Mixed Weapon Relay (Teams)

This document provides the rules specific to the Mixed Weapon Relay Tournament. All rules outlined in the General Tournament Rules also apply to the relay tournament.

Rules are subject to change up to the commencement of the tournament.

Tournament Goal

The goal of the team longsword tournament is to promote school spirit and healthy competition between groups, rather than just between individuals. In addition, we wish to highlight schools which have proficiency in multiple weapons.

Team Composition

A team is composed of three individuals from the same school/club. Mixed school/club team entries are not allowed. Prior to the commencement of the tournament we will gather all individuals with no team who wish to compete, and form teams randomly from this pool.

Each team will be composed of:

1 Longsword fighter
1 Saber fighter
1 Rapier fighter with offhand.

The 3 members must report to the match with their weapons already chosen, however they may elect to change who uses which weapon between matches.

READ THE EQUIPMENT SECTION FOR THE WEAPON/GEAR REQUIREMENTS, ESPECIALLY FOR RAPIER.

Match Conduct

A match shall consist of a series of 1v1 matches between the team members. Members must report to the match having already determined which fighter will use each weapon. The order of fighters will be random and declared at the start of the match (ie: Rapier->Longsword->Saber).

Each team will start with 0 points. At the end of every exchange the points a fencer is awarded will be added to their team score.
Once a team exceeds 5 points they will force their opponent to switch to their 2nd fighter
Once a team exceeds 10 points the opposing team will switch to their 3rd fighter.
The first team to 15 points wins!

Illegal Actions

All illegal actions from the General Tournament Rules apply to this tournament, including but not limited to: lack of control/excessive force, high amplitude throws, or anything else that has a high chance to hurt somebody. Refer to the General Tournament Rules for more details.
Exposing the spine or back of the head to the opponent. Note that if your opponent does expose such targets it is still your responsibility to do what you can to arrest the power of your strike.
Should a longsword fighter execute one handed blows outside of the grapple they will first be warned, and subsequent infractions will be assessed non-safety penalties.
Buckler punches are not permitted.
Any form of takedown is not permitted in the Mixed Weapon Relay Tournament.
Note that pommels and blade grabs are permitted in accordance to the longsword rules.

Scoring Actions

Scoring shall be fully weighted doubles, with full points assessed against each team (think “Nordic rules but only doubles and no afterblows”). Point values are as follows:

Thrust to Upper Opening or Torso**: 2 points
Cut to Upper Opening*: 2 points
All other valid longsword point scoring actions*: 1 point

*Point values for all rapier cutting actions are reduced by one. Quality cuts by the rapier will still draw a hold, even if worth 0 points.
**The only valid off-hand scoring action is a thrust from a dagger, which will be considered a regular thrust.

Wrestling and Takedowns

The amount of time permitted for a wrestling action is a 5-count from the director; beginning when both of the swords are inhibited (discarded, entangled, etc). This count may or may not be verbalized at the director's discretion.

Throws/take downs are not permitted in the Mixed Weapon Relay.

Example

Team A has 3 fighters (A1-saber, A2-rapier, A3-longsword) and Team Z has 3 fighters (Z1-saber, Z2-rapier, Z3-longsword). The order of the match is randomly drawn to be Saber -> Rapier -> Longsword.
(Which is a very nice coincidence for the very unusually named team members. Probably all siblings.)

A1-saber and Z1-saber fight
Team A reaches 5 points. Z1-saber leaves and Z2-rapier enters. It is now Saber vs Rapier.
Team Z reaches 5 points. A1-saber leaves and A2-rapier enters. It is now Rapier vs Rapier.
Team Z reaches 10 points. A2-rapier leaves and A3-longswors enters. It is now Rapier vs Longsword.
Fighter Z2-rapier is amazing, and Team Z reaches 15 points before Team A gets to 10. Team Z wins with Z3-longsword never even fighting.

Weird Edge Cases

A team may not win on a losing exchange.

If the score is A 10, and B 14, and an exchange ends up as 2-1 for A, it will not put B above the 15 point threshold to win. In this case A will be awarded a single point and the match would continue (11-14). Should a tie exchange (1-1 or 2-2) occur then B will have exceeded 15 points and have won the match.
If the score is 14-14 and a 2-1 exchange is recorded, it will be a win for A.
If the score is 13-14 and a 2-1 exchange is recorded, the match will be tied and continue until a point advantage is reached by one of the teams.

Equipment

Rapier

Sword: Same as individual rapier tournament.
- A sidesword/arming sword is permitted if you can't get a longsword glove inside your rapier's hilt. (The point reduction on cuts still applies though.)

Off-Hand: Off-hand is mandatory. Acceptable off-hands are:
- Parrying dagger allowed by the rapier tournament rules.
- Buckler of 12" or less in diameter.
- Cloak. A cloak will only be considered protective if it is completely wrapped around the forearm. In all other cases strikes through the cloak will count as normal attacks. A cloak may not be thrown, and the maximum size will be 'something that looks like you would realistically wear it' at the complete discretion of the director ---> play nice and don't try to ruin it for everyone :) .

Gear: Same as individual LONGSWORD tournament.
You must wear gloves that meet the longsword equipment standards. The only exception is a lacrosse glove on the off-hand if using a buckler.

Saber

Sword: Military style saber. (The 1796 Pattern sabers used in the Saber tournament shall serve as a template for what is expected in terms of weight/flexibility/hand protection.)
- Gymnasium sabers are not permitted.
- A fighter may elect to use a messer instead of a saber.

Gear: Same as individual longsword tournament.