Heroic Dreams - All Things Medieval

 Ever want to really have a renaissance and medieval experience? You might want to check out RenCon 2010 (Renaissance Convention). It is called “The Gathering of Guilds” and I really love this stuff. I just might go. I have some other trips planned for early this year but I might squeeze in a trip to this rencon.

It is a weekend event and here is how they describe it:

The RenCon weekend will include two magical nights of music and masquerades,
as well as three days of fascinating and informative themed panels, presentations and demonstrations by our special guests, and shopping in the Guild Hall for fine apparel, jewelry, accessories, crafts and art. RenCon Guests will also have the opportunity to
learn new skills at our RenCon Guild workshops

The event runs from Friday April 9th through Sunday April 11th  and includes crafts and exhibits, a Medieval Masque Ball Ball on friday night and the Dark Carnevale on Saturday Night. Here is some information on the events that I have taken from their website:

The Medieval Masque: Tonight, we evoke a dramatic world lit only by fire, a realm of extreme polarities: darkness and light, life and death, honor and revenge, high thoughts
and bawdy humor. Come as lord or lady, knight or serf, wizard or commoner and raise a glass and dance to the music of the internationally acclaimed German medieval band, Estampie, in a very rare performance in the US.

The Dark Carnevale: Fog lifts from mythic canals, footsteps echo in ancient alleys, intoxicating music moves on the night air. Tonight, mystery and intrigue reign, elaborate masks obscure identities, monsters and magicians roam, fantastic costumes cloak forms and no one is whom they appear to be. Through the doorway rings the sensual music of
the German gothic band, Qntal, transporting you to ecstatic heights as you dance with
your mysterious partner into the midnight hour.

Where and more information

To learn more  you can visit their website at: Renconvention.com

Date: April 9th - 11th, 2010
Venue: Baltimore Marriott Hunt Valley Inn
Location: Hunt Valley, MD

Maybe I will see you there

I spent a lot of time creating content, articles, videos and all kinds of interesting stuff. i often don’t schedule myself time to take care of the products on my websites. Although this can be rather fun because it allows me to check on what new stuff that is out. Anyway, I have spent the last couple of days updating a lot of the products on my various medieval sites.  Here is a look at some of the things I have found.

Medieval Swords

My medieval swords website has been updated with a lot of new stuff. This is a quite popular little site that gets good ranking in the search engines and gets a good amount of traffic. You can see some of the swords that I own and read about them. You can also see some of the interesting sword topics like swords that are in video games (Which you can actually buy replicas of) and swords from the movies. One nice discovery I made is that the Assassin’s Creed Sword is available as a replica. Assassin’s creed is a terrific game that stays very true to the Italian Renaissance and this includes the reproduction of weapons.  I have a very interesting review of the architecture and design of this game here: About Assassin’s Creed

Medieval Toys and Games

I have also updated the section on Medieval Toys and games. These are the types of modern games that are available, not actually the games they played in the middle ages. The theme is on medieval and the section includes board games like Carcassonne.  I am currently working on a section of one of my websites that is all about the types of games they played in the Middle Ages. I will update you when it is complete. That will be an interesting thing to take a look at.

And Chess Sets of Course

When it comes to medieval toys and games Chess is a bit of a timeless anachronism. It is something they played in the Middle Ages and it is still very popular today. There is a tremedous variety of beautiful chess sets themed as medieval, king arthur, and Renaissance. You can see a selection of them here: Medieval Chess sets

I received this picture of a pair of medieval statues (Grave monuments) from a web visitor (Brad) who is a fan of all kinds of medieval things.  He needs help identifying the figures in the picture. I am not sure who these figures are and I could make a few guesses but I want to be sure. Maybe you recognize these statues. The architecture and stained glass in the background, not to mention the dress of the figures gives us some great clues as to the country and time period.

Anyway, If you recognize these figures just send me an email! And thanks for your help!

 A New MainStream Big Title by Robin Hobb

I have been a reader of Robin Hobb for a long time. I just enjoy her books. Here new book “Dragon Haven” is scheduled for release in May. You can pre-order it now on Amazon.com here: Dragon Haven That’s terrific and I am really looking forward to it but the thing I really want to say about this book is the Harper Collins decision to give away the complete first chapter (over 50 pages). It is a free pdf download. I think this is a great promotion and it says a lot about the book. A publisher has to really believe in an author and in the writing to do something like this. Well, I would imagine that Robin Hobb is in that top tier of writers. You can open it up right here: Chapter One of Dragon Haven 

This book is the second in a new series by Hobb. The first book is Dragon Keeper and if you want to know about her other series of books you can see a complete list on my Fantasy Guide Website here: Robin Hobb Books

And a little something from the small press: (Although with the power of Amazon.com backing it I am not sure we should categorize CreateSpace as a small press

Not Ordinarily Borrowable: or, Unwelcome Advice by Thomas Thurman

Here is a fun childrens and young adult fantasy story about a young woman who goes to the library to check out a book. When she gets there she discovers that a dragon had been there, wreaked havoc, and stolen her book (among others). So, what should she do? Should she follow after the dragon and attempt to recover the book? This is exactly what Maria does. It is a wonderful little tale as we adventure along with Maria and watch as the gains the things she needs to face the dragon.

If you are looking for something that is lesser known yet well written and a fun read this is the book.  It’s always a pleasure to discover a little gem that nobody else knows about.  But don’t try to check this book out from the library. You may discover it has been mysteriously taken!!

About My Fantasy Guide Website:

I have been writing and reading Epic and Heroic Fantasy of all kinds for pretty much all my life. It is something I am really passionate about. if you love this subject or are simply interested in it you can check out my website called “The Fantasy Guide”. Lots of stuff there including reviews by me and other writers and the biggest list of epic fantasy series books on the web.  The Fantasy Guide Website

I have a complete tutorial that shows you how to cheaply and easily make a spartan shield. It looks just like the ones they used in the movie 300.

But first you might want to take a look at a real spartan shield. The picture below is a shot I took of a real spartan shield in a museum in Athens Greece. The plaque reads: Bronze Spartan Shield - loot from the Battle of Pylos 425 B.C. This shield has seen some action.

If you want a closer look I have a bigger picture on my website here: A Real Spartan Shield

I also have a home video of the monument at the actual battlefield of Thermopylae where the battle of the 300 took place. It is on my youtube channel here: The Battle of Thermopylae monument

If you want to make your own Spartan Shield the tutorial is here: Make a Spartan shield 

Here is a picture of what it looks like when completed: