5/9/2021 0 Comments Best Sword Fights Ever
Unlike Hollywood however, parries should be a last resort and should be part of a layered defense as the best option to avoid an incoming strike or thrust is to not be there when the strike comes in, by a combination of footwork, slipping or ducking the attack and having a parry in place as a last line of defense.
Best Sword Fights Ever Series Of ArticlesWith this in mind, I am pleased to present to you a series of articles.To get started, simply select your main area of interest from the menu below. ![]() While battle was and still is essentially chaotic in nature, and no plan survives first contact with the enemy, there are several characteristics and factors common to the winner (survivor) of a medieval duel, trial by combat or battlefield ordeal - and these are outlined in chapter 14 of Hank Reinhardts excellent book, the Book of Swords as follows: Physical Conditioning (modern people were nowhere near as tough as our ancestors) especially of the back and the abdomen, though cardio and strong wrists are key for Sword Fighting. Deception - fighting fair is a sure way to get you killed in a sword-fight. Historically, foul play was not only expected, it was par for the course. Confidence and Toughness of Spirit Rhythm - or rather, the lack of it. Falling into a predictable pattern is anathema to sword fighting. Intimidation - or rather, not being intimidated or using intimidation against a lesser opponent. Timing and Distance - simple enough, but striking at the right time and being close enough to actually hit is a skill in itself. Most of these factors to winning a sword fight, be it in a duel 400 years ago or in a modern day sports contest, are self explanatory, timeless principles. But while quite a few are more or less the correct winning mentality and take years to cultivate, others are simple techniques or tricks. For example, it is relatively easy to learn a few tricks and employ deception in Sword Fighting. Examples include, feigning weakness or fear before attacking strongly, glancing down at a leg, dropping the shoulder and feinting a downward blow only to whip it up and attack the helmet, or the classic Musashi tactic - feigning to jump aside when the enemy attacks, and then dashing in strongly the millisecond they relax. ![]() Figure 2: Fighter B wisely parries the attack with the forte (strongest part) of his sword. Figure 3: Without missing a beat, fighter A follows up with what looks like the same attack he did in figure 1, however. Figure 4: While looking at the opponents head and keeping the actual target only in his peripheral vision, he sidesteps out of the way of any potential counterattack and attacks with one hand, suddenly dropping the attack into his opponents foremost leg. Because the first attack was so strong and potentially deadly, Fighter B is likely to fall for the feint. While other angles are theoretically possible, they are all pretty much variations of the 8 main attack angles - as are thrusts. Most experts agree that if you want to win at sword fighting, you are better off seizing the offensive than waiting for the right time to counter-attack. But no matter how skilled you are on the offense, at some point you will have to take some defensive action, and for that there are basically 5 main counters as shown below. The same basic principle can be used against a rising vertical attack, though with the sword held downwards instead of up. Simply extending the arm outwards and away from the body can parry most downward diagonal cuts or thrusts or high horizontal attacks coming from the left to the right. Conversely, an attack from right to left is parried by swinging the arm across the body. Diagonal rising cuts, cuts directed to the right leg, or low horizontal attacks can be parried by dropping the sword downwards and bracing with enough space to absorb the impact of the blow. Conversely, low attacks directed to the left side of the body are parried by turning the wrist so that it faces outwards and sweeping the attack aside.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |