IJBMer Updates

Alkthash

I am the eight of swords. It is me. 

Saturn

Alkthash is a persona of the Emporer Arcana.

My SL with him is 1/10...

Alkthash

I'm going to stay in my circle of swords tied up and blindfolded forever then. 

MadassAlex

I tried dual-wielding Lightsabers once.

It was hard and I arguably did worse than usual (I did survive longer than usual against that guy (it was usually single-stroke ties) but that was probably because I just kept whacking at him and didn't give him a chance to hit back). Then I got hit in the face.

Here's some tips for using one lightsaber in two hands (pretty much longsword):

• Don't strike in arcs. Push your hands directly forward from a guard (preferably vom Tag to begin with) and then "flick" your wrists in the direction of the cut you want to make when you're close to full extension. Falling strikes should end in Pflug (left) with rising and horizontal strikes ending in Ochs (right).


• The general striking technique was described above, but to end a strike, you generally draw back (thus ending up in the positions I described), with your sword pointed at your adversary. You don't always have to draw back, though -- sometimes, you should begin another attack from an extended or semi-extended position, although the details for that are quite long-winded. 


• On the pointing guards above, they can be used on either side of the body. Your hands will be "crossed" on the right side (if you're right handed) and "open" on the left side. That's the only difference. Also, they can be held close in, extended, a bit higher, a bit lower -- whatever you like, really. Don't commit to perfectly imitating those images, but to understanding the essence of these guards and finding a comfortable set of ways to hold them yourself.


• Your attacks should intercept enemy attacks, and this should be your primary means of defense. This means you should ensure that all your strikes and thrusts pass through a centralised position at their "apex", at or a bit under shoulder height, with full or almost full arm extension. If you are facing an enemy and doing this correctly, you will either hit them first or intercept their strike, unless they're using particular footwork shenanigans. 


• On that note: move! Swordsmanship should never be static, so ensure that you're weaving in and out, side to side and so on depending on your objectives. Diagonal movement is often ignored to the detriment of swordplay beginners and casual practitioners. 


• When two swords meet (the bind), the part of the blade closer to the hilt has better leverage than the part towards the tip. Try to ensure, in these scenarios, that you're levering closer to the hilt than your adversary. 


• Remember the Pflug and Ochs guards from before? These are your primary tools when it comes to levering and binds. Always keep your sword pointed at your adversary while you're in close, and use whichever guard on whichever side allows you to maintain contact with the enemy's "weak" by way of your "strong" (where the strong is the part of the blade nearer the hilt. From a point of superior leverage, thrusting is the obvious solution, but you can also use other techniques. 

Anyway, that's a primer. 

Nyktos

Eluveitie were alright but truth be told I spent much of their set sitting down out of tiredness and also them not playing songs from Slania.

Legionnaire

^^That would have been so useful three months ago ;-;

-saves anyway, because you never know. And thanks-

ClockworkUniverse

Finished my shoulder. Rings of my shirt complete: 301. Rings remaining: several thousand.

MadassAlex

^^ Pleased to be of (belated and/or potential) service. 

^ Are you going to make padding for it, too? 

All Nines

@Ironweaver, where's that birthday song you posted for someone way back when? I dunno how to find it, but I want one of my friends to know that it exists, since it's his birthday as of an hour ago.

ClockworkUniverse

um

i dont know

should i

Icalasari

*dies*

MadassAlex

Well, you can hardly wear mail on your bare skin. You need underclothes for it, and in the Middle Ages, this was very light padded cloth that went underneath. It helped absorb kinetic impact, too. And then, over the top, you can have a surcoat. 

ClockworkUniverse

well i was going to wear a shirt

But...I dunno. I don't know much about making padded shirts.

MadassAlex

One step at a time. You can finish your mail before I berate you further about other elements of the armour set. 

ClockworkUniverse

Haha, true.

(i might have enough left to make a coif too, btw)

Legionnaire

I really need a hobby that isn't sitting on the internet all day.

Icalasari

...What the fuck did I miss over the past 14 pages?

Legionnaire

Nothing unusual.

ClockworkUniverse

I really need a hobby that isn't sitting on the internet all day.

Chainmaille is really good for that because you can do it while sitting on the internet all day.

Case in point, I spent 13 hours today making chainmaille while on the internet.

Legionnaire

Yeah but I need my fingers to type a lot and don't want to be constantly picking up and putting things down.

More seriously, chainmaille is something of an option, as one of my RL friends who lives about a five-minute walk away is doing it, and I definitely doubt he'd have much of an objection. The only problem with that is that he's currently in Bulgaria, so if I decided to start I couldn't start for...probably a month or so at least.

ClockworkUniverse

don't want to be constantly picking up and putting things down.

That's more or less what Chainmaille is :P

Anyway, if you want to get started, I started with this project and found it to be a pretty good starting one.

Legionnaire

I'll bookmark that and keep it in mind. Thanks for the suggestion and link.

ClockworkUniverse

Fair warning, though: it theoretically requires one ring of a larger size. The supplier I use, at any rate, doesn't sell individual rings. I substituted a normal one for the larger one, and it worked, but was kind of a pain getting started and if you inspect the bottom you can see where it curves back up to accommodate it. No big deal, but just thought you should know.

Nova

Gave Demon's Souls another shot as a Hunter.

Got through 1-1 with no deaths by not being so stingy with healing items (and still had 2 more when I came out than I went in with).

Bows to lure enemies are a godsend.

Ironweaver

@All Nines

Here you go.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__2bHcqk-2o

glennmagusharvey

fripside - Heaven Is a Place on Earth

opening refrain: E minor, ends on an E major chord

verse: begins in E major

fripside - future gazer

opening refrain: G minor, ends on a G major chord

verse: begins in G major

fripside - only my railgun

opening refrain: Ab minor, ends on an Ab major chord

verse: begins in F minor (relative minor of Ab major)

I THINK I SEE A PATTE--wait

fripside - -LEVEL 5- judgelight

refrain: Ab minor

verse: begins in Ab minor

Damnit.

All Nines

Hmm. I'm suddenly having second thoughts about posting that video to my friend's Facebook wall for his brzdej.

Tools

hey...

All Nines

Hey, Tools. What's up?

glennmagusharvey

Hi @Tools.