Quote Originally Posted by Wigferth Ironwall
Ok, I'm going to stop you at "12 pound longsword." Assuming you mean a single handed weapon you can cut that down to a quarter. As I said the Ermine Street Guard are one of the world leaders in Roman re-enactment. I suggest you actually read the link I posted in full as he goes through the construction of each piece of equipment, both historically and in modern terms.

You still haven't addressed the lack of manuverability with the palm up grip or the strain it places on the elbow. Regardless the shield shouls never jump out of you hand because your forarm will be braced against it.
Sorry for the long delay in answering you. BTW, I love your screen name!

A three-pound sword sounds more like a ceremonial or theatrical weapon. The swords used by northern European barbarians were long and quite heavy. Their purpose was to shatter shields, crush helms, and break bones under body armor. They had a secondary ability to thrust, but this was not their primary purpose. For these purposes, they needed strong, highly-conditioned men.

I did read the link you provided, and found it very interesting. I don't deny any of the claims made there. Indeed, my purpose in this thread is not to start an argument or a debate of any kind, but to raise a question based upon my personal experience as a re-enactor, and as a trainer in theatrical productions.

Like I said earlier, none of what I have to say in this thread should be taken as "evidence", and it certainly should have no effect whatever on the animations used in the mod.