Water bearing in Drachenwald
A small „Handbook“ to make it easy

by the Interestgroup of Waterbearers in Drachenwald

Water bearing is one of the “invisible” services in our fair Kingdom. Most of the Time water bearing is organised just the day the Event starts, this “Handbook” should inspire Marshals, Stewards, Water bearers and all who take care of our fighters to organise themselves simple and with fun.

How to get one of the kingdoms most wanted specialists for liquid concerns: A Waterbearer!:
Anyone can be a Water bearer. At Wars minors must be 16 or older for water bearing on or near the field . If you are between the ages of 14 and 16, you can work at the water bearer's point, and away from the field.
You must also meet all kingdom and corporate minor waiver standards.

You should be familiar with:

  • The rules of the List ( special Ref.Rule 1).
  • A minimum of first aid knowledge - specially about dehydration, heat exhaustion and heat stroke.

Authorisation :
We don’t have authorisations for Water bearers in Drachenwald. Water bearers must stay off the lists field while combat is in progress. They may enter only if they have been called and only at the direction of the marshals.

Water bearer in charge:
Ask the Event steward or the Marshal if there is a water bearer in charge. Sometimes we don’t have "W.I.C´s". Then you may ask the marshal in charge if he is organising the water bearing.
Hint for Stewards and Marshals: Look for a person who is willing to be the W.I.C and announce it, so all people who like to volunteer will have a contact person.

Water bearing Points:
Set up Water Bearing Points. At Wars it is useful to set up two water bearing points, one for each side. Water Point is where your refill station will be.

Here is a list of supplies you might need at a Water Point:

  • water containers to refill the bottles
  • a sunshade
  • a table
  • Plates
  • Mugs (only useful for tournaments or light-fighting)
  • Waterbearer banner
  • Sunscreen
  • Knife
  • Duct tape
  • Gatorade
  • Food

Informative Meetings:
This is a suggestion for future W.I.C.'s, Marshals and Event Stewards to organise informative meetings for water bearers. Such meetings should be held in the morning of the first day of fighting. It can either be announced at Court or put on to an info sheet passed out at the "troll" booth (one of both is recommended). Find a herald to run the announcement and hold the meeting in your camp or some other central location.

Suggestions for the meeting:

  • Who's Who - Introduce all water bearers and let the beginners know, who they can ask for help. Decide who will be the Water Bearer in Charge for the time of the ongoing event. Find out who will be the Chirurgeon in Charge and the Marshal in Charge.
  • When Things Are - Make sure everyone knows when to muster onto the field, when the battles are scheduled to begin, what kinds of battles will take place (bridge, resurrection, open field) and when they are expected to be fought.
  • Where Things Are - Make sure everyone knows the location of the Water Points as well as the location of the water source, where the battles are going to be run, the Autocrat's Point, the Court area and any other places that might be necessary to be known.
  • Questions - Let people know, that the only silly question is the one you don't ask. Also remember to tell people where to go and whom to talk to in case of problems or questions during the day.
  • Time of Closing Meeting - This can be a very short meeting. It is a good way to find out what went well and what didn't while the event is still fresh in people's minds. Make sure everyone knows when and where the meeting will take place.

A Waterbearers Equipment:
This list covers what is commonly used and what has worked well in the past. Please feel free to come up with your own ideas.

  • Water containers for 20 litre (important for wars)
  • Clean 1,5 litre or 2 litre bottles (Amount: 5 per every ten fighters).
  • Bowls - for serving pickles and fruits
  • Bags - Hint: The bottles should be covered with cloth. Denim or trigger cloth or something else that will stand up to wear is recommended. Take care to use light-coloured fabric for the bags; a darker fabric will attract the sunlight and heat up the liquid inside the bottle, making it less desirable for a fighter to drink.
  • One cutting board (minimum) and one fairly sharp knife
  • Trash bags
  • Gatorade (or other powdered sports drinks).
  • Tables for each fighting area
  • Coolers
  • Fruit - peeled-sectioned oranges, peeled-sliced bananas (turns brown quickly so slice at last minute), sliced-cored apples (same as bananas). (20 pounds of oranges will sustain approximately 50 fighters for two melee battles.)
  • Pickles - always a favourite with the fighters. Slice them in half, then quarters, then slice the quarters into quarters.
  • Nibbles - like nuts or raisins
  • Chocolate
  • Hoses and straws
  • Spray bottles - Never spray anyone without permission
  • Duct tape
  • Bags for your own stuff
  • Sunscreen
  • Baldrics and Banners with the water bearer device

You could find more information’s about equipment on the Web-Site of the water bearers.

Information you should know:

  • What is the fighting schedule? What time will you need to have water bearing points set up and torn Down. Make sure there will be no delays.
  • How many lists will there be? How many water bearing points will you need? If the fighting is on the same field and relatively close you might only need one. If the fighting is widely spread out you will need to have separate points for each fighting area.
  • Where will these lists take place?
  • How many fighters are typically present? This will determine the amount of Gatorade, fruit and pickles you will want to have handy.
  • Where are the closest water sources for your water bearing points?

Watering the fighters:
Give it to them is the important thing! Most of the fighters don’t have in mind that they have to drink. It will be a never ending discussion why and if… don’t discuss! All fighters are old enough, our job is to service the water.
If someone says he is not thirsty, let him go the first time. If you come back around and he still won't drink, find out if he has gotten water from someone else. If not, politely insist. We find, "Oh, please, just a small sip," to be pretty effective. If he still refuses, don't push it, but keep a close eye on him for the heat. As in anything, approaching this with patience and a lot of smiles will get you a lot farther than: "Hey, buster, I said you have to drink!"
Also don’t forget to water the marshals and your self.

When Problems arise:
Problems with fighters should be turned over to the nearest marshal. If there is an Injury contact the Chirugeon.

Marshalete and Chirurgeonate Support:
The role of a water bearer is to provide the Marshalete and the Chirurgeonate with backup support. Our main job as backup to the Chirurgeonate is to recognize symptoms of heat stroke and exhaustion and to watch for problems caused by blows to the head.
When you see armour that looks as if it is broken or flapping, always mention it. If it is broken, the fighter will thank you. Especially, check for broken straps and obvious bare spots around the neck. Familiarizing yourself with the armour regulations will help you here.
Hint: Your local knight marshal should have a copy of the handbook - read it!

Safety:

  • Drink plenty of water and Gatorade.
  • Use sunscreen liberally.
  • Wear comfortable shoes.
  • Wear a hat.
  • Take breaks!
  • Keep the water bearer stuff clean.
  • Wash hands before preparing fruits.
  • Cover food against rain and sun.

We hope this inspires you to participate in water bearing.

 

- The Waterbearers of Drachenwald