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 Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:05 pm
Quote: The Stadium:There is a small stadium for young War Horsemen set up away from the larger training fields, several circles set out for pairs to spar against each other in. A rather rugged looking female stands, dark skinned, light haired, covered in scars and warpaint, her hair unevenly cut in the back to a short length and ridiculously long and braided in the front, wrapped around itself, several feathers tucked into both it and the dark stained fabric, bones from several different types of creatures weaved into jewelry she wears, her wings colored like a golden eagle. On one arm, she has several slashes of paint – what looks like hundreds, trailing down it. After staring too long she finally speaks up:
“There is one for each battle I have won.” She said simply, shifting the pole she held to her other hand before turning to show her other arm, which is spotted with paint of a different color – and much more numerous. “I have one for each battle I have lost as well. To become a true warrior, you must climb your way to the top from the very bottom, and the best place to start is practicing against those who may just be better than you.” She explained, before motioning to one of the circles and an individual that was practicing on their own.
“Go join them.” She says, “If you think you’re ready. If you win, you will be paired up with the winner of another spar. So on, and so forth. After five victories, a break will be allowed for the day.” She says, the only explanation she gives as she hands off a small staff.Mechanics There are 5 roundsRoll 2d8 each post First post is how hard you hit Second post is how hard the opponent hit You want to roll higher than your NPC opponent. Please fill in each of your posts with a small summary of how your spar went! It could be more than one hit, despite having only rolled one! Have fun with it! Horsemen Points Distribution [ Horsemen Points Distribution: ] (Select only one option based on your results) You win one point if you get to rounds 1 or 2! You win two points if you get to round 3, 4 or 5! You win all three points if you get to round 6 or higher!
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Ice Queen rolled 2 8-sided dice:
6, 7
Total: 13 (2-16)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:10 pm
Roch hesitated a second too soon, wondering if he could summon his guitar--or if he even should. Before he managed to even try, the warrior rushed forward, slamming hard into his gut with a heavy fist. Roch grunted, falling back and scissoring his feet at the warrior's leg, dropping the female to her knees.
She twisted, kicking out at him and catching him in the arm. His right arm. He grunted, then kicked upwards, aiming for her chin. She took the hit, then flipped away before kicking him hard in the arm again.
He REALLY didn't want his right arm broken. No wonder he lost.
Day 1
Round 1: FAIL.
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Zyphiris rolled 2 8-sided dice:
1, 7
Total: 8 (2-16)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:10 pm
Edel entered the ring, surprised to see Roch being subdued by his opponent. It wasn't as though she had underestimated the fighting prowess of the horsemen, from the Clan of War no less, but the ghoul held Roch as some form of a benchmark. To see that so easily overcome ... the odds really weren't in her favour.
If for a moment Edel thought she had the advantage with attacking speed, well, she thought wrong. The shower of icicles were too easily deflected, dodged and sidestepped. But if anything else, it was the stationary stance she adopted that was her greatest downfall – within seconds of the match beginning the young war horsemen had closed the distance between them and sent a hard-hitting wallop right into the ghoul's gut. The frost demon coughed and stumbled back, channeling her FEAR to her feet for a speed boost and a quick getaway.
Too late.
All it took was the not-so-gentlest of nudges to send her flying out of the ring, splayed on the ground in complete defeat. What had just happened there was Edel nearly pulling a Robert was the most embarrassing and humiliating kind of trouncing. Picking herself up and what was left of her dignity, the ghoul bowed towards her opponent, whom had only bothered to give only the slightest of acknowledgement before heading off to seek a more worthy opponent.
It couldn't be clearer by now that she had a lot to learn. Finding herself a seat near the ring, the ghoul spectated and took the time to study the warrior's movements. Speed, agility, dexterity, strength ... she was lacking in all the places. Those would need more training to build up over time. But for now, just watch and learn.
Day 1
Round 1 - Fail
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:16 pm
The isle of war... was nothing like what Jove had anticipated. Instead of hard edges and steel weapons, he was immersed in a forested paradise, thick with leaves and plants and the beautiful scents of earth and soil. He could smell all sorts of things, including scents of animals he had never smelled before. He wanted to go wander, to explore and see if he could find any new mushrooms...
But... how would he get down from the trees? At first he had been excited, going up in the elevators, but as they got higher and higher... the pup realized it was VERY HIGH and he wasn't sure he had climbed that high before. He skittered around in the middle of the herd of students, found the dorms, fell out of a hammock, and then reassured himself the platforms under him were solid enough, all before he was able to approach the platform edges and peer over.
And then he was fine, and back to the scents. There were so many things to smell up in the trees! Even the people... He tried to be discreet, but each horseman, or horsewoman, wore skins and feathers and bones, all awash in the unique scents of animals, tanning chemicals, and the residents themselves... He couldn't resist taking in deep breaths to catch all the scents.
His nose led him to the stadium area, where he noticed some familiar figures out on the platforms.
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:19 pm
Roch headed to the sidelines, watching the fighting for a moment before looking around-- "Hey!! Hey Jove!" he called. "C'mon over here and give it a try! These ghouls are pretty badass!" he yelled to his sparring buddy, grinning even as he rubbed his arm.
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Grey Dragon rolled 2 8-sided dice:
7, 4
Total: 11 (2-16)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:24 pm
Jove's ears perked. Give it a try... and have his own arm broken? It was a hard call. Besides, most of the fighters in there were ghouls, and thinking about fighting ghouls gave him an unpleasant feeling in his stomach.
But he did want to learn and get stronger...
Stepping onto the first platform, he faced the ghoul with some anxiety. He didn't want to attack first, that would be ungentlem- AAAAH!
The pup was caught off guard as he was promptly attacked by the war ghoul, and was easily knocked to the ground. She grinned as though entirely confident, but she wasn't able to pin the little ghost. The spar ended almost as quickly as it had begun, Jove smacking one of her ears hard with his bony little elbow as he panicked. She recoiled, and was pushed over in Jove's attempt to get away.
So much for not beating up a ghoul.
Day: 1
Round: 1 - success
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:34 pm
Roch was cheering from the sidelines--at least he was until he got a few looks from the warriors. As it was he had a huge grin on his face as Jove accidentally took the ghoul out.
"That's my trainin' buddy," he bragged. "He's a Hob now!" He was so proud of his little brother.
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Grey Dragon rolled 2 8-sided dice:
6, 5
Total: 11 (2-16)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:40 pm
Jove moved onto the next challenger, his shoulders slumping. This one was definitely a ghoul, with an ample... bosom to prove it. He could have gone all out against another boil, but how could he justify fighting ANOTHER ghoul?
Looking around, he saw that most fighters were not taking it easy on one another, regardless of gender. And there were some vicious moves! He glanced back in time to get knocked over, the most spectacular bruise already forming on his left cheek. Ouch!
He growled, going for the face was not fair!
The pup could only do so much in retaliation with his shapeshifting locked down, but he had learned some tricks in bruteball over the past few months. His opponent might have been fast, but the pup was faster, and used what little weight he had to his advantage.
Day: 1
Round: 2 - Success
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Grey Dragon rolled 2 8-sided dice:
8, 8
Total: 16 (2-16)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:54 pm
Jove's third round was tough. She was as fast as he was, and the pup could just barely avoid the blade of her weapon as she swung it with skill and precision. How was he supposed to get a hit in?
Day: 1
Round: 3 - Tie
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Grey Dragon rolled 2 8-sided dice:
2, 6
Total: 8 (2-16)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:59 pm
The pup ducked and dodged around the small sparring platform, until finally the ghoul lunged. Jove couldn't escape, he threw up an arm to protect his face, the blade sinking into his pale skin, and then it was over in an instant. She stepped on his fluffy tail and gave him a good push backwards. With his left arm leaking reddish-black ghost blood and a blade at his throat, he was done.
Day: 1
Round: 3 - Fail
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OnionGrump rolled 2 8-sided dice:
1, 1
Total: 2 (2-16)
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Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 12:02 am
Tybalt stepped into the stadium and eyed his opponent.
The clan of war. That alone was enough to put doubt into the black dog's mind.How were they supposed to win against someone born for fighting? Fortunately, it seemed that his opponent was nothing more than fledgling himself. Not yet ready to leave the nest, just like them. Perhaps it was that thought that calmed the black dog down. After all, while these horsemen were experienced in battle, Tybalt was no stranger to fighting himself.
Lunging for his opponent, the two went through a series of blocks, jabs, slashes, and punches. Both chipping away at each other until eventually neither were able to stand. It was quite a thrilling fight really and though he hadn't won, he hadn't lost either.
"Guess we have to do that over again, huh?" He asked, grinning tiredly at his opponent.
Day: 1
Round: 1 - Tie
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OnionGrump rolled 2 8-sided dice:
5, 1
Total: 6 (2-16)
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Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 12:09 am
Once the two were rested enough to stand and fight, they lunged for one another again. Only this time, Tybalt ducked down and managed to move around behind him.
Perhaps the black dog was a little smarter than he gave himself credit for. During the last fight with his opponent, not only was he attacking, but he was observing his opponents movements; watching and learning, looking for any signs of a pattern. Which sure enough, there was!
With a feral grin, he used this opportunity to his advantage. Striking quickly and repeatedly to overpower his opponent until the other couldn't stand any longer. Surprisingly it worked.
Day: 1
Round: 1 - Pass
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OnionGrump rolled 2 8-sided dice:
5, 2
Total: 7 (2-16)
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Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 12:12 am
With his first victory won, the black dog's confidence was slowly building. Not that he was thinking he could beat everyone or fly through these rounds with ease, mind. No, no. He was a little smarter than that. But knowing that he could beat them if he worked hard enough and used his brain, rather than simply relying on brute force, was enough to ease him into thinking that he might just stand a chance against them.
Keeping that in mind, he faced off against the next opponent. This time watching, learning, evading, and then striking back when he found an opportunity, or his opponent left them self open for attack. Something which he was sure would be trained out of them over the years. However, in the mean time, he'd take advantage of their weakness while he could.
Day: 1
Round: 2 - Pass
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OnionGrump rolled 2 8-sided dice:
4, 3
Total: 7 (2-16)
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Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 12:13 am
Well this was surprising. Who would have thought he'd make it past two rounds? Perhaps he was stronger than he thought himself to be. Or maybe he was just lucky and these opponents were more inexperienced than he thought them to be? Whatever the reason, it didn't matter. What mattered was that he should try and get through as many rounds as he can without becoming a disappointment to the school or himself.
Well it was a plan at least. Though this time his opponent was larger than the last. Much larger. He was probably twice the size that Tybalt was in muscle and still looked like he could handle his size with ease. That wasn't good. There was no way the lanky black dog could over power someone like that. No, he would have to avoid direct combat with and try something else.
Using the size of the stadium to his advantage, the black dog darted around, and lunged at his opponent. This was probably the best way for him to win. He'd use his small size and speed to strike him swiftly and then move into a run before the horseman could land a hit on him.
Surprisingly it worked wonders. The war horseman may have been strong and muscular, but he was no match for the black dog's speed.
Day: 1
Round: 3 - Pass
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OnionGrump rolled 2 8-sided dice:
3, 3
Total: 6 (2-16)
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Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 12:15 am
By the fourth round Tybalt was starting to feel the effects of the battles. He was both sore and worn out from it all. Not surprising considering it was one round after another. It was tiring, but each time he came out victorious it made him want to continue and put his all into it. No matter how worn out he got. But it only got harder from here.
Stretching out a sore muscle in his arm, the black dog stepped onto the stadium grounds once again. This time facing a woman. Not surprising considering the majority of the horsemen he had seen were in fact female, including the leader of the war clan herself. Which meant he shouldn't take her gender lightly. Not that he would anyways. After all, that whole claim about females being weaker than males was a load of crap. There were a lot of females he didn't want to face in battle and this horseman could very well become one of them.
Still, he didn't want to give in just yet.
The battle started faster than the last. The first strike coming from the horsemen as she aimed at him with deadly precision.
Already he could tell, that this opponent was going to be trouble. She seemed calm and collected. There was no sign of panic or fear as she struck at him. There was just no emotion at all. Perhaps it was then he could tell, that it was going to take a lot more than a hit and run strategy to beat her.
More cautious than before, Tybalt was doing a mix of running, dodging, and striking like he had before. Only unlike the previous challenger, who was too slow to react to his movements, this one was ready. In fact, instead of the black dog landing any hits, she was fending them off and countering with her own. The result of which was the two of them being locked in a never ending struggle. A struggle which left them worn out and at a draw.
Day: 1
Round: 4 - Tie
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