Fighting left-handed with Sword and Shield
Aug 22, 2007 5:18:36 GMT
Post by Deleted on Aug 22, 2007 5:18:36 GMT
The question was raised in another forum of how the fight changes with sword and shield when you are fighting left-handed or if you are faced with a left handed opponent. I answered it there and I think this is a worthy subject to bring here too.
Normally when a right handed fighter fights another right-handed fighter with sword and shield, each man's sword match's up against the other mans shield. In the case of off-handed fighters, a righty against a lefty, the two shields will match up and the two swords will match up on the same side. This changes the fight considerably.
Righty against righty is the same fight as lefty against lefty. It is only with lefty against righty that things change. For this reason, I will not refer to the matter as an issue of left handed or right handed, but rather as off-handed or like-handed in the case of righty vs righty (and lefty against lefty).
My primary form is sword and shield. I fight both right handed and left handed in the SCA, MSR and in unofficial circles with less restricted rules. I also fence rapier both case and with dagger.
In the case of rapier, longsword, polearm, or single sword were no shield is involved fighting off-handed presents little difference. With rapier dagger there is some issue because you can not comfortably block the rapier with you dagger. For off-handed fighter is has to cross over to the other side to offer defensive assistance. A rapier fight between off-handed fighters will resemble more of a single rapier fight. The daggers will be largely out of play unless they cross them over their rapier or fight in an extreme refused guard where the dagger is out in front of the tip of the rapier. In any case the off-handed opponents will be use to fighting single and will not have trouble adjusting. Crossing your blades is also very risky and should be avoided.
When fighting sword and shield, with a heater size shield, the fighting style changes significantly from like-handed to off-handed fights. In a like-handed fight, the shield is held more open so it covers the the side and front partially. It only need cover half your chest. The sword side of you chest will be out of reach from the other fighter. There is an advanced shot that can hit that opening, but that is the exception. The front foot is always pointing at your opponent or the direction you plan to move in. The back foot among like handed fighter will set further back and to the side for balance. The angle can be anywhere from a 90 degree "L" to 45 degrees.
In an off-handed fight, the first thing that must change is the foot-placement. The back foot must be at a "T" directly behind your front foot. This will shift the shield in front of you body. An off-handed fighter presents little threat to the shield side of your body. His sword arm can't reach you. You sword side is wide open. He can throw wraps all day at your sword side from behind his shield. You can do the same to him if he does not bring his shield over. You have to tilt you body so you shield is flat in front you, not off to the side. Putting one leg behind the other and bringing your shield arm over, will do this.
The shield naturally hinders some of your offensive capabilities as well as you visibility. The bigger the shield, the more defense you have but the more your visibility and range of attack will be hindered. Moving the shield across you body as I mentioned before will hinder you even more. Not a problem since both fighters are limited in a similar way. It is very hard to throw an on-side cut from the position I mentioned. If you try to throw an on-side cut, you will naturally rotate you body, move your shield and expose yourself. On-sides are still possible if you raise you hand up high and strike over you shield but it is awkward. Your main offense is an off-side cut that comes over your shield to his head (from the shield side) or an on-side wrap to his head or body. The wrap is an on-side cut where you rotate the wrist and strike with the false edge. The dynamics of this cut allow you to bend you arm at the elbow around your shield (and his) to get to your opponent. You will not see you target, you have to anticipate where your target is based on what you can see.
A word of caution on shield bashing and charging. Yes, it does have a place in fighting but it can easily be turned against you because you typically open your shield and move it forward in order to bash. A skilled opponent will be happy to take advantage of this opening. It is more useful when used infrequently. Among like-handed fighters, hooking the edge of your opponents shield and gently pushing it aside can effectively create an opening for you to get your sword in without exposing yourself.
Some of what I said can be very hard to follow, so let me know if I need to clarify anything.
_________
Normally when a right handed fighter fights another right-handed fighter with sword and shield, each man's sword match's up against the other mans shield. In the case of off-handed fighters, a righty against a lefty, the two shields will match up and the two swords will match up on the same side. This changes the fight considerably.
Righty against righty is the same fight as lefty against lefty. It is only with lefty against righty that things change. For this reason, I will not refer to the matter as an issue of left handed or right handed, but rather as off-handed or like-handed in the case of righty vs righty (and lefty against lefty).
My primary form is sword and shield. I fight both right handed and left handed in the SCA, MSR and in unofficial circles with less restricted rules. I also fence rapier both case and with dagger.
In the case of rapier, longsword, polearm, or single sword were no shield is involved fighting off-handed presents little difference. With rapier dagger there is some issue because you can not comfortably block the rapier with you dagger. For off-handed fighter is has to cross over to the other side to offer defensive assistance. A rapier fight between off-handed fighters will resemble more of a single rapier fight. The daggers will be largely out of play unless they cross them over their rapier or fight in an extreme refused guard where the dagger is out in front of the tip of the rapier. In any case the off-handed opponents will be use to fighting single and will not have trouble adjusting. Crossing your blades is also very risky and should be avoided.
When fighting sword and shield, with a heater size shield, the fighting style changes significantly from like-handed to off-handed fights. In a like-handed fight, the shield is held more open so it covers the the side and front partially. It only need cover half your chest. The sword side of you chest will be out of reach from the other fighter. There is an advanced shot that can hit that opening, but that is the exception. The front foot is always pointing at your opponent or the direction you plan to move in. The back foot among like handed fighter will set further back and to the side for balance. The angle can be anywhere from a 90 degree "L" to 45 degrees.
In an off-handed fight, the first thing that must change is the foot-placement. The back foot must be at a "T" directly behind your front foot. This will shift the shield in front of you body. An off-handed fighter presents little threat to the shield side of your body. His sword arm can't reach you. You sword side is wide open. He can throw wraps all day at your sword side from behind his shield. You can do the same to him if he does not bring his shield over. You have to tilt you body so you shield is flat in front you, not off to the side. Putting one leg behind the other and bringing your shield arm over, will do this.
The shield naturally hinders some of your offensive capabilities as well as you visibility. The bigger the shield, the more defense you have but the more your visibility and range of attack will be hindered. Moving the shield across you body as I mentioned before will hinder you even more. Not a problem since both fighters are limited in a similar way. It is very hard to throw an on-side cut from the position I mentioned. If you try to throw an on-side cut, you will naturally rotate you body, move your shield and expose yourself. On-sides are still possible if you raise you hand up high and strike over you shield but it is awkward. Your main offense is an off-side cut that comes over your shield to his head (from the shield side) or an on-side wrap to his head or body. The wrap is an on-side cut where you rotate the wrist and strike with the false edge. The dynamics of this cut allow you to bend you arm at the elbow around your shield (and his) to get to your opponent. You will not see you target, you have to anticipate where your target is based on what you can see.
A word of caution on shield bashing and charging. Yes, it does have a place in fighting but it can easily be turned against you because you typically open your shield and move it forward in order to bash. A skilled opponent will be happy to take advantage of this opening. It is more useful when used infrequently. Among like-handed fighters, hooking the edge of your opponents shield and gently pushing it aside can effectively create an opening for you to get your sword in without exposing yourself.
Some of what I said can be very hard to follow, so let me know if I need to clarify anything.
_________