Okay, I realize that by the first day of the official war starting, I had been on site for three nights and two full days. I made notes of them before lightly, but mostly I was just getting a good lay of the land. So Monday was the official start of the war and I was so looking forward to getting involved in the big battles. On tap for the day was bridge battles with limited fronts and a lot of hard pressed up tight quarter constant engagement.

I made my way over at a good early hour, as I had not managed to get over and get an inspection prior and I did not want to get stuck in a line and miss out on anything waiting for an inspection. What a mistaken idea on my part. Anyway, inspection was quick, easy, and of not pain at all. It was a very nice process and very well-organized. Given the number of those being done I was rather impressed with it. I will note, the green paint on my black sword guards was a bit if a pain, but the open-faced beater basinet getting a sticker was fine – would have to think twice on the other one though.

Then I made my way to some folks I knew and after some introductions and willingness to have me, decided to fight with part of Stalhgiest for the time being. I had a couple of friends who are squired to a knight in the household so it made a good deal of sense as a beginner at this level to do that. I was ready to go, pumped and had sword at the ready, helm on (since it is a bit of a pain to get all set), and sword on arm. After about fifteen minutes past the start time I ditched that and chilled out. Another eon went by, and then someone decided we needed to form lines and pair with someone for the other side. What a forever long process and in the end, no one was sure what the reason behind it all was.

After what did seem another eon, we finally were able to start and we had one of the center bridges. As we got close to the bridge, but still nowhere near an engagement I realized just how much of a press we were going to have. For those not familiar with, as a shield guy my job is to protect those spear guys working over my shoulders and such, once we get up close enough in the land. Generally, the idea of a sword guy getting a kill is not likely, short of a big surge forward.

Eventually the time came and I was front. I think I made a decent showing before going down. At that point, one begins to realize in a battle just how much bodies could pile up. You read about such descriptions in the history and think little about it and even dismiss it. But a limited front, where else can the bodies go. And so there I was on the bottom and a battle going on over my head, until a couple of other folks were dead on top of me. Eventually, unlike the real warfare, a marshal called a hold and let the dead get from between the lines.

The battle was to be contested three times, so a bit of a break while the first was finished and then shortly after that, back to it. This time a slightly different approach and different organization as we went at it. This time we were closer to the front. In the battle, we first settled, and later surged and amazingly I was still alive. I am pretty sure in the surge I had knocked a couple of folks off the side of the “bridge,” which was death to them. Then a count I know in front of me was taken out and we were pressed so tight he could neither go down nor even move. He did get out though, eventually. Then we were pushed back and surged forward again, somehow I got a bit ahead and by the time someone yelled loud enough for me to get back in position (helmets are hard to hear in, especially with the rush of battle around) I was hit. As I went down, I was hit again.

I get a little fuzzy – but I think the situation changed somewhat, but it was still a limited front next up. I know in this one our tactics broke down or we just got beat. This particular battle I think I got a kill before I went down myself, but I am not 100% sure that it was taken. I went down though and had some step on my grill as the ebb and flow took place and that twisted my helm nearly off. Just as I was about to yell hold, someone above me must have seen and did so.

After I cleared out and got back to a safe point, I realized my gauntlet was missing the linkage on the thumb. That blow I took on the way down had apparently broken the rivets. Worse, I was missing a piece. Later, along with some marshal friends of mine, I did find the piece. Still not assembled though.

What a HUGE amount of fun the fighting was though. I could hardly wait for the next day, despite the heavy shield and fatigue I was feeling at the moment. So, in the evening, we spent some time having a good meal, lots of mead, and eventually wandered around pursuing various parties. I suspect some of them where good fun, but the ones we pursued were more of deep amounts of drinking and probably lewd behaviors. All in all that was a lot of fun as well and not something, with horses, I had gotten to pursue a lot at Gulf Wars.

Tags: event, heavy-fighting, melee, pennsic, sca, Society for Creative Anachronism, war