The first step in Grimlock's basic survival combat training was learning how to form Gion Tattoos using Gion Ink and Gion Points.
A Gion tattoo was not ornamental. It was a functional pattern inscribed onto the skin with Gion Ink, carefully connecting specific Gion Points along the body's internal Gion Circuits. Through precise configuration, the tattoo could form a seal, a spell construct, a curse matrix, a formation array, or a hybrid design tailored to the user's needs.
When executed correctly, a Gion tattoo operates as an auxiliary Gion circuit, reinforcing or redirecting the body's existing flow. This discipline of creating Gion tattoos was known as Ink craft.
Ink craft demanded anatomical accuracy, gionic stability, and mental precision. A single misplaced Gion Point could distort the flow and destabilize the entire structure. At best, the tattoo would fail to activate. At worst, it could backfire, rupturing the user's Gion Points and damaging their internal circuits.
For beginners, the training was brutal in its simplicity. They were required to memorize their own Gion Points, chart their internal pathways, and practice forming temporary patterns that faded within hours. With sufficient repetition, they could switch between Gion Tattoos at will.
In combat, a well-designed Gion Tattoo could mean the difference between reacting decisively and hesitating at a critical moment.
Ink Craft was also a good segway into Card Craft. The same Gion Ink used to inscribe patterns across the skin could be used to engrave seals, spells, curses, and formation arrays onto empty cards within a Grim Deck. Through this process, Grimlocks created spell cards, trap cards, summon cards, artifact cards, and countless specialized variants.
The governing principle remained the same for both practices except for the medium changed.
Unlike tattooing one's own body, engraving a Grim card did not require mapping personal Gion points or stabilizing internal circuits. The card itself served as the structured framework.
Where skin demanded anatomical precision to prevent backlash, a card demanded structural clarity to prevent collapse. A flawed Gion tattoo could rupture the user's internal Gion circuit. A flawed engraving would simply fail or, at worst, combust the card.
Gion ink was a mixture of the user's blood and Gion microbiome, saturated with concentrated Gion. Once prepared, it carried both biological compatibility and gionic conductivity. When applied to skin, it formed an external Gion circuit linking Gion points. When applied to a card, it established an independent Gion circuit contained within the card's structure.
In either case, Gion Ink was not mere pigment. It was a living conduit, allowing the user to direct Gion in a precise and controlled configuration, using one's skin or card as a medium.
With the help of the Dream Engine grim cypher and my Gion Circuit card, mapping and memorizing my Gion Points and internal circuits was not difficult. Thanks to the Dream Domain's time dilation, I accomplished it in less than a second in real time.
The next step was memorizing and mastering Gion Tattoos.
Every Gion Tattoo was constructed from established frameworks—seals, skill matrices, combat arts, formation arrays, etc. I had to memorize each pattern exactly as designed.
That required more than recalling its shape. I had to understand its flow: where the Gion entered, where it converged, where it compressed, and where it was released. Some tattoos amplified physical strength. Others reinforced mental defenses. Some acted as preloaded spells, triggering upon impact or when specific conditions were met.
Unlike card engravings, where a flawed inscription merely damages card durability, mistakes made on skin carried immediate consequences. A structural error could disrupt Gion flow, destabilize the circuit, and in combat, that instability could be fatal.
Therefore, many Grimlocks—even those equipped with memory-enhancing cards like Engram Enhancer—limit themselves to mastering one or two Gion tattoos over their entire lifetime.
The reason was simple. Mastering a Gion tattoo to the point where one could deploy and maintain it instinctively in a high-tension situation like combat could not be achieved through memorization alone.
During battle, the user had to actively sustain the tattoo while adjusting it to fit dynamic situation. That increased the cognitive load and shortened the transition time between Gion tattoo configurations, which raised the risk of misalignment under pressure. This was not something memorization alone could solve.
Only through experience could one learn to use a Gion Tattoo fluidly in combat. Muscle memory, situational judgment, and Gion control had to align. Anything less would result in hesitation or silly mistake, which could prove fatal in combat.
So most Grimlocks follow a principle often repeated in training gyms: fear not the one who has practiced ten thousand Gion tattoos once, but the one who has practiced a single Gion tattoo ten thousand times.
A Grimlock who has engraved the same tattoo across their skin for years knows exactly how much Gion to feed it, how it reacts under strain, how to adjust when disrupted, how to use it dynamically in high-risk situations like combat. Their execution becomes faster than thought. Such versatility and speed couldn't be achieved by just superior memory.
There were countless Gion tattoos to choose from, depending on the type of Grim deck one intended to build. For most Grimlocks, the deck still remained their primary strength, so their tattoos were selected to complement that strategy.
Another option was to keep things simple and focus on body-reinforcement Gion tattoos. These strengthened the physical form directly, allowing the user to wield their own body as a combat artifact. For survival and close-quarters combat, this approach was highly effective.
The drawback was prolonged reinforcement placed immense stress and strain on the physical body, especially the gion points. After all, Grimlocks were still fundamentally human that possessed a Gioncore and a Grim deck.
I, however, possessed an ultimate undying body thanks to my Gioncore. To take advantage of that, I chose the reinforcement route as well. I had no interest in becoming a Grimlock who stood in place and overwhelmed opponents by spamming powerful cards like an immobile siege turret. I wanted mobility, adaptability, and control over the battlefield, regardless of the tarrain. That was only possible by relying on my body as a primary weapon, it would also give me greater flexibility when constructing my Grim Deck, freeing it for utility and specialization rather than brute force.