A couple more questions on war

[Leslie Miller]

> War has lately been much on my mind. I would like to ask a few 
> questions of people on this forum. 
> 
> 1) (To fighters) Is war preparation (drilling, practicing, marching) 
> something that you enjoy doing? Or a necessary evil so that you can do 
> well on the battle field? Or a total waste of time?

I have always enjoyed war colleges and war preparation.  I'm not an 
excellent tourney fighter, but I can follow commands and stay alive in 
melees. 

> 2) (To fighters) When you think about wars, do you imagine yourself 
> doing well, or your local group doing well, or your kingdom, or some 
> combination?

Well, on the grand scale of things, I always hope my kingdom does 
well.  To forward that goal, I simply hope to stay alive as long as 
possible... I'm not as good as some at doing so (like Baroness Kat, who 
is frequently the last person standing), but I'm better 
than many, probably because I'm content to stay in the ranks where I'll 
do the most good and don't go glory seeking.

> 3) (To non-fighters) Are you happy for fighters when they do well? To 
> restate: Are there nonfighters who watch battles like many people watch 
> sporting events, rooting for the home team?
> 
> 4) (To non-fighters) What could fighters do to make things more 
> interesting for you in a war? 
> 
> 5) (To all) Describe some of your favorite moments at a war.

I already did in an earlier post... Although, I could add Puck 
Oneshoe's splendid rendition of the Barnacle Bill episode...oh well, 
I'm sure you can imagine... it rates right up there as one of my 
favorite Pennsic stories... ;-)

> 6) (To all) Describe some of your least favorite moments at a war. (Be 
> gentle.)

At Gulf Wars I, since Sir Hildebrandt's group had found the 
banners in the Woods battle, we were given the "honor" of leading the 
charge against the fortress in the next battle.  Well, we charged, and, 
true to form, I stumbled sideways through the defending shield wall.  
Nobody else survived the frontal assault, so there I was to one side, 
me against the entire army.  All I had was a glaive.  I hit one 
or two people who didn't call the shots because they thought everybody had 
been killed (I guess);  I could see their eyes, but they weren't 
looking at me.  (I still wonder what they thought was 
going on, "ugh, my head just got knocked back four inches, I wonder 
what caused that?!") It was a frustrating and stupid situation.  They 
didn't call my shots because they didn't realize I was there, and 
alive, and of the opposing team; and as soon as I made it apparent 
that I was there, and alive, and of the opposing team, I got nailed, 
hard, by about six spears and a couple of swords on the way down.  
I don't know, it's one thing to get a few bruises during the 
course of a weekend or tournament, it's another to get several at 
the same time in a kind of brutal gang mugging.  I suppose the point 
could be argued, but it seemed excessive at the time.  

I think the worst thing about wars (as far as the fighting is 
concerned) is that some people can get carried away.  It can be 
confusing and chaotic, and sometimes people just don't think about 
what they're doing. I have seen the viciousness level get out of hand 
more than once, and it was always ugly and unpleasant. 

Gunhilda
Mooneschadoweshire
Stillwater, OK
miller at pp.okstate.edu