Longsword general fighting rules

1. The materiality of the hit. The hit must land on the valid target and with sufficient quality, within the time allotted by the director.
2. Hits may be scored with the point (Thrust) or the blade (Cut or Draw Cut), including half-sword strikes.
3. The quality of a hit is determined by the following:

• Edge geometry – Only cuts with the edge may score. Hits with the flat of the blade do not have quality and will not score.
• Blade placement – only cuts scoring with the upper half (foible) of the blade will be considered of quality. Hits with the forte do not have quality and will not score.
• Rotation – Only cuts with significant rotation may score. A simple touching of the target area may not have quality and will not score.
• The draw cut is correctly executed when at least half the sword edge is continuously pulled across the target.
• Half-sword and pommel strikes, if permitted, must be executed with control otherwise the red card will be issued.

5. Gripping of the blade: taking control of the opponent’s blade by grabbing it is allowed, however, if it is done during a cut action from the opponent, the fight will be stopped, and opponents get the point for a successful cut to the hand. The opponent also gets the point by pulling the blade from the grip aka cutting the hand.
6. Illegal strikes – While historically accurate, for the safety of competition, the following techniques are prohibited and will be punished under the rules.

• Any hit with the crossguard, or forte of the weapon.
• Any cut or thrust with excessive force.
• Any cut that originates from behind the fighter: e.g. giant windmill strikes.
• Any strike to a prohibited target zone.
• A pommel strike is performed while holding or otherwise restricting the movement of the opponent’s head.

7. Additional illegal maneuvers

• Wrestling, tripping, bars, and locks are not permitted.
• Strikes with the offhand are not permitted aka hits with a fist or elbow.
• Strikes with the feet are not permitted aka kicks with a foot or ankle.
• Strikes on a fallen opponent are not permitted.
• Takedowns or throws are not permitted.
• Turning the back of the head towards the opponent is not permitted.

8. Disarming an opponent. If a fighter is disarmed or drops their weapon during the combat, their opponent will be awarded a point.

Exceptions:

– if the weapon was let go during a thrust toward to incoming opponent, to avoid a hard strike.

– if the weapon was dropped to grab the opponent’s weapon.

– if the weapon was dropped due to excessive power use of the opponent in push-out-of-boundary action.

9. Afterblows. Fighters must always protect themselves, even after performing a valid strike.  Hits that occur immediately after a valid strike (a.k.a. Afterblows) are legal and will be counted.  Afterblows that occur over one second after the valid hit aka “reaction strike” will be considered late, and not counted.  The director decides if the afterblow is within the time.
10. Double hits. If both fighters make a valid hit at the same time, no points will be awarded. However, in advanced longsword (“Steel Brawl”) if one of the touches lands on extremities, one point will be awarded to the fighter who hits a head or a body.
11. Running onto the sword. If a fighter is in a position with the point of the sword directed at the opponent’s chest or head, the fighter is said to be in the in-line position.  If a fighter is in an in-line position, the opponent must try to remove the threatening line.  If they run onto the sword point without doing so, it potentially creates a safety hazard, and may be penalized under the rules.  A yellow card will be issued if the director determines that the action was unsafe.

However, if a fighter is in the in-line position and thrusts forward or deceives the opponent’s attack, despite being hit, the running onto the sword penalty will not apply.

12. Grappling. While, wrestling, tripping, throws, unarmed strikes, and joint or body locks are not permitted, fighters may engage in grappling.  Grappling is defined as hand play to control the opponent’s weapon, ability to control their weapon, maneuver to gain a favorable position, and attempt to disarm the opponent.  If, during the grapple, the fighting becomes confused or a stalemate is achieved, the director will stop the combat.

Hand touches are not awarded points unless they meet certain criteria (applied to an Advanced Longsword Competition only):

• Hand touches are hits that land on the opponent’s hand or forearm with the tip or the edge of the blade.
• Hand touches are not awarded points unless they meet certain criteria, such as: they are done with commitment, they are not easily countered by the defender, they are part of a good combination, they are technically correct, and they are in perfect balance.
• The reason for this is to avoid forming in HEMA fighters a bad habit of hunting for that small target and forgetting about everything else, including proper defense.
• Poking, searching, tapping, etc. hands are not exactly deadly hits, but most importantly, do not require well-established techniques. They are more of cheating cuts and are not valid.
• Circle City Steel Clash tournament aims to encourage and reward fighters who demonstrate skill, strategy, and martial spirit, not those who exploit loopholes or take advantage of the rules.
• Therefore, hand touches are only recognized as valid hits if they are well-performed, done around the opponent’s blade or cross-guard, with intent and balance, or in good combination with other actions.