[Steppes] Re: Fighter Levy

[ironwyrm at juno.com]

On Tue, 12 Aug 2003 14:15:25 -0500 "Stosh Gypsy" <stoshgypsy at comcast.net>
writes:
> I might want to volunteer, but I would need to know a lot more about 
> what it
> would entail..
> 
> 
> Stosh Gypsy


Hmmm, 

First step GET ARMORED UP!  Wether you make, purchase, or borrow armor do
so early enough to locate and adjust any fitting problems prior to
wearing it in combat.  Battle is not the place to discover some item does
not fit properly.  Poorly fitted or padded armor can negatively influence
your combat experience.

Belive it or not the major item I see plague most fledging heavy
combatants is acquiring a helmet.  That may sound a bit silly but
arguably that is the most important and expensive piece of personal armor
you will require.   Keep in mind unobstructed visibility and breathing
should be very important factors in your choice of helm!

A basic helm will cost you about $50 - $125 wether you make it yourself
or purchase it there is hardly any way to get around that investment. 
Knees & elbows would be the next most costly items to purchase but not as
expensive as the helm, about $10 - $45 a pair.  You can make the rest of
your armor including knees, elbows, vambrances, kidney belt, gorget, and
half-gauntlets from hard materials (metal, thick leather, or some types
of plastic), and the last required item to purchase is groin protection
(some fighters claim it's the most important piece of armor).

So you can expect to spend at least about a $100 or more upon your armor
not including the time required to make, assemble and pad all the pieces.
 I've seen some complete that task in a day, others sometimes take
months, depends on experience and how complex the design is, but simple
designs are always best.  I would suggest that for your first set of
armor spend as little cash as possible to meet the minimum requirements. 
As you learn more about armored combat your interest and needs will
change.  You will be able to make better informed decisions later about
where you need improved protection.

OK, once you have your own armor and you have made that commitment, for
the combat siege engineer the rest is easy and just up to you.  You can
volunteer to crew another's siege engine learning to load, aim, and
shoot, or build your own siege engine and recruit your own crew, it's
your choice!  

But if you get on the field you'll have a lot of fun, just ask any of
these warriors responding on this string, each of them has their own
favorite "there I was" story worthy of bard lore!

If you're still interested contact me off list and I'll be very glad to
assist you in getting started.

YIS

Ironwyrm

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