A powerful diagonal descending cut from the shoulder, used to strike into an opponent's Oberhau so that your point ends up threatening them.
The Zornhau is the first of the five . Mechanically it is simply a strong diagonal from the right shoulder, like an angry untrained swing. What makes it a master cut is how it is used: you cut into the opponent's descending cut so that your meets their blade, and your arrives in front of their face.
From that bind the gloss describes a whole family of follow-ups: thrust along the blade if they are soft (), if they are hard, if they push, and when they cover.
The key skill is what the opponent's blade is doing the instant the blades meet, and acting .
Your familiarity
Sources and interpretation
- Johannes Liechtenauer (Wiktenauer article, with the Zettel and its glosses) Article text CC BY-SA 4.0; hosted translations generally CC BY-NC-SA 4.0; the historical text is public domain Zettel, verses on the Zornhau and its gloss.
- Sigmund ain Ringeck (Wiktenauer article and gloss) Article text CC BY-SA 4.0; hosted translations generally CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Ringeck's gloss on the Zornhau.