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Main => The Great Hall => Topic started by: AnsalonPaladin on 2015-05-26, 01:09:22

Title: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: AnsalonPaladin on 2015-05-26, 01:09:22
Hello folks, my name is Jeremy Thomas, you may refer to me by that or by my screen name, obviously. I'm a prior military infantryman who has always held a deep love and respect for knighthood and the code of chivalry. I'm 24 years old and turn 25 in July, I'm a Cancer by Greek astrology, an Oak by hypothetical Celtic astrology, and a horse by the Chinese zodiac! If you can't tell, I'm kind of into that sort of thing. Anyways, I love history, video games, fantasy realms, most things military related, weapons, tactics, and nature. I live in Richmond Virginia, a hub of history and culture, and I love it! I'm currently a Social Science major and a writer for www.universityofguns.com. I just recently saw the Order at the VARF and I was so impressed that I just had to learn more! Thanks for allowing me to join the forum, and I hope to meet some cool folks on here.
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: Thorsteinn on 2015-05-26, 03:33:12
Welcome. What are your martial interests?
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: Sir Brian on 2015-05-26, 07:33:37
Hail and well met Jeremy! Glad you liked the demonstration and thank you for your support of our chosen charity as well as your service to our nation! I was in the medic in the 7th and 3rd Infantry Divisions a few decades ago and can fully appreciate the resiliency and resourcefulness of a grunt. :)
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: Ian on 2015-05-26, 13:27:43
Welcome Jeremy!  Former US Navy H-60 pilot here, so maybe you've gotten a ride before?  Glad you enjoyed the show at VARF, enjoy the forum!
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: Lord Dane on 2015-05-26, 18:02:47
Welcome Jeremy. Hope you enjoy your travels here. :)
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: Sir Martyn on 2015-05-26, 18:16:42
Welcome, Jeremy from a fellow Cancer :)

Glad to hear you enjoyed the VARF demo - that's why we do it.
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: Sir Rodney on 2015-05-27, 02:29:09
Well Met Jeremy!
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: AnsalonPaladin on 2015-05-27, 11:07:30
My martial interests are sword and shield combat, spears, archery, well...most weapons actually- jousting is high on the list, I've dreamt of it all my life and would like to be on the field by my mid thirties. I like a variety of time periods, from the Classical and Archaic age to Early and High Middle ages. I like late period arms and armor but do tend to bemoan the loss of the shield as it's always been such an iconic and interesting piece of panoply to me. Ian- I have in fact ridden on a number of Blackhawks, my battalion 1-12 Infantry 4BCT 4ID was an Air Assault battalion so we spent a lot of time in UH60's and CH64's. I'm definitely glad I joined this forum and forsee good things in the future for me, as I've started to feel you folks are an accepting, generous, and honorable lot, and that's my bread and butter! I can't wait to learn more, and have already learned a lot from Sir Ian on how to set up my panoply correctly. Currently I only have ancient Greek kit but do have a nice chainmail hauberk. I'm going to continue to expand over the years and hope to one day be on the field practicing combat with some of you outstanding folks!
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: Sir William on 2015-05-27, 15:11:33
Well met, Jeremy.  Jousting...I think we'd all love a crack at it, eh gents?
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: Sir James A on 2015-05-27, 15:40:54
Hail and welcome!
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: Sir Patrick on 2015-05-27, 16:54:33
Hail and well met!
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: Sir Edward on 2015-05-27, 20:39:43

Hail, and welcome!
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: AnsalonPaladin on 2015-05-29, 09:41:10
Well met, Jeremy.  Jousting...I think we'd all love a crack at it, eh gents?

I'm blessed that my family came upon some acreage of land these past few years that we have been cultivating, so my vision is to some day turn a portion of it into pasture and stables. Eventually after I master raising horses in general I'd like to turn one of them into a joust-worthy thing. A lofty dream I know, but I feel dreaming big is a great motivator to do great deeds even if you don't always achieve the exact dream.

Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: Sir Edward on 2015-05-29, 19:04:07

I think that's a great goal! It's not easy to train them to be comfortable with armor and weapons, but obviously it can be done. Having your own trained horse goes a long way to being able to participate in jousting groups, I think.
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: Sir Nate on 2015-05-29, 21:56:03
Well met Jeremy!
Im glad you have such a wide range of interests! I hope we can help.
Also, thank you for your service.

P.S. Can you tell us more about your hauberk?
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: AnsalonPaladin on 2015-05-29, 23:57:05
Well met Jeremy!
Im glad you have such a wide range of interests! I hope we can help.
Also, thank you for your service.

P.S. Can you tell us more about your hauberk?


My hauberk, though I may be referring to it wrong- is a dark nickel silver in the European 4 in 1 weave style. It's heavier than many maille jackets I've held or worn. It stretches down to myknees, but the sleeves are very short, almost vest-like. I got it from my father on my last birthday in order to substitute for another gift, as someone had gifted it to him and he didn't have use for it. I actually added it to my Greek panoply, which, along with my red tunic and black plate gave my outfit a kind of Roman Noble look (as some Roman nobles adopted the Corinthian helm just out of appreciation for the aesthetic, even though it was often the Italo-Corinthian style). I definitely think it's more fitting to use in a medieval setting.


Sir Edward, for as shy as horses are I find jousting horses to be an amazing spectacle. Their ability to completely disregard their inset nature is very intriguing to me. That's why I find the vision of myself on a dark and audacious stallion such a romantic prospect!
Title: Re: Hail from the Old Dominion!
Post by: Sir Dimitry on 2015-06-02, 03:38:14
Stallions are a pain to deal with if you're not an experienced horseperson and even then most would rather deal with geldings.

Many factors go in training a horse to joust or for medieval games. Dressage is one of the best disciplines you can learn that equates to you and your horse becoming a single machine. I can tell you its very hard, and takes a long time. But the rewards are great.