Systematically Attacking From Half Guard by Gordon Ryan No-Gi Course

By BJJ University Editorial · Published 2026-11-02

8 listed volumes

Our buying assessment

Best for: No-gi half guard players who want attacks into legs, back takes, and sweeps.
Buy less if: You want gi grips or a narrow fundamentals-only half guard primer.
Main tradeoff: Broad decision tree; useful scope, but a heavier study load.

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Based on the seller’s curriculum and cited product sources, checked 2026-10-26. This is a researched guide, not a firsthand review. Study recommendations are our editorial assessment.

In this guide

What it teaches

This course teaches no-gi half guard as an attacking system built around sweeps, back takes, leg-lock entries, grip fighting, and transitions between common half guard configurations. The supplied curriculum specifically names butterfly half, knee shield, lower leg shift, deep half, scorpion, scoop grips, irimi ashi, cross ashi, X guard entries, kimuras, triangles, Hiza Gatame, and rolling commentary.

Our assessment is that the course is best read as a connected decision tree rather than a single move library: many lesson titles are framed around failed attacks, opponent reactions, and positional dilemmas, such as failed arm drags, whizzers, backsteps, knee slips, and back-take-versus-sweep choices.

Curriculum overview

Inside position and framing

Covers the early positional battles: inside position, denying head control, framing, centerline shift, and converting a cross shoulder post into an underhook.

Study this if: Stops half guard from collapsing before attacks begin.

Butterfly half entries and dilemmas

Builds from butterfly half into sumi gaeshi, scoop-grip X guard entries, pinch headlock, arm drag, knee lever, leg entries, and kimura follow-ups.

Study this if: Creates offense when seated or half-butterfly rather than just holding half guard.

Leg-entry pathways

Shows near-leg and far-leg irimi ashi, cross ashi, outside ashi, scoop-grip spins, and transitions to chase legs after missed back or upper-body attacks.

Study this if: Connects half guard offense to leg entanglements when sweeps or back takes stall.

Knee shield and lower leg shift

Focuses on lower leg shift transitions, sweeps, coming up, whizzer counters, back-take reactions, Hiza Gatame, and recovering high knee shield when compressed.

Study this if: Gives structure when knee shield turns into underhook, whizzer, or pressure battles.

Deep half reactions

Uses deep half when opponents post knees, backstep, step over the head, or expose leg and back routes; includes entries from outside foot position.

Study this if: Adds bottom-half options when standard knee shield or butterfly half lines are blocked.

Scorpion and waiter-style dilemmas

Covers scorpion heists, passing the leg across, scoop-grip backward sweeps, overwrap forward sweeps, knee-slip counters, waiter dilemmas, and back-take/sweep choices.

Study this if: Develops a secondary half guard hub for opponents who expose leg-position dilemmas.

Live rolling and commentary

Includes half guard rolling rounds and separate commentary segments intended to show the system in live motion and explain decisions afterward.

Study this if: Helps students connect static lessons to timing, reactions, and decision-making.

Who it is for

This course is for grapplers who already play or want to build a no-gi half guard that can attack in multiple directions: sweep, submit, enter the legs, take the back, or recover into another half guard configuration.

It may also suit students who like studying live application, because the course lists dedicated half guard rolling rounds and separate rolling commentary volumes where the instructor breaks down the action.

Prerequisites

The product page says the material is presented for “all levels,” but the curriculum assumes comfort with no-gi positional terms and leg-entry language: underhooks, cross shoulder posts, pinch headlocks, shoulder crunches, irimi ashi, cross ashi, outside ashi, X guard, kimuras, and Hiza Gatame.

If those positions are unfamiliar, our suggested prerequisite is to first learn basic half guard retention, framing, underhook mechanics, and safe leg-lock terminology before trying to connect the more advanced leg-entry and dilemma sequences.

Format and gi/no-gi notes

The supplied product text identifies the course as no-gi half guard instruction and lists eight volumes. It also lists streaming or downloading through the BJJ Fanatics app, but the verified format field supplied to us is marked unverified, so platform details should be checked on the seller page before purchase.

Because the curriculum emphasizes underhooks, posts, headlocks, shoulder crunches, scoop grips, and leg entries rather than sleeve or lapel grips, consider it specifically for no-gi application rather than gi grip development.

Strengths

A major strength is breadth within one position: the course covers butterfly half, knee shield, lower leg shift, deep half, scorpion, arm drags, kimuras, triangles, back takes, sweeps, and multiple leg-entry paths from half guard.

Another strength is reaction coverage. The lesson list repeatedly addresses what happens when an opponent stalls, hip-switches, whizzers, backsteps, wins knee position, crushes the knees, slips a knee, or steps over the head.

For analytical learners, the live rolling and commentary may be especially useful because the product describes rolling from half guard followed by real-time explanation of the system in motion.

Limitations

The curriculum is not a narrow beginner-only half guard primer. It includes a large number of branches into leg entanglements, back takes, scorpion, lower leg shift, deep half, kimura reactions, and rolling commentary, which can make the study load substantial.

Grapplers looking for gi-specific collar, sleeve, lapel, or pants-grip half guard should buy less confidently; the supplied text repeatedly frames the course as no-gi and emphasizes no-gi pummeling and grip structures.

The supplied source includes chapter start times, but those start times do not establish a verified total runtime for the course; buyers who need a precise duration should confirm it on the seller page.

Suggested study order

Our suggested order is to begin with the first-volume positional concepts—inside position, denying head control, framing, centerline shift, and moving from cross shoulder post to underhook—before drilling any finishing sequences.

Next, consider building one attacking hub at a time. Start with butterfly half attacks such as sumi gaeshi, scoop-grip entries, pinch headlock, arm drag, knee lever, and kimura, then move to knee shield and lower leg shift reactions.

After that, add deep half and scorpion as secondary routes for specific opponent reactions, then use the rolling commentary to test whether you recognize the same dilemmas under live resistance.

Alternatives to compare

Brian Glick’s Simplify The System: Half Guard Mastery is the closest alternative if you want a half guard course framed around foundational concepts, essential skills, pin-escape entries, tight-waist trilemma, knee lever, side-by-side underhook-versus-whizzer work, and troubleshooting smashed positions.

Compared with Glick, Gordon Ryan’s course appears more focused on a broad no-gi attacking web that repeatedly links half guard to leg entries, back takes, scorpion, deep half, and rolling commentary. Consider Glick if you want simplification and troubleshooting emphasis; consider Gordon’s course if you want the larger attacking decision tree.

Giancarlo Bodoni’s Forging The Guard: Mastering The Foundations of Half Guard is another alternative for learners prioritizing half guard criteria, frames, grip fighting, flattening recovery, knee shield, half butterfly, underhook attacks, and a shorter deep half section.

Compared with Bodoni, Gordon’s course lists more dedicated scorpion content and live rolling commentary, while Bodoni’s excerpt foregrounds foundations such as criteria, frames, grip fighting, recovery when flattened, and underhook structure. Choose based on whether you need foundational consolidation or a broader attacking expansion.

Purchase guidance

Consider purchasing if your main training problem is building a no-gi half guard that does more than hold position: the course repeatedly connects half guard to sweeps, leg entries, back takes, kimuras, triangles, and reguard options.

Buy less urgently if you only need a small set of basic half guard escapes or gi-specific grips; this course is presented as an extensive no-gi attacking system with many branches rather than a narrow fundamentals-only module.

Bundle or individual course note

This is supplied as an individual course, not a bundle: no component courses were provided in the brief. The decision is therefore whether this single half guard course fits your needs, not whether to buy separate bundle components.

If you only want one sub-area—such as scorpion, deep half, or knee shield—consider whether the broader course scope is useful to you, because the listed curriculum spreads attention across several half guard families and reaction chains.