Archery: Another Lesson in Concentration
Vogue al'Deem, Written by Beth
Posted on Sat, Aug 21, 2010 22:42 pm
Talaban continued his lesson after everyone was introduced. It seemed like a simple lesson to Vogue, but she listened. She didn’t know when she was going to learn something new, of course, she also wanted to frustrate the Yellow Sister who sat watching her every reaction. She knew after the lesson it would be full of questions about certain things and to get better clarification. The yellow sister would once again delve her with the one power to see if she could locate a source of the auras.
Vogue passed on the equipment, taking out her personal belongings. She strapped on the glove and the bracer, feeling more at home. The bow was a little smaller than she normally drew, as Two Rivers bows were very large. I think I might like the smaller ones. She had even fashioned her own bow for her height, but it was still larger than the bow currently in her hands. She could feel the wood grain, and the wax in the string. She relaxed as she lifted the bow to proper height. She lowered it again, this time placing her index and middle finger on the bow string, the third finger lightly touching the string. She tested the pull weight with two small tugs. Little lighter. She hoped that the trainee who had handed her the bow hadn't simply given her a smaller draw weight because she was a women. Despite her small frame, there was plenty of muscle to draw any bow in Two Rivers. The bow itself was beautifully crafted, so the smaller bow did not matter to Vogue. She frowned, and took a deep breath. She assumed her own personal bubble, or what the trainees called the Flame and the Void. The auras were muted and she could focus her attention to the task at hand.
She lifted the bow and slowly drew the string back. It was defiantly a lighter weight, but it was nice to practice. The string rested gently against the corner of her mouth, the bow barely held in the left hand. The tension kept the bow neatly balanced between her thumb and forefinger. She release the tension and drew again, this time over drawing due to the lighter weight. She corrected the error, held position and relaxed. She didn’t really want to see who was near her. She had learned from experience certain auras had a way of shattering her concentration. She still had much practice in keeping that void, because she knew that it helped to dull many of them. She remembered spending many summer days out in the horse fields drawing and releasing. She’d tried several times on the horse, but the Two Rivers bow was too large. She would have to speak with the instructor and the young Tairen after about horse bows.
She drew the bow back several more times, Talaban nodding as he passed her. She was on the end of the row, facing away from all the other trainees. He made a few adjustments in her posture, mainly from her lack of sleep, and nodded leaving her to continue to practice. She glanced over at Kahti Sedai, who was writing furiously in her notepad. She shook her head, laughing slightly. I should almost think she should be brown for as many ink smudges as she has on her face already.
In reply to Death From Above: Basic Techniques (Part 1)[show]/[hide]
Tal frowned slightly as the gathered students introduced themselves. The wind was mild today, making it a good day for archery but he was, admittedly, disappointed with the attendance for the lesson. There was an optimum size for a class of any sort. Too big and the trainees did not learn enough. Too small and, well, too small meant a distinct lack of variety in the experience on display.
The introductions tapered off as those at the end of the line presented themselves. Mentally attaching faces to names, Talaban moved easily over to the wall demarcating the side of the range. Picking up one of the simple, identical bows leant against it, he moved back in front of the class. Bending the weapon, he strung it and turned back to the assembled trainees. His low voice sounded as he proceeded with the lesson.
“This is a bow. It is usually fashioned from yew wood, the material providing both the strength and flexibility needed to project your arrow. The design itself is simple and no-frills, a good weapon for those who are just picking up archery. There are many other types of bows, compound bows, short bows, horse bows and reflex bows being just a few of them. I will not bore you with the rest since the focus of this lesson is on archery and earning how to shoot. Theory on bow types can wait for an advanced lesson.”
Talaban paused momentarily, taking a breath before continuing, “The range of a longbow is affected very much by the strength of the archer and the structure of the bow. An average man could probably shoot about two-hundred yards without too much difficulty. Now, I will start on the parts of a longbow. First up, the stave itself. The body is usually made of yew wood that has been seasoned for one to two years. This is followed by slowly working the weapon into shape, with the entire process taking up to 4 years. The basic bow has a bow stave made from a half cross-section of a tree or branch, bent into a D-curve. The inner side of the bow stave consists of rounded heartwood and the outer of sapwood with a flat back. The heartwood resists compression and the outer sapwood performs better under expansion. Longbows will generally last a long time if constructed this way and are protected from moisture with a rub of wax, resin, and fine tallow.”
What of the bow? The bow was made in England: Of true wood, of yew wood, The wood of English bows; So men who are free Love the old yew tree And the land where the yew tree grows
Leaning the bow against the wall beside him, Tal reached into his belt pouch and fished for a couple of bowstrings. Flicking them out, he passed one to each end of the assembled class, leaving himself one for his explanation. “Bow strings are usually made of hemp, flax or silk. They are fastened to the horn nocks at the ends of the shaft. Like the shaft, bowstrings are vulnerable to degradation by water and should be kept dry at all costs. Something to note is that bows should never be kept strung when not in use. This is because the constant force exerted by the string on the shaft can cause deformations which affect your shot further on in the lifespan of the bow.”
What of the cord? The cord was made in England: A rough cord, a tough cord, A cord that bowmen love; So we'll drain our jacks To the English flax And the land where the hemp was wove.
Allowing the class to continue passing the string along, the arms man moved on to the next item. Drawing an arrow from a quiver lying on the ground, he held it up. “This, is an arrow. Here in the Tower and in most armies, fletchers are responsible for the production of these. However, the best archers generally prefer to cut and fletch their own arrows to ensure consistency. At the entry level, though, this is not critical. There are many types of arrowheads, each suited for different purposes. For example, arrows with thin and sharply slanted heads are used to pierce chainmail suits, breaking one ring and consequently 'popping' a huge hole in the armour as the force of the impact knocks the other rings out of place.”
What of the shaft? The shaft was cut in England: A long shaft, a strong shaft, Barbed and trim and true; So we'll drink all together To the gray goose feather And the land where the gray goose flew.
Motioning for the trainees to rise, Tal led them inside the range. Acquainting them quickly with the shooting orientation, as well as the sacrosanct rule that one should only shoot toward the butt, the arms man sent them off to choose a bow from the selection available. The weapons were generic, mostly between six to seven feet and should fit all but those who were very short or extraordinarily tall. Once they returned with a weapon, the Talaban handed out bowstrings, showing them how to bend and nock the weapon.
Next, he handed out leather gloves to the men, to protect their fingers from the effect of drawing the bowstring, and from arrow abrasion. A forearm bracer followed, to protect their forearms from the string impact. Some of the more seasoned trainees declined, though the bulk of the class did proceed to don the guards. The backlash of an improperly released string could be quite painful.
Once all the trainees were kitted up, Tal assigned them individual lanes in the range. There were few enough attending the lesson that they could occupy alternating lanes, further lessening the possibility of an accident. Ensuring all were in place, Talaban continued, “I will now show you how to properly draw and shoot a bow. You will be using dummy arrows, with collapsible clay heads, since bows should never be dry-shot. Their weight is comparable to normal heads but they are soft. Of course, you should not expect them to fly very far. Bear in mind that aiming a longbow is not as easy as it seems. I will explain more later. Now, for the first step. Position your body at a ninety degree angle to the target. Spread your feet comfortably apart, with your body weight equal on both legs. Your shoulders should line up with an imaginary line drawn from the centre of the target.”
He pulled the Tairen, Swane, to the front, using him as a demonstrator for the rest. “Next, we will get an arrow and hold it against the string. Place your fingers in such a way, that you hold the string with your index finger above the arrow nock and middle and ring finger under the nock. Hook the bowstring between the first and second finger joint, making sure to maintain a deep hook.”
The burly trainee obligingly did so, turning his body to give the others a better view. “The bow should be held between your thumb and index finger, with the rest of your hand falling away in a fourty-five degree orientation. Now, bring the bow arm up to shoulder height, extending it fully. Make sure the elbow of the bow arm is turned away from the string.”
Making sure that all had the correct position, Tal retuned to his Tairen demonstrator. Guiding the man’s hands, the arms man continued, “Draw the string along the bow-arm in a straight horizontal line to the anchor point. Draw with your back muscles, moving the shoulder blades towards each other. Stand straight up and relaxed, keeping both shoulders as low as possible. The position your right hand is at, beside your chin, is known as the anchor point. Your index fingers should be just touching the base of your chin and the string may run across your chin.”
Talaban moved around again, correcting postures as he went, making sure that the trainees kept bow hand, draw hand and elbow in a straight line. Satisfied, he returned to the front. Picking up one of the other bows, he motioned for Swane to return to his position before continuing, “Now, the release.” Nocking one of the practice arrows to his weapon, the arms man drew. “To shoot, draw your shoulder blades closer to each other while relaxing the nocking fingers. Eventually, the tension on the string will propel the arrow forwards. Until you reach a higher skill level, your arm and the bow should remain in position until the released arrow hits the target.”
Talaban demonstrated a second time before moving to the trainees one by one, making sure they released properly. “Now, you will all practice the draw and release until the motion is smooth. Remember to aim and release only toward the butt. Carry on.”
OOC: Ok, first up, thanks for attending. Post of 450 words should not be a problem. Let your character learn to draw and release. Next part will be up in around a week. Credit for the poem to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Drop me an email if there are any issues.
@Misty: Wonderful to write with you again. Yeah, well… some technicalities with the ranking now :p
EDIT: The next part will be up within the next 2 days... apologies for delay. RL is a little hectic at the moment
DOUBLE EDIT: Luck is deserting me... my computer died last night. I'll have to borrow another machine to get the next post up. It will be up by Monday. PROMISE. Apologies again...
