Getting a sound beating by Roland Warzecha BBB XVI. - 1000 subs special

Finally had the opportunity to test my skills against Roland Warzcha and what can I say? I did not stand much of a chance!
Thanks for all the support of this channel, we finally made the 1000 subscribers

[@swordandshield]

Hi Alexander, thanks for sharing this video. it was a pleasure finally meeting - and fencing - you. Regarding the video title, you are too modest. Apparently, you knew how to use the openings which were at your disposal, and punished any mistake I made.

[@luizotavioazevedo2283]

You can see how Rolando is good with the shield, and all his studies work on the fight. You and Roland inspire me here in Brazil, to train and be good like you two. Always keep doing your videos man, they are pretty good ;)

[@alexandermartzok_vikingcombat]

Thanks man!

[@swordandshield]

Thank you for your kind words.

[@oddthearcher7555]

You can really see how strong his shield movement is. That's a proper learning experience, great work!

[@alexandermartzok_vikingcombat]

Thats for sure, thanks!

[@swordandshield]

First time I fenced Alexander, it was a pleasure. He is very strong and tall, and his attacks were fast and sudden. So I had to carefully approach him and create/provoke a tempo I could control which is difficult against the lurking kind of combatant. The other challenge is to never play your opponent's game, so I had to make an effort to refrain from mimicking his more static style, which is something a lot of people intuitively do when they are confronted with someone who has a different style/approach.

[@oddthearcher7555]

@@swordandshield that's a really interesting insight that I hadn't thought about. Is it possible to provoke someone into a slower tempo, I regularly fight someone who is all aggression, I regularly end up matching his energy but maybe I should be trying to get him to change his

[@mina7572]

Impressive.

[@gotfrydzbouillon4191]

Dammm he is good xD

[@alexandermartzok_vikingcombat]

Yeah, also his movements always look kind of fragile he always knows how to react against pressure and how to use it against you. And he is much better with the shield binding, obviously.

[@gotfrydzbouillon4191]

@@alexandermartzok_vikingcombat Also looks on his movment flow. He think quick in fight and use tactic if he needs too.

[@swordandshield]

I feel flattered, thank you.

[@Tsurukiri]

Just wondering, why does Roland do so many beginner mistakes here? Was this on purpose? He opens his shield several times and you get him with a simple imbrocata-style thrust to face each time. You even punch him to the face with your shield. He seems to be very surprised.

[@alexandermartzok_vikingcombat]

I cannot tell you to be honest, he always seemed like he was thinking about tactics he could test. Maybe in this moments he was to distracted? But good observation!

[@Tsurukiri]

@@alexandermartzok_vikingcombat I'm not sure, I mean, one can open a shield like that for a feint, to invite a thrust. But if that would be the case, then Roland should take the advantage of it, which he does not do. For this reason to me it looks like a technical mistake instead of distraction. This is actually a fun clip to watch. Because the moves are so slow, it is easy to see what is going on.

[@swordandshield]

If Alexander is able to exploit an opening and use the correct tempo, then this shows his keen eye and practice. If your beginners fence like I do here, I am impressed. You guys should come to Berlin next time. On a different note, a more appropriate and useful answer to your question is this: When fencing someone for the first time, and it is not a contest, it is advisable to start gently to make each other feel comfortable in order to create a fruitful atmosphere for constructive practice. Going slow and remaining calm is easier when you are accustomed to moving in a flow. It is more difficult if you tend to generally be more static. This could occasionally lead to going at different speeds, which is just the way it is. It tends to get better when you train together more often. Going at a slower pace creates longer tempi which helps with learning to deal with the respective situations. Thus you as a viewer could follow actions more easily, as you have pointed out. It also helps with trying out things that are difficult to test at a faster pace. So this is also what I did, as well, as Alexander correctly assumed. Trying out new things will generally lead to being hit more often but it is from our mistakes that we learn the most. Admittedly, I do not enjoy being hit, so I hope that next time I will be able to close those openings which Alexander successfully. And of course my invitation still stands: you are welcome to join the BBB, too, next time.

[@Tsurukiri]

@@swordandshield Thank you for the invite to BBB! We fight in a different style(s) from yours, but shields are shields, and some mistakes are common, no matter the style. That being said, I'm the only one in our group who fights with a center grip shield extended, but I avoid shield to shield contact at all costs, except for momentary tactical slaps and presses. The style I use is historical, from Africa. For European center grip styles, you might want to check out the book by Pallavicini. It's from 17th century and describes the use of a large center grip rotella. There are some close parallels from that to the African fighting style I do, but Pallavicini is quite minimal, while the African style is far more extensive and has more weapons. In any case, neither of these historical styles uses prolonged shield to shield contact, like you do. I have a book coming out of the African style soon. At the moment I've started doing research on Chinese iron age center grip fighting styles, parts of those may have been preserved in Indonesia/Borneo, at least the shields and weapons are fairly similar. These styles are simple. We are living in great times, a lot of new, historical fighting material is coming online every year.