[PP-F5] Looking for Group (Takao, Ebony, Shirien, Nikodemus)

[Avilon 0]

Avilon glanced over the hard sandy structures that the people of this floor had claimed as their homes and shops, each structure expertly crafted to withstand the sandstorms that took place. Frankly the dry climate and blinding rays were enough of a put off for her, but sadly this game had ways of lifting one out of their comfort zone. All the less it was gorgeous to see a desert for the first time in the virtual flesh. The pink haired maiden smiling as she still had no basic armor or upgraded weapon beyond her short sword. A sigh now lingering over her lips as she raised a hand over her face to cup over her eyes. She really regretted her lack of training and fighting as she really was in a search for finding the most gorgeous climate so a fight between the only three floors she had been on so far. The Grassy fields of level one, the snowy wonderland that comprised level four and this desert wasteland that was making it uncomfortable to look around. Slowly she pulled up a key board and typed in a message public to those around her, "Looking for group hoping to gain some sp maybe see a sub dungeon who knows?"

Edited May 3, 2016 by Avilon

[Shirien 0]

Shirien was walking around the fifth floor for the first time, his eyes wide with wonder as he scanned the sandy horizons. "This... This is an option?" He says with a hidden tone of excitement. Desert settings were his favorites whether it was anime, games, or Disney movies! He stomped his feet around a bit to test the sand and smiled up at the scorching hot sun for a bit before tugging his hood forward to help block it from burning him alive. When word of adventure reached his ear he hummed in thought while weighing his options. On one hand he could go at his own pace if he went solo, but then again power in numbers was a major advantage. Plus he hadn't even heard of a 'sub-dungeon' before so the nagging sense of curiosity in the back of his mind pushed him to move forward and investigate. He double checked his equipment to make sure he was actually ready. He drew the dagger on his hip and insured that it was indeed his newly purchased one. He was also able to see the basic leather gauntlets on his arms. It was good quality armor, but his light armor skill made it somewhat useful, even though he failed to appraise extra power from it. His mental checklist complete the hooded player with brown eyes and hair sent a reply to 'Avalon' with a private message. "Feel free to add me to the party, or tell me where you are!" Names didn't display over people's head in this game, so he had to be in a party with them or have a tracking skill to locate them

[Ebony 0]

Ebony was checking the boards on her hud while sitting in a cafe on the fifth floor. She absolutely disliked this floor and all of the sand. One notification in specific drew her attention though, one from her recent friend Avi. She tapped on it and brought it up, smiling. It looked like she was looking to finally get some gear and levels. Ebony glanced at her inventory. She had a shield her friend could borrow, but she doubted that the enhancements would help her very much as she would need to be hit for them to activate. And at her elvel if she got hit she was dead. She glanced at her inventory again. Ah, there was some old mitigation armor... She exited the cafe, glancing around to see Avi standing around, seemingly admiring the view. She wandered up behind her, carrying her old shoulder guard. "Hey Avi. I heard your looking to go adventuring!" She said excitedly, handing the piece of armor over. "Its my old armor, i dont need it anymore." She explained.

Spoiler

 

Name: Impenetrable Gauntlet

Tier: 1

Quality: Perfect

Enhancements: 27 Mit

Description: Heavy black armor extending from the shoulder all the way to the wrist on one arm.

 

 

[Nikodemus_Blackwood 1]

Sitting in a small bazaar in the main settlement of floor 5, Nikodemus kept his full armor on, not enjoying the sun as others here did. He had come in search of a job, but found nothing he was fit for. While sipping from a cup of water, Nikodemus heard the familiar chiming of the message system. Opening his HUD he read the message and decided that it was work, and he always enjoyed meeting new people. Putting his cup and water bottle away, Nikodemus began to walk to the players location. Arriving, he saw 3 people. He did not know any of them personally. Of the three, he had heard of one of them, a young lady named Ebony. He heard of her exploits during Boss raids, and her title of Aincrad's Best Paladin. Smiling, he waved a salutation and then gave a curt bow. "Guten Abend. My name is Nikodemus. You can call me Niko, Hatter, or anything else really. I am here for the request to help with leveling and maybe a sub-dungeon."

[Takao 0]

"This place is terrible." Takao grumbled lowly. The vast, expansive desert was one of many floors tied for his least favourite. In terms of temperature, it was only rivaled by the hellish volcanic range that was the ninth, although the humid jungles of floor six was a close second. Jade eyes drifted sidelong to the red-scaled reptile seated upon his shoulders, whose appearance vaguely resembled a dragon without wings. It sported an uncharacteristically blissful grin as Takao descended the first steps of the warp gate platform, already being hit with a wave of dry heat. Exhaling an entertained huff of breath through his nostrils, Takao turned his gaze back forward. "At least you're happy for once, but like... c'mon man. There's five dungeons 'ere for every one dungeon on the other floors, 'n this place is impossible to navigate. Just all... sand dunes 'n stuff." He said aloud, with little regard to whoever might have heard. If history was of any indication, finding the dungeons themselves would be of little issue, and clearing them even less so, but it didn't make the experience any more tolerable.

The soles of his boots hit the pathways of Armadillo with a soft thud and just as Takao was about to take his first steps in the direction of the floor's wilderness, his familiar tapped him on the head and pointed in the direction of three gathered players. Having overheard the small group talking about a sub-dungeon, Takao cast an accusatory glance to the monster. "Since when are you the social type?" He muttered in a low tone, and shifted his course toward Avilon, Ebony, and Nikodemus, the latter having given him a clue as to how they had gathered.

"Hey uh," Takao spoke up once he was within a reasonable distance away; not so close that he was looking over somebody's shoulder, and not so far that he needed to raise his voice to garner some attention. "Overheard you guys talkin' about a dungeon?"

- -

T2 Perfect Damage Potion used.

Edited May 5, 2016 by Takao

[Avilon 0]

Avilon now stood there looking around the town center of the fifth floor rather aimlessly wondering if this was how one was suppose to go about calling upon a group of people for adventuring. Her eyes and heels each peering in opposite directions of one another, first clockwise then counter clockwise. A large sigh escaping her lips as she was afraid she was quite pathetic at this. The pink haired girl smiled happily from seeing the response as she now clicked on the message a bit haphazardly attempting to make sure she did this right. "Oh bullocks," she stated quite confused now typing it in as she realized she was helpless when it came to directions. "I guess that the best way to to describe where I am is the sandy center of the town?" She said now glancing around Armadillo attempting to see if anyone else was stopped messaging.

 

As she stood within the center she then heard a greeting, "Oh are you -" her own question answered as she now was peering to the new man who had appeared and back to the name in the message. She then winced wondering, "That isn't your real name or something and your username isn't something completely different say Shirien?" Giggling as she realized she was going to fail utterly at this group congregating deal. She slouched and then hung her head uncomfortably as she then heard another voice speaking over the crowd that was familiar. "Huh?" She blinked now looking back to see Ebony. "Oh hi again!" She shouted happily her hand waving energetically. "Well this is good I wasn't expecting to have two people let alone armor for this little excursion." Humbly she accepted the gift and took out the new gear and blinked looking about it and putting the armor on backwards. At that mention she then stopped again spinning around in the sand and collapsing as she wasn't particularly graceful now getting a mouthful of sand as she faceplanted. "Oh, gosh sand everywhere now." She groaned waving still in a partially upbeat mood. "Yes we were plotting to take one on although I must admit I'm pretty useless."

[Shirien 0]

Shirien blinked at the response mentioning a sandy place. He half hung his head and half laughed as he was told to meet someone in a sandy place on this floor of all places. He simply laughed and started to look around, soon figuring out that he should head to the center of town as she suggested, that little bit of information being helpful. He raised a brow when he saw a gathering of players before long. The sheer coincidence of someone looking for a group and him finding a group lead him to approach the players and wave. "Heeey, are one of you Avalon?" He asks curiously before gesturing to his chest "I'm Shirien, by the way." He looks to their faces and tugs back his hood enough so they could see his. His brown eyes wandered from face to face until he had confirmed that he had seen a few of them before, and even one of their names.

He had overheard the latest part of the conversation as he approached, smirking as he tugged his hood forward again and said "Useless or not, get enough people and the impossible becomes possible." His mind was filled with the image of a few hundred level 1 mages killing a high leveled orc in a certain MMO. It was truly death by a thousand pin pricks. He tried to pretend the faceplant didn't happen, holding his laughs inside himself to save her the shame of his judgement. "I'm pretty new myself, never been to a sub-dungeon, so hooray for learning experiences?"

[Ebony 0]

Ebony smiled as the girl grabbed the armor and put it on the wrong way before collapsing. It wasnt a big deal that the armor was on backwards, the enhancements were the same no matter how she wore it. She looked over at the other players. She recognized Takoa with a sigh of relief. If she recalled correctly he was a capable damage dealer, and they would need one if they were going to do a dungeon. Ebony wasnt worried for herself, but for the other players. She could probably survive a dungeon solo, but the same certainly couldn't be said for Avi, even if Ebony was there with her. "Hey Takao. We'd love to have you if your up for it. I dont deal damage, so we need someone who can really pack a punch." She replied.

[Nikodemus_Blackwood 1]

Seeing Takao wander up, Nikodemus smiled and waved at him. They had worked together once and he knew the man's reputation as a capable fighter and a good man. Listening to the others, Nikodemus smiled and took his large ornate helmet off, letting his brunette hair flutter slightly in the wind. His icy blue eyes gazed at the players around him, and he smiled, letting it reach his eyes. Even outside of his armor, he was a large man, weighing nearly 350 lbs, and standing at a towering 6'3. Holding his helmet beneath his arm, the beak-like face guard protruding slightly outwards, "I am sure Takao can deal a good amount, and I can also deal some with a couple sword arts of mine. I am mostly a shieldwall though. I can take a good amount of hits and walk away unscathed."

[Takao 0]

Takao's eyes glanced over the players one by one. Avilon seemed to be rather clumsy, having put her armour on backwards and tripped mere moments afterward. Shirien seemed familiar in some capacity, though he wasn't sure where he recognized him from. He quickly recognized Ebony as a fellow front liner and offered her a cordial nod of his head in greeting, and returned the wave that Nikodemus offered him. "Yeah, sure thing. I was actually headed out for a dungeon on my own, 'cause I know the general area where one's meant to be. I think it'd work out better in a group though." He admitted in monotone, glove clad hands finding their way into the pockets of his pants. At the notion of his capabilities as a dealer of damage, a faint smile grew on his face that he just couldn't help. It wasn't a role he often found himself taking in a group, nor was it one he found himself to fit, yet he still nodded his head all the same. Jade eyes shifted back onto Avilon and his head tilted slightly. "You uh... y'alright there..?"

[Avilon 0]

As the fourth voice began to speak up she was now pulling herself back off out of the sand as she was still a newbie in this game. Her hands brushing some sand off as she had managed to get it in every crevice she could have deemed possible. She grunted and squirmed uncomfortably as she puzzled which one was Avilon. Slowly spinning the armor around again and her shirt underneath with she sighed. "Gah I hate sand why on earth people think beaches and the like are fun is beyond me." She stated rather mellowly, her own body still gritty texture of it between her skin and clothes and in her shoes. "Anyway,  I an Avilon sorry you are Shirian?" A have exasperated sigh of relief now escaping with a rather obvious tone. "I was afraid I was gonna have to start it off with a scouting party from the poor directions." As the rather tower lingering man removed his helmet she blinked. "I didn't realize how tall you were."

As Ebony spoke about the fact that we need someone  who was high damage dealing caused Avilon to realize she probably should take notes once more, her hand quickly typing out in her braille keyboard once more as she began to make notes about all these players. 'Takao is heavy dps and a good fighter apparently, skills not viewed in action. Nikodemus seemed like this tank build which she was attempting to pull off, ask him for further questions if this is true. Ebony still is hybrid build that I don't completely understand and Shirian is still a mystery.' As her fingers blazed through the notes she then stopped looking to her companions. "Sorry I'm a scientist at heart not a gamer." Smiling rather naively as she rubbed her head.  After hearing Takao's concern she nodded and held a thumbs up to answer his question about her health. "A-ok captain." Her attempts of being sociable and getting along possibly being a bit far-fetched.

Edited May 4, 2016 by Avilon

[Shirien 0]

Shirien nodded happily when Avilon asked who he was "Yup yup, that's me. I can't say at my level I fit into a 'build', but I guess right now I am closest to a basic damage dealer." He pats the Good quality leather gauntlets he wore to indicate his light armor and draws his dagger. The dagger was the only piece of combat equipment he had that had enhancements. All three of the enhancements were used for plain damage. He didn't mind sacrificing creativity and build diversity in favor of survival up until he reached tier two. He figured by then he'd have enough SP to throw around that he could start getting more creative. "What I will be when this character is finished... Well... That's a secret." He chuckled softly, not wanting to be too predictable right off the bat. His eyes quickly surveyed everybody and he came to the confirmation that two of them could kill him with no effort at the very least, while a third would be impossible for him to kill at the very least. Concluding his strategic judgments he sheaths his dagger happily.

When Avilon mentioned being a scientist he raised a brow, momentarily about to ask if she was involved in nervegear at all before deciding that was odd to assume. There were many fields of study after all, not everybody in a labcoat took part in making sci-fi esque gaming systems. "Scientist, hm? That's interesting..." He tried to think of something to say, never having been a conversationalist, more of a listener and information gatherer. "Well, nothing wrong with learning everything you can. I try to do the same thing. It's better to know stuff you won't need than not know stuff you will need... Or something that sounds smart like that?" He shrugs his shoulders and says slightly suddenly "So, anyone against Takao being our leader for this venture then? I vote 'aye' for it." The guy had found a floor boss, he figured that he could find a simple sub-dungeon with ease.

[Ebony 0]

Ebony nodded to the other players. It seemed as though they had all of the bases covered, at least at first glance. She could play the role of the tank, or the healer, but not both. Her being the tank should be enough though, with Takao backing her up. "Nik, it sound like you and I will be tanking. Shir, Takao, and Avi, you guys will be dealing the damage. Everyone make sure to keep track of hate when we're doing this, some of you probably cant take any hits." This was pretty risky business for Avi at least, and she didnt want anyone to die.

[Nikodemus_Blackwood 1]

"Agreed Mamzel Ebony. I will make sure nothing slips past me." With that, Nikodemus ran a hand through his brunette beard and then with an impish smirk, he put his ornate helmet back on and sealed it. The large Plague Knight's helmet was ornate, with a large beak-like face plate and a crown of spikes along the top of it. Checking his inventory, he made sure he was ready for the battle to come. "I also agree with Shir. Tak should lead. Any shots called by him should be followed. I think we will be safest that way." His deep voice seemed hollow through the helmet, and his ice blue eyes were hidden from sight.

[Takao 0]

Takao nodded slowly in response to Avilon, opting not to push the question of her apparent nature as a scientist. The two groups often found themselves falling under the same tropes as one another, yet perhaps they didn't mesh well in one another's natural habitat. His neck straightened and his gaze fell onto Shirien, whom had withheld information regarding his build for some reason or another. Takao's naturally curious eyes glanced over him, and went to work with their analysis. Wears a hood, wields a dagger, and talks about being secretive... A stealth based class makes sense. Takao narrowed his eyes slightly at the thought and let his eyes drift away. Light armour and dagger means he'll be an evasion based DPS regardless. His trust in the former archetype had waned, and he found himself rather unwilling to allow the thoughts to persist. The topic shifted to him leading them in some capacity, which earnest a reluctant nod of his head.

"Uh... Yeah, sure. That's fine." He said in response, gesturing with his head for the group to follow him. He headed outside of the gates of Armadillo, jade eyes set forward on the rolling fields of dune after dune. "Do you have «Howl», or «Fighting Spirit»?" Takao asked as he walked, glancing over his shoulder at Nikodemus. Either skill was a prerequisite of tanking, and with how much hate he knew would be built up as they cut through the first fifteen monsters or so, it would be quite the chore to keep up.

"...'cause that's the Dungeon there," Takao said, gesturing down one of the sand dunes. True to his word and barely visible to the eye was the ruined entrance to the dungeon, the only indications of such were a pair of inconspicuous sandstone pillars. "...and it'll probably be kinda annoying to keep up with the hate using fighting spirit."

 

Advanced Dungeon found.

  ID :: 58270
LD :: 23 
(10(Roll) + 5(S&D) + 3(HoM) + 2(Reveal) + 1(Detect) + 2(Vitamins)

Edited May 4, 2016 by Takao

[Nikodemus_Blackwood 1]

Shifting his glance from the entrance to the dungeon, Nikodemus let his eyes settle on Takao. Shaking his head slightly he sighed. "Neither ranked above 0. So I doubt I could use them. That was next skill acquirement... But the job I came here for was a wash. I didn't feel like spending my next few days searching the desert for a probably buried wagon of merchant goods..." His shoulders sagged slightly and the sound of creaking metal was heard. With a sigh, the large madman looked away and murmured to himself about needing to get more jobs done. 

[Avilon 0]

Avilon looked around nodding her head as she then looked over in the direction which Takao had apparently spotted this supposed dungeon, "Holy cow you must have incredible eye sight I don't see squat?" She mentioned now squinting harder to see if she could spot it still. "I can try and do damage I suppose, although I must admit I don't think I will be doing anyone any good with how weak I am." Wincing and rubbing her head feeling rather childish compared to the rest of the compatriots in this little squadron they had coagulated. "I think someone should really tell us the strategy for not dying right now as I don't really know where I should be in this formation."

[Shirien 0]

It hadn't escaped notice that he was being watched, but he shrugged it off easily enough. If anything he thought it was fair since he had done the same. He decided he'd keep his guard up just in case, doubting anything would come of it. It only made sense for himself to be suspicious he figured, considering the weapon and hood. Appearances were his first line of defense so he was glad that it was taken into consideration. People often try to avoid suspicious people and try not to cause trouble in his mind.

When the dungeon had been discovered by Takao Shirien gave a whistle and stared out into the distance at his claim. "Nicely done. Hate to be a shadow in the dark around you." He says cheerily before turning his attention to Avalon "Well, going by usual RPG rules..." He gestures to the two tanks "They charge in first, piss off all the baddies, and then we attack the baddies in the back when they are busy attacking the 'tanks'. You'll get used to it, just don't wander off on your own and we should be good I figure..." He glances to the tanks in wonder if they knew their limits "As long as they don't over extend themselves." That said he drew his dagger in preparation for any sneak attacks by the enemy, not that they could get past Takao's seemingly eagle eyes.

Edited May 5, 2016 by Shirien

[Ebony 0]

Ebony looked around at their group. "Avi, you specifically I would advise to just stay back and watch. At your level you dont have much health and even with that armor I gave you, mitigation doesnt mean anything if you dont have health behind it." She explained. She paused, looking each player over except for Takao. "Nik and I dont have hate gaining abilities, at least i dont think he does. That means that we'll be getting hate at the exact same rate as you guys if you attack, making you targets, especially if you land a critical. I would advise everyone who isn't confident in their abilities to let Takao and myself shoulder most of the fighting." She stated, not mentioning Nik as she wasn't sure of his level or mitigation or abilities, just that he had said something about being able to take hits.

[Nikodemus_Blackwood 1]

"No, I do not have Hate. I have a MIT rating of 30, and health of 40. My best Sword Art will do rought 30 DMG not counting what it would be if it were any form of critical hit. Place me where I am needed Takao. I will follow orders." His voice rang out hollow through his helmet. He looked around at the group and smiled beneath his helmet. "I also have some health potions. but they will take some time to heal the user, but no <First Aid> or <Combat Medic> skills." Sighing lightly, Nikodemus wished he was stronger, or atleast had some other skills, but for most of his time in Aincrad was spent in a wake of madness, something he still struggles with to this day.