Spear vs 2 Poles Drill, 2 on 1, 5 Man 2 on 2 Resurrection Drill

Hey all,

I'm posting here to recap on some of the takeaways from last night's Philly SCA practice.  We did a bunch of singles, worked on a few things, listened to Elglin's "back in the day"stories, but also did some of the following drills as well:


Spear vs 2 Poles Drill

We did this as an alternative to a spear bear bit.  One person has a spear while his two opponents have pole arms.  The pole arms line up next to each other and are required to remain planted in their positions (but are free to move their bodies, arms, head, weapon, etc.).  The spearman then takes shots at his two opponents who attempt to defend themselves.

I think we all liked the outcome of the drill as an alternative to spear dueling (which is also very good practice).  2 on 1 spears is often overwhelming for the single spearman, especially if they are below the level of one of the 2 opponents.  Using 2 pole arms gives the spearman a chance to figure out targeting against two opponents, while the opponents focus on defense not knowing which person the spearman is going to attack.


2 on 1

I've written a lot on the subject already, so I'd like to just highlight two mistakes that came up last night.

Mistake 1:  charging into the middle

The single fighter really needs to commit to one side or the other in order to turn the 2 on 1 fight into a 1 on 1 by getting his opponents to stand in front of each other.  The last thing he wants to do is to charge at one opponent in a position that is between both of them.

Mistake 2:  risky shots from a pole arm

In general when fighting a 2 on 1 scenario, you want to keep your defenses at a maximum and take safe shots on your opponent.  You have the advantage, so why give your opponent a chance to even the odds?

In a 2 poles vs shield scenario, keep the shield at range if you can.  You don't even have to be that mobile.  If he attacks to your side, simply move toward and behind your partner while attacking at full range.  If he's moving toward you, that means that your partner will have easy, safe opportunities to attack.

An alternative to this approach is to tie up the shield and turn him toward your partner.  When doing this, however, you have to fully commit to tying up his weapon and keeping yourself alive.  Again, the biggest mistake you can make is giving him a chance to kill you.  

5 Man 2 on 2 Resurrection Drill

The setup is pretty simple.  Begin with a 2 on 2 fight with a 5th person who waits at the resurrection point.  When the first person dies, he goes back and resurrects while forming a new team with the person who is waiting at the rez point.  The new team moves in and attacks who ever is available (with proper engagement rules).

The purpose of this drill is to learn to make quick team oriented decisions under stress.  In a matter of minutes you find yourself fighting in many different scenarios, combinations of weapons, 2 on 1, 1 on 1, being engaged from behind, etc.  Keep in mind, the key is to keep the fighting constant.  Don't stop, reset, and call lay on between each battle.

Every time we do this drill we have very positive feedback.  Its one of the rare times in SCA practice where we get to really engage our lizard brain and fight under chaotic (but controlled) circumstances.