AHF Michael vs Nick - longsword vs spear sparring - Playback 1/4 normal speed - Recorded 120fps

[@petertimowreef9085]

Seems to me that there's only one thing to do for the Sword-fighter and that's grab a hold of that spear. Like at 0:49 the spear guy was completely open, yet sword-guy still couldn't capitalise 'cause his oppononent was simply too far away.

[@MinSredMash]

This is fantastic! Please post more high-FPS slow-motion videos!

[@elearis1]

I just had this crazy idea. How about designing a large shield with a spike on it and using that to attack the spear? Sorry... just had to let it out...

[@zachsmith4213]

who ever was working the sword needs to be 100% more aggressive take the first swing to knock the spear left or right. if he hits or misses still press forward the tip of the spear is the only concern and you need to cut the distance

[@lorenzlin6898]

Not as easy as it sounds

[@matthewpham9525]

@@lorenzlin6898 Unfortunately, that's the only option for fighting someone with greater reach than you. If there's something I learned from fencing with short arms, is to close the distance.

[@SargNickFury]

Good spearman can pull spear back as fast as he can thrust you'll catch air then get stabby stabby.

[@SirFancyPantsMcee]

So... I'll start out by saying I practice BJJ, but that is obviously not weapons fighting. I am also assuming a spear is much cheaper than a long sword. I keep watching vids of spears just wrecking most other weapons. I'm not sure if the practitioner is just more skilled or what... I'm just tickled that a pointy stick keeps winning over all these fancier weapons.

[@AcademyofHistoricalFencing]

We are of equal skill, and yes the spear typically dominates the sword. Of course the sword is much more versatile overall, in that it can easily be worn in daily life, used in confined spaces, better in many situations on horseback, used with an offhand weapon very successfully etc. In a straight up fight in open ground, the spear is king, and it is therefore no surprise that it was the dominant hand to hand weapon throughout human history. The sword has for the most part been secondary to the spear and other pole weapons in war.

[@SirFancyPantsMcee]

Thank you for the detailed reply. I'm not used to that. It's very nice. :)

[@raedalhazmi6448]

One to one in open areas is a spear advantage, while the sword is better in open war and close area

[@funbro99]

And thats why you had platearmor when 2 handing a longsword. Otherwise you mostly went sword and shield.

[@AcademyofHistoricalFencing]

Longswords were very commonly used without any armour at all which is why the vast majority of surviving manuals on their use relate to unarmoured fighting. The same can be said for the montante/zweihanders as well. Both types of swords were used in and out or armour. Often because they are being used/worn for very different purposes, as both weapons served in civilian life and in war.

[@wiggalama]

Always keep moving forward against a spear, no matter what. Whether attacking and missing, dodging, you should aim to be at a range where you can hit them also, and to rush in to turn that range against them. Bottom line is, the long sword user here was vastly inferior and intimidated/ not aggressive enough or pressing the advantage. Grab the shaft, attack the hands, especially keep rushing by pushing it to the side until you get past the point and hit the forearms. The human body is far better at, both in speed and flexibility, in term of moving forward. Moving back against a spear with a sword is playing into their chances. They just keep striking till they hit you while you do nothing except hope to dodge or maybe grap the shaft(no homo). Kenjutsu teaches forward movement against a spearmen, so should HEMA and ARMA. Spears are only really better than two handed sword users if armor is worn or the swordsman is a novice or both novices. Now... a one handed sword user is almost certainly doomed. Simply not enough power to parry the two handed spear thrusts properly to rush in. A spear does the core strategy of the rapier better in almost every way save perhaps certain indoor situations. And a saber... 1/1000 chance, except maybe on horseback....probrably not even then lol Anyway, to educate peope more, can we get some good ole' spear and sword stabbing chainmail action going? :D

[@wiggalama]

***** 1. Boar tusks are a vastly inferior comparison to high quality forged steel with a sharpened blade over 2 feet, being wielded by a human, the fasted short distance sprinter in the animal kingdom(save some arguments involving insects since they are technically animals too). 2. You have committed the Strawman Logical Fallacy. 3. I have indeed stated numerious times that in medium to heavy armor, the spearmen almost always wins. Even with light he has the edge. Only with a no armor or almost no armor duel, do I give the slight edge to a katana and longsword user. 4. In fighting, staying at a range where my opponent can hit me and I can't hit him is stupid. One should stay at a range where I can hit him as well, and use that range against them. The spear starts out with a range advantage, but if not capitalized on quickly, say within 5 seconds or so of fighting, the two handed sword user can win. P.S. Good profile pic :D

[@MinSredMash]

Why on earth would armor favor the spear user? Seems like it should be the reverse. If the spearman has a thrust deflected by armor, he is dead in seconds. If the swordsman fails to penetrate the armor, he must already be close enough for a follow up blow, and the more versatile weapon is far superior as a close-quarters can opener. It's no coincidence that all the modern sparring videos of the spear dominating the sword involve no real armor (all hits counted as disabling).

[@HaNsWiDjAjA]

MrChyort Because swords really, really sucked at damaging people who're wearing armor. Even a jack made of twenty layers of linen is pretty much impossible to cut through with a longsword. Thrust worked better, but even a half-sworded longsword had nothing like a spear's penetration power and could rarely inflict fatal wounds to a mail clad opponent, while a two handed spear could with some regularity. With plate the sword was basically just a wrestling aid, while the spear still presented some threat of penetration. Thus an armored spear user could shrug off almost all of the swordsman's attack as nonsensical, while the reverse is not true. In terms of close in grappling, a fairly short (6-7 feet) spear gave up nothing to the longsword as a wrestling aid. Here is a fairly historically accurate test of the impact of various medieval weapons against various medieval armor types: myarmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=11131

[@LilHoss4k]

grabbing the shaft is harder than you think

[@swarceproducions]

If I were the sword guy I would've just rushed in to the side of him when he kept whiffing then taken a good swing at him.

[@AcademyofHistoricalFencing]

You can see attempts to rush the spear loads of times on our various sword vs spear videos, the reality is that the spears disengage is so fast you usually get skewered, and it can also strike like a staff to stop people closing as well. Without a good size shield, closing on a spear is extremely difficult and dangerous. It has to be done of course, but most of the time, the spear will win.

[@chrisr6950]

Seems to be the obvious answer is to grab the thing it's not sharp

[@saiyanfang1047]

​@@chrisr6950 It's not as easy as you think it is because a spear thrust is a lot faster than a sword swing

[@Dautar748]

​@@saiyanfang1047youve never sparred with a sword if you think that 😂

[@saiyanfang1047]

@@Dautar748 I have, and I also know logically you need to move less for a spear thrust rather than a swing.

[@leehilborn8118]

floppy weiner 1/4 normal speed

[@Dautar748]

i feel like longswordmen would give vastly better results if they were more used to fighting ppl with longer weapons instead weapons with similar reach. The guy seems to have issues closing distance even after parrying the spear to the side. 🤔

[@chrisr6950]

The guy with the sword was crap lol pivot to the side grab the spear and stab, he has reactions like my grandad

[@AcademyofHistoricalFencing]

Then you haven't faced a lot of spears. The theory of fighting the spear is easy, the reality is a nightmare. He's got fantastic speed, but the spear in two hands has ridiculous speed.

[@chrisr6950]

yes cant really judge ive never done it, the guy with the sword looks like hes approaching completely wrong though he must just dive in with aggression there i s no defence in this situation there is no chance

[@AcademyofHistoricalFencing]

Diving in with aggression is a really quick way to die against the spear, the disengage is incredibly fast. You need to get an engagement against it before closing, and that needs to be done at as safe a distance as possible. It also happens to be the thing he is constantly avoiding, and the spear is much faster at that disengage than you can move your sword, simple because of the leverage of a wide two handed grip with low weight.

[@chrisr6950]

yes but watch the video he is dead just standing there after 15s on the first strike from the spear, i would rather die trying to suprise the enemy than stood there like a lemon

[@AcademyofHistoricalFencing]

its not just standing there, its looking for an engagement. Which is requires some great timing. Any big moves and you just create bigger openings. You've got a much better chance of survival responding to their attacks at their maximum reach, than closing without it. You need to try it. Everybody underestimates the spear when its used in two hands. It is ridiculously good against an unarmoured swordsmen who has no shield. The best thing would be to run and avoid the fight altogether.