Wild Beasts’ Match Rules

Wild Beasts’ Match Rules are the customs governing a strength contest used to decide whether Matt or Borka will lead their rival robber bands. Their broad allowance for rough tactics makes the contest a stark test of endurance, while one expressly forbidden blow marks a limit the fighters must respect. The match ends with Matt as chief and Borka retaining a chieftain’s name and his own men under Matt’s authority.

Purpose and Setting

The match takes place on a cold, sunny morning in the open space below Wolf’s Neck. Matt’s robbers and Borka’s robbers form a ring around the two chieftains, who are to establish which of them is the stronger leader. The contest is not merely a private quarrel: its result determines the hierarchy of the joined groups.

The customary name for such a trial is a “wild beasts’ match,” a phrase that reflects the violence associated with it. Women and children are kept away, both because this is the custom and because the fighting is considered unsuitable for them to witness. Ronia objects to being excluded, but Matt tells her she will not be allowed to watch; Noddle-Pete, despite feeling unwell, is brought to the event by Matt.

Permitted and Forbidden Tactics

The rules allow an unusually wide range of tactics. A fighter may use holds and blows, bite or scratch, and kick with bare feet. The contest therefore permits fighters to use almost any means of overpowering an opponent rather than limiting them to a narrow set of techniques.

One exception is explicit: kicking between the legs is forbidden. The rule treats that act as an outrage, and anyone who does it immediately loses the fight. This sharply defined limit distinguishes a foul from the otherwise broad permission to fight roughly.

Application and Outcome

Fooloks gives the signal, and Matt and Borka charge at each other. The match applies the rules in a contest in which both men use force and taunting words; its outcome is recognized by the gathered robbers. Matt emerges as chief, while Borka accepts the result.

The settlement does not erase Borka’s position altogether. Matt calls him a brother and allows him to keep a chieftain’s name and continue with his own men, but declares that Matt is now the mightiest chief and that his word carries greater weight. The rules thus provide a customary means of resolving leadership, producing a hierarchy that preserves Borka’s band while placing it under Matt’s command.