the Rift


Will we not survive ourselves? Practise Spar | Levi
Ascended Helovian

Gaucho The Wildfire Posts: 1,004
Deceased atk: 8.5 | def: 11.5 | dam: 8
Stallion :: Pegasus :: 17.2 :: 12 HP: 85 | Buff: PINNACLE
Mara :: Black Mamba Snake :: Paralyze & Vorsa :: Plain Zephyr :: Phoenix Odd
#1
 GAUCHO </style>
 With fire to keep us warm & tools we made from rocks and bones
[Image: 5105621d5416e]</style>



[OOC: Since we talked about this in the cbox, we'll just assume that Levi offered to spar with Gaucho? So in the post below, we can skip the "do you want to spar" posts :P]

Gaucho hadn't been so sure about the grulla stallion who had 'claimed' him in the Threshold days ago. He spoke too much for Gaucho's liking, and used words he didn't understand. Still, however ranks worked in the Throat, apparently Levi held one of a certain status, for the way he said he was a Sar-gent, apparently was supposed to mean something to the brute. It did not, but Levi's tone of voice did. He was not one for herd hierarchy and ambitions; Gaucho was a warrior, plain and simple. So when Levi had offered to spar with him, he definitely became "okay" in Gaucho's books.

The Throat was dry and hot, even by the naturally occurring lake. Still, Gaucho had scoped out the strategic points of interest before choosing this location. It was only fair that the newcomer would chose the location, as surely Levi, a veteran of the herd, would have had an advantage other wise. Moving forward, his large hooves striking into the lush grasses heavily, he trotted a few meters away from Levi, surveying the area. The lake was in front of them, slightly to the right, and the ground was firm under his hooves. With a grunt, Gaucho spun with surprising grace on his back legs, to face Levi once again. His steely blue eyes washing over his sparring-partner with an appreciative excitement. "Levi, start." He grunted, and began to ready himself.

Gaucho shifted his weight onto his hind end increasing the speed with which he would be able to move once Levi began his attacks. The invigorating feeling of The Wait settled into his bones, as his eyes almost glazed over, as his instincts took hold. Gaucho was an instinctive fighter, rather than a tactician. His brute size was to blame for this, for Gaucho could handle more physical attacks than a smaller stallion could, which decreased his need and desire to over think a fight. Tossing his head, Gaucho raised his massive black wings; the red feathers near his shoulders glinting in the sunlight as if already dripping with blood. Wings now fully outstretched, Gaucho presented himself as a massive target, as if daring Levi to attack.

[OOC: 800 words max. 2 offensive posts, and 1 closing defence. I'd prefer if you not use magic, since this is only my second spar, if that's okay? You may begin.

Setting: Dragon's Throat, the way it is depicted in the herd image, for simplicities sake. Gaucho is about 10 feet from Levi, with the lake behind him. It is midday, and warm, but no other weather conditions should really be a factor. Thanks for sparring with me, Ava!]



Please tag me in every post! Magic/Force is allowed on Gaucho at any time.


Levi Posts: 270
Hidden Account
Stallion :: Pegasus :: 16.1hh :: 6 Buff: NOVICE
Ava
#2
 Levi</style>



The brute faced Gaucho with temptation to start. His silver gaze looked straight into the blue orbs that washed over his structure. Gaucho was surly much larger, but Levi was convinced that Gaucho was still a good fighter. His build was very strong looking and the way he wanted to go to the Throat worked out great. Levi was glad that he was able to claim Gaucho to the Throat and hoped that maybe they could end up good friends. They would be the perfect spar buddies since it seemed all Gaucho wanted to do was fight. If that’s what he wanted to do, then Levi would give it to him, but not in the way the Gaucho expected. Gaucho seemed to underestimate that Levi was good because he was smaller than the taller steed was. Levi learned not to underestimate anyone whether they are a mare, smaller, or taller because anything can happen and anything is possible it is just all about how a horse fights.

The muggy dry day would be perfect for sparring since it was not too hot, but not too cold. It was warm and it would be great weather to start with. Levi would not already by sweating like he had many other times because of the weather. The stern tone of Gaucho interrupted his thoughts as he told Levi to start. Collecting himself together, Levi nodded his head towards Gaucho and stated what he thought would be fair. “Gaucho we can fly, but not all through the spar okay? That way it is fair.” Levi tried to keep his words short explaining what he thought before he started towards Gaucho.

Gaucho was already in a stance waiting for the brute to come at him. Levi did not want to make it to obvious, so he started out just staring. Anticipating Gaucho so he got anxious for the fight to start, Levi just stood, like a rock, so that the stallion would start to get upset. Suddenly after a few minutes, the brute galloped towards him, taking every stride to his advantage. Attempting to ram into Gaucho’s left shoulder, he waited to see if the impact would come. Opening his wing on an angle, the brute sliced through the air so that he flew over and around Gaucho to his right side. As he flew over, the brute aimed to kicked at his right rib cage before landing close to his other side with his maw stretched wide open aimed to cut his neck or cheek. As he landed on the other side, Levi prepared himself for any type of kick or hit by tucking his neck in and keeping his ready stance. Now was Gaucho underestimated?

[OOC: You’re very welcome :3


Summary: Levi started the spar by standing still to make Gaucho anxious. Standing there for about five minutes to anticipate. Then he suddenly leapt forwards in a gallop to create speed to ram into his left shoulder. Not sure if he was going to ram into him or not, the brute angled his wings so he flew over Gaucho to his right side. As he flew over he aimed to kick his right rib cage and as he landed he kept his maw open to cut his neck or cheek.


Injuries: None.


Defense: Tucked and ready.

"blah blah blah."



Ascended Helovian

Gaucho The Wildfire Posts: 1,004
Deceased atk: 8.5 | def: 11.5 | dam: 8
Stallion :: Pegasus :: 17.2 :: 12 HP: 85 | Buff: PINNACLE
Mara :: Black Mamba Snake :: Paralyze & Vorsa :: Plain Zephyr :: Phoenix Odd
#3

 GAUCHO </style>
 


With fire to keep us warm & tools we made from rocks and bones
[Image: 5105621d5416e]</style>


Frowning, Gaucho wondered what fairness had to do with anything. if there was to be an invasion, or a threat to the herd, surely Levi wouldn’t expect them to play fair? Just what sort of herd had he joined? Perhaps he was in the wrong place after all. Still, Gaucho enjoyed a spar and would gladly take Levi on, regardless of his strange rules. Later, Levi might reflect on how silly his tactic had been to frustrate Gaucho, once he got to know him better. For now, Gaucho’s steely blue eyes watched Levi fiercely, though without any perceptible anger or frustration. Gaucho was a creature of instinct, letting the primal part of his brain take over entirely, when in battle. It bothered him not, that the grullo stallion remained still for so long, for impatience was an emotion afforded to those of a higher intellect than Gaucho. Naturally, Levi galloped towards Gaucho. The larger bay stallion pranced forward, but did not run to meet Levi head-on. He gauged that even though the day wasn’t so hot yet, that he should still be careful of how much he exerted himself. Later in battle, he would surely chastise himself if he felt his energy draining simply because he had charged forward now, like some young colt.

Prancing forward to meet Levi, Gaucho carried himself with an odd grace for such a primitive looking creature. He almost looked as if he were simply moving forward to meet an old friend: His head was up, ears alert, and his movements while graceful and animated, appeared relaxed; surely lacking the tension and frustration Levi had been anticipating. Gaucho’s primitive mind whirrled, creating and playing-up the facade that he was merely some large dumb brute. Meeting on his left side, the bay braced himself to throw his weight into his left shoulder, should Levi choose to try and impact him there. As the stallion angled his right wing, but not his left, Gaucho’s instincts told him that Levi did infact mean to try and knock into him. Tucking his chin to his chest defensively, the large stallion threw himself forward and down to the left, to compensate for their slight differences in height. It would do no good to hit Levi in the wither - the lower down he was able to strike him, the more unbalanced he would become. With a grunt, he felt their bodies collide. As Levi was no rolly-polly stallion, there was little fat on his body to cushion Gaucho’s blow, and the bay felt the sting of his muscular form and shoulder bones charlie-horsing his own shoulder.

With surprising speed, as if Gaucho’s blow hadn’t even effected him, Levi was suddenly airborne, gliding over and around his backside. Infuriated that his opponent could be so quick, Gaucho easily bucked into the air, aiming to strike out at Levi. As his chin had already been lowered, and his center of gravity adjusted forward somewhat from the impact only seconds earlier, the stallion was in a good position to fire his hind legs at the grullo. With a grunt, he hoped to connect somewhere on the stallion’s belly. As his hindlegs descended (either striking Levi or not), he felt a blow to his side, and grunted with pain as Levi’s hoof hit behind his rib cage, luckily not breaking any bones, but surely causing a large bruise.

As Levi landed on Gaucho’s right side, he took advantage of their differences in build, using his bulk to his advantage. He couldn’t neatly fly over Levi, as the stallion had just done to him - he was far to big to be airborne so quickly, but what he could do, was throw his weight around. Literally. Grunting, he turned into Levi, twisting his midsection towards the grulla, who currently had his maw wide open, appearing to be trying to bit his cheek or neck. Although Levi’s body was directly to the right of Gaucho, making it impossible to open his wings, he still attempted to jut his right wing out, hopefully hitting Levi in the ribs, or if nothing else, pushing him off balance. Swinging his large head, he tried to maneuver his chin up and over Levi’s head to avoid his teeth, while at the same time, rearing up and into Levi. As he moved up, he thrashing his front hooves, aiming them at Levi’s head if it was not moved, and if it was, his chest.

[Summary: Gaucho prances forward to meet the galloping Levi, throwing his weight into his left shoulder, aiming down. As Levi flies over him, Gaucho bucks at his belly. Once Levi lands, Gaucho shoves his right shoulder into him, and rises his muzzle high, striking out at him with his right wing. Rearing up, Gaucho thrashes with his front legs.

Attack: Levi and Gaucho collide, shoulder-to shoulder, bucks towards Levi as he flies over head, wing-attack, and flails his front hooves.]




Please tag me in every post! Magic/Force is allowed on Gaucho at any time.


Levi Posts: 270
Hidden Account
Stallion :: Pegasus :: 16.1hh :: 6 Buff: NOVICE
Ava
#4
 Levi</style>

The silver grullo was surprised that Gaucho was not nervous, or at least he did not seem to be. By the feeling of the vibrations in the sands, there was nothing that there was not before. Levi could use the sands to feel if another horse was tense and Gaucho either was not tense or he did not show that he was. There were no harsh vibrations from his sturdy legs as he waited patiently for Levi to come over. Levi was very pleased on how Gaucho took the situation. The brute planned to outsmart him, but Gaucho was apparently not fooled one bit. He seemed to be the type to let the fight come to him, instead of letting him go to the fight immediately. Making a smirk, Levi nodded his head in appreciation letting Gaucho know that he had done very well.

Gaucho was pretty graceful for being such a big horse. Standing at 17.2 hands, he towered a whole foot over Levi’s head and his build was bulky and wide. Gaucho was literally the perfect ideal warrior and he had a mind for just fighting. Levi was inspired by that, in fact, Gaucho should eventually become some kind of professional warrior because he would serve well. Levi wondered how long Gaucho had been fighting for, since he seemed to be extremely good at it. The bay looked picture perfect as he came over with such grace, coming meeting Levi on head on. He was a brave stallion and Levi knew that this was going to be a very good fight.

The sudden pressure of the two colliding made Levi brace himself for the upcoming pain as Gaucho hit him head on. Since Gaucho was much taller than he, the brute banged more into his right shoulder and neck. Letting out a grunt of pain, the grullo was in the air. As he was in the air, he saw Gaucho rising from the corner of his eye. A sudden pain struck his stomach creating Levi to be a little bit off balance. His stomach was now pouring with blood as he landed next to the left side of the bay stallion, wanting to fight more. Gaucho had so much power that Levi had never felt a kick like that before. His eyes watered it hurt so much, but Levi was nowhere even close of giving up.

Gaucho and Levi were side to side, but Levi was in no time to fool around. Levi was serious and he knew now that he would need to be a bit stronger so that Gaucho wouldn’t cream him in a second. As Gaucho moved his head out of the way, Levi drew his head back attempting to head but into Gaucho’s left shoulder. As Gaucho reared up towards Levi, the silver grullo reared to meet him attempting to block himself from a direct hit to the face. Gaucho was successful in hitting him in the face, but Levi thrashed out towards Gaucho as well, hoping to hit him in the face to. When gravity pulled him down, Levi attempted to strike his right back leg out on Gaucho’s left thy. Whether this hit him or not, Levi was losing energy fast due to his stomach being sliced. The pain killed as the grains of sand accidently went into his blood stained stomach.


[OOC: Aud, you are doing really well! Gaucho is a very fair fighter and I like that, but also as a friendly reminder please also always say what direction your char is in, and if they strike out what leg, foot, or what direction on the opponent they are striking out to. Ex. (right leg, left side, both of forelegs, etc.) Other than that, it is great :)


Summary: Levi and Gaucho collide and Levi gets busted in his right shoulder. As he flies over, Gaucho thrashes out succeeding in slicing his stomach open. When Levi lands to his left, Gaucho moves out of his biting way and Levi gets hit in the face by his front hooves. Next Levi attempts to head but into his shoulder as he next moves himself so he can kick his right leg out at Gaucho’s left thy.

Attack(s): Levi attempted to hit Gaucho in the face with his forelegs, head but into his right shoulder, and thrashed out at his right back leg out to Gaucho's left thy.


Injuries: A battered up right shoulder, a sliced stomach, and a bruised face.


Defense: Holds his forelegs out to try and block Gaucho.



"blah blah blah."



Ascended Helovian

Gaucho The Wildfire Posts: 1,004
Deceased atk: 8.5 | def: 11.5 | dam: 8
Stallion :: Pegasus :: 17.2 :: 12 HP: 85 | Buff: PINNACLE
Mara :: Black Mamba Snake :: Paralyze & Vorsa :: Plain Zephyr :: Phoenix Odd
#5

 GAUCHO </style>
 


With fire to keep us warm & tools we made from rocks and bones
[Image: 5105621d5416e]</style>



Even as Gaucho reared into Levi, he had not seen the blood from the wound on Levi's stomach - as his snout was raised high in the air to protect his eyes from possible bites or lashes from Levi's hooves. But as the battle overcame him, the scent of blood was unmistakable in the air. It was an acrid and metallic taste on his tongue; pleasurable, although surprising. Gaucho didn't give his opponents well-being more than a moments consideration, for Levi quickly rose up to meet Gaucho, which was confirmation enough that the grulla wished to continue despite his injury. Still, in the back of Gaucho's mind, he wondered how it was that he was injured so badly. An old wound, perhaps. Gaucho quickly felt the pull of blood-lust overcoming him, causing his vision to be tainted by the desire to wound, and maim. Still, his primitive mind was socialized enough to not flip the switch between spar, and all out domination. And yet...the temptation to feel Levi's bones break beneath his hooves was tantalizing.

As he was rearing, Gaucho felt Levi attempt to head-butt his shoulder, and snarled in anger. His hooves thrashed against the stallion as Levi rose up, mirroring Gaucho's position. Given their height differences, Levi's hooves were no where near Gaucho's head, although the stallion did successful grate along Gaucho neck, striking his throat painfully. Grunting as his throat flared in pain, his windpipe feeling bruised with each breath, Gaucho viscously shoved Levi back to protect his neck from being attacked any more.

Without warning, for Gaucho hadn't even seen Levi move* as he lowered himself back to the ground, he felt a stinging sensation in his thigh. Luckily Levi was still close - he couldn't have had time to leap away and get a full range of motion behind his kick, and yet even at short range, Gaucho felt his muscle cramp. It felt as though Levi had almost kicked the war-paint brand on his hip. A snarl braced his lips as he remembered how those brands came to reside on his hide, and he had to check himself from lashing out at Levi violently. The combination of blood, and the disrespect that Levi had unknowingly shown by kicking at that marking, made Gaucho see red. But Levi couldn't have known, even a primitive and simple creature like Gaucho understood that. Horses of the throat used words like sar-gent to tell others who they were within the herd; where Gaucho had come from, they had used brands, and the bay took his very seriously.

Feeling the heat of the sun beating down on him, Gaucho was again glad that he hadn't charged to meet Levi earlier. His bay coat provided no insulation from the sun, and seemed to absorb the rays, rather than reflect them. He felt a slick lather between his thighs, and the dizziness that came from trying to revive his oxygen-craved muscles using hot air. He wasn't sure which was warmer: the air he was breathing out in hot fast streams, or the stagnant air he was pulling into his lungs.

With a final effort, Gaucho lunged forward, leading with his left shoulder. Tucking his wings back, he hurtled his muscular frame at Levi's right flank, aiming to contact just behind his shoulder joint. Opening his jaws wide, Gaucho mashed his teeth together hoping to land a bite on Levi's neck as he flung himself at the grullo. (Either hitting him or not), Gaucho tucked his muzzle to his right shoulder, shielding his large head from a further attack, and turned into his right, away from Levi, bucking at the stallion's flank as he defensively moved away.





[Sorry Ava! I definitely thought I had been good with the directions. I tried to make things clear in this post - and I"ll definitely keep that in mind for the future!


* I was a little confused here: First they are rearing, facing one another, and then suddenly it seems like Levi is parallel to Gaucho, with them both facing the same way - that's the only way I can visualize Levi using his right hind leg, to hit Gaucho's left thigh. But it doesn't seem like you said Levi moved, only that "Gravity pulled him down". I'm assuming that he swung his butt back around to kick at Gaucho, since visually I think that makes the most sense. Sorry if I"m reading you wrong!

Attack 2/2: Lunges at Levi's right flank/just behind his shoulder, and also tries to bite his neck.
Defence: tucks his head and turns to the right, bucking at Levi's flank as he moves away.

Injuries: Bruised windpipe, sore left hip.



Please tag me in every post! Magic/Force is allowed on Gaucho at any time.


Levi Posts: 270
Hidden Account
Stallion :: Pegasus :: 16.1hh :: 6 Buff: NOVICE
Ava
#6
 Levi</style>

[OOC: Ending the spar from where Levi left off last, if that makes sense? :3]

Compelled pressure of the grullo’s skull impacted the hit to Gaucho’s right shoulder. The smell of his freshly opened cut lingered in the air. As the brute rose to meet Gaucho face to face, Levi felt the muscled flesh under his hooves as his neck was tucked away keeping his vision from Gaucho’s forelegs. Gaucho’s massive hooves were close to Levi’s face, so if he did not turn his head the bay would have a very good chance in striking his face once again. The bay was certainly a good fighter as he was very defensive, but as Levi heard him grunt, the brute thought maybe he either hurt him or upset him, maybe a weakness of some sort? The grullo would surely ask the brute if he was alright at the end of the spar. Continuing to press harshly together, Levi suddenly fell backwards from the vicious shove from Gaucho. This shove made his strike out with his right back leg harder to whip around because of the opposite pressure. Swinging his butt around to meet Gaucho’s thy, Levi had to use extra strength.

Once again, silver hoof on bay flesh, the brute succeeded in hitting his left back thy, but did not notice that he was close to striking the bay’s marking. Levi did not know that in Gaucho’s culture that was disrespect for he did not mean it in an intentional way in any matter. Keeping his attention on Gaucho now, the brute suddenly felt pain as Gaucho’s muscular body hit his once again. Teeth sank into the left side of his neck, re opening a cut that had just healed from a recent spar with Midas. Letting out a shrill that was the last time that Levi was going to allow someone to re-open a cut. Metallic brick red blood gashed down his left side of his neck. As Gaucho had grabbed his neck, Levi aimed his front left knee backwards underneath his stomach to kick Gaucho’s knee or somewhere on his leg so that he would let go as he spread his massive wings hoping to blind him momentarily. This was no little thrash towards gaucho, Levi had put most of his remaining power into this kick and not much into the wing spread.

Finally, for his last blow, went thrashing out to the front of Gauho, but Levi’s left side was facing Gaucho, not back area. It was almost as though they looked like a “T” shape. (I hope that made sense) Levi was just getting the feel for his final blow. Keeping his head high and his ears perked, the brute reared facing into the distance looking at Gaucho from the corner of his eye, but quickly leapt onto his front legs, twisting his butt around towards Gaucho. Hoping to strike him in the face or throat again, Levi let out one last powerful kick straight on towards Gaucho. Now they were both facing in the same direction, but only Levi made his last move, hoping to succeed one last time.

The mixture of sweat and blood lingered in the air, as Levi collected himself when he landed. Worn out and tired, he breathed heavily before giving a slight friendly nod to Gaucho. “Gaucho, my brother, you have pleased me. You are a worthy warrior and I believe that you can go far with your skills. Always make sure that you don’t get over angered so that you can control your body. I hope that we can spar again soon.” With a slight bow, Levi took off into the distance hoping the Gaucho enjoyed the spar as much as he did.

His hooves thrashed against the stallion as Levi rose up, mirroring Gaucho's position.

[OOC: Aud, there is no need to apologize! This spar I feel was a success as you did extremely well for your second spar I believe?

Just for future reference, I would like you to know though that when you are writing, you need to decide what the opponent char is doing( Ex. If they are hitting or missing your char. ) You cannot decide if your char is able to push, shove, etc. because that is considered power playing in sparring. I know that you did not at all mean it intentionally and I understand that, so you can edit it. In this case though, I found a point of Gaucho power playing:

1.) "Gaucho viscously shoved Levi back to protect his neck from being attacked any more."


Because you said that he shoved and thrashed Levi, that would be deciding what my char was doing. You needed to say there that he attempted to shove or aimed to shove, thrashed out towards Levi but never deciding what the other char is doing. I hope that clarifies everything :)

Also yes, when gravity had pulled Levi down, his front legs came down. Leaning his weight on his front legs, he swung around to attempt to hit Gaucho's thy. The way you described it was perfect and I am so sorry for the confusion!


Summary: Levi feels success as he keeps getting hits to Gaucho. Even though he feels as though he is doing a good job, his physical energy is somewhat drained because of Gaucho’s strength. When Gaucho came over to ram into his left side, Levi feels the hit and takes it bracing himself. Gaucho also grabs Levi’s left side with his teeth. To try and make him let go, Levi spreads both massive wings with some power and then the rest of his power went into his attempt to kick Gaucho’s knees with his right front leg. Letting it drawn back underneath his stomach to strike.

Finally, Levi thrashed out not being anywhere near Gaucho, just getting a feel for his final attempt. Making a “T” shape, Levi looking into the distance collecting himself to make his final kick. Levi reared up and the leapt onto his front legs letting momentum take over from his twist. As his body twisted he thrashed out one final kick with both back legs directed towards Gaucho’s head.



Attack(s): Used his front left leg to go underneath his stomach to kick at either of Gaucho's knee's or somewhere on either leg. Final Blow: Thrashed out with both back legs one powerful kick towards his head.


Injuries: Re-Opened cut on his neck, sore left side.


Defense: Bracing himself for impacts and opened his wings to block Gaucho's vision.


"blah blah blah."



Ascended Helovian

Gaucho The Wildfire Posts: 1,004
Deceased atk: 8.5 | def: 11.5 | dam: 8
Stallion :: Pegasus :: 17.2 :: 12 HP: 85 | Buff: PINNACLE
Mara :: Black Mamba Snake :: Paralyze & Vorsa :: Plain Zephyr :: Phoenix Odd
#7

 GAUCHO </style>
 


With fire to keep us warm & tools we made from rocks and bones
[Image: 5105621d5416e]</style>



[Ava, apologies. Thank you for bringing this to my attention and offering to let me edit the post. I will leave as is, as it is my error. But you're quite right, it was sloppy writing on my part. I should have written Gaucho shoved towards Levi viciously.... Thank you for being so patient with me, and helping me practise! ]

As their bodies once again collided, Gaucho grunted. The sun beating down upon each of their muscled and dark bodies, caused Gaucho to feel a sudden pang of heat as his shoulder impacted Levi's. His muscles were already starting to feel bruised from the multiple impacts against the grullo, and the addition of such searing heat was not a welcome one. As his teeth grazed the right side of Levi's neck, he tasted the satisfying metallic pang of blood on his lips. In the fury of their movement, he hadn't even noticed the old wound on Levi's neck. In that moment, the warrior wondered if he ought to commend Levi for sparring with him regardless of his physical condition, or to chastise him for being so foolish. In war one must always fight, regardless of how much strength one has left, or pain one is enduring, but did the same rules hold in a spar?. Given the blood coming from Levi, the warrior wondered how he was still standing - unless it was some sort of magic, to make your opponent think you weaker than you were? Regardless, the confusion was soothed by the hot taste of blood in his mouth, satisfying his primal mind.

By the time Levi opened his wings and tried to kick out at Gaucho, the bay had already moved away from Levi, bucking defensively*. As such, Gaucho was unable to see Levi's rear, or to be fooled by his facade of simply 'looking off into the distance', before flipping around to buck. However Levi's lithe movements had apparently saved him from Gaucho's thrusting hooves, as the primal creature felt nothing but air circulating around his hind-end's attack. That was somewhat disappointing - The blood in his mouth seemed to demand one more attack, to feel Levi's skin or bones beneath him if only briefly. Grunting as his hind hooves struck the hard earth, he licked his dry lips, relishing the metallic taste.

As Levi landed, breathing heavily, Gaucho assumed the battle was over. Where he had come from, spars were fairly regulated, and his instincts sensed that the brute would not solicit any further attacks Gaucho's way. Straightening, the bay extended his wings as he trotted forward a few steps, trying to work the muscles in his shoulders and hip so that they would not seize up on him later. He had struck Levi quite hard, with both shoulders. and the grullo was not plump - even if his shoulders didn't bruise, they would surely be stiff unless he took care of this now. His large ears flickered slightly as Levi spoke to him. Grunting, the beast was confused once again by Levi's words. He spoke far too fast for Gaucho to completely comprehend what was said. Turning and halting, he studied his opponent. Clearly the fight was over. Briefly Gaucho considered going to Levi to ensure that he was alright, but as the stallion took off into the air, Gaucho assumed that he must be. Grunting primitively once again, Gaucho turned and made his way to the naturally occurring lake within the Throat.

Moving in only until his knees were covered, the brute resisted the urge to fully emerge himself. It was far too hot out, and his body felt like an inferno. To drink the cool waters now would only cause severe gut-ache, and while Gaucho was a creature used to giving into his desires, he knew better than to submit to them now. Dropping his muzzle, he sniffed the water, allowing only a few drops to enter his mouth. Raising a hoof, he splashed playfully for a moment, feeling the cool beads of water as they sprinkled down around him.


[Just to clarify, you said the blood dripped down the left side of Levi's neck, but Gaucho is on Levi's right side :)

*Also, I believe this post was supposed to be your closing defence - so I didn't have Gaucho reply to any of the attacks.

Summary: Bucks towards Levi's flank as he defensively moves away (as per the previous post). Listens to Levi before moving into the water to cool off.

Defence: Continues to move away from Levi, avoiding his rear/buck tactic. ]



Please tag me in every post! Magic/Force is allowed on Gaucho at any time.


Official Posts: 847
Administrator
Stallion :: Equine :: ::
Official
#8




L e v i | G a u c h o
- - - - -
By my verdict GAUCHO is the winner.
Gaucho is awarded one Victory Point!


LEVI -- post 1 (attack only)

[Realism]
+ 1| Attack: Ram to Gauncho's left shoulder.
- 1| In order to be close enough to ram, I feel it would not be possible for Levi to fly over Gaucho, who is substantially taller, in such short notice.
+ 1| Attack: Kick to the right ribcage of Gaucho.
- 1| Attack: Biting at Gaucho's cheek and neck. After ramming a shoulder, Levi should be facing the opposite way. This is also a bit of a stretch in time, because even if he managed to turn slightly in the air, Levi would still have to partially pivot to have his face in the first direction to bite at Gaucho.

[Prose]
- 1| Easy Read: You did not clearly state when Levi took off from the ground. One moment he is running, the next moment he is flying. All you mention is one wing opening, which is not enough to lift a pegasus into the air.
0| Emotion: This post was very mechanical and dry of emotion.
+ 1| Flow

GAUCHO -- post 1

[Realism]
+ 1| Defense: Aiming to "shoulder bump" Levi in response to his ram, throwing his weight into his left shoulder against the impact. Accounting for Levi's "fat" was an humorous addition.
+ 1| Attack: Bucking out at Levi in the air.
+ 1| Injury: Taking Levi's kick to his ribs, sustaining no broken bones.
+ 1| Attack: Wing slap to Levi's ribs.
+ 1| Defense: Throwing up head to avoid bite.
- 2| Powerplay: "...while at the same time, rearing up and into Levi." You cannot say that Gaucho throws himself into Levi. This is too restrictive of language, and forces Levi to take the hit.
+ 1| Attack: Kicking front legs during rear at Levi's head or chest.

[Prose]
+ 1| Easy Read
+ 1| Flow
+ 1| Emotion

LEVI -- post 2

[Realism]
+ 1| Defense: Allowing the blow from Gaucho to land on his right shoulder and neck.
- 1| Injury: You make no mention of the damage done by Gaucho's attack.
+ 1| Defense: Gaucho's kick hits Levi in the stomach.
- 1| Injury: You do not really describe the wound well at all here, not to mention you took an attack to a very unguarded area of a horse. I would much have preferred a kick to the lower ribcage than the stomach.
- 1| Defense: You missed Gaucho's wing attack.
+ 1| Attack: Headbutt into Gaucho's shoulder.
+ 1| Defense: Rearing in response to Gaucho's rear.
+ 1| Defense: Taking Gaucho's kick to the face.
- 1| Injury: No description of damage again.
+ 1| Attack: Attempting to kick out toward Gaucho's face. I decided to award you this point, even though Gaucho is significantly taller than Levi. I can still see it as possible, as they are not that disparate, but something to keep in mind.
- 1| Attack: Kicking out with a back leg toward Gaucho's back thigh. You never mention Levi repositioning to make this attack plausible.

[Prose]
+ 1| Easy Read
+ 1| Emotion
+ 1| Flow

GAUCHO -- post 2

[Realism]
+ 1| Defense: Allowing the kicks to Gaucho's neck, trying to shove Levi to avoid further damage.
- 2| Powerplay: You cannot say that you shove him directly, again, as it is restrictive to your opponent.
+ 1| Defense: Taking the kick to his leg, further up on a less delicate area.
- 1| Injury: Your description of the injury for this attack is minimal at best. A muscle cramp is about all we get out of it, but this does not fully describe what happened.
+ 1| Attack: Charging toward the left shoulder of Levi.
+ 1| Attack: Biting at Levi's neck.
+ 1| Attack: Bucking at Levi as Gaucho feints away.

[Prose]
+ 1| Emotion: Angry Gaucho
+ 1| Flow
+ 1| Easy Read

LEVI -- post 3 (closing defense)

[Realism]
+ 1| Defense: Being shoved by Gaucho after Levi's attack.
+ 1| Defense: Taking the ram from Gaucho.
- 1| Injury: no mention of injury from the ram.
+ 1| Defense: The bite from Gaucho reopens a former wound.
- 2| Attack: This is a closing defense, you are not supposed to attack. Also, I am not sure how horses would bend their knees backwards. The joint only goes one way.
+ 1| Defense: Throwing wings out to try and blind Gaucho.
- 1| No mention of Gaucho's last kick.
- 1| Attack: There are to be no attacks in a closing defense. Kicking out at Gaucho.

[Prose]
- 1| Easy Read: I was very confused with with you were doing often in this post.
+ 1| Emotion
+ 1| Flow


LEVI

[Bonus]
+ 1| Breed comparison
+ 1| Using the sand of the desert to feel vibrations

[Injuries]
- 1| Excessive bleeding of the neck and stomach.

[Creativity]
Nothing of note.

Comments: I think you should definitely focus on describing injuries in your fights. You almost never did this, and when you did it was often less than I would have liked to see. You seem to be lost a lot in terms of positioning, as well, and timing. I would work on the basics and nail them down. They are pesky little things, but you could have done much better not having missed so many of those little details. It might seem nitpicky, but these are what are called for on the rubric. Be sure to read over it carefully!

GAUCHO

[Bonus]
+ 1| Breed comparison
+ 1| Effect of the heat
+ 1| Least injured

[Injuries]
None.

[Creativity]
Nothing of note.

Comments: You did well! I think that you have made strides in your fighting abilities. The one thing I want to stress is to be very careful about powerful wording. If your writing comes across as too declarative, it is powerplay. You cannot say that your actions affect your opponent, as that is for them to decide. Powerplay is very easily avoided by simply adding "trying to" before the attack or "aiming to". It is a small change, but it makes a big difference in meaning! That is the only real issue I saw throughout the fight.

TOTAL
Levi - 55
Gaucho - 65


Image Credit: dirkjankraan @ Flickr


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