Här är ett utkast till reglerna för tävlingarna:
1.At the start of the bout, the referee will call the fighters into the ring and announce their names/colours to the scorer and judges (and audience if present).
2.The time keeper and scorer will each signal that they are ready to begin
3.The referee will check that all judges are ready
4.The referee will check that both fighters are ready
5.The referee will call ?fight?.
6.A bout will consist of 10 exchanges or 2.5mins fighting, whichever happens first.
7.An exchange is a period of fighting that starts with the fighters out of measure and ends when the referee calls ?exchange?. ?Exchange? will be called when
(a)After a hit has been indicated by a judge and both fighters move apart out of measure after the hit party makes one more action, or a halt to the fight has occurred due to grappling or other actions
(b)A fighter leaves the ring
(c)Both fighters move apart out of measure after an exchange of actions, whether or not any hits were scored.
8.When ?exchange? is called, both fighters must step back out of measure and pause before continuing the fight.
9.The referee will also announce how many exchanges have been fought. ?Exchange ? 1? etc.
10.When the 10th exchange is completed, the referee will announce that the fight is over.
11.The time keeper will call ?time? when the 2.5mins are up if required. The referee will call ?break? and declare the fight over.
12.The scorer will announce the final score to the fighters (and audience) and record it.
There will be three Judges, a referee, a score keeper [who may also keep time] and a Head Judge or President who will preside over the bout. Their Jobs are as follows:
1.Judges, three in number, will follow the fight and indicate by the raising of either of two coloured flags,when they think a fighter has been hit. Fighter will be designated a colour at the start of the fight.
2.Referee, one in number, will organise the fighters, check other officials are ready, announce when exchanges have taken place and keep order in the fight generally.
3.Time keeper/Scorer, one or two in number will record the score and keep time.
4.President, one in number, will oversee the judging and will correct judgements that are obviously wrong. This ability to veto a judgement by a judge will only be sparingly used. Presidents will swap arenas regularly.
1.Points can be scored as follows:
(a)By striking your opponent to any target, with a valid part of the weapon
i.For most swords this includes the point, the edge and the pommel* ? detail to be added here on a weapon-by-weapon basis.
A.Bucklers can use the edge or the flat, though utmost caution should be used with any strike.
(b)By grappling your opponent to the ground, as long as you stay on your feet
i.Grapples that last longer than 5s will be stopped with no score
ii.Grapples must be safe.
iii.Grapples can be stopped by the grappler at any time they show superiority.
iv.Only immediate counter techniques will be taken into account.
(c)By forcing your opponent out of the ring, while remaining in the ring yourself
(d)By striking your opponent with your companion weapon, e.g. a buckler strike
(e)By showing a controlled strike with the empty hand &&&& [To be discussed]
2.When a judge sees any valid hit or point, they raise the flag of the person who made the hit.
(a)Flags should be held horizontally away from the body as soon as the point is seen and held out until the referee calls ?exchange?. It is up to the scorer to interpret the flags and record the correct scores.
3.A fighter only needs one judge to see their hit to score the point
4.NOTE: it is up to the fighters to demonstrate ?good? hits. Judges will decide if a hit is good enough to score and will ignore light taps, flat hits etc. Good hits will be demonstrated for the participants at the start of the tournament.
(a)Good hits are as follows:
i.Cuts which contact with the edge in the weak half of the blade, and have moved a reasonable distance from the last resting place.
ii.Draw cuts that cut with at least half the blade, forwards or backwards.
iii.Thrusts which have not reached the end of their extension.
iv.Weapon pins and grips that the opponent cannot release before the onset of the second attack of the one making the pin/grip. Notice that pins and grips do not show Superiority.
v.Pommel Strikes that contact face or hands. Notice that Pommel strikes do not show Superiority.
5.Strikes that land at almost exactly the same time (?nearly simultaneous? - less than 1s between hits) count 0 for both fighters.
(a)Judges should raise a flag for both fighters ? the scorer will record this as a double hit.
6.If you are struck by your opponent, then you have one ?action? to make a counter hit and nullify their point.
(a)An action may include one blade action, a step or both.
7.If you are struck while your opponent is pinning your weapon, then you do not get your action once they release your blade
8.Counter hits must be made to the head or the torso
(a)Exception: if you are struck in the LEG or the NON WEAPON HAND, then the counter strike may be made to the head, torso or weapon arm
9.If you are struck with the blade, counter hits may only be made with the blade, not the pommel etc.
10.Judges should raise the flag of any fighter who scores a counter hit ? both flags showing indicates the counter hit to the scorer.
11.Judges MUST check that the counter hit is valid before raising their flag.
12.Counter hits are scored like double hits, 0 ? 0.
13.Superiority: If the first hit in a double or counter hit is not made with the blade (i.e. a pommel strike, grapple, buckler strike etc.) and the return hit is made with the blade, then this is counted as a point for the blade (0 ? 1), not as a double (0 ? 0).
14.Two Point hits: If you can strike you opponent twice within two actions, i.e. before they complete their failed counter strike, you will be awarded two points. You will be awarded no points if they are successful with their counter strike
15.Judges will indicate the first point by holding the flag out horizontally and indicate the second point by raising the flag vertically over their head.
16.The scorer will award the points dependant on all the flags raised.
Only one colour seen = 1pt to that fighter
Only one colour seen, including vertical flag = 2pts to that fighter
Two colours seen = double (no points scored, double recorded)
Time Out:
17.If neither fighter engages for a significant amount of time, the referee will begin an audible 10s countdown. If no exchange has started by the end of this countdown, the referee may award a point to the fighter who was attempting to engage, or call ?exchange, no score?.
Final Score:
18.The winner is the fighter who scores the most points in the bout
(a)Double hits will be recorded for the purposes of tie breaks and to fill places in repêchage style tournaments ? the fighters with the fewest double kills will be rewarded.
The key points:
Any clean strike will always score 1pt
Two clean strikes will score 2pts
Double hits score 0 for both fighters
A hit, followed by a valid counter hit scores 0 for both fighters
Blade strikes and thrusts always out score strikes with other parts of the weapon or grapples etc.
Offence Penalty
Failure to present ready to fight: Loss of fight
Hard hitting : Warning
Seriously dangerous fighting, including unsafe grappling : Disqualification
Unsportsmanlike conduct : Severe Warning, loss of 1pt
Two warnings in any bout = Severe Warning and loss of 1pt
Two warnings across separate bouts = Severe warning, no loss of pt
Two severe warnings = disqualification
1.Fighters must ensure that they are in the right place, at the right time, ready to fight.
(a)Fighters who are not ready to step into the ring when called by the referee will forfeit the fight. The winning opponent will be awarded their average score from their other bouts within that group.
2.Fighters must present themselves with appropriate equipment, including armour and weapons as indicated in the event rules
3.At any one time, two fighters should be engaged in the ring, two fighters should be ready to fight and two fighters should be ?arming up? in the designated area.
4.All equipment must pass the safety checks made by the marshals for the bouts, as appropriate to the event.
Q: I strike my opponent in the head and they hit me in the leg after a step, what is the score?
A: 1 ? 0 to you, as their counter hit is not valid (head or torso)
Q: I strike my opponent in the leg and they hit me in the body at the same time, what is the score?
A: 0 ? 0 for a double hit
Q: My rushes in and strikes me in the face (repeatedly) with the pommel, but I hit them with a thrust as they step in, what is the score?
A: 1 ? 0 to you, as the blade beats the pommel, as long as your hit was before (or simultaneous with) theirs.
Q: I strike my opponent and they strike me three times in return, what is the score?
A: 0 ? 0, because they have countered your strike. Nothing after that counts. However, your opponent must be careful that they are not excessive, or they may get a penalty.
Q: My opponent hits me then retreats out of the ring. What is the score?
A: If you do not counter the hit in 1 step, then the score is 1 ? 0 to your opponent.
