Non-Contact Drills
Most lessons are delivered as non-contact drills for beginners where the weapon simulators never make contact with the practitioner. For this we only need a suitable weapon simulator. We recommend a specifically made HEMA steel, synthetic or padded practice weapons.
If two students pair up for partner drills, the weapon simulators should be matched, i.e. steel with steel, synthetic with synthetic, etc.
Light gloves may be worn for the comfort of the hand, however students should NOT wear mis-matched safety equipment (for example one student has a mask, the other has not). This may skew the perception of risk and safety of the practitioner wearing the equipment against the one who is not. Either everyone wears the same equipment, or the drill is altered to where the equipment is not required.
Light Contact Drills
As soon as drills and exercises include making contact with a partner, suitable safety equipment must be worn. If performed with padded weapons this includes as a minimum:
- a well-fitting fencing mask
- lightly padded gloves
Where contact is made with steel simulators, we further require:
- a lightly padded and well-fitting HEMA fencing jacket with a blade catcher
- a solid plastic or steel neck guard (gorget) suitable for HEMA
- a solid steel or plastic groin guard suitable for male anatomy (and strongly recommend for female anatomy)
Partners may choose to wear additional or heavier equipment at this point, so long as this does not interfere with the intended exercise or risk perception.
Sparring with Padded Weapons
The minimum required kit for sparring with padded weapons are:
- a well-fitting fencing mask
- lightly padded gloves
- a solid steel or plastic groin guard suitable for male anatomy (and strongly recommend for female anatomy)
We also recommend a solid plastic or steel neck guard (gorget) suitable for HEMA if desired
Sparring with Synthetic or Steel Weapons
We do not differentiate between steel and synthetic weapons – both types impart nearly as much force and equally increase the risk of the activity. Therefore full steel sparring equipment must be worn even for synthetic play. This includes:
- a well-fitting fencing mask, with optional additional padding
- a back-of head protector fitted to the mask with hard inserts (no foam)
- Heavy sparring gloves suitable for weapon type
- a padded and well-fitting HEMA fencing jacket with a blade catcher
- a solid plastic or steel neck guard (gorget) suitable for HEMA
- a solid steel or plastic groin guard suitable for male anatomy (and strongly recommend for female anatomy) – this must be worn UNDER the trousers.
- hard-shell elbow protectors fitting closely and covering the outside of the elbows sufficiently
- wrist & forearm protection, either stand-along or integrated into the glove
- hard-shell knee protectors fitting closely and covering the outside of the knees sufficiently
- Shin protectors, potentially integrated into the knee protectors
- Trousers of sturdy and dense fabric to be worn – as a minimum denim or “workwear” fabric or suitable martial arts attire.
- No exposed skin anywhere on the body (plams, wrists, neck, lower legs, feet)
We also recommend either specific padded HEMA fencing trousers or alternatively a padded HEMA skirt
Recommended Equipment List
FEDERWYRM & MANCHESTER SCHOOL OF ARMS
HISTORICAL SWORD ARTS
We use SQUARESPACE for all our class scheduling.
We recommend registering for an account for ease of use and admin – this will enable you to edit your data and reschedule classes.
Please click the booking button and schedule a registration date.
Our coaches will process your application on this date and respond to you with a booking link for our member sessions.
Please allow approximately a week for your registration to be completed – we are a volunteer run club and have friends and families. =)