Were the Romans the only people who made assuredly lethal combat

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>>2774659
The Medieval Tourney can get pretty lethal sometimes. Especially during the Early Middle Ages. Although by the late middle ages and the 16th century it just became this faggy social event.

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>>2774659
Imperial Chinese Lei Tai (Striking Platforms) were pretty much mostly non-lethal Proto-MMA rings set up in a town/city square for public entertainment.

However in some dynasties, Chinese law only allowed duels to take place in public areas like bridges, crossroads, and such for the purposes of gathering large numbers of witnesses so the thing wont be misconstrued as murder. So sometimes, a Lei Tai event could get pretty interesting whenever a duel between two quarreling parties will take place, effectively turning it into a bloodsport venue.

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>>2774671
>

>>2774698
>Oh my gawd! Oh my gawd! Don't do it! That man has a family!

>>2774659
Yeah. At least the Etruscan prototype was supposedly for "religious or ritualistic" purposes.

>>2774698
is he about to get a ring out?
is this where virtual fighter and tekken come from?

>>2774659
Gladiators wer basically rasslers. Scripted "combat" was hardly lethal.

>>2774777
>At least the Etruscan prototype was supposedly for "religious or ritualistic" purposes.

it was that way until the early republic.

there was a kind of gladiator that was meant to fight to the death on the tombs of powerful men as a form of funerary celebration.

by the time of classic Rome it was 60% scripted wrestler shit with no deaths, 30% glorified executions, 10% actual bloodsport.

>>2774671
So many people were dying in tournaments during parts of the middle ages that the popes repeatedly tried to ban them. Especially after the crusade era started, the idea of Christians killing other Christians for sport while the infidels gathered strength influenced their decision to announce that anybody who died in a tournament automatically went to hell.

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>>2775224
This.

Roman gladiatorial combat was not nearly as deadly for the actual gladiators as Hollywood likes to portray.

Gladiators cost what would be the equivalent of a modern sport scar to train, promote, and equip, so having them kill each other constantly would be retarded.

Most of the people who died in the arena were prisoners or worthless slaves.