Katana Training for Sabar

Lunerith · January 5, 2004, 12:11 PM

It seemed that the wilder platoon, D-31 or the Shades as they preferred to be called, would have each and every unit trained individually. Sabar was no exception, seeing as how there were no other Katana wielders among the ranks of his peers. He had recieved intructions on where he was supposed to head over to and since he wanted to learn how to wield his Katana more efficiently, he was sort of forced to go over there. It was out in the open, in a small courtyard. Around him could lastly be seen the walls of the academy, but before that, others were training. Currently, he was in the middle looking around, before someone approached him. It was quite clear that the elven soldier was heading over towards him.

"Serale, I am Fillynon, normally I would not be here to train you as my mastery does not lie in the art of the Katana, but they had none other available to train you personally. As this is but the basic training, I know all the stances, moves and attacks and we shall be using shard edged swords, proper blades. Rela'ta would have been training you, but she's training Windrek as she is more used to elven champions than I" The elven soldier beckoned Sabar to follow him and they proceeded over to a small part of the courtyard, which was seperated from the others by a small and low fence. There was enough room to move around and the cold merely explained the snow that lay on the ground where they would be training and probably dueling for a while as well.

Fillynon turned around to face Sabar, whirling his katana around in one hand before bringing it softly down to soflty touch the snow with the tip of the blade. The whirl was just a simple and slow, in comparison to the speed that it could have had, movement, meant to bring the blade first next to Fillynon's head and thereafter plunging towards the ground. To the unexperienced it would seem impressive, so it was probably meant to give a good first impression to Sabar. "The two stances you will learn will be focused on attacking without risking the life of your sword and next on dodging, not deflecting, the enemies' blades or blade, depending on their number. Before we begin, I will ask you a simple question, are you ready?"

Sabar · January 5, 2004, 06:05 PM

After waiting for the instructor for a mere couple of minutes Sabar spotted an elven soldier walking in his direction. When the elven soldier introduced himself Sabar nodded and said, "Serale, I am Sabar." Following Fillynon to the area in which he would train he focused solely on his instructor not letting anything else take his attention away. When the instructor stopped he also stopped and awaited instructions, watching closely as he spun his own blade he drew the Katana on his left hip when Fillynon asked if he was ready. Not knowing the proper way in which to hold the blade he held it out in front of his with both hands where he though was the best place in which to block any attacks he could not dodge. Taking a breathe he said, "Aye be ready."

Lunerith · January 7, 2004, 09:25 AM

"Good" Fillynon told Sabar in his elven voice "I will explain you a couple of things, listen carefully. The Katana can be a fragile weapon at times, it's probably best to avoid deflecting blows. I can see your blade is of exceptional quality though, one of Razor's and made of elven steel too, so you might be able to risk a bit more with it." That seemed to be the first part of his speech, because he began wandering, while he drew lightly in the snow with his Katana, while he walked, he began talking once more "Balance is important too, fighting makes no sense if your enemy can knock you to the ground in his first blow, whereafter you'll be left defenceless. This is why we have stances." Fillynon stopped drawing and turned around to face Sabar once more, his footsteps littered the snow in between him and Sabar and it was obvious that quite a bit of snow had fallen that night.

"This will be an intensive and dangerous training, there isn't much to worry about, but I will warn you beforehand to be a bit careful at times, though I can deflect and dodge most of your blows and stop my own cuts soon enough. Speed, power and effectiveness mixed together can be a potent friend and enemy too, be sure to put in the correct amounts, so that you don't lose any of the other. Speed will allow your sword to sing faster, both away and back to you. Power will allow you to stay in control of the sword and especially your enemy. Effectiveness will determine whether you fail or succeed." Fillynon took a short pause "While you take your defensive stance, I want you to repeat, in your own words, all that I just said"

Fillynon, then took a defensive stance rather quickly. Going from almost harmless and drawing on the ground to standing with the sword at the ready on his side with both his hands, prepared to deflect and most of all, dodge. "Place your right foot in front, two feet away from left foot which has to be perpendicular to your right one. Also, the left one is to point the same way as the rest of your body. You should have your right side pointing towards the enemy. Keep your katana close to your side, which is farthest away from the enemy. It should be close to your hip, pointing upwards diagonally, thus leaning a bit towards your enemy. From this stance it is easy to adopt an aggressive position and your dodges will be more effective, while it also keeps your katana out of harms way." Fillynon stopped there. Sabar could still remember the stance Fillynon had taken, though whether he could remember everything he had said, or exactly what he was supposed to do, was another matter. It was likely that Sabar didn't have to perform perfectly in the beginning and that it would also be better if he found his own style.

Sabar · January 7, 2004, 10:02 AM

As Sabar followed Fillynon's directions to adopt his defensive stance he said, "The katana is a fragile weapon and should not be used to deflect blows, it is better to dodge. This will be intensive and dangerous training. Power, speed and effectiveness can be a dear friend or a hated enemy, power will let me control my blade, speed is how fast i can attack and bring my blade back, effectiveness is whether I will fail or succeed." Thinking the speech over again he didn't think he missed anything. By the end of it he was in his defensive stance. Right foot in front, perpendicular to his left, leaning forward a bit and katana near his left hip with both hands on the hilt, pointed slightly diagonal.

Lunerith · January 12, 2004, 02:55 PM

"Good" That was apparantly something Fillynon liked to say to his pupils whenever they had properly understood him, while also done what they had been instructed to do. "Remember that speech. Now an aggressive stance is much like a defensive stance, the biggest change is your mind set. In defensive, you will be intent on dodging every single blow and make sure you survive by deflecting those you fail to dodge. When you switch to aggressive, you must keep your blade in front of you and not to your side. This way, your reach will be longer, enabling you to push forward, using the attacks and dodges you will learn later. While moving forward, keep on switching between having your left foot in front and your right foot in front, but be aware that to present less of a target to your enemy, your side should point as much as possible towards him. Try it now, though wait with the attacking part till after you've learnt them."

Fillynon prepared himself for Sabar to move forward towards him. The instructer had taken a defensive stance and was obviously waiting for Sabar to get into an aggressive one. It was time to show Fillynon what he could and couldn't do, although most likely, he'd only be showing him whether he could use the aggressive stance he had just been taught. The snow was fairly undisturbed by the light footsteps of Fillynon, yet it was obvious that the snow had been stepped on. Soon, Sabar would be making his own soft footprints on the ground, all he had to do was muster his courage and do as Fillynon had told.

Sabar · January 12, 2004, 08:21 PM

Sabar listened closly to Fillynon, when told he moved his katana in front of him instead of at his side, still holding it firmly in two hands. Slowly Sabar moved his left foot in front of his right by about a foot to a foot and a half, taking the same size step with his right afterwards. Slowly he approached Fillynon in his aggressive stance, waiting to see what he would do. Bending his knees a bit as he got closer to Fillynon he would be ready as he could to dadge any blows that might come at him.

OOC: Is this training before the war? Can I say I have some katana training in the war, or am I defenseless?

Castimoniastu · February 17, 2004, 03:22 PM

OOC: I'll be taking up this training now since I'm the essence of purity and control Fillynon. It can be before the war if you want to but you may only use the skill when you acquire it, meaning: when I give it to you.

IC: Fillynon commanded Sabar to stop and said "That was good. Now, the basics of using a katana, and that which will be the foundation of all you can do with this blade, come from nine strikes. I want you to duplicate these strikes, all right?" He looked firmly at Sabar, to make sure that he understood.

"I will first show you all the strikes to see which ones are easy for you to learn and which ones are hard for you. Then we'll work on them individually. The strikes are as follows:" He began to count, as he executed the cuts and strikes. The first was the basic overhead cut. Followed by the side slashes, from the right and left. Then came the diagonal overhead cuts, from the left and right again. He then next performed the rising diagonal slashes from the right and left, and then the two variations of the rising slash, from the right and left, though they were the same. Then lastly, he performed the thrust attack.

He went through each motion slowly and steadily, moving fluidly like the wind as it carried leaves through the air, with nary a pause in his motion as he spoke and described each basic attack to Lucifer. Even his ending move, the thrust, and return to the stance was equally smooth. "Did you follow? Questions?"

Sabar · February 17, 2004, 05:56 PM

Sabar watched atentivly as Fillynon went threw the strikes. Sabar thought he could do them quite easily , though probaly not as good as Fillynon. None of them looked that hard to begin with. When he was done Sabr thought for a moment before answering, "Now I don't." He then waited for the okay to try the strikes.

OOC: Sorry if you posted this before I PM'ed you about it. My computer doesn't always show all the threads there are for some reason and this one hasn't been here for the last few times.

Castimoniastu · February 17, 2004, 11:57 PM

OOC: I've only just posted it.

IC: Fillynon seemed to have been expecting Sabar not to follow. There were alot of strikes. "Let's take each strike at a time." Fillynon took up an offensive stance besides Sabar and began with the first strike. He demonstrated the strike while explaining it to Sabar, "You take up the basic offensive stance. When you want to strike you move your forward foot a bit more forward. You apply your strength and weight into the blow as you pull the sword just above your head. Do not bring the sword behind your head, only just above. Then, when you land with your forward foot, you strike down as if you're trying to cleave through your enemy from top to toe. Remember not to try and cut with the entire blade, try to slash with the tip of the blade so that the sword won't get stuck in your enemies body or break the katana. Now try it, then the other strikes should be easier to learn." Fillynon gave Sabar some time to practice the overhead cut.

Sabar · February 18, 2004, 01:49 PM

Standing sideways with his right foot roughly a foot in front of his left Sabar moved his right foot a bit more. Bringing his katana up over his head so the tip of the blade was slightly behind his head while the hilt was diagonally upwards in front of his face, arms slightly bent. Taking a step with his right foot he brought the katana whistling down with applying his weight to the blow, not knowing how to finish it he swung the blade around and stopped with it at his side in the defensive position.

Castimoniastu · February 18, 2004, 03:53 PM

Fillynon was impressed and thought well of Sabar. This was a recruit who could swing a sword. "Well done. That was perfect," he said to Sabar and took up once again the basic offensive stance. "Now, let us train the rest of the movements." he said and started to show Sabar the different moves while explaining how to do them.

"Now, I will teach you how to slash. Thrust the blade forward, then down to one side. Don't go too far or you will not be able to recover in time. Turn the blade toward your opponent, and cut up as you bring the blade back to your starting position. The idea isto make two rapid cutting motions, one going down and one coming back up. Now, the slashes are used in most offensive moves with the katana but I will also teach you the thrust later. The slashes are used for exactly four offensive moves; the right side slash, the left side slash, the right rising diagonal slash, and the left rising diagonal slash. All of these slashes are done the same way but from different angels. Practice all them now." Fillynon had done explaining and began to train with Sabar. He seemed to be able to imitate all of Sabar's move and thus learning his flaws.

Sabar · February 18, 2004, 07:33 PM

Sabar nodded as Fillynon demonstrated the slashes. Pulling his katana in front of his back into the offensive position Sabar tried the slashes. Thrusting the blade forward as he took a step he pushed it down to the right, then he quickly reversed the blade and swung it back upwards to the left.

Getting back into his offensive stance he thrust the blade forward while taking a step. This time he pushed the blade down and to the left, then quickly he reversed it and swung upwards to the right and finally pulled it back in front of his into his offensive position.

Sabar's forehead wrinkled as he tried to bring back the image of Fillynon doing the diagonal slashes. After a moment he said, "Could you demonstrate the diagonal slashes again?"

Castimoniastu · February 19, 2004, 10:52 AM

Fillynon answered Sabar with the voice of a true mentor "You just did the diagonal slashes. The side slashes are only from the sides and not at all from the top. The side slashes are mostly used when you acquite a higher level of training but in some situations you might want to cut sideways instead of bringing your sword back up above your head and down unto your opponent. Try the side slashes and then try the diagonal slashes, those you just did, to improve them. Try and swing your sword cleaving with the tip of the blade instead of thrusting it into your opponent from the top to the bottom. The katana is an elegant and fragile weapon and your moves must be likewise. Try the slashes again." Fillynon resumed his position and followed Sabar's moves once more.

Sabar · February 19, 2004, 01:07 PM

He then duplicated what he had done except backwards. Turning the blade horizontally he swung left about the width of a human chest then reversed the blade and swung it back to the right pulling it back so he ended in the offensive position.

Taking up his offensive position again he pulled the katana above his head like the first strike he learned, he then cleaved downwards and to the right while taking a step, when the blade was roughly a foot off above the ground he reversed the blade and pulled upwards to the left then ended in the offensive position.

He then tried the left diagonal slash. Again he pulled the blade over his taking a step he brought it down to the left, at a foot above the ground he reversed it and swung it back upwards to the right. He then ended by pulling it back in front of him to the offensive position.

When he had tried all four strikes he stood waiting to find out if they were good or find out if he needed to work on something.

Castimoniastu · February 19, 2004, 03:14 PM

Fillynon seemed to have a hard time following Sabar's move this time and gave up after a while. Sabar had improved but there was still work to be done. One last exercise, thought Fillynon before speaking to his apprentice, "The three top attacks are cuts, the four side attacks are slashes along with the down attack, and the middle attack is a thrust. After I have taught you the thrust, we will practice all nine attacks, then go over to parrying and dodging and then we should be done."

Fillynon took up the basic offensive stance and prepared himself. He then showed the different attacks while explaining them to Sabar, "The three top attacks are cut attacks and done like the top attack you did first. These attacks can be set from the right, left, or middle."

"The four side attacks along with the down attack are slash attacks and done like we just did. These attacks can be set from the right (middle or buttom to up), from the left (middle or buttom to up), or from the ground and up."

"The thrust attack is unique in that it attacks the middle, it's like a piercing attack. This is the attack I will now teach you. If I'm contradicting myself then only take heed to what I just said now and practice on that. When I'm done explaining how to do a thrust attack, I want you to do the attacks in the order I'm going to give."

Fillynon loosened his body and turned towards Sabar. He let his sword hang by his side while talking to Sabar and making movements with his hands to try and help Sabar visualise the last offensive exercise. "The thrust attack is simple. Throw the katana in a slender and smooth motion forward, following through with your strength from your hand to your shoulders. Shift your entire weight forward. After contact is made, twist the blade to open the wound and then pull it back and get ready for a second attack."

Fillynon brought up his sword and stood besides Sabar. He was prepared to strike and it seemed that Sabar was to follow Fillynon's moves this time. "Now, practice. TOP CUT! LEFT BOTTOM SLASH! LEFT CUT! RIGHT SLASH! RIGHT BOTTOM SLASH! RIGHT CUT! LEFT SLASH! DOWN SLASH! THRUST!"