A Giveaway with an Italian Flair!

Another contest brought entirely to you by the generous donations of other myArmoury.com members!

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First Prize
The first place prize is the Albion Next Generation Doge sword. We were able to purchase this prize with the money donated to us by you guys, the members of myArmoury.com, including a giant $500 donation provided by a very generous anonymous donor who wanted very much to help another member own an Albion sword.

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The Doge has become one of my absolute favorite swords and is a model that I hope one day to purchase for my own collection. It sports an Oakeshott Type XIX blade that has a flattened hexagonal cross-section and packs a punch in the cut while still having just enough nimble qualities to put the point where it needs to go. Awesome sword. Check out our hands-on review by Bill Grandy for his opinions of this piece.

Second Prize
The second place prize is a Windlass Steelcrafts Anelace dagger / short sword. Another anonymous and generous member has donated this piece as a giveaway for you guys. To be honest, I was a bit surprised when I got it in hand due to how attractive it is! It's a unique piece and I'm glad to have the opportunity to give it away! For those not versed in these types of wide-bladed shorter edged weapons, I suspect you'd be surprised by it, too.

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The Anelace was a weapon that filled the void between the dagger and short sword. Contemporary to the Italian Cinquedea, the Anelace was often carried at an angle at the small of the back and would be the only weapon carried in cities, at court, traveling on horseback or riding during the hunt. This well-balanced blade was of a size that one could use it to defend against a sword, but it could still pass as a dagger. Antiqued brass parts paired with a hand-carved hardwood grip, this attractive piece comes with a decorative scabbard.



HOW TO ENTER:

1. Ensure you're a registered member of myArmoury.com
   
   
2. Those members who have donated $10 US or more to our donation drives since July 1, 2008 are already eligible for this drawing. If you've already donated or you donate before the contest closes, you'll be entered.
   
   
3. Any members who have Purchased a Membership Plan or is a member of our Benefactors Group between July 1, 2008 and the close of the contest will also be automatically entered.

That's it! You're done!

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Please note that if you've already given something to the site since the July donation drive, you're already entered into this contest. While I certainly welcome additional contributions, and no doubt can put to use anything I can get, they are not necessary for you to be a part of this contest. For those of you who have already given, I say "thanks to you and good luck winning these great prizes!"


Now just like previous contests:

When the contest closes, the names of all the participants will be thrown into a hat. Every $10 contributed as part of a donation or as the cost of a membership plan will earn that participant a separate chance to win. This means that members who donate $10 to the site will have one (1) chance to win. Members who donate $50 to the site will have five (5) chances to win. Members who donate $100 to the site will have ten (10) chances to win... and so on. The more donated, the better the odds of winning the prize!


Entries must be made prior to contest close on Monday May 18, 2009 at 10:00am PST. All participants will be entered into a drawing and the winning name will be randomly selected later that same day.

Domestic shipping charges are included with the winning prize, but international winners will be required to pay for shipping.

Thanks goes out to everybody who has given to this site. Good luck to everyone!!

Contest-specific rules and limitations:


1. You must be a registered member of myArmoury.com. Donations must be made while logged-in
   
2. myArmoury.com moderators and Team Members are eligible to win since they have been amongst the most generous with their donations
   
3. Shipping charges are included for winners located in the continental US
   
4. Entries are based on the amount of contributed money, either through donations or through the purchase of membership plans, and represent the number of chances to win
   
5. Should the winning entrant choose not to accept the prize, another winner will be selected
   
6. Those who have donated anonymously will be given the opportunity to accept the prize but must agree to have a public announcement made regarding the contest win
   
7. The contributed amounts will never be revealed to the public by myArmoury.com. Contest entrants can choose for themselves if they wish to share this with the community
   
   Please read our detailed Rules and Limitations document for complete information and our disclaimer.

Very nice prizes and for once I won't participate to increase the odds of others winning one of these as I already have both. :D

So donating is mandatory to enter, correct?

M.

I'm so in.
The Dodge looks so sweet.

Nice! :D
Hurrah for the donators!

And now the waiting begins... :p

Cheers,

I mostly lurk, reading the threads and learning from others

This forum is definitely the most generous of all I'm a member of.

I don't envy you getting to play with the Doge and then having to send it away, Nathan. Your self control is admirable :)

What I find surprising about the Doge is that it feels like a heavy cutter but handles like a later fencing sword: Not that one can't fence with the earlier more massive looking blades but the Doge feels close to a rapier in handling/agility but should be as good a cutter as the Gaddhjalt or not so much less so that the target would know the difference.

Another way of saying it might be that it looks like a sword that is much less substantial than it feels in hand without being slow or ponderous: The tool of a true swordsman !

Oh, not mentioned in the review, I think, is that the blade is not whippy at all and rigid enough that it would be a very good in the thrust. The point is sharp enough to penetrate easily an unarmoured target but rounded enough that tip cuts using the last few inches of blade would be very effective I think.

The Doge is one of those swords that you don't want to leave your hand once you've held it. Sometimes I almost carry it out the door with me on my way to work (bad idea for sure :eek: )

I just donated so I could be in this contest. Too bad I couldnt donate any more than 10 dollars.

The Anelace is actually a very nice item. I snatched one up on a whim when it went on closeout on the MRL site, and it's probably ended up being my favorite out of the MRL pieces I've purchased.

Of course, there's also that Doge to consider... :eek:

I missed the last pledge drive so it was time to cowboy up. It's nice to know that others feel the same way about
the Forum and step up as well. I know times are tough but wouldn't they be a little worse still if we didn't have
myArmoury?

Yours in the Bond,

Doug Gentner

Well, I have been lurking around here for a month or two now and the information that I have gathered (not to mention all the nice pictures you guys have posted :)) is well worth a donation. And now I see that there are contests! How awesome is that?