Belegarth

I am jsut starting Bele, and woudl prefer to make my own weapons as i attended a practice and broke 2 of the loaner weapons. I have read the weaon contruction links and have bookmarked them.
I am planning on making a Blue hammer, blue axe ,sheild and a red 2 handed weapon(unsure as to hammer axe or sword.)
THe advice i need is in order to make an extramly leagel and durable weapon

What core material, size, and shape(round or square) should i use?
best place to buy materials (internet or local store in the orlando area)
Any advice for makingthem legal, extra padding, changing layers up and the such.

Any help on this would be greatly appreciated as not many people in my area use axe's and noone uses hammers.

jlpinion wrote:not many people in my area use axe's and noone uses hammers.

This is because axes and hammers just aren't as effective as Swords/bats/flails. They also tend to be harder to build, for longevity, anyway. My advice: Find a local vet and have them help you construct two SHORTswords (<35") and a medium, round shield (~26" diameter, depending on your size/build).

Honestly your best bet would be to build several dozen swords first, then to move up to building hammers/axes. That being said, here is a basic guide to weapon construction:

AXE

Welcome to the game.

Get with a vet at your local Realm and ask them to teach you to build a basic sword. If there are multiple people in the Realm needing new weapons or repairs this could be a good social activity to get that done and build camaraderie. You'll probably have to pay for the materials yourself, but that's a good thing since you'll have leftovers.

Ask the vet to build one simultaneously with you as you follow behind and make your own under their tutelage. At the end of the session, you'll have two swords (or they'll keep one if they use their stuff) and you'll have seen, heard, and physically done it and been corrected.

From that point on, build another sword on your own and bring it to practice. If it passes, awesome. If it needs tweaks or you fogot a crucial step, redo it and get it right. From there on, build about a dozen swords that pass and are long lasting. It is important that you get the practice down; don't stop just because you have one sword to play with. You'll get better the more you do it.

Swords are the most basic and common weapon in use in the game. They are simple and effective - that's why various types of swords are the close-quarters weapon of choice throughout history. Building swords will teach you fundamental foamsmithing skills that transfer to other weapons, including your preferred hammer. Fighting with a sword will allow you to learn fundamental combat skills if you are willing to set aside your desire to use a hammer and wish to become effective. This is a game that people play to win and competition is strong. Since you're new you'll be losing quite a lot to begin with. Learning how to fight with a sword, along with other fundamentals, will hasten the time needed to get legitimate, repeatable kills and will make your early time in the game more enjoyable.

Have fun, fight hard, be honorable

- TCM

Thank you for the advice. As much as i would prefer not to i will take upo the sword method for a bit. I deffinitly need more combat practice.

jlpinion wrote:Thank you for the advice. As much as i would prefer not to i will take upo the sword method for a bit. I deffinitly need more combat practice.

Good call. Gaining an understanding of single sword combat will benefit you in the long run. If you feel particularly adventurous; learn to be proficient with both your left and right hand.

Now that the style is settled and i have read all the tutorials and guides, i need personal opinions. Which makes a better core for blues and reds? Pvc or fiberglass? Also which diameter is recommended? I am going for max durability on my first weapons.

.5" Fiberglass is currently the most commonly used core in Belegarth. It'll last forever and a half as long as you treat the weapon well.

Thank you, and that is round right? I would want 2 .5 square rods for a red weapon correct? Would square .75 be good for a blue also or is it to stiff?

Square .5" is good for minimum length reds. Don't work on any red swords until you've built several blues and gotten the hang of construction. .75" would make an insanely stiff blue. Use .5" for all of your blue swords and you'll be great.

Ok, and to stiff for a blue isnt good. But the .75,would be good for a red or should i stick with the joined .5?

The .75 would be good for a red. If you can help it, always use a single core on weapons. Double cores are finicky and you have to do things very particularly to get them to work right.