Introducing King Keliance and Queen Mysteria

Eastwind Village has been around since 2009, but like any living community, it has changed and grown over the years. Following COVID, Eastwind went through a major reboot of its focus. In November 2021, we began reshaping Eastwind around a simple idea:

A kingdom needs people before it needs knights.

Knights need a kingdom to protect, and a kingdom needs a village to make it worth protecting.

Because of that, our focus shifted from primarily being about the Knights and the Knights’ Path to being about the village and its people. The Knights’ Path is still an important part of Eastwind, but being a knight is no longer the definition of what it means to be an active and valued member of the village.

Our goal is to provide a place where people can participate, learn, contribute, and grow regardless of whether becoming a knight is something they ever want to pursue.

We are a place where nerdy, geeky, outdoorsy, history-loving people—and those who simply don't quite fit into the ordinary groups of the mundane world—can meet, build friendships, and grow together as a village.

Many of our activities are designed to be fun while also giving people opportunities to develop skills that can carry over into their everyday lives.

We've seen introverted people become comfortable in groups. We've seen timid people learn to stand their ground. We've seen people discover confidence, leadership, communication, and other strengths they didn't realize they possessed.

That personal growth is one of the reasons we encourage people to create an Eastwind name and character.

For some people, approaching a challenge as their Eastwind character creates a safe distance from the walls and limitations they have built around their mundane identity. By giving their character goals, they can experiment, take risks, and practice skills in an environment where failure becomes part of the learning process.

The character isn't about pretending to be someone you're not.

Sometimes, it is about discovering who you can become.

The Knights’ Path still exists.

After attending Eastwind events, getting to know our village, witnessing our Knights in action, and deciding that becoming a Knight is something you want to strive toward, you can become an initiate on the Knights’ Path.

But you don't have to become a Knight to have an important place in Eastwind.

We have worked to create activities that allow villagers to participate without needing to follow the Knights’ Path.

Three of our current focus areas include:

• Live-steel archery
• Live-steel weapons throwing, with multiple weapons available to learn and practice
• Foam sword fighting

And even if you don't want to become a Knight in one of these disciplines, you can still learn the discipline and support its house by becoming part of that house's guild.

A guild isn't simply a place for people who want to compete. It is a place to learn, practice, teach, contribute, and help others become better.

While attending Eastwind events, you may hear us refer to people as Freehands, Villagers, and Citizens. Each of these groups is important to Eastwind, and we understand that our people are at different stages in their lives and have different levels of availability.

Freehands are individuals who may only be able to make it out a few times a year. They may volunteer at one of our larger events or join us for an occasional weekend social. Many Freehands were previously Citizens or Villagers but, for various reasons, had to move a significant distance away from Eastwind and are no longer local. Even though they cannot attend as often, they are still recognized and appreciated for helping whenever they can.

Many of our SCA counterparts are also considered Freehands. They join us at events such as Dragon Faire and provide demonstrations from our time period, helping bring our Renaissance Faire to life. While they may not attend often enough to be considered Villagers, their contributions and assistance are incredibly valuable to Eastwind.

Villagers are those who are able to participate more regularly. They attend our socials, take part in village building and beautification days, and volunteer at one of our three main fundraisers throughout the year. Villagers play an important role in helping maintain and grow our community.

Citizens are those who wish to take their involvement to the next level. They may eventually want to hold a Kingdom position, start a guild, or take on additional leadership responsibilities within Eastwind. Citizens have yearly requirements that must be met and represent a deeper level of commitment to the community.

No matter which level you choose, every person is important to Eastwind. You are welcome to remain at whichever level best fits your life, availability, and personal goals. Whether you are a Freehand, Villager, or Citizen, your contributions help make Eastwind the community it is.

Our newest endeavor is Eastwind University, which provides a home for our classes and educational programs.

Many of our classes focus on skills, crafts, and knowledge related to our medieval setting. However, we don't believe learning has to stop at the edge of the medieval world.

If you know how to do something and want to teach it, you can request to offer a class—even if what you're teaching is a modern craft or skill.

That's part of our modern twist.

Eastwind University classes are open to everyone, regardless of affiliation. You don't have to be an Eastwind member. You might come from a Dagorhir, SCA, Amtgard, or other organization—or you might be someone who has never participated in anything like this before.

If you want to learn, there should be a place for you.

Our guilds will also fall under Eastwind University, with their educational focus being on teaching and learning the disciplines associated with that guild.

Eastwind is a community of people, and people have lives outside the village.

Because of that, Eastwind goes through growth spurts and quieter periods. We don't see that as a failure. In fact, we recognize that our people have families, careers, health concerns, responsibilities, and other things that must come first.

Your health and your home come before Eastwind.

We try to anticipate growth and establish roles to help the village function, but we also understand that someone may not always be able to give 100% to the role they have taken on.

That is why we strive to build a community where people can step forward when they are able and step back when life requires it.

The village continues because its people support one another.

Our younger villagers—our Poppets, ages 15 and under—are an important part of Eastwind.

We try to include them in as many activities as we reasonably can, although we recognize that some activities aren't appropriate or safe for every age.

When activities are appropriate, participation gives our Poppets opportunities to learn skills, build confidence, and become part of the village from an early age.

For example, participating in fighter practices can help prepare our Poppets for our Poppet fighter tournaments, where they can compete for recognition and work toward our end-of-year prize.

We are also honest about the fact that our Poppets program still needs additional help and development. We are actively working to improve the experience and create an even stronger place for our younger villagers.

Competition is another part of Eastwind, but even our tournaments are designed around our larger philosophy of community.

Adult villagers participate in a Token Tourney throughout the year. Rather than being one single competition, it consists of different events held throughout the year.

Participants earn tokens by taking part in these events. At the end of the year, the villager who has earned the most tokens receives a prize.

But the tokens aren't only about winning.

Tokens can be saved and used in future tournaments, where eligibility may vary by event. More importantly, they can be used to help someone else.

Imagine we're holding an archery token tournament and you notice another villager isn't having a good day.

You can spend one of your tokens on them.

If they use that token, they might receive two additional arrows to shoot again.

If you spend a token on yourself, you receive one additional arrow.

The system is intentionally designed to reward people for helping others.

Because sometimes the most important victory isn't your own.

It's helping someone else get another chance.

The Token Tourney itself has evolved since its creation, and like Eastwind as a whole, we expect it to continue changing as we learn what works best for our village.

While the village has its Token Tourney, the Knights have a major tournament of their own.

The first weekend in December is dedicated to determining who will become First Knight for the coming year.

Over two days, the Knights compete in numerous events across the three houses. Each event tests different skills, and the overall winner earns the title of First Knight.

The winners of the individual events, along with the overall First Knight, are announced at our annual New Year's Eve celebration.

It gives the Knights something to strive toward while also providing the entire village with an opportunity to celebrate the accomplishments of its members.

At its heart, Eastwind isn't really about swords, armor, archery, medieval clothing, or pretending to live in another time.

Those things are the setting.

The people are the reason.

Eastwind exists to create a village where people can belong, learn, teach, compete, cooperate, fail safely, try again, and discover abilities they may never have had the opportunity to explore elsewhere.

You don't have to be a Knight.

You don't have to be an expert.

You don't have to be outgoing.

You don't have to know anything about medieval history.

You don't even have to know exactly where you fit.

Come as you are. Find a place in the village. Learn something. Teach something. Help someone. Try something you've never done before.

Maybe you'll discover that the person you thought you couldn't be is actually the person you've been becoming all along.

Eastwind Village — medieval roots, modern growth, and a place to belong.