The Northkeep Castellan event has traditionally been held in the spring, most often in late May or early June. Currently its protected event date is the third weekend in May. It is the event at which the Baronial Champions are selected.
The original event was designed to select a champion who is judged to be the best overall person to defend the Barony, based on their skills over several categories of competition, not simply the heavy martial tournament. It has undergone several variations but the most recent version has individual champions for each category as well as the overall champion. The overall champion, the Castellan of Northkeep, is the best with a minimum of three categories entered. At least one competition must be martial, and one must be non-martial to qualify.
The individual titles for the Castellan competitions are:
- Drighton – A Chivalric Combat “meatgrinder”-style competition.
- Provost – A Rapier Combat competition where the format varies from year to year.
- Marksman – A Thrown Weapons competition, where the format can vary.
- Archer – A modified Royal Round competition.
- Title Bard – A Bardic competition, usually a challenge format.
- Artisan – An Arts & Sciences competition scored with the standard Ansteorran A&S judging forms. Documentation is required.
There is also a Youth Castellan title.
To win the Castellan title, the entrant must have entered a minimum of three categories, one of which must be martial and one of which must be of the Arts & Sciences or Bardic. Points are earned for placement in any of the competitions, and this total is divided by the number of competitions entered. The individual with the highest points wins the title of Castellan.
See our Champions page for the current list of Champions.
A list of the Castellan Winners is at the Ansteorran Wiki.