"There is only one god, and His name is Death. And there is only one thing we say to Death: 'not today'." George RR Martin- A Game of Thrones
Rule #1 in sparring, and in life is and should be don't die.
Yes I know this does not work long term, every person dies, but that does not mean that you should do dumb stuff and quicken that inevitable end.
I have spent a fair amount of time as of late watching new students and it comes across to me that somewhere in their training someone has encouraged them so much to get in the first shot, that they have not given how to do so safely much thought. The thinking goes, "if I can hit the other guy before he hits me, I win" This may be so in sport fencing or in some tournaments, it may even be so that if you can hit the other guy more times than they hit you you win, but ultimately this is not the best strategy. The best strategy is to walk away if you can without being hit at all. This is harder than it sounds and I don't suggest people sit and just try to defend themselves without countering or doing anything in response, but at the end of the day, the person with the best defenses will simply be hit less and that is always a win. In this essay I will talk about sword fencing specifically since that is my area of expertise, but these things apply to other martial arts and living in general.
So how do you follow rule #1?
There are 2 ways, the first is to be proactive, the other is to be appropriately reactive.
Pro-activity in a fight: Get in the first shot
"Nuke 'Em, get them before they get you"- Robocop
"The best defense is a good Ofense, You know who said that? Mel the cook on Alice" Tai Kwan Leep- the Frantics
The first way to stop the attack is to simply attack them before they have a chance to attack you.
Don't ever assume that because you pose a threat that they will have to deal with it before they attack. Sure, a smart person with see a sword point in their face and try to do something about it, but assume that no one is a smart person. If you threaten them, they can do 2 things, they can ignore the threat and get hit or hurt, or they can deal with it, but always pose the threat assuming that they will do nothing to protect against it. Some people are just not in their right minds, some people think they can move faster than you, are stronger than you and can take it, or that if they take a hit they can hit you harder it is worth it. If you can avoid interacting with crazy, do so, if you can't assume that they don't know what they are doing, are on drugs, or are otherwise not smart and make sure you stay safe as you deal with them, preferably at a distance.
Throughout this lesson, I do not want to understate that this can work. If you see someone on the street who looks like they want to fight you and you knock them out cold first, at least they did not attack you right? Besides the legal implications of this, there are some logistical problems with this thinking but it can work to accomplish the task of not dying. If you don't like people living in a multifamily unit is probably not the best option. Sure shooting anyone on the street that you see with a handgun keeps them from shooting you, but you can only get away with this so long before having some legal and ethical problems.
How do you do this in long sword fighting? If you can read their intentions from their body language you can tell where they are likely to attack, or what they intend to do and from there you can stop it. Is their weight on one foot or the other? What can they do from the guard they are holding? How are they holding their body, are they tense, or relaxed? Are their shoulders forward or backwards? What motions have you seen them make and what were the results of that?
If you do not know the guard, ask yourself, what does this the way they are holding their sword tell you about what they intend to do. You may not know that guard but something with their point at you or generally towards your face or torso is good for thrusting, a guard with the point away is better for cutting, there are some exceptions but you get the idea.
The truth is that you may not be able to read them 100% especially if you are just getting started, but what you can do relatively easily is eliminate what they cannot, or are not as likely to do. If they are holding their sword upright on the right side of their body with their left foot forward they are likely to be cutting from that side. (Zornhaw, or Fendente) What they are not going to do: cut from the left with a simple step on that side. To do this it takes more time and when they change, you can see them change. Something I always tell my students is that they cannot do that from here, unless they change, in which case it is not from there anymore.
The real key here is to cut off their line of attack while making yours. If they are going to thrust, don't thrust back, rather: block their line of attack as you attack even before they move.
Another quick and easy way to do this is to move as they are changing guards or moving their point away from you, or taking a step as they are in transition and their intention at that point is to move from A to B not to move part way then attack.
Reactive: Be prepared
Avoiding the legal implications of shooting the guy who has a gun before he has a chance to draw it and shoot you is really easy, just don't do it. Throwing the first punch before they get a chance to throw one, is easy, but it starts something you may not want to deal with. If the guy with the gun does nothing, you have no problem, if the guy who looks like trouble does not trouble you, there is no reason to get into a fight for nothing.
Fiore's art is largely one of stopping the attack as it comes and responding with something of your own. This can be accomplished by controlling your reach and theirs by adjusting your measure. If you are out of reach, and they step with a cut, while you step backwards the same distance nothing has changed, they have not gained an upper hand, and you have neutralized the threat. In my class on this, I have some drills that can be done that teach this but again it is a question of watching what they are doing and responding when they move. If someone attacks you and you respond by just defending yourself, you may not have won the day, but at least you were not hit and have thwarted their attack. This is not ideal but if you live to fight another day, it is a win in my book.
This is not to sat that this is an easy task, occasionally I run a drill where the objective is to just defend yourself for a period of time, and it is one of the hardest things to simply defend, but it is a good lesson to work with. This does also not mean that you have to meet their strike with your parry to defend, If they are cutting at your leg and you step backwards with it they have missed their target and you have some great openings. If someone is rushing you and you can sidestep and let them run into a wall, all you did was take a step and it was them who missed you. There are drills that I teach that are in line with this and what we find is that it is a fun experience to be the one who is simply moving, and a frustrating one for the person who is trying to make a grab.
Covering your Line: Finish it right.
No matter which way you accomplish rule number 1, the last thing you have to do is to get away properly. The idea here is that no matter if your attack lands well, or your missed entirely, you still have to follow rule #1. If you cut their arm, and they cut your head just afterwards you have not followed rule 1. You hit them first, but they hit you after in the leg? Good job on being there first, but what if it was not good or it was not called, you have to protect yourself always to follow rule #1. If you see the guy in the street with the gun who is not likely a threat, but you know where he went, you are at least ready if he becomes a threat. In a tournament an opponent is not a threat when he is not a threat. If a hold has been called and you stop your defense, there is nothing to stop him from sweeping your leg and getting a penalty for example.
Conclusion: Rule #1 in life
Tournaments are not real life. We use weapons that are safer than the real thing, we wear protective equipment that helps make things hurt less and protects us. but that is not ALL of rule #1. If you are sparring without a mask and get hit in the head, you could have a headache, a concussion, or die, even with safe weapons. Rule #1 however goes a step further, it is not just about the fighting floor, it is about being safe in life. If someone aims a gun at your chest and asks for your wallet, give it to them. It is not worth dying for a few cards and a couple bucks. If you can avoid the places where people are likely to start a problem with you, do so, it is not worth the time and effort to have to defend yourself if you can stay safe and avoid it. If you see someone on the street who gives off a bad vibe, walk away, maybe you are wrong but better wrong and safe than right and dead. If you are driving, this is all about watching other drivers to know with or without a turn signal what they intend to do. That split second means you can make smart decisions and stay safe. At the end of the day, we will all not be able to avoid death. I have to say Not today, to many times in the last few months, but if you can make smart choices you may be able to choose a better time than right now for your end to come and that makes all the difference.
