Biweekly Warfare Training - Block One

[governorkang]

The turnout ended up being better than expected. Kang stood with his arms crossed over his chest in front of the bar of the tavern, looking over his and Ronon's students; he knew that several of them wouldn't stay, once they realized how brutal this training was going to be. He glanced over at his fellow instructor, and nodded slightly, getting a nod and grin in return.

Sons-of-bitches voice was go.

"Welcome to Warfare Training. For those of you who don't know us, I am Kang, and this"--he pointed at Ronon--"is Ronon Dex. We are going to be your instructors." His wings rustled slightly, and he grinned. "I'm going to tell you right now: this is not going to be easy. You will get hurt. You will be sore in muscles you didn't even know existed. We are going to make you give us everything you have, and more."

He placed his left hand on the hilt of the sword at his waist. "You will be learning hand-to-hand, various melee weapons with an emphasis on swords and knives, firearms, and for those interested, I will be giving private lessons with the axe. You will also be learning strategy and tactics, and will be facing off against many different types of nonhuman foes. Our goal is to make sure you have a chance of surviving, no matter what situation you happen to find yourself in."

Pointing to the door, the bozak's expression turned serious again, "If you feel that you can't handle this training at any point, the door is right there. We only want those who are serious about learning, and we won't put up with whining or half-assing. We also won't put up with any sort of discrimination based on age or sex, so be respectful to your fellow classmates, and to your instructors." He meant it, too.

"Classes will be Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 1600 to 1800, and mostly optional on Saturdays from 0900 to 1200. We'll let you know which Saturdays are required at least a day ahead. Questions?"

[Things to be covered!

Basics of hand-to-hand, proper knife and sword handling, and for those interested in axe, message me and we'll work out the private lessons. :3]

Comments

[kaya-waterwave.livejournal.com]

Katara had been quiet, waiting for Kang to speak. She hadn't met him directly, but she had heard about this training and so she went listening intently to what was going to happen. Once she was briefed, she smiled to herself. It was just about everything she had expected to hear: the grueling work, the type of specializing, the dedication that would be needed. She was happy she came after all.

"Yes," Katara spoke up, smiling. "How soon can we start?"

[fireworkbubbles.livejournal.com]

The guy, or whatever he was, sounded like a combination of Scott and Logan when the pair got on a training kick. The sad part was Jubilee fully expected to be just as sore as the guy - dragon, whatever - was telling her she was going to be. Firearms, she'd dealt with in the past. She could practically feel Remy and Kurt wincing at the thought of bladed weapons in her hands - her few lessons had consisted of her not hurting herself... Barely.

She leaned back against the wall, hands tucked behind her. For all she looked relaxed, Jubilee could feel the kick of adrenaline that these type of lessons always gave her. She was damned addicted to it, too. It didn't matter.

No matter what her situation, sparring, practicing, making herself just that little bit better made her feel like things would work out, like everything might be okay.

And it made her miss Logan even more. She took a deep breath and simply looked around. A mix of people. This could get interesting.

[bonnypiperlad]

Jamie hooked his thumbs behind the chain that kept his sporran in place, listening with interest to the briefing. He had no illusions that this was going to be easy, but that chance to get to learn how to use an axe was a strong enough temptation that it brought him here. He figured he could deal with a few wee bumps and bruises along the way.

For once, he didn't have a million questions about what was going to happen. He simply shook his head when asked and waited to begin.

[lackofdarkwings.livejournal.com]

Genuinely interested in Kang and Ronon's methods, Matt had come down to the Dragon and listened to the spiel. Standard "We're not taking no namby pamby wussies" speech but it was a hard reality. He knew that his style was a little softer than usual, but that's cause he provided a impact zone for them to fall into, aka a pool or maybe a hot spring.

Matt was grinning all the same. This ought to be enlightening.

[its-keeper.livejournal.com]

"To think I thought I left all this behind with Orube."

Will endures the briefing with a small smile.

"Not that I don't miss that crazy cat-lady."

[lackofdarkwings.livejournal.com]

"Hey don't knock it till you've tried it," replied Matt with a impish little grin. "Besides, there's a chance that we'll learn something for our own lessons."

"Oh really? You and Orube are pretty good friends since she went back."

[morphitudinous]

Billy was ready for this. He'd cleared out most of his work for the day, stretched, jogged, and begged Stacy for the most nutritious slop she could muster a few hours before. He would take any amount of pain dished out to him if it meant he could become competent enough to protect everyone.

If anyone were to wonder what one of the geek squad was doing there...well, they'd get an answer.

[is-the-ultimate.livejournal.com]

Shadow leaned up against a wall, listening to what was being said. While Shadow had plenty of experience in some of the things Kang has planning on teaching, it wouldn't hurt to do more to be experienced. He was in a war, after all and he couldn't afford to mess up.

He was the Ultimate Life Form after all, and he had to keep up to prove it.

[fiercerhyena.livejournal.com]

Grim Eyes still hadn't quite gotten over the idea of males fighting on an equal footing with females - but even she had to admit that when really, really tall lizard with wings and an axe told you to do something, it was probably in your best interests to do it. She leaned on her spear, her eyes fixed on the two 'instructors,' giving the appearance of listening intently while she surveyed the class.

Her ears caught the girl human's words - the one that smelled faintly of something spicy and frozen water - and she huffed a bit in approval - she was probably the only one with real promise out of the whole lot of them. Maybe the other girl... she had the excited smell of a hunter about to let loose. She'd learn in time to curb that energy and use it when it was truly needed.

The lizard's speech was winding down to a close. "Sure thing," Grim Eyes said, straightening. She was ready to start - ready to see what these males were made of, and just how much she would have to re-teach the rest of the class without making it look like she was re-teaching.

[whitefireshot.livejournal.com]

Aine did her best not to stare too much. He was a large man covered in scales, this was not a thing she regularly saw at home. Which, given her life, was a thing she rarely said. However, her decided choice besides looking at the large scaled fellow was to look at the handsome quiet man who also stood up there. Training three days a week, for two hours... that didn't seem so bad. However, she felt it rude to underestimate the training being given by a man... Well, she assumed his gender worked that way, it was a rude thing to assume if you knew better but she didn't.

She knew a few people in the room, not very well by her concern. Even if how she met them might be considered intimate by others. She didn't care about that though, she wondered what they could do but that was her only concern. The main thing that lit up the girl's expression was the comment about age. Whatever notions she had were put aside, that no matter what, she would not be treated as feeble for a simple lack of years.

She knew she should not expect fun, but as she desperately desired to increase her strength and skills. She had to smile, like it would be fun. Because, at the end of the day, if she was a greater solder then when she woke up, her parents can be proud. Which is what truly mattered to her.

Basics of Hand-to-Hand - sparring

[runnerwithagun.livejournal.com]

After a brief moment of pause to let anyone who couldn't take it leave or let people ask questions, Ronon stepped up.

"We'll be starting with basic hand-to-hand combat now. Some of you have never thrown a punch before, some of you have had extensive experience on the battle field. We need to figure out everyone's levels so the best way to do this is partner up and spar." The Satedan Specialist looked around the room and saw some uncomfortable shuffles amongst some eager looks.

"Everyone, choose a partner and begin. We'll spar for 10 minutes and then gather to evalutate." Ronon nodded at Kang and the two instructors split up to find different partners to spar with.

[morphitudinous]

Billy searched the faces around him, seeking out a partner. Despite his own weekly training, he'd probably be outmatched by anyone here. He knew the basics well, supplemented with some tricks, and practiced advanced evasion skills, but others were superpowered or far more experienced. So it didn't truly make a difference who he chose.

After some thought, he felt compelled to call out to Katara. How long had it been since he'd spoken to her? This was a far cry from conversation, but maybe they'd be able to talk later.

"Katara? Would you like to spar with me? I understand if you'd rather not, since there are far worthier opponents, but I'll give you everything I can."

Something about a return to training in a group brought out his old timidity---in socializing, at least.

Re: Basics of Hand-to-Hand - sparring

[is-the-ultimate.livejournal.com]

Hand to hand, hm? Cracking his knuckles, he pushed off the wall and approached the crowd, trying to see who'd be worth his time. That is, until he spotted one of the humans - Matt.

"You." Shadow said, pointing. "You're with me."

[bonnypiperlad]

As people started to split off into pairs, Jamie considered his options. His first reaction was to find one of the other men in the room to spar with - after all, would any of these wee girls even give him a fight? Katara, maybe. Or that...whatever that beastie with the spear was.

Kang's words, though, hadn't gone unheard. Jamie knew he had to try and stop thinking that just because someone was a girl didn't mean they didn't know how to fight. It was a good way to get himself killed. Glancing around, he spotted Jubilee leaning against the wall. She looked rather relaxed, but there was something else there that made him think that perhaps there was more to it then that. He turned towards her.

"Would ye be interested in a wee bit of sparring?"

HEY FARASHA :D

[governorkang]

Most of the other students had paired off, and Kang was pleased to see that the numbers were even. It made things easier. At first, he was tempted to pick one of the humans, to see how well they handled the intimidation factor, but decided against it for the time being; however, there was a gnoll that looked like she knew a few things about fighting.

Motioning for her to come join him, he set his weapons on top of the bar, "Let's see what you can do."

[whitefireshot.livejournal.com]

Aine put her glasses into a pocket of her long coat, removed the coat, and her gunbelt, and her Intar. Leaving the collection of personal belongings in the corner out of the way of training. She didn't want any of them to be damaged, and for sparring like this they would only get in the way.

Now, anyone else, with nothing to prove to themselves, would pick any old opponent in the room. Without picking someone who was very likely stronger, faster, and all around better trained than they are. However, Aine was not one to go at anything with half a heart in it. She picked an opponent she knew would be at an advantage the whole time, and she knew would take everything she had. She wanted to get stronger, and the easiest way to grow was to throw yourself in and never look back. It was the way of her people and she would not neglect it now.

So she walked up to the most intimidating person in the room who was not covered in scales, the instructor that announced the sparring, Ronon Dex. She bowed to him slightly, not losing track of where his limbs were in case his people did not believe in pleasantries before a friendly match, then took her pose. Arms defending her torso and head, legs far enough apart to give her the best balance. She did wish she had a knife for this, but it was unarmed. She'd make do. She hoped the words of the other instructor were held to, and that he would not take it easy on her.

Re: Basics of Hand-to-Hand - sparring

[flunkingspanish.livejournal.com]

Paco looked around and moved to poke the nearest person -- male person -- in the shoulder. Just because it was just sparring didn't mean that he was comfortable with the idea of hitting a girl. Although he was willing to bet that at least a couple girls here could kick his butt to kingdom come and back.

"Hey, don't think we've been introduced," he said brightly, holding his non-mechanical hand out to the dark-haired guy in question. "I'm Paco. Wanna be my partner for this?"

Basics of Hand-to-Hand - eval and lessons learnt

[runnerwithagun.livejournal.com]

The ten minute mark was up and people started to gather again. Others were still finishing off their sparring. Ronon had made sure he was done a little earlier.

"While we wait for the others, stretch. Stretching is important for flexibility and blood flow. Never stretch when your muscles are cold. You could pull a muscle if you do so. It's best to stretch after a warm up."

Once everyone was gathered together again, it was time to resume the lesson.

Re: Basics of Hand-to-Hand - eval and lessons learnt

[kaya-waterwave.livejournal.com]

This Katara had no problem with: it was customary in her training, both by Arha and in waterbending, to get the blood to flow. Coincidentally, she'd done this before she arrived, but she didn;t mind doing this again. Taking a breath, she balanced herself onto her tippy toes, then put her flexibility to test with a few yoga moves that helped to breathe life into her body a bit more. She finished with a side stretch and then stood up straight, watching the others.

[morphitudinous]

Billy followed silently behind Katara, head hung low. If he had a tail, it would be planted firmly between his legs. He came back a complete failure, an embarrassment to both the crew and his old friends. What use did anyone have for him? All he'd learned as a Ranger were some time-wasting tricks that had no value in the real world. He'd be dead within seconds on any real battlefield.

That shame stayed with him as he silently followed the order to stretch, positioning himself away from the others. Any reactions to pain were controlled as tightly as possible. They already knew he was a worthless wimp, so why should he help that perception along?

Billy's only hope was that he might soon take enough beatings to learn how to handle himself properly in combat. Until then, he'd take his well-earned spot as their chew toy. Figuratively speaking, hopefully---was biting an approved combat maneuver? He didn't know, but he supposed he'd find out the hard way.

Basics of Hand-to-Hand - sparring rounds go!

[runnerwithagun.livejournal.com]

"Now it's time to practice what you've just been taught. Again, there's no better way to do this than spar. Everyone line up into two even rows and face each other."

Luckily for Ronon and Kang, the students shuffled into even rows quickly and without too much fuss.

"Say hello to your sparring partner opposite you. We'll change up partners every 10 minutes. It's not uncommon to have to fight more than one enemy on the battlefield and often enough, it's the enemy next to the one you just defeated. Your next partner will be on the right side of your opponent. We have 30 minutes left of hand-to-hand training. Make the most of it and now GO!"

This time Ronon and Kang didn't take part in the combat. Instead they were weaving in and out of the different pairs observing and leaving advice.

Re: Basics of Hand-to-Hand - sparring rounds go!

[kaya-waterwave.livejournal.com]

Katara was ready for this after her stretching and sparring with Billy. It bothered her that Billy was so downhearted about his performance, but she would talk to him later. Right now, he was her opponent, and now he wasn't the only one. She'd had a chance to see what some of the others could do., and while there were a few she knew she would do well against, it didn't mean that she would underestimate them, nor the ones she knew had a distinct advantage over her.

For the second time today, she was happy to have had her BG training, she would need that increase in speed and quicker reaction to hand to hand combat.

She got into her row first, anxious to see who she'd spar against.

[bonnypiperlad]

After stretching, Jamie fell into line with the others. If he had any opinions on how his fight with Jubilee went, they were kept to himself. Instead, he focused on the others, studying them while everyone settled in. He knew all too well what it was like to have to fight multiple opponents on the battlefield, so it came as no surprise that they were to switch partners.

The question was - who would he be sparring against next?

Little and Maybe Late

[bluebrassmonkey.livejournal.com]

Renne knew how to survive in the wilds.

In a place completely devoid of civilisation, where the law of nature was it, he knew how to fight, how to eat and how to survive. Despite being a vegetarian by nature, Renne knew how to hunt when it became desperately necessary and he could do it on smaller game with the best of them.
What he could not do however, was handle larger prey, or attackers four and more times his size without resorting to methods most Humans would call supernatural.

He wanted to go beyond that.

Thus, albeit late enough to have missed the introductory speech, probably well late into that first session, the blue oddity crawls quietly into this new location, following every orientation-and-mobility rule he knows.

"Eee. Ah-skewse?" His chirp might or might not be missed.

Re: Little and Maybe Late

[runnerwithagun.livejournal.com]

A late-comer. Ronon frowned with disapproval. He spotted the blue creature as it crawled into the tavern, yet there was something strange about the way it moved. It didn't take long for Ronon to realise that Renne was blind and he glanced at Kang who had also noticed the new addition.

Ronon made his way to Kang. "Do you know him?" He assumed it was a male.