requently Asked Questions

• How'd you get into this?
• What does it take to become a Seattle Knight?
• Are your weapons real?
• Is it hot in there? Is it heavy?
• What kind of tack do you use? And where do you get it?
• What kind of horse is that?

ow'd you get into this?

Many of the members of the Seattle Knights started out just like you; they had an interest in armor and swords, or they were horse lovers who wanted to learn more about jousting. A small handful were actors looking for a new venue. But most were -- and still are -- regular people who work more-or-less normal jobs.

Most have a secret dream, though; they wanted to be in a movie, or play, or to just pretend that they live in the age of chivalry. To be a knight in armor, riding a horse, righting wrongs by the might of your sword... we all dreamed of it at one time or another. Many of the Seattle Knights spent way too much time reading fantasy novels or playing role playing games, either table top or live versions. Quite a few were members of the Society for Creative Anachronists or The Fantasy Alternative.

But when they finally discovered a place where they could actually play the part of the hero or villain of their dreams, there was no stopping them.

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hat does it take to become a Seattle Knight?

Ask most members of the Seattle Knights what it takes, and most will answer, "A lot of hard work!"

Yes, it takes a lot of work, and the monetary rewards are small. But not all the rewards are monetary; the best ones are the smiles that you get from the audience, the excitement of the children who get swept up in the story you helped bring to life, and the acknowledgements from your peers when you have helped to create a great performance. These are the real reasons most of us do it.

But hard work is only a small piece of the picture. Desire was the beginning, for without the desire to do this, most people would have given up after the first lesson. Tenacity -- the ability to stick to it when things got rough -- is a must; not just for the training, but the road shows, the long hours of travel, the work to clean armor and costumes when you've been fighting all day in the mud and have to go back out and do it again (just ask any Knight who was at the first Shrewsbury Faire in Philomath, Oregon). And let's not forget the joys of baking your brains out in a suit of steel under a blazing sun, living on very little sleep because your camp is next to a drumming circle, getting up in the middle of the night because the horses are loudly banging their empty water buckets because they kicked them over.

But more than anything else, it takes a love of the art. Not just love of the acting (though that is part of it), and not love of the cheers and jeers of the crowd, but the love for the sword.

Most of the Knights get a dreamy, far away look in their eye as they pick up a blade to examine it. Finding a good one fills most of them with an almost childlike excitement. You can see it in their eyes, how they sparkle and shine. And the style of the blade usually matters little, for each of the Knights has their favorite, but they universally appreciate a good blade, and literally love their cherished favorites.

It is the love of the sword that brought most of them to the Knights; they just couldn't get enough. Some expressed their early love and devotion by collecting swords, and a few of the Knights have homes that look like armories. The walls of their houses are not always hung just with antiques, but with swords of all types and qualities, simply because they were swords. A few, more discerning, individuals collected only certain types or blades only by certain makers. This has allowed many of the rest of the Knights to learn about blades on the market without buying them; a very important factor in a new member's education, and information we are glad to share with any who ask.

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The question most commonly asked of the Seattle Knights is:

re your weapons real?

The answer is both Yes and No.
No, they are not antiques built hundreds of years ago, but, yes, they are modern day replicas of the weapons that existed then, or they are replicas of fantasy weapons, their designs taken from books or movies, but built to the same standards as the antique replicas. They are built to have the weight and feel of the weapons that were used during the time periods we represent. And, when properly sharpened, they function exactly the same way. We do not keep our blades razor sharp, for obvious safety reasons. We are not really out to kill one another. We are performers, not warriors.

Most of our weapons are commercially purchased pieces that can be found in many catalogues. The majority of the impact weapons have come from state side suppliers that deal in weapons made in India. A few are specialty pieces purchased from the Arms and Armor catalogue, manufactured by a man named Christopher Poor. (You can connect to his web site from our Allies page.)

Now, Christopher's impact weapons may be a bit more expensive (in some cases, his pieces were the prototypes for the ones now made in India), but they are some of the best we have ever seen. The Spiked Flail is one of the most deadly and beautiful pieces we've ever worked with. The Rondache and Bucklers that he makes are also great pieces. Generally speaking, however, his rapiers and cut-and-thrust swords are just too expensive for us to actually use them. They are beautifully balanced, and a few hang on various Knights' walls, but of the edged weapons that he makes, only a few of his daggers are used by the group. The rest are just too pretty to work with!

Each Knight has their favorite weapons, and a few have many different versions of the same type of weapons. Some have bought and used, very successfully, a plethora of the CAS Iberia swords, mostly those made in the Philippines instead of the ones made in Toledo, Spain. Although they use the same basic designs and patterns, the ones built in the Philippines are less expensive and seem to actually hold up better (possibly because they are made from recycled jeep and truck springs).

Because of the way we fight (we block with the sides of our weapons, as they did throughout history, rather than with the edges, as in most stage combat methods), we always use real weapon replicas instead of specially built stage blades. While there are some good stage blades out there, like the ones sold through American Fencing Supply in San Francisco, or special heavy duty ones like those built by "Starfire" sword company, we do not use them unless we are fighting in a mixed troupe, with people trained only in SAFD type combat.

Now, for the better commercial blades, most of the Knights will use Del Tin swords. They are almost exact replicas of the blades they are built to resemble. In weight and heft, they are little different from the original; it is in the high quality of materials and the difference in some material choices that you can tell that they are not authentic, and you won't usually notice these things unless you take one apart. They are great pieces of work, and other than our custom built swords, they are the best that we can get for the price.

Del Tin armories have so many styles to choose from, and at such great prices, that it is sometimes hard to choose between one of theirs and a good custom built.

Michael Pearce, a.k.a., "Tinker," is a member of the Seattle Knights, but that's not the only reason many of us are armed with his swords. His work holds up exceptionally well to our type of combat, and, for the most part, the designs are historically well documented. "Tinker blades" are widely sought-after. Many of the Knights also use blades built by Jess Roe of Prose and Steel. A few have Salamander Armories weapons, but they are hard to get unless you order far in advance. Still, they are nice working pieces.

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Now as for Armor...

Again, some of the most often asked questions are about our armor:

s it hot in there?
Is it heavy? (always asked by people of all ages as you are sweating in the 90 degree heat and 90% humidity).

Most of the time, the answer to both questions is "YES!"
Our armor is hot and heavy, and again it is replica armor, not antique, which means it actually weighs more than the real armor that it is built to resemble. This is because our armor is built of modern, cold-rolled steel, instead of having been beaten out of forged plate. Forged armor is extremely expensive to make, but is lighter than the more common cold-rolled plate armors. This is because the steel is thicker in the front and top layer pieces, and thinner on the sides and in the back.

Forged armor actually has superior strength, due to the tempering, than the modern version. This is why a historical suit of armor will weigh as little as 50 pounds, when the modern replica will weigh in at about 75 pounds, if built of 16 gauge cold-rolled steel or stainless in the same weight.

Of course, there are many other factors to consider in the overall picture of comfort. For example, if you're wearing the appropriate padding and maile pieces, it will add more weight and heat. Some of the armor is built to standard designs such as "Gothic" or "Greenwich;" others are strictly fantasy pieces.

The suits of armor worn by Sir Charles and Sir Phillip are built by Terry "Sven" Orten, and made of stainless 16 gauge steel, using the same pattern as the cold- rolled armor suit that he built for Sir John von Ravensburg. In all three cases, it is a High Gothic German harness.

Sir Emil has a suit by Sven in the later 16th century style, also in cold-rolled steel. As a matter of fact, it is easier to say that all of the plate armors, with a few exceptions, are cold rolled steel in 16 gauge, built by Sven.

The one that was probably the toughest to build is the fantasy armor worn by Rowan, which was designed and partially built by Dameon Willich. Of the plate armors not built by Sven, the most striking example is the armor of Sir Wilhelm. His armor was constructed by Christian Fletcher, and is a typical 16th century harness in blackened steel, with brass trim. Most of it is 16 gauge with 14 gauge points (elbows, knees, helm).

Then we have the armor worn by Indigo and Geleah. Theirs are mixtures, with the plate work of Eagle Talon Armories for the legs and arms and some additional pieces, like the gorgets. But the helms are from Sven.

There are a few helms made in Czechoslovakia by KK Art, and a few by Jess Roe, and some by the actors themselves. Taliya's plate armor was built by Dameon, while her mail pieces were built by herself. Most of the maille was built by Eric Slyter of Vistars Maille. But some was built by the individuals who are wearing it, or by Dameon and/or Mike Miller.

Leather armor, again, is generally built by the wearer or Dameon, though some of the newer pieces are being built by Tanglewood Leather Crafts (they also make most of the high boots), Kathryn "Kat" MacKay, or Dragonshallow (a.k.a., Tim Mitchell).

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hat kind of tack do you use? And where do you get it?

One of the most commonly asked questions both via email and live is, "Where do you get your tack?" In many cases, we build our own tack from saddles that we adapt to our specific use. But many of the Knights have been picking up Peruvian tack to use for their chargers, the reason being that it is so close in style to the type of late period saddles used throughout most of Europe. The basic Peruvian saddle design is literally the same as it was in the 1600s. With a change of stirrups and a different barding added, the saddle is very believable for our uses, whether it be for the Swashbucklers or for the earlier period “Jousting” saddle. Adding Saddle Plates to the pommel just makes it that much better.

A few of the Knights have also had great luck adapting the Spanish bull fighting saddles to their use. These saddles are usually used for Andulusians and other Iberian show horses here in the States, and are similar in design to the Paso and Peruvian saddles. With few modifications, generally in the addition of barding, they pass just fine for our shows.

In the earlier years we often adapted McClellan cavalry saddles to use for the joust. These saddles are based on an older Hungarian design, and were cheap and easy to get a hold of, at least in the beginning years. Now, if we could have found a Ringold or better yet a Grimsley, both earlier versions of U.S. cavalry saddles, we would have been in heaven. But it would have been a shame to ruin such antiques for our purposes. We have, however, found a saddle maker in Arkansas that will build those types of saddles: Border States Leather Works in Springdale Arkansas (501-361-2642). They make cavalry reenactment saddles for people that want the best in quality for their reenactments. For the Peruvian Tack, try Hacienda La Enchantada in Austin, Texas (512-276-3855). In both cases, you are talking a serious investment for new tack, around $1000 - $1600. Good used tack can be found for around $500, if you shop around a lot.

Now, as for the Caparison and Barding, we usually have to build those ourselves. The caparison or “clothing,” that a few of the horses wear, is designed similarly to a horse blanket, only longer. Captain Markos uses the uncommon two-piece style, where the front is a separate piece from the larger, blanket portion. Because they meet under the saddle, it is easy to cheat and use heavy duty Velcro instead of lacing it together, and the back piece bellows out like wings when Knarr charges down the lists. Dame GeLeah uses an earlier style that is very much like the blanket or sheet. Because it is split in the front, her Arab mare has less chance of overreaching and tripping. Both have their advantages. And, not only are caparisons eye-catching, but they are highly recommended for those who have white or gray horses, and little access to showers between shows. The term “green” horse takes on a whole new meaning when we’re on the road doing shows in places that have no bathing facilities for the horses.

Also, some of the best jousting horses are not exactly the most beautifully built. Good conformation does not necessarily go with a good disposition or strong “heart.” A well-built caparison can cover a myriad of flaws.

Barding is the leather strapping that is commonly used by Dark Moriah, Sir Morgan, Sir Charles, Rowan, and others. This is in either a Basket weave style or Spider web style. In both cases, it is fashioned from heavy double layered harness leather, and attaches to the saddle, behind the cantle and at the girth, with a crupper under the tail to hold it in place. These types of barding are period for 15th to 17th Century, and are excellent protection as well as very stylish. However, it is recommended that you have a harness maker build them, if you do not have the machinery that will handle stitching heavy leather. It is far too much work to do it by hand.

The horse armor is usually built by one of our regular armorers (See Armor). But we use little of it. A few Chamfrons and Crinets is about all, though you’ll see an occasional Peytral when we are doing parades, or just in the joust.

As for the bits and bridles, most of those are again adapted from harness pieces or from Australian-style halter-bridles. We use a variety of bits, from snaffles to double Pellams, Tom Thumbs, and Kimberwicks. It all depends on the horse that you are working with. Since each of the Knights owns their own horse and tack, it is their choice as to what bit works best for them.

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This brings us to the next point, or most commonly asked question.

hat kind of horse is that?

Most of the Seattle Knights own their own horses. In some cases, they have more than one. But not all of our mounts are used for the same thing. Some horses are best at Jousting, and some are better at the light horse games. A few horses are great at both, and those are the ones we use most in the shows. Not all of our horses can handle this type of game. It is rather stressful for 9 out of 10 horses, and goes against their basic “fight or flight” instinct. But many adapt to it very well, and a few actually seem to thrive on it. They get bigger than life and develop what we refer to as “show presence”. These are the horses most often used in our major shows. So when we are looking for horses, we look for those that have the temperament to become “Show” horses. Then we go for breed, color, or size.

Most of the horses in the troupe are listed in the Horsepower section of the Cast list, and we treat them as members of the cast. They are not just our mounts, ridden into the ring and out again for our glory; they are our teammates and partners – and our friends. For the most part, they are why people come to the shows.

We have a variety of breeds; Andalusians, Appaloosas, Arabians, Friesians, Quarterhorses, Morgans, Mustangs, Paints, Percherons, Thoroughbreds, and crosses of all the above. Many people are surprised by the fact that we prefer the smaller, faster horses, instead of the large draft breeds that they all believe were used. In truth, most of the war-horses of the medieval and renaissance period were actually Iberian horses or cross breeds of such; Andalusians, Friesians, or horses of that size. The famous Lippizan horses, with their airs above the ground, are merely repeating the war training of the period. There were cases of the larger drafts and draft crosses being used in the northern European countries, but by and large the common war-horse throughout Europe and the Mediterranean area was of Iberian decent. However, then just as now, it was the temperament that made the difference.

As for the training of the mounts, that is usually handled by each of the individual knights under the tutelage of either Dameon Willich or Lauri LaSabre, both accomplished horse trainers.

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