Archery:Officers

Kingdom Earl Marshal

The Earl Marshal is a Greater Kingdom Officer, the principal martial officer of the Crown, and the Head of the Marshallate in Lochac, and is responsible for:

• Development of the new combat standards of the Kingdom as required.
• Encouraging the development of chivalry on the field.
• Maintenance, publication and enforcement of the Kingdom standards for construction and use of weapons and armour.

The Earl Marshal, in consultation with the Crown, can appoint a deputy in the area of archery and thrown weapons, or they may subsume this role into their own office should they so desire.

Deputy Earl Marshal for Archery

The Deputy Earl Marshal for Archery is a Lesser Kingdom Officer acting on behalf of the Earl Marshal on matters relating to target and combat archery, and thrown weapons. The normal term of office is two years, but this term can be extended in exceptional circumstances to a maximum of four years consecutively.

Responsibilities

The Deputy Earl Marshal for Archery is responsible for:

• encouraging the development of combat standards and chivalry on the field in all actions involving archery and other projectile weapons, in co-operation with the Marshallate;
• maintaining and enforcing the Kingdom standards for construction and use of projectile weapons and armour for plumed combatants;
• setting, maintaining and enforcing safety standards;
• making regulations and information concerning target and combat archery available;
• warranting the Captain of Archers for each group;
• reporting as required by the Crown and the Earl Marshal.
• reporting quarterly to the Society Archery Marshal.

Requirements

The Deputy Earl Marshal for Archery is required to:

• have sound knowledge and experience of target and combat archery, as well as thrown weapons;
• meet the requirements for holding a Lesser Kingdom Office as recorded in Lochac Kingdom Law - http://lochac.sca.org/laws

Captain of Archers

The Captain of Archers is responsible for the administration of archery and thrown weapons in their group. They are not necessarily required to organise archery and thrown weapon activities for any specific event as that is the responsibility of the Target Archery Marshal-in-Charge for the event, who is appointed by the event steward.

The normal term of office is two years, but this term can be extended in exceptional circumstances. The appointment process is the same as for any other group officer as recorded in the Kingdom of Lochac Procedures Manual - http://lochac.sca.org/seneschal/docs/LochacOfficersProceduresManual20082015.pdf

It is not necessary for a group to have a Captain of Archers, but the group will need a rostered Target Archery Marshal to undertake target archery or thrown weapon activities. In the absence of a Captain of Archers, event reports should be sent to the group’s Knight Marshal, or Seneschal.

Responsibilities

A Captain of Archers is responsible for:

• being the main point of contact for the archers or throwers in their region of the Kingdom;
• maintaining communication with the Deputy Earl Marshal for Archery and reporting quarterly on archery and thrown weapon activities within their region, including being signed up to the archers@lochac.sca.org mailing list;
• spreading information regarding target archery and thrown weapon activities in their region by reporting to the group marshal, seneschal and score keepers as required;
• organising and encouraging target archery and thrown weapon activities in their region;
• advising on the current Kingdom safety standards;
• and encouraging the study of period archery and thrown weapon styles and equipment.

Requirements

A Captain of Archers must:

• meet the requirements for holding a Group Office as recorded in Lochac Kingdom Law - http://lochac.sca.org/laws ;
• have sound knowledge of target archery and thrown weapons – they are not required to be a rostered Target Archery Marshal, though this will assist in their application.

Target Archery Marshal

A rostered Target Archery Marshal is needed to set up and run target archery and thrown weapon activities. No archery or and thrown weapon activities may take place without a rostered Target Archery Marshal present on the range.

If more than one Target Archery Marshal is present, one should be designated as the Target Archery Marshal-in-Charge.

The Target Archery Marshal-in-Charge may request the assistance of other Target Archery Marshals in the performance of their duties. However, the responsibility for safely setting up and running the range remains with the Target Archery Marshal-in-Charge.

Responsibilities

A rostered Target Archery Marshal is responsible for:

• taking all reasonable steps to enforce the rules and safety standards for archery and thrown weapon activities;
• ensuring all archers or throwers are familiar with the Kingdom target archery and thrown weapon rules for the activity. This may be done either by verbal briefings, or by requiring the participants to read the posted rules.
• reporting any injury or near miss incident to their superior officer as soon as is practical, in accordance with Kingdom policy - http://chirurgeon.lochac.sca.org/documents/

The Target Archery Marshal-in-Charge or the assisting Marshals have the authority to inspect all equipment for safety and compliance with Kingdom rules.

Requirements

To become a rostered Target Archery Marshal a candidate must:

• be a subscribing member of the SCA (not just an event member);
• be over the age 18 years;
• be properly authorised as a Target Archery Marshal:
• The applicant should provide an appropriately completed authorisation form.
• The candidate must be assessed as being competent by another rostered Target Archery Marshal that they can:
  • demonstrate familiarity with current SCA and Kingdom target archery and thrown weapon conventions and rules;
  • demonstrate the ability to set-up and safely run an archery shoot and thrown weapon activity.
  • inspect equipment as required for safety and compliance with Kingdom rules;
• The authorising Target Archery Marshal must submit the appropriate paperwork to ensure the authorisation is registered with the Kingdom Lists Officer within three months of the authorisation taking place. Expired authorisation paperwork will not be processed by the Kingdom Lists Officer;
• A copy of the authorisation paperwork may be used in lieu of an authorisation card for a period of up to three months from the date of the authorisation;

Target Archery Marshals must renew their authorisation at least every four years. Renewals will be conducted by performing a repeat of the authorisation test, in the same manner as if they are applying for the first time.

Reporting

Quarterly reports Society Reports The Deputy Earl Marshal for Archery reports quarterly to the Society Archery Marshal on the last day of February, May, August, and November. A copy of the report as sent to the Kingdom Earl Marshal is sufficient. Kingdom reports The Deputy Earl Marshal for Archery reports quarterly to the Earl Marshal and Crown on the last day of February, May, August, and November. Reports should include: Deputy Earl Marshal for Archery details: SCA and mundane name Contact details – email etc Membership number and expiry date Start date of term in office Overview of archery and thrown weapon activities in the kingdom Combat archery specific matters Target archery specific matters Thrown weapon specific matters Any other issues List of groups which have reported Experiments or research Recommendations – people for awards or just to bring people to the Earl Marshal’s attention. Questions – does anything need clarifying? Suggestions – possible changes to rules.

Group reports

Captains of Archers of Baronies and Shires report quarterly, on the 15th of February, May, August, and November. Captains of Archers of Colleges and Cantons report quarterly to your supporting group, on the 15th of January, April, July and October. Report should include: Your details: SCA name; Mundane name; Contact details: Email, phone number, mailing address, other ways to contact you (Skype etc); The date you have held office since; Membership number and expiry date. Target archery information Are target archery activities happening in your group? Competitions, practices etc How many participants? Are there any issues? Do you have any queries around rules? Do you have any suggestions for novelty shoots? How many Target Archery Marshals are there in the group? Is there a good geographical spread so that people can do archery in their part of your group’s area? Combat archery information (you might need to collect this information from the Group Marshal) Are combat archery activities happening? Are there any issues? Do you have any queries around rules? Do you have any suggestions for combat archer games? Special request: How many ramin combat arrows are still in use by participants, and how many shafts remain to be turned into combat arrows? Please include updated numbers in each report, we are hoping to track the decline. Anything else you would like to include - event reports, recommendations for awards, etc