Atmor raised har hand "Professor, the opponet may be under a spell so they may not know what they are doing" she had just heard the professor and continued "Like i said before Professor, one must never be too quick to spar, because your opponent may be looking to tire you out you must wait for them to strike first and once they are tired or over worked you should strick then but not with too much energy because they may be able to replenish themselves or they may not be alone"

Themea arched an eyebrow at the Gryffindor prefect. She was good and she knew it, however, there was a difference between knowledge and practicality. A large difference. "You should always be aware of your limits and should only push them when victory is certain, otherwise run away." Themea twitched at the very thought of running from a fight. "I agree with my esteemed compatriot, always train. Always puch yourself. You are never as skilled as the next guy. One day, someone will come along and, before you know it. You've lost, because you weren't on your toes. A fight is over as soon as the other guy is just one half-second faster, one gram stronger, and one bit more intellegent. If you lose your edge, you lose the fight."

"I think it is most important to know one's own abilities. What spells and methods are you familiar with and confident in performing and also, how much damage are you willing to do, even if you have the ability to do it. And more importantly, can you in good conscience perform that particular spell, hex, curse, etc. I also think it is important to know the abilities of one's opponent. If they are capable of using an Unforgiveable Curse, one must be aware of that possibility and determine the best means of protection of oneself and others."

Megan raised her hand, "Your stance is a big one to watch," she said. "I suppose you should watch out for everything you are looking for in your oppenent. If you see faults in them don't make the same faults yourself." She really had no clue but decided to give it a shot anyways.

Beck wrote down the answers and the professor's reaction she had no idea what a dark dark object was. but she had a feeling that deep dwon she did know. "Your own stance and knowledge should be in your head, And shouldn't you be aware of your opponent's stance and counter attacks." beck held her hand up and answered very unsure of herself.

suzy raised her hand, "you should decide whether or not you can beat the person or if the person looks as if the have more years on you and knows how to fight better."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Themea

Themea thought on that one. He was only trained to take out people with wands, or no wand. "If they have a wand, and only a wand, I imagine you're pretty well off, but if they have a Dark Object, I have no idea. I don't even know what one is let alone identify it."

"No worries... why do you think this is an 'object' lesson?" She smiled.

Quote:

Originally Posted by D.A Forever

Savannah raised her hand as she thought of something,
"Professor, I know this is abit off the subject, but what if the opponet wasn't using a wand, What if they were saying spells in their head?" She asked, not remembering what it was called when you did spells without your wand.
"There isn't much you can do then, Is there?"

"Wandless magic is very rare, while voiceless magic is less so. If they can cast without a wand... I suggest you run or stupefy them. Binding someone who can cast wandlessly doesn't protect you."

Torie thought about this one for a moment. "You should never underestimate or overestimate your abilities. By underestimating yourself, you might not attempt a spell that could potentially save your life. You might choose to stand down, when you should really step up."

"On the other hand," she continued, "You shouldn't overestimate yourself either. By being too cocky, you might act foolishly, trying a spell that is too difficult, or losing sight of the fact that your opponent just pulled out a dark object from his pocket. You need to stay alert and vigilent."

"Well, I guess you need to make sure you can do the spells. I mean if your're a first year straight out of school and meeting a Dark Wizard, then you're in trouble, but if you know spells which would get you out of there, not to win but to just distract them enough for you to run than that's oky. I guess you also need to know how they're standing. If you're not standing a certian way your spells will miss giving them the opportunity to win easily. Also it's good to know your strengths, if you're good at blocking spells than use them." Ariana said stabbing at the answer from her mind, hoping it was partially correct. She wrote everything the others said just in case.

Kerry thought about that, she raised her hand "Well, let's see... you should think about what your strengths and weaknesses are. Are you a strong flier? Perhaps having a broom near by would help you get out of a situation. Are you strong at transfiguration..perhaps transfiguring an object into something that would aide you would help. If your strong at Charms.. charming an object to aid you would be best. Obviously if your strong at a particular spell... there are ways all spells could work to your advantage if you think of the proper way to use it. Think of the situation and what is around you to work to your advantage.

At the same time... you have to be realisitc and realize not everyone is good at what they want to be. Don't fool yourself and try something you're not sure will work... in a life or death situation..trying something for the first time can be the last time you'll try it."

Dinara thought for a moment. She pushed her glasses up, hair out of her face, and said, "The first things I would think about my own abilities are what sort of spells I know. Defensive, offensive, etc. I would then think about where my strengths and weaknesses are in these areas. Also, I would consider using spells that I am more comfortable with as opposed to spells that I am less comfortable with, there would be less chance of failure there."

Savannah nodded and brushed her bangs out of
her eyes before she continued to write down everything.

Themea perked up. "Your true strengths are your oppenents weaknesses. You need to be confident enough in your abilities that you can study your opponent and gague what their stregths are. You must remember that time is your ally, so is inertia. Your abilities should not only be magic related. You need to train both phsycally and mentally, endurance is your strongest ally."

Kerry raised her hand again, "Themea makes a good point about your opponent's weaknesses and your confidence. You need to put confidence behind your magic. The stronger the confidence and belief in your magic, the more heart and mind you put into it, resulting in a stronger spell. This makes a good point, too - to learn from others, it can be very valuable in realizing things about yourself." Kerry smiled.

Curt scratched down the notes, a question quickly came to mind, "Can people only be gifted with beging able to perform magic without wands...or can you become skilled enough to do it?" said Curt with extreame curiosity.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Magical_Mione

Jasmine hesitated then raised her hand and said, "You need to stay within the limits of your own abilities. Trying something new in the heat of battle and having it fail could prove fatal for you or those who were fighting with you. Play to your strengths and avoid your weaknesses if possible. Never stop training either. There is always something new to learn. Stay on top of the game."

"Very good... so you don't want to try a new spell out and have it go horribly wrong in a fight, but it doesn't hurt to learn new spells whenever you can. Five for Gryffindor."

Quote:

Originally Posted by atmor

Atmor raised har hand "Professor, the opponet may be under a spell so they may not know what they are doing" she had just heard the professor and continued "Like i said before Professor, one must never be too quick to spar, because your opponent may be looking to tire you out you must wait for them to strike first and once they are tired or over worked you should strick then but not with too much energy because they may be able to replenish themselves or they may not be alone"

"So you need to know what your limits are in physical stamina, as well as in casting spells. Very good point. Three for Slytherin."

Quote:

Originally Posted by lemondrop13

"I think it is most important to know one's own abilities. What spells and methods are you familiar with and confident in performing and also, how much damage are you willing to do, even if you have the ability to do it. And more importantly, can you in good conscience perform that particular spell, hex, curse, etc. I also think it is important to know the abilities of one's opponent. If they are capable of using an Unforgiveable Curse, one must be aware of that possibility and determine the best means of protection of oneself and others."

"The best part of your answer, dear, is that you suggested we inventory not only what we can do, but what we are capable of doing. Many of us know the incantations for the Unforgiveables already, but most of us can't cast it and wouldn't want to. You need to know how far you can go, and you should also know how far the law will let you go. Three for Ravenclaw."


OOC: I'm closing shop for tonight so that I can SLEEP. Resuming tomorrow at about 3:30/4 p.m. EST. Don't post or chat or frolic in here.

cecilia bent her heat over her notes. Thinking, "yeah but how does that count when you're up against an unforgiveable curse.

Megan wrote and the Professor spoke. She put her quill down for a moment and shock her hand to try and get some feelings back in it.

"And the last thing you need to pay attention to as you approach a situation would be your resources. Any idea what I mean by that?"

And so we resume.

Patrick had been furiously taking notes to make up for his misdemeanor earlier in the class. He put up his hand and answered, "What you have at your diposal to manipulate against your opponent," he suggested.

Hayley slowly raised her hand, unsure of the answer.
"Um...resources are things or people which will help you with the situation, and if a dark wizard was about to hex you or something, you would need to be ready to defend yourself??" She said in an unsure voice.

Ariana raised her hand and replied "By resources you mean what you have around you or on you? If so than you need to know what shape your wand is in, I mean if it's in bad shape than your spells won't be as strong as normal. It's what you have at your disposal I guess." She wasn't sure about that answer either and felt weird for saying it.

"A resource would be something close to hand that would be useful to you in that situation. Your wand for example, or other people on your side that could cover you and give you relevant information," Nat suggested as she raised her hand, shriking slightly as she hated drawing attention to herself in class. She felt like she was way off mark, but if was her resolution that she was going to try her best, even if that meant getting a couple of things wrong on the road to getting them right.

"Yes, exactly. Five for Gryffindor. You need to be aware of what is available to you aside from your wand. You should have noticed some resources when you were checking your surroundings... places to hide, items to deflect spells with, and so on. What other resources might you be able to find?"

Pauline raised her hand and said "Diversations?" she suggested not really sure if that wa elabrit enough.