Medieval re-enactment as martial arts styles

[Brandy]

Originally Posted by Anthony

In any case, most of the time you're talking about 1-2 points max spent across a couple sport skills. Yes, there are people who spend years working on being better, but the vast majority don't, and there probably isn't a sufficient critical mass to create a high skill sustained sport culture.

I sometimes wonder if I'm the only one who thinks of GURPS the way that I do. Sometimes, on the forums (and I know that I'm replying to Anthony, but this is really a general comment not especially true of him) it seems like people respond to these queries as if GURPS were some sort of "reality engine" and not a tool for playing a game.

My answer to the OP is "it depends upon what you're trying to do". For me at least, my approach to "how to represent SCA fighting styles" (SCA is the only re-enactment group with which I have more than passing familiarity) would depend greatly on the game that I was running.

Am I running a bunch of modern people transported via the Banestorm to Yrth? If I am, then my re-enactors probably will be as Anthony describes -- just 1 or 2 points in Combat Sport and leave it at that. In this setting, they will probably need to learn genuine combat skills ASAP and the fact that a character was an accomplished SCA fighter would soon fade to background.

On the other hand, if I were running (for some reason) a game where the characters were SCA heavy combat fighters and the game centered around the characters attending SCA events and fighting, then I would expect many more of their points might be spent here. It would be much more important, in this case, to have their SCA sport skill serve as a point of differentiation between the characters, and their fighting styles and preferred techniques would be relevant to play.

In my way of thinking, the same real-world ability might be represented in GURPS by different traits (and skill levels) depending on the setting. Am I the only one who thinks this way?

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by Joseph Paul

Anthony - What are you calling 'maneuvers'?

He may mean Techniques. They were called Manuvers in GURPS 3rd Edition.

[Polydamas]

Originally Posted by Dangerious P. Cats

I'm working on a campaign where the players are historical reenactors going to various events and doing reenactors things (the campaign will be a bit tung in cheek). For the campaign I was thinking about starting up various forms of medieval re-enactment combat as martial arts styles and thought I should ask the forum hivemind for suggestions.

The SCA guys definitely recognize a variety of styles for their kind of club and shield fighting alone. You might want to incorporate "style quirks": many groups don't practice defending the shin against cuts (because they ban attacks below the thigh) or the face against thrusts (because they wear open helmets so ban attacks to the face). Boffer fighters would lack familiarity with sharp or blunt steel weapons.

Originally Posted by Anthony

Sorry, techniques. In any case, most of the time you're talking about 1-2 points max spent across a couple sport skills. Yes, there are people who spend years working on being better, but the vast majority don't, and there probably isn't a sufficient critical mass to create a high skill sustained sport culture.

If course, you could say the same for many groups who use weapons professionally. Outside of organizations which enforce regular training and practice, it is often people who practice a fighting sport who get really good at fighting.

[Joseph Paul]

Tongue-in-cheek - There is a history of attitudes between groups. There are groups that use rebated steel but pull their blows to prevent injury and their are groups that use wooden wasters and armor to prevent injury from more forceful blows. Each thinks what the other does is, respectfully, just mad. Jousters take the cake though. Getting hit with a rebated lance and you have to fall off! I have ridden and I have fallen off. It is a long way to the ground.