Just Boy Scout experience here:<div>- flint and steel in perfect conditions and the right gear can be very quick in a expert's hands, maybe 30 seconds before you're adding tinder. I'd consider people living in a pre-matches/lighter world all to necessarily be experts. Of course, using a found (dirty, wet) piece of flint and a crappy piece of steel could turn this into 5+ minutes.</div>
<div><br></div><div>- bow/drill firemaking I've found to be FAR more condition-tolerant (slightly damp punk, breezy, etc.) but slower Generally a I've had more success with a hand-drill technique unless it's damp, then the firebow works better just because you can have a longer-running spin generating higher heat - also easier in very-cold conditions because you can keep gloves/mittens on. Bigger pain in the butt to set up tho and will always take a good 10 mins from start to kindling.<br>
<br>- never tried to light a lamp with that kit; i'd guess it's a matter of making a small fire normally, then lighting the lamp therefrom. Personally, I've always wondered really about torches, because I've never seen a credible medieval-tech torch that's not short-lived, horribly smoky, dangerous to the user in many ways, and throws off a useful amount of light?</div>
<div><br></div><div>IMVHO there's a reason that ANY survival kit includes waterproof matches. Making fire 'by hand' is VERY difficult (nearly impossible without training/practice). There are firemaker kits (high-spark 'flint&steel' kits, etc.) that are novelties that make it a little easier to get sparks, but still it's a major challenge in any but perfect conditions.</div>
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<div style="FONT-FAMILY:times new roman,new york,times,serif;FONT-SIZE:12pt"><font face="Arial" size="2"><b><span style="FONT-WEIGHT:bold">From:</span></b>
<a href="mailto:royce@efn.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">"royce@efn.org"</a>
<a href="mailto:royce@efn.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><royce@efn.org></a><br>
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<b><span style="FONT-WEIGHT:bold">Sent:</span></b>
Saturday, December 3, 2011 3:45 PM<br>
<b><span style="FONT-WEIGHT:bold">Subject:</span></b>
[Runequest] Fire starting questions<br>
</font><br>
Hi, Guys,<br>
I'm a really lousy camper, but my characters
all seem to be competent<br>
at making a camp fire, preparing a torch, and
maintaining an oil lamp. <br>
So I have what might be simply commonsense
questions.<br>
<br>
1. Given good camping conditions and the
typical fantasy RPG fire<br>
starting kit (described vaguely, if at all, as
flint & steel) how long<br>
does it take to start a fire, and then to make a
camp fire?<br>
Also, how bad do weather conditions have to be
before our outdoorsy<br>
characters would despair of making a camp fire?<br>
<br>
2. Given a dungeon crawl and the typical
fantasy RPG fire starting kit,<br>
how long does it take to light a torch or oil
lamp?<br>
Also, what factors, if any, would likely
complicate matters?<br>
<br>
3. What is a medieval fire starting kit? How
does it work? Would it be<br>
cool to have one, or should I stick with lighter
fluid and charcoal<br>
briquettes? :-)<br>
<br>
4. Any good RPG adventure stories about using
fire in dungeons, castles,<br>
etc?<br>
<br>
Many thanks ahead of time.<br>
Sincerely,<br>
Asher<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
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