FAQ

• What is Pugilance?
• How is Pugilance played?
• What are the various colors and what do they do for the team?
• What Are Basic Rules of Pugilance?
• What is Illegal in the Pugilance Rules?
• What are the Commands?
• How Do You Score Points?
• How safe is Pugilance?
• When and how did Pugilance begin?
• What do I need to try playing Pugilance?
• What will it cost to play?
• Who needs a Sponsor?
• What does a Sponsor do?
• How do I become a Sponsor?

What is Pugilance?

Pugilance combines the basic elements of several weapon-related combat sports into a unified whole. For the purposes of competition, team scores are used.

Pugilance is not a Live Action Role Playing Game. The word role, for the purposes of Pugilance, is in reference to the function a player fulfills on the team. Pugilance is a game but, similar to fencing, is more or less a physical activity and therefore a sport. While fencing teams practice together and help one another, competition is essentially at the individual level. The same is true of Pugilance.
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How is Pugilance played?

Opponents first don appropriate safety gear, and then face one another to wait for the command to begin. Points are scored when either tip of the Battle Pole touches one of the three scoring zones with solid contact. Grazing or glancing blows do not count as scoring touches. The three scoring zones are the chest, the biceps, and the entire head. In all cases, if someone calls “Hold!” the match must pause. Anyone, even someone who is not a judge or Lancer involved in the bout, may call “Hold!” at any time if he or she believes that equipment should be adjusted or any other safety concern should be immediately addressed. The first Lancer to score seven points wins the bout.
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What are the various colors and what do they do for the team?

Colors represent a Pugilancer’s fighting spirit and demeanor. For this reason, each color comes with a special title, which plays into a Pugilancer’s role on a team as well. Armor may be painted and/or individualized by Pugilancers, as long as it is in an easily recognizable shade of the Pugilancer’s color designation and does not cover, block, or any way interfere with the body armor’s scoring zone circles.

Guiding Dragon; Role = Team Leader – Green, a guide to heroes, skilled, ethical, and a good leader. He is responsible for making sure that team members are ready for competition and that they obey all rules regarding battle pole and other Pugilance gear.

Wrathful Flame; Role = Team Training Officer – Red, wild and aggressive, but brave beyond compare. Responsible for the team’s collective fitness and physical conditioning.

Heart of Virtue; Role = Team Scout and Recruiter – Purple, has a valuable knack for seeking out new talent. Responsible for accepting or refusing challenges from other teams. Also responsible for issuing challenges to other teams. Should work together with Terror of Night to keep track of the abilities, names, etc, of other Pugilance teams and/or individual competitors. Pugilancers with a purple color designation are often calm in demeanor, but more than capable on the mat.

Terror of Night; Role = Team Intelligence Officer – Black, simultaneously defensive and aggressive, waiting for the perfect opportunity to attack. Pugilancers with a black color designation are responsible for finding out all that they can about potential future opponents/teams and compiling that data so that it may be made available to all members of his/her team.

Blade of Wisdom; Role = Team Historian – Grey, a strategist on the mat, he/she can adapt to counter his/her opponent’s technique. Responsible for maintaining a written record of wins/losses for all team members, both in practice and in competition.

Undying Spirit; Role = Team Roster Scribe – Blue, he/she never gives up, even in the face of certain defeat. Working together with the Blade of Wisdom and Wrathful Flame, he/she maintains an up-to-date roster of team members, contact information, and is responsible for informing all team members of upcoming training and tournament dates, times, and locations.

Ronin designations are meant for those Lancers who, for whatever reason, are unable or unwilling to be on a team. The ronin designations are:

Dark Ronin – Black& Red
Mystery Ronin – Black& White
Strange Ronin – Yellow
Fire Ronin – Orange& Yellow
Wind Ronin – Blue& White
Earth Ronin – Brown, Green, & Black

Pugilancers are allowed to change their color designations at any time, as many times as they desire. However, they must adhere to the abovementioned rules regarding Ronin lancer and team lancer color designations. Color designations may not be changed during tournament or WPLT competition event.
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What Are Basic Rules of Pugilance?

Contact to scoring zone

Helmet = 1 point
3" arm circle = 2 points
6" chest circle = 3 points

Disarmed/dropped/lost battle pole

-1 point penalty to Pugilancer who lost his/her battle pole

Stepping out of arena

Reset Pugilancers to starting positions

Stepping out of arena X 3

1 point is awarded to the violating Pugilancer's opponent

Pugilancer falls during a match

Opponent has 3 seconds to score a hit.  At 3 seconds, judging official will halt lancers and reset them to starting positions. 

Pugilancer is knocked down by a strike from opponent

Judging Official immediately calls "Hold!" and investigates that the fallen Pugilancer is not injured.  Judging Officials should inspect striking Pugilancer's battle pole for illegal modifications, i.e. weighted tips.  Once Judging Officials are satisfied that fallen lancer is okay to continue, and that striking lancer's weapon is in accordance with regulations, lancers may return to starting positions and continue match.
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What is Illegal in the Pugilance Rules?

! !  Deliberate Illegal Contact

1st time: Verbal warning (may be upgraded to 2nd penalty at judging officials' discretion)
2nd time: Penalty (-3 points)
3rd time: Immediate disqualification from entire competition

! !  Refusing to bow to opponent at beginning or end of Pugilance match

Immediate disqualification from entire competition and violating Pugilancer is banned from any and all Pugilance competition for a period of no less than six months.

! !  Excessive Illegal Contact (as well as "Beating Through")

1st time: warning
2nd time: -1 point penalty
3rd time: violating lancer forfeits match

! !  The Deliberate Use of Illegally Modified Battle Pole, Body Armor, and/or any other Pugilance Gear at Pugilance Competitions

First offense: Immediate Disqualification.  If violator is participating in team or melee competition, his/her entire team will also be disqualified.
Second offense: Immediate Disqualification; Pugilancer is banned from any and all Pugilance competitions for 6 months.  If violator is participating in team or "melee" competition at violation, then his/her team is also disqualified and the team's Guiding Dragon will also be banned from competing for a period of no less than 3 months.
Third offense: Immediate Disqualification; Pugilancer's gear and indicator coin is confiscated, and Pugilancer is banned for life from any and all future Pugilance events or competitions.  If violator is participating in team or "melee" competition at violation, the team will also be disqualified and the team's Guiding Dragon is banned from competing for a period of no less than 6 months and no more than a year, depending upon judging official's discretion.

For a full copy of the rules, join/login now!
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What are the Commands?

"Lancers, to your starting positions!" -- Sends lancers to starting positions.  Also to be called if a lancer's foot, hand, or other body part is past the line or if a lancer is too far behind the line (outside of the 5' starting circle).

"Hold!" - Immediately stops the match.  Can be called at anytime, by anyone in the immediate vicinity of the battle area, that an unsafe condition is observed, i.e. a lancer's mouth guard falls out.  Only judging officials may call "hold!" for contact.

"Lancers, hold!  Stand for decision!" - Can be called immediately after "hold!" whenever any solid contact has been made so that judges may convene and come to a decision on whether or not there a valid point has been scored.

"Lancers, bow!" - Lancers bow to one another.  To be called at beginning and end of match.

"At the ready!" - Lancers assume fighting stances.

"Begin!" - Starts an exchange at the beginning of a match as well as after a reset.

"POINT, (color designation)!" - Awards point to a Pugilancer

"# Points for (defeated color), # Points for (winner's color)!  Match goes to (winner's color)" - Awards match victory to a Pugilancer.
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How Do You Score Points?

Contact must be made by the colored end of a Pugilance battle pole to a designated Score Zone in order to be counted as a legitimate point. 

Scoring Zones on any Pugilancer's body armor are marked by RED CIRCLES. The 6" circle on the chest is worth 3 points. The 3" circles on the biceps are worth 2 points each. Also, the entire helmet area is a scoring zone, and it is worth 1 point.
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How safe is Pugilance?

If you do not wish to experience pain, Pugilance is not for you. When you get hit, it will hurt. However, there is a definite line between bruises, scrapes, and other things that "hurt" and being "injured." All WPL equipment is designed to reduce the risk of injury, though it is still a minute
possibility. Will playing Pugilance ever hurt? That's very LIKELY. Will You be injured? That is VERY UNLIKELY, but within the realm of possibility.

For safety sake, if you cannot see without the use of glasses, we suggest that Lancers wear contacts or sports goggles when you play Pugilance. Everyone is required to wear a mouth guard. Long hair must be pulled back away from the face in a ponytail or bun. Minors will be allowed to practice bout only with other minors in their age group or specially trained, authorized adults, and only near equal ranks within an age group will bout in a tournament. This applies to all age categories. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON SAFETY PLEASE READ A COPY OF THE RULES.

Furthermore, NO discrimination or hazing of any sort will be tolerated by the World Pugilance League. Players found doing so will be punished by the WPL in accordance with the policy set forth by that body.
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When and how did Pugilance begin?

Pugilance started in mid February 2004. It started with Nathan Brown teaching a group of people some basic skills with light weight bo-staves. When the idea caught on, the WPL was created and they went to work creating everything that would later become Pugilance.
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What do I need to try playing Pugilance?

You need minimum safety equiptment (such as a mouthguard), and a willingness to try something new. Your first few times to practice with the group some one will probably lend you the necessary major equipment (Battle Pole, armor, etc). No prior martial arts training is required. Before your first bout, you will be taught everything you need to know to play .
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What will it cost to play?

Once you decide to stay with Pugilance there is a biennial membership fee. Initial Basic Membership for Front Lancers is $0. We want you to try it and be sure this sport is right for you.

Rokkyu Memberships are $25, and help us give you better service and assistance.

At the same time you will also want to purchase your own equipment. A basic starter kit is $120 and includes a standard helmet, shoulder pads, mouthguard, and a weapon. When you buy your kit you will be given a choice of weapon styles.

Each team, should you choose to start and compete as one, is also charged a Membership fee of $50. All of this money goes toward maintaining records and paying insurance costs.

Each player can expect to pay about $130 dollars for eqipment and membership their first two years if they are on a team. Continued membership for team members only costs about $33 every other year. Not too bad a deal considering the average gym will charge you much more than that for a single month's membership.

Lifetime memberships are also available at any time to Lancers of any level for a one-time payment of $400. Lifetime members will receive a special card identifying them as such. This will greatly speed tournament registration, and will be a huge discount on membership dues in the long run.

For those of you looking to start a six-man team, please contact us and ask us about our team discounts on membership and Pugilance certified gear!

For those of you looking to start a six-man team, please contact us and ask us about our team discounts on membership and Pugilance certified gear!
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Who Needs a Sponsor?

All teams composed of minors (persons under 18 years of age) require an adult to Sponsor them. The Sponsor may be a Lancer's parent, teacher, youth minister, or other community member who is willing to help younger Lancers get off to a good start.
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What does a Sponsor Do?

A Sponsor will be the contact person for their Sponsored team or group, and will be responsible for reporting the bouts and wins of the Lancers registered with them. Sponsors are not allowed to bout, with minors or adults, unless they are otherwise a member of the WPL. Even so, only specially trained and authorized adult instructors may bout with minors.

Sponsors will also assist their Guiding Dragons to make sure that all equipment meets the WPL-established safety standards and that everyone understands the rules of Pugilance.
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How Do I Become a Sponsor?

Please click here to go to the Membership Application and Waiver pages. Sponsor's Membership is free of charge, but we must have you registered in our system so you can report records for you Lancers. This membership must also be renewed biennially with a Renewal Application and a new Waiver.

If you have any questions on how to become a Sponsor, please contact us.
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