Dalwhinnie Fields, Marion, AL
Barony of Iron Mountain
February 3-5, 2017
So, late in the afternoon on Friday, February 3rd, I made the snap decision to pack my bags and head down to Meridian War College. After seeing the schedule published for the event, I thought that any marginally decent squire would be out of their mind missing it. Being a marginally decent squire...and in my 'right mind'...I talked myself into making the almost 5 1/2 hour trek from Easaraigh down to Dalwhinnie Fields in Marion, AL.
I was on the road by 5 pm and conducted an uneventful journey south down the King's road (I-59) to the lands of the Barony of Iron Mountain. Near the event site, I found refuge for the night in an Inn ran by the Hampton Family in a town called Selma. The Inn was only 20 minutes or so from site, so made for a good answer to the cold evening that had presented itself that night. By midnight, I had retired for the evening in a warm bed safe from the elements.
The Dalwhinnie Fields site is a new location for Meridians to congregate. This event was the first published event to occur there. The site is still being developed but I found the facilities and environment excellent for our activities as medieval recreationists. It is an all camping site, but there is a hall, a kitchen, a modern privy, and a designated tournament area with populace seating.
After troll, I found the fighting field and unloaded my gear. The field is still fairly rough, but spacious enough for a few hundred soldiers to wander around without being too crowded.
Before armoring, I performed a small service assisting with the royal pavilion setup under the knowledgeable guidance of THL Legio. Once that was set, I attended to my own needs and made ready for the lessons to come.
The first item on the agenda was a lecture on readiness and Esprit De Corps. Due to various factors, the cold of the previous night being a major component, the days schedule was running late. This created a relative example of the scheduled subject matter of time management and preparedness. It was addressed by our general, Sir Timothy. It was a valid lesson and well received I think. Tardiness in war is a bad thing after all.
There were several 'tracks' in the days curriculum geared toward the main categories of heavy combatant in today's Meridian army. The categories of combatant are spear, shield wall, cav, support weapons, and archers.
I chose to stick with a 'shield wall' curriculum throughout the day. While I am an experienced shield man, I am quite rusty in the practical execution of the skill.
The first breakout session (Movement and Tactics) I attended was led by Graf Ulrich. The session concerned itself with 'Charging the Line'. His Excellency addressed charge targeting (go for the weak link), chain of command (whos in charge), charge execution/technique (practical application), and decision making (when/how to go). It was all good refresher for me (remembering some forgotten concepts) and set me up for a good train of thought for the rest of the day. A nice opening salvo.
From this point forward, one session ran into the next with only a lunch/court break. It was a rapid fire day where activity was non-stop and there was no real mandated down time. I liked it.
The first group session was a standard field melee bringing all the elements together and applying the practical application of the prior breakouts lessons. The adhoc group of Meridian soldiers was organized into roughly equal teams labelled 'Red' and 'Blue' (I might suggest 'Black' and 'White' might have been more Meridian, but I digress...). I didn't get exact numbers but it felt like we had 100 or so on the field. We fought 2 or 3 engagements with cav reserves, regrouping after contact, on the spot correction and review from our chivalry and Bears. It was very enjoyable exercise and a feeling of confidence was established in the soldiers present.
Lunch followed along with a brief court with HRM Barthelemy, HRHs Bryce and Rhiannon, Thier Excellencies Iron Mountain, Bjorn and Genevieve and visiting royalty from Gleann Abhann, HRMs Caillin and Danielle.
After lunch, I attended breakout 2 (Fixed Line) led by Duke Kenneth on 'Surviving spears in a fixed line'. His Grace addressed the different 'types' of spearmen, A type (aggressive, dominant), snipers (patient hunters), and support (manipulators, assistants). We discussed 'team defense' concepts (protecting self, left and right) as well as opportunity attacks from the wall. He conducted some drills with us divided into two groups where we applied defense concepts and opportunity stikes. It was a good class that added on what we learned earlier without being too far off course with the material at hand.
The next group session was a bridge engagement. Red and Blue assembled at either end of a narrow corridor. Main lessons that I latched on to: how to stack the line and reinforcements, forming a cup or pocket defense, and supporting spearmen. 3 engagements were executed, but I was only involved in 2 (I got caught in a water break on the 3rd engagement).
I managed to squeeze in one pickup fight at this point with a squire named Michael whom I had never met before. We were able to get in a few passes before the next class started. My thanks to him for that opportunity.
The third breakout session (Timed Objectives) I attended was led by HRH Bryce with the support of Graf Ulrich. The subject was 'The Dynamic Wall'. The gist of this lesson was about the operational aspects of the wall in a fluid environment and a shieldman's (or shieldmaiden's) decision making process. More reinforcement of wall protection concepts along with relief in place (individual), regrouping/reinforcement tactics for resurrection scenarios and energy conservation/management.
The last group session, culminated all of the days lessons into a 30 minute resurrection fight with a point control element. This is much like what is done a Gulf Wars each year in the ravine. Red and Blue went at it with gusto for 30 minutes solid. Lots of small unit action with great communication. Communication turned out to be another subject that had subtle reinforcement throughout the day and was liberally applied with great success in the final group action without much of us realizing the improvement we had made during the days events.
At the conclusion of the day, the chivalry was called to meeting. Congratulations to Conrad and Seamus being called to vigil (I later found out).
The day was full of activity and well thought out. I found myself fairly spent and facing a long drive back home. With very little energy left for pickups and fighter practice in Easaraigh happening on the next day I decided to depart. With a few fond farewells, I packed my wagon and left for the King's Road and the journey north to the fair lands of Easaraigh.
Well met friends. Safe journey to thee!
I was on the road by 5 pm and conducted an uneventful journey south down the King's road (I-59) to the lands of the Barony of Iron Mountain. Near the event site, I found refuge for the night in an Inn ran by the Hampton Family in a town called Selma. The Inn was only 20 minutes or so from site, so made for a good answer to the cold evening that had presented itself that night. By midnight, I had retired for the evening in a warm bed safe from the elements.
After troll, I found the fighting field and unloaded my gear. The field is still fairly rough, but spacious enough for a few hundred soldiers to wander around without being too crowded.
Before armoring, I performed a small service assisting with the royal pavilion setup under the knowledgeable guidance of THL Legio. Once that was set, I attended to my own needs and made ready for the lessons to come.
The first item on the agenda was a lecture on readiness and Esprit De Corps. Due to various factors, the cold of the previous night being a major component, the days schedule was running late. This created a relative example of the scheduled subject matter of time management and preparedness. It was addressed by our general, Sir Timothy. It was a valid lesson and well received I think. Tardiness in war is a bad thing after all.
There were several 'tracks' in the days curriculum geared toward the main categories of heavy combatant in today's Meridian army. The categories of combatant are spear, shield wall, cav, support weapons, and archers.
I chose to stick with a 'shield wall' curriculum throughout the day. While I am an experienced shield man, I am quite rusty in the practical execution of the skill.
The first breakout session (Movement and Tactics) I attended was led by Graf Ulrich. The session concerned itself with 'Charging the Line'. His Excellency addressed charge targeting (go for the weak link), chain of command (whos in charge), charge execution/technique (practical application), and decision making (when/how to go). It was all good refresher for me (remembering some forgotten concepts) and set me up for a good train of thought for the rest of the day. A nice opening salvo.
From this point forward, one session ran into the next with only a lunch/court break. It was a rapid fire day where activity was non-stop and there was no real mandated down time. I liked it.
Lunch followed along with a brief court with HRM Barthelemy, HRHs Bryce and Rhiannon, Thier Excellencies Iron Mountain, Bjorn and Genevieve and visiting royalty from Gleann Abhann, HRMs Caillin and Danielle.
After lunch, I attended breakout 2 (Fixed Line) led by Duke Kenneth on 'Surviving spears in a fixed line'. His Grace addressed the different 'types' of spearmen, A type (aggressive, dominant), snipers (patient hunters), and support (manipulators, assistants). We discussed 'team defense' concepts (protecting self, left and right) as well as opportunity attacks from the wall. He conducted some drills with us divided into two groups where we applied defense concepts and opportunity stikes. It was a good class that added on what we learned earlier without being too far off course with the material at hand.
The next group session was a bridge engagement. Red and Blue assembled at either end of a narrow corridor. Main lessons that I latched on to: how to stack the line and reinforcements, forming a cup or pocket defense, and supporting spearmen. 3 engagements were executed, but I was only involved in 2 (I got caught in a water break on the 3rd engagement).
I managed to squeeze in one pickup fight at this point with a squire named Michael whom I had never met before. We were able to get in a few passes before the next class started. My thanks to him for that opportunity.
The third breakout session (Timed Objectives) I attended was led by HRH Bryce with the support of Graf Ulrich. The subject was 'The Dynamic Wall'. The gist of this lesson was about the operational aspects of the wall in a fluid environment and a shieldman's (or shieldmaiden's) decision making process. More reinforcement of wall protection concepts along with relief in place (individual), regrouping/reinforcement tactics for resurrection scenarios and energy conservation/management.
The last group session, culminated all of the days lessons into a 30 minute resurrection fight with a point control element. This is much like what is done a Gulf Wars each year in the ravine. Red and Blue went at it with gusto for 30 minutes solid. Lots of small unit action with great communication. Communication turned out to be another subject that had subtle reinforcement throughout the day and was liberally applied with great success in the final group action without much of us realizing the improvement we had made during the days events.
At the conclusion of the day, the chivalry was called to meeting. Congratulations to Conrad and Seamus being called to vigil (I later found out).
The day was full of activity and well thought out. I found myself fairly spent and facing a long drive back home. With very little energy left for pickups and fighter practice in Easaraigh happening on the next day I decided to depart. With a few fond farewells, I packed my wagon and left for the King's Road and the journey north to the fair lands of Easaraigh.
Well met friends. Safe journey to thee!
Ld. Eoin Mac Cana, CACM
Knight Marshal, Shire of Easaraigh
Kingdom of Meridies
Knight Marshal, Shire of Easaraigh
Kingdom of Meridies
