[Annual Yuletide Game] Attack The King (With Snowballs)

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Petunia
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[Annual Yuletide Game] Attack The King (With Snowballs)

Post by Petunia »

Annual Yuletide Game: Attack The King (With Snowballs)

It has become an annual tradition that during the coldest part of winter, when snow is thick upon the ground, that everyone - the citizens, nobles, creatures, and even peasants of Fenia - engage in snowball fights with one another. And no one, including the King, is above being hit by a snowball. So each year everyone, whether Fenians, travellers or guests, are invited to seek out the King to pelt him with as many snowballs as anyone can possibly throw!

And of course, with this event now being part of the Fenian calendar, it comes with a competition. This means that whomever can strike the King’s coronet or crown off his head (with headshots) the most often is deemed the winner. Prizes will be announced in due course, but the top three strikers will all receive prizes, with the grand champion receiving a special gift.

Rules
Only in-game Snowballs count.
Only headshots count towards winning the prizes, as the main aim of the attacker is to detach the King’s crown from his head.
Role-Playing is actively encouraged and the King will do his best to react to snowball attacks, so be creative! You are also welcome to god-mod Zuan in appropriate situations to ensure snow can be thrown at him e.g. Walking in the castle courtyards; visiting the tavern; exploring the town markets.
The Best Role Played Post will be decided by Zuan after the event is officially concluded, and we look forward to some surprising attacks.
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Nikola
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Re: [Annual Yuletide Game] Attack The King (With Snowballs)

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Nikola, Viceroy of Fenia, had been biding her time and saving up her snowballs, just waiting for the chance to pummel her King with the icy deliciousness. At least, she found it delicious to see him covered in snow, although she doubted he enjoyed it as much as she did. That just made it all the sweeter! She waited nonchalantly for him to appear in the courtyard. She waited a long time, but at last his familiar silhouette appeared at the opening of the courtyard and he strode purposefully across, trailed by his ever present Royal Guards. Biding her time until he was close, she let loose 12 snowballs. The first two hit their mark, nearly dislodging the crown, but it remained seated upon his royal head. She sometimes wondered whether it was permanently ensconced upon his head, but had never tried to find out. She was so excited about hitting her mark with the first two balls that she merely grazed him with the third. That sobered her up enough to get in two more great head shots before he finally realized what was happening and began to dodge. The guards had, of course, allowed this to occur without consequence, enjoying their King's discomfort behind his back. She winked at them and let fly more snowballs, two of which he successfully dodged before she grazed him again and then...joy of all joys...got him a fifth time squarely in the face! She was laughing so hard afterward that her aim was off enough that she merely grazed him with the last three snowballs.

Cheeks flushed from the cold, activity and laughter, she presented herself before him and curtsied dutifully.
"Good afternoon, Your Majesty," she greeted him, barely containing her giggles. "Have an enjoyable walk!" With that she grinned at his guards and dashed away before he could try to pay her back in kind.
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ArtemisEntreri
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Re: [Annual Yuletide Game] Attack The King (With Snowballs)

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Artemis contemplated the perfect ambush. After briefly analyzing the layout of the buildings in the palace complex, he decided to ambush near a small booth that even the king walks to. To gain precious seconds, he decided on a small diversion. He made sure no one was around and nailed the stall door to the frame with a small nail. It wouldn't stop the king in his hour of need for long, but it would be enough to send him a dozen snowballs. He climbed onto the roof of a nearby outbuilding, optimally laid out the ammunition, lay down and waited....

Patience was rewarded - His Majesty the King had arrived. The "closed" door somewhat surprised the king (monarch's lavatory occupied?) - he culturally knocked to find out who dared to occupy the "throne room". At that moment Entreri sprang to his feet and from on high showered the king with a hail of snowballs.
Bang! Bang! Right on the crowned head! The next projectile only muscled the king, but the next one hit cleanly again. The king jerked against the door and tried to dodge, but without much success. More snowballs mercilessly hit the king's face. Urged on one hand by nature, on the other by the treacherous attack, the king jerked the door hard and it gave way, allowing him to hide inside the shack.

The attacker, enraged by battle rage, wanted to send several bullets into the heart-shaped window but mastered himself - "Stop! Enough is enough. I'll respect the sanctuary hehehe." Moving away from the "crime scene" Artemis wondered if the king also uses a small nail that the crown clings so tightly to his head.
:snowball:
Last edited by ArtemisEntreri on Fri Dec 09, 2022 4:37 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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EIUS IN OBITU NOSTRO PRAESENTIA MUNIAMUR

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Nikola
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Re: [Annual Yuletide Game] Attack The King (With Snowballs)

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It was a lovely new day and Nikola was on the ramparts enjoying the crisp late autumnal day. She had been making snowballs, preparing for the battle ahead, when the King passed near enough to the castle walls for her reach to work so she stopped making them and began throwing them. The first grazed him. He must have been ready for he whirled around and actually caught the next one! Nikola ducked behind the parapet, peeking out after a moment to find looking right at her. Feeling brave, she stood up and threw another at him, hitting him squarely in the face! She shrieked in glee and tossed two more that only grazed him. He was getting good at avoidance! But not good enough as the next three shots hit him squarely in the face! Somehow the crown remained attached and Nikola wondered if he had magicked it to stay on his head.
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Petunia
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Re: [Annual Yuletide Game] Attack The King (With Snowballs)

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The People's Representative had opened the competition and sent messengers throughout the Kingdom. She had enjoyed last year's game, so once she'd done her work, she had gone out to the open space outside the castle walls to find a suitable spot from which to attack the King. After glancing around to assess the snow and potential ambush sites, she found a place between a tree and a few bushes. Not under the tree, of course, for she had no wish to find herself with extra snow falling on her head from the branches; and not actually too close to the bushes, for a similar reason, but strategically situated near a particularly thick drift of snow. She busied herself gathering up snow and patting handfuls of it together until she had a small pile of snowballs, lying on the ground just behind a bush. At that point, Petunia looked up from her "work", to see the King and a few of his guards emerging from the castle - phew, just in time!

She picked up a snowball in each hand, and stood next to the bush, her hands behind her back innocently as she awaited the small procession to reach her position. When it did, she lost no time in hurling the first snowball at the King. It must have taken him and the guards by surprise, because it hit him squarely in the face! She barely had time to register her hit because she immediately threw the second snowball - but that only grazed his arm.

Swiftly, Petunia bent to pick up more snowballs and sent them winging their way to the target. One of them just caught his arm, and then he must have realised that he was under attack because he managed to dodge the next couple. But then she must have got better at anticipating his movements, because the next two caught him right in the face. She chuckled as she picked up more snowballs, but her chuckles turned to slight panic as she noticed that the guards were pointing towards her and looking a bit determined. That slight panic might have been the reason that her next snowball was so wide of the mark that it not only missed the King completely but actually hit one of the guards, stopping him in his tracks. Quickly, she aimed her last two snowballs, the first of which just splattered the monarch's arm again. But the final one caught him squarely on the head, although she was disappointed to see that the crown hadn't moved from its place on the King's head - and she only noticed that out of the corner of her eye as she sped away to avoid the guards' wrath. Ah well, tomorrow was another day.
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Petunia
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Re: [Annual Yuletide Game] Attack The King (With Snowballs)

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On the following day, Petunia completed her work well before the light started to fall into dusk. She slipped out of her office, wanting to find a good spot from which to ambush the King. She'd had time to formulate a plan, hoping to catch the King without his guards around him because she didn't want to either spend time in the dungeons or to waste her snowball ammunition on anyone other than the King himself...or, indeed, to have to try to run away through the snow.

By the end of yesterday, seeing the crown still apparently riveted to the King's head, she'd remembered back to last year when much the same thing had happened. During today, she'd considered why that might be. Was it magic that kept it there? Well, she'd tried last year to use magic to dislodge the thing, but that hadn't worked - although, to be fair, she wasn't completely confident that the man in the magic shop had given her the right counter-spell. For a few moments, she'd mused about whether the crown was actually attached to his head organically, perhaps he'd actually grown it like his ears or nose? No, unlikely, she'd decided. Could it be some sort of comb or clip arrangement that fastened into his hair? That might be a possibility, but how to dislodge it, short of hiding something like a small lead ball in one of the snowballs? She dismissed that idea - no only was she probably not strong enough to throw it fast enough or hard enough to remove the crown, but she might actually cause the King some harm, which obviously she didn't want to do in a friendly game.

Anyway, if she wanted to find a time when he wasn't surrounded by guards, perhaps the courtyard within the castle walls might be a better option. It was worth a try, and there was certainly plenty of snow piled up in some parts. So Petunia found a thick pile of the white stuff, and patted together another little pile of snowballs. She waited for a little while, pacing up and down and rubbing her hands together to keep them warm. But she was sure that the King would need to take the air at some point soon, and then she'd have her chance, so it should be worth a bit of a wait.

And she was right, because just before she was starting to get so cold she'd need to give up, the King appeared. He emerged from a door to the left, and began to pace along the path that led directly past where she was standing. He wasn't going especially fast, and was looking around the courtyard and up at the ramparts and the sky beyond...possibly thinking of his new wife, or perhaps the cares of the Kingdom, or just looking to see whether it was likely to snow again soon - not that it mattered because she would soon enough distract him from whatever his thoughts were.

With a snowball in each hand, she waited until he got a bit closer, and then threw one and then the other. But her aim wasn't too good because they both hit him with a soft 'whump' and immediately disintegrated, sending a small shower of snow down his leg. While she picked up another two snowballs, she could see that he had stopped, of course, and was looking around to find his attacker - which was useful because it meant that her next missile managed to hit him squarely in the head, although the second of the pair just grazed his arm, splattering it with soft snow. Swiftly, she sent another two snowballs whistling through the air...and again, one his him right on the head, with the other showering his leg with snow.

With a wide grin now, she sent another pair of snowballs on their way. Another hit, as one hit the King's head squarely and solidly - well, as solidly as a lightly-packed ball of snow can hit. By this time, the King had obviously realised where his attacker was, and began to dodge her missiles. As he dodged them he seemed to be heading towards her,, crown still firmly lodged on his head which unnerved Petunia mightily, after all, she'd been throwing missiles to hit the King! She fled.

(Sorry for the double post, but I forgot to post yesterday's snowball attack.)
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Nikola
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Re: [Annual Yuletide Game] Attack The King (With Snowballs)

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Nikola watched from her hiding place behind the trunk of a tree as Petunia turned the King's dry garments into wet ones, giggling softly at the display. When Petunia fled, NIkola bided her time, watching the King as he dusted himself off and then looked around, possibly for more missiles. He seemed to relax and continue his walk and that's when she struck. He was not as nonchalant as he appeared, however, and dodged the first ball! Feeling determined, she threw two more balls which grazed him, but missed his head. She was not to be deterred and and threw four more in rapid succession. The wiley King not only dodged them all, but caught two of them! He was getting quite good at this!

She paused to reconsider her approach and then shrugged and tried again, this time striking his face not once, not twice, but THREE times in a row! She burst out laughing and threw her last ball only to have him dodge it at the last moment.
"I got you today, Your Majesty!" she called out gleefully before fleeing from the scene and leaving him to dust himself down again. Where else in the world could creatures pelt their sovereign with snowballs and not end up in a dungeon somewhere?
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Petunia
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Re: [Annual Yuletide Game] Attack The King (With Snowballs)

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Petunia had been musing about how that crown remained seated on the King's head and, more pertinently for the competition, how it might be removed without actually decapitating the monarch. That would have been a rather extreme way to win, and actually would probably have disqualified her - after all, the crown would still be on the head, even if the head was no longer attached to the body. Not that she would have done such a thing, but it popped into her head as she was wondering. Well, she decided, until a better option occurred to her, she'd just have to keep pelting the King with snowballs, and hope that she struck (literally!) lucky.

She happened to meet one of the King's personal servants on her way through a castle corridor, so she stopped to chat for a few moments, discovering that he was intending to vary the time and route of his walk. After a bit more chat (and just possibly some ever-so-slightly flirtatious eyelash fluttering), he told her of today's schedule. Perfect!

Finding a good spot along his intended path, she built up her little mound of snowballs, and then waited behind the trunk of a tree for the King's arrival. She didn't have to wait very long because, peeping out from behind the tree, she could see him coming. Excitedly, she picked up a snowball in each hand, emerged from her hiding place, and hurled them towards the King. Unfortunately, either her hiding had been completely ineffectual or her throwing was weak - or both - because not only did he dodge both of the snowballs, but managed to catch them!

She laughed and shook her head at her lack of success but, undaunted, picked up another two snowballs and aimed them a bit more carefully. And this time, she had much more success because the King was unable to dodge them, with one hitting him squarely in the head while the other just grazed him and spread some of the soft snow down his arm. While he was brushing off the snow, she sent another couple of missiles heading towards him, with exactly the same result - one hit his head and the other disintegrated and showered his arm with snow. Encouraged, Petunia threw two more of the soft white balls, but the King managed to dodge them. Her final two had a better result, with one grazing him and the other hitting him in the head.

Having thrown all her snowballs, she stepped out on to the path and, laughing merrily, gave the King a quick curtsy and a wave as she turned and walked quickly away.
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Petunia
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Re: [Annual Yuletide Game] Attack The King (With Snowballs)

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Her next attempt to knock the crown off the King's head was a bit rushed, in that she only had time to make half a dozen snowballs before he emerged from the side door of the castle. She was bending down and had just finished patting together the sixth ball when she noticed that he was walking towards her, so she stood up and hurled the missile. But he had clearly seen her obvious movements because he dodged it easily.

She wondered whether he might retaliate in some way, but nonetheless picked up snowball after snowball and flung them towards the King. Three of them hit him a glancing blow, showering his right side with white snowflakes as they disintegrated. But her final two were much more successful, and hit him right on the head...although they were more in the face (oops!) than the top of the head, so the crown was unmoved. Unlike Petunia, who gave a grin and cheery wave as she beat a hasty retreat.
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Nikola
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Re: [Annual Yuletide Game] Attack The King (With Snowballs)

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Nikola had been hiding out near the stables today, knowing that the King was likely to take his favorite stallion for a ride today. She created her arsenal of snowballs and waited. And waited. And waited. Finally, just as she was about to give up and go back inside out of the cold, movement appeared. A huddle of people materialized into the King and several of his guards. NIkola nearly jumped up and down for joy, as much as to warm her frozen toes. From her hiding place behind the stable wall opposite the King's entourage, she waited patiently until he was in range and then let fly her arsenal. He must have been on high alert as he dodged the first ball and then caught it! Unfortunately for him, but fortunately for Nikola, he was not paying close enough attention to the barrage of snow heading his way and the next two balls hit him squarely in the face! Two more grazed him, exploding into puffs of snow against his chest and arm before the next four found their mark, hitting him squarely in the face. She was laughing so hard at the sight of his snow covered face that her aim was off with her last two balls and the merely grazed him, exploding harmlessly against his shoulder and down his arm. Laughing gleefully, she presented herself to the king and curtsied. "Long live the King!" she called out and lifted her skirts to keep from tripping over the hem as she fled the scene.
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