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fandomhigh2012-03-12 11:18 am
furious-maximus.livejournal.com) wrote in fandomhigh2012-03-12 11:18 am
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Defending Yourself [Monday, Period 1]
This week the Danger Shop was configured to mirror the lobby of the dorms, and Max was leaning against the wall near the door with an expression that was a cross between stern and amused settled across his face.
"So far this semester, we've mostly talked about how to defend yourself when you aren't ready. When someone jumps out at you, or you suddenly find yourself on the wrong side of a dangerous invasion." Max shrugged. "And, often, that's how it happens. It's also what people tend to need the most practice getting ready for."
"But it's not always that way. Sometimes you know you need to defend yourself. You see the threat coming. Of course, in many situations, this just makes it really easy to get away. You catch the next portal out of town, or whatever it is you need to do."
Max's eyes narrowed. "But sometimes you can't leave."
"There are any number of reasons that might be true, but most of them boil down to there being someone or something that you can't leave behind, and that you can't get to come with you." By now, given Fandom, Max was sure that more than a few of his students totally understood exactly what he meant.
"So if you're not going to use the extra time that knowing ahead of time brings to get away, you might as well use it for something that might keep you and yours safe: preparing. We've talked already about how important terrain can be when you're fighting for your life, but that's mostly been in the context of finding the right terrain. Things change when you have time to prepare because that means you can, to some degree, build new terrain. You can erect walls, or knock them down. You can reinforce doors. You can prepare booby traps. You can generally set things up to go your way as much as possible."
"There is something important to remember, though: just because you have time to prepare, doesn't mean you have infinite time to prepare. There are limits on how long you probably have before whatever you're preparing for happens, and that means you need to prioritize what you focus your time and energy on."
"We'll be talking about this for the next couple of weeks. This week is a simple chance for you all to see what you already know. The Danger Shop is configured to mirror the first two floors of the dorms. You have until the end of class to turn this place into as much of a fortress as you can manage."
Max smirked slightly. "You might find it helpful to work in groups, but that's up to you."
"So far this semester, we've mostly talked about how to defend yourself when you aren't ready. When someone jumps out at you, or you suddenly find yourself on the wrong side of a dangerous invasion." Max shrugged. "And, often, that's how it happens. It's also what people tend to need the most practice getting ready for."
"But it's not always that way. Sometimes you know you need to defend yourself. You see the threat coming. Of course, in many situations, this just makes it really easy to get away. You catch the next portal out of town, or whatever it is you need to do."
Max's eyes narrowed. "But sometimes you can't leave."
"There are any number of reasons that might be true, but most of them boil down to there being someone or something that you can't leave behind, and that you can't get to come with you." By now, given Fandom, Max was sure that more than a few of his students totally understood exactly what he meant.
"So if you're not going to use the extra time that knowing ahead of time brings to get away, you might as well use it for something that might keep you and yours safe: preparing. We've talked already about how important terrain can be when you're fighting for your life, but that's mostly been in the context of finding the right terrain. Things change when you have time to prepare because that means you can, to some degree, build new terrain. You can erect walls, or knock them down. You can reinforce doors. You can prepare booby traps. You can generally set things up to go your way as much as possible."
"There is something important to remember, though: just because you have time to prepare, doesn't mean you have infinite time to prepare. There are limits on how long you probably have before whatever you're preparing for happens, and that means you need to prioritize what you focus your time and energy on."
"We'll be talking about this for the next couple of weeks. This week is a simple chance for you all to see what you already know. The Danger Shop is configured to mirror the first two floors of the dorms. You have until the end of class to turn this place into as much of a fortress as you can manage."
Max smirked slightly. "You might find it helpful to work in groups, but that's up to you."