Codex Belli

Codex Belli is the name of a set of rules for medieval combat reenactment first issued in 1999 and then revised by the German umbrella group Kämpferliste in 2002. The Codex Belli is allegedly based a 1977 ruleset by Colin Richards.

The Codex Belli, literally Laws of Battle, are a ruleset for unchoreographed semi-contact combat with medieval reenactment weapons, which differ most notably from realistic replicas in that they have rounded edges and points. The goal of this ruleset was to create a common standard for safe fighting practices as lower-scale reenactment events grew larger and a trust-based system became insufficient with the increasing number of reenactors involved.

Numerous German medieval reenactment groups have adopted the Codex Belli as a standard ruleset for combat reenactment, in preference to custom rules based on other groups, such as the SCA. Among other things, its application at major national reenactment events has led to an increasing popularity, although critics have attempted to establish different systems.