EDC Gunfighter vs. Force on Force: Scenario Training — Which One’s Right for You?

At The Defense Lab, we aim to share knowledge and create better protectors through in-person training. Whether you’re brand new to defensive training or already seasoned, we offer two core seminars that challenge different aspects of the fight.

Each one pushes you in a unique way — and both are built from real-world analysis and pressure-tested experience.

EDC Gunfighter

EDC Gunfighter takes you straight into the fight, where distance is gone, space is limited, and control is everything. This is close-quarters training designed around weapon retention, entangled fighting over weapons, and shooting from contact distances.

These situations start at clinch range, often end up on the ground, and escalate quickly. We’ll break down the critical skills you’ll need — from positional control to weapon access and recovery. Then, we’ll test it all in live resistance-based training at the end of the day.

This course is built around extreme close-quarters encounters, where you’re either fighting to keep your weapon holstered, fighting to draw it, or fighting to stop someone else from doing the same.

What We Cover:

• Fighting to the draw and using your pistol at clinch range

• Fighting from clinch and ground positions with a weapon in play

• Weapon retention in the holster and during the draw in extreme close quarters, using frames, leverage, and movement to regain control under pressure

• Defending, retaining, and regaining control of your weapon.

• Stuffing, stripping, and countering another person’s draw and offense

• Resistance-based rounds are not full-contact fights, but high-effort reps with a training partner who helps sharpen your skills through pressure

• Physical contact to reinforce the realism and application of everything taught

  EDC Gunfighter is built for the moments when drawing a gun is only half the battle — keeping it is the other half.

Force on Force: Scenario Training

Force on Force: Scenario Training steps back from the clinch and drops you into full-scale situational simulations using Simunition pistols and live role players. These scenarios are based on real-world violent encounters caught on video.

Before you're ever put into a scenario, we spend the first part of the day teaching and drilling the exact skills you'll need — from live-fire reps to partnered drills. When it’s time to test them, you’ll be ready.

You’ll face threats at distance, manage unknowns, and navigate complex environments that challenge your awareness and decision-making under pressure.

What You’ll Experience:

• Live-fire drills to sharpen your fundamentals and prepare you for multiple different scenarios

• Partnered drills focusing on movement, protecting others, managing multiple attackers, and reading intent

• Scenario-based training with threats at 1–15 yards requiring real-time use-of-force decisions

• In-depth simulations with 1–4 role players, varied settings, bystanders, instigators, and environmental props — including vehicles

• After-action debriefs to analyze your decisions, refine your judgment, and learn from your performance

• Little to no physical contact — this seminar focuses on your thinking, movement, and reactions under pressure

WHICH ONE SHOULD YOU TAKE?

Both courses serve a purpose — and together, they build a complete fighter.

• EDC Gunfighter is for those who want to own the close-quarters fight when weapons are involved. It’s physical, hands-on, and focused on entangled combat, weapon retention, and surviving when space disappears.

• Force on Force: Scenario Training is for those who want to develop sharp decision-making, situational awareness, and the ability to apply their skills under pressure in more dynamic environments.

If you're serious about preparing for the full spectrum of violence — from clinch range to complex public scenarios — you need both.

Start where your gaps are. Then fill the rest.