Bardic Bedlam in Aston Tor Sunday, May 9 2010

Well I made it out to an event finally.  Life kept getting in the way of my other travels.  Unfortunately there were no knights so I could not advance my quest but we did manage to do a little fighting at the event.  I also shot a little archery which I rarely get a chance to do.  The feast was excellent.  Some of the best tasting dishes I’ve had in the SCA. 

Origionally I was going to go to Saint George in Oak Heart but I had some friends who wanted to go to an event but could only day trip so I chose the even 45 minutes away rather than almost three hours away. 

Here is a video I made at the event.

Next event is Melees and Madness which should give me more oppertunities to advance my quest.

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Newbie Knightly: My attempt to make an early 14th century “knightly” SCA harness for as little money as possible. Thursday, Apr 29 2010

 

$80 Great Helm

Recently there has been some discussion on the Armour Archive about some changes being made to the SCA rules of the list regarding covering blatantly modern material and equipment. The usual arguments have cropped up about how hard and expensive it is for people like the much lamented “poor college student” to put together a nice looking harness. Apparently some folks even think a tunic and baggy pants are too far out reach for these poor kids. Many of the regular member think this is a stretch.

Violen, an archive member, issued this challenge.

 Any reasonable hobby has a price point to enter. The SCA is no different. If your having trouble figuring out how your going to cover your basic needs like keeping a roof over your head or feeding yourself then taking up a new hobby probably isn’t such a hot idea. It has been my experience that getting started in a typical hobby usually runs a minimum of $200-$500. That’s a fairly decent budget for a starter kit and there is no reason that starter kit can’t look decent with a little extra research and effort. If you scrounge a bit you can even trim that.

 I recently picked up a helm (the one pictured above) from another Armour Archive member Hjalmr for $80.00. It’s a very basic early 14^th century great helm which should be suitable for creating a knightly impression from the first quarter or so of the century. I’m planning to build a “knightly” looking kit around it for about $100 minus the gauntlets.  When I’m done I will add in the price of the helm and gauntlets for a total harness cost.

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My Estate: Armour Wednesday, Mar 31 2010

In an effort to get prepared for this war and tournament season I decided to take stock of my armour.  Not just what I am wearing on the field at the time but also the “best” pieces I have in my inventory.  Of course there are several piece here that are not padded or strapped but they could be set up fairly easily.  With any luck I’ll have at least an extra harness or two put together by the end of this year so I can provide armour to some of my noble cousins that have not yet acquired theirs. 

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Spring! My Quest Begins again! Monday, Mar 29 2010

Squire Questing

Well Spring is finally here.  The Winter was particularly harsh and long and I was unable to get to any tournaments or wars but now it is time to resume my quest.  I still have 99 challenges to make to any Knight who crosses my path.  Hopefully I will cross paths with many over the next few months.  I plan to attend several tournaments and events in April and May. 

April 

10th-11th Spring Spears: Calanais Nuadh, Calontir  Unfortunately I can’t make this because I forgot about prior commitment.

17th-18th Ceilidh:  Dun Ard, Calontir

24th-25th Highland Games: Lost Forest, Calontir

May

1st-2nd War College: Amleth Moor, Calontir

8th-9th Saint George and the Dragon: Oak Heart, Calontir

15th-16th Melees and Mayhem: Cresecnt Moon, Calontir

29th-31st Tournament of the Horse and Falcon: Forgotten Sea, Calontir

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100 Knighs 100 Fights #1 Master Glendour Knight of Calontir Sunday, Nov 22 2009

Years ago when I was a wee lad of 11 or 12 I went to the Kansas City Renaissance Festival and while I was there I found a shop called “Talon Armoury”.  Even back in those days I loved armour so I had to go check this place out.  Inside was the most amazing array of armour including a full suit of Maximillian armour inside a glass case.  The shop was run by Master Glendour a Laurel in the Kingdom of Calontir.  He was quite patient with myself and my friends despite the fact we were getting our grubby finger prints all over his nicely finished armour.  He answered all our questions about the armour and how he made it and then he told us about a group called The Society for Creative Anachronisms who were running a big demo on the site.  I think I spent the entire day there running back and forth between the SCA demo and Master Glendours shop.  A few years later I found out there was a SCA group just an hours drive from my home so I joined up. 

Master Glendour was also knighted a few years ago in the Kingdom of Calontir so when I saw him at the Toys for Tots tournament I knew I had to ask him to be the first knight to accept my 100 Knights 100 Fights challenge which he graciously accepted.  I was honored not only because Master Glendour is such and excellent knight who embodies the knightly virtues in every way but also because it was he who introduced me to the SCA and armouring. 

Thank you Master Glendour!

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