Real-World Construction

Physical safety standards for weapons, armor, shields, packets, arrows, and approved building materials.

Real-world construction tells you how to safely build the item. In-game crafting tells you how the item is created in play.
Real-World Construction
Construction Overview

This section covers the real-world materials and safety standards used to build weapons, shields, armor, packets, arrows, and other physical props for play.

All equipment must pass staff safety check before use. Staff may fail any item that is unsafe, damaged, too stiff, too flexible, poorly padded, too heavy, or otherwise unsuitable for combat.

Principle Meaning
Safety First Every item must be safe for repeated use in lightest-touch boffer combat.
Staff Approval Passing inspection is required before an item may be used in play.
Preferred Materials Kite pole and fiberglass tubing are preferred over PVC where appropriate.
Equivalent Materials Linked products are examples. Equivalent materials may be approved by staff.
Weapon Core Materials

Weapon cores must be safe, durable, and controllable. Kite pole and fiberglass tubing are generally superior to PVC, but PVC remains acceptable for certain weapon types when built correctly.

Weapon Type Preferred Core Acceptable PVC Option Notes
Small, Medium, and Long Weapons 1/2" fiberglass tube, such as arc-resistant GPO3 fiberglass round tubing. Example: 43" long, 1/16" wall, 1/2" outside diameter. Staff approval required if using PVC for these sizes. Fiberglass or kite pole is preferred for weight, flex, and durability.
Great Weapons Filament-wound fiberglass or kite pole tubing. Example: FWETFL602084, FL-602 x 84" FWET. 3/4" Schedule 40 or Schedule 80 PVC. Must remain safe, padded, and controllable for lightest-touch combat.
Polearms Filament-wound fiberglass or kite pole tubing. Example: FWETFL602084, FL-602 x 84" FWET. 1" PVC. Polearms require extra attention to flex, tip safety, and control.

Rule of thumb: fiberglass or kite pole is preferred. PVC is acceptable only when properly sized, safely padded, and approved by staff.

Weapon Padding & Covering
Part Requirement Notes
Blade / Body Padding At least 3/4" closed-cell foam or equivalent weapon-safe foam. Foam must not be brittle, torn, crushed, or exposed down to the core.
Thrusting Tips Minimum 2" open-cell foam on legal thrusting tips. Tips must compress safely and must not allow core punch-through.
Pommel Must be padded and safe if it can contact another player. No exposed hard edges or uncovered core ends.
Covering Cloth, tape, latex, or other approved covering. Covering must not make the weapon too hard, sharp, sticky, or abrasive.
Coverage Rule At least 3/4 of the weapon must be padded. Example: a 72" spear may have no more than 18" unpadded.
Weapon Size Chart
Type Length Notes
Small16"–22"Daggers, short clubs.
Medium23"–34"Shortswords, axes.
Long35"–46"Longswords, maces.
Great47"–60"Greatswords, large axes.
Polearm60"–72"Spears, halberds.
Thrown9"–72"No core. Safe foam only.
BowVariesUsed for archery.
Spell Packet—9" x 9" cloth filled with birdseed.
Archery, Arrows & Packets
Item Construction Rule Notes
Bow Blocking Bows may block. After blocking with a bow, step back 3 steps before firing again.
Arrow Build Spell packet with an 8"–12" tail. Must be soft, visible, and safe for contact.
Spell Packet 9" x 9" cloth filled with birdseed. Do not overfill. Packets should remain soft and throwable.
Armor Construction

Armor must look like the type it represents and must cover the chest to count as physical armor. The item does not need to be historically perfect, but it must be safe, wearable, and recognizable.

Armor Type Acceptable Materials Real-World Notes
Leather Real leather, faux leather, soft leather-like materials. Should visibly read as leather armor.
Chainmaille Aluminum or steel ring mail. Must be safe, wearable, and not have sharp or broken links.
Plate Metal breastplate, high-quality foam, plastic, or other plate lookalikes. Must visibly read as plate armor and be safe for contact.
Shield Construction
Part Rule Notes
Shield Body Wood, foam, corrugated board, or staff-approved equivalent. Must not splinter, crack, or create unsafe edges.
Shield Edge Entire outer edge must be padded with at least 1/2" pipe foam or equivalent. Edge padding must be secure and cover all hard edges.
Handles / Straps Must be secure and safe. No exposed bolts, sharp hardware, or dangerous protrusions.
Final Approval All shields must pass staff safety check. Staff may fail shields that are too heavy, unsafe, damaged, or poorly padded.

Shield Sizes

Shield Type Max Size Notes
Small Shield24" radiusCompact defensive shield.
Medium Shield30" radiusStandard defensive shield.
Large Shield36" radiusLarge defensive shield requiring extra control.
Approved Materials Guide

This section can be expanded as staff approves more supplier links and material examples. Listed items are examples, not the only possible approved products.

Use Example Material Example Source Status / Notes
Small, Medium, Long Weapon Core 1/2" GPO3 fiberglass round tube, 43" length, 1/16" wall. McMaster 2197K22 or equivalent. Preferred example. Equivalent materials may be approved by staff.
Great Weapon / Polearm Core Filament-wound fiberglass tubing, FL-602 x 84" FWET. Goodwinds FWETFL602084 or equivalent. Preferred example. Equivalent materials may be approved by staff.
Great Weapon PVC Option 3/4" Schedule 40 or Schedule 80 PVC. Hardware store. Acceptable if safely built and staff approved.
Polearm PVC Option 1" PVC. Hardware store. Acceptable if safely built and staff approved.
Blade / Body Padding Closed-cell pipe foam or equivalent. To be added. Minimum 3/4" padding.
Thrusting Tip Padding Open-cell foam. To be added. Minimum 2" on thrusting tips.
Shield Edge Padding Pipe foam or equivalent edge padding. To be added. Minimum 1/2" padding around outer edge.
Packet Cloth Soft cloth cut to 9" x 9". To be added. Must remain soft and safe.
Packet Fill Birdseed. To be added. Do not overfill packets.

In-Game Crafting

Mechanical crafting rules for materials, recipes, repairs, Masterwork items, and crafting locations.

In-game crafting tells you how the item is created in play. Real-world construction tells you how to safely build the physical prop.
In-Game Mechanical Crafting
In-Game Crafting Overview

This section covers the in-game crafting rules: where crafting happens, how materials are used, how repairs work, and how Masterwork items are created.

Topic Rule
Crafting Location Weapons and armor are crafted at a Forge or in the Merchants’ Quarter.
Miscellaneous Goods Miscellaneous crafted goods are crafted in the Merchants’ Quarter.
Crafting Time Crafting and repair time depends on your Craftsman Tier.
Materials Recipes require specific materials by type and tier.
Repair Repair costs are listed on the item recipe tables.
Masterwork Items Masterwork items require additional materials and provide a listed mechanical benefit.
Armor Mechanics

Physical Armor requires the Armor skill and a visible physical piece covering your chest. Armor values and restrictions are mechanical rules, separate from the real-world construction guide.

Armor Type Armor Bonus Restrictions
Leather +4 No Wizard spells or Dexterity Armor.
Chainmaille +8 No Wizard/Primalist spells or Dexterity Armor.
Plate +12 No spells and no Dexterity Armor.

Adjusting Armor: When Physical Armor reaches 0, spend 5 minutes Adjusting to restore half its value. This may be done once before repair is required.

Shield Mechanics
Shield Type Max Size Restrictions
Small Shield 24" radius No Wizard/Primalist spells or Dexterity Armor.
Medium Shield 30" radius No Wizard/Primalist spells or Dexterity Armor.
Large Shield 36" radius No Wizard/Primalist spells or Dexterity Armor.
Masterwork Quick Reference

Masterwork recipes are listed in the Weapons Recipes, Armor Recipes, and Misc & Jewelry sections. Each Masterwork item has a specific added benefit and usually costs additional or higher-tier materials.

Item Type Example Masterwork Benefit
Small Weapon+2 Backstab Damage.
Medium Weapon+1 Flurry.
Long Weapon+1 Flurry.
Great Weapon+1 Called Damage.
PolearmFree Disengage once per day.
ArmorAdditional Armor value based on armor type.
ShieldResist 1 Destroy per repair.
Where to Find Recipes
Looking For Use This Section
Weapon material costs Weapons Recipes
Armor and shield material costs Armor Recipes
Locks, lockpicks, gems, spellbooks, ink, scrolls, lanterns Misc & Jewelry
Harvesting and raw material descriptions Materials & Harvesting
Physical build safety Real-World Construction