History Main / DaintyCombat

* BladeOnAStick

When Dainty Combat includes weapons, it's usually some form of GunKata, swordplay with flourish, or [[WhipItGood a whip]].

* WhipItGood

* ArmorPiercingSlap

* WaifFu

* MagicIsFeminine

* LittleMissBadass

* KickChick

* GuysSmashGirlsShoot

* GirlyBruiser

* FragileSpeedster

* ActionGirl
** FauxActionGirl

* AgentPeacock

[[caption-width-right:219:Pretty that might be, that kick ''hurt''.]]

* GradualGrinder

* SwashBuckler

You compromise with Dainty Combat. In this trope, a character (usually small and/or female) uses a more graceful, beautiful and possibly gentle fighting style in order to combat her opponents. Attacks typically focus on [[KickChick kicks]], holds, {{Pressure Point}}sb flourishes, joint locks, swift tosses and open-hand strikes (such as palm strikes or slaps) rather than heavy blows, grappling and wrestling. Rather than blocking, defense is focused on dodging, invoking [[SheFu acrobatics, gymnastics]], and possibly [[DanceBattler dance moves]] to avoid taking a direct hit.

'''[[Administrivia/ExampleSectionectomy No Examples, Please. This page just defines the term.]]'''

Not all characters that use Dainty Combat are women and not all are small or frail, but they are by far the most common practitioners. It thus overlaps a lot with WaifFu, although in this case, the woman need not be a "waif" (small or smaller than her opponents). WaifFu is about the contrast between a small woman and her larger opposition; this trope is about the fighting style she uses to beat them.

In most forms of fiction, MenAreStrongWomenArePretty, and this is so woven into the human consciousness that altering those points too much can alienate your target audiences. An overly-aggressive female character can seem less relatable to a feminine audience, although it's hard to have a likable character in an action show that doesn't do any fighting at all. You can hopscotch around this issue with SwordAndSorcerer or GuysSmashGirlsShoot but what do you do when martial arts or physical combat is the entire focus of the series?

You compromise with Dainty Combat. In this trope, a character (usually small and/or female) uses a more graceful, beautiful and possibly gentle fighting style in order to combat her opponents. Attacks typically focus on [[KickChick kicks]], holds, {{Pressure Point}}s flourishes, joint locks, swift tosses and open-hand strikes (such as palm strikes or slaps) rather than heavy blows, grappling and wrestling. Rather than blocking, defense is focused on dodging, invoking [[SheFu acrobatics, gymnastics]], and possibly [[DanceBattler dance moves]] to avoid taking a direct hit.

* LadyOfWar
* LittleGirlsKickShins
* LittleMissBadass

* SheFu

In most forms of fiction, MenAreStrongWomenArePretty, and this is so engendered into the human consciousness that altering those points too much can alienate your target audiences. An overly-aggressive female character can seem less relatable to a feminine audience, although it's hard to have a likable character in an action show that doesn't do any fighting at all. You can hopscotch around this issue with SwordAndSorcerer or GuysSmashGirlsShoot but what do you do when martial arts or physical combat is the entire focus of the series?

'''[[ExampleSectionectomy No Examples, Please. This page just defines the term.]]'''