Stupid Guest Tricks

lady ulrike wrote:Personally, I like more medieval weapons. I know how to use a sword, mace, that sort of thing. I can also shoot a crossbow pretty well, I don't own one however. Longbow, is another story, but I probably still shoot better than the average person.

You and me both. I have a huge sword and dagger collection, a battle axe, bull whips, war hammer, etc. And I have my own Chain Mail shirt, gauntlets, and coif that I hand made. And I learned how to use everything in my collection. And how to defend against it. I live by the rule that any weapon you carry can be taken away from you and used against you. But if you use a weapon that not everyone can use well, you have a benefit and if you know how to defend against your weapon, you're in the clear. And you don't need a carry conceled permit for a 12' bullwhip. :D:

Randy

lady ulrike wrote:Then there's another story of a group going to or from an event in New York, some gangbangers surround them, take out their knives, and start threatening them. Well, this group simply pulled out their swords and the gangbangers took off (what do you know, smart gangbangers exist :)

Kinda like the scene from Croc Dundee? (That's not a knife, (SHNICK) This is a knife.)

Randy (not SCA, just an ancient weapon fancier)

hobie16 wrote:I've always been a trebuchet kinda guy.

Yea, but have you tried to unobtrusively slip one in your pocket? :D:

Randy

Randy B wrote:Yea, but have you tried to unobtrusively slip one in your pocket? :D:

You might be able to, depending on just what *size* trebuchet you have: Check out these little babies!

Lady Ulrike, if you've been in the SCA for many years, you may know some from the Hemet area I used to know......

Okay, I was going to stay out of this thread because I'm vehemently anti-gun. I'm trained with them (ex-military) and I've owned some at various points in my life for hunting related purposes. On the whole though I think they're unnecessary and the world would be better off without them or at least fewer of them.

On the other hand: If you can defend yourself with a trebuchet and happen to own one, I'm all for it! It's hard to commit a spur of the moment crime of passion with a weapon it takes about an hour (or more...the one in that picture looks big!) to arm and load.

And, as something of a cook, I'm all for blades.

Interesting story about self defense I'll share though: I have a friend who is a white Zimbabwean currently living in Tanzania. His family were hot air balloon guides in Zimbabwe and he now works for the only balloon company in the Serengeti (look for the reference to the company on a chalk board/sign at Kili Safaris). For those of us who don't know about African history, all the white people were "kicked out" of Zimbabwe several years ago. The thing is when they kick people out of a country, they don't say "we'd like you to please leave now." The prefer to do it as a genocide, especially in Africa, where there is very little value placed on a human life in most regions. And in Africa, they do genocide right (anything worth doing is worth doing well!) they simply go door to door, and if you're the wrong skin color or ethnicity or whatever, they shoot you in the head. My friend's family had guns, but not enough bullets to keep an army of rioting locals at bay until the military could gain control of the situation, so they used what they had on hand. Anybody know how you keep a hot air balloon in the air? They use big tanks of flamable gas that shoot out giant flames. Turns out placing those at the gates to their home and torching a few rioters is a great way to keep them from trying to get in again!

For clarification: I'm not saying I'm happy about what they did (from how he ended up describing it, he's not proud of it either), but at the same time, I'm happy I got to meet him and make a friend which could not have happened had they not defended themselves...

Like I said before, never bring a knife (or sword) to a gun fight!

Arrrrhhhh!

GRUMPY PIRATE wrote:I used to shoot with bow and arrow, till I took a blunted one in the eye, that kind of help me loose my enthusiasm (owwweeeee!!)

Well, a blunted bullet to the eye would have helped you lose your enthusiasm, too... but this time, for everything!

Big Wallaby wrote:Well, a blunted bullet to the eye would have helped you lose your enthusiasm, too... but this time, for everything!

True, but I was much younger, and learned a valueable lesson! (eye protection!!) Years later, while on the range, I was test firing a weapon that a trainee wanted to put into service,(it was a revolver) and the cartridge/forcing cone was off, got some lead shaving on my goggles right smack dab in the same eye!! Arrrhhh!!!

GRUMPY PIRATE wrote:True, but I was much younger, and learned a valueable lesson! (eye protection!!) Years later, while on the range, I was test firing a weapon that a trainee wanted to put into service,(it was a revolver) and the cartridge/forcing cone was off, got some lead shaving on my goggles right smack dab in the same eye!! Arrrhhh!!!

That happened to me when I was about 7, but no eye protection! Fortunately just landed on my eyelid(Yoweeeeee).My Stepfather who I before mentioned liked to go to the desert and shoot beer cans....However, a bullet ricocheted off a rock, came back and hit both my mom and my brother
on their legs....Fun Times!