Battlecry!
This is a weekly bulletin for practices in the Realms. Practices are one of the most important facets to the Realms, it is a place where many people are introduced to the game, as well as a place to enjoy the company and meet new members of the community. Even if you are not a fighter, it is still a great form of exercise, as well as a way to hone your combat skills, which is an important skill for helping out at events while NPCing. A lot of what makes a great combatant in the Realms has to do with muscle memory and building a good intuition for combat, which can only happen with consistent practice, so make sure to try and stop by your local practice as often as possible
Monday
Camelot Fight Practice (https://www.realmsnet.net/events/1858)
7:30pm-9:30pm
Details
Practice consists of a mix of individual and group combat.
Water refills are available if need be, bring your own container.
Public restrooms available on site.
Loaner weapons are very limited, plan on bringing your own.
Masks are optional.
Important Notes
This site is part of a neighborhood. Please be respectful of the people who live here.
Weather
This week will be a warm evening with partial cloud cover and in the 70’s.
Tuesday
Western Massachusetts Fight Practice (https://www.realmsnet.net/events/1857)
6:00pm-8:00pm - West Street Playground, Ludlow, MA
Details
Practice consists of a mix of individual and group combat.
Loaner weapons are/are not available?
Water is not available, bring your own water.
Public restrooms are available on site.
Masks are optional?
This is outdoors and inclement weather is very likely to limit attendance.
Important Notes
None this week.
Weather
It’s going to be in the mid 70’s and mostly cloudy this week.
Wednesday
Nashua Blackwood Fight Practice (https://www.realmsnet.net/events/1857)
4:00pm-8:00pm -Greely Park (Concord St), Nashua, NH
Details
Practice consists of a mix of individual, squad, and line battles, as attendees prefer.
Loaner weapons are available.
There is no water on site, bring your own.
Public restrooms are available on site.
While a few people might be there around 4:00, 5:00 is a more likely time to get started.
We set up near the grills and tables on the West side of Concord St, just off the access road to the north of the public restrooms.
Masks are optional.
This is outdoors and inclement weather is very likely to limit attendance.
Important Notes
None this week.
Weather
There is a high chance of rain this week, although it is currently set to end just before practice. Keep an eye out for updates.
Thursday
Central CT Fight Practice (https://www.realmsnet.net/events/1860)
6:00pm-9:00pm - Pierson Park, 5 West St, Cromwell, CT
Important Notes
Practice consists of a mix of individual training and if attendees are interested, team combat and combat games.
Loaner weapons available.
Water fountains are available in season, best to bring your own drinking water.
Public restrooms available on site.
Updates
Please note, the location has officially changed as of last week.
Weather
There is a high chance of rain this week, although it is currently set to end just before practice. Keep an eye out for updates.
Stratham Hill Fight Practice (https://www.realmsnet.net/events/1859)
6:00pm-8:00pm - Stratham Hill Park, Stratham, NH
Important Notes
Practice consists of individual combat for the first half, and ditch style team combat for the second half.
Masks are optional.
Loaner weapons are available.
Water is available on site, but bring your own container.
On-site bathroom.
Updates
None this week.
Weather
There is a high chance of rain this week, although it is currently set to end just before practice. Keep an eye out for updates.
South Shore Practice (https://www.realmsnet.net/events/)
7:00pm-9:00pm - 138 Hms Stayner Dr, Hingham, MA
Important Notes
Most important thing is that this neighborhood has a lot of young kids so please be respectful of my neighbors with noise levels.
Park either at the place or on the street and then you can walk up the ramp to the park.
Practice consists of individual combat for the first half, and ditch style team combat for the second half.
Masks are strongly encouraged but not required.
Loaner weapons are not available, be sure to bring your own.
There is no public water on site, so please bring your own.
There is no on-site bathroom.
Updates
None this week.
Weather
There is a high chance of rain this week, although it is currently set to end just before practice. Keep an eye out for updates.
Featured Drill: Poisonball
More game than drill, poisonball is a great activity for limited style practice. Although often seen as a light hearted, silly bout of mayhem, there are some important skills you can develop. Like I mentioned with Grand Melee’s, it is always good to check in and see what the fighting culture is for this game. Backstabbing is almost always allowed in poisonball, usually encouraged, but that could vary from practice to practice. While there are several variations of the game, I am going to explain what I believe to be the most common one. The main goal of poisonball is to defeat all the other combatants without yourself losing. It starts much the same as a grand melee with all combatants spread out in an area with whatever weapon combos they prefer. Often it is a good idea to have several with you, as in order to win, this can be an advantage. When fighting starts the main rule is that whenever the person who defeated you is themselves defeated, you are able to re-enter the fight with all their limbs. This means that in order to win, you must defeat all your opponents one by one, while keeping the damage that was dealt to you.
Now, this is often chaotic, but can be a good tool to learn some skills, mainly situational awareness and strategy. Where this is a chaotic fight, with people getting up and going down many times, you will need to be aware of your surroundings at all times. You will have to learn to use your ears to listen for threats that you cannot see, make note of your environment, and develop a sixth sense of danger. Listening is the easiest, keeping an ear out for the sound of footsteps coming up behind you is fairly effective, especially when fighting on a hard surface. Making note of your environment is a bit of a memory game. Try to observe the battlefield and keep track of who has been winning. If you defeat an opponent right next to the person that they just defeated, there is a good chance that you will have an immediate threat to deal with if you survive. Likewise, if you lose several limbs, consider trying to fight near the corpses of your defeated opponents so that if you lose, the person who defeated you may very quickly themselves be defeated and allow you to re-enter the fray quickly. Finally, there are a lot of ways to develop that sixth sense of situational awareness. Using your peripheral vision is important, however even more so is learning to read your opponents face. If they are constantly looking over your shoulder after suddenly changing to a more defensive style, consider repositioning, as that could mean someone is sneaking up behind you.
Poisonball is best with a medium sized group, 8-12 people. It can be done with any size, but be careful with very large groups, as it can sometimes mean very long periods of people sitting dead. Also, when participating, keep in mind that while you’re alive you should be actively seeking to engage, as it keeps the game moving and helps cut down on downtime for people who have been defeated. A few ways you can augment this to speed things up are;
Whenever someone defeats an opponent, their limbs are healed.
After 3, 5, or 10 deaths, you are out of the game for the match, leave the battlefield.
When you are defeated, you can no longer use that weapon style until the end of the match, until you get down to a dagger, which you are restricted to, until the match ends.