Heroic Dreams - All Things Medieval

I play Medieval Role Playing games and I really enjoy them. But, these kinds of games take real liberties with the whole idea of reality in that all the rules are broken. In a fight and your health getting low? Take a health potion and problem solved. Need a quick ride across the lands? Hop on your dragon mount and off you go. These games all take a heavy slant toward the fantasy of the genre.

Ever wonder what a game would be like if it took a heavy slant toward the reality of the genre? Did you ever wonder if there was a game that really took things in a more realistic approach? Well there is a new medieval role playing game out that does just that! And it is quite amazing. It is called Mount & Blade and here is a video of some game play

They have the philosophy of try before you buy so you can download the game and give it a try totally for free before you buy it.

Some other nice features of the game are a really nice mounted combat system which is something not to be had in other games. And of course it has a full suite of mod capabilities so you can go right ahead and design your own games.

It just seems to me to be a refreshing change from the whole host of medieval RPG games that are out there.

Official Website for Mount & Blade

Popularity: 42% [?]

One of the best things about being a fan of all things medieval is the plethora of potential projects that are available. And these projects are not just things to hang on the wall. You can make lots of things like mini-catapults and of course hand-held weapons like the beautiful dragon crossbow you see here.

It is done in the style circa the 13th century and it has an absolutely gorgeous dragon carving in the wooden stock. The dragon’s head is on the left near the steel bow.

This crossbow is part of a project called the Wiesenfeuer Crossbow Project which I believe is affiliated with the Society for Creative Anachronism. Anyway, a web visitor submitted this picture and other pictures. And you can see more pictures about this absolutely gorgeous dragon carved crossbow on the Medieval website.

The Hand Carved Dragon Crossbow

Popularity: 17% [?]

I got an interesting email from somebody yesterday. He is purchasing a sword and cannot decide whether he should have the manufacturer sharpen it for him, or whether he should just order it unsharpened.

It is an interesting question and his main concern is how the condition of the blade will affect the long term value.

My initial recommendation to him is to leave it unsharpened for two reasons. First off, there is a safety factor. I feel much more comfortable with an unsharpened sword. And I just figure that if it is left unsharpened it is an easy process to sharpen it at some point in the future.

Anyway, I thought maybe some of you that read this blog might have an opinion on the matter so leave a comment on this blog or send me an email and I will forward it to the person that inquired.

A Little bit about the sword. This is not a hundred dollar purchase this guy is making.  The sword in question is a magnificent re-creation of Conan’s Atlantean. This is a high end sword that would bring up the value of any collection. And the company is Albion Swords which is a fantastic company.

If you want to learn more about Conan and the Sword I have a page on my website that goes into the movies, the books, the sword and more: All About Conan

And if you want to check out the Albion Sword Company here is the link: Albion Swords

Popularity: 39% [?]