● What is Dagorhir?: Dagorhir is a Battle-game recreating both historical & fantasy combat by using safe foam-padded weapons & using rules aimed at the safety of the participants. Members enhance the excitement by dressing in the appropriate garb of their medieval or fantasy persona. Fair play, camaraderie, & courteous behavior are the standards of our society.

● How do I find more information about Dagorhir?: You can visit the Dagorhir website, read detailed rules, participate in discussions & check events at www.dagorhir.com. Also check at the end of this summary for your local contacts. This summary in no way substitutes for the complete rules & for experience, it is just a guide to educate the onlooker & give person an idea of what they can expect.

● Who referee's a battle?: The Heralds are there to monitor safety issues & prevent accidents. The actual combat is done on an honor system where each fighter honorably & honestly judges the blow he received as to how "good" it was. It is courteous though to treat each person out there as if they were of heroic strength & to judge blows in the light of good sportsmanship & friendliness. Because of the safety standards of the weapons often the person who fired the arrow or threw the javelin are allowed to call their shots as to whether they were "clean" or not.

● What are the classification of weapons?: The actual construction details of weapons are dealt with on the website but here are the basic classifications. Be sure to talk to an experienced Dagorhir warrior to see examples of each weapon & how they are made.

● What about armor & shields?: Dagorhir has padded safe shields that can not be used as a weapon themselves though they can be used to press an opponent. Shields stop any blow, but will be destroyed by two solid (baseball swing) hits from a red-weapon. Dagorhir allows for any type of armor as long it is considered safe (see the herald for details) & is made from period materials such as 3/16" leather, or steel. Armor will protect against the first hit from a blue weapon in any legal zone (torso, each arm, each leg) but subsequent hits will act as if the armor wasn't there even if not delivered by the same person. All one-handed thrusts from a green weapon are stopped by armor. Two handed thrusts from green weapons ignore armor. Red weapons & yellow weapons ignore armor. The only exception is that head armor will stop a yellow weapon. White weapons, which may only strike heads are stopped by head armor. Armor only protects where it covers.

● Is there a minimum strength blow?: Blows must be firmly, solidly, & cleanly landed. Courtesy encourages the acceptance of lighter blows from smaller people. Dagorhir leaves the recipient of the blow to judge how it felt except in the case of missile weapons which is often called by the archer or thrower since they are made so lightly. A good rule of thumb for missile weapons is that it landed point first & changed its course of flight by at least a few degrees.

● What kind of damage do weapons do?: The damage done by each type of weapon depends on the type of weapon it is & where the blow lands. Here is a chart to help summarize this:

● What about hands and feet?: Any hand holding a weapon, or a foot planted firmly on the ground is not effected by a weapon strike.

● How do you fire a missile safely?: Any arrow shot aimed at a target less than 20 feet away should be done from a ½ drawn bow. Any Javelin thrown at a target less than 10feet away should be done with a light throw.

● Can I grab weapons?: Weapons can only be grabbed at the obvious shaft area where any wielder would obviously grab it. Otherwise grabbing a weapon results in the loss or that limb.

● Can you punch or kick?: There are no punches or kicks allowed in Dagorhir even with padding such as a cestus.

● Can you grapple/wrestle?: Grappling can be initiated only by unarmored warriors in Dagorhir & must be done in a safe reasonable manner similar to High School wrestling. No strikes, arm-bars, joint/nerve holds are allowed.

● What's the best way to learn about Dagorhir?: This guide is just a starting point to help you understand what you are watching. There are chapters, local Dagorhir organizational units who co-ordinate events, etc & Units, which are martial groups that teach people the skills needed in combat & melee. Both of these groups will have people to guide you through understanding & experiencing the wonderful sport called Dagorhir. Here are some contact points for you.

The main Dagorhir page with the national rules, a list of local branches, major event schedules, & a discussion forum for asking questions & seeking guidance: www.dagorhir.com.

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