Cheap(er) Glowing Weapons and Shields to reduce the danger of night fighting?

[Mason]

Do to the fact that some Alliance chapters play on public grounds which may not allow generators, light issues may be a problem during night time battles. Not to mention the little skirmish modules that pop up late at night, or even just running into bandit when on your own?

Combat happening anywhere at any time adds a sense of danger to the game which is thrilling, but at night directly translates to more unintentional blows to the face than anyone is happy to absorb.

I figure the easiest way around it is to wear more armor, but more armor lends to its own set of problems depending on who is wearing it.

The other option is to have weapons and shields which can be easily seen in the dark, yet not *so* bright it destroys the opponents night vision. But these tend to be cost prohibitive, one of a kind, works of art.

Also there is the problem of a unified construction that would pass a safety test in as many settings as possible.

So if these problems were solved, would glowing weapons make your personal game better?

 

[OrcFighterFTW]

Many people in SoMN use in-game light sources, usually glow sticks hanging from the neck through "Liquid Light" alchemy or "Light" spells or small battery powered lanterns, so that this hasn't really ever been a problem in this chapter. We also use solar powered electric torches to illuminate dark areas at night.

 

[Mason]

That's a very simple yet totally effective way around it! I tend to over think things, from time to time.

 

[evi1r0n]

I think this is one of those regional issues, we don't see much in the NW. OR and Seattle use large private sites with lighting. So I doubt it would impact anyone's game in our neck of the woods. We do use glow sticks and such, for personal light sources, however.

 

[Dr_Chill]

I've always wanted to make a weapon using EL Tape (ex: http://www.adafruit.com/products/415). I'm not a boffer-smith, so I don't know how durable/safe it would be, but swinging the "glowing" sword in the middle of a night battle would be epic!

I currently use red EL Wire on the back of my shield which I use at night, but its more for my buddies to see where I have run off to versus providing any amount of "usable" light.

-Ryan

 

[MaxIrons]

At first blush with the product I'd fail a sword with this on a striking surface immediately as it's coated in clear PVC plastic. You might be able to do it on the handle, but that's about it. I'd have to check the application, but it might be okay on the front of a shield.

 

[EC-JP]

el wire on swords have been a thing for about 8 years, and has been used occasionally in most of the East Coast chapters. It was limited to specific weapons, but I think that was more of a "players that got it approved" thing than a mechanical one. Personal experience is that the wire under cloth diffuses it enough to be a general glow rather than a single thin line of light.

Expect to replace the wire at least annually, as evens along the flat, it will get hit occasionally.

And to address the original question, yea, they have made my personal game better, but I've has one of those "unique pieces of art" for a long time.