More fighting 2025 – Longsword tournament

Last edited: 11-06-2025 19:48

General:

• 18 year or older only.
• It is expected that everybody competing is well trained in sword fighting/fencing to maintain control and structure to prevent themselves and others from maintaining injury.
• Everybody goes to the elimination after poulefase
  • People that reached higher in the poulefase also get a better situation on their elimination bracket and may fight one fight less than others depending on the amount of people in eliminations.
• Semi-finals as the bronze and gold finals will be fought with 3 rounds.
• Poule sizes may and will be aimed for 8 people with a minimum of 6 and a maximum of 9
• The results may and will be published online on our website and to HEMA-ratings
• Clean hits only
  • Get hit without getting a double or (late) afterblow
  • Only solid hits count.
• The referee (main judge) has total control over the results.
  • The side judges helps the main judge has their second eyes.
• The weapons will be provided by the organisation.

Match

Time

• Time will always be stopped when there is a break
  • We try to discuss the least as possible during the match
  • Last exchange will be called after time is up
  • If time is up before last exchange is called: Then the last exchange will still be fought.
• All matches will take 2 minutes
• Elimination matches will take 2 minutes
  • If there is no winner at the end of the match there will be 30 seconds added to the match
    • You have to win with 2 points or more
  • If there is no winner after that the first person that scores wins.
    • You have to win with 1 point or more
• Semi, Bronze and Gold finals will have 3 rounds of 1,5 minutes
• There is no maximum of points

Scoring

• 2 points for:
  • Strikes, thrusts and slashes to the head and neck
  • Thrusts to the torso
  • Domination by:
    • Gaining a superior position*
    • Unarming the opponent
    • The opponents falls or let’s their sword go
• 1 point for other body area’s
  • Arms, shoulders, legs
  • Strikes and slashes to the torso
• Minus 1 point for showing or hitting the back of head or any other forbidden area
• Minus 1 point for hitting the floor

*All points are decided by the referee (main judge)

Tempo

• Clean hits only
  • A clean hit is a hit made without getting hit within two tempo’s
  • One tempo can be seen as one movement (one attack and a second attack
    • This means you have to already begun your first attack before you’ve got hit to also make the second attack count.
• Tempo is up to debate for the judges. If there is doubt if it was in tempo, then it was within tempo and the afterblow counts.

Afterblows & Doubles

We want to have beautiful and great fights to tell our offspring. If you are not protecting yourself when your fighting you probably will not have a good fight.

• Afterblow counts if it is within tempo and there will be no score called for it.
• A double hit is an attack that happened within the same tempo as the other fighter with one or both fighters not trying defending themselves.
  • The reason to call out these attacks is to prevent fighters/fencers from creating bad fighting/fencing. A referee can penalise a fencer for not caring about their defence.
• There will be no points given to any fencers for afterblows and doubles.
• Double hits can be and are never in your favour, try to prevent them!

Allowed actions

• The only permitted scoring actions with a weapon are the following:
  • Stab with the point
  • strike or cut with the cutting edge
  • A thrust with the pommel on the mask is only a scoring action if performed from a dominant controlling position where the thrust can be indicated without actually hitting the mask
    • At least one hand must be on the grip or pommel of the weapon at all times to perform a scoring action.
• The attacks must be executed with the right amount of intent and intensity; merely making contact is not enough, and poor contact, bad edge alignment, flat strikes, insufficient follow through of a thrust etc. will result in ‘no quality’ and therefore no points. Judges are permitted to flag ‘no quality’ without stopping the exchange; see the semaphore mentioned earlier.
• The fighter/fencer must continue to defend themselves until the referee stops the fight.

Wrestling/domination

• Wrestling is allowed, provided that throws are executed with control.
  • Wrestling can result in points if a controlling action and a scoring action with the sword are executed.
  • This action can also be indicated instead of continued if there is clear dominance. If there is also a clear dominant position in a wrestle, where only one of the fighters/fencers can use the weapon and the other is unable to defend themselves, this will also be seen as a scoring action and will be awarded with 2 points.
• Should either fighter/fencer manage to lift the other off the ground with both feet without being hit, this will also be considered dominance and awarded 2 points.
• Should either fighter/fencer lose its weapon or fall to the ground without being in a wrestling position, this will be seen as a scoring action and the opponent will be awarded with 2 points
  • Excluding wrestling/tripping/pushing actions caused by the opponent.
• Should both participants lose their weapons, there is no longer a sword fight and the exchange will be stopped and the fight will be restarted.
• If, in the referee opinion, a wrestle action lasts too long without a dominant position being established or quality scoring actions taking place, the referee is free to stop the fight and restart it.

Communication during the match

• The fighter/fencer is allowed to speak to the referee. This occurs after the contestant raises his hand outside of an active fighting situation, and the referee walks over to the contestant to engage in conversation. During a discussion between the fighter and the referee, the referee must call a time-out. The final decision of the referee , after the aforementioned discussion between the contestant and the referee, is final. Further protest may result in violations or disqualification. The contestant is only allowed to speak to the referee for the following reasons:
  • The fighter/fencer thinks that there has been an incorrect count in the allocation of points (a so-called ‘recount’).
  • The fighter/fencer does not feel safe because of the opponent’s behaviour and wants to address this.
  • The fighter/fencer wants to forfeit.
  • The fighter/fencer has health complaints.
• The fighter/fencer is allowed to forfeit the fight at any time. This will result in an automatic loss of that fight.

Disallowed actions

Sportsmanship

• Arriving too late to the match
  • You have to be ready before the match starts.
  • Be watchful for the “on deck” call of the tablecrew or check online the fighting order of the poules/ eliminations
  • Swearing, cursing, or yelling.
  • Making wild gestures at the jury or judge.

Savety

• Intentionally turning the back of one’s head away.
  • If your opponent could demonstrate (by moving the point/blade back and forth) that they could hit you while turning the body. They will get the full 2 ​​points.
• Attacking a forbidden target
  • Back of the body
    • Including back of the head
  • Foot/ankle
  • Crotch
• Actively trying to push the opponent out of the ring. ‘Bullrushing’
• Choke holds or breaking techniques.
• Offensive use of the crossguard
• Keep fighting after “break” has been called
• ‘Extreme’ attacks, that is: all otherwise legitimate attacks that are used with too much force, so that they unnecessarily increase the risk of injury. The limit for this lies with the referee and/or tournament manager.

Damage

• Throwing with the sword or hitting the floor/objects
  • Beside heavy safety reasons for people trying to deflect the sword and hitting tournament crew/visitors, it will damage the floor and or other objects

Communication

• Speaking to the table crew or jury members. For speaking to the referee, see the heading ‘permitted actions’ on communication during the match.
  • You only speak to your referee (main judge) or coach. While poules/eliminations are active.

Ring out

• Should either fighters/fencers step out of the ring with both feet, the fight will be stopped and the opponent will be awarded 1 point.
  • Unless: before there was a ring out, a point is scored. Then that score counts and the ring out is ignored.
• It is not allowed to push the opponent out of the ring by force (the so-called ‘bullrush’).
• In the event that both participants step out of the ring with both feet at the same time, the fight will be stopped and restarted. The clock will not be stopped.

Warnings and penalties

• The referee can give warnings and penalties if illegal actions are found. The first offence will be given in a warning. The second offence in the fight results in a penalty of one point deduction. The third offence results in automatic loss of that fight. These offences are kept by the scorekeeper.
• If a fighter/fencer has received three offences in a previous fight, a loss due to too many offences in a previous fight will result in immediate disqualification from the tournament.
• The tournament manager is authorized, in consultation with the referee, to skip this system of violations in the event of extremely aggressive behaviour and to immediately disqualify a participant.
• De rechter is bevoegd om naar eigen inzicht niet-toegestane handelingen, of handelingen die de grens van het toelaatbare benaderen, niet te bestraffen met een overtreding, maar de deelnemer hierop eerst te wijzen. 

Coaching

• The fighter/fencer is allowed to have a maximum one coach in their corner
• The coach need be standing still, sit or kneel in the corner. They cannot walk around the field and come out of their corner.
  • This is of course outside of safety reason when the fight has been stopped.
• The coach has the ability to speak for their fighter/fencer. And are allowed to (just like the fighter/fencer) to ask for gear, medical time outs. By calling “safety” or raising their hand.
  • The coach or fighter/fencer has two minutes to fix their gear.
• The coach is allowed to actively give verbal instructions to their contestant during the fight, as long as this is within an acceptable volume and the coach does not attempt to influence the judges. Should this occur, the referee may decide that the coach must remain silent during an active exchange. Should the coach be unable to do so, the referee and/or floor manager may deny the coach access to the fight arena, and if that does not work, deny him access to the hall.

Gear requirements

General

• All gear must of course be in a proper state of repair. There must be no visible skin on the fighter/fencer. The referee reserves the right to disqualify gear at any time, possibly in consultation with the tournament manager.
• These are minimum requirements. More protection, such as a hard breastplate or thigh protection, is allowed and in some cases even recommended, but not mandatory. Note: extra protection of metal, such as steel armour plates, is not allowed.
• If there is any uncertainty as to whether a specific piece of gear is permitted, please contact the tournament manager jeroenvanwordragen697@gmail.com on the day itself, as this may be refused.

Equipment

• Mask with back of head protection, no (heavy) damage such as burst mesh or deep dents.
• A sturdy padded fencing jacket with a minimum of 350 Newtons, without gaps or openings, without through-and-through tears or holes. If the jacket can be opened at the front, there must be an overlap on this opening, which does not allow a sword point. The jacket must have a collar, which covers the throat. The jacket may have ventilation holes or mesh on the back, provided that these holes are not so large that a sword point can fit through them.
  • The 350N or higher has to be certified.
• Heavy longsword gloves
  • Only gloves with hard (plastic) plates.
• Forearm protection
• Elbow protection that covers the entire elbow with hard plate.
• Knee and ship protection with hard plate
• Toque (mandatory for gentleman, recommended for women).
• Gym shoes mandatory.
  • The shoes have to be clean and not give of any marks to the floor.

The sword will be provided by the organisation for this tournament for the 2025 edition:

Weapon

Longswords provided (HF-Armory: Federschwert classic)

• Material: 65G high carbon spring steel, hardened to 51-53 HRC
• Length:134 cm
• Length of a blade:100 см
• Length of handle with pommel: 34 cm
• Length of a crossguard: 27 cm
• Weight:1520g +/-
• Flexibility: 16-17 kg

Comando’s or actions by staff

Referee (main judge)

The referee is the director/composer of the match. While the actors (fighters/fencers) are the most important persons a good director can/may help in making the match more fun/exiting. The referee has much freedom to help the fighters make the match go better. The most important task of the referee is to give the fighters the best experience and chances.

Safety:

A referee is the main judge of a field hand has the head responsibility to the safety of themselves and everybody in and around that field. The referee can call break for safety reason and should ask his crew to speak out safety calls to help them when needed.

Medical:

If a medical emergency occurs, there can and should be a call for “First aid” or “EHBO” to make sure the fighter/fencer is help as soon as possible. The fights will be stopped immediately. Or there should be enough first aid personnel available to keep on fighting when a accident occurs.

Gear

If a piece of equipment malfunctions there can and should be a call for “Safety!” to prevent any accidents.

Gear check

The referees are responsible for the gear check at the beginning of the poulefase to check if there is no malfunction in the gear. See more in the gear requirements.

Comando’s:

“Table ready?”

The referee checks/asks if the tablecrew is ready. The tablecrew will give a thumbs up or any other signal (that is known to the referee) to state that they are ready to begin or resume the match.

“Judge ready?”

>The referee checks/asks if the side judge is ready. The side judge will bring their arms up or give any other signal (that is known to the referee) to state that they are ready or resume the match

“Fighters ready?” or “Fencers ready?”

>The referee checks/asks if the fighters/fencers are ready. The fighters/fencers will nod or give any other signal (that is known to the referee) to state that they are ready or resume the match.

“Fighters salute” or “Fencers salute” <- A mandatory requirement to do for every fencer to show sportmanship

>The referee demands that the fighters/fencers salute each other.

“Fence!” or “Fight!”

>The fighters/fencers will begin/ their match.

“Break”, “Stop” or “Halt” is shouted when the first action has been seen or a “hit”, “savety” has been heared by the staff.

>Bother fighters/fencers finish their last attacks and keep defending and facing the opponent until they gain significant distance to maintain any injuries. The Tablecrew will say “Time out” to stop time until the fight starts again.

These are many of the even more different ways to stop a fight. We asks referees to stay with one choice and make this clear to the fighters/fencers because this is the one thing all fighters/fencers should listen to. The tournament’s preference is “break” if there is any discussion needed. We want to make it as easy as possible for all parties.

We also recommend to use your referee pole to visually put in between both fighters/fencers.

“1 or 2 point for blue or red fighter/fencer!”

>The Referee calls out the points to the tablecrew. And the tablecrew will repeat the sentence back and put in the score. The fight will resume shortly after.

“Warning/penalty blue or red fencer for: [reason]”

>The referee will call out a warning or penalty for the given fighter/fencer. The referee will make sure the fighter/fencer understands the reason and why it has been given to prevent it happening in the future. The tablecrew (in timeout) will write down the warning/penalty with the given reason.

“Last exchange”

>The referee after they have heard “Time is up” from the tablecrew will call out that this exchange will be the last of the match (time has run out)

“The winner is red or blue fighter/fencer!” or “The match has ended in a draw!”

>At the end of the match the referee will call out the end result.

Judge (side judge)

A judge is the biggest help of a referee to see where they cannot see. If a referee cannot see because of any reason at all or they have a disagreement the referee can rely on their side judge to make sure mistakes are prevented and the match gets scored as close to the truth as possible. There is a big discussion if more eyes are better or less eyes are better to determine what has happened during a fight. We have chosen: “Less is more” by asking experienced judges to help with judging the match.

The semaphore:

Flag up is 2 points, flag to the side is 1 point, flag straight down is ‘no point’. Both flags straight down is ‘no judgment yet’. Flag diagonally up in front of the body is ‘no quality’. Flags crossed in front of the body, pointing down is ‘unclear’. Both flags crossed behind the body is ‘no point made’. The judge also can verbally communicate with the referee if needed, but as few as possible.

Comando’s

“Hit!”

>The referee will stop the fight by calling “Break” or anything similar.

The “Hit” commando will be called out if the judge will see a scoring action.

“Ring out!” One of the fighters/fencers has stepped out of the ring with both feet.