Fechtschule Sacramento

WHAT

Fechtschule Sacramento is a public gathering for the display of skill and control with the Dussack and Longsword.

The Dussack Tournament is hosted in conjunction with the Davis Historical Fencing Club and is suited for beginner and intermediate Dussack fencers. Synthetic Dussacks from Purple Heart Armory will be provided for competitors in this event.

The Longsword Tournament is hosted with support from the Meyer Freifechter Guild Region VI. This event is an open steel tournament and fencers will be expected to provide their own federschwert from approved suppliers. Blunt steel longswords are not appropriate for this event. 

WHERE & WHEN

Date : Saturday, 24 September 2016
Location: Sacramento Turn Verein,  3349 J Street, Sacramento, CA 95816

Schedule:
Pending. The event will run from approximately 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. with an awards ceremony and competitors dinner to follow. Exact details and time lines will depend on the number of competitors in each event. 

HOW MUCH

Both Events:
- HEMA Alliance Member, $40 ($30 for the first event, $10 for the second, Awards Dinner Included)
- Non-Alliance members $50 ($35 for the first event, $15 for the second, Awards Dinner included)

Single Event:
- HEMA Alliance Member, $30 (Awards Dinner NOT INCLUDED, must purchase separately)
- Non-Alliance members $35 (Awards Dinner NOT INCLUDED, must purchase separately)

Awards Dinner:
- Guests, $10
- Competitors competing in only a Single Event, $10

Spectators:
- FREE

Pre-registration will close September 10th. After 9/10/16 tickets will only be available by contacting the Sacramento Freifechter directly.

Food and Drinks will be available for sale throughout the tournament. Competitors are barred from the consumption of alcohol before or during the event. 

FECHTSCHULE SACRAMENTO - TOURNAMENT OVERVIEW

LONGSWORD

We will be using the rules recently run at Fechtschule New York which are affectionately known as the KnifePoint Rules.

DUSSACK

The Dussack Tournament will be run under the same rule set as long as at least 12 people are competing. 

THE KNIFEPOINT RULES FORMAT

Fencer's will be grouped into pools of ideally 8. There will be 2 rounds of Pool Matches, followed by the Elimination Rounds. Each fencer will have a number of lives determined by the size of the pools.

- When you win a fight, you score a point.

- When you lose a fight, you lose a life.

- If you Double in a fight, you lose a life.

- When you are out of lives, you are out of the tournament.

After the first 2 rounds of pools fencers will be sorted into 3 groups based upon their number of wins. These 3 pools will represent the Novice, Intermediate and Experienced fencers. Each group will then fight until they run out of lives. The last man standing in each group wins their pool.

Each pool will have 4 Corner Judges and 1 Referee. The Judges will be made up from fencers in the pool and Meyer Freifechter Guild Members who are not competing. The top 3 fighters from the Experienced pool and the top fighter from the Novice and Intermediate pools will all receive awards and recognition.

SCORING

All targets, except for Hands are valid.

Intentional attacks to the Back of the Head and Spine are prohibited and a warning may be issued by the Referee for use of excessive force. The First Warning is a verbal notification. The Second Warning will result in the loss of 1 life. The Third Warning will result in expulsion from the tournament. 

All valid targets score the same. There is no point difference.

All fights between fencers will be for one "clean" exchange. If there is a debate or question between Judges about the outcome of the fight, it will be thrown out by the Referee and the match will be fought again. Combat does not end after a strike until the attacker has completed their withdrawal or the referee breaks up the fight.

HIGHEST “BLEEDING” HEAD WOUND RULE

This applies in the case of a Double (simultaneous successful strikes from both fencers) or Afterblow (a successful counterstrike that follows immediately after the opponent’s successful initial strike) situation.

Any strike that falls below the head may be negated by a strike to the opponent's head. The order of strikes does not matter. In the event this occurs:

- The person struck on the head will be counted as a loss.

- The person who delivered the blow will not receive a point for a win, but neither will they lose a life.

Gear Requirements

Dussack

Head = Head protection must cover the entire face and front of the throat for drilling and slow sparring, and the entire head and front of the throat must be covered in competitive sparring. It must be sturdy enough to withstand impacts. There should be no gaps in coverage that would allow a thrust or strike to the face.

Throat = A covering to protect the throat.

Torso = Clothing to cover the body. (Padded gear is unnecessary.)

Groin = An internal or external cup.

Elbow = Hard elbow covering to protect the joints.

Hands = Sturdy gloves or gauntlets must be used to protect the hands and wrists. Gloves must include protection on the sides and tips of the fingers sufficient to resist hard strikes from steel or synthetic weapons. An un-supplemented lacrosse glove is not sufficient. Steel Gauntlets need additional interior padding of some sort. A mechanic’s-style glove has minimal padding and when used inside a metal gauntlet would not be sufficient. Most HEMA-dedicated synthetic gloves or gauntlets, such as Sparring Gloves and Black Lance, are adequate. Finger breaks and hand injuries are the most common and organizers should be conscientious of these risks.

Legs = Hard knee covering to protect the joints.

Feet = Covering of some sort.

Trainer = The trainer must be free of splinters or burs. The tip must not come to a point. Edges must be blunt or blunted. (These are provided by the Tournament).

Longsword

Head = Head protection must cover the entire head and front of the throat must be covered in competitive sparring. It must be sturdy enough to withstand impacts. There should be no gaps in coverage that would allow a thrust or strike to the face.

Throat = A covering to protect the throat.

Torso = Clothing to cover the body. Clothing should be puncture resistant, or three layers.  

Groin = An internal or external cup.

Elbow = Hard elbow covering to protect the joints.

Hands = Sturdy gloves or gauntlets must be used to protect the hands and wrists. Gloves must include protection on the sides and tips of the fingers sufficient to resist hard strikes from steel or synthetic weapons. An un-supplemented lacrosse glove is not sufficient. Steel Gauntlets need additional interior padding of some sort, however a mechanic’s glove has minimal padding and when used inside a metal gauntlet would not be sufficient. Most HEMA-dedicated synthetic gloves or gauntlets, such as Sparring Gloves and Black Lance, are adequate. Finger breaks and hand injuries are the most common and organizers should be conscientious of this.

Legs = Hard knee covering to protect the joints.

Feet = Covering of some sort.

Trainer = The trainer must be free of splinters or burs. The tip must not come to a point. Edges must be blunt or blunted. (Federschwert only, no blunt longswords. These are to be supplied by the competitors.)