An Update

I've been silent on this blog far too long, so I want to add a quick update.

The Kit is Coming Along

My Aurelian officer kit has come along nicely.

Naturally, I am on the left.

I have since painted the shield red with gold trim. The rest of my kit has not really changed. I am wearing a plastic lamellar cuirass over a black faux leather subarmalis while wearing a spangenhelm.

I really like how it turned out. I am planning one change - replacing the plastic lamellar with a leather one.

Another New Beginning

We finally decided to leave WotS and strike out on our own. We formed our own LARP organization called Valiant LARP.

We gained 4 or so new recruits this year, which has made battles more interesting. Our third season is well underway. This year we are battling the machinations of the Faedwyr (dark elves). Read more about it at Legends of the Legion.

More Changes

A lot has happened over the past month or so.

Explorators Fizzle

In June, I raised the possibility of doing a ranger-themed campaign. The explorators were to be the rangers for the army. I felt I could run this campaign with small numbers. I even began considering options for a ranger-ish kit.

Well, that's already gone by the wayside. I came up with a better campaign idea. I'm not sure if I'll run it this season or next, but I have effectively shelved the explorators.

WotS Changes

There is new leadership at Way of the Sword (WotS), my group's parent organization. I had lunch with the new president, CJ, and discussed the future of the organization. I plugged some of the Legion's house rules. CJ seemed intrigued. Anyway, I am optimistic.

Recruiting

I'm planning a recruiting push for this fall. I'm already having some success with social media. I have a few interested parties. I set up a meet and greet / game day for us at Tate's.

I'm also creating some flyers. Here are samples of the front and back.

Change of Plans

Some thoughts and notes about my current LARP state of mind.

The Elzwehn Campaign

We completed our first campaign set in the Olden Wyrld of Elzwehn.

• The campaign began with our heroes confronting a necromancer.
• It ended with the destruction of the Dark Magi's totem and the rout of the enemy forces.

There were a number of other encounters recorded in the Annals

While I enjoyed the campaign, I was disappointed that we were not able to find more players. At the end, it was pretty much just 4 of us.

Full Immersion Follies

I've become interested in trying out a more immersive LARP experience.

First up was Mythic Adventures in Central Fla. Basilius and I went up in March for a weekend event. Unfortunately, it was a bit of a disaster. I got overheated while playing an NPC. That orc mask just retained too much heat. Also, there was not much for 1st level characters to do, and then we got murdered by orcs while supposedly in an OOC area. At the time, I said I would not return.

In May, we learned of a full immersion LARP (Exile) starting in Broward County. But then, inexplicably, Basilius and I got banned before the first event! Does one (or more) of the organizers have it out for Republicans? Anyway, so much for that.

We've been writing rules for our own full immersion LARP. I just don't think we have the numbers to pull it off.

This has led me to considering alternatives.

A "Ranger" Campaign

Because we can only rely on 2 to 4 players, I've been thinking of a campaign structure that will work with small numbers. I'm leaning toward a "ranger" campaign. Instead of planning larger, set-piece battles, design smaller skirmishes. We can go trekking along some nature trails and then have some combat encounters. Details TBD.

A New Creation

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation." (2 COR 5:17)

And speaking of new creations, welcome to my "new" blog.

Actually, I amalgamated two prior blogs. From 2015 until 2019 I ran a blog called Way of the Wardens, which chronicled my personal LARP experiences and the history of the "realms" that I ran. In late 2019, I started a blog for a new LARP that I proposed. Called "Paladins' Quest," it was intended as a Christian LARP. COVID derailed it, and I have since changed my plans. Therefore, I decided to merge the two blogs together as The Paladin's Path.

How will Paladin's Path be different? I want to highlight the intersection of my faith with my hobby. Many think that Christianity and LARP don't mix; I disagree. As I explain in this prior post, I have found that LARPing as a knightly character has strengthened my faith in Christ. Thus, I see no conflict between LARPing in general and Christianity.

So what should you expect from this blog? Well, it will be a mix of things:

• General LARP stuff, like battle reports, persona advice, and organizational discussion
• General Christian stuff, like holy day reflections, (hopefully) without getting too preachy
• Discussions about how faith and LARP can work together. For example, I am planning a series on the Christian virtues that undergird the code of chivalry, and how they apply to LARP

Anyway, I hope you join me on my journey.

All glory to the King!

Realms!

Elizabeth showed me this funny bit about Game of Thrones (it starts around 1:40 but the previous 1:39 is also good).

Regrets, I Had A Few

Shrouded Isles is facing an uncertain future, which has me pondering the mistakes I have made in my LARP career. Oh, I've made a few . . .

• I regret letting leadership of Dragon Coast pass to someone who did not share my vision. Now, I feel that Glen did a fine job. After that, however, it seemed that the park was moving in a stick-jock direction. Furthermore, leadership did not really respond to feedback. If I could do it again, I would have taken over the Chancellorship from Glen. Ironically, some of the things I wanted to do (such as park autonomy) are mirrored in my vision for Shrouded Isles.

• I regret declining leadership of Caligo. At the time, I did not want to run a Dagorhir park but wanted to start HFS instead. What I should have done is take over Caligo, and then push through the changes I wanted (such as a Caligo knighthood). I think people may have been more on-board that way.

• I regret introducing Amtgard to Caligo. More particularly, I regret introducing Amtgard awards to Caligo. Now, it seems that the park values awards more than park autonomy, which has led us to bend the knee to Neverwinter.

Sigh. No sense fretting over past mistakes. Just need to forge forward, and remember the words of the Chairman of the Board.

Sing it, Ol' Blue Eyes.

Twas A Dream

As I was taking a nap this afternoon I had a very vivid dream. I normally don't remember my dreams but this one stuck in my mind so I wanted to get it down.

A ship full of Viking-like barbarians is fleeing from some catastrophe. In it is an extended family of the barbarians. The ship is captained by Thorvald, an experienced warrior. Accompanying him is his wife Elga, a young woman (who is likely a servant), 2 sons (one late teens, another about 9-10), and some of Thorvald's comrades in arms.

 

They are shipwrecked in a civilized land. They are rescued by someone from the civilized land and nursed back to health (a merciful priest perhaps) At first, the populace of the civilized land treat the castaways with suspicion and contempt. However, Thorvald wins them over by defeating a monster that was terrorizing the land.

One day most of the barbarians just disappear, leaving the two sons and the servant girl. Number 1 son then tries to track them down. One day, he is kidnapped. Number 2 son sees his brother being dragged off. He is distraught because he believes that someone from the civilized land committed the crime. He bursts into a meeting of their ruling council and accuses them. When they try to get rid of the boy, he grabs a kitchen knife and kills one of the council members. He then stands over the corpse, waving his bloody blade, and issues a challenge to the council.

"If you are innocent, prove it in a test of arms. I will fight any of you cowards and criminals!"

The sergeant at arms disdainfully agrees and stands before the kid. A ring forms around them. The boy realizes that his blade is bent. He states he cannot fight with a defective weapon. He demands that someone procures matching daggers. Someone finds some and hands them to the lad. He checks them and is satisfied. He throws one at the sergeant of arms, who is holding a wooden club. The dagger embeds itself in the club. The sergeant at arms and the rest of the crowd stare at the dagger in surprise.

The battle is over in no time. The boy easily dodges a clumsy attack by the sergeant at arms and stabs him through the heart. He then berates the council, calling them cowards, and pledges to find his family. The council does not try to stop him.

After many months of wandering, the boy comes to a series of caves inhabited by a strange race of humanoids. They are actually peaceful, and even seem to recognize him. They take him into their cave city, where he surprisingly finds his father and mother! I'm not sure how they got there, but they remained to help the beings. But what about his brother, the boys asks. His parents reply that he had been brought here and was safe. He was out wandering the land.

At that point, all activity in the cave stopped. Some monsters are seen moving through some of the adjacent tunnels. Thorvald explains to his son that the monsters were at war with the peaceful humanoids. He was helping his new friends against these evil creatures.

After supping with his family, the boy is alone in the tunnels when he is approached by a spirit, one of a race of spirits who appear to the barbarians. These spirits are like a person's conscience, guiding them if they are losing themselves to evil. The spirit tells the boy that he committed two murders, and must return to the civilized land to face the consequences for his crimes. In tears, the boy complains that they would kill him. The spirit replies that if that was what was needed for justice to be done, then so be it. However, there was another way; the boy could offer his services in recompense. It was a tradition in the boy's former homeland a person causing an accidental death could repay for it with seven years of service. The boy was to return to the civilized land and offer that deal. The boy wiped away his tears and sadly agreed.

"I will tell my father." the boy states determinedly. "I will go at once."

"No, not yet." The spirit replies gently. "Wait until you grow to be a powerful warrior. Then it will be your time."

That's when I woke up.

Wow, I thought. There are just SO many stories possible from this one dream. I could flesh out the story of Thorvald's escape and adventures in the civilized land. The war against the monsters, the eldest son's adventures, and the youngest's sons labors in recompense for his transgressions all make great fodder for stories. I guess I need to start writing.

Introduction

I am known as Rufus of Wyvernwatch. I am the commander of a band of valiant warriors known as the Wardens of Wyvernwatch. 

Heraldry of the Wardens of Wyvernwatch

We are united in our love and loyalty to our Lord Jesus Christ as we protect the people from the depredations of the evil entities that plague our land. This is our story

OOC - I decided to start a new blog specifically devoted to the lore of my character that I developed over my years of live-action role playing (LARPing). The blog will be in the form of an annal of the experiences of Rufus, my alter-ego. At times, I will interject with out of character exposition, which I will identify by using italics in addition to marking it OOC.