Safety

Rule Book

Please read through this section carefully before play and follow the rules outlined below. Failure to do so will result in a possible ban from Age of Essence Events.

We ask every member of AoE to fill in a form that gives us your personal details including an emergency contact and any medical conditions. It is imperative that we have this information so we know what to do and who to contact if a problem occurs. Please inform us of any changes so that we can keep the forms up to date. If you take medication please make sure it is with you and inform a first aider and ref. Age of Essence is not responsible for the possesion of or administration of any medication.

It is very rare that a serious injury occurs but there is always a designated and trained first aider and a designated driver to get an injured person to A&E if required. If it is very serious then there is always access for an ambulance to get to us.

The most important call we us is “MAN DOWN” This call is ONLY to be used if someone is actually hurt and needs medical attention or has lost their glasses. This could happen in many ways but if this is called its important you know what to do in the situation:

* If you are not one of the designated first aid members then you move out of the way, get down on one knee and point toward the injured person or the direction of the “MAN DOWN” call. Make sure to give the injured person plenty of space.

* If you are one of the designated first aid members then you follow the pointed fingers towards the injured person and follow your training.

LARP is a contact sport. By agreeing to participate in combat you are responsible for your actions and safety of yourself and others. We advise wearing appropriate clothing such as padding or armour as you will be hit due to the nature of the sport. You participate at your own risk. Alternatively if you do not wish to take part in combat you can go non-combat. This means you will not be hit but also cannot hit others or even carry weapons.

Please remember that the aim of combat is not to injure others and so you need to soften your blows when fighting. This is called pulling your blows. You may be reminded to do this during an event. Sometimes a combat situation can get intense and so we ask that if you feel that it is too much then step away from it. Sometimes you may give or receive a hit that is too hard or hits an invalid place which can be dangerous. If this happens tell the person, apologies should be made and then carry on. There is always a ref on hand to notify but more often than not these situations are usually resolved between the people concerned.

The head is a viable target for combat, however it must be done safety. This should be a softened strike aimed vertically downwards towards the top of the head. You are not allowed to stike at the side of the head.

If a member of the Ref team tells you to do or not to do something then you MUST follow that instruction. We say it for your safety and the safety of others. This could involve moving in the environment, freezing combat or stopping it completely. If a ref believes you are being unsafe with a weapon you will be asked to stop combat and repeated occurrences may result in a weapon ban.

Reporting out of character issues is very important to us and we take it very seriously. Do not be afraid to come and speak to us about any concerns you have regarding safety or any other issues. We will listen, investigate and resolve problems as effectively as possible. Racism, sexism and other concepts within the game are present and will be acted upon where relevant, however bullying, racism and bigotry out of character will not be tolerated and will be addressed quickly without hesitation.

**LARP Weapon saftey**

Before each event all LARP weapons will be checked to make sure that they are safe to use and you may be asked to demonstrate that you know how to use them properly. If you are not sure on how a weapon should be used then a ref will be available to explain and demonstrate how to use it properly.

**Daggers** **–** Daggers can be no longer than 12 inches from hilt to tip. Daggers cannot be thrown.

**Medium Sized Melee** **–** Medium weapons are between 13 to 42 inches long. Anything over 42 inches becomes a great weapon. The most common weapons are swords, axes, clubs and hammers. They can also be wielded 2 handed.

**Great Weapons –** Great weapons are usually sized between 42 inches and 5ft. These huge weapons must be wielded in two hands for safety. These weapons come in several forms, often in the shape of great Swords, axes, battle axes and hammers.

**Pole Arms –** Pole Arms are long weapons usually over 5ft. The most common pole arms are staves often used by spell casters to store magic. You must wield pole arms with 2 hands.

**Spears (stab safe) –** Spears are typically between 4ft and 6ft. They can be dangerous and players will be asked to go through an additional weapons competency check to make sure a spear is being used safely. These weapons are the only weapons that can be used to thrust in combat.

**Bows/Crossbows –** Bows and crossbows will need an additional weapons competency test to make sure they are being used safely. They cannot exceed 28lbs of pressure.

**Arrows –** You are responsible for your own arrows and are expected to check the integrity of each arrow before and after each shot. The arrows used at Age of Essence must be flat head arrows. Round head/golf ball arrows are not permitted.

**Thrown weapons –** Thrown weapons must be coreless. This means that they will not likely cause any harm despite how hard they are thrown. They must be able to be fully compressed. You cannot stab of thrust with these weapons.

**Shields –** We are a system that allows shield bashing. However this must be done safely. Do not shield bash without first going through a competency check with one of the refs.

**Special Weapons -** There are new LARP weapons being developed all the time. Some may require competence tests depending on the nature of the weapon and some weapons may not be used in Age of Essence. At present flails and round head arrows are the only weapons not permitted.