Information for Newcomers

Many newcomers feel intimidated by attending their first meeting or feast. However there is no reason to feel uncomfortable, as a newcomer such as you is the lifeblood of the SCA. The more people who are members of the SCA, the more fun we all can have. You will find that we are very happy to help any newcomer with any questions. However, it may help if we explain some of the traditions and behaviours expected of everyone within the group at feasts and other events.

If you are interested in seeing what we are about, please email our Hospitaller or join us at Combat Training or an Arts & Sciences Gathering.

Combat in St Florian de la Riviere

Within the Society for Creative Anachronism, we have three main forms of combat:

Each of these have a specific set of rules which ensure that personal safety is considered at all times.
Fighting within the SCA is a full contact sport, and we have special rules governing our weapons, armor and rules of engagement. The most obvious difference between the SCA and other medieval groups is that we do not play with real metal swords. Instead, we use swords made of wood, called rattan. These differences are also noticeable in Light Combat where the arrows we fire at each other have a rubber stopper (we call it a blunt) at the end rather than a metal arrowhead.
Fighting normally occurs under two sets on rules: tournaments and wars.

A tournament is fought upon the list field, where combatants will face each other until there is a victor. This is done with pageantry, chivalry and skill. Tournaments are run fairly often and are fun to watch and to participate in.

Wars occur every couple of months on average across Australia and New Zealand. Wars are big events with people coming from interstate and overseas to take part. It is common in Australia for wars to have 200 people aside. There are wars in the United States that have over two thousand people on each side.
If you would like to know more about fighting, read more here or take a look at the Combat Handbook.

Arts and Sciences in St Florian de la Riviere

While our displays of fighting in its three different forms attract much attention, the Society for Creative Anachronism also boasts a strong and vibrant Arts and Sciences base. Within the Barony of St Florian de la Riviere we have large numbers of skilled artisans in a number of interesting and varied fields. Amongst the skills that our members display are:

While this is only a small list in comparison many of the fields that are available for research within our time period, you will find in St Florian that we have a large number of members who are multi- talented. We encourage newcomers to the group to talk to us about what interests them, and you will find that we are very happy to pass on what knowledge we have. This can either be by chatting to you, suggesting books to read on the topic, or more often, sitting down and showing you an example of the item and helping you to make it.

So are you interested in becoming a member? Click here to register

Some text taken from Gabriel de Beaumont’s Newcomer Information.