Line #18 Main/WeaponTwirling


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9	[[quoteright:350:[[Manga/{{Naruto}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/weapon_twirling.jpg]]]]
10
11	It's well known that when it comes to fictional fight scenes, what looks exciting and cool is far more important than what would be effective in real life. That's where Weapon Twirling comes in because [[SpectacularSpinning spinning is spectacular]]. It's visually interesting and looks like it may be difficult to pull off, and is thus [[RuleOfCool cool]]. It's also used when a character would otherwise be standing idly since someone just standing around with a weapon isn't as interesting as that person doing fancy tricks with that weapon.
12
13	In certain cases, some weapons have large rings or straps at the end of their handles, allowing the ability to spin or twirl their weapon much easier. The former is more common in short-bladed weapons such as knives or daggers (kunai and karambits are good examples) and for the latter it's more commonly seen with blunt weaponry (namely batons.)[[labelnote:*]]In fact it's common to see straps on {{Lawman Baton}}s used by {{Old Fashioned Copper}}s and then used as they twirl them around while patrolling, whistling a tune may or may not be required.[[/labelnote]]
14
15	In some instances, spinning weapons are used to [[SpinToDeflectStuff block projectiles]], [[SpinAttack attack enemies]], or create [[BlowYouAway wind attacks]].
16
17	If the weapon twirling is being used show off before an attack, probably with the intent to intimidate, it's also IntimidationDemonstration. Can also overlap with UnorthodoxSheathing.
18
19	SuperTrope of GunTwirling. SubTrope of SpectacularSpinning. SisterTrope to FanningTheKnives
20
21	----
22	!!Examples:
23
24	[[foldercontrol]]
25
26	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
27	* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'':
28	** The Third seat of squad 8 tries to intimidate Chad by spinning his sword rapidly as part of an "unbeatable sword technique" and just gets punched in the face for his efforts.
29	** Just before Tousen unleashes bankai on Kenpachi, he walks forward, twirling his sword in his right hand.
30	** Former squad 13 member Kaien Shiba's Shikai is activated by twirling his sword until it morphs into a large trident. then proceed to keep spinning said trident at a speed that he uses to smash his opponent with it.
31	* ''Anime/{{K}}'': Saruhiko likes to do this with his throwing knives. Doumyouji is also fond of adding a few extra flourishes before sheathing his sword.
32	* ''Manga/RurouniKenshin'': Kenshin is once able to deflect fire being spat at him by an {{Elite Mook\|s}} until the latter has to reload.
33	* The titular heroine in ''Anime/SailorMoon'' regularly uses weapons which she sometimes twirls before firing the actual attack, such as during [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlNTm9waNo0 Moon Healing]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCCTVMwVyTo Escalation]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHMQMyUbXbw Moon Spiral Heart Attack.]] The egregious example is likely [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWNUU2osFY4 Starlight Honeymoon Therapy Kiss]], where she ''[[MindOverMatter telekinetically]]'' twirls her rod.
34	* ''Manga/SnowWhiteWithTheRedHair'': Obi tends to spin his throwing knives between his fingers when he's waiting for his allies or targets to reach his location.
35	* Every single Meister in ''Manga/SoulEater'' seems to love doing this. It may or may not aid with Soul Resonance or not, but it sure looks cool and eats up a few seconds of screen time. As Maka actually incorporates lots of this into her combat style, she is in fact sent into a brief HeroicBSOD [[spoiler:when the Book of Eibon tries to [[MindRape use this]] to claim that if she (seemingly) cannot pull off the same moves with a regular broom, she is too weak to do anything but rely on Soul Eater]].
36	[[/folder]]
37
38	[[folder:Comic Books]]
39	* ''ComicBook/DisneyMouseAndDuckComics'': The comic "La cappa e la spada" has Goofy write a novel where one of the characters used to be a knight who loved to show off by twirling his swords (even lampshading that it's much more impressive than doing it with revolvers.) He stopped using physical weapons altogether after one stabbed his foot while in mid-twirl.
40	* ''ComicBook/TheMightyThor'' is very well-known for holding the leather strap of his mighty hammer Mjölnir and spinning it around. This serves a practical purpose however, as rapidly twirling Mjölnir has a variety of uses. From building up momentum [[NotQuiteFlight to launch himself up in the air to fly over great distances akin to flight]],[[note]]although later on he would just get proper flight powers[[/note]] increase the impact strength of his strikes to quickly dispatch sturdy foes or send large swathes of {{Mooks}} flying, using his status as the god of thunder to create thunderstorms with the rapidly spinning Mjölnir and that's not the last bit.
41	[[/folder]]
42
43	[[folder:Fan Works]]
44	* ''Fanfic/ADarkerPath'': Atropos frequently twirls her shears around her finger while chatting with someone she's considering killing. Since the blades are razor-sharp on both sides, this would be quite dangerous if she ever mishandled them. Naturally, she never does.
45	* Marc in ''Fanfic/MarcBeingInAGangRights'' tends to twirl his knives [[BladeEnthusiast to show how good he is with them]].
46	[[/folder]]
47
48	[[folder:Films -- Animation]]
49	* In a DeletedScene of ''Toys/{{Bionicle}}: The Legend Reborn'', which was to be an [[ShoutOut exact replica of]] the scene from ''Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk'', a bone hunter swordsman tries to intimidate Kiina this way, but she blasts him away with water.
50	* ''Franchise/KungFuPanda'':
51	** In the [[WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda1 first film]], Master Shifu twirls his chopsticks before his awesome fight with Po [[WhenYouSnatchThePebble for the last dumpling]].
52	** ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda3'': [[BigBad Kai]] does this with his jade blades whenever he shows up.
53	* ''WesternAnimation/PussInBootsTheLastWish'': [[KnightOfCerebus The Wolf]] has a character tic of twirling his sickles so they scrape against each other.
54	* ''WesternAnimation/StrangeMagic'': [[EvilOverLord The Bog King]] does a lot of unnecessary showy staff twirling during his duel with [[TheHero Marianne]], [[spoiler:probably because by the time he starts this, the two are quite [[DatingCatwoman flirtatious]]]].
55	* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}}'', Rapunzel is justifiably pleased with herself after dispatching an intruder.
56	-->'''Rapunzel:''' Too weak to handle myself out there, huh, Mother? Well, tell that to my frying pa--''clonk''
57	[[/folder]]
58
59	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
60	* ''Film/{{Barbarella}}'': The Black Queen has [[DualWielding two knives]] that she twirls simultaneously after stabbing two men.
61	* Riddick does some fancy knife-twirling in ''Film/TheChroniclesOfRiddick2004''. Possibly a subversion of the usual usage of weapon twirling in fiction. Riddick picks up an unfamiliar knife, and proceeds to perform a complex twirl of the weapon while apparently studying it intently, then comments on what's wrong with the balance. The implication is he twirled it only to do a thorough check of the balance.
62	* ''Film/CrouchingTigerHiddenDragon'', as well as many other {{Wuxia}} films, has a ton of sword spinning for this very effect.
63	* The protagonist of ''Film/LifeGamble'', Yun-Xiang, favours using a curved silver dagger which he frequently twirls to taunt opponents.
64	* In ''Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheFellowshipOfTheRing'', Boromir twirls his sword a few times while waiting for the goblin horde to break into Balin's Tomb in Moria. However, as the Real Life section points out, this is more likely a case of him stretching.
65	* ''Film/MadMaxBeyondThunderdome'': Max sticks a pistol in the face of The Collector, then shotguns off the fancy headdress of a mook who comes at him twirling twin knives. The mook slinks off with a pensive look and TheDragon moves in instead; Collector wisely signals everyone to back off until they can come to a more civilized arrangement.
66	* The infamous scene in ''Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk'' where a swordsman twirls a large scimitar to show off and Indy [[CombatPragmatist just shoots him]].
67	* ''Franchise/StarWars'':
68	** The lightsaber fighting in much of the prequel trilogy involves lots and lots of spinning. At least one portion of Obi-Wan's climactic duel with Anakin in ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'' has both of them standing next to each other, spinning their sabers for a good three seconds before they actually attack again. It should be noted that most lightsaber combat is based on Japanese techniques, where the general better balance of weapons wielded by leaders (and therefore the type of people who were likely to write things down) encouraged a rather circular movement of the blade as being smoother to execute and harder to anticipate.
69	** In ''Film/TheForceAwakens'', a First Order Stormtrooper wields his riot control baton this way.
70	* In one scene of ''Film/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles1990'', the Turtles come across some Foot Clan soldiers. One starts twirling some nunchucks. Michaelangelo then twirls his nunchucks. Then the Foot twirls his more elaborately, and so does Mike. Finally, the Foot does a really elaborate twirl and then looks up in surprise -- to see Mike spinning his nunchucks on top of his finger.
71	* ''Film/{{Tombstone}}'':
72	** The best gunfighter of the villain's gang, Johnny Ringo, decides to show off with some fancy, quick pistol twirling to antagonize Doc Holiday. It goes on for ''quite some time.'' He finishes, then stares at Doc in challenge. Doc then calmly replicates Ringo's entire showoff routine perfectly... with his ''drinking cup'', while making mocking faces at Ringo the whole time, capped with "holstering" the cup when he's done. Ringo is understandably livid at being mocked in public so effectively, and it's fuel to the fire with their [[spoiler:eventual showdown in the climax]].
73	** Later, Doc Holiday points twin pistols at one of his enemies. Mind you, he is utterly shitfaced levels of drunk, and this happens:
74	--->'''Thug:''' The drunk piano player. You're so drunk you're probably seeing double. ''[he pulls his big knife out]''\
75	'''Doc Holiday:''' I have two guns. ''[he twirls the pistols ''in opposite directions simultaneously'' and points them at the thug in perfect sync]'' One for each of ya.
76	[[/folder]]
77
78	[[folder:Literature]]
79	* A certain character in ''Literature/{{Brotherband}}'' is named Jurgen Half-Foot. He tells people that he lost half his foot in a battle, [[ExactWords which is technically true]]... only he was spinning his battleax around his head and [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome he dropped it]].
80	* ''Literature/{{Gate}}'': Rory Mercury has this down to an art form -- with an axe that's taller than she is, and heavy enough to hospitalize humans trying to lift it.
81	[[/folder]]
82
83	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
84	* ''Series/Batwoman2019'': The balisong is the weapon of choice for mad supervillain Alice, who lampshades the advantage of being able to [[EvilIsHammy flip it around in a menacing fashion]] while explaining your EvilPlan.
85	* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'':
86	** Buffy twirls a stake after dusting a particularly troublesome vampire in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS4E1TheFreshman The Freshman]]" and has been seen doing this frequently in other episodes. Spoofed in the promo for the aborted ''Buffy: The Animated Series'', in which Buffy hits herself in the head while twirling her stake.
87	** Dark Willow lifts the training weapons off Buffy's WallOfWeapons using her [[MindOverMatter telekinetic powers]]. Before they fly at our heroes in a FlechetteStorm, one of the axes and some of the knives twirl in mid-air.
88	** In the spin-off series, Series/{{Angel}} often does this when he's using an axe.
89	* ''Series/{{CSINY}}'':
90	** In "[[Recap/CSINYS02E04 Corporate Warriors]]", Mac twirls the katana he's testing while Lindsay observes. He does not do so with the other martial arts weapons he tests just before this, so possibly a case of stretching, as in the Real Life section below.
91	** In "[[Recap/CSINYS06E19 Redemptio]]", Sheldon is caught up in a prison riot. Upon being introduced as a fellow inmate by one of them to a group of others holding the warden hostage, he is handed a billy club and is told to use it on the warden as revenge. He hesitates, then twirls it much the same as a sword fighter would do. Just as he starts to swing it for real, the first inmate stops him and convinces the group that they don't need to harm the warden any further, but to use him as leverage.
92	* ''Series/GameOfThrones'':
93	** Played straight for the usual badass versions, but [[KnightInSourArmor Sandor Clegane]] scoffs at [[TomboyPrincess Arya Stark]]'s twirl-heavy [[SheFu waterdancing]] technique, [[AwesomeButImpractical saying that it's a recipe for getting herself killed]]. He then proceeds to demonstrate how.
94	** Arya also twirls her Valyrian steel dagger whenever she hands it to someone to be admired.
95	** Ser Arthur Dayne, one of the leading members of the former Targaryen Kingsguard, was such a proficient MasterSwordsman that he [[DualWielding dual wielded]] two swords that he often twirled in his hands to scare off opponents.
96	* ''Series/{{Highlander}}'' uses this all the time. Both heroes and villains routinely twirl their swords, apparently to keep the weapon moving and keep the enemy guessing as to whether it's just a twirl or the start of a real attack.
97	* ''Series/HouseOfTheDragon'': Aemond Targaryen twirls his dagger he intended to use to cut an eye of Lucerys (his nephew) before putting it back in its scabbard upon Lord Borros Baratheon's refusal to have the blood of a messenger shed in his throne room.
98	* ''Series/{{Leverage}}'': Elliot twirls every single weapon he manages to get his hands on at least OncePerEpisode.
99	* Whenever there are swords out in ''Series/Merlin2008'', somebody twirls one at least once.
100	* ''Series/XenaWarriorPrincess'': Xena does this frequently, usually when she's backing off from her enemy. The intent seems to be to keep her blade moving and confuse her enemy.
101	[[/folder]]
102
103	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
104	* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'':
105	** The one class in ''D&D'' 3.5 for whom the weapon twirling has an in-game effect is the Warblade. Warblades recover their spent maneuvers by spending a swift action and making an attack or full-attack action -- or, if no opponent is within range, doing a weapon flourish.
106	** Otherwise, it can certainly be used as part of the perform [weapon drill] skill or during an intimidation attempt.
107	[[/folder]]
108
109	[[folder:Video Games]]
110	* ''VideoGame/AuraKingdom'': The Ravager skill "Round and Round" weaponizes the spinning to deal continuous damage to all surrounding targets [[http://24.media.tumblr.com/cf25cc9c1043b8c17c96740935c2da04/tumblr_n66j1dw7Qh1r06ifyo3_1280.jpg in a cyclone]] for three seconds as well as absorbing some of that damage to restore health.
111	* ''VideoGame/BushidoBlade'':
112	** In the first and second games, the character Katze twirls his revolver as a [[VictoryPose victory pose]].
113	** In the second game, Jo twirls her sword, similar to Cloud Strife from VideoGame/FinalFantasy, as her victory pose.
114	* ''VideoGame/ChaosRingsII'' is rather fond of this trope.
115	** Darwin twirls his sword [[UnorthodoxSheathing before he sheathes it]] and before performing his [[spoiler: first]] two [[LimitBreak Awakenings]].
116	** Orlando spins his machete-like [[DualWielding swords]] after attacking.
117	** Marie spins her staff after attacking and as part of her Awakenings.
118	* ''VideoGame/{{Cloudphobia}}'': Players can twirl the Núllpunktur vibroblade indefinitely by holding down the fire button, which can be effective for dealing with weaker enemies.
119	* ''VideoGame/ConquerorsBlade'': When wielding Dual Blades, your hero will finish the standard attack combo with a deft twirl of both knives.
120	* ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsII'': To show off his status as ClimaxBoss and strength, Velstadt the Royal Aegis does it with his giant (as in, bigger than ''you'') two-handed [[MixAndMatchWeapon hammer-slash-magic staff]]. With one hand.
121	* ''VideoGame/{{Destiny}}'': Cayde-6 twirls his pistol literally every time he pulls it out, to the point that it’s like a CharacterTic for him.
122	* ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII'': Mages frequently do this, with their combat having evolved from the simple point-and-click casting of [[VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins the first game]] into a full-body form of Wushu that turns their spears into a veritable font of destruction. Mage Hawke's SignatureMove in cut-scenes is to repeatedly twirl their Staff, whilst [[PlayingWithFire summoning an inferno]] and roasting their enemies alive.
123	* ''VideoGame/DustAnElysianTail'': The Dust Storm technique, when performed on the ground, is a weaponized version of this, causing a ton of weak hits, sucking in nearby items, and [[CombinationAttack powering up Fidget's otherwise incredibly pitiful magic attacks when they get caught in it]].
124	* ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'':
125	** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'': Cloud does this as his victory dance, often with a sword that's as long as he is tall.
126	** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'': Zidane does this when he's equipped with double-edged swords.
127	* ''Franchise/FireEmblem'':
128	** Units in the games will often do this before scoring a CriticalHit.
129	** ''VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening'': Chrom does this after felling an enemy.
130	** ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'': Claude will do this with his arrows in his idle animation if equipped with a bow. Similarly, Edelgard's axe animation has her twirl it behind her after any hit, critical or otherwise.
131	* While running, Jack from ''VideoGame/{{Ghostrunner}}'' will occasionally twirl or spin his sword just to look cool. Heck, there's even a designated button that lets you twirl or juggle your weapon whenever you so desire.
132	* ''VideoGame/GranblueFantasy'': The Berserker class will rapidly spin the currently equipped weapon when preparing a Charge Attack.
133	* ''VideoGame/KidNikiRadicalNinja'': Kid Niki attacks by spinning his sword in front of him.
134	* ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsI'': At the Coliseum, Sora will imitate the victory dances of Cloud and Squall, this is the result.
135	* ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'':
136	** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'': Link twirls the Master Sword before sheathing it after every boss battle. Lampshaded in one fight when he does his victory sheathe, but then notices that the boss is still barely alive; after finishing it off he quickly returns the sword to its scabbard without showing off. [[note]]Humorously enough, said victory sheathe was entirely unnecessary considering the sword hadn't even been used during said fight.[[/note]] Link also twirls his sword while L-Targeting as an IdleAnimation.
137	** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]'': Moblins holding a one-handed melee weapon such a sword will perform occasional flourishes with it when in combat, flicking it into the air and catching it again by the hilt before striking a blow.
138	* ''VideoGame/MetalGear'': Revolver Ocelot twirls his revolvers in impressive ways.
139	* ''VideoGame/MysticWarriors'' has a GiantMook wielding an equally enormous naginata that inexplicably develops a blade at each end when he twirls it.
140	* ''VideoGame/{{Onimusha}}'':
141	** ''VideoGame/Onimusha3DemonSiege'' has Heihachi's SuperMode, where his spear turns red and he slowly walks forward, twirling the blade in ample circles before stopping.
142	** ''VideoGame/OnimushaDawnOfDreams'': The three-combo weapons for Tenkai involves essentially lots and lots of twirling as he walks forward, as well as his special technique "Awakening", where he twirls his weapon around himself while rotating his torso and forming a dome of spinning pain around himself.
143	%%* ''VideoGame/PanelDePon'': This is Seren's pre-attack animation.
144	* ''VideoGame/Persona4'': Yosuke does this while in battle and in the opening animation. It backfires when he nearly drops his dagger in both.
145	* ''Franchise/StarWars'':
146	** The later ''VideoGame/DarkForcesSaga'' games include some twirling of lightsabers. In ''[[VideoGame/JediKnightIIJediOutcast Jedi Outcast]]'', it's mostly just the animations for activating or deactivating a lightsaber while standing still,[[note]]as well as an EasterEgg "taunt" function where your character lifts his current weapon above his hand with the Force, spins it around, then lowers it again; active lightsaber blade passing harmlessly through his head during this optional[[/note]] but ''[[VideoGame/JediKnightJediAcademy Jedi Academy]]'' incorporates a lot of spinning and twirling into the fighting styles for {{dual\|Wielding}} or double-bladed sabers.
147	** ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' has a "Flourish Weapon" ability mapped to a key that can be used to spin blasters, swords, and lightsabers around dangerously. Including the [[DoubleWeapon double-bladed lightsabers]].
148	** In ''VideoGame/StarWarsJediFallenOrder'', pressing left on the D-Pad will activate Cal's lightsaber, but not before the handle does a few twirls in the palm of his hand. In this same fashion, when he exits combat and deactivates his lightsaber, Cal will occasionally twirl the handle rapidly before clipping it to his belt. There's no purpose to this, other than to look like a complete badass.
149	* ''VideoGame/StreetFighterXTekken'': Ibuki does this with her kunai in her generic intro when she is on point after her partner is shown.
150	* ''VideoGame/TalesSeries'':
151	** ''VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss'': [[BlackMagicianGirl Anise Tatlin]] twirls her staff like a baton during spellcasting.
152	** ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'': Yuan twirls his bladed DoubleWeapon above his head when casting spells.
153	** ''VideoGame/TalesOfVesperia'': Yuri weaponizes it with his Shining Fang arte, twirling his weapon to slash the enemy multiple times.
154	* ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'': The Spy and Scout do this a lot with their weapons. The Spy opens and closes his butterfly knife this way (or spins it around his finger if it isn't a butterfly knife), and the Scout flips his [[BatterUp bat]] before grabbing it. He also does this with the Crit-a-Cola and Bonk! Energy Drink (it looks like he's spilling it everywhere, but it works just fine).
155	* ''VideoGame/TrailsSeries'':
156	** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky'': Estelle will twirl her staff as a victory animation and during cutscenes when she wants to show off. At one point in ''FC'', she even manages to deflect a bullet this way.
157	** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel IV'':
158	*** [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsFromZero Elie]] has her twirling her gun before firing her [[LimitBreak S-Craft]].
159	*** Rean also twirls his katana twice before unleashing [[spoiler:his final S-Craft of the Erebonia arc]].
160	[[/folder]]
161
162	[[folder:Webcomics]]
163	* ''Webcomic/SleeplessDomain'': Before her sparring match with Undine, Cassidy shows off a bit by twirling one of her [[ShearMenace scissor blades]] in her hand.
164	[[/folder]]
165
166	[[folder:Western Animation]]
167	* In ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'', Aang is fond of doing this with his glider staff. Since he can use it to create [[BlowYouAway wind attacks]], it's also {{justified\|Trope}}.
168	%%* ''WesternAnimation/CaptainNTheGameMaster'': Kevin frequently does this after firing his Zapper.
169	* ''WesternAnimation/PennZeroPartTimeHero'' invokes this in "Number One, Number Two" when one of the contests requires the competitors to pull this off with [[DualWielding two weapons]] instead of one.
170	* In the fifth season of ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2003'' Mikey gets into a competition with a golem to see who can do this better. The golem wins.
171	-->''[[HypocriticalHumor "Show-off!"]]''
172	%%* ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime'': Dreadwing keeps spamming this move.
173	* ''WesternAnimation/TronUprising'': Beck nearly gives away his secret identity as the Tron impostor to TheDragon by doing this with what appears to be the Grid's equivalent of a Swiss Army Knife.
174	[[/folder]]
175
176	[[folder:Real Life]]
177	* Spinning a weapon between strikes helps maintain the momentum, which is particularly useful with heavier and/or slower-to-use weapons. It means you need to use less energy to launch an attack, the attack reaches the target quicker, and delivers more damage when it hits. The problem lies in gauging when you have time to spin the weapon, or whether you need to not spin in order to parry.
178	* In fencing and sabre, spinning your sword is called a moulinet, and is used to move a parry to a circular cut, although you'll rarely see it used this way in fiction. It is also used to warm up before a match, which may be where creators got the idea.
179	* Spinning your blade is a good stretch for your wrist and reminds you of the heft of your weapon. Also, looks good for the ladies.
180	* A point of contention between various schools of Eskrima (a Filipino martial art). Some advocate twirling as an effective way of increasing a strike's power and getting around an opponent's defenses while others claim that it's needlessly flashy and a good way to lose your grip on your weapon.
181	* In colorguard and winterguard, although not real weapons, will do this with [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6I7I-nYJa_w wooden rifles,]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9c9-dKQeqU blunt sabres,]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kleNKSn9SY oddly shaped airblades,]] the three of are part of weapons (also called spinning, because calling it twirling [[BerserkButton makes them angry]]).
182	* The Rajput weapon known as the Aara (or Urumi), is actually used ''exclusively'' by twirling, as it is basically the lovechild of a sword and giant whip (it is composed of a normal sword hilt and one or more multi-foot blades so flexible that the weapon is worn like a belt when not in use). The user twirls around in circles simply to keep track of the weapons forward momentum and not injure themselves (although this has the additional effect of being a 360 area-attack). Whoever created this weapon actually managed to out-Hollywood Hollywood. Not only does the weapon make a noise like a cross between a whipcrack and two cookie-sheets banging together whenever it strikes something, but watching someone who knows how to use it demonstrate just that is like a cross between watching someone do the same thing with a whip, and ribbon dancing. The result is actually far more awesome and badass-looking than anything Hollywood has ever dreamt up. However, not only was the weapon intended to shock-and-awe and bitch-slap rather than do real damage, but it may be the single hardest weapon to master in pre-gunpowder history. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCQMtsyPuK0 Watch a two-blade version in all its glory here.]]
183	* UsefulNotes/{{Russia}}n UsefulNotes/{{Cossack\|s}} saber-dancing with the ''shaksha'' sword is [[https://youtu.be/bLkjBMPAP2g quite spectacular to watch]], especially when performed with two swords. Even if formal sword-teachers from other traditions sniffily talk about "moulinette" and "windmilling". Ksenia Rogers is a mistress of the art and can be [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=piI692DS7YY seen here.]]
184	[[/folder]]

Context Main / WeaponTwirling