[MR] Who the heck is Ghaltai Jida?

[Phillip Jones]

Well, that would be me. Most of you knew me as Phillip Bell, and that I’ve been off-planet the last ten years.


As far as I’m concerned, ‘Phillip Bell’ died the day he broke his neck at Pennsic. I don’t feel like that persona any more, so I applied for a change of arms and name. No more Landsknect, no more codpieces.

Ghaltai Jida is a good Mongol name meaning “burning spear”. I loved fighting spear. Won’t do it again. I –will- shoot arrows though, so hopefully the name will still fit. 

The name is pronounced “ash’-tie  zhee’-dah” the ‘t’ is sort of from the back of the throat.  Don’t sweat it; I can’t pronounce it right either.  Appropriate short forms would be Ghalt (asht) with an emphasis on the t. This translates to “fiery” or ‘hot’ Those who know me well will recall my fondness for fire.  Jida is also a perfectly good name, and means ‘spear’.  I’ll always answer to “Phillip”

I’ll enjoy renewing old friendships and making new ones. I hope to get back out on the field soon, though I don’t think it prudent to go into close-quarters heavy combat. I know that I would hate to be the guy who popped the plate out of some guys neck. 

My life has changed remarkably fast since an epiphany in September. I’ll be on the field as soon as I complete my marshal training, and in combat as soon as I authorize in combat archery. I’ll always be glad to help train fencers, and hope to be able to fence again. I just won’t know my limitations until I try.

The SCA has been a huge part of my life, and I’m really excited to be coming back. for a while, my activities will be in a fairly small area, but I hope to increase my driving radius. I’m trying hard to get back into The Dream.

Thank you for your attention and patience.

Ghaltai Jida