Armored Combat:Conventions - Use of weapons and defensive equipment - General

General

1. You must use your weapon according to its design. E.g. spears can only be used for thrusting, axes for striking along the edge of the blade, etc.
2. You can thrust only with a weapon approved for that purpose.
3. You are not allowed to feint a thrust with a weapon that is not allowed to be used for thrusting.
4. Before a bout where you use a thrusting weapon, you must inform your opponent and marshals that you have a thrusting weapon and show your opponent your thrusting tip.
5. You are not allowed to grasp the striking surface of your opponent's weapon, their shield, bow or crossbow during combat.
6. If your hands are appropriately armored, you are allowed to grasp any part of your opponent's weapon that is not a striking surface.
7. You are not allowed to trap the striking portion of your opponent's weapon against your body as a means of preventing them from using their weapon.
8. You are not allowed to deliberately block a weapon in motion with an illegal target area, eg. an empty hand, knee, lower leg or foot. If you do, you must lose the limb as if it were struck in a legal target.
   1. If you are holding a weapon in an appropriately armored hand, or your weapon has a basket hilt, you can deliberately block with that hand or the basket hilt without losing the limb.
9. If you repeatedly block with your own weapon and it is in contact with your helm, body or shield at impact, the marshal can decide that your weapon is considered broken for the remainder of the bout.
   1. If you are carrying a secondary weapon, or your opponent allows you to rearm, you can continue the bout, otherwise you must forfeit the bout.
10. You are allowed to use your weapon or shield to displace, deflect or immobilize your opponent's shield or weapon, as long as this does not endanger you or your opponent.
11. You are allowed to safely place your shield or the haft of your weapon against your opponent's body to restrict their ability to strike or defend, but you must not strike them with shield or haft.
12. Your shield must be controlled by your hand. A passive shield (not controlled by your hand) is decorative armor, and you must accept blows that strike it as if it was not there.
13. Your shield (when controlled by your hand) is considered invulnerable to all strikes, except those from siege class munitions.
14. If you are carrying and controlling a pavise with your hand, treat it as a shield.
15. If you are carrying a pavise in a manner that does not require hand control (eg. by a shoulder strap), you are not allowed to actively block with it, and if the pavise is struck by a weapon, you must take the blow as if the pavise was not there.
16. A pavise set up on the ground is considered invulnerable to all strikes, except those from siege class munitions. If you are sheltering behind the pavise when it is struck with siege class munitions, you are not considered killed, but the pavise must be immediately dropped flat or removed from the field.