Nickolai Tseppelin

Photo
Nickolai Tseppelin in full Landsknecht regalia at Les Beltaines 2024
Information
Resides: Shire of Mountain Freehold
Status: Active
Awards: Order of Precedence
Heraldry
Heraldry Needed

Award & Office Badges
Deputy Chatelaine, Shire of Mountain Freehold

Persona

Nickolai, Voivode of Tseppelin, thought running away to war would be all glitz and glory. It turned out there was a lot more ditch-digging and smallpox than he expected, but at least he got some really nice pants.

Nonetheless, Nickolai’s jovial nature, and the generosity instilled by his patrician upbringing, bring much-needed camaraderie to the landsknecht forces of Europe. As Voivode, he was known as Nickolai the Fun, a moniker well corroborated by his love of games. Nickolai approaches war like play and play like war. He’s not afraid to back you into a corner on the board or the battlefield, but his infectious grin makes it hard to stay mad at him for long.

Affiliations

Inn of Bards Rest
Ailemen

Offices & Positions

Deputy Chatelaine, Shire of Mountain Freehold, 2024-Present
Rapier Marshal in Training, 2024-Present

Event Staff

Deputy Autocrat, Feast of Fools, 2024

Awards

Baroness's Rapier Champion, Barony of Stonemarche, 2024

Projects & Publications

As is the mercenary’s custom, Nickolai is a keen gambler, ever accompanied by his “tavern in a basket”: games from around the Known World etched meticulously on leather (see below). His enthusiasm for leather extends to all manner of projects, including shoes, costrels, and trinkets for his magpie of a wife, Eseld. Ever magnanimous, Nickolai always carries a spare game board should a fellow player wish to purchase (or commission) one. He has recently entered the medium of wood, producing rubber band guns for his fellow fencers.

Forever seeking novel flavors, Nickolai is also an enthusiastic cook. He particularly enjoys the exotic spices available to an officer of his station -- and is known, as well, to share them with soldiers of every rank.

Below is a selection of his games, all designed and laser-engraved on leather by Nickolai himself.

Senet, Egypt, ~2600 BCE
Royal Game of Ur, Mesopotamia, ~2600 BCE
Nine Men's Morris, Rome, ~1400 BCE
Duodecim Scripta, Rome, ~5 AD
Alquerque, Middle East, ~10th century AD
Hnefetafl ("Viking chess"), Scandinavia, 12th century AD
Fox and Geese, Scandinavia, ~14th century AD
Gluckshaus, Europe, ~15th century AD

Other projects:

Leather costrel
Leather shoes
Rubber band guns
Boiled pudding served with preserves and fresh fruit
Egg, leek, and dill pie
Sambocade (elderflower cheesecake) from a 14th-century recipe
Meal composed of recipes from The Forme of Cury (14th century): frumenty, funges and leekes, broad beans with onions, and salmon in berry sauce

Gallery

Nickolai Tseppelin, Kythe Szubielka, and Drake MacLeod at the Inn of Bard's Rest, Panteria 2023
Awaiting his court summons at Les Beltaines 2024
Receiving his AoA from TRM Tindal and Emerson, Les Beltaines 2024
With Sylvain du Soleil and Eseld an Goarnic, Panteria 2023
Nickolai and Eseld at Shire of Panther Vale's Yule 2023
Nickolai and Eseld at Les Beltaines 2024
Patiently awaiting instruction before capturing the fort at Les Beltaines 2024
Presiding over the games table at East Kingdom Twelfth Night, January 2023
Teaching a game at Shire of Mountain Freehold's Birthday Bash, September 2023
Entering the thrown weapons competition at Shire of Mountain Freehold's Birthday Bash, September 2023
With a trusted friend at Les Beltaines 2024
Nickolai Tseppelin vs. Olan Blackhand, Panteria 2024
Nickolai Tseppelin vs. Sage Elan de Janvier, Panteria 2024
Challenging Perez ben Meir Gershon to Duodecim Scripta at Les Beltaines 2024