Advance / Retreat

An Advance or Retreat moves you forward or backward with out changing which foot is forward. In an Advance you move the front foot forward, and then the back foot to return to the stance. In a Retreat you move the back foot backward, and then the front foot to return to the stance. Advance and Retreat allow you to take smaller steps forward and backward without changing what foot is forward.

Pass Forward / Pass Backward

Passing Forward, and Passing Backward is when you move forwards or backwards by changing what foot is in front. In a Pass Forward you move the back foot forward, and in a Pass Backward you move the front foot backward. Passing Forward, and Passing Backward allow you to take large steps forward and backward while changing what foot is forward.

Traversing

Let's assume that at the center of the cricle to the right, is your opponent. The outer edge of that circle is the maximum distance his sword can extend without stepping. All traversing is done by moving around this circle, and changing the angle at which you face your opponent so that your center is again aligned to your opponents.

In order to make things simple, we'll assume the circle is a clock face. The lines touch the circle at 12, 1:30, 3:00, 4:30, 6, 7:30, 9:00, 10:30. Your standing left foot forward, feet shoulder width apart, and about shoulder deep, facing your opponent at 6:00. A traverse is going to take you to either 4:30 or 7:30 depending on direction, facing your opponent.

The Pass Traverse changes which foot is forward. Assuming your left foot forward you bring your right foot up to the edge of the circle, and then bring your left foot back. You are still facing your opponent. You're range has not changed, but the angle you are at has.

An Advance Traverse follows the same principles. You are still going to traverse around the circle, but your feet aren't going to pass each other. So, again in the left foot forward stance, you move your left foot around the circle. Then move your right foot into line behind the left foot. Your range does not change, but the angle you are at does. You'll notice that as you advance traverse to your right that you cross your feet. If you've studied any type of unarmed combat, they'll tell you that his bade because it leaves you unstable. They're not wrong, however you have 3 feet of nice sharp pointy steel in your hand to keep your opponent far enough away that the temporary instability can't be taken advantage of.

When doing either the Pass or Advance Traverse, you must be careful not to step to far, as this will unbalance you, and take too much time. Once you commit to a deep step it is almost impossible to safely change it's direction or length if you have to. With an Advance Traverse, the danger is that you cross your legs too deeply, leaving you unbalanced. This means that the length of your legs will determine if you can actually end up at 4:30. If you end up at 5, that's good too. Don't get hung up on moving exactly to the right point on the circle.

A fight is a fluid thing, you will not always step perfectly along the circle to the same exact point. This is ok, expected and normal. Sometimes it may be more important to step deeper into the circle then others. Sometimes it may be more important to move more sideways then forward. Adjust your movement to your situation.