Both fencers begin with the traditional salute
What we are about to witness is ultimately
reflexes and speed versus experience and technique,
the first to reach 15 will win the match.
red then lunges, but blue successfully parries
left to right
as a result red retreats
although nobody has scored yet, we can already
see red taunting blue
blue goes in for an attack, red successfully
parries left to right and attempts a riposte
but fails, retreats again
red attempts the advance lunge and is extremely
close as blue pushes red’s blade upwards,
hindering the attack
red lunges again, this time blue takes a step
back to avoid the attack
now we can see red trying to out-maneuver
blue’s blade
blue now seems to realize he’s at the end
of the fencing strip here and instead leans
back to escape red’s oncoming barrage of
attacks
yet another lunge attack from red, blue leans
even further back and is forced to parry,
swiftly striking down red’s blade
after the series of attempted attacks, red
temporarily retreats before beginning a new
series of attacks, but while doing so does
what’s called a beat, a strategic tap of
the opponent’s blade in order to feign an
oncoming attack, thus putting the opponent
on the defense again
red is back on the attack, but it appears
blue is used to the lunges and promptly steps
back while pushing red’s blade to the right
red, after taking a short break, realizes
that blue has been pushed to the very edge
of the strip and takes advantage by going
in for an even steeper lunge to finally score
the first point, blue attempts to parry but
the inability to move back results in the
inevitable chest hit we just saw
after a long back and forth red takes the
first point of the duel, however that victory
may be short-lived as red becomes seemingly
overconfident now and is carelessly caught
in a riposte, where blue knocked red’s blade
out of the way and immediately went for red’s
exposed chest
red points the blade downwards, possibly to
seem as if he’s going for the foot perhaps,
causing blue to instinctively move his foot
away
Blue steps back with ease and now counters
with his own attack. However this attempt
is quickly thwarted as red deflects the blade
causing blue to quickly retreat
red goes in for the attack but falls short
as blue barely averts the thrust by falling
on his back foot and immediately counters
by scoring a strategic arm shot putting blue
in the lead at two to one
as we can quickly start to see, blue’s natural
style appears to be more defensive and relying
on counter-attacks that exploit vulnerabilities
since more areas of the body become exposed.
Red appears to be a naturally offensive player,
seemingly more comfortable on the attack and
taking risks such as lunging which open up
the body, but allow for more opportunities
to score
red takes a huge lunge, determined to close
the point gap
blue leaps back with ease and parries the
following attack
however, red’s plan doesn’t end there.
Now expecting blue to quickly counter with
his own attack, red changes directions and
goes for a clever thigh shot that also successfully
diverts blue’s blade
red lurches forward without wasting a second,
catching blue off-guard and not giving him
a chance to step back in time, thus resulting
in a strategic arm shot
now it’s blue’s chance to catch red off-guard,
while blue may not have the experience red
does, he certainly has the speed to potentially
make up for it, which could be problematic
for red if he doesn’t figure out how to
respond
once again in slow motion, blue, without hesitation,
strikes red in the chest, leaving red
stunned
red brazenly leaps forward, but halts midway
to fake a lunging attack, thus conserving
his own energy, not risking a counterattack,
and pushing blue slightly back
this gives red time to think about areas to
target, leading him to take advantage of the
exposed part of blue’s arm here
red appears to be more cautious now, not wanting
to lose his current lead. Blue is definitely
more active, with good footwork
a clean parry by blue
red lunges forward and misses, quickly follows
up, but blue yet again evades the attack
quick beat on the sword by red
blue now tries to take advantage of the space
red has opened up by advancing, red now aware
of this seeks to push blue back to the edge
blue’s skilled maneuvering and footwork
appears to leave red puzzled, trying to figure
out a new strategy
blue attempts to surprise red by countering
off the parry, but finds that red was prepared
for this move and narrowly beats blue by hitting first
red motions for blue to attack him by openly
exposing his body
a preemptive beat by blue, to divert a potential
lunge attack
both fencers now sidestep with the intention
of confusing each other
another successful evasion by blue
now here, red actually manages to hit blue’s
ungloved left hand right as he was going in
for the chest. While being a seemingly sneaky
point grab, this is still legal in the rules
of fencing as blue made the mistake of bringing
his left hand too close to the body. We can
now start to see how red’s actual fencing
experience is coming into play for situations
like these.
attempted head shot by red, but blue steps
back in time
red then does what’s called a fleche attack,
where one brazenly charges at the opponent
arm outstretched with no regard to defense
in the hopes of scoring first and relying
on the opponent to not be able to counterattack
in time. being the first time of employing
such a strategy in the game, red walks away
with the point
red, now with a sizable lead advantage, just
has to maintain this margin to which we may
see a change in strategies to accomplish this.
Blue on the other hand has pressure to turn
things around, and therefore even more pressure
to change strategies
the first couple seconds have gone by and
red hasn’t taken a lunge yet, this could
mean red is now taking strategically the backseat
either to conserve energy or due to the lack
of it
this is the first double-touch of the game,
as you can probably imagine, such an event
only occurs when both fencers land a hit within
an miniscule margin of milliseconds, which
is exactly what happened just now. In the
long run however, double-touches usually prove
to be more beneficial for the fencer in the
lead.
the score is now four eight, the question
now is will blue be able to close the gap?
blue is carefully studying red, scanning all
possibilities looking for an opening
blue finally finds his opening and seizes
it, hitting red’s open stomach with accuracy
if blue can keep this up, the gap will be
closed in no time
clean parry and good footwork by blue so far
solid shoulder shot by blue with good timing,
and here we can actually see that red was
going for an elusive leg shot, which narrowly
missed its target causing red to now pay the
price
2 consecutive points for blue now making up
for some of the lost point, if he can avoid
double-touches and continue taking points
like these slowly working his way up, this
could put red in a tight spot
red, knowing that his experience advantage
also gives him a endurance and stamina advantage,
now seeks to tire out blue which could pay
dividends later on
blue takes a stab at red’s wrist but is
quickly inhibited by a skillful disengage
by red, which involves a versatile wrist movement
causing the blade to encircle the opponent’s
blade and allows for a counterstrike. However
red isn’t able to accurately counter following
the disengage because of blue’s fast recovery
unfortunately it appears blue has stepped
too far back, having a complication with the
wires from the reel. While blue was seemingly
distracted, red sought a nice opportunity
for a lower chest shot, putting the score
at 9-6
red backs up, baiting blue to come forward
and possibly preparing for a fleche attack
with more than enough sprinting room
as expected, red charges and catches blue
right below the chin
red rushes in, purposefully getting blue to
react
blue, now down by a 4 point margin again,
has to change something fast. The combination
of his fluid footwork, speed, and unorthodox
style are now blue’s best, and possibly
only, chance at recovering
advanced lunge by red but falls short
red takes advantage of the width of the strip,
stepping to the side to achieve a better angle
blue narrowly eludes red’s thrust by leaning
back
blue attempts a chest shot, but red promptly
knocks the blade to the side while stepping
back
red aims for the right shoulder, but blue
leans to the left dodging this shot
beat on the blade by blue
both fencers engage in a short standoff, waiting
to see who will react first
as expected, red acts first by performing
a disengage. Blue backs up in time and counters
back with a clean hit to the upper chest
some strategic beats from both sides, another
brief standoff, with red breaking off first
and blue stepping back
red with a bold display of audacity, entices
blue to attack, with the intent of catching
him on the forearm possibly if he rushes in
red appears to be carrying out a sort of staggered
attack, with a series of bluffing moves encompassing
one genuine attack, overwhelming blue with
consecutive false alarms and toying with his
defense
here comes the real ambush from red, the second
fleche attack of the duel. Only this time,
blue was better prepared for such a tactic
and parried downwards just time to redirect
red’s blade between his legs instead and
actually score a point for himself on the
right foot as we can see here.
red appears to be more relaxed, possibly to
lull blue into thinking he’s let his guard
down
This plan appears to have been successful,
as blue was lured to attack, only to be caught
under the arm right before striking red
attempted disengage by red, but blue jumps
back to avoid the maneuver
red steps in for a lunge, but blue effortlessly
neutralizes the attack with a parry, driving
red’s blade up towards the ceiling
excellent combative techniques from both sides
we can see a fierce ongoing battle with red
furiously seeking to penetrate blue’s defenses,
but blue tenaciously locks red’s blade in
place, by effectively using his bel-garde
to hinder red’s sword movement
both fencers take a shot at each other while
retreating but end up barely missing
as both fencers reset, red quickly takes initiative
by knocking blue’s blade down to deter incoming
attacks
red lunges again and as we’ve seen, blue’s
reflexes and instincts safely remove him from
danger
this time blue tries to score, but is quickly
met with resistance as both bel-gardes meet
once again. After a cutthroat clash resulting
in no points being scored, both fencers cautiously
separate
as the round drags on, blue appears to become
impatient and rushes forward with a fleche
attack, wanting to end the round. Consistent
with the risks of this tactic, blue disregards
his own defense in order to catch red off-guard.
Unfortunately the plan did not work in blue’s
favor this time as red catches blue on the
bicep just in time as he comes in.
after perhaps the most intense round of the
bout, we may start to see fatigue factor in
for both fencers, especially blue, given the
enormous disparity in pure hours spent fencing
red again, daring blue to take a shot
and now actually misses the attempted beat
here
blue bounds forward, now desperate to make
up the lost points more than ever, but the
impulsive decision to chase red after even
after red has backed out of the danger zone
allowed for red to reach out while treading
backwards and catch blue as he’s moving
in
blue has some serious ground to cover, if
he is to have any chance of coming back as
the point gap stretches to 5
blue is now visibly wary and cautious as ever,
not wanting to give up any more points
Red on the other hand appears unconcerned
and relaxed. Perhaps blue’s plan is to wait
until red becomes reckless and then attack,
using his overconfidence against him
as we’ve seen before, red briefly angles
his blade downwards at the opponent’s feet
and back up, followed by a traditional lunge,
which blue manages to dart away from by the
skin of his teeth
after patiently searching for an opening,
blue finds one at last, snatching a point
from a shoulder hit with an impressive show
of speed
blue now trails by 4 points, but if he can
continue progressing with the fencing we just
saw, it won’t be hard to catch up
blue once again, vigilant and alert, constantly
staying on his feet. Red’s hoping to slowly
push blue to the edge of the strip again and
corner him, now realizing blue’s reluctance
to attack due to fear of losing valuable points
blue, becoming increasingly fearful of taking
risk, resorts to attempts at short-range arm
shots, being unsuccessful for the most part.
It is during one of these attempts that blue
carelessly concedes a point, due to the inability
to reestablish defense
things are certainly looking grim for blue
here, seeing as blue can’t afford to lose
any more points or even double-touches. However,
as we all know red was expected to win from
start to end, being the experienced fencer,
with the odds stacked immensely against the
5th-time blue fencer.
blue, now presumably more confident, has nothing
to lose at this point and appears to have
let go of the previous tension. Just as we
have seen before, blue is carefully analyzing
red, waiting for the right opportunity. Now
aware that brash moves can lead to double
touches which he can’t afford, blue waits
for red to overextend in order to counter
to avoid the double-touch.
and just like that, blue counters perfectly
as red comes in, hitting his arm at a downwards
angle before red can reach blue
both fencers are in double digits, red now
a little more worried about blue’s advance.
The pressure is now on red to put an end to
the match.
blue aggressively parries an attack from red,
however red appears to have miscalculated,
thinking he scored the point when in reality,
the tip of his blade only grazed blue. Blue
then scores by jabbing red in the lower stomach
before he can respond, putting the score at
11-14
seeing as only a 3 point gap exists now, blue
has already pulled off the improbable, pushing
red into an increasingly uncomfortable position
Ironically enough, both fencers appear to
be more cautious than usual, given that the
match could be over any second now. Blue is
obviously hesitant as red is merely one point
away from 15, but red is also afraid of blue’s
rapid progression, not wanting to deal with
the uncertainty of a win by two situation.
blue daringly slashes at red’s wrist, with
the intent of pushing red to back up
red instead lunges, seeing the missed wrist
shot as an opportunity
Luckily blue is able to recover in time to
parry, causing red’s balde to veer upwards
blue manages to repeat the same feat again
here, but how long will blue be able to keep
this up?
After a tense impasse, both fencers unintentionally
attack simultaneously, with red initiating
just barely before blue. This miniscule time
margin advantage allows for red’s blade
to be on the inside first, thus pushing blue’s
blade out to the left and facilitating a direct
hit to blue.
Overall an exceptional and interesting match
put on by both fencers, with blue putting
up a good fight being the underdog and red
showcasing technique and experience. if you
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you guys so much for watching.
