Something That Has Always Bugged Me

[Mira]

He does when he draws a firearm. Trying to use both hands on his staff and a piece at the same time is likely to result in his rod going off prematurely, he therefore has to use a single hand on his staff to avoid going off half cocked.

I hope that clearly explains it.

To further that point, if he has drawn his blaster rod, it is unlikely that he is physically using his staff
on someone at the same time.  When he is wielding his staff to underscore some serious power, he uses both hands.  It is rare that he uses his staff like Little John of Robin Hood fame.

[Conspiracy Theorist]

Harry doesn’t use a firearm and a Blasting Rod at the same time, it means he has to take both hands off his staff which he is loath to do for any length of time, especially when things are coming to a head.

I can see the confusion, “rod” has a double meaning in the vernacular, it is slang for a firearm which is why Jim used the term in the first place, for its magical equivalent, but the appellation “blasting” to it is perhaps inappropriate, as it could be misconstrued in a sexual context by some juvenile readers. I hadn’t realised this until you drew my attention to it. Thank you.

[Mira]

Harry doesn’t use a firearm and a Blasting Rod at the same time, it means he has to take both hands off his staff which he is loath to do for any length of time, especially when things are coming to a head.

I can see the confusion, “rod” has a double meaning in the vernacular, it is slang for a firearm which is why Jim used the term in the first place, for its magical equivalent, but the appellation “blasting” to it is perhaps inappropriate, as it could be misconstrued in a sexual context by some juvenile readers. I hadn’t realised this until you drew my attention to it. Thank you.

Oh I don't think anyone was mistaken, just having a little harmless juvenile fun in a dark week...

[TrueMonk]

I think it is a really impressive thread. By which I mean that I am impressed by how long it keeps going on, not saying it is thin.

[Mira]

I think it is a really impressive thread. By which I mean that I am impressed by how long it keeps going on, not saying it is thin.

That's because we've nothing really new to talk about.  Loved Toot's story but there really wasn't much to really sink your teeth into.  Hopefully there will be enough substance in "The Law" to keep us going until "Twelve Months" comes out.  Otherwise we will rehash things we spot in the older books and sometimes get a little silly for several pages about a thin subject.

[Conspiracy Theorist]

I think it is a really impressive thread. By which I mean that I am impressed by how long it keeps going on, not saying it is thin.

Harry’s manual exercise with his weapon has a long history within the pages of the Dresden files. That why this thread keeps going and going.  Harry rarely has a partner for day to day bouts and has gone years between person on person action, and although Murphy was more than willing to show him how to properly use his staff, her demise in Battle Ground  means that unless Lara is going to take him in hand and properly train him in the maritalmartial arts it will be like him and The Titan all over again. Harry got his Spear out in front of her but at the crucial moment he lost focus and was in danger of there nearly being no successful climax to the engagement. He was lucky,  Ethnui had already grasped Odin’s mighty Spear, but it went off in her hand, leaving her shocked and weak at the knees, giving Harry his chance to plough on into her and dominate her through a binding, thoroughly like no mortal man had ever done to her before. Harry got (for him) a happy ending.

I know that as Harry now has the Eye the temptation is that he will seek to mount it on his staff. Now a Wizards staff may have a knob on the end, but he should eschew temptation to do so, if he were to treat it too roughly, the Eye might erupt unexpectedly and rock Harry’s world.

Endurance is the key to keeping this thread up. I can keep it up all day and night, without flagging.

[Fcrate]

You truly have a gift, CT.
@Monk: ha! You got him going again...

[Conspiracy Theorist]

You truly have a gift, CT.
@Monk: ha! You got him going again...

My dear Sir, I never stopped.

It strikes me that Michael would have made a good sparring partner for Harry, but due to injury is now “Mr Once A Knight” although Charity seems to be happy with the arrangement.

[Mira]

Harry’s manual exercise with his weapon has a long history within the pages of the Dresden files. That why this thread keeps going and going.  Harry rarely has a partner for day to day bouts and has gone years between person on person action, and although Murphy was more than willing to show him how to properly use his staff, her demise in Battle Ground  means that unless Lara is going to take him in hand and properly train him in the marital-martial arts it will be like him and The Titan all over again. Harry got his Spear out in front of her but at the crucial moment he lost focus and was in danger of there nearly being no successful climax to the engagement. He was lucky,  Ethnui had already grasped Odin’s mighty Spear, but it went off in her hand, leaving her shocked and weak at the knees, giving Harry his chance to plough on into her and dominate her through a binding, thoroughly like no mortal man had ever done to her before. Harry got (for him) a happy ending.

Murphy didn't know jack squat about a magical staff.. Odin's Spear went off in her hand by design in my opinion.  Harry lost focus because Ethinu was getting into his head... Martial arts aren't that easy to pull off when you are six foot nine..

[Conspiracy Theorist]

Murphy was considered something of a master with a stave, although in Battle Ground she admitted that Bradley would beat her into submission on a regular basis with his weapon. I doubt following the soul gaze though that Bradley will show Harry his technique, and frankly I don’t think Harry could pull it off, even if he did.

[Mira]

Murphy was considered something of a master with a stave, although in Battle Ground she admitted that Bradley would beat her into submission on a regular basis with his weapon. I doubt following the soul gaze though that Bradley will show Harry his technique, and frankly I don’t think Harry could pull it off, even if he did.

You are talking about coordination, something Harry admits he wasn't overly gifted with, he also admits he isn't terribly good with a sword. If you will notice most gymnasts, dancers, are usually under six feet in height.  It is what it is, but while Murphy maybe good with a stave, if she pointed one at something nothing would happen, Harry with a point and a word could blow it to hell..

[Conspiracy Theorist]

Unless it was a human. More often than not Harry faces adversaries who are ostensibly human, and as such magic is out of the question and he generally ends up engaging them up close and personal. For example the choking incident with Nicodemus. In such circumstances the magic in his staff is less useful than the wood. A nice thick, seasoned length of wood has saved Harry on numerous occasions one on one, and whilst he is not the most experienced swordsman, Lea certainly had no complaints when he bared his blade in the cemetery. She really was quite satisfied by Harry’s exertions, even though his size may have counted against him.

[Ed0517]

I think he must of cracked it on the popup.  What you need to do is go back and listen to the sound when the bat hit the ball.  I bet you can hear the crack even if the bat didn't come apart at that moment.  Notice announcers usually know the minute the bat strikes the ball if it is broken from the sound it makes.

they didn't say so, and I didn't think so ... but I used Alonso because I had seen it that day. Bo Jackson did it after striking out, so the bat was intact until his knee.

[Mira]

they didn't say so, and I didn't think so ... but I used Alonso because I had seen it that day. Bo Jackson did it after striking out, so the bat was intact until his knee.

Was it? Unless they had a before close up, you wouldn't see an existing crack before he broke it over his knee.  Or there is a trick to it, which apparently there is;

According to The Hardball Times. Here is the physics of it;

The force on the bat intended to break it can be applied rapidly or slowly. Or, if you prefer fancier language – dynamically or quasi-statically. Here’s a way to understand the difference. Go get an uncooked piece of spaghetti and hold one end in each hand.

Breaking it dynamically means very quickly snapping it in two. Put another way, you apply the force rapidly. Quasi-static means slowly applying the force so the spaghetti gently bends more and more until it eventually breaks. For most materials, the breaking force is different in the two cases.

In the case of breaking a bat in game situations, we know from high-speed video measurement that the force is applied dynamically because the entire bat doesn’t have time to bend before it breaks. Check out this famous broken bat hit by Hunter Pence off Joe Kelly in the third inning of the 2012 NLCS.

It also goes into how a bat is shaped and knowing where to apply the force at the weakest point.  In other words, the players that do it make a dramatic impression, but it apparently is something they studied and perhaps practiced before hand.

[Conspiracy Theorist]

I am confused is this baseball? I was talking about wood in his staff not about sporting wood involving Harry. As far as I am aware Harry never even swung his staff at the Eye of Balor in Battle Ground, so he didn’t even manage to get to first base with Ethnui.

However Harry is far more used to striking out than getting a home run. He prefers to watch, remember the story involving the tuatha and the goat? That’s more Harry’s speed.