Duel:Naeaftas V Winter, Match 4 of the 2015 Frostmaw Tournament

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Duelists: Naeaftas vs. Winter. 
Duel: Traditional 3 posts each, with final defense. 15 minute posting limit. 
Stakes: Autohit post. Advancement in the Titans of Winter Tournament 2015. 
Judges: Hildegarde & Loraen


Heart of Fog Forest

Hildegarde announced, "Welcome to the fourth match of the annual Titans of Winter tournament! Today we find ourselves in the Heart of the Fog Forest, which sits snugly between Rynvale and Gamorg. The fog is thick and difficult to see through… hiding the feral lycans that hunt and skulk about this renowned forest. Keep your wits about you, fighters, for your opponent is not the only danger to you in this forest. Fight well, warriors! Best of luck to Naeaftas and Winter… let the battle begin!"


Winter stands across from her opponent dressed in dull gray. Gray from the collar of her loose fitting shirt to the soles of her boots. In the feline’s hands is a heavy looking double arm crossbow. Her emotionless eyes scan her opponent until the start is announced. As if it had become weightless the bow comes up to her hip and she fires the bolt for the middle of his chest. As soon as the bolt clears the bow it’s being discarded to the side and the assassin is on the charge. She’d charge right up until just before she reaches his hammer range then leaps into the air. As she goes up a pair of needles made of ice appear between her fingers and she sends them flying for the slit in his visor. As she reaches the height of her jump she twists until she’s facing him and comes down behind him. As she drops to a knee a knife falls into her hands from each sleeve. The knives are small flat knives with triangular blades. She sends them flying for where she expected his knees to be and then starts moving away. She gets some distance but then has to dive suddenly as a paw strikes out from the mist going for her head. The white feline swears and starts back towards her opponent hoping to use the armored man to distract the beast.


Naeaftas‘s ears tucked into his helmet as the bolt was fired, his shield coming up to block the projectile squarely. As Winter rushed toward him, he paid careful attention to her movements, aware that she would do anything to avoid an attack of opportunity. When she leaped, the old paladin ducked his head, beginning to lower his body. The ice needles pinged against his helmet, causing a loud ringing to resonate in the feline’s sensitive ears. A low sweep with the silvery-blue hammer accompanied Naeaftas’ kneeling turn, a maneuver that would bring his shield around to block the knives that flew toward him upon his opponent’s landing. As she swore, the aged knight was given a brief hint as to her location. Likely, she’d been attacked by a lycan, but she’d have to worry about the hammer sweep before she could do much else. It would either strike her full-on, or sweep at her legs, depending on her movement. Immediately after the knives were deflected, Naeaftas would rise, executing a follow-up swing of the hammer at what should be Winter’s waist level, accompanied by a swift incantation. If she were to be hit by this attack, the warhammer would flare with holy fire, igniting her body.


Winter goes down when the hammer sweeps her legs but just hits the ground in a roll. When the second blow comes she’s still on the ground rolling for distance. A few rolls later she’s back on her feet dancing back into the fog. The lycan had been right behind her. She would leave it to her opponent and take a moment to calculate her next move. He was fast. Disgustingly fast for a man in full armor. She couldn’t see him so far back in the fog. Not at first anyway. For a moment she lets her eyes fall into the heat spectrum. Seeing her opponent she launches four needles from each hand splayed to hit at various points ranging from his thigh to his head. Needles in the air she comes back towards him, slowly. She was cautious to come into range again. She comes just close enough to see him through the fog and then launches another onslaught of needles in the same manner as the last. She knew the needles would hit nothing but metal. It didn’t matter. Now she wanted him to come to her.


Naeaftas narrowed his eyes, ears doing their part to track Winter’s movement. As the lycan approached, the elderly fighter stood with his body low, charging forward with his shield held before him. The beast snarled, leaping at him, but his decades of shield mastery became handy at this exact moment, allowing him to shove the insignificant attacker aside as he blew past. The needles came soaring in, indeed hitting metal. If his adversary’s desire was to bring him to her, she would get her wish. As Naeaftas neared the origin point of the needles, he jabbed his hammer forward, allowing to act similarly to a lance. With his charging speed, Winter would be left with little option but to dodge or find out what the searing smite would do to her.


Winter smiles when the man chargers. As he nears her she would vanish into a sudden snow storm going three feet in every direction. She would then drop low to the ground and charge into his legs as he came in. If she dropped him she would slip away and then send needles of ice flying for the backs of his knees. If she failed to trip him she would roll away, a little stunned but still functioning. Once away she would shoulder roll behind him and then launch her needle attack for his knees. Needles launched she would charge off into the mist in the direction of the tree.


Naeaftas charged straight into the snowstorm, heedless of whatever attack Winter might pull. She hit his legs, and the elderly servant of the Cat Lord leaned into the blow, tucking his legs under him as he rolled to the ground. Ice clanged against his armor, reverberating throughout the enchanted metal and hurting his ears further. A stray needle landed in his kneecap as he continued to recover, causing the paladin to swear in Feline. The needle snapped as Naeaftas landed, and he turned toward Winter, his bad knee protected by his shield as he stared through the fog at her.


Winner: Naeaftas


Naeaftas got up, charging at full speed after Winter. Within seconds, he had caught her, and had spoken a prayer to the Cat Lord to initiate the holy nimbus. Daylight sprung from within him, which would cause burning radiance to harm his foe. With that done, the aged paladin swung his hammer to the side, the divine magic flaring out to ignite the white feline’s body. As she landed on the ground, Naeaftas followed through, bringing his weapon firmly down to rest at Winter’s throat. He would hold her there, and every few seconds she would feel the burning divinity of the holy nimbus, as well as the that of the fire which would not harm, but not destroy. For a minute, he would hold her there. “Well-played, Lady Winter, but you have failed to keep me at bay this day. Perhaps heavy armor is your truest weakness.”