Hasta La Gadget!

If you watch Adventure Time, you know that Finn the Human has a cool sword made of grass. When he got it, he could not get it off his arm. The grass just wrapped itself around his hand. It was a trap set by the Grassy Wizard. Here is a real life prop of the sword that looks just as cool.

It may have been a trap, but it was a real kick butt sword, so Finn just said, “You know what? I think I’m cool with that.” Sometimes when you have a totally awesome sword, you just have to accept its quirks.

This acrylic and plastic replica comes from Etsy seller ThePropShop for just $65(USD). The question is, will you be able to put it down after you get it?

[via Neatorama]

I have always thought swords were pretty cool. In fact, I used to take fencing, if only because no one taught kendō in my area. If you have ever picked up a stick and started a mock sword fight with someone, you know that your foes tend to become liars quickly. Even if their knuckles are bleeding, they will deny being hit by your sword/stick.

Sabertron is working on a new sword fighting system that takes away the ability for your opponent to lie in this way. The swords keep track of hits and can tell the difference between a person and another sword. According to its makers:

Sabertron uses wireless communications to determine when two swords have clashed. If a player strikes the ground, the microcontroller can ignore the strike because the sword is tilted down at an angle. If a player strikes a tree, a bystander, or the player’s self, the microcontroller will detect those objects as the opponent. This is a limitation and players must agree to be honest. This limitation will be removed in follow-on products that support Melee Mode, by utilizing proximity detection circuits. It is possible that the initial reward product supports this mode, depending on the production changes to bring Sabertron to the masses, but is not guaranteed.

Each sword comes complete with sound effects and LED lights that count down the points until victory or defeat. Initially, you’ll only be able to get versions looks like a lightsaber, but if they should exceed $500,000 in orders, they’ll also offer a medieval blade. Down the road, they hope to release accessories that allow for multiplayer melee battles.

If you want a pair, you’ll need to pledge at least $125(USD) over on Kickstarter to get in on the sword-swinging action when they launch. Delivery is estimated for Fall 2014.

Artist and cosplayer Casy Kovach chose to go as Nightmare from SoulCalibur 5 for this year’s Dragon Con. Short of hiring Tony Swatton, Kovach went to great lengths to create a Soul Edge replica worthy of its videogame counterpart.

The base of the sword’s blade was carved from a board of insulating foam. Casy carved the board to match the shape of Soul Edge’s blade then added fiberglass to its outer edge. Then he used lots of Model Magic as well as hot glue to replicate the muscles and flesh covering the blade. He used a plastic sphere from a toy for Soul Edge’s eyes. Finally he painstakingly painted and buffed the blade. He worked on it on and off over 7 months, but the result is worth it.

Casy estimates that the blade alone weighs about 15lbs, but it sure looks like it weighs more than that. He used plumbing pipes as the sword’s handle but eventually he had to add a few ankle weights as well to give the sword a more sensible center of gravity. This is just the sword; imagine when he’s wearing Nightmare’s armor. He’s going to be a statue at Dragon Con.

[via For All Intense Porpoises via Obvious Winner]

This game room tells you many things at a glance. This gamer clearly loves Halo. He is rocking an Xbox 360. His game collection is neat and orderly. There are a bunch of game weapons on the wall. And he is almost certainly single. I don’t know any wife or girlfriend who would allow such an awesome room.

Prop builder Andrew Cook created an arsenal of replicas of guns and swords from Halo and Mass Effect to decorate his game room with. Clearly, Andrew takes his gaming very seriously. It would be kind of intimidating entering this room to play with him.

The weapons are made primarily from lightweight EPS styrofoam, and no, Andrew won’t sell them to you. But if you want to see how he builds them, you can check out some videos of how the guns were made here. Check out the massive Halo 4 Forerunner Binary Rifle here:

Impressive work, Andrew!

[via Kotaku]

While I still have years worth of old paper books lying around my house, I have to be honest and say that I don’t read much in the way of physical books anymore. Other than the occasional graphic novel or comic book, I prefer to read on my iPad these days. That said, I have a few very special books that are deserving of a proud place on top of the bookshelf, and I’ve finally found the best way to show them off.

Yep. Katana Bookends, folks. Shut up and take my money already.  They’re coming this March from UK design shop Mustard for about $30(USD) and they’re perfect for displaying your favorite martial arts instructional books, or in my case, issues of The Walking Dead – specifically those with Michonne in them.

While I’d like to think they pulled off the visual trickery of the blade slicing through the books using massive neodymium magnets, it looks to me more like the old Steve Martin arrow-through-the-head gag, but with books instead of a head in the middle. Regardless of how they’re made, they’re still Katana Bookends, so what’s not to like?