Medieval Warfare at 'Battle of the Nations' - VICE INTL (France)

[@shardliveactionroleplaying1113]

"They organized a 50 v 50 fight...just for fun"--that's the absolute best part of this!

[@Nog10200]

There's a 150v150 match too!

[@ChrisJP_808]

They do like 150 vs 150

[@guero_me7237]

reporter: your in the united states army? guy: no I am a marine most american thing ever

[@firstnamelastname4881]

Guero_Me ikr

[@MrCmon113]

So the marines don't like their own military?

[@firstnamelastname4881]

Taxro marine,army,navy,airforce are all branches of the military

[@MrCmon113]

So they make a bid deal out of not using terms "army", "military" and "armed forces" synonymously.

[@Sergeant1127]

Taxtro no, "military" and "armed forces" are fine it's because the Army and Marines are two separate branches of the military and since they both do ground combat they've had a brotherly feud since forever. (Soldiers are army, Marines are, well Marines)

[@Nitrojet6]

This needs to be a Olympic sport

[@tristanszymanski5562]

Battle of the Nations is basically the Olympics of the sport. In the US, there is only one tournament to decide who gets to go to BotN, but in countries with more clubs, they have more tournaments throughout the year. My dad may be going to Russia this year to fight in one of their tournaments.

[@surfergirl0519]

Yes it does!!! For more information on the BOTN Team USA, the captain is Anthony Lynch and you can contact the team at facebook.com/groups/IToCinfo/

[@SpacemanXC]

Look up HEMA here on youtube. It's existed as a sport for quite a while. It would be sweet if more people got involved and it actually got considered as an olympic martial art.

[@mrgoob76]

the only difference that i have managed to find between this and HEMA, is from what i understand HEMA is supposed to be more historically accurate. and from what i have seen from this and other videos is that this (BON) is just guys in a pit beating on each other with sticks etc. personally i would stick with HEMA... which imo would make for a better sport

[@lesROKnoobz]

I bet the guys in this video would be laughed at if a real medieval knight were here to see them do this today lol.

[@rochat]

I came expecting LARPers hitting each other with foam sticks. This, however, was pretty cool.

[@ukownphantomGrin]

can we use this to elect presidents?

[@fatcat5544]

Best idea I've ever read

[@vulpesinculta3238]

Poor Hillary wouldn't stand a chance against the Trumpdozer.

[@fatcat5544]

Vulpes Inculta You mean fat and obese. Anyways, he probably wouldn't do well against people that would actually JOIN in the sport, not hippy liberals.

[@fatcat5544]

Lmfao, these people.....

[@pwn3dbyme]

Trump could just hire an army to fight for him, wouldn't need to actually be there to fight personally, just hire the best to do it.

[@pantsupirateold5625]

Officially the manliest sport in history

[@paxas03]

Nop. Unless they bring back gladiators fights... Roman style.

[@maybecolby]

+paxas03 like legit weapons though

[@Krawurxus]

Call me an edgelord, but I'm with the Game of Thrones approach here. As long as the participants are there voluntarily, let the fighting pits be opened!

[@breightonbisbane]

+Krawurxus lol Democrats would be be love no they cant learn to play wrieght

[@aaronmarshall1212]

+paxas03 Gladiators never killed eachother and used blunted weapons. Only rarely would the organizer of the fight sacrafice a perfectly good gladiator. It was similar to this.

[@NewYorkKnightsCombat1]

One funny thing I have noticed is that of all the people saying that the USA, having not existed in the middle ages, should not have a team in this tournament, no one is saying anything about Belgium, Germany, Italy, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Israel, Ukraine, Belorussia, Australia, New Zealand, and Argentina, none of which existed in the Middle Ages either. Also, if the tournament were only limited to medieval nations, how , exactly, would that work? The borders changed often. Would we just pick one year and limit it to nations that existed then? Would we only allow people who come from the modern versions of those nations, or would we say that people who live within the medieval borders must form teams representing those medieval nations? Can anyone see anything absurd about this?

[@ilikecheesesoupNEW]

+New York Knights Combat People have opinions on things they don't know about, let them do their thing and you do you. :)

[@AK-hi7mg]

Wtf ? Germany and Italy existed in the middleages as the holy Roman empire of German nation since the 9th century

[@NewYorkKnightsCombat1]

The modern nations of Germany and Italy were each unified in the 19th century. There was no "Germany" and no "Italy" as a national identity in the Middle Ages.

[@AK-hi7mg]

Sei g ll

[@AK-hi7mg]

Wrong ! The Germans got their name from the Italians way before the 19th century they named us tedesci which was translated to teutsche today Deutsche the country was relatively unified under the rule of king Otto II who is considered as a founder of the nation look it up

[@CaravelClerihew]

How to spot a VICE journalist: 1) Dumb facial hair 2) Tragic haircut 3) Tight clothing 4) Retro-but-not-too-retro glasses.

[@skatatataatje]

And he just came out of his basement for the first time and hasn't got a clue about anything.

[@miguelconti650]

TheSpoonyBard beta through and through

[@abdulrasheedsinggon7551]

Basically a hipster

[@crozraven]

This is awesome, we need more medieval things like this! It's a harsh sports but it still a "sports" right?

[@kurtilein3]

all the weapons are potentially lethal, but the armor they use is effective, and they take care to only hit the strongest parts of the armor when they hit full power. so, yes, its sports, they put some serious dents in each others armor but when someone gets hurt its not intentional.

[@surfergirl0519]

kurtilein3 The officials make sure that the weight and length of the weapons are appropriate so as not to be lethal.

[@kurtilein3]

surfergirl0519 i visited a dealer who sells these weapons several times. he is in prague, in the Czech Republic, and works directly with the manufacturer. the edges are not sharp, the weapons are heavy, the tip is quite pointy, and the quality requirement is that they never break and that the handle is well-designed and that the blade cannot detach. they are checked for a solid build and appropriate design. if a sword feels like the handle is too weak, or if the blade of an axe might detach from the wood, it gets banned. the weapons that pass the inspection are still absolutely deadly if used against a person without armor. it is still easy to split a skull open or to stab someone through the heart or neck, while comparable in force to a baseball bat the 2mm wide blade and the pointy tip can cause much more damage on impact. i have held these swords and a friend of mine has two of them, you can totally kill a horse with these things.

[@MrZulgen]

kurtilein3 Interesting.

[@majorD01]

kurtilein3 are you speaking with experience (on the house part)

[@radamanthys_0154]

damn this for honor gameplay looks amazing

[@Eddneton94]

2:95 he calls it training i call it "hit the new guy"

[@anarshit5451]

2:95 ? I thought a minute is 60 secounds

[@thebeardbeard4416]

This is the greatest thing in the world, who wants to start a team with me.

[@zoso1]

i'm down, but all i have is a trash can lid for a shield and a mop bucket helmet and a $5 samurai sword... and some skateboard kneepads... i can make a cape though, don't worry about that.

[@thebeardbeard4416]

zoso1 first member recruited :)

[@thebeardbeard4416]

***** England

[@thebeardbeard4416]

ye, I'm on facebook. have you got a group or something I can talk to you on. Don't wanna put my facebook name on here.

[@jamesmidd833]

Would a Scot be invited? I know we had a shaky relationship during the middle ages but I'm sure we can work it out :)

[@danmaderaverde7872]

Here I am, french canadian reading the captions in english.. 5 minutes into the video I'm like.. 'Wait a second.. why the hell am I reading the captions?' lol.. But for real.. f*ck UFC, this is the shit

[@SliC3oFicE]

Dan Maderaverde I tend to read the captions even when I cant read them.

[@francaisintrepide6213]

Dan Maderaverde Parlons un peu Français, si tu es vraiment un Canadien Français ok? C'est très rare de voir des Canadiens Français aimant le Canada et beaucoup de Canadiens Anglophone se font passer pour des québécois sur youtube

[@ryanhouk3560]

+Français Intrépide oui

[@robertramos1297]

8:45 red armor lad: "this is fun!!!" 8:49 red armor lad: "this is no fun"

[@NewYorkKnightsCombat1]

That's me! The American with the light blue oval shield in that clip! The "red armor lad" is a huge Frenchman who was fighting for belgium. I and two other Americans went up to him and I said "Vous est un char! Il est votre gauche, il est votre droit, est je suis votre derriere! Avant!"

[@robertramos1297]

New York Knights Combat well fight my friend well fight you deserve some good feuds

[@Thomi92]

2:45 Im fucking dieing of laughter

[@jungi001]

uaaa :s xD

[@eyezonabankrolll2931]

🤣🤣😭

[@GhostOfDamned]

Im going to softly hit you Literally swings at him like he was chopping down a tree

[@badfoody]

"geopolitical issues?" yeah i make every matter with a foreigner i meet to be something about geopolitical crap. "Chinese dude is walking faster than me, gotta beat him to the aisle for my nation's pride"

[@grilledcookie6259]

Yeah, fuck this way of thinking

[@badfoody]

Grilledcookie like I'd never date a British girl cause I have Indian blood. Fuck that way of thinking

[@vulpesinculta3238]

You can't beat Chinese dudes on walking fast, unless maybe you're Japanese.

[@lordhawhaw9480]

If your Indian you better not go near a British girl.

[@brittanymale3398]

badfoody gooo seet is queen of woman woman uie she has used a great time yesyou ok can bc she woman woman eiyeiueuuruuty she woman u woman is the a goooy woman woman euriy woman is queen irre up uwoman woman she is

[@littletat3519]

6:36 who else thought his leg was actually chopped off?

[@jamesthompson626]

Now THIS Is something I would pay money to see over and over again

[@tristanszymanski5562]

This footage was recorded at the 2013 Battle of the Nations tournament held in Aigues-Mortes, France in May. I was there with my dad who fought on the USA team. If you guys want more info about Battle of the Nations or Team USA, I'll try to answer as best as I can.

[@tristanszymanski5562]

Here's a link for you USA people. facebook.com/groups/IToCinfo/ More info on the sport in the US.

[@eljimmy7437]

hm per entry

[@holdmybeer]

I was wondering why some people had those poll axes. Those things looked brutal. Do they do more damage than a sword?

[@mrcatman6374]

How did the Belgian team do?

[@riley10199]

tummy lice the plate probably absorbs most of the shock but just by looking id say the extra leverage gained from the long handle would increase the damage of a full power strike if executed properly.

[@rileyjensen5257]

And then the Americans come shouting U S A

[@JITTERdUdEepic]

+Riley Jensen If America existed in the Medieval times...

[@ryanhouk3560]

Damn straight we do!

[@IamHueGraves]

+Riley Jensen I'm sure the others shouted things, it just sounded like noise if you don't know their languages

[@NewYorkKnightsCombat1]

+IamHueGraves I learned that "Rus-si-a!" is a three-syllable word.

[@MajesticSkywhale]

+Riley Jensen And the russians came there shouting "Росс-и-я" so what's the fucking difference?

[@gorgor6978]

The french singing anti-monarchical anthem, while wearing tabards with the heraldic lily?

[@johnv5129]

+Gor Gor the anthem is revolutionnary but not anti monarchy in itself

[@slade54ubermen88]

+john v it most definitely is. read about who they went for first during the French Revolution. hint it was the aristocracy.

[@johnv5129]

Slade54 Ubermen i know i'm french, but the anthem is much more war and violent insurrection like than speaking against monarchy, there are other songs of this period for that ;)

[@eugspit]

It's not anti-monarchial. When it was written, France was attacked by coalised nations of europe. The "féroces soldats" (ferocious soldiers) are the prussian

[@264hugo]

know your shit, Gor Gor.

[@supyo3616]

I love when the american marine talks about the russian spetnaz soldier. Comradeship through common interest.

[@Jamhael1]

G recognize G.

[@canadianjake1995]

I love the bond there was between the Russian Special forces solider, and the Marine, goes to show that we are all soldiers doing our job, and we can be friends because we know the struggle!

[@BlazedTownesFan]

2:46 "im gonna hit you softly" BLAM! blasts him in the head, fucking hilarious.

[@VICE]

VICE France visits a tournament where grown men beat each other with medieval weapons. Watch more stories from the global VICE family: bit.ly/VICE-INTL- Check out Polar Bear Man Returns to the Arctic: bit.ly/Polar-Bear-Man-Full

[@thesmilingdentist676]

+Jason Tsang They Wouldn't. Medieval European weapons are armor are far superior to Japan's.

[@TheEwker]

+Jason Tsang Japan would get fucking wrecked because the most advanced armour they had wasn't entirely designed to encase you in protection. I don't think their armour would actually pass the safety regulations. Also, Japanese weapons were mostly designed for getting by not breaking through armour, so the weapons would be useless in this sport where the objective is to bring or make the guy submit to the ground

[@ikksksknsk4720]

+Jack Troughton Japanese weapons aren't especially light or sharp in comparison to the weapons of other cultures.

[@mastermill79]

Typo's/bad grammar in the description, don't make me smack you with my red pen. You're journalists ffs!

[@MoosicDude]

They had a medieval full contact expo at a festival I attended last year, though on a smaller scale, it's every bit as brutal as it looks here. It was great fun to watch.

[@OfficialRaddeck]

One thing's for sure after watching this: the Medival Ages were freaking hard times. I can only imagine how real battles for life and death could look like back then.

[@marylbc]

French dude: "Praises republican anthem and it's anti-royalists ideals" Same dude: "Praises nobility" Bruh

[@imRiiisq]

marylbc many frenchmen nowdays and such as me are ok for the monarchy but not the absolutionism

[@scouttrooperhh-1487]

Damn the french, theyre the ones who contracted the moral syphilis known as liberalism and spread it across europe. Aristocracy is for trve right traditionalists.

[@haaxeu6501]

The anthem isn't really anti royalist, the lyrics are about fighting the ennemies of the revolution, but it was written by a man who supported a constitutional monarchy before Louis XVI was executed, the ennemies of the revolution in that case were the nations of Europe that went to war against France fearing the spread of the revolution.

[@kurtilein3]

the biggest knights tournament is each year in Schloss Kaltenberg, Germany. its a big show and they do the tournament on horseback. and all the stuntmen and performers train their riding skills and knight skills in Spain and France. the weapons are real metal and the blades are not sharp, but they hit really hard. without the armor, all the weapons are lethal and much more dangerous than a baseball bat.

[@dime4026]

Im a united states marine. Here is my slave

[@Jelikoh]

You didnt.. XD LMAO

[@bobjohnson6946]

[@JMGEntertainmentify]

Foking idiot.

[@ds936]

*sword-bearer

[@flowerpower111]

lmao

[@t.j.payeur739]

"Not open to women, which makes it technically the best sport on Earth"...Love it....women are the Fun Police...Great Video...

[@greedy9310]

Only men can play this!

[@armoredghost1610]

Not true there is actually a big group of women who are in this sport.

[@varck7935]

Yeah, there are plenty of women who fight in HMB. There are categories specifically for women as well. Though here in Australia, we tend to do mixed gender as well.

[@Bluespicygreen]

Incel anthem.

[@noahcorpus6609]

Absolutely love this and hate that it didn't become fashionable till I was in my 50's.I want to play!!!

[@raltor40]

I love that medieval American Standard.

[@nickstersss]

2:47 "I'm going to hit you softly" and proceeds to give the guy concussion LOL

[@imstupid880]

>tfw a guy thinks whacking someone in full plate with a sword is going to do anything >tfw you realize that's everyone here

[@imgoingberserk5918]

+Richie Demo Is it realistic? Hell no. Is it fun? Probably.

[@NewYorkKnightsCombat1]

+Richie Demo In singles, what it does is score points. In melees it cna really bother the personinside the armor, knock their brains about, knock them ioff balance, etc. And is a sword won;t do enough, you ca use a falchon, and axe, a mace, a polearm, etc.

[@ianburnham]

holly crap, i actually recognize one of the fighters, at 56 seconds in, i dont know his name but he is part of the EMP or empire of medieval pursuits, we do a very similar style of combat except the majority of the time we use rattan, although there are some groups that use steal weapons

[@naveensilva2312]

I'd watch this over UFC

[@deathdealer2443]

He said “ imma lightly hit you... BLAT” 😩🤣🤣🤣

[@napoleonboneabark6960]

"Geo political issues" Moron these guys just want to come out fight, and have fun. No reason to bring politics into this.

[@anglishbookcraft1516]

The True Vigil liberals love bringing politics into simple fun

[@mjfeldo]

Actually, that's the point of the commentary, which you just misunderstood.

[@eemelilounela1212]

Watch the whole video. He changes his opinion.

[@halopartyboy]

8:08 Did he just say Spetschnitz? Obviously he was referencing Spetsnaz, but that is the damn funniest pronunciation of it I've ever heard!

[@Tiisje]

Brilliant.You guys managed to pick up a theme about medieval fighting, and your video is mostly about Quebec and the French Governmental System. What the fuck?

[@pinkieandthebrain8159]

For anyone wondering, the song that plays while they are fighting is "Evil rise - Yussuf Jerusalem"

[@mineconcrazy]

It’s awesome to see stuff like this, a brutal yet intelligent sport derived off of our history. Preserving the past and doing something fucking badass at the same time. Glad this hasn’t been deemed illegal or something stupid

[@edgyjeans88]

Just watching this, i cannot even imagine how gruesome it wouldve been watching hundreds of thousands of men fighting with their lives in this type of combat, except without this armor... Just wouldve been breathtaking.

[@lesROKnoobz]

These guys definitely aren't using any technique or weapon skills in this, they're just shoving each other and beating each other with blunt swords and whatnot. I wish there was a version of this where the guys were actually trained in hand to hand combat with medieval weapons...

[@NewYorkKnightsCombat1]

Highlight videos of combat sports have a tendency to look that way to those who don't know what they are watching. What you call "shoving" actually does involve technique, not just in the best way to "shove" someone and remain standing, but also to be in the right place at the right time to "shove" the right person to best help your team. And believe it or not, there is a skill for "beating": someone, and a science as to when, where, and why to do it. Check other videos of the Battle of the Nations. and try to find an organization in your area. Put on some armor and give it a try. Then you will see how much skill it takes.

[@fivemeomedia]

this isnt a movie were their doing a pre orchestrated fight this is a real dirty full contact fight

[@Kandiell]

considering youre "out" if youre knocked to the ground then yes, theres shoving. the hits are more meant to either intimidate or destabilise your oppoenent, then you go for a "shove" to drop him. historicly if you fell on the ground in a fight like this, you were pretty much fucked. what did you expect? youd get wrecked in a heartbeat versus these guys.

[@VelmiVelkiZrut]

New York Knights Combat I agree that HMB takes skill, but there is still a difference between HMB, SCA combat or something actually meant to represent historical war like HEMA. HMB is based primarily off of the medieval tourney and melee, and is on a point system. Likewise, SCA combat is based off of a strike = kill system. The amount of skill and technique for each to work in their given setting is staggering, and the effort HMB fighters put into learning, training and then fighting is huge. This in no way changes the fact that HMB simply does not match historical technique (although I argue this is a good thing. After all, historical techniques were intended to deal with armor and kill the wearer. In this sort of event, perhaps striking the armor and toppling the opponent is a wee bit safer).

[@gustlightfall]

Burn....

[@strikerwoman]

“im going to hit you soft, ready?” rung his fucking 🔔 😂😂😂😂

[@hunterfindon1018]

"I'm going to hit you softly..." W H A P

[@RealityCheckTV]

Markland Medieval Mercenaries - full contact Medieval fighting - We covered it back in 1981 in New Jersey. Full on battles, debauchery and wenching. I joined in, loved it, lead my own army the next year. Good times.

[@briandijkgraaf5563]

50 v 50 "for fun" starts to kill eachtochter

[@benrathbun5916]

“I trained with them” lol this guy just stood in the middle of a circle as they all beat him

[@YMS09D]

Actually it is open to women, has been for two years now.

[@Morrigi192]

Hida Toyatota It wasn't in 2013, which is when the footage was shot.

[@flemishmilitant]

8:12 this moment gave me chills...

[@bearling477]

I hate that betas like the reporter stole the undercut.

[@joherold]

They think they invented the beard too.. Try with the mustache but look fucking retarded.. 'Invented' the food truck with $12 chicken and waffles.. I fucking hate hipsters......

[@royals1231]

@@joherold hahahaha y'all just jealous, why would you guys care.

[@mreddyfeelgood]

@@royals1231 because they think they are alpha but they still dont have any beard. Indeed they are jealous.

[@alexanderleeart]

this shit just isn't the same in the US, it looks so much cooler with an actual medieval wall in the background

[@brianho2859]

Chivalry isn't dead!

[@dovahkiin1786]

The thing that veteran said was the most beautiful thing I've ever heard.

[@thramagen]

how did they kill people wearing suits of armor back then

[@KeggersMcKeagney]

a lot of the time they actually didn't, a decent chunk of combat was about incapacitating the enemy and then ransoming him back to his family!

[@thramagen]

Dara McKeagney how nice of them

[@pirateman5]

specifically if you had a sword you could use the half swording technique to help you attack the joints in an opponents armour, or by grabbing the blade of your sword and striking them with the cross guard to cause a concussion or break bones, or hook them with the guard and grappel them to the ground, but you could also use a club, warhammer or mace to beat your opponent into submission then take off his helmet and stab him in the face with a dagger

[@falloutftw216]

They also mainly used blunt weapons in battle, such as maces, which would do far more damage against plate armour than a sword. Lots of broken skulls and the like.

[@drummer2177]

Also, they do not allow piercing weapons (for obvious reasons).

[@lukebutler7112]

A lot of the soundtrack is by a French band called Yussuf Jerusalem. They have two great albums.

[@BucketPukes1969]

Badass fighting, good music. Vice did something right

[@BucketPukes1969]

Then again it was vice France. Hahh

[@BucketPukes1969]

+skeeter sorenson as in vice America is hipsterville

[@BucketPukes1969]

+overthrow beartrap can't tell, either one. Sorry mate

[@Doctoberfest]

Me: "This looks pretty fun but idk if I could get that into it" Sees dude chugging Rumpleminz at 9:02 Me: "Oh yeah I could get into it"

[@ZURATAMA1324]

Just curious. I am well aware that in medieval times, women did not fight on the battlefield except for highly desperate/unusual circumstances. Hell, I even hear that Joan of Ark was pretty much a symbolic figure than a fighter. But I don't get why the competition is not open to women. It's... just a recreational sport. Nobody really gets hurt and there are no nations on stake like real warfare. BTW, If there is a safety concern that specially apples for women, I'd understand.

[@Makrelacz]

ZURATAMA1324 I think there is a women category since 2015 (all vs all), but it's not for everyone. It's very brutal sport as you can see.

[@ZURATAMA1324]

Makrelacz Thanks, mate.

[@Grouuumpf]

+ZURATAMA1324 there were a few women in 2014 already, and has Makrelacz said, it seems they've opened it to women this year. But even if women are allowed, there probably never be as many as guys, considering the muscle mass necessary to wear those armors. For the safety concerns, I don't think they differ from men, they probably just don't need the cockpiece. I've met a woman in the belgian team, and she used an armor borrowed to one of the guys if i recall correctly. luckily, she's kinda like Brien of Tarth, size wise

[@mxfng]

Because women are generally smart enough to refrain from subjecting themselves to the same testosterone fueled foolishness

[@MovieHound17]

+ZURATAMA1324 because woman aren't stupid beings fighting on baser urges.

[@lxxwie9407]

He looked like Shrek after he got dressed.

[@futuregreatestpresidentale1221]

Looks fun, but that music is annoying as fuck. And did a guy at 8:40 seriously use a poleaxe? Someone's gonna get killed.

[@surfergirl0519]

My husband uses a poleaxe. The armour that each person wears must be inspected and deemed to be suitable to withstand blows from authorized weapons. Thus far there have been no critical injuries and far less than most other sports.

[@futuregreatestpresidentale1221]

surfergirl0519 I see. I thought heavy weapons like that would be off-limits.

[@FRANKBLACK2]

***** "anti armour weapons" nop. Poleaxe is not anti armour especially if used as a bashing implement. He's using it like a big axe rather than a polearm. Crush damage over stab damage.

[@NewYorkKnightsCombat1]

Using a polearm like a "big axe" is a very effective method of crushing armor and the person inside it. That's why poleaxes are shaped like...well...axes. If the weapons that hit me in the head and put deep dents in my 14 ga stainless-steel helmet were sharp I would have died out there.

[@FRANKBLACK2]

then don't let them have sharp ones? sounds fair enough to me

[@Aeternuss]

Vive le Québec libre

[@satanaze7]

De tout coeur avec vous amis Québécois! Je suis Belge francophone et je sais ce que c'est d'être la minorité linguistique d'un pays ;)

[@itsthatsebguy93]

Rather than going to war; we should do this.

[@Aron-ru5zk]

iBeer420noscope rather than going to war we should go to war like it's the 15th century?

[@misaka3468]

@@Aron-ru5zk with zero deaths

[@jakeservo7178]

I can't imagine breaking a bone there during a match, it must hurt like all fuck when having to get out of all that armor. That's honestly the one thing that kind of sketches me out about trying this =P

[@LeisuresuitAndy]

I really liked VICE from the beginning. The subjects in last couple of months were not interesting for me. I almost lost faith in VICE... This though is something i really like. Thank you for sharing the information.

[@jty9631]

It's an interesting sport! But it's hard to get into because it's deeply connected to the medieval re-enactment stuff. I think it's cool if someone wants to fly colors from their own family line that was used in ancient times. But it's totally weird to see everyone running around dressed like they wish it were a different era they lived in. I like the armor, I like the fighting, but I don't like the medieval stuff. I feel they could try to separate the two a bit. With maybe just light medieval stuff. I think they could rethink this further and come up with a very interesting modern combat sport. But somehow I think this is more about the re-enactment than the sport. So it's probably unlikely the sport would ever become it's own thing separate from medieval re-enactment.

[@vaiteastokes9784]

Julius Rivers no

[@peaceyteavo]

This is so cool

[@jonnyswab12]

@ 2:01 - 2:03 - The shoes he's putting on look much more comfortable than those Dr. Martins he was wearing before.

[@AyatollahS9430]

DAAMM EUROPE!! YOU SCARY!!!

[@garywhite3255]

When your man servant would finish helping you get the armor on he would say "now sir you are dressed to kill." I love the shit!

[@bairdey1140]

This is mad entertaining

[@Cheezus]

oo, the bit about the marines and spetsnaz was cute

[@Bigdicus]

Best sport ever

[@hajabakala]

This was alot better than the American version, you actually talked to someone else than just the americans, and you were there to see what they do when the fighting is over.

[@LAGARTOKID]

"Woman are not permitted on combat, this makes it the best sport on earth." Hell no

[@RomyIlano]

I'm not even sure if this is Europe or some kind of multinational thing but when Europe does Europe it can really do Europe well!

[@konstantinn.9846]

Seems like a lot of fun! Well done Vice. Also, my russian comrads didn't let me down :)

[@epicsandwich123]

I can't believe that American guy. He genuinely said 'I'm a big deal'

[@albinotatertot]

He said; "No I'm a United States marine, big deal." I don't think he was calling himself a "big deal", but rather explaining that the difference between a marine and an army soldier is a big deal...

[@SliC3oFicE]

Richard browne You don't call a marine, army. You also don't call army, a marine.

[@NewYorkKnightsCombat1]

Richard browne He may have meant it in one of two different ways. He said "I'm a Unitd States Marine. Big Deal." That could either mean that it was a big deal TO HIM to be a US marine, or else he was being subtly sarcastic, meaning that it's not really a big deal to be a marine, he is a member of the team and a participant of this sport. It doesn't matter that you are a marine, a soldier, a cop, a baker, a lawyer, or a comic book artist. I've heard him express such sentiments before). I know the guy. I will ask him.

[@epicsandwich123]

Guys I apologise. I must have misheard him the first time around as I have a tendency of doing.

[@documentaries2206]

Much better than MMA!

[@PillNye]

That outfit is equal to $800 Canadian....yeah no thank you😂

[@MegaRadomstuff]

Don't tell me this doesn't look like fun

[@primoshunter]

This looks so FUCKING AWESOME!!! It might be the inner nerd in me talking but this just seems like a good ol time for a bunch of people from a bunch of different countries to get to gether, fight, and have drinks. Can anyone tell me if it's ok to go to this if I don't speak french? I can wait until I learn but I really would like to go this year.

[@OdinMMA]

This looks brilliant. All team sports are just recreations of combat anyway, why not have the real thing?!

[@david-barna]

How surreal would it be if we could see HD footage of an actual medieval battle.

[@BucketPukes1969]

My question is, is there Scandinavian Viking teams?

[@mingolaflare6224]

I saw a Danish flag but no Vikings :/

[@Aron-ru5zk]

Viking armour wouldn't be protective enough science the best technology they had in the Viking era would be chainmail and a helmet that protects the top of their head This is about 400 years after the vikings settled

[@barp94]

Too late, vikings had virtually no armour

[@npfazy]

Can we just take a moment at 8:43 to acknowledge this man

[@pusillirex]

USA, sorry but the only thing you're not good at is medieval battle Leave it to the ancient nations !

[@napoleonboneabark6960]

They went to the finals.

[@josephstalin7248]

Russia is the best team

[@pusillirex]

I thought this will be a sport without men shouting "USA, USA, USA"

[@ProtomanButCallMeBlues]

There really were people shouting "USA,USA,USA"

[@Hazztech]

T.J. Payeur no it isn't....

[@Urbansurviving]

Russian here. I like this one! Vice thank you. Lets solve our problems this way not the way of War

[@Petey0707]

I'd love a time capsule to see how these battles really unfolded. This is cool but seems unorganized and silly.

[@omeganism]

+eluxsus0195684 Probably because their goal in this video is to just pummel and hurt each other to the ground rather than kill. If killing was meant to be, then there would be less of swinging and hacking, and more stabbing.

[@Zedd0z]

There were also a lot less armor back in those battles. Having full-plate armor like the guys in this video was super expensive and almost exclusively used by knights and nobles which was a very small percentage in terms of soldiers. When it came to the big clashes between infinity i think it would be a terrifying sight, many people slipping in mud and getting trampled down. Screams of horror, pain and death mixed with stink of feces, piss and blood/gore. It would most likely be so tight of space that you couldn't swing your weapon properly, and the occasional one on one fights would only lasts a couple of seconds until one of you that got stabbed/slashed would have to bleed to death or choke in the mud while people step on you. It would be really fascinating to watch a real historical battle unfold, sure, but i would not want to watch one up close i think.

[@timrthoward7007]

+Zedd0z too much detail

[@Zedd0z]

TimRT Howard huh?

[@user-ve9cs7ee6x]

Funny how you guys made a documentary about this. Just started doing HEMA and I was watching Battle Of The Nations the other day.

[@zaboobebop]

its a shame no asian countries were there

[@matthewmccurry6567]

+Buk Lau Technically Russia is Asian

[@zaboobebop]

other than russia

[@matthewmccurry6567]

+Buk Lau I think Japan and China are getting a team for 2016's competition

[@zaboobebop]

china would be pretty cool!

[@maniacbanana9431]

+Buk Lau china is in IMCF which is p[ractically the same thing, the other teams even have the same people in them

[@JifftasticGhozt]

Oh fuck they beat the shit out of that reporter. Amazing episode!

[@xanderhebert6257]

Even though I was born and raised in America, I’m a member of the Hebert family whose roots can be traced to the first apothecary to settle Quebec so I think I should be on that team.

[@murphysmuskets]

As cool as this is I cant help but think,... Europeans look down on America for gun ownership yet something like this is totally ok???

[@psyssi]

Two purely different issues. This is a sport, and gun ownership is a "right".

[@WindmillStalker]

Because consenting adults engaging in a violent sport is totally the same as having a gun in every nightstand because you're afraid of your own fucking government. Brilliant analogy there, murphey. Top notch work. *facepalms hard*

[@Flourikum]

Well 1) guns have range while most of the weapons shown come no where close to that range and 2) if you are the one who gets in the ring no one is held reliable for what occurs to you because you thought it would be fun. There is a difference between having everyone able to carry a gun and being a possible threat vs. blaringly obvious armored men/women ready to kick someone else armored ass.

[@DoubleDCharmin]

***** so do rocks, your point?

[@murphysmuskets]

WindmillStalker A weapon is a weapon. Without guns Swords and bows are the next best thing. There are probably more shooting sports in America than anything like this in all the world.

[@painfall]

This is a mans dream to fight in battles like these.

[@aleksi503]

Virginity oozes over this damn place.

[@tristanszymanski5562]

Ehhh most of the guys there are either married or have girlfriends, the USA team is mostly full of middle aged men in their thirties and forties.

[@Rahab111222]

Speak for yourself, dweeb.

[@aleksi503]

Lou Skunt Quite frankly, nope. Tristan Szymanski You can be middle aged and still a virgin. These mates seem to be.

[@Robin-kp1nv]

aleksi503 You'd have to try hard to be a virgin Marine.

[@kevinkirk6442]

Where did all of those women and kids in the video come from? I used to do this stuff back in the US, before I moved to Europe. I have 4 kids and 1 ex wife. Lots of women still like seeing men beat the snot out of other men. REAL women, that actually have kids, like real men.

[@SolemnFlight]

Awesome story! This would be definitely worth the trip. By any chance will Vice cover Dagorhir's Ragnarok XXX in June 2015 at Slippery Rock, PA?

[@vinylzinc8456]

DEUS VULT