[PP - F2] Guildmates and Venomous Creatures [The Venomous Warg] (Freyd)

[Aquan 0]

Aquan had decided that he was going to take his time and hangout in a tavern for a while. He didn't know many on the second floor, having gone there only a couple times all together. However, he decided that after all of his questing and the time he took on the first floor, now would be as good a time as any to start off into the second floor and explore what he could do there. So, this brought him to the second floor tavern to have some food.

After eating for a bit, he noticed an NPC in the corner with his own drink, looking upset. He knew a quest when he saw one and decided to approach the NPC. "You come for the bill I posted? I am Gatsly. I work as a merchant, making just enough to support me and my family, but lately all of my supply caravans have been destroyed or chased away by a ferocious beast." He looks down at the floor, "I don't have much, but if you could slay the beast, I would pay you." Aquan smiled and nodded. "I shall do this for you sir, no need to worry. I will be back soon with the slayed beast." He immediately opened his friends list to look for help.

Hello Freyd. Do you mind assisting me on a quest on Floor 2? I will send you my location.

Editing

Spoiler

Level: 9
HP: 180
EN: 18
LD: +1
Stealth Detection: +1
DMG: +1
EVA: +1

Skills
Searching, Rank 1
1 HSS Rank 1

Equipment
Uncommon Tier 1 Light Armor: Evasion
Rare Tier 1 1 HSS: Paralyze, Bleed (12 Unmitigable DMG for 2 Turns)

Guild Buffs
Lucrative: Reduce LD needed for Salvage by 5 (10+ for Alchemist crystals, 6+ for everything else). +2 EXP per craft. Rank 9 crafters receive +1 crafting attempt per day. Rank 10 crafters receive +2 crafting attempts per day.
Col Deposit: +5% bonus col from last-hit monster kills and +10% bonus col from treasure chests.

Edited November 23, 2020 by Aquan

[Freyd 0]

"Gatsly, you old dog!  Are you still pulling that 'lost wagon' routine on the newbies?"  Freyd's voice bellowed across the open tavern so loudly that half the NPCs in the room nearly dissolved their pants.  

"Don't let him fool you, Aquan.  I don't actually believe it's his caravan."  He shot the beleaguered merchant such a glare that the poor, balding, heavy-set man blinked and blubbered in a paltry excuse for protest.  "The number of times I've seen him offer the same deal, and he always has a heft reward somehow magically available, despite having allegedly lost all his worldly belongings!"  The darkly clad spook raised his voice again near the end, further stammering the quest giver.  Pointing two fingers into his cowl, he spun them around towards the NPC, clearly indicating that he was on the lookout for shenanigans.  A free hand subtly accepted the quest window just as red eyes winked at him from shadows beneath the charcoal cowl.

"Don't worry," he said to Aquan.  "I mess with him every time.  It's all good."

***

Freyd, The Whisper in Shadows | HP:1630/1630 | EN:175/175 | DMG:20 | MIT:79 | EVA:2 | ACC:5 | ABS.ACC | KEEN 1 | LD:5 | BH:81

Spoiler

Name: Freyd, The Whisper in Shadows
Level: 80
HP: 1630/1630
EN: 175/175

Stats:
Damage: 20
Mitigation: 79
Evasion: 2
Accuracy: 5
BH:81
ABS.ACC
KEEN: 1
LD:5

Equipped Gear:
Weapon: Grave Injustice (T3-2HSS, ACC 1, Keen 1, Abs. ACC)
Armor: Skirmisher's Garb (T3 LA, MIT 2, EVA 1)
Misc: Night Shades (T3-Trinket, ACC 3)

Skills:
2H Straight Sword [Rank 5]
Light Armor [Rank 5]
Searching [Rank 4]
Battle Healing [Rank 5]
Parry [Obtained]
Energist [Obtained]
Charge [Rank 5]
Extended Mod Limit R3 [Obtained]
Hiding [Rank 4]
Martial Arts [Rank 3]
Quick Change [Obtained]

Extra Skills:
Disguise
Familiar Mastery: Fighter 3
Survival
Meditation

Mods:
Precision
Finesse - Rank 3
LA Athletics
Ferocity
LA Sprint and Acrobatics
Night Vision
Vengeful Riposte

Battle Ready Inventory:
Teleport Crystals*5
Gungnir Shard: Haniel's Modesty (T3 Perfect HP Rec [Instant]*5
Flash of Rejuvenation (Mass HP Rec [Instant] (+30*Tier HP)*5
Fruit-Infused Tea (T3 HP Recovery)*5
Imugi's Inspiration (T3 Mass HP Recovery)*5
Mega-Duper... Sauce (Antidote 3)*5
Samael's Pride (T3-2HSS, VO 1, HOLY 1, FLN 1)*1

Housing Buffs:
Rested: -1 energy cost for the first two expenditures of each combat
Clean: The first time you would suffer DoT damage in a thread, reduce damage taken from DoT each turn by 20% (rounded down)
Hard Working: +2 EXP per crafting attempt and +1 crafting attempt per day
Filling: Increase the effectiveness of a single food item consumed in a thread by +1 T1 slot.
Item Stash: +1 Battle Ready Inventory Slot
Delicious: Turn 3 identical food items (same quality, tier, & enhancements) into a Feast. A Feast contains 6 portions of the food items sacrificed.
Relaxed: Increases out of combat HP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts.
Skylight (Searching): +1 Rank to the Searching skill.
Angler: +1 material gained when fishing
Advanced Training: +2 SP to a thread. Limit one use per month [0/1]
Multipurpose: Gain +1 to LD, Stealth Rating, Stealth Detection, or Prosperity to one post in a thread. Can be applied after a roll
Decor [Potted Tanabata Bamboo Tree]: This buff affects the player and their choice of up to two party members.

Guild Hall Buffs:
Lucrative: Reduce LD needed for Salvage by 5 (10+ for Alchemist crystals, 6+ for everything else). +2 EXP per craft. Rank 9 crafters receive +1 crafting attempt per day. Rank 10 crafters receive +2 crafting attempts per day.
Col Deposit: +5% bonus col from last-hit monster kills and +10% bonus col from treasure chests.

Scents of the Wild:
Kumatetsu Statue: +1 Base Damage for a thread

Wedding Ring: n/a

 

[Aquan 0]

Aquan almost jumped out of his skin when Freyd came along and started talking to the NPC. He could not help but smile a little at the strange interaction of player and NPC. "I don't believe-" He was about to tell Freyd he did not expect the NPC to react, but strangely enough, they did. Some of the other bar-goers also responded as well. "Huh, that is strange." The times that he talked to the NPCs, nothing of note ever happened.

Freyd's personality was throwing Aquan off just a tad. When interacting with people like Valentine or Chase, they seemed a bit more reserved (or at least not as positive as he was). Aquan offered a confused smile when Freyd began to reassure him of what he was doing. "Okay..... Shall we get going? And I appreciate your support through this quest. Both the company and the extra muscle are needed." He nodded and began to walk.

After a moment of the two of them walking towards the quest objective, he turned to the man. "What have you been up to today? I have not been up to much. I've been crafting a bit at my shop, and just trying to enjoy the day the best I can. I did not know that NPC you were talking to was a quest giver until after I entered and got a drink."

[Freyd 0]

"Today?  Hrm... today."  Freyd needed a moment to catalogue and collate his response.  "Slayed a bunch of spiders, took out an ancient boss baddy, laid a few bombshell revelations on some friends, oh.. and I had a really nice lunch on floor five!  Fortaleza has some really good cuisine, if you can gain access to the local chefs' special bonus menus."  Freyd had the barest hint of a smile on his lips, which probably meant that half or more of what he'd just said was completely fabrication.  Which also meant that it was also probably all true, but with certain key details modified for convenience.  It was a facet of his dark and twisted sense of humour, and also amounted to his particular form of banter.

"Actually, I'm just trying to gather some last minute resources for the floor boss raid."  The smile was gone, implying an abundance of honesty.  "What's your crafting skill again?"

[Aquan 0]

"When does the Floor Boss Raid take place? And I am a cook. So far not a high rank, but I'm hoping that will change in the next few days. Trying to keep consistent with my crafting in order to keep my rank increasing faster. I know being apart of the guild is going to help with that. What kind of food did you have on the fifth floor? I do not think I have visited that floor yet. I've been staying on the bottom few floors for a while, only going up when I am invited to take on a higher quest. I've been to the 24th floor, and possibly the 21st floor soon." He nodded and continued to walk with Freyd.

The pair came closer and closer to the nest of where the Wolves and the Main boss lay. "I'm going to take my antidote now. You are by all means welcome to attack first." He smiled and laughed softly, his poor attempt at a joke. "I think I will try to attack them some what. Wanting to get more comfortable with combat mechanics and my own ability. I know I have invested in less combat skills than others have, but I believe that should not hurt me."

Aquan took the Antidote and took a moment to analyze the four creatures they were quested to talk on.

Taken: Antidote: Reduces the duration of a single Poison, Bleed, or Paralysis effect by one turn. If used out of combat, reduces the duration of the next Poison, Bleed, or Paralysis effect that would affect you by one turn.

Freyd, The Whisper in Shadows | HP:1630/1630 | EN:175/175 | DMG:20 | MIT:79 | EVA:2 | ACC:5 | ABS.ACC | KEEN 1 | LD:5 | BH:81
Aquan | HP:180/180 | EN:18/18 | DMG:2 | LD:1 | SD:1 | EVA:1 | Paralyze | Bleed |

Wolf 1: HP: 40/40 | DMG: 25 |
Wolf 2: HP: 40/40 | DMG: 25 |
Wolf 3: HP: 40/40 | DMG: 25 |
Venom Snapper: HP: 135/135 | DMG: 35 | CRIT: 50 | EVA: 1 |
Venomous Bite: Natural MD of 9-10 poisons the target, dealing 10 unmitigatable damage at the start of their turn for 3 turns.
Feral Strike: Every time a <<Wolf>> is slain, <<Venom Snapper>>’s next attack becomes AoE. This ability can stack (if 2 wolves die at the same time, <<Venom Snapper>>’s next 2 attacks become AoE). “Venomous Bite” can still trigger on AoE attacks.

Edited November 25, 2020 by Aquan

[Freyd 0]

"It was some kind of curried snake, I think?"  Freyd smacked his lips, as if triggering some flavour recall.  "Cooks are some of the most amazing crafters, considering they have to take sensory input that everyone experiences differently and somehow make it palatable for all.  I honestly don't know how you all do it!"

Somewhere between starting their conversation and the wargs appearing before them, Freyd had summon a striking, long, polished steel blade.  The brass cross guard and hilt looked to have been made to resemble a set of scales.  

"This fight gets considerably easier without the Snapper being present.  Gimme a sec..."

He marched forward, prompting threatening growls from the wolf pack and their mutated alpha.  As Freyd lunged forward to strike at their leader, Aquan watched the shadow beneath it also reach up and engulf the beast, swallowing it whole.  A small, feline-like creature formed out of the hangry darkness, opening two brilliant blue eyes with horizontal slots as it leapt up and perched itself upon the warrior's shoulder.  

"Aquan, meet Persi.  She eats field bosses for breakfast.  Just ask Raidou!  It's a mongoose thing. Take some time practicing with the rest.  They're mostly harmless now."

Vanity Tag: @Raidou

Spoiler

Galaxy Destroyer (x13): 13 EN - (Rested 1/2, Finesse 3) = 9 EN

ID #178657 | BD: 10 (Crit +2).  Freyd deals (13x22=286) damage to Venom Snapper.

Freyd, The Whisper in Shadows | HP:1630/1630 | EN:166/175 | DMG:20 | MIT:79 | EVA:2 | ACC:5 | ABS.ACC | KEEN 1 | LD:5 | BH:81
Aquan | HP:180/180 | EN:18/18 | DMG:2 | LD:1 | SD:1 | EVA:1 | Paralyze | Bleed |

Wolf 1: HP: 40/40 | DMG: 25 |
Wolf 2: HP: 40/40 | DMG: 25 |
Wolf 3: HP: 40/40 | DMG: 25 |
Venom Snapper: HP: 0/135 | DMG: 35 | CRIT: 50 | EVA: 1 | (135-286)
Venomous Bite: Natural MD of 9-10 poisons the target, dealing 10 unmitigatable damage at the start of their turn for 3 turns.
Feral Strike: Every time a <<Wolf>> is slain, <<Venom Snapper>>’s next attack becomes AoE. This ability can stack (if 2 wolves die at the same time, <<Venom Snapper>>’s next 2 attacks become AoE). “Venomous Bite” can still trigger on AoE attacks.

 

[Aquan 0]

Aquan scrunched his face up slightly at the mention of curried snake. He had tried many different types of cuisine in his life, but reptilian food was definitely not one of his favorites. "Oh Snake... That's definitely a unique choice." He shook his head and laughed softly. His face then turned to a light red with the praise that Freyd starts to give him about being a cook. "I guess it's not super difficult. I just treat it like the real world. I used to cook a lot of different foods so I got used to matching flavors. I commend anyone that can work with metals or clothing. No matter how hard I've tried, I can never sew." He smiled a bit and shrugged.

Freyd began to talk battle strategy, then immediately killed the boss, leaving the other creatures hanging around. "Well that was effecti- YOU HAVE A FAMILIAR?!" Aquan's face lit up and he ran up to look at the man's familiar. "I've never seen one like you! I love the name Persi, and she is beautiful! What floor did you get-" Chomp one of the wolves lashed out at Aquan, biting his leg. "Do. You. MIND." He pulled his leg free from the wolf's mouth. A second one lashed out at Freyd, but barely doing any damage.

Spoiler

ID: 179110 BD: 3
ID: 179111 MD: 7 - 1 = 6 [25 DMG]
ID: 179112 MD: 9 - 2 = 7 [25 - 79 = 1 DMG]
ID: 179113 MD: 5 - 2 = 3 [Miss]

Freyd, The Whisper in Shadows | HP:1629/1630 | EN:166/175 | DMG:20 | MIT:79 | EVA:2 | ACC:5 | ABS.ACC | KEEN 1 | LD:5 | BH:81
Aquan | HP:155/180 | EN:16/18 | DMG:2 | LD:1 | SD:1 | EVA:1 | Paralyze | Bleed |

Wolf 1: HP: 40/40 | DMG: 25 |
Wolf 2: HP: 40/40 | DMG: 25 |
Wolf 3: HP: 40/40 | DMG: 25 |
Venom Snapper: HP: 0/135 | DMG: 35 | CRIT: 50 | EVA: 1 | (135-286)
Venomous Bite: Natural MD of 9-10 poisons the target, dealing 10 unmitigatable damage at the start of their turn for 3 turns.
Feral Strike: Every time a <<Wolf>> is slain, <<Venom Snapper>>’s next attack becomes AoE. This ability can stack (if 2 wolves die at the same time, <<Venom Snapper>>’s next 2 attacks become AoE). “Venomous Bite” can still trigger on AoE attacks.

 

Edited November 29, 2020 by Aquan

[Freyd 0]

Another pair of swift strikes reduced the packs numbers further, leave a lone wolf to face Aquan's wrath.  

"Kinda reminiscent of the boars in the Second Lesson quest this way, isn't it?"  A pleased smile crept across his pale face as his companion took notice of his familiar.  "Yes, her proper name is Persistence, in recognition of how bloody long it took us to find each other and learn to work together.  She's a goof, but a fierce one at that, and I'm grateful for her skill."  He leaned towards the shadowy creature, which nuzzled its void-like head against his as its eyes narrowed comfortably.

"Have you given any thought to what type of familiar you might wish to seek?  It never hurts to start thinking about it early, though I would also recommend that you raid the guild vault for supplies in advance.  It can be a bit of an ordeal."  

Spoiler

Blast (x2 AoE, +4 hits): 6 EN - (Rested 2/2, Finesse 3, Turn Recovery) = 1 EN

ID #179194 | BD: 1+5=6 (hit).  Freyd deals (20*2=40) damage to Wolf #2.
ID #179195 | BD: 8+5=13 (hit).  Freyd deals (20*2=40) damage to Wolf #3.

Freyd, The Whisper in Shadows | HP:1629/1630 | EN:165/175 | DMG:20 | MIT:79 | EVA:2 | ACC:5 | ABS.ACC | KEEN 1 | LD:5 | BH:81
Aquan | HP:155/180 | EN:16/18 | DMG:2 | LD:1 | SD:1 | EVA:1 | Paralyze | Bleed |

[0,0] Wolf 1: HP: 40/40 | DMG: 25 |
[0,0] Wolf 2: HP: 0/40 | DMG: 25 |  (40-40)
[0,0] Wolf 3: HP: 0/40 | DMG: 25 |  (40-40)

 

[Aquan 0]

"I love the name Persistence. I have not run into many pets that have names that are primarily words, outside of the common food items, swear words, and dainty items like: Cloud, Bubbles, etc. Also, I never did the Lessons Quest. I will probably do them with Grimm soon. I know there is a level cap for them, but I enjoy companionship with those quests, and unfortunately I haven't had much access to a lot of people to assist me with them. As for a familiar I was thinking something like an Otter, Weasel, or a Pine Marten. They can move fast and I think they are adorable." He smiles brightly.

He turns to focus back on the fight at hand, gripping his sword and analyzing the battle field as much as possible. He stood still for a moment then randomly lashed out. His analytical mind was running as fast as possible to under the fighting mechanics. He side stepped the wolf's lunge and he plunged his sword into the wolf's side. The wolf fell limp for a moment, and gained two effects. "Well that, oh." He moved back fast just in case. "That was a lot easier than I expected." He laughed softly and looked at Freyd.

Spoiler

ID: 179235 BD: 10 [Base: 2, Crit: 2, Sword Art: x3 [Snake Bite] 12 Damage
ID:  MD: 

Freyd, The Whisper in Shadows | HP:1629/1630 | EN:165/175 | DMG:20 | MIT:79 | EVA:2 | ACC:5 | ABS.ACC | KEEN 1 | LD:5 | BH:81
Aquan | HP:155/180 | EN:14/18 | DMG:2 | LD:1 | SD:1 | EVA:1 | Paralyze | Bleed |

[0,2] Wolf 1: HP: 28/40 | DMG: 25 |

• Paralyzed
• Bleed: 0/2 Turns, 12 Damage Each Turn

 

Edited December 1, 2020 by Aquan

[Freyd 0]

"Hah!"  Freyd exclaimed, watching Aquan deliver the beast a stunning blow.  The poor thing twitched and spasmed as it fell, sprawling into the snow that slowly turned red as its health bar dipped.  "Isn't it strange how the game designers deliberately avoided most of the the gorier bits of battle, and yet still created an enhancement called 'Bleed'.  That was a good, solid hit, by the way.  You may be better at combat that you let yourself think.  A bit of good gear helps, and Firm Anima are certainly good for that."  

Black, leather-clad fingers rose and traced the edges of his lips while his weapons rested on his shoulder.  Freyd ignored the, harmless wolf while he pondered.  

"You're with Kiluia's group in provisions, yes?  Let me know when you need an agent or two to help you out with your duties.  If I can't help you myself, I'm there are others in the guild who would suit and gladly assist.  You may want to finish him off, by the way."  The raised hand pointed down that the frothy-mouthed wolf.  "There's no need to be cruel here."

Freyd takes no action.

[Aquan 0]

"Thank you Freyd, I appreciate it." He smiles a nods, his smile looking more confident than it looked before. "What kind of gear does Firm Anima usually have to offer to newer players? I have no looked into the guild armory much to fully know what I could grab in order to quest easier. Mostly what I do is tag along for higher level quests with others in order for me to get levels without having to fight much." He nods and smiles.

Freyd mentioned taking the wolf out of its misery and he nods, moving towards the Wolf. "Okay, I'm sorry for thi-" He fell backwards as the wolf try to chew on his arm. Aquan quickly rolled out of the way and stood up again, wiping dirt off of his body. "Okay... Okay that was rough. I will take him out of his misery next attack. And yes I'm in Provisions. I'm hoping to gather as many materials as I possibly can. I've already asked a few people to adventure with me, so things seem to be going better. Any other tips that you have?"

Spoiler

ID: 179452 BD: 2
ID: 179453 MD: 2 - 1 = 1

Freyd, The Whisper in Shadows | HP:1629/1630 | EN:165/175 | DMG:20 | MIT:79 | EVA:2 | ACC:5 | ABS.ACC | KEEN 1 | LD:5 | BH:81
Aquan | HP:155/180 | EN:13/18 | DMG:2 | LD:1 | SD:1 | EVA:1 | Paralyze | Bleed |

[0,2] Wolf 1: HP: 16/40 | DMG: 25 |

• Bleed: 1/2 Turns, 12 Damage Each Turn

 

Edited December 3, 2020 by Aquan

[Freyd 0]

"If it's gathering you want, pick up an LD trinket.  They'll give you the best and most useful buff for that.  And the searching skill too, after you master your weapon.  It's tough to balance combat needs with other priorities.  There are only so many points to go around."

Freyd nudged his head to the left, suggesting that the wolf might be more vulnerable on that side.  "He'd trying to protect his injured side.  It's not like you need to hit the same spot.  If he's exposing the other flank, hit him there instead."

Scratching at his woolen hood, he pondered what other advice he might give.  "I'm really not very good at gathering myself, so it's tough to think of what else to suggest.  My style is more combat-oriented, especially grinding mobs down into loot, or tracking down threats to the guild and players at large.  Actually, I honestly suck at gathering in any way shape or form."

[Aquan 0]

"LD Trinket, got it." He smiled again, looking over at the wolf. His attention faded from the conversation as he focused on the wolf, watching it move as it was injured. The bleed effect wore off, almost killing the creature in the process. It was just barely holding on, but definitely not for long. "Okay." He says and runs forward. The wolf in a desperate attempt in survival lashes out at Aquan. He jumps over the wolf and lands behind it, spinning around and stabbing three times into its torso.

The wolf let out a soft howl before shattering into crystals. Aquan took a breath in and let it out slowly, looking over at Freyd. "Well that took a while." He chuckled and smiled at his comrade. "I am looking at getting more skills dedicated around gathering instead of combat, at least right now. I seem to be surviving easily by just dedicating myself to gathering and support skills. I will probably go back and forth from gathering and combat skills to try and balance myself out the best I can. Also, shall we head back?" He paused before looking at Freyd again. "What threats of the guild are you tracking? I know Chase.." He trails off, not sure how to continue that comment.

Spoiler

ID: 179454 BD: 10, Base: (2+2)3 = 12 Damage
ID:  MD: 

Freyd, The Whisper in Shadows | HP:1629/1630 | EN:165/175 | DMG:20 | MIT:79 | EVA:2 | ACC:5 | ABS.ACC | KEEN 1 | LD:5 | BH:81
Aquan | HP:155/180 | EN:11/18 | DMG:2 | LD:1 | SD:1 | EVA:1 | Paralyze | Bleed |

[0,2] Wolf 1: HP: 4/40 | DMG: 25 |

 

Edited December 3, 2020 by Aquan

[Freyd 0]

"Heh."  Freyd nearly chuckled at the mention of Blue-Boi.  "Believe it or not, I'd never given ChaseR a second thought until he pulled what he did.  He's a bit of a brat at the best of time, and too quick to anger and insult, but we all have our flaws.  No, my priority was in hunting down clues on the nature and leadership of the Sundered Spire.  They're a faction of mobs who had somehow gained the ability to retain their memories when they respawned.  Whoever was behind them had whipped up the group into a frenzy, stoking anger at players as the cause of those deaths.  It all came to a head just after the last Tanabata event, when one of their champions managed to breach the barrier between floors 21 and 22.  They drained most of the lake down and a dragged in a lot of players with it.  Without some magnanimous intervention from the event's deities, a lot of players could have died that day."

Freyd summoned a small, smooth stone about four inches wide, made of polished sandstone.  It bore a symbol like the profile of Aincrad itself, drawn in blood, with a black sword driven through the middle of it.

"If you ever see this symbol, let me know.  It's the sign of the Sundered Spire, and probably means more trouble than you want to tackle alone."

[Aquan 0]

"Sundered Spire? Hmm, yeah that is not something I remember hearing about. I did not take part in the Tanabata event so anything about that is completely lost from my mind. Do you think the memory retaining monsters and NPCs could be something to do with glitches in the game? I didn't know if they could be a mistake. I have never experienced any sort of "mistake" or "glitch" in the game so far, so who knows." He shrugs. He was very much unaware of what Freyd did in the guild. Obviously during the Guild meeting he was told what he did, but beyond that he did not really have any idea. "Any leads on the Sundered Spire? I can't remember anyone even mentioning them, so I didn't know how big of an issue they could be."

The two got closer to the city and he thought for a moment, unsure of what to do. "Are there any plans the guild has coming up? I know we had the meeting, but I haven't heard much about anything that the guild is running. I don't expect much in terms of training sessions or anything of the like, but I didn't know if the guild liked to host different events."

[Freyd 0]

"There's been talk, but my involvement tends to focus more on combat training and organizing quest and dungeon runs.  I leave the fluffier stuff to those with better-suited talents for such things.  If you need someone to grind gear or mats from mobs for you, I'm your man.  Beyond that, I'm basically just doing the regular spy stuff."

Aquan's mention of glitches did bring a few things to mind.  "There are always oddities in code, and this game is no exception.  I can't say that I've ever discovered any of real consequence, though there is some speculation that the Spire's abilities might have originated from such a thing."  Freyd shrugged, suggesting neither belief nor denial.  "I'm more interested to see if I can discover who their leader might be.  Anyone potent enough to gather and organize so many different types of mobs across multiple floors is worthy of concern.  Even animals and beasts can belong to their ranks, and why not?  They have the same rudimentary capabilities."

Waving to the stoic guardians at the gates as they re-entered Urbus, the Whisper directed back towards Gatsly's hangout.

[Aquan 0]

"We could try to have a Guild-wide material hunt competition? Each team matches up Newbies and Stronger players and have them gather over multiple days and come back to see how much that team gathered. The winning teams earns... I'm not sure, but the materials get distributed amongst everyone involved, and maybe some stored in the Guild vault? Could save materials for Boss battles to help fund crafters." He paused, getting distracted about possible event planning. "Oh, sorry, got distracted in my head. Speaking of Bosses, could the leader of this Sundered Spire group be a Boss? They are wickedly strong, influence the entire floor, and died near the entrance to a floor, they could possibly spread to other floors by the labyrinth. The boss could be somewhere in the labyrinth and monsters/ NPCS can walk in and out of there. A base of operations could definitely be put in there without players knowing, because why would players go through all of that again." He paused, realizing he spoke a lot all at once. "Sorry.. I tend to talk a lot when I have a lot of thoughts. I have been called the "Stream of Consciousness" Motif but in real life."

[Freyd 0]

"That's an interesting idea, though the only way it would likely work is if the entire guild faced off against Raidou.  Have you seen that man gather?  The plants practically uproot themselves and jump into his satchel on their own accord.  I'm certain he would win, too, even with the rest of us competing against him.  It's actually scary how good he is at this sort of thing."

As they re-entered the same tavern where their quest had begun, Freyd waved to the barkeep for a fresh cup of coffee and a platter of steaming steaks and veggies.  Scheming made him hungry.

"Why don't you propose it to the guild?  See what kind of interest you get from the others.  There are several gatherers in our ranks, and many older players would be eager to help train newer arrivals.  It would also make quite the impression and help you get to know more people."

[Aquan 0]

"I think I will at some point. I only met them all during the Guild Meeting, and unfortunately that was not good for social interaction." He shrugs and walks up to the bar, grabbing a cup of water and looking around the tavern before going to turn in the quest. He quickly went through the dialogue with the NPC and finished off the quest. He walked over to Freyd and sat down with his glass of water, slowly sipping on it. "Would you like to work on any quests with me after this at some point? I would need to make a list of quests I want to work on it order to increase my level, but it will take me some time, unless you have some ideas for them."

He finished his glass of water and looked at his menu. "I do not believe I have talked to Raidou before. Is he going mainly gathering too? I think I may want to meet him. It would be nice to get some tips from him about what exactly I should be doing. Thank you by the way for helping me out with all of this."

[Freyd 0]

"Ah.  Yes.  That."  Freyd avoided any farther comment on the meeting he had called to address ChaseR's ambush.  It was awkward for many of the newer members, especially.  He recalled a few of them walking out, likely out of conflicted loyalties or simply anger.  It seemed prudent to simply change the subject, and Aquan had already provided the segue.  

"I will gladly help you or any other member of the guild who asks for assistance.  That's what the guild is about.  Worn Out Welcome, Let there be Light and Long Live the Queen immediately come to mind as good options, unless you've already completed them.  Search for the Hoya or wandering into the middle of the Elf-Treant war on floor three are also good options for you at your current level.  You have a surplus of options.  Pick whichever you need or want and call me when you are ready.  I will be there."

Freyd fondly remembered first navigating the myriad options laid out before him as he first started out on his adventures.  It seemed like a long time ago, though little time had truly passed.

"Raidou is... unique, in many ways.  He's an alchemist first, and one of the game's finest tanks second.  I'll fill you in later.  It's a rather complicated tale."  For the moment, all he wanted was some food and to give Aquan a bit of time to absorb what he'd been told.  Some of it went farther down the rabbit hole than most were wiling or able to handle. 

***

Thread Summary:

Freyd Receives:

2 SP (1 page, +1 event) - quest previously completed
Venom Vial: BD 9-10 deal 10 unmit damage for 4 turns.  Lasts one thread.  Post action to apply.

Aquan Receives:

3 SP (1 page, +1 event, +1 quest)
900 Col.
(4x) T1 Crafting Materials.