Fifty Spear Tips

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.