Expectations for Associates
Before agreeing to be an associate to a Peer, it is important to understand what will be expected of you in that role. Although requirements will be somewhat different from person to person, there are guidelines that probably apply to all. These are strictly my expectations, but I think most other Peers would agree with them.
Service: Being a Peer is less a title in the SCA and more of a job description. Peers are expected to attend events, participate in their specialty, teach in their areas of expertise, and attend meetings to do the Order's business as well as advise the Crowns. As a result, service is something that is expected of associates as well. Associates should be prepared, within in their limits, to provide service to the Peer, their local group, and the Kingdom. This may be as simple as setting up feast dishes and washing them later, or as complex as running a Kingdom event. Because Peers are often very busy at events, personal service in small ways is greatly appreciated. Making sure that they have food and beverages throughout the day, assistance getting into armor or costume, organizing a household lunch are all the types of things that you should be prepared to do. Every associate should be prepared to provide service at events where needed, whether that is being in charge of some aspect of the event or merely carrying chairs. Showing up at events and participating in that event's activities is also a form of service.
Honing Your Skills: Whether you are in the arts, fighting, or service, you should strive to improve your skills, go to events where you can practice and/or display your skills, and be able to both talk intelligently about your skills, as well as take constructive criticism in order to improve. Practice is important with any skill. Make sure you are doing things that will help you in mastering your skill set.
Have a Medieval Presence: You should strive at events to maintain an SCA period look, whether you want to be strictly in your persona or try different costumes to suit the theme of the event. You should have a well thought out SCA period persona, and know about the life and times of that person. You should develop and have heraldic arms. You should be able to do at least some of the things that your persona would have done. This might include dancing, playing chess or other games, riding a horse, singing, or reciting poetry. If your persona is a ship builder, you should know something about building ships. You should know the proper forms of address for Royalty, Peers, and others in the SCA. You should know basic heraldry, and how SCA fighting is done and the basic rules. You should know what the various awards are and what they are given for.
Not everyone can afford to go out and buy a full kit of period equipment. But over time you should make or acquire period looking equipment such as feast dishes, chairs and tables, tents, and of course, costumes. Until then you can follow two simple rules for hiding your mundane stuff--put it in something like a box or basket, or cover it with something. Simply draping a piece of cloth over a cooler makes all the difference.
Deportment: Remember that your behavior is being watched, and someday you will likely be judged by it. We often refer to proper SCA deportment as having "Peer like qualities," or PLQs for short. This means that you should be polite and courteous to everyone. You should listen more than you talk. You should show an interest in what others are doing, even if you are not interested in doing it yourself. You should be helpful. Politics is not a bad word. It's what makes cooperative endeavors possible, and you should learn how it works in the SCA. If you strive to be a leader, you must learn how to lead. Effective leadership is something that all Peerages look at. You are responsible for looking out for yourself. If you have health issues, make sure that you manage these in a responsible manner at events.
There are a few things that must be avoided. Mismanagement of other people's money is something that should never happen, whether it is an SCA group's funds or a personal loan. If you borrow something, it should be returned promptly and in the same condition in which you received it. No means no in any context. Bullying is bad. Gossip of the backbiting variety is not acceptable. Everyone loses their temper, but don't make a public display of it. Go find your friends and vent to them. Avoid talking about strictly mundane matters, especially politics and religion at events. Your on-line presence counts. The SCA is a place of tolerance and diversity. Ranting on line using slurs, threats, or reciting conspiracy theories about how "they" (insert group of your choice here) are the source of all evil, will be noted and filed away. Even if you take a post down, someone has done a screen capture. And frankly, if that is how you truly feel, the SCA is not a good fit for you, and you should move along.
Communication: Effectively communicating with your Peer is important in many contexts. First, your Peer needs to be able to contact you by mail, phone, and on-line. Make sure that they have that information. As soon as you become an associate, you should develop and keep up an SCA résumé with your full SCA name and brief persona history, awards you've received and when, your various endeavors within your field of expertise, a good photo of yourself, and anything else that you think your Peer might want. Include a section for "In case of Peerage, Break Glass." This is how you would want your Peerage ceremony to be, should that happen. Update your résumé as appropriate, and forward to your Peer. You should try to get to events where you and your Peer can spend time together and interact. Many Peers have households, and those often have activities for the members. You should make an effort to participate in those activities. If you run into some kind of problem, talk to your Peer. Even if you can handle it yourself, let them know what's going on with you. Facebook is awesome for sharing photos of projects, keeping in touch, and generally keep up with things. There are specialty groups of all kinds, and it is a wonderful way to get to know people.
I hope this article is informative, and gives you something to think about whether you are currently an associate or considering becoming one.
Service: Being a Peer is less a title in the SCA and more of a job description. Peers are expected to attend events, participate in their specialty, teach in their areas of expertise, and attend meetings to do the Order's business as well as advise the Crowns. As a result, service is something that is expected of associates as well. Associates should be prepared, within in their limits, to provide service to the Peer, their local group, and the Kingdom. This may be as simple as setting up feast dishes and washing them later, or as complex as running a Kingdom event. Because Peers are often very busy at events, personal service in small ways is greatly appreciated. Making sure that they have food and beverages throughout the day, assistance getting into armor or costume, organizing a household lunch are all the types of things that you should be prepared to do. Every associate should be prepared to provide service at events where needed, whether that is being in charge of some aspect of the event or merely carrying chairs. Showing up at events and participating in that event's activities is also a form of service.
Honing Your Skills: Whether you are in the arts, fighting, or service, you should strive to improve your skills, go to events where you can practice and/or display your skills, and be able to both talk intelligently about your skills, as well as take constructive criticism in order to improve. Practice is important with any skill. Make sure you are doing things that will help you in mastering your skill set.
Have a Medieval Presence: You should strive at events to maintain an SCA period look, whether you want to be strictly in your persona or try different costumes to suit the theme of the event. You should have a well thought out SCA period persona, and know about the life and times of that person. You should develop and have heraldic arms. You should be able to do at least some of the things that your persona would have done. This might include dancing, playing chess or other games, riding a horse, singing, or reciting poetry. If your persona is a ship builder, you should know something about building ships. You should know the proper forms of address for Royalty, Peers, and others in the SCA. You should know basic heraldry, and how SCA fighting is done and the basic rules. You should know what the various awards are and what they are given for.
Not everyone can afford to go out and buy a full kit of period equipment. But over time you should make or acquire period looking equipment such as feast dishes, chairs and tables, tents, and of course, costumes. Until then you can follow two simple rules for hiding your mundane stuff--put it in something like a box or basket, or cover it with something. Simply draping a piece of cloth over a cooler makes all the difference.
Deportment: Remember that your behavior is being watched, and someday you will likely be judged by it. We often refer to proper SCA deportment as having "Peer like qualities," or PLQs for short. This means that you should be polite and courteous to everyone. You should listen more than you talk. You should show an interest in what others are doing, even if you are not interested in doing it yourself. You should be helpful. Politics is not a bad word. It's what makes cooperative endeavors possible, and you should learn how it works in the SCA. If you strive to be a leader, you must learn how to lead. Effective leadership is something that all Peerages look at. You are responsible for looking out for yourself. If you have health issues, make sure that you manage these in a responsible manner at events.
There are a few things that must be avoided. Mismanagement of other people's money is something that should never happen, whether it is an SCA group's funds or a personal loan. If you borrow something, it should be returned promptly and in the same condition in which you received it. No means no in any context. Bullying is bad. Gossip of the backbiting variety is not acceptable. Everyone loses their temper, but don't make a public display of it. Go find your friends and vent to them. Avoid talking about strictly mundane matters, especially politics and religion at events. Your on-line presence counts. The SCA is a place of tolerance and diversity. Ranting on line using slurs, threats, or reciting conspiracy theories about how "they" (insert group of your choice here) are the source of all evil, will be noted and filed away. Even if you take a post down, someone has done a screen capture. And frankly, if that is how you truly feel, the SCA is not a good fit for you, and you should move along.
Communication: Effectively communicating with your Peer is important in many contexts. First, your Peer needs to be able to contact you by mail, phone, and on-line. Make sure that they have that information. As soon as you become an associate, you should develop and keep up an SCA résumé with your full SCA name and brief persona history, awards you've received and when, your various endeavors within your field of expertise, a good photo of yourself, and anything else that you think your Peer might want. Include a section for "In case of Peerage, Break Glass." This is how you would want your Peerage ceremony to be, should that happen. Update your résumé as appropriate, and forward to your Peer. You should try to get to events where you and your Peer can spend time together and interact. Many Peers have households, and those often have activities for the members. You should make an effort to participate in those activities. If you run into some kind of problem, talk to your Peer. Even if you can handle it yourself, let them know what's going on with you. Facebook is awesome for sharing photos of projects, keeping in touch, and generally keep up with things. There are specialty groups of all kinds, and it is a wonderful way to get to know people.
I hope this article is informative, and gives you something to think about whether you are currently an associate or considering becoming one.
