Blade - Sword Patterns

Sword Patterns

Swords may have either a straight blade or a curved one. A straight sword was thought to be primarily intended for hacking and stabbing, yet recent studies have shown this to be untrue, as many slicing techniques were used. The difference between a hacking cut and a slashing one is essentially the same as the difference between using a butcher's knife and a chef's knife; one forces an edge straight into a material while the other is pulled along the material to get more of a slicing action. Hacking cuts were usually followed by a slicing action, where the sword is drawn backwards to maximize the cut. For more information see Western Martial Arts or kenjutsu.

Some variations included

• the flame blade (undulated blade, for both psychological effect and some tactical advantage of using a non-standard blade: vibrations and easier parry)
• the colichemarde, found in smallsword