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A new riddle by me - I don't think a line-by-line analysis is strictly necessary, but if you could cover off the various peculiarities that would be super.

I have eleven limbs,
Which can all rotate and swap.
I can slip, I can sweep,
But never with a mop.

I have a few legs,
Sometimes short, Sometimes square,
They've even been called fine -
By those who really care.

I can cover and I can point,
I can have a bovine on a bend!
But I go out to do battle,
Not to make a friend.

My foe, though, is different,
He is armed, it is true.
He comes out to fight me,
But his limbs are only two.

Cut one off, though
And you will quickly see,
Another one replaces it
But not for eternity.

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1 Answer 1

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You are

a cricketing team fielding.

Your eleven limbs are

the players.

The terms

slip, sweep, short leg, square leg, fine leg, cover(s), point, cow corner, all describe fielding positions. Except that, er, so far as I can tell "sweep" is only the name of a thing a batsman does, so I'm a bit confused about that.

Your foe is

the opposing team. Only two of them are playing at a given time, but if you get one of them out another takes their place -- until 10 are out and they have to stop.

And of course

"cricket", like "contest", "curious" and "creatures", begins with a C.

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  • $\begingroup$ Perfectly answered, and correct of course. Regarding the term you're not sure on: r13(N fjrrcre vf n nygreangvir anzr sbe gur fcbg nebhaq qrrc rkgen pbire. Ng yrnfg vg vf va AM - zvtug abg or n tybony guvat.) $\endgroup$
    – Johnson
    Feb 3, 2020 at 1:25
  • $\begingroup$ Ah, OK. My ignorance of this stuff is boundless. $\endgroup$
    – Gareth McCaughan
    Feb 3, 2020 at 1:39

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