Article by Diane Hamments

Swords, the Noblest of Weapons.

Of all the different weapons that are in use today, and of all the different weapons that have existed throughout history, swords are by far the noblest. Yes, swords are brutally effective weapons. But they are far more than that.

In the past, reigning monarchs and members of royal families, members of the nobility and various other prestigious men, all carried swords not just as weapons, but as a traditional, highly visible sign of their status. Even today, swords and their close relatives – such as scimitars – continue to be a cross-cultural signal of high achievement or high social status.

In the military, swords were, and still are, traditionally carried only by commisioned officers and, in some cases, mounted cavalrymen. Swords are used to cut, thrust, strike and slash, and they have the longest reach of any edged weapon. During the Middle Ages, any knight considered his sword to be his most important weapon, and with the possible exception of his horse, probably the most important possession he owned. The edged weapons carried by rank and file foot soldiers, usually knives, dirks or daggers, were much smaller than swords and much less deadly, with much shorter blades. These smaller bladed weapons were also much less prestigious to carry and conveyed no signal of the bearer’s social status.

Sword Nomenclature.

A sword consists of a very long single-edged or double-edged blade and an attached hilt, which is a collective term that includes the pommel, the grip and a simple or elaborate guard. The swords of some cultures use straight blades, while other cultures designed swords or sword-type weapons with slightly curved blades. But the basic underlying design of all swords is remarkably uniform. Swords are typically carried while sheathed in protective leather or metal scabbards that are attached to the waist. Swords that are intended to be used as weapons are usually quite utilitarian and are not elaborately decorated as are many ceremonial swords.

Swords in War and in Peace, Past and Present.

Swords have been used as weapons since time immemorial, in hundreds of different cultures and in just about every region of the world. Throughout the passage of time, weaponry swords have been made of bronze, iron and steel (later, tempered steel) and, as noted above, these types of swords were designed for killing efficiency rather than beauty.

But in addition to being used as coldly efficient weapons of war, swords have also been used for ceremonial purposes for at least one thousand years. And although they are no longer used as actual weapons, they continue to be used ceremonially. Swords play an important role in some military weddings and in certain military rituals, and they still are part of a commissioned officer’s dress uniform. The investiture of a knight (being “dubbed” a knight) traditionally was, and still is, performed by the man being touched on the shoulder with the flat of the sword of his monarch or lord. Swords are even used by Masons during certain Masonic rituals and ceremonies.

Ceremonial swords are most often made of gold or sterling silver, and their blades and scabbards are often very elaborately engraved or inscribed. Sometimes the sword guard and/or the scabbard are bejeweled.

Traditional swords, sabres, rapiers, cutlasses and scimitars. Swords that were used in mortal combat, such as Japanese Samurai Katana swords, and ceremonial swords such Masonic swords. They all have a noble past, and they all signify tradition and prestige.

While shopping around for swords, knifes, and daggers, you might have come across some weapon smiths that claim their swords as “highest quality” or “the best made”. These claims might have some basis, however it doesn’t hurt to define a set of criteria by which you determine quality.

Part of our Sword buyers Guide goal, is to help people to not get cheated into purchasing what’s actually not a sword but an over-ambitious kitchen knife, or just a simple display peice! Swords and knives differ in what’s expected out of them. A sword is most definitely not a longer knife, and people who merely approach it that way may be selling you something no better than a Taiwanese replica piece of junk! Which I even freely admit we do sell here at The Captains Trunk are mostly DISPLAY Only pieces. But we are always increasing our inventory, so check in with us often.

However as there are so many factors that determine quality, we wanted to give you a very cursory breakdown of a few things to get you started.

Metallurgy of Metal Used

First of all, anything made of stainless steel cannot be considered a real sword but a display sword. Anyone selling you stainless steel as a real sword needs to understand that stainless blades are molecularly brittle and cannot take nearly the same punishment as the swords of old, regardless of the steel coming from Toledo of Spain or any other historical landmark.

Modern metallurgy has had incredible advances. Steels of different metallurgies have different designations, but they are all generally simple alloys or “low alloy” high carbon steel.

Let’s take stainless steel for example. It’s generally very high in chromium which acts as a grain enhancer but weakens the molecular bonds – definitely not a weakness you want in a sword!

On the other hand, 5160 steel is used much in truck springs and has proven itself as a sword that can give as much as it can get. Other steels that are used for, say, higher end Japanese katanas might be made from forge welded cable steel, or from the AISI 10xx series such as 1050, 1084, 1095, etc. which are metallurgically similar (though with differences) with traditional Japanese steel sources. L6 is a steel that is currently the talk of the town, with incredible performance being reported. In the case of Japanese swords, the steel must be able to be clay tempered to create a real temper line (or “hamon”) which is something high alloy steels cannot do.

Some smiths have used O1, D2, or A2 for swords. These are in the tool steel category, and can serve as functional swords. But if you want the same beautiful aesthetics as a real Japanese sword temper line, you’re out of luck unless the smith knows a special technique to achieve this.

Quality

Another thing of importance is the quality of the source of steel itself. How so? Many swords manufactured in the Philippines and other third world countries such as India and Pakistan may use “spring steel”. These are in fact recycled springs from tanks or trucks. While in America the cost of new 5160 steel is quite low, the recycling of truck springs could present a problem. Often times, recycled spring steel is not processed properly; the process of treating the steel takes some skill, but third world countries have been known to cut corners. This results in “memory” in the steel which may cause the steel to stress and want to revert to its original grain direction. Also, without proper annealing and normalization, the steel can suffer micro-crystaline cracks. Thus, over a period of time, this can cause “cracking” along the grain boundaries as the sword is subjected to stress and shock. The result is that swords can eventually break if they are not made correctly.

Thus, be very careful when purchasing swords. Find out what country they are made with. Observe the sales pitch. “Live steel” or “Spring Steel” or just “High Carbon Steel” can be either incomplete or misleading information depending on how its presented. This is not to say that steel from recycled sources are bad. Some of the best Japanese style swords have been made from anything from forge welded cables to Russian anchor iron. It’s how the steel is recycled and retreated for the sword.

Heat Treating

The goal of heat treating is to achieve an ideal balance between toughness and hardness – qualities which are inversely proportional to one another! Toughness has to do with impact absorption and shock tolerance, while hardness has to do with cutting and edge-holding capability. Too soft, and your sword gets cut into. Too hard and the sword is too brittle.

Poor heat treating can totally ruin a sword. It’s amazing how some businesses or websites boast about the quality of the steel but speak very little about how a sword was heat treated. If there is no mention, and the sword retailer or reseller cannot comment on the heat treat, and if the sword is US0 or under, then chances are your sword may not perform as well as a sword made by a smith who paid particular attention to maximizing the performance of the blade.

In the case of Japanese swords, the edge is harder for cutting durability, while the back of the blade is softer to withstand the stresses of combat (though the Samurai tried to kill with single blows and avoid blade-to-blade contact altogether!)

If you don’t heat treat it right, initially, it might not survive the final water quench and end up crack. Some cracks are very obvoius, and some are very fine. The fine ones can grow larger over time in some cases.

Some Renaissance Faire interpretations of, say, the Japanese sword, are – to say the least – pitiful. They do not have a hardened edge and softer spine like traditional Japanese swords do – which is a magnificent marriage between toughness and hardness – a result of extra careful heat treating. They are merely selling a curved bar of steel with a sharp point and a sharp edge which do not require as much work!

Weight and Balance

Even if some have a good concept of the first two points, some sword makers don’t have any concept with how a sword should feel. The best thing to do is to discretely ask the sword maker his philosophy on approaching a blade design. Dean Piesner, a sword maker in St. Jacobs, Ontario, Canada, relates that he first determines with the customer what the intended use of the blade – and its intended target is. These factors – including the person’s physical measurements – come into play in the resulting sword design. A sword made to cut armor will differ in design than a sword designed to just cut through flesh. Historically, the Japanese sword had differences in balancing thickness and blade width, and adding fullers (or grooves – not “blood grooves”) to lighten the blades in some cases.

A large blade needn’t be all that heavy, as a result of balancing all these factors. Thus the ability to craft a weapon that satisfies (and exceeds) the parameters of its intended use is a tremendous blessing. In short, a sword does not have to be heavy, contrary to some people’s belief. In fact, a heavy sword can undermine maneuverability, and in a life or death situation I would bet my life on a well balanced and ligher sword that was made with the aforementioned qualities (Points 1, 2, and 3).

Swordmakers of yesteryear constantly worked with fencing masters, etc. in a synergistic relationship which provided constant feedback of how a sword was made. The sword was made for man. Thus a smith without this kind of support is hindered from providing a product that can serve as a weapon. Otherwise you have a wall-hanger or decorative piece.

Beware of swords that are over 3 lbs. Some decorative swords are 5 to 10 lbs. which is as heavy as a weight-training dumbbell. In olden times, a sword of that incredible weight would get you killed by someone else’s sword!

Design and Aesthetics

Some say, “Who cares how it looks, so long as it’s functional?” However, the sword of ancient times have their own artistic elegance which cannot be denied. While not all swords are ornate or detailed with gold, silver, or gems, the fact remains that there is a balance, again, between sword design and aesthetics, ranging from swept hilt rapiers to Italian schiavonas to Scottish basket hilt broardswords.

A fuller, for example, may in some swords be joined by one or more smaller fullers. The effect looks decorative, but the lighter sword suffers no compromises in strength. If you imagine the diamond-like cross section of a sword and picture a fuller on either side of the blade, a fuller basically creates two spines. The spine serves as a backbone of support for a blade.

Modern day swordmakers who make ugly weapons perhaps can benefit from a study of historical weapons. Some Western-interpretations of the Japanese katana are indeed pitiful in appearance. The handles are not of wood, as was the tradition, but is basically the tang made thicker, and then wrapped around with an appoximation (or an attempt) of a traditional wrap, and then “frozen” with epoxy. One person related to me, “They do that because they just don’t know how to make a proper handle and wrap the thing properly!” Interestingly, they boast about the functional aspects of the sword to detract you from looking at the poor aesthetics.

At one knife show, someone showed me his “katana” and boasted about it, indicating four different Rockwell hardness readings, from edge to two mid-points and finally the spine. He was very pleased with himself at the differential heat treat he achieved. But what is it made of? “Stainless steel.” Ah. Bu-bye.

And if you’re approaching someone to make a Japanese style katana, it’s worth studying the actual geometry of a Japanese blade. A katana blade, if you study it carefully, is beautiful because of its wonderous temper line, its grain (which comes from forging and not stock removal or grinding) and the geometry of the blade. People who make curved bars of steel with sharp edges and sharp points have entirely missed the point of the katana and have inadvertently made the sword heavier (this is one serious problem I have with many Renaissance Faire interpretations of katanas.) The attention to detail of the facets of a traditional Japanese blade given by traditional sword polishers is an immense discipline of many years of study and should not be flippantly overlooked!

Another thing to take into account is the hilt. The hilt comprises the guard, the handle, and the pommel. While the pommel is mostly seen as the counterweight to the blade, the hilt has to be seen as a whole. This, in turn, has to be factored in with the previous Point regarding weight and balance. Many fantasy swords have the wildest hilts in the world, and yet the hilts are so heavy that the sword makes no sense as a weapon.

For the handle, I find that certain wire wraps are very comfortable, while certain others will absolutely tear your skin off or give you blisters. Certain leather grips are good, but some others may give your hand a hard time. Those “katanas” which are, say, parachute chord over the handle/tang can be uncomfortable to the hand by virtue that you’re trying to grip a flat rectangular bar of steel and not a more ergonomic rounder handle that a wood-carved handle can give you.

Adherence to Tradition

There is a reason why swords were made the way they were. They’ve come from many years and generations of painstaking research, trial and effort. Certain designs worked and certain ones didn’t. Consider the Japanese katana and how it maintained its general shape throughout the centuries!

There is a saying that if we don’t study from history we are bound to repeat its mistakes. I personally admire the swordmakers who approach museums and private collections of historical antique swords and research how they were made, their construction and their balance.

My personal feeling is that modern technology should generally only enhance and not replace the overall creation of the sword. For example, certain metals or techniques or tools can aid and help deliver a better performing product and improve consistency of quality. Swordmaking is as much an art as it is a science, and perhaps a way of life.

Recreations of historical swords should, at the very least, match the functionality of the original. Some modern pieces may not duplicate the ornate decorative features of the original sword as closely as the originals were, so as to maintain affordability and lower cost. The degree of decoration does not necessarily guarantee a more battleworthy sword.

In the case of Japanese swords, creating a Western implementation where it’s a contiguous bar of steel and wrapped either with an approximation of a handle wrap, or just strung with parachute chord, etc. are strictly Western interpretations and don’t truly qualify as “katanas”. Devoted schools of tradition feel these sword should not even be marketed as katanas but as “katanas” because so much work has been bypassed in making such a sword. Smiths of ancient Japan have been known to sit at the feet of their masters for at least a decade learning the craft of sword making. Claims by smiths today – who have bypassed the painstaking processes – and claim superior performance are debatable and should be taken with a grain of salt. Do you want a sharp bar of steel, or do you want a real sword?

Conclusion

Finally, does the sword feel like it is a part of you – an extension of yourself? Is its use awkward to your own natural body movements or does its use appear intuitive? While these are debatable and subjective qualities, I feel these are a good start for a beginner. If a sword maker has satisfied the aforementioned points, the quality of their work compared with that of others following the same criteria will be – not identical – but within the same ballpark. There will always be room for new discoveries and new methods and approaches to forging and design. A smith that achieves the aforementioned points and yet is actively researching ways to improve quality is probably worth your attention. Dean Piesner says, “It’s not the final product that is the art but rather the process itself.”

To find high quality swords, knives, daggers and more online goto: www.thecaptainstrunk.com

ok guys wanan make another thing clear. i love my brother. and am not blaming anything on his autism. i just put it on here because people keep asking. i think my brother is amazing. and would never do anything to hurt him(((EDIT: since people dont like to read comments i need to make a few things straight one, im a girl, two im the one who recorded this vid. three he has autism (high functioning autism. heres a link to a wiki page about aspergers. en.wikipedia.org )) so stop asking if hes handicap. four, he knows he need to lose weight so stop commenting about it or your comment will be deleted))) my brother practicing his sword techniques to show a teacher so he can teach him. hes pretty good. and would like from critique from anyone. please dont be mean. we allow all constructive criticism. hope you enjoy
Video Rating: 4 / 5

Tarot Card: Two of Swords
Deck: Rider Waite
Description: You are ignoring your true feelings.

Interpretations for love and relationships: The right keyword for the upright Two of Swords tarot card is ignorance. In a relationship situation, it implies that the facts are right in front of the two lovers, but they are intentionally pretending to not see them. Now you have to be careful in understanding in how you interpret these facts. Consider the red flags you have in the relationship. Are you sure they are not such a big deal for you? Think twice. If you cannot still see them then it can be because of the intense love you have for your partner. Yes, you are so crazy about him that you are failing to see if any way the relationship is hurting you psychologically. Basically, that is what Two of Swords sums up. If you still have not understood the meaning of Two of Swords then lets look at an example. Imagine that a hunk approaches you. He asks you out on a date and you simply say yes. During the date session, you find out that many female passers by give him seductive looks which he wholeheartedly accepts with a seductive smile. This allows you to understand that this man is somewhat of a player, but he is so cute that you tell yourself that you are ready to forget about what he is doing and continue to date him anyway. By doing this, you are basically representing the Two of Swords features.

Additionally, Two of Swords can appear for a person who is refusing to say that he loves or likes you. The truth is that deep down inside he feels for you, but he just does not wish to let it rule his heart. Interestingly, Two of Swords can often pop up in readings of lovers who went through a breakup. A year ago, I did a reading for a girl whose boyfriend broke up with her on the phone all of a sudden. They were a happy couple. It is just that he got jealous of the fact that she became the apple of his parents’ eyes. Coming back to the reading, when I asked the tarot cards as to what he was feeling towards her the Two of Swords showed up. The card basically implied to us that the guy was so taken by all the negativity and self-love that he was telling himself that he did not want her anymore. But somehow the pain of the breakup was piercing him. Now a point to be noted is that swords are governed by the air element which is instable in nature. So the kind of thoughts that Two of Swords create are taken as variable. Perhaps, that is why, my client’s boyfriend after two months renewed his relationship with her! 

In reversed position, Two of Swords talks of bringing the pain to the surface. In a relationship situation, you just have had enough. So you can no longer go forward without doing the ultimate talk with your partner about what is bothering you in the relationship. Unfortunately, this might lead to some yelling and screaming! That is why, many tarot card readers see Two of Swords as symbol of argument. 

In love readings, Two of Swords reversed, implies that your love interest has come in touch with his true feelings for you. For a post breakup situation, it shows fading of all negative elements from the mind. In other words, hurtful feelings are gone. So it is possible for the lover to revive the past relationship or simply start moving on towards another direction.

For love and relationships, you may also like: Magician   High Priestess   Empress and Emperor   Hierophant   Lovers   Chariot and Strength    Justice   Hanged Man and Death   Temperance   Devil   Tower   Star   Moon   Sun  Judgement   World  Fool

Ace and Two of Wands   Three and Four of Wands   Five and Six of Wands   Seven and Eight of Wands   Nine and Ten of Wands   Page of Wands   Knight of Wands   King of Wands   Queen of Wands

Ace of Cups   Two of Cups   Three of Cups   Four of Cups   Five and Six of Cups   Seven of Cups   Eight of Cups   Nine and Ten of Cups   Page and Knight of Cups   King of Cups   Queen of Cups

Ace of Swords Two of Swords   Three of Swords    Four of Swords   Five of Swords   Six of Swords   Seven of Swords   Eight of Swords   Nine of Swords   Ten of Swords  Page of Swords   Knight of Swords   King of Swords   Queen of Swords

Ace of Pentacles   Two of Pentacles   Three of Pentacles   Four of Pentacles   Five of Pentacles   Six of Pentacles   Seven of Pentacles  Eight of Pentacles   Nine of Pentacles   Ten of Pentacles   Page of Pentacles   Knight of Pentacles  King and Queen of Pentacles

Cold Steel Two Handed Great Sword. For a FREE color catalog and DVD visit us at www.coldsteel.com *All the meats utilized in this video was carefully preserved and donated to the Ventura County Rescue Mission.
Video Rating: 4 / 5

Related Swords Articles

Now, I don’t know about you, but for me a good weapon is a very accurate and automatic. Mainly because they are very effective at close combat.

Weapons that I would say are recommended:

M4A1 Custom:
The perfect stealth weapon, equipped with a silencer and a scope similar to a sniper. Personally I don’t like the normal M4A1 that much, despite its high accuracy and power. This modified version of the popular M4a1 will be effective against any enemy.

RPK:

Perfect for mutation mode, lots of ammo, and tons of damage done. It is super effective against mutants. Only downside is the high cost. I prefer this over the Gatling gun because of its faster reload and no need for startup turns. This weapon can help push back mutants as whenever they get hit they will fly backwards. Did you know if you deal 2000 damage you get awarded one kill point.

AWM:

Snipers only work on low lag servers, if you have 100+ lag, than completely forgot about sniping since its pointless sniping an enemy who moves faster than you. Oh yeah, if you use a sniper, don’t let anyone come close, snipers in close combat are sitting ducks. An alternative to the AWM is a Dragon OV which has a faster reload and a larger clip. The disadvantage about it compared to the AWM is that it deals less damage and is less accurate (crouch for optimal aim).

Ster Aug:

This weapon is perfect for medium distance combat, due to it’s scope. This weapon has a quite high fire power and is very accurate. Just for a little note, the upgraded models aren’t exactly as good, so stick to the origianal.

Desert Eagle (aka Night Hawk)

This is the ultimate pistol, hit an enemy (100 HP ones obviously) and you can deal over half their HP in damage. The major downside of this weapon is its small clips and low total ammo. A hit in the chest alone can cause 70 damage. This is the best combo with a sniper rifle.

Anaconda:

Although the anaconda looks old, it is probably the second most powerful pistol after the Deagle (Desert Eagle). It’s fast reload and high power makes it optimal for close combat. It may not be too accurate, but it will kill your enemy in a few shots normally. This weapon also like the Deagle has very low ammo capacity.

More Automatic Weapons Articles

Most people understand that it is legal to purchase and possess firearms for personal protection and hunting, but many do not know where the line is drawn between legal and illegal weapons and the laws regarding possession.

It is important to know the specific laws in your state and realize that weapons possession laws may vary depending on location. If an individual is apprehended while carrying an unlawful weapon, he or she may face serious criminal charges. Depending on the type of weapon and the person’s criminal history the charges may be very serious or relatively minor.

Weapons that may be considered unlawful include automatic weapons, sawed-off shotguns, items that have been modified to become a dangerous weapon, hollow-point bullets, switchblades, butterfly knives, brass knuckles, and other types of items that have been deemed too dangerous for public use. If a person is found to be in possession with such objects, he or she can be charged with illegal weapons possession.

Many people do not realize that although some types of guns and other items may be legal to possess in the safety of your own home, some types of handguns and other weapons may be illegal to carry on certain types of property. Government buildings, schools, establishments that sell and serve liquor, and certain public buildings may be off-limits to persons who are in possession of weapons.

Places that prohibit the carrying of licensed handguns typically post signs warning of their requirements and the potential criminal charges that may come with ignoring such warnings. It is important that individuals pay attention to such signage and follow the rules regarding locations that are off-limits to persons carrying weapons.

If you have been accused of carrying an illegal or unauthorized weapon, you have the right to defend yourself in a court of law. The penalties for carrying unlicensed or unauthorized weapons often range from fines and probation to license revocation and incarceration. It is important to know the laws in your state and to consult an experienced criminal defense attorney if you are accused of such crimes.

If you would like to know more about weapons possession and criminal defense, visit the website of the Milwaukee criminal defense lawyers of Kohler & Hart, LLP.

Joseph Devine

BY MICHAEL WEBSTER: Syndicated Investigative Reporter Dec 17, 2008 at 4:00 PM PST.

Early this month U.S. Border Patrol agents from the Tucson, Ariz. sector and agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement were again fired upon with what appeared to be military type automatic weapons by Mexican drug smugglers dressed in military garb. Agents after observing a Flatbed tow truck on the Mexican side of the U.S. Mexican border backed up to the new international border fence. According to witnesses the tow truck backed up on a newly constructed earthen dirt berm which put the truck almost even with the height of the fence. The tow truck operator slowly unloaded two trucks laden with marijuana over the 18 ft. high fence to the U.S. side of the border. The entire episode was caught on the remote camera surveillance system and watched by U.S. predator and National Guard camera operators who were able to coordinate Border Patrol field agents to the scene. Shortly after arriving several Border Patrol agents came under fire after chasing and stopping the drug smugglers two vehicles near Douglas, Ariz.

According to the Border Patrol, agents observed two large trucks, a Chevrolet Avalanche and a Ford F150 using the tow truck ramp to cross over the border fence. While using a remote camera surveillance system, camera operators were able to coordinate field agents to intercept the trucks. As agents got close, the trucks turned south and attempted to flee back to the border. Agents were able to deploy a tire deflation device and successfully deflated the tires of both trucks stopping them just north of the international boundary fence. A third vehicle was spotted south of the border fence where a subject was observed firing an automatic rifle in the direction of the agents. Several additional subjects with weapons were seen climbing over the fence and they began unloading marijuana from the Chevy Avalanche. The individuals were seen throwing numerous bundles of marijuana back into Mexico. As agents were able to form a security perimeter around the Ford F150, the smugglers set fire to the Avalanche and absconded back into Mexico. Agents were able to secure the Ford F150 and inside the vehicle they discovered 1,158 pounds of marijuana with an estimated street value of million.

Registration checks were run on the Ford F150 and agents discovered the vehicle was reported stolen out of Douglas, Ariz. Mexican law enforcement was contacted but at this time no arrests have been made or expected.

An official close to the investigation tells the Laguna Journal that agents did not return fire when they were fired upon. Later an agent who wants to remain anonymous says many Border Patrol agents are fearful of losing there job or worse being arrested should they return fire particularly since the Ramos and Compean case. “These men are still in prison for doing what many of us think was just doing their jobs as Border Patrol Agents.

In a similar incident last month Border Patrol agents from the San Diego sector seized nearly a ton of marijuana and seized two vehicles after agents spotted two vehicles jump over the border fence also using a ramp system, five miles east of Tecate, Calif.

San Diego Chief Patrol Agent Michael J. Fisher commented, “This significant drug seizure exemplifies smugglers’ disregard for our laws and the safety of the general public. The Border Patrol’s mission includes securing our Nation’s borders and preventing dangerous drugs from reaching our streets.”

 Mexican solders on the U.S. side of the Border.

In the past the Laguna Journal reported locals said they have witnessed, not far from this tow truck incident on the Mexican side of the border a big yellow crane that they refer to as a cherry picker it was seen lifting several vehicles, one at a time up and over the fence and put down gently on the American side. These witnesses say they believe those vehicles were loaded with drugs. There are also many reports from locals seeing armed Mexican solders operating on both sides of the international border and they believe the Mexican army is being used by the Mexican drug cartels to escort and protect drug runners, human smugglers and gun runners and they say they have reported these activities to the authorities.

There are many reports of Mexican troops being spotted on our side of the border and just as many we never hear of. Seven members of the Mexican military were found inside the United States recently, telling border agents they had become disoriented while on patrol and accidentally crossed into the country, the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol said.

The incident began when the Border Patrol’s Yuma, Arizona, sector was notified that a military-style Hummer was broken down, Customs and Border Patrol said in a written statement.

Agents said they found the vehicle about 200 yards from the Colorado River, and the seven individuals were dressed in military-style clothing. Customs and Border Patrol later determined that the troops’ entry was unauthorized.

U.S. agents told the Mexican troops they were inside the United States and took them into custody, the statement said.

“This is not an uncommon occurrence,” Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colorado, said, “Often times, it is the result of the Mexican military providing cover essentially for drug transportation across into our country, and/or creating a diversion so it will draw our people away from the place where the drugs are coming across.”

In August, the Border Patrol said Mexican troops had crossed the border illegally 42 times since October 2007.

Tancredo said the U.S. State Department lodged a complaint with the Mexican government for the first time over these and other military incursions. Attempts where made by this reporter to contact the State Department and the Mexican government those efforts were unsuccessful. Nor did they return our calls.

Secretary Michael Chertoff said last month that attacks on agents were an “unhappy” consequence of heightened enforcement. According to the latest figures available the Border Patrol said its agents were attacked 1,097 times during the fiscal year that ended in September, 2008 an 11 percent increase from the record 987 a year earlier.

The mostly uninformed U.S. public about the escalating levels of military incursions into the U.S. and the violence associated with warring Mexican drug cartels in Mexico and along our border is alarming.

Joan Lopez a Deming resident said, “Most people have a notion of what’s going on from an occasional headline in the mainstream newspapers, short sporadic newscasts on network television, and even Hollywood movies like “No Country for Old Men.” But I believe most of the ongoing coverage is done by freelance reporters and some local news media”.

As reported earlier this year in the Laguna Journal the explanations for the void of information on a national scale is believed at least partly because of the cozy relationship between the Bush and Caldron administrations. Both governments filter the information that is made available to the public, some call it diplomatic courtesy.

Google or click on the following:

Watch how Mexican troops found their way in the United States »

Video of average Joe’s and Jane’s (and their kids) firing lots of light and heavy automatic weapons.
Video Rating: 4 / 5

Find More Automatic Weapons Articles

The mega popular Internet MMORPG World of Warcraft (WoW) is a game that allows players to find, buy, and use different weapons. Not only are these different weapons part of the game’s role-playing appeal, they allow for different strategies to be used.

More you understand about WoW weapons, the more chance you have of making your character a fierce, lean, mean killing machine.

The vast array of different weapons that may be acquired in WoW include the Axe, Bow, Crossbow, Dagger, Fishing Pole, Fist Weapon, Gun, Mace, “Miscellaneous”, Polearm, Spear, Staff, Sword, Thrown, Two-Hand Axe, Two-Hand Mace, Two-Hand Sword, and Wand. These different weapons can also be for use for one hand or two, used by the off-hand or the main hand, wielded by the legs or shoulders or chest or wrist, and so on and so forth.

Keep in mind that knowing your level is very important to knowing what sort of weapons may work best for you. The effectiveness of different classes of weapons changes as you power level upward. But we do know of a few rules of thumb. If your character is at a lower level, s/he can almost assuredly do a lot of serious damage with a melee weapon regardless of who s/he is. If yours is a warrior character, you’ll want to use dual-wielding weapons, probably not two-handed weapons; for while the latter seems like it does more damage, if you’re a warrior you can move so fast that the speed and accuracy given to you by dual-wielders is better than needing to tote and swing that giant battle axe.

WoW weapons can be acquired from monsters drops or retrieved on quests; high level characters can also purchase rare and epic quality weapons. There are variations on every weapon, and some of them cannot be wielded by characters below a certain level. For instance, there are many Acrobatic Staffs that cannot be wielded by anyone who is not at least Level 29, the Rare Banshee Finger requires at least a Level of 50, and the “Epic” Barb of the Sand Reaver requires a character at least at Level 60. Certain minimum levels of Agility and Stamina are required for each different weapon to be wielded, too.

“Caster” characters such as Mages and Druids should focus on weapons that improve their statistics. All characters should focus on acquiring weapons that play to their general strengths and usual ways of doing things. So characters that do lots of instant special strikes should find or buy a mixture of high-damage, slow weapons and weapons that can hit from a long range, while those who prefer special ability strikes will probably want fast, high frequency strike, low damage-per-hit weapons. So as a player, you can build a character’s attributes so make him able to wield better weaponry.

So what the best World of Warcraft weapon is for you is going to depend on who your character is and at what level they are. You do, however, want all the latest enchantments that your gold can buy on your weapons. But clearly, the better you can fight, the more gold you can acquire…by force if not by honest work!

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Looking for mass effect 2 weapon upgrades? Click here.

One of the innovative features of mass effect was its weapon upgrade system. By defeating enemies or chatting with merchants you could purchase upgrades that enhance your weapon. Many people found this situation confusing though, but it was very useful to help beat some of the tougher bosses and challenges in the mass effect game.

With mass effect 2 on the way, I’ve been playing through the original mass effect again and been paying special attention to the weapon upgrades. The result is this guide, which I hope will help you pick the mods that are right for you!

Weapon mods, 101.

First of all, you don’t NEED weapon upgrades to beat the game. If you keep getting your butt handed to you by mass effects legions of enemies, it may well be down to you playing poorly, or having a poor build, or needing to buy new equipment. That’s not to say the a weapon upgrade doesn’t make the difference between life and death in mass effect, but if you’re being soundly beaten, don’t expect sticking some fancy McGubbin onto your guns to help!

Broadly speaking, there are two main divisions of weapon upgrades in mass effect. The first is the actual weapon upgrade, which modifies your gun in some way, and the second is the ammo upgrade, which puts special status effects on your target.

These are then further divded into different types which have different effects, and then divided yet again into levels. At this point though it gets easier, as the only difference in levels is how effective the upgrade is. It’s important to know this so you know exactly just what upgrade you are fighting to your weapon.

We will begin by looking at the first of these divisions, the weapon upgrades.

Weapon Upgrades.

Stability upgrades

Stability upgrades do exactly what they say on the tin! They are some of the most utilitarian upgrades in mass effect. They are divided into three tiers. From worst to best they are recoil dampener, Kinetic  stabilizer and Kinetic coil. They all have the same effect- they increase your weapon stability. This means the ‘zone of fire’ doesn’t expand so quickly, meaning you can place your shots more carefully on the target, meaning you hit more often, meaning you do more damage to everything. The Kinetic coil has the added bonus of giving you a small direct bonus to damage. If you’re not sure which of mass effect’s enemies you’ll be facing, stability upgrades are always a default option.

The best time to use this upgrade is when you’re facing uncertain situations. You won’t be doing the best damage possible, but you WILL get an advantage.

These work best with the assault rifle and pistol, but also find use with the shotgun.

Barrel Upgrades

Another three tiered weapon upgrade, these are for mass effect players who like lots of boom to their shots! The three tiers are: High Calibre barrel, rail extension and scram rail. They all have the same effect though- they increase the damage of each individual shot, at the expense of increasing the amount of heat generated by each shot. This means that while each shot does more damage, you can’t fire for as long before you need to let the weapon cool down. Oh, and the tier one upgrade also lowers your fire rate too.

This upgrade finds its best use on weapons that you don’t fire frequently anyway. Shotguns and sniper rifles are the best, as they have a massive damage to begin with, meaning they get even more! Plus, their slow rate of fire means most of the heat generated by this weapon upgrade will disperse before your next shot anyway. I would advise avoiding high calibre barrels all together though.

Cooling upgrades.

These weapons are the soldiers friend! A two tier upgrade, both of them reduce the amount of heat generated each time your weapon fires, and the second tier also adds a damage bonus (tier one, heat sink, tier 2, frictionless materials).

If you have a high assault rifle skill, these weapon upgrades can let you fire your assault rifle accurately and for extended periods of time for massive damage- even more so with the frictionless materials weapon upgrade. These are not worth it on most other weapons.

Sight Upgrades.

These increase your accuracy. Important for sniper rifles, but not much else. Tier one only.

Detection upgrades.

These come in two tiers, tier one being combat scanners and tier two being combat optics. Both weapons upgrades help cancel out the effect of geth stalkers (which Jam your radar), but the tier two version also pumps up your accuracy. To be honest, these are not much use, as you can easily track down enemies by sight. The higher tier combat optics though are great for sniper rifles!

These are all the weapon upgrades available in mass effect. Some are good, some are bad, but they all have their place. Hopefully, you will now know what you need to use to defeat your enemies… but this is only half the story! In the next article, we look at the second part of weapons upgrades in mass effect- ammo upgrades.

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Rather than having endless different weapons, In Final Fantasy XIII you have only a few weapons which you have the option of upgrading at any save station once you have received the omni kit key item (you can’t miss this item, so if you don’t have it yet, don’t worry, just keep playing and you WILL get it). Once you have the omni kit, you can start using all those hereto useless items you’ve picked up in the early stages of Final Fantasy XIII!

Collecting items for upgrading.

You can find these all over the place, in treasure spheres, through battles and just sometimes given out at random. Check my Final Fantasy XIII combat guide for help on how to get a high score and help get those rare items! You’ll need to quite a large stash to get anywhere, especially at the higher levels, so get grinding!

How upgrades work:

When you go to the upgrade screen, you can convert these items into EXP for your weapon. You need to hit a certain EXP threshold for each level, and once you do, your weapon becomes stronger. Each upgrade also increase the weapon’s EXP multiplier, meaning that subsequent upgrades give a little more EXP than they would at their base levels. As a basic rule of thumb, organic components like broken claws and ooze  tend to give you a greater XP multiplier, this increasing the effectiveness of later upgrades. Technical upgrades (Icons in the inventory is a screw) such as cables offer a greater XP boost, but not as large of an EXP multiplier.

Upgrade weapon type.

After you’ve ground through several levels worth of upgrading, you will eventually find that the weapon level becomes a star, usually around the 20 to 30 mark for a weapon’s first form and around 60 for its second form. This means that weapon cannot get any stronger through upgrades, and must instead be transformed into a new weapon using a transformation catalyst. You won’t find many of these in Final Fantasy XIII, and they are very expensive to buy. But you use them the same way you would use any upgrade item- but they are only available to star weapons.

Once the transformation is complete, bingo. You have a new weapon and can start upgrading again.

One important thing to note here is the fact that the new weapon will often have lower stats to start with than the old one. However, it’s potential stats are much higher. This means that when you upgrade, you should try to have a supply of components ready to buff the weapon back up again- or your character may very well end up badly underpowered!

Identifying weapon capabilities

The simplest way to see what a weapon does is to go to the equipment screen and change it. you will see how the strength and magic shifts in the top left, but also if the weapon has any special properties such as Sazh’s Antares Deluxes which give a chain boost. When a weapon is upgraded to a new form, it nearly always keeps any special abilities that it originally had. The only exception to this is when the ability is upgraded to a more powerful form.

Ultimate weapons:

You can only get these through upgrading. The important thing to remember is that each weapon is no better or worse on the standard base line that any other for that character. Some will push a character’s magic higher, some their strength, others take a more balanced approach. As you upgrade and change your weapons, this trend will continue. Confusingly, the final upgrade for any weapon in Final Fantasy XIII always carries the same name, regardless of the weapon it started out from- yet it will still display the stat rates of the weapon it began with. Supposedly, this is your ‘ultimate weapon’- but there are 8 of them for each character!

In short, there are NO Ultimate weapons in Final Fantasy XIII. You can upgrade your weapons to the limit to get the best weapon set, but there is no all powerful item for each character. You will simply need to pick the weapon that best suits your playing style and stick with it. Sad really, feels like the end of an era!

Closing Tips

Use Organic components first when upgrading a weapon to increase the effectiveness of the technical components.

Save your game before playing with the upgrades. That way if you waste materials, you won’t need to go hunting for them again!

A character’s starting weapon is their most balanced one. This means it gives about equal bonuses to strength and magic. The exceptions are Vanille, who’s starting weapon inflicts far more magic, and fang who’s starting weapon has far greater strength. Unless you have a very specific party in mind, it’s usually best to stick with these weapons.

Endgame.

After completing Final Fantasy XIII, you have a lot more time to farm the materials you need to upgrade your weapons. Gather up some Gil by killing sacrifices in the last stages of the game (they drop perfume which is very valuable for resale). You can then use this Gil in the Leonara’s garage and R&D depot shops to buy ultracompact reactors, or particle accelerators if you don’t have enough cash. Then buy as much vibrant ooze from the organic component shops as you can.

36 Vibrant ooze will instantly give you a full multiplier for your weapon. Then just burn through as many ultracompact reactors or particle accelerators as you like- the more the better, and try to spend them all at once. Your item’s level will go through the roof.

This method will let you grind your weapon levels up very quickly.

Episode of Future Weapons featuring the LWRC M6A2 PSD in 6.8mm SPC. Features Col. Darrel Elmore retired DCO of 5th Special Forces Group and Paul Howe of CSAT (Combat Shooting and Tactics) ex special forces.
Video Rating: 4 / 5

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