Ducal Prize is a benefit tourney to raise money for the West Kingdom to purchase a permanent tournament site. It is sponsored by KHTI (Kingdom Historical Trust, Inc.) in conjunction with the Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc. (SCA), and the West Kingdom. It is scheduled for Labor Day weekend and consists of competitions (for entry fee, with prizes), auctions, a garage sale, and other interesting activities. All state and local laws are strictly enforced.

Anyone may attend Ducal Prize, provided he or she is willing to wear pre-seventeenth century clothing of any period or culture known to medieval Europe and conform to the By-Laws and rules of the SCA and KHTI. All West Kingdom fighting conventions and other rules are in force.

Any donations to KHTI are as deductible as donations to the SCA, Inc. In other words, any donation, above the actual value of goods received, is deductible from your income tax.

Ducal Prize runs on donations; donations of items, skills, services, and your time. Donated items in the past have included the tourney and feast gear that you are no longer using, tables, chairs, tourney beds, pavilions, musical instruments, jewelry, food, etc. Skill and service donations have included promissories for a massage, dinner for four at a future event, training in skills, custom work by artisans, etc. Volunteers are needed to help run and judge the competitions, and to help staff the auctions, garage sale, lists, marshals, and constables at the entry gate.

Operations & Activities

General Operations: The GHQ (general headquarters) for the event will be the large sunshade on the eric and most of the activities will be centered around it and the adjacent pavilions. It will be hard to miss. This is where you will find autocrats, information, sign-ups, and so on, and where the evening competitions will take place.

Display Pavilion: This is where the auction items and prizes will be set up for you to examine. Please note some of the items are small and valuable. Others are fragile. Please do not handle items without checking with the staff. There are also times when the display pavilion is closed to the public. Fabric and rope, across the front, will indicate a closed pavilion.

Fiduciary Activities (Money): The Land Fund (KHTI) accepts cash, traveler's checks, and personal checks. At this time we cannot accept credit cards. Checks should be made payable to KHTI.

You may wish to establish a credit account or tab, so that you don't have to keep coming up with change. A tab will allow you to write one check to cover all of your expenses at Ducal Prize, including any entry fees, and purchases at the auctions or garage sale. (However, you cannot charge your purchases at the merchants to your tab.)

A tab can be set up by and for a group of people (like a household), and all of the people listed will be able to make purchases on the tab. One person must be willing to take responsibility for all of the group's purchases. People setting up tabs will be expected to give their SCA and legal names, their addresses, their phone numbers, and a list of the SCA names of those authorized to use the tab.

Please make sure that you have settled your accounts before you leave the event, since KHTI does not enjoy acting as a debt-collection agency.

Competitions: At the GHQ, there will be several tables where you can sign up for the competitions you want to enter. At that time, you should be prepared to pay your entry fees or make arrangements to run a tab. The entry fees vary with the competition, and are (loosely) based on the value of the prizes offered. If you want to enter a competition because it sounds like fun, but you (cannot afford the entry fee / don't really want the prize yourself / want to help the Land Fund get even more money), you can put yourself up for auction. If you put yourself up for auction, the persons who buys you get the prize if you should win.

Prizes: There will be at least one prize for every competition. Some of the competitions will have multiple prizes. The exact number of prizes offered for any competition will depend on the number of people who sign up for it. If there are any changes in the number of prizes for a particular competition, they will be announced at the competitor auctions. The prize for a particular competition will be listed on the sign-up sheet for the competition. Prizes will be displayed with the auction item in the Display Pavilion.

Auctions: There are two types of auctions at Ducal Prize. The first type of auctions is the Competitor Auction. A competitor who wishes to enter a particular contest can put his/her skills up for auction. The buyer donates the amount of their bid to KHTI, and if the competitor wins, the buyer gets the prize. The minimum bid is always the entry fee for the competition. The second type of auction is an Action for Goods and Services. These are regular auctions, wit the items going to the highest bidder. Auction items will be on display in the display pavilion. Remember to bid high and bid often, since all money raised will go to KHTI (only the part above the fair market value of the item is tax deductible). If you are not running a tab, remember that you will be expected to pay at the time of purchase.

Garage Sale: It's just what it sounds like; show up and shop! Haggle to your heart's content. All prices are negotiable and all monies go to the Land Fund. Purchases can be paid for immediately or added to your tab.

Bardic Activities: The evening activities will take place in or near the GHQ. Purchases at the bardic circle can be added to your tab, as can purchases at the evening competitor auctions. The Special Request Bardic Circle will bring together the best bards in the Kingdom to play, sing, or recite the pieces you request for a donation/fee paid to KHTI. For a $1 donation, you can request either a specific piece or a specific bard. If you specify a bard, you can also specify a mood. If you request a specific piece by a specific bard, the expected donation is $2. (No bard will be expected to perform a piece with which he/she is unfamiliar.) Repeat performances of especially well-liked pieces will carry a higher fee, which will be set by the bard doing the piece. You can also bid against a particular piece, and raise even more money.

Merchants: Merchants who wish to sell at Ducal Prize are expected to donate a minimum of ten percent of their profits to KHTI and to donate an item for a prize or auction.

Fighting: Some loaner weapons may be available, although fighters should not rely on borrowing equipment. All lists will be fought as standard double-elimination. Finals will be the best two of three, with all deaths forgiven. There will also be melee fighting.

Arts and Sciences, Games, and Other Special Competitions: The categories of competitions change every year, and you can sign up for these competitions at the GHQ.