Familiar with feints, Pytyar moved in feinting counters, feeling out her movements.  He stuck to feinted swings with the top third of the staff in response.  It got to be a pattern.  A few students stood off to the side watching, one or two smiling.  They'd seen it before.  He created a pattern, got the opponent used to it, complacent, then suddenly broke the pattern.  Whcih usually ended up with the student on his or her back on the ground or with a mock sword blade against the throat.<br/><br/>This time, however, his opponent broke the pattern.  Pytyar brought the top end of the staff over in a beat parry, designed to knock the thrust out of line with a swift, sharp, rap.  Given its weight, roughly that of most spears, it was surprisingly fast as a weapon.  Came from being balanced well.