~Yondaime~ learns to honor the sword.

[KeotsuEclipse]

Oh cool, I should include Gymnastics in my bio o;
And I am ready ^^

Alright, next is parries. I describe parries as a lesser form of a counter - instead of matching a strike and immediately counter-attacking, parries are generally used to either stop, redirect, or simply deflect an attack - that's not to say that they can't be incredibly useful.

Think of it like this - if you come at me with a horizontal slice, instead of actually blocking your blade and stopping it, I swing my blade at yours, hitting it near the top, and push it out wide, quickly.

That's a key to remember with parries - they generally hit above the mid-point of the blade. They stop an attack with the strike, but it doesn't keep your blade in prolonged contact with another.

 

[Yūsuke1]

Alright, next is parries. I describe parries as a lesser form of a counter - instead of matching a strike and immediately counter-attacking, parries are generally used to either stop, redirect, or simply deflect an attack - that's not to say that they can't be incredibly useful.

Think of it like this - if you come at me with a horizontal slice, instead of actually blocking your blade and stopping it, I swing my blade at yours, hitting it near the top, and push it out wide, quickly.

That's a key to remember with parries - they generally hit above the mid-point of the blade. They stop an attack with the strike, but it doesn't keep your blade in prolonged contact with another.

Oh coolios, so if I parry someone...Wouldn't I have a better shot since his wide open due to his hands being pushed back along with his sword?

 

[KeotsuEclipse]

Oh coolios, so if I parry someone...Wouldn't I have a better shot since his wide open due to his hands being pushed back along with his sword?

Yes. A parry deflects the user's blade to the "outside" while your blade remains on the "inside." Tactically, this a favorable position.

If you're ready, I'll go on.

 

[Yūsuke1]

Yes. A parry deflects the user's blade to the "outside" while your blade remains on the "inside." Tactically, this a favorable position.

If you're ready, I'll go on.

I am ready =DD

 

[KeotsuEclipse]

I am ready =DD

Anyway, next is blocking. It's relatively simple, and one of the most common things to do. It involves using your own blade to bring the opponents to a complete stop, generally holding blade contact.

An example of this is if you attacked me with a vertical slash, and I raised my blade horizontally, stopping your blade against mine. Neither blade is in motion, and thus - theoretically - neither fighter has an advantage.

It's a simple concept, so I think you get it.

Ready to move on?

 

[Yūsuke1]

Anyway, next is blocking. It's relatively simple, and one of the most common things to do. It involves using your own blade to bring the opponents to a complete stop, generally holding blade contact.

An example of this is if you attacked me with a vertical slash, and I raised my blade horizontally, stopping your blade against mine. Neither blade is in motion, and thus - theoretically - neither fighter has an advantage.

It's a simple concept, so I think you get it.

Ready to move on?

*absorbs what you have just said*

Yup ^_^

 

[KeotsuEclipse]

*absorbs what you have just said*

Yup ^_^

Good.

Next is counter/counter-attacking.

Basically, it's how to effectively make your parry/block go in your favor. This is a fairly long section, as I break it down into parts.

Ready?

 

[Yūsuke1]

Good.

Next is counter/counter-attacking.

Basically, it's how to effectively make your parry/block go in your favor. This is a fairly long section, as I break it down into parts.

Ready?

Yup~!

 

[KeotsuEclipse]

Yup~!

Alright, let's begin with countering after a parry: after a parry, your blade will be the one on the inside, putting you at a tactical advantage over your opponent. The reason for this is that since their blade is outside, they have to first get past your own blade to attack you - with your blade on the inside, you just have to land the hit.

Now, the strike you use will almost certainly be dependent upon how and where you parry and the position it leaves your blade - however, a stab/lunge is almost consistently a great choice as it gives forward movement (making it difficult to dodge by stepping back), has great speed (making it even more difficult to actually react to), and can easily be brought into a back-swing to counter the nearly inevitable attempt at attacking you the opponent will make.

Clear?

 

[Yūsuke1]

Alright, let's begin with countering after a parry: after a parry, your blade will be the one on the inside, putting you at a tactical advantage over your opponent. The reason for this is that since their blade is outside, they have to first get past your own blade to attack you - with your blade on the inside, you just have to land the hit.

Now, the strike you use will almost certainly be dependent upon how and where you parry and the position it leaves your blade - however, a stab/lunge is almost consistently a great choice as it gives forward movement (making it difficult to dodge by stepping back), has great speed (making it even more difficult to actually react to), and can easily be brought into a back-swing to counter the nearly inevitable attempt at attacking you the opponent will make.

Clear?

Got it (;

 

[KeotsuEclipse]

Got it (;

Alright.

Now, as for counter-attacking from a block -with your blade locked with the opponents, you want to quickly disengage and attack; the key to this is to disengage in your favor.

However, a useful thing to do is consider how you blocked and how it can transition into a blow. An example is this - if I'm locked at cross with my opponent with my blade held horizontally above me, a great counter-attack is to push my opponents blade upward as I unfold my blade; this will cause their blade to go upward and to their left, not only putting their blade on the outside, but also putting the opponent off balance and putting them in a position that their strike wouldn't be able to do near as much damage.

All good? Because we still have more to go.

 

[Yūsuke1]

Alright.

Now, as for counter-attacking from a block -with your blade locked with the opponents, you want to quickly disengage and attack; the key to this is to disengage in your favor.

However, a useful thing to do is consider how you blocked and how it can transition into a blow. An example is this - if I'm locked at cross with my opponent with my blade held horizontally above me, a great counter-attack is to push my opponents blade upward as I unfold my blade; this will cause their blade to go upward and to their left, not only putting their blade on the outside, but also putting the opponent off balance and putting them in a position that their strike wouldn't be able to do near as much damage.

All good? Because we still have more to go.

Yes sir~!

 

[KeotsuEclipse]

Yes sir~!

Alright, now, off course, you could also try a true counter-attack - that is, attack while the opponent's attacking. By choosing not to make a defensive move, you create a dilemma for the opponent: do they continue with their own attack at the cost of trading blows with you, or do they stop their own attack and try to counter yours?

It's a useful, but brash tactic. The biggest thing to remember about sword fighting is that while it's nice to have first blood, it doesn't always determine the outcome of the battle. It's a rare thing to do, but maybe taking a hit in order to give one will be what you need to put you on top.