While some empaths are sweet and kind and cannot stand the sight of violence… there are those of us that just plain love the hunting grounds and training there.

If this is more the path for you then my advice would be...

SPELLS:

Rummage through your spellbook. You should have the following:

Theoretically, now you can stand in the midst of a swarm and
never once get hit between innocence, manipulating,
and your fae guardian.  

MANIPULATION:

You can now manipulate the friendship of critters in the field. This makes them view you as a friend and not wish to harm you, they will also attack other critters that are still attacking you (kinda cute!).

Each time you manipulate a critter you drop a bit in concentration; you should not count on it to keep ALL of the beasts out of melee with you because of this. For some manipulating just 1 beast could take all of your concentration while others can manipulate a swarm easily. (Note: Circling and training Discipline are the only ways you can gain more concentration.)

Now.. if you want to learn empathy hunting alone is the best way to go. Let 1 or 2 face you, manipulate the rest as they enter. The manipulated creatures will attack the ones facing you, if you are hunting with a partner they would just advance them as the next foe in the room. Holding them manipulated that way moves your empathy steadily, if you have a partner or a group with you they will kill off the ones you have turned, it is having them alive and fighting to protect you that teaches you most, or so it seems to me. If you are worried that things could get out of hand keep a Guardian Spirit with you, summon them when needed. Or Innocence works wonders for getting you out of a tight spot.

And on a side note... How flipping cute is this???!!!
The fendryad notices Vestibull, and alerts you and others of his attempt to fire from hiding.

HUNT: 

Get off your duff, armor up, grab a light weapon and dive into a pile of critters.  Helps to take a barb along to throw at them if they get too sassy.
 

 ARMOR: 

This is of course a personal choice, but light chain is my personal favorite. Offers a good deal more protection than leathers, and does not weigh that much more overall. You need protection for your entire body (heads, hands, arms, legs, torso, neck, eyes, etc).

You can even grab some for free in some hunting areas (Maras up by Theren drop chain shirts, for one).

GEAR: 

You will need a weapon to learn parry with, preferably something as light as possible (you will want to keep your burden down). Once you have one you can practice Parry or if you like fiddling with blood you can help those you hunt with by skinning if they do not want to (survival ranks are always a good thing).

A shield is also a must, if need be this can be picked up free in several hunting grounds.

ALL DRESSED UP AND READY TO GO:  

Ok, so you are all armored up and looking rather vicious with your sword and the grimace on your face from the hindrance. Now what you ask? Well first look at your gear. Your shield should be in your left hand, and your weapon in your right hand. (When you are training you need only have one or the other out at a time). 

Look at your STANCE. Set stance evasion at 100 and leave it there. Later you can adjust this to give you more points to use in other areas, but until you are very comfortable in the field and good at dodging incoming bolts, I would just leave it alone. 

If you are holding a weapon: set stance shield to 0, set stance parry to 80. (Note: there is no sense in filling your other hand with your shield when parrying, as you will not use it, nor learn from it).

 If you are holding a shield: set stance shield to 80, set stance parry to 0.

 Yes, you can set stance shield 40, set stance parry 40 and learn both. But your odds of parrying or blocking are significantly lower thus your odds of getting the crap smacked out of you are higher.

 If you are parrying, Parry. This will move you into position. If you are using a shield, BLOCK.

BRAWLING: 

This will help you knock critters out of melee with you, or onto their backs. Also, if you can get them off balance, you can dodge easier as well.

You must be very careful to stop brawling when you are not hunting, as things like kicking or biting someone will bring on shock.

Note: Nothing is more fun than having some snert that likes roughing up pathies engage you, then knocking them on their arse or across the room.

GENERAL: 

At first you should always hunt with a partner that can actually… well kill the damn critter that is chewing on your leg. It works out well for you both usually. You can help keep them alive (though leave the non-deadly wounds until you are done hunting until you are older or in a mana saturated room, as they hinder your dodging).

Have them guard you though, to keep you from getting swarmed. If many critters start coming in and you are too bold to run, then retreat and have them re-guard as each one comes to melee with them. Or better yet use your spells - Innocence will disengage most critters with a 5 prep, and send them running out of the room altogether with more mana. This also works on snerts/pvp.
Do not be a dolt when first learning, one critter is plenty.

If you prefer hunting alone, make sure you are hunting within your skill level (should be able to retreat if needed, and handle the extra critters that will come in). Though do not get all offended if people come by and keep offering to help. Most see us as frail, regardless of the fact that we walk around with more wounds than they could survive most all of the time. Some are shocked at the notion of a troll smacking you around and will be rather put out and want to help you. (Watch their face when you shove the offending critter across the room in a heap, the fun never ends!)

The key skills you will need to train are: Evasion, Parry, Shield, Multi Opponent, and Brawling.

May Hodierna guide you gently upon your chosen path ...
 and smack you upside the head when you need it.

~Master Healer Gwynath Remb~

Bloodthirsty Wench