The term "medieval martial arts" conjures images of armoured knights wielding sword, lance, and axe. While the image is correct, at the foundation of knightly combat was a sophisticated form of close quarter combat, centered on fighting with-and against-the dagger, a deadly weapon of both self-defense and last resort.In Mastering the Art of Arms, Volume One: The Medieval Dagger, Guy Windsor presents a complete guide to the principles and practice of Italian dagger combat, as set down in Il Fior di Battaglia a manuscript written in 1410. Readers are guided step-by-step through the process of mastering this six hundred year old art, from choosing a dagger to striking with it; from guard positions to steps and turns; from disarms to locks and takedowns; from safe falling practice to formal drills, and finally pressure testing their skills with sparring.Both a primer on the art and a methodology for on-going training, this book will give the complete novice a solid starting point, while providing useful drills and ideas for advanced martial artists. Those who study other traditional knife arts, and modern military combatives, will find many familiar techniques present in this ancient system.

The term "e;medieval martial arts"e; conjures images of armour-clad knights wielding sword, lance and axe. While the image is correct, at the foundation of knightly combat was a sophisticated form of close quarter combat, instantly recognizable to students of classical Asian arts such as jujutsu or practitioners of modern, military combatives. At the heart of this system was fighting with - and against - the dagger, a vicious weapon of both self-defense and last resort that was dangerous to those in and out of armour alike.In Mastering the Art of Arms, Volume One: The Medieval Dagger, renowned instructor, author and researcher, Guy Windsor, presents a complete guide to the principles and practice of Italian dagger combat. Drawing from Il Fior di Battaglia, a manuscript written in 1410, students are guided step-by-step through the process of mastering this six hundred year old art, from choosing a dagger to striking with it; from guard positions to steps and turns; from disarms to locks and takedowns; from safe falling practice to formal drills, and finally sparring, or free-play.Both a primer on the art and a methodology for on-going training, this book will give the complete novice a solid starting point, while providing useful drills and ideas for advanced martial artists.

In 1827, James Bowie carved his way into American history at the Sandbar Fight, and soon every fighting man of the South and West had to have a knife like his. The bowie knife could cut like a razor, chop like a cleaver, and stab like a sword, and many considered it deadlier than a pistol at close range. So great was the dread it inspired that by 1838 it was banned in several states—a ban that did little to stanch the flow of blood. Bowie's story is well known, but what of the other cutters and stabbers of his day? Gunfighters have long been celebrated, but those who fought with the bowie knife have been largely ignored—until now. Unearthing accounts from memoirs, court records, regional histories, and newspaper archives, Paul Kirchner, author of the Paladin bestsellers The Deadliest Men and More of the Deadliest Men Who Ever Lived , presents their stories for the first time in Bowie Knife Fights, Fighters, and Fighting Techniques. Kirchner identifies and profiles the four greatest bowie knife fighters of history, as well as numerous other wielders of the blade. He details the weapon's use in the Texas War of Independence, the Mormon exodus, the Mexican War, the slave system, the Gold Rush, Bleeding Kansas, the Civil War, the Lincoln assassination, the Indian Wars, and the Western frontier. The book describes bowie knife fighting tricks and techniques and provides numerous accounts of knife-against-knife and knife-against-gun encounters. Its final chapter surveys the continued use of the bowie and other fighting knives in modern warfare.

The low-tech, high-impact tomahawk has been carried in every American war, including Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq. Here the author traces the origins of the tomahawk and uses his dynamic drawings to show how it can be utilized singly or with the long knife in both offensive and defensive encounters. Includes fighting scenarios, throwing lessons and applications of the war club.

The Wheel of Time is now an original series on Prime Video, starring Rosamund Pike as Moiraine! In The Path of Daggers, the eighth novel in Robert Jordan’s #1 New York Times bestselling epic fantasy series, The Wheel of Time®, Rand al'Thor engages in battle wearing the Crown of Swords and wielding Callandor against a force unprepared for the wrath of the Dragon Reborn. The Seanchan invaders are heading for Illian—and Rand's army of Asha'man soldiers. When they meet in battle, some of the Asha'man are afflicted by madness, unable to control their channeling and unleashing raw power. The madness extends to Rand himself. He has been hearing the voice of a man believed to have been the previous Dragon Reborn. Besieged by visions and debilitated whenever he uses the One Power, Rand chooses to attack the Seanchan with Callandor. The sword consumes him with a berserker rage, felling ally and enemy alike. And when he regains his senses, Rand finds himself less trusted by those who were once the most loyal. Since its debut in 1990, The Wheel of Time® by Robert Jordan has captivated millions of readers around the globe with its scope, originality, and compelling characters. The last six books in series were all instant #1 New York Times bestsellers, and The Eye of the World was named one of America's best-loved novels by PBS's The Great American Read. The Wheel of Time® New Spring: The Novel #1 The Eye of the World #2 The Great Hunt #3 The Dragon Reborn #4 The Shadow Rising #5 The Fires of Heaven #6 Lord of Chaos #7 A Crown of Swords #8 The Path of Daggers #9 Winter's Heart #10 Crossroads of Twilight #11 Knife of Dreams By Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson #12 The Gathering Storm #13 Towers of Midnight #14 A Memory of Light By Robert Jordan and Teresa Patterson The World of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time By Robert Jordan, Harriet McDougal, Alan Romanczuk, and Maria Simons The Wheel of Time Companion By Robert Jordan and Amy Romanczuk Patterns of the Wheel: Coloring Art Based on Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

The sword has been a brutally effective weapon for thousands of years, but try to find instruction on using one for self-defense today and you're liable to find nothing but books written by dojo-dwelling, gi-wearing martial artists hung up on ancient traditions and picture-perfect stances. For the modern sword aficionado looking for real-world advice, author and pragmatic martial artist Phil Elmore wipes the slate clean with Street Sword. Despite attempts by elitists to romanticize, deify or otherwise elevate it into a mystical artifact, Elmore treats the sword like a tool for delivering force, period. It is a mundane object that obeys the laws of physics, just like any other weapon. Street Sword will give you a framework in which to use the sword as a functional, practical weapon in today's violent world, quickly providing an understanding of the simple physics involved, as well as concepts like timing and distance. Reading this book won't help you win a colored belt or an Olympic fencing medal, but it may be invaluable if a knife-wielding thug ever comes crawling through your bedroom window one dark night.

His presence was intoxicating. From the moment he entered our mysterious town, we were consumed. I was mesmerized, completely taken by him, but not like everyone else. They stared at him like a juicy piece of meat. The men looked at him like a meal; they sniffed the gorgeous scent of his blood like a druggie does to a fresh bag of pot. I could tell that if they ever managed to get the poor human boy alone, they would share him among their fellow young vampires and feast on him. They would bite into his warm flesh and feel his blood flow to the surface, through the wounds that they inflected on him. They would drink his blood, which smelled so very delicious. His blood was rich with life and love and coated with a thick layer of innocence. You could smell his joys and pleasures. Biting into him would give them a true high that would last days, if not a week or two. They would laugh in the horrible ecstasy of his screams until the loss of blood left him too weak to utter a sound. That would thrill thema greater thrill than sex, and believe me, vampires love sex. His name was Justin Collin, and he too consumed me.