Rapier Combat Archery

Currently there is very little in the Society rules for Rapier combat archery. Check with your kingdom rapier and combat archery marshal to see what your kingdom rules are for this and here to see if it’s allowed in your kingdom.

Check here for the Society’s Rapier Combat rules:

http://www.sca.org/officers/marshal/combat/rapier/rapier_rules.pdf

From page 5 of the Society Rapier Combat rules:

“6. PROJECTILE WEAPONS: Kingdoms may permit combat archery, throwing weapons to be used in rapier melee combat, as long as safety standards for those arts are met.

A.     The use of any projectile weapon is forbidden within formal rapier Tournament lists (single combat), or in any situation where spectators cannot be separated from the potential line of fire by more than the effective range of the projectile weapons to be used.”

These were the rules about rapier/combat archery that were made during my term as Society CA marshal:

  1. No Baldar blunts on arrows or bolts are allowed on the rapier field.
  2. APDs are not required on combat arrows/bolts that are used on the rapier field, as long as all fighters on the field have mesh/screening on their helms. If you have APDs, you do not have to remove them, but you don't have to add them, if you are only using these arrows/bolts for use on the Rapier field.
  3. You must have your name and your kingdom written in English, on all of your arrows and bolts.
  4. Your missile weapons must be inspected before you take the field.

My Recommendations:

1.     Bows should be 30# or less and crossbows 600 inch pound or less, otherwise they are likely to dent rapier masks and can cause injury due to lighter armor standards.

2.     Just as there are no special armor standard for Armored CA, there is no  special armor standards for Rapier CA. Just read the Society and your  Kingdom Rapier Rules and that is what you need.

3.    I recommend these blunts: UHMW, Modified Marklands with 1/2" or more padding  or Golf Tube/Siloflex w/Tennis Balls or w/ 1" padded Omarad blunts

4.    CA Marshals take care of inspecting the CA equipment for both the Armored and the Rapier fields and the folks go over to the regular armored or rapier combat marshals to get their armor and other weapons inspected.

5.     During battles you need Rapier field marshals and CA Marshals.

Bacially the rules are the same as Armored CA  with the following key limits/differences.

 

Remember that these rapier combattants are not wearing any rigid armor so the light blows and softer blunts are important.  A shot from a heavy bow and a hard blunt to the side and back of the head or to the neck or throat could be bad.  Kidneys could similarly be a problem.

 

Also heavy bows or hard blunts out of light bows (like Baldar blunts or bolts with only a half-inch of padding)can dent masks.  The denting of masks is a big deal because it weakens the mask to the point that it quite likely would no longer pass a punch test.  This a real problem since masks are a too big of an investment to have them ruined by one shot from a heavy bow or hard blunt.

 

If you have additional questions, suggestions or concerns about combat archery on the rapier field, please let me know.

Tessa the Huntress