Berserk Cosplay

[lon3vvolf]

EDIT: Lonewolf, btw if you want to wield a sword 200 pounds heavy, good luck, you'll never lift it off the ground. As an exercise try lifting even a Olympic Bench Press bar (weighs about 50 pounds total) from one of the ends. At most with your hands 1 feet a part, if you can lift that AND swing it with your hands the way I mentioned, congratulations but because all of the weight will mostly be far away from you and your upper body strength is a lot weaker when your hands are away from your body, so what I'm trying to say is you won't be able to hold a 200 pound sword away from your body, even less swing it with your arms without seriously fucking up your joints and ligaments. All this even if the sword was balanced (which is impossible to balance such a big sword and wield it).

Who said anything about wielding it you momo? I just want one made. Just like I had that demon horn made if you look back a page or two. I mean, it would be nice if there were demons around and I could get a horn from one of them... I'm just saying it would be a nice addition to my rabid Berserk fandom shrine. (Just check out the merchendise thread) As for the benching bar, American bench bars weigh 45 lbs. Thats why when you stack 1 plate on each side you get 135, 2 plates 225, 3 plates 315 and so forth. Euro ones weigh about 22 kilos. Are you some kind of fitness/medical expert who found his way onto this site? And yes, I've fucked around trying to swing my bench bar, I can handle the EZ bar fairly well. I've actually gone and calculated how much the sword would weigh based on some rough dimensions and the atomic weight of iron. Also another problem is not how much it weighs but how the hell to make it. If you look on some other berserk fansites you'll find this one guy from Italy (i think) who wanted to get a DS made. He went to various blacksmiths but none could forge it since its way too big. One blacksmith made it in pieces and it was hollow. Me saying earlier "the ultimate goal is to lift a goddamned sword" comes from the You know you've read way too much Berserk when you... thread. Cuz when people ask you why you work out and thats your reply, you know you've seriously read waaaaaay too much Berserk. Lol.

And there are ridiculously big swords in existence though they don't weigh that much. Personally I'm still going to get myself a Zweihander, or something similar, once I get a new job. Saw a 6ft one on Ebay which weighed 25 lbs.

Check out this article: http://www.thearma.org/essays/2HGS.html
Those are more realistic DS-sized swords.

Also... New York Anime Festival. Expect better pictures of my Guts costume and hopefully signed stuff by Yoshitaka Amano! Wooooot!

[Guts[LCF]]

Well you did say you wanted to "lift a god damned sword". If we're talking about the generic sword, even the Zweihander doesn't need much strength to lift, wield is a different story. Even IF you were able to make a DS and it was 200 pounds I doubt any lone man could lift it from the hilt down. I'm not a fitness expert or nothing, its just common knowledge that the further away your limbs are from your body/core the weaker they are. As an example stretch out your arm and ask someone to push it down, you'll barely be able to resist, same exercise with your arm closer and it'll be somewhat easier. Anyways thats not the point. It just sounded like you actually did want to wield it by the way you said you wanted to lift a sword. I have nothing against anyone who likes Berserk as much as some hardcore fans do. I don't feel the need to buy merchandise besides the manga but I am also a big big fan of Berserk.

I also seen your shirtless Guts pictures, very cool stuff, liked the Horn and the Nightmare Sword borrowed from another cosplayer. I'm curious to see what that guy looked like if his sword was that nice

Also looked at the link, nice Zweihanders there, but as mentioned they rarely way over 10 pounds. Anyways, good luck on your quest to Gutsdom, if anything it will get you fit in the process which is always a good thing.

[The Prince]

Well you did say you wanted to "lift a god damned sword". If we're talking about the generic sword, even the Zweihander doesn't need much strength to lift, wield is a different story. Even IF you were able to make a DS and it was 200 pounds I doubt any lone man could lift it from the hilt down. I'm not a fitness expert or nothing, its just common knowledge that the further away your limbs are from your body/core the weaker they are. As an example stretch out your arm and ask someone to push it down, you'll barely be able to resist, same exercise with your arm closer and it'll be somewhat easier. Anyways thats not the point. It just sounded like you actually did want to wield it by the way you said you wanted to lift a sword. I have nothing against anyone who likes Berserk as much as some hardcore fans do. I don't feel the need to buy merchandise besides the manga but I am also a big big fan of Berserk.

I also seen your shirtless Guts pictures, very cool stuff, liked the Horn and the Nightmare Sword borrowed from another cosplayer. I'm curious to see what that guy looked like if his sword was that nice

Also looked at the link, nice Zweihanders there, but as mentioned they rarely way over 10 pounds. Anyways, good luck on your quest to Gutsdom, if anything it will get you fit in the process which is always a good thing.

The DS would weigh much more than two hundred pounds......I'd say you'd be lucky to get it under five. The hilt itself would weigh at least 2 bills just in order to offset the top-heavy potential of swinging something so heavy in length and torque (controlling the momentum).

[lon3vvolf]

The guy who had the nightmare was actually dressed up as a school boy from some anime/manga unrelated to SoCal. Otherwise I would have taken a pic.

But seriously about a life sized DS its impossible to make one or wield it. That is, unless you find Flora and get the Berserker armor from her first.

[Starnum]

The DS would weigh much more than two hundred pounds......I'd say you'd be lucky to get it under five. The hilt itself would weigh at least 2 bills just in order to offset the top-heavy potential of swinging something so heavy in length and torque (controlling the momentum).

Actually that's not true. It's totally possible that the Dragon Slayer could way as little as 150 pounds, and even that would make it rather unwieldy for just about anyone. As has been stated before, traditional two-handed swords only weighed around 10-20 lbs. You could make a traditional "greatsword" that weighs only a bit more than that. I still think the DS probably weighs more around 300 lbs. but I doubt it weighs any more than that. I'd like to think that Goto was a master blacksmith, so it's possible he could make the sword lighter than you'd imagine by looking at it, yet it's still way too heavy for any normal human to use. The speed at which you need to swing a sword is going to increase its weight exponentially. I mean, it depends on how big you think the sword really is. It's actual size is never mentioned, and after debating it a million times, I really don't think it matters anymore. I doubt it's over 6 1/2 feet long though, if that. Oh, and I also doubt the hilt is nearly as heavy as you say. Trying to balance that sword would be ridiculous, and it's not like anyone could actually use it anyway. Gatts is just a freak. People can't wield his old sword normally, let alone the Dragon Slayer.

[The Herald]

If anyone is into the whole sword fighting thing, as in broadswords or longswords, but you don't have one handy, just get a baseball bat, preferabbly a wooden one because they're heavier, and swing that around like a sword. Hold it above your shoulder parallel to the ground with your hands on the bat like they would be normally, that would give you a good sense of what it feels like. Just a few minutes of that and your arms burn. Just imagine whacking that against a shield or another sword a few hundered times in a day, then you'd kinda get what a page would have gone through just starting out

[Starnum]

Hm, I know what you mean, but isn't a bat weighted differently than a broadsword or a longsword would be? I was under the impression that swords were balanced, and that bat's were top-heavy. I'm not as familiar with western swords as I am a katana unfortunately, but I've handled a few. You probably weren't really referring to that when you said that's what it would feel like, but I think it would feel a little different with a real sword, and might actually be harder to swing the bat around than the sword. That could make for good practice though. I bet if you did that enough it'd make the sword feel lighter in comparison, but I'm not sure about that. I mean, I'm imagining a heavy wooden bat. *shrugs*

[The Herald]

now that its official that my girlfriend is cool with doing farnese, i'm just wondering how well she's gonna fit into the role. you see, farnese is very skinny and has a small cup size, but my gf is curvy and has a larger cup size (and if she ever finds this thread she will kill me). just wondering what anyone's thoughts are on this small problem.

[dialdfordesi]

You could always find ways to make the dress more slimming, or you could just go with it. I mean lonewolf isn't the chiseled image of Guts, but he went with what he had and pulled it off rather nicely.

[Starnum]

Yeah, I agree. There are lots of techniques that can be used in tailoring to make an outfit more slimming. Other than that, I agree, just go with it.

[The Prince]

now that its official that my girlfriend is cool with doing farnese, i'm just wondering how well she's gonna fit into the role. you see, farnese is very skinny and has a small cup size, but my gf is curvy and has a larger cup size (and if she ever finds this thread she will kill me). just wondering what anyone's thoughts are on this small problem.

Speaking of fitting into their roles, u still planning on playing Slan? Personally I found her to be a great choice.

Yeah, I agree. There are lots of techniques that can be used in tailoring to make an outfit more slimming. Other than that, I agree, just go with it.

Diet & exercise also works.

[Starnum]

Bah, that never works.

He said she was curvy, not fat, lol. Maybe he was just trying to be nice though, who knows. Only so much can be done though, a persons frame plays a factor as well.

[The Herald]

No, Starnum is right on this one, she isn't fat, just curvy. How to explain ... she's got big boobs and muscular legs? She's closer to a six pack than I am, as embarrassing as that is. Yeah, she would fit slan pretty well, but she doesn't want to be Slan. Anyways, we're not doing Roderick and Farnese, but Serpico and Farnese, because I have a good skit in mind for those two characters. Plus, I figured out a way to make Serpico's cloak float, it involves balloons. That's all I'll say, don't want to give it away.

[War Machine]

Small balloons filled with helium inside the cape? That would look pretty awesome as long as the balloons don't float too high up.

[DrPepperPro]

Maybe with some sort of pump system that changes the amounts in each balloon slightly, so that it looks like its constantly flowing around in the air. But it would be hard to make that looks good.

[The Herald]

well, my idea was to tie different lengths of string to my belt, and then have a kind of mesh so that they don't push themselves out of the cape. my favorite thing is special effects as you can tell . anyways, my gf probably won't wear a corset or anything to make her look smaller, but it looks like both of us will probably wear wigs. I might bleach my hair. Oh yeah, our friend agreed to be Shierke too, and she'll probably get her boyfriend to be something too, which should be easy because he lives right outside of seattle.

I'm getting so excited, I've even compared the era in which Berserk is based, which I think is somewhere in the middle of the European Rennaissance. Though, that isn't very accurate because gut's fighting style looks more like late medieval while Roderick is mid Baroque, almost two centuries in between each other. But then again I am basing this on the haute cotour (check the spelling) of the period. In any case, the fact that Guts and co wear trousers is a problem. Though, it can be argued that those trousers are hose. But the boots that they wear are definately 17th century, they were known as bucket boots. So, basically, the clothing in berserk is very fantasy. The closest that they could be related to would be the Cavalier style of the early 17th century. So my previous discussion that Berserk's style was late 14th century because of the 100 years war in France was incorrect.

The building style I'm basing off of Vrittanis because almost anywhere else would be older. Farnese's home is what is called a Palazzo, or town palace, which were built in the big cities of Italy during the mid rennaissance for the rich merchant families like the Medicis, for which the Vandimions are based off of. I'm also comparing Roderick's ship to both Henry 8th's Mary Rose and those in Pirates of the Caribbean. Since Roderick's is in the middle for shape and sails, that's where I'm placing it.

So, to sum it up, Berserk's style is late rennaissance to early baroque. Even though Berserk feels older than that, it isn't, it's very baroque. It can't be placed over the events of the real world because it is obviously fantasy, even though the events, countries, even which countries invade the others. Though, I am curious as to where the Spanish Armada fits in, because at the point of the Baroque the Spanish had discovered and been using South America for about a century.

[DrPepperPro]

How about it doesn't fit in anywhere. Why do you need to analyze it so much? Can't you just make the costumes to look like it does in the the manga.

[War Machine]

How about it doesn't fit in anywhere. Why do you need to analyze it so much? Can't you just make the costumes to look like it does in the the manga.

Ha ha ha, just make the fucking costumes!

Miura has said that the timeline is completely fictional and any similarities are just that, similarities. He mentioned how he uses weapons and armor from different eras in the drawings with no concern over the time and place. So you're making a mistake by trying to place Berserk at any time in the real world.

[The Prince]

How about it doesn't fit in anywhere. Why do you need to analyze it so much? Can't you just make the costumes to look like it does in the the manga.

Ha ha ha, just make the fucking costumes!

Miura has said that the timeline is completely fictional and any similarities are just that, similarities. He mentioned how he uses weapons and armor from different eras in the drawings with no concern over the time and place. So you're making a mistake by trying to place Berserk at any time in the real world.

Shut up! Berserk is real......

[The Herald]

But I can't just make them, I want to use them for my portfolio and no one would take them seriously if I didn't at least bullshit about doing proper research. And I am making the fucking costume I have patterns ready for a half scale Roderick. The pics should be up by the end of the month.

Anyways, this is a huge undertaking, I gotta brainstorm don't I? And what better place than a forum dedicated to it full of people that understand the subject matter?

[Istvan]

But I can't just make them, I want to use them for my portfolio and no one would take them seriously if I didn't at least bullshit about doing proper research. And I am making the fucking costume I have patterns ready for a half scale Roderick. The pics should be up by the end of the month.

Anyways, this is a huge undertaking, I gotta brainstorm don't I? And what better place than a forum dedicated to it full of people that understand the subject matter?

Then instead of trying to focus on what era Berserk itself is from (since Miura himself has said that it's not from any one era), it would probably be a far more profitable use of your time to study on the era any given costume is based on. That way you can focus on the costumes you're actually producing, and (being Miura) I wouldn't be at all surprised if any given characters clothing is 100% accurate to a given time/location. Just a thought.

[The Herald]

Thank you Istvan, that's what's been in my head but I haven't been able to explain myself very well. Individual characters do work better within one period better, then they all kind of get smooshed together. Personally I really enjoy how Berserk is presented, like how it has historical merits to fantasy, instead of those generic fantasy that's an overkill of D&D era style. Miura brings the best of both worlds together.

[Starnum]

I like the way Miura blends the styles, and even mixes in some more new-age looks or fantasy like with the Berserker Armor. I've always liked the way Gatts dressed though. I see a lot of colonial fashion at times, and I really enjoy that style of apparel, personally. Anyone who knows what Ksi looks like would understand, heh.

[Aetherfukz]

I like the way Miura blends the styles, and even mixes in some more new-age looks or fantasy like with the Berserker Armor. I've always liked the way Gatts dressed though. I see a lot of colonial fashion at times, and I really enjoy that style of apparel, personally. Anyone who knows what Ksi looks like would understand, heh.

I have no idea what Ksi is but Guts' casual clothing definitely has style. I would probably enjoy wearing something like that too, especially the one piece he had when they celebrated Griffith' dukeness (if that is even a word - the party right before he killed the queen).

[The Herald]

I deleted that picture, it was a very bad costume anyways. Made me realize how bad of a 'big-talker' I was.