Acre’s Autumn Crusade, 2013

As always, Acre throws a wonderful event.

Since the forecast predicted some rain, we opted to all share a cabin this year, and despite the itty bitty boy scout sizes of the bunkbeds, it was a great decision. (plus, with the dark and windowless nature of the place, we all slept in past nine both mornings)

This was the first event at which we had a compliment of four fighters, and it was awesome. They were able to work effectively as a unit in the woods, and had a blast. Brego and Branoc, in their leather armor, were able to sneak behind enemy fighters and use the special “kill from behind” attack of the day. Their unit also managed to take a fort and raise their flag just before the last horn sounded, helping to win the day for the Byzantines.

The ladies spent the afternoon on crafting projects, and in the evening, Branoc and Dougal were formally initiated into the household with our very secret H3S ritual, and handled themselves admirably. We wandered over the perilous looking bridge to the amphitheater bardic circle. Vivienne, Branoc, and Aoife made a pact to have household singalong evenings, so they could learn all of the words to a few songs, instead of a few verses of a lot of songs.

Aoife went to a class and learned how to spin wool on a drop spindle. She’s already spun the ounce of wool that came with the class materials, twisted it into two-ply yarn, washed it and set it to dry. It only made a few yards, but she knows this is going to be an immediate hobby, and is looking forward to trying out the antique family spinning wheel, too. Here’s her finished yarn:

Adelisa loved the boy’s rounds of broom jousting, our impromptu pre-bardic bardic, and watching Vivienne lead the fighters in calisthenics. Brego’s favorite parts of the event included the bardics, working as a team with the guys, and reminding Baroness Venture that her lights were on in her automobile.

The food was awesome and plentiful, and the weather was beautiful. Everyone enjoyed listening to the boys yelp after being peer pressured into bathing in the icy stream. All in all, another great event by Acre, and a wonderful way to bid the SCA season adieu for the year.