Water God Style

Water God Style (水神流 Suishin-ryū) is one of the three major schools of swordsmanship.

Characteristics
It is a style of swordsmanship that specializes in defensive techniques emphasizing parrying and counter-attacking oncoming attacks. Since there are only a few ways to attack, there is also the art of provocation to make the opponent take the initiative. A skilled practitioner would be able to read the flow of Magic and use their senses to block and counter any attack, including magic and projectiles.

The downfall of the Water God Style is that the user cannot attack first while displaying Water God Style techniques, making it weak against North God Style due to their characteristics of sudden-attack, trickeries, and adaptability, which are hard to read. On the other hand, Water God Style is a good match against Sword God Style due to their philosophy of taking the initiative and striking first.

Practitioners often wear heavy equipment such as full-body armour, as they do not need to move themselves. This sword style is mostly used by palace knights and nobles, where the job is to protect someone or themselves.

Succession
To succeed to the title of Water God, one must master at least three of the Five Secret Arts of the Water God Style left by the founder, the first Water God Reidal.

Techniques

 * Flow (流 Ryū): The basic counter-attack technique that can be applied to all the techniques of the Water God Style. This technique, once mastered, is said to be able to return any attack that comes in the user's way. Though it is a basic technique and not one of the Five Secret Arts, the school considers it to be the backbone of the style and the most important technique.
 * Deprivation Sword Kingdom (剥奪剣界 Hakudatsu Ken-kai): An ultimate technique formed by combining the two most difficult Five Secret Arts, also called the phantom Sixth Secret Art. In this technique, the user takes a stationary stance which allows to react to the movement of the opponent in all possible directions within the range of the technique, and unleash a deadly slash capable of cutting down everything in its vicinity.
 * Five Secret Arts (五つの奥義 Itsutsu no Ōgi): The collective name of the five undisclosed ultimate techniques of the Water God Style. Even just one of the Arts is extremely hard to master, and when at least three of them have been perfected the individual is qualified to be a Water God.

Ranks
There are seven ranks in the Water God Style:
 * 1) Water God
 * 2) Water Emperor
 * 3) Water King
 * 4) Water Saint
 * 5) Water God Style Advanced
 * 6) Water God Style Intermediate
 * 7) Water God Style Beginner

Practitioners who are of Saintly level and above may call themselves a Saint, King, Emperor or God of the Water God school. Similar to the system of Sword God Style, there can be only one swordsman of the God rank while the there can be multiple practitioners who can assume the rank of Water Emperor and below.

Known Practitioners

 * Water God: Reida Reia †, Isolte Cruel


 * Water Emperors:Isolte Cruel (Former), Gal Farion †


 * Water Kings:Isolte Cruel (Former)


 * Advanced: Paul Greyrat †,


 * Intermediate: Soldat Heckler,


 * Beginners:Rudeus Greyrat, Luke Notos Greyrat


 * Users of unknown rank: Ginger

Trivia

 * The first generation Water God was the only individual ever to master all five of the Hidden Techniques of the Water God Style.
 * The headquarters of the Water God school is located in Ars, the capital of Asura Kingdom on the Central Continent.
 * Water God Reida Reia is the only known swordsman who have mastered the technique Deprivation Sword Kingdom, and is what allowed her ascension to the God rank despite the existence of several other qualified swordsmen.
 * Water God Style is ranked last among the three Sword Style after the North God style.