Virtues of Chivalry

It is important for every knight, and knight-to-be, to maintain a standard of virtues. Herein lie the virtues to which I hold myself accountable. I will refine and elaborate upon this list over time.

• Largesse
• Franchise
• Courage
• Honesty
• Loyalty
• Faith
• Courtesy
• Prowess
• Honor
• Mentorship
• Perseverance
• Justice
• Temperance
• Humility
• Gratitude

First Page Challenge

As part of my page-ship, I am required to fight every titled fighter present at practice five times once a month, and seek feedback on how I can improve my fighting. I learned quite a few things from this first trial:

• I need to start moving more, because I am by no means a giant, and I can't just act as a wall against my opponents.
• I really need to start working angles through footwork and moving, especially against opponents with big shields.
• I need to work on my endurance, so I can stand up to the challenge of going through 25 or more fights at a time without feeling like I might pass out.

Knights, Squires, and Pages

 Here is Phira's knighting ceremony at Chaos Wars XVII, followed by Oroku's squire ceremony, and my page ceremony in the last ten minutes.
Sir Phira

Chaos Wars XVII

I had the privilege to attend my first Chaos Wars in the third week of July. It was a wonderful experience right from the get-go! While I was still checking in at troll, Oroku came up to me and said that Phira's knighting ceremony would be taking place immediately. It was wonderful to share in the community experience as we watched Phira endure her knight's trial. Once the ceremony had concluded, she bestowed squireship upon Oroku, who, in turn, bestowed pageship upon me. It was wonderful to spend the next few days adjusting to my new title, meeting new people, spending time with old friends, protecting Sir Phira from assassins with the Mountain Mercenary Elder Guard, and fighting on an excellent field.

On my final night, Oroku and I had a long conversation about the last year and what the future might hold in store for us. Following in Oroku's footsteps as his Page, I have some rpetty big shoes to fill. I hope that I can live up to his reputation and have a large, positive impact on the community.

I didn't step into my Page shoes right away, and I had a fun discussion with Oroku about how long it would take me to start feeling like a Page. The moment came exactly one week later. The next Wednesday, I was chatting on Facebook with Oroku and the illustrious Echo of Ebonhold. The conversations we had made me truly feel that I have leveled up and finally figured out how to take on the role of Page.

Oroku and Aine Training

Here is a lovely video that Oroku put together of the two of us training.

Summer 2013

A lot of things have happened in the past six months. My liege and I broke away from the Dread Gate Mercenary Alliance and started a new unit called Shadow Clan (originally a sub-unit of the DGMA). It is not an easy task, and it has had many ups and downs already, but I think we both agree it was the right decision.

Training has been going well, and Oroku and I have been working on a wonderful new fighting technique called measure. It consists of three dimensions: distance, time and line. The distance used for measure is half a step from the distance where you can hit your opponent. This is called the edge of measure. From here, you should be able to take half a step in and be in measure (able to hit your opponent. When you step into measure, the concept of time becomes important. As soon as you step into measure, you should be either striking or defending. We use the rule of three, a combination of three striking and defending actions, before you should step back out of measure in order to to stay in control of the fight. The final important concept in measure is line. If you are fighting with a shield, the center of your shield should always be pointed at your opponent's weapon. For best results, your body should also be facing at an angle to the direction their body is facing.

Looking to the future, I will be attending War of Forbidding this weekend, and I hope to have my Mountain Mercenaries belt flag finished before then, and if I can access my weapon-making supplies, I will finish two new sword. Before I attend Chaos Wars in August, budget permitting, I would like to have a portable dance floor, so I can show people how we Irish get our jig on.

On Chivalry

The following are my ongoing thoughts on what chivalry means to me. I will update them as they occur:

• The sooner you act like a knight, the sooner you will be one.
• As a Mistress-at-Arms, I am always pushing myself towards my knightly goals. I am always working on the ideals listed here, and coming up with new ones.
• Strive to push yourself further.
• It is too easy to rest on your laurels after you achieve something, but chivalry requires you to continue to push past that point and grow still further.
•  The path of chivalry is a challenge to grow outside of your comfort zone. 
•  The last two go hand-in-hand, but are not necessarily the same thing. It is possible to push yourself within your comfort zone, but you should also explore the world outside of it, in order to grow.
• A higher class of knight requires a higher class of person in all aspects.
• This comes from pushing yourself to be a better person, a harder worker, a better friend and significant other, and on, and on.
• The teacher provides the tools, the student must provide the desire and will.
• This does not mean that the teacher should not work hard for their students. As I see it, both individuals should be doing an equal amount of work. In this way, the individuals can get as much out of the relationship as they desire.
• The basic shots are not a task, they're a lifestyle.
• Fancy techniques and styles may look cool, and often come in handy, but you simply cannot execute them properly without the basics. It is impossible to grow properly in any activity without a strong base to grow from.

The Station of a Mistress-at-Arms

As a Mistress-at-Arms, on a path to knighthood, I have sworn to protect my Liege and his household, to train as he bids me, to maintain his kit in such a manner as befits one of his station, and to gain him renown by enhancing my own. I am sworn to bear arms against all his enemies and cherish those things he holds dear. Above all, I am a loyal warrior and serve my people as a strong sword arm and able body through my Liege.

In return, he promises to train me and give me every chance to walk upon the road I have chosen. He will protect my household and myself and bear arms against my enemies. He will guide me in the ways of a Knight and a peer and place me where I will have a chance to learn these things.

My First Sash

This is my red sash, indicating my Hireling status in the DGMA. The writing on the end is elvish for The Beast, my nickname courtesy of Oroku. On my sash, I have my first war braid indicating my attendance of Sam Hain. The red strand represents receiving my red sash, and the brown and green strands represent the DGMA. The other item is my first belt flag, made for me by Ora. It is the symbol of Clan Vertha of Dagorhir, the parent game of Belegarth. Clan Vertha is a house for the LGBT community and straight allies. The flags were created to help support visibility of the LGBT community in Dagorhir, and some have started sporting them in Belegarth.

Tasks for a Mistress-at-Arms

Here is a list of the tasks given to me by my teacher, Oroku Norinaga. I will do my best to create a complete list, and keep it updated.

• You cannot turn down a titled fighter who challenges you or offers to spar.
• Create a blog Clearly, this is ongoing, but generally accomplished.
• Take over leadership of the Freeholders of Stygia I am unable to perform this due to my early induction into the DGMA.
• Learn the 12 shots from Naga
• Create a biography
• Write an essay on the musical Camelot from the perspective of a future knight.
• Write a formal introduction to Squire Phira
• Create a Geddon page http://wiki.belegarth.com/%C3%81ine_N%C3%AD_Fhathaigh
• Write to Ronda Rousey, and get an autographed picture from her
•  Have enough garb to wear a different outfit each of the 6 days of Chaos
• Learn the 5 basic shots As we have determined, the basic shots are a lifestyle, not a task. However, I have them down, and use them consistently.
• Learn the 5 basic shots with the off-hand

Photos from Sam Hain VIII

Bonding with Badhbh

Team battles with some awesome people

Down an arm, but still in the fight

I got to meet the legend that is Forkbeard

Conquering Stygians! Áine (L), Oroku (M), Valas (R)

DGMA before the feast: Echo (L), Áine (M), Oroku (R)

We make quite a team: Áine (L), Oroku (R)

Sam Hain VIII

This weekend, October 5-7 of the year 2012, I attended my first event. It was a fantastic experience. I traveled with my teacher, Oroku Norinaga, to Crystal Springs in Utah. On the way, we picked up a fellow Hireling of the Dread Gate Mercenary Alliance, Echo. The nights were cold, the days were beautiful, the hot tub was warm, and most of all, the fighting was excellent and clean. I felt myself becoming a more controlled fighter as the day progressed, and I couldn't have been happier with my performance. I met lots of new people, made new friends, and met some legends. I may have even let slip the dark secret of my lineage (My father was half mini-van.) I am so glad that this was my first event, and I am eagerly looking forward to next event season. For now, I will continue to work hard, play hard, and grow as a Belegrim and a person.

Recruited

On Sunday, September 30th of the year 2012, I was recruited as a Hireling to the Dread Gate Mercenary Alliance. Sadly, this means I will not be able to take over the Freeholders of the realm of Stygia as planned, but I am very honored to have been invited to join this group of excellent fighters. They took a huge leap of faith to recruit me into their ranks so early in my career, and I promise to do my best to live up to the overwhelming vote of confidence they have granted me.

Badhbh

Meet Badhbh (pronounced Bayv). She is my first shield, and newest fighting companion. In Irish lore, the Badhbh is a beautiful woman who appears bathed in blood and gore, and portends death for any who happen upon her. She will often choose sides in a battle with absolute prejudice, bringing certain death for all who oppose her will. Stories of the Badhbh greatly influenced the tales of banshees in later Irish lore.

Who is Áine?

Gearóid Ó Fathaigh never would tell how he came to father a half-fairy child, but the result was a baby girl left on his doorstep, whom he named Áine. She was always somewhat of a curiosity in Gaillimh where she grew up. Despite growing up without a mother, and the constant whispers behind her back, Áine grew up a kind, fair-minded child. That is, until foreign raiders razed her village to the ground, destroying everything she had ever known. Stricken with the grief, with nothing left but the clothes on her back, Áine did the only thing she could think of; she went in search of her mother.

 Overcome by grief and anger, she wandered for what seemed like weeks, until she came to a fairy tree. She removed the fine ribbon from her hair, and tied it to a branch, as was custom, before collapsing from exhaustion. There was no telling how long Áine lay unconscious beneath that tree, but when she awoke, it was clear that her ailing body had been tended to. As she sat up, she discovered a gift of fine weapons and clothing lying beside her.

Little is known of what happened after Áine left the tree, but there were whispers of a young woman wandering the land, seeking vengeance upon those bearing ill-will towards others. Throughout the countryside, locals reported seeing a human camping near the fairy trees and forts. These reports were always followed by ill news for the rich and the brutish near the area, but they could never find proof of the suspected, mischievous rogue.

Some years later, the reports of the rogue woman simply stopped. On the same day, witnesses saw a mysterious young woman who had run into trouble seeking passage on a pirate vessel docked at the port in Gaillimh. Áine found no solace during her years as a pirate, and the crewmembers were wary and contemptuous of her fairy half, but she worked hard, fought hard, and learned much. After two years aboard the vessel, Áine returned to dry land, and eventually found her way to the realm of Stygia, where she lives now, and hopes to find her place in the world.

Concave, coreless, spiral shield

Here is my first ever shield. It's pretty silly, but I'm hoping that it will also prove to be a useful companion in combat. I'll let you know how it works out, once I finally start using it.