Medieval Dagger Defense - Effective or Contrived?

Рет қаралды 145,554

Жыл бұрын

There are lots of instructional books and videos about defending yourself against a knife, and many (if not most) of them follow the McDojo Bullshido path of "how to get yourself killed in seconds". What about looking back at a time when dagger fights were not uncommon, and when writing and illustrating a manuscript was a lot more time consuming and costly? Did what they taught in the Middle Ages make sense?
So let's look at a few techniques from historical fighting manuals. I'll be demonstrating my interpretation of how they're described and commenting on how effective I would expect them to be. Keep in mind, I'm not an expert on knife / dagger combat, and I have not practiced these extensively. Also, unarmed against ANY weapon means the defender is pretty much screwed, so any attempt other than running away is highly risky no matter what. In fact even running away is risky, in case the attacker is able to catch up, and now you're out of breath on top of it. In other words, DON'T TRY THIS, be safe, and avoid trouble.
This video is for entertainment and a bit of education. Maybe it can serve as inspiration for fight scenes in fantasy stories, tabletop RPG's, animations in video games, etc.
Other videos you might find interesting:
How to Fight with Daggers (Historical Martial Arts)
• How to Fight with Dagg...
Dagger Against Longer Weapons | Dark Souls Rolling?
• Dagger Against Longer ...
SICKLE vs. SWORD... It's Intense.
• SICKLE vs. SWORD... It...
Could THIS Make "Dual Shielding" Viable? (Brawler Style)
• Dual Wielding Shields ...
** Music credits **
"Medieval: The Old Tower Inn" by Random Mind
opengameart.org/content/medie...
CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain
"Small Loss" by HorrorPen
opengameart.org/content/small...
Attribution 3.0 Unported license (CC BY 3.0)
Outro:
"Highland Storm" by The Slanted Room Records
theslantedroom.github.io/stev...
Used with artist's permission
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Пікірлер: 955

@phil_da_ork Жыл бұрын

My favorite "what to do in a knife fight" video, is the one with the army guys in the desert. By time one guy pulls the knife, the other dude is already like 100ft away, full sprint. Funny and sensiable.

@DivingDonut Жыл бұрын

Personally, I fucking hated it. Yeah, sure, if you see the knife dude, and you think you can outrun him, then run. If you have loved ones nearby that cannot run that fast, if you do not think you can outrun him, or if you just see the knife when the attack already began (which is the norm), then this advice goes from good to dangerous and becomes equivalent to other feel good bullshit like "muh deescalation™", "muh pepperspray" or bullshido arts that barely sparr at all.

@heibk-2019 Жыл бұрын

Except you dont see 90% of knife attacks coming and wont be able to run away.

@preferablygeneric Жыл бұрын

@@heibk-2019 I dont think thats a flaw exclusive to attempting to flee. If you don't see a lethal attack coming, yur kinda fucked regardless

@erurainon6842 Жыл бұрын

That video was the first i had on mind😂

@scottmacgregor3444 Жыл бұрын

Unless you have a compelling reason to stay, running really is the smartest play .

@00muinamir Жыл бұрын

I love how Skall's sparring partner is desperately trying not to lose his shit every time Skall mentions Butt Attack Punisher Girl.

@phileas007 Жыл бұрын

today I learned a thing 🙃

@elgatochurro Жыл бұрын

What's the anime title?

@EladarImm Жыл бұрын

Yeah, I was admittedly caught a tad off guard :p didn't quite expect the zoom shot of my wtf-moment to be captured, though xD

@WorldWearyAngel Жыл бұрын

@@elgatochurro I too must know this anime's title for science of course XD

@01100101011100100111 Жыл бұрын

@@elgatochurro I want to know the butt catch and the cleavage catch animes just for the experience of seeing them explained.

@valentinepavliuchenko7309 Жыл бұрын

I just can't get over how epic the beard on Skall's training partner is. Oh, and the knife defense stuff is interesting and informative as well

@lfbp7051 Жыл бұрын

Easy bro u gon get skall jealous

@embodimentofgreatness5514 26 күн бұрын

hes got a really good style in general, like a middle aged bandit

@deaks25 Жыл бұрын

I really enjoyed this one, seeing the manuscripts read by someone familiar with HEMA and then demonstrated with an opponent both slow and resisting is really interesting. Shows these techniques were actually well thought out and developed in terms of understanding body mechanics and manipulating them.

@NigelTolley Жыл бұрын

They were more battle tested than modern ideas, I'm fairly sure - anything that didn't work then would've been dropped and fast, since even a basic cut could well have been fatal. These days, they can tuck your guts back in and stitch you up if you make it to the hospital alive.

@evanevanf4033 Жыл бұрын

Is there ground-fighting in hema? I mean, a fight isnt over just because your on your back and on the ground, eight? You can stil defend youself while on the ground, right?

@TtrtRX Ай бұрын

@@evanevanf4033stop rolling on the floor

@vincentvacuus7010 Жыл бұрын

Kali enthusiast and instructor here, unarmed knife defense is bleak even if you do your techniques perfectly. Interestingly, when it comes to knife vs knife, the most likely outcome is mutual destruction. Gotta love it.

@webbowser8834 Жыл бұрын

In fairness, mutual destruction was a very common outcome for sword duels too, didn't stop headstrong nobles from running eachother through for centuries though.

@marcusc9931 Жыл бұрын

@@webbowser8834 The difference is, a sword can one-shot someone and end the fight. Daggers do a lot of damage too, but they lack the stopping power compared to swords - so the other guy has plenty of time to stab you back before the bleeding gets him.

@webbowser8834 Жыл бұрын

@@marcusc9931 Ok yeah, that's a fair point.

@CaptainWumbo Жыл бұрын

never bring a knife to a knife fight

@evanevanf4033 Жыл бұрын

Is the reason why you don’t do reverse grip with a knife is because it’s easier to block?

@NicholasJeffery Жыл бұрын

I enjoyed watching this, seeing how medieval manuscripts were teaching techniques that looked familiar to the techniques I learned in my BJJ and Judo. And I concur with your parting words, these are still unarmed techniques against an armed assailant. And yes, always, always de-escalate and always leave. We never know if there are hidden weapons or there's more of them lingering nearby.

@exploatores Жыл бұрын

their is no absouts when it comes to this kind of situations. if it´s a robery. then give the robber what they want. it´s not worth dying for stuff and money. If the person is out to kill others. then runing isn´t realy a option. the faster the attacker is taken out the better.

@WJS774 Жыл бұрын

@@exploatores You mean "give the robber what they want, then pray that they don't kill you anyway"?

@blarfroer8066 Жыл бұрын

If the robber doesn't kill you immediately, there's a good chance that they will let you live. I looked up the statistics for my country. About 90.000 cases of robbery in 2019, 2 of them left the victim dead.

@exploatores Жыл бұрын

@@WJS774 then they go from something that might give them a few years at most. to life in prison. if the police finds them.

@ndld4955 Жыл бұрын

Why do i feel like this is one of those things where you practice for years and years finally getting proficient at knife defense so you can reliable counter it like 99% of the time..😌 Only to get shot with gun ..😲 😏😏🤔😂

@heresjonny666 Жыл бұрын

Although the techniques are unrefined, I think you've got the right mindset for these techniques. One big suggestion I will give you (I offer this advice as I've been training with the Exiles, who do a lot of dagger - i'd say 50% of classes are dagger, for over 8 years) is that when you're trying to stop dagger attacks, don't chase to grab their arms / weapon etc. Simply focus on covering a line. The sheer variety of techniques that you find in medieval manuscripts when it comes to fighting daggers is to give you plenty of options from all the different ranges / grips you will find yourself in after stopping the initial strike. The second suggestion I will offer is to keep your body structure strong and upright, and to try to close down the attacks. The natural reaction is to move away from the attacks as they come in, or to go fetal against them, and while this is appropriate sometimes, if you move in on the attacks, as well as offline, you stifle their ability to pull back and stab again, as well as giving yourself more chances to grab hold of something, and more angles to escape to. For more tips and info on dagger combat, especially from a Fiore perspective, check out our KZfaq page. You can find it just by searching 'Exiles CMMA' - we have a lot of videos dealing with dagger which you might find useful and enlightening! Keep up your journey Skall!

@catocall7323 Жыл бұрын

I like that you mention on covering lines and positioning.

@chrismarlow9585 Жыл бұрын

Good points. I noticed the moving away too. From my experience with judo I know that moving away makes it extremely difficult to grab their arms at all. You have to reach your arms out faster than you're moving backwards and any pulling away they do becomes stronger. By moving in and, if possible, moving your body towards the shoulder of the arm you're tackling you have a much better chance of grabbing and controlling it. However, of course it's more dangerous to move in than it is to move away so it's a risk you need to weigh up given how confident you feel against the incoming attack. Also, I 100% get why Skall's default is to move the way he does, it's more optimal for a lot of armed fighting.

@johnl2648 Жыл бұрын

@@chrismarlow9585 The movements could be alternated - a parry and move out for the initial attacks and then a move in with a tackle-like pressure for the follow up swings after the defender gets a feel of the attacker's flow or something.

@a_921 Жыл бұрын

Thumbs up for the disclaimer(s). Like you said, too many dodgy people out there claim that their near-magic trick can work for anybody any size and fitness against any assailant. In a modern day setting it would probably be wise to scream "KNIFE!" at the top of your lungs to at least (hopefully) have somebody nearby aware that they might have to call emergency services in case of a bad outfall.

@googleandsusansucks Жыл бұрын

Or be an American and show flash your gun at them, then they will run away. Shame most people in the world are disarmed.

@jinx8624 Жыл бұрын

And run

@kempbrown4402 Жыл бұрын

Screaming that might be less effective than you think. Bystander syndrome is a real issue, most people will just ignore that call

@MrMiddleWick Жыл бұрын

@@kempbrown4402 eh, still better than just dying in silence

@tricksterjoy9740 Ай бұрын

@@kempbrown4402it’s still better to try it if you can then not try it. At best someone will respond, and the attacker will be momentarily taken aback. At worst nothing happens and your still running.

@SpiritualHypertrophy Жыл бұрын

“This is good” and “This is also good” sounds like Bas Rutten’s self defense videos

@kylebell466 Жыл бұрын

*Slaps man in the liver with knife so hard his ribs turn to dust*

@shinomori69 Жыл бұрын

I love those videos.

@MartinGreywolf Жыл бұрын

7:30 For Fiore at least, this technique (disarm from 3rd master) works not because you step out of the line of the attack, but rather because your opponent does it for you. If you have a guy and you stab at him in the icepick grip and use the very first technique in the video (1st master disarm), he can counter it by turning his dagger under your arm and stab you from the reverse side (your right, his left). If he does that, our 7:30 disarm works a lot better, because it was your opponent who gave you his outside. If you want to slap away his initial attack like this, Fiore says in his 1st master play (24 on Wiktenauer): 1) it is a rare defense, 2) you should follow it up with a strike to the torso.

@prismaticc_abyss Жыл бұрын

As always your sparring partner has a magnificent beard

@whorhaydelfuego7190 Жыл бұрын

This is nice and timely given Tom and Schola's recent Rondel Dagger video. I think putting an edge on daggers was really more of a nice feature to have but the primary purpose seemed to be for puncturing through armor of all types. For real life application I think the best defense is to flee when you're unarmed and someone pulls a knife. If fleeing isn't a possibility then I think the best bet would be to get that initial block and turn it into a wrestling match where you strictly go for control of the limb holding the weapon. And in that case suffering a maiming wound to your hand is probably worth staying alive, so outright grasping a blade in order to gain control of it would be worthwhile.

@raiteri1885 Жыл бұрын

Reminds me of a story i read where the victim got hold of the knife when it pierced through his palm and assailant's grip slipped, leaving it lodged in the victim's hand where he could pull it out with his other hand.

@NigelTolley Жыл бұрын

Don't forget, if you've got a hand on the blade, it can't really cut unless it can slide, so hang on to the attacking arm/hand with your other hand as if your life is depending on it!

@nevisysbryd7450 Жыл бұрын

The primary purpose was not universally to puncture armor. Tod's rondel is _heavily_ optimized towards armor penetration and is far less optimized for cutting than most other dagger types, including ones contemporary with rondels. If we liken them to swords, that dagger was equivalent to an estoc, when most swords were compromise cut-and-thrust blades.

@datdabdoe1417 Жыл бұрын

Loved the quick aside at 12:37 . Thats something a Lot of people need to understand about Plays in Manuscripts. Most of them aren't about using the Play Step for Step in an actual fight, its just about developing an intuitive understanding of the Body mechanics involved with Fighting, and the muscle memory to perform these High-Risk Techniques when an opportunity arises.

@edgarburlyman738 Жыл бұрын

Haha I love this one, it feels like a video from a decade ago, with the single overhead camera angle, and Skall seems so happy and excited

@TheCCBoi Жыл бұрын

Loving this HEMA hand-to-hand combat, would love to see more.

@pokemon1895 Жыл бұрын

I've really been enjoying the content, Skall! Thanks!

@shawnwolf5961 Жыл бұрын

I'm gonna say it; it's fun to see your sparring partner, and I hope to see more of him in the videos! Also great video, and it is sad you need to include like 50 disclaimers, but we all know how some people are. On your note about running, I noticed some of the techniques showed armored knights--this insinuates a battlefield or armored duel scenario where running wouldn't really be an option as well, I thought that was quite interesting to notice. This was a fun video Skal. And that is good.

@AnotherDuck Жыл бұрын

If you're wearing armour, especially gauntlets, you have more options as well, since you can actively block the blade with those. You're also going to worry less about getting the blade pressed against your arm while binding your opponent.

@davidresetarits5616 Жыл бұрын

I really enjoyed this video, especially your stylistic representation of the manuscripts! Very nice work!

@ASMRDoodlez Жыл бұрын

It's interesting how many of these are similar to aikido techniques. The main one I noticed was at 5:30, which they call ikkyo. When we did it in my class, you'd want to push their shoulder down, so it hits the ground before the hand, and use your footwork to pull them off balance.

@comradebork Жыл бұрын

Ikkyo is essentially a shoulder lock, whereas the 5:30 technique seemed to be trying to hyperextend the elbow. Ikkyo keeps the opponent's elbow flexed while manipulating the opponent's shoulder.

@mel0nman803 Жыл бұрын

“Let’s just leave it at that. Thanks for watching. Fuck off” 10/10 outro

@quint3ssent1a Жыл бұрын

This channel definitely needs more of "showing things from medieval fechtbooks". Goofing around with bat'leth is fun, but this is better.

@andregon4366 Жыл бұрын

Please note that if you're training these kinds of moves do not make an habit of giving the knife back to your training partener. It's better to lay it on the ground and the other person to pick it. I heard a story of a person who had training and disarmed the assailant and gave the knife back to him after disarming him. Muscle memory can screw you over.

@russianbot2630 Жыл бұрын

Some of those techniques are *similar* to bjj and catch wrestling techniques such as the Americana and other arm locks from a standing position. As always, it's better if used in grappling range rather than at boxing distance, but you dont always get the choice.

@JohnBloggart Жыл бұрын

I really enjoyed this video, i’m a security guard in London and have seen my share of knives. While the best advice definitely is to defuse the situation before violence, never the less some really interesting techniques. When it does happen the natural reaction is to grapple but these more planed techniques will be fun to practice.

@EladarImm Жыл бұрын

Honestly it's probably best compared to someone attacking with a broken bottle (which is more obvious, stab-only, and blunt on the sides)! The security guard thing made me think of it: I used to work security in nightclubs, and that was a very real concern. Especially since our employer refused to get us stab vests.

@EM-tx3ly 3 ай бұрын

@@EladarImm What no stab vests ??? You’re in Roadhouse situation and vests can save lives

@SentecaMorvan Жыл бұрын

This would make for some pretty awesome fight scene choreographies. Thank you and your sparring partner for showing :)

@Amy_the_Lizard Жыл бұрын

That's actually what I came here for - this channel's been very helpful for my writing

@tiktakkat Жыл бұрын

From an experienced (30+ years) and "traditional Okinawan" martial arts perspective, I would note the following things: First, these techniques are nearly if not totally identical to traditional Eastern martial arts techniques, though they tend to focus more on unarmed versus armed defense, in terms of how they grip and manipulate. Extending from that; Second, as you clearly stated, the knives these are defending against were not the same as modern knives, and so make manipulating them a lot "safer". And; Third, from some of the illustrations from the manuals, they are done while wearing armor, often plate. I think it is obvious that even with fully edged daggers that would provide significant protection for grabbing and bracing against casual cuts and scrapes from light pressure. Those two combined are, I think, a critical factor in some of the disconnect between what is taught and what is functional, as techniques for martial (war) defense are adapted for civil (street) defense. Fourth, regarding resistance, that is absolutely correct. In fact, that is a key factor in almost all locking maneuvers - they can be rather easily resisted - unless they are initiated with full speed and total disregard for the injury they will cause - or perhaps more accurately with total intent to cause injury. Locks and joint manipulations done in practice have to be slower and with less intent to avoid breaking your training partner, and that makes them considerably easier to resist. Do them not caring about how many joints you dislocate, tendons your shred, and bones you break and SUDDENLY! they become surprisingly easier to perform. Of course, finding a volunteer for your next demonstration will become surprisingly more difficult. Related to that is other supporting moves, like the hand to the face, throat, or elbow, all of which reduce resistance proportional to the force used, along with increasing injury to your training partner. These factors both reduce the seeming effectiveness as well as increase perceptions that they are gimmicky because your training partner complies with the moves rather than resists and increases the chance of injury. Fifth, regarding grabbing clothing, instead consider grabbing and digging into muscle and tendons. Yes, it takes longer and more focus, but the pain from it increases shock and decreases resistance, making the follow up techniques easier to perform. Clearly armor, even gambeson, will reduce that effectiveness, but it should be standard for completely unarmored civil defense.

@travisashby7780 Жыл бұрын

Loved the editing, the manuscripts, the camera angle, the number of techniques covered, the demonstrations, etc. :)

@dsendall4922 Жыл бұрын

Your friend did a good job! I have tried to be a demonstration partner in various martial arts classes, not as simple as just taking a beating! Kept the flow going with minimal distraction.

@emanekaf145 Жыл бұрын

Ooo, a new Skall video! I think this is the earliest I've ever been to a new upload!

@foxymoronvideos3270 Жыл бұрын

It's good to know that there *are* options for defending yourself against a knife or dagger if you're unarmed, and that having multiple options is better for your chances of survival than having just one, or none at all. Also glad that you went into detail about how these techniques could go wrong or just be avoided. Seen too many videos floating around where people don't do that, they just make out that the technique is flawless when it really isn't. Also loved that ending "Thanks for watching, fuck off." Stay classy XD

@Sableagle Жыл бұрын

Fall not for the scam of the scammer, for he is a scammer, and doth scam.

@AnotherDuck Жыл бұрын

If there were a flawless technique, everyone would be using it. And consequently develop a counter to it.

@kingkilburn Жыл бұрын

Aikido has a lot of knife/dagger defensive techniques I think you'll find interesting. Some feel more viable than these techniques, others not so much. It's always interesting to see how similar it all is.

@kingkilburn Жыл бұрын

In aikido their strong grip on the dagger can give you a ton of control over the wrist and elbow in the initial contact. The weapons techniques really is the heart of the martial art. The modern mcdojo nonsense really falls to the wayside when that much force and leverage is in play.

@calvinrieder5312 Жыл бұрын

These newer technique videos are super interesting!! Really enjoying the demonstrations and info that goes along with them!

@gregscalzo5259 Жыл бұрын

A couple of rules to remember in a knife fight...it doesn't matter the technique, you will get some level of cut and if all you do is try and block, deflect, disarm, pretty much anything without counter attacking in some way to give them a reason to stop stabbing you or at least to give them something else to think about you will lose. Oh and the moment you have distance, sneaker fu is your best friend.

@tekken.universal2343 Жыл бұрын

Yeah there is no winner in a knife fight mostly (ofc if you don't wear mail shirt like metatron)

@Griff1011 Жыл бұрын

Sindri: What video are we doing today? Skall: The grappling dagger one. Sindri: **sighing and putting on elbow braces**

@SlendermanDefeated Жыл бұрын

One of my favorite videos from you in a while, Skall! Excellent work as always, much love from the states

@YoDudeMan15 Жыл бұрын

Learned a similar technique to the first "uno-reverse card" move in a Pekiti Tirsia Kali class. They modified it by pulling the opponent towards you to unbalance them and reduce the likelihood of them resisting as you quickly reverse the direction of their thrust by hooking and pulling the elbow and controlling the hand at the wrist. Just thought it was cool that such different systems so far removed from each other in time and location have a similar move set.

@Str4vv Жыл бұрын

Top notch thumbnail game and intro!

@entend.8087 Жыл бұрын

Facts

@Skallagrim Жыл бұрын

Thanks!

@Sableagle Жыл бұрын

@@Skallagrim impersonator-scammer needs blocking: kzfaq.info/love/vtPjmpk9zf43gOhNw8qngg

@iantheduellist Жыл бұрын

I really love these more martial videos. I missed them.

@JohnNathanShopper Жыл бұрын

90s Jim Carey “You stabbed me wrong!”

@Memorixt Жыл бұрын

It wasn’t too long, as matter-of-fact was one of the best videos you made; and I am telling you this by being one of your fans!

@spy00at Жыл бұрын

10:02 and don't forget to restomp the groin XD

@dannynip Жыл бұрын

Really enjoyable video from start to finish! Hard to believe we haven't seen the self-stab technique done in a movie yet!

@LuxisAlukard Жыл бұрын

This is great demonstration! And pictures with text from manuscripts to accompany them - brilliant!

@williamp.5253 Жыл бұрын

I have really enjoyed all of these sparring / resisted training videos, thanks for making them!

@emilygarnes2258 Жыл бұрын

Hi! Awesome video! It's amazing how so many of these techniques look similar to knife defense stuff we find today and how you're able to put them together with just manuscripts, pressure testing and common sense! I'm an Escrima/Filipino Martial Arts practitioner and it was interesting to see how much of it resembles stuff that I've learned. Actually the 'partial success' empty hand parries and blocks are something we train a lot of too, so it was interesting seeing that happening in live sparring even when the grapples and disarms failed. Again, tons of respect and amazing video. It's always so cool to see HEMA practitioners developing these things and to see what we can all learn from each other and the commonalities and differences among styles!

@galenmarek2765 Жыл бұрын

I’ve been thoroughly enjoying these latest videos Skall! Taking a deep dive into both the context of historical techniques as well as the actual mechanics of them is something you surprisingly don’t see as much of.

@Sableagle Жыл бұрын

Fall not for the scam of the scammer, for he is a scammer, and doth scam.

@noneofyourbusiness3288 Жыл бұрын

This just strengthens my desire to see a movie about medieval bodyguards. "Bodyguard" (the 2018 BBC mini series), or "Jon Wick" in renaissance Rome or Constantinople? So much untapped potential...

@Helxas Жыл бұрын

Insight from having been in two stabbing attempts doing unarmed security: The first time, a woman pulled out a pair of scissors and jabbed at my belly. I pushed her in the shoulders as hard as I could and with as much range as I could get and immediately backed away. She walked away after I pushed her and I still think about how close a call it was. The second time, a man pulled out a small knife. We were standing very close to each other and out of "measure", so he couldn't really get his knife pointed at me very well. I grabbed his forearm with my right hand and sort of wrapped my left arm around his, up to the shoulder, basically pinning his entire outer arm fully extended against my chest. My coworker wrestled the knife out of the guy's hand and we took him down to the ground. Adrenaline can make your perception of time weird. I remember everything vividly, like seeing it in slow motion, but both these attempts can't have been more than a second long. My brain understood what to do, and when I think back I can sort of "hear" myself narrating my actions - but in the moment I wasn't consciously formulating a play by play plan. I don't train for this sort of thing, and don't plan to (outside of for fun in HEMA!). In these instances, I had advantages like home-turf, authority, backup, and sobriety working for me, all of which contribute to the psychology of the event. Also probably a lot of luck. Without these advantages, though, it's more than likely that I would fail to defend myself against a weapon.

@youremakingprogress144 Жыл бұрын

Great video. You guys both made me laugh, and your explanations for the techniques were helpful. I can't wait to take what I've learned today, and run away as soon as someone pulls a knife.

@HoustonRLamb Жыл бұрын

This is reasonably informative and i find it very interesting how many of these techniques are still being taught. 10/10 great Video as always. also didn't skall uses to have the same gambison that his partner has, sorry, i'm bad with names no offense to him.

@styxspeedrun Жыл бұрын

Really interesting video with great pacing in the explanations and showing of the techniques. 10/10

@evannyakabuski Жыл бұрын

Really great video, I appreciate your actualy use of the weapons in sparing!

@jakobfel2 Жыл бұрын

Even with martial arts such as the Filipino arts (which have a LOT of techniques for unarmed vs. knife), they always talk about how the best defense is to avoid the fight, because you WILL get cut. No mastery of any art can truly stop you from getting cut in a knife fight, even if you have a knife yourself. Even so, I like that there are ways you can avoid being killed if you ended up cornered and unarmed against a knife-wielding opponent.

@jamesmiddleton6464 Жыл бұрын

This was really enjoyable. As a former competitive wrestler and part time HEMA enthusiast. These techniques make a lot of sense. I would point out three things. 1. When attacked by a knife you WILL get cut your goal is to minimize the damage. 2. In keeping with number one, with shorter, more modern blades which are typically sharp you may save your life but you will be injured using any of the dagger stripping techniques. 3. This demonstration really makes some hilt configurations make a lot more sense. The combatant is sacrificing some dexterity in favor of a more secure grip when they know that opponents will have some knowledge of counters and disarm techniques.

@aldahirlopez3757 Жыл бұрын

i love this anual Halloween themed videos, every video of yours is great but the Halloween ones hit different

@xoxxox5352 Жыл бұрын

@Skall - another great video - thank you. I finally purchased my first two swords: 1. The new version of the Cold Steel Kriegsmesser (lower quality replica of the Albion Knecht) 2. The LK Chen Snow Peak Jian I know a ton about knives, but very little about swords. That said, I think that I got some good blades to start my journey. Wish me luck...

@jasonguest5820 Жыл бұрын

The technique at 6:11 would break the upper arm if done with force. The motion is nearly identical to how arm wrestlers break their humerus bone with bad form.

@razumikhim Жыл бұрын

do they lose their sense of humor as well once their bone breaks

@paulyoder742 Жыл бұрын

Some basic Brazilian jiu jitsu moves in there. Super nice to see how most martial arts have a good deal of crossover. :)

@EM-tx3ly 3 ай бұрын

Combat manuals think alike

@jerimiahjohnson4272 Жыл бұрын

really been enjoy these demos skall lots fun to watch.

@ricardojvindasb1693 Жыл бұрын

I love these videos with the thunder wizard, they've all been really good :)

@Matty18795 Жыл бұрын

Some very cool techniques though in real life I think it's only a last resort. The best option would be to run if they look slower than you or pick up a rock and hold it as if your about to throw it and they would most likely flee.

@thinnedpaints6503 Жыл бұрын

I've been doing Meyers dagger for a while, and whilst I enjoy it, I have found it's very hard to actually get most of the techniques off in sparring, not to say they're useless by any means, but it does feel like the skill floor for them is quite high.

@NothingYouHaventReadBefore Жыл бұрын

Yeah, Meyer is really difficult. I think it's important to remember that Meyer's techniques (whilst absolutely beautiful, refined and intelligent) are developped in and for sport. I say this as someone who loves Meyer. I'd look at Fiore, if I were you. He's fun to read (kind of a dudebro), but his techniques are a bit less 'flashy'.

@kylehowell5610 Жыл бұрын

Skall, you need someone who understands grappling (wrestler or bjj guy) to go over these with you. If you understood things like pummeling, head position and handfighting, you could likely had made some of those work live. Especially the russian tie one. Also, the one that you showed where you try to break the arm is an americana and the other direction it was asking for would have been kimura. If you have someone show you the correct hand position and way to finish that you could probably make that work too. I do appreciate you going live at the end with a low intensity spar though. That is a super important element when we are talking about these sorts of things. All in all I appreciate you taking an honest wack at this subject and I as always enjoyed the video!

@mwgdy Жыл бұрын

Great vid, very honest and informative. Loved the careless ef off on the end.

@Sableagle Жыл бұрын

Fall not for the scam of the scammer, for he is a scammer, and doth scam.

@bintarochan Жыл бұрын

6:01 Hiki otoshi 8:45 Gyakugamae ate 11:11 Ude gaeshi These names above are Jujutsu/Aikido techniques that looks very similar to the ones in the video. Just like with long sword and katana, it's interesting to see how the same techniques exist on the other side of the world. (Check Shodokan Aikido's 17 basic techniques to see the above)

@isaweesaw Жыл бұрын

I don't think we always appreciate how well-drilled these techniques are when Skall shows them. Good job!

@shinomori69 Жыл бұрын

I loved the first thing you said in this video "Without me telling you what I'm going to do" very important in technique videos like this.

@assaultpioneer8414 Жыл бұрын

Just letting you know you baited me in with the” why art thou stabbing thyself?” bit. Kudos

@emanekaf145 Жыл бұрын

Not enough ki? I'm leaning toward them not having enough butt. Gotta get caked up for Anime self defence.

@elcreyo Жыл бұрын

3:27 - The dagger on the right has nuts for a crossguard.

@scottmacgregor3444 Жыл бұрын

That is literally called a bollock dagger, a type that was popular for several centuries.

@nahuelmat Жыл бұрын

Bollocks daggers, they were extremely popular, there's a video by Tod from Tod's Workshop on them

@corrugatedcavalier5266 Жыл бұрын

Great stuff, Skal! I've been getting more and more into dagger and wrestling. These unarmed vs. dagger covers are tough unarmored for sure, but if you get good at them they can certainly be done against committed attacks. Wear armor and it gets a whoooole lot more likely.

@Nirakolov Жыл бұрын

There's also a difference between someone trying to 'fight' you and someone trying to 'kill' you... someone pulling a knife while drunk at the bar for example as opposed to a mugger who is taking your shit whether you're ready or not.

@boricuapower1099 Жыл бұрын

I don’t know if this has already been said, but I think for like…2 million subscribers Skall should take a trip to Australia and spar with Shad, that is something I would absolutely love to see

@angeljamais8541 Жыл бұрын

I SECOND THAT!!!

@marcusc9931 Жыл бұрын

falchion vs stick?

@Thes564 Жыл бұрын

Being a martial artist myself in the art of Silat this looks very functional and practical so i think it works however dont over look simply striking the knife hand/arm to get a disarm and follow up with fast and brutal strikes to his face and body until he is down and out.

@huwhitecavebeast1972 Жыл бұрын

Yup, I have trained Silat and FMA and agree. Attacking the weapon hand is very effective if you have trained it. Even more so if you have trained arts Cimande where the forearms are heavily conditioned so that when you strike the offending limb, you break it.

@Thes564 Жыл бұрын

@@huwhitecavebeast1972 Yes i do train to harden my bones and have been doing so for 2/1/2 years now and when i simply block a punch/kick from new friends they say to me,"Dam your blocks hurt so much"and i say well i only blocked lightly so they sure can feel it big time.

@Thes564 Жыл бұрын

@aaa Well first of all you are not replying to a young snot nosed young guy and i happen to be very skilled at weapons and its true that using a weapon is the fastest easiest way to dispatch a threat and i also shoot as well as skilled with weapons so no i am not an idiot and the insult was not appreciated,you could have just ask me if i had any weapons training or not and my business name on my youtube has nothing to do with my interest in martial arts nor my love of weapons ,Lastly i served in the US Army and went to basic training at FT Knox 1985 B1-1 Tank crewman.Lastly you should not judge a book by its cover but that being said i am fine talking with you as long as we keep it respectful.

@emperor2596 Жыл бұрын

Man this was very informative loving the content skal

@aurenian8247 9 ай бұрын

I like that you emphasised how hard it is and showed it often not working in the sparring part. So many times I see this being like "Just take his knife away" and I'm like sure mr perfect practice.

@giggityguy Жыл бұрын

Step 0 is always: run away if even remotely possible. Knife fighting is about as dangerous it gets. There's a popular saying that goes: "In a knife fight, the loser dies in the street, and the winner dies in the ambulance." Modern knives are very fast, very sharp, and force you to fight at a range that leaves very little room for mistakes. Only attempt to fight if you have absolutely no choice.

@googleandsusansucks Жыл бұрын

Or be a chad American and just carry a gun.

@catocall7323 Жыл бұрын

Gee, I never thought of it that way...

@AnotherDuck Жыл бұрын

Yeah, get out, deescalate, or just hand over your wallet. Best options if available. You often hear people arguing about being the faster runner and how important that is, like elsewhere in the comments here. I don't think it matters that much other than if you're significantly slower (and in that case defending is probably not an option anyway). But the first few steps are the most important. If you need to turn around to run while the attacker can stab you, you're probably not going to be well off. But if the attacker hesitates you will get a bit of a head start, which might be enough for the attacker to give up, since at that point it takes a lot more effort to take you down. If you need to make time to turn around to run, it might just be better to take a stab in the hand or arm while trying to throw off the attacker than to take it in the gut or back.

@gogzhp88 Жыл бұрын

That and nobody actually uses a knife in a big obvious way that is always shown for demonstrative purposes or cinematic effect. There's a reason you never see any techniques for disarming a knife wielder when you're tangled up in a brawl, because you're already dead.

@giggityguy Жыл бұрын

@@gogzhp88 Pretty much, yeah. That's another great reason to comply or try to run away if you can. To paraphrase another comment, "If their intention was to stab you from the beginning, you'll never see the knife to begin with." Odds are if they're threatening you and showing you the knife, they would rather not fight you if they don't have to. It's only if you fight back that you increase your risk dramatically.

@orcushelvetii9613 Жыл бұрын

I do an asian martial art (like kung fu but not kung fu), and i recognise almost everything. The human body works the same everywhere.

@Kvikr_ginnung9921 Жыл бұрын

Thank you kindly was having trouble with this seeing it done a broken down really helps

@marcosanaya9540 Жыл бұрын

Great video! Can't wait to try these! Thanks!

@lindseyspencer6982 Жыл бұрын

I think what you said about grabbing the clothes makes sense, also a lot of these things where you lean on the blade to wrench it free wouldn’t work if you were bare skinned (not as well anyway) so I think this microcosm of the macrocosm assumes you and your opponent have some sort of light armor on by the very least. I still think it’s a good toolbox against a variety of weapons and even against guys with fists, those arm breaks in an altercation would be savage period. I think good wrestlers would find a lot of this stuff to be common sense/instincts. The manuscript you showed teaches an under pattern correspondent to chess, your opponent’s latest move is their newest weakness.

@operator-chan1887 Жыл бұрын

Remember what he says about daggers being mostly not that sharp unlike knives today. Although, getting a bad cut on your hand beats getting stabbed to death

@frooglefrog7106 Жыл бұрын

What i was taught was "if you're up against someone with a knife, expect to get stabbed or cut, and if you come up against someone with a gun, expect to get shot" and the mentality of my sensei was not thinking of it like you're gonna fail, moreso that you're gonna get hurt and the techniques i learned were to either lessen the damage against attackers with weapons or defend myself against those without them.

@nicolaiveliki1409 Жыл бұрын

most important info in this great video: If someone shows you a technique that seems effortless and doesn't explain, run! Yes, especially when it's unarmed defense against an armed attacker, but if it looks too easy to be true, it is

@Sableagle Жыл бұрын

Fall not for the scam of the scammer, for he is a scammer, and doth scam.

@0713mas Жыл бұрын

It is a very good historical demonstration IMO. I have been training traditional martial arts and combat sports for 37 years and have worked in security and law enforcement for 20 years. I believe they had it as right, as any modern knife defense, if not more so. Keeping in mind that this is the sort of thing that is the ideal scenario, it's gonna be messy, your gonna get hurt likely. This would've been the sort of thing merely instructed to warriors, to give them some direction and confidence, to step into battle. Also one or both combatants would've likely been wearing thick garments, gloves, chain mail or even armor. Variations of two on ones, russian ties, overhooks, underhooks, armlocks and shoulder locks are essential to any grappling situation. Hence why many of these techniques have survived in modern combat sports. Ty for posting, love the channel.

@SolPhoebusApollo Жыл бұрын

It is good 🗡

@palmerharrison7660 Жыл бұрын

This is good.

@flatmosquito Ай бұрын

I've been a HEMA/SCA dagger vs. dagger (or anything, really - it's my favorite!) fighter for about 15 years now and I still try to wrap my head around how these historical teachings could work. I think it would be great fun to spar someone who is well-trained in them!

@FerronBlackmoore Жыл бұрын

LOVE these style of videos! Skall, if you could do one on longsword disarms where both opponents have a weapon that would be awesome! Longsword disarms are confusing to me for some reason 😅

@GinoLuccio Жыл бұрын

Fun to watch, especially how badly it went after he actually started trying 😆 Next best thing to try out: Duel-wielding shields against a knife attacker?

@Specter_1125 Жыл бұрын

Ultimately it’s about making the best out of a bad situation.

@GinoLuccio Жыл бұрын

@@Specter_1125 Completely agree, in the situation you have no other choice being trained in this will be a lifesaver. Was just poking at Skall using unconventional weapons:) But damn it's fun to watch him trying 'em out!

@Generic549 Жыл бұрын

Been training in shodokan (Tomiki to some) aikido and interesting to see how similar the techniques are! We do sparring with foam knives (straight thrusts only, no ice pick grip). The most I’ve learnt from it is get off the line of the attack, get a two on one, and try and throw them, which seems to be exactly what the manuscripts are trying to teach. Nothing new under the sun I guess.

@pinkofastora Жыл бұрын

i think skall actually mentioned something similar to this in a recent video, about how all effective martial arts will have moves that someone training with different techniques will be able to recognize. there’s only so many ways that someone can move their body efficiently after all.

@Aliyah_666 Жыл бұрын

@@pinkofastora I think that was Bruce Lee's point as well to an extent. He seemed to learn new combat arts and inject what worked best in his mind.

@willkido9641 Жыл бұрын

Love the vid man a few of those are in aikido so I enjoyed that. Plus for what I assume you don't do this alot your movement looks pretty good especially if you got all this from a manuscript man.

@KatanaKamisama Жыл бұрын

Torque = Force * Radius so if you double the distance from the moment center, you double the applied torque. Conversely, if you double the distance from the moment center, you only need half the force to apply the same torque.

@ilkka9195 Жыл бұрын

The loser in a knife fight dies on the scene. The winner in a knife fight dies in the hospital.

@icecoldchilipreppers Жыл бұрын

I always like watching legit knife defence videos. Very enjoyable watching one based on the medieval manuscripts. The overall consensus is to run away, or, Dodge, strike the face quick and then run away. Be aware of your surroundings and never let sketchy dude in stabbing distance. Or, practice crazy weird tia chi forearm blocking for years and years, and then still try to run away because it doesn't work very well.

@janicemcalisterdouglas7351 Жыл бұрын

This is an awesome demonstration of disarming a knife! Thank you!

@janek144 Жыл бұрын

Just want to let you know I appreciate your work. 🙏

@poetwp975 Жыл бұрын

I successfully pulled off the first technique in real life once. A woman ran at me with a large butcher knife. I got the knife away from her. I was lucky my muscle memory took over from years of martial arts training.

@jkdbuck7670 Жыл бұрын

I hope you broke something to teach her a lesson.

@TheScarvig Жыл бұрын

i think a big problem with most of these techniques is that training them with a non compliant partner is very hard if you dont want to seriously hurt them. that is because most of them end in somehow breaking the arm and doing them at full speed its really easy to overshoot your target of *just* disarming them. especially if they resisted and you tension built up in a move and suddenly breaks away if you want to keep your sparring partner " that is NOT good"

@John-ir4id Жыл бұрын

Watching these exercises really drives home a good point about fighting - and life. Success is a succession of failures. If one tactic fails, you adapt and respond with another until it works.