The Armour Archive

Ive been trying to get my device done for a little bit now, but i am so artistically inept its sad. I know exactly what i want, just cant make the dang thing. If anyone is talented at microsoft paint and all the terms and can doodle it up for me that would be awesome (and id be willing to pay for your time). I dont know the rules or terms for colors but ill show everyone what the basic idea i have in mind is. Please forgive the extremely kindergarten quality m.s. paint attachment.

Something like this:
[img]http://i371.photobucket.com/albums/oo159/bhaiduk/device_for_archive.jpg[/img]

Thats exactly what i wanted! Thank you so much! Now i just have to figure out the terms for it since it makes my brain smoke.

If you're wanting to submit it (SCAwise) I would suggest simplifying it a bit. To be honest, it's very busy. It's got 4 different charges in it and 4 colors. My advice would be to think about what you really want to include and leave out the rest. I usually try to get people to choose one or two charges and a couple colors rather than try and fit everything in.

I went the complicated route because i figured with 40-50k worth of registered devices all the simpler ones would be taken. I do really like the first one you did up, i might have to try that idea...

NeeSayer wrote:I went the complicated route because i figured with 40-50k worth of registered devices all the simpler ones would be taken. I do really like the first one you did up, i might have to try that idea...

But with your design, you have a color on color(the two tone cross) and you have metal on metal, the rose and fish and chalice. You cannot do this.

Color on color may be divided(as per Isabella's example, the black Latin Cross with red quarterly, but not how it is shown on bhaiduk's...That might be a gyronny but I don't think so(so sayeth the newbie herald... )

The counter changed charges(fish, Rose and chalice) are a metal on metal. Heraldicly speaking, White=Silver, and grey doesn't exist AFAIK.

Just some thoughts...

NeeSayer wrote:I went the complicated route because i figured with 40-50k worth of registered devices all the simpler ones would be taken.

Fortunately, that's not true at all, for a couple of reasons: one is that the conflict rules are written to reward simplicity (so it's easier to clear conflict between two "simple" devices than between two devices with lots of stuff on the field), and the other is that back in the Bad Old Days the SCA protected every single medieval device it knew about, so there's free space that had been occupied by some minor fourteenth-century English knight just begging to be used.

Ursula Georges.

NeeSayer wrote:I went the complicated route because i figured with 40-50k worth of registered devices all the simpler ones would be taken.

You'd be surprised. My wife only last year registered her device and it's really simple... "Argent. Three flames sable." Basically a white shield with three black flames.. that's it. The heralds loved it, it looks awesome and wasn't taken or in conflict with anyone. (or the CoH is getting lenient)

Also, if there is a conflict sometimes you can contact that person and they can give permision for the conflict to be allowed.

Mine is not very complex. There was only one person I was close to being in conflict with, and I just needed a minor color tweak to be clear of it.



Also, remember the point of heraldry. It needs to be able to be seen and recognized from across the field. Big and bold and clean is what you want.


How I relate it to new guys, is this:

Imagine there was a guy whose heraldry was similar enough to yours that on the other side of the pennsic field, his device was easily confused with you. Up close, it may have the two required differences, but those little roses look a lot like little castles from over there.

Now, he spends the entire field battle kicking people in the crotch, and is finally walked off the field.

The next day, all the guys he punted are lined up waaaay over there, waiting for the cannon to fire.

They see you.

Lay on.

A lot of people go for complicated, when there's a lot of simple devices that are available.

"Chequey, gules and vair" was conflict-free, last time I checked it -- it's been a long while, but it's still a pretty simple device. Pain in the arse to sew, but simple.

Unfortunately, I cannot see the images that bhaiduk and Isabella provided. I'd be happy to assist, if I know what it is you're working toward. All I can see is the OP's original drawing.

Gray doesn't exist in heraldry, and silver and white are considered the same.

Several have pointed out that the design is busy, and they're right. You can and should simplify it - there are many ways to avoid conflict.

And every now and then a design goes through in what I call the "dateless homecoming queen" phenomenon. No one submitted it before because they though it had to be already taken (The name comes from the situation of the homecoming queen who sits home on prom night because everyone assumed she had a date, or who goes with some ordinary guy 'cause he was the one who had the gumption to ask her)

Unfortunately, I cannot see the images that bhaiduk and Isabella provided. I'd be happy to assist, if I know what it is you're working toward. All I can see is the OP's original drawing.

Gray doesn't exist in heraldry, and silver and white are considered the same.

Several have pointed out that the design is busy, and they're right. You can and should simplify it - there are many ways to avoid conflict.

And every now and then a design goes through in what I call the "dateless homecoming queen" phenomenon. No one submitted it before because they though it had to be already taken (The name comes from the situation of the homecoming queen who sits home on prom night because everyone assumed she had a date, or who goes with some ordinary guy 'cause he was the one who had the gumption to ask her)

They're up on my photobucket account. Here's just the link:

http://s538.photobucket.com/albums/ff34 ... angelista/

I can also upload em to some other webspace if it's photobucket that's the problem.

Anyhow there's lots of room left for simple devices. The biggest problem is that there's a number of charges that are really popular so they are getting harder and harder to pass. But there's an enormous number of charges that are very period but weird to the modern person so they are very unused.

Yeah, I try to get prospective clients to avoid anything that looks like a rose, quatrefoil or a cross. I hate conflict-checking those.

Fortunately, I've had a run of people who want Spanish heraldry, which is under-used and very cool. Especially when they give you things like "I want to use pomegranates, and have it be Spanish." That was a fun one to come up with and relatively easy to crosscheck.

Photobucket IS the problem. It's blocked at work, but Flickr isn't, go figure.

Maybe this will work instead:

http://www.megapathdsl.net/~amichaels/b ... chive1.png
http://www.megapathdsl.net/~amichaels/b ... chive2.png

Yes, those I can see!

The first one would blazon "Per pale argent and gules, a Latin cross throughout sable between in base two chalices counterchanged."

The colour on colour could be a problem, though the cross IS lying over a party field.

The second would blazon "Per pale argent and gules, a Latin cross throughout between in base two chalices counterchanged."

They're both good, but myself prefer the second, it would require no special treatment.

I like counterchanging, too.