[Ranger Hall]The Future Begins (Eldrew Basic Bowmanship)

[Eldrew Whiteone]

7th of Cryxatum, season of Summer, Era XIV pf

The morning was already beginning to warm. Eldrew, sweat forming on his brow, eased his pace. He was excited. Today was the day he would begin his journey to become a Naturan Ranger. Throughout his brief time in the small nature themed city, he had heard the stories of their adventures. However, a more meaningful task underlined his main reason. A reason he kept quiet about for many months.


The halfling continued his walk north along Druid Walk. The familiarity of his trek was a retrace of steps he had taken the day before. His newly purchased bow hung over his left shoulder. Kathel Boarfist, the Silver Arrow’s keeper, was at the door this fine summer morn. The pair nodded to each other. The smaller giving the elderly human a brief smile.


With the Silver Arrow behind him, Eldrew picked up his pace. He knew it was several miles to the Ranger Hall. His mind raced with the questions he had. When could he start training? What was involved? The halfling knew that the training was going to be hard. He was ready, more ready than anything he had ever done before. As his mind spun, the Ranger Hall came into view. He reached the doors.


For a halfling, the doors to the hall were massive. Then again, everything in the world was bigger, except for the fairies. Bobbity, good, funny fairy, he thought. Opening the door, he stepped into foyer of the hall. A noticeboard stood just past the doors. He read the parchment tacked to it. “Ranger requirements,” he said softly, “Hmm….Intermediate to Advanced Bowmanship, Initiate to Apprentice Druidism, Tracking, Healing, and Basic Herbalism.” This was going to be tough, but he was up for the challenge. “Well at least I have one of the optional requirements done.” He thought about Loaern Aw’elnse, the elf that taught him the beginning of dagger combat.


The halfling began looking for someone that could give his directions. “Serale,” came a voice from behind him, “I am Owaten Aspenpath, Rangermistress of Natura. Do you need assistance?” Eldrew, startled by the voice, jumped slightly. Turning he saw a mature looking elven woman. Her strawberry blonde hair barely reached her chin. “Serale, I am Eldrew Whiteone. I am here to train in the ways of the Silver Wolves. I want to become a Naturan Ranger.” The elf gave him a hard look and motioned the halfling to follow her.


As Eldrew followed the elven woman, he soaked up the sights and sounds of the Hall. There were other here, training as he would. Passing through an arch, the two entered the barracks. “This will be your home,” she said with arms out before her, “you may take that cot over there.” She pointed to the far left corner of the room. "The footlocker at the end of the cot is yours for storage. Once you are settled, go to the dining hall and eat. Get familiar with the Hall. We will begin your training at the seventh candlemark tomorrow.” She turned and walked out the room.

[Eldrew Whiteone]

Morning came early to the halfling. He had spent the better part of evening wandering. The Hall was enormous. He had found the Dinning Room, ate a good meal, and then retired to his cot. The excitement of the day caused his sleep to be restless. However, with the light breaking through the windows, Eldrew dressed in his tan breeches and white shirt. Slipping on his boots, he tied them tight. Walking out the barracks, he stopped turned around and retrieved his bow. Great the morning has started bad already.


“Good morning, Mr. Whiteone.” Owaten Aspenpath was already waiting at the archery range. “I trust you are ready to begin.” Eldrew nodded. “I am Rangermistress.” “Good then let us begin.” The elven woman motioned him next to her. “I believe you to be of the right hand.” She held up an ornately decorated long bow. “We are the same then.” Eldrew held his short bow tightly. His sudden nervousness caused his palms to sweat.


“We will start with the proper stance and balance of a bowman.” Aspenpath turned her body, so that the left shoulder was pointing down the range. “Imagine a line drawn on the ground. That line is your shooting line. An archer stands in an upright, comfortable, relaxed position with one foot to each side of the shooting line. Your feet should be about shoulder width apart with an even amount of weight spread across each foot. You also need an even amount of weight between the ball and heel of each foot. This will maintain balance and help keep the body steady.”


Eldrew positioned his body to mirror his teacher. Owaten continued, “During your shooting sequence, your body position must remain as steady as possible with no shifting of weight or leaning of the body.” She drew an arrow from the quiver at her hip. Nocking it in place, she fired down range. The arrow struck true center. The halfling’s eyes showed amazement. “Sometimes there is a problem with bowstring clearance to the arm,” she demonstrated the lack of pull on the string, “then a open stance may be required.” She moved her left foot out so the toes were at a slight angle to her body. “Once your stance has been established, then it must be consistent from shot to shot.”

[Eldrew Whiteone]

The halfling followed his master’s advice. Finding the open stance more to his liking, Eldrew adjusted his body. Since he was short, his arms just were not capable of pulling the bow string in the regular position. With left shoulder aimed toward his target, he accepted his footing. It was comfortable.


“You look stable enough,” the elven woman replied, “but let us just make sure.” Owaten pushed the halfling in the chest. Thanks to former training, he was solid. “Impressive, small one. Well, your center of gravity is very low to the ground.” She stifled a laugh commenting on his size.

“We will now learn the correct way to nock the arrow onto our string.” Aspenpath produced another arrow and held it in her right hand. “There are those in the world who believe that we notch an arrow. Notching involves cutting, like the notches your strings are attached to at each tip of the bow.” She pointed out the cuts. “Nocking is the placement of the arrow onto the string.” She pointed to the knot located about halfway down the string. “The nock of the arrow rests below this point.” The Rangermistress demonstrated. While holding the bow in her left hand, she rested the shaft of the arrow on the rest above the grip. The arrow was spun until the feather fletch was perpendicular to the nock of the arrow. It was then secured under the nock point on the string. She readied herself, drew back the string, and fired again. Perfect placement. This arrow rested a few centimeters to the right of the previous one.

[Eldrew Whiteone]

“See how easy that was,” Owaten stated to the young cether, “pay attention, and I will demonstrate again.” The Rangermistress repeated the steps going over each one slowly. “Now that the arrow is nocked, we shall continue with how to draw the bowstring." She gave Eldrew once over and commented. “Good I see you have yourself a wrist guard, and you have properly secured it.” She nodded her head in approval.


The elf went into a detailed explanation of the benefit of wearing one. The main purpose of the guard was to protect the forearm of the bow hand from getting cut by the fletch of the arrows. “As the arrow is pushed forward at a high rate of speed, it is highly probable that the fletch will slide long the inside forearm, therefore cutting, or rather burning along its path.” She removed her guard to so Eldrew exactly what she meant. The scar was old and it had the appearance of pain when it had happened. She fastened it back into position.


“Alright Mr. Whiteone, please retrieve an arrow.” In front of the halfling was an arrow holder stuck into the ground. At first glance, there seemed to be about two dozen arrows in the holder. With a second, he realized there were more, much more. Eldrew ran through the steps of his stance, which was an open one, and then he nocked the arrow and held it in place with the index finger of his bow hand.


“Now I will show you how to place you finger around the string to prepare to fire.” The halfling paid close attention, never taking his eyes or his ears off what he elf was explaining. She placed her index finger above the arrow nock and the second and third fingers below the nock. Curling her fingers around the bowstring, she aligned the first joint of all three fingers with the bowstring. Owaten showed the young one how to keep a space clear between the index and second fingers and the arrow nock, so the fingers do not touch the nock. “If you don’t do this you will end up pinching the arrow.” She moved her finger together to show what the pinch would look like. “Remember to keep the back of the hand as flat as possible and tuck the thumb into the palm so it can be placed against your neck at full draw.” She drew the string to show how the thumb rested against her neck. “I want you to slightly pull on the bowstring to set the fingers in position. This will get you ready for the draw phase.” Eldrew complied with her command.

[Eldrew Whiteone]

With fingers set, Owaten Aspenpath, Rangermistress of Natura, drew the string back from the bow. Her left arm was pushed out straight in front of her. It was solid. She explained, “This is known as the pre-draw. You are getting your upper body set for the firing of the arrow.” The right arm began pulling the string. It looked awkward. Her elbow lifted above her head as the finger strained against the bowstring. “This position helps to pull the string to its full draw.”


In one motion, the elf rotated her right shoulder down and drew the string to its final position. “As I stated before, your thumb will rest against your chin. This is called the anchor.” Eldrew noticed how the string touched Owaten’s face. “What is the reason for the string touching the face?”


THANG! The fingers released the string. Fast and straight, the arrow flew toward the target. It looked to only place a halfling’s hair above the other two, sticking in the belly of the target. “Your question bears merit young trainee.” The position of the bowstring against the face, she explained, acted as a rear sight. Being consistent with the string’s position would be important for successful shots. “As long as you keep the push of you left hand against the bow, and the pull against the bowstring, you will remain balanced when aiming your weapon.”

[Eldrew Whiteone]

“Speaking of aiming,” the elven woman continued, “practice is the only thing that will make you better.” The Rangermistress pointed to the cutout where the arrow rest was located. “This is your viewing area. As the bowstring is in its draw phase, you should be looking down the shaft of the arrow towards its point. From there you raise or lower the bow to align the arrow tip with your target.” The halfling nodded his head showing he understood.

“This isn’t as easy as it sounds, Mr. Whiteone. Only time and constant repetition will perfect this. Please give it a try.” Eldrew immediately got himself back in his stance. The arrow was still nocked on the string; however he did give it a slight adjustment. Feeling comfortable, the small one locked his fingers around the bowstring. Index on top of the nock, middle and ring below. With left arm extend, he drew back the string. His elbow, rising above his head, he then allowed his shoulder to rock back bringing it to rest. A small thumb rested against his chin, the string barely touching his nose. Looking down the shaft, he focused on the target twenty yards away.

THANG! The tension on the string propelled the arrow toward the target. He dropped his arms to watch it fly. “Not to be too critical, but you missed,” Owaten Aspenpath commented. The halfling was unsure what had happened. He had followed all the steps that his trainer provided. What did I do wrong?

[Eldrew Whiteone]

The cether could not believe what had just occurred. He had missed the target. Not miss the center, but miss it altogether. He ran through the steps in his mind. Eldrew had taken the proper stance. The arrow had been nocked into the correct position. The bow was held tight enough as to not let it slip from his hand. Fingers pulled the bowstring with the right amount of tension. He aimed. What could have possibly went wrong?


“You forgot to follow through,” the Rangermistress pointed out. “You were impatient. You wanted to see the arrow strike the target. The problem is you dropped your arms after the release of the bowstring.” She shook her head, then said with a laugh, “It happens to everyone the first time. You just need to be patient.”


Another arrow was retrieved from the quiver at her side. Owaten took her stance and carefully walked through each of the steps, repeating them loudly for the halfling. When the arrow was released, her arms never moved. Eldrew watched as the arrow found its mark. Another perfect shot.


The elf motioned for the halfling to attempt another shot. Once again, Eldrew walked through the steps. “Remember Mr. Whiteone,” she spoke from behind him, “do not drop your arms. Focus down the shaft of the arrow after release.” She quieted herself. THANG! The arrow flew from the bow. Eldrew’s left arm remained extended. Success, barely. The arrow had hit the target, but right along the left side. Another centimeter and it would have sailed past it.

[Eldrew Whiteone]

“Good, much better.” Owaten was reassuring the young cether. “Practice is your friend. Do you think I became Rangermistress by doing nothing?” Eldrew shook his head. “Since you maintained correct form, I have a correction for you.” She nocked another arrow. “Please watch my fingers.” The halfing took a position behind and to the right of her. The elf drew the bow back and held the string. She allowed the tension of the bowstring to pull it forward, slipping through her fingers.

“Did you see how the string slipped out of the fingers?” The halfling nodded. “You let the string go. It needed to slip from their grasp.” With her hand, she gave the permission to try again. Securing an arrow, Eldrew set his stance, nocked the arrow, and drew the bowstring. “Now feel the string slip from your fingers.” Taking steady aim, the string slid from its confinement. The arrow rocketed toward the target, hitting only a foot to the right of center.

“Nicely done, Mr. Whiteone.” Owaten Aspenpath, stood, clapping her approval. “Now before I leave you to practice what you have learned, a few tips.” The female elf gave a run down of each of the steps taught. “A final thought on hand placement after the release. Your hand should end up just past your ear along the cheekbone. Once the string is released and the hand is at rest, you may lower the bow. It all takes practice, which is what I would like you to do.”

She pointed at the target, twenty yards away. “I would like you to take your time. Shoot a quiver, then retrieve them. Repeat the process. I will return in a while.” With that the elf left the Halfling to his practice.

[Eldrew Whiteone]

With the sun shinning brightly overhead, Eldrew ran to the target and retrieved the arrows from both. Owaten had four perfectly placed arrows, which the Halfling grabbed. Walking to the next target, his, hung his head as we pulled his one hit from it and then found the one on the ground. He returned all the arrows to the holder set in the ground.

The cether stared twenty yards from where he was standing. There was his goal, his target, the reason for him being at the Ranger Hall. Time to put what I have learned to the test. He retrieved an arrow and held it in his right hand. Drawing an imaginary line on the ground beneath him, he took up his stance. The arrow was nocked into place and held in the bow rest by his left index finger. Raising the bow, he secure the bowstring with the right hand. Index finger above the nock point, middle and ring finger below. With left arm set, he drew the string back. Aiming down the arrow shaft, he found the center of the target. The bowstring rested slightly on his nose. The tension pulled the string forward and the arrow left the bow.

Slicing through the air, the arrow flew toward its destination. The target moved closer. The tip of the arrow hungered to strike a surface. And soon enough it had found it. Eldrew, halfling and future member of the Naturan Rangers, had hit the target. It was not a bulls-eye, but it had hit. The small one smiled. I followed the advice and I found the target. Over the next two candlemarks, the halfling repeated the process. He soon found comfort in both stance and aim.

[Eldrew Whiteone]

Not far away, but hidden with the shadows, Owaten Aspenpath, Rangermistress of Natura, watched the halfling work through the progression. She noticed that his placement of the arrows, although not quite the center, had hit somewhere on the target each time. Satisfied with what she had seen, she walked back to meet him. “How goes the practice, Mr. Whiteone?” she asked with a slight smile. “I feel more comfortable with the process, but my arm is tired.” He began to rub the muscles in his right arm. “Practice will strengthen them.”


He went to gather up the arrows he had shot before the elven woman approached. Placing them back in to the holder. He prepared to take another shot. “That will not be necessary. You have done well for your first day. Tomorrow I shall test you. Enjoy the rest of the day, get good sleep.” And with that she walked away. Eldrew unstrung the bow and carried it back to his cot in the barracks. “Time to take it easy and reflect on the lesson. And probably a bite to eat.”

[Eldrew Whiteone]

The night was filled with restless dreams and anticipation for the young halfling. He knew that that morning was to bring him one step closer to his goal of becoming a ranger. Little did he realize that morning was approaching quicker than expected.

The bright light of early summer burned through the closed eyelids of the cether. Shading his eyes, he wiped away the sleepiness and quickly dressed. It was a good thing that he had taken the initiative to wash not only himself but his clothes. Still slightly damp, which would soon dry in the hotness of the sun, Eldrew grabbed his bow and set it on his bed, then attached the string. Securing his wrist guard, he made sure his garments were properly tightened. He hurried out of the barracks.

She, Owaten Aspenpath, was already waiting. Am I late? he thought. “Right on time, Mr. Whiteone. Ready to begin your test?” Wow she wasn’t wasting any time. “You will be provided with a single quiver of arrows. A total of twenty shots will be required. I will be watching not only the placement of your shots, but your technique as well. You may begin when ready.”

Those were her last words. The time had come to put all he had learned to work. Eldrew knew that the Rangermistress would scrutinize every aspect. She was the top. He had to perform well. And so he began. With a deep breath to clam his nerves, he set his body. Open stance, left shoulder toward the target. Taking an arrow, the first of twenty, he nocked it in place and held it with the index finger of his left hand. His right hand placed the correct fingering around the bowstring. Index, nock, middle, ring. Drawing back the string, he aimed down the arrow shaft. With a clean look at the target, he left the bowstring slip through the fingers. The arrow flew straight and true only stopping when it hit just centimeters left from the center. Satisfied, he allowed a few seconds, before his next attempt.

Of the twenty arrows shot, all had hit the target. Now it was time for his judgment. The elven woman, Owaten Aspenpath, rangermistress of Natura, walked over and stood beside the halfling. “You have done well, Mr. Whiteone. You are a quick learner.” Eldrew was happy to hear these words. “The road to being a ranger takes discipline. You have learned the basics of how to shot a bow, but it will take more than just shooting at a target. You will need to master further distances and also moving targets.” She patted the small on the shoulder. “You will need to become familiar in the ways of the druid also. As rangers we use the world around us to help in our goals. Whether that be hunting down an enemy or staying concealed, nature can be our greatest ally. From there you have a choice, learn healing, tracking, or herbalism. Of these you may find people, here at the Hall or back in town. You may also want to travel to the other Halls in various cities.”

Eldrew was proud of his accomplishment. He had become a welcome addition to the Ranger Hall. “I thank you for your training Rangermistress. I know I still have a ways to go but I will not let you down.” She dismissed the thought, knowing that he would not. She handed him a piece of parchment. “This paper will provide with room and board at any of the Ranger Halls in Aelyria. Without it, you will have to prove yourself again.” As she walked away, preparing to deal with other business, she reminded him, “Keep practicing.”

And that was exactly what he would do….

8th of Cryxatum, season of Summer, Era XIV pf The bearer of this letter, Eldrew Whiteone, shall be granted access to any Ranger Hall in the country. Treat him and teach him well in the principles of being a ranger. ~Owaten Aspenpath - Rangermistress Natura

[Kalinda]

Basic Bowmanship Approved!
+2 XP!