HOPLOMACHIA

5 points

Hoplomachia was the armed combat style of the ancient
Greek city-states. Most citizens learned only the spear and
shield, but dedicated warriors studied the entire art. The
style outlasted the citizen armies, and was common among
professional soldiers and mercenaries alike. For an earlier
style suitable for “heroic” Greek warriors, see Heroic Spear
Fighting (p. 196).
Hoplomachoi (as practitioners were known) lead with
their medium shield, often held out at an angle in front of
the body or even horizontally, rim pointed toward the
enemy. They use shield bashes, Beats (pp. 100-101) with
the shield, and shoves to render the foe more vulnerable
before bringing the spear into play. Favorite targets for the
spear are the less-armored neck and face. Defensively, styl-
ists prefer to block with the shield rather than parry with
the spear. Close in, hoplomachoi make aggressive use of
the spiked spear butt or resort to a sword – typically a
shortsword but occasionally a broadsword. A common tac-
tic is to grapple an adversary in order to drive the sword or
butt spike into him.
teachers, offering their services to young men
seeking training in the style as well as in unarmed
combat styles; see Pankration (pp. 188-189) and
Ancient Greek Boxing (p. 153). Greek society was
Martial artists often distinguish between “external” and “internal”
divided on their status: some thought them essen-
styles. External arts stress physical achievement and strong attacks.
tial to a city’s military strength while others
Internal ones emphasize spiritual development, and sometimes have
regarded them as dangerous men of doubtful
deep philosophical underpinnings (e.g., in Taoism or Buddhism).
morals. Indeed, a number of philosophers agued
This distinction originated in China, which traditionally sorted the
that this kind of training was detrimental to a sol-
martial arts into the Wudong schools (Taoism-based styles such as
dier because it taught him how to defend himself
Hsing I Chuan, Pa Kua Chuan, and T’ai Chi Chuan), which were
rather than to rely on his comrades in a firm bat-
deemed “internal,” and the Shaolin schools (all other Chinese
tle line. Whatever the prevailing view, a teacher
styles), which were identified as “external.”
would not be difficult to find in ancient Greece.
Another common way of classifying the martial arts is to dub
Skills: Shield; Shortsword; Spear; Wrestling.
them either “hard” or “soft.” Hard styles are those that meet force
Techniques: Close Combat (Shortsword);
with force in an effort to overwhelm the opponent, while soft ones
Feint (Shield); Spinning Strike (Spear);
are those that yield to aggression and attempt to redirect the enemy’s
Targeted Attack (Spear Thrust/Face); Targeted
force. Faced with an attacker, a hard school defends and then coun-
Attack (Spear Thrust/Neck).
terattacks – or even seizes the initiative and attempts to defeat the
Cinematic Skills: Immovable Stance; Push,
foe before he can attack. A soft stylist seeks to avoid confrontation,
used with shield.
and responds with a throw, trip, or lock if attacked.
Perks: Grip Mastery (Spear); Naval Training,
The “external vs. internal” split is more legendary than actual. An
for elite epibatai, or marines, aboard triremes;
external style might counsel spiritual development; for instance,
Teamwork (Hoplomachia).
Nito Ryu Kenjutsu (pp. 174-175) is solidly external but its creator
wrote a deeply philosophical work on the martial arts: A Book of Five
Optional Traits
Rings. The “hard vs. soft” dichotomy is similarly idealized; few
Advantages:
Combat Reflexes; Cultural
“hard” styles lack “soft” parries and retreats. And while external
Familiarity (Ancient Greece); Enhanced Block;
styles tend to be hard and internal ones tend to be soft, this isn’t uni-
Language (Ancient Greek).
versal. Hsing I Chuan (see below) is hard and internal, while Judo
Disadvantages: Duty (Polis); Reputation
(p. 166) and Wrestling (pp. 204-206) are soft and external. A single
(Dangerous man of doubtful morals); Sense of
art might have elements from each of these four categories!
Duty (Polis).
Today, these terms describe a style’s methodology more than any-
Skills:
Boxing; Brawling; Broadsword;
thing else. “Hard” is another way of saying that the art makes heavy
Hobby Skill (Feats of Strength); Running.
use of striking (Boxing, Brawling, Karate, and Melee Weapon skills),
as exemplified by Boxing (pp. 152-153), Jeet Kune Do (pp. 164-165),
Karate (pp. 169-172), Wing Chun (pp. 203-204), and most armed