So you memorized the rules.
You're safe on the range
You can identify and use the weapons discussed
earlier.
Heck, marshal willing you can sidearm throw
blindfolded with your back to the target.
Left handed.
Yes, in your own backyard you are a god/goddess
among throwers thanks to the hours of practice at your own personal
target. The one thing you need now can be found only at a
competition among equals, whose eyebrows you'll raise with your display
of unearthly skill. What you'll find at the competition is a big,
healthy slice of humble pie. This will be promptly served after some
thrower you've never seen before struts up to the range, leaves
everyone in the dust, and disappears before anyone learns anything
about them. People involved in college football seem the best adjusted
to this phenomenon.
Marshals are encouraged to come up with new
competitions so we don't get bored running the same ones over and over.
Remember to gauge your competitors when setting up. "Gleaning for
Honor" or "Combat Runs" (see below) are a bad idea when you have all
newbie throwers unless you want the herald to announce the winner had a
score of 1 and no other points were scored with 11 other throwers.
A basic competition will have several targets on a
range with different layouts on each target. Here are some of the more
popular target layouts in the East:
Bullseye: It's tough to beat an old classic. Put in as many rings as
you wish with varying score values (don't put in so many to make
scoring difficult.) Standard practice that eliminates a lot of
arguments is if the weapon sticks in more than one ring, score to the
higher value (see above about not putting in too many rings.) The
"rings" can be square, too.
Viking
Braid Toss: Use a small paper plate or unwanted CD as the
center, and run yarn/twine/string out from the center of the target at
3 o'clock, 9 o'clock, and 12 o'clock. Cutting the braids gives "x"
points, cutting the plate or disc subtracts points.
Dartboard/Pie
Slices: Use masking tape and divide the face of the target up
into equal (or unequal, you are the marshal) slices. Label what each
slice is worth, cutting the tape subtracts "x" points. Note the tip or
center of the slices doesn't have to be symmetrical.
Multiple Circles:
Put one circle in the center of the target, and one in each corner (an
example of this target can be seen in the "bad throws" picture in Basic_Throwing.html).
Assign score values. Make the circles or squares any pattern you wish.
Here are some more complicated targets:
Vertical Strip: A
1/2" strip of ribbon 12 inches long is tacked vertically to the face of
the target, an unwanted CD is taped centered over it. Cutting the
ribbon scores, cutting the CD loses or subtracts points. A more heinous
variation of this is to use a styrofoam manequins head. As the weapon
rotates the handle could well hit the manequin before the blade cuts
the ribbon.
These are not basic competitions. Save this for
Baronial Champions and the like:
Combat Run:
This is as close to the "Hogan's Alley" target shooting competitions
that thrown weapons can get. The targets are set up in anything but a
straight line, often the location where the thrower can stand is marked
(it will be an odd distance from the target and probably at an angle.)
Weapons the thrower has never used before are placed at the throwing
station of each target. The thrower is timed through the course,
beginning when the marshal starts the clock. Run to each station and
use the weapons provided. Stop the clock when the course is completed.
How the thrower's time relates to the score, and their placement in the
competition is up to the marshal. One note of caution: no weapons can
be carried while a thrower is running.