Quarterstaff, and use of spear butts in larp fighting.
A couple of questions come to mind:
Interested to hear people’s thoughts on this both in terms of is it possible, and secondly their use in on the battlefield on a large scale.
I use a staff in battle, although I’m a battlemage so I don’t use it in conjunction with Heroic calls but with spells. I use either end to strike my opponent, although prefer to use one end as the other is closer to the hilt.
As for Spear butts, I’m not sure. While monstering when using my staff I was told by a ref I could use it as a great weapon but couldn’t use it to call IMPALE as per the heroic skill. So I would assume it’s the same for spear butts? No sharp edges = no Impale.
As with any LARP weapon, I’d say it’s a case-by-case basis; don’t strike with a spear butt if it’s not sufficiently padded or if doing so could cause injury somehow.
Also remember the one second rule, so no flurry of blows with each end of the weapon.
Of course, I am not a ref.
When one mentions ‘the butt’, to my mind this means a thrusting motion. Unless you have a thrust safe butt (very weird mental images!), you would simply be swinging with one end of a weapon and striking with it.
I use both ‘ends’ of my spear, because it is strike safe along the whole length, but I would never consider myself as using the butt, because of the action.
I’ve used the butt of mine a few times, in a simple way to Jo Kata only thrusting with the stab safe spear tip. But in more general terms I rarely see quarterstaff style fighting so hence really interested in who uses it!
From the Wiki:
"Can I use weapon master to wield a quarterstaff?
Both the battle mage and weapon master skills can be used to wield a staff in combat. However, neither allows the wielder to employ heroic calls using a staff (see below).
Can I use a quarterstaff and make heroic calls?
A staff is not a suitable phys-rep for a lethal battlefield weapon capable of delivering a heroic blow nor a suitable physrep for a magic weapon such a magic spear."
I’d assume the same rules apply for the shaft of a spear.
Thrust Safe Butt is the name of my band.
You cannot use a staff to call IMPALE with because it is classed as a Staff not a Great Weapon. Staffs can have pointy metal or crystal bits. As quoted above, there are no further restrictions on what part of the weapon you have to hit with to make it count. A greatsword is no better than a daneaxe.
If your physrep is of a big axe, hammer or sword, you can do IMPALE with it if you have the means to call IMPALE.
If you have a physrep of a spear, you can use it to call STRIKEDOWN as a heroic call if you have STRIKEDOWNs. Could be knocking them over, could be a physrep for tripping them up. Again, no restriction on what bit you have to hit with.
It is best not to assume that there are rules when rules are not stated. That way lies complex “folk rules” by rumour. By all means decide you are only going to do hero calls with the metallic bits, but it’s not a rule.
(Not a ref, but I have read the rules extensively as I used to use heavy armour and a mage staff)