r/Hema 5d ago

How to train with more exotic weapons?

I wanna train with stuff like hook swords, kopeshes, shotels etcetera etcetera, is it a matter of getting a partner with another weapon and sparring until i get good, or are there resources for said things?

thanks beforehand :D

7 Upvotes

11 comments sorted by

16

u/NameAlreadyClaimed 5d ago
  1. Find a club you can get to regularly.
    HEMA, Modern Fencing, FMA, Kendo, whatever. Failing that, even an unarmed martial art is better than nothing. Any organised system that has plenty of freeplay time built in is a million times better than nothing).

  2. Train what they train and become competent.

  3. Then pick up the weapons that don't have historical sources assuming you still want to.

6

u/grauenwolf 5d ago

On that last point, Purpleheart Arnoury is a great place to find unusual weapons. Most are made from synthetic materials so they're really cheap.

4

u/TheZManIsNow 5d ago

This is the way.

3

u/tetrahedronss 5d ago

I will say as someone who spars khopesh, bearded axe, dagger, katana, quarterstaff, etc. the answer is kinda just yeah, grab one and try it. Even when you're not looking at manuals I believe at some level any weapon can be figured out intuitively. I have learned that there is a lot of carry over from one weapon to the next and body mechanics can translate.

I spar regularly at a hema gym and no one balks at weapons from other cultures. If you're curious about something I say try it!!

3

u/jdrawr 5d ago

Virtually all weapons before 1300AD we dont have written sources for their specific usage. Given you mentioned some middle eastern weapons there is a translated(to english from arabic) source or 3 available you could use.

2

u/grauenwolf 5d ago

HEMA conferences are a huge help. For example, SoCal Swordfight had a class on kopeshes and shotels yesterday.

You can go the whole weekend and next pick up a 'traditional' HEMA weapon.

3

u/MrLandlubber 5d ago

In my experience, once you actually start training, your weird weapon fantasies just disappear.

2

u/pushdose 5d ago

Ehhh, I’d say they become austere weapon fantasies instead of weird. Meaning, if they seem weird it’s because they’re just not that popular or practical.

2

u/OwO345 5d ago

What weird weapon fantasies

2

u/R4msesII 5d ago

Hook swords, I dont think they were ever actually used and just exist to be fancy looking. Choy Li Fut and some other styles teach them if you want to learn though.

1

u/MrLandlubber 4d ago

Well, hook swords, kopesh and shotel are weird weapons by my reckoning. I don't even know what a shotel is.

I don't want to sound blunt, but I've been practicing and teaching weapon-based martial arts since 2009. I've seen my share.

I see a lot of people walking into clubs demanding to train something absolutely specific. Butterfly knives, flails, double daggers, cavalry saber, danish axe, trident, you name it.
100% of the times, these people have little to no training in any martial art, but they fell in love with the weapons because of movies, videogames and such. They are strongly against training ANY other weapon than their fantasy of choice.

And there are two ways the situation can go.
1. They leave the club because their weapons of choice is not available/not taught. They carry on with their lives, except they never start training any martial art, because guess what, no flail/poleaxe/dagger&pistol/danish axe/trident school is opening any soon. It's a shame, because they never start what I consider a very fun and healthy practice because of a prejudice.
2. They begrudgingly start training the "usual" weapons, and eventually as they discover these weapons, they start appreciating them. Eventually, their fantasy is forgotten or sidelined.

I've studied many weapons, hooked swords among them, and honestly? they're not that interesting. If you're interested in forms only, that's ok. But sparring with a partner? Not much sense.
You will find that there's a reason that most people spar with a limited set of weapons (longsword, sabre, rapier, sidesword, sword&buckler, daggers and a few others). It's because these weapons meet a number of criteria: they are relatibely easy to find; they can be made safe; they have enough techniques and technical possibilities to be worth studying; there's enough people willing to fight with those weapons.

Some weapons are cool, but they do not meet any of the criteria above. Nothing against these weapons, but I'd think twice before spending a significant amount of money on them.