Sword help?

[MonkeySage]

Just picked up the pencil again after a semester of chemistry, and decided I'd give swords another shot.

My character, Adelard, carries an arming sword and a small round shield. Problem is, I'm terrible at drawing swords, especially foreshortened swords.

I'm getting a little better, but I was hoping to get a few tips. Likewise, perhaps some tips on his stance. I'm wondering if maybe his arms are too short, i know his torso's too small, and possibly his legs too. I wanna give him at least 8 heads height, and only come to 7 here.

Then comes the position of his sword, which I haven't sketched. Single handed, about 1/3 the length of his body. Any advice would be most helpful. :)
http://redandblackknight.tumblr.com/post/135953459980

This is a very rough wireframe sketch I used to plan things like stance; when i actually draw him, i'll be using GIMP and a sketchpad. :)

[TechnOkami]

So, the question you're asking is essentially a perspective question. I would recommend looking up guides regarding perspective, as they will help you immensely.

To put perspective in an EXTREME nutshell: if something is closer to you, it'll appear bigger. If it's farther away, it appears smaller.

The easiest way to give you a concrete of how perspective works for a sword is to take a ruler, and hold it lengthwise close to your eye. This will give you the most extreme way to represent a closely stabbing sword, which will basically mean the blade has a forward taper to it the closer it is to the viewer. That's to say, you will see the seemingly straight ruler actually curve and bend at angles due to how you are looking at it. Examine that, and reproduce it.

The key to drawing is to look at what you're drawing and reproduce it. Mentally break down whatever you're drawing into basic objects: spheres, cubes, cylinders, cones, ovals, squares, circles, triangles, etc., it all applies. Then you draw, and draw, and draw and draw and draw and draw and draw and draw again. Try and draw what you see versus what you think you see. Using reference material, copying (with due sources and/or copyrights given if necessary) is completely fine. Art is pure thievery, and the best artists are level 20 Rogues. Steal everything you see, and make it your own.

There's a lot of guides out there which'll explain perspective into much more detail than I currently have the mental strength to do. It only requires a quick google search and a little elbow grease, work, and digging.

Hope that helps.

-TechnO