Defending against a High Slash / Low Slash Combo

[Jim Bannister]

Hi everyone,

I've been running into a technique that I've been having a hard time countering effectively while sword sparring and I'd be most grateful for any advise you'd be willing to share.

The attacker starts with a sideways slash to the head and then follows through after the block, ducks / squats and does a sideways slash to the legs from the opposite side. He usually does this using a one handed grip, but also has applied it using a messer & long sword. He's able to do this surprisingly quickly.

I've had limited success stepping back (I believe you call this voiding the leg) and slashing to his arm or head, but since he's ducking, the range on his leg slash is greater than it would normally be for such a counter and since he has longer arms than I do, he's often able to catch me anyways. If I'm able to see it coming, I can sometimes jump over the sword and slash downwards to his head, but I don't feel this is the best solution as it's also unreliable and the timing is difficult.

I've not seen a lot of defenses against leg slashes. Does anyone have any favorite techniques to counter such an attack?

Thanks for your help!

Jim Bannister

[Stacy Clifford]

Voiding leg cuts and hitting them over the top is one of my favorite tricks, and there's an art to it. If you're trying to take a full step back, you will be too slow almost every time. The trick is to momentarily withdraw your front foot to your back one without moving the rest of your body. The vulnerable leg gets out of the way while your upper body remains in range to attack. You'll be off balance for a fraction of a second, but you can put your foot back as soon as the cut goes by. Whenever you see a figure in a manual standing in a high guard with their feet tight together, there is a good chance they are executing a similar maneuver. I've been working through Manciolino's sword & buckler lately and there are a lot of leg attacks and defenses in there of this nature, so that would be a good manual reference for this type of fight.

If your friend's arms are just too long or your feet aren't quick enough, then you need to move forward and crowd him so that he can't get off the second cut without exposing his upper body. This should work especially well if he's ducking as you describe. A left-hand weapon like a buckler or dagger will still allow your opponent to sneak in leg shots at closer range sometimes, but against most single weapons, fighting from a close bind and pressing forward effectively shuts down most lower body attacks. A good high-low feint requires a bit of space to pull off effectively, so if you don't give him the space he wants, then he'll have to try something else. Force the fight to your preferred distance, not his.

[Jim Bannister]

Thanks for your help, Stacy! I'll practice that and see if I can't get it to work.