Completed Quarterstaff 102

[Jynx]

The 25th of Spring 509 Northern Reaches OOC : Training in Weapon: Quarterstaff (Second Attack and Guard) “The first attack strikes at the right side of your opponent's head,” Quince said. “The second attack strikes at the left side.” They had begun by practicing the first attack and guard again. Now they moved on to the next attack. “Bring the lower end of the staff up to your opponent's head, extending your right hand as you do so.” He demonstrated. “At the same time, pull your left and in toward your left shoulder. Try it.” Jynx walked through the maneuver a few times. Quince said, “You are not swinging the staff. You are snapping it. Swinging is way too slow. You want the strike to come hard and fast and you don't want your opponent to have time to react.” Jynx practiced the two-part snap several more times: Right hand snaps up and out, left hand pulls back. “The defense against this strike is similar to the defense against the first one except that you want to intercept the incoming blow with the center of the staff rather than the upper part.” He demonstrated. “Raise the lower hand – your right hand – up and to the left so that it is in front of your left eye. At the same time, lower the upper hand – your left hand – a few inches. This brings your staff nearly perpendicular on your left side, intercepting the incoming strike with the center of the staff, between your hands.” He had Jynx strike several times while he demonstrated the guard. Then they reversed roles, with him striking and Jynx defending. Then they mixed it up, sometimes attacking and sometimes defending, until Jynx was comfortable with both. “Now,” Quince said. “Let's mix it up with both the first and second attacks and their respective guards.” The spent the next hour attacking and defending, with master Quince gradually increasing both the force of his attacks and the speed. Jynx soon found himself backing across the dojo as the master rained blows down on him from the left and from the right. “Do not retreat!” Quince ordered. “Stand your ground. I cannot hit you as long as you are successfully guarding. Wait for me to make a mistake and then attack.” This went on for another hour before master Quince finally relented and let the weary Kelvic rest.

[Jynx]

OOC : Training in Weapon: Quarterstaff (Third Attack and Guard) “The third basic attack,” Quince continued when Jynx seemed ready to go at it again. “Is a strike at the center of your opponent's body.” He demonstrated. “Use the upper end of the staff to strike at your opponent's side, twisting your body a you do so to add torque.” Jynx tried it a few times. “Imagine the staff is swinging through his body, as if you were cutting him in half at the waist. The defense against this move is the same as for a right-side head strike except you are intercepting the incoming strike with the center of the staff rather than the upper third. They took turns practicing the attack and defense against each other. Then they mixed the three attacks Jynx had learned so far, engaging in a free-form combat. The clack-clack-clack of wood against wood became faster and faster, filling the room with a steady rhythm as the two combatants attacked and defended. Jynx collected some more bruises, but two hours later, sweating and tired, he was doing a passably good job at mixing up his attacks and at defending against whichever of the attacks master Quince threw at him. “You are doing well, Jynx,” the master said. “Come back tomorrow and we will continue.”

[Jynx]

OOC : Training in Weapon: Quarterstaff (Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Attacks and Guards) The fourth attack proved to be the mirror image of the third attack, with the lower end of the staff coming up to strike his opponent's left side, again turning his body to provide added torque to the blow. The guard was the same as the guard against the second attack. It dawned on Jynx that the various strikes and guards were mostly variations of each other. Jynx and Quince practice attacking and defending with the third and fourth attacks. Right side strike, left side strike, right side strike, left side strike. Right side guard, left side guard, right side guard, left side guard. For an your they kept this up, with master Quince gradually increasing the force and speed of the strikes. The fifth and sixth attacks were, not surprisingly, aimed at the legs. “Strike at your opponent's right leg with the upper end of the staff, extending your left arm out and down. Aim for the knee. Imagine you are going to sweep him off his feet.” He demonstrated the move and then watched Jynx do it several times. “The guard is simply to extend both arms forward, which puts our staff a few inches in front of your knee. The lower end of the staff intercepts the strike.” The sixth strike was the mirror image of the fifth except it was done with the lower end of the staff, coming from the opponent's left. The sixth guard turned out to be essentially the same as the second and fourth guards, except that the lower end of the staff intercepted the incoming strike.

[Jynx]

OOC : Training in Weapon: Quarterstaff (Seventh Attack and Guard) “The seventh attack,” Quince continued. “Is a direct strike to the middle of the head with the upper end of the staff.” He demonstrated. “The guard is formed by bringing your staff horizontal and a little above and in front of your head, so that the center of the staff receives the strike.” Jynx executed the strike several times at his instructor, who effortlessly blocked them. Then Jynx defended against strikes by his instructor, but not quite so effortlessly. The timing turned out to be more difficult than it at first seemed. Soon, however, they were exchanging blows and blocks in a rapid-fire sequence of clack-clack-clack. “Now,” Quince announced. “We will employ all seven attacks and guards at will in what is called 'loose fighting'. That means it is unscripted. You may use any attack you want, as may I.” Without waiting for Jynx to reply he struck him on the right side of his head, sending him stumbling back. He immediately advanced on the Kelvic, using another strike to the right side of the head. Jynx barely managed to bring his staff into the first guard position in time to avoid another direct hit. The quarterstaff vibrated in his hand as master Quince's staff connected with it. The master was attacking with force. Quince followed with a strike to the middle of Jynx's head, which Jynx blocked by holding his staff parallel above and in front of his head. Quince immediately followed up with a strike to Jynx's left side, which he narrowly blocked. Then came a flurry of strikes: right leg, left leg, right side, left side, right head, left head. Jynx was forced back by the sheer power of the blows but he was managing to fend most of them off with the appropriate guards. Abruptly, master Quince stopped. “Well?” he demanded. “Are you going to attack? Or are you just going stand there and let me beat on you all day?” He launched another flurry of strikes. But Jynx was ready for him now. Quince snapped off a strike to the right side of his head, which he deflected with a right-side guard and followed with his own strike to Quince's right knee. The master easily blocked it but Jynx followed with a strike to the man's right left side, forcing him again to defend. Then it was master Quince's turn to deliver a flurry of left-right blows. “Trust your body,” he said. Jynx was getting the hang of it. His movements were becoming fluid, almost instinctive. He was now returning one strike for every two that master Quince leveled at him. They moved back and forth across the dojo, sometimes circling, always the constant clack-clack-clack of wood on wood. Standing just outside the dojo entrance was Hannah, Jynx's mistress. She had approached quietly and now watched the flurry of quarterstaffs moving so fast they were almost a blur. Quince had told her he thought Jynx would be a natural with the quarterstaff and he was right. In a matter of days, Jynx had become proficient with the weapon.

[Valkyrie]

Jynx :

Experience
5 Quarterstaff
2 Observation

Lore
Persistence in Training
Quarterstaff: Changing Up Attacks
Quarterstaff: Loose Fighting

Other
N/A

Notes: Another nice thread in the quarterstaff series. Jynx is very persistent in his training and compliant to his teacher. He clearly wants to please Hannah very much.

You Will Be Collected if Worthy

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