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Post by Brian on Jun 15, 2006 13:10:15 GMT -5
Hello everyone,
I am interested in trying this out but I have a few questions:
#1. Can I use a staff? (there's no specific mention of this in the rules) #2. Can I push/trip with the staff? #3. How thick does the padding have to be on the staff? #4. What material can I use inside the padding? (ratan, bamboo, dowel, fiberglass, pvc)
Thanks!
Brian
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Post by TheMick on Jun 15, 2006 13:30:08 GMT -5
1. Yes; but it won't count as a red weapon no matter how big it is, and if you build one side stab the other has to stab as well: so its either 2 stabs, or no stabs. 2. No, and no. 3. The striking surface is subject to all the same rules as regular weapons. Which is to say you should be able to hit someone (or stab someone) as hard as possible without hurting them too much. Its a bit of an ambigious way to judge, I know, but once you get the feel of how a 'normal' weapon hits you should have no problem judging how to foam your staff. 4. Anything you'd like (aside from metal), but all wooden cores need to be wrapped in tape before being foamed to avoid splintering. Ratan might also be a little too heavy for Belegarth purposes, an d a Dowel would be too flimsy and breakable. If you choose PVC, watch out for flex. If the weapon flexs too much (more than 45 degrees) you can't use it.
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Post by latrans on Jun 15, 2006 13:40:46 GMT -5
Most of the weapon stuff is in Appendix A of BoW:
For question #1: A staff would be a double weapon 1.4.6. Double-ended Weapons must conform to all of the following: 1.4.6.1. Double-ended Weapons must not be more than 7 feet long. 1.4.6.2. Double-ended Weapons must have a minimum of 18 inches in length of padding covering each end in a cylindrical fashion. Both striking surfaces of this weapon must follow Class 3 Weapon standards for a Double-ended Weapon to be legal. 1.4.6.3. Regardless of length, a Double-ended Weapon is a Class 1 Weapon when swung and Class 3 when thrust.
#2: While it's not explicity addressed, the prohibited weapons section (A1.5) mentions entangling weapons, so I doubt if tripping would be allowed. I think pushing might be similar to shield checking.
#3: It's a blue weapon, so it needs that level minimum, and if you're planning on stabbing that's another issue. The best answer is that it needs to be padded enough to pass and be safe.
#4 Fiberglass tends to be the material of choice, since it's light and durable. PVC is ok, but you need to worry about weight and flex. Ratan, Bamboo and Dowels are ok, but you have to wrap it to prevent splinters. They are also less durable.
I'm sure this may be corrected by those who know better, so check back.
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Chicken
Commander
BWAAAAK!
Posts: 905
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Post by Chicken on Jun 20, 2006 12:22:24 GMT -5
This is probably pretty superfluous since Mick and Latrans have already covered this quite well, but here's a few things anyway Hello everyone, I am interested in trying this out but I have a few questions: #1. Can I use a staff? (there's no specific mention of this in the rules) #2. Can I push/trip with the staff? #3. How thick does the padding have to be on the staff? #4. What material can I use inside the padding? (ratan, bamboo, dowel, fiberglass, pvc) Thanks! Brian First off, hello and welcome! Please feel free to show up any time to one of our practices and give it a try if you haven't already (sorry, I'm crap with names). Ask anyone in a green or yellow tabard and they'll find someone who can explain the rules, find you some loaner weapons, and maybe do a little sparring to get you off and running! Tuesday nights, James Madison park. As to your questions: 1) Yes, as long as it passes the rules Latrans quotes above and the normal rules for all class 1 and class 3 weapons. Technically, all staffs are actually required to have a stabbing tip on both ends. However, if you got to a big event (300-500 people fighting at once) it's rare that you'll see a single staff on the field and I've never seen two at once. While fun, they're just not very good. Compared to their real-life counterparts they tend to be slow (all that heavy padding on the ends) and there are many traditional quarterstaff moves which don't work well or are outright illegal (holding it at one end is an example of the former, and striking forward with the section between your hands the latter). Compared to other styles of fighting, they're simply inferior. They provide no protection against arrows (unlike a shield), they functionally lack the reach of a true polearm, they lack the rules benefits of all other two-handed swung weapons (breaking shields and ignoring armor) and compared to using a sword in each hand they arguably have slightly improved defensive abilities at a cost of greatly restricted attacks. Real staves are cool, but unfortunately they're one of those weapons that just doesn't adapt very well to this sport. 2) You could push someone with the striking surface, but then you might as well just hit them with it instead. You could push a shield around with it, but otherwise they aren't padded enough to push people around with. Deliberate tripping in any fashion is illegal. 3) That's a kind of tricky question. As long as it doesn't pass more than .5" through a 2.5" hole at any point, and as long as the striking surfaces are 18" long and pass for both swinging and stabbing, whatever you can make work will work. Since staves are so uncommon there isn't really a standard method of constructing them. If I were to make one, I'd probably put two layers of blue walmart camping pad around the striking surface, then a 1" thick layer of open cell foam, then half a nerf football on each end, then one more layer of camping pad. If you were to use just blue foam I'd use no less than 4 layers. Before you make something relatively tricky like that, I'd recommend you try making a regular one-handed sword first. Everyone's first weapon sucks, so you might as well blow it on something that'll teach you the basics . We run build sessions almost every Wednesday night, and you'd be more than welcome to show up and we can teach you how to make whatever you want... . Okay, that's way too much blathering for something that's already been well answered - I'll shut up now .
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