[PP | F01] The First Step <<The First Lesson>>

[Van 0]

<<The First Lesson>>
Party: Van, Morningstar, Valk

 

Vanessa had finally gotten herself all geared up and prepared for her first journey into the wild. Even with the piece of mind of having proper equipment, she was still certainly nervous about the concept of player killers roaming out there. From her research, she should be able to handle any mobs she encountered at least. She wasn't quite sure what she would even do out there to be quite frank, beyond some mindless mob slaying, but any progress would be progress for a measly level one player. She shifted the sword around in her hand, still getting used to the idea of the lack of weight in it. She thought for certain that her armor, sword and shield would put quite a burden on her mobility, but it felt almost weightless. It was difficult to remember that this was a game sometimes.

Making way to the outskirts of the city, she would be rapidly approached by an NPC. The older man caught Vanessa off guard as he beckoned for her to halt, "Who me?" The NPC introduced himself as Dorian, mayor of the town. He had some sort of debt he needed assistance with so Vanessa politely took the request, hoping that this could give her a much needed purpose with rewards in tow. "Oh, uh, yes! I'd be more than happy to help." She gave him a small wave of the hand before heading off in the direction of the alchemist's shop, 'Hopefully it's nothing too crazy.' It wouldn't be long before she arrived at the storefront, but she wouldn't immediately enter. Instead, she took a peek through the window trying to observe the layout and building confidence before enter. Letting out a sigh and mentally closing out the world around her, she would whisper under her own breath, "You've got this."

 

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Van
Level 1
HP: 20 | EN: 20 | DMG: 7 | MIT: 16
THORNS: 2 | TAUNT: 1

Spoiler

EQUIPPED

Malignant Blade | T1 Perfect Weapon (1HSS)
A fairly simple sword mounted on a black hit with guard, containing an amethyst within the pommel.
Enhancement: Damage [3 Slots] | Effect: +(1 * Tier) base damage per slot.

Unyielding Bastion | T1 Heavy Armor
A shining set of silver knight's armor, thick and durable. It bears some ornate, curved etchings for flair, but does not have any particular theme. The full helm has large slits for visibility, but can be latched upwards for a better view.
Enhancement: Mitigation [3 Slots] | Effect: Prevent (6 per slot * Tier) damage from successful attacks against you.

Barbed Rose | T1 Shield | Thorns 2, Taunt
A medium-sized metal shield bearing a red rose crest on an eggplant background with a wine colored metallic edging.
Enhancement: Thorns [2 Slots] | Effect: Successful non-critical attacks against you deal (9 per slot * Tier) unmitigated damage to the attacking enemy. Only activates on damage dealing, melee attacks.
Enhancement: Taunt [1 Slot] | Effect: +1 Hate generated from Howl, Focused Howl, and successful attacks.

 

Battle Ready Inventory

Starter Healing Potions (3) | Effect: Heals 50 HP

 

Skills

Spoiler

Mods: 0/5

1HSS | Rank 1/5
Effect: At Rank 1, gain +3 DMG. At Ranks 2-5, +1 per rank (max of +7 DMG for R5 Weapon Skill). At Rank 5, unlock the ability to specialize in a Combat Shift.

Sword Arts

Spoiler

Rank 1
[x4] ST-I (4 EN) | A single-target sword art.
[x3] AOE-I (1 + [2 * targets] EN) | AOE | A sword art that strikes multiple targets at once.
[x4] TECH-A (5 EN) | STUN | A single-target sword art that stuns an enemy.

 

 

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Edited July 31, 2023 by Van

[Morningstar 0]

Two days.

They lingered over him like a curse. Nerves ate at him, spiraling like tornados in his stomach and disrupting his sleep. Stressed and weary, he wandered the streets of the Town of Beginnings, trying his best to put on a smile as he passed by people whom he did not know personally but had, for some reason or another, encountered over the years. Even after all of the grinding and hunting he had done, his items lacked variety. His time with Freyd had come in handy but the items he had collected remained in his shop, unidentified until he could find the time to go to work. 

Morningstar's usual hotspots for alchemical needs were closed, at least for the time being. The shopkeepers were busy, especially with a raid on the horizon. Mass production was their priority in times like that and there were very few alchemists who were skilled enough to create such a substantial quantity of items in such a short period of time. The words repeated in his head.

Two days.

That was how long they had before the group of merely sixteen players entered the fray at the frontlines. Nobody could come to a definite conclusion regarding what they would need for the coming fight. How could they, considering the meager information they had to work with?

He ran his hands through his long hair. It would not have shocked him if even the veterans were nervous. It had been some time since Floor Twenty-Six was cleared and things had been quiet ever since. Some of them were likely as rusty as he was.

A familiar sight stopped him in his tracks. It was a basic store, primarily intended for beginner players. He knew the owner, Zackariah Stroll, from his time on the First Floor; a time before the frontlines, before his friends, before her. His gaze dropped from the worn wooden door to a woman he had not noticed before. He had an idea of what she had come to the shop for.

"Hi," Morningstar said, his fatigue not apparent, "thinking about doing Zackariah's quest?"

[ lv. 37  ->   l. 32 / p. 5 ] MORNINGSTAR | HP: 720/720 | EN: 104/104 | DMG: 23 | ACC: 4 | MIT: 122 | LD: 5 | BLD: 36 | PAR: 1 | Stealth Rating: -5   Hide contents notes.     Hide contents equipped meteor BLD II, PAR I armor of fallen radiance  MIT III lexa's light ACC III battle-ready inventory n/a skills.   Hide contents mod count: 3/5 2HSS | RANK 5/5 precision, stamina, ferocity shift: tech HEAVY ARMOR | RANK 5/5 impetus, iron skin COMBAT MASTERY: DMG | RANK 3/3 SEARCHING | RANK 5/5 night vision, detect BATTLE HEALING | RANK 1/5 ENERGIST CHARGE extra SURVIVAL FORGOTTEN KING'S AUTHORITY LADY LUCK buffs.   Hide contents statue n/a consumables  n/a paragon Lv. 5 | Gain additional col equivalent to 15% of EXP earned in that thread. arts.   Hide contents en cost matches multiplier unless stated otherwise. shift underlined. ST | x12 -> x15 | x20 AOE | x11 -> x14 TECH-A | x16 | STUN | 13EN TECH-B | x16 | DELAY TECH-D | x16 | SHATTER misc.   Hide contents 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). Filling | Increase the effectiveness of a single food item consumed in a thread by +1 T1 slot. This can exceed normal Cook enhancement caps. Ex: A perfect T2 MIT food gives 35 MIT instead of 30. Tasty | Turn 2 identical food items (same quality, tier, & enhancements) into a Lesser Feast. A Lesser Feast contains 4 portions of the food items sacrificed. Lesser Feasts created this way cannot be used outside of the thread they are created. Limit 1 item created per thread. Relaxed | Increases out-of-combat HP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts. Basic Training | +5% EXP to a thread. Limit one use per month. Must be used on a player's first post in a thread. Cooldown begins counting down when used in a post. gathering n/a

Edited July 31, 2023 by Morningstar

[Valk 0]

Valk was in the mood to knock out some quests. She had placed an order for some new custom equipment, but it would take some time for it to be prepared and transferred over. In the meantime, she figured it would be optimal to go ahead and generate some more Col and materials to purchase some additional knick knacks that she still needed to pick up. She would make her way over to the Dorian, the mayor of the Tolbana, who was known for having easy quests for low levels. Learning that the NPC talked too much, she would accept the quest as soon as he was done yapping. "Yeah, yeah. I got it." The alchemist's shop wasn't too far away so it didn't take long for Valerie to arrive, but much to her dismay, there was a familiar figure in front of the shop.

'Is that Nessa?' There was no way her little sister was in front of her, but that face was unmistakable. Everything in her was screaming to yell at her and ask what the hell she was doing here. Not once in any of her talks with Vanessa in the real world did it sound like she was interested in the slightest in MMOs so there was no chance she got stuck here on that day. Clenching her fists, she thought carefully about how to approach. Her identity was concealed and Nessa didn't know her username so Valerie made sure her mask was up and snug as she approached the duo. "Yo, here to do a quest for the mayor. The two of you want to party up?" It would give her some time to speak with Nessa and potentially pry into why she was here.

 

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Valk
Level 1
HP: 20 | EN: 20 | DMG: 3 | MIT: 0

Spoiler

EQUIPPED

Vanity Whip | Vanity Weapon
A simple bound whip..

Vanity Rogue Garbs | Vanity Light Armor
Light armor with a hood and mask that conceals all but the user's eyes.

 

Battle Ready Inventory

Starter Healing Potions (3) | Effect: Heals 50 HP

 

Skills

Spoiler

Mods: 0/5

Whip | Rank 1/5
Effect: At Rank 1, gain +3 DMG. At Ranks 2-5, +1 per rank (max of +7 DMG for R5 Weapon Skill). At Rank 5, unlock the ability to specialize in a Combat Shift.

Sword Arts

Spoiler

Rank 1
[x4] ST-I (4 EN) | A single-target sword art.
[x3] AOE-I (1 + [2 * targets] EN) | AOE | A sword art that strikes multiple targets at once.
[x4] TECH-A (5 EN) | STUN | A single-target sword art that stuns an enemy.

 

 

[Van 0]

Vanessa was too engaged in her own mind space to notice the man approaching her, giving her an absolute startle when he spoke up. She instinctively clutched her chest as she backed away from the window, "Ahh... Uh... Sorry about that, you gave me quite the scare..." Breathing in and out for a bit to calm herself a bit, she responded to his ask, "Yes, this is actually my first quest. I was just checking out the shop to see what it might be about before heading in." She felt a bit flustered that she was caught off guard, knowing that if this was out there in the wild, she could've been attacked while she wasn't paying attention. "Ah, mister..." He hadn't introduced himself so he wasn't sure what to refer to him as, "I'm Van, by the way. Would you be interested in accompanying me on the quest?" She could certainly use the assistance, especially if there were any dangers she had to face. She could probably take a beating with her new armor and shield, but she wasn't sure how effective her offensive capability was.

Shortly after, another figure would approach them, but this time it seemed to be a tall woman. Yet another player that happened to be working on the mayor's quest. "Oh, uh, sure!" She hesitated a second before looking over at the man that had approached first, "That is... If you're okay with that?" Vanessa didn't want to pressure the man in any way, especially if he was willing to assist her. Waiting to see what he would say before continuing, she would rock back and forth from heal to toe, "Alright, that's settled then. How about we get started?" She was eager to complete her first quest and make some new friends in this world so she would open the door and make her way inside, approaching Zackariah.

"Good morning, sir." The man behind the counter was aged, adorned with silver hair. He asked if the party was there to purchase any goods to which Vanessa would shake her head, "No, we're actually he-" She would be cut off by the man as he leaned forwards, asking them to gather some material goods to fill his supply. 'Is this part of the quest?' Unsure of why Zackariah didn't mention anything about the mayor, she would accept the request. She would turn to the party of two with her and ask, "Is this normal? I thought this was about the mayor's... ya know." Vanessa wasn't sure if she could speak about the exact details of the quest in front of Zackariah since the mayor asked to keep it on the down low, but she kept it hushed enough to not have him overhear.

[Morningstar 0]

"Morningstar," he introduced himself, "Star is fine, though."

From the rear, another girl approached, interrupting before the blonde could answer Van's request. She was tall, only a few centimeters less than Morningstar. Considering the quest the two players were taking, it was only right to assume that their levels were low. Zackariah had one of the safest quests in the game, although it did take you outside of the city. Tagging a long would not hurt, he thought.

Van was polite, making sure he was comfortable with joining them before beginning. It was early; he could find his items later on. "Sure, we can party up," he said, following the girls inside the shop.

Zackariah was busier than Morningstar remembered, almost immediately throwing his quest at the trio before sending them on their way. "Not sure I'd say normal," he shrugged, "but the material collecting is part of the quest, yeah."

The alchemist was a lot more relaxed back when they had first met and did not seem to recognize him. It was unsurprising—he looked a lot different and Zackariah likely met a dozen players a day. He accepted the quest alongside Van, the prompt disappearing as he tapped on the blue circle. "We should be good to get started now that we've talked to him. He's a little... eccentric," Morningstar whispered, "but he's a good alchemist."

He turned to the other girl. "Didn't catch your name. Star," he said, reaching out to shake her hand.

[Valk 0]

Easily enough, Vanessa agreed to Valerie's ask, but did throw the question over to the other guest to make sure both were on board. Hands on her hips, she was pleased to hear him agree with allowing her to party up, "Cool, let's get crackin'." Following the party into the store, she watched as Vanessa approached the counter and begin the quest for the party. Listening to Zackariah as he blabbered on about needing some materials, she would hit the accept button on the prompt as it popped up. The man in the party seemed to be familiar enough with the quest to answer Vanessa's question, leading her to wonder if he'd already completed the quest and her younger sister called in a favor. Could that mean...?

Thankfully, the man would introduce himself, extending his hand. "Valk. Pleasure to meet ya, Star." Seemed as good a time as any to pry, "You and missy here friends or..." She deliberately wrapped her index finger around her middle before them to suggest they could be partners, "Heck, I forgot to ask what was yours, little one?" So many questions that she wanted to ask, but it wouldn't make sense for her to get ahead of herself and make it seem suspicious. "Earlier you mentioned that Zackariah's behavior wasn't normal, have you done this quest already?" If so, that meant this would be a much easier quest than expected.

[Van 0]

Morningstar seemed like a pretty fitting name, but she couldn't bear how cute Star sounded for a boy, though she made sure not to accidentally reveal that thought. She watched as Star and the mystery girl would introduce themselves to each other, thinking it was neat that they both happened to share the same first letter for their names. A brief second later, she nearly choked on her thoughts as Valk proposed a question insinuating that the two were together, "No no no no no, we only just met a few moments before you came up to us... I-I happened to be here and he happened to show up..." She always hated blunt questions like these that could catch her so off-guard, 'Why would it matter anyways?'

She let out a sigh, hoping to start fresh, "I'm Van... and I'm not little, you're just really tall." The odd one out in the group, Vanessa didn't feel quite confident in her statement. She would continue to lead the way for the group, heading towards the outskirts of the city so that they could collect their materials. Their conversation would carry them out of the city in no time, leaving the new player completely uncertain of what kind of materials they were looking for in the first place. "Star... When Zackariah asked us to collect materials, what exactly did he mean by that? Are we gathering flowers, mushrooms, wood or something else entirely?" It felt like an incredibly dumb question, but she had never gone material collecting on her own, much less left the city.

[Morningstar 0]

Valk and Van.

It was strange that their names sounded so similar but he ignored the thought, chuckling at the pink-haired girl's embarrassment. "Yeah, I did this one a long time ago. He's changed, surprisingly, but I don't think the quest itself has."

He followed along, Van taking the lead. When she asked about materials, he pondered for a moment. It was not really a question he had thought about before. Materials just... made sense to him. "Anything really, I think. I'm not an alchemist or anything but, to my knowledge, if you can fit it in a cauldron then you can craft a potion out of it," he spoke confidently but truly had no idea. "But yeah. Flowers, mushrooms, wood. Those types of things are common."

Burying his hands into his pockets, he spoke again. "I probably won't be able to help you find the materials, though. You'll have to bring them back yourself. Think of me as a bodyguard," he half-joked.

The plains were sort of harmless. There were boars and there were other players but a quest this introductory would never send a pair of level ones into a place inherently dangerous. They could steer clear of the neighboring forests and the Stone Valley, where the primary causes of death were. He could fend off a pack of wolves or a giant wasp but avoiding risk altogether was in their best interest.

"So," Morningstar hoped he was not crossing any boundaries, "what made you two decide to take on this quest after all this time?"