Solo A Honing of a Body Part II

Crylon continues his combat training, beginning work with his weapon.

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A city floating in the center of a lake, Ravok is a place of dark beauty, romance and culture. Behind it all though is the presence of Rhysol, God of Evil and Betrayal. The city is controlled by The Black Sun, a religious organization devoted to Rhysol. [Lore]

A Honing of a Body Part II

Postby Crylon Stonecraft on July 1st, 2018, 5:19 pm


5 Summer 518

Continued from here


Once they were done with the unarmed combat training, Johan gave Crylon a fifteen chime break before they moved on to the next bit, the armed combat training. The original reason he'd come, he would finally get to learn how to use his new weapon a wolf's teeth club... Which he'd only just gotten that day and hadn't knew existed before then.

Coming back from inspecting the facilities and checking in on his other patrons, Johan now held a wooden sword in his hand. He went over and inspected the wooden long club he'd selected for Crylon before gesturing at it. With a grunt Crylon heaved himself up off the ground from a seated position, and went and picked it up.

Like the other weapon that haft was about as long as he was tall, along with another wooden bit at the top which fattened similar to the actual weapon.

“Now first thing to know, every weapon including your hands has a range of operation. Hands, gauntlets, the like, work in close and close up against someone. Closer than that your grappling, wrestling. Beyond that is smaller weapons, daggers and the like which only provide a bit of range over your bare hands. And weapons get bigger and longer from there.”

“Swords, axes, the like. They give some proper range over fists, and if you've got one and your opponent only has fists they'll have to get under or past your weapon to get at you. Long weapons like yours, spears, and the like, they have even more range. But the tricky bit is as I said they have a range of use they are meant to be used at. Everything is a trade off. Shorter weapons can hit people when they get in close, but don't have the reach of longer ones. Longer ones can keep people at a distance, but if they close and get within the range of the weapon then you are petched because you can't bring the long weapon to bear on something that close to you.”

As he spoke, Johan pointed at various weapons on the rack, going from a tiny dagger to a wooden sword and up to a facsimile of a spear made of wood.

“Which is why you need to know how to fight without a weapon as well. In case you lose yours, or they get within the reach of your longer weapon. And thats just melee fighting. You've also got ranged weapons. Throwing weapons like axes and daggers, or bows and crossbows. If used right they might just pick you off . So pick yours up, and we'll trade some blows. Start by holding it right. Get a good grip, not too far down or up the haft. Space out your hands and use them to maneuver the weapon.”

Nodding Crylon moved his hands on the haft of the wooden weapon, getting a feel for it and its shaping. Swinging it a few times through the air, Crylon pictured invisible targets floating in the air which he aimed for. Once it got moving it was tricky to stop, he learned quickly enough, though turning it was a bit easier.

“Seems like its not meant to stop once moving...”

“Yes, with this type of weapon its all about blunt force. Even with the spikes, the blunt striking force of the blow pushes the barbs in for the blow. Not like a blade with cutting force and such, no stabbing with your weapon.”

Crylon nodded, stopping in the middle of miming out a thrust at a head with the top of the weapon to listen to his words. He supposed it'd be tricky to get enough speed with such a motion, a thrust of the head, though he supposed it could still work if perhaps not as well as swinging which gained more speed through said motion.

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Last edited by Crylon Stonecraft on July 1st, 2018, 7:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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A Honing of a Body Part II

Postby Crylon Stonecraft on July 1st, 2018, 6:09 pm


Crylon having in the roughest sense felt out the weapon, Johan stepped forward with his wooden sword in hand. While it wasn't small, in comparison to Crylon's much longer weapon it was.

“Alright, lets start off by you trying to defend yourself. Using the weapon, I want you to try and stop me while I come at you using only my weapon. So take a good stance, and lets begin.”

Nodding, Crylon took on a stance similar to his fighting one, hands spaced out along the shaft of the wooden weapon. One hand was about halfway up its length, while the other was closer to the bottom end or as close as Crylon could reach with his arms.

Johan paused, held the rounded wooden sword point first in front of him, and then suddenly began to move forward. Crylon by instinct swung his own weapon forward and at Johan, but the combat instructor seemed to not be phased. With a twist of his wrist the human swung his wooden blade about in a circle, sending Crylon's own weapon swinging outward and out of his grip. The weapon clattering to the ground Johan took another step forward and poked Crylon in the chest.

“Dead. You need to either keep a good grip and therefore control of your weapon, or be ready to give it up and fight by other means. With you that means your arm. As soon as the weapon is gone, or someone gets within your range and makes it useless, forget about it. Toss it aside and fight with what works at that range. Namely your body.”

Crylon, nodding, went and fetched his replacement weapon from where it had landed on the ground.

“Also, bear in mind where you hold it. The farther up the haft you hold it, the greater your control. But the further down the haft you hold it, the greater leverage you'll get from the length of the weapon and therefore the harder you can hit. This type of weapon is all about how hard you hit. Now again.”

Holding his wooden weapon in front of him, Crylon waited for Johan to move, focused on the task at hand. He waited... And waited... Took a breath. A chime passed... And Johan began to move. Crylon began to swing in response, but he soon after committing realized this was a fake and Johan hadn't moved forward at all before stepping back out of range. As the weapon blew past in the swing Johan stepped inside its reach, knocking it aside further with his wooden sword and stepping forward to poke Crylon in the chest again.

“As soon as I get past the head of this, within your reach, you can't bring the weapon to bear. And forget trying to fight in close quarters, say a alley or something, your weapon will get caught on the environment and not be able to swing around fully. You'd be better off then just abandoning it and using your hands. If you can keep me at a distance, and use the weapon properly, your golden. But if I get past your weapon, your vulnerable and need to abandon it to fight with what you can at that range. Understood?”

Crylon nodded, taking a deep breath as he focused again. At least this time, he thought to himself, he'd kept the weapon in his hand and had not had it sent flying out of his grip like the first time. Baby steps.

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A Honing of a Body Part II

Postby Crylon Stonecraft on July 1st, 2018, 8:16 pm


“Alright, so you've tried defending a few times, and learned a few things not to do. Now lets try offense. You come at me.”

Nodding, Crylon pondered how to go about coming at the man. He'd clearly gotten the upper hand when Crylon was defending, mainly by steering Crylon's weapon out of the way. Crylon could try to do likewise, but didn't think he would be able to with his current skill.

Also, with the smaller weapon it was easier to work it in such a way to finesse it. His weapon, he was coming to realize, could be powerful but wasn't easily stopped or turned and simply hit with no finesse.

While that didn't make the damage it would potentially do any less, if not possibly more, it did mean it was more easily manhandled by a skilled opponent. Until he knew how to stop said manhandling from occurring.

Unsure of what to do, Crylon simply stepped forward and swung the weapon at Johan's side. Johan nicely stepped back out of range, avoiding the blow with minimal effort. Taking several steps at once Crylon ran forward, trying to stop the same thing from happening, this time swinging once he felt he had a good grip on things. Johan however this time stepped forward and crouched under the blow, smacking the haft with his blunted wooden sword as it wizzed by to add to the force, making it impossible for Crylon to stop it. He once more lost his grip, the weapon flying out of his hands and bouncing several times across the ground. Johan rose once more, and tapped Crylon on the chest with the point of the rounded blade.

“Don't over commit. Until you really know how to use it, how to use it completely. Over committing can be deadly, especially when you do not know what you are doing. Eventually in using it you'll know how to change your grip, how to change directions, how to let go at the right moment. But that will only come with time and training. In the meantime, you'll just need to practice till you get it right.”

Nodding Crylon went and retrieved his wooden weapon, turning back to face Johan. While he still had a lot to learn, he already felt that fraction of a bit better than when he had first arrived. And if nothing else he had learned many things not to do, which he could avoid when he did get in a fight. Though, he thought to himself, hopefully that time would not come for awhile and until he was better trained or else he would be liable to get himself killed.

Moving up on the haft of the weapon, Crylon tucked it in a bit closer and stepped into a swing. This time Johan didn't dodge or duck, instead swinging his own blade upward from below and smacking into his weapons haft. This made it bounce upward even while Johan's sword bounced downward. But he had managed to stop Johan from getting within his guard, or from knocking the weapon out of his hands.

“Better, the tiniest bit better. Still needs work, but you are improving. Barely, but it is there.”

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A Honing of a Body Part II

Postby Crylon Stonecraft on July 1st, 2018, 9:19 pm


Holding the weapon in his grip, Crylon inspected Johan as he tried to sense an opening. The man had an eye missing and an arm missing on one side. Surely that would mean some sort of blind spot or weak point? Crylon thought it made sense that such a thing would be the case, but as he lacked experience he was not even sure how to capitalize on such things.

Coming at him in a half hearted blow, Crylon stepped forward and swung the head of the weapon at his side. Johan stepped forward and knocked the weapon clear with an upward smack. While the wooden sword was still flung downward he shifted his grip and turned one hand and yanked on his weapon, trying to bring it back down suddenly to strike the human.

It almost worked, but Johan sensing the strike coming from above managed to sidestep and get out of the way, a grin on his face as the stared down Crylon.

Pulling the weapon in a bit closer in terms of his grip on the shaft Crylon moved towards Johan again and this time thrust the head of the weapon towards his chest rather than swinging from the side. Johan swung his sword and deflected it upward again, stepping back out of reach.

Then Crylon did something he'd been working towards, feeding out the shaft to its full length instead of gripping halfway up its length he extended its length all of a sudden back to full. Swinging downward at an angle, Crylon aimed a diagonal sweep at Johan's side and shoulder.

Crylon had been hoping this sudden extension of the weapon to full length would catch the man by surprise, but it seemed that nothing surprised him as he had seen such tactics before. Still, as he swung his blade to deflect Crylon's weapon and sidestepped out of the way, he grinned at him.

“Better, getting better. Nice trick there. If you want to win, you have to think in a way your opponent is not, otherwise they will always be able to counter you and get around your attacks. Either you have to surprise them in that case, or you have to make a move so good that even if they know it is coming they cannot do anything about it. At your level, surprise is the best you can hope for.”

As he finished speaking Johan suddenly moved forward, grabbing the hilt with one hand and twisting, and then releasing and spinning his body in closer along the shaft. Crylon's grip compromised and Johan in close enough it just took another one handed grab and a pull, and the weapon came clean out of Crylon's hands.

“For instance, you did not expect me to do that. But like I said, this type of weapon is all about range. Once I get within it, past the dangerous part, you are not going to be able to as easily come at me with it. When you saw what I was doing you should have abandoned the weapon, and come at me with your first. Next time, alright? You are learning. Someday you will even be able to fight off a toddler without losing. Not today mind you, but soon.”

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A Honing of a Body Part II

Postby Crylon Stonecraft on July 2nd, 2018, 2:01 am


Letting out a sigh, Crylon watched the man holding his weapon. At some point he had dropped his own in order to grab Crylon's, but he couldn't quite recall when from his memory. Or perhaps he had picked it up again at some point? Running back through his memory of the event he knew Johan had struck his weapon against Crylon's, but had also shortly after grabbed Crylon's weapon in order to yank it from his grip.

Johan tossed the weapon back to Crylon and backed up, and at some point gathered his wooden practice weapon again. Yet again however, Crylon was not quite sure how he had done it. Crylon could not help thinking that when fighting a one armed man, he ought to be able to keep track of that arm.

It did give him a bit of an idea, though he was unsure if it was any good. Returned his weapon Crylon took on a ready stance, waiting for Johan to get back into position.

Once he had, Crylon began to circle, moving around him sideways and forcing him to turn. All the while he held his weapon out, keeping space between them.

He waited until he had done a turn and a half around him, before acting. Springing forward as if to attack with the club, Crylan began to move. But just before he fully committed Crylon shoved the club forward and tossed it at Johan. Johan, having to block the weapon flying at him, was not able to maneuver about just yet. Cry;on, taking advantage of the momentary distraction, followed up the toss of the weapon by coming in with his fists. A good strong right punch as he neared, pausing and using the torque of his stopping to rotate his body into it.

It almost worked, or so Crylon told himself later. Johan in that moment had batted the weapon flying at him aside, and only moments later had assessed the Isur flying at him. Without pausing or thinking he had then gone in low, and tackling Crylon in the legs sent him flying over the human body. Crylon came crashing to the ground on the other side of his form, using his left arm as best he could to cushion the landing and slow his descent. Unfortunately Crylon, not being an acrobat, managed to do little more by this than stopping himself from landing on his face.

His entire body aching besides his left arm, sore and tired from the days exertions, Crylon let out a groan and lay in a heap on the ground. He felt as if he had been trodden upon by a horse, or perhaps several.

“Better, but just like I said avoid over committing. But it was a much better attempt than the others. I think that will do it for todays lesson. If you want another, you will have to pay again. Otherwise, you can train freely in the main parts of the facility. Good luck with your work.”

Crylon continued to lay there for several chimes, gathering himself and trying to get his tired body to respond. When it finally did he rose with a wheeze, the stitch in his side having fully bloomed into a dress. He planned to do nothing else today but to get a ride on the ferry home, take a Ravasola to his house, and to collapse into his bed for a day or two.

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A Honing of a Body Part II

Postby Ruvya on August 10th, 2018, 9:45 am

G R A D E
Weapon: Club +5
Tactics +3
Observation +2


Close-range versus long-range weapons
Club: Higher grip gives a heavier strike while lower grip gives better control
Club: Not effective in closed spaces like alleys
Club: Lacks finesse but a powerful weapon in skilled hands
Sword: An agile weapon
Club: Be wary of overcommitting as your momentum can be used against you
Tactics: Exploiting an opponent's blind spot
Club: Alternating grip with swings and jabs
Tactics: The element of surprise
When to abandon a weapon for unarmed defence
Tactics: Feigning an attack to catch an opponent off-guard



Great work, I especially liked the balance of tactics and novice mistakes you threw in, it made it enjoyably believable! If you feel I missed anything don't hesitate to send me a PM and I'd be happy to take another look.
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