Scott Adair
When trying to beat the blade it seems like we get too much edge on edge contact. We were wondering about using the flat in such a case? Should we be trying to beat the blade or just step out and hit the guy bypassing the blade altogether?
Ringeck describes four scenario's in regards to the krumphau.
1) He attacks with an oberhau to your left side and you krump to his hands with the point.
2) He attacks with an oberhau to your left side and you drop your point (hands crossed) into the shrankhut, essentially a type of hengen guard which sets aside the blow
3) Against a master who attacks an oberhau at your left side you krump against his blade with crossed hands, and then cut upwards to his head with the short edge, or wind the short edge and thrust to the chest
4) He attacks with an oberhau at your left side and you feint a krumphau at his blade, pulling it short, slipping the tip underneath his blade, sweeping and winding your hilt across to your right side (carrying his blade with it) and thrust him in the face.
Now of course those are all in response to the cut. When tossing the cut to break ochs I'm of the opinion that it should always be thrown at the open target, in this case the head or hands as they sit in ochs. Otherwise if you strike pre-emptively against his blade, you are fighting the blade and not the opponent, something its often mentioned not too do. The meisterhau used in the pre-emptive sense, in my opinion, are aimed at a target on the opponent (hands/head) in such a way and angle that it is most difficult from that guard to protect and bind against it, therefore "breaking" the guard. They are not meant to be tossed against the blade or "guard" itself.
The only time I see Ringeck mentioning a pre-emptive strike aimed at the blade is in regards to the long point, and in that case its a feinted strike at the long point, to prompt a predictable disengage by the opponent which he then takes advantage of by binding.
