Naturally, you must suspect me to attack with Capa Ferro?

Inigo Montoya: You are using Bonetti’s Defense against me, ah?
Man in Black: I thought it fitting considering the rocky terrain.
Inigo Montoya: Naturally, you must suspect me to attack with Capa Ferro?
Man in Black: Naturally… but I find that Thibault cancels out Capa Ferro. Don’t you?
Inigo Montoya: Unless the enemy has studied his Agrippa… which I have.
-Princess Bride

I took a rapier class at the Baronial birthday this weekend a class on Capa Ferro from the ground up. It was a practicum by the knowledgeable Lord Donte on the mechanics and theory of rapier fighting from the Cappo Ferro manual. Starting with the feet we worked our way up to the blade then finally the head. I will say stance puts some interesting strain on the back leg. With correct footwork you are place about 80 percent of your weight back there. However this allows you to use that energy to spring forward, with  lunges delivered with more force and distance. Cappo Ferro allows you to also recover from an attack quickly with little force. I am looking forward to learn more from Lord Donte and more from Cappo Ferro.

O Fortuna

 

Arthur: [to Kay] ready my knights for battle. They will ride with their king once more. I have lived through others for far too long. Lancelot carried my honor, and Guinevere, my guilt. Mordred bears my sins. My knights have fought my causes. Now, my brother, I shall be… king.

I find this quote from the 1981 movie Excalibur drifting in my mind pretty often. During good time, before a tournament and even at bad times when they seem bleak this quote  and the next scene with the knights riding through the cherry blossoms with “O Fortuna” in the background touches some subconscious part of my soul.

I have been in the Society going on some 25 years now. This time however was interrupted by a rather long absence but I was never truly gone. I never sold or threw away my garb and most of my armor sat in a bag. I could never get rid of it knowing really that one day I would return. Now back full force I see a lot of changes and pretty much all for the better. The Society appears to be a lot more organized. I noticed immediately there were a lot more things to do. It made bringing my family into the society much easier. I am once again busy this time adding a number of new interests – cooking, brewing and a new/old interest. Before my absence I was deeply involved in what is called now – Heavy Fighting (there was only heavy fighting when I started) however a shoulder injury is keeping me from going back as much as I like. However there is a new facet of SCA combat that really didn’t exist when I was in it last – rapier.

I went to rapier practice the other day and the sound of steel on steel was well thrilling. I had done a smidgen of fencing back in college but this was different. No right of way, it was in the round wearing historical costumes with historical weapons. I can hear “O Fortuna” loud and clear once again.

Memories of the Sword

Memories of swords go far back into my distant past. I can remember as a child climbing trees and swinging an imaginary blade beating back all sorts of opponents. Growing a little older I found the joy of reading. Out of the pages sprung forth new opponents and companions as I dueled besides D’Artagnan, King Arthur, and Robin Hood.

 

In my teenage years I soon came into contact with the growing gaming movement and my thoughts were fueled with the aspects and differences in weapons. Books once again proved a treasure trove of now historical facts and adventures. As gaming slowly moved into mainstream in the 1980’s Hollywood would fuel my passion and still do with such movies as…Ok I know these are not all great movies but it’s all we had. Still it was a decade of fantasy movies we haven’t seen its like since.

 

Flash Gordon (1980) (go flash go!)

Hawk the Slayer (1980)

Clash of the Titans (1981)

Dragonslayer (1981)

Excalibur (1981)  (“ready my knights for battle they will ride with the king once more..”)

Time Bandits (1981)

The Beastmaster (1982)

Conan the Barbarian (1982) (“Do you want to live forever?”) *

The Dark Crystal (1982)

The Last Unicorn (1982) (‘that’s what hero’s are for..”)

The Sword and the Sorcerer (1982)

Deathstalker (1983)

Krull (1983)

Thor the Conqueror (1983)

Conan the Destroyer (1984)

Neverending Story, The (1984)

The Warrior and the Sorceress (1984)

Ladyhawke (1985) (I played a chess piece at an SCA demo for the movie)

Legend (1985)

Red Sonja (1985)

Highlander (1986) (there can be only one, ignore the rest of them)

Labyrinth (1986)

The Princess Bride (1987) (ah ha I am not left handed)

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988)

Willow (1988)

 

(I am going to say that it was Bedknobs & Broomsticks (1971) that absolutely pulled me into all of this. I was my youngest son’s age when my dad took me to Radio City Music Hall and I watched the movie on a very large screen. We even had an intermission with the Rockets. It’s still one of my favorite movies. Not too long after my uncle introduced me to JRR Tolkien “The Hobbit.”)

 

In college I continued to game but this group of historically dressed people I noticed walking around were on my mind. Wielding what appear to be swords they fought under the shade of the trees. It didn’t take long before I took and look and discovered the Society for Creative Anachronism..And so another journey began.

 

* it is considered by many to be one of the finest examples of motion picture scoring ever written

Riddle of Steel

Father to young Conan - Fire and wind come from the sky, from the gods of the sky, but Crom is your god. Crom, and he lives in the earth. Once giants lived in the earth, Conan, and in the darkness of chaos, they fooled Crom, and they took from him the enigma of steel. Crom was angered, and the earth shook, and fire and wind struck down these giants, and they threw their bodies into the waters. But in their rage, the gods forgot the secret of steel and left it on the battlefield, and we who found it, are just men, not gods, not giants, just men. And the secret of steel has always carried with it a mystery. You must learn its riddle, Conan, you must learn its discipline, for no one, no one in this world can you trust, not men, not women, not beasts, this you can trust. [points to his sword]

Khitan General: We have won again. This is good! But what is best in life?

Khitan Warrior: The open steppe, a fleet horse, falcons at your wrist, and the wind in your hair.

Khitan General: Wrong! Conan, what is best in life?

Conan: To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentations of their women!

Khitan General: That is good.