Seeking topics for SCA 201

[jducoeur]

As part of Carolingia's upcoming Novice Schola, I'm planning on teaching a new class called "SCA 201". We've had "SCA 101" for a while -- that's an introduction to the Society, aimed primarily at the true novice, giving useful information for getting up and running. This is a little different. The target audience here is people who have been around for a year or three and have their feet under them. It is intended to get into a bit more detail about life in the SCA, and how to survive and thrive within it.

To that end, I'm seeking ideas for topics. Any and all ideas will be considered, but I'm especially looking for ideas from the people who *have* been in for 1-5 years. What questions have you had in the back of your mind for a while? What would have been useful for you to know about, that you learned only through painful experience? This class has a very broad remit -- the primary constraint is that it about SCA culture, *not* about history. Don't be shy about tossing ideas into the pot, and don't be afraid of "me, too" in this case -- if a bunch of people think a topic would be useful, that will bump it up the priority list. (Just bear in mind that I only have an hour, so I can't cover everything.)

Comments

[jducoeur]

I'll mention it in the class, but for your reference and in case you don't get to it: really, Ya Just Do It. Households are, at their heart, basically unregulated -- if a bunch of people say, "We're a household", then they are. There is so much variety in the concept that there aren't many expectations or requirements about how you organize it.

Within Carolingia there's the concept of the "chartered household", which is a slightly bigger deal (mostly in that it gets a Council seat), but it's basically just a higher layer. To get chartered, the household has to demonstrate that it's reasonably stable and worthwhile; at that point, they present a charter to the Baron, who signs it.

(I should note that this is mostly talking about the practical side. The *politics* of households, and how to avoid making them nasty, can be an extremely complex subject indeed. That's another good topic for a separate session, if there is interest.)

None of the households currently being called in Council are defunct, but none are really roaring along. Windsmeet and Chat Gris have effectively reduced in size due to members gafiating, Silverwing's center of gravity has shifted to Bridge, and Lochleven (which is actually huge and very healthy) has always been a rather inter-Baronial entity. There is certainly lots of room for more-active households if folks wanted them...