Viking Fighting Moves from the Sagas: 1

A speculative reconstruction of one-on-one Viking combat based on fighting moves described in the Sagas of Icelanders, including:

--- thrusting with the horn of the axe: Grænlendinga þáttur, ch. 5
...en Kolbeinn snaraðist við honum og stakk fram öxarhyrnunni og kom í barkann Þórði og hafði hann þegar bana.
Kolbeinn sidestepped Þórður and jabbed the horn of his axe into Þórður's throat and that was his death.

--- hooking a shield with a weapon: Þorskfirðinga saga, ch. 10
Askmaður skopar um hið ytra og vildi krækja af honum skjöldinn.
Askmaður ran around him and wanted to hook his shield off him.

--- throwing away a sword, running under to grapple, and throwing an opponent down: Hávarðar saga Ísfirðings, ch.21
Atli sér að eigi mun svo búið hlýða, kastar síðan sverðinu og hleypur undir Þorgrím og rekur hann niður við völlinn.
Atli saw he was making no progress. He threw away his sword and slipped under Þorgrímur's guard and threw him to the ground.

---throwing a man down and killing him with a sax (short-sword): Grettis saga, ch. 56 (and many others)
Fann hann eigi fyrr en Grettir tók hann upp yfir höfuð sér og færði niður svo hart að saxið hraut úr hendi honum og fékk Grettir tekið það og hafði ekki orða við hann og hjó þegar höfuð af honum og lauk svo hans ævi.
Grettir lifted him up above his head and threw him down so hard that he lost his grip on the sax. Grettir took the sax and without a word, cut off his head and ended his life.

More information at:
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