matching arms on the field

[John Strauss <jstrauss@gmu.edu>]

Poster: John Strauss <jstrauss@gmu.edu>

Regarding the hypothetical case of two persons in a tournament having the
same arms displayed:

Galmr issued two way important clue tokens.

1) Nothing is more important than safety. In that this is not an unsafe
condition, the marshall should not permit his attention to be diverted
from his all-important duty of making sure no one gets hurt. Don't dilute
the marshall's job.

2) This circumstance could occur in period.


Okay, I want to take point two a little further. 

Gosh, guys! What an _opportunity_! Relax and have a little fun with this. 

Perhaps you could get each fighter to hire a herald to argue that he has
the right to bear the arms and to claim the other is an upstart. The
heralds can spout heraldi-babble at each other for a bit, talk about
lineages, et nauseum, then declare it a draw. Then the fighters can fight
over who gets to keep the arms. The loser can apologise and difference his
arms for the day. 

They didn't have the internet or even the US Postal Service in period. 
They didn't have a centralized bureaucracy of heralds, either.  That's
something the SCA and FDR came up with as part of the whole "Jobs for
Heralds" program. Surely, without those things, this sort of thing must
have come up often.  Find out how they handled it and do the same. I bet
it would be fun. 

As to one suggestion I read about bothering the _autocrat_ about the
matter. Well, ummm, c'mon. I think the autocrat is too busy to be called
onto the field to arbitrate dress codes, eh? Settle it like grownups. I am
reminded of the words of the immortal philosopher, Joel Hodgson, who said,
"Tell yourself: It's just a show. I should really just relax." 



-Henry

       John Strauss             |    Henry Best, OP       
       Lexington, KY            |    Dragonsmark, Midrealm      
 -------------------------------+------------------------------
       jstrauss@gmu.edu         |    "Jugate Potentum Gaudii"


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