My Impression of a LARP Sword by Calimacil (The Highlander)
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- Опубликовано: 5 сен 2024
- Overall length: 127 cm / 50''
Blade length: 90 cm / 35.5''
Weight: 572 g / 20 oz
Balance: 15 cm / 6''
Material: Fiberglass rod, reinforced on the tip with fiber braided polyurethane tube, and covered in latex-free polymer foam
www.calimacil.c...
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Only a true warrior can kill a man with a foam sword.
Giltia let alone the pommel of one.
If you stab someone with a Larp weapon with a fiberglass rod in it he would most likely suffer some serious injuries because of the fiberglass. These swords are not meant to stab someone
Swordcam LARP If you dont Stab really hard your opponent is safe but we both knowthat you can really hurt someone
Alexander Lumsden Most Calimacil weapons are actually created, with the ability to thrust in mind.. They are much safer to use for stabbing, than normal latex weaponry
just saying most people wont like it if you stab them :)
Why no sharpness test... I wanted to see a paper sharpness test
I get you, listening to hard metal as he cuts paper.
"When papers give you cuts. Make those papers take those cuts back!"
Live Action Role Play.
Get mad, I demand to see Paper's manager! Make paper rue the day it thought it could give Barbados Sephtis cuts! DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM?
If you can cut paper with it, it wouldn't be good for LARP.
Or too good
Oh, finally Skall looks at my hobby :)
A few points about LARP and LARP swords for the interested:
- In most LARP enviroments, thrusts and murder strokes are forbidden.
- LARP swords are highly different from every manufacturer, the one presented is a, less realistic, more durable variation.
- LARP sword maintenace includes silicon spray and for bad cases, redoing the latex layer, the foam can usually last a lifetime.
- Some LARP swords gain weigth with lead strip inlays, though they are still lighter then any metal sword.
- Throwing weapons (including pommels) are made without the PVC core.
-[Al_K_TraX]- I did it, my pommel was loose so I ripped it off and thrown it to my opponent
@@Silaan Yesterday a friend of mine lost his pommel and when i saw him he threw it to me so
@@Silaan If you did that with a normal larp sword you'd destroy it. I do know one guy who made a sword with a removable pommel just because he saw Skals video. Pommel was just wedged onto the end
I'm very interested in the Idea of sparring with foam weapons, is there anything you could tell me about different larp weapons and their possible applications for martial arts studying?:)
*"There's no way, even at first glance you could mistake this for a real sword...Unless you're in desperate need of prescription glasses."*
Realizes it looks just like a regular sword to me.
Goes to eye doctor.
Prescribed with glasses due to poor vision, that I just was too accustomed to, to notice.
Skall is a genius. Forget the alphabet test, use the fake sword test.
Wow, the legends were true, Skallagrim is indeed a Jesus, a sword Jesus.
I want to see Skal chop a tree down with a nerf sword.
Chad Nine brutal
I don't think nerf makes swords any more. When they did, they were even more flimsy than this one is (yes, I know from experience).
The best swords were those plastic ones that were basically just a series of tapered cylinders that you could flick forward to have it extend, and if you thrust in to someone it would just collapse back down.
No, those were the best lightsabers...
The ones in the 80's didn't light up or look anything at all like lightsabers sorry. I thought you knew about old stuff "from experience".
The handle is textured for your pleasure ;) lolll
Stephane Barrette hahah
LMAO
Don't you mean "for her pleasure"? Or are you sticking it up your own ass?
Don't tell me how to live my life!
To quote scholagladiatoria: "... for your gripping pleasure" (although that was about a ribbed handle).
STOP BEATING AROUND THE BUSH, YOU KNOW THAT SWORD IS GOING TO BE YOUR FIRST BORN'S TODDLER TRAINING GEAR
hell ya
Edgar Turn your caps lock off!
Gameman659
HOW ABOUT NO.
I'm fairly certain in a vlog Skall and Cara once said children is something they'd never be interested in
yep, especially if you have a daughter. Lenny Face.
So many larp folks are all frazzled about safety.
My buddies and I's definition of "larp" was grab two metal broom handles and try not to kill anybody.
At larp events people can emerge themselves really well and get emotional at times. Also, larger battles can get chaotic. And since not everyone wants to be in full-plate, the weapons will have to be safe. The calimacil weapons easily make any reasonable safety standards.
It's one thing to just have some backyard fun, and a whole other thing to actually go to an event with 50+ people attending. In a major battle with a bunch of untrained people swinging around weapons I'd really prefer to be hit with a bit of foam instead of a piece of steel.
Yea, LARP safety is such a fucking joke, I regularly mock my friend's LARP gear for having higher safety standards than fucking NERF.
Even worse is that when i convinced him to start HEMA, he insisted that we could not free fence if he didnt have what amounted to a suit of fucking armor to protect him.
Bearling so you are a jerk to someone who dont want to get hurt
It's only a joke until the LARP organizers get sued...
I use larp swords for my kids HEMA classes and they work extremely well for this purpose. The kids need less protective gear and since they don't have the best control and coordination I don't have to worry as much with these.
And one pro for foam swords. They stick to eachother unlike blunt blades or feders
Am I the only one around here who loves the way he says "buuuuuuut" ?
(Insert lenny face here)
I like big butts and I cannot lie.
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Waldgeist you otha brothas can't deny
CONTEXT!
The pommel is the most dangerous part so it must be Skallagrim approved.
As a LARPer, Calimacils are the Rolls-Royce of weapons until you get into plastidip homemade, which are high-performance kit cars by comparison. Calimacil weapons NEED to be "broken in" (ie: foam needs a few fights to soften up) before they perform well, but overall, they're often lighter than Boffer (Foam, Duct Tape, and PVC) weapons and faster in the hand.
That specific one is pretty good, though some games call that a Bastard Length (1 or 2 hand use), but the weight for such is too much to comfortably check your swing speeds in one hand.
You have never heard the tale of the dreaded Guard Ripper?
Alena Efimova Some say the Legend shall return one day, and not even the foamiest of guards may protect thee...
Can you unscrew the pommel though?
Otherwise, how could you roleplay a true martial artist.
Obviously you can't since it's not meant to hurt people. He already said the pommel is hard enough to harm you, being able to end rightly would be too dangerous.
SMH
Am I the only one that got tired of these pommel comments? It got old.
+Jerry Garza It's several centuries old. It's always been old.
And yes, you probably are. I love them.
nah they are a fountain of youth!
for reference Calimacil weapons are excepted in every major LARP event, so the edge geometry is not considered a problem by most
wait, accepted or excepted? In this sentence they mean opposite things.
maybe it was a typo and it was "expected"
absolutely accepted, my friend
Not even close to being accepted in every major LARP
You could go with a calimacil here, but leave with a destroyed one, wooden shields with just leather on the rim, wooden hafts of polearms and axes and hammers.
Welp, game over, they nerfed the pommel
At least they ended it rightly.
"So this guy sent me this thing, so I'm gonna talk about this thing. Here's a video about it"
I subscribed because of videos like this, and I'm very happy you keep making them. Keep up the good work!
If no one can end these pommel jokes rightly I will have to end them myself!
Ionlymadethistoleavecoments Join me on my quest to end these jokes! I will amass an army to end the jokes rightly are you with me?
Kekistan must take control of the pommel industry to regain it's freedom!
0hn0haha So, seize the memes of production then?
Seize 'em, mash 'em, boil 'em in a stew, and PRAzE KEK
UltyGamer How aerodynamic are these pommels?
I have the same calimacil claymore for like 5~6 years now and it has a very good durability compared to the others latex larp swords which can break fairly easy.
About the thrusts, they were not allowed in the larp event i've taken a part in, so that's not a problem.
Thanks for the very objective description. Since I love LARP and HEMA I can tell that there are only very few realistic techniques you can practice with foam weapons.
As mentioned in the comments thrusts aren't allowed in most LARP events which reduces the use of the weapon for hitting. It really is hitting and not cuting since the weapons don't glide at all and just stick to other objects (especially other weapons).
These weapons aren't intendet to be used in a correct way but they are intendet to fight against a wide variety of armor (from naked skin to plate armor) without hurting anybody.
Is the sound edited at 6:56? Did you originally say something naughty instead of "edges"?
Sorry to disappoint you, it was just a case of cutting out "ummm" and "uhhh". :)
I is too dumb to understend @-@
It was fun to see you do something different :D Just so you know, thrusting in LARP is generally discouraged. Cutting is the primary method of attacking (unless you use a spear)
For a minute there, I thought LARP was an acronym for "Long And Really Pointy." :D
Calimacil makes great products. Due to being dirt poor, I do use larp weaponry for rudimentary HEMA practice. I know it's not ideal, but given my budget it's pretty good for learning basic cuts and footwork and whatnot.
Yeah, that's alright. Despite the lower weight the balance is actually the same as on a steel sword.
lol i would love to see skallagrim actually do a larp since he practiced HEMA he would probably wreck on the battlfield XD
Actually no...Most historical techniques work rather poorly in a context where the brushing touch reigns supreme and light foam weapons ensure that the dominant combat style is always ''wildly flailing around in an attempt to touch anything in reach or getting your weapon to curl around the adversary's guard''. Speaking from personal experience, those who dominate in LARP fights are those who just repeatedly bash at foes in a random manner until some kind of glancing blow manages to ''kill'' the enemy. Unsatisfying and goofy-looking in my opinion.
'battlefield'. Surviving in the thick of a battlefield has not much to do with knowhow. Formation breaks and you're screwed. A random bolt ends your journey. Been there, done that. It was a great experience that teaches you that your individual skill is pointless 'in the field'. Larp is great for experiences like that. Trying to survive on a field for hours with up to 5000 combatants exposed to weather, flak and arrows is quite one.. and its great that we can experience this and simply respawn :-)
Most HEMA guys have already trouble keeping two opponents in check. Especially when they have different weapons and reach. I know that some schools started to tackle this and started with 2 vs 1 sparing.
You can make a nice show with HEMA background in a duel though.
Just saying. No offence intended.
Lots of Larpers also practice combat, especially those playing in military factions.
Bernd: A fair point. It's true that with LARPs, you do get a nice sense of scale with massive battles that simply couldn't work in an HEMA scenario. I've ''died'' many times with spectacular arrow shots in the teeth or complete formation breakdowns and routs, and it's a hard experience to reproduce in any way outside of LARPing! (I still stand by my opinion that the individual fights tend to be rather crappy though)
@NeonCrusader: Absolutly. It depends on the game though. We've some pretty "serious" around where you won't find that widly flailing example of yours. Usually small ones. Keep an eye out for Reenlarpment or invitation-only games from like-minded people :-)
The thin edge. It makes it appear a bit.... (I was waiting for "edgier")
ArdenKel the thin edge makes it appear a bit EDGIER
Why thank you. My wait is over.
Man, whoever wrote the Gladiatoria must be feeling the burn from all the pommel jokes.
RIP
i saw the thumbnail and thought "that sword looks really huge and clunky"
A new Viking based videogame, Vikings: Wolves of Midgard has come out early this week, and it seems to make historical and folkloristic accuracy one of its main goals.
Could you look it up and give an opinion about those points?
Fun fact: the longship carpenter is named Skallagrim, i kid you not.
From what I have seen, Wolves of Midgard is not historical in the slighest. It´s Hollywood Vikings in Scandanavian Folklore.
Edoardo Prevelato Gonna have to check that shit up if you are correct on that carpenter.
Hmmmm......
I think this is an ad
Calimacil actually comes form my home town of Sherbrooke, Québec. Having used one of their daggers for LARP for years, I can say that these things last for ever compared to other LARP weapons. I've never done any maintenance to mine and it still looks as good as the day I got it. For comparison, any weapons I've ever seen made of ductape and foam lasts a year or two before they start breaking appart.
you talk of being able to remove the crossguard but what about the pommel?
Well it is made of foam...so if you try really hard you might be able to rip it off....
I ordered my 3rd Calamacil sword yesterday for my son's birthday. My previous 2 swords are 1.5 years old and going strong. Excellent quality.
I realize that LARP isn't your thing, nor is it necessarily mine, but I don't think that you gave that sword a fair chance. Granted that you obviously can't do your usual wood chopping and plastic bottle cutting with this sword but you could have brought it to HEMA practice with you, or got suited up with Kara, and gave it a go for a couple of rounds. Then you would have gotten a better feel for its handling as well as how well it stands to a bit of abuse.
Riceball01 An abuse test would be fun, but I don't think you need to do a handling test. It is obvious that it handles very different.
Riceball01 I agree. He should have at least tried fighting with it against the other padded HEMA sword he has, since that would be soft against soft.
weights under 600 grams, a normal Claymorenis about 2200 grams, of course it is going to hanlde diferent as hell
Context matters for assessment. In LARP one does not typically do or is disallowed from thrusting, binding, hard strikes, strikes to the head, throat, neck, and groin. Additionally there are a few things one would look for in evaluating a LARP sword that are not immediately apparent things for quality checking. Such as the foam being bound to the core and not turning or shifting around it. Or not being able to feel any part of the core through the foam.
Hahaha imagine a dude really running around and ripping off guards😂😂😂
Noyan 74 guards? what about pommels
Spot on with the safety concerns Skal! Most LARPs that allow Calimacil type weapons don't allow thrusting type strikes, only slashing type strikes. Even with the slashing type strikes usually it is "lightest touch" meaning pull your strikes so that you are using enough force for them to know that they were struck but not much more than that. The issue that comes up with that type of material is when you out out in cold autumn or winter events and the blade gets stiff. When that happens they become pretty rigid and can hurt other people easier if you are not careful with your swing. To alleviate that most folks keep that in mind with blows, throwing strikes that are even lighter than normal, work their blades to "keep them warm" if they are big blades, the daggers keep them under cloaks or whatnot so your body heat keeps them supple. Also if you are inside a building or somewhere warmer than outside, use that time to also warm up the weapons.
4:05 close you're eyes and let your mind wander...
Fuck it's like 3am and I just woke up everyone by laughing
When he's twisting the guard, I was half expecting it to tear off
We'd love to have you join us at Bicolline! North America's largest LARP. A lot of the things that annoy you about larp aren't a factor. You can thrust, hit the head, arrows are real (padded), and armor matters where it's located. We have lots of fencers, HEMA and SCA fighters that enjoy it a lot.
Check out The Voyage North to learn more!
As an owner of a few Calimacil swords and a lover of HEMA, and a regular larper, I can say I mostly agree with your review. Calimacil swords are not gonna replace your blunt steel swords or your synthetic practice swords. They are simply to thick, and foam is not equatable to the real HEMA practice swords. That being said I think they're great low budget alternatives for people (like myself and my brother) who want to get into HEMA, but have no real place to learn nor do we have the money to sink into protective gear and practice blades. You CAN NOT pull off moderate or advance sword fighting techniques with these swords, but I believe for basic practice and solo drills to get the movements committed to muscle memory, these can be a good tool in that sense. As a regular (albeit new, I started about 7 months ago) larper, Calimacil is VERY high quality, at least here in the northern US. The edge being fairly thin is a slight problem however, but that's mainly in the Winter months. The cold can make the blade a little more harder and can cause minor welts if you hit someone hard enough. Obviously because it is foam you can't do any major damage to anyone, but larping is a game, and it is for fun so I'd recommend controlled strikes, not unlike in HEMA, where the goal is just to hit the opponent, not to swing full force and actually hurt them. A long comment, but I hope this information is at least entertaining or possibly helps someone who wants to start getting into HEMA any way they can and may not have money to sink into the startup costs.
I own a Calimacil longsword. I do enjoy it, but it's not appropriate for LARP.
I know less than nothing about HEMA, but with the point of balance about 10-inches from the crossguard on a 4-ft longsword, I can't imagine it wields anything like a real sword.
The foam isn't nearly soft enough for most LARP organizations. On the other hand, it does look nice and I'm not worried about my nieces or nephew (ages 2-15) playing with it and injuring themselves.
I bought it on a lark while at a comic/rpg convention and it mostly just hangs on my computer room wall and is a source of inspiration for when I write fantasy/fiction.
It is a LARP "appropriate" sword. I am familiar with Calimacil and the swords and other weapons made by his company. There very high end larp weapons as well.. You don't see many of them and are specifically made to be in the official restraints of LARP. So, appropriate? yah! way to expensive for a foam sword to smack each other with on the weekend? YAh! Loads of fun anyhow!
Alan S Even fantasy swords aren't this thick.
I can guarantee that this thing wouldn't be even close on the standards of Amtgard (Far too thin, no cloth covering, guard design wouldn't be legal either as it is far too thin to be safe with regards to eye injury). I'm also fairly certain that Belegarth would not allow the fielding of such a weapon either, though for entirely different reasons. Mostly the weapon would be far too soft while also not meeting their safety regulations. I don't know what this is supposed to be for, but it certainly isn't for a high player base, multi-national organized LARP.
Well, in every LARP-event I know, Calimacil weapons are allowed...
It has been allowed at every event I've went to. If hardness is a concern, kneed it a bit. It's consistent quality actually makes it a safe option.
I Larp in the Netherlands and Belgium btw.
As a larper and owner of several Calimacil swords I was so happy when this popped up I'm my subscriptions.
For anyone debating getting one, the quality is absolutely incredible. Its pricey but so worth it
That's Dark Souls 1 Claymore. Like exact copy.
Glad im not the only one
Jack Harsel it just looks like a normal claymore
Maybe the pommel is slightly different due to that spike
the Claymore from DS1 seems to be based on the same claymore that Alvion based their Cheiftain claymore
I own a real claymore that looks exactly the same. Brass pommel and cross guard.
I'm a big fan of calamacil products. People often look down at larp sword fighting but it's great fun and a cheap way to get into sparring with your friends.
But can I unscrew the pommel? ... That's an important feature in a duel.
In Germany we use LARP weapons who quite often have near the real weight of a historical accurate weapon. Also there are a lot manufacturers who make real slim paddings. They are mostley hand made and with a latex coating. I myself have a really nice "Bauernwehr" with a functional nail and guards, bindings are no problem with this sword.
Calimacil is perfect for LARP beginners, we have them in germany too, but we mostly use handmade LARP Weapons.
Can we end the "end him rightly" jokes? They're fun, but not when the entire comment section is making that joke.
Brandon Haffeman Exactly, the only way this meme will die is if it is so overused that it gets boring.
end the jokes rightly
Exactly. Quality over quantity, folks.
Skallagrim And that's why having a ton of pommels from windlass swords isn't as effective as most people think.
Party Shrimp That was actually kinda good and made me smile. Not as much as seeing Skallagrim's reply though! *fanboy engage* But in all seriousness, it is annoying.
As a HMB/IMCF Fighter in Guardia de Poniente in Spain i can tell you that kind of swords are really usefull to train cause we can to to our gym and train without having to carry over all of our combat gear just to be safe for a technique training, where we really don't need thet kind of protection, plus in Bohurt you CAN'T thrust.
am i the only one who thought it was real when i saw the thumbnail? :DD
Ruben Burkhardt I thought it was a plastic practice sword since the blade looked just like mine
yes, you were.
Ruben Burkhardt I thought it was made of a weird metal.
yes you are
Sounds like you're in desperate need of prescription glasses.
As someone who does LARP, I can tell you that that edge would be a no-go for a good number of groups that use foam. Usually foam LARP "blades" are simply cylinders of padding covered in cloth. It largly comes down to your particular group and what they're comfortable with.
If you're in a group that uses latex though, I can't imagine anyone objecting.
Says only one comment but I see two comments. RUclips is a Liar
Sir Chives s welcome to yt
Sir Chives it predicted yours
To answer your question about the edge, yeah generally in LARP's strikes are very light. The material for LARP weapons makes them really nice looking but still pretty painful on a full contact strike. Those thin edges being the main reason for that. Stbs are also pretty light to the point that they almost don't really make contact. I can't comment on anything else really because well I'm not holding the sword. Typically for groups that contact full force, you use boffer weapons. They have extra padding, the edges are wide and flat, the pommels are thickly padded etc. They can be uncomfortable but well built ones shouldn't be too painful even in the hands of really heavy hitters.
Skall, you seem really adamant on *not* associating yourself with LARP in any way. Is this one of those "dark past" deals? Not that i have interest in it either, but still...
Nope, I just wanted to point out that my opinion is limited by the fact that I have no experience with it. No dark, embarrassing secret, sorry. :)
Awww...
would you be prepared to try LARP to get experience with the difference in fighting styles?
Wait, what common ground does LARP have with historical *or* modern fighting styles? We are still talking about "live action role play", aren't we?
well some LARP do have strong historical setting/story, the real problem is that most larper dont have/use any historical martial art to go whit it, and even those who do have some experience in it cant use it fully,
i have some fencing training but most larp dont want sword trust making it harder then it have to be :/
We have some for our youth group when they aren't using nylon but we found that theese are actually very good for winden practice. The friction is higher in the bind so you get way more feedback than both nylon and feders. Try it if you can, and haven't
to be precise I don't know what maker our are but the are foam larp longswords of some kind, not the regular latex type
i am gonna call the police cuz you are abusing youre foam sword XD
I have many calimacil swords and axes and I can tell you they are extremely durable. Some I've had for over 10 years now and it's still going strong. As for the flex I have the claymore and the flex is needed here in Quebec (where calimacil is located) as we tend to strike harder than in other places. If the flex wasn't there it would be hurting a lot more.
Please can somebody explain this pommel thing to me i have only star ted watching this channel recently and every video i have binged videos so i have seen a fair few but a comment involving something to do with pommels is in every fucking video also why would you unscrew a pommel?
watch his "end ihm rightly" video
TimurAShadow him*
It's a really tired joke that people insist on not letting go of.
Gameman659 damn autocorrect!
thank you
As a larper I can say this: It seems good! Perhaps it should be less "sharp" but I do not think it would be a problem. As far as the thrust is concerned, a lot of campaigns do not allow thrusts for safety reasons. If you want to use it for thrusts, I advise to be careful. It does not have the optimal safety for thrusting. However, the optimal safety, which is accomplished the way you make larp arrows (putting a penny in front of the core so that it can't poke out), is hard to pull of if the weapon is also made for cuts.
Correct me if I'm wrong anyone :)
I dunno man, toy reviews? I think you need to end this rightly.
BUT THE POMMEL DOESNT UNSCREW
But he latex body parts before - this one doesn't even vibrate.
everything its a toy, grow up and face it!
as long as he doesn't dress in spiderman costume and cara doesnt dress as elsa, I don't mind
Calila PloyPloy That would've been a perfect Halloween video :P
As a consumate LARPer, I have had many many Calimacil swords over the years. They are not all as good as the Highlander, but there is a reason they sent you that one, it's clearly one of their best work!
However, the last few generations of foam they use get harder and harder in an attempt to be more durable. Which is not always a good thing, even for LARP =/
But can you unscrew the pommel?! LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL (sarcasm)
Jerry Garza its not really a sarcasm if you need to point that out
as someone who does larp, calimacil has a fantastic reputation for durability. I've had one of their swords going on 5 years and the amount of abuse that thing has taken is astronomical. I can say that the blade type they made this claymore with is one of their newer designs. it's half the weight of their normal blades and the tip isnt that safe for the thrust. on their page they have this particular blade labelled as the "Diamond V8" I would recommend the V7 for a more common larp blade for weight thickness, and over all durability. but this review brings alot of unbiased facts and observations that I really enjoyed. thanks Small for giving a lot weapon some critique :)
Larp = Life action dissapointing your parents
Still not as pathetic as trolling on the Internet where people cant event deck ya in da grabbah properly when you talk shit. Great job, hero.
Oxygen Corrosion Larpers cant deck anyone though...
***** Lmao are you triggered?
I sure as hell can.. I've done Larp... Now I've done everything from HEMA to armored combat. I obviously find the humor in the comment by Oxygen corrosion, it is funny. But I don't agree with leaving mean spirited comments on peoples videos meant to hurt and or demoralize others. I don't like bully's
Matt Evans If that was my intention I'd say something like "Larp is for fat virgin fucks who'll never get fucked without payment" or some stupid shit like that.
that sword is PERFECT for forms practice,movement practice,positioning etc. when done with a mate.since u practice hema,you know how important that kind of training is and this sword seems to be strong enough and safe at the same time.it allows you to hit your student a little harder than with a wood practice sword and thats good becouse some techniques are better explained when done at almost full speed,and this sword seems to be very safe.
I love your channel, Skall, I really do, but in all fairness this is the laziest review you ever made, and one of the laziest I ever saw on any platform. At least grab a friend and have him hit you a couple times, to a stress test, read abour larp if you're gonna do a review. This is just "Uh, eh, it looks like a foam sword, I don't know if it's durable, I don't know if it can cause injury, I don't plan to test any of this, it's useless for HEMA, and from a HEMA point of view it's awful". This is the pinnacle of lazyness. You could at least send it to Shad, maybe he would enjoy reviewing it at least a bit. edit: corrected bad grammar.
to be fair dude nah skall's got it right a lot of larpers don't buy calcilmal due to if its cold it hurts like a son of a bi*** to get hit by specially when blows aren't pulled.
leithafae that doesn't make the video less lazy. And all non latex larp weapons hurt when it's cold. Besides, that is irrelevant, I'm complaining about the lazyness of the review, with 0 investigations or interest, just for the sake of uploading a video. He doesn't like larp, doesn't know anything about it and doesn't care at all about it, but he reviews one cause "free stuff and views", while he clearly doesn't care.
Not as expensive and possibility to open up to people and actually roleplay that you're a medieval knight or whatever else you might want. LARP'ing doesn't only include fighting.
I have used calimarcil swords , axes and halberds for some pretty hard full contact fights.. they are incredible durable, and with some body protection you only get a few bruses
I really like when you talk about topics you don't know a lot about. It's cool how you don't give unnecessary speculation towards whatever you're talking about yet you still give good input. Noice video Skall. :P
All the larps I've been to prohibit thrusting for safety reasons so I guess the limit thrusting capabilities are not a problem for a larp sword. Thanks for the review
To be quite honest there is one thing I like about LARP- you can make the sword as thick as you'd like and it'd still work which, for the most part, is great because boy, oh boy do I like how thick swords look.
I've been making weapons out of duct tape and piping insulation for years, not sure how that compares to this material but even putting in quite a lot of effort you could maybe cause bruising at the worst as long as you have enough padding on it. You could do some damage targeting the head but this basically applies to nearly any object that's fairly firm has some mass and isn't limited by being your hand (skulls are tougher than hands, boxers wear gloves to protect themselves not their opponents). The duct tape can have an abrasive effect but I've never made contact with an opponent or their blade long enough to do any real damage to my skin. With homemade LARP style weapons you just have to check for any spots that are getting thin and add padding where needed, the tip is the obviously the most important part to check, especially since I switched to using a thin steel rod as the core for added durability and to make it easier to add curves into the weapon. When it comes to making shields PVC piping works great and is quite safe and comfortable with adequate padding. You could also use thin metal rods perpendicular to the PVC piping to make the shape of what most would call a tower shield. Also remember to pad the pommel as well, I usually just straight up make it out of piping insulation held into place by duct tape.
I just have a foam scabbard for my purple heart synthetic for larp.... so i get to use my practice and not worry about under weighted swords (we also make our own with the tried and true pvc pipe and foam)
Usually thrusts are not allowed in most LARPs, in case the rod does stick out in cheap/selfmade swords (exception for full foam daggers ect).
And I've explicitly read/heard a couple of times to not actually touch skin when you're assassinating someone via slicing their throat to avoid cuts in those sensitive areas. But as you're usually only striking clothed parts of the bodies (heads often count as no-hit area), I don't see that much danger of getting cut by those rough edges.
4:08 well, i dont know how it goes on larp events in canada/usa, but here in europe thrusting is prohibited on most events as far as i know
My friends and I have started using Calimacil weapons as an alternative to nylon sparring swords. What I used to do with my old training partner is use the Rawlings nylon ones with metal crossguards and pommel to give appropriate historical-ish weight, but in order to do it safely we had to each buy about £300 worth of safety gear in total (HEMA helmet, back-of-neck-protector, gorget, groin guard, greaves, gambeson, elbow guards, etc...).
However, now she's gone so I am forced to look into other options. Another friend showed me their LARP knife and it gave me the idea to at least try out using Calimacil weapons.
Last week a different friend and I tried out two Calimacil quarterstaves from their Novice range that I'd purchased : they stood up brilliantly, and we fought at basically full-contact (including with thrusts) wearing only eye shields and groin guards. Neither of us got so much as a small bruise, or even an area that stung more than 10 minutes afterwards. Although it hurt being hit with them it was basically like being slapped as opposed to being punched in the face. Also the handling of the quarterstaves was remarkably similar to that of the ash poles I have - it was lighter, but not noticeably so.
I'm going to try out how it goes with two swords once I get them. I think as a sort of break-in for people to use who are not yet willing to spend so much on sparring gear, it could be a great training tool. It's not optimal (as far as simulating historical conditions goes), but neither are many options such as a purely plastic synthetic sword, a rattan pole, etc.
I would definitely recommend at least the quarterstaves (which lie at the short end of historical spears) for HEMA training.
"Unless you're in desperate need of prescription glasses" I took my glasses off and it looked like a ridiculous sword.
so a few things from my group ive noticed
1 theres a few people who practice with larp stuff just to have a lighter time with no protective gear which ngl seems like a really good idea for slower weeks
2 larp itself is quite good for battlefield tatics stuff weve done, i know not all larp things do large scale battles but the one they do does and everyone has said how much they realize how good the battlefield stuff is
the thing about thrusting with most larp swords, is that it's forbidden. The core can actually penetrate the foam, entering you opponent, and most cores split inside the body. Not such a rightly ending but more of a very painful death. Only weapons without cores can be thrown or used for thrusting (such as Larp Spears). Also the edge seems kinda sharp, it could make some painful marks on your opponent (who could be wearing short sleeves or no body protection at all). but it's fine i guess idk
Skall, I respect you for giving this a fair review.
The edge roughness is no issue to comfort. I've been sparring with foam swords which have the rough edge (due to manufacturing) and it has never so much has caused a graze.
Thrust with this kind of weapon is usually illegal anyway, you will need a specialized thrust tip. Don't worry about cutting, this kind of blade will bump back as soon as it hits anything, it would require some kind of draw cut and those maneuvers are never used in larp. Murder-stroke is also illegals if your weapon is not specialized for it. The soft guard is sometimes required in some events but really, a stiff guard is usually much better.
Around where I live, the safety test is quite simple. The participant hand over the weapon to an organizer, he presents is bared arm and the organizer strike as hard as he can. If he didn't flinch, the weapon is safe. From my experience, Calimacils are often too stiff for most NA Larp events.
Those things are pretty safe. I've larped for quite a while and while you might not wanna swing for the fences with it, Most of the swords sold by calamacil are totally safe for full impact fighting.
I personally love my calimacil swords, they look great, and because I play with family and friends they are not hard enough to severely hurt someone. We play pretty hard so a bruise is ok, crying and needing ice packs is bad. Calimacil is great!
They make rapiers that are safe for thrusting the bend in the flat is very obvious in those where as the edge doesn't give
The rough spots come from the molding process
I LARP, and the only maintenance I need to do is spray the latex parts with silicon spray and rub it out with a cloth of some kind once per event. And they last several years at the very least.
Secondly, at least where I LARP there's a rule that you're not allowed to put the weapons to someone's throat as indeed, it can leave some nasty scrape/burn marks if it slides along your skin.
Lastly, Calimacil is known as fairly hard and rugged. But also high quality and very durable for it's purpose. Most LARP brands weigh even less and they can often bend more as well. People using Calimacil are generally told to be extra careful with the strength they put behind their swings, as it can leave nasty bruises quite easily on people not wearing metal armor.
When I was involved in LARP, we used weapons made of composite epoxy or wood and even occasionally steel. Had my finger broken during the event)
What a great Review! Knowing what to expect from the company when looking into Foam swords is great... Thank you!🌷
With Calimacil, you can be sure of good quality. They are making the best Larp Sword.
Most LARP don't allow piercing (stabbing) since not all weapons are safe for it. You must do a cut movement, horizontal or diagonal. Vertical cuts are also not allowed.
I love the skallagrim community so much
so i just had an idea for a HEMA sword.
Foam padding, but with a telescoping skeleton inside, so if you stab, the foam is left to flop, while the skeleton collapses, to extend the skeleton again, you'd have to detach the padding and set it back up, but it should be quite safe.
hi Skall, here in the UK most LARP systems don't allow thrusting with swords, only with specially specific stab safe spears
Omg am I the only one who died laughing when he was abusing the heck out of the guard? 😂😂😂 and when he was like it looks like wood... if you don't touch it
Calimacil makes great toy swords. Their scimitar-like blades could use some work though IMO, as the tip has a lot more core-less floppy foam than the straight swords and just folds over when you stab or get a glancing blow. I rendered my favorite sword useless that way; the foam folded over in a bad way and broke off right at the fiberglass core, which then scratched my opponent as it passed across them.
Put people in buckskin or leather armor, or even a gambeson, use only straight swords, and you can have a whole lot of very safe fun thwacking at friends and family.
There are other uses for boffers besides LARP. It's a grown-up toy sword. Sometimes it's just fun to boff things without worrying about the damage to the thing or to your real sword. Even if you're not going out LARPing, Skallagrim, you can have some fun testing one of these.
Given the date I was expecting Skall to review it like an actual sword. "The cutting edge is is inshavishient, I ran some cutting test and it wasn't able to chop through a small branch". **Footage of him attempting to hack a branch in the woods**
In the swordfighting training in our association, we use the Robert Stark and the Novice II from this manufacturer. These are relatively cheap weapons, and this is my experience with them:
They are NOT stab-safe. The point will pop forward if you put some power into the thrust, making the core jump out. As you mentioned, it is also unsafe to hit with the crossguards or the pommel.
The crossguards are too weak to actually reliably defend you in a duel, but they are pretty sturdy in construction.
We have never had an issue with the edge biting someone, but our swords visually look a bit thicker in my opinion, it is hard to judge through the camera.
The swords are also a lot lighter than a metal sword, which changes the fighting technique a bit. Since as you mention, the blade doesn't bend as much on the thin axis as a real one, and it is padded more on the thick, you can bounce better with a block on the sharp and bind better with a block using flat, which is opposite from real swords.
The blade is not very painful when you get used to it, but if you are prone to bruising you can get bruises if someone hits hard.
For durability, since Skallagrim declined to comment on that, we have about 10 swords which are used 2 hours per 2 weeks by people who have had usually at most a year of such training, and we expect to lose 2 swords per year, almost all because of stabbing or accidentally leaning on the point pushing the point out of the sword making it unsafe.
Overall, we quite like the swords, they are great for larp use.
As a LARPer who loves your channel, this was a different and nice video to see! I was actually wondering what your impressions would be on LARP swords in comparison to real steel and while the comparison is pretty obvious, it is still nice to hear.
I can say with total confidence that after using Calimacil products for 10+ years, they are by far the safest, most durable, and well made weapon makers for LARP.
In any case with my biased opinion aside, it was again a cool video to see. Always love watching your channel! keep up the great work!
As a Larper I absolutely love they swords. They are pretty much indestructible!
So over in the UK, at least the games I've played, Calimcail and calimacil style larp swords are.....iffy, and often don't pass weapons check. Sometimes they're great, but sometimes the core is misaligned in moulding and that can cause safety issues. The other issue is that they get *really* solid when its cold.
Also, no you are absolutely right, do NOT thrust with a larp sword. Worst case scenario is the core pushes through the foam and snaps off inside somebody, and then can't be found on x-ray. Certain polearms are designed to be thrust safe, and to be fair that sword looks more thrust safe than mst, but by and large thrusting with swords is explicitly banned for safety.
It DOES look gorgeous though.
Considering that most LARP rules prohibit or heavily restrict the use of thrusts, I doubt it would be a problem. It stems from the worry that eventually, whatever type of re-enforcing element you use will tear through the tip of the weapon and even though this one is supposed to prevent that I very much doubt most people who run LARPs would be willing to make the exception. From an aesthetic standpoint, it seems like a pretty nice piece and really that's 90% of the selling point; the other 10% is the likelihood that it would pass muster for use in a LARP.