The "Battle of the Nations", a World Championship of Historical Medieval Battle, is underway in the Serbian town of Smederevo. Warriors from all over the globe fight with actual steel weapons in this full-contact four-day competition, which will conclude on May 5.

Battle-hardened and time-tested, much of the weapons and armor expected to make an appearance at the games are rooted in a long history of warfare.

Weapons for battle

What might the Western teams bring to the battlefield?

First up, the medieval knight's go-to weapon – the longsword. With its reaching, heavy, double-sided blade, it's capable of delivering devastating slashes. That helped it earn its title as one of history's most formidable swords. And its one-handed or two-handed variants come with their own advantages and disadvantages, but it's all about versatility.

Regulations require the length to be within 100 to 140 centimeters, giving fighters' considerable range – a major advantage when it comes to larger battle competitions.

But when it comes to length, look no further than the halberd. The rules state it can be anywhere from 130 centimeters to over two meters long. This pole arm combines the blade of an ax with the point of a spear – and could keep enemies at bay while presenting a daunting challenge to cavalry forces.

While there will be no mounted troops at the games, fighters can employ strategies used throughout the Middle Ages that forever instilled the halberd as a powerful option in the medieval arsenal.

Finally, protecting Western fighters – impenetrable plate armor. Once reserved for only high-ranking knights, full suits of armor soon became the norm on battlefields in Europe during the Middle Ages. They're capable of withstanding even the heaviest of blows. Significant technological advances pushed armor to its limits in terms of strength, and it was a mainstay of warfare up until firearms came to dominate the frontlines.

Chinese characteristic weapons

Since 2017, these Western knights have got themselves a new challenger: a group of Chinese warriors waging war on their enemies with their distinctive and powerful weapons and armor. Let's now take a look at how the Chinese team are bracing themselves for battle.

But when it comes to close range combat, the Chinese team has another trump card to play – the Sanjiandao, or the three-point sword. This deadly weapon comes with a trident-like upper section and sharp side edges. Chinese foot soldiers in the 12th and 13th centuries used this formidable weapon to break the enemy's heavy armor.

Guandao, or the Green Dragon Crescent Blade, is the first weapon the Chinese team brought to the games. The legendary combat weapon was wielded by Chinese general Guan Yu in the 14th-century classic novel "Romance of the Three Kingdoms." It has a heavy blade with a spike on the back and is used for delivering strong and powerful slashes. Its main purpose is to disarm an opponent and deflect his strikes at long range.

The battle

Every battle is waged in so-called rounds in the sand covered arena, which is surrounded by referees wearing yellow uniforms. 

Referees have long yellow and black sticks with small yellow flags at the top. When they want to stop a fighter from doing something, they just wave the yellow flag in front of their helmets. In order to win the battle, the winner needs to win in at least two rounds. 

There is no time limit to any round and every single battle is fought until there are either no fighters left in one of the teams who can stand one their feet or if one team has only one fighter left as opposed to three or more in the rival teams.

The apparent brutality of the battle could stun the viewers, where fighters exchange bone crushing blows. Luckily, the heavy armors absorb most of the strikes. But yet, we've witnessed several occasions when paramedics had to rush into the arena to help injured (mostly female) fighters. However, in the end there were no serious injuries or long-term problems.

To build the most reliable possible army, an impenetrable armor is also a must for fighters to endure potentially life-threatening blows.

This is a 36-kilogram, Ming Dynasty-style armor worn by the Chinese team. It has metal plates scaling down the arms and rectangular plates of metal, riveted between layers of fabric with securing rivet heads visible on the outside. With decent weight and range of motion, this style of armor worked well against the glancing slashes of horsemen, or the piercing strikes of lances.

The guandao, the Sanjiandao, their armor, and a variety of other weapons, will be sure to pose a grave threat to other teams. But the straw that will break the camel's back will be the Chinese team's sheer determination.

What the Chinese team say?

Thursday was the first day of matches. The Russian team won first place in the men's 5-versus-5 category. China's team earned a big win over Romania's side but exited at the group stage. On Friday, two Chinese fighters will join the Australian squad for the 5-versus-5 women's category. 

Earlier, CGTN talked to the leader of the Chinese team, Gao Peng, about his experience in the games.

Chen Huidong, Meng Tao, Timothy Ulrich, Yang Xiao and Aljosa Milenkovic contributed to the story.