Newcomers might also like to check out:
This is when the Crown (that's the King and Queen) recognize you for what you've done and make you a Lady of their Court.
From that day forward you would have a title in the SCA: that of Lady.
A way to display your heraldic device, or coat of arms.
(If you don't have an Award of Arms, it's called a device. After you've been awarded Arms, it's called your Coat of Arms.)
Bringing a banner to events is one way to help add the flavour of the Middle
Ages to a mundane hall.
Do you want a heraldic device of your very own? If so, ask to talk with a
herald. They will help you design and register one.
Have you ever sat in a circle around a campfire and told storys and sang
songs?
In the SCA we call that a Bardic Circle. Same sort of thing, but the stories and songs tend to be from period.
You can wear anything that's legal in Canada. Illegal blades in Canada include switchblades, belt buckle knives, butterfly knives and some oriental martial arts blades. Check with your local RCMP to be sure.
We strongly encourage period cutlery.
Don't bare a blade unless you are about to use it (i.e. taking out your
eating dagger at the dinner table).
Don't touch the steel part of anyone's blade. Many of our swords and knives
are made the old-fasioned way and finger oils and acids can damage the
blades.
Don't touch someone elses blade without permission.
If you are withdrawing a blade (just to show if off), make sure that the folks around you know that there's live steel about by calling "Clear!".
No horseplay!
No knife fighting!
That's what the word sounds like, but it is spelled "Bransle" and it's a
dance.
This is one of the officers of curia for the group.
They are in charge of hospitality, making sure that everyone is comfortable
and able to enjoy the event.
In Ruantallan, this includes handling "Gold Key".
This is what you usually call when you draw a blade and there may be people about who don't know that there's a sticky-pokey out of its scabbard.
It's a safety thing.
In the Middle Ages, it would be poor manners to just walk up to someone of
the opposite sex and introduce yourself. Introductions would be made by a
third party.
We have overlooked that custom and replaced it with the cloved fruit. This, as the name implies, is a fruit (lemon, orange, etc.) studded with cloves.
You go to the person to whom you wish to bestow the honour, present it and
give proper compliments. In return you exchange a kiss.
It may be a kiss to the hand, the cheek or upon the lips, depending on how
familiar you are with the person. The usual wisdom is to let the Lady
decide, but that should not oblige you to becoming more intimate than you
are comfortable with.
Ask for a demonstration!
Yes, Virginia, we _do_ have a constitution.
From the Latin, meaning "Council" or "Court". In Ruantallan, the Curia is the executive officers of a branch. It is usually made up of:
There may or may not be other officers, according to need.
Cantons may "double up" on several of these offices. See the East Kingdom
Law and Policy for details.
Means that beer and/or wine may be brought and consumed at a feast.
If a site is referred to as "damp", you should be discreet in the use of
alcoholic beverages.
Remember, drinking may be permitted, but drunken behavior is strongly
frowned upon.
Also remember that serving alcohol to minors is not permitted.
We use the term c.e. (common era or Christian era) instead of a.d. (anno
dominae) out of respect for the many different religions that our members
represent.
We also use the term A.S. (Anno Societatus, the year of the Society) which
would be the number of years since the SCA was founded.
Means that there is no alcohol allowed on the site. That means NO DRINKING!
Feast, tournament or demo held by the local SCA. To hold an event, you must go to your local curia or seneschal.
A favour is a wee token given to a person as a gift. Most often it is the
favour of a Lady, worn by a fighter in the lists, or from a Lady to her
Lord.
In Ruantallan it usually takes the form of a strip of cloth, embroidered,
and attached to or tucked into a belt.
Some people consider it tacky for someone to wear the favour of more than
one person.
A feast may be the reason for an event or it could be
just a part of a touranment event.
If you are coming to an event that has a feast, you should bring your own
service, a banner and table
decorations.
The feast, itself, is usually served in one or more removes
and may take from one to four hours to complete. According to the site, the
feast may be wet, damp, or dry.
Find out beforehand and bring things, accordingly.
Newsletter for the Canton of Distant Shore.
This is what you wear. We discourage the term "costume", since that implies
that it is not really clothing. You don't call your best chruch-day
clothing a "costume", do you?
We differentiate SCA clothing as "garb", to distinguish it from mundane clothing.
This is a chest full of stuff to loan out to newcomers. To attend one of
our events you must be wearing an attempt at pre-1600 clothing. It is
unusual for someone to just have some of this stuff lying around their
closet, so we can provide some to loan newcomers.
Once you have decided that you like the SCA, you will likely get your own
garb, usually be making it yourself or getting a
friend to make it for you.
Also, you are expected to bring your own service to a feast. If you don't have any, there might be some in Gold Key.
In Ruantallan, Gold Key is usually handled by the chatelaine.
If you hear this, freeze! Don't move! Then, carefully(!) look around to
see why someone shouted "Hold!".
It means that someone or something is in immediate danger.
On the fighting field, the fighters stop fighting when the marshall hollers
"Hold!". This turned out to be such a useful thing, that the general public
does it, too.
Remember, if you hear "Hold!"... FREEZE!
If you see a dangerous situation that could get worse, holler "Hold!"
It's a safety thing.
Title reserved for women who have received their Award of
Arms.
For folks without titles, the term "M'lord" or "M'lady" (contractions of "My
Lord" and "My Lady") are used.
Calling someone "M'lord" or "M'lady" when they have a title is usually not a
social mis-step and is taken with good grace.
Title reserved for men who have received their Award of
Arms.
For folks without titles, the term "M'lord" or "M'lady" (contractions of "My
Lord" and "My Lady") are used.
Calling someone "M'lord" or "M'lady" when they have a title is usually not a
social mis-step and is taken with good grace.
Not in the SCA. The outside world.
If you go to a feast "off-board", it means that you will not be eating the feast that is served, but will be bringing your own food and setting up at separate tables with the other off-board people.
You can also go on-board or out-board.
If you go to a feast "on-board", it means that you will be eating the feast
that is served.
You can also go off-board or out-board.
No, it isn't a kind of boat motor :-)
If you go to an event "out-board", it means that you
will not be staying for the feast, but will probably be going out to a local
restaurant to eat.
You can also go off-board or on-board.
The period in history that we re-create. It runs from 600-1600 c.e.
Latin for "what's up"? (liberal translation :-)
It is the newsletter for the Barony of Ruantallan.
The SCA is _NOT_ a religious organization of any sort or description! We do
not discriminate upon the basis of religions (or anything else, for that
matter) and do not endourse any particular religious faith. For the
protection of our members, we have a policy in place whereby nobody who
attends an SCA event is obligated to participate in anyone else's religious
observances (such as weddings, meal blessings, etc.).
We even are non-religious in our method of dating.
A remove is part of a feast. It consists of several courses of food
(usually around six (6) in Ruantallan).
A feast may be one, two, three or more removes. The most common type of feast in Ruantallan is a two remove feast with between 10 and 15 courses.
Pronounced: rev-RAWNCE
The bow or curtsey done to show respect. Often used in dance.
From Latin terms that basically mean "Senior Servant".
(It actually means "Senile Slave", but let's be kind :-)
This is the person who chairs curia and is generally the one responsible to see that everything is done correctly.
This is the equivalent to the President of the local group and is the only
one permitted to make legal contracts in the name of the SCA or its local
groups.
This is your bowl, trencher, knife, spoon and cup.
The stuff you need to eat with.
In the Middle Ages, it was common to bring your own stuff to a feast. We
recreate that in Ruantallan.
In "service" we may also include candlesticks (make sure they're stable),
candles, tablecloth and salt.
We don't usually call a banner part of your service,
but you should make one and bring it to events.
In the Middle Ages, there were often laws that limited what you could and
could not wear. These were called "Sumptuary Laws".
We do not have sumptuary laws, but we do have customs:
Also there are a few things about medieval clothing that you should know:
It is something you eat off of. Usually it is a wooden platter or plate, but the poor folk would use a half loaf of stale bread as a trencher. After it soaked up the juices of the meal, it might be soft enough to eat.
We do not have any customs restricting the wearing of swords. Be aware,
however, that sword are potentially dangerous weapons and treat them with
the respect they deserve.
Means that alcoholic beverages may be brought and consumed at a feast
without any problems.
Remember, drinking may be permitted, but drunken behavior is strongly
frowned upon.
Also remember that serving alcohol to minors is not permitted.
A quarterly newsletter put out by the Canton of
Wolfsgate.
"You Know You're In The SCA When..."
...is a series of jokes based upon this theme. Here are some of them:
You Know You're In The SCA When...