V9: Striking Your Opponent

This page is part of the Official Amtgard V9 Alpha-Playtest Rulebook.

• The Amtwiki is the official home and primary source for Amtgard V9 Rules as of February 25, 2023.
• These rules are currently in Open Alpha Playtest. See the Playtest Disclaimer for more details.
• To learn more about Amtgard V9 Development, please visit Amtgard.com.
• To view the current Amtgard V8 ruleset, please see the Amtgard V8 Rulebook.

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Striking Your Opponent

Striking your opponent with a weapon is the primary way to interact with them in combat. Only weapons that have passed an equipment inspection can be used to strike in Amtgard. Only the Strike-Legal portion of a weapon can deliver a valid strike.

Valid Strikes

Valid Strikes, also known as Legal Strikes, must make contact with enough forward momentum that an unaware opponent wearing basic, non-bulky, garb could distinguish the strike as offensive rather than incidental contact. Players wearing thick or bulky armor/garments must acknowledge a valid strike against them even if the blow is not felt.

Valid Strikes are divided into four categories:

1. Melee Slash: A slash is a strike with the side of a weapon. It must be percussive (contact with an audible impact) and stop on or deflect off the victim.
2. Melee Stab: A stab is a strike with the tip of a weapon. It must strike with the tip and be stopped by or deflect/glance off the victim.
3. Projectile Stab ( Arrows/ Javelins): A stab from a projectile weapon. The projectile must have traveled its own length through the air after being released, strike with the tip, and be stopped by or deflect/glance off the victim.
4. Projectile Contact (Thrown Weapons| Thrown Weapons, Rocks, Spellballs): Contact Projectiles can strike with any part of their surface as long as it has traveled its own length through the air after being released and stops on or deflects/glances off the victim.

Illegal Obstructions: A strike that is prevented from making valid contact due to an Illegal Obstruction, such as loose garb, thick hair, bulky armor, or unwielded equipment, will count as a valid strike against whatever would have been hit if the obstruction was not there.

Invalid Strikes

Some examples of invalid strikes are listed below. If you are unsure whether your opponent’s strike against you was valid, give them the benefit of the doubt and take it. If you have to think about it, take it. Only strikes which are clearly invalid should be treated as such, and in those cases it is common courtesy to announce the reason you believe it to be so.

1. Grazes: Contact that is neither percussive nor stop/deflect.
2. Draw Cuts: Attempted stabs which fail to strike with the tip but slide against a victim and barely deflect, if at all, instead of impacting cleanly.
3. Pushes: Weapons that are pushed into or slid against a victim after the initial motion was completely blocked by something else and the initial motion had stopped.
4. Light Contact: Attempted strikes that connect with so little forward momentum that an unaware opponent wearing only close-fitting clothing could not distinguish the strike as offensive rather than incidental contact.

Striking Your Opponent

Striking your opponent with a weapon is the primary way to interact with them in combat. Only weapons that have passed an equipment inspection can be used to strike in Amtgard. Only the Strike-Legal portion of a weapon can deliver a valid strike.

Valid Strikes

Valid Strikes, also known as Legal Strikes, must make contact with enough forward momentum that an unaware opponent wearing basic, non-bulky, garb could distinguish the strike as offensive rather than incidental contact. Players wearing thick or bulky armor/garments must acknowledge a valid strike against them even if the blow is not felt.

Valid Strikes are divided into four categories:

1. Melee Slash: A slash is a strike with the side of a weapon. It must be percussive (contact with an audible impact) and stop on or deflect off the victim.
2. Melee Stab: A stab is a strike with the tip of a weapon. It must strike with the tip and be stopped by or deflect/glance off the victim.
3. Projectile Stab ( Arrows/ Javelins): A stab from a projectile weapon. The projectile must have traveled its own length through the air after being released, strike with the tip, and be stopped by or deflect/glance off the victim.
4. Projectile Contact (Thrown Weapons| Thrown Weapons, Rocks, Spellballs): Contact Projectiles can strike with any part of their surface as long as it has traveled its own length through the air after being released and stops on or deflects/glances off the victim.

Illegal Obstructions: A strike that is prevented from making valid contact due to an Illegal Obstruction, such as loose garb, thick hair, bulky armor, or unwielded equipment, will count as a valid strike against whatever would have been hit if the obstruction was not there.

Invalid Strikes

Some examples of invalid strikes are listed below. If you are unsure whether your opponent’s strike against you was valid, give them the benefit of the doubt and take it. If you have to think about it, take it. Only strikes which are clearly invalid should be treated as such, and in those cases it is common courtesy to announce the reason you believe it to be so.

1. Grazes: Contact that is neither percussive nor stop/deflect.
2. Draw Cuts: Attempted stabs which fail to strike with the tip but slide against a victim and barely deflect, if at all, instead of impacting cleanly.
3. Pushes: Weapons that are pushed into or slid against a victim after the initial motion was completely blocked by something else and the initial motion had stopped.
4. Light Contact: Attempted strikes that connect with so little forward momentum that an unaware opponent wearing only close-fitting clothing could not distinguish the strike as offensive rather than incidental contact.