Some Idle Dreaming

[Greg]

I'm gonna pretty much just thought-vomit here for a little bit. Read on at your own peril.



The whole point of this forum, at its roots, is to provide a place for reenactors, larpers, and costumers who share a love for Tolkien to build legitimate kits and personas based around the cultures of middle-earth, most specifically the Dunedain Rangers. Fair enough?

Many of us take this a step further, and employ these kits in live-fire environments, carrying out "backpacking trips" of a sort, re-creating what patrolling Eriador as a Ranger would have been like, over an afternoon to several days. Fair enough?

Others still go so far as to practice historical methods of fighting through Western Martial Arts groups and other media, to develop the actual skill sets found in the role of a Dunedain Ranger. Fair enough?

So if so much of Tolkien's written word is re-creatable, and we've succeeded to various degrees in each of the above categories...yet there's something that I keep coming back to that I feel is missing, yet frighteningly difficult to include in all of this.


I want to visit a Tavern. I want desperately to be able to step through a creaky wooden door out of the cold and wet, and barter with a fat inkeeper over a room for the night and a hot meal. I'd like to sit in a common room with a pint and watch as people come-and-go, and then, finally, retire up some creaky old stairs to a small room with a bunk.

The prancing pony, of course, is a prime example of this, but I've encountered a dozen such sequences in various literature, including ten or more just in the first book of the Wheel of Time, and countless others. A ranger needs a watering hole every now and again...a dry roof over his head and a hearth blazing, even just for one night.


The problem, of course, is where to find something like this, where a small group, dressed and armed as we would be, could pull something like this off. We could be nice and give the proprietors of the location some warning so they'd know to not call the cops when half a dozen strangely dressed folks walked in off the road with swords on their belts and a strong need for ale. I'm thinking the best place to approach would be an off-the-beaten-path old bed-and-breakfast somewhere. The idea of practically flooding one with "strange folk" one night would be a blast. Perhaps even make a bit of performance art out of it, by staging it similarly to the well-known prancing pony scene from PJ's films, by having characters enter in order, starting with a dark hooded character in the far corner, and then having a group of four well-dressed but travel-stained hobbits enter...and, of course, not giving any inclination that anything is out-of-the-ordinary. Give the locals something to talk about for a long time, as the stories always go.

Food for thought. Anyone who can supply a few images, inside and out, of a local B&B that might fit the bill and would be willing to go along with it, please feel free to post. There's one near me that might work, that I have yet to see the inside of, but I'll post details again. I suppose once we actually get an idea for where this might happen, we'll move this along to the Gatherings forum. In the meantime, this is just me daydreaming in public.

Sorry.

[Ringulf]

No need to be sorry Greg I think most of us have had the same desires! I have had many of these type of encounters in some of the more elaborate SCA tavern events and have been told of even more. I have also seen this thing done quite well in the Larp genre. I would think a re-enactment type Larp situation or event could be put together rather nicely. The degree to which our level of realism and fantasy move to is totaly up to us as a group. we could have our own "Personas" so to speak or for those who have not or do not yet want to develop one be ansilarry NPC type characters or "cast" This could also include family and friends. A limited one time gathering or a seasonal series could be produced with a plot or just as a gather /Rangerfair (as opposed to renfair)
If there is any serious interest in putting together something like this, I know myself and a few other ripe candidates for the project. (Manveron might be able to lend us some of his vast knowledge and experiencein putting together something like his pirate conventions but for Rangers)
It truly would be amazing to get us all together in the same place someday!

[Greg]

That's dreaming big, for sure, but making a large-scale event of the type you're describing is a bit beyond my goal here. I want to walk up to a Tavern, sit down, eat a hot meal, etc...just dressed like I do for, well...this. I don't want to have to make the tavern and staff it with reenactors to achieve my goals. That'd be an undertaking for someone associated with a larger group than I am.

The biggest challenge here, for starters, that I'm finding is simply coming across a location that would fit the bill and look the part. There's a place called the King Henry VIII Tavern, which would look the part, inside and out...but it's in England. I'm not. See the dilemma?

At the same time, I'm willing to do just about anything to encourage realism. The Bed and breakfast near me charges about $100 a night to stay in a room...but they only charge $20 a night to stable your horse (literally). So if a weary traveler 'couldn't afford a room'....what's to say that they wouldn't, wanting to avoid being noticed heavily by the locals, spend a night in an empty stable, and be gone before first light? I'd happily crash a common room for a few hours, eat a hot meal, and then share a stable with a few nut jobs like myself before taking off and paddling down the local river.

[wulfgar]

I don't really have any good personal pics of it but in Conway, Arkansas, there is a blockhouse that the Early Arkansas Reenactors Association uses for events. It is two stories, with large fireplaces at each end, and a common sleeping area upstairs. There is also a clay bread oven outside Very cool site. Here are some examples from the website.
http://www.arkansaw.us/images/DonnaJeanandLaurine.jpg
http://www.arkansaw.us/images/DakotaandTom.jpg
http://www.arkansaw.us/images/Cadron2002.jpg
http://www.arkansaw.us/images/pavillion.jpg
http://www.arkansaw.us/images/CadronBoyce.jpg

[Ringulf]

Very cool Wulfgar!
Yeah the scale you are speaking of Greg would be very attractive and it would be very cool to have a few interested couples and individuals all meet up someplace Friday afternoon and possibly do a little something the next day together in the outdoors to return on sunday to our respective homes. That way if we found the right B&B and could have the proprietor make it what we were looking for so much the better. We will have to search out a good place!

[Straelbora]

Greg, you've pretty much described what I'd like to do in my retirement.

I'll know soon (based on my wife's job) whether or not we're staying in Indiana for the next 25 years. If so, my goal is to buy some wooded land in Brown County and build a mead hall (pretty simple, really- just a rectangular pine log structure with a large fire pit in the middle). I would love to have it as a site of Ranger gatherings. But that's just the first step.

Since before the Lord of the Rings films, I've had the plan in the back of my head to have a small Middle Earth-themed bed and breakfast. I can picture myself as a Gandalf of sorts, sitting around the fire in the common room telling stories, serving up hearty stews and dark ales. I'd even build a couple of Hobbit-sized rooms to rent for kids, smaller guests or those who don't mind spilling out of the bed.

I think with the success of the films, the worldwide fandom could support this as a semi-retirement hobby (like a lot of lawyers who historically became 'gentleman farmers'). It wouldn't need to necessarily make a profit, just support itself. If my wife's job situation keeps us here, and if there's an immigration amnesty (not sure if I've mentioned before- I'm an immigration lawyer) and a large influx of business from it, I could be building the mead hall within five years and a small inn within ten. The neat thing about the B&B inn would be that you could build a core, then add on in a sort of ramshackle manner, which would only add character.

[Ringulf]

Sounds like a ripe opportunity for living history type summer internships!

[Udwin]

Greg, this post brought to mind the Talbott tavern in Bardstown, Kentucky. A bit modern in its amenities, but it is a historical building with a large, wooded common room and a few small rooms for rent up the creaky stairs.
(just pretend those 'steel horses' are flesh-and-bone horses and it could easily be the 'Pony.^)

[armchair]

Straelbora, if you do get such a place built in Brown Co, will you be needing any entertainment there? Say, a fiddler, perhaps? I'm on Indy's south side; Brown county is a reckless drive down 135 for me.

[Liathwyn]

Greg~ Thank you for sharing your "idle dream". It is wonderfully encouraging to know that others aren't just into role playing, but really living it! Your idea sounds awesome : )

[Peter Remling]

An idea, I had many years ago was to start a live in Medieval Village. The residents would maintain their cars outside the village out of sight. They would live and work in garb in the village, in shops on the bottom floor and live upstairs for those that were merchants. The housing units would have all there electrical items concealed. power lines would be out of sight. Light bulbs would be allowed but be concealed behind colored glass. HVAC would be central, and invisible to casual observation.

There would be several traditional farms on the outskirts of town, outside the defensive wall. The centerpiece of the town would be a full size castle. The castle would be made from modern techniques to resemble a traditional castle. Outer walls of the castle would be hollow and not filled in with rubble. These outer walls would house educational class rooms and library/media center, now-a-days.

The idea would be that the village would be a traditional craft and skills center open to the public. The educational aspect would be connected to local colleges to be accredited. This would be a draw and allow internships. The property around the village would used for have events: a returning Renfair, archery competitions, LARP events and skill classes (blacksmith, bladesmith, leather craft etc. The farms would ideally, have ancient breeds and at least one would be designed for back breeding.

The inns in town would host overnight or several day long packages so that visitors could immerse themselves in the environment for a vacation or just for one of the events, hosted year round. There would be things like a Ranger Walk, 1 day to multiple days.

The merchants, shops and private residents would receive their goods from a underground or hidden receiving point and be delivered by a delivery hand drawn cart for small items or picked up at the receiving point by the owner depending on size of delivery.

It is assumed that many of the houses in town would be unoccupied during off season, these could be rented to students taking off season courses. The castle would mimic a Europeon castle of 1100-1300 and show changes in designs prior to and taken from involvement in the Crusades. It would also host a museum of arms and armor ( to keep it cost effective these would be modern reproductions) and other day to day items.

Total initial setup costs with the castle, roughly 30 building in town , town wall and the small farms would be in the area of 50-75 million dollars.

If I'm the sole winner of a Powerball Jackpot maybe or ...



I accept Paypal.......

Presented in a rambling fashion

[Ringulf]

Say the word man if you need a village idiot, I am available!

[Peter Remling]

Say the word man if you need a village idiot, I am available!

Tempting as that is, I'd consider you more of a craft instructor, okay, quirky craft instructor. Your work is imagination come to life.

[Odigan]

What Pete describes is nigh precisely what some close friends and I had conceptualized over a period of some twenty years, to the point of approaching investors. We even agree on his price estimate (though that was ten years ago...). Originally our plans were for a small medievally-themed tavern/pub/B&B, but when scheming such things and looking for funding, bigger is often better. People with the kind of coin to drop on that sort of project tend to prefer the outrageous, but they also want a return. And so it is not for any lack of persons having these ideas - nor even necessarily available funds - but that they just tend not to make money. There are, last I checked, numerous small sorts of establishments around, more often "fun" than "authentic," and not much of the scale Pete and I refer to. Projects like the Ozark Medieval Fortress show that even for the very cool, proftitabilty is a damper to continued funding. When you look around and see what appears to be an open niche, it's either because no one's thought to fill it before, or it just isn't practical. There isn't much that hasn't already been thought of.

However... there is at least one place in this country that is a permanent "medieval" site, and that is Camlaan Medieval Village in WA., complete with feasting facilities and open year round. Additionally, there are numerous venues, particularly in the Northeast, which can be adapted to such purposes for events. Though not Medieval, it is the part of our country architecturally nearest to it, and there still exist some functioning Colonial B&Bs which would pass easily for any in the Shire. Here again, cost is a problem should you ant to stay more than a night or two!

[Greg]

Oh, wow. Where to begin. If I miss you, I apologize.

*cracks knuckles*

Wulfgar, that place looks great. My sister and brother-in-law live in Arkansas...perhaps we'll hit that place together on a visit sometime in the near future.


Straelbora, I'll happily be your ranger-in-residence in the dark corner of the room whenever you'd like.


Udwin...I'm in! Sounds like a great venue!


Armchair...we need to talk. That reckless drive you speak of is my "street", just south of Beanblossom, just north of Nashville. Right on 135. I daresay we need to have a session, sir. You play any irish settings?


Liathwyn, thanks. Glad to not be alone!


Pete/Odigan: I'd love it. We've all dreamed of one of those at some time or another. "Ghost Towns" and other living history mining camp-like places are often successful out west...the big issue facing us is that those are all usually at historic sites that WERE mines, etc. We don't exactly have anyI daresay true historic medieval sites in America beyond what's already described. But say the word, and I'm in and will help!


There's a community of "couch-sitters" online, where people essentially drive across various distances, and then use the network to find a couch to crash on for the night, and meet new people, etc. I daresay we're on the verge of creating a Tavern-Hopping network, here. Wulfgar, Udwin...soon!