Live Weapons Marshal

Archery Marshal Badge

Kingdom Live Weapons Marshal
Dafydd ap y Kynith, OP

Email: liveweapons@gleannabhann.net

Current Marshals

A list of current marshals is available at Hall of Records – List of Live Weapons Marshals

Purpose

The bow and arrow, the axe, knife and spear — these weapons were mainstays of medieval life across many cultures. Whether for bringing food to the table, defending homelands or simply testing one’s skills against worthy opponents, they were essential tools of the age.

In the Current Middle Ages, live weapons offer a chance to hone medieval martial skills off the battlefield. Competitions such as the Royal Round, Inter-Kingdom Archery Competition and Thrown Weapons Inter-Kingdom Challenge let us test our abilities against ourselves and citizens of other kingdoms.

Reports

Handbook

The current handbook is available in the Gleann Abhann library, in the Live Weapons folder.

Ranking System

Royal Round scores can be reported at Royal Round Reporting Form.

In order to encourage participation in archery in the Kingdom of Gleann Abhann, and to recognize those archers who excel at this skill, a system for ranking Gleann Abhann archers is hereby established. While these are not official Kingdom awards and carry no precedence, they will stand as a means by which archers may recognize each others accomplishments.

An archer’s rank is based upon the average of his or her best three Royal Round scores submitted during the preceding 12 months to the Deputy Earl Marshal for Live Weapons (or that office’s designated scorekeeper). Scores may be submitted from Royal Rounds shot at an event and in the presence of a warranted Live Weapons Marshal. At least two persons must be present at the time of the Royal Round (including the LWM), and the marshal must submit the score(s) with the following information for each archer: Date, event, location (group/kingdom), SCA name, mundane name, bow type (longbow/recurve/crossbow), bow weight, scores at each distance, and total score.

Scores may be submitted electronically to: [NEW EMAIL ADDRESS COMING SOON PLEASE CHECK BACK], and the marshal who oversaw the shoot should keep a paper copy for 12 months, then discard it. For those without internet access, the score can be posted to the Scorekeeper, listed after the DEMLW in the Regnum in The Ambassador.

Only two scores may be submitted for rank from any given event, and they should be reported within a reasonable period of time after the event (two weeks at most). If an archer is allowed to shoot more than two Royal Rounds at an event, he or she may submit the best two results. Royal Round scores may be submitted from out-of-kingdom events provided that a warranted archery marshal from that kingdom supervised the shoot and submitted the information.

Consult the following table to determine the archer’s current rank:

AVERAGE SCORE RANK TASSEL
0-24 Archer White
25-44 Bowman Black
45-64 Marksman Blue
65-84 Woodsman Red
85-104 Yeoman Gold
105+ Toxophilite Gold & Green

An archer’s rank can change as their skill level (or luck) changes. An archer’s average score is not rounded off; for purposes of advancing to the next rank, a fractional score is counted as the lower of the two ranks (i.e., 24.9 is still an Archer, 44.9 a Bowman, etc.). Archers who fail to submit three Royal Round scores in a 12-month period will be dropped from the rankings.

However, those archers who reach the rank of Toxophilite will be allowed to carry that title for perpetuity, in honor of their noteworthy dedication and accomplishment. The title is derived from “Toxophilus,” the archery manual published in 1545 by Roger Ascham, tutor to Edward VI and Elizabeth I. Toxophilite societies – archery clubs – are still around today, and use of the term reflects upon those who seek to achieve the mastery of the bow and arrow that Ascham wrote about.

Archers who move to Gleann Abhann from another kingdom, and who hold a rank from their previous kingdom, will be afforded the courtesy of the equivalent Gleann Abhann rank, based on their most recent average; as soon as they submit three Royal Rounds as a Gleann Abhann, a new average will be calculated and the appropriate rank assigned.

The tassel is a traditional element of the archer’s kit (it was used to clean off arrows) and a standard emblem of an archer’s rank in many kingdoms. When an archer’s rank is confirmed by the DEMLW office, the archer may procure a tassel of the appropriate color and about 12 inches in length. The knot at the top of the tassel will be made of alternating bands of red/black/red to symbolize the archer’s Gleann Abhann heritage. It is the archer’s responsibility to obtain the appropriate tassel.

Rankings will be posted on the internet and will be published quarterly in The Ambassador. If an archer believes his or her ranking incorrect, they must contact the scorekeeper with the correct information, verified by the marshal who ran the shoot, before the next list is published in The Ambassador. After that, the score will stand.