This weekend I went to Dusk Hollow (Dallas, OR). It was reasonably warmer than last weekend but I brought my highwayman coat so I wore it anyways. It kept me pretty toasty. I did eventually take it off to get in some sparring with Critias.
After a bit of sparing and some more people arrived, Ozzward ran a battle game. It was a combination of heavy object and ring the bell. A small sword was placed in the middle which was the heavy object. The goal was to get it to the opposite side of the field and hit the shield marking the opposing team’s base. Once done, you score a point. We played to 3 points. I say we, because I actually played in the game as a Wizard.
I was playing as a spell ball wizard. Our team was winning, scoring the first two points. Then the reeves thought to change up the teams and took Morath from us and put him on the other team. That changed the game and the other team ended up scoring the next three points, winning the game. Once they changed the teams up it wasn’t even close.
I generally had a good time. Because there was a refresh I was able to use Elemental Barrage four times during the game. The first two times I was very effective. The third time not so much and the fourth time I shut down their team before dying but my team managed to not move the object even a foot.
I managed to pull off one combo I was proud of. I first used a fire ball to remove Critias’s shield, then I hit him with a lighting bolt to hold him in place and killed him with Finger of Death. That’s the first time I’ve used a Wizard verbal in v8. I had to make sure the person couldn’t move to do it, but I did it!
The last time I went Elemental Barrage, as I said I shut down the team. I used up nearly all of my balls doing it, it’s the most I’ve ever used. I will be honest, I missed a lot, which is why I ended up dying. The speed of which I threw the balls though was some what impressive. I just need to up my aim game.
In he end I started getting a bit salty, the competitiveness was coming out in me and I was getting frustrated. I realize it’s hard to balance teams when there is such an experience disparity, but it was more balanced before the change. There was more back and forth before scoring a point.
There was a break for a while before the next game. In the mean time Vale showed up, which was a nice treat. The next game was a two man forever game capped at level 2. I wasn’t going to play but eventually I joined in as a peasant, so all I had was my short sword. I ended up doing pretty well. One particular kill was a against Vale. He was using a sword and board, I stabbed once, straight to his right should and killed him. It was my highlight kill for the day.
The day ended with a good amount of ditching. I even managed to work up a sweat. I did alright in the general fighting. Some people that i thought were doing better than me claimed I was the better fighter, I didn’t argue. My baseline might have been better but they were used to fighting certain people that I was having problems with. There is something to say about familiarity.
I did have a bit of a talk wit Ozzward, my new man at arms, about fighting. I gave him the story about my early days when I didn’t know about footwork. I plateaued and when I realized why I had to deconstruct a lot of what I learned and relearn it in a new way. For a year or two while I was consciously working on foot work I was markedly worse, but once it became I habit I was able to progress again and with a better foundation.
For him he has to break a few habits, learning forward, crouching, and keeping his shield low. My plan is to break him of the habit of crouching, leaning and having his shield low and then work on his foot work. He also needs to work on his fighting endurance. I fought a lot longer than he did and I am not in good shape and I don’t have an aspiration of becoming a sword knight. I also look forward too when I introduce him to short sword fighting, something I consider my best style.
I think when I explained my troubles when I was younger and the necessary difficulty I went through to reteach myself, he understood. I hope he gets that it’s going to be a difficult road a head and that he’s prepared to fail before he succeeds. He also ordered the Book of the Five Rings, so I hope after he reads that he starts to understand some of the things I teach him.
I want to ended on a note about my Patreon. The first month has passed and I got my first pay check. After fees it came to $5.39, I’m excited to hit this first mile stone, actual money! Sadly it doesn’t cover the cost of the site, which is $10.99 a month, so I’m not in the positive yet, but I hope I’ll get there some day soon. If you would like to show your support, follow the button below. I’d appreciate it. It’s the best way to let me know that you enjoy the content I provide.