The Abandonment of the Gladius for the Spatha - Why?

[petrinus]

And from then onwards almost all combat swords have been long bladed until the 20th Century.

well the "ninja to" sword as it is often called is much shorter and lighter than a katana, its basicaly a wakizashi if you straighten out the sori or bend in the blade, of course then the method of appearing delivering short successive strikes at close range and vanishing isnt really combat, its insurgent sword play at best, though when battling larger numbers it was a necessary evolution in tactics and weapons. reach is important, one hand vs a two hand use will give you a critical half inch-to an inch depending how the universe arranged your parts and pieces, i'll take a 3' folded steel razor blade that can plow through 5 corpses in a single cut any day.....however if im sneaking around a camp dispatching my oppressors or a castle corridor, give me the short , straight flat ninja blade!!!!.....can i get some shuriken and caltrops too?

oh the other point i want to make, irimi or entering is what we call moving inside the enemys attack and occupying his center thereby controlling his energy/balance/movement wether armed or not the technique by which one moves the body (his own and his opponents)allows him to effectively employ a weapon or his hands(one and the same) against an armed opponent, im cofident that i with a gladius could carve up most men with larger and longer weapons. atleast i'll leave you praising the confidence and commitment one should always exhibit!