Weapon Types, Shields, and Equipment

From AmtWiki

Projectiles

This category includes thrown weapons (axes, rocks, daggers), javelins, Magic Balls, and arrows Unless otherwise noted projectiles may not be used to parry, block, or melee, are indestructible, and affect all targets struck while in motion. Unless otherwise noted projectiles may be carried in any number. Only projectiles may be thrown (i.e. you may not throw your sword). Unless otherwise noted projectiles may not have rigid or granular cores such as solid rubber balls, wrapped balls of rubberbands, tennis balls, etc. Suggested acceptable materials are sweatshirt material, loose rubber bands, etc. Unless otherwise noted any protrusions or tips on a projectile must meet the requirements for stabbing tips.

Light Thrown

These weapons represent throwing daggers and the like.

  1. Between 2.5” and 6” in total length.
  2. All parts must be Strike-Legal.
    • These weapons are exempt from a minimum foam depth for Strike-Legal.
  3. May be covered in non-abrasive cloth tape instead of cloth.
    • Duct tape may not be used as a cover.
  4. Will score a hit from any portion of the weapon.
  5. May not be of a color and shape which may reasonably be confused with a Magic Ball.

Heavy Thrown

These weapons represent throwing axes and the like.

  1. Between 9” and 18” in total length.
  2. All parts must be Strike-Legal.
    • These weapons are exempt from a minimum foam depth for Strike-Legal.
  3. May be covered in non-abrasive cloth tape instead of cloth.
    • Duct tape may not be used as a cover.
  4. Will score a hit from any portion of the weapon.

Rocks

  1. Must be at least 10” in each dimension.
  2. All parts must be Strike-Legal.
    • These weapons are exempt from a minimum foam depth for Strike-Legal.
  3. May be covered in non-abrasive cloth tape instead of cloth.
    • Ducttape may not be used as a cover.
  4. Will score a hit from any portion of the weapon.
  5. Hits from Rocks are Armor Breaking and Shield Crushing.
  6. Items that meet the criteria to be classified as a Rock may not also be classified as Heavy Thrown.

Javelins

Javelins are a hybrid throwing/melee weapon. They are considered a melee weapon when wielded, but are considered a projectile otherwise. Javelins are only available to those classes explicitly granted Javelins.

  1. Between 36” and 72” long.
  2. Must have between 6” and 12” of Strike-Legal.
  3. Must be padded along their entire length.
  4. May be thrown and used in melee (including blocking and parrying).
  5. Stab only for both melee and throwing.
  6. Hits from Javelins when thrown are Armor Breaking and Shield Crushing.
  7. Must strike point-first to score a hit.
  8. Must have a rigid core.
  9. Pommel is not required to meet the requirements for a stabbing tip.
  10. May be Double-Ended.

Magic Balls

These projectiles are thrown to represent various magical attacks and are not considered weapons. They represent magical energy, motes of elemental force, alchemical mixtures, and the like. These are thrown to represent various magical attacks and are not projectile weapons but follow the same construction requirements except as noted below.

  1. Must be a spherical object at least 2.5” in diameter.
  2. Must have a streamer between 1” and 6” long.
  3. All parts must be Strike-Legal.
    • These projectiles are exempt from a minimum foam depth for Strike-Legal.
  4. May be covered in non-abrasive cloth tape instead of cloth.
    • Duct tape may not be used as a cover.
  5. Will score a hit from any portion of the object.Magic Balls which are thrown and strike a player or object can have various effects.

Unless otherwise noted:

  1. Players may only bring a number of Magic Balls on to the battlefield equal to the maximum uses allowed to them. Likewise, players may also only carry up to that amount at any given time.
    • Owners of Magic Balls may grant other players permission to carry their Magic Balls in order to return them to the owner or to the owner’s base. They may also grant other players permission to use their Magic Balls if the other person has the ability to do so.
  2. A Magic Ball must be held in the caster's hand by the end of the Incantation.
  3. Once a Magic Ball’s Incantation has been said, it is considered active until it hits a Player, Wielded Equipment, or Terrain. It will also become inactive if the caster begins an incantation or the material component stops being held in hand and has not been thrown. The caster can transfer an active Magic Ball from one hand to the other without it becoming inactive and can wield a weapon or shield in a hand that is also holding an active Magic Ball.
  4. A player may only have one Magic Ball active at a time.
  5. Magic Balls of the Subdual School have no effect on equipment that is not being carried.
    • Example: You may not Iceball a player’s shield if it is not being wielded or carried by them.
  6. Magic Balls discharge and attempt to affect the first Player, Wielded Equipment, or Terrain they hit; Magic Balls are not engulfing unless noted.
  7. Barring any Enchantments or magical effects, garb strikes count as hitting the player if the Magic Ball would have continued on to hit the player.
  8. Magic Balls do not damage armor unless otherwise noted.
  9. Magic Balls are not stopped by Protection from Projectiles and other similar magic and abilities.

Ammunition

Not explicitly granted to anybody, ammunition is a class of projectiles used in conjunction with other types of weapons.

Arrows

Includes bolts and any other similar items.
NOTE: Improperly constructed or maintained arrows can pose a serious safety hazard. Before building your fist arrows take the time to study an online construction tutorial or practice with an experienced player.

General

  1. May not be drawn beyond 28”.
  2. Fletching and nocks, if present, must be in good repair.
  3. Must be clearly labeled with their owner’s name.
    • Arrows without labels will never be allowed on the field.
    • Using arrows without labels can result in immediate suspension from the field.
  4. Broken or poorly mended arrows are not to be used.
  5. Like any other equipment arrows may only be used by their owner unless the owner grants specific permission for another player to use their arrows.
    • The owner of an arrow is responsible for the safety of the arrow even if fired by another player.
    • Special arrows may never be shared.
  6. Swinging at an arrow in flight is illegal.
    • Arrows may only be passively blocked by placing an object in the flight path.

Shafts

  1. May be fiberglass, aluminum, plastic, or graphite.
  2. Wood shaft are only allowed if covered in a minimum of 4 mils of plastic tape or equivalent.
  3. Shafts must have any real arrow head or tip removed.
  4. The tip of shafts must be built up to at least 1” in diameter in a solid manner such as:
    • Wrapping in fiberglass strapping tape and capping with a 1" diameter galvanized steel disc.
    • Affixing a 1" diameter washer into the shaft with a solidly-attached screw.
    • Other similar methods. Replacing the washer or disc with a U.S. penny is not considered 'similar' to those construction methods. Acceptable construction methods include, but are not limited to, building the arrowhead onto a base which is removable but firmly attached (commonly referred to as "modular" construction) and/or shaft buildups made using fused deposition modeling ("3D Printing"). Please consult experienced arrowhead builders before attempting new designs.
  5. Shafts longer than 28” must have a draw stop (generally a ring of tape or similar) placed around the shaft no more than 28" from the inside of the arrow's nock where the string rests.

Heads

  1. Must be 2.5” in diameter.
  2. Front and side must be Strike-Legal.
  3. Must include a minimum of 2” of foam in front of the shaft of the arrow.
    • The 0.5” of foam immediately after the end of the shaft must be closed-cell.
    • Foam must be firm but compressible, and not able to deform around the arrow shaft on impact.
    • Very soft foams such as couch cushion do not count towards the required 2” minimum of foam.
  4. Heads should be checked regularly for degrading foam.
  5. Must have a cloth cover on the head.
    • Properly colored strips may be used in lieu of colored head covers to denote special arrow status.
    • Normal arrows may not be covered in any of the colors reserved for special arrows.
    • Reserved colors are: yellow, red, green, purple, and grey.
  6. Must strike point first to score a hit.
  7. Affects all targets struck while in motion.
  8. Hits from arrows are Armor Breaking.
  9. Hits from arrows are Weapon Destroying.

Siege Projectiles

See Siege Weapons for more information.

Bow

Includes bows and crossbows used to fire arrows or bolts. They are not projectile weapons themselves but are used exclusively with Arrows. Other devices which aid in accelerating projectiles are not considered Bows. This includes devices such as slingshots, slings, and atlatls.

  1. The maximum limit for a bow’s pull is 35 pounds with a maximum 28” draw length.
  2. Crossbows are limited to no more than 450 inch-pounds.
  3. No compound bows are allowed.
  4. At 20’ or less bows must be no more than half drawn.
    • Half-Draw is half the distance between the brace height and 28 inches. Example: If your bow has a brace height of 8 inches, its Half Draw is 18 inches.
    • Crossbows do not have to be half drawn within 20’.
  5. May only be used to passively block (i.e. may not be swung towards an incoming strike in order to block). If hit by the strike-legal portion of any weapon, the bow is destroyed.

Melee

All melee weapons require a rigid core (unless otherwise noted) and may be used to block, parry, or score hits with their Strike-Legal portion. Some melee weapons allow for Heavy Padding Substitution for a given length.

Heavy Padding Substitution

All melee weapons require a portion their length to be Strike-Legal, as noted in the individual weapon descriptions. Heavy Padding Substitution allows you to replace a portion of Strike-Legal with Heavy Padding. For each inch of Heavy Padding added you may also replace an additional inch of Strike-Legal with Courtesy Padding.

Heavy Padding added must start within 3” of the stabbing tip and proceed continuously towards the handle. Courtesy Padding added in this manner must begin at the top of the handle and proceed continuously towards the tip.

For example: A 48” Long weapon is typically required to have 32” of Strike-Legal followed by 16” of Handle. Using Heavy Padding Substitution you could have 16” of Heavy Padding, followed by 16” of Courtesy Padding, and then 16” of Handle.

Dagger

This is a melee weapon that:

  1. May stab and slash.
  2. Between 10” and 18”.
  3. Must have 10” Strike-Legal.

Short

A melee weapon:

  1. May stab and slash.
  2. Between 18” and 36”.
  3. At least 2/3 of its length must be Strike-Legal.
  4. Allows for 1/3rd of its length to be substituted for Heavy Padding.

Long

A melee weapon that:

  1. May stab and slash.
  2. Over 36” up to a maximum of 48”.
  3. At least 2/3rds of its length must be padded.
  4. If used to slash at least 2/3rds of its length must be Strike-Legal.
  5. Allows for 1/3rd of its length to be substituted for Heavy Padding.
  6. May be Double-Ended.
    • Each end of a Double-Ended long weapon must be padded 1/3 the total length of the weapon, continuous from the tip. If an end is used to slash, that end must be Strike-Legal for 1/3 the total length of the weapon. This requirement replaces the standard requirement for padding on long weapons.

Great

  1. May stab and slash.
  2. Greater than 48”in length.
  3. Must be padded on upper 1/2 of length or at least 3’, whichever is less.
  4. If used to slash must have at least 18” of Strike-Legal surface.
  5. Great weapons, when wielded in a two handed manner, may gain the Shield Crushing and Armor Breaking Special Effects if built to one of the two standards below:
    1. If the weapon has 18" of Heavy Padding, starting within 3" of the tip and continuous down the core
    2. If the weapon has a total length of no more than 72" and additionally is Strike-Legal for 2/3 of its total length.
  6. May be Double-Ended.
    • Each end of a Double-Ended great weapon must be padded 1/3 the total length of the weapon, or 3'. whichever is less, continuous from the tip. This requirement replaces the standard requirement for padding on great weapons.

Madu

A shield joined to a weapon.

  1. Counts as both a shield and a weapon.
  2. Only usable if a class can use both a weapon of the madu’s length and a shield.
  3. Weapon Destroying will affect the entirety of the madu if it strikes any part of the weapon portion.
  4. Shield Crushing and Shield Destroying affect the entirety of the madu if it strikes any part of the shield portion.
  5. Magic and abilities that affect any part of the madu, such as Imbue Shield or Heat Weapon, affect its entirety.
  6. Weapon portion must be non-hinged and meleeonly.
  7. Any shield with weapons affixed to it in any form is considered a madu and must conform to these rules.
  8. If built to slash.
  9. May be Double-Ended.

Hinged

  1. No more than 36” in length.
  2. Has a single articulating head which must be entirely Strike-Legal and cannot contain a rigid core.
  3. The chain of a hinged weapon:
    • Is not a legal striking edge.
    • Must be wrapped in foam with less than 0.5” of the rope exposed at any point.
  4. The combined rope and striking edge may not exceed 18” in length.
  5. The top half of the non-rope and Strike-Legal portion of the weapon must be padded.

Siege Weapons

Siege Weapons are extremely powerful engines of destruction that, historically, were used for everything from anti-personnel to tearing down walls from a great distance. Examples of this type of weapon include ballistas, catapults, onagers, and trebuchets. The abilities and limitations of siege weapons are as follows:

  1. You may only have siege weapons at the discretion of the game runner.
  2. Siege weapons should have a historical or fantasy counterpart that they mimic in form and function. Ammunition from siege weapons must conform to the following rules, and cannot have any additional powers unless specified by the game designers:
  3. Siege weapons must be approved by the game reeve prior to being used. Safety is of the utmost concern when determining whether a siege weapon should be allowed on the field.

Shields

Shields are used to block shots from weapons and are impervious to harm except from certain abilities and magics. All shield measurements are the exterior surface area on a flat plane.

  1. Must not break or bend significantly during the course of combat. Rigid or easily breakable foam, or low-density foams, are inappropriate for all-foam shield construction. Some acceptable materials are:
    • Sturdy high-density foam.
    • Plywood.
    • High impact plastics.
    • Aluminum.
  2. Must have an opaque, durable cover such as cloth or PlastiDip.
  3. The rim and face of the shield must be padded by at least 1” of closed cell foam.
    • All-foam shields do not require any additional padding so long as the foam itself would be considered padding.
  4. Hard edges may not be exposed on any surface which can reasonably come into contact with another player or their equipment.
  5. A player may only wield one shield at a time.
  6. Must be gripped in a hand in order to be considered wielded. An open hand inside a shield handle is not enough to consider that shield wielded.
    • A shield that is gripped in a hand may also have a support strap around the arm.
    • A blow that strikes a non-wielded shield strapped to a player, such as a shield slung across a back, is considered to strike the player as if the shield had not been there.
    • A small shield may be strapped to an arm instead of wielded in a hand.
  7. A small shield is between 36 square inches (6.8 inch diameter) and three square feet (23.45 inch diameter).
  8. A medium shield is no larger than five square feet (30.28 inch diameter).
  9. A large shield is no larger than eight square feet (38.3 inch diameter).
  10. Shield shapes may not cause confusion on the field. A shield cannot look like Armor or a Weapon.
  11. A shield may be tossed in a manner that keeps it (relatively) perpendicular to the ground. While in the air, such a shield is considered a terrain effect, though it is still vulnerable to things that would normally affect a shield (such as Fireball or Destruction Arrow). A shield may not be tossed into another player or their wielded equipment.

Other Equipment

Sashes

Sashes are used to denote certain classes by their color in games where classes are used. All sashes must be at least 2” wide and be worn from shoulder to opposite hip across the body.

Class Symbols

Class Symbols are used for the garb requirement for some classes.

  1. Class Symbols must be primarily a solid color as specified by the class. Small color variations in details are allowed.
  2. Background must be of a contrasting color to the symbol.
  3. Symbols must protrude past all edges of a 5” square.
  4. Must wear at least two symbols. They must be located on opposite sides of the body.
  5. Symbols must be clearly visible from 20' away.

Strips

Strips are used to denote certain types of Enchantments and Special Effects for quick on-field identification.
The most common use of strips is to denote enchantments or abilities that function as enchantments.

  1. Strips must have at least 6” of visible drape, and cannot be covered by garb or equipment.
  2. Strips on players must be attached in a visible location when viewing a player from the front.
  3. Strips have a cohesive color-coding system.
    1. Offensive Enchantments and Special Effects are denoted by red strips.
    2. Defensive Enchantments and Special Effects are denoted by white strips.
    3. Miscellaneous Enchantments and Special Effects are denoted by yellow strips.
  4. Enchantments and Special Effects that require enchantment strips do not function if the enchantment strips are not present. It is the responsibility of the bearer to ensure their strips are present in order for the enchantment or ability to function.
  5. Traits do not require strips unless they require activation, i.e. Traits that are an always-on part of a class do not require strips.
V8 Rulebook
Introduction · V8 Made Easy · Organization · Role-playing · Combat Rules · Armor · Weapons · Weapon Types, Shields, and Equipment · Equipment Checking · Magic Items · Battlegames · Classes · Magic, Abilities, States and Special Effects · Magic and Abilities · Rules Revision Process · Common Misconceptions · Award Standards · Kingdom Boundaries & Park Sponsorship · Annexure
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