The art of protecting, defending, and battle in my eyes: The approach
As I play games, watch fight scenes in movies, and every other artistic medium that portrays battle in a completely flamboyant fashion. That said, there is one simple offensive maneuver that proves to elude me everytime in real life, and I want to dissect it here on my journal: the approach.
Take into account fighting games. You have two basic methods on a 2D plane: on the ground or in the air. From there, you have the narrowness of degrees. The walk-up approach, the running approach, the dash approach or the jump-in, the short-hop, or the air dash. Expand on this with other games that are fighting game inspired. You have to teleport-in (DBZ), the side-dash (Naruto), grazing (Touhou), and more. These are all premises that vaguely work in reality minus the obvious (I wish air-dashing was a real option, I'd do it a lot). What I want to focus on, for my own benefit, is the ground approach. Namely, what I'm dubbing the "Stinger slide". Take into account Dante (from Devil May Cry fame) and his patented Stinger. It was functional as an approach tool, a targeting mechanism, an evasion tool, a singling tool, and above all else a faster means of travel when leveled up enough. Let me explain these terms.
Approach tool: Obvious, a move used to quick close the gap and attack a target
Targeting mechanism: Since Stinger requires the player (and Dante) to lock onto an opponent, and this move by its nature closes the gap created during frantic multiple target combat, this move could be used to zone in on one target and strike just that one. Expanded upon in DMC4 with Nero, since he swings and thus can strike more targets in lieu of hitting his primary targeted opponent.
Evasion tool: To dodge a blow coming from behind or the side, one can Stinger a distant opponent to take yourself out of strike range of surrounding opponents.
Singling tool: Piggybacking off of Targeting Mechanism, the strike of Stinger also inflicts blowback on the target. Since it knocks them backwards, and sometimes into a wall, if you proceed to Stinger AGAIN, you isolate the target and push them out of the fray. Creates space for you to react, evade, and isolate the target you plan on taking down if you're singularly oriented in combat.
Faster means of travel is self explanatory when seen in action. Stinger Lvl2 always manages to be slightly faster than walking, and provides a boost on certain gaps before Trickster Style was instituted.
So why does Stinger fascinate me? Dante (and those who mimic this Capcom-inspired attack) don't move their feet after the initial launch. This creates an unreal twist on the approach mechanic that still has some interesting concepts. Tokugawa in Sengoku Basara mimics this mechanic with a forward striking uppercut. Senel Coolidge from Tales of Legendia performs this slide with Shadow Rush and then accents it later with Dragon Rush (ending with a combo instead of a single strike). What I'm trying to dissect is the real-world comparison to this maneuver. And then Dragon's Dogma answered my question.
One of the first moves you learn as a fighter, Blink Strike, is essentially Stinger. The difference is the human twist put on it, which is a blessing and a curse in itself. The character runs at the opponent, with the camera slightly lowered, and barrels toward their opponent before thrusting. Important note: the footfalls all feel genuine. If I were to mimic the attack to a T, you would think I was being slow about it. But the full-force, head down rush of this running attack applied in real life is as you see: a functionally slow move with a large force output at the very end. It still fulfills the mechanics I mentioned before, but requires footwork. So in attempting this, I'm still at a loss: is there a way to smooth the delivery? To slide, without ice, at your target with concentrated control for some similar effect? I don't know what steps it requires to do this kinesthetic study, but I know playing Metal Gear Rising has renewed my self-study of humanly profound fighting techniques. I may post more as the study continues, but I wanted to start notes here.
Take into account fighting games. You have two basic methods on a 2D plane: on the ground or in the air. From there, you have the narrowness of degrees. The walk-up approach, the running approach, the dash approach or the jump-in, the short-hop, or the air dash. Expand on this with other games that are fighting game inspired. You have to teleport-in (DBZ), the side-dash (Naruto), grazing (Touhou), and more. These are all premises that vaguely work in reality minus the obvious (I wish air-dashing was a real option, I'd do it a lot). What I want to focus on, for my own benefit, is the ground approach. Namely, what I'm dubbing the "Stinger slide". Take into account Dante (from Devil May Cry fame) and his patented Stinger. It was functional as an approach tool, a targeting mechanism, an evasion tool, a singling tool, and above all else a faster means of travel when leveled up enough. Let me explain these terms.
Approach tool: Obvious, a move used to quick close the gap and attack a target
Targeting mechanism: Since Stinger requires the player (and Dante) to lock onto an opponent, and this move by its nature closes the gap created during frantic multiple target combat, this move could be used to zone in on one target and strike just that one. Expanded upon in DMC4 with Nero, since he swings and thus can strike more targets in lieu of hitting his primary targeted opponent.
Evasion tool: To dodge a blow coming from behind or the side, one can Stinger a distant opponent to take yourself out of strike range of surrounding opponents.
Singling tool: Piggybacking off of Targeting Mechanism, the strike of Stinger also inflicts blowback on the target. Since it knocks them backwards, and sometimes into a wall, if you proceed to Stinger AGAIN, you isolate the target and push them out of the fray. Creates space for you to react, evade, and isolate the target you plan on taking down if you're singularly oriented in combat.
Faster means of travel is self explanatory when seen in action. Stinger Lvl2 always manages to be slightly faster than walking, and provides a boost on certain gaps before Trickster Style was instituted.
So why does Stinger fascinate me? Dante (and those who mimic this Capcom-inspired attack) don't move their feet after the initial launch. This creates an unreal twist on the approach mechanic that still has some interesting concepts. Tokugawa in Sengoku Basara mimics this mechanic with a forward striking uppercut. Senel Coolidge from Tales of Legendia performs this slide with Shadow Rush and then accents it later with Dragon Rush (ending with a combo instead of a single strike). What I'm trying to dissect is the real-world comparison to this maneuver. And then Dragon's Dogma answered my question.
One of the first moves you learn as a fighter, Blink Strike, is essentially Stinger. The difference is the human twist put on it, which is a blessing and a curse in itself. The character runs at the opponent, with the camera slightly lowered, and barrels toward their opponent before thrusting. Important note: the footfalls all feel genuine. If I were to mimic the attack to a T, you would think I was being slow about it. But the full-force, head down rush of this running attack applied in real life is as you see: a functionally slow move with a large force output at the very end. It still fulfills the mechanics I mentioned before, but requires footwork. So in attempting this, I'm still at a loss: is there a way to smooth the delivery? To slide, without ice, at your target with concentrated control for some similar effect? I don't know what steps it requires to do this kinesthetic study, but I know playing Metal Gear Rising has renewed my self-study of humanly profound fighting techniques. I may post more as the study continues, but I wanted to start notes here.