Sun_Helmet

Possible over emphasis in FMA on the guntings. If you look at non stick applications of the gunting, the targets are the parts of the limbs beyond the guards and set up to injure the two beat parry on the short weapon. Many overlook the principles of the gunting and try and apply them weapon to weapon due to the drills- even while students are informed that the REAL targets are the limbs.

So you have some FMA students trying to apply the killshot without regard to the exchange that must happen to gain that killshot against an opponent with a different weapon. They move into a mutual killzone.

Beyond sword to sword, the spear is an advantage over the sword. Hence, the European transition of pikes over the swords. It allows reach for the thrust and the shaft of their weapons were protected against edged attacks. One doesn't need a sword guard nor a short dagger at all if the fighting gap has been extended by several feet of pike shaft (and of course support of other pikemen). Only if the pikemen are overrun would swordsmen be necessary.

Thus, the development of the sinawali where two short weapons are used to disrupt and close on the longer weapon. One could also parry SEVERAL pikes as you close into SWORD killzones.

However, there was no such thing as dueling in these particular engagements, because if the Spanish Sword is deployed that means they are in mopping up mode or are being overrun. That scenario VASTLY alters the way one must fight. Here is when triangle formations and tactics come into play.

War was never fair play, Filipino tribal tactics involve ambush at close quarters and projectiles at long. In the end, the final evolution of tactics in the Philippines against Spain was to reverse Divide and Conquer by uniting the island peoples, allying with the US temporarily (my enemy's enemy is my friend), using Spain's hypocrisy and distortion of Christian teachings against them so that local priests turned on Spain, learning the Spanish language to communicate amongst tribes, and finally obtaining firearms.

In the final days of the Philippine Revolution, the day to day first hand accounts indicate Filipinos only used their blades so that they can gain the FIREarms of the dead Spanish soldiers. The Katipunan even made wooden proxy guns so that their silhouettes would indicate they carried more firearms than they actually had. At that point Spain rarely relied on pikes or swords at all, since this was the late 1800's.

So yes, evolution is necessary and in war that means adapting beyond the actual weapon design and defeating the enemy on all fronts.

--Rafael--