To: future Huntmasters I've Hunted three times now, and I think I now understand what makes a fabulous Hunt. But you're the Huntmaster, so you get to decide which of these pieces to use. Some people take the Hunt more seriously than others, and some take it not at all seriously. Humor isn't out of place at all, but the Hunt isn't usually entirely a joke. All the suggestions I've presented here, I've seen in real Hunts (except number 2), but not all together. Since I take the Hunt seriously (as you can tell by the capital letters), these suggestions aim towards a somewhat serious Hunt. _The Wyld Hunt_ Participants: 1 Huntmaster 1 Stag any number of Hunters 0. The woad in a tube washes off, the woad in stick form doesn't. 1. The Huntmaster needs to be differentiated in some way from the Hunters: a. By garb (Warren's black robe was quite effective) or b. By implement or device (a sickle or rod, for instance) This gives the Huntmaster the authority to tell the Hunters what to do. Also, it looks cool. 2. The Huntmaster invites participants into the Hunt and one-by-one, inducts them. This could be done by painting the final mark on the Hunters, or asking them to say a word. Do it quickly, because it's cold out. Actually, I don't know that this has ever happened at a Hunt, but I think it would work, and work well. My model is communion at a Catholic church, or the passing of the tobacco pipe in some American Indian rituals. It helps the participants to shed the feeling that this is an ordinary day, an ordinary game, and makes them feel like they are not just people, but initiates. 3. The Huntmaster calls upon the gods, and invests power into the Stag. At some point during this step, the Huntmaster should place the horns upon the Stag. Because the Stag is in the same room with the Hunters during the process of applying woad, it's easy to think of them as just another player in the game. This sort of thinking needs to be discouraged; once they put on the horns, they need to become the Stag until the horns are removed. Also, get some new horns, or at least cover up the duct tape on the ones we have. 4. The Hunt is on. There's got to be some mechanism for letting the stag get a bit of a head start without being explicit about it. Stopping for group photos might work. Make sure that the person with the camera knows how to use it. Bunch people together so the camera can be closer to people; consumer cameras don't have very strong flashes. 5. The stag should choose a path which (a) goes through the open more than through streets (b) loops, so that slower people can catch up by cutting corners The stag should run fast enough that at least the slower people can end up winded, if they want to. The feeling of being spent, having given one's all to the run, is one of the great things about the Hunt. It makes one feel like one has earned one's victory. 6. The run should take about 20-30 minutes. Of course, to determine how long this is, the Stag should run it ahead of time with a watch. One of the great parts of the Hunt is passing through Harvard Square, being completely wild and alien, and disrupting the lives of the ordinary people, making them yield the sidewalk to the blue-painted pack. 7. During the Hunt, the Stag should allow themself to be surrounded a few times. Hunters will swipe at them and growl. In order for this to be satisfying for the Hunters, the Stag needs to act like a real stag might: (a) look around frantically (b) turn and rush at the Hunters (c) eventually, break through and get away 8. When the Stag is caught at the end of the Hunt, before the Hunters tear into it, the Huntmaster should stop everyone for a minute to pray. It will give the slowest people a chance to catch up, and give everyone a chance to catch their breaths before carrying the Stag back to the feast. In 2003, this was a moment of silence, which I thought worked pretty well. This feeling may be personal; I went to a Quaker high school, so I appreciate silence. This is also a good time for photos (perhaps this is also self-centered, as one of the only good photos of myself is from this point in the 2003 Hunt). 9. If at all possible, have someone already at the feast-area, with the Hunters' clothing and food and drink. The loops that the Hunt takes should allow them to beat the Hunters there. It's more important when it's cold, and when the Hunt has been long, but it's a good idea in any case.