November Training

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone
What: Information and Training
When: February 21st, 2017
Where: Outside the Meeting Hall, the Far Shore
Summary: Training and informational sessions for newly arrived gods and shinki



Gods and shinki arriving at heaven's meeting hall are brought into small one-on-one meeting rooms as they appear, with a white-robed shinki offering them an explanation of their current role, the name of the god they will represent or the god they will serve, and directions to the temple that will be their new home.

They are cordially invited to a training session beginning in early afternoon, after they've had the chance to return to their homes, meet their new partners, and have their questions answered.



Morning/On the Road

New gods and shinki are being packed off to their new temples for the morning to settle in and meet their partners -- this is also a good time to visit with new neighbors or explore the area! What does your new temple look like? Are you headed straight there, or taking the scenic route to get a better sense of your new surroundings? The Western District is still scarred from the aftereffects of a recent volcanic eruption and earthquake, with fissures in some of the roads and burn scars in the wild landscape. The volcanic ash, though, seems to be serving as fertilizer for vast swaths of unfamiliar and colorful wildflowers that line the roads despite the fact that the weather is late-February chilly.

Shinki Training

A well-appointed dojo has been prepared for newcomers to practice their physical or magical arts. Outside, there are two impromptu target practice areas: one is for long-range weapons, with targets set up against hay bales at the other side of a wide, grassy area and a line drawn for the weapons' wielders to stand behind. The other is for borderlines, and a number of young children wearing short coats marked with Amaterasu's golden chrysanthemum on white are dashing around practicing their own borderlines against scary paper masks tied onto bushes or other haybales. The game seems to require a cutting borderline that will cut the mask without damaging the gardeners' hard work on the bushes.

Inside the dojo, there's room for several pairs to spar, and weapons are set up all along one wall, everything from polearms to rifles, chakrams to broadswords. They're all meant for practice, with edges dulled or padded to avoid any accidental deaths, but sparring partners will still have to be careful to avoid injury. Although there are many fewer white-robed shinki here than usual, except for the children, there is one adult shinki keeping an eye on things inside the dojo and one keeping an eye on things in the yard. They are willing to answer questions, help with borderlines or teach shinki new spells on request. Comment to the NPC REQUEST form to request a thread with one of them or if you have questions about handwaving an interaction.

Physical Training

The last vestiges of winter have melted away from most of the Heavens, but one section of the Meeting Hall grounds appears not to have gotten the message. Snow is piled waist or even shoulder high, the trees and bushes show no sign of fresh leaves, and an ornamental pool is frozen as hard as a rock, with the drifting shadows of koi barely visible under the thick ice. It's the perfect opportunity to play in the snow, and many of the shinki children are already taking advantage of it, sliding on the ice or throwing snowballs.

For those who brave the heavy snow, they may discover an an old woman in the center of the frozen area. She's wearing heavy white makeup and a straw coat, and humming cheerfully as she pounds rice into mochi. Anyone who finds her will be offered freshly made mochi and a cup of warm sake to fortify them for the snowball fights!

Rest and Refreshments

Gods and shinki who are finished with their training can step into a large room in the Meeting Hall that has been set up with comfortable cushions and low tables. Tea, liquor and a wide variety of savory dishes are available, with the drinks already set out on the tables and the savory dishes set up in chafing dishes on a buffet table along one wall. Guests can help themselves, settle in, chat, and make new friends. There's even a dessert table, well-stocked with plenty of chocolate, most of which seems to be mysteriously heart-shaped.

After eating, there are a variety of board and card games available for guests to play. From classic games like shogi, go and mahjong to more modern ones like Trivial Pursuit or Pictionary -- or Cards Against Humanity -- there's something for everyone.

In Summary:

• Get all the information you can handle
• Veteran new gods and shinki are welcome to volunteer showing the ropes
• Practice sparring or shinki magic
• Enjoy a buffet dinner and party games
• Have fun~

Comments

rest and refreshments

[revolutionfalcon]

[Shun doesn't usually approach people during the break after training, generally preferring to hang around unobtrusively towards the back of the room. There's something...familiar about this particular woman, though, despite the fact that Shun doesn't remember her having been here before. It might take him a few moments to match the resemblance, but for now, he's approached her with a faint draw to his brows.

As soon as she addresses him, though, he waves a hand somewhat dismissively.] I don't join in these things. I just keep an eye on them. [After a brief pause, he adds:] You're new.

[It's not a question. He's quite sure he hasn't seen her in the Heavens before, at least.]

[holygrailed]

[In a life forgotten and gone, there is a young girl Irisviel left behind in a castle deep in a forest in Germany. The pure white hair, the deep red eyes, they are not coincidence or merely traits passed from mother to daughter. Though if anyone was to put them side by side, Irisviel looks far less like Illyasviel's mother and more an older sister.

An observer only? How interesting. There's a light hum at the gentle rebuke of her offer, but Irisviel doesn't seem bothered by it either, accepting it as is. Her smile is still gracious and polite as she inclines her head.]

I am. My name is Irisviel von Einzbern. If you will not sit, may I have your name at least?

[revolutionfalcon]

[The name doesn't ring a bell, but the longer Shun looks at her, the closer he gets to picking the resemblance, until he finally finds it - the girl from Archer's dream. Since the name isn't the same, clearly it isn't Illya herself, but it must be someone somehow related to her, from the resemblance.

Shun watches her for a moment or two longer before answering the question, tone somewhat brusque.] Kurosaki Shun. Nekhbet when I have to be. Are you a shinki?

[Some gods introduce themselves with both names, some don't. Shun would rather be sure before he says anything she shouldn't know about, even if his knowledge is still limited to what Archer passed on to him.]

[holygrailed]

[Names have meaning and power. Her first day is far from done, but Irisviel is slowly picking up an understanding of the way people introduce themselves whether they are gods or shinki. By far, most seem to prefer their given name, but their god name is useful too.]

It is very nice to meet you. And yes, I am. I serve Berserker, the god Balor. He is also new. Have you met him?

[revolutionfalcon]

[Shun can already tell from the name "Berserker" that he's probably from the same world as Archer and this woman are, but he keeps that to himself, shaking his head slightly.] Not yet, but I'll keep an eye out now that you've mentioned him. I prefer to keep an eye on who's coming in and out of here.

[By that he means preferring to keep an eye on who he might need to work with...and who might be a potential threat. They've had severe enough ones in the past among the newcomer gods that he's not going to pass up the vigilance.]

[holygrailed]

Are there any people a newcomer should be aware of? For better or worse?

[The friendliness in her tone and expression doesn't waver. It's an honest inquiry and with the lack of guidance at today's session, finding out information through the more experienced is the best way to go. The world is a new one and one can only get by with friends and allies.]

[revolutionfalcon]

[Shun considers that for a moment before shrugging.] Within the newcomers ourselves, not really. There's no active threats in our ranks that I know of, and you're more likely to hear about our business by word of mouth anyway. From the old gods, it's useful to know about Amaterasu, the leader here, and Suijin, one of her three advisors. They're probably the two highest-ranking old gods who interact with us the most - Ebisu is another old god who's among us more often, but he has a bit of a reputation with the Heavens. There's also a group of cultists causing trouble for us right now, but obviously that's more than just one person to be aware of.

[His tone is blunt and dispassionate, relating information that he's pretty clearly got stowed away in his memory very securely.]

[holygrailed]

[Amaterasu's name she's heard in passing from her very quick onboarding and from conversation among the other white-robed shinki. She's also met Ebisu - what a charming young god - on her walk to her temple, but Suijin is a new name.]

Who are the other two advisors? And what can you tell me about the cultists?

[revolutionfalcon]

Raijin and an idiot wind god, neither of them interact with us enough to bother with. I've seen more of Kaede - the wind god's exemplar - than the god himself recently.

[As for the cultists...well, that's a lot to get into, and Shun waves a hand.] You might be better looking for information on that on the BBS, but basically, they're a scattered group who's been around for a while and doing things like setting bad luck charms in shrines and orchestrating ayakashi attacks. They've breached the Heavens a few times, so they're the main consistent threat we've been dealing with.

[holygrailed]

I see... [Irisviel's words trail off into a sad sigh. It's a lot of information to take in on the first day and a frankly distressing reality to realize. However, it's better to know and prepare than to be caught off-guard. She'll have to tell Berserker when she returns to the temple. And figure out navigating the BBS for information.]

Do the charms look a specific way? So I'm aware of what to look for at my god's shrine.

[revolutionfalcon]

[At that question, Shun pulls out his phone and flicks over to a picture of one of the charms before turning it to show her. It looks pretty similar to a normal fabric charm.] They're not that different from how good luck charms here look, honestly, but usually they're planted in places more out of the way than those. They've usually got a piece of coloured plastic in them and a piece of paper written in some obscure or dead language, which is an easy way to tell them apart from good luck charms.

[At least, if someone opens them up to check, but if a shrine is suffering that kind of bad luck then he considers it reasonable to be thorough.]

[holygrailed]

[Irisviel commits the look of the charm to memory, heeding the advice they're often hidden and to check the contents inside. She will have to visit Berserker's shrine as soon as possible and learn the layout as well as any places one might hide something in.]

Is there a way to keep out the cultists? With barriers or other spells?

[revolutionfalcon]

[Shun puts his phone away as soon as it seems like Irisviel is finished looking, and shakes his head in answer to her question.]

They're mortal, so if any spells work against them, we haven't been told. Traditional traps might work if they're stupid enough, but there's enough of them that we need to sever the command to actually solve the problem.

[holygrailed]

[It's sobering information, but it doesn't mean she won't try to do what she can. What that is she hasn't figured out, but there's a gut feeling that exists of survival and defense that can't and shouldn't be ignored.]

Is there a known leader of the cult? Or others in position of power?

[revolutionfalcon]

We only know of one, and only that he's called Sensei by some of the people associated with him. We're still working on getting more information about him.

[They're very close at this point, but at the same time, he doesn't want to reveal everything they have to someone he just met either. It's force of habit by this point, even if this woman seems more like she's trying to get a foundation of information than anything.]

[holygrailed]

[Knowledge is important and she will do what she can to protect her temple, but Irisviel also understands she is new. The information she receives is appreciated and it's not her place to press for more.]

I wish the best of luck to those searching for him. I appreciate the information you've given me, I'll have to warn my temple about the charms.

[revolutionfalcon]

[Shun inclines his head slightly at that - normally he'd dismiss the matter of luck, but honestly, there's been a lot of luck involved in the process of tracking these people down.]

It's worth mentioning so they keep an eye out for them, at least.

[holygrailed]

We will be vigilant.

[Will the shrine of a new god draw such quick attention? It's hard to believe, but it's no reason to be careless either. She will warn Berserker and Avenger and see about ways to protect their grounds.]

Thank you. Please, don't let me take any more of your time if you're busy.

[revolutionfalcon]

[At that, without hesitation, Shun moves to take his leave - which in this case, mostly means retreating back to another corner of the hall.] I wasn't planning to hang around anyway.

[It's...not exactly rude with how normal the tone is, just a bit emotionally stunted.]