I let the team sleep in until 6 in the morning, though I doubted that anyone was going to be thankful for the extra one hour of shuteye. Today, instead of starting our day with a grueling morning workout, I had something else in mind. A lesson. An activity. Something very important to keep in mind for when we would soon be competing in a potentially humid and hotter climate than we were used to.
While chow (a mess of biscuits and gravy? with toast and a choice of either apples or oranges) was being eaten promptly at 0630, having been prepared by myself with the help of Val an hour before, I would stand a few meters away from where the team was congregated on the slightly frosty ground in front of me. In two six-pack containers that I held one in each hand, were 6 large 32 ounce green water bottles that depicted an orange lightning bolt with a large 'G' centered on it. Fixing my gaze on each player narrowly, ready to flip out if any of them decided to make a smartass comment, I place the 6 packs on the ground before throwing a water bottle to each player without looking to see if they were ready for it. Their fault if they couldn't even catch a large water bottle coming their way.
Rubbing off my black gloves and putting my scarlet cloak over my left shoulder, I fix each of them with an icy look again before explaining myself shortly.
"Hydration." I nod to the water bottles still at my feet. "Is an incredibly important thing. Our bodies are over 60% water. Water helps in respiration, electrical signaling, digestive functions, muscle growth, cell regeneration, mental functions, fine motor control, need I go on?" My voice is almost flat with disinterest, but set with a familiar rumble that has always implied a recommendation to tread softly thus far in this Camp.
"London can get warm in summer. They are located further south than Durmstrang." Even for myself, a Mediterranean used to the balmy heat of July and August near the seafront, I knew London could get uncharacteristically warm with the right weather conditions. "I won't be having any of you passing out during my game just because you didn’t drink enough water before competing." I cross my arms over my chest, ignoring a burst of wind chill that blows past all of us. Ah yes. Cold. Perfect segue.
"Drink some water right now, even if you don't feel thirsty. Your body has a natural reaction to the cold, and it will try to draw all your blood to your core to keep you warm. However, doing that can make you dehydrated without you realizing it." Another whippet of frozen air through the trees. "The dehydration is mostly caused because of an increase in kidney function, which causes you to lose water through excessive urination."
If anyone laughed, I swore to God.
"To avert this, both in the cold here and in case of hot weather during my game, we're going to start getting all of you used to consistent hydration. Drink as much as you can. Right now."
After waiting for a few minutes, with myself indulging with one of the Gatorade bottles, I finally drew attention back to myself. "Now that we are properly starting hydration… we are going to practice staying hydrated by continuing to drink as much as we can while doing our daily exercises." I smile cruelly with my lips only. Ah yes, I was going to test their constitutions today, and their ability to stay hydrated and efficient at the same time.
"This is a competition. There will be a winner. The losers will be taken care of by myself, and the winner can have a half hour to recover before we continue our training."
Running my glove through my bangs to fix what the Russian wind had ruffled, I shrug and then indicate to the water bottles. "We’ll have no shortage of water, I have a cooler on the way. Now," My eyes narrow. "Drink."
Hold Your Water Rules:
Reducio
Fundamentally a game of chicken with yourself that will last 3 rounds or until only one person is left standing. This game will consist of a series of Stamina, Strength, and Evasion checks, which represent Constitution, Strength and Dexterity respectively and will be moderated by me weekly unless all participating people post before then.
Stamina: Will determine your ability to "hold your water down" and not let it up again. Note that if you can't hold your water… you lose.
Strength: Determines how quickly you can perform strength related checks (burpees, pushups, lifting weights, and situps). The higher you roll, the faster you perform your muscle tasks.
Evasion: Determines speed in performing aerobic and speed based exercises (running laps, doing sprints, shuffles, and jumping jacks). The higher you roll, the faster you perform aerobic tasks.
How a Round Works:
Choose how many chugs of water you drink between 1-10 before performing an exercise (not needing to choose a DC*, as your check total will decide points). The 1-10 number will be a detriment to your stamina check. Then, choose how many repetitions of an exercise you want to perform;
Strength Based: Pushups: A safe, vanilla option. How hard can you push the ground? 1 point for every surpassed +5 in DC (so DC 10 = 1 point, DC 15 = 2 points) Burpees: Jumping as high as you can… but bellyflopping to get a good pushup can be risky… 1 point for every 5 DC (so DC 5 = 1 point), but your critical failure range increases by 2** Lifting Weights: Be a macho man! Just don't hurt your back… 1 point for every 50 pounds lifted (maximum of 250). *This is the exception to not choosing a number of reps, and it is represented as a base 7 DC + 3 for every 50 pounds. If you fail your lift, however, you have a 50% chance to mess up your back, which gives you disadvantage on your next Strength or Evasion check. Situps: An easy exercise for those with excellent core strength. This is a strength check that will give you advantage on your Stamina check to hold your water, but will only give you 1 point per +5 DC over 10 (DC 15 = 1 point, DC 20 = 2 points)
Evasion Based: Run a Lap: An easy 25 meters down, 25 meters back. What could go wrong? 1 point per every +2 past a DC of 10 (so DC 12 = 1 point, DC 14 = 2 points). If you choose this option twice in a row, your minimum DC for a point is increased by 2 (so DC 14 = 1 point, DC 16 = 2 points.) Sprints or S*icide Sprints: Run as hard as you can for three 25 meter shuttles! Don't slow down! Three evasion checks will be made, each with a stacking -3 detriment (so first check is -0, 2nd is -3, etc.) For every 5 in your total, you receive 1 point rounded down (so a total of 27 = 5 points) Half Jacks: Easy. Bring your arms even with your shoulders in one jump and then jump back into a standing position. Just mind that bouncing for your stomach's sake. You may add half of your Accuracy to this check, but will only receive one point per every 5 above a DC of 10 (so DC 15 = 1 point, DC 20 = 2 points) Shuffles: A simple shuttle shuffle 50 meters down and 50 meters back facing the same direction. Feel that burn in your calves? For every +5 surpassing a DC of 5, you receive 2 points (so DC 10 = 2 points, DC 15 = 4 points) However, you must perform a Strength based check for your next round, as your calves are sore from the same direction shuffle (cannot be used in the double points round).
At the conclusion of the exercises, each person must make a DC equivalent to [8 + (round number) + (amount of points earned from exercise)]. The check equals 1d20 + Stamina - chugs of water drank
On a success, you gain an additional number of points equal to half the chugs of water you drank that round. On a failure, you can't hold your water and are disqualified from the game. Please note that if you choose 0 or 1 chugs, you gain no bonus points (½ of 1 is .5, and points are rounded down).
One random round will have surprise double points for both water bonus and exercise points. Plan accordingly!
**a critical failure indicates a tossing of water and loss of the event. Every round, your critical fail range will increase +1
Entrance and participation posts for round 1 will be open for 2 weeks or until everyone has posted that wants to participate.
Every subsequent moderation will be once a week or when everyone participating has posted.
If a post is missed between moderation, you are considered to have either balked or been unable to hold your water.
