Combat Types
Tactical formations
Tactical Formations: These originated in phalanx formations and shield walls. The use of pole arms requires larger and more stable stances to provide a platform for the extended weight. Shield walls also require more stability than mobility so stances tended to be wider. These arts tend to emphasize breath work and use explosive power. Formation arts tend to be the oldest and most widespread as they were taught to thousands of soldiers at once.These styles tend to have very few movements but there is greater emphasis on the details of the power expression. These arts required the most repetitive movement and tend to engage the entire body. Riot police still use shield walls and even utilize roman shield wall tactics in modern skirmishes. The central intent of formation training is to maintain formation. Most formation based martial arts died out in a practical sense as the cost of mass produced firearms rendered them antiquated. They maintain relevancy in the modern world within the context of crowd control and riot police who still use shield walls. The entire formation advances slowly to rout an enemy. Tactical formations are also used within mafia groups in China particularly if they are going after a skilled melee fighter. Typical formations include attacking in a Y formation with two frontal attacks coming in at a 45 degree angle and a third line of attackers coming from the flank. to reduce the advantages of their melee footwork. The goal is to bring the opponent down and then kick stab him on the ground before dispersing.
Melee
Melee arts make the assumption that one person will have to fight many others without the benefit of a formation. This is also known as a skirmish. This demands a high degree of personal mobility and relies heavily on footwork. The central intent of melee training is to getting to the backs of others while not letting them get to yours.
Dueling
This is one on one fighting. Dueling is found as a stage of both melee and formation training typically with less lethal wooden weapons or with unarmed combat and protective gear as a combat sport. It started to develop rapidly both in Europe and East Asia in response to the widespread dissemination of cheap and efficient firearms which rendered long weapons antiquated. With increased public safety this gradually evolved into combat sports. Modern fencing and fight sports are examples of dueling arts. Dueling arts make use of formation and melee techniques and adapt them to the context of a sport or one on one altercation. The central intent in dueling is to overcome an individual. MMA and fight sports have advanced quickly in recent decades and have relevancy. They are much safer to pressure test.
Context detrmines efficieny
Within the context of a formation, breaking formation to overcome an individual is still a loss as it puts the entire formation at risk. Locking horns in a prolonged wrestling match is a great tactic in a duel, but will make you highly vulnerable within the context of melee combat. Even groin kicks that are so useful in dueling must be reconsidered. Clasping legs can cause entanglements that can cause you to “win” while still forfeiting your objective and greatly adding to your risk by limiting mobility. Training for hand to hand combat in the context of dueling or sport is a foundation from which we can build upon with melee or formation skills. Over reliance on the reactions and strategies that make dueling effective can get you killed within a different context. Dueling is an excellent morale booster and is indispensable training. It is the safest way to pressure testing the core skills required for combat. Still it should be viewed as stage in training with the ultimate goal being to fight in either melee or formation.
Training in one of these martial art types will all carry overlapping skills but specialization in them will also cause you to become weaker or even vulnerable in the others. Once I was alongside a friend who practiced a dueling based grappling art. We were rushed by a group of mafia bodyguards in China. He “won” the duel with the first guy who rushed at him by putting him in a rear naked choke. My friend was completely vulnerable as a few others rushed him. I was disabled them using combat footwork, neck punches, and throwing their heads onto the pavement. In the context of melee, his art was useless. When grappling in a dueling context his transitions on the ground were incredibly smooth and he could submit me. Was his approach to training superior or was mine? The answer changes drastically depending on the context.