From Caernest

Combat is very much a real life skill that requires practice on the part of the players. While there are skills and abilities that can artificially boost the combat abilities of a player (Body points, armor, or weapon proficiencies) they will never compensate for a lack of skill. There is no way for a player to officially remain out of combat or non-combative during the course of the game. Simply participating in the game places a player at risk of getting caught up in combat and struck by weapons. It is perfectly legal for players to ambush each other without prior warning, strike from behind, and use similar “first strike” tactics. If a player feels in real life danger by participating in combat (medical condition, anxiety, etc.) they need to take steps to protect themselves while playing in the game. Protection might include always traveling with a group, wearing safety gear (kneepads, teeth guards), or simply practicing their powers of observation. Players that have conditions that are easily aggravated by combat activities should never take skills that increase the time they will remain engaged in combat, such as Body points, and players with combat aggravated conditions are encouraged to communicate their concerns with the Game Masters and other players so that they can remain safe and still gain maximum enjoyment out of the game.
Respect all other players. Keep things friendly. After all, it’s a game and we’re all here to have fun.

Contents 1 Combat Referees 2 Legal Hits 2.1 Hit Locations 3 Weapons 3.1 Inspections 3.2 Weapon Classifications 3.2.1 Non Martial 3.2.2 Martial 3.2.3 Great Weapons 3.2.4 Thrown Weapons 3.2.4.1 Javelins 3.2.4.2 Spears 3.2.5 Missile Weapons 3.2.5.1 Arrow Construction 3.3 Weapon Safety 3.4 Blunt Damage 4 Shields 4.1 Construction 4.2 Turtling 5 Taking Damage 5.1 Wounds 5.2 Killing Blows 6 Armour 6.1 Metal Armour 6.2 Leather Armour 6.3 Armour Rating 6.3.1 Helms 6.3.2 One Point Armour 6.3.3 Two Point Armour 6.3.4 Three Point Armour 6.3.5 Four Point Armour 6.3.6 Five Point Armour 6.3.7 Monstrous Armour

Combat Referees

The calls of a Combat & Safety Referee are ALWAYS right. Failure to follow the instructions of a referee will result in immediate expulsion from the event. A Combat & Safety Referee has the right to inspect any weapon (including beanbags), shield, or piece of armor at any time, and remove them from play if they are damaged or otherwise unsafe. A Combat & Safety Referee has the right to remove any player from the game they feel is mentally, emotionally, or physically incapable of playing safely. The player is free to protest their removal AFTER the game or immediate encounter is over, but in most cases the Game Master’s decision is upheld, since safety is paramount over opinion or hurt feelings.

Legal Hits

Hit Locations

Hit locations include Torso, Leg, Arm, Head and Neck, and Hands.

• Torso: Includes shoulders, chest, stomach, sides, back, groin, and buttocks.
  

Aiming for the groin is forbidden, however accidental hits to the groin should be accepted as torso hits.

• Leg: From the foot to the torso (below the buttocks).
• Arm: From wrist to torso or shoulder socket. A hit to the wrist counts as an arm hit.

Hands: Treated as part of the weapon if wielding a weapon (therefore unaffected). When not holding anything they are considered arms and should take hits as such.

• Head and Neck: Off limits/not a legal target

Feigning strikes at the head is not permitted.

A hit from a weapon counts if the striking surface of the weapon strikes the target’s body with noticeable force. A legal strike is any hit that is clearly and distinctly felt on the receiver’s body. Players may call “Light!” or “Too Fast!” to indicate to their attacker that they are not taking damage from the attacker’s hits, either from being hit too lightly or being hit too quickly. (This should not be abused in a manner to avoid taking hits. Not taking damage or effects from good hits is blatantly cheating.)
Players wearing too much gear or armor to feel otherwise-legal hits must learn to spot hits by hearing or sight. Players who demonstrate an inability to do so will be required to remove their armor or gear until they have more practice taking their hits.
Combat is full-speed, but not full-force. Players must not strike any blow that uses their full force. The rule of thumb when striking someone is to strike an opponent with as much force as is needed to make them acknowledge the blow, and never more. Hits from arrows, crossbow bolts, javelins or throwing spears only count if the target is struck with the head of the projectile. Hits from throwing weapons count if the target is struck with any part of the projectile.
A player who has fallen to the ground from a wound should never be hit. If the fallen must be dispatched, only a Killing Blow is required.
Players are required to call out the type and amount of damage they are doing with each hit. In the lack of a damage call, the player taking the hit should simply accept one normal damage – do not ignore the hit. Players may deliberately “down-call” their damage to an amount lower than they normally hit for. Players may down-call their damage types if desired for clarity, or if required as part of a scenario. Players are required to call “No Effect!” when, for any reason, a normally good hit causes no damage. Players taking no damage because the hit struck an illegal location (head, weapon hand, etc.) should also indicate this to their attacker.
The Heroic Safety Rule: it is not required that a player count self-inflicted damage such as dropping weapons on their feet, smacking their own leg with a weapon due to a very bad swing, and so on. Heroic Safety does not protect against “friendly fire”.

Weapons

Inspections

All weapons are subject to inspection and/or rejection at any time and for any reason by Combat & Safety Referees. Rejected weapons found in play may be summarily destroyed. All striking surfaces should have a minimum of 5/8 inch of closed-cell foam. All non-handle surfaces of a weapon should have a minimum of 3/8 inch of closed-cell foam. All pommels must be composed of a flexible material. All crossguards, quillions, basket hilts, or other hilt fittings (not to include the grip itself) must be composed of a flexible material. All melee weapons must have a rigid core. Weapons that flex more than 45 degrees will be rejected. Cores of wood or metal are forbidden. Acceptable core materials include but are not limited to: plastic, PVC, fiberglass, and carbon fiber. The minimum length for any melee weapon is 16 inches. No swung weapon may have more than 1/3 of its length unpadded for striking. No swung weapon may have more than 30 unpadded inches.
Illegal weapons include, but are not limited to: flails, punch daggers, slings, ball and chain weapons, and blowguns. Any weapon with a flexible component is forbidden. Any weapon which strikes primarily with a punching motion of the arm rather than a swinging motion is forbidden (katar, tonfa). Any weapon designed primarily to entangle rather than damage (whips, nets, bolas) is forbidden.
Non-handle pommels shall not count towards the overall length measurement of a weapon. The core of the weapons should be securely held within the padding by glue, tape, or some other adhesive. Weapons with padding that slides or twists on the core will be rejected. Weapons with cores that rattle or bounce within the padding will be rejected.

Weapon Classifications

Non Martial

Non-Martial Weapons are weapons that are 30 inches or less in length. Non-Martial Weapons may be used in one hand or two.

Martial

Martial Weapons are longer than 30 inches but not more than 42 inches long. Martial Weapons may be used in one hand or two.

Great Weapons

Great Weapons are longer than 42 inches. Great Weapons must be used with two hands. Great Weapons may be used with a passive Buckler. Great Weapons may deliver strikes with one hand, but only if the strike is delivered as a straight thrust that is immediately withdrawn back to both hands. Great Weapons may be used to block with one hand.

Thrown Weapons

Thrown Weapons are weapons designed to be thrown. Thrown weapons must be completely padded, including the hilt and grip. Thrown weapons must weigh no more than 6 ounces. Thrown weapons must be at least 6 inches in one dimension, and no longer than 30 inches. Thrown weapons must look like weapons, either knives, axes, or some other historical or fantasy weapon. No throwing “rocks”, “disks” or “paddles” are allowed. Thrown weapons may have a core. The core of a throwing weapon should never come within an inch of a tip or end of the weapon. Cored throwing weapons may also be used in melee. Coreless throwing weapons may not be used in melee.

Javelins

Throwing Weapon Masters with Melee Training can also throw javelins, which are between 30 inches and 42 inches long, and can be used as Martial melee weapons. Javelins may weigh no more than 12 ounces. Both ends of a javelin must be at least 2 inches in diameter. Players are encouraged to incorporate some open-cell foam into the ends of their javelin designs.

Spears

Throwing Weapon Masters with Great Weapon Training may use throwing spears, which are over 42 inches long but less than 84 inches long, and may be used as a Great Weapon in melee. Throwing spears may be thrown for a character's normal melee damage total. Throwing spears may weigh no more than 24 ounces. Both ends of a throwing spear must be at least 2 inches in diameter. Players are encouraged to incorporate some open-cell foam into the ends of their throwing spear designs.
Thrown weapons, javelins and throwing spears may be blocked or deflected by shields or weapons. Thrown weapon users (not javelins or throwing spears) may call their hits on others for clarity. Players that abuse this rule will not be allowed to use throwing weapons.
You may not ever carry another player's thrown weapons around without their express permission. You may return fire with thrown weapons that have been thrown at you, but if you leave the immediate area where the weapons were thrown, you may not take any weapons other than your own with you.

Missile Weapons

Missile weapons include bows and crossbows. All bows must have a draw weight of 35 pounds or less at 28 inches draw. Compound bows, takedown bows, brightly colored fiberglass bows, modern crossbows, or any other obviously modern archery equipment (peep sights, weights, camouflage or brightly colored shafting, etc.) are prohibited. Brightly colored and/or rubber fletching is allowed. Brightly colored plastic nocks will not disqualify arrows.
Archers shall half-draw their shots when the range is less than 10 feet. Crossbows may not fire at targets within 10 feet unless their draw is tested at 15 pounds or less. Arrows must always be fired from a bow, they may never be used as melee or thrown weapons.
If an arrow strikes a weapon, the arrow shall be called as if the weapon was not there and the arrow continued through unimpeded. Only shields can block arrows. A player who intentionally blocks or deflects an arrow with a weapon, hand, head or foot takes that hit directly to the Torso, ignoring armor and magical protections (but not Body points).
If an arrow strikes a Wounded limb, the hit goes to the Torso instead. Once an arrow has hit any object (changed its path) it is harmless. An arrow cannot strike multiple targets.
You may not ever carry another player's arrows around without their express permission. You may return fire with arrows that have been shot at you, but if you leave the immediate area where the arrows were fired, you may not take any arrows other than your own with you. Any player entering play with a bow must also enter play with at least three legal, usable arrows.
Bows may not be used to block or parry strikes or thrusts. A bow that is struck in melee combat is destroyed. This damage can be repaired at any time by targeting the bow with a Mend Armor spell. The bow cannot be held or used while damage is repaired. It should be laid flat on the ground or leaned against an inanimate object such as a tree or building. Hits to a destroyed bow that is not dropped go directly to the Torso, ignoring armor and magical protections (but not Body points).
Archers may call their hits on others for clarity. Players that abuse this rule will not be allowed to use missile weapons.

Arrow Construction

Arrows and Bolts are the ammunition for Bows and Crossbows A draw stop shall be present on all arrows to ensure they are not drawn past 28 inches. The head of an arrow shall not be smaller in any dimension than 2 inches. The heads of all arrows shall be of a uniform, round shape. All arrows shall contain a coin or other small rigid disk perpendicular to the end of the shaft to prevent shaft punch-through. Commercially-made rubber bird blunts also fulfill this requirement. Golf tube arrows are not permitted. All arrows and bolts must have at least two full fletchings and a nock. The head of an arrow or bolt must not be wobbly or move from side to side.

Weapon Safety

At no time should a player carry real weapons of any sort. This includes walking sticks, canes, and torches. Players who need mobility assisting devices like canes should consult a Combat & Safety Referee on what to do during play. Physical contact between players should never take place. All combat at Kingdoms of Novitas is carried out with foam weapons. A player is not permitted to move toward another player in such a manner that the second player must move to avoid physical contact. Players may not grapple, wrestle, or otherwise entrap limbs or impair movement during combat.
It is acceptable to use an axe, halberd, or other weapon to pull a shield or limb. It is acceptable to grasp another player’s weapon, provided you do not do so by a striking surface. Grasping another player’s weapon by a striking surface will result in damage.

Blunt Damage

Players are allowed to inflict non-lethal damage, called Blunt damage. Blunt damage can only be inflicted with melee weapons. Spells, missile weapons (including thrown weapons), and thrown poisons are incapable of inflicting blunt damage. The damage call for Blunt damage is “Blunt!” Blunt damage affects a target’s defenses in the same manner as normal damage so it is still required to beat through a target’s armor and so forth. All Body points and Wounds lost to Blunt damage recover after ten minutes if not healed normally. Armor and/or magical defenses destroyed or expended by blunt damage does not recover and must be repaired through normal means.

Shields

Shields are defined as any rigid defensive item held in the hand or on the arm, padded on all edges to prevent damage to weapons and minimize accidental damage to players. Any rule or reference applying to shields also applies to bucklers, unless specifically superseded or overridden here. All shields shall have a distinct, rigid core, including but not limited to steel, aluminum, plywood or rigid plastics. All plastic, foam or other modern materials shall be covered with paint, cloth or leather. Exposed aluminum, titanium, galvanized steel, or other modern metals are acceptable. Shields that exhibit more than minor (approximately 10 degrees of) flex shall be disallowed. Shields shall have no exposed non-rounded metal hardware, such as bolts or screws. Minimum padding on all edges of a shield shall be five-eighths inch of closed-cell foam. If the shield edge is covered by rubber, vinyl, or similar flexible tubing or hose underneath the padding, the minimum padding may be three-eighths inch of closed cell foam.
Any shield is destroyed after taking 4 points of Acid damage. This damage is cumulative over the course of an event, but resets between events. This damage can be repaired at any time by targeting the shield with a Mend Armor spell. The shield cannot be held or used while damage is repaired. It should be laid flat on the ground or leaned against an inanimate object such as a tree or building. Destroyed shields should be dropped. Hits to a destroyed shield that is not dropped go directly to the Torso, ignoring armor and magical protections (but not Body points).

Construction

The size of a rectangular shield shall be determined by measuring the height and width, and multiplying. All shields that are not round are rectangular. No allowance shall be made for irregularities, cut-outs, or curves. A rectangular shield may not exceed 40 inches in any one dimension. A rectangular shield may not exceed 720 square inches in surface area. A round shield may not exceed a 32 inch diameter. A rectangular buckler may not exceed 24 inches in any one dimension. A rectangular buckler may not exceed 324 square inches in surface area. A round buckler may not exceed a 24 inch diameter. The minimum dimension in any direction for any shield is twelve inches. Curved shields shall be measured across the face of the shield (across the arc, not the chord). Passive shields are not allowed. Passive shields are shields that are not held in a player’s hand. Bucklers are specifically excepted from this rule, and may be strapped to a player’s arm to leave the hand free. A player may only use one shield at a time.

Turtling

Turtling is when a player with a shield exposes only their head, and no legal target areas in their front 90 degree arc. Turtling is not permitted. If a Combat & Safety Referee determines you are turtling, either due to deliberate crouching or simply small body size, you will be required to discard your shield until you can procure a smaller shield less likely to cause you to fight illegally. Shields are solely defensive items. No shield rushing or checking is allowed. At no time should your shield come into contact with anything except the weapons of another player.

Taking Damage

Players remove defenses in the following order: magical defenses, magical armor, physical armor, damage requirement, Body points, Wounds. The call “Pierce” ignores magical and physical armor. Magical armor covers the entire body with no gaps in coverage. Physical armor only protects the areas it actually covers. An area that has at least 75% coverage is considered to be completely covered. The physical armor granted by a helmet is always deducted first. Loss of armor is not locational. If, for example, the armor on your leg is destroyed, all your armor is destroyed. Physical armor automatically recovers between events.
Body points are not locational. If, for example, you lose a Body point from being struck on the arm, that Body point is also gone from all other areas. Body Points and limb wounds recover automatically between events. When a player has no further Body points, subsequent hits will cause a Wound on the location struck. If a hit inflicts so much damage that it reduces a character's Body points to a negative value in a single shot, a wound is automatically caused in the area struck.

Wounds

Wounds to a limb render the limb useless. Anything carried in the hand of a Wounded arm must be dropped. A Wounded leg must be dragged and cannot bear any weight. Hopping on one leg is not permitted. A player with two Wounded legs must remain on his knees and is immobile, but may turn to face any direction. Wounds to the torso render the character in a helpless state of near unconsciousness and a great deal of pain. Characters with torso Wounds must fall to the ground. They may not move, can take no actions, and cannot use any non-automatic skills. Characters with torso Wounds are allowed to feebly cry out for help in a last desperate attempt to save their life, and may speak, albeit haltingly, to other players. Characters that receive a torso Wound have ten minutes to get healing or they will die. Torso Wounds do not heal between events.

Killing Blows

Killing blows are used to dispatch characters that are incapacitated or near death, representing a throat slit or some similar instantly lethal coup de gras. Once the attacker announces a killing blow, the victim instantly dies regardless of Body points or Wound status. A player may killing blow a character that is suffering from a torso Wound, bound, faking death, or unconscious. It is impossible to killing blow a character under the influence of Charm, Pin, Fear, or Stun. A killing blow ignores all forms of protection the character may have, including magical and physical armor. To deliver one, the attacker must place a weapon on the victim's chest and loudly announce “KILLING BLOW!” Players will sometimes simply act out a Killing Blow. The absence of a call of “Killing Blow!” shall not invalidate an obvious, theatrical coup de gras. This practice is encouraged.
A weapon is required to deliver a killing blow, so an unarmed character is incapable of giving a killing blow. Tag bags can be used to deliver a killing blow. Only the torso is a legal spot for a killing blow; it is impossible to deliver one through a character’s limb. Creatures with Damage Requirements require a weapon that would normally affect them to give the killing blow.

Armour

Armor must never impede the normal movement of a player’s body in a fashion that endangers the wearer or prevents the player from following the rules of the game, e.g. If a player is wearing armor that prevents them from kneeling, they are unable to properly accept leg wounds. Armor must be attached or fitted on the body with proper integral closures such as buckles, laces, or snaps. Players are not allowed to attach armor to their body with tape, string, or similar temporary means. Armors constructed in a markedly ineffective manner, that would provide little actual protection, or damaged armors, may have their value downgraded. Wearing armor does not count as a costume and players are required to wear a proper costume under their armor at all times. This includes racial make-up, EVEN if the player is wearing a full-face helmet.
Players wearing plate armor are required to wear a padded gambeson or arming jack underneath the armor. Armor that consistently causes unreasonable damage to weapons will be removed from play. Armor made of non-period materials (plastics, kydex, nylon, etc.) is not allowed. Non-period metals or alloys, such as aluminum, titanium, galvanized steel, stainless steel, nickel-plated steel, or anodized aluminum are allowed.

Metal Armour

Metal armor plates are of at least .051 inch thickness. All edges of metal plates should be safely blunted or rolled. Chain mail rings should be of no greater than one-half inch inside diameter. Metal scales must be of at least .040 inch thickness. Metal scales must overlap to provide armor value. Metal brigandine is armor constructed of non-overlapping metal plates on a backing material. Brigandine plates must be within one-half inch of each other. Brigandine plates must have multiple points of attachment to the backing or to each other, or be held in individual pockets. Non-leather backing materials generally reduce the armor value of brigandine armor. The plates may be inside or outside the backing material.

Leather Armour

Leather armor must be constructed of real leather of any thickness (unless otherwise specified). No pleather, vinyl, or other synthetic leathers are acceptable. Studded leathers may be studded with metal spots, rings, washers or rivets. No bottle caps, brads or plastic may be used. Studded leather should have no more than 1 inch of un-studded leather on any part of it. The simple test used for this will be to try and place a US quarter dollar coin between studs. It should fit with a small bit of wiggle room, but no more. Leather scales must overlap to provide armor value.
Light leather is leather of at least 6 ounce weight (3/32 inch). Heavy leather is leather of at least 12 ounce weight (3/16 inch). Leather is a natural material with natural variations that may result in irregular measurements. Players are free to request an average of multiple (up to five) measurements when their armor is measured for its armor point value.
Leather brigandine is armor constructed of non-overlapping leather plates on a backing material. Brigandine plates must be within one-half inch of each other. Brigandine plates must have multiple points of attachment to the backing or to each other, or be held in individual pockets. Non-leather backing materials do not contribute to the armor value of brigandine armor. Brigandine plates must equal or exceed the value of the backing leather to be counted as armor. The plates may be inside or outside the backing material.

Armour Rating

Armor counts for between 1 and 4 points of protection. Only areas that are actually covered by armor gain the protection from it.
Combining or layering armor does not give a player more than one armor point value, nor does it increase the value of the armor on a location. The character still has a single, main armor value that is based on the best armor they are wearing on their torso. To wear other armor, such as legs and arms, and have it count as coverage, that armor must be no more than one point lower than the player’s torso armor value. Limb armor may be of a higher point value than the torso armor. In this case, the limb armor uses the lower armor point value of the torso armor. Players may count their torso armor as lower than its listed value to get limb armor to count. This rule also applies to helmets.

Helms

Helms grant 1 point of universal armor. Universal armor covers all hit locations.
Helmets are helms that cover at least the entire crown of the head, but have minimal or no neck and face coverage. Helmets must be constructed primarily of metal.
Helms are light helmets that also cover the face and neck. Heavy helmets must be constructed of at least light leather.

One Point Armour

The following offer One point of armor:

• Full Costume
• Studded Leather
• Light Leather
• Furs
• Helm/Helmet Only
• Brigandine (Light Leather backing with Light plates)

Full Costume: A player dressed in a full, appropriate fantasy or historical costume, free of anachronisms, from head to toe, is granted one point of complete armor coverage. This allowance may not be combined with a helmet or other armor. Players who wish to claim this point of armor must present themselves in full garb to Logistics to be inspected.

Furs: Real animal hides with the fur on, unless the leather is thick enough to qualify as a higher value by itself.

Two Point Armour

The following offer Two points of armor:

• Studded Light Leather
• Heavy Leather
• Scale Armor / Lamellar (Overlapping light leather pieces)
• Any 1 Point Armor with a Helm/Helmet
• Brigandine (Leather or light leather backing with heavy leather plates)

Three Point Armour

The following offer Three points of armor:

• Studded Heavy Leather
• Scale Armor / Lamellar (Overlapping heavy leather pieces)
• Any 2 Point Armor with a Helm/Helmet
• Chain Armor (Interlocking butted or riveted metal wire)
• Metal Scale or Lamellar Armor
• Brigandine (Heavy Leather backing with heavy leather plates)
• Brigandine (Any backing with metal plates)
• Half-Plate (Metal armor, no articulated joints, up to 25% chain/leather)

Half-plate is metal plate armor that does not incorporate any articulated joints and/or has up to 25% exposed leather or chain.

Lorica Segmentata is half-plate armor.

A 2-piece back-and-breast is half-plate armor.

Half-plate armor counts as Monstrous.

Four Point Armour

The following offer Four points of armor:

• Any 3 Point Armor with a Helm/Helmet
• Articulated Plate Armor (See below)

Articulated plate armor: Plate armor with flexible joints that can bend and move with the movements of the player while still providing complete coverage.

Articulated armor must be a complete harness, e.g. articulated arms would contain a full vambrace, articulated elbow, rerebrace, and pauldrons.

Wearing incomplete articulated plate, e.g. wearing a back-and-breast without fauld, tassets and gorget, makes it half plate armor.

Articulated plate armor is Monstrous.

Five Point Armour

The following offer Five points of armor:

• Any four point armor with a Helm/Helmet

Monstrous Armour

Monstrous armor takes only one damage from sources without the Slay ability. The Monstrous ability is only granted to areas covered with 3 point or 4 point armors, not to areas covered by lesser armors being counted as a greater points value to match torso armor. In order for any limb armor worn to be counted as Monstrous, Monstrous torso armor must also be worn.