spagthorpe,<BR><BR>Mail works great for SCA combat. The way mail is designed is perfect for blunt weapons and takes impacts a lot better than people think, for much the same reasons kevelar is good at ...

The sound of sword strikes echoes through the towering pine trees in Black Forest, just north of Colorado Springs where the Colorado Wardens practice their sport. Armor, long swords and shields are ...

In one corner is thirty-seven-year-old Matt Gifford, five foot ten inches, weighing in at 185 pounds. Over his armor, he wears a red brigandine, a cloth garment studded with metal. On the other side ...

The armored combat sport of "buhurt" — from an old French word meaning "to wallop" — delivers adrenaline and violence surpassing the bashing found in hockey and football. (Mike Barry / For The Times) ...

A violent new sports league is trying to make inroads in the Pacific Northwest. It’s best described as full contact, MMA-style combat in medieval armor. The swords and axes are all real. These aren’t ...

CHESAPEAKE — In the Middle Ages, knights sparring in combat as a public spectacle might have been a typical entertainment option. Hundreds of years later, some locals are dedicated to keeping the ...

NEW YORK — Even in a city where pretty much anything goes, the sight and sound of knights in shining armor swinging swords at each other still draws a crowd. “Are you ready for a medieval rumble?” ...

“Fighters, touch tips!” master of ceremonies Mickey Gallus booms over a loudspeaker. The clunky innuendo elicits a roar from the Saturday-night crowd inside Hammond Civic Center. Violence looms, and ...

Pinned against a wooden rail, battered with axes, the knight staggered. Two attackers, clad in armor from head to toe, tried to kick his legs from under him. There was a flash of steel, and out of ...