I is the attacker

[drippingwet]

Good coaching is making me enthusiastic about attack these days. Me serious coaching has only recentrly started, so I still got some questions that I can get cleared up with him, but I got sparring before then, so...

Is the idea to compress the distance within opponent's reaction time? If you advance down the piste and just attack when opponent fails in distance, this could actually be a set-up to make you attack, so do you keep advancing until you are very close. I think I read something about good fencers attacking from closer distance which makes defence more difficult.

Secondly, what are the ways to stop attacks in preparation when trying to get into the right attacking situation? Should you make a constant, slow extention or be ready to make parry riposte or what? What is counter-time?

Thirdly, how important is it to constantly apply pressure on the opponenent through attacks, wouldn't this be a better approach than defence?

Thanks.

[jBirch]

Good coaching is making me enthusiastic about attack these days. Me serious coaching has only recentrly started, so I still got some questions that I can get cleared up with him, but I got sparring before then, so...

Is the idea to compress the distance within opponent's reaction time? If you advance down the piste and just attack when opponent fails in distance, this could actually be a set-up to make you attack, so do you keep advancing until you are very close. I think I read something about good fencers attacking from closer distance which makes defence more difficult.

The last action is always direct to target and so must always come from extension distance. When you land your lunge, you are at extension distance. When you land any attack, you are at extension distance. At that point, one of two things have happened: you have hit your opponent or they have hit you. Endeavour to make it the former and not the latter.

Many upper level foilists tend to attack from a closer distance in response to the demands of the flick (the predominant foil attack). If you are responding to a flick threat, then you need to get in close to cause it to land flat (proper extension distance tends to have the flick finish on target). If you are flicking then the distance, by necessity, needs to be closer. Geometry of the attack.

Secondly, what are the ways to stop attacks in preparation when trying to get into the right attacking situation? Should you make a constant, slow extention or be ready to make parry riposte or what? What is counter-time?

The proper way to defend AIP is to use counter-time. It's called "counter-time" because you are setting up a "counter-attack". What that means is to set up your parry-riposte (using blade work or footwork) on the stop hit. So what you do is a slow attack, call the AIP, accelerate your parry-riposte and hit. The other tricks are to attack through the AIP to make it simul (which goes to you as the attacker) or take the blade and prevent the stop hit from arriving. What you do depends on the tactical situation so learn a bunch of tools and use them when you need to.

Thirdly, how important is it to constantly apply pressure on the opponenent through attacks, wouldn't this be a better approach than defence?

Thanks.

This is an opinion thing. Personally, I prefer fencers that are able to keep the pressure on without getting careless. It is important to keep the pressure up, but not do stupid things by advancing recklessly. What you are doing with the high pressure is increasing the odds that the opponent will make a mistake. When they do, you need to prepared to deal with it correctly. Make sense?

Hope this helps.