[Training Thread] A Way With Swords (Samael)

[Jaquise Emittere]

The man was going remain on the defense? Jaq wondered about that for a moment. It was an good tactic for fighting an overzealous enemy, especially one you were sure you could keep at bay. The problem was Jaq noticed almost immediately a difference in their skill's so the likely hood that Sam would be keeping anyone at bay for long was low. Next was the fact that this was a sparring match. Practicing your defense was all well and good but you'd never get a full workout just waiting for the opponent to leave an opening, not for either participant. Jaq would have to get this guy working if he was going to get anything out of this. 'You ready?' Jaq projected the thought to Zagarek, his familiar who now hung from his neck in the form of a necklace. The familiar had positioned himself so that he now rested on Jaq's back instead of on his chest, a position that would allow the familiar to warn the mercenary about any attacks from behind him. 'Of course wizard.' The response was cold, quick, and all Jaq needed. With a deep breath the mercenary moved forward once more, this time bringing the scabbard down in a hammering like motion. He put as much strength as he could into it and instead of stopping allowed his momentum to carry himself forward even further then necessary or even safe. Whether or not he hit Jaq would end up moving past Sam and leaving his back wide open for a counter strike. At least that's what such a mistake would normally mean had Jaq not planned it. With Zagarek watching Jaq would have ample warning for whatever attack might be coming, then using the surprise deflecting or avoiding such a blow would bring he'd get in a point. OOC : Words in the '.....' are telepathic communications between Zagarek and Jaq. The italic one's are Zagarek, and the bold ones are Jaq.

[Sama'el Sunsinger]

Sam's conscious mind was not sure yet what to make of Jaq's skills and strategy. That he was better schooled and experienced was obvious, but his motivations were not. Of course, he had been told to trust his instincts in matters such as this, that his unconscious mind would take in all the details that his senses brought him and come to lightning-quick conclusions, whether one called it intuition or instinct, and those hunches could keep one alive when the conscious mind failed. That said, he was in no way trained to sight a wizard's familiar or even to spot a wizard hiding in the guise of a mercenary swordsman. If he had paused to wonder why Jaq left his back open, he would have missed the opportunity. The curve of his scabbard arced up to catch Jaq's blade, and before he could congratulate himself on his defense against a superior opponent, the arc continued, aimed for the small of his opponent's back and hard enough to bruise. Even practice could hurt.

[Jaquise Emittere]

Zagarek gave a warning as to wear the attack would be aimed at just as Sam began to swing. 'He's aiming for the small of your back.' Had they simply been talking, such a warning would have been cutting things a little fine for Jaq to be able to act on it, leaving him with only enough time to dodge. Conversations held at the speed of thought occur at a much faster rate though, leaving Jaq with plenty of time to act. Now generally a person would want to avoid getting hit with a sword, but as this was a practice match with practice weapons getting hit once or twice wouldn't be to bad, especially with the training Jaq had grown up with. With this in mind the mercenary decided to sacrifice a point to his opponent. He did so by spinning around and letting the blade glance his side, he turned most of the momentum from his opponents attack away from him and deflected it to the side, the way one might block an enemies punch off to the side with your arm. It also had the added affect of adding Jaq's momentum to the swing, carrying the attack further then Sam might have originally intended. By doing this instead of taking the time to move around the weapon Jaq was that much closer to his enemy when he came face to face with Sam once more. As he was spinning Jaq also brought his scabbard to bare in a swing, letting it gather the momentum, aiming the swing at his opponents neck. Because the spin had deflected the shot Jaq had moved right past his opponents defenses, leaving little for his opponent to do. Jaq managed to halt the scabbard just it struck, holding it steady perhaps an inch from his target's neck. A three point match it might be, but a kill shot was a kill shot and Jaq had the perfect opportunity. "Forfeit?"

[Sama'el Sunsinger]

The rush of exhilaration at scoring first blood was almost immediately shunted off by surprise when Jaq didn't disengage to start anew, but carried through to check mate. Even fighting as they were with scabbards or as the might have with practice blades, if the other man hadn't pulled his strike, he might have crushed Sam's windpipe or at least severely bruised him. He blinked, his breath held for a moment before he nodded. Of course, it was stupid to believe that anyone would play by the rules, and of course, they had not agreed that each score meant disengagement before a new round. The ghosts of his pavilion were likely rolling in their -- well, not graves -- at his naivete. There was a lesson to be learned there, he noted to himself. A rueful smile overtook him. "I suppose I should stick to mucking stables and leave the swordplay for abler men." He sighed, but he would not give up.

[Nisaba]

Grade Complete: XP Award! Name: Jacquise   XP Award Meditation- 1 XP Familiary- 2 XP Katana- 3 XP Tactics- 1 XP Jac started his day with meditation, which earned him only a single skill point since it was only mentioned in passing rather than expanded upon. The points in familiary came from his telepathic communication with his familiar both before going into town and during the match. I gave Jac points in Katana because the fighting style he used was the same as he did with the katana, even if he was using the scabbard. He held it the same, used the same moves, etc. I also gave him a point in tactics because of his decision to allow himself to get hit in order to turn the movements to his own advantage.   Lore Award Disliking Horses Memory: Near Death Experience Weapon: Scabbard Using a Familiar to Win at Sparring Additional Note: Where did you go, hun? I was really starting to get into your thread and wonder how it was going to progress (or if Sam was going to be seriously defeated multiple times). I understand life takes its toll and is more important, but I still really enjoyed what you have so far. If you ever come back and want to finish it, I will be more than happy to re-read it and give more points/lores.

Grade Complete: XP Award! Name: Sam’ael   XP Award Horsemanship- 2 XP Socializing- 1 XP Scimitar- 2 XP Observation OR Tactics- 1 XP Alrighty, here I go. Sam got points in horsemanship because he cleaned and brushed and took care of Horse’s hooves first thing in the morning. He also, of course, unsaddled Horse and let him graze before sparring, which indicates horse care, at least to me. He got a point in socializing because he overlooked the whole ‘disdain’ thing and was polite and eventually introduced himself and offered to spar. I gave Sam two points in scimitar because he was fighting with the scabbard as if it was his scimitar, so I thought the points should be distributed there (where they would do the most good). I wasn’t sure, however, if Sam would prefer to add to his observation points or get a point in tactics for his watchful attitude toward Jac’s fighting style and how he tried to react to it accordingly- and his move at the end where he ended up getting the first hit.   Lore Award Putting Work Before Play Weapon: Scabbard Losing at Sparring with Dignity Additional Note: This was a very nice beginning for a training thread. I enjoyed the introductions, where they were both wary of each other and had to get over that fact before they could begin the actual sparring. I also liked that Sam was rusty with his weapon but still willing to try his best. You have a very strong grasp on your character and don’t seem to stray from his concept, which is something I truly admire. Thank you for letting me read this thread, even though I wasn’t able to really award it much.