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Event Report: Ealdormere War Practice III
By Colyne Stewart (MKA
Todd Fischer, © 2001)
Appeared in The TankArd #34
Every event that Thorfinna and I have been to has been better than the last, and EWP has to date been the best of them all.
Eirik Andersen did a masterful job of organizing the event and assembling a crack team to assist him (consisting primarily of Lachlan MacLean on Troll, Fursto as Chiurgeon, Melchior as head grunt, Eanor of Amberhall as the Parking Enforcer, Crispinus Spellar as Deputy Sheriff, and other Creaggers who were always willing to lend a hand whenever it was needed).
As some of you may have heard, a
certain member of our Canton was induced to put on a dress and cavort about the
Ardchreag campfire, going so far as to give yours truly a lap dance. This brazen
hussy even offered such a dance to Theign Cynred when he
came to visit. I will neglect to mention this individual's name, though that
likely won't save him from notoriety. As he said, when he was walking back from
the Rusty Tankard the next morning, he heard a passerby point him out to his
companion, saying, "I hear that guy looks great in a dress." This is
untrue, though. He did not.
Our very own Marian of
Heatherdale was put on vigil at a spontaneous court, as they had to grab her
during the hour she spent at the event. She is being (now has been) Laurelled
for her research into Arthurian Legend. This I unfortunately missed by a few
minutes, though Crispinus was on hand and got some photographs. Helen of
Greyfells was also put on vigil.
Baroness Gaerwen became Authorized as a level 2 scout, dodging about the fighters and gleaning Cynred's arrows as he dropped fighter after fighter.
Though we all had a good time,
the weather seemed to conspire against us. On Friday we baked, on Saturday we
were drenched, and on Sunday we were buffeted by
freezing wind. (Monday, of course, was perfect weather, just in time for Tear
Down). In fact, the wind on Sunday was so strong it blew our sunshade free. Not
from its pegs, which were still securely driven into the ground, but right out
of its feet and
flipped upside down.
The rain on Saturday did not
stop the House Galbraith Birthday Bash, which went off almost without a hitch.
Mead flowed as free as the rain, the Templars were tossed and a good time was
had by all. The children's piñata (in the shape of a knight) was
broken the next day. The piñata’s creator danced him about, refusing to
accept blows ("That was only a glance!"), until Brandt's son Lance
stepped up and cracked him soundly across the neck (he was not wearing a gorget)
and severed said neck, sending a
spray of candy flying thorough the air and leaving a head dangling from a
string, dripping bits of wrapper.
On Sunday night, Master Hector
stopped by the Ardchreag encampment and read to us the history of the Royal
Line, all the way back to the very first King of the West, passing around a
bottle of Scotch Whiskey for the listeners to enjoy. A Bardic circle began
to form up around him, growing to the point where the circle had to move out
onto the open field. The circle went late into the night as stories were told
and songs were sung.
Kingdom and Baronial Moots were held on Sunday, within view of archers cursing the wind, and fighters thankful for it (though Brandt was almost lifted into the air as the wind caught his war door).
Also on Sunday, a memorial
service was held for Ulrich von der See, of beloved memory. The service was held
where the List Field met the archery range, resided over by the Baron and
Baroness, who were in full regalia. The members of Ardchreag and Greenhithe
lined up to either side, with the Baron at one end, and Master Hector at the
other. Everyone spoke of their fond memories of Markus, of his projects, his
songs, his humour, his self sacrifice, and Hector quoted from one of Marian of
Heatherdale's songs.
Fursto had a vial of Markus' ashes which she then spread over the field.
Charles, the new Seneschal of Eoforwic, whispered, "I knew there was a
reason for the wind." Cynred and Hector began to clash their weapons
together as several people called out
Ulrich's name. It was a very moving ceremony.
These are only a few of the things that I witnessed, though I heard of many more, such as a trading circle and Red Herring initiations.
This is an event like no other, where the autocrats blend into the background, basically winding up the toy and letting everyone else play with it. Eirik deserves much praise (and many Cokes) for his efforts in organizing this event. Wassail Eirik!
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