I wrote this a while ago, but now have a place to put it. Enjoy!
1) Stance: stand completely sideways to your
closest spear threat. It creates
the smallest profile to hit.
Opening up just 20 degrees opens up a kill pocket in the arm pit.
2) Stance: Keep the knees at least slightly bent. Find the sweet spot where you can fire
your spear as quickly as possible.
3) Fire from
the hip: half of the power and
speed comes from pushing the hip that is furthest away from the target toward
the target.
4) Avoid
lunging: taking a big step forward
with the front foot is slow and telegraphing. It gives the opponent time to see that the shot is coming,
and it gives other opposing spearmen the chance to counter attack. The return to a defensive
position is also very slow. Learn
how to safely get within your opponent’s range so that minimal forward movement
is needed. A small step forward is
ideal in order to move into range, but keep this movement as small as possible
while still being able to hit your target. Sometimes a bigger lunge may be appropriate, but be aware of
your vulnerability when doing this.
5) Use the full
range of your weapon. Fight at a
range such that you can step in, hit your target while fully extended, and step
right back out of range. Don’t get
caught dancing inside too much.
6) Move your
arm, hips, and legs at the same time.
The shot will get to its target in half the amount of time with twice
the power than if your arm follows after the hip has rotated.
7) Fire a spear
with one hand: Removing the
“guide” hand off the spear allows you to rotate the body quicker and to extend
6-8” further. Don’t worry if
your spear tip hits the ground after your shot. Step back just out of range and recover.
8) Recoil to a
defensive position as quickly as possible. Once your shot is fired, you are exposed (assuming that another
spearman is within range). Get out
of range as quickly as possible.
9) BE
THERE! A spearman who stands a
foot behind his fellow spearman might as well not be there at all. Simply being a threat by being in range
of your opponents protects your line.
10) Fight from
the front: Get out in front of
your line and use your spear. If
your opponents charge you, retreat behind your line before they get to you.
11) Trade
shifts with other spearmen. If you
are on the front line, you should be working for a kill and keeping 100%
focus. When you are tired and need
a break, step back and let another spear take your spot. Don’t hog the front line, its bad for
you and for your side.
12) See the whole line in front of
you. Don’t get tunnel vision. Your potential targets and potential
threats to you are not always only the guy right in front of you.
13) Take good spots on the front
line, not just available spots.
This means you will need to figure out how to communicate with random
fighters and convince them to move so that you can take a good spot.
14) Two spears spread apart with a
gap in between them are better than two spears next to each other. This places the two attacks at wider
angles on the opponents making it more difficult for them to defend.
15) Don’t crowd
the front line. Too many spears
crowded together can’t move to attack or to defend.
16) Sometimes its best to find a
spot where no spears can kill you so that you can get lots of free shots on
poles and shields. When in this
situation, kill them as quickly as you can.
17) Sometimes its best to be in a position against
lots of spears. You might be the
only thing keeping these spears from killing your line. In this situation, be very
careful. Even a great spearman
will have a difficult time fighting 2-3 opposing spearmen by himself.
18) Often simply looking
intimidating will keep people from attacking. A line that is ready to press can be stopped by simply
stepping forward with confidence and getting in to a very aggressive stance. Most fighters are actually very afraid
of a good spearman.
19) Deflect an incoming spear with
minimal movement. It usually only
takes a slight movement with your shaft to deflect their shot out of the way.
20) When facing a spearman, you
can control where his spear is pointing by pushing it slightly out of the way
with your spear. In general, try
to keep your spear pointed at his body while keeping his spear pointed away
from your body.
21) If he tries
to over power your spear, you can disengage by dropping your spear tip just
below his shaft which causes him to swing past the position he was fighting
for, and you can re-engage on the other side of his shaft with your tip, again,
pointed at his body and his tip pointed away from yours.
22) Draw and counter: sometimes you can allow him to have the
straight line pointed at your body
hoping to get him to shoot at what he thinks is an open target. When he does, deflect his spear off
target so that he misses, and then fire your spear at him immediately after.
23) Disengage and fire. While pointing your tip at one side of
the body, if he tries to push your spear away from that target, disengage by
dropping your spear tip beneath his shaft, and immediately fire to the other
side of his body as his spear moves out of the way.
24) Disengage and disengage and
fire. This is the same as the
previous maneuver, except after the first disengagement, you anticipate him to
swing his shaft back to knock your spear
back off of line. When he
attempts that, simply move the spear below his shaft again to move it back to
the side that you started on and immediately fire. Both of these maneuvers should be done very quickly.
25) Feints: Pretend to fire a spear shot to one
side, then immediately fire somewhere else. A slight head fake and a slight foot stomp can help. The previous two maneuvers can be done
as feints instead of engaging with his shaft.
26) Try to
shoot around the opponent’s spear shaft. Most shots need only to be straight,
but some shots can go around the shaft.
27) Shooting
around from the inside: if your
right hand is back, step out and
to the left with your front foot as you fire your spear (step out to the right
if your left hand is back). Move
the hand holding the back of the spear across your body, and rotate your back
hand so that your elbow is facing the ground when finishing the shot. This will give you the greatest angle
of attack to get around your opponent’s shaft.
28) Shooting
around from the outside.
When you fire, move your back hand in a direction that swings out and
away from your body to get the tip to move up and over the opponents’ shaft. Beginning with the spear tip a little
higher will help move it around the shaft. As the back hand moves up, the tip will drop onto its
target. When fully extended, the
elbow should point out or even up toward the sky.
29) If you
anticipate having your spear deflected in one direction, aim to hit a spot that
far to the other side of your target.
For example, if you think he will deflect your shot 8” to the right,
then aim 8” to the left.
30) Watch their eyes. If your opponent looks away from you,
hit him! (or hit the guy next to
him).
31) Pump and shoot: This is effective against shields in a
static line when you are not threatened by other spears. Shoot for the face but pull the shot
right before it hits your opponent.
He will raise his shield to block.
Hold the spear tip a foot from his face. When he drops his shield to look, finish the shot. Because you are only a foot from his
face, he will have no time to react once he drops his shield.
32) If you can,
sneak attack good spearmen from the side.
Instead of taking them straight on, try to attack them from a few spots
down the line. They will be less
likely to notice you, and their spear will not be in a good position to defend.
33) Protect your friends. If the spearman across from you is
killing the people to the left and right of you, then you are not doing your
job.
34) Slap me low – too slow. Ever play the game “Give me five, slap
me high, slap me low…too slow?”
Eventually you learn that in order to slap the hand that is low before
they pull it away, you have to be quick and sneaky. This is how you should approach fighting with a spear. Be quick and sneaky. Try to hit your opponent quickly and
when he doesn’t expect it.
35) After
firing a spear and hitting your target, sweep the hand left holding the
spear up in front of the face as
you recoil for defense. This will
knock incoming spears out of the way.
36) Target
practice often. Hit something that has a little give in it (not a thick
tree. Not a brick wall) but not
too much give (not a tennis ball on a string). A tire swing, weighted pell, or thick vine hanging from a
tree all work. Also, a cardboard
box stuffed with cardboard will work provided that the surface is reinforced (a
plastic tote lid works). Place
dots on your target for you to aim at.
37) Practice against your target as
if you are really fighting.
Pretend you have an opponent in front of you, and that you need to be
quick and sneaky to hit him, and when you do, you need to get out of the way
before getting hit. If you
can do this is in practice, you can do it for real. If you don’t practice in this manner, you will develop bad
habits.
38) Sometimes look at an object
away from your practice target, and then turn your head to spot your mark and
hit it has quickly as possible.
39) Sometimes aim for one mark on
your target, but hit a different mark as quickly as possible. Don’t forget to recoil for defense as
soon as you do.
40) Sometimes hit multiple targets
in rapid succession as quickly as you can.
41) Practice
recoiling from the target while sweeping the hand holding the spear in front of
the face for defensive purposes.
42) Practice
against other spearmen at fighter practice. Spear dueling, 1 on 2, 2 on 2, 5 on 5, etc. are all good
practices.
43) 3 on 3
counter attack practice: 3 spears
face 3 spears on a “bridge.” The
spears on the ends can only attack each other. The spears in the middle can only attack the spears on the
ends when those spears are in the process of firing a shot. This drill is intended to teach the
spears in the middle to look for counter attack opportunities on people not
directly in front of them and it is to teach the spears on the ends how to be
quick and sneaky when multiple spears are watching them.
44) Practice
fighting another spear over a line that can’t be crossed by either spear. Without this, spear duels often devolve
into running each other down and choking up. That’s a fine technique to win an actual one on one spear
matchup, but it occurs less than 1% of the time in actual combat. Using a line that can’t be crossed
teaches the spears how to make those attacks at range, which is more practical.
45) Be aggressive in battles that don’t last long. Especially with archery so prevalent
these days, a spearman may only last a few minutes in the front rank of a
battle. Make those minutes count
and get lots of kills!
46) Pace
yourself in long resurrection battles.
If the battle is won in the last five minutes, make sure you have enough
left over to be able to hold your ground and get kills in those 5 minutes.
47) Stay off
the extreme flank. It is very
difficult for a spear to defend himself against a charging shield man. A spear should never (almost never) be
at the end of a line unless there is a terrain feature to protect him.
48) Use your
spear to control the shape of the lines.
You almost always want to be surrounding your enemy by making your lines
concave and their lines convex.
When they turn their backs to each other and bulge out in the center,
you can get more spears on them in better attack angles. Be like a sheep dog with that
spear. Make them move to where you
want them to be to kill them.
49) Follow your
shields when they charge. Look for
gaps to open up, and dead people to start to create obstacles to fight over.
50) If someone
charges you, use your shaft and press it against their body to guide them away
from you. A cross check is fine if
you are big enough to knock them over, but it doesn’t really take much leverage
just to push one man charging into another.
