Boffing
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- For the slang term for sex, see Sexual intercourse.
Boffing is the act of fighting with padded weapons called boffers. Boffer groups construct weapons such as swords, bows, catapults, and other armaments. Boffing is done purely for entertainment, as an alternative to modern fencing and kendo, and is practiced across the globe.
Boffing is often associated with live action role-playing games, as well as the Society for Creative Anachronism, since many of these groups incorporate boffing into their activities.
The general goal is to score a touch of some kind with your weapon upon your opponent, but the rules of boffing vary widely from group to group, with disagreements on such points as:
- 1. Padding on the weapon, and amount thereof
- 2. Legal target areas
- 3. Grappling
- 4. Weapons and designs allowed
- 5. Swing strength needed to score a valid hit
- 6. Roleplaying elements included
The most common reason for these disagreements is liability, since lawsuits and waivers often shape a group's outlook on safety.
Many boffing groups have their own methods of construction for their weapons and shields, but most sword construction follows the same basic principles. Most are built by attaching foam, often pipe insulation or camp padding, to a core of PVC, fiberglass, bamboo or wood, and covered with cloth, duct tape or latex to both soften the blow and protect the padding. The padding is most often attached to the core using either more duct tape or some sort of glue, most notably DAP contact cement or spray adhesive. Most also have some sort of handle and/or pommel construction for grip, safety and aesthetics, and some use a golf club shaft as a core, leaving the finished weapon with a convenient grip already attached.
[edit] See also
- Amtgard
- Belegarth
- Dagorhir
- Darkon
- Kingdom of DragonWynde
- Society for Creative Anachronism
- The SCP
[edit] External links
- Foamfighting.net, a portal to many different boffer groups
- Boffer and Boffing FAQ at TheAlmightyGuru.com
- A Boffer fighting class offered by the Livingston Recreation Center at Rutgers University (Fall 2005)
- The Freestyle Dueling Association, Yale University boffer group
- RealmsNET.net, Home of The Realms, a New England–based LRPG group
- The SCP, a boffing group based out of Kent, WA with expansions in Eugene and Salem Oregon.
"A Complete Introduction to Boffing" By Steve Johnson at RealmsNET.net
