January Training

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone
What: Information and Training
When: March 24th, 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 (God or Shinki), the name of the god they will represent (Gods) or the god they will serve (Shinki), and directions to the temple that will be their new home, regardless of role. During these initial meetings for Gods, paper and pens are provided as an unsubtle suggestion to take notes on the information they're given. For Shinki, there are stacks of informational pamphlets sitting out on a table inside the room, and which new shinki are offered as they are leaving the Meeting Hall.

Gods and Shinki alike are cordially invited to a training session beginning in early afternoon - several hours later - after they've had the chance to return to their homes, meet their new partners, and have their questions answered.

This time, it is implied that the Training Session will have a different purpose, so it is highly encouraged for ALL new gods and shinki to attend, no matter how long they have been in the Far Shore.



Divine Service

New gods are assigned a time to meet with an attendant in white robes with a chrysanthemum on their robes bearing a notepad. Gods can request a changed time slot, but they are not given an option to avoid the appointment entirely. Unless they are bullied into allowing multiple gods in one interview session, they insist on one god per time slot. All meetings take place in private rooms similar to those for New God and New Shinki meetings.

The interview consists of questioning the God's commitment to serving the needs of their followers, the Far Shore, and in turn Amaterasu herself. There is the matter of "A God's Actions Are Always Just" and The Gods' Greatest Secret as well, to see if the God believes these are true and important. Do they espouse these opinions to other Gods? Will they respond to a summons by Amaterasu to defend The Far Shore? (If prodded, the attendant will admit that they are in fact an Old God, despite wearing clothing similar to Amaterasu's shinki. They will claim it an honor to do a favor for Amaterasu during her preparations.)

The second round of questions are about their shinki. What vessel forms do they take, in order starting with Exemplar? How do you use them in combat? What sort of opponents have you faced with your shinki in vessel form - human, ayakashi, or other? Do you have any plans to personally train your shinki for battle ahead? For wielders of multiple shinki, when was the last time you used all of them working together?

They insist that all questions are answered. Afterwards, the God is dismissed.

(An OOC breakdown for you characters IC answers to the God Interview...)
On a scale of 1-10 with 1 being low and 10 being high, what is your commitment to serving the needs of...<blockquote><b>1. Your followers?</b> ## <b>2. The Far Shore?</b> ## <b>3. Amaterasu herself?</b> ##</blockquote><b>4. Do you believe that A God's Actions Are Always Just?</b> ... <b>5. Do you protect The Gods' Greatest Secret?</b> ... <b>6. Do other Gods know your opinions on the above matters?</b> ... <b>7. Will you respond to a summons by Amaterasu to defend The Far Shore?</b> ... <b>8. What vessel forms do your shinki take, in order starting with Exemplar?</b> ... <b>9. How do you use them in combat?</b> ... <b>10. What sort of opponents have you faced <i>with your shinki in vessel form</i> - human, ayakashi, or other?</b> ... <b>11. Do you have any plans to personally train your shinki for battle ahead?</b> ... <b>12. For wielders of multiple shinki, when was the last time you used all of them working together?</b> ...

Tempering the Vessel

Shinki are assigned time slots to meet with the white-robed shinki as well. While their sessions are shorter, the conversations are similar, and likewise held in private meeting rooms.

What is your vessel form? How many battles have you been in while in vessel form and what were your opponents? Do you have any opponents you would resist fighting alongside your God and fellow temple shinki? What have you done to increase your resilience while in vessel form? If you have other shinki at your temple, how often have you fought alongside them in vessel form? What spells do you know? Do you have any plans to further that training?

The shinki are then dismissed after all questions are answered.

(An OOC breakdown for you characters IC answers to the Shinki Interview...)
<b>1. What is your vessel form?</b> ... <b>2. How many battles have you been in <i>while in vessel form</i> and what were your opponents?</b> ... <b>3. Do you have any opponents you would resist fighting alongside your God and fellow temple shinki?</b> ... <b>4. What have you done to increase your resilience while in vessel form?</b> ... <b>5. If you have other shinki at your temple, how often have you fought alongside them in vessel form?</b> ... <b>6. What spells do you know?</b> ... <b>7. Do you have any plans to further that training?</b> ...

Shinki Training

A well-appointed dojo has been prepared for newcomers to practice their physical or magical arts. There are five or six white-robed shinki present, who will willingly answer any questions or instruct newcomers in the use of the borderline. They accompany their answers, or their lessons, with an explanation of what is expected of a shinki and the importance of teamwork with other shinki and with gods.

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. (Shinki characters who are interested in learning more about the borderlines or want to learn new shinki spells or songs may approach any of the training shinki for advice or instruction. Please remember to comment on the Shinki Spells page when your character begins to learn a new spell, excluding the borderline.)

Physical Training

While each month the Far Shore attendants try to adapt the physical training to the Near Shore's weather and holidays, the weather is fair and any festive impulses have been subdued. This time, Physical Training encourages pitting a God with one or all of their Shinki against another God with one or all of their Shinki. This is touted as a benefit to the Shinki, so the white-robed shinki make clear that certain Shinki need this training more than others. For example, the ones who answered their Interview questions saying they hadn't spent much time in their vessel form, or fought in many battles, or hadn't fought with their fellow Shinki much - if at all.

There are Old Gods (NPCs - not run by a mod) who can be targeted as opponents, allowing the temple residents to gel as one fighting unit. (OOC: So that your multi-person thread can be limited to as few players as possible, if you choose.)

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. Moreso than other Training Sessions, there is a wide array of international alcoholic options this time. If you've heard of it and you can get drunk by imbibing it, it's probably here in a bottle or glass. Guests can help themselves, settle in, chat, and make new friends.

The Old Gods in particular will begin to regale the crowd at the end of the afternoon with War Stories from the ages past, speaking of their great deeds they performed as prayers for their followers, miracles to convert the unbelieving, powerful ayakashi they fought, and other amazing feats, especially if they involved a shinki at their side - who it was and the form they took. After many Old Gods have spoken, they turn to the New Gods as if in challenge to tell better stories, mocking words exchanged that imply the New Gods could not possibly have done anything so impressive in their short time in the Far Shore.

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
• Answer Interview Questions
• Tell the truth - if you dare - or lie through your teeth... if you dare
• Tell War Stories
• Have fun~

Comments

[nopixiedust]

Having someone bend down to talk with her is certainly a new experience, at least as much as it concerns other people in the Far Shore. Wendy pauses, blinking over at Yaone as she decides how to take it. Well... It's not a big deal, she supposes. She seems like a nice enough lady, so maybe Wendy can use that for her own matters sometime.

"Well... I guess it's a bit of a story. I'm sure other people would know a lot more." Ginia seems like she has her fingers in every pie she can conceivably stick them in, which seems like she's going to run out of fingers eventually. "There was just this sleeping volcano that hung around for a while. However, a few months ago, out of nowhere, it exploded. A lot of people over in the West District had to move... Oh, you'll probably live there now, so just let people know if there's dried lava in the way." That's a bit of a problem, although Wendy thinks most of the mess has been cleaned up.

"Heaven thought it was suspicious, so they actually did something for once and went over there, along with anyone else who was curious and whose house wasn't on fire. Apparently, there was a rogue god who'd set it off for some reason... I don't think anyone caught him, although Heaven tried to act like they were successful in chasing him off."

[medicinemaster]

Yaone is , first and foremost, a nice lady who truly means no offense. Even her enemies learn that she's surprisingly kind and polite. It's just the way she is, eccentricity or not. She listens intently to the the explanation. A rogue god, then? That explains some things about this training exercise, at least.

"I see. I will be careful about potential lava flows then. I have yet to see my temple so I do not know what state it is in. Is there a way I can contact others about this?"

She'd been given an odd little device that had been called a cellphone but she has yet to inspect it or begin to puzzle how it works. Ordinarily, Yaone would be quietly going over it to understand it better but she's simply been too worried and upset.

[nopixiedust]

"Well, you can bother the shinki here about it, but they've been... pretty useless and annoying about actually helping people lately." In case Wendy hasn't made her disdain for Heaven's functions apparent right now. She starts to go through her jacket.

"Oh, but there is something- they should have given you a small plastic and glass box kind of thing? Like this!" Finally hunting down which pocket her phone is in, Wendy pulls it out to hold up as an example. "Do you know much about phones, or the internet?"

Funny, how her and Ginia had been thinking of how to teach other people about technology like this not that long ago... It really is becoming pretty relevant.

[medicinemaster]

"Oh, do you mean this?"

Yaone pulls her cellphone out of where she'd tucked it into the sash on her outfit and holds it up questioningly.

"I am not certain how to operate it and I do not know what the internet is."

[nopixiedust]

"That's it!" Good, at least the white shinki are remembering to do one of the actual important things. Wendy twists her phone around to how the side. "If you hold down on this little button here, it will help turn it on. Then, the screen will pop up with different titled pictures, including a list of people in the Far Shore. If you click on them, you get to choose if you want to write to them or call them to talk with them."

That's the most basic function of the phone. So long as she can impart that, then it's mostly fine.

[medicinemaster]

"Thank you, miss. That is a great help."

Yaone means it, truly. It certainly looks and sounds like a fascinating device. She'll have to play around it and explore it thoroughly to fully learn it and how to put it to use. It's simply how she operates.

"Does it serve any other function or is it used only for communication?"

[nopixiedust]

"No, there's a bunch more stuff, too. For example... Hm." Pausing, Wendy presses a finger to her cheek. "It's a little out there to explain..." At least, Wendy had found it to be pretty miraculous, when she first learned about it herself. She's never thought about how to explain it before.

"Basically... People can kind of generally share things? Like, a call is one on one, usually, but, through the connection everyone shares, a single person can put something out there in public. Sort of like, um..." She tilts her head from side to side. "A public library where everyone else could put whatever books they wanted there? Only there's more than books."

[medicinemaster]

"I think I see what you mean. It sounds like an amazing device. I shall experiment with it soon."

Not only will familiarizing herself with the technology of this world be a boon for the future, it will keep her distracted when she needs it.

"Again, thank for your time, miss."

Yaone straightens up to her full height. Bending over like was beginning to put a little strain on her back.

[nopixiedust]

"It's no problem." Hopping back so that Yaone doesn't need to crane her neck so much, Wendy points at herself with a smile.

"Heaven might be recently pretty useless, but I'm not!" What? It's true. "So if you need any help, feel free to ask some of the other people who are in your position. For the most part, people are pretty helpful here."

[medicinemaster]

Yaone's lips quirk with amusement. It's not as if she has many charitable thoughts toward Heaven right now herself given the poor impression they've made. She's willing to believe that of the other foreigners to this land. So far, most have been very kind and helpful toward her.

"I will keep that in mind."

There's a brief pause before Yaone speaks again.

"Oh! I do not believe I caught your name, miss. I am Yaone."

[nopixiedust]

"Oh, I'm Wendy." Right, she needs to remember to do introductions... This whole mess has really thrown her off her game. She'd do a curtsy if she was wearing the dress for it so, in absence of that, she just beams and waves her hand a little bit.

"If you ever need to find me or want help, you can find me at Hibiki's temple. She's the god Apollo right now. You'll recognize her temple over in the Central District because it's the most obnoxious one that's around there right now." Well, even if she says 'right now', it's hard to imagine a temple that could outdo Hibiki's...

[medicinemaster]

That description actually coaxes a soft, lady-like giggle out of Yaone. So she should be on the lookout for an ostentatious temple, huh. She thinks that she can manage that.

"I shall keep an eye out for it sometime again. Hopefully, we will be able to speak again on a better day than this. It has been a pleasure meeting you, Miss Wendy."

Wendy seems like a unique, colorful individual herself and Yaone just happens to like people of that sort quite a bit.