The Desert Tiger Gerik

Hey, I'm Gerik, a mercenary and fencing instructor from Jehanna. I lead the Sandstorm Sellswords, a small mercenary group that includes my dear friends, Marisa, Saleh, and the brother-sister duo of Ewan & Tethys. I'm known as the Desert Tiger across the battlefields, but don't be intimidated, I look forward to meeting you. Go ahead and call my name if you need anything, or if you want to test your blade or get any pointers in using it, I'd be up for that too. Want to show me your skills? Or do you need any help there?

[whiskey-wolf-deactivated2020060]

And this is what happens when a masterfully crafted katana collides with a masterfully crafted longsword.

Suck it, katana

[val-ritz]

And that is what happens when a masterfully crafted scalpel collides with a masterfully crafted guillotine.

Does nobody understand that longswords and katanas are two different kinds of tool?Longswords are essentially sharpened fucksticks designed to destroy the shit out of anything resembling armor that comes their way. They shatter bone, jelly flesh, and essentially fuck people up by sheer inexorable force of being a goddamn sharp steel bar.

Katanas don’t do that.They’re not meant to withstand collision with armor or a brick wall or a charging fully outfitted warhorsebecause the circumstances of its development didn’t call for that. It’s a precision instrument. It’s designed to be lightweight, outmaneuver, and find weak spots, not go barreling into people hack-n-slashing your way to victory. It’s a specialized tool.

In a sense this reflects a core difference between cultures; katanas are a shitton of work and preparation to make the execution as efficient and streamlined as possible, while longswords are more durably and simply made in response to a climate that would require a soldier to be a one-man battering ram in battle.

[bloganddice-deactivated20190518]

Actually no. The vaunted differences between the katana and the longsword are largely myth. First off: longswords are nowhere near as heavy as everyone thinks they are, the weight difference between an average longsword and an average katana is very slight. Second: Longswords are not just random hack and slash weapons. THERE’S NO SUCH THING AS JUST RANDOM HACK AND SLASH WEAPONS EVERY WEAPON IN THE WORLD REQUIRES SKILL AND FINESSE! To use a longsword requires precision and training and skill. If you think the longsword requires no skill I suggest you try fighting a master, or go read The Flower of Battle by Fiore dei Liberi. Third: The structural differences between a katana and a longsword make little to no functional difference. The reason the katana is so narrow and has a slight curve has nothing to do with functionality and EVERYTHING to do with iron being very rare in Japan. The curve on a katana is only enough to help increase the cutting length while using the minimum of material. The differences between Katana technique and longsword technique are about as large as the differences between Italian longsword technique and German longsword technique. Because there’s only so much you can do with a long sharp piece of metal. Fourth: The Katana did not evolve. They came up with one design and never changed it for thousands of years, not once. The design process of the longsword is well documented, it went through thousands of permutations and redesigns to make it more efficient, more useful and more adaptable. Fifth: Longsowrds took a fuckton of work and preparation. Ok, I’m about to burst your bubble here, but bear with me because you’re going to learn something. When the Japanese developed their folded steel technique it was in response to the fact that their iron ore was not only rare, it was also so full of impurities it was brittle and pretty awful at being a weapon.  All the Japanese folded steel technique really did was bring their steel up to the quality that was standard in most European steel. Why do I say Japanese folded steel? BECAUSE THE REST OF THE WORLD HAD ALREADY GOTTEN THERE ABOUT A THOUSAND YEARS BEFOREHAND! Japanese Folded Steel is primitive compared to some of the shit we were producing for weapons at the same time in Europe. And do you want to know who the masters of that were? THE FUCKING VIKINGS! Japanese folded steel involves hammering one piece of steel into a fucking sandwhich over and over and over again. Viking folded steel involves taking separate rods of Iron (For a flexible core) and Steel (for a hard edge) AND FUCKING BRAIDING THEM TOGETHER! LITERALLY BRAIDING TWO DIFFERENT KINDS OF METAL IN THREE OR MORE PIECES TOGETHER AND THEN HAMMERING THAT INTO A SWORD! JUST TRY AND TELL ME THAT’S NOT THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING YOU’VE EVER HEARD! Sixth: The Katana was a backup weapon. It was literally the last resort. It got a lot of reverence in bushido because of how pretty it was and for no other reason. But the chief weapon of the samurai was actually their Kyu (longbow) followed by their Naginata (A spear, which was essentially like a katana on a stick and WAY more effective) or their Tetsu bo (A big conical wooden club covered in iron studs) and then if none of that worked then they would use the katana.  Seventh: The function of a longsword depends on the historical period you’re thinking of. In the 15th century and onward they were for dealing with plate armour and their design changed to reflect that. But they existed long before then and had many different functions, people of each period tailoring them for their specific needs. Eighth: Swords are expensive. Doesn’t matter what period or country you’re in a sword is a LOT of metal and metal is ALWAYS expensive.  In almost every culture spears and axes were FAR more common than swords. This caused a widespread phenomenon that historians/archaeologists/folklorists refer to as “the cult of the sword” where the rarity and beauty of swords causes them to become an object of reverence.  Almost every culture that developed swords also developed a weird spiritual reverence for them. The cult of the sword died off FAR later in Japan than it did in Europe which is why katanas have so much reverence and mythology attached to them even into the modern age. Ninth: Stop idealising other cultures because they’re over there.

[professor-tammi]

[vgprintads]

"Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones (Booklet)"

EGM, July 2005 (#193)

[art-of-swords-deactivated201705]

Sword

Dated: 14th century (Medieval)

Culture: European

Medium: Steel

Measurements: 40 5/8 in. (103.19 cm)

This piece is undecorated. The grip would have been padded.

Source: © 2013 The Walter Art Museum

[micaiah]

[lunarians]

HBD : Gerik FE8 by *Ariall

[soanvalcke]

[poly-hebdo]

The option to “save” units in Fire Emblem always made me lol.

[leadbythesword]

I apologize that a conversation I had outside this roleplaying group ended up having negative repercussions in it. The conversation was fandom related and took place exclusively within personal blogs. In it, I used the word trigger between quotation marks with the intention to differentiate the meaning I wanted to convey (set off an immediate reaction), and not the meaning related to anxieties and traumatic experiences. In doing so, I did not think about the ambiguity expressed and how quotation marks are sometimes used by people to make fun of terms. I did not intend to mock traumatic episodes or the people that face them. I use quotation marks for quoting, emphasis or to show the word is foreign and/or the closest word I could think of to the one I want to express; I use italics for sarcasm, jokes, titles and emphasis. I realize I should be more wary of misinterpretations, but I assure I mean no harm to anyone should they occur. I do not bring out-of-character and personal matters into my roleplaying and try to keep my character as separate from me as possible.  Should I have faltered in doing this during my roleplaying (which I never intend to do), the mods of the masterlist would have taken action in ensuring the welfare and comfort of the group. I realize now that this misinterpretation has caused others to feel unsafe in my presence but I can assure you that the safety of a group member has never been in peril, and that pertinent authorities would be immediately contacted if such emergency arises.

To rethink the errors in my word choices and use of punctuation marks, I will not return to roleplaying next week as I had announced previously, and will be out of roleplaying in this group for a month.  Once again, I apologize for this misunderstanding, and to those who may have felt offended and/or unsafe by my presence as a response to my poor choice of words.  May you all have a good day and great time roleplaying. 

[leadbythesword]

(ooc: Sorry I've been out of rping for over a month. Overthinking slowed my  writing process. I'll post a new open eventually soon. If you want to rp with sir Gerik 'ere and don't mind slow replies, I have an extra open rp from last October that is unanswered. I'm also always willing to take on any rp idea you have in mind for the mercenary. 

I should get back to studying and trying to fix my sleep schedule now. I'll be fully back from semi-hiatus once I beat my first surge of tests. Have a good time everyone! Also, late welcomes to the new members I haven't said hi to!)

[leadbythesword]

(It's not too late to wish a Happy New Year to all of you! May it be filled with health, wisdom and other good things.)

[leadbythesword]

Running from the Assailants (Gerik-Arthur-Eirika)

[zephyrguard]

For most of the duration of the ball, Arthur had stood aside to observe quietly.  Finally, he’d been able to relax his suspicions enough to start a conversation here and there.  One of these was with Eirika; for some reason or other, she’d drawn him in.  He suspected it had something to do with how worried he’d begun to get in regards to the sister he’d left behind in his own country, and Eirika was so terribly similar to Tinny in this fashion or that one.. well, he usually knew better than to lend credence to such thoughts.  

This time had been different, and why should it not?  It was a ball.  He was allowed to speak to people.  But he hadn’t planned on what happened just moments after he finally approached her.  A southern wind broke into the room, and he felt an unnatural tingling in his arm.  His mind seemed to slow, become foggy, as it was filled with a voice.  

“Go on… Give her an affectionate pat on the head.”

And to his stunned, alarmed confusion, he did so.  He had no choice in the matter, not that he could have fought back if he wanted to.  But suddenly, the heavy feeling controlling his arm and strangling his consciousness faded away, leaving nothing but a breeze caressing his face to mark its passing.  He was breathless, frozen to the spot with a bewildered expression— what had just happened?  He began to apologize, but he was interrupted by a voice; a man greeting Eirika in familiarity.  

And then the lights were gone, jolting Arthur back to his senses.  He heard the sounds of aggression, felt the room closing in as more bodies emerged.  An agonized wail pierced the air above the rising chaos, and the suffocating scent of panic and the rush of bodies desperate to escape flooded his mind.  He’d known something was going to happen, all evening— it seemed the moment he let his guard down was when he was to be proven right.

Before he could react, the man who’d greeted Eirika seized his arm and began to drag him off.  Were it not for the man’s words, Arthur would have treated it as an assault and fought back, but as things were, it seemed as though he’d just have to trust him.  They ran, the three of them, stumbling down dimly lit corridors that left the mass of confusion behind.  But they couldn’t escape completely, of course.  They were followed, and they were surrounded from the other side.   

Arthur cursed himself silently.  The one time he didn’t have his things with him… Thinking he’d be able to escape properly, and do so more efficiently with less to slow him down if need be, he’d left all of his belongings tucked away in some hidden, forgotten corner of the inn he’d found to stay at— everything except his pendant, which hung around his neck beneath his clothing.  But the lack of a wind tome wasn’t much of an issue when the man he was with handed him a sword.  He took it without hesitation, liking the weight in his hand.  It was perfect— almost too perfect.  

“Yeah, this’ll do.  Don’t worry about me.” 

[lunarbrace]

Unless it was a custom to greet strangers in such a fashion in this land, Eirika couldn’t find a reason to justify the man’s action towards her. Even though he had the same bewildered expression as she did, she thought it would be best to avoid this man, just to be on the safe side.

As she made to step away from the young man, Eirika heard a familiar voice greeting her. She knew instantly who the voice belonged to, and just as she was to greet Gerik back, everything went dark. The chaos began shortly after, when the pained screams pierced the ballroom, and everyone began to flee for their safety.

Her arm was seized and pulled suddenly, forcefully. Thankfully, it was Gerik and not somebody else who decided to take her away. Together they’d find a way out of this mess, just as he had done with Prince Innes during the war.

However, one thing worried her greatly, the fact that they were being followed. Unarmed, they would have no way to defend their lives if they found themselves in a dead end. Her fears became a reality as three figures appeared before them, blocking their path. They were done for.

… Or so she thought, before Gerik handed her the sword. “Thank you, Sir Gerik.” The blade was light and easy for her to handle, but still very sharp for an ornamental sword. It was suspiciously perfect. “I will be all right with this blade.”

Despite the scarce moonlight dimly illuminating their surroundings, it was still too dark to see their enemies and their weapon of choice. Eirika took on a defensive stance. Recklessly attacking with reduced mobility and visibility would most likely prove to be a disadvantage. It would be best to wait for an attack pattern, or an immediate opening, whatever came first, before moving in to attack.

As the footsteps coming from behind drew closer, the figures charged towards them.

[leadbythesword]

"Alright," Gerik said in reply to Arthur and Eirika, after they assured him that they're in condition to fight with the swords. "Good luck you two." The 3 figures had then entered the hallway and were positioning to attack, splitting to fight each of them individually.

The first to move forward went for Gerik, and under the little light in the room, the only thing he could tell was that they moved in an awkward and rather slow manner, but when they raised their sword, the hand motion was swift. Gerik found this familiar but he could not remember at the moment where he had seen it before. As Gerik tried to recall that, the figure's sword began to glow and a purple haze formed in front of him. The haze then turned to blue and purple light, taking the shape of a magic array. Gerik recognized the spell was Nosferatu and ducked to avoid it. The lights burst in the place where his head was only seconds ago.  

The positive thing about the failed attack was that it illuminated the first assailant.   They appeared to be a young thin man in an assassin's garb, but something seemed off. An assassin with a Runesword... well ain't this familiar to last year's situation? 

Gerik did not have to think and had to act quick. If he was to fight off the attacker without disadvantage, he had to move closer and get into a sword fight and not a magic-and-sword one. He bent down and charged towards the assassin moving upward to try and take the Runesword off his hands. It was to no avail, as the enemy blocked his move. At least, he didn't cast another Nosferatu.

(ooc: If you read what I said here, you may ignore it, it was a stupid idea, I was very confused by something I didn't realize.) 

[leadbythesword]

Running from the Assailants (Gerik-Arthur-Eirika)

Having been a castaway visitor to the island for only a few months, Gerik was nonplussed to see a letter inviting him to a Winter Ball held by none other than Lord Van Sol, the ruler of the strange land he was in. He was planning to pay the king a visit with L'Arachel, so he took this as an opportunity to meet him. He rented a decent over tunic for the occasion with some of the money he'd obtain from small jobs, and headed right over to the castle, where he saw a few more of his old friends that were also mysteriously transported into the island. After talking with some of them for a moment, he excused himself to get a drink. On his way to the table with them, he noticed Eirika talking to a man in a formal mage attire foreign to him. 

Gerik deviated his path to walk torward them when a strange gust entered the room and he could swear he saw a faint blue swirl passing by that appeared to be the product of magic. When Arthur patted Eirika's head, Gerik wondered if he was a friend or a romantic companion. But Eirika was startled and stepped back from Arthur, and Gerik thought then that it would be an appropriate time to step in, in case of anything.

"Ah, Princess Eirika, a pleasure seeing you here. How are you doing?," he said in a casual tone as he waved at her. Eirika did not have a chance to reply when the lights of the ballroom all suddenly ceased. Loud clatter like that of an approaching army was heard arriving from the hallway, and the scream of someone suffering filled the room. Gerik was taken back to memories of the ball he attended in the previous year, which was assassin-infiltrated in a similar manner.

As the crowd inside starting frantically running about, Gerik grabbed the arms of Arthur and Eirika. "Come with me, quick! Don't get separated." He led them towards a hallway opposite the incoming sounds. Although the windows were smaller in this corridor, there were no curtains so a bit of the scarce moonlight shined in to leave them under dark blue lighting. It was enough to see where they were walking on and what was immediately next to them, but not tell apart what was in the distance. And something was indeed approaching them. It appeared to be three figures, but only the sounds of two pairs of footsteps was heard running forward from their back. 

This was bad. They were unarmed because it was a formal event, while the figures behind them seemed to have skipped that part of etiquette. Gerik looked around at the walls and halls they were passing by until, just their luck, he found 3 decorative swords mounted on the wall at the end of an intersecting corridor. He grabbed Arthur and Eirika by their arms again and led them right. The mercenary took down the mounted swords which were all different sizes, maybe a bit too conveniently for their respective weapon preferences. He took the large and heavy blade for himself, and handed Eirika the sharper, thinner one. "Think of it as your rapier, Princess, but more fragile if you cut than if you thrust." 

Gerik looked at Arthur and offered the medium-sized one. "Have you wielded a sword before?" He was used to mages that never tried to fight with weapons in Magvel, but in the past year, he was proved that that was not the case in other continents. Gerik asked any way because there was no time to teach a novice how to fight with swords, and it would have been better to have him not fight if that would be the case. 

(ooc: Sorry I added a short intro paragraph on Gerik getting there since I wasn't around for part 1. I hope this is an ok starter, no length matching necessary, I just like setting up... Well, nice to meet you Arthur, we'll get onto introductions later in the thread, I suppose.)

[principilucis]

leadbythesword started following you

Ah, a fellow swordsman. Such people were relatively rare in Ettavia, it seems.

“I am Marth of Altea. Who may you be?”

[leadbythesword]

Gerik turned out to notice a young man wearing a regal blue outfit. He seemed like a noble but because he didn't add a title and mentioned a name like Altea that didn't fit the pattern of city names in Ettavia, Gerik took it that he wasn't from here and might not want to disclose his position too easily.

"Oh, hi. I'm Gerik. I come from Jehanna in the continent of Magvel. Not sure if you've heard of that one, since I haven't heard of Altea either." Gerik extended his hand. "Nice to meet you, Marth."

(ooc: hi there! Welcome to our group! I hope you like it here.)

[ettavia-blog]

[mod note!]

Hi everyone! Just a few things:

1. We were hoping to get people to interact more with each other, both in- and out of character. While we had said no to a chat room earlier on, if there’s enough interest in some place where muns can gather and talk OOC to get to know each other, we’ll keep it in mind. That being said, that’s certainly not the only way for us to get to know each other, so if you guys have suggestions on how to get everyone involved, feel free to let us know! 

2. Everyone’s been a bit busy as of late, but we hope that this place has been all right so far! We’re aware that there hasn’t been that much of a moving plot so far, but we hope to fix it soon. While we do have a bit of an overarching idea of how some things might play out, Ettavia and how it runs is largely up to you guys! So if you think something’s lacking or that something should be changed, please don’t hesitate to tell us. We’re here to help make your experience as good as possible.

And for feedback:

+ For simplicity, answer this post! + You can message the masterlist. We check it on a regular basis and do try to get you prompt answers. + Message any one of the mods, if the masterlist isn’t your thing. We’re really nice people, promise!

So, the question: what would you guys like out of Ettavia?

[leadbythesword]

ooc: I'd say I'm mostly content with how things are right now, but the inactivity has gotten quite noticeable lately. I'd say it's due to 2 main factors: one that is out of masterlist control and it is real life interfering on the roleplaying time; the other is a bit tricky, but as Mod 3/other rpers have mentioned earlier in nicer terms, the proliferation of long rp conversations has intimidated many, if perhaps not all, the roleplayers in this group to think a lot before writing down posts/responses. Thus replies are slow for almost everyone when they clearly spent more time looking at their screen/thinking what to write to avoid feeling badly judged or whatever feeling they experience due to comparison.

I'm not suggesting we should all write shorter posts, and thankfully, we don't have an elitist aura to our group, because everyone seems understanding of each other's slowness and human errors. But we should do something given the resources/premise/setting we have to correct some of this perceived 'strictness' (for lack of another word in mind as I write this). We don't have to go as far as Meme Mondays and TMI Tuesdays, or aim for something overly elaborate.  I'll probably give off some ideas for consideration soon, but at the moment, I must go to sleep. I believe we should supplement our regular rping with more sporadic or inspirational activities on the side. It would not only bring more activity to the Ettavian dashboard, but keeping the roleplayers on the dash would help in motivating them to reply earlier (if within their time reach that is). There are other things too and we might need to advertise in different forms than usual (not just making a post and tagging it as Fire Emblem). Oh and last but not least, we need to bring back that sense of community, if not via chats, via other methods that could be within tumblr. 

Uh, as you can see, this has been one of my post-3 AM rambles. I hope you all forgive whatever incoherence or spelling error I may have written at this time. Have a nice week everyone!

[leadbythesword]

[L'Arachel - Gerik]

[latrollachel-blog]

“Talking to many people? And NOBODY has ever heard of Magvel? Even my homeland?” she gasped in disbelief. “But—-how—-could—-“

Gerik didn’t lie to her, right? Innes wouldn’t like liars anyway. This was the first time she ever talked quite much with Gerik, face-to-face, and if Innes seemed to believe in his credibility as a mercenary, then perhaps she should. 

She thought again. Mercenaries were used to being far away from home. If mingling with the locals didn’t even give him a hint, then this was indeed a strange place… even for a mercenary such as him!

She locked his eyes with hers right when he said the divine grace thing. “Tell me,” her voice shaking, but her gaze stayed sharp. “Does this mean I—-I have lost—-my power—-am I doing something that wrongs the Divine One, is something happening that my forever well-intentioned deeds are—-tested—-wasted—-“

This was too much. A L’Arachel would not break down before anyone, not even the twin royals of Renais, not even before the graceful Renaitian bluenette whom she could call a dear friend. Coughing softly to ease that tone, she addressed him firmly like a princess.

“Very well. I think we should cooperate. Perhaps we could start by meeting the lord or lady of the land, castle, whatever—-to get some clue. I couldn’t promise you anything given the circumstances, Sir Gerik—-” she emphasized the title, “—-for you might have to cover the front line for me and all I could do in return would be keeping you save from the rear. Of course if we managed to make it back to Magvel I’m sure I can arrange something nice for you. Something golden, something shiny, which Innes would agree that it’s what you mercenaries need for a living.”

[leadbythesword]

This was the first time Gerik saw L'Arachel lose her composure mid-sentence. Gerik approached his hands, leaving a distance between his and her arms, then made a comforting motion that seemed like stroking air. "No, it's not like that, Princess. You  haven't lost your divine powers or committed any wrongs, to my knowledge. Eh, this is just a situation happening to us. We'll get through this." Gerik stopped talking when she gave a few coughs and brought herself together after the minor breakdown.

"Oh, yes, that would be a great idea. I seriously haven't asked the locals much about the government here, but I suppose they'd be settled on the capital in the center." He remembered some of the tidbits about Ettavia he had learned from locals. 

"There's no need to pay for my services if you can get me back to somewhere I know. I'd re-group with my crew once that's done and get my life back to normal," the mercenary said while imagining the return. "I'm barely surviving off of small jobs here, so doing something more familiar like bodyguard work would be easier. If I can aid you until striking a deal with another ruler to return, that'd be great, all I want at the moment."

[tagerrrrr-deactivated20131120]

Falling || Marisa / Gerik

[tagerrrrr-deactivated20131120]

If she knew the answer to that, she wouldn’t have been wondering about it herself. 

“I don’t know. I just…woke up there.” She turned her head upwards, looking to see just how far below she’d actually fallen. Scary, that was. If she hadn’t fallen on top of the Chief, she might have been dead by now. Or suffered several broken bones that would take a long time to heal, if not at all.

“Why are you here? And…where are we?”

[leadbythesword]

Gerik couldn't surprised at her answer despite she having been asleep on the top of a tree.  "I woke up here too a few days ago. Not on a tree but on a small boat. I'm not sure why I'm here, or why you're here; I just know I had a weird dream before waking up and that other people have gone through similar experiences here."

He told her all he knew at the time and thought it might be better to return to a village to catch up and check if she was alright. "We should probably get back to town while there's ample sunlight. There's a lot of time until sunset, but I've heard stories of townsfolk getting lost easily here."

"Are you sure you can walk?," he asked even if he knew Marisa's answer would be yes and that she'd hide any pain she might feel. "I could lend you a hand if you have to limp."