Atajo 2 is a gain of the opponent's sword on the outside, with a step to the left (i.e. away from their sword). Figure 1: Atajo 2 Rada gives 8 first intention techniques from afar. His explanations of each are very hard to understand, so this is my best guess. Something you should start to appreciate, having learned technique from Atajo 1: in Atajo two, we are walking away from the opponent's sword, not into it. This means that we can't perform a thrust in opposition (witho

Atajo 1 is a bind over the opponent's sword with your sword in the Obtuse angle (hilt low, tip high), made from the inside, and with a step to the left. To gain the Atajo, at middle distance you angle your blade over theirs while simultaneously dropping your hilt a little but raising your tip. You get the 3rd of your blade over their 2nd (i.e. your mid-strong over their mid-weak). Rada says we should shift the weight onto our right foot, then drop the hilt even lower to loc

If you keep eating thrusts when you are in Plough and don't know why, then read on. "Your Pflug is open!" Huh? If someone says this to you, no, the Velcro on your breeches hasn't come undone - again... It means your plough (plow for my American friends) is crappy. Plough - Posta Breva, whatever you want to call it - is one of the best guards in Longsword. When your hands are safely tucked in, it is one of the few guards that doesn't expose your hands to a hand snipe, gets yo

In part 1 I looked at 'block' parries, which work primarily by crossing the strong of our blade over the cutting direction of our...