I don't know if anyone here is a fencer, but I thought I'd post this anyway. If you don't know what I mean by fencing, I'm talking about the sport where you dress layers of white clothing, and a wire mesh mask, and you stab the other person with whatever weapon you're using. There are three types of weapons:
The Foil - This is the most traditional blade. It's shorter than the other two, and the target area is any where from the crotch up to the neck, and all the way around the fencer's body. You attack with stabs using a mechanism at the tip of the blade to register hits or misses. The foil requires the most skill and precision, and is the most fun to use.
The Saber - This is the one all the hulking people who weigh a little over several tons use. The bouts are mainly contests of who can shout the loudest. The target area consists of the bottom of the ribcage up to the neck (the area broadsword wielding medieval warriors would aim for, and you can hit them with any part of your weapon. The slightest touch triggers the electric device used for detecting hits, and it's almost impossible to parry because the blade is so huge and unwieldy, quite like the people who use them.
The Epee - The epee is basically a longer foil, however, what really sets them apart is the fact that you can target anywhere on your body. Massive arm strength is required for epee, because the bouts usually consist of both fencers standing in en garde with their blade extended for periods of up to 7 minutes, before the Director (referee) calls halt and awards them both with a yellow card for passivity. If anyone bothers to attack the other person just steps back and lets the opponent run into their blade. Dodging skill is useful in this fencing subtype.
Anyways, back to what I was saying. Is anyone here a fencer? I've been fencing for about three years now. My strategy mainly consists of waiting until they attack, parrying once or twice, and then contorting my body into grotesque shapes to avoid their blade and counterattacking. I follow this up with laughing in their face as they accuse me of "not being there" and "annoying sliminess." However, my technique appears weak, my parries are feeble, and scarcely accomplish anything besides allowing them to disengage and ram my parry into the ground, at which point I quickly retreat and employ my aforementioned technique. I am unable to predict their moves, and oftentimes find my disengages lying passively outside their six, allowing them to impale me repeatedly. On the rare occasions that I attack them my attacks are parried multiple times unnecessarily and I constantly find myself employing my dodging skills to avoid their ripostes.
Share your strategies with me! I'm always open to receive tips. I really need to strengthen my parries; I'm using the more modern American "Power Grip," any advice on how to hold it? I usually hold it vertically (with my hand to the right of the grip) but I see some people hold it horizontally (with their hand under the grip.) I hope there is someone on here who enjoys this sport!