r/wma

Got new swords from Sigi so we had to give them a try!

I recently started learning Swedish with the long-term goal of studying in Sweden and I thought this would be a good way to combine two of my interests.

I mostly do German longsword but this seems like a great excuse to branch into other systems and weapons. I am aware that the Caroleans of the early 1700s made heavy use of rapiers in combat but exactly how or what they trained is beyond me.

I want to start boxing but I didn't know anything about boxing or ufc

Can anyone help me or how to start or what to first

Ive committed to buying a sharpened battle ready sabre from either silkfencing or some other place. Im at a crossroad: either i buy the silkfencing hussar saber that will be bulletproof for years to come for a staggerint 1000$ or i can get one from other sources. Im thinking of getting the sabre from peserey but the problem is simple, i save 500$ at peserey witch is great, but the blade is way thinner, worse steel (still good just not silkfencing type) and less handguard.

Should i drop 1000$ on the silkfencing one that has everything i could ask for (guard, paluch, thick blade) or do i save 500$ and get the peserey one for a thinner blade that is not as strong but i can get two of them for the price of 1 silkfencing one.

What do you think is the right blade?

I want to train with it aswell (not sparring) so it will be a blade that might get used heavily.

Any feedback from owners of either is valued.

Has HEMA outgrown the term “HEMA”?

I’ve noticed more and more labels popping up along the lines of “Brazilian HEMA” and similar regional or cultural variants. To be clear, I’m not against that kind of growth at all. Quite the opposite. I think it’s a good thing that the scene is getting bigger, more international, and more willing to learn from different martial cultures and traditions.

HEMA has already benefited a lot from looking outside itself. People compare interpretations with modern fencing, wrestling, boxing, living martial traditions, reenactment, experimental archaeology and all kinds of adjacent practices. So this is not meant as an argument for keeping the hobby culturally closed or narrowly European in some exclusionary sense.

My concern is more about the terminology.

“HEMA” originally means Historical European Martial Arts. But in practice, it now gets used for several overlapping things: historical reconstruction, modern tournament fencing, club culture, sparring rulesets, equipment standards, and sometimes just “weapon martial arts that exist near the HEMA scene.”

I've already seen arguments about what counts as HEMA. Some people use the term mainly for source-based historical reconstruction. Others use it for the modern sport/tournament scene. Some people would include things like Buhurt under the broader historical martial arts umbrella, while others see it as a separate activity. None of these debates are new, but they show that the term is already under a lot of strain.

So when we start adding labels like “Brazilian HEMA”, I think the language can get confusing pretty quickly. Does that mean HEMA practiced in Brazil? Does it mean European martial arts as interpreted by clubs in that country? Does it mean local historical martial traditions being studied through a HEMA-like method? Does it mean a regional tournament style? Or does it just mean “martial arts community adjacent to HEMA”?

That distinction matters because otherwise people end up arguing over the word instead of the thing being discussed. The issue isn’t inclusion. The issue is that one umbrella term is being asked to cover too much.

I think the growth of the hobby is good. I want more people, more regions, more traditions and more cross-cultural exchange. But I also think the language needs to catch up, because HEMA is no longer one single, clearly defined thing, even if the name still makes it sound like it is.

So I’m curious what other people think about this:

Has “HEMA” become too broad as a term? Should we be more precise about whether we mean historical reconstruction, modern sport fencing, regional HEMA communities, or non-European martial traditions studied in a similar way? Or is the ambiguity just a normal part of a growing hobby?

Hello! I’m new to longsword, and I’m looking for guidance on what material to study. To explain my situation, I live far from any clubs, so I’m completely self-taught, mostly using YouTube. I do, however, have a couple of sparring partners. One of whom bests me regularly as he practices saber. While I do my best to take advantage of the longsword, the mechanics of the saber give my partner some nice advantages against me.

If someone could provide guidance on material to study, that would be wonderful, specifically, if you could explain what style or sources would be most beneficial against a clever and agile saber user!

Also, please know that my little group loves and respects the art of swordplay, and this is far from an attempt at one-upmanship. We are all working to become better at the sport, and this specific counter-training isn’t considered unsportsmanlike among us.

I really appreciate any help you can provide.

Hi, im buying my first pair of padded trousers for longsword, and was wondering if I need 800n if I want to go to tournaments, or if 350n would be fine? If I get 350n do I also have to get a skirt?

Can anyone recommend trousers that are protective but not super hot/heavy? UK based btw. Thanks

Hi,

Can anyone recommend or at least provide info on any tournaments with S&B in Europe taking place after summer/autumn?