Macsen ap Rhys of Wyvern Hall
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 Macsen ap Rhys of Wyvern Hall | ||||||
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Introduction
rglwydd (/ˈarɡlʊɨ̯ð/) Macsen ap Rhys of Wyvern Hall is a brewer, leather worker, and archer of some small reputation in his first SCA home, the East Kingdom. Macsen first encountered the SCA in the Canton of Fennbrycg, Barony Beyond the Mountain circa A.S. XIX (UConn, Storrs, 1984) where he dabbled briefly in heavy combat and period gaming. Macsen moved away from Fennbrycg in 1985 to pursue his mundane career but never really forgot the SCA; keeping in touch via FidoNet lists and rec.org.sca. A few years later, he sought out the SCA in the Canton of Bowman's Rest and discovered SCA archery at the fabled House Rivendell.
Macsen soon joined House Rivendell and trained under the tutelage of Master David MacDougall. He was strongly influenced by fellow archers Mistress Ygraine of Kellswood, Master Li Kung Lo, Mistress Daryl of Avallon, Master Krakken Gnashbone, and William of Barnsdale. Macsen quickly obtained a warrant as an archery marshal which he maintained throughout his tenure in the East Kingdom. He traveled widely competing in archery tournaments in the East, Middle, and Aethelmearc. Macsen achieved the ranking of Grand Master Bowman (see EK Archery Royal Round) in A.S. XXVIII.
Only one picture of Macsen in his Wisby-inspired leather and steel armor survives. He authorized in sword & board, spear, great sword, and pike, but has only fought as Pennsic sword fodder. Macsen's weapons of choice will always be longbow and crossbow.
Macsen changed mundane jobs in 2019 and moved to Atlantia just in time for the Plague to strike! This slowed his entry into the local chapter a bit, but he eventually connected with the local group at the Canton of Ritterwald in the Barony of Nottinghill Coill during the summer of 2023. Macsen is thrilled to be back in the Current Middle Ages and looks forward to whatever will come next...
Persona
Macsen is a 14th-century CE Welsh yeoman longbowman named after the legendary Macsen Wledig (Magnus Maximus), the 4th-century CE Celtiberian Emperor of Rome. He fought as a contractually indentured mounted archer in the Hundred Years War and achieved enough favor to be awarded arms. During his indenture, Macsen served for a time as a man-at-arms to a renowned Scottish archer who schooled him in bowmanship and fletchcraft. While Macsen's first choice is the longbow, he has been known to pick up a crossbow at need.
Macsen has been known to time-shift on occasion and may appear as an 8th-century CE Norseman, Magnus Logisson, Bror Bueskytter (Brother Archer), or seasonally as Knecht Ruprecht...
Offices & Positions
Warranted Target Archery Marshal, Atlantia, 8/30/2023 to present
Chatelain, Barony of Nottinghill Coill, 1/27/2024 to present
Web Minister, Canton of Ritterwald, 7/8/2024 to present
Past East Kingdom Offices & Positions
Warranted Target Archery Marshal, East Kingdom
Warranted Journeyman Chirurgeon, East Kingdom
Seneschal, Canton of Bowman's Rest, East Kingdom
Herald, Canton of Bowman's Rest, East Kingdom
Web Minister, Canton of Bowman's Rest, East Kingdom
Member of Pennsic Archery Champions Team, 3 times
Member of the Queen's Guard of HRM Christence II, A.S. XXIX (first archer to hold this position)
Event Staff
- Newcomers & Novices Point, Not Quite Quarterly Braggin' Rights, Ritterwald, June 15, 2024
- Archery Marshal, Yule Toy Tournament, Nottinghill Coill, December 13-15, 2024
- Event Steward, Baronial Birthday, Nottinghill Coill, January 17-19, 2025
- Field Steward, Dragon's Fire, Nottinghill Coill, April 12, 2025
Past Events in the East Kingdom
- Staff, Third Rivendell Challenge and War Camp (RP), June 12-14, 1992
- Autocrat, (4th) Rivendell Challenge (RP), June 4-6, 1993
- Autocrat, (5th) Rivendell Challenge, Canceled due to RP conflict
- Autocrat, Queen & King's Archery Champions (RP), July 7-9, 1995
- Autocrat, Queen & King's Archery Champions (RP), July 12-14, 1996
- Archery Marshal, Pennsic War, various
- Chirurgeon, Pennsic War, various
Awards
Classes & Publications
Classes
| Class | Location | Date | Files | |
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"Archery in the SCA, An Introduction" | Ritterwald A&S Tuesday | 6/13/23 | 
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"Mead Making Madness and Pennsic Pity Party (Mead Making 101)" | Ritterwald A&S Saturday | 7/27/24 | |
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"An Intro to SCA Archery: So You've Decided to Take Up the Bow..." | University of Atlantia (online) | 2/3/24 6/9/24 [Coming 2/1/25 Register Here] |
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"Atlantia Wiki 101: Building Your Personal Wiki Page" | Nottinghill Coill (online) | 2/29/24 |
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"Fire Safety for the SCA: A Primer for SCAdians and Event Stewards" | University of Atlantia (online) | 2/2/25 | |
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" What's That Pointy Hat and What Does It Mean? Rank and Regalia for Newcomers" | University of Atlantia (online) | 2/2/25 | |
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" What's That Pointy Hat and What Does It Mean? Rank and Regalia for Newcomers" | University of Atlantia Summer University | [Pending 6/14/25 Register Here] |
Publications
| Title | Publication | Date | Files | |
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Chatelain's Point | The Nottinghill Quill | 2/24 6/24 |
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Hnefatafl (It's pronounced, "Viking Chess") | The Nottinghill Quill | August? | (placeholder)
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On the List
- Article/static online class version of "An Introduction to SCA Archery: So You've Decided to Take Up the Bow..."
- Article/static online class version of "Atlantia Wiki 101: Building Your Personal Wiki Page"
- Hnefatafl (It's pronounced, "Viking Chess")
- We Don't Need No Steenkin' Badges
- SCA Role Models
Projects
Ongoing
- Supporting the development of an archery program in Nottinghill Coill
- Establishing an archery range with Royal Round capabilities in Ritterwald
- Rejuvenate dormant online WordPress/LearnDash Learning Management System (LMS) for hosting SCA-related classes
Active
- Small batches of mead laid down and actively fermenting (Imbolc 2024 Batch)
- 1 gal. Dragon Sweat 2/11/24
- 1 gal. Dragon Sweat (w/blood orange, raisin) 2/12/24
- ½ gal. Dragon Sweat (w/Persian lime) 2/13/24
- All batches bottled and aging, 4/3/24
- All batches drinkable, but not ripe yet, 5/18/24
- All batches quite drinkable and maturing nicely, 6/29/24
- Making a new back quiver
In the Queue
- Creating a new batch of arrows and documenting the process for eventual publication
- Brewing a batch of Macsen's Nut Brown Ale
Past Projects in the East Kingdom
- Mead, Finest at Festival of Roses, A.S.26
- Wisby Inspired Leather and Steel SCA Armor, A.S.27
- Various Meads and Beers (including Macsen's Nut Brown Ale)
- Various Sets of Matched Arrows (custom spined within ±2.5#, weight within ±5gr)
- Various Back Quivers (custom sized to owner, including a Queen and a Captain-General of the East)
SCA Waypoints
Fennbrycg
- First encountered the SCA at the University of Connecticut, which was closely tied to the Baronial seat at the time, in the Canton of Fennbycg, Barony Beyond the Mountain, Kingdom of the East, early 80s
A very visible fighter practice was held on the Student Union Mall on Sunday afternoons. This was my introduction to the SCA, borrowed armor, and getting soundly whacked with a rattan sword. Friday night gatherings were devoted to (mostly) period gaming and dance practice. In those days, it was considered important for fighters to be competent at chess and court dance...
- George Romero's Knightriders, loosely inspired by the split between the SCA and the Kingdom of Acre, was released in 1981
Knightrider's found its way onto Showtime, which had a habit of running it in the middle of the night more often than not. If I was home from school and it was on, I was watching it. It unknowingly introduced me to a perennial philosophical debate in the SCA and left me with a lifelong crush on Pat Tallman. 🥰
- Attended first East Kingdom SCA event, The Feast of Simple Fare, Barony Beyond the Mountain, November 11, 1984
I'd been bitten by the SCA bug, but moved away from Fennbrycg in pursuit of finding a real job in 1985. The internet was still in its infancy so finding other groups was hit or miss in those days, but that changed rapidly over the next few years.
- Caught the Camelot 25th Anniversary tour, October 1985 in New Haven & October 1986 in Hartford, with Richard Harris as Arthur
- Operated The Dragons' Lair BBS, FidoNet 1:142/333, 1989-1999
The BBS served as the CT hub for medieval-themed echolists (FidoNet's implementation of group messaging), including rec.org.sca (aka The Rialto) ported from USENET. A bunch of us who met through the BBS decided to meet up in person at the NY RennFair. Shortly afterward, we all investigated the local SCA group, the Canton of Bowman's Rest.
Bowman's Rest
- Mead, Dragon's Sweat, awarded Finest at Festival of Roses, AS XXVI (1991)
- First Pennsic, Pennsic XX, August A.S. XXVI (1991)
When the first Pennsic was held at Cooper's Lake in 1977, Pennsic 6, I was just 5 miles up the road at the 1977 BSA National Jamboree at Moraine State Park.
Name and Device passed, January A.S. XXVII (1992)
- Awarded Arms by Ruslan & Margaret at Rivendell Challenge, June 13, A.S. XXVII (1992)
- Finished in the top 10 at King & Queen's Archery Championship, June 27, XXVII (1992)
- Authorized Armored Combat, 7/19/1992
- Finished in the top 10 at King & Queen's Archery Championship, June 12, XXVIII (1993)
Archery Champions Team at Pennsic XXII (1993)
I was on three or four Pennsic Champions teams, but this is the only one for which I can pinpoint the year with any certainty.
Grand Master Bowman, 10/13/1993
I was always of the opinion that too much emphasis was placed on shooting Royal Rounds, as they are an entirely modern sort of competition. But, since Royal Round scores are tied to official archery ranks in most kingdoms, they continue to flourish. I was advised that, if I ever aspired to be inducted into the Order of the Saggitarius, I would need to become a Grand Master Bowman (i.e. achieve a Royal Round average of 100 or more). The last Royal Round I needed to become a Grand Master Bowman was the last Royal Round I ever shot...
- Finished 3rd at King & Queen's Archery Championship, June 11, XXIX (1994)
- The sca.org domain is created, the SCA officially joins the World-Wide-Web, 8/26/1994
Member of the Queen's Guard of HRM Christence II, October - April A.S. XXIX (1994)
I was the first archer to hold this position and travelled extensively to attend every RP I could possibly attend. This seemed like a Good Thing™️for the visibility of archery in the East, but I later learned that I was criticized for chasing RPs and missing archery events.
- Autocrat for King & Queen's Archery Championships, June 6-8, XXX (1995) and June 12-14, XXXI (1996)
- The wyvernhall.com domain is created on 9/23/1996
- Established and hosted numerous SCA email lists including SCA-Archery, SCA-MissileCombat, SCA-ThrownWeapons, SCA-YouthIssues, and SCA-Chirurgeon, circa 1997
The lists were originally hosted on my wyvernhall.com servers tucked away under the stairs in my basement, but later migrated to free commercial services as they became available (i.e. onelist, egroups, googlegroups). Eventually, they all ended up on Google Groups, which started to lose support around 2008. By that time, much of the traffic that used to be in the email lists had shifted to social media - mostly Facebook, which was rapidly growing in popularity. Today, there are still Facebook groups with those Wyvernhall email lists at the root of their ancestry.
- Hilken awarded arms by Lucan IV and Caitlan at K&Q Fencing Championships, March 25, A.S. XXXII (1998)
- Attended Marketplace at Birka at Rockingham Park (Salem, NH), circa 2000
This was probably the last in-person event I attended in the East. I still have a cast iron dragon purchased there.
The Dark Ages
- By 1999, the email lists that originated at wyvernhall.com had all been migrated to their first commercial hosting platform at OneList. They all eventually found their final homes on Google Groups before its decline.
The Chirurgeons list, archived at SCA-Chirurgeon@groups.io, was still alive as recently as 11/22/2019.
- Mad Macsen's Medieval Mart (Online Auction Site and occasional East Kingdom Fundraiser Auction), circa 2003
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Get Medieval at Mad Macsen's http://www.MedievalMart.com/
*** BUY *** SELL *** BID *** HAGGLE ***
Look for the East Kingdom Fundraiser Auction coming May 1st
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- Grad school - all but disappeared from even the eSCA between 2007 & 2014
- Proposed the name, Order of Valiance on the Omnibus Peerage Facebook group, circa 2015
This is the Order name that accompanied the Omnibus Proposal to the BoD thereafter, but it didn't stick once it got to the College of Heralds in 2023.
- Living in Baltimore (Bright Hills, Atlantia) for work from the fall of 2016 through the spring of 2018
I actually got as far as rounding up my archery gear with the intention of finding an SCA practice near Baltimordor. Since I was commuting home on most weekends, that plan never materialized. It's also the last time much of that gear was seen as it was later stolen.
- Moved to the CSRA for a new job in July of 2019
I attempted half-heartedly to locate the local SCA but didn't get far. About this time, I discovered my archery equipment was missing. Getting the household moved from CT took precedence over finding the local SCA and then COVID came along...
Ritterwald
- Attended first Atlantia SCA event, Baronial Picnic, Nottinghill Coill, 8/26/2023
- Ritterwald awarded the Coill's Hydra for exceptional service to the Barony at NQQBR IV
Made a Companion of the King's Missiliers by Randall & Iul'iana at Yule Toy, December 14, A.S. 59 (2024)
- Event Steward, Baronial Birthday, Nottinghill Coill, January 17-19, A.S. 59 (2025)
- Field Steward, Dragon's Fire, Nottinghill Coill, April 12, A.S. 59 (2025)
In Case of Court
In the highly unlikely event of Court, please consult Viscount Sir Elazar of Northumbria or Master Robert de Bardoulf for guidance...
Random SCA aspirations:
Order of the Sagittarius 🏹- Court Barony 👑
- Mermaid Supporter 🧜🏽♀️
