Barad'Dun's first Champion Tournament.

Here's the Video of our First Monthly Champion's Tournament. We didn't get all the fighting from the 3 prelimary rounds, but we did video all the elimination round and the final. If you don't know who won, you will have to watch the video!



Konradr

i loved this

This was fun:D

This is a great way to see others fighting habits at their best:D Great learning tool for sure:D I learned some stuff while fighting too:D

I want to analyze some of the fighting. I just haven't had time to do so. Two things I can point out....

The one time I manage to go to Surt's Tuesday night Royal Army practice (when I was on vacation from work and before they were suspended do to the cold) I learned (though I don't practice enough of it) the style he likes for attack and defence. The sword always up and to the right of your shield. Snap attacks, no overextending and then back to guard.

Strider has this form perfected. Its beautiful to watch. Notice his fight with Sasquatch. Sas didn't move his shield enough or his body around enough and Strider kept "popping" the tip of his sword at that shield indentation towards Sasquatch's chest. He did it like 3 or 4 times and finally got the kill.

Moral of that. Move your shield and body around, don't do things the same way over and over. Movement will make you harder to figure what is available.

However, despite beautiful form, Strider seems vulnerable to sword arm hits. I can only think its a speed issue. Or he could be telepathing his intentions too much. Speed, work up that hit and back to guard quicker, get those blows lighting fast so someone with slow defensive perception won't be able to pick up on it or move quick enough to counter it. Telepathing (probably the wrong word) means either you are doing the same thing over and over and someone with good Defensive perception knows its coming and can put a counterstike on your arm or it means your moving so slow it can be read easy enough to counter.

Striker has beautiful sword movements, but I think he needs to work on speed and maybe vary his combinations more.


Anthony You have the heart of a fighter but you're not seeking out the skills. You shield movement is nonexistant and your sword (or in this case Axe) movements are limp. Seek out Taco, Heretic, Smithy, Caretaker or Surt and ask for help. Listen to what they tell you and practice it at home. Shadow box with a stick and a pretend shield. move it with your body, work on the mechanics, throw hard and accurate basic shots. Seek out the video (do a search on this forum) on the 6 shot drill (its an sca video I posted) and follow the guidelines against your nearest tree, pole or sister.


Me, legs still vulnerable, need to pop it out of the way. Shield pushed away from the body (a habit from the SCA) I have speed in my sword strikes but overextend terribly. leave my sword side shoulder vulnerable (squaring up too much?) I need to work on more sword shots, and snap shots like Strider rather than those long winding, power wielding, if I had a real blade, type shots.

More later....


Konradr

Taco is always talking about holding the bottom of your shield out to shadow your legs (hide them. Its harder to strike a target you have to guess at) See how Heretic either holds it out (even that heavy plywood teardrop) or holds it against the leg. Perfect form.

Sasquatch, I know that tower if heavy, but its excellent protection. Walk around with it at home, get used to the weight and moving it around or rotating the hips to move the shield side to side. Also, get that shield side leg under it, press your knee against your shield See how Romeo fights with his long shield (granted its coreless and alot lighter). but he is able to keep the shield in place for protection of the legs and to rotate the shield left or right, still keeping it in line for protection rather than have it sag left or right and leaving the legs open.

If someone continually pops for that open dip towards your chest, snap the shield out against the blade, or swing it and trap that blade or knock it off to the left/right and swing for that sword arm. Anticipate the attackc, practice the counter (shadow fight an imaginary opponant using that move) so that it happens instinctively in combat.

Konradr

telegraphing is like when you have a tell in poker it is pretty much a body movement that tells you opponent were you are going to strike... i have watched this vid a lot of times and ya i need to work on my shield work... i think the reason strider gets his arm taken a lot is he pops his elbow in front of his shield a and when he goes back to guard his elbow is poped out so it is easier to get that ... in the fight with me and black mike i telegraph my high cross shot soo much it is embarrassing no wonder heretic destroyed me. To anthony don't cross yourself up flow back to your original stance and when you had strider's sword i would have just dropped the shield and florentined at that point@konrade i agree with the fact that leg work needed to be done more but you might wanna place you handle some place higher on your shield every time i hit the bottom of that thing it goes spinning and considering that you legwork is not the best, neither is mine, you would have a sturdier shield

True Sasquatch, I'm thinking of a hybrid Foam/plywood heart strapped shield or maybe throwing in some money and getting ABS and making an ABS cored strap. Moving the handle up might help too, I'll have to consider making another coreless and moving the handle up a smudge.

Love the feedback guys. Jump in.

Konradr

or if you like the handle in the middle just go total viking and make a round shield that way the spinning issue is taken care of

Heretic and I have always been on a similar level and we throw a lot of the same shots, I learned where I need to protect more, he killed me in the same spot every time, making the same shot I was. He kept getting me behind the right shoulder. We would both go to cross and we got so into it that i didn't pull my shield up far enough with us bumping into each other:D Good learning experience, need to stop throwing so many cross over shots:D I just got excited about a new toy i guess:D

I thought Anthony tried real hard also, it made me happy to see so much effort and heart:D He always manages to get me when i'm not looking:D

@Squatch: Punch shields are meant to be movable. What I've learned is...just dont get hit by Reds and let your shield wrist have some time. It will get strong. Put some grip tape on the handle. What I do to give my shield a little more stability is extend my thumb straight up so i can use it to move my shield and keep it more stable.

Wouldn't moving it up give you less center of control?

Yay rounds!

That's an Idea, though I'm thinking more on the lines of a Greek Hoplon. (3 foot plywood or ABS round) which had the arm holder dead center and the hand grip near the edge. Their edges were curved in, but I don't know how to do that unless I use heat on the ABS and mold it. The 3 feet gives me 1 1/2 feet of passive shield side protection. Also, historically, I've seen statues with Greeks holding their shields out foreshadowing their legs (just like Heretic does with his teardrop in the video) Though alot of historians say the big round was useless for individual fighting, I disagree and am itching to find out.


Caretaker, Love you to death, but that hopping around you did as you closed on your victims in the tournament, I don't know why, reminds me of those winged monkeys in wizard of Oz. Monkey fu.

Watch Caretaker throw his shots, Sword side high then swings shield side low, back and forth, fast and furious trying to get his opponants to overcommit their shield either high sword side (then BAM! to the shield side leg ) or low shield side (Then Close and BAM! to the sword side chest or torso) Very effective. Make your opponant work his shield and over extend or commit it then hit him hard and fast with the opposite counter. Very nice work.

Konradr

well the reason his pops soo easy like that is because he has an equal amount on top so it wants to spin completely around as such but with it being disproportionate the weight will settle to the bottom so he doesn't have to strain his wrist every time someone nocs the bottom to the side. i agree with the red thing but this happened with a blue. but i agree yay for round shields

ya it was not useless it was just more effective in the way the greeks fought how can it be useless it protects from knee to neck ... the spartan won season one of deadliest warrior against the samurai and you can take that however you want but it was due to that shield and those fights were one on one fights... and i wanna make a curved shield for that reason the natural protection of it

I know, I was watching myself move through the whole thing and i was like.....i move so weird....I don't know why I did the jumping, It seemed to work though. Im not complaining:D Just working on keeping always moving.

You did a real good job of this pushing and putting a lot of energy on romeo. Romeo is amazing at teeter tottering his shield on his leg, amazing shield side defense, however completely open sword side.

My shield has a dead center handle, this allows me to have as much control as possible in all directions, plus i don't have to work so hard on making sure its up high enough to protect my shoulder. I understand what you mean though.

And I happen to like those Monkeys!!!!

I'll get you my pretty

I made a Video CD of this tournament clip for Heretic. I'll give it to him next Saturday. I'm assuming they have a DVD player???

Konradr

Grrrrrr! I forgot all about the VCD I made for Heretic, Damn it! maybe I'll remember next week.

Konradr