The three fencing weapons that have lasted through the centuries include foil, epee, and sabre. The epee, is a heavy thrusting weapon that has the whole body of the opponent as a valid target.
The epee was invented in the middle of the 19th century by a group of French students who did not like the rules of foil fencing, and they thought that the weapon itself, was too light. The preferred the experience of an actual duel and so they created the epee. It very similarly resembles the small sword, just without the sharp point at the end.
Like the foil, the epee is meant to be a thrusting weapon and to score a valid hit, the tip of the sword must land anywhere on the opponent. To score in both saber and foil fencing, you must land a hit in the target area. The creators of epee fencing did not like that rule so they made the whole body a target with the exclusion of the metal parts like handle, face guard and blade. If the touches are made within 40 milliseconds of each other, both fencers are rewarded with a point. Otherwise, the first receives the point for that bout.
Another point of interest about the epee is the fact that the epee is the largest and heaviest of the swords. The parts of epee swords include a blade, bell guard, point, and a French or pistol grip.
In electric epee style fencing, the force needed to be considered a hit is 7.35 newtons of force which is the highest of all styles. The judge needs to watch for ground hits because this can register on the machines. Players who do this on purpose can be penalized.
Epee style fencing has less rules when it comes to physical contact and footwork. When the two fencers bump the bout does not stop unless it is done with the intent to harm or is ruled excessively violent.
The counterattack is very important in epee fencing. Direct, unprepared attacks are vulnerable to counterattacks to the hand or arm of the opponent, or to the body if the attacker is shorter than his opponent. High level epee is often a game of provocation, with each player trying to temp the other into an attack and then using a counterattack to score the point. Distance in epee is even more important than in the conventional weapons because fencers are so vulnerable to counterattacks.
A style of fencing that was invented in the 19th century is one of the hardest and most difficult to master. Epee fencing is a game of skill, strength, and knowledge. The history of this weapon is quite simple, some fencers did not like rules of foil and sabre, so they made their own game.