Written by various authors
Third Line Healing
by: MJ “Liana” Rodriguez
“I was nervous to bring my knowledge to others. Originally I had said no more than 5 participants, and ended up with a great group of 8! We had immersive discussions about how Fighters can help Casters, about the importance of communication and about knowing your spells. There were interactive questions, where we all helped one another learn. Healing, armor/item repair and special items, held back from the main fighting line to protect the whole group - we covered it all. Thank you to those who attended!
Also, I had a great day at classes, and the KoR Challenge was exhilarating even while I was nervous. I appreciate the reminder that I like embroidery - thank you Odd!”
“This class was a combination of bad words and useful signs for the realms. The bad words consisted of "eat a d*ck" or other more phrases that I will not repeat here but you can ask the people who attended. As for useful signs I taught a lot of emergency signs and some that will communicate common things in the realms. It was a really laidback class and it was a lot of fun to be a teacher. There really is not more to say about the class than that.”
Dueling
by: Nate “Aelias” Carr
"People had a lot of fun at the dueling class, and it was good to get out and stretch our arms after the long winter break. We reviewed basics such as stance, proper movement, and basic offense and defense."
Problem-Solving from Eight Feet Out: Introduction to Pike
by: Kathy “Makhta” Fey
“The Introduction to Pike workshop was well-attended, so thank you to Chimeron and others who loaned pikes to the cause! We had oldbies and newbies alike, and every participant had very little prior pike experience, so it was perfect for an introductory workshop. We spent a significant amount of time on the topic of safety, then shared some technique and strategy tips. Smiles abounded when we indulged in stabbing practice!”
Combat Casting 101
by: Maria “Liselle” Carr
“Training day was a day of learning for everyone. There was a wide variety of classes that everyone got to choose from throughout the day. I had a great time in the classes that I chose. I also had the pleasure of teaching my first class, Combat Casting 101. In this class, we learned what combat casting discussed the spells and how to use them in combat. We also discussed the best spells for combat casters and how casters and fighters work together. Overall, everyone had a great time and I loved meeting all the newbies!"
Gambling 101, Tournament poker 101 & Dealing poker for fun and profit.
by: James “Tao” Murphy
“Using the electronic sign in was unique. Not sure if I liked it or not. It kept a line from forming as people went off to use their own phone, but it also added a taste of technology in a fantasy game. Like I said, not sure.
I was scheduled to run three gambling themed classes back-to-back to back.
Introduction to popular casino games; Blackjack and Let-It-Ride. Then introduction to tournament poker. And finally; dealing poker tournaments for fun and profit.
Each class had at least 5-8 learners who really seemed to get into it. I had a great time. I will say that people were also very kind to me when I could not remember names and butchered some of them. (like Vote but with some semi silent G or something)
The posted signup sheets really did help get people into classrooms. The students knew where to go and approximately what time to get there. And I did not hear of any absent-minded teachers not making it to their classrooms.
The food was fantastic and plentiful. I stayed downstairs in the very appropriately named “Game Room”, during the first 3 breaks to change up my props and clean up so the next group could have it. When I finally came upstairs there was still food available. And then more courses came out, and more, and more…..
Maybe next time make time 50/10 instead of 45/15, does not seem like much of a change but a 45-minute class once everyone wanders in could use all the time it can get.”
“Both times I ran this class, we had a quick review of folks' experiences of quests going awry to help illustrate some common pitfalls (mostly boiling down to lack of information and coordination). The class was then told they'd be facing a simulated dungeon room encounter, given a few minutes to discuss their individual capabilities, and to assume the basic skills available to other adventurers to help balance out their party makeup. My first class was almost all fighters, and my second class was a mix of builds.
Both classes did well at resolving combat but got hung up on their initial assumptions about how the runes in the puzzle they needed to solve would translate. It was a lot of fun to run the scenario for them, and the differences between the two groups' approaches were fascinating. One class in particular was fairly disjointed in their attempts to solve the runes as people bounced between puzzling and fighting without strong leadership in either context. All in all, both classes evacuated the dungeon before it collapsed on them, emphasizing a key lesson that getting everyone out alive is at least as important as completing the quest.”
Intro to Physical Reconnaissance
by: Pat "Col. Robert Vinsin" Bobell
“The two class periods ran a bit differently, as I learned the hard way in the first period that I planned way too much content to cover in a 45 minute class. After some initial instruction about moving through enemy territory undetected (Mind Ahead, Ears Open, Eyes Up, Feet Down!) we did a "stealth circle" drill in the first class and skipped to the recon test with the second class.
For the "stealth circle" drill, each student started about 20 paces away from me in a direction different from their peers, then was tasked to tap my shoulder without me hearing them while I had my eyes closed. They also had bells tied to their feet! Many of them got close, but only Azimuth managed to sneak up on me completely without making sound. We briefly discussed ways to mitigate the noises that gave folks away, and then it was the end of the class period.
For the recon test, after a brief stealth test (again with bells on!), students were brought to a trailhead and told that along it lay a mock-enemy position to be scouted out. They were given GPS coordinates and instructed to photograph the enemy's heraldry from as far away as they could while still keeping the heraldry legible in the photo.
Each participant in both classes is now cleared to lead scouting missions into Gi between now and the finale war event in July - points of interest are being hidden along hiking trails across New England for players to photograph and retrieve, and successful missions will result in favorable intel availability and stronger field positions for the many battles that will need to be won alongside the Gidan Resistance to take down the Fallen King and his army.”
Introduction to the Novem
by: Travis “Elwin” Wilcox
“For Training Day I taught a class on the Novem. This class was a smaller one with five people in it but everyone was attentive to the content and asked some very good questions. Over all I started off with a basic overview of each of the gods and what their domains were. From there I moved on to the origin story of them and how they impacted the lands of Stonewood. I then went over the Stonewood Gods War and the results of that. At the end of the class I opened it up to a Q&A session and was asked many thoughtful questions and was able to relay a story or two. Overall I am very pleased with how the class went and very thankful for those who attended and participated.”
Intro to Ouchium
by: Taylor “Tefarah”
“In “Intro to Ouchium”, students got the overview on different weapons materials in the realms, like hematite, angelsbane, sanity metal, and more! There was also a brief practicum in which students dispersed a minor demon, and an experimental (partially ethereal) automaton.”