Sparring Games

A few weeks ago I asked the good people on the HEMA Alliance Facebook page for input regarding sparring games. The amount of feedback I got was, as always, massive and quite helpful; if interested you can find the original post here. Since this blog is all about sharing useful information to the larger HEMA community, I figured it would be a good thing to give as many of those wonderful ideas back so even more people can use them. Obviously, none of these ideas are my own since I was the one seeking out ideas to begin with.

I've edited and made the responses flow a bit more, but essentially these are the answers that folks provided. If no name for the game was given in the thread I've added one, just to make reading this easier. Hope you enjoy, and that these ideas can help add some additional fun element to your regular training.

(Parenthetically, let me add that any reasonable question -- and by reasonable I mean a serious question shared among much of the HEMA community, not something silly like "How can I learn to use a sword like Jon Snow?" -- can be brought to the HEMA Alliance page and you'll get all kinds of useful feedback. The answers are always thoughtful and complete, and the commentators have always been respectful, even if you're asking a classic newbie question. No one to my experience has ever been condescending or arrogant since everyone knows we were all beginners once. So, anything you'd like to know, start there first.) 

Schola Gladiatoria playing a team sparring game

"Perd Sévère"

This is a good training game which is the strict opposite of "King of the Hill" (perd sévère is a French pun with "persevere" and "severe defeat"). It is intended to let the losers get better by continuing to fight until they take a win. 

This game has two main advantages: First, it helps in limiting the difference of level between fighters. Consecutive defeats give good feedback on what you do bad, and you keep the opportunity to correct it. You just have to if you want to rest. Secondly, people don't get too cocky as winning means getting out of the fight.

"The Big Balls Game"

The ideal number of fighters is three or four, in two teams, as everyone is guaranteed to fight regularly.

Put a beach ball or exercise ball in the middle of the sparring space. Start with two teams on each side. The goal is to take control of the ball (which is too big to hold in one hand) and carry it over the opponents starting line. If you get hit by an opponent you must retreat past your start line to respawn.

This is a fabulous workout, teaches group cohesion and cooperation (while rewarding individual valor) and encourages situational awareness. It's also really fun.

"Ninja"

The camp game where you go around in a circle take turns making an attack or trying to dodge it or block it in one motion.

Everyone get in a circle around one person. Everyone on the outside has a strike they are to deliver (set according to the skill level of the one in the middle). When the man in the middle salutes one of the surrounding students, they then move in and engage with that action. Once all of the surrounding students have been engaged, the one in the middle rotates out and everyone gets a new strike to deliver.

"Serpents"

A serpent is chosen; he or she can have two weapons (or a shield or something else), and the weapons are poisoned so a simple touch kills. Everyone else has a single weapon and forms a line. The first person attacks the serpent. If he wins, he becomes the serpent and takes up a second weapon, and the serpent goes to the back of the line. If the serpent wins, the next person in line joins the fight, and the serpent has to fight 2 people. If the serpent wins against both, a third joins, etc., until finally, the serpent loses. When the serpent loses against multiple people, any of them still alive fight each other, and the winner becomes the next serpent. Great exercise, lots of challenges, and a fun way to learn to fight multiple opponents.

"Pin the Sword in the Donkey's Ribs"

Back to the wall, some part of your body must remain in contact at all times, faced by two opponents. 

"Nail in the Foot"

Draw a foot wide circle on the ground and one foot (chosen at random) must remain in that circle and grounded.

"Windsor’s Card Game (Audatia)" 

Using the German deck, two fighters come up and draw a card and show it to the judge. The winner is the first person who pulls off their technique.

Guy Windsor's "Audatia" card game, German packs

"King of the Hill Mini-Tourney"

These always have some kind of limiting rule based on the lesson of the day. For example, if we focused on Zwerchhau, it's a king of the hill where the "king" can only initiate an exchange with a Zwerchhau, but the challenger can fence as he pleases.

"The Descending Weapons Game" 

Both opponents start with spears. The winner to three clean hits descends to sword in two hands. The loser keeps the same weapon they had in the prior round. The winner of a round descends from spear to sword in two hands, to arming sword, to dagger. Alternatively, you can do ascending weapons (both with dagger, winner goes up to arming sword, etc.). Or, vary the weapons. Very fun and very easy way to integrate students with mixed experience.

"Paired technique challenge"

Provide a starting position for two players. One position is intended to win. The players demonstrate one or more techniques from these positions. They can take turns if desired. Each pair is judged on historic documentation, originality of presentation, plausibility, theatrics, etc. You can expand into demonstrating counters or responses from a range of different sources.

"Strike One"

To work offense/feinting/learning to read the opponent's structure/rhythm, spar using only one kind of strike. Like, only a Tajo/Sabre Angle I/Mandritto/etc., and then score points based on hit locations; one point for limb shots, three points for a body shot (reduced or negated if they get an afterblow). First to seven or ten points wins.

“Collect the Targets” 

To demonstrate one's ability to put the sword in a specific place when we want to. Head, torso, legs, arms. Like hangman without all that fancy wording. (Note: There was no specific mention as to how the targets are decided or called, but you can develop something for yourself. I think one way that'd work is to start the game with both having to hit the head; if one does then they can move on to the next target wereas the other person has to wait until they hit the opponent's head as well. Whatever works for your club.)

"Seth"

A variation on the basketball game Horse. In Horse, you take a shot, and if you make it the next person has to land it too, but if they don’t they get a letter; the same thing, but in sparring. Two people bout, loser stays in and gets a letter, newcomer can only land the same target as the previous winner, won with.

“Gun Game”

Everyone starts with a dagger and makes a challenge. Winners go to sword in one hand. Lowest weapon gets to challenge first until everyone is paired. Two wins moves to sword and buckler, three wins to sword in two hands, five wins to spear, and five wins to win it. Losing the same number of times with your weapon as it took to advance knocks you down a weapon.

"Ninja Assasin" 

One person in the middle of training mats, four to six in a circle around the edge. One person at the edge says, "hep!" and make a single attack. The person in the middle must turn to the attacker and counter in one go. That person stays in the middle, and immediately another will say, "hep!" and attack and so on until middle person is dead a couple of times by increasing tempo and angle of attack.

"Zombie" 

One hero in the middle with four zombies around the edge. All attack the hero in the middle simultaneously but at only about 30% normal speed. The one in the middle must then try and use speed and awareness to move around and position himself to fight a minimum of enemies at a time. Lingering in place means being surrounded and killed. Zombies go to the nearest edge and respawn. Add additional zombies as you also go up in tempo until the hero dies.

"Hold the Bridge"

Named for the viking who held off an army on his own armed with a Daneaxe (Note: This is a reference to the 1066 Battle of Stamford Bridge, fought by the English Saxons under Harold Godwinson against the invading Norwegians under Harald Hardrada). Move a few mats so only a narrow runway leads to the hero. At one end all others line up and attack one at a time over the bridge making one obvious attack for the hero to counter. When killed, the attacker goes sideways and then run back in line to attack again. The hero should be pressed by attackers coming one right after another and should be engaged constantly. He will die from bad flow and sloppy footwork or from exhaustion. Not meant to be a prolonged duel with every attacker, rather the attackers should deliver just one obvious and correct attack, then die and return to the end of the line.

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OK, folks, there you have it. Like I said, none of these games are my original creations, having been provided by the wonderfully inventive HEMA community. I hope you like these games and can put them into action at your club. I sure know we will be putting them to good use!

Stay loose and train hard!

-- Scott