"That's what I mean by 'on the receiving end,'" he says. In the meantime, her effort towards a back thrust is extremely well-telegraphed - though, it does mean he has to let go of the stick to step out of the way. "Dodging tails, yes - utilizing them to ward off attacks, less so."

He supposes he does that now, on an instinctive level, but it seems an impossibly far cry from traditional dragooning.

"Generally, tails were frowned upon."