Not getting killed...

[Salus]

I've been interested in sword fighting for a while and done abit of research, but there's still one question I need answered and was hoping you guys could help

I know that people didn't clash swords and bang them like crazy, so my question is how did you not get hit (with out using a shield, lol)

did they use the side/ back of the sword to block with, did they dodge the attack or by some other means escape death

Thank you for any replies

Salus

[parkerlineage]

Chinese broadsword, which is all I know, uses the side of the blade to parry if necessary, and other than that, relies on agility to not be where your opponent's blade is.

[alsey]

this is all about kendo, other forms of sword fighting might be different. but this is what i know:

you usually deflect the opponents sword with the side of yours. there is one technique where you strike down onto their sword to 'kill' it, and in this action you actually strike the back of their sword with the blade of yours. but usually, you use the side of the sword for parrying.

as for not getting killed, there's a lot more to it than blocking your opponent's cuts. you want to seize the initiative, be strong and quick and cut him before he cuts you. if he attempts a cut, you either have to get out of the way, cut him before his cut lands, or deflect his cut and counter.

ideally you don't want to be thinking about blocking, you want to be thinking about how to cut your opponent. parries are used to enable to you to cut, not just to prevent yourself from being cut. if you are in a position where your opponent can cut you, you are either already trying to cut him, or trying to draw an attack which you can then parry and counter from.

for example, a common kendo technique; suriage. when your opponent attempts a cut, you swing your sword up, deflecting the cut on the way up with the side of your sword. then, with his sword out of the way, you swing your sword down and cut him.

real sword fights are extremely fast and usually end within a few seconds unless the combatants are very evenly matched. a lot of samurai duels ended in mutual death. initiative and confidence are even more important than other types of combat, and things like blocking are less important.

you might want to watch the kendo kata. you can download them here:

http://www.yorku.ca/kendo/KendoForms.htm

these kata represent common results of a katana duel. they look very simple, usually with just one or two moves. imagine speeding the kata up to real combat speed and you have a sword fight. its very short and is decided almost entirely by the initial movements.

[cathal]

That's good advice.

[lordtariel]

I can't quite remember the saying:

First priority is to attack. If they attack first, counterattack, if you can't counterattack, dodge to put yourself in a better position to attack, if you can't dodge, parry and then attack. I've noticed a lot of untrained people try to attack the weapon, when they should be trying to attack the person.

[UseoForce]

thearma.org

[Salus]

Thank you very much, if I could rep. you guys I would

anyway, (i don't know if i should ask this question here but...)

are there any drills to help my sword (katana) handling/attacks/parries/dodges that you guys know of?

if i should put this question in another thread just let me know and I'll

see it gets done ASAP

Salus

[alsey]

best way to develop katana skills is get shinai (bamboo practice swords), bogu (kendo armor) and a partner. unfortunately bogu is very expensive (hundreds of dollars), but a lot of kendo dojo will let you borrow bogu for a while. with shinai and bogu you can go full power against eachother and learn what works and what doesn't.

there are some drills you can do on your own. mainly suburi; swinging the shinai up and down, coordinated with footwork if you can. this builds strength, speed, stamina and control. its the sword fighting equivalent of bag work.

you really need to master suburi with proper grip, cutting technique and footwork before you can do anything else. and those things are hard to explain in text. i don't have time right now but i'll come back later and post some links and stuff. but really you need to find an instructor.

if you want to learn actual fighting techniques you absolutely need to find a kendo or kenjutsu dojo. alternatively you could try iaijutsu if you want something more internal.

finally, if you actually have a katana, respect it more than anything you've ever respected before. the injuries some people sustain while practicing with katana are quite horrific.

[lordtariel]

It's not as good as armor, but if you can't afford it, you can get away with a heavy padded coat, gloves and a three weapon fencing mask. I actually practice with the mask and gloves for the most part. Contrary to popular belief, shinai don't normally hurt that badly

[alsey]

ok salus, some links:

http://www.mushinkankendo.com/kendo_kihon_waza.html

http://www.yorku.ca/kendo/KendoForms.htm

http://www.kendo.org.uk/clubs/edinburghkendo/manual.html

this book has it all:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/4770021194/sr=8-1/qid=1154429378/ref=pd_bbs_1/103-0057504-8379038?ie=UTF8

of course, you could go for something other than kendo. kenjutsu is more traditional and more complete, but often lacks the full contact sparring of kendo. iaido/iaijutsu is very interesting; its very internal and all kata.