Belegarth is a
medieval combat reenactment group that uses
foam weapons, or
boffer weapons. Belegarth was formed when disagreements between leaders caused many groups to split from
Dagorhir. Very few changes were made to the
Dagorhir rules and methods, but some name changes were made to avoid legal conflict. One example is
Armageddon, the early summer week-long swordfighting event, which was previously called
Ragnarok under the Dagorhir leadership.
Belegarth is comprised of different
realms. Each realm has a group of leaders who create or alter combat rules as neccessary, arrange practice space, keep track of club membership, and deal with any other issues that come up. Every year the leaders of realms get together for a
war council during the week of Armageddon to make decisions on national
rules and regulations.
Armageddon is one of several events held throughout the year, though most others take place over only a weekend. Armageddon's competitive activities include daily
field battles (where fighters are split into two groups, then fight),
tournaments (which are generally one on one, excepting the
Assassin's Tourney),
competitions (such as Strongest Man/Woman, Mrs. & Mr. Armageddon, mud wrestling, and the Bardic Olympics). Non-competitive activities include
feasts,
merchants, and
classes. Classes generally include weapons checking, or testing weapons for safety and durability in battle; and
heralding, basically refereeing during combat.
Safety is a primary concern in Belegarth's combat reenactment. Though a variety of weapons may be used (e.g. swords, shields,
flails, spears, and bow and arrow sets), all must be made to strict standards to minimize the risk of injury. Also, rules governing placement of hits, force of tackles, and restrictions on grappling maneuvers make this sport no more dangerous than any full contact sport such as
football or
soccer.
Like other medieval reenactment societies, Belegarth participants are encouraged to wear
period costuming and use period items wherever they are able to. While
role-playing is a factor in Belegarth, it is optional.
For more information, visit www.foamfighting.org, the official homepage of the Belegarth Medieval Combat Society.