The Death Game - IC

[Kiran]

”Ah, perfect!” Aster said, smiling. He was glad that they had decided on that with little problems- it wouldn’t have been hard to turn something like it into an argument. Nydedri accepted, though, so it was fine. She had some concerns, of course, but it wasn’t like she said ‘no’. Besides, would anyone really be stupid enough to go without a proper raiding party to fight the boss?

 

Stay focused, he reminded himself. Right, right, they needed to find somewhere to raise their levels. Hmm… Well, he wasn’t exactly the right person to ask, but maybe he could contribute something? It wasn’t like he knew where all of the best leveling spots were, but he wasn’t completely clueless. Every time he partied with someone new they tended to share a bit of information. Some were a bit less interested in sharing (Aster always made a mental note to never party with them again- didn’t they realize that everyone should be working together?), but he ended up learning something or other from everyone. He shrugged. ”Well, it’s dusk now, so… hm, the best place I know of is, ah, you know that one forest…?” Sighing, he decided to just pull out of map. Opening his menu, he flicked through the options and pressed a button to create a flat, physical representation of the first floor. Pointing to a forested spot on the map, he continued. ”Here. I’ve farmed here before and it wasn’t busy, hopefully it still isn’t... Normally the «Small Brown Bears» that spawn on this floor are too rare to farm properly, but it turns out that they spawn more frequently there. There’s some sort of den-like structure there, it’s probably for some quest that hasn’t been discovered yet. Anyway, they’re still not common, but there’s enough trash mobs nearby to get a decent amount of exp and with the bonus from the bears, you know. They’re a bit tougher than most- nothing we can’t handle, of course -and it’s a fair distance away, but unless anyone has anywhere else…? If not, we could meet over there...?” He really wouldn’t be surprised if they did, but eh, it was worth a shot.

 

[Marcus Pheonix]

Lance sighed with relief as he passed through the gates to the town. On his way back he had been attacked by a couple wolves, they were fairly low level though so he managed to take them out with little impact on his health bar. But nevertheless returning to a location that was safe put his mind at ease.

 

Upon entering he noticed a fair few people, a mix of both players and npc's milling around the markets, which took up the majority of buildings on the central strip. Instinctively Lance reached up and pulled his hood down more casting shadows on his face, he also brushed the long strands of hair that hung down in front of the right side of his face.

 

Walking quickly Lance made his way to the blacksmith. As he arrived a couple players exited, made sense as blacksmiths were fairly important buildings that were frequented regularly. Lance entered and the blacksmiths eyes lit up at the sight of him, recognising someone who had accepted a quest earlier.

 

"You get me the materials I need boy?" He asked.

Lance nodded, keeping his head low.

"Of course, weren't out of my way," He said confidently. His left hand raised he selected the leather from his inventory and it materialised on the counter.

The blacksmith looked at it and nodded satisfied, albeit without hiding his somewhat suspicious look as he was doing so. Clearly the blacksmith didn't trust the dark hooded figure.

The A.I of this game was certainly something impressive, even though the NPC's were all fairly basic, they each had personalities which were conveyed with their lines.

 

Upon the blacksmiths completion of his examination the quest completed screen appeared before Lance's eyes accompanied by the blacksmiths words.

"Well that's what the doctor ordered, as per our deal here's your money, now what type of armour were you wanting?" The blacksmith asked.

As he did so a small list of leather equipment appeared on the quest completion screen. One of the reasons he liked this quest was that if you gathered a specific type of leather you got a custom piece of bull leather armour of your choice.

Lance briefly examined his current equipment, he knew what he wanted but just in case he found anything that might change his reasoning he checked.

 

"Ill take some leather arm guards thanks," He said whilst pressing his fingers on the arm guards listed.

"Aye," The blacksmith responded as the arm-guards appeared in Lance's inventory.

 

Exiting the building Lance equiped his new arm guards, completing his basic leather equipment set. The material the gauntlets were made of had a black sheen and also had the 'durable' trait. Stats wise it was similar to normal leather but the different default colour and the small percentage that the armour wouldn't wear when taking damage made it a popular low level light armour material. Lance briefly considered the idea of going to the tailors and getting the guards dyed, but as it fit with his pallet quite well and he didn't want to waist any unnecessary money he decided against it.

 

Pausing he felt his stomach churn, and his eyes sought out the inn, the main eating location of the town. With swift pace Lance moved to and entered the inn. There were a fair few players scattered around eating there food, he noted a reasonably sized group sitting nearby. It appeared they were discussing farming strategies.

'A guild?' Lance thought. He brieftly listened in as one of them spoke.

”Here. I’ve farmed here before and it wasn’t busy, hopefully it still isn’t... Normally the «Small Brown Bears» that spawn on this floor are too rare to farm properly, but it turns out that they spawn more frequently there. There’s some sort of den-like structure there, it’s probably for some quest that hasn’t been discovered yet. Anyway, they’re still not common, but there’s enough trash mobs nearby to get a decent amount of exp and with the bonus from the bears, you know. They’re a bit tougher than most- nothing we can’t handle, of course -and it’s a fair distance away, but unless anyone has anywhere else…? If not, we could meet over there...?”

They were between him and the counter so Lance walked passed them. As he did he stopped and paused briefly next to their table.

"Ugh... you know... farming near the den is good and all... but... a better way to attract the bears... is to bait them using the sour meat that's available in the market... using it will cause wolves... and also bears to spawn around the point of the meat... its a more guaranteed way to farm then the den... because... well the den still has a set spawn time... so uh... yeah..." Lance stumbled nervously.

'Dammit man! You know what you're saying, be confident! Stop stammering, otherwise they won't just think you're ugly they'll think you're a wimp too!' He internally screamed at himself. Pulling his hood down to well below his nose, his head lowered so that he could barely see in front of him, Lance continued towards the counter.

 

((Ok hows that, to clarify Lance didn't turn or anything he just stopped and spoke, he didn't look towards them))

[Coryn02]

"Semantic isn't getting us anywhere. Let's just go."

Mirage wanted to get going as quickly as possible; she wasn't very good at reacting to situations with lots of people around, but at least she could take her mind off things if they were busy. She also wanted to get to the next floor soon. Mirage had no intention to stay in this world any longer than she had to.

 

Another person, a man in a dark hood and cape, walked by them and briefly mentioned something about baiting the bears and wolves with meat.

 

I've heard about this sort of thing... He obviously knows more than he says. Maybe he can help us.

 

As he started to walk away, Mirage grabbed his arm, stopping him.

 

"We're getting ready to scout the labyrinth soon. You know a lot about this hunting spot, right? Could you help us?"

Edited July 16, 2015 by Coryn02

[Epyon]

Though he wants to bolt out of the meeting to round up his officers and his allies, it would be best to set a rendezvous point. While his guild and allied guilds are strong in their own right, red guilds have been known to ambush unwary parties."The bears are a good idea, we would be wise to heed this strangers' advice. I have also found a smaller complex of caves where lizardmen dwell. I've been training on them and gained some useful items. Although they range from levels 7-10." He narrows his eyes as he examines the stranger, leather armor.. A quick hitter. He acts like Mirage, he realizes as he chuckles to himself.

 

Speaking of Mirage, he almost forgot about her when she piped up, little girl needs to be more sure of herself. As much as he's told her on the few occasions that they party together. However, she needs to know better about formulating plans, and semantics are a part of that. "Now Mirage, plans and strategies are mostly semantics with only a single part as the execution. We're as anxious to clear this level as the next, however I would prefer not to rush in and have us all dead. The more we can hammer out our strategies, the better we'll likely be." He then stops as he takes a good long look at everyone. "If anyone else has something to add about farming spots or anything of value, I believe we are done here. Aster? Mirage? Ybyl? Nydedri? Anything you all can think of? If not, we should decide on a place to meet up."

[Peelzies]

Three level six wolves surrounded a blonde, teenaged mace user. As simulated growls rumbled from their insides, the young man looked up with a smile on his face. The wolf to the left struck out, but not before the young man had performed a deft front flip over it. Dust exploded from the ground as his feet connected, splayed out and bent to absorb the impact. He used the built up energy to propel himself at the confused wolf, and just as it turned to look, the mace connected with it's canine skull. An explosion of pixels engulfed the wolf, and the other two turned towards their fallen pack-mate.

 

The right wolf lunged, and it's jaws snapped shut two inches from the young man's abdomen.

 

"Close but no cigar!" the young man laughed as he brought the mace down into the face of the second wolf.

 

As it exploded into pixels, the final wolf launched itself at him in a wild attack. The attack reeked of a desperate animal's last ditch effort. Unfortunately enough for the wolf, the young man sidestepped the attack and one last time brought the mace into the head of the snarling beast.

 

A 'Quest Complete' screen unfolded in front of his face.

 

User: Orion Pacer

Quest: Control wolf population (Kill 25 Wolves)

 

Congratulations!

 

Orion Smiled as he closed the Quest Complete screen and a Level Up screen took it's place

 

"Level 7! Nice." Orion exclaimed to himself.

 

He contemplated what skill to choose once he reached level 10. He had often toyed with the idea of a hammer skill. He wondered if this game even had hammers. It always seemed like a pretty badass fighting style to be swinging around a big ol' hammer. If the hammer skill didn't exist, he would be using parry.

 

His choices gave him a very unique play style, and helped him level up solo very quickly. However, it also prevented him from having any sort of chance at the labyrinth without a party or guild.

 

It was time for Orion to head back to the town of beginnings and sell the cracked claws and torn pelts he had been racking up. On his return trip he contemplated the recent events. It hadn't been long since the Whats-his-name creator of SAO had announced that nobody was leaving until the game was over.

 

Orion had quickly lost track of time since then, diving into the beautiful world of SAO. He woke up daily, found a quest, and did it. If he had time, he would take another.

 

He cringed a bit when he remembered that he had family and friends outside of the game.. but wouldn't they want him t be happy? Even if it meant staying in this world... oh well. He would enjoy it while he had the opportunity.

 

Before he knew it he was in the Town of Beginnings once again. He pulled up his inventory screen and unequipped his worn leather armor. it pixelated to reveal a tight green shirt and brown pants.

 

The bell rang as Orion stepped into the store. The shopkeep hailed him as Orion materialized what was essentially garbage onto the counter. The large man smiled and nodded as if Orion had just handed him a few jars of sweet cream. A window appeared confirming the transaction, and the accept button lit up as Orion's finger tapped it. The NPC proceeded to exhaust it's dialogue as Orion stepped back out of the store. Manners weren't exactly important when dealing with NPCs.

 

Nearby the shop was a tavern, which Orion wandered into smiling. the wooden door creaked open and a mild thrum of voices escaped into the street. The door quietly slipped shut behind him.

 

What looked to be a full party appeared to be discussing something with a tall hooded man. Orion opted not to interfere, but shuffled past quietly. He then broke his silence and shouted out.

 

"Anybody have a Labyrinth party going?"

 

Orion was never really one for the subtle approach. Walking up to parties and discussing it with them never really worked for him.

 

((My posts are inferior to all of your vivd ones. ))

Edited July 21, 2015 by Peelzies

[Marcus Pheonix]

Lance jumped with shock as he was suddenly grabbed on the arm. He quickly moved to try and wrench his arm free but the girl gripped it like a vice.

Damn whats her strength stat!? Lance thought.

His attempts at getting away were halted as he heard her words.

 

"Could you help us?"

Lance blushed and reached up to rub his cheek, a small sense of pride coursing through him.

These people want my help... maybe I should help them, I mean there'd be some good loot in the dungeon, yeah good loot, I can get another shoulder guard He thought, internally laughing to himself.

Lance turned slightly and looked at the other seated at the table, his eyes passing over the girl still clutching his arm. It was a little awkward to do so as he needed to turn his full body to see them whilst she... Mirage apparently, clutched his right arm, and with his right eye covered and his hood drawn so far down he had to lift his head up and look down his nose just to see.

 

Lance paused as he listened to the second speakers comments, he recalled the lizard den from the time in the beta, he had barely been able to get out of there as he'd tackled them at far too low a level.

Levels 7-10, no wonder I was only level 5...

Once again he jumped in shock as a loudmouthed guy burst into the inn practically screaming for attention.

Once again losing his voice Lance stared at the newcomer for a few seconds before looking back at the other speaker and Mirage.

"Uhh... sure I'll show you how I farm if you like... but-" He turned his gaze to the man.

"Would you be able to show me where those lizardmen are? I have a little bit of a vendetta against them that I'd like to fulfill," Lance said, his face still heavily in shadow. He then turned back to Mirage.

"Uhh you know there are some non-hostile mobs in the forests and they have a good chance of dropping the sour meat... so if you kill a couple you won't need to spend money at the...uhh... butchers... you can just... keep farming... though it might wear your HP down pretty quick... that many monsters. I guess it could probably work for the lizardmen too though I'm not sure whether sour meat will bait them," Lance concluded, somewhat to himself.

Finally he looked again at Mirage.

"Uhh... could you please let go... I'm actually quite hungry... and I need to get to the counter," He said, lowering his head as he realised that as he was taller than her she could probably see his face more easily.

[ValidEmotions]

Nydedri started to rub her temples. The discussion was starting to trail away from the focus of the group as two additional players entered and began their interruptions. "I'll assume you noticed the flyer calling for a meeting at a specific time a little late. Otherwise, I will not allow for a party member who does not know how to be punctual," she started, looking first at the young boy who shouted into the inn. "Have a seat. Mirage? Let the mumbling fool go," Nydedri stated. Shifting her gaze upon him, she frowned and drummed her fingers across the table surface. "You seem like you vaguely know what you're talking about. However, what makes you think an animal is going to follow of the sent of sour meat? Would you want to eat it? Would any of you?" she inquired, turning on the rest who had supported the idea.

 

Shaking her head, Nydedri rubbed the bridge of her nose. "No carnivore is going to chase sour meat. Their instincts tell them not to out of self-preservation. Soured meat is not healthy meat and can make a creature fall ill; for an animal, they can't afford to be," she stated. Now she pointed her gaze at Naudleigh, almost rolling her eyes at his last question. "What do you think we're trying to do? We're not twiddling our damn thumbs. Now, shut up unless you have something to actually contribute instead of spewing redundant questions," she snarked.

 

Ybyl rested his hand on her arm, patting it gently. "You're getting a migraine. Maybe you should step outside and let me handle the dealings until you're in a better mood," he soothed. She glared at him but he didn't appear to waver. Finally, she growled and muttered something inaudible before abruptly getting up and leaving the inn. After a moment, Ybyl cleared his throat. "I apologize for her behavior; she's not fond of... interruptions. Please," he motioned to the two newest males, indicating seats. "Sit with us. You can easily make any orders from the menu that pops up once you sit."

 

Shifting briefly in his seat, the man regathered his thoughts. "So we farm in one or two possible locations. Nydedri did have a point about the sour meat but the plan can easily be mended to use fresh meat instead for the bears. Regarding the lizardmen, it might be useful to at least try there. We could even split up into two and farm both areas as such. As for meeting up, I think it would be safer to meet at the Town's center, by the announcement board. Same goes for when we finally set out for the labyrinth. It's a place we all know well and can easily get to without complications such as unexpected encounters."

[Epyon]

Naudleigh wants so much to roll his eyes at Nydedri's continuing snarkiness. Although to his credit, he keeps his expression blank, albeit with difficulty. He takes a deep breath once she leaves and feels himself relax.

 

"I like that plan, makes the most use out of our time. Shall I take the stronger players to the lizardmen while everyone works on the small bears? Nydedri does have a point concerning the meat, even carrion eaters won't actively go for rancid meat," he says. "Instead, how about we lure them out with the food that they graze on? Red berries I think attract them the most." Although, wouldn't it be safe to at least see if what this lightweight said is true? He has no answers so he says nothing and instead, he waits for the meeting to be adjourned. He leans back against the wall, having nothing else to say. He instead opts to gaze around the tavern.