Martial Arts in Sci-Fi and Fantasy #12 - Training

[skribs]

Some of the threads in the General board got me thinking: how would you train, in a fantasy setting, to fight against races other than your own. Let's say, for example, that I find myself in a typical fantasy setting. There are Orcs that are 7 feet tall and strong as an ox, dwarves that are half my height, but stout and powerful with a low center of gravity. Elves are twice as fast as any man. There are centaurs, giants, and 4-armed creatures (like Goro or Machamp, for any '90s gamers).

So let's say you and I are in this world. We aren't anything more than we are now, just normal humans. When we drill, we can't just magically be orcs or dwarves. How do we train techniques that will prove effective on centaurs and Machamps and snake people? How does it affect our drills or our sparring rules if we need to be able to defend ourselves from ruffians of all the fantasy races?

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

First: your new profile picture threw me off. Is there any significance to the chair?

So for the question: My first go to would simply be to train with those people. Find a dojo with as much variety as possible, and spar a lot. If the different races are segregated so that I can't train somewhere with a lot of them, I would either enter inter-racial/special competitions/tournaments, and use what I gained from that to alter my training or find a dojo that's run by/has a lot of people that have done said tournaments/competitions, to gain from their information. As long as I can do that, there wouldn't need to be any changes to sparring rules, with the exception of possible safety measures (if gorgons exist, you must wear sunglasses to spar them )

If that's not possible, (people separated by country, for instance, but going to combat soon) I would think about how I train against people closest to them/try to spar them the most (if there's a chance I'll have to fight an orc, I'm going to spend my time training with the biggest dude I can. If I might fight an elf, I'll practice against people that are faster than me, and/or intentionally go half-speed while they spar at full speed. For dwarf, spend time fighting those stocky short guys.) If there's not a human equivalent (centaur/machamp), I would study videos or live matches of them, and try to imagine or approximate the best way to handle them. And I would try to figure out what ranges give them the biggest advantage over me, and practice transitioning out of those ranges.

 

[drop bear]

You find some orcs and fight them.

 

[Deleted member 39746]

You invest in cannon.

 

[Christopher Adamchek]

Orcs that are tall and strong - i would suggest something like a 3 man team. Center is a short range archer with a heavy secondary sword, flanking soldiers have spears and a light quick blade. As they engage archer gets in a shot or two, flanks stab as they close making things awkward and an opportunity for the archer to transition to major damage strikes. As they the orc thwarts the spears they can make a quick transition to light blade to annoy the orc and protect the person with the heavier sword.

Short but powerful dwarves - something like a weighted net to annoy them and a war hammer to pound in their heads

Elves twice as fast as any man - a thin light blade and heavy training on timing of attacks so they can intercept a faster oppnent

Centaurs - a good staff sword training like a naginata to take out the horse legs, and likely a followup soldier to finish it off

Giants - Something like a ten man team, five up front with several javelins to throw as they close (and light short swords). Two calvary men with grappling hooks to try and tie up or annoy the legs with hopefully a fall. Three long spear men to hopefully get deep damage and then everyone hacks away.

 

[skribs]

First: your new profile picture threw me off. Is there any significance to the chair?

So for the question: My first go to would simply be to train with those people. Find a dojo with as much variety as possible, and spar a lot. If the different races are segregated so that I can't train somewhere with a lot of them, I would either enter inter-racial/special competitions/tournaments, and use what I gained from that to alter my training or find a dojo that's run by/has a lot of people that have done said tournaments/competitions, to gain from their information. As long as I can do that, there wouldn't need to be any changes to sparring rules, with the exception of possible safety measures (if gorgons exist, you must wear sunglasses to spar them )

If that's not possible, (people separated by country, for instance, but going to combat soon) I would think about how I train against people closest to them/try to spar them the most (if there's a chance I'll have to fight an orc, I'm going to spend my time training with the biggest dude I can. If I might fight an elf, I'll practice against people that are faster than me, and/or intentionally go half-speed while they spar at full speed. For dwarf, spend time fighting those stocky short guys.) If there's not a human equivalent (centaur/machamp), I would study videos or live matches of them, and try to imagine or approximate the best way to handle them. And I would try to figure out what ranges give them the biggest advantage over me, and practice transitioning out of those ranges.

What chair?

What if video footage is not available, because cameras are about 1000 years from being invented?

Orcs that are tall and strong - i would suggest something like a 3 man team. Center is a short range archer with a heavy secondary sword, flanking soldiers have spears and a light quick blade. As they engage archer gets in a shot or two, flanks stab as they close making things awkward and an opportunity for the archer to transition to major damage strikes. As they the orc thwarts the spears they can make a quick transition to light blade to annoy the orc and protect the person with the heavier sword.

Short but powerful dwarves - something like a weighted net to annoy them and a war hammer to pound in their heads

Elves twice as fast as any man - a thin light blade and heavy training on timing of attacks so they can intercept a faster oppnent

Centaurs - a good staff sword training like a naginata to take out the horse legs, and likely a followup soldier to finish it off

Giants - Something like a ten man team, five up front with several javelins to throw as they close (and light short swords). Two calvary men with grappling hooks to try and tie up or annoy the legs with hopefully a fall. Three long spear men to hopefully get deep damage and then everyone hacks away.

These are strategies to fight them. I'm talking about training itself.

 

[Deleted member 39746]

Ok so since cannon is a no go/loss.

Get a load of pikemen* and have them do daily drill. That would mitigate any advantage in strength most things have etc.

*or pretty much any polearm, they all work similarly well. stacked to which eveer is more suited for what armour your army has and the opponents and other factors like that.


If this is more individual combat, make peace with your maker if you have to fight something stronger than you by yourself with no/little weapon choice as your dead. (edit: quite obviously i mean things with a great strength disparity not a barley noticeable one)

how valid archers and the like would depend on what armour the opposition is wearing and where they reside,the same could be said for cavalry. and obviously the species characteristics

 

[drop bear]

You could have a guy pretend to be a fighter of that race but you would end up with kung fu takedown defence.

And get smashed by the first real orc you encounter.

Make a funny story though.

 

[oftheherd1]

Seek terms?

If you are fighting individual to individual, use your strengths against their weaknesses. Not what you may have been thinking, but what better? If you are fighting teams consisting all you mentioned, see the first sentence.

My problem is I don't follow sci-fi enough anymore to know what their fighting styles are and so what would be any better than what has already been mentioned.

 

[Deleted member 39746]

My problem is I don't follow sci-fi enough anymore to know what their fighting styles are

Its pretty much still Orginal series star trek standard, just fleshed out a little bit more. Or just brawling, its quite amusing to see how many sci fi's basically copy star treks techniques, it might have been the in thing for the late 1900's.

 

[Xue Sheng]

I'm thinking training would change to me training a bunch of Kodiak bears to fight orcs

But since this is fantasy.... I'm thinking trained Velociraptors, like in Jurassic World, might be better

 

[JowGaWolf]

Let's say, for example, that I find myself in a typical fantasy setting. There are Orcs that are 7 feet tall and strong as an ox, dwarves that are half my height, but stout and powerful with a low center of gravity. Elves are twice as fast as any man. There are centaurs, giants, and 4-armed creatures (like Goro or Machamp, for any '90s gamers).

This guy

 

[skribs]

This guy

Good idea. If I'm dead, the orcs can't kill me.

 

[granfire]

This guy

Caillou?

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

What chair?

Your new profile picture (at least on mobile) looks like the middle of a rocking chair, decorated with the american flag on both sides. Is that not what it is?

What if video footage is not available, because cameras are about 1000 years from being invented?

That's what the other part of my answers (live matches) are for. If I were a hypothetical king in one of these fantasy lands, I would have POW's fight for their freedom in highly publicized fights, so that my soldiers could learn from them, and base their training on that.[/QUOTE][/QUOTE]

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

Caillou?

One punch Man.

 

[skribs]

Your new profile picture (at least on mobile) looks like the middle of a rocking chair, decorated with the american flag on both sides. Is that not what it is?

No. It's my 3rd dan belt, with the 3 stripes.

 

[granfire]

One punch Man.

 

[PhotonGuy]

Some of the threads in the General board got me thinking: how would you train, in a fantasy setting, to fight against races other than your own. Let's say, for example, that I find myself in a typical fantasy setting. There are Orcs that are 7 feet tall and strong as an ox, dwarves that are half my height, but stout and powerful with a low center of gravity. Elves are twice as fast as any man. There are centaurs, giants, and 4-armed creatures (like Goro or Machamp, for any '90s gamers).

So let's say you and I are in this world. We aren't anything more than we are now, just normal humans. When we drill, we can't just magically be orcs or dwarves. How do we train techniques that will prove effective on centaurs and Machamps and snake people? How does it affect our drills or our sparring rules if we need to be able to defend ourselves from ruffians of all the fantasy races?

I would train with a Vorpal Sword +5 Flames On Command, and with that I would beat them all.

And I would also learn how to throw fireballs out of my hands and do flying kicks where I go flying for 20 feet and also flying bicycle kicks. And of course I would learn how to do fatalities.

 

[PhotonGuy]

But since this is fantasy.... I'm thinking trained Velociraptors, like in Jurassic World, might be better

Velociraptors? I would go with fire breathing dragons.
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