"Not quite, Little One!" said Chopper somewhat sardonically, "But Spud is more closer to the truth than you are! On guard!"Chopper closed the distance between himself and Heidi as he tried to hit her on the head with the flat edge of his wooden sword. As the Lady Knight barely blocked his blade in time, the Drow Warrior said, "Speed is how fast you can switch from a parry to a block or from a block to a feint or to any maneuver of your choosing. The best warriors can make the transition between maneuvers effortlessly!"
Whirling around like a dervish, Chopper immediately switched from a direct strike to a feint and then to a leg sweep in which he literally knocked Heidi off of her feet sending her to the ground.
Continuing his attack, the Drow Warrior hammered his sword against her blocks announcing, "Strength is not what you think! It is the application of your will, your force, and your energy into the edge of the blade! Your goal is to do the most damage to your enemy as efficiently and expeditiously as possible! A master of this aspect can slice through a melon seamlessly and without splattering it all over creation!"
Finally, Chopper went for a disarming maneuver and spun Heidi's sword out of her hand. He then put his blade at the Lady Knight's throat and said, "And skill is exactly as you think! It is the ability to out-fight, out-think, and out-maneuver your opponent with the express purpose of disarming him--or killing him! The master of this aspect of swordsmanship can literally defeat his opponent in his mind, long before he ever draws his sword!"
Offering the Lady Knight a hand to help her to her feet, Chopper concluded, "Now, do you understand why it is important that you must learn these three aspects and achieve a balance between them? There are warriors that go their whole lives without ever achieveing this balance. I wonder if you two will be able to do it. Any questions?"
