RULE ANNOUNCEMENT – FULL GAUNTLETS

Effective AFTER PENNSIC, Section VII(F) of the armored combat rules will amended such that unmodified ice hockey gloves will not be legal for use with a weapon in the Midrealm.

Please note that you may still use an ice hockey glove behind a shield. The marshal’s handbook will be updated ASAP. In the meantime, the new language is attached below.

Section VII(F) – Hand and Wrist Armor:


The outer surfaces of the hand, to one inch above the wrist of both arms and including the thumb, must be covered by one or a combination of the following:

  1. A rigid basket or cup hilt with enough bars or plates to prevent a blow from striking the fingers or the back of the hand. If a basket or cup hilt, shield basket, or center-grip shield is used, a vambrace and or partial gauntlet shall cover the remaining exposed portions of the hand and wrist.
  2. A gauntlet of rigid material either lined with .25 inch (6 mm) of closed-cell foam or equivalent or designed to transfer potentially injurious impact to the surfaces being grasped.
  3. A gauntlet of heavy leather lined with .5 inch (12 mm) of closed-cell foam or heavy padding. (Note: An ice hockey glove is considered to be the equivalent but looks blatantly modern; their use is discouraged.) Street hockey gloves are NOT equivalent, as the padding is lighter than a regular ice hockey glove. Street hockey gloves will be treated only as padding.*

Middle Kingdom Rule:
a. Unmodified ice and street hockey gloves are not legal for use as hand protection while holding a weapon in the Middle Kingdom and are suitable as padding only.
b. An unmodified ice hockey glove may be used as hand protection behind a shield, pursuant to Section VII(F)(4), below.

  1. A shield with a shield basket or equivalent. A shield alone is NOT sufficient, since it covers the back of the hand, but not the fingers, thumb, or wrist. A shield alone may be considered an equivalent to full hand protection only if no part of the gloved hand or wrist is within 4 inches (10.2 cm) of the edge of the shield while the shield is in use.*
  • Middle Kingdom Rule:
    a. Hand protection that complies with Section VII(F)(1-3), above, must be used behind a shield, regardless of the distance from the edge of the shield.
  1. Combat archers, siege engineers, and those using a thrown weapon, need only a half-gauntlet made to the above standards for gauntlets but without finger protection.

YiS,
Sir Marcus
DKEM Armored Combat