In-Person Beginners

The goal of our in-person beginners program is to make you comfortable playing the game of fencing. By the end of your first 2-hour class, you will be in full protective gear and fencing with steel swords against other beginner and intermediate students, supervised by our instructor staff!

We have a short application form below; fill it out and the next time we offer a beginner’s program, we’ll let you know so you can join us!

Apply to join beginners

In-Person Beginners program FAQ

  • Our motto is “ancient weapons, modern training.” We like to approach this as a modern sport with foundational rules that are implied in the historical texts, and we help you uncover these rules by putting a sword in your hands and letting you use it. Be prepared to sweat!

    In class, beginners explore distance, timing, how to parry an attack, how to thrust, how to use both sides of the sword to cut, and more. You will get to use two-handed longswords (called feders), rapiers, and sabers dynamically in games, drills, and sparring with your fellow students. By the end, you won’t be an expert—but you will have built foundational skills that will serve you for years to come.

  • Our in-person Beginners classes are two 2-hour classes on consecutive Saturdays from 12pm to 2pm, for a total of 4 hours of training. You won’t come away as an expert—that takes years!—but you will come out with solid fundamentals, an understanding of how to play with swords safely, and with skills to help drive your future training.

    It should go without saying, but students must attend both classes in full to join us. If you can’t, please wait until next time—we’ll invite you again.

    After your first class, beginner students are encouraged to register for weeknight intermediate classes and stay for open sparring til 6pm. (But you don’t have to!)

  • Beginners program classes are 8 to 10 students maximum. We pride ourselves in a minimum of 2 to 1 student to teacher ratio or better. There is always an experienced fencer or instructor available to address questions and keep everyone safe as you learn!

  • Currently, we run a new beginners program approximately every other month (or every 8 weeks), with some flexibility for holidays, tournaments, and instructor staff needs.

  • Beginner members don’t just sign up for a course; you’re a member of DHFA in full and can register for any other class after the first beginners class! In-person beginners is $75 for the first month of classes, which will show up as a $20 discount on the $95 full membership.

    Your membership will renew automatically as a full membership at $95/month one month from your first beginners class. Of course, just let us know at any time if you need to pause or cancel.

  • Other than being one of our registered beginners with a membership (anybody who is not will be turned away!), you should wear or bring to every class you attend:

    Athletic clothing. Fencing is a sweaty business and you will be going into full kit with padded jacket, fencing mask, and other protective gear. We recommend quick dry gym clothing.

    A water bottle. We have a place to refill so it doesn't have to be huge!

    Athletic shoes like boxing / martial arts shoes, court shoes, barefoot shoes, or any other type of grippy athletic shoes. Wide-soled stability / tennis / running shoes aren't ideal long-term but will be totally fine for your first days.

    A cup if you have external genitalia. While we have loaner BJJ-style cups you can wear over your clothes if you forget, we strongly recommend you buy your own cup.

    Other than a cup, PLEASE don't purchase any gear in advance! We have a list of recommended and prohibited gear, and an extensive loaner library of equipment for you to try out both in your beginners program and beyond.

  • Nope! For insurance reasons, we do not allow spectators, auditing, or any other non-members into DHFA during, before, or after class times. The only exception to this rule is guests of existing members. We don’t like doing it, but if you just show up and you are not a DHFA member, you will be asked to leave.

Online Beginners

Want to start learning historical fencing right now? We have an online beginner’s program that you can start today, hosted in Thinkific.

The online program covers technique and historical basics for fencing in a video series that you can view at your own pace. At the end of the online beginners course, you will be offered a link to onboard with us and get a full in-person membership.

Online membership is $50 a month - cancel your membership anytime through our platform, Thinkific.

Join Online Beginners

Transfer STudents

Do you already have experience in historical fencing? This transfer application is to join DHFA at the intermediate level as an experienced fencer, whether in HEMA / historical fencing, SCA fencing, or other fencing traditions. If accepted, you will receive a link to register for onboarding.

Apply to Transfer
 
 

Frequently asked questions about memberships

  • Full membership costs $95 per month, the same price it has been since 2020. Full membership gives you:

    • Access to all intermediate classes and floor times

    • Access to and sometimes discounts on club events - guest instructors, tournaments, etc.

    • Access to private lessons with instructors

    • A sword family. DHFA is committed to a safe, welcoming environment where everyone feels like they matter and can train in historical fencing in a constructive space

  • Do you already have experience in historical fencing? Then you may not have to go through beginners programs! Anyone with experience doing HEMA / historical fencing, SCA fencing, or other fencing traditions can apply to transfer in.

    If accepted, you will receive an email with a link to register for onboarding. Fill out this form to apply.

  • Transfer students and students coming from online beginners go through a short onboarding process to get them transferred to in-person classes and sparring.

    During onboarding, we go over club policies and administrative information, and then help you get into full fencing gear to do an evaluation spar to ensure you can fence responsibly. This sparring session isn’t a test of skill; we are making sure you can fence safely and show you our club sparring etiquette.  

    Onboarding occurs once a month on Saturdays at 12pm. Only accepted transfers and students who have completed the beginners course may onboard.

  • Unfortunately, for insurance reasons, we do not currently accept students under 18. However, we highly recommend the Denver Fencing Center and their catalog of youth programs, where students will build the skills that make an incredible historical fencer!

  • Unfortunately, for insurance reasons, we do not currently accept students under 18. However, we highly recommend the Denver Fencing Center and their catalog of youth programs, where students will build the skills that make an incredible historical fencer!

  • Are you an existing Intermediate student with a sporadic schedule or a long commute to DHFA? Then our punch card will work for you. Punches expire 12 months after purchase and are only available to Intermediate Students.

    Note: This membership type is not available to beginners. After completing a beginners program, students may switch to punch card after their first month on the beginners membership.

    Existing Intermediate students or onboarding members can reach out to memberships@denverhistoricalfencing.com to learn more.

    Cost: $150 for 10 classes.

  • At DHFA we are dedicated to making historical fencing accessible for everyone we can. We offer scholarship memberships to any student experiencing financial hardship.

    Existing or onboarding members can reach out to memberships@denverhistoricalfencing.com to learn more.

View our current class schedule on pushpress