Ancient of War

"Push until you can't push, then you push some more! Don't let me see that shield dipping, kid, or I'll make you run the wall until you can't feel your legs anymore and then I'll make you push again! You aren't going to quit now because you aren't quitting when we get in a scap, by Domielle!."
~Ellayne Warbough, Sheriff of Alcedene

History

Iliac formed the first balatar militias in a rapid tour of humanity. With little time to train and equip them, he showed them how to make the basic equipment for which the balatar would be known, and set them up with a series of exercises. It was already tradition to plant an oak in the village green, so Iliac instructed them to knock it down. Forming a boar's head or wedge (depending on the size of the tree) the balatar were to practice pushing with their shields. Given that actually knocking down a healthy oak tree in this manner is nearly impossible, the task was simply to build strength. To this day, the Ancient of War is still a core tradition among balatar across the Confederation.
This tradition is so ubiquitous it has led to a variety of recognizable phrases across Maecodia.

Components and tools

Balatar kit is necessary to perform this exercise properly.