2023, Stage 2 Slytherin vs Ravenclaw: Match 1

It was not common for Guinevere to be nervous, but here she was, anxiously twirling her aspen wand, throughts spinning around her head a hundred miles an hour. It was her first official duel, after all, and she was facing off against one of Ravenclaw's duelling co-captains, not to mention her own partner was one, and all of the duellists on the piste today had much more experience in the sport. However, she could also not help but also be very, very excited; she was finally on the team, after months of waiting.
As the duel began, Guinevere took a breath and rasied her wand to cast. It would all go perfectly fine, she assured herself. It was competition. It was them or her. Though unsure of whether she would do well, the Slytherin had one clear thought in her mind: if she went down, she would drag those birds down with her.

This was not ideal.

After a disastrous first duel of the season, he was paired against another new co-captain for the second. He could not help but feel that this was some kind of test by @Meenauh Silmataurea, or one of the other senior captains. A test of duelling ability, or leadership, or just a test to see how the new blood would handle being faced off against each other?

It did not matter, in the end. He could do only what he could do.

A small nod to his partner. Miss @Guinevere Russetwood was no Veela like last time, and Hui-Ming could not shake the sinking feeling that all eyes would be on him this time.

"Remember to keep calm, miss Russetwood." His voice presented a calm he did not feel. "You just have to remember your basiscs and do your best. I'll handle the rest."

Action: As strategised

@Gemima Sable

It was her first official duel actually being on the Duelling team, and she was the newest Ravenclaw Co-Captain too. Though she'd participated in duels before, and she had the practice, this one seemed a bigger deal than the rest of them. Probably because she was also going up against another new Co-Captain, Ming, who she knew as a moderator for the practice duel she had participated in that was also, ironically, against the snakes.

So, this was definitely kind of a big deal to her. She wasn't nervous though, she was confident in her ability, and the familiar presence of her partner, Gem, who she had duelled with before, helped. They've got this, they were going to smash it. She smirked at Gem, giving her partner a reassuring nod, "We've got this," before taking a deep breath and turning her attention to the Slytherins. Well, let it begin.

Action: As strategized

Date: ...

Word Count: 276

Hex Code: #433687

【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】

Even though the crowd of onlookers was buzzing with noises of excitement, Gem was keenly aware of her footsteps as she made her way up the stairs to the dueling piste. She rolled her wand between her fingers, hoping the spiraled ridges would bring some feeling back into her hands. She didn't know whether she was nervous or ecstatic. One does not partake in their first ever official Hogwarts duel every day, after all.

Gem released a shaky breath and paused to adjust her hair, which was gathered up into a long ponytail at the apex of her head. A lone strand flopped back into her face, as if taunting her. She huffed and pulled a star-shaped hairclip from her pocket, all while surveying her surroundings with a kind of jittery fascination. She'd been practicing quite a lot in here, but the dueling club room was strikingly different when it was actually being used for a match.

A match that she was a part of, no less. Gem hoped that it would fare better than the last duel she was in. Heart pounding, she scanned the crowd for any of her friends, but the moderator's voice rang clear throughout the room, and the space fell silent. Gem's racing thoughts were replaced with an eerie static. It was almost time. She nodded at Adelaide, too wound up to form a reply. At least that was one factor she was confident in. Her fellow Ravenclaw was a strong spellcaster, and Gem was happy to be fighting at her side again.

She looked ahead to the pair of Slytherins standing before them, and readied her wand.
Here goes nothing.

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@Adelaide Barlowe

Action: As strategized

Round One

Ming

Reducio

Ming actively dodges.
Active Dodge: 5 + 0.25 x 6 = 6.5 → 7 Bonus to Evasion.

Guinevere & Adelaide

Reducio

Guinevere cast Tickling Charm at Adelaide.
Wisdom DC: 9
Wisdom Check: [d20: 17] + 7 = 24, success
Accuracy: [d2o:4] + 7 = 11
Evasion Check: [d20: 15] + 8 = 23
11 < 23 → Miss

Adelaide & Ming

Reducio

Adelaide cast Blindfold Conjuration at Ming.
Wisdom DC: 10 + 2 LC = 12
Wisdom Check: [d20: 5] + 8 = 13, success
Auto-Hit: [d20: 15], success CP
Accuracy: [d2o:2] + 8 = 10
Evasion Check: [d20: 6] + 6 + 7 Dodge = 19
10 < 19 → Miss

Gemima & Ming

Reducio

Gemima cast Knockback Jinx at Ming.
Wisdom DC: 9 + 2 LC = 11
Wisdom Check: [d20: 15] + 8 = 23, success
Accuracy: [d2o:19] + 8 = 27
Evasion Check: [d20: 15] + 6 + 7 Dodge = 28
27 < 28 → Miss

Alan had still been so focused on his last moderating experience, with some quite excellent senior league duellists, that he forgot how some students were still rather young and somewhat inexperienced when it came to practical spell skills. As such he shouldn't have been surprised by the lack of hitting spells in this first round of exchanged spells. Though he had to say he was quite happy to see that all who had cast their spells had done so with ease, almost as if it came naturally to them. He also had to commend Ming for being able to foresee that he would be the Ravenclaw pair's main target this round as his carefulness served him well. A knockback jinx and a blindfolding spell cast by Gem and Adelaide both would have possibly made his life a tad more miserable in this duel if they had hit. Guinevere had attempted to retaliate with a Laughing jinx, which too missed its target. Alan briefly wondered if it would remain like this, in which case he might have to suggest some target practice to their captains.

I N F O R M A T I O N

• You have 96 hours from the timestamp of this post to owl me, Alan Vanes, your actions. If you do not send your actions or post within the allotted time, your action is void. There are no extensions.
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• And most importantly, have fun!

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[Spectator Thread, Day 1: Morning]

”Got it,” she responded as she nodded at her partner and fired her first spell at Barlowe.
Well. It was safe to say that that hadn’t gone as expected.
Guinevere’s heart leaped when she saw the spell successfully shoot from her wand, only to have it drop back to its original place when it missed Barlowe by a mile.
“Oh, for heaven’s sake,” she muttered, frustrated both at herself and at the Ravenclaw’s unhelpful dodging. Looking over at her partner, she saw that Ming had successfully sidestepped both of the Ravenclaws’ spells, which was good, at least. Hopefully the real fun would start soon. It would be terribly embarrassing if she kept on missing.

Hui-Ming was not one for big unseemly taunts, but as he side-stepped the incoming spells from his opposing Ravenclaw co-captain and her partner, he could not help but feel a bit vindicated. There was just something so satisfying about starting things off as planned.

He did not even let his partner’s miss daunt his confidence. Half of dueling was making the right decisions, and it seemed to him that he had had the Azure house right where he wanted them.

“Excellent cast, Miss Russetwood,” he would say to his partner. As if they were back in class and practicing the spell for the first time. “Let’s do that again.”

Action: As strategised

@Gemima Sable

Adelaide was most definitely not thrilled with the way Ming seemed to predict her spell, and he was able to dodge both her Obscuro and Gem's Flipendo. Her jaw clenched, she was better than this.

At least she was able to sidestep Guinevere's spell. Nobody's spell had landed this round, but she hoped it wouldn't stay that way for her or Gem. She wouldn't miss next time. Just because they started off on the wrong foot does not mean it would stay like this. She took a deep breath and steeled herself once more.

Action: As strategized

Word Count:
74

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Once the spells started to fly, Gem's mind shifted into an intense focus.
She somehow managed to dodge everything that was sent her way. That had always been a decent strength of hers.

Unfortunately, their opponents were just as agile. In fact, not a single spell hit. Gem couldn't help but let out a soft "Ha!" as the wayward spells careened harmlessly into the opposing walls. At least now she was feeling less nervous.

【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】

Action:
As strategized