The rules of the game

Fencing in competition is not a simple sport. There are many complicated rules regarding tempo, right-of-way, and other such things. The core rules, however, are very easy to grasp. You delineate a narrow strip on the floor (a minimum of 1.5 meters wide). You and your opponent pick up a weapon, of the same kind, and you try to hit your opponent while remaining untouched yourself. The winner is the first one to get as many touches as that match requires (uasually 5).
As we won't have time to cover nearly all of the rules; I suggest finding a good fencing manual, preferably a new one because the rules are constantly being revised. These rules, will however give you a good idea of how the game is played.

Épeé is the simplest weapon in terms of rules, as there are very few. Épeé is a point weapon, so you hit your opponent with the tip of your weapon and not the edge of the blade. Any hit counts, on any part of the body, as long as the point (not the blade) hits target. If two Épeé fencers hit each other at the same time, both fencers are credited with a touch. The only thing a director needs to determine is who actually hit first.

Sabre is not a point weapon so you don't need to worry about what part of the weapon hits the target, but it gets more complicated in three ways: right-of-way, target area, and footwork. The touch with right-of-way rules is not always awarded to the person who hits first; instead, it is the person who hits while maintaining right-of-way. To have right-of-way you must be controlling the action; it generally turns fencing into a game of alternating attacks and defense. Beating your opponent's blade (a beat is a tap with your blade on the opposing blade to knock it out of the way), parrying, and initiating an attack are all ways to gain right-of-way. The target area in Sabreis limited to the upper torso, arms and head, so touches that hit elsewhere do not count. The footwork of Sabre is a bit different than that of the other two weapons; Fleching, which consists of crossing one foot over the other to essentially run at your opponent, is illegal in Sabre.

Foil is very similar to Sabre, as it uses right-of-way and a limited target area. Foil is, however, a point weapon (like Épeé) and the point must be depressed on the target. The target area is smaller than that of Sabre, including only the upper torso without the arms or head. Foil and Épeé both allow the back foot to cross over the front to Flech

Penalty

The penalty system of fencing is based on cards. When a fencer breaks a rule, the director will assign the fencer a yellow, red or black card depending on the severity of the offense. A small offense such as being unprepared for a bout, falling over, or talking back to the director will incur a yellow card. Once a yellow card is given to a fencer, that fencer will recieve a red card for any other minor offence. A red card will be given automatically for a more extreme offenses like corps-á-corps (where fencers crash into each other). For very extreme offenses, such as blatant disregard for the safety of your opponent, a black card is given, which prevents the fencer from participating in the rest of the competition.