Amaya Blackstone (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
special_rabbit) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
fandomhigh2022-01-26 04:51 am
special_rabbit) wrote in fandomhigh2022-01-26 04:51 am
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Weaponry; Wednesday, Second Period [01/26].
"Morning, everyone!" Amaya greeted the class with the usual eagerness that came with the prospect of getting to blather on about weapons to a captive audince for a certain amount of time. "And welcome back! I hope you're feeling limber and ready to work those arms, because today, we're moving onto what's been turning out to be a favorite around the island, and, really, it's no surprise, and that is axes!"
"Which every woman," Rosa interjected, despite there just being the one girl in the class this semester, but, hey, woman in this context clearly meant everyone, "should have."
And then went back to being probably a little distracting during Amaya's lecture because she couldn't help herself from going over and inspecting all the axes and choosing a few favorites to lob into all those tree trunks while waiting for the fun part of the class to start.
"The axe," said Amaya, hoisting up a simple, almost crude looking one, "is one of mankind's oldest tools, and, unlike a lot of weapons, it's main function is as a tool. It just also happens to make a great weapon as well. And it's pretty simple, too, when you get right down to it, consisiting of a handle, called a haft, and a head, and back in those early days, it didn't even have the haft, it was just a piece of sharp stone. They're simple machines, fitting into the category of a wedge, due to the shape of the head and how it's used to wedge itself into a material. These days, the head of an axe is usually made of a strong metal, curved on the edges, but what back in their advent, they were roughly hewn pieces of stone, and they were used for a wide variety of tasks, not just chopping wood as they're associated with now. They were used for butching animals, for digging up food...it was generally an all-purpose sort of tool until people started refining the process and making tools like knives and hoes that were better suited for those individual tasks.
"There are, essentially, two different kinds of axes," both of which she hoisted up now to show, "non-shaft-hole axes and shaft-hole axes, and then there's plenty of variety within each of those categories, but we don't have all the time to get into that. So a non-shaft-hole axe is an axe where there's no hole in the head for the handle; they're typically made from flint, greenstone, or slate, while a shaft-hole axe does have a hole for the handle, as you can see here, it just goes right through the head by design, and these are your weapon-type axes by far, no worrying about...flying off the handle, as it were, with these ones!
"And actually making an axe head is great, there's actually probably as many different styles and shapes of axeheads as there are swords, and it requires a bit more in the way of actually shaping and upsetting the steel to get those interesting and essential curves and points. You want a good, solid strong axehead, but it's also got to be light; not much uses if it looks pretty but you can't even weild it well! The broad shape also allows for a smith to put in some intricate etching details if they want, as well, which is why axes are very popular as decorative or ceremonial pieces as well.
"With an axe, there are, essentially, eleven parts." And, lucky you, students, you were going to learn about each and every one of them, from bit to beard to butt, in loving details from a woman who clearly found the minute changes in them amazing. Even after she covered it all, it seemed as though she could probably go on into even more detail, somehow, but there was only so much time!
"Now, as I mentioned, a tool axe can still be used as a weapon axe. Technically speaking, anything can be used as a weapon, and tool axes already have a great base for that down. But axes specifically suited for combat, called battle axes began to develop into their own thing, and there's a wide variety of types. They tend to be a bit larger, intending to really pack a punch rather than being a fast and efficient sort of tool; however, their handles are longer for a better swing and the metal on the head tends to be thinner to help make them light enough to be used effectively. But don't go too long on the handle, because then we're getting to halberd territory, and that's a whole 'nother unit! Smaller axes, with similarly smaller handles, intended to be used as a projectile weapon also came into development, and we call those our throwing axes. I will say this about people who name weapons: they're very efficient, no room for second guesses as to what they're talking about! And, of course, a throwing axe doesn't necessarily have to be just for throwing; they'll make a good hatchet in a pinch, and I know the one Detective Diaz carries around with her pretty much everywhere is usually used that way. And, technically speaking, a battle axe can also be a throwing axe, but if you're about to do that....please let me know, because that's something I'd really like to see in action.
"Today, we'll be focusing on those two types: the battle axe and the throwing axe, and we're focusing on them as weapons, not tools, so we won't be chopping down any trees, these are just for show."
There was, however, a slight pause.
"I mean, unless you really want to. Actually, yeah. Sure. If anyone wants to chop down some fake trees today, come with me, we'll work on that, and those of you more interested in throwing 'em or hackin' with 'em can go with Detective Diaz. Why not? I won't even make you wear flannel."
With that, Amaya concluded herramble lecture and turned a faint grin to the students. "Are there any questions? If not, I'll turn it on over to Detective Diaz."
"Which every woman," Rosa interjected, despite there just being the one girl in the class this semester, but, hey, woman in this context clearly meant everyone, "should have."
And then went back to being probably a little distracting during Amaya's lecture because she couldn't help herself from going over and inspecting all the axes and choosing a few favorites to lob into all those tree trunks while waiting for the fun part of the class to start.
"The axe," said Amaya, hoisting up a simple, almost crude looking one, "is one of mankind's oldest tools, and, unlike a lot of weapons, it's main function is as a tool. It just also happens to make a great weapon as well. And it's pretty simple, too, when you get right down to it, consisiting of a handle, called a haft, and a head, and back in those early days, it didn't even have the haft, it was just a piece of sharp stone. They're simple machines, fitting into the category of a wedge, due to the shape of the head and how it's used to wedge itself into a material. These days, the head of an axe is usually made of a strong metal, curved on the edges, but what back in their advent, they were roughly hewn pieces of stone, and they were used for a wide variety of tasks, not just chopping wood as they're associated with now. They were used for butching animals, for digging up food...it was generally an all-purpose sort of tool until people started refining the process and making tools like knives and hoes that were better suited for those individual tasks.
"There are, essentially, two different kinds of axes," both of which she hoisted up now to show, "non-shaft-hole axes and shaft-hole axes, and then there's plenty of variety within each of those categories, but we don't have all the time to get into that. So a non-shaft-hole axe is an axe where there's no hole in the head for the handle; they're typically made from flint, greenstone, or slate, while a shaft-hole axe does have a hole for the handle, as you can see here, it just goes right through the head by design, and these are your weapon-type axes by far, no worrying about...flying off the handle, as it were, with these ones!
"And actually making an axe head is great, there's actually probably as many different styles and shapes of axeheads as there are swords, and it requires a bit more in the way of actually shaping and upsetting the steel to get those interesting and essential curves and points. You want a good, solid strong axehead, but it's also got to be light; not much uses if it looks pretty but you can't even weild it well! The broad shape also allows for a smith to put in some intricate etching details if they want, as well, which is why axes are very popular as decorative or ceremonial pieces as well.
"With an axe, there are, essentially, eleven parts." And, lucky you, students, you were going to learn about each and every one of them, from bit to beard to butt, in loving details from a woman who clearly found the minute changes in them amazing. Even after she covered it all, it seemed as though she could probably go on into even more detail, somehow, but there was only so much time!
"Now, as I mentioned, a tool axe can still be used as a weapon axe. Technically speaking, anything can be used as a weapon, and tool axes already have a great base for that down. But axes specifically suited for combat, called battle axes began to develop into their own thing, and there's a wide variety of types. They tend to be a bit larger, intending to really pack a punch rather than being a fast and efficient sort of tool; however, their handles are longer for a better swing and the metal on the head tends to be thinner to help make them light enough to be used effectively. But don't go too long on the handle, because then we're getting to halberd territory, and that's a whole 'nother unit! Smaller axes, with similarly smaller handles, intended to be used as a projectile weapon also came into development, and we call those our throwing axes. I will say this about people who name weapons: they're very efficient, no room for second guesses as to what they're talking about! And, of course, a throwing axe doesn't necessarily have to be just for throwing; they'll make a good hatchet in a pinch, and I know the one Detective Diaz carries around with her pretty much everywhere is usually used that way. And, technically speaking, a battle axe can also be a throwing axe, but if you're about to do that....please let me know, because that's something I'd really like to see in action.
"Today, we'll be focusing on those two types: the battle axe and the throwing axe, and we're focusing on them as weapons, not tools, so we won't be chopping down any trees, these are just for show."
There was, however, a slight pause.
"I mean, unless you really want to. Actually, yeah. Sure. If anyone wants to chop down some fake trees today, come with me, we'll work on that, and those of you more interested in throwing 'em or hackin' with 'em can go with Detective Diaz. Why not? I won't even make you wear flannel."
With that, Amaya concluded her
Sign In - Weaponry, 01/26.
Re: Sign In - Weaponry, 01/26.
Re: Sign In - Weaponry, 01/26.
Re: Sign In - Weaponry, 01/26.
Listen to the Lecture - Weaponry, 01/26.
Listen up, take notes, pass notes, try not to giggle too much over your teacher being so excited to talk about butts and knobs. And feel free to axe questions until that pun gets old!
(Which, for the record, is never).
Class Activity: Throwing Axes - Weaponry, 01/26.
"Alright, the good stuff," Rosa started. "Throwing axes. It's a skill worth knowing, because there's nothing more satisfying that cleaving an axe into someone's face from a good distance, especially if they're close enough that you can still hear the crunch."
She'd clearly missed her calling as a poet, painting a picture with her words like that.
"But it takes some work and some practice getting to that point. Throwing an axe is all about knowing how and where to grip the axe and, most importantly, about when to release it. If you're new to axe throwing, you're going for the two-handed, over the head method, like this." She took a moment to show them, "which looks stupid and isn't good in an intense fight situation, but it'll get the technique down and get to your axe where you want it to go. Both hands on the axe, firm, and I'd say like you'd hold a baseball bat, but I'm pretty sure not even half of you even know what baseball it. Bring the axe over your head, lean back a little, and then swing forward," which Rosa did, "release," and there went the axe, smashing perfectly into the center of the target on the tree, "and there you go.
"That's the basics," she said. "When you get that down, try it one handed." Which, of course, she was also going to show. "Swing one arm down to your side, bringing it up quickly behind you once it passes your leg. Swing it back up, forward, until its over your head, and then, when you come back down again, release," look at it go!, "when your arm is parallel to the ground."
Clunk! The second axe landed just shy of the first one, and Rosa turned her attention to the students.
"Easy, right? Go on, then, pick up an axe, get throwing, I'll see how you're doing and we'll go from there."
Re: Class Activity: Throwing Axes - Weaponry, 01/26.
She threw it, hit the target but she misjudged and threw it too hard and ended up splitting the tree in half with her axe.
“Oh,” Alara blinked a bit as she stared at the tree, “oops,” she was getting into the lumberjacking a bit early.
Re: Class Activity: Throwing Axes - Weaponry, 01/26.
That proved to be a bit of a missjudge on his part. Turns out throwing axes took a bit more coordination than he anticipated. Especially trying to figure out the throwing technique when trying to compensate for his speed, strength, and flexibility.
"Hummm... that didn't work quite right either" he said as another axe hit and barely stuck into the wood. "At least it stuck this time?" Consider there were several other axes laying around that had bounced off the target completely, Kurt considered this a good bit of progress honestly.
Re: Class Activity: Throwing Axes - Weaponry, 01/26.
Then once he'd at least picked up the axe, he swung it and released it but he ended up falling to the ground when he did.
This was apparently going to be a thing.
Well he hit the target at least?
Class Activity: Battle Axes - Weaponry, 01/26.
She took a moment to go over basic form and a few strikes, and then went into more detail, with a variety of specialized moves that they could all find useful and interesting to try.
Against a line of targets that were definitely doors, because Amaya still thought that was hilarious and really knew how to drag a joke so deep into the ground you'd think they were using shovels instead of axes.
Class Activity: Cut Down Trees - Weaponry, 01/26.
Talk to the Teachers - Weaponry, 01/26.
Re: Talk to the Teachers - Weaponry, 01/26.
Re: Talk to the Teachers - Weaponry, 01/26.
Rosa will not talk at all, actually, if she can help it.
OOC - Weaponry, 01/26.