aionlogs | Kenoma Team Training

Entry tags:

Kenoma Team Training

WHO: The Kenoma
WHAT: Training Activities
WHERE: Starts at the Citadel, varies per activity
WHEN: Starting on 6/4
WARNINGS: None yet...?

After a period of relative quiet, the Kenoma will receive a Communion post of utmost importance:

"Good day, everyone. This is Ciel. We may have received a passing grade from the Regent following the events in Venera, but they have sorely underlined how ill-prepared we were for a proper mission on Horos. Emet-Selch, Eustace, and I are in agreement, thus we have organized a series of training and teambuilding exercises. We ask that you all please attend, there will be... prizes."

OVERVIEW

When trainees arrive in the Courtyard after the Communion, a plethora of training activities await them.

The courtyard itself is sectioned off into areas, one for each training activity for the day. The activities vary from one subject to another, and still manage to be related to their tasks as a Kenoma while still leaving room for "fun". Weapons training, tag, survival training, and strength training are all provided. Kenoma is also welcome to spar on their own if they so choose. (This is not included as a specific prompt to avoid too much PVP, but you can add it in a TL if you like.)

Instructions on each activity will be provided to the participant before they begin. For those who can’t participate or choose to show up for moral support or to dodge the activities, water will be provided so that you may gossip around the proverbial "water cooler".

Each of the three trainers are on hand in some capacity or another to provide instructions on that activity or training on a specific skill.

These exercises can be done at any point and do not necessarily have to be done on a training day with the group. Characters can return after the crowd has dispersed to train on their own or with a chosen individual. The equipment will still be there and trainers (or fellow Kenoma) can be brought here at their leisure.

I. WEAPONS TRAINING

Racks of weapons are lined up on the far side of the courtyard. These range from swords to polearms and rather sizable knives to swords and tonfas. Feel free to grab a weapon of your choosing and have a trainer engage you to show you how to use it. Or, if they have experience, other students may also advise you!

The intent is to train on the proper use of several types of weapons and how to wield them effectively. It may also delve into how to most efficiently disable/neutralize/injure someone in a fight, depending on which teacher you wind up with.

II. AGILITY

There is an open part of the field that has been roped off specifically for...tag! Rope bridges, mud pits, chest-high walls of rock, and even a large wall of ice (?!) dot the field to give people plenty of places to hide and run. (If you would like your own obstacle, feel free to comment to ask so we can make sure it’s within reason of what our characters could do.)

Participants will be provided with a waxy paint to put on their hands which will stain whatever person it comes in contact with with a very luminescent purple glitter. (It washes out, of course!) The last person standing will get a prize of…dubious worth.

Now get running!

III. SURVIVAL

There’s two locations for this: the outdoor courtyard closest to the main citadel kitchen, and the kitchen itself.

For the outdoor location, bundles of tree branches and firewood are provided if needed, students are expected to start their own fire and cook wild game with what they foraged.

A - Foraging
Time for a field trip to the mountains and woods outside Achamoth! Students will be taught basic survival skills including: first aid without the use of magic, how to find and create shelter from natural terrain, how to identify and forage for food that is safe to eat, and how to create traps to catch wild game. Yes, you too can experience the joy of floor meat!

All foraged supplies can subsequently be used for Home Ec cooking lessons.

B - Home Ec
For the kitchen, there's a dedicated area where several Aions at once could attempt cooking with utensils and more elaborate ingredients. There are some servants keeping an eye out just in case and could be flagged down for help or assistance if requested/needed, but otherwise, Aions are free to make use of everything available to their own ends. Is this really useful for "training"? Cooking is a science that shapes and nourishes both body and soul, of course, it's important enough to have a part in the curriculum!

IV. STRENGTH

Step up to the starting line with one partner. One person will carry the other across a small section of the course to the finish line at the opposite end. There are a few minor obstacles such as walls and puddles. Nothing that you have to put too much effort into getting around. The person who can see will guide the person carrying them to the finish line using only their voice. Try not to bump into anything.

If you feel *really* ambitious, extra weights will be provided. Or you can forgo the rules and carry two people (or more?). Your choice, really.

V. REFRESHMENTS

For those who are not athletically inclined - or claim not to be athletically inclined - a large chunk of ice with refreshments dotted throughout awaits you on the sidelines. They will take a little effort to free them. Most will be freed with a little pull while others are completely encased in ice and may not be worth the effort.

Feel free to hand out refreshments, gossip about the participants, or scheme to your hearts' content.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Of course.

[He shifts his attention away from the targets without any hesitation, readily abandoning his position at the shooting line in order to focus instead on providing assistance. From his willingness to abandon his current activity, it would be entirely reasonable to guess that he’s been waiting for the chance to help someone out.

Leaning the longbow he’d been using up against the rack, he stands next to Misa as she looks over her choices. Rather than scanning the bows along with her, however, Liem is directing his attention at her for the moment.]

Crossbows are heavier because the bow does more of the work. It means you don’t have to rely only on your own strength for the shooting power. It’s simpler and quicker to use a bow, but your strength will determine the kind of power you can manage.

[ She draws out a long hum when he explains that— really, it's a simple concept, just not one she ever really had to think about until recently. Of course it would make sense that the power of a bow came from the wielder, but she'd just never thought about anything aside from the skill needed to fire one. ]

So you could either get used to carrying and loading the crossbow, or get strong enough to fire a regular bow well... I get it.

[ To her, a crossbow feels much more reliable, at least in concept. Too many variables with firing a bow, maybe? ]

Which one do you prefer?

It depends on what I want to use it for.

[A small, rueful smile curves the corner of his mouth as he thinks wistfully of the crossbow he’d left behind when he was brought here. None of the mundane options on offer in the Citadel’s armoury come close to it—though its power was linked so closely to his country, he’s not sure any of its magic would follow it here even if he did manage to reacquire it.

Reaching for the supply of crossbow quarrels, he takes one and holds it up for Misa to see. With his other hand, he slides a much-longer longbow arrow from his quiver and holds it next to the quarrel.]

A small quarrel like this won’t fly accurately for as far as an arrow from the kind of longbow I prefer, so it isn’t as good for using in open areas. I tend to use a longbow when I’m hunting.

But in urban environments, the extra range isn’t necessary. The crossbow is also more compact, making it a little less unwieldy. I could use it while crouching or even lying down if I needed to.

Gosh. I didn't even think of that. Sounds like you've used them in all kinds of situations, huh....

[ Being able to wield something while lying down, how accuracy might change across weapons - all of it. It's become very clear to her in the mere minutes they've been talking that it's all leagues more difficult and complex than she'd initially imagined it to be. She'd been imagining it all as a very "either or" type of selection, not that each weapon had certain uses for certain situations. Though in hindsight, it makes a lot of sense.

More than that, she'd mostly expected the other Aions to brush her aside if she bothered them too much with questions, which makes her doubly grateful for his detailed information— and it's that attention to detail that has her actually paying attention to it and reminding herself to retain it for later. She puts her hand on one of the smallest crossbows on display, trying to lift it up by the neck. ]

I'm not strong, but I have really great eyesight— better than a normal human's, since becoming an Aion. I thought, something ranged would be good, right? Like, for aiming. But now that you said all that, I'm wondering if that'll even help if I'm thinking about all the other stuff - the weight of the bow, the rush of battle or hunting, you know.

[ Cradling the weapon in her arms, she sticks close to his side, looking back and forth from the targets to the array of weapons. ]

Maybe if you show me how hard it is to aim?

Good vision can help if you’re working with a longer range, or poor visibility.

[He gives a small nod as he slides the arrow back into its quiver. It’s not exactly clear to him whether Misa just means her distance vision is very keen, or whether there’s anything more to her eyesight. Certainly Liem has found his excellent low-light vision very helpful when shooting at night, or in dim forest wildernesses.

For now, he leaves his bow with the others and grabs a small quiver of bolts for the crossbow Misa’s chosen.]

I can certainly show you, [he agrees, and moves back over to the shooting line. Range safety is important! It wouldn’t do to be practising over by the weapon racks.] May I?

[He reaches out to take the weapon from her, so he can go step-by-step through the basics of loading and aiming it.]

When you hold the bow, always make sure your fingers stay below the top level. [He indicates the area where the bow’s string is going to be active, demonstrating how to hold the stock from beneath.] You brace it and pull the string back like this. [There’s a sharp click as the nut locks the string in place.] Once the bow is set, keep your fingers between the stock and the trigger so you can’t squeeze it prematurely. The quarrel goes all the way back against the nut, here. And then…

[He lifts the crossbow up so the stock is resting against his shoulder and his cheek is leaning against the thumb of his rear hand. He sights down the length of the weapon, aiming at one of the range targets.]

You hold it like this, using the tip of the quarrel to aim.

[ As soon as she hands off the weapon to him, she watches him intently, trying her best to commit all the instructions to memory. There's a few words here and there that go over her head, but seeing the step-by-step process is a wealth of information in any case. ]

So, that very tip is what you aim with, after all.

[ She muses, crossing her arms and taking a mental photograph of his stance and body posture. ]

Is it true you have to aim slightly above where you want to hit something? I heard that's a thing. Totally seems like it'd be a thing.

[ Something about the projectile traveling through the air, and coming down slightly as it travels? At least, that's how she's seen it done in TV shows - not like she's ever had a chance to confirm that for reality. Her words are a little joking, a soft smile coming to her lips, since she has no inclination as to whether or not her little hypothesis is true. And, she'd like it if she can make things a little funny for him, since he's doing all the hard work of giving her a lecture and demonstration. ]

[Liem shows every sign of being pleased by Misa's questions, regardless of how much effort and explanation might be required of him to answer them. Despite supposedly being vital to the Kenoma's efforts in this world, he hasn't had many opportunities before now to feel especially helpful. He lowers the crossbow from its shooting position and answers her soft smile with a small, genial one of his own.]

Where you want to aim depends on a number of things, like how far away your target is, how much it's moving, and even how windy it is. But that's something you learn to account for with practice.

[It sounds like a lot to remember, and he supposes that there is quite a bit to keep track of. But like anything else, learning to shoot and maintain a bow becomes almost automatic with enough hands-on experience. Carefully, Liem holds the loaded bow out to offer it to her.]

Would you care to try?

[ She's listening so intently to his directions that she nearly doesn't catch his question— causing her to blink in surprise when she realizes it, cheeks heating up a bit in embarrassment. ]

Oh! Sure...

[ Even though this is what she's supposed to be here for, somehow she's still a little flustered taking hold of the weapon itself, and with the actual prospect of firing it. She's not going to kill somebody by accident somehow, is she? No, no way. Not with everyone around...

Awkwardly, she tries to hold the bow as he had done, fussing with it and adjusting for far too long before actually attempting to aim. Perhaps comically, her face looks overly tense with focus, even though this is such a low stakes situation. Eventually, she fires the bolt without warning, and it zips through the air to hit... the very upper corner of the target, not at all anywhere near the painted circles on the thing. ]

Did you see that? I hit it!

[ Close enough to be a success for her!! ]

[Liem keeps a hawk-like eye on Misa as she takes the crossbow and aims at the target, alert for any signs he might need to intervene. Never fear; he won’t let her loose any accidental shots into another person, or do anything with the weapon that might result in a self-inflicted injury. But he doesn’t offer any commentary on her technique just yet, deciding to let her acquaint herself with the weapon a little.

When she takes her shot, he lets out a small hum of approval.]

So you did. Well done.

[Her aim obviously leaves much to be desired, but that can be remedied easily enough with practice. He gestures along the crossbow’s stock, then brings the rear knuckle of his thumb to his cheek in a mirror of the gesture he’d made to sight along the weapon.]

When you aim, make sure you’re looking straight down the middle, so your shots don’t veer to the side. Leaning your cheek against your knuckle helps you sight more consistently along the bow.

[Lowering his hand again, he regards Misa appraisingly.]

How does it feel? Is it as complicated as it looked?

It's a lot easier than expected, thanks to you.

[ She chirps, all while testing out what he'd suggested about resting her cheek against her knuckle. A few more moments of just looking through the aiming mechanism, and she just relaxes entirely, withdrawing from the weapon itself to meet his eyes— looking rather satisfied with herself. ]

I thought I wouldn't be able to get it at all in just a day. But you're a pretty good teacher, did you know that? Let me guess, you were some kind of professor back at home too?

[ He must be just like Emet-Selch? Used to teaching others in his craft? That's the impression she gets, from his patient instructions and encouraging demeanor despite having to take baby steps with someone who clearly doesn't have a clue. ]

[It's true that Liem seems at ease as he watches Misa sight again along the crossbow, his posture alert and unruffled despite the perceived tedium involved in advising a novice. He's pleased by her willingness to learn from him as much as by the swiftness with which she seems to absorb the information. He's endured his fair share of sullen and foul-mouthed youths in his life (some of them here in Achamoth), and having a young woman cheerfully compliment his teaching ability is frankly a steep upgrade from what he's been experiencing of late.]

Something like that.

[He lifts his right hand to show her the palm, displaying a scar not unlike the ones he's seen on some of Kenoma's aions, but depicting a key rather than the symbol of a Legacy. Though the lines remain precisely defined, the ridged mark is pale and faded, years old at least.]

I sometimes instructed novices at the church where I served, in my country. Knowledge in the use of a crossbow was expected for those seeking to attain priesthood.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Kenoma Team Training

OVERVIEW

I. WEAPONS TRAINING

II. AGILITY

III. SURVIVAL

IV. STRENGTH

V. REFRESHMENTS

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject