Missile Combat Rules

[Jonno]

I was wandering if a javelin made with a bamboo stake, foam (from an old foam mattress) rapped inside a piece of material and secured with tape would be aloud on the field in light missile combat.
The bamboo stake would be in the middle of the foam.

Cheers Jonno

[NigelT]

Hi Jonno,

Purely from what you've told me I would say yes that is fine. However we'll have to take a final look at weapons check anyway. Javelins are a bit more forgiving than arrows because they have inherently less power and therefore are not subject to the same rigourous requirements as arrows.

With javelins what we're looking for is that they are not too heavy and they have enough padding on the end to prevent punch-through and make them safe. They don't have to be wrapped and there is no set length as long as they're not longer than 1.6m.

If you're in any doubt, post a photo, but you're probably on the money I would say.

Nigel

[Inigo]

Stuart, this reply is a bit late because I haven't been around here for a while. I think you've missed the fundamental point of what SCA combat is about.

Combat done by most reenactors looks nice but it's difficult for the reenactors to be as competitive or aggressive as SCA combat because the primary focus is on not hurting anyone. Rather than wrapping everyone in cotton wool like the SCA does, compromises are made to the techniques you can use so that equipment looks appropriate and people aren't hurt. Generally, if a compromise has to be made, reenactors will tend to try and get their kit looking correct and restrict technique rather than the other way around.

On the other hand, if you look at SCA combat, the focus is on feeling like you are actually fighting, with the main restrictions on technique being decided by people many years ago, based on what techniques were "chivalrous"*. The primary focus when you're fighting is using your very ugly rattan stick like it's actually a weapon. Sure, we have more restrictions than some of the WMA would like, but it works for mass combat where you may have a huge disparity in size and skill.

So, given the choice between:

A) wearing pretty helmets and using pretty weapons and not being able to smash each other in the head
-- or --
B) wearing ugly helmets and using ugly weapons and being able to smash each other in the head

NAAMA chose A and the SCA chose B.

The SCA in Australia and New Zealand use the rules (that were copied from a steel weapon group) because they "feel like fighting". Sure, you have to wear ugly mesh, but we already have ugly helmets, so that's not important.

It's similar to the choice we made above, except you can:

A) wear pretty helmets and only allow lofted volley fire which looks good but is ineffective
-- or --
B) wear ugly helmets and allow archers to treat their bow as a weapon, not just a way to entertain an audience

Again, the SCA picked B. (NAAMA is currently looking at doing A and B)

I really enjoy combat archery in the SCA. It's nice to storm a fort and have arrows disintegrating on the front of the shield wall and seeing the guys beside you die from an arrow in the throat shot by a guy less than 10m away. It FEELS like war even if it the helmets look ugly. Arched volley fire is fun - I'm not knocking it. But direct fire where the archers are sniping the helmets of the pikemen behind the shield wall is MORE fun. Sprinting at archers who are trying to kill you with direct fire is also lots of fun, for both people.

The NAAMA camp is more about entertaining the participants than trying to reenact a specific battle, entertain an audience or make a movie. The new archery rules allow for two grades of archers; the first is probably more like what you are used to and the second is more like what I'm used to.

One other point I'll mention, while I'm on my soap box; I'm glad that the NAAMA rules are compatible with the SCA rules because of a very good reason. The pool of potential combat archers in New Zealand is small. It would be the height of stupidity to create a new system that was substantially different one that already works. As these rules stand, any SCA combat archer in New Zealand could walk out onto the NAAMA battlefield and participate. More than half the SCA fighters in New Zealand are able to fight as archers and this is likely to be a larger pool of ready to fight archers than any other group can muster. Many of this pool of people can't currently fight at NAAMA because they don't train with steel weapons. Offering them a familiar option is good!

* it's bollocks of course as we all know the chivalry were as happy as the next man to wrestle a man to the ground and stick a poinard in his armpit.

[Stuart]

As my old martial arts instructor used to say: No art is better than any other, they are only different..

BTW, Linseed oil on the arrows, and they don`t break. I am taking the bow and flus down to Five Oaks this weekend. I am encouraging everyone to have a shoot.

[NigelT]

[stephan]

hey nigel
i have just been given a bow
i am all for authenticty and all but this bow is is made of plastic and bright red it looks like a bow should but is not made of the right stuff it was a present to me and i intend to use it before i replace it with a wood one, its ok if i am not allowed on the feild with it due to it being red and plastic

i would never take it on a public event but between us at a private one would this be allowed as i relly want to shoot at people but cant afford a new one in time
from five feet away it looks like a painted wood one
i will not take it personnaly if the answer is no
regards stephan

[Stuart]

Sound like a fibreglass bow. You might want to take some thin leather, soak it, and stitch it around the bow. At least that disguises the 20 century materials. Hope that is helpful.

[NigelT]

[Grayson]

Neon zebra stripes hmmm.... wonder if I'd be allowed to paint our new bows....Probably not.

[stephan]

awesome will see about covering it up


wow its really begining to ail right now the ground is turning white

[Víkarr]

[Black Jack]

Hi Nigel . I'm on the periphery of the reinactment scene, having being introduced to it by the Dark Company here in Orcland, my area of experience being field archery. May I make a suggestion to the bow draw weight rule? As you know, not everyone has a 28" draw. Although all mass production bows are classified in this way, a custom bow will be built to pull a specified weight at a specified draw length. For instance, my usual, comfortable draw length is 24 1/2 inches.( not only because I'm vertically challenged, but because of the style I've adopted).
If I was to draw a 30# bow to this length, I'd be lucky to be drawing 20# (depending on the type and efficiency of the bow ). I would therefore be seriously diadvantaged , especially shooting slow. heavy blunt tipped flu-flu arrows.
An alternative rule would be that the bow must pull no more than 30# at the archer's draw length. This could be easily checked using a spring scale and a marked arrow, and you're going to have to check everyone's bows anyway, as not all bows will come with the poundage scribed on them. What do you think?

[Black Jack]

Hi Nigel . I'm on the periphery of the reinactment scene, having being introduced to it by the Dark Company here in Orcland, my area of experience being field archery. May I make a suggestion to the bow draw weight rule? As you know, not everyone has a 28" draw. Although all mass production bows are classified in this way, a custom bow will be built to pull a specified weight at a specified draw length. For instance, my usual, comfortable draw length is 24 1/2 inches.( not only because I'm vertically challenged, but because of the style I've adopted).
If I was to draw a 30# bow to this length, I'd be lucky to be drawing 20# (depending on the type and efficiency of the bow ). I would therefore be seriously diadvantaged , especially shooting slow. heavy blunt tipped flu-flu arrows.
An alternative rule would be that the bow must pull no more than 30# at the archer's draw length. This could be easily checked using a spring scale and a marked arrow, and you're going to have to check everyone's bows anyway, as not all bows will come with the poundage scribed on them. What do you think?

[Chevalier]

[Inigo]