Location The Taloban Ball Court

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The Ball Court is a recently rebuilt and expanded amphitheater located in the eastern portion of the Taloban city proper. Disused for some time due to the dwindling number of ritual games it has now been rebuilt in the wake of the Djed Storm of 512 AV under the orders of Myri herself. Some say she wishes to begin anew the games held there upon festival days as a way of reviving age old tradition, others that the game itself is a useful conduit through which to prepare the youngsters for war. Whatever the real reason it has now been cleared and shines as a monument to both the ingenuity and the brutality of the Myrians. The granite court is comprised of two raised levels that resemble the steps . The entire court are where the game is played is penned by a thick wall 26 feet high and from which observers can enjoy the play beneath them if they so choose. Two rings of carved stone, their centers only two hand spans wide, fulfill the role of goals through which the hardened ball is to be slipped through. These are attached to the outside walls themselves, opposite each other, a forbidding 23 feet from the ground. The whole court itself measures 300 feet between the hoops and by 150 feet in width and this defines the playing field. The ball is supremely solid, made as it is from rubber molded around a solid core of wood – it is no more than a hand and a half across. The goal is simple – to get the ball through the opposing team’s hoop until one can leave the arena in victory with 3 ‘goals’. Achieving this task, however, is very difficult and requires skill, stamina and a body conditioned to physical abuse. The only rule is that the ball cannot be touched by ones hands, calves, feet or head (for obvious reasons). Any other part of the body is fair game and the rest is left up to the creativity and savagery of the teams in question. Teams are usually no smaller than five, though they can still play if with reduced enjoyment for the masses. Injuries are rife, and the perfect acoustics of the court have been known to bring the snapping of bones to the thronging spectators with sometimes sickening clarity. Protection is provided in the form of hardened wooden arm guards, shin guards and leather is used to give the shoulders, elbows and torso protection. *This location can be used without a Moderation Thread. Just try and not kill each other as that is frowned upon and will perhaps lead to some form of punishment if it was deemed unneccessary*