SCA @ UVa

To celebrate Spring and all we've done this year, we will be hosting a dance and dessert revel in the Ballroom of UVa's Newcomb Hall on THURSDAY April 5th, from 7:00 - 10:00pm.

One of the most exciting things about this dance versus normal dance times is that it will be in garb. This is your chance to show off those new threads you have. If you don't have any garb and would like to borrow some, let Kendra know as soon as possible so we can find something. Or better yet... This is still three weeks away so there is time to start and finish some basic pieces. So come to a handcrafters or the 4th Sundays to get some help with this. (We do have some fabric if you need that as well). If you absolutely don't have time to make garb or want to borrow any, just bring yourself because Dance is Fun!

Plus there will be food, so you really don't want to miss this.

Respectful of the traditions of His ancestors, Prince Valharic has called on an Oracle to speak of His upcoming coronation. Those auguries speak of a glorious reign to come, with great things to begin at the coronation of Valharic and Arielle. Yet they also hint at some darker, alarming event on the heels of that joy:

No doubt in the strength of a chain's bond, those unproven prove the day.

Mars and Vulcan strive, so must the brave as a strong hand's fingers.

Ever mindful of the welfare of Atlantia, Prince Valharic asks that teams of five ("as a strong hand's fingers") stalwarts apply to him and be prepared for a quest into the very realm of the Roman Gods. Teams must include at least one armored combatant and at least one non-combatant and must be captained by a non-peer ("those unproven prove the day"). One peer per team, but you may include a multiple peer. List as many of your five and their titles as you have worked out when you apply to HRH Valharic. Email prince@atlantia.sca.org to apply.

One of the best benchmarks for the health of any SCA group is the number of its members who regularly travel outside of their home group. Healthy cantons/shires/baronies have lots of members who travel regularly. Any group that spends all of its time locally ends up filled with tangled, incestuous and outright bone-headed ideas. Not that the broader SCA isn't filled with bone-headed ideas, but they won't be the same bone-headed ideas, and learning how the kingdom works tends to show you that things in your group don't have to be the way they are.

Further, some people aren't good fits for their local group. They need to know that the larger kingdom has people and groups that will appreciate and nurture them, if the local group is incapable of doing so. This improves the individuals, the local group and the kingdom.

Technorati Tags: SCA, UVa

Thjora is off to Jamestown for a training weekend, so I'm at home dogsitting and working on gear. While it just might get warm enough to fight, the ground will probably be too muddy. But we can do some slow work in the carport if anyone wants to.

Timm has said he'd like to finish his vambraces this weekend. Who else is interested?

We can probably arrange rides, but let's work it out with a little lead time.

I'm free all day Saturday and Sunday. Get in touch if you're interested!

Technorati Tags: armor, Armor & Weapons, Crafting, SCA

We just finished Personas & Pizza night where we (11 students) ate pizza while Lord Gotfrid talked to us about heraldry, personas, and devices. With a mix of stories, examples, and documentation he explained how one might come up with a name, how to think about doing a persona, and answered questions.

I knew a little about how names were registered in the SCA but I definitely learned a lot more. For example, evidently I can have up to four names officially registered. Given that I don't even have one persona done yet, that is plenty. I had no clue about anything in the devices arena and now I understand some of the rules about color and symbols. Perhaps by this time next year I shall have a device. I know the general idea of what I want to do, but other things like finishing my Elisabethan garb in time for KASF are higher priority.

More than anything, Gotfrid was just fun to listen to and hear stories about German naming and the history thereof. Thanks again Gotfrid for talking to us.

Thjora's determined to complete her Rapier MIT stint in the shortest time possible, so she's going to Chalice of the Sun God this weekend, then brining Rob & Wendy's Pennsic trailer back down to our place for storage.

So, I'm a bachelor again this weekend. Help keep me out of trouble by coming down/over/up anytime between Friday night and Sunday morning for a fight practice, working on gear, barbecuing or just hanging out.

Just don't forget to RSVP.

And the following weekend is Masters of Defense. You better come.

Everyone seemed to have a good time, with lots of enthusiasm for dancing, promises to come to Thursday practice and a general feeling that we've got several new long-term members from the student population.

I had a rare quiet weekend at home, so I did I bunch of work in the shop. I pulled the old shield cover off my main shield to prepare it for receiving a new, untorn one, and I almost finished cutting down and refurbishing my old metal shield with the leather face. Here's a loaner shield I refurbished for new fighters.

It is fiberglassed plywood made and donated by Master Geoffrey. Considering how long it has been since Geoffrey or Grace have fought, this shield might be older than some of the First Years who will use it over the next year or so!