Run by active fighters.
The people writing the rules are the people the rules apply to. Not retired administrators. Not committees that haven't taken a hit in a decade.
Steel Combat Federation · Founded in 2026
Armored combat,
governed like a sport —
not a costume contest.
Fighter-run. Safety named honestly and enforced consistently. Aesthetics left alone.
What the SCF Is
Safety named honestly.
Every rule names the body part it protects and the injury it prevents. If a rule can't be justified by injury prevention, it doesn't exist.
Consistent marshaling.
Transparent finances.
Certified, tested, recertified marshals. A rule applied the same way in California as in Quebec. Every dollar in, every dollar out, posted annually.
The governing idea
“Safety is named honestly and enforced consistently.
Aesthetics are left alone.”
Every safety rule SCF writes names the specific body part it protects and the injury it prevents. We don’t police paint, finish, period, or kit matching.
Why SCF
The Seven Founding Principles
These are commitments, not aspirations. Each one is a thing we will do, or won’t do, with the league we build.
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01
Run by active fighters, not retired administrators.
Every board seat and rules committee seat is held by someone who has fought sanctioned combat in the last 24 months — or is a credentialed marshal in active rotation. When you stop fighting and stop marshaling, you cycle off. The people writing the rules are the people the rules apply to. Full stop.
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02
Safety standards are non-negotiable. Aesthetics aren’t our job.
There’s a real safety floor: gap coverage, edge geometry, weapon weight, helmet ratings, hand protection. That floor is enforced rigorously and consistently at every sanctioned event. Whether your mace head is painted, whether you taped your bolts, whether your kit looks like it came off the same century — none of that is SCF’s business.
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03
Consistent marshaling, transparent calls.
Marshal certification is standardized, tested, and recertified annually. Every sanctioned bout has its officiating decisions logged. Disputed calls have a defined appeal path, and appeal outcomes are visible to the membership. A fighter in California should expect the same rule applied the same way as a fighter in Quebec.
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04
Transparent finances.
Member dues, event sanctioning fees, insurance premiums, salaries, prize purses — all visible to the membership. Every dollar in, every dollar out, posted annually. If money is being moved, members can see where.
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05
Discipline is a process, not a vibe.
Suspensions, bans, and disciplinary actions follow a defined process: written findings, the right to respond, a defined appeals path. No captain finds out a fighter is banned from a Facebook post. No decisions made by whoever happened to be in the right group chat that week.
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06
Built once, built right, built in the open.
Fighter registration, rankings, event calendar, marshal certification tracking, incident reporting — purpose-built for this sport, owned by SCF, operated transparently. Not a Facebook group. Not a Discord held together by one person’s free time. Real infrastructure that survives whoever happens to be running things.
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07
We are not the SCA.
We don’t run historical-accuracy or kit-authenticity events. SCF sanctions armored combat, full stop. There are good organizations for the period work — we’re not one of them, and that’s the point.
The Standards
Every rule names the bone it protects.
Every requirement in an SCF standard protects a specific part of the body against a specific injury. No requirement exists to make equipment resemble any historical period or satisfy any aesthetic preference. A fighter should be able to point at any rule and know exactly which bone or joint it protects.
Example Standard
SCF-SS-01
Lower Leg, Ankle & Foot Protection
Worked example — not on the ratification docket yet
The entire front of the lower leg shall be covered by rigid plate.
Protects against: Tibial fracture. The anterior tibia is subcutaneous bone with no muscle padding and fractures readily on direct impact.
Medial and lateral malleolus shall be covered on both sides of the joint — not just the front.
Protects against: Malleolar fracture. Load-bearing joint, minimal soft tissue, poor blood supply. Fractures are slow to heal, often career-ending, and are struck incidentally in melee, falls, and ground fighting.
The top of the foot shall be covered by a sabaton or equivalent. Required regardless of format.
Protects against: Metatarsal and phalangeal injury. The most-exposed area to incidental trauma — trampling, stepping, dropped weapons — because the foot is on the ground the entire fight.
Protection shall not rotate, slide, or gap under impact or grappling.
Protects against: Coverage that moves out of position protects nothing. Retention is a safety requirement, not a fit preference.
Minimum steel gauge and acceptable alternative materials. [pending committee ratification]
Note: Mail/scale allowance for sabaton coverage is an open committee question. SCF will not assert a position until the engineering case is on the page.
Not Regulated by This Standard
- Historical period
- Proportions
- Panel count
- Articulation method
- Sabaton shape
- Finish & decoration
Meet the safety requirement however you like.
A failure under this standard is stated to the fighter in plain anatomical terms — e.g. “lateral malleolus exposed” — not as an authenticity infraction. Marshals enforce safety gates. Nothing more.
What’s broken
Rules that police paint, while safety enforcement varies event to event.
- Aesthetic compliance dressed up as safety.
- The same kit passed in one region and failed in another.
- Authenticity committees making decisions that should sit with marshals.
- Captains finding out a fighter is banned from a Facebook post.
SCF’s answer
A standard you can point at and verify.
- Every rule names the body part it protects.
- One standard, one ruling, every event.
- Safety calls made by certified marshals, logged and appealable.
- Discipline as written process: findings, response, appeals path.
Marshals
Standardized. Tested. Recertified annually.
An SCF marshal is certified through a written and practical test, recertified every year, and required to log decisions in The Lists. Every safety call is recoverable, every appeal has a defined path.
- Annual recertification — not a one-time check.
- Logged decisions, visible to fighters.
- A documented appeals process. In writing.
- Consistent calls across regions.
Get Involved
Three ways in.
SCF is being built now. The earlier you’re in, the more you shape what it becomes.
Fighters
Register as a founding fighter.
Get a profile on The Lists, vote on standards as they ratify, and compete at sanctioned events the day they go live.
Join as a fighterTeams
Register your team.
Roster, region, and chain of command logged. Eligible to host sanctioned events as soon as marshaling is in your area.
Register your teamOrganizers
Sanction an event.
Free insurance, certified marshals, a transparent safety bar. We bring the infrastructure; you run the fight.
Sanction an eventHave a Say
Help build the league.
SCF is being formed by fighters, for fighters. If you have feedback on the principles, the draft standards, marshaling, insurance, or the structure of the league itself — this is where it goes. Public comments inform what ratifies.