It wasn’t that Fiach thought Soresu was the best Form – she didn’t believe any of the seven could claim that. It was, to her, all about individual circumstances and context. But it did feel strange going up against someone that was using the very tactics that she held dear. And if you threw in the fact that she was expected to go on the offensive – against all her natural instincts – and you had someone that was clearly not committed to the duel. Which was, as any combatant would tell you, a very poor place to be.
Her ubiquitous smile remained – which was often a strangely useful tactic when sparring. Looking relaxed and as if you were enjoying yourself could be unsettling. A kind of inverse Dun Möch. Throw in her propensity to chat as if out for a morning stroll, and it could really get under the skin of an opponent.
On the plus side, she was physically set-up for constant motion – lithe and not muscular – stamina her greatest physical weapon. But regardless, as she pressed and found Izel’s defence more than adequate, she found herself being moved around – and therefore losing control of the bout. And as her fellow Padawan circled, it exposed gaps in Fiach’s relatively non-existent defence.
It would have been very easy to switch back to Soresu, but that was not the aim of the exercise and so Fiach was now picking up more and more small burns. With a training saber, they were little more than irritations – in a real duel they would be significantly draining.
But she was not about to give in, and had a few tricks up her proverbial sleeve to use and decided to use one now. She presented a short combination that ended with an overhead strike. She presumed Izel would block or parry and – at the precise moment their blades would touch – she deactivated and reactivated her blade. This would allow her saber to effectively pass through her opponent’s and continue its path unhindered.
If it worked of course…
@Reyn
Her ubiquitous smile remained – which was often a strangely useful tactic when sparring. Looking relaxed and as if you were enjoying yourself could be unsettling. A kind of inverse Dun Möch. Throw in her propensity to chat as if out for a morning stroll, and it could really get under the skin of an opponent.
On the plus side, she was physically set-up for constant motion – lithe and not muscular – stamina her greatest physical weapon. But regardless, as she pressed and found Izel’s defence more than adequate, she found herself being moved around – and therefore losing control of the bout. And as her fellow Padawan circled, it exposed gaps in Fiach’s relatively non-existent defence.
It would have been very easy to switch back to Soresu, but that was not the aim of the exercise and so Fiach was now picking up more and more small burns. With a training saber, they were little more than irritations – in a real duel they would be significantly draining.
But she was not about to give in, and had a few tricks up her proverbial sleeve to use and decided to use one now. She presented a short combination that ended with an overhead strike. She presumed Izel would block or parry and – at the precise moment their blades would touch – she deactivated and reactivated her blade. This would allow her saber to effectively pass through her opponent’s and continue its path unhindered.
If it worked of course…
@Reyn