Legends of Windemere Fantasy Bundle #1

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Guest author: Charles E. Yallowitz – We’re Not Together: Male and Female Friendships
A fun guest post on a rather odd topic.

Thank you to Sue Vincent for letting me write a guest post to help promote my newest book Legends of Windemere: Ritual of the Lost Lamb. This is the 13th book of my series and it’s where things go downhill for the heroes. Luke Callindor, the longest running hero, has been captured by their greatest enemy and they have to save him before he breaks. To do this, Nyx decides to use a forbidden ritual that requires some traveling and racing against a new agent of their enemy who is out to stop them. Of course, this isn’t surprising since Luke and Nyx have been best friends since the end of their first adventure. It didn’t take long for them to call each other little brother and big sister even though they aren’t related. They certainly have one of the deepest and strongest relationships in the series.
Yet…
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7 Tips to Fighting with Counters and Caution
- Cover Art by Jason Pedersen
- Cover Art by Jason Pedersen
Well, you knew the other two champions had to be here. At least you would if you read the other posts. Now, Delvin can fall into the strength style in some ways just as Dariana can fit into the speed or strength style. Yet, they are more defensive at times. This is definitely more Delvin than Dariana, but I tend to see her being a bit more countering than the other heroes. What do I mean by countering? Well, it’s all about reactions, strategy, and patience.
- Physical appearance and training are not as uniform as the other styles. Since a lot of this style depends on the mind and reacting, a less in shape person can use it. Being all flab or winded when they get out of bed might not be the way to go, but they don’t always have to be chiseled. In fact, a strategy could be to look weaker in order to draw an enemy into attacking.
- Counter-fighters typically don’t attack first unless they see an opening. Yes, there is a strategy to getting the first blow because you can deliver an injury, end the fight, or throw an enemy’s plan into disarray by doing this. A character who depends on the reactions of others will do this, but typically only if they think it is worth the risk. They don’t function off as much aggression as the other styles. It’s very much about caution and patience.
- For those that use weapons in combat, they might need one of two things. A weapon that fits their countering style is very important. Most commonly this is something sturdy enough to block another weapon and not designed to get trapped on contact. You need something that can return an attack before the enemy has a chance to try again. This is where the other option comes into play. Shields are very useful in fantasy combat. Sadly, they don’t get as much love as their stabby counterparts.
- For those that fight without weapons, you might want to look at some hand-to-hand combat videos. This is where you can learn how to counter various blows and the best way to take advantage of a block. You do need to keep things somewhat realistic here. For example, don’t try to block an overhead blow with your knee. Pretty sure most human bodies can’t bend that way. Now, you can block with a leg and strike with a fist, but you usually have to keep the body parts in natural positions. If not then you have a fighter who just exposed themselves to an attack. Counter fighters are hard to find openings on because they knew the tricks.
- It isn’t easy to find an opening, so these fighters have to work for it. I don’t mean to rapidly attack or dance around to create an opening. They have to remain patience and demonstrate an awareness. It’s a challenge because if you make the character focus entirely on one enemy then they’re exposed to others. You also need them to remain on the defensive until they see an opportunity. This is a fight scene where the enemy needs to think they’re winning and the audience might start believing that until the counter-fighter spots an opening.
- In regards to injuries, these characters can get hurt fairly easily. While they aren’t always as big as a strength-fighter or wearing lightweight like speed-fighters, they do require that their enemy attacks. Blocking with a limb can still cause pain and a bruise just like weapons clashing can jar the arms. The big difference here is that a a counter-fighter can adjust their style quicker and last longer. They might not have the same strength or speed as they started, but they depend on delivering precision shots and they are used to falling back and baiting.
- A secondary role for these characters in a group is strategist. Since they are prone to examining the strengths and weaknesses of others, they can create tactics that suit the rest of the group. This requires a certain mentality. Dariana can’t do this because of her low confidence and fear of losing her friends. Delvin does this because of his sense of responsibility and being sure of his own decisions. It helps that while he is blocking and defending, he can create openings for others and call orders if he sees that something has changed.
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Tagged action, battles, counters, Dariana, defense, Delvin Cunningham, fantasy, fighting, fighting style, shields, warriors, writing
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Dirty Dozen Character Interview – Luke Callindor – Fantasy
Welcome to Luke Callindor
Tell us a little about yourself. I’m . . . Wow, where to even start? I began as a young warrior who wanted to be a great hero and now I’m a champion of Windemere. That’s a fairly simple explanation of myself, but I’ve been through so much over the years. Well, I already said my name is Luke Callindor, right? Okay, that’s who I am and I’m working with my friends to save the world. If I had to describe myself, I’d have to say I’m the speed fighter of the group. The others might call me the source of chaos too because I follow my instincts, especially in the middle of battle or when we’re trying to solve a problem. Can’t say they always save the day, but I’m not dead yet . . . That’s probably not a good thing to say considering…
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Sally’s Cafe and Bookstore – Author Update – Toni Pike, Charles E. Yallowitz and Sally Cronin
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Smorgasbord Book Promotion – Air your Reviews – Paige Addams and Linda Bradley
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I Did It!
Not sure how I pulled it off since Monday was a disaster in terms of distractions and time management. Yet, here I am. Edited 200+ pages in about 2 days. Hitting publish tonight, so by tomorrow morning:
Legends of Windemere: Ritual of the Lost Lamb will be Live!
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7 Tips to Fighting with Speed
- Sari by Jason Pedersen
- Cover Art by Jason Pedersen
One of the best ways to handle strength is speed, which is what we’re going to look at this time. Luke Callindor and Sari are the big speed fighters. Their styles are familiar similar, but Sari uses more magic and stealth. One would call her a cautious warrior while Luke is aggressive, using his speed to charge in and dodge while delivering blows.
- We’ll start with body type again. Speed requires strong legs and not as much as weight as a strength fighter. This is why you tend to see shorter and skinnier characters using these styles. Unable or unwilling to develop large muscles, they focus on their reflexes and foot speed. Reaction time is very important when one is fast in battle because you need your eyes and body to respond at the same time at whatever pace you’re going.
- Heavy weapons and armor are a hindrance to these characters. They need to remain light and flexible, which is why leather tends to be the strongest material that they are found in. Daggers and lightweight swords are fairly common as well as less common weapons that can be hidden or strapped to an arm. For example, a claw on one hand won’t weigh a speed hero down.
- Injuries and exhaustion take a big toll on them. While a strength fighter can stand their ground to recover some energy, a speed fighter needs to keep moving. This is why many will try to end a fight quickly or depend on stealth at the beginning. They are a lot more cautious in this way even if they are the type to charge in. Note that Luke tends to get hurt a lot more than Sari. Another tactic, which is one Luke uses, is to slow down enough to ease the muscles and dodge to recover energy. Seeing an opening means a burst of speed, which can catch an enemy by surprise if they think you’ve been going full tilt the whole time.
- I mentioned reflexes here because speed fighters aren’t always about the legs. The arms are where most attacks will come from if the character doesn’t use a kick-based style. Think of Bruce Lee punching and you’ll get the idea. You can also show this through how quickly a character blocks and parries. You can’t always get out of the way, so this can be a lifesaver for a hero.
- As weird as it sounds, think about the clothing of a character who has to move around a lot. For example, laces are something to consider even though they never get untied unless it’s important to the plot. Still, a character who is cautious and needs to depend on mobility will think about their outfit. You don’t want anything that will trip you up like long cloaks and capes. Too many objects hanging off you can increase the risk of snagging on something. This is one reason why I think about fighting style very early in character creation.
- Just like with strength characters, there should be some mention of training and maintenance. Some speed fighters end up having big appetites because they use more energy, but this tends to happen for comedic effect. It’s fairly easy for this to be done if there’s traveling in a story. At least if they do it by foot. Stationary heroes can do morning runs and training, which you show by having them return from such an activity during a scene.
- Quick of body doesn’t always mean hyper. Seriously, why are so many speed fighters fast-talking, always moving, and kind of annoying? It’s almost like people don’t want you to forget that they’re fast. The only aspect of this that I can understand is the insults and teasing during a fight. If done correctly, it acts as a way to make a stronger opponent drop their own style and work off rage. Then the speed fighter can take advantage and reduce their own chance of getting hit.
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Tagged author, battle, combat, fantasy, fighting style, footwork, humor, Luke Callindor, Sari, speed, stealth, tips, writing
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