The Great Unpleasantness

We were talking at Love Revel this weekend and the topic eventually turned to the difference between northern and southern fencers. Is there a difference? It doesn't really matter. Northern fencers think there is, that's all that matters.

For many northern fencers, southern fencers are seen as arrogant and stand-offish, who make looking good more important than being good. By contrast, many northerners see themselves a friendly and open people who care more about who a person is than how they seem. I won't touch on the validity of these views, as I said all that matters is that there is an "us versus them" feeling in Northern Artemisia. This feeling isn't helped by the fact that there haven't been any home-grown fencers to rise above the gold scarf - and relatively few to reach that exalted rank.

But the northern fencing community has adapted to this perceived lack of recognition. We have substituted warrants for awards. Marshals at Large are treated as if they wore the White Scarf while warranted Marshals take their place next to their brothers, the Gold Scarves. Yes, it is true that a warrant does not make a skilled fencer, but in a region lacking in officially recognized skilled fencer, people will gravitate towards where the authority and knowledge lies: the marshals. The only downside to this is that those who have earned their white scarves are lowered in importance to that of a local marshal: yes, what they say is important, but where's their warrant?

Probably not the best environment for improving north/south relations. Even if that was the only difference in perceptions.

The other difference is in how northern fencers view the top fighters in both regions. They see White Scarves as skilled duelists with a collection of students. While I doubt anyone can take offense at that view, it is in distinct contrast to how the skilled northern fighters are seen. The skilled northern fighter is seen as a commander, with an army at their disposal. The best example of this is Cormac, and his Ever Growing Army of Darkness. Cormac can, at need, field an army of (I think he said) eighteen skilled melee fighters (the same number of fencers Artemisia fielded at Estrella two years ago). Even among the skilled fencers without a standing army at their beck and call (His Lordship Albion, Baron Antoine, etc.), all they need to do is ask, and the Northern masses will rise up to their banner. And what's more important, they will lead their troops, and lead them effectively.

Call it Dahoud's Legacy.

Of course that cultural focus on melee minimizes the chances of a Northern White Scarf - after all, a soldier is not a courtier - but until Northern fencers raise the importance of tournaments to above that of melees, there is no way to improve the odds.

Our Friend: The Buckler

As I mentioned last year, the buckler is not the normal off-hand choice in Artemisia. Most people, it seems, prefer to go with the additional offensive capabilities found in either a dagger or a second sword. And while it's true that bucklers do not have any offensive capabilities at all, their incredible ease of use more than makes up for it. I mean, you can't get much simpler than a buckler to use. You want to know the secret to using a buckler effectively? Here you go:

Punch the other guy's sword.

That's it. You don't get much simpler than that. Even my two-year-old has figured it out - although he still tends to shield-bash. Oh, and don't hold it flat against your arm, hold it perpendicular to it. That's Using A Buckler 101 & 102.

Of course, that still leaves the question of what type of buckler to use. The standard seems to be an 8" to 10" (50 to 78 square inches) round, but it's not your only option. Artemisia does not have any size or weight limits on bucklers - either minimum or maximum (although I have been advised that shields should be period appropriate, so no scutums if you're Elizabethan). I've seen as small as a 6" (28 square inches) round and as large as a 24" (452 square inches) round (it was actually an armored fighting shield). The smaller bucklers have the advantage of speed while the larger ones are slower but offer more protection. Because of this, the smaller bucklers are better suited to to the speed and skill required of tournament fighting while larger bucklers are best suited for the simpler staying alive of melees. For myself, I have two bucklers: an 8"x16" (call it 140 square inches) mini-kite for tourneys and an 18"x24" (about 350 square inches) oval for melees.

If you want to get a buckler for tournament use, I'd recommend either a 10" (78 square inches) or 12" (113 square inches) round. If you want one for melees, I'd recommend something in the 14" to 18" (153 to 254 square inches) range. If you're looking at getting a single buckler for both tournaments and melees, I'd recommend getting a 12" to 16" (113 to 201 square inch) round. They're not as fast as the smaller ones and they don't offer quite the protection of the larger ones, but they're still quick and will still offer good protection.

But what about fancy shapes, you're asking? For the most part, shape is a matter of preference: it's surface area that matters. For example, my mini-kite comes in at about the same surface area as a 13" round. Where it starts to matter is when the buckler is corrugated, dished, curved or has wings. Corrugation and wings are designed to direct blades into the buckler, making it easier to "hold" your opponent's blade on the buckler. Dishing or curving around the hand has the opposite effect. A dished or curved blade will redirect your opponent's blade off your buckler and the more dished or curved, the more it redirects the blade. My mini-kite is curved just like a full-sized kite shield, but I got around the problem of it pushing blades off by wrapping it in a fairly soft leather. When an opponent's blade strikes the buckler, the leather compresses, "grabbing" the blade. Likewise, if your buckler has a rolled edge or has an edge that's wrapped in leather or hose, that will help keep the blade from sliding off the buckler.

Now while I realize that off-hand weapon choice is a matter of preference, just remember how hard it was to get pasts those two honking-big bucklers in the front row at last Uprising's gate battle.

Annual Maintenance

I don't know about you, but the warm, sloppy days of winter turning to spring leave me chomping at the bit for the upcoming event season. I find myself longing to be out in the sun, facing my friends on the list field. But spring isn't quite here yet and the weatherman's still threatening snow, so what to do? I take an afternoon and go over my equipment from top to bottom, making sure its ready for the warm weather when it comes. But what to look for during this once-over.

Weapons:

Probably the most importants pieces of our equipment to maintain is our swords and daggers. To do this, you need to strip your weapon completely down - remove tip, tape, guard and pommel. Once completely apart, go over the blade, looking for rust on both the blade and the tang. If there are any rust spots, remove them with a green scratchy pad. Then do the same thing, looking for nicks. This time, remove any nicks with a needle file. NOTE: If there are any cracks in the blade, it is unserviceable and must be replaced. Once all the rust and nicks have been removed, give the blade a light coating of oil (gun oil or machine oil work well).

After you've gone over the blade, inspect the tip. If the tip is worn through or beginning to crack, it needs to be replaced. If you can see the line made by the blade, it is approaching time to replace the tip. If you do replace the tip, a trick you can do to extend the life of your tips is to put a small metal washer inside the tip. This spreads the impact of a thrust over the entire face of the tip and eliminates the line caused by the bare blade impacting the tip in thrusts. After inspecting or replacing the tip, put it back on the blade using new tape.

Next, you need to inspect the guard. Again, look for any rust spots, nicks, cracks or broken welds. Rust spots and nicks can be cleaned up the same as the blade: using green scratchys or needle files. If there are any cracks or broken welds, bring the guard to your local marshal to see if it is still serviceable.

After you've inspected the guard, go over the grip. Sand down any nicks that may cause slivers and replace any leather washers you may have. After you've finished the inspection, reassemble the blade.

Bucklers are simple to inspect. All you need to do is make sure the edge is smooth (if wood) or that the edge is completely covered and the edging is attached firmly and make sure the handle is securely attached. Likewise, inspecting batons is fairly easy. The best way to do it is to remove the covering and make sure there aren't any cracks in the PVC tubing and that the end cap is securely attached before recovering the baton. If there are any cracks, the baton is unserviceable and must be replaced.

Armor:

To inspect your fencing mask, run your fingers over the mask while looking for any splits or separations in the mask. If there are any splits or separations in your mask, it is unserviceable and needs to be replaced. If you find any dents in the mask, push on them with your thumb from the inside. If you can push them out, your mask is unserviceable and need to be replaced. If you cannot push the dents out, leave them there. Hammering out the dents will weaken the mesh and shorten the life of the mask. If your mask has a removable bib, wash it. If your mask has an attached drop, make sure that it is still attached securely and that it doesn't have any holes in it.

Go over your gorget, looking for any broken straps or buckles or missing rivets and replace them as necessary. Then make sure your padding is securely attached and that it still meets requirements.

You need to check your gloves for any rips or tears and make sure that no seams have split. If your gloves have any of these problems, they need to be replaced.

The process for inspecting all of your cloth armor is the same. First, wash it (be honest now: when was the last time you washed your coif?). Then go over the garment, looking for rips, tears, split seams, missing buttons or threadbare edges. Replace any missing buttons. If your armor has any other problems, fix them and begin planning your next set of armor.

That's all there is to maintaining your equipment. This is also a good time to make sure your field repair kit is well-stocked for the upcoming tourney season.