Just be aware, that if whack someone with a stick, then YOU have just deployed a weapon that is considered lethal force (whether or not you killed him). Your assailant would be justified in using lethal force back against you (in the eyes of the law, assuming he would claim self defense, which any smart criminal certainly would, true or not).

Situation: He comes up to you and demands your wallet. You respond by whacking him with your stick. He pulls out his gun and shoots you dead. He tells the police that he stopped to ask you the time and you began beating him for no reason, so he responded in self defense. You, of course, can't counter his account of what happened, because you are dead.

Don't think it doesn't or can't happen. Just a month ago my wife and I attended a course taught by a self defense / shooting defense lawyer. Real world legal cases were discussed. We covered all kinds of scenarios like the above example - discussing what would happen if you responded with your fists, a gun, or whatever. And what laws you'd have to watch out for - Murder, Manslaughter, Negligence, Assault (lots of different degress of that), Menacing, Brandishing (actually, there is no law about brandishing here in Colorado, but we discussed it relative to other states), etc.

We also discussed, "What it you are found innocent of <whatever> charge in court later?" Then eventually you will be free. You will have lost a lot of time. And you will have put out about $150,000 for a defense lawyer, court costs, etc. That's for criminal charges, if you were found innocent. A civil suit filed against you would be additional expense. And you'd be surrised to learn how many ways YOU could be considered the criminal when deploying any kind of weapon, be that a gun or a stick.

Bottom line: You better be the victor in a battle, you better call the police to report the incident before your assailant does, and you better keep your mouth shut, ... tightly.

I would recommend at least doing significant research, if not attending a class by a self defense attorney (if you can find one), before thinking "Well, I can just bash him with my stick - no harm in that."