Covering New Ground

3rd of Saun 721

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Praetorum
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Covering New Ground


Timestamp: 3rd of Saun, Arc 721

The smithy of Skydas Keep had become something of a refuge for Prae—he found himself coming back here even when he didn't have anything he wanted to make, just to have a space to think. Today, Aurelia was out, so he had the place to himself. Settling down into a corner of the room, Prae closed his eyes, and focused. Silently, his awareness spread from his own body, outwards and outwards until it encompassed the room, until he was attuning to the smithy itself. 


Notes of flame, of creation, of satisfaction permeated its song, and Prae smiled to himself. Even this place's frequency was soothing to him. Perhaps it was because he could hear a little of himself in it, so often had he been here. 


But this was not all he was here to do this trial. 


Spreading his awareness wider, Prae's attunement encompassed the armory in the back, and then further out still. Here, he started to hear notes of violence and competitiveness and camaraderie—the training yard, where his mercenary band trained, where he was due to lead an exercise in a few bits. Then beyond that, stone and steadiness and protection—one of the walls. 


As he started to spread his attunement even further though, trying to attune to the other half of the keep, Prae found himself pushing up against resistance. This was the largest area he'd ever tried to attune to at once, and it seemed he had found the limits of his spark right now—trying to spread out his awareness to the other two buildings felt like trying to wade through sludge, dragging a log behind him. Even this simple attunement was starting to drain ether from him at an alarming rate, and he shook his head, withdrawing his sense. 


Half the keep. He could attune to about half the keep. That was good enough, for now. He'd have to practice expanding it even more—Balthazar's range was far, far wider than Prae's own, and Prae's well hidden competitive streak wanted to catch up to the human soon.

Still, that was good enough for the trial. Standing, Prae shook his limbs out, rolling his neck before walking out the door to the courtyard beyond.
Last edited by Praetorum on Mon Jul 12, 2021 12:55 am, edited 2 times in total. word count: 387
Let's play 'What's Weird About Prae'

Head

  • A fiery rune shines under his right eye
  • A firey glow in the back of his mouth

Arms

  • A ring of blue runes floats over each of Prae's wrists
  • A silver shield marks the back of his right hand
  • A ring of light around his left forearm

Misc

  • His tail is about eight feet long, usually knotted around his waist
  • His body temperature is uncomfortably high

Surroundings

  • Wind gusts with every step he takes
  • The area around him is slightly more static-y than normal
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Praetorum
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Posts: 1335
Joined: Sun Jan 20, 2019 11:08 am
Race: Frog Person
Profession: Mercenary
Renown: 880
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Re: Covering New Ground


Out in the yard, he found the defensive line—sixteen mercenaries in all, of varying levels of experience— starting to gather as the time approached for the training exercise he'd be overseeing. The two squad leaders he'd appointed were already there, chatting amicably—or rather, he realized as he watched coin change hands, placing a wager. Valbjorn was nowhere to be seen, but Prae wasn't too worried—he'd show up before the exercise started.

Ricky, he spotted perched on a training dummy, indolently eating an apple. "You know, I don't believe that's what those are used for," Prae said, padding up to the human. Seated on the wooden dummy, Ricky was almost eye to eye with him. 


"You're the one who keeps telling us to make creative use of things." The man grinned jokingly. 


"In battle, Ricky. Be creative in battle," Prae shook his head playfully, not particularly bothered by the Yari's misuse of his equipment. These dummies were sturdy enough to easily take a man's weight, so there was no harm done. "We're starting," Prae said as he spotted Valbjorn approaching with the last handful of stragglers. "You plan on sticking around to watch?" 


"Sure, why not." Ricky waved as the Lotharro drew close, and produced an apple from his bag, chucking it at Valbjorn's head. 


Valbjorn caught it easily. "Ricky, Praetorum," he said somewhat gruffly. That was normal—Prae wasn't sure he'd heard a word out of the Lotharro's mouth that wasn't gruff or gravelly, even by the standards of his species. "That's everyone gathered up."

Prae nodded, and stepped towards the training area. "Form up," he called out, and watched as the mercenaries quickly gathered into two groups of eight—one standing behind a slim, axe wielding man, the other behind a wirey woman with a cocky grin on her face. They weren't as quick or organized in falling in line as legionnaires were, but few were. He'd get them whipped into shape. 


"What're we doing this trial, boss?" Nellie called out, already unslinging her spear and shield from her back. 


"Nothing fancy," Prae said, straightening so his voice projected across the field. "Your two squads will be facing each other in a mock battle—Maerin's squad will defend, and Nellie's will attack. Then you'll switch once one squad breaks ranks or you come to a tie. This is an evaluation more than practice, to see where we are as a group."

Prae saw more than a few nods, much to his relief. He wasn't much of an orator, he knew, being more the kind to lead by example. Nor was he much of a teacher—but he was learning, just as surely as they were.
word count: 472
Let's play 'What's Weird About Prae'

Head

  • A fiery rune shines under his right eye
  • A firey glow in the back of his mouth

Arms

  • A ring of blue runes floats over each of Prae's wrists
  • A silver shield marks the back of his right hand
  • A ring of light around his left forearm

Misc

  • His tail is about eight feet long, usually knotted around his waist
  • His body temperature is uncomfortably high

Surroundings

  • Wind gusts with every step he takes
  • The area around him is slightly more static-y than normal
User avatar
Praetorum
Approved Character
Posts: 1335
Joined: Sun Jan 20, 2019 11:08 am
Race: Frog Person
Profession: Mercenary
Renown: 880
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Point Bank Thread
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Wealth Tier: Tier 5

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Re: Covering New Ground


The two squads faced off, and Prae settled back to watch, Ricky on one side, Valbjorn on the other. Maerin and his team immediately bunched together in a rough shield wall. "We're going to have to talk to them about proper spacing," Prae muttered. "They're a little too close together to be able to fight at full effectiveness, especially since they're not all using spears."

He was glad to see Maerin take the right corner of the formation, though. It was the most dangerous position, because there was no one at your right to cover you with their shield. It was a position that went to the strongest, toughest fighter, who could survive without it. It was also a known weakspot, and in battles between formations, often that corner would be targeted early on. Of course, bandits were not often knowledgeable enough to do such things, but still. It was a dangerous position, and it was only right for the best of them to take it. 


Nellie's squad, on the other hand, was a little more haphazard, crashing into the shield wall as a disorganized blob of bodies. And in the thick of things was Nellie herself, spear thrusting into a gap between shields. One of Maerin's mercenaries yelped in pain, but didn't step back—good man. Even with a blunted weapon, Nellie was damn dangerous, and hit hard. 


"Nell's going to win this one," Valbjorn said quietly. Prae concurred. Already, he could see Nellie's more loosely organized squad spreading out to flank the defenders. If Prae was in the battle, he'd have already ordered them into a circle formation, but Maerin, it seemed, was too busy fending off Nellie to think of such a tactic. In this wide open space, a shield formation this small wasn't much use. 


Before long, Maerin's squad were backing away in a clear rout, and Prae let out a sharp whistle. "Alright, take a short break and then we'll switch." He gestured at the squad leaders, and they approached expectantly. 


"Good job you two. Nellie, keep an eye on your squad—you had a couple stragglers back there. Maerin, remember to change things up if your current tactic isn't working out. When her squad started spreading out to surround yours, you should have changed up to a more defensive formation, or tried to break through her offensive line."

The pair nodded, and returned to their squads as they were dismissed. "You could do with being a little more encouraging," Ricky commented.

Prae blinked at that, considering. He supposed he had been a little critical... He'd keep that in mind for next time.


This time, Nellie's squad was on the defensive. Unlike Maerin's squad, Nellie's didn't form into a shield wall, instead, staying somewhat loosely grouped up, with enough space between each person that they could fight, but not so much that someone could slip in between them. Not a bad plan, if they could maintain their position.

When Maerin's squad charged, it was as one—it seemed the man had taken what Prae had suggested as inspiration, and was trying to break right through Nellie's defensive line. Nellie, on the other hand...


"Woof," Ricky commented. "She's really throwing herself in there."

"That's Nell for you," Valbjorn said. "She's a damn good fighter. Always the first to charge into the fray"

"But too aggressive for what we need," Prae pointed out. "Look—she's doing well on her own, taking down Maerin's squad, but her own squad's being scattered without her to rally around. What happens when there's archers and clients behind her that we need to protect?"

Valbjorn considered that a while, then nodded. "Mercs like these are used to fighting aggressively."

"Aye," Prae said. "It's a habit we'll need to break them of. There's a time and place for aggression." He raised his hand as Nellie's squad scattered at last. "Ten bit rest," he called out. "Then we'll switch again."

word count: 688
Let's play 'What's Weird About Prae'

Head

  • A fiery rune shines under his right eye
  • A firey glow in the back of his mouth

Arms

  • A ring of blue runes floats over each of Prae's wrists
  • A silver shield marks the back of his right hand
  • A ring of light around his left forearm

Misc

  • His tail is about eight feet long, usually knotted around his waist
  • His body temperature is uncomfortably high

Surroundings

  • Wind gusts with every step he takes
  • The area around him is slightly more static-y than normal
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Fate
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Re: Covering New Ground

Your Review
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Overview

I liked the conversation way of showing the action. I feel it was an excellent way of approaching this type of thread. It kept me with the action but also helped me as the reader see the good and the bad of what was occurring. Good job.

Points

XP: 10 (May be used for Attunement)
Renown: 5 (For Teaching tactics)

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None

Knowledge

Skills Appropriate to level

Attunement: Attunement has a size limit
Teaching x2
Tactics x3



If you have any questions or concerns regarding this review - drop me a PM.
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