The eve of Pennsic is upon us!

The eve of Pennsic is upon us! Some have already departed (or are about to), while others still have days to wait. In either case Her Excellency and I wish you all a wonderful and exciting Pennsic. Try to avoid packing panic (trust us it will all fit in the car) and when you hit the road may you have safe travels. While braving the hot days and long hours please look out for each other and stay safe. If you need anything while you are there please come and see us. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, guidance, or assistance. If there is something you would like Her Excellency or I to support or witness please let us know. We will do our best to accommodate as much as possible. If you are new to Pennsic or the Barony know you are always welcome to come and join us and feel part of the family. Sadly we understand many of you that cannot join us this year. You are not forgotten. We will miss you and look forward to seeing you when we return. Keep the Barony safe why we are away at War!

Oh and as always….Hael Yeah!

Magnus and Miriel

The Baronial Keystone Changes Hands!

In 1999 The Barony was awarded a  Keystone for service to the Kingdom. Each year the Baron and Baroness are tasked to pick a new member of the populace to carry the Baronial Keystone. Traditionally the person does not have a Keystone of their own, but exemplifies the qualities of a member of the order. This year it was our honor to pick Lady Artemisia da Manarola to carry the Keystone for the coming year. Lady Artemisia has served the Barony as Dance Mistress and Web Minister, organized multiple demos, and is a continuous source of inspiration to all who meet her.

Her Excellency and I would also like to thank Lord Rhys Penbras ap Daffyd for carrying the Keystone last year and for his continuing service. Lord Rhys was awarded a Hael Stone upon transfer of the Keystone to Lady Artemisia.

After Pennsic Potluck and Baronial Bardic Championship

Every year it has been a tradition for the barony to host a after Pennsic Potluck, for people who have and have not attended Pennsic to meet up, say hi, and tell some fun stories. This year is no exception, it will be held August 16th 7:00PM-9:30 PM, the Wednesday after Pennsic at the Lancaster Elks Lodge. Bring your tastiest food and save the date on your calendar. (Fighting is open as always if people wish to practice)

However we will not only be holding the Post Pennsic Potluck, we will also be hosting the Baronial Bardic Championship, to find out who our next bardic champion will be! There will be open bardic encouraged where everyone is welcome to participate, tell a story or sing a song around the theme "most chivalrous act witnessed" For the actual Champion Competition, those wishing to compete for Champion, are welcome to perform a piece of their choosing whether on the theme or another topic.

We look forward to seeing everyone there, eating yummy foods, and hearing or watching some outstanding bardic performances.

The Hael welcomes a new Thrown Weapons Champion!

On Monday July 17th Her Excellency and I attended the last of our martial champion tournaments with the purpose of determining a new Hael Thrown Weapons Champion. Our current Champion THL Eleanore Godwin ran a challenging course tasking each participant to throw axe, knife,and spear at a series of unique targets. We had a total of eight throwers with four competing for the position of Champion. With all weapons thrown it was Lord Akayuma Yatarou Kage’o who won out above all and accepted the position of Hael thrown weapons champion. This is not the first time Lord Akayuma has served as thrown weapons champion so we have no doubt he will do a great job. We are already proud of him!

Thank you to THL Eleanore Godwin for her service as our thrown weapons champion (and as current A&S champion) and for running a fun tournament.

We would also like to thank Master Augusto Giuseppe da San Donato for his inspiration during this tournament. Master Giuseppe was facing some serious surgery that would have eliminated him from participating in the tourney, but took time out of his schedule to come and throw the week before so he could participate. Additionally, even though he did not need to, he came out the week after his surgery to watch the other champions throw and to cheer them on. Vivat! 

On point! The Hael Welcomes a new Archery Champion.

Our new Champion Lady Simonetta di Alfassi

What an exciting week for the Champions of the Hael! Only a day after the new fencing champion was determined (Lord Wolfgang Starcke), the archers of the Hael gathered to decide the next archery champion. The tournament was held at the Double T archery club alongside the normal Baronial archery practice. There was a total of seven archers shooting, with five of the seven competing for the champion spot.

The final duel!

The tournament included two parts. First, each person was required to complete a single Royal Round before moving onto the main part of the tourney. The score of the Royal Round was not important and was solely meant to encourage people to submit Royal Rounds for the year.  The main part of the tournament involved shooting two rounds of six arrows at a standard archery target at a distance of 20 yards. The goal was to score as closest to 41 points without going over. The score for each ring was modified with the center (yellow) set as 15 points, working out to the outer ring (white) set as 1 point.

At the end of the first round of shooting Lord Abdullah al-Rashid was in the lead with a total of 40 points. The second round began with no less enthusiasm even though a score of 40-41 was required to challenge or beat Abdullah. Arrows flew, the scores were counted, and in an exciting upset Lady Simonetta di Alfassi came away with a high score of exactly 41 points! Bewildered but happy, Lady Simonetta di Alfassi was offered and accepted the position of Baronial Archery Champion!



Thank you to our outgoing Champion Lady Siobhan Readnait for her service and for running such a fun tournament and to all the archers who joined us for the tourney.

The scores and tokens for the shooters (provided by  Lady Siobhan Readnait)

Announcing the New Hael Rapier Champion!

Lord Wolfgang Starcke

On a warm July night the rapier fighters of the Hael gathered on the list field to determine a new champion! Nine fighters entered the list, with seven competing for the spot as Rhyderrich Hael rapier champion. The format was round robin with each fighter fighting a best-of-three bout against each other fighter. At the end of the fighting the result was a tie between Lord Wolfgang Starcke and Lord Abdullah al-Rashid. This is the second time this year Lord Wolfgang has made it to the finals of one our tournaments, facing off in the heavy finals against Lord Tadhg Mag Uidhir only a short time ago. The final bout was best of five with alternating matching weapon forms. Both fighters made a great showing, but in the end Lord Wolfgang Starcke stood victorious. Her Excellency and I offered, and he graciously accepted his rightful position as our new Rapier Champion. Her Excellency and I would once again like to thank Lady Brigette de Sainte Mere-Église for acting as our MOL, Lady Logan Lotta da Kent and Lord Robert l'Etourdi for acting as our marshals, the gathered fencers, and last but not least our outgoing champion THL Minamoto Roku-i Sakurako.

Lady Thalia Papillon

In addition to our new champion, Lady Thalia Papillon was declared "most improved fencer" in recognition of her steadily improving skill over the past year. Recently authorized at Adult Swim in February, Lady Thalia has gone on to enter several tournaments (performing well in all) and gained additional authorizations not only in fencing, but also in combat archery and siege.  



Finally Her Excellency and I sought to add an additional piece of regalia for the Hael fencing champion. This new regalia came in the form of a buckler built and hand painted by Lady Malleen Fenella Menzies (AKA Rivin). The new shield was presented  to the new champion for the first time and there is no doubt this beautiful piece of art will become a part of Hael history. 

Lady Malleen Fenella Menzies (AKA Rivin) and her fine work!

Thanks again to everyone who came out to support and represent the Barony! What a wonderful night.