After Fendar had given out their spar assignments he turned his pale tan gaze toward his sparring partner, a tri-colored young man. He was a fair bit younger than himself, perhaps a bit less experienced, but Nikolai also knew it had been quite some time since he had fought and his trick knee always put him at a slight disadvantage. A very fair pairing he thought. He smiled to Sigmarr and gave a small nod before standing and stretching out his limbs and moving off away from the group to give them both plenty of room to fight. 

"Would you like the first move then?" he would ask with a grin as he began to set his defenses. His paws would spread into a even, widened stance and his toes spread to give him better balance, his claws also digging into the dry soil of the Rock Garden. His neck would fall even with his spine along with his tail while his hackles raised and bunched his scruff protectively up around his neck. He knew all too well that he had to over compensate his balance for his knee so he took every measure possible to do just that. His ears fell back against his skull, his pale eyes narrowed, and his lips pulled up in a snarl. He waited for his opponent to take his first move, his muscles tensing in preparation. 

ooc: sorry, edited cause forgot to close the bolded words tag xD

"Speech" 'thoughts'

Sigmarr followed Nikolai to a clearing as the wolves around them paired up to begin sparring.  His time slaving in the ring had made his battle style crude and ill suited toward friendly sparring but he would control himself, he had too… mind drifted to Sindri and how he'd hurt her.  What he wanted now, more than ever was control in his life but it seemed to be ever out of his reach.  The man, Nikolai seemed a pleasant fellow and it wasn't often Sigmarr met another of his height.  They were well matched. "Um.. yea sure, I'll take the first move." Sigmarr tried to smile, the gesture coming across far more shy than he meant it too.  Taking a few deep breaths he moved to set his defenses and begin the match.  Ice blue eyes narrowed as his ears laced to his head, hackles rising as he tried to mentally prepare himself for the battle to come.  Head and tail lowered to align with his spine as his chin tucked just slightly.  A growl hissed from the boy's throat as he psyched himself up.  Jaws parted at the ready as his shoulders rolled forward and neck scrunched back.  Legs spread equidistant apart, bearing his weight evenly as limbs coiled to both lower his center of gravity and to prep him to move at a moments notice.  Toes splayed and claws dug into the earth.  Time to do this. Musclar limbs uncoiled as the young man launched himself at Nikolai.  Sigmarr attempted to close the distance between them as well as trying to come at the earthen male head on, though slightly [an inch or two] to Nikolai's right.  Sigmarr aimed to keep his body low, his head twisting up and to his own left as he sought to catch Nikolai's lower jaws in his own.  Sigmarr aimed for his upper fangs to land just in front of the corner of Nikolai's right sided jaw and his lower fangs just in front of the corner of Nikolai's left-sided jaw.  Sigmarr hoped to get a powerful hold from which he could sprain the other male's jaw.  In addition to the bite, Sigmarr attempted to throw his right shoulder forward, aiming to collide the front of his shoulder blade into the grove between Nikolai's left shoulder and chest.  He hoped to seriously bruise the area and strain the muscles and ligaments there.   As he shifted to throw his right shoulder his weight shifted as well to balance over his back legs and front right leg.  Sigmarr attempted to lift his left front paw and slam it down on Nikolai's right front paw in an attempt to strain and maybe fracture the toes in the others paw. Sigmarr vs. Nikolai for Spar Rd. 1 of ? "Speech"

Nikolai double checked his defenses while he waited for Sigmarr to do the same and for him to make his first attack. His legs were in a widened, more stable stance, his toes spread, his claws digging into the ground. His ears folded back and his eyes narrowed while his head and tail remained even with his spine. His knees were slightly bent and his lips were pulled back to expose his teeth, his hackles raised so the skin would bunch around his neck to protect the vital veins there. As he tightened his muscles to brace for the first attack, he made sure to adjust his stance to account for his unstable right foreleg, leaning more of his weight on his other three legs than that one. He didn't want to tire out his trick knee before the fight even started.

Sigmarr started out with a bang, coming head on like a bullet. His opponent went slightly to his right and since Nikolai was already leaning more toward his left to keep the weight mostly off that leg he took a sidestep to his left so that when Sigmarr attempted to throw his shoulder into Nikolai's chest it hit more toward the middle of his chest instead of by his left shoulder bone. Moderate bruising would bloom across his chest from that, but since he had changed positions it would displace the rest of Sigmarr's attacks. Instead of latching on to his lower jaw, Sigmarr's teeth bit into Nikolai's right cheek, the teeth of his lower jaw scraping Nikolai's right lower jaw. The moderate cuts his teeth left behind stung and blood stained his earthen hued fur. His move toward his left also left his right paw out of reach, escaping Sigmarr's left paw that came down and landed right next to his right paw instead. He would balance himself onto all four paws again, keeping his stance even and knees bent as he moved.

Immediately he would spring into action, retaliating with attacks of his own. He kept his chest pressed tight to Sigmarr's shoulder, hoping to keep the boy from attempting another shoulder check like he had done before. He then turned his head to the right and lashed out with open jaws, hoping to bite down hard into the skin on Sigmarr's side, right behind the boy's elbow. He wanted to inflict some moderate lacerations there, wanting to cause some pain and irritation in a place that would impede the boy's movements. He would not attempt to latch on there however, instead bringing his head down lower in the same movement once his teeth left Sigmarr's side. He would aim his second bite for Sigmarr's right foreleg, hoping to latch onto the limb at the half way point between his elbow and ankle. He wanted to get a solid grip, not quite crushing the limb but still causing plenty of damage to the skin and flesh there. He wanted to keep the boy in close quarters so that he wouldn't have to chase after him and risk his elbow giving out on him. He would be sure to keep his hackles raised and shoulders rolled forward, knowing full well that the back of his neck and scruff would be exposed to his opponent in this position.

Sigmarr vs Nikolai for spar round 1/2

"Speech" 'thoughts'

No light, No light In your bright blue eyes I never new daylight could be so violent Nikolai side-stepped to his left as the males clashed in battle causing Sigmarr's right shoulder to hit the other male squarely in the middle of his chest.  The impact caused light bruising to Sigmarr's shoulder and he winced at the impact.  Sigmarr's paw slam missed altogether and as soon as it met earth again he quickly moved to evenly distribute his weight amongst his limbs.  His bite missed a grasp on Nikolai's lower jaw and instead sank into the center of Nikolai's right cheek.  Sigmarr quickly checked his defenses, knowing that Nikolai would retaliate in less than a second.  Eyes remained narrowed and ears tucked, hackles were raised as he sought to align his head and tail with his spine as much as possible given his current position.  Chin tilted to tuck just slightly as his neck scrunched back and shoulders rolled forward.  Legs spread equidistant apart, lowering his center of gravity and evenly distributing his weight.  Toes splayed and claws dug into earth. Sigmarr saw Nikolai's head duck down as the other moved in to attack.  The pale male's legs coiled as he attempted to shuffle several steps to his own right and to the back to get out of reach of the other male but he was too close to fully get away.  Nikolai's fangs tore into the flesh just above his right elbow causing moderate lacerations.  Blood stained his fur and caused him to yelp in pain but his back and rightwards motion managed to keep him out of reach of Nikolai's grip attempt but the males fangs still grazed the flesh along the front of his right foreleg mid distance between elbow and ankle. Sigmarr curved his head down and aimed to return the volley of attacks.  Jaws parted as Sigmarr attempted to aim his head down in a fierce bite as he hoped to grasp Nikolai's head in his jaws. Sigmarr aimed for his top jaws to land just to the right of Nikolai's right eye and his lower jaws just to the left of Nikolai's left eye.  He wanted a grip from which he could control the other males head and prevent further damage to his delicate forelegs.  In addition to the bite Sigmarr shifted his weight to his left foreleg and back legs as he attempted to lift his right forepaw so he could bring it down on the other males left fore paw in another attempt to sprain the other males toes. Sigmarr vs Nikolai for spar Rd. 2 of 2

ooc: Thank you for being so patient x_x And I'll throw this into judging as soon as I'm done! Nikolai watched his defenses as he launched his attacks, never wanting to be caught off guard. His eyes were narrowed and his ears were folded back against his skull. His muscles remained tensed and ready to move at a moments notice. His stance was spread evenly under him and his knees were bent slightly to give him more freedom of movement. He spread his toes and dug his claws into the earth while he tried to keep his neck and tail as level with his spine as he could. His hackles were raised as well as having his shoulders rolled forward and his neck scrunched back. His teeth were bared in a snarl and his chin was tucked slightly to guard his throat. His attacks were fairly successful he thought. His teeth met their mark behind the boy's elbow, feeling skin give way under his bite and tasting that faint tang of blood. However, with Sigmarr shuffling away his second attack wasn't quite so successful. He managed to get a small scrape on the boy's shin, but nothing more. Before Nikolai could attempt another attack, Sigmarr went for one of his own. Unfortunately, with his head in this lowered position he couldn't see Sigmarr's jaws coming in on his head from above. The next thing he felt was his oponent's jaws around the top of his head, gripping his skull and causing rows of several moderate puncture wounds there. With a low growl Nikolai realized he couldn't pull away without risking ripping the skin around his head even worse than it might already be. He wasn't a vain wolf, but he did value his face not being completely scarred! Luckily, since his face was basically turned toward the ground he was able to easily see Sigmarr lifting his paw to slam it down on his again so Nikolai quickly scooted his left forepaw back a few inches to avoid the attack, watching Sigmarr's paw hit the ground again. Quickly shifting his wight to his right, Nikolai lifted his left paw in an attempt to slam it down onto Sigmarr's paw that had just tried to do the same attack to his own. He wasn't sure what kind of damage he could do like this, but he hoped to at least sprain or bruise the male's paw. It was about the only attack he could think to do with his head trapped in Sigmarr's jaws like this. Once his left paw was done with his first attempted attack he would keep his weight shifted to the right, lifting his left leg higher to attempt to shove his left forepaw into the base of Sigmarr's throat, hoping that maybe if he choked the boy a bit it would make him let go of his head. Nikolai vs Sigmarr for Spar Round 2/2 ""

SIGMARR vs NIKOLAI for SPAR Round 1 SIGMARR: 10 for clarity: Clear! 10 for powerplaying. None seen! 10 for defenses. +1 for each seen until max of 10 8 for attack. +4 Bite/grip, +2 shoulder throw +2 toe stomp + maim attempt 10 for injuries.First round SIGMARR'S round one total: 48/50 NIKOLAI: 6 for clarity:  -1 “Sigmarr's teeth bit into Nikolai's right cheek” The inside of his right cheek?, -1 “He then turned his head to the right” His right?, -2 “...into the skin on Sigmarr's side, right behind the boy's elbow” Which side/elbow? 7 for powerplaying. -1 “He kept his chest pressed tight to Sigmarr's shoulder” This needs to be attempted; otherwise you're assuming that Sigmarr doesn't move, -1 “He would not attempt to latch on there however...” I feel like you're not giving your opponent enough time to react., -1 “once his teeth left Sigmarr's side...” That's assuming the bite lands 10 for defenses. +1 for each seen until max of 10 7 for attack. +3 bite, +4 bite/grip, 10 for injuries.First round NIKOLAI'S round one total: 40/50 Round 2 SIGMARR: 10 for clarity: Clear! 10 for powerplaying. None seen! 10 for defenses. +1 for each seen until max of 10 6 for attack. +4 bite/grip, toe stomp +2 7 for injuries. -2 for moderate bite, -1 scrapes SIGMARR'S round two total: 43/50 NIKOLAI: 10 for clarity:  All clear! 5 for powerplaying. -2 “His teeth met their mark behind the boy's elbow” In Lunar's last post, Sigmarr takes the hit elsewhere, -1 “watching Sigmarr's paw hit the ground again. “ You can't assume anything about your opponent, even if it seems obvious, -2 “Once his left paw was done with his first attempted attack he would keep his weight shifted to the right, lifting his left leg higher to attempt to shove his left forepaw into the base of Sigmarr's throat” Two attacks in a row by the same body part feels like powerplaying to me 10 for defenses.  +1 for each seen until max of 10 2 for attack. +1 toe stomp, +1 shove 8 for injuries.  -2 moderate bite NIKOLAI'S round two total: 35/50 Totals: SIGMARR: 92/100 NIKOLAI: 75/100 And the winner is... Sigmarr! Nikolai must give up by either submitting, fleeing, or passing out. Damage: SIGMARR: Moderate bite: 2 OOC weeks, scrapes: 4 OOC days NIKOLAI: Moderate bite: 2 OOC weeks Notes: Tips for both writing, and some suggestions. (no points are deducted here) Notes For Lunar Great fight! Nothing to note! For Shelby You lost the most points in powerplaying and I think I've mostly covered that in my deductions. Just remember that you can't assume anything about the way your opponent moves and try to avoid using the same body part more than once in a round. - By [Lazuli]