Come join us for our quarterly in house fencing tournament!
On June 8th, Hilt and Helm Fencing Club will gather together to celebrate the life of Benjamin Orr. A long time part of the club and beginner instructor to many, he will be surely missed. It breaks our hearts that we have to say good bye to him and his wife Christina … as they prepare move to Uruguay. That’s right, he ain’t dead but he is moving away. So this Pillowfecht is dedicated as a going away party to our dear friends as they prepare for the journey of a life time.
As with all Pillowfecht’s we have a couple of twists in store! We will be testing out the following alterations to our usual ruleset:
Health Bars - Competitors will have a health bar with 10 points that will subtracted from every time they get hit (regardless of whether or not it is a double)
No Tempo - Instead of using tempo to determine who hit first, once hit a competitor has one step and one swing of their sword to land their blow for it to count as a double. This means that if you go in for an attack, you better guard as you retreat or else your point will turn into a double.
Doubles - The match will end when one or both competitor’s health bars reach 0. If both fighters’ health bars reach 0, it counts as a double loss. During pools this will result in neither fighter getting points for that round of fighting. In elims, this will trigger sudden death and the match will end in victory to the person who gets the first clean exchange.
Pool Scoring - During pools, winners of the match will receive the 10 points plus the difference between their score and their opponent’s. Losers will receive points equal to their remaining health bar. This is to incentivize people to cover their escape after they attack if they want to optimize in the elimination seeding. Alternatively if they aren’t able to effectively attack, it allows them to minimize the blow to their score by prioritizing their defense and retaining as much of their health bar as possible.
Pillowfecht 6 will be an open weapon tournament, meaning that as long as the following criteria are met the fighters get to choose their weapon:
The weapon is approved by Hilt and Helm staff. Common weapons such as steel longswords, rapiers, sabers, messers, small swords, arming swords, katanas, and daggers are automatically approved so long as the weapons themselves are in suitable condition for sparring. Other weapons must pass inspection by Hilt and Helm staff before being allowed as a viable. Egregiously unsafe weapons such as montante, chain saws, and pocket sand will not be allowed.
Both fighters must require the same type of protection. There are 3 types of weapons:
Very Light Weapons: Only mask and gloves are required.
Light Weapons: Full kit is required, but light gloves are necessary.
Heavy Weapons: Full kit is require, but heavy gloves are necessary.
Both fighters must agree on the weapon match up. If one fighter can’t wield a particular weapon because of medical issues or doesn’t feel up to fighting with a heavier hitting weapon, please be compassionate and fight with the lighter hitting weapon. Afterall, consent is the only thing separating “fighting” and “assault”.
See “Da Rules” section of this page for details on the rules of the tournament.
Spectators can attend for free, competitors must pay a $20 registration fee + $10 if they need to borrow equipment.
Light refreshments will be served.
Fighters will be competing for club swag!
1st Place: Hilt and Helm Water Bottle + Ben will miss you the most!
2nd Place: Tote Bag + Ben will miss you, but not quite as much as the first place winner!
3rd Place: T-shirt + Ben will non-committedly agree to message you on discord, but no promises!
Word of warning: Limited time!
If you intend to compete, please reserve your spot on PushPress under “Pillowfecht 6: Ben Voyage Tournament”. This will allow us to put together the pools ahead of time and get right to the tournament as soon as we arrive. If you’d like to simply spectate, please check in under “Pillowfecht 6 Spectator”. We only have 2 hours at the Axe Throwing place so we will need to be judicious about how our time is spent. Again, if you intend to fight in the tournament, please reserve your spot on PushPress.
Equipment
This section explains the equipment required for each weapon set. All fighters will be examined prior to start of the pools to ensure they are in compliance. We have spare equipment people may borrow for an additional $5.00.
Heavy Weapons
Fencing Helmet with back of the head protection
Gorget
Padded Fencing Jacket
Heavy Fencing Gloves
Forearm/Elbow Protection
Groin Protection (we won’t look but for your sake it better be there)
Knee/Shin Protection
Light Weapons
Fencing Helmet with back of the head protection
Gorget
Padded Fencing Jacket
Light Fencing Gloves
Forearm/Elbow Protection
Groin Protection (we won’t look but for your sake it better be there)
Knee/Shin Protection
Very Light Weapons
Fencing Helmet
Gorget
Heavy Fencing Gloves
Groin Protection (we won’t look but for your sake it better be there)
Before the Fighting Starts
Each fight will consist of 2 two fighters facing off against each other. All fighters will be in one of these statuses throughout the tournament.
Fighting Now - 2 people are currently in the ring fighting.
On Deck - 2 people who will be fighting after the teams that are “fighting now” are done. If you take too long (5 minutes), both fighters will lose and we will move on to the next group of fighters.
In the Hole - 2 people who will be fighting after the next 4 people are done. Now is also the time to agree on a weapon set, get your gear in order, and prepare to step in when the time is appropriate.
Sitting around - Everyone else in the pool. Relax, but don’t get too comfortable. You could be “On Deck” or “In the Hole” at any moment so keep an ear out. If you’re going to step outside or use the rest room, let someone know.
Structure of a Match
At the start of each match, one fighter must stay behind the blue line in area of the alley until the director calls “Fight!”
The match will continue on a 3 minute non-stopping clock except if
The director pauses the clock to discuss a score.
A safety hault is called.
When a judge sees a quality hit land, they will call “Point!”
When the director sees a quality hit land, they will call “Halt!”
Judges will lower their heads.
Fighters will stop fighting and return to their sides.
The director will say “Judges!” and the judges will show their scores.
If a judge sees a strike to the arm/leg, they will raise the hand of the team who scored the point to the side.
If a judge sees a strike to the head/torso, they will raise the hand of the team who scored the point above their head.
The director will adjudicate points as they and the judges can agree.
If all judges and the director agree, points are allotted as the collective sees it.
If the director and at least 1 judge agree, points are allotted as they see it.
If neither the director nor any of the judges can agree, the match is reinitiated.
Head/Torso = 2 Points
Arms/Legs = 1 Point
All points scored by the fighter will be deducted from the opponent’s health bar.
Which ever fighter has a larger health bar at the end of 3 minutes the song or their opponent’s health bar reaches 0 wins.
Winners of the match will receive the 10 points plus the difference between their score and their opponent’s.
Losers will receive points equal to their remaining health bar.
If both fighter’s health bar becomes depleted during pools, they both lose and neither is awarded points.
If both fighter’s health bar becomes depleted during elims, that will trigger sudden death. The winner will be the first to perform a clean hit on their opponent.
During the Fighting
Only a “Quality Hit” (defined further in “Da Rules”) will be considered viable means of pausing a match. While paused the time will continue but we’ll try to keep the adjudication as brief as possible.
During the match, fighters may not pass the outside of the blue line closest to the edge of the ring or past the blue lines on either side of the alley.
Doing so once will be counted as a “ring out “and will reset the match.
Doing so twice will be counted as a yellow card and a warning.
Doing so three times will result in the offending fighter losing the match.
Excessive use of force will result in a yellow card. Points can not be scored in the same action that yields a yellow card.
Hitting the back of the head will result in a red card and lose the match for whomever made the blow.
2 yellow cards for the same offense will result in a red card which will cause the fighter to lose that match.
2 red cards for the same offense will cause the offending fighter to be barred from the rest of the tournament.
Quality Hits
A quality hit is performed with the weak of the blade to a valid target by either
a thrust with sufficient force that it would penetrate an unprotected body part if the blade were sharp
or a cut that rotates at least 30 degrees with intention to inflict bodily harm
or a slice that travels at least 1/3rd of the blade’s length
Pommel Strikes are also considered quality hits if and only if they meet the following criteria
The fighter presents the clear capability to perform a pommel strike by raising their pommel in the air above the opponent’s mask.
Does not actually make hard contact with the opponent’s mask. If the director feels the strike was done too hard, the point will be thrown out and the offender given a red card for excessive force. Is this subjective? Yes. So err on the side of caution if you don’t want to be yelled at.
Shouts one of following words to demonstrate their intention:
Bonk!
Pow!
Bam!
Boop!
Other equally humorous words will be considered on a case by case basis.
In-Tempo Hits
If a fighter strikes their opponent, the opponent has one step and one sword swing to land a hit on their opponent. If the hit lands, this counts as a double and both scores will be deducted from the appropriate health bar. So if blue fighter thrusts the chest and gets hit on the hands, blue fighter loses one health point but orange loses two.
Valid Targets
Any quality thrust or cut to a target above the knee will be considered valid. Shins will not count as valid targets only because if people target the shin and accidentally hit the ankle, it could result in serious damage. Targeting the knee but accidentally hitting the shin is unfortunate, but at least everyone will walk away unscathed. No strikes to the back of the head will be considered valid and any such strikes will result in a yellow card.
Grappling
Grappling will be allowed; however, both fighters have approximately 5 seconds to resolve the grapple in a quality hit.
Take Downs
Take downs (neither their set up nor their execution) are not permitted. We have hard wood floors and they are not conducive to having people get thrown on them.
Pocket Sand
Expressly forbidden.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding “Da Rules” please feel free to message us at hiltandhelmfencing@gmail.com.