capnwilliam

Not that big a deal... You're already aiming the weapon and intentionally firing at least one barrel. -CS Good point. It would give a hard kick, though. Capt. William

Cats of one sort or another go back at least as far as ancient Rome: "flagellum" pops into my head as I type this, but I'm proceeding just from memory. Jesus was flogged with some sort of a cat. Capt. William

They're interesting, and pretty: but personally, I'd be leery of actually shooting any firearm that's got sparks flying about that could ignite the load in more than one barrel at a time. Capt. William

Well put, and sadly true!! Aye. Thanks! We really have no leadership at all in this country, and no choice. Both major parties ought to become one: The Republicrats, or the Demicans. An elephant's head with an ass's ass! Capt. William

Some terrific looking stuff there, Kass! Tell Ed that I got the fid, it looks great! :) Capt. William

Just finished a big slice of Mardi Gras King Cake. Capt. William

Wenches are always welcome here, mate! :) Capt. William

Yes, and so many of us, myself included, mistakenly believe that wearing a beard or outlandish mustache makes us look more piratical. Capt. William

I do remember his name as being a legend, back in the days when I used to fence Olympic epee and SCA rapier. He will indeed be missed by all students of the sword. Capt. William

The last post about whatever portion of whoever's anatomy we were supposed to view has been deleted. Capt. William

Agree on the "splinters" issue: they'd be spraying mayhem all over the place; the cannonball itself is harmless unless you get hit directly by it. The "night vision" theory makes no sense. Pirates avoided fighting when they could, attacked by day if they couldn't. One theory I'd heard about eyepatches (besides the obvious hiding of an empty eye socket) was that they protected the other eye when taking sextant readings. I'm not sure this is MUCH more plausible than the "night vision" theory. Capt. William

I don't have enough hair - length or thickness wise - that it's a problem. Capt. William

That DAY? Sleep late. Maybe avoid the problem of getting out of bed altogether! Capt. William

I understand that the Knights of Malta - the actual historic Order - still exists as a society within the Catholic Church. Their purpose is charitable, not martial. I'm a Knight of Malta, but within Freemasonry. "Knight of Malta" is one of the Chivalric Orders of Freemasonry, open to Masons of the Christian faith. We don't claim a direct lineage with these knights of old, though: only a spititual heritage. I'm also a Masonic Knight Templar. And a Past Commander. Capt. William

The beauty of American politics is that we have a strong two-party system. Let's see: we have the Democrats - that's the liberal party. They stand for : a strong central government, internationalism, globalism, Zionism, massive deficits, open borders, and getting us involved in wars that don't benefit our country in any way shape or form whatsoever. And then we have the Republicans - that's the conservative party. They stand for: a strong central government, internationalism, globalism, Zionism, massive deficits, open borders, and getting us involved in wars that don't benefit our country in any way shape or form whatsoever. See the difference? :) Capt. William

A Knight, by any chance? Capt. William

Kegs come in handy for the same purposes, also. Capt. William

The biggest "don't: should be: don't use Edward England's or Jack Rackham's flags, unless you're reenacting specifically THEM. Capt. William

Lady Alyx, I was responding to Sjorovaren's message about forming a Medicine at Sea guild. As my wife Jan is interested in period home remedies, please share 'em with us! :) Capt. William

The small kilt isn't period, though. Capt. William

Is no one else interested? Capt. William

That's not burnout, Longarm, that's frustration over spending too much time in dock. Capt. William

That's an important consideration! Capt. William

You play dead, and use him for cover! :) Capt. William

We always think in terms of lots and losts of death-dealing hardware - blunderbuss and three brace of big pistols and a cutlass and all that - : but consider the situation, mates: yer climbing over the rail, both vessels are rocking and rolling: smoke, shots, screams, tight spaces: I really believe the best thing would be just a cutlass. Less bulk and weight to lug, leaves one hand free at all times, no need to worry about which weapon to grab and use, no worrying about yer weapon being useless after you've just used it...I say, just concentrate on that thing in yer dominant hand and hack yer way ahead! :) Capt. William