Why do Combatants Circle Each Other?

[Will]

When I wrestled in high school, it was often because we were lazy or tired and wanted to look busy so our couches wouldn't yell at us.

Probably not helpful in this instance, but hey.

 

[Tinner]

Speaking strictly from a wrestling/HTH combat POV, there are only two reasons to circle.

1. To gain an advantageous position on your opponent. If you can attack from the rear, or from his weak side/blind side/etc. you stand a better chance of dealing damage without taking any in return.

and

2. To draw your opponent into attacking you from a bad position. If you feint an opening, you can deceive an opponent into attacking what he thinks is a bad spot, but might actually be a strength. In my wrestling days, I would often trail one leg out "undefended" as I circled, hoping to convince my opponent to try to attack my leg, because I had numerous defenses ready to defend that leg.

That's basically the only two reasons for circling IMO. YMMV.

 

[Umbran]

One thing folks seem to have missed - it is easier to not "telegraph" your next attack or movement if you are already moving, rather than stationary.

 

[pawsplay]

Let's say you decide to move three smidges to the right and one smidge forward. In the time you do that, your opponent has determine the distance you have just moved, and then move the same amount, just to keep the defensive posture he had in the first place! Thus in practice, fighters within one lunge of each other always move.

Also, moving creates the impression you are moving toward the opponent, which causes fear and panic and may create the perceptual illusion you are getting larger.

It keeps the blood flowing and the muscles elastic. Circulation and breathing are crucial elements to winning a fight. You must keep up your energy constant and keep your body loose and relaxed while working strenuously!

It allows you to assess whether an opponent has become wounded or tired. If you are the aggressor, this is ultimately your goal. If it is a mutual combat, this can foster the psychological state that you are the aggressor.

Another reason is that when you are stationary, your options are few. But when you move, you could be doing any number of things. To react to your movements tires and confuses the enemy. The only time you do not move in combat is when you have anticipated your opponent's motion and he does the moving for you.

 

[Drowbane]

I think people have covered the "why" fairly well.

How: In D&D it is already somewhat covered.
* 5ft step (especially to create flanks)
* Dex to AC
* Feinting
* AoO

Thoughts?

 

[megamania]

Many reasons, most have been said-

movement so as NOT to be flatfooted

gaging the strength and skill of a foe

Stare / intimidation

setting up attacks

it looks neat (not a true reason but it does sometimes look neat)

 

[Warren Okuma]

Different styles. Some styles tell you to look for an opening, and amateurs circle to psyche themselves up.

Others styles rely on aggression, such as berserkers and Krav Maga practitioners tend not circle. Not everybody circles.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krav_Maga

 

[baradtgnome]

One thing folks seem to have missed - it is easier to not "telegraph" your next attack or movement if you are already moving, rather than stationary.

bingo. From the view of something like fencing, you are are attempting to get into a position of an explosive lunge. You want to be in range but not let your opponent know you are. In addition to the moving around, there would be small moves in and out. Moving to your 'handed' side also has some advantage. So a right handed fencer would likely favor circling to their right. Both opponents are quickly judging foot position, hand and weapon position, where the eyes are looking etc. Many small fients and repositions are happening quickly.

I would imagine that different fighting styles and weapons would modify this to suit. All very difficult to 'simulate' in game.

Also, I agree, this is something that you'd only do in one on one combat. Adding more combatants would change the movement to be more concerned with overall position.

 

[Sanguinemetaldawn]

Nor did armies fight that way when it actually came to fighting. Their manuevers were (especially in the ancient world) generally a lot more linear. Yes there were flanking and encircling manuevers, but those were more generally one flank of the an army marching around or smashing through a flank of the opposing army to strike the main force in the rear or in the sides than the kind of mutual circling you suggest.

There is an interesting historical example of such a thing happening with the phalanxes of antiquity. From wikipedia:

"The natural tendency during battle would be to drift towards the right side, or even for both lines to "wheel" as one side gave ground and the other advanced. This is because the individual hoplites carried their shields on their left arm, protecting not themselves but the soldier to the left (thus giving an incentive to stand very close together). Battles were won when the exposed right side (carrying spears) could overpower the opposing army's left side (carrying shields)."

A fundamentally similar principle is probably at work.

phalanxes

 

[The Levitator]

This is an interesting conversation, and I think it hits on why we love using the Facing Variant from UA. Although, we found we had to modify it slightly to minimize a "leapfrog" effect, where combatants are constantly moving around to get flanking on each other round after round. We instituted an Engagement action, whereby a creature can choose to engage one combatant once per round as a free action (even when not their turn). Once they've chosen to engage that combatant, their facing will change to keep that combatant to their front.

Facing really encourages movement during combat, and it REALLY encourages team strategy as players learn how to draw the attention of a creature so that one of their allies can move into a flanking or rear attack position. Facing also makes movement and positioning more crucial because while it gives +2 to flank attacks, it gives +4 to rear attacks.

It's been one of my groups favorite additions to the core rules, and we use a lot of 'em!