[F5-PP] Sand, Sand everywhere. Why is there so much Sand? <<Blood in the Sand>> (Vargas, Shield, Atzo)

[Atzo 0]

Spoiler

<<Blood in the Sand>>

This Repeatable quest takes place on Floor 5

 

Word from the Information Brokers speaks of a hidden respawning Field Boss on Floor 5. A small party reported having encountered a dangerous unknown enemy in the sand dunes of Floor 5. 'Swimming' through the sand, the shark like creature would attack by bursting out of the sand and biting with powerful jaws. This monster <<Sand Shark>>, proved to be a dangerous opponent for the relatively low leveled party, and dropped a powerful alchemical concoction.

 

This RP will not count in the benchmark

 

Requirement: 

<<Sand Shark>> must be defeated, Maximum Party Size of 3

At least two [2] Pages  (21 or more posts)

 

Rewards: 

1. [sand Armor Potion] This incredibly potent alchemical salve can be applied to a piece of armor, increasing damage mitigation/resistance by one point for one battle. (MIT +27)
2. [3 Skill Points]

 

 

<<Sand Shark>> is a respawning Field Boss and has the following statistics:

HP: 125

Damage per Attack: 50

 

• Parties or Groups of low level players are encouraged.
• You are free to control Sand Shark yourself, however he must be Rp'd responsibly.

 

Note:

While you may repeat this Quest as many times as you like, the 3 Skill Point reward will only be obtained on the first completion of the Quest. Repeat completions will only yield <<The Sand Armor>>

 

Good Luck Players!

“I think it is time I attempted this ‘Blood in the Sand’ quest I have been hearing about. Now that I am at about the same level as Vargas we should be okay. I do think I should ask Shield to help me through.” Atzo pulled up his menu and sent a joint message to @Shield and @Vargas.

Hello Friends,
I think today is probably going to be a good day for me to finally take Blood in the Sand. I would greatly appreciate any help either of you can give me.I don't want to attempt to take it on my own. So, if you two are willing to assist me I would appreciate it if you would meet me in the floor five tavern. 
Dum spiramus tuebimur
Sincerely,
Atzo

Hopefully they would show up sooner rather than later. It was going to be a long day for him and he wanted to make sure he would be able to successfully defeat the monster there.

Edited April 2, 2017 by Atzo

[Vargas 0]

Vargas arrived in Fortaleza through the teleportation platform. The crystal animation dispersed as he materialized. Looking around he saw the buildings were made vastly of polished sandstone and sturdy wood. Each one appeared to serve a purpose as a business, a tavern, or an inn. Well, looks like my first time on this desert floor is going to be for Blood in the Sand. At least I'll get be able to probably level up from it, he thought. Stepping off the platform Vargas began to make his way through the settlement. As far as he could see, most of the traffic traveled back and forth from one area, meaning that there was likely only one way in and out of the walls that had been erected around the place.  Wonder what the walls are trying to keep out. Some kind of giant desert beast or something? Better not be a freaking sand demon. I don't need to be dealing with giant beasts right now. 

As he looked around the town on his way to the gate he got a number of odd looks from his appearance. He had his hood down from the cloak, revealing his fox ears that matched his sandy blonde hair. His matching tail swayed to either side as he walked, brushing along his calves. Spotting Atzo, he walked over to his guild leader waving. "Hey. How's it going? Oh! I recently got my Howl skill finally. So I can draw aggro with greater ease."

 

@Shield

Edited April 9, 2017 by Vargas

[Shield 0]

"That shouldn't be necessary," Shield said, arriving behind the other two players at nearly the same time. He gave Atzo a nod of greeting. He did not know the other player, but if Atzo had requested his presence, he could at least assume the player was trustworthy. "I've handled this boss before. You two should focus on damage, since that's currently my downfall."

He brought up his HUD and checked their position in town, figuring which was their nearest path to the exit and the shortest route from there to the location that the sand shark tended to occupy.

"I would also request," he went on motioning for the others to follow as he began along the plotted course, "that if time permits, we at least poke around for a dungeon once all is said and done. If nothing else, since I'm running low on quests, it will give me a chance to earn some solid SP later on once we've concluded."

The course was direct, which put them in the right area in good time. Shield could hardly say he recognized the area, since the dunes not only lacked much distinction from one another but were also constantly shifting, but it seemed as if they were on the right part of the map. Before long, a cloud of dust began to rolling along the top of the nearest dune, tracing a line down the side and leaving a trail of swirling, sandy cloud behind it. In its midst, Shield could just barely make out the tip of a fin.

"Look alive, everyone! We have inbound!" he called, gripping his axe as the telltale fin drew closer. In the mean time, he slowly filled his lings, careful not to inhale the sand. Just as the shark was on its final approach, he let loose the contents of his lungs in a <Focused Howl>, the force of which cut a cleft in the top layer of sand. "Been a while, hasn't it fish face!? I hope you've gotten stronger, because I certainly have since then!"

The boss creature's head came into view as the sand was peeled away, and with a flick of its rear fin, it launched itself out of the ground and propelled itself towards Shield.

Spoiler

ID# 81802 results:

Action: Focused Howl

 MOB: 10 - Hit! - 50 dmg + 2 - 124 mit = 1 dmg

[H:6] Shield - HP: 859/860: EN: 86 | DMG: 3, BLD: 24 (8+) | MIT: 124 | RGN: 30+54 when hit | THN: 28 dmg
@Atzo
Vargas

<<Sand Shark>> HP: 125/125 | DMG: 50

The impact of the jaws that wrapped around his torso didn't even register, save for the single row of pixels that disappeared from his health bar. However, that the health bar of the boss remained steady told him that it must have hit a vital spot, otherwise his thorns would have activated and taken out a significant portion of its health.

"Well, so much for the idea of a challenge."

Edited April 10, 2017 by Shield

[Atzo 0]

It was a quick spawn, quicker than what Atzo was accustom to. “I am glad to hear that Vargas. Though, leave the tanking to Shield right now, in fact, you may want to take a few pages out of his spreadsheet” Atzo said with a laugh, poking fun at the fact that Shield worked as a statistician in the real world. “I have no problem with that Shield, you are doing this for much less than Vargas and I, so helping you out in finding  a dungeon is the least we can do.” The shark hit Shield with quite the large amount of force, though Sheild’s health didn’t really move. Still Atzo charged the beast at thirty miles per hour while activating Back Rush. The large gaping wounds lasted for a few seconds as he jumped back to allow room for Vargas. It was going to be a very quick fight, he had a good feeling about that.

@Vargas
ID# 81889

Spoiler

Battle 7+3=10 (Hit) [DMG=(6+1)*5=35]

Stats

Spoiler

[H:6] Shield - HP: 859/860: EN: 86 | DMG: 3, BLD: 24 (8+) | MIT: 124 | RGN: 30+54 when hit | THN: 28 dmg
[H:1] Atzo 340/340 HP |27/34 En | LD 3 | Eva 3 | Acc 3 | Bld 1 T1 | 
@Vargas

<<Sand Shark>> HP: 90/125 | DMG: 50

 

Edited April 11, 2017 by Atzo

[Vargas 0]

Don't tank they say. He'd just gotten the skill because that's what had been asked of him to fill a tank role for the guild. Sighing, Vargas just went with it. He still dealt decent damage with his sword skills so he could help beat the mob with little effort. "If that's what you guys want then that's what I'll do," he said, accepting his current role, "as for the dungeon search, that sounds fine to me. Especially if it repays you for helping us."

He followed after Shield along with Atzo as they made their way to their destination. All Vargas saw for great distances was sand, lots and lots of sand. Dunes spout out of the never ending proof of time as they shifted from the flow of air. Spotting what Shield had, Vargas drew his Anneal Blade.

The creature propelled itself from the shifting grains and captured Shield in its large jaws. It would've clung to Shield but Atzo quickly charged the shark, dealing a chunk of damage to it. "Let's end this quickly," Vargas said as Atzo dropped back. Charging forward, Vargas leaped over the creature and impaled his blade in its back as he activated his lightning fall sword art. "Anyone else feel like having some cooked fish for dinner after this?" Grinning at his own little joke, he kicked off from the shark and gathered some distance.

ID #81891

BD: 9 (7 + 2)
DMG: 5*8=40

[H:6] Shield - HP: 859/860: EN: 86 | DMG: 3, BLD: 24 (8+) | MIT: 124 | RGN: 30+54 when hit | THN: 28 dmg
[H:1] Atzo 340/340 HP | 34/34 EN | LD 2 | Eva 3 | ACC 3 | BLD 1 T1 |
[H:1] Vargas 340/340 HP | 34/34 EN | LD 1 | Eva 2 | ACC 2 | BLD 1 T1

<<Sand Shark>> HP: 50/125 | DMG: 50

@Shield

Edited April 10, 2017 by Vargas

[Shield 0]

Spoiler

ID# 81914 results:

 Battle: 1 - Miss

 MOB: 1 - Miss

[H:6] Shield - HP: 859/860: EN: 84 | DMG: 3, BLD: 24 (8+) | MIT: 124 | RGN: 30+54 when hit | THN: 28 dmg
[H:1] @Atzo 340/340 HP | 34/34 EN | LD 2 | Eva 3 | ACC 3 | BLD 1 T1 |
[H:1] Vargas 340/340 HP | 34/34 EN | LD 1 | Eva 2 | ACC 2 | BLD 1 T1

<<Sand Shark>> HP: 50/125 | DMG: 50

Shield was impressed. It had been a while since he had seen Atzo in combat, and even longer since their first quest together, but his damage was already outpacing the kind of punishment he used to deal by leaps and bounds. Vargas wasn't doing too bad either, especially for someone who was supposedly a tank. He was clearly taking a more holistic approach to tanking than Shield was.

As soon as the others had completed their attacks, Shield ran up the center between them, pulling his hand back to swing an uppercut as soon as the shark emerged. In his haste to strike, however, he overshot the spot where the shark had apparently planned to emerge from the sand. Jaws snapped shut on the air behind his heels. At the last moment, he tried to turn around and take a swing at the foe, but all he saw was the tip of a tail vanish back into the sands.

"I'd prefer sushi, honestly," he quipped back, trying to get a bead on where under the sands the shark had gone to.

Edited April 11, 2017 by Shield

[Atzo 0]

Atzo watched as Vargas followed up Atzo’s attack. It was going to be a quick fight today. Though as he went to strike Misguidace’s help was not enough, Atzo ended up tripping and doing a forward roll, Misguidance skidding along the ground beside him. “[censored]” he muttered under his breath as he rolled out of the beasts next attack and grabbed the mirrored blade. He used his momentum to stand back up. “I need to make sure that doesn’t happen again” He shook his head and turned his attention back to the rest of the group. “Are they talking about food? I wonder what brought that up.” He readied himself for his next strike, scanning the area to ensure he didn’t replicate what he had just did again. It wouldn’t be a challenge to end this fight, he had a stong feeling that Vargas would next hit, and even if he couldn’t Atzo hoped that Shield’s thorns would activate.

ID# 81926

Spoiler

Battle 1 (Crit Fail)

Stats

Spoiler

[H:6] Shield - HP: 859/860: EN: 84 | DMG: 3, BLD: 24 (8+) | MIT: 124 | RGN: 30+54 when hit | THN: 28 dmg
[H:1] Atzo 340/340 HP | 25/34 EN | LD 3 | Eva 3 | ACC 3 | BLD 1 T1 |
[H:1] @Vargas 340/340 HP | 34/34 EN | LD 1 | Eva 2 | ACC 2 | BLD 1 T1

<<Sand Shark>> HP: 50/125 | DMG: 50

 

Edited April 11, 2017 by Atzo

[Vargas 0]

Vargas watched for his turn as the others moved in turn. The battle seemed to have become game of hide and seek as the shark nipped at Shield's heel before diving back into the sand. Atzo tripped over the shifting sands, causing him to roll forward to get back to his feet quickly as he lost his sword in the process. So far, it appeared that the fight was a spotlight for Vargas to strut around and slay the beast as everyone else flopped about. 

Looking to Shield, he saw his eyes glint as he spotted the shark. "If you want sushi, then I guess we'll just have to catch this thing and chop it up," he laughed as he quickly made his way across the rippling waves of sand to where he could now see the grains lifting up from the creatures movements. Activating his sword skill, he stopped running and slid across the ground as he slid his blade into the shifting sands, cutting through the mob. The sand shark thrashed violently under his feet as it tried to escape its assailant. It wouldn't be long before it died if its reaction was anything to go by.

Spoiler

ID #82024

BD: 10 (9 + 2) Bleed activated

DMG: 5+1=6*8=48

[H:6] Shield - HP: 859/860: EN: 84 | DMG: 3, BLD: 24 (8+) | MIT: 124 | RGN: 30+54 when hit | THN: 28 dmg
[H:1] Atzo 340/340 HP | 34/34 EN | LD 2 | Eva 3 | ACC 3 | BLD 1 T1 |
[H:2] Vargas 340/340 HP | 34/34 EN | LD 1 | Eva 2 | ACC 2 | BLD 1 T1

<<Sand Shark>> HP: 2/125 | DMG: 50 | Bleed 12 DMG (2/2) 

@Shield

Edited April 12, 2017 by Vargas

[Shield 0]

Spoiler

ID# 82030 results:

 Battle: 10 - Hit! 3 dmg +2 = 5 dmg, Bleed - 24

 MOB: 8 - (Disregarded - Dead)

[H:8] Shield - HP: 859/860: EN: 84 | DMG: 3, BLD: 24 (8+) | MIT: 124 | RGN: 30+54 when hit | THN: 28 dmg
[H:1] @Atzo 340/340 HP | 34/34 EN | LD 2 | Eva 3 | ACC 3 | BLD 1 T1 |
[H:2] Vargas 340/340 HP | 34/34 EN | LD 1 | Eva 2 | ACC 2 | BLD 1 T1

<<Sand Shark>> HP: -27/125 | DMG: 50 | Bleed 12 DMG (2/2) [DEAD]

After yet another solid blow from Vargas, the shark dove further under the sands. Its fin and burrowing mound weren't visible from the surface which meant one thing.

It's coming up from below.

Since nobody had yet drawn enough of the shark's ire to pull its focus, that meant that all Shield needed to do was wait for the thing to come up below him and he would have a clear shot at its head. The whispering of the desert winds filled his ears as he waited. Just as he was beginning to wonder if the shark had turned literal tail and fled, a mound began to push up just below him and the beginning of a jaw emerged next to his feet.

With a heave, he sped his axe into the monster's nose, cleaving its head in two as red pixels surged up from the sand and then were gone. He let his shoulders fall back into a relaxed position, turning to the others and giving a slight nod of the head.

"That could have gone a lot worse," he said, storing his axe and Shield away in his inventory. "Overall, you two seem to be in good shape combat-wise."

Edited April 12, 2017 by Shield

[Atzo 0]

This was good to see, the shark was dead. Now to figure out what we were to do for the rest of the day. they still had some time before they needed to search for a dungeon. “You have gotten stronger as well Shield, ether that or I just forgot how powerful your thorns and bleed damage was” Atzo said with a smile “So what do we plan to do now? Fight some more monsters? Or just hunt for materials? I don't care either way, though if we do fight if we could take a breather I would appreciate it.” Atzo said as he looked for something to use in a potion, he wasn’t too surprised when he didn’t find anything. Most things couldn’t grow in the desert so finding potion ingredients would prove to be very challenging. He looked to Vargas “Good job back there bud, I am glad to see your luck has improved sense we fought those minotaurs.”

@Vargas

ID# 82135

Spoiler

Loot 4+3=7 (HA)

 

Edited April 13, 2017 by Atzo

[Vargas 0]

It sucked he hadn't been the one to finish it off but at least their quest was now over. Though, just cause the quest was over didn't mean their day was. They still had a dungeon to try to look for, if one was anywhere nearby and hadn't already despawned. Speaking of materials, it'd be good for me to collect more. I don't have too many left after my last batch of appraisals, Vargas thought as he glanced around their surroundings. There were few plants and hardly any variety. There was a cactus, a cactus and, ooh, another cactus. If he could find some desert blooms or something like that he could collect it. For now, he was just gonna have to make due. Looking at Atzo, Vargas shook his head smiling, "Yeah, perhaps. Yours didn't seem to do much better though. Hehe. At least your damage output is higher though."

 

ID #82136

LD: 7 (6 + 1) [No Mat]

 

@Shield

Edited April 13, 2017 by Vargas

[Shield 0]

Spoiler

Swapping gear:
- Pain Drinker (-54 Regen), -1 Bloody Hell (-2 dmg, -24 bleed), + Finder's Keeper (+1 skill rank: search & detect), +Seeking Aura (+3 LD)

ID# 82139 results: Loot: 19 + 3 item + 1 skill + 1 skill item = 24 - +1 Material (1 total)

Shield navigated his menus until his shield and axe vanished in flashes of white. An earring and a wristband manifested themselves in their place, and with that, he set about searching the desert with the others, now properly equipped for the task.

"Atzo, from the sounds of things, you've been pushing your ventures to some degree of success," he said, nudging a clump of sand which turned out to be nothing more than a clump of sand. "There are even whispers among the Ascendants about your efforts."

He went to nudge the next clump, but this one did not dissolve, instead moving the sand below it as it moved itself. Shield knelt down and dug out around it, revealing a hardened structure made seemingly of sand frozen in place.

"A fulgurite," he mused aloud. "Natural glass left behind after a lightning strike. It's this kind of attention to detail that makes SAO a little scary at times. Not that there wasn't plenty to be wary of already."

@Atzo

Edited April 13, 2017 by Shield