Solo [Wolf Creek Course] Team Building

Jez takes his Strider out to the obstacle course to test their bravery and trust in one another

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Built into the cliffs overlooking the Suvan Sea, Riverfall resides on the edge of grasslands of Cyphrus where the Bluevein River plunges off the plain and cascades down to the inland sea below. Home of the Akalak, Riverfall is a self-supporting city populated by devoted warriors. [Riverfall Codex]

[Wolf Creek Course] Team Building

Postby Jez Firetongue on April 28th, 2017, 1:07 am

OOC Note :
I decided to do weighted rolls based on Jez's skill level and the trail difficulty (novice/competent) to figure out how many obstacles they would find fine, difficult or refuse to do.

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Jez Firetongue
40th of Spring 517 AV

Pavi/Grassland Sign , Common, Nari


It had been seven days since Jez had arrived in Riverfall, his journey from Endrykas completed. Most of that time had been spent in the city walls, the Drykas wanting to fully experience life within while he had the chance. However, he couldn’t stay away from his bonded Strider, Wind, for long. Luckily the stabling he had chosen, The Sanctuary, was less than a Bell’s walk from the city, so most days he had had time to make the walk and see his stallion. However, he had been missing the Strider in a way that a few moments with him, some grooming and playing in a paddock, could not cure. He missed working with him.

Jez had found out that The Sanctuary had claim over the surrounding lands, and that on them the owners had built a series of obstacles known as the Wolf Creek Cross Country Equestrian Training Course. He had never tried such a test and so didn’t know what to expected, but was excited to spend time with Wind again, to experience something new together. The sedentary lifestyle where horses were not required for survival was not suited to either of them, and the team needed some time to work with each other.

Jez had picked Wind up from The Sanctuary’s Boarding Barn in the late morning. He had chosen to equip the stallion in full yvas, wanting the extra support to hold if they struggled with some of the obstacles. The purple cloth pad had been placed first, covering part of Wind’s back and shoulders. Next the yvas was placed over this shoulders, the chest piece attached to hold it snug in place. His quiver and yvas bags had been kept with the yvas, attached to the metal rings, as had the knotted decorations of rope and leather dangling from it. It was strange to Jez to see so many horses used with a saddle and reins, and he was happy to see his own wearing the traditional Drykas gear.

Jez had mounted and led the stallion towards the exit of the factility, the creature perking up in excitement as he realised he wasn’t being put out to pasture but heading to spend some time with his rider. Jez had dismounted to open the main gates, with Wind pawing at the ground and tossing his head while waiting. As soon as the gates opened the stallion danced a few paces out of the facility before waiting for his rider to shut the gates once more and join him. The Drykas had mounted, equally excited for their day together, and directed them down the path that led to the course. The signs had pointed them to the outskirts of the pastures surrounding the facility, where a strip of forest lay on the ocean border.

“Hang on a minute, Wind,” Jez straightened, shifting his weight in his seat so the stallion would slow. They had made it to the course entrance, where a carved map clearly indicated the routes to take for the different difficulty trails. Wind’s ears flickered and he turned his head to nudge against his rider’s leg. Jez leant forward a little, eyes still looking over the map, to scratch at his horse’s forehead while he figured out where to go. “We should take the novice trail to start with,” he told Wind, “We don’t know what to expect and I don’t want us getting stuck between obstacles we can’t complete.”

Wind snorted and turned his head forward again, starting to walk down the trail ahead of them. Jez chuckled; the stallion clearly didn’t take too kindly to the thought of not being able to do something. “We’ll get there one day buddy, but for now we should take things easy. Let’s go left,” he pressed his right leg against the stallion’s side, tilting his pelvis left a little. Wind followed the direction, responding to both words and pressure, entering the start of the novice trail at a brisk walk.

Only a short way down the trail they encountered the first obstacle, one which Jez would hardly have thought about had there not been a small sign marking it as such. A small riffling river dissected the trail ahead, about ankle deep, and needed to be crossed to continue along the trail. A little to the right Jez noticed the trail widening to a shallower section, with a flagged staff marking it. Unsure what the marker meant, Jez shrugged and urged Wind onwards. The stallion paused for a moment in the water, pawing at the sediment curiously, before stepping back out onto the path. Having grown up on the Sea of Grass, Wind had little fear of crossing streams. Not only was it a part of life traveling through an entire region, but the stallion was often washed in rivers.

The pair continued their brisk walk, Jez taking pleasure in being out in the wilderness again. It was obvious the area around them was maintained by people, but enough wildlife had been allowed to grow that he felt comfortable. He thought of Caiyha, and her son Eywaat, as he looked around them. With a lack of Winter there were more insects buzzing around them, and the birds were out in good numbers to take advantage of them. This place was one of a few examples he had seen of Riverfall fully trying to embrace and work with Caiyha’s creations, rather than removing them in the name of progress.

Jez smiled at the knowledge that people existed outside of Endrykas who desired a life where man and nature could live in a side by side balance. He sent a silent prayer to Caiyha to thank her for the existence of this place, and for his being able to visit it. He was slowly growing more accepting of the culture where people chose to stay in one place. Upon first arriving in Riverfall he couldn’t understand why a people would stay in one place, manipulating their environment and not giving it a chance to recover. Now, though, he was beginning to realise that manipulation of the environment by planting and moving greenery, and setting aside specific areas for animals, was what made it possible for people to stay in one place. He didn’t see it as a perfect solution for a lifestyle, but it Riverfall he couldn’t understand why they would stay in one place, not giving their environment a chance to recover and manipulating it. Now, though, he was beginning to realise that the manipulation by planting and moving greenery, with only specific areas for animals, was what made it possible for people to stay in one place. He wasn’t sure it was the perfect solution for a way of living, but it was certainly better than if the people had doing nothing and let the environment wither away around them.



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|| Jez Firetongue || 25 years || Drykas || Amethyst Clan || Firetongue Pavilion || Bond to Wind ||
The Heart of Nature Soothes the Heart of Man More Than Any Woman Can
Last edited by Jez Firetongue on April 30th, 2017, 8:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Jez Firetongue
Nature answers us in time
 
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[Wolf Creek Course] Team Building

Postby Jez Firetongue on April 28th, 2017, 11:59 am

Image

Jez Firetongue
40th of Spring 517 AV

Pavi/Grassland Sign , Common, Nari


The next obstacle, a small log that Wind could easily step over, was soon upon them. Beside it was another flagged staff, this time marking a trail around the log. Jez realised that the staffs were there to show an easier route, in case a rider came across an obstacle they couldn’t pass. He was relieved to realise this, glad to know he wasn’t stuck on the trail and that they’d have an easy way out should they encounter too difficult an obstacle. Squeezing gently with his legs, Jez grasped Wind’s mane with his right hand as the stallion responded to the pressure by breaking into a trot. Although they could step over the log, Jez watched to push his horse to jump it. They were doing the course to test themselves, not to take things easy.

Jez could feel the energy in Wind’s body building as his ears flicked forward and head lifted. He laughed, changing the pressure in his seat to try and contain the energy, preventing Wind from breaking into a canter as they approached the log. A step before the log Jez relaxed the pressure, allowing Wind to use his contained energy to bounce over the obstacle. He fluidly moved into the jumping position, back straight and pelvis bent so that his torso was parallel to the horse’s neck, so that he wouldn’t get bounced off. As Wind’s hooves touched the ground Jez jolted, gripping his mane tighter, before managing to rebalance himself and straighten back up in his seat. It wasn’t perfect technique, but he’d never had to jump something high enough that perfection was required to safely make it over.

Jez patted Wind’s neck, grinning as the adrenaline began to pump through him. The thrill that came from working alongside his bonded stallion was an addictive one. The trail meandered right before the next obstacle appeared. Jez was pushed forward suddenly and had to tense up to stop himself propelling over the horse’s neck, as Wind came to a sudden halt from his trot. The stallion’s nostrils flared as he tensed, legs quivering a little at the sight of the obstacle. “It’s okay Wind,” he soothed, “It’s just a bridge.” The bridge was set up over a small man made ditch, created from flat wooden planks with wooden railings put up on either side. It was about two horses wide, giving enough room for a single horse to startle without bumping the railings.

Although blended in fairly well with the trail, the structure was not natural and therefore not something seen out on the Sea of Grass. It made Wind unsure, the horse eyeing it nervously and only remaining in place thanks to the soothing from his bonded Drykas. “Forward, Wind,” Jez instructued, nudging inwards with his calves. The stallion hesitated but at Jez’s insistent pressure began stepping forward slowly. He didn’t seem happy about going across, but ultimately trusted his rider to not guide him directly into danger. Jez settled deeper into his seat, wrapping his legs firmly around the Strider and gripping both hands on his yvas, ready to keep his balance in case Wind spooked. Obstacles new to the Strider were the reason Jez was riding with his yvas, wanting the support of something other than his mane to grip.

Wind moved a few hesitant steps onto the bridge before stopping to investigate the railings. His lips quivered as he carefully nibbled a little at the wood. Jez grinned, allowing the horse to do as he wished. He wasn’t training for a fast time over the obstacles or wanting to push Wind so far that he’d be afraid of the new obstacles in the future. They were there to work on their relationship, to develop their trust in each other and see how well they worked together. He considered it a success if Wind completed a new obstacle, not a failure at how long it took. After a Chime or so of allowing Wind to investigate, Jez urged him to continue forward and complete the bridge.

“Not too bad, hey Wind?” Jez smiled while scratching the stallion’s shoulder. Wind nickered and pranced a little as he trotted away from the bridge, proud of himself for overcoming the small bout of fear beforehand. He was also beginning to feel the adrenaline rush of working together with his Drykas in this new way. The pair followed the trail as it turned left, taking the corner as the trail began to narrow. The fourth obstacle was on the other side of the turn, a small step down a cut of bank that led straight into running water. Jez could hear as he approached that the water was swift, but as they reached the bank he realised that its depth only just reached over a horse’s hooves. Much like the first obstacle this didn’t present much of a challenge given their annual travels around the Sea.

“Slowly,” Jez called as they approached the bank. The stallion stopped and looked down for a moment before stepping down into the water. As he did so Jez leant back, leaning against the sudden forward angle by sitting backwards in his seat. Once the step was completed he pushed his hand back to the stallion’s rump to push himself back up. Wind snorted and looked at the water streaming over his hooves. His tail lifted a little as he started to prance again, splashing at the water. “Woah!” Jez laughed, quickly grabbing the yvas handles to stop himself from being bucked off, “Easy, Wind. Let’s calm down now.” Rather than trying to stop the stallion and ending up winding the energy up inside him, Jez let it escape by urging him forward. Wind moved on, still playing, and gave a small spring out of the stream on the other wide. Still urging him on, trying to channel the energy differently, Jez convinced the Strider to break out into a steady canter. Focused on a faster pace, Wind’s playful prancing was calmed and his energy was put into moving forward on the trail.



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|| Jez Firetongue || 25 years || Drykas || Amethyst Clan || Firetongue Pavilion || Bond to Wind ||
The Heart of Nature Soothes the Heart of Man More Than Any Woman Can
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Jez Firetongue
Nature answers us in time
 
Posts: 121
Words: 129941
Joined roleplay: December 10th, 2012, 6:38 pm
Location: Endrykas
Race: Human, Drykas
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[Wolf Creek Course] Team Building

Postby Orakan on September 30th, 2019, 1:34 am

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ImageJez
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Skills
● Planning - 2XP
● Horsemanship - 2XP
● Riding - 2XP
● Observation - 2XP
● Socialisation - 2XP
● Tactics - 1XP
● Prayer - 1XP
● Philosophy - 1XP
● Logic - 1XP
● Acrobatics - 1XP

Lores
● Location: The Sanctuary
● Location: Wolf Creek Cross Country Equestrian Training Course
● Horsemanship: Putting an yvas on a Strider
● Riding: Using one's weight to signal a horse to slow
● Riding: Using pressure and tilt to get a horse to turn
● Jez: Finds comfort in being surrounded by nature
● Wolf Creek Cross Country Equestrian Training Course: Staff markers indicate easier routes around obstacles
● Riding: Controlling a horse's speed
● Riding: Jumping position and technique
● Horsemanship: Soothing and building trust within a wary horse
● The importance of exercising the bond between Strider and Drykas
● Horsemanship: Understanding how to properly use and channel a horse's energy

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Another beautiful thread cut too short <3 Thanks for the read! Do let me know if you have any questions or concerns regarding your grade and don't forget to delete/edit your request in the grading queue.
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“The means to every crime is ours,
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we multiply the horror a hundredfold.”

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