New Member FAQ/Q&A/Information, OR:
Can SOMEONE tell me what's going on here?

• Okay, I think I want to join this bunch of folks but where do I start?
• What's a "persona," anyway? And where do I find a name?
• Garb? What's garb?
• Fighting and armor you mean, you use real weapons?
• Event? What's that?
• What if I need a ride? Is there a message board or something?

Aaah, so many questions, normally so little time. However, thanks to the wizardry of the Current Middle Ages (that is, this technological marvel we call a computer), you can find the answers to the questions above and take your time reading them. What's even better if you still don't quite understand, or have questions not dealt with right here, you can email the Chatelaine and she will happily work with you until you're comfortable! Such a deal, eh?



The best place to start is with your local group. The Shire of Rockwall includes the counties of Rock, Walworth, and Jefferson, in southeastern Wisconsin. If you live within those boundaries, you can start with us!
Bring yourself (and a friend, or three friends, or a dozen we're not fussy) to one of our meetings. They are held on the second and fourth Sunday of each month, at 1pm local time, in the Delavan Community Center. The first is a business meeting and the other is either a workshop, dance practice, or other activity. Please, join us if you can! You needn't come in garb (huh? Don't worry it's explained below), or even know what persona you want to play (persona? No sweat that's down below, too) just come as you are, and be ready to enjoy yourself.
You do NOT have to pay to play! There are advantages, certainly, to being a "card-carrying member" of the Society, but that's not a requirement to attend meetings or events. (What's that? Wait, all will be revealed in time!) Of course, if you WANT to pay, just click here, and you're on your way.
We also attend area events when time and money allow. Check the Calendar page for upcoming opportunities to jump into the pool with the rest of us.


Back To Top


A persona is a fictional person portrayed by a member of the SCA. This persona can be from any culture, any time period before A.D. 1600. There are Japanese, Aztec, Icelandic, Spanish, French, Italian, English, Irish, Scottish, Moorish, Turkish, Frisian... the list goes on and on and on. Some people even choose a persona from the Roman era. The emphasis tends to be on medieval and Renaissance, but that doesn't mean you can't select something from an earlier period if that's what interests you. Many people start with an early-period persona, because the garb (see below) is simpler to make (or have made). It's never cast in stone; you can change personas any time you like. Some people even have more than one, and "play" them according to their mood or the time of year. (Vikings do well in winter, with all those furs and such, but that's beastly hot in summer when something less heavy and more breathable is more comfortable. Just one example, out of many.)
As for finding a name: The SCA strictly forbids using the actual name of an actual person. However: We encourage researching a name that uses parts of real names from the time period you're interested in. For example, if your great-great-great-great-great grandmother's name was Hepzibah Sutterfield, you wouldn't be able to use that name. But, you could use either the given name or the surname, and put another name documented from the same time period with it, to get your SCA name. Many people choose names from their family history, mixed and matched in this way. Once you have an idea of where your persona is from, and what time period you like, then it's time to think about a name. Plenty of people are happy to help with researching; all you need do is ask.


Back To Top


Clothing. That's it. Clothing. But not t-shirts and jeans, or Armani suits. Garb is clothing suited to the time period you choose, and the culture you select. It can be as simple as a t-tunic (two t-shaped pieces of fabric sewn together and belted) worn over a pair of loose drawstring pants, or as elaborate as an Elizabethan court gown with full farthingale, neck ruff, and a jewelled stomacher. If you don't have the skills to make your own, there are plenty of folks who will be happy to help out. You can also purchase garb ready-made from the many quality merchants of the Society, quite a few of whom have web sites and trade in e-commerce. (Again, if you want more information, contact either the seneschal or the chatelaine, or look at our Gates page.)In addition to garb, if you're interested in fighting, you'll want to find out about armor, too.


Back To Top


Real as in steel swords and battle axes? No.
Real as in rattan wrapped with duct tape, yielding an approximation of the weapon in size and weight, that's hard enough to leave a bruise if you get hit? Yes.
The art of hand-to-hand combat is a large part of the SCA, and the rules governing it are many and precise. A person can't just grab a rattan longsword and head out into the lists to start whacking on whoever looks like a good target. First, one has to undergo the training regime. Both men and women pursue the arts of combat; there is no rule limiting the access of one gender or the other to specific arts or sciences.
Each kingdom in the SCA has its own rules regarding minimum armor (protective gear) for combatants. No combat takes place without one of the warranted, trained Knights Marshals present to oversee the activity.

Just as there are events focused on the arts and sciences within the Current Middle Ages, so there are events for which fighting is the central theme. The latter are often called "tournaments."

Click on this link to read the commentary of a Middle Kingdom fighter and Marshal , regarding one period pattern for a padded gambeson (a heavy tunic, worn under armor). In this text you'll find mention of various rules and regulations of the Middle Kingdom, in reference to individual safety during combat.

Back To Top


An event is well, an event. It has a central theme, as mentioned just above: This theme could be courtly love (common for Renaissance-period events), or the bardic arts (good for the Anglo-Saxons as well as the later cultures), or even combat (good for just about any time period). Events include classes, usually related in some way to the theme; often some kind of Arts and Sciences display or competition, where people show off their work in the various categories (anything from brewing to cooking to calligraphy to costuming to armoring you get the picture); and nearly always include a feast.


Back To Top


You bet! SCA Feasts are wondrous things. There you can explore the many foreign flavors found in medieval cooking, which was far from the horrible bland stuff we thought it was. You might start with a delicate soup of almond milk and herbs, some cheese, and bread; then move on to a cinnamon beef roast, served with a puree of peas and baked turnips; then, a course of roast chicken in a fine saffron-tinted sauce, accompanied by frumenty; and finish the night with cherry bread-pudding flavored with a hearty red wine.
There's a charge for the feast, but you can see it's well worth the nominal fee you're asked to pay. Some events serve only what are called "Dessert revels," after a dinner break where folks go off and fend for themselves. Dessert revels cost less, but they're just as tasty and you get to sample more than one sweet!
If you're planning to "sit feast," as it's called in the Current Middle Ages, you need to bring your own "feast gear." This means a plate, a spoon, a knife, a bowl, and a cup, tankard, or goblet, usually carried in a good-size basket. If you want to fit in, do your best to avoid Melamine and polystyrene; borrow someone's stoneware, if you have to. Many folks haunt their local Goodwill shops for likely candidates for their feast gear baskets. One can find very nice stoneware plates and bowls for very little money; wooden bowls and utensils are also readily available, and very "period." Forks weren't too common, but the two-tined variety are quite nice to have and sold by your merry merchants, who want you to enjoy your feasting experience!


Back To Top


As a matter of fact, Northshield (the principality in which we reside) now has a mailing list for just this purpose. NS-RIDES@minstrel.com was created so people who need rides to events, or people willing to give rides to events, have someplace to post their needs or offers. Here's the relevant portion of the information provided by the list administrator, Lord Michel Mac Pheadair of Nordskogen:
For now, the only format we request is the one Lord Owen already suggested--have something obvious in the subject line telling whether you're offering or requesting, and to where.

Either:

Subject: RIDE wanted to EVENT-DATE-GROUP
Subject: RIDER(S) wanted to EVENT-DATE-GROUP
Or:

Subject: OFFER to EVENT-DATE-GROUP
Subject: REQUEST to EVENT-DATE-GROUP

which I actually think is a little clearer. The body should include what range of times you're willing to consider departing, and when you're planning to return."

To subscribe to the NS-RIDES list, send an email to: majordomo@minstrel.com
In the body of the letter, type "subscribe-ns-rides" (without the quotation marks).
Be sure to include the hyphens exactly as they appear. There are bound to be other questions that arise as more new folks find us. If you're one of them, and there's something you want to know that's not covered here, email the Chatelaine and she'll gladly a) answer you herself, or b) direct your question to someone who can!




Back To Top