V9: Glossary
- 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.
Glossary
Developer Note: This is a work in progress based on the terms and keywords that we believe players will want to reference. Anything with an existing definition elsewhere in the ROP will have a summary here and a link to the actual entry. Anything not defined elsewhere will have the full definition here. For now, we are updating this as necessary. Feel free to suggest terms for inclusion on the Amtgard V9 Discord Server.
Contents
- 1 Glossary
- 1.1 Affect / Be Affected
- 1.2 Amtgard International (AI)
- 1.3 Apprentice
- 1.4 Archery/Archer
- 1.5 At-Arms
- 1.6 Authority
- 1.7 Boffer
- 1.8 Circle of Monarchs (AICOM/COM)
- 1.9 Class
- 1.10 Damage
- 1.11 Death Count
- 1.12 Declare / Announce
- 1.13 Effect
- 1.14 Flat Blade
- 1.15 Foam
- 1.16 Forced Movement
- 1.17 Gameplay
- 1.18 Half-Draw (Bows)
- 1.19 Healed
- 1.20 Hit Locations
- 1.21 Hit Test
- 1.22 Hold
- 1.23 Illegal
- 1.24 Illegal Obstructions
- 1.25 Knights
- 1.26 LARP
- 1.27 Legal
- 1.28 Magic Switching
- 1.29 Move
- 1.30 Non-Striking Surfaces
- 1.31 Nullified / Rendered Harmless
- 1.32 Omni
- 1.33 On-Going Effect
- 1.34 Open Hand
- 1.35 Padding
- 1.36 Page
- 1.37 Paragon
- 1.38 Reeve
- 1.39 Repair
- 1.40 Replenish
- 1.41 Respawn
- 1.42 Restore
- 1.43 ROP (Rules of Play)
- 1.44 Rules Representative (RR)
- 1.45 Rules Representative Organizer (RRO)
- 1.46 Rules As Intended (RAI)
- 1.47 Rules As Spoken (RAS)
- 1.48 Rules As Written (RAW)
- 1.49 Spirit of the Rules
- 1.50 Squire
- 1.51 States
- 1.52 Strike
- 1.53 Strike Legal
- 1.54 Striking Surfaces
- 1.55 Version
- 1.56 Wounds
Affect / Be Affected
When used in the context of gameplay, Affecting something means successfully imparting an in-game mechanic onto something else, such as a Wound, a State, or other effect.
Blocking, parrying, evading, or otherwise being immune to an effect does not count as being affected, however Shield Crushing, triggering Resistances, and other limited forms of protection *do* count as being affected because the interaction is still imparting some kind of change.
Real life physical and emotional changes do not count for the purposes of 'Affect'. An player that is intimidated by their opponent does not count as being affected. A player that dodges or runs away from magic does not count as being affected.
Amtgard International (AI)
Amtgard International is the overall governing body of Amtgard. You can learn more about them on the official Amtgard website: https://www.amtgard.com
Apprentice
An Apprentice is a player who is under mentorship from a Paragon. Apprentices may wear a Silver-Trimmed Belt Favor in the color of the associated class.
Archery/Archer
Only people playing the Archer class are referred to as Archers in Amtgard. For the sake of ambiguity, a player using a bow in any context is referred to as a Bow-User.
At-Arms
An At-Arms is a player who is under mentorship from a Knight or Noble. Pages may wear a Black Belt with Silver Trim to signify their position.
At-Arms can also be referred to as: Man-At-Arms, Woman-At-Arms, Comrade-at-Arms, Sword-at-Arms, Shieldmaiden, Shield Brother, or other similar terms.
Authority
Authorities are players within the game that have the power or right to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience within a certain realm of the rules. The common Amtgard authorities include Safety Authorities, Rules Authorities, Equipment Inspection Authorities, and the various authorities granted to Officer positions by their Kingdom.
Boffer
A boffer is a common term used to describe a foam-padded weapon used for full speed LARP combat. Latex-coated weapons are not considered Boffers.
Circle of Monarchs (AICOM/COM)
A council of leaders. In Amtgard, the Amtgard International Circle of Monarchs (AICOM) is composed of the Monarchs of each Kingdom. Within each Kingdom, a Circle of Monarchs includes the Monarchs of each park therein.
Class
Damage
Damage is a multi-purpose term that deals with wounds and armor points.
- A player is damaged when they suffer a wound or lose armor points.
- An attack causes damage if it inflicts a wound or removes armor points.
Death Count
Declare / Announce
Declarations and announcements are synonyms in this rulebook. They are mandatory spoken statements to inform other players about the state of the game. They usually deal with aspects that are not easily perceived in real life, such as enchantments, states, and other such effects.
Players are always able to make declarations, regardless of their in-game ability to speak.
Different rules will handle declarations in different ways. When required, players must make declarations in a timely manner according to the rule that required the declaration. Declarations cannot force a player to interrupt their own incantation, a prior declaration, or any other similar spoken action, but they must make the declaration as soon as possible afterwards.
Other players are only allowed to request declarations for information that is noted as being available that way. For example, a player may ask their opponent to declare their armor coverage, but they cannot ask their opponent to declare their spell list.
Developer Note: Regulating the exact timing of declarations can be extremely difficult in the chaos of live combat. It is important for participants to place their Honor System Responsibilities above their desire for competitive advantage and act in good faith to ensure everyone has the information they need to execute the rules of the game.
Developer Note: This entry will be updated as the Full-Class rules are introduced.
Effect
The term ‘Effect’ is a broad term frequently used to describe any sort of change to a player or equipment which is the result or consequence of an action or other cause within the game. There are many subtypes of effects, including Damage, States, On-Going Effects, Instantaneous Effects, Strike Effects, etc.
Developer Note: This entry will be updated as the Full-Class rules are introduced.
Flat Blade
A Flat Blade is a common term used to describe a weapon that is made with one or two striking edges instead of being Strike-Legal throughout its entire circumference.
Foam
See either:
Closed-Cell Foam
Open Cell Foam
Forced Movement
Forced Movement occurs whenever a player is required to move by some sort of in-game Effect. Abilities such as Shove and Teleport are examples of Forced Movement.
Gameplay
Gameplay refers to action happening during an active game using the rules and mechanics of Amtgard.
- Running, jumping, attacking, casting, talking to team-mates, etc. are all examples of gameplay.
- Answering your phone, drink some water, talking to out-of-game individuals, etc. are not considered part of gameplay.
Gameplay Advantage
A Gameplay Advantage is whenever one player is able to use the mechanics and rules of the game to put themselves into a favorable or superior position compared to their opponents.
Half-Draw (Bows)
Amtgard defines Half-draw as when the bowstring is at the midway point between its natural resting point and full draw.
Healed
The term 'Healed' is a commonly used term to refer to the removal of Wounds. It does not imply the use of the Heal spell.
Hit Locations
Hit Test
A Hit Test is part of the Equipment Inspection requirements. It involves a player being physically hit with a weapon to determine if it is safe and comfortable enough to be allowed on the battlefield.
Hold
Illegal
The term 'Illegal' is used within Amtgard to describe something that is not in line with the rules of the game. Usually this refers to a piece of equipment but it can also refer to manoeuvres or behaviors.
Illegal Obstructions
Knights
LARP
Legal
The term 'Legal' is used within Amtgard to describe something that is in line with the rules of the game. Usually this refers to a piece of equipment but it can also refer to manoeuvres or behaviors.
Magic Switching
Magic Switching is a term used across many Boffer LARPs to describe a player passing their weapon or equipment to another hand upon being wounded instead of dropping the equipment to the ground. Magic Switching is allowed in Amtgard.
Move
When used without any additional context, the term 'Move' in Amtgard refers to directional movement across an area, such as by walking, running, crawling, etc. For example, if a player is not allowed to move, they can still move their physical limbs and fight, they just cannot change their physical position on the battlefield.
If an effect intends to restrict a different type of movement, it will call it out directly such as "Player may not move their feet." In these instances, the player is preventing from physically moving the specified parts.
Reminder: Players are always allowed to move and speak if necessary to ensure their own safety.
Non-Striking Surfaces
Nullified / Rendered Harmless
Something that is nullified or renders harmless is considered to have no further effect on the game. It cannot cause damage nor impart any other kinda of effect. Attacks that are nullified are only nullified for that instance of the attack, additional attacks of the same type are not affected. For example, if a Monk nullifies an arrow, the arrow can still be retrieved and used again as normal.
Omni
'Omni' is a common term used to describe a weapon that has Strike-Legal padding on all sides of the core. It has omnidirectional padding.
On-Going Effect
Open Hand
Open Hand is used as a synonym for Free Hand.
Padding
Padding is a common term used to refer to layers of Foam or cushioning applied to equipment to make it safer.
Page
A Page is a player who is under mentorship from a Knight or Noble. Pages may wear a Yellow Belt to signify their position.
Paragon
Reeve
Repair
Repair is a term commonly used to repair to the restoration of equipment or armor, usually via the Mend spell or some similar effect.
Replenish
Respawn
A multi-purpose word that deals with players returning to life using the Respawn mechanics.
- When used as a verb, it refers to the act of respawning.
- When used as a noun, it is often shorthand for 'Respawn Point'.
Restore
Restore is a general term used to refer to when something is returned to it's original state or otherwise brought closer to that state that it was originally.
- Restoring Wounds means that the wounds are removed.
- A destroyed weapon that is restored is no longer destroyed.
- An effect that restores 2 points of armor will repair armor points up to the maximum value.
- An effect that restores 1 use of an ability will grant another use up to the maximum available.
- And so on.
ROP (Rules of Play)
The term 'ROP' refers to this document, the Amtgard Rules of Play.
Rules Representative (RR)
Rules Representatives are appointed members from each Kingdom that act as ambassadors for their populace in official rules-change discussions.
Developer Note: This is a simple placeholder. A proper Rules Revision section will be created eventually.
Rules Representative Organizer (RRO)
The RRO is the person in charge of coordinating and overseeing the Rules Representatives, ensuring they are contributing to the various official rules-change discussions and safeguarding the integrity of the process.
Rules As Intended (RAI)
This refers to a way in which the rules text may be interpreted. In this case, RAI means trying to interpret the rules in the way the developers intended them to be played and ignoring technicalities or exploits due to the specific wording that was used.
This is also known as the "Spirit of the Rules".
Rules As Spoken (RAS)
This refers to a way in which the rules text may be interpreted. In this case, RAS means considering how one player might explain a rule to another player without the use of the rulebook. If a player learns something via Rules As Spoken then they may not have received all the little details.
Rules As Written (RAW)
This refers to a way in which the rules text may be interpreted. In this case, RAW means interpreting the rules exactly how they are written in the document, including any technicalities and counter-intuitive exploits that may allow.
Spirit of the Rules
This refers to a way in which the rules text may be interpreted. In this case, considering the 'Spirit of the Rules' means trying to interpret the rules in the way the developers intended them to be played and ignoring technicalities or exploits due to the specific wording that was used.
This is also known as the "Rules As Intended".
Squire
A Squire is a player who is under mentorship from a Knight. Squires may wear a Red Belt to signify their position.
States
Strike
The common term used in this book to describe hitting another player with legal equipment.
Strike Legal
Striking Surfaces
This refers to the surface portion of any Strike-Legal equipment. The physical surface that will impact a player.
Version
Amtgard uses the term 'version' to refer to it's major rules editions. Version 9 is the 9th Edition of the Amtgard Rules.
Wounds
Appendix Equipment Inspection Guide · Equipment Reference Sheets · Weapon Competency Assessments · Glossary
