[F03/F17-PP] An invitation by the Gods <<Challenge of Olympus[Forager]>>

[Randal 0]

Spoiler

Randal | HP: 590/590 | EN: 74/74 | DMG: 19 | MIT: 30 | EVA: 3 | ACC: 4 | LD: 8 | -2 Stealth Rating | TECH Shift | +5 Stealth Detection

Relevant Skill information not already added:
<<Survival>> | (Healing +10% and Immunity to environment effects)

Equipment:
Perfect Weapon: DMG | DMG | DMG
Perfect Light Armor: EVA | EVA | EVA
Perfect Jewellery: LD | LD | LD

Battle Ready Items:
4x Tier 3 Spicy Mala Snack each with 3 slots of MIT [+45 MIT]

Accumulated Exp, Col, Mat, Items

Available Rank 5 Sword Arts:
[x12] ST-I (12 - 2 EN) | A single-target sword art.
[x15] ST-II (15 - 2 EN) | A powerful single-target sword art. Only available for use when ST-I was used and successfully struck an enemy the previous turn or if ST-II had been used and had missed the previous turn.
[x20] ST-B (20 - 2 EN) | A devastating single-target sword art. Can only be used if the sword art used the previous turn is not ST-B and had rolled a natural CD9+. When performing an AoE attack, use only the first roll.
[x11] AOE-I (11 - 2 + [2 * targets] EN) | AOE | A sword art that strikes multiple targets at once.
[x14] AOE-II (14 - 2 + [2 * targets] EN) | AOE | A powerful sword art that strikes multiple targets at once. Only available for use when AOE-I was used and successfully struck an enemy the previous turn or if AOE-II had been used and had missed the previous turn.
[x12 + 4] TECH-A (13 - 2 + 3 EN) | STUN | A single-target sword art that stuns an enemy.
[x12 + 4] TECH-B (12 - 2 + 3 EN) | DELAY | A single-target sword art that, on a successful strike, applies [Delay] on the enemy. [Delay] is a status condition that reduces the enemy’s ACC by 1 for one turn.
[x8 + 4] TECH-F (8 - 2 + 3 + 2 * targets EN) | AOE STUN | A sword art that strikes multiple targets at once. All struck targets are stunned for one turn.
Unlock Condition: Complete <<Breaking the Unbreakable>> and meet additional quest requirement.

Once again morning had come for Randal. The light pierced through the canopy of the trees in streaks of gold against the harsh and dark backdrop of the Forest's more shadowy depths. Looking out the window after a restful night, Randal noticed that he had received a notification dated a little before he had come to the Town of Flora. 

The invitation was tagged by Poseidon - The Greek God of the Sea. It seemed that by reaching Foraging Rank 2, Randal had become eligible for a test amongst the gods. A challenge to test his mettle and to prove that he was worthy to receive their blessing. Honestly, it all seemed a little pompous in Randal mind, but the blessing would be good. It would probably serve him well in his days as a Chef. Looking out for new materials was one of the many passions he could proudly say he enjoyed. The invitation details more or less the fact that recipients of this notification were welcome to visit an area within the confines of Olympus - the seventeenth floor. He offers that domain as an area for participants of the Challenge to take on, on the condition that it was cared for and maintained as a result.

Randal was both annoyed at the high-mighty nature that gods tended to take with those that were seen as mortals but there was no chance that he was going to miss this golden opportunity. This was an opportunity to explore new lands and to take on new challenges. He hoped desperately that this challenge as a Forager at least centered around foraging and did not require him to take on the twelve labors like that of standard Greek mythology.

Paying for his room as he made his way down the wooden steps of the inn which he stayed at, he made sure to say goodbye to Kagamine and Issela before making his way to the teleportation circle. The journey was going to be a fairly long one, but with the sign just starting to make its way from the starting line and horizon, Randal had much time to lose.

His first destination would be Aruyt - for that was where the teleportation circle would be found. Randal had to brave the long trek from the Town of Flora which was a sub-settlement. He quickly found some Merchant Faune who would be making the track and negotiated. A spot on the wagon would make it far more relaxing and all he had to do in exchange was provide some protection to the caravans. It seemed like a fair deal to Randal and the merchant so they quickly shook on it and the ride commenced soon after all the cargo was loaded up.

There was no chance that Randal would be able to extend his rest in the caravan, the bumps along the roads made it near impossible to find a comfortable position in which he would be able to lie, much less the fact that with the cargo all around him, would it be likely that he was going to find the space needed to make himself comfortable either. Nonetheless, it took far less mental effort to sit there, than to walk on his own through the forest.

Randal could overhear conversations sparking up and laughter coming and going in the wind from the merchants, but they spoke in a language that Randal himself found unfamiliar. Nonetheless, it felt good to hear them chattering away, it made the all too often lonely journey’s a little less so. Something pricked at his senses however, it seemed like something was buzzing around, prowling in the woods. To Randal, not necessarily a battle-hardened warrior, he started to expect that something was coming towards them, stalking them, ready to pounce.
 

Edited August 24, 2023 by Randal

[Randal 0]

Spoiler

Battle Ready Items:
4x Tier 3 Spicy Mala Snack each with 3 slots of MIT [+45 MIT]

Accumulated Exp, Col, Mat, Items

Available Rank 5 Sword Arts:
[x12] ST-I (12 - 2 EN) | A single-target sword art.
[x15] ST-II (15 - 2 EN) | A powerful single-target sword art. Only available for use when ST-I was used and successfully struck an enemy the previous turn or if ST-II had been used and had missed the previous turn.
[x20] ST-B (20 - 2 EN) | A devastating single-target sword art. Can only be used if the sword art used the previous turn is not ST-B and had rolled a natural CD9+. When performing an AoE attack, use only the first roll.
[x11] AOE-I (11 - 2 + [2 * targets] EN) | AOE | A sword art that strikes multiple targets at once.
[x14] AOE-II (14 - 2 + [2 * targets] EN) | AOE | A powerful sword art that strikes multiple targets at once. Only available for use when AOE-I was used and successfully struck an enemy the previous turn or if AOE-II had been used and had missed the previous turn.
[x12 + 4] TECH-A (13 - 2 + 3 EN) | STUN | A single-target sword art that stuns an enemy.
[x12 + 4] TECH-B (12 - 2 + 3 EN) | DELAY | A single-target sword art that, on a successful strike, applies [Delay] on the enemy. [Delay] is a status condition that reduces the enemy’s ACC by 1 for one turn.
[x8 + 4] TECH-F (8 - 2 + 3 + 2 * targets EN) | AOE STUN | A sword art that strikes multiple targets at once. All struck targets are stunned for one turn.
Unlock Condition: Complete <<Breaking the Unbreakable>> and meet additional quest requirement.

Just as Randal had thought, it seemed like a party of Roaring wolves were quickly heading in their direction. It seems important to point out at this junction that Ranal wasn’t the only adventurer that was onboard these caravans, besides the armed guards that the Merchant had hired, there were also other adventurers who had come along in hopes of a safer journey in numbers. We all got out of the caravans and started to position ourselves in ways that made sense. Generally, adventurers that were sporting shabbier looking equipment would stand further towards the back to directly protect the caravan and to hold off any monsters that managed to break past the front line of defense. Then, there would be the rest of the adventurers, Randal included, who take on the brunt of the attack head on, showing any enemy that attempts to mess with Caravan who’s the boss.

Something was odd though, normally, Roaring wolves tended to hunt at night, and with such a large caravan size, it seemed like they would not attack without a good reason. When the wolves finally launched themselves at the caravan on attack, they worked hard to attack the merchants more so than the adventurer’s that were aiming for their necks. Randal couldn’t stop the numerous wolves but trusted that he would be able to pull his weight in the battle. Instead of letting some of the wolves sneakily dash past him, Randal was able to grab onto the tails of two wolves and pull them back into him, swinging them around a little, before using his bodyweight to slam them into the ground. This stunned them, giving him a moment to look around and observe the chaos that was ensuing, the weaker looking adventurers were trying their darndest to prevent the wolves from claiming the merchants’ lives - which seemed to be their primary target, while some other wolves were gnawing at the wheels of the caravan.

“Ah! Help!” A voice cried out from behind the caravan. The chaos caused by the Roaring Wolves was not dying down, as howls echoed into the sky, all of us felt the hairs at the back of our heads stand. Roaring Wolves were called as such because they had a certain peculiarity, they often howled to let surrounding enemies know that they had found prey and were in need of help. Soon, more beasts would be coming and there was no way to tell how long we had before we were swarmed by monsters.

The minutes ticked on, the wolves that Randal had thrown to the ground were getting back up, fortunately they were still dazed. Members of the caravan party were trying their best to hold the wolves off but it seemed that they had already pushed them back. Fortunately, none of the players had died yet, there was still fight left in them and they were not ready to give up.

One particular adventurer of note, boasted cosmetically dyed blue hair - when we were told that we were trapped in the game, the administrator had reverted everyone’s faces and bodies to that of their living ones. The thought of that made Randal lose focus, thinking about the fact that his living body, still alive somewhere in the real world, was likely drying up into a husk, being pumped with the bare necessities to ensure that bodily function could continue, not ensuring that it was getting the exercise its muscles needed nor the excess nutrients to sustain a “healthy” lifestyle. If anything, it was probably laying in a hospital bed somewhere surrounded by family members that visited once in a while.

Post Action - Attacking Roaring Wolves with TECH-F

Spoiler

ID	Battle	Craft	Loot	MOB	Character	Link	Purpose	Time
216811	8	3	13	2	Randal	http://www.cydel.net/images/saorpg/diceroll/Msg_hover2.png	Post Action - Attacking Roaring Wolf 2 with TECH-F	2023-08-24 01:19:39
216810	9	1	3	1	Randal	http://www.cydel.net/images/saorpg/diceroll/Msg_hover2.png	Post Action - Attacking Roaring Wolf 1 with TECH-F	2023-08-24 01:19:22

Randal uses Tech-F on two targets, on hits, on is a minor critical : -13 EN
RW1 takes 20*12=240 dmg
RW2 takes 19*12=228 dmg

Both RW miss their attacks and are stunned. Stunned coolsdown on post 5.

Randal | HP: 590/590 | EN: 61/74 | DMG: 19 | MIT: 30 | EVA: 3 | ACC: 4 | LD: 8 | -2 Stealth Rating | TECH Shift | +5 Stealth Detection
<<Roaring Wolf 1>> | HP: 96/336 | DMG: 168
<<Roaring Wolf 2>> | HP: 108/336 | DMG: 168

 

Edited August 24, 2023 by Randal

[Randal 0]

  

Spoiler

Battle Ready Items:
4x Tier 3 Spicy Mala Snack each with 3 slots of MIT [+45 MIT]

Accumulated Exp, Col, Mat, Items
TOTAL COL: 6,384
MATERIALS: 2

Tier 1 Unidentified Perfect Armor (1) | [216814]
Tier 1 Unidentified Perfect Trinket (1) | [216814-1]
Tier 1 Unidentified Perfect Weapon (3) | [216815] | [216815-1] | [216815-2]

Available Rank 5 Sword Arts:
[x12] ST-I (12 - 2 EN) | A single-target sword art.
[x15] ST-II (15 - 2 EN) | A powerful single-target sword art. Only available for use when ST-I was used and successfully struck an enemy the previous turn or if ST-II had been used and had missed the previous turn.
[x20] ST-B (20 - 2 EN) | A devastating single-target sword art. Can only be used if the sword art used the previous turn is not ST-B and had rolled a natural CD9+. When performing an AoE attack, use only the first roll.
[x11] AOE-I (11 - 2 + [2 * targets] EN) | AOE | A sword art that strikes multiple targets at once.
[x14] AOE-II (14 - 2 + [2 * targets] EN) | AOE | A powerful sword art that strikes multiple targets at once. Only available for use when AOE-I was used and successfully struck an enemy the previous turn or if AOE-II had been used and had missed the previous turn.
[x12 + 4] TECH-A (13 - 2 + 3 EN) | STUN | A single-target sword art that stuns an enemy.
[x12 + 4] TECH-B (12 - 2 + 3 EN) | DELAY | A single-target sword art that, on a successful strike, applies [Delay] on the enemy. [Delay] is a status condition that reduces the enemy’s ACC by 1 for one turn.
[x8 + 4] TECH-F (8 - 2 + 3 + 2 * targets EN) | AOE STUN | A sword art that strikes multiple targets at once. All struck targets are stunned for one turn.
Unlock Condition: Complete <<Breaking the Unbreakable>> and meet additional quest requirement.

“Rargh!” One of the wolves leapt at Randal, no longer attempting to sidestep him. Instead taking Randal momentary confusion to its advantage and trying to bite him. Fortunately, Randal was just barely able to move out of the way in time. The wolf tried to pivot and push Randal towards its ally but a few backsteps was enough to give Randal enough space. Two things came from his retreat, the first is that the two wolves that were not plotting their revenge against Randal were no longer interested in pursuing the caravan or the merchants, the second was that Randal was not being navigated away from the caravan in general. Realizing this, Randal pushed forward instead, making dancing like steps towards the wolves and attacking, a few kicks were able to get them to retreat instead and give him the momentum.

“Let’s go!” One of the voices cried out. All of a sudden, the caravan started moving again, leaving the armed guards and adventurer’s behind. The deal between Randal and the merchants was that of protection and transportation, and though he understood that it was in the merchant's best interest to escape before more wolves arrived, it was still quite rude and uncaring of them to leave everyone else behind. The wolves started to split, some chasing the caravan while others became embroiled in the fight they were having. My two partners in this dance of death were of the latter. There was not much that Randal could do except to try and end the fight as soon as he could. If he was lucky, he might be able to catch up to the caravan before anything major happened.

As the field started to clear, the remaining wolves were getting swarmed by the rest of us. Randal was able to take out his own two wolves swiftly in the confusion, a small tussle involving a fist to one’s crown and a knee kick to another’s jaw was enough to eliminate them from the playing field. Wherever Randal looked, mobs were being eliminated left and right as they got ganged up on. In a sea of players and armed guards, the wolves were like grains of sand - swept away by the storm.

“Hi, Randal!” Randal introduced himself a little curtly.

“Balverine.” The blue haired kid responded, he was the only one to do so. The rest were either not interested in making conversation or were already moving towards the caravan dust trails.

“Let’s go too?” Randal asked, happy to at least not be ignored.

As they sprinted ahead, Randal and Belverine had a short conversation. He was going to Aruyt to end his  expedition. He had been out in the wild tracking a beast the whole time and was unable to find it in the end. He was going back to get his bearings and resupply. 

Midway through their conversation, they spotted the rest of the adventurer’s who had gone on ahead battle with a few of the wolves, the caravan had had its wheels torn off and some of the the animals that they had been using to drive the vehicle were no longer there, presumably without any armed guards, the wolves had caught up easily and eliminated them. Some wolves were in the heat of battle while others were yapping at the doors of the caravan.

Post Action - Attacking Roaring Wolves with TECH-F

Spoiler

ID	Battle	Craft	Loot	MOB	Character	Link	Purpose	Time
216813	3	3	5	5	Randal	http://www.cydel.net/images/saorpg/diceroll/Msg_hover2.png	Post Action - Attacking Roaring Wolf 2 with TECH-F	2023-08-24 01:25:59
216812	6	4	8	3	Randal	http://www.cydel.net/images/saorpg/diceroll/Msg_hover2.png	Post Action - Attacking Roaring Wolf 1 with TECH-F	2023-08-24 01:25:43

Randal uses Tech-F on two targets, both hits: -13 EN
RW1 takes 19*12=228 dmg
RW2 takes 19*12=228 dmg

Both RW are eliminated

Randal | HP: 590/590 | EN: 51/74 | DMG: 19 | MIT: 30 | EVA: 3 | ACC: 4 | LD: 8 | -2 Stealth Rating | TECH Shift | +5 Stealth Detection
<<Roaring Wolf 1>> | HP: 0/336 | DMG: 168
<<Roaring Wolf 2>> | HP: 0/336 | DMG: 168

Looting the Wolves

Spoiler

ID	Battle	Craft	Loot	MOB	Character	Link	Purpose	Time
216815	1	6	17	7	Randal	http://www.cydel.net/images/saorpg/diceroll/Msg_hover2.png	Looting: <Roaring Wolf 2>	2023-08-24 01:30:14
216814	1	8	12	4	Randal	http://www.cydel.net/images/saorpg/diceroll/Msg_hover2.png	Looting: <Roaring Wolf 1>	2023-08-24 01:30:00

TOTAL COL: 6,384
MATERIALS: 2

Tier 1 Unidentified Perfect Armor (1) | [216814]
Tier 1 Unidentified Perfect Trinket (1) | [216814-1]
Tier 1 Unidentified Perfect Weapon (3) | [216815] | [216815-1] | [216815-2]

 

Edited August 24, 2023 by Randal

[Randal 0]

Before any of the adventurer’s were able to get to the wolves by the doors of the caravan, they managed to break open the steel locks which disintegrated in a blue flash, allowing the doors to the cargo hold of the carriages to open. They entered as Belverine and I approached as a vanguard to some of the slower adventurers’. Those that came before were either occupied with the other wolves who were leaping around avoiding their attacks skillfully.

According to Randal’s observations, it seemed like unlike before, they were uninterested in attacking or killing, they were focused on dodging and staying alive. That’s when Randal looked into the cargo gold to find the wolves that had entered facing him, mouths upturned in a vicious growl and sneer. Behind them were little baby wolves. Infantile and unable to defend themselves, these merchants must have snuck into their camps while the main force was out hunting and slain the fewer older or more maternal wolves all to capture these babies. 

The idea was not beyond Randal’s imagination and illuminated him. This was why the attack on the caravan seemed so forced. It also explained why there were so many hired guards in the first place. Normally traveling through these routes didn't pose much of an issue, the merchants must have predicted and even expected there to be a revenge attack on them, so they over prepared.

“Are those?” Belverine started. He didn’t get a chance to make a complete question before he pulled Randal back. 

“Sorry about that,” and apologized for laying his hands on Randal, “those are baby roaring wolves aren’t they?”.

“Yea, it seems the merchants were doing something they shouldn’t have. Ended up calling the whole cohort of wolves into action.” By not telling us the truth of what we were protecting, these merchants had made us undertake a risk we weren’t prepared for. A risk fortunately, that had ended the lives of no one important, none of the other adventurer’s had been eliminated, only some guards and merchants themselves. Nonetheless, Randal shuddered at the thought that some of these people were more important than others. 

“Well yes,” He thought to himself, “some of these people actually have lives in the real world, beyond the veil of virtual reality, they were human beings with organs and families that had to take care of them in their time of invalidity,” shuffling in place,”but the NPCs who populated this world, seemed just as much alive as everyone else. They may not exist in a real sense, but their lives, their motives, their families were all real to them…and real to the rest of us who are trapped here.” 

“What do we do though? Should we back away? There’s nothing left to protect.” Randal murmured.

“We don’t have to fight them, you’re right. Guys! Everyone!” Belverine shouted, “Retreat a little, just slow down and back away, kill them if they attack you but just hold on one second!” His voice didn’t echo but it was still enough to stem the tide of attacks.
 

[Randal 0]

It didn’t take long for the inertia to be overcome, people stopped swinging, and those that didn’t, suddenly felt the abandonment of their task by the contingent in general. This cognition caused them to feel pressured, forcing them to lay down their weapons. 

To everyone’s surprise, the wolves didn’t press the advantage that was given to them. They circled around the caravan. Randal looked into the one with the baby wolves, while Belverine led him further back with a few footsteps.

Another adventurer stepped forward. 

“Short…” Randal hadn’t noticed her before, she barely came up to his chest in height and sported shoulder length hair. Looking at her leather hide armor, Randal once again felt sorely underdressed. 

The outfit she wore was riveted together with metallic pins and buttons across the front, while the middle seemed to be tucked into her navel like a corset. A useless skirt-like addition was seen at the top of the leather trousers she wore. “A fashion statement and a good one.” Randal thought.

She gave Belverine and I an appraising nod and approached the wolves slowly, weapons not drawn, hands up. She let out a soft gasp when she saw what the wolves were after. The wolves reacted with pause, they looked at her and their growls grew softer. They allowed her to approach with caution, eyeing her every move. As she drew towards the cages one of the wolves suddenly jumped in front of her before another laid a paw on its side, forcing it to withdraw. She entered the caravan, the atmosphere amongst the adventurers outside was tense. At any moment, she could lose her life if she was piled on by the wolves.

The idea of taking such a risk was honestly beyond Randal, there was no reason to care that much about the storyline of the wolves, they were just beasts of the forest that were hunted for experience and col. Although they might have lives of their own, they were still the only means by which growing adventurers were able to become stronger themselves. Moreover, in SAO there was no such thing as an ecology. The system took care of that by ensuring the monsters continued to be generated and spawned in the forest. Or at least…that’s what Randal thought, he had never considered that if a party of players were to completely wipe out the roaring wolf population in a day, that the system might take that into account and stop spawning them, instead increasing the spawn rate of their prey to simulate the sudden disappearance of their predators.

Nonetheless, she was given access to the cages, and with some skill, fiddled with the hinges and locks of the first cage. Not long after the hatch of the cage swung open, allowing the first baby wolf to exit. Wearily and tiredly pacing out from the cage, the baby wolf had barely taken a step of free land before it was nipped in the neck by a wolf which promptly retreated, running out of the caravan and into the forest as fast as it could. 

The girl proceeded to release the rest of the baby wolves and the same thing repeated for each of them. Soon all the wolves had left. The last of them giving the girl one final look before disappearing.