Hey Zac,
There will defiantly be some differences in the combat from what you are use to. A thing that jumped right out at me as a difference is that we different mechanics for hits and how many you can take. I suggest taking a look at the online rulebook in the combat section to see what other differences you can find.
As for using full force swings, as others have stated before me in this thread, we do not use full force. We have players of many ages and sizes as well as some who do not partake in combat at all. When combat is based only on a successful hit, the amount of real life strength behind that swing does not augment the game affect of landing it. So it is in the interest of safety that we have players to pull their blows. Now do not take from that statement that combat is not fast or intense, because I assure you it is. Also many of our players use foam latex weapons. These are far denser than even a standard boffer is, thus it is always the player's responsibility to be safe rather than expecting the gear to act as a buffer.
Hope to see you out at an event soon,
OOG:
Brendan O'Hara