#sword combat

[waeponwifestre]

I really need people to spar with…

[milasartblog]

Training (Anoli)

In life, no matter how perfect and skilled you are, there is always a place for training. Most of it is about gaining new abilities, in other cases it's just a refresh of your current skills. For Anoli, it was both. She didn’t expect to come up with such thing one day, but she also understands that she can’t always be so kind and sweet every time. Moreover, she still doesn’t know who was that person responsible behind Nazeel’s parents murder. And so, Anoli thought to prepare herself for any situation. The training took its place very recently, as in order to be able to at least hold the sword steady, the warrior must prepare themself mentaly, which Anoli did before the actual training. It was close to the evening, Liya, Nazeel and Sona were all at home. Anoli meanwhile was still outside, somewhere on the outskirts of the city. She warned Liya and Nazeel that she will come back a bit later today. Anoli looked at the horizon, holding a wooden stick that looks like a sword. Seems like she was waiting for someone. Fortunately, this someone didn’t keep her waiting.

Anoli: Thank you so much for accepting such proposition, Michael.

Michael: It’s nothing, I arrived as fast as I could. I’m honestly still surprised that you decided to learn how to use sword.

Anoli smiled as looked at the horizon again, then prepares for the training. She walked some distance and stood on the fighting pose. Michael did the same as looked at Anoli.

Michael: Didn’t change your mind yet?

Anoli: No. I came up with such decision, and I will go till the end with it.

Michael: Okay. Then you should remember one thing: no matter how honorable and generous you are, fight was and will never be fair, neither for skilled one nor for newcomer. Pay attention to moves and tricks that your opponent is about to use.

Anoli: Really? I thought that angels and archangels always fight fair.

Michael: That was long time ago. In our situation, we must be ready for anything, especially with our enemy that tries to harm Nazeel.

Anoli: You’re right.

She sighs deeply, cliching the wooden sword. They made an eye contact before Anoli started her move. Michael dodged her upper attack as swings his sword to her, which she blocked successfully and even pushed it away before making another attempt. Sounds of wooden blades accompanied the fighting as Michael keeps blocking and dodging the strickes. It made Anoli worry a bit.

Anoli: Why is he not attacking? Is he afraid to hurt me?

She thought to herself as stood still for a moment, which Michael noticed.

Michael: Don’t stay still for too long. You’re opened for the enemy.

And he rushes his attack to her right side. In panic, Anoli blocked the blade as tried to hold the position. Now it was her turn to avoid the attacks. Sometimes she had to step back in order to collect her strength and swing. To her surprise, Michael blocked it too...while holding the grip and the blade at the same time, standing almost on the knee. Anoli was stunned and worried, while Michael looked calm and collective.

Anoli: Michael, your ha-

Michael: If you’re going to pay attention to it, your opponent will easily knock you off.

He made a push towards Anoli, making her step back as she almost fell, while Michael put the sword closer to her chest. They both stood still for a moment, then the archangel removed the sword. Anoli looked down with upset face, putting her sword down too. Michael patted her shoulder.

Michael: You did great, Anoli.

Anoli: But I got distracted. I got worried about you and-

Michael: We used wooden swords, remember?

Anoli: Oh....right, I totally forgot about it.

Michael: It’s okay, on the first training emotions and excitement can make the picture too real, However, it can be bad for your attention. Even tho you demonstrated not bad results, your focus and emotions need some work.

Anoli: Wait, do you mean that I should be emotionless?

Michael: No, of course not. Just when we feel anger, as an example, our attacks can be stronger, however our focus will be only on making as much attacks and swings as possible, not paying attention on where to strike better in order to disable the opponent.

Anoli: Disable? Not kill?

Michael: That’s right. 

Anoli: But shouldn’t warriors be ready for such situations? Sword is still a murderous weapon, no matter how you look at it.

The archangel looks down at his wooden sword, thinking. His face was not so confident as before, like this was something he prefered to avoid it, or this took place in his past. Anoli realised that she probably said too much.

Anoli: Sorry, I just-

Michael: No no, it’s okay. It’s just our thing, to disable the opponent and not kill it, no matter how terrible they are. Still, it doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be done. There are fates worse than death from the sword.

Anoli: Oh...I see, I will remember it.

Michael: Good. Shall we try one more time or take a rest?

Anoli: I want to try one more time, then maybe come back home.

Michael: Alright, but first, I would like to teach you something else.

Anoli got curious as Michael showed a sign to come a bit closer. She did it as the archangel put his hand on her head, then suddenly Anoli felt like her and Michael’s powers are synchronized. It was new to her.

Anoli: Woah, I can feel how the power flows through my hand. What is it?

Michael: Just an improved healing ability. Sometimes, less powerful angels have to rely on more powerful ones, and so their powers should be in one wave. And so, such ability allows not only to heal faster, but also strength others if need to.

Anoli: That's incredible! And you will teach me how to do it properly?

Michael: Of course, every angel should be able to do it. And with your quick learning ability, I'm sure it will go fine. So, are you ready to learn?

Anoli: Of course. I'm always ready to help and learn.

Michael: Good. Then let's train a bit more, then take a rest. It's important to have proper rest.

She nodded as they continued training before the evening covered the city with its early stars. Anoli gained some experience during this training, but also felt super tired to cook something, so Liya took the responsibility on it. Fortunately, this time kitchen was not on fire and everyone could enjoy the meal. It's a long way for Anoli to master the sword combat, but she was determined to do it. For the safety of her dearest people.

----------------

And that's the next story for our universe^^ Anoli decided to master not only healing, but also sword techniques. Hope she will succeed in it^^

Anoli and Michael belong to @wildstarfan and @milasartblog (both me)

Okaria et Feria belongs to @wildstarfan and @captainthane

Base for the drawing is by AdorkaStock (SenshiStock)

[samanthaswords]

Hi Samantha, I would like to ask for a method of practising more on reading the opponent and being slower. I feel like my skill in this is very unstable and escapes me sometimes. I feel like rushing is what I do most of the time, which usually ends up with me being dead.

Thanks for asking! This is a big subject. It is the result of what happens when people wear protective gear and lose fear of the blade, which makes it easy to become reckless when fighting. It is extremely hard to defend against an opponent who is reckless because they don’t hold back, but if you are smart in a real fight, then you will preserve some caution- especially with sharp blades. I don’t think that it’s your skill that varies, just the circumstances that you are learning in.

I think that you need a partner who wants to learn the same way, who is trying to develop the feeling in the blade. If one opponent moves faster then the other will follow so you really need to have someone who can agree to not try to “win” or try to be the fastest during a drill. You have to agree to move at the same speed, keep the bind until you have manipulated the other to a place that is safer for you. The goal is for you to learn together and not by taking advantage of the other in the relative safety of the drill.

This is all in aid of developing ‘fühlen’, or ‘feeling’ in the fight.

(For a good technical breakdown of fühlenwithin historical German martial arts, see Hugh Knight’s description here.)

Below: Half of the page from manuscript i:33 folio 20v, showing two fencers bound.

What I demonstrate when I teach is all centred on fencing from the bind. The historical treatises largely recommend binding and control, rather than rushing in. However the way that most of the modern sword-combat sports world* are fighting is the opposite, unfortunately. There is very little binding, even though it’s shown all the time in the fight books.

*Just what I mean: the wider international community of medieval sword-centred combat sports fighters, which comes in over a dozen forms and identities.

When fighting, if a person’s goal is to strike the other, they will rush in and be reckless. If their goal is to defend themselves from attack, they will be more conservative and efficient.

I think that part of the problem causing “rushing in” is that in modern competitive sword combat, we generally seek to score points in a hurry to win a bout.

If we changed the rules to be that we started with hit points and had to preserve them, it would make for more careful fencing. There would still need to be motivation for both parties to fight, but the focus would shift and reflect the more cautious approach seen in historical swordsmanship. The key is to still have a healthy fear of the other person’s blade. Then you learn how to be safe against the danger.

It’s the same as working with any hazardous equipment. In my industry, there are so many of these that we use all the time. For example, the table saw is a pretty devastating tool but you don’t replace it with a blunted or plastic version, or wear a lot of protection to work with it. Bulky clothes or thick gloves actually get in the way, and create more of a hazard than working with just a pair of earmuffs and safety glasses.

Instead, you just accept the potentially-fatal dangers of the tool and learn to work with it carefully, in a controlled, precise and mindful way.

Below: Carving polystyrene-foam into organic stone steps as a scenic sculptor for the film industry. I’m wearing chaps because the chainsaw can potentially kick-back, although since this is fine-detail work, the material is much softer than what I usually work with and less of a hazard. Note the fencing stance for stability, and the rotation of my body to agree with the angle of the cut.

I am not advocating an irresponsible approach to training with swords, rather to appreciate the full hazard they present and then learn to handle it.

What I’m talking about refers to historical swordsmanship in the context of self-defence, but there are many, many modern sword combat sports that exist that have already put safety factors in place to protect their athletes.

Not everyone can be good at sword sports. But anyone can be good at at fencing for self-defence.

I have experienced this kind of approach in more than a few sword clubs around the world. To see video examples of it in action you can check out Roland Warzecha/DIMICATOR’s YouTube channel, showing the active practice of swordsmanship using sharp steel and shields that as closely as possibly follow the specifications of museum artifacts.

Lastly, a philosophy that may help prevent rushing in:

You have to control your space, the circle (or sphere) around your body. This is the distance around you that you or your weapon can reach. Anything that is inside it is your space.

(This concept was developed extensively during the Renaissance though Italian and Spanish schools of fencing- the example below is from Sebastien Romagnan’s book on Destreza)

So when your opponent comes into that space, they can be in your control.You are allowing them in. It’s the same for them- they are allowing you into their space. You just need to help them to make a mistake. Then once they make a mistake you can control them. Unless you also make a mistake, then you are both equal again. The best thing is to be efficient and make fewer mistakes than your opponent.

You can let someone into your space to trick them, or if you already have a better angle and they will struggle to defend. But it needs to be a clear decision to allow them that close to you.If you practice understanding your circle (with and without a sword), and think about what you allow to come into it, it will give you an advantage when you practice with a partner. However, there is a lot you can do to improve your reflexes and self control for combat, explained in length by many other martial arts practitioners.

I hope that helps!

[sofitheviking]

The Field of Chivarly at Gulf Wars XXVI. 

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[schwerterundstickerei]

TZLongsword / Squinting Rabbit Productions is creating Historical European Martial Arts videos | Patreon

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Hello, all! It’s been a while since I’ve posted directly on Tumblr; nowadays it’s mostly stuff that auto-populates from my Instagram account. But I wanted to let everyone know that I’m still alive and kicking, and still teaching swordplay! A very recent development with all that has been the launch of a Patreon page, which is a joint effort between myself and my associate/friend/student/co-producer Peter, of Squinting Rabbit Productions. Our goal is to create content for the global Historical European Martial Arts community that is high quality in terms of production value and content. Please support and share. We do this because we’re passionate about HEMA, and want to share that passion with all of you!

[ninjajustice]

[pyrolitheus]

Have you ever noticed that crows are very aware of the combat line? If you toss food towards them, even if it will obviously land short, they get off the line as fast as they can. If you toss in their general direction except clearly off the line, they don't move away at all. I want to know how good they would be with properly adapted swords.

[salvasti]

Not a huge fan of two handed swords, but I do like how real the fight is all the same.