Multiple Personas?

[Abaddon]

How many personas are permitted to a person within the SCA? Can you actively carry more than one, or do you update from one to another, keeping only one active persona?

I am trying to narrow down my focus on my persona...but my mind doesn't work that way. I want to do eight things at once and leave my options open. It is nice to have specialized knowldege of a particular region or time period, but I find all of it fascinating. The whole darn period from 500 A.D to 1550 A.D....and I could go earlier or later outside the SCA.
I also like different color schemes; vert/argent, sable/crimson, etc. If I am going to change colors, I might as well change standards as well. How easy is this to do?

[Joe Skeesick]

Changing your name and arms are tough to do and will cause you problems for a couple of reasons. One is possible awards, they will have your name and arms on them and won't be redone for your whim. Not a big deal perhaps.

Another is feild recognition. You see alot of people a few times a year at events. It would be nice if the could find you by your arms either on the feild or at your camp.

The same issue but to a greater degree holds for the name. People get use to calling you by a viking name and then suddenly your a frenchmen the next week it confuses us normal folks (aint that right Gaston?)

I don't put 2 cents of worth in personna past a name. I have the same kind of wandering interest and I go where it takes me. I don't let it stand in the way of what I want to study. Now I only have 2 real areas of interest but I let the time frame and exact location drift as my interests do. Try and be consistant in the "here and now" by having a conherent kit/garb for the "personna" you are today but if that changes tommorow whos to care?

J

[Konstantin the Red]

Many SCAdians run one alternate persona, but more stick with one main one. If I'm any example, what probably happens most is a radical shift in time, often from an early-period century to a considerably later one. I remember one clever fellow who parted his personae by time, but had the latter persona a direct male descendant of the earlier one -- and I think he simplified matters by having the one as the namesake of the other.

Too many personae would vex one's fellows trying to keep track of who you are this week, so definitely keep a lid on. Context will be everything -- an alternate persona for a tourney company might be a good way to go. As a practical matter, if you are in one persona and someone calls you by the other persona's name, answer to that name also, and make being gracious about it your first priority, rather than rushing to explain matters (that would probably be your second or third priority). Courtoisie, you know.

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"The Minstrel Boy to the war is gone..."

[ironmongermisc]

I have two personas one name, one is early period norse and the other latter (14th) Norse, so explain and use all my spiffy awards that do not translate into early period ( no such thing as Baron or Master,,)

Due to the heat here, I bring out the old Norse clothes in winter (all 4 days of it) and use the lighter stuff the rest of the time

[Pietro da San Tebaldo]

The SCA College of Arms lets you register a primary and secondary name, with an heraldic device for each one.

Depending on weather/mood/occasion/weapon-style, I can wear my 14th century garb, my 15th century garb, or my 16th century garb. (The da San Tebaldos are a family with a lot of history.)

I don't have much in the way of a persona developed - I'm interested in the Italian penninsula, but I can't give you a breathless first-person account of "my" journeys to England and Turkey and Japan... (You've all met these people, haven't you?!)

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"Or, a pall inverted surmounted by an orle Azure counterchanged"
mka: Sam Pearce