[Ansteorra-archery] Combat Archery Authorizations

[Eadric Anstapa]

Jed Tressler wrote:
> So a question for consideration and debate.  The impetuous for this 
> question comes from considering the requirements of combat archery in 
> regard to our other contact activities.
>  
> Why do you have to go to a melee practice to get authorized as a 
> Combat Archer?
>  
First, I am going to give you the obvious response.  Combat Archery is 
only allowed in melee, therefore that is the environment where is is 
BEST evaluated

> Before we jump to the obvious response protocols please consider..
>  
> A new fighter, who has never fought anything besides sword and shield 
> at a small local practice can get authorised at that same small local 
> practice and fight in the war.  He has never even seen a melee before, 
> let alone demonstrated any ability to comport himself on the battle 
> field.  He may not even have been asked questions about the melee 
> rules in his authorization aside from being asked to die defensively.  
> But with his freshly inked temporary authorization card, he can walk 
> onto the melee field, where he will most likely be put in the front 
> lines, where it is the loudest, and for most scariest, carrying a 
> 2-5pound club, and a potentially dangerous shield.  Worse still, in 
> our kingdom, he can grab his buddies gauntlets and glaive and swing a 
> 7 foot weighted lever that he may never have even touched before.
>  
I firmly believe that this is a flaw in the system.  I believe folks 
shouldn't be using a weapon type outside of training sessions that they 
aren't familiar with and accustomed to.  Some time should first be spent 
getting accustomed to the weapon and understanding and becoming familiar 
with it while working with experienced fighters and marshals who know 
the weapons form in a controlled "training" environment.  This is 
precisely why some other kingdoms make you sign off separately for 
virtually every different weapons form.

> How is this fighter less dangerous than a combat archer, who has been 
> asked to demonstrate knowledge of the rules, shown he can call a good 
> blow, demonstrated an ability of control with his shots, and who, if 
> they get "freaked out" and loose there cool essentially cant make 
> there weapon hit harder? 

If he is any less dangerous it is only because he is on the field with 
other people who are wearing armor and can defend themselves.  Combat 
Archers have to be able to make sure that they aren't going to be 
shooting off the field and into unarmored specators.  It is amazing how 
people get wrapped up in a melee and have do idea really which direction 
the are facing and get focused only on the people within a  couples of 
spears length of them.  Combat Archers and Siege Engineers need to 
remain aware of hidden dangers within about 80+ yards of wherever they 
point their weapon.

As Deputy Earl Marshal I had the unenviable responsibility of revoking 
the authorization of a noble lady of Ansteorra who simply could not keep 
her ammo on the field and was shooting int he spectators.  A great lady 
with a warm smile and a kind heart who was a pretty good shot, but 
obviously just wasn't staying as well controlled as she should in 
melees.  If other archers had been having the same problems at the same 
events then perhaps I could have made the arguement that the field 
wasn't setup correctly but that was not the case and the simple fact was 
that it was single specific individual that was having the problem.  It 
really broke my heart to have to revoke the authorization but I didn't 
see any other choice.

> Yes we haven't SEEN him take part in a melee, but for those who are, 
> or have been privy to authorizing marshals, how many times have you 
> seen a new fighter participate in a melee before their authorized?
I've seen lots of fighters in meless before they were authorized.  
Because I have seen melee practices where there were fighters in 
training.  And because back when I started fighting there wasn't such a 
thing as authorizations and cards here.  Ya just showed up at 
Bordermarch Melees, went to inspection, and went onto the field and got 
your ass beaten up on.

>  
> I ask this question because I believe the necessity of a melee 
> practice for authorization is a major block for allot of people 
> joining this activity.  Also, I believe that if we look very carefully 
> at what it is important for a combat archer to demonstrate in that 
> melee, we can actually design authorization techniques that require 
> only a few people (say 5ish) instead of the 20 I see more often looked 
> for.
>  
I have done authorizations with far fewer than 20 people and doubtless 
will again.  However, as was said earlier there is a lot of marshals 
discretion involved.  When there are more people and large melees I can 
expose the archer to more situations in a shorter timeframe.  With fewer 
people in smaller melees it personally takes me longer to convince 
myself that I have adequately evaluated the person and usually means I 
feel I need to see em more than once.

> The other possibility of coarse is that the above mentioned armored 
> combatant IS unsafe, and should not be allowed on the melee field. 
> Which means we need to be talking to the marshalate to required that 
> all combatants be required to participate and be observed in a melee 
> before authorization, or perhaps separate authorizations for single 
> combat and melee or....  it can get out of hand fast.
Again the key difference is how many people that person can reach with 
their weapon.  Even on a melee field the guy with the glaive is pretty 
limited as to how may people he can reach at any one point.  There is 
supposed to be an adequate buffer zone around the edge of the field and 
the marshals should keep the guys with the glaive on the field and the 
spectators off the field.  An archer, is not so limited.  In 22 years of 
fighting the number of battles that I have participated in as an archer 
where I could not reach a spectator with my crossbow if I wanted to can 
probably be counted on my two hands and they are usually situations like 
woods battles where there are no spectators and archers dont want to 
participate anyway because they don't want to loose their ammo in the woods.

Instead of CA authorizations being too difficult maybe the Ansteorran 
process needs to be tightened up rather than the CA portioned loosened.  
In some other kingdoms you have to authorize separately Single Handed 
Weapons and Shield, for Single Handed Thrusting weapons, for Polearms 
(two handed mass weapons), for Greatsword, for Spear, for Two Weapons, 
for Siege, and for Combat Archery.  In those same kingdoms you always 
have to authorize basic Sword and Shield first before anything else.  In 
those same kingdoms TWO marshals are required to do the authorizations 
and they prefer three and at least one of the marshals has to be someone 
who is unfamiliar with the person seeking authorization and not just 
people who have been watching and training them.  Authorizations can be 
held at local fighters practices only if there are two marshals present 
from outside the local group who have come to do the authorizations and 
they have the explicit permission of the regional marshal or earl 
marshal to do so.

CA authorizations aren't too hard in Ansteorra compared to what you go 
through in some other places.  Heck, we don't even force you to go get a 
simple Sword and Board authorization first

Regards,

-EA