[SP-F01] Forging a Future | <<Earning a Living: Blacksmith>>

[Wulfrin 0]

Whilst awaiting for Freyd to confirm he is ready to start his patented "Shark Bait Training Program", Wulfrin decided to focus on his future in the floating castle, Aincrad. His goal was to start down the path of the blacksmith. Wulfrin began searching through the streets of Tolbana for a proper teacher. He wanted to steer clear of Lyle, as his previous encounter with the rather unpleasant old man left him with a less than desirable attitude. Wulfrin located what appeared to be another much smaller smithy down one of the back streets of Tolbana, where Wulfrin rarely visited.

Stepping into the hot forging area of the quaint little smithing space, the sound of rhythmic hammer strikes filled the sot covered space. Smoke filled his nostrils and mouth causing Wulfrin to cover them hastily. A quick scan of the work space revealed a handsome young man hard at work at an anvil with a glowing hot ingot of metal.

"Can I help you?" The smith asked, offering only a quick glance in Wulfrin's direction.

"Maybe?" Wulfrin replied slowly removing his hand from his face as the soot settled from his entry. "I'm looking to start up blacksmithing and was looking for a tutor."

"I've only recently become a blacksmith myself," The smith replied having finally stopped his rhytmic work. "I've only started in the past month after my father passed, but I could still pass on the knowledge. Name's Callum. Lets see what I've got for you to play with."

* * *

Wulfrin | lvl: 7 | HP: 140/140 | EN: 32/32 | DMG: 8 | MIT: 20 | ACC: 3 | LD: 2 | REC: 1

BATTLE READY:

 

• 3 Starter Healing Potions (Heals 50 hp each)
• 6 T1 Uncommon Health Potions: Heals 5% of Maximum HP.
• 1 T1 Uncommon Damage Potion: +1 DMG for an entire thread.
• 1 T1 Uncommon Overhealth Potion: Adds 5% of Maximum HP to users Maximum HP for a thread.
• 4 Teleportation Crystals

Quest Link

Edited February 22 by Wulfrin

[Wulfrin 0]

"Wulfrin," Wulfrin introduced himself. The two shared a brief handshake before Callum led them into his small storage space. Most of the material lay in started but not yet completed projects. What was finished was a few bits of armor plates and simple weapons.

"Unfortunately," Callum said with a sigh. "I can't really spare any of our stock." Callum only gave the cluttered workspace a cursory glance. "But, if you bring me back something to work with I'll be happy to pass on what I know." Wulfrin had already done a crafting tutorial before, so at least he knew the drill. Gather some material then come back. By then the NPC would have enough stock he can try multiple times until he succeeded. It was almost identical to the first lesson he had undergone with Zachariah.

"Sure," Wulfrin said confidently. "I'll go see what I can round up." Unlike the first time he underwent a quest of this style, he had something in his wheel house, a new grasp on fishing. This time he actually had a secondary objective. Two birds one stone. He could increase his skill as a fisher and farm the materials at the same time. Maybe he could even find some extra equipment via chests. "I'll be back in a few!" Wulfrin turned and exited the forge as Callum returned to his work.

[Wulfrin 0]

Wulfrin made his way to the familiar riverside. Here is where his adventure had started. It began with him simply turning over rocks and picking up random bits of herbs for materials to satisfy the requirements of Zachariah. Not far from here was a cave where he found the secrets of a tablet outlining the foes he must face to find the treasure within. He had also faced off with several boars not far from here. For the most part though, the area was very calm and free of danger, unless he went out of his way to look for it. He pulled out a simple fishing rod and hook and cast it into the river. The bobber moved with the river's lazy waves. It wasn't long before something pulled the bobber below the surface. Wulfrin retrieved his catch and found it came with a bonus chest containing a handful of unknown weapons. Freyd had mentioned he could identify items, so he decided he'll go to Freyd first.

* * *

Fishing Attempt | ID: 219393 | CD: 11 | LD: 13 | Critical Catch! | +1 Material | +1 Treasure Chest | +16 EXP

Opening Treasure Chest | ID: 219398 | LD: 16

T1 Perfect Unidentified Weapon 219398a
T1 Perfect Unidentified Weapon 219398b
T1 Rare Unidentified Weapon 219398c

+16 Fishing EXP this thread

[Wulfrin 0]

Wulfrin cast his line again. His time in Sword Art Online have mainly consisted of menial tasks like this. He had very few experiences in combat, but that was intentional. Wulfrin was trying to get as much of a gain in his level and gear as he could without fighting. Once he had exhausted all of those options, he planned to start getting into more fights while staying as safe as possible. Ideally those combats would be accompanied by some high leveled players looking to get more people to the frontlines with them. So far that plan was working. He had several paths before him he just needed to complete them. Another goal he had was to find a familiar. Most of the players he had met had one, but he had no idea what that entailed. What would his familiar look like? He hoped it would be something like a tiny winged dragon or maybe a flaming cardinal. Only time would tell since he would have to hunt one down and tame it. Wulfrin brought in his line to find nothing on the end.

* * *

Fishing Attempt | ID: 219399 | CD: 5 | LD: 19 | Nothing Found | +3 EXP

+19 Fishing EXP this thread

[Wulfrin 0]

The floating castle was unforgiving in many ways. Wulfrin had gone many times to Black Iron Palace to take in the number of names that appeared on the Monument of Life. Each name that appeared came with a brief description. Many of them were simple things, killed by boars and such. Wulfrin had already faced many of the dangers that players had fallen to. He managed to get his confidence up by telling himself he was making progress. He also scoured the monument often to see if he recognized any names. He had intended to join up with some other friends he had run with in other games, but hadn't been able to find out if they had made it in or not. Secretly he hoped they had been delayed. He had been in here two years already, but he had only just now decided to get his act together and do something about it. Perhaps if they were within the floors of Aincrad, they had left him behind and were already fighting to get out. Wulfrin checked his line to find nothing at the end.

* * *

Fishing Attempt | ID: 219400 | CD: 6 | LD: 17 | Nothing Found | +3 EXP

+22 Fishing EXP this thread

[Wulfrin 0]

Wulfrin continued his path of reflection. He cast his line back into the river, the bobber dipping up and down over the waves almost mockingly. The memories of this river were fresh, but they were still just as real as his life before. Outside of running through a repository of old memories for skills that could help with survival in the death game that had become his new reality, he hadn't really dwelled on his life before. Lance's life was rather mundane. He was stuck in college studying Computer Science and living with his parents. The house was always full and he often found it very hard to keep to ones self. He was often ridiculed for how much time he spent in front of his computer, despite it being necessary for his classes. Everything he did was just seen as "being anti-social and unproductive". Sword Art Online was a dream come true for him. It allowed him to rise above his lack luster day to day life and enter the fantasy world of his dreams. He pulled his line from the water to find nothing was hooked.

* * *

Fishing Attempt | ID: 219401 | CD: 4 | LD: 3 | Nothing Found | +3 EXP

+25 Fishing EXP this thread

[Wulfrin 0]

Here in Aincrad, Wulfrin could be the swordsman he had always dreamed to be. In every game he played the first character Lance created was Wulfrin. A human from a mundane life that never backed down from challenges and would do anything to help others. Often times that was the biggest weakness the character had, a fatal flaw if you will. He was too loyal. Wulfrin had a bad track record of putting his allies above whatever goal was before them often going so far as to sacrifice himself to get his allies out. Normally this wasn't a problem as in those games there was some way to come back, but that was not the case here. In SAO, if Lance, or Wulfrin to the other players, was to fall to deep into that flaw, it would literally become fatal. For a while Lance locked himself away to avoid the temptation. Eventually, Wulfrin's voice of reason started to creep in. Now Wulfrin was almost two people. When alone he was the sheepish Lance, too scared to go out into the world. When he was with others, he felt like the odds were much more in his favor. He often found himself wandering if he had looked harder for his friends, he would've been able to get on his feet sooner. The bobber dipped below the surface. Wulfrin tugged the fish back to the surface.

* * *

Fishing Attempt | ID: 219406 | CD: 12 | LD: 4 | +1 Material | +8 EXP

+33 Fishing EXP this thread

[Wulfrin 0]

Wulfrin recast his line into the river. Should he make three attempts to catch in a row that fail, he told himself he would face off with some mobs. He was confident he could handle the lower level mobs on floor one on his own if he was able to take them one at a time. The small mount of combat experience he had gotten had proven that much. He had a close run in with an enraged mama boar, but with the help of his mentor Freyd, the beast was able to fall. Up until that point Freyd had simply been the silent observer critiquing his performance, but in that moment of pure terror, he had stepped in and allowed Wulfrin to finish the quest. Looking back on that battle, Wulfrin was sure he could have beaten the beast, despite his lacking starting equipment. Now he was certain he could have done it no problem. It was odd to him that a tutorial level like that could be so deadly. Then he remembered SAO wasn't originally a death game. Wulfrin checked the line, finding nothing.

* * *

Fishing Attempt | ID: 219407 | CD: 5 | LD: 13 | Nothing Found | +3 EXP

+36 Fishing EXP this thread

Edited February 20 by Wulfrin

[Wulfrin 0]

Wulfrin cast the line back into the river. This would be his second attempt under his own personal restrictions. This plan was put in place to help mitigate the monotony of gathering materials. That was the part he liked the least about SAO. It had an egregious Random Number Generator that always seemed to be the bane of his existence. Every time he had to complete something that required him to collect any amount of items, he found himself continuing hopelessly, failing over and over again. Not this time he vowed. He would break up the fails with a combat to stretch his legs. Maybe looting the mob he kills might help bridge the gap and make up for the lost materials. Wulfrin checked the line, unsurprisingly nothing was hooked. He reset and settled in. His next attempt, should nothing be snared, would be the one he stops and finds something to fight.

* * *

Fishing Attempt | ID: 219413 | CD: 4 | LD: 7 | Nothing Found | +3 EXP

+39 Fishing EXP this thread

[Wulfrin 0]

Wulfrin eyed the bobber intently. It seemed to mock him by occasionally dipping below the surface of the water. He found himself thinking ahead to what came after the quest. He could open a shop, but he had no land to do that on. He supposed he could just sell from his inventory, but that limits what he was capable of doing. There wouldn't be any forging of new gear for people, nor would there be any maintaining gear. He also couldn't craft anything new. All he could do was hoard as much col as he could get his hands on. Then he could maybe afford a plot of land somewhere, but he would need even more to furnish it. A place to call his own was already a pleasant enough idea. Wulfrin was growing tired of the ragged inns he was staying in. He longed for someplace that felt like home. Then there was a tug at the line. Wulfrin brought the catch up to the surface, collecting the third of his five materials. He also reset his mental fail counter. Another three fails before changing tactics. Cardinal was definitely toying with him.

* * *

Fishing Attempt | ID: 219414 | CD: 10 | LD: 6 | +1 Material | +8 EXP

+47 Fishing EXP this thread

[Wulfrin 0]

Wulfrin recast his line and materialized a honey bun from seemingly nowhere. This was a gift from Freyd. He had a fellow player that would make small treats like this all the time. Freyd had an abundance of them and offered some to Wulfrin. It was a bad habit to have, but it kept Wulfrin rooted to the real world. The snacks often served as a welcome reminder to the life he left behind. They only satisfied the urge of hunger in the game, but if he had survived this long his body must have been getting nutrients somehow. Likely he was in a hospital linked up to some massive array of life support IVs and devices. No doubt his muscles had atrophied during his coma, but there was no sense on dwelling on the current state of his body. He had to focus on getting out. This was a step in the right direction. If he was going to be stuck here he may as well make life as comfortable as he can. That meant making friends, earning col, and finding a place to live. All that and training to fight against the many monsters of SAO. He checked his line to find nothing attached to the hook. 

* * *

Fishing Attempt | ID: 219415 | CD: 6 | LD: 14 | Nothing Found | +3 EXP

+50 Fishing EXP this thread

[Wulfrin 0]

Having recast his line for the second attempt of his three attempt cycle. Cardinal was definitely mocking him since it always seemed to wait until his last attempt to grant him his desired item just to keep him hooked. He definitely intended that mental pun as he watched the bobber dip up and down with the waves. At least the weather was nice. To be fair, the weather was always decent in Aincrad. If you wanted to experience other types of weather than the default of the floor, you had to either wait for an event to change it or go to a floor with the desired settings. That was one benefit to being trapped in this virtual prison, the weather was always predictable. The bobber showed little sign of movement, but Wulfrin reeled in the line to check his findings. Unsurprisingly, he found nothing at the end of the line.

* * *

Fishing Attempt | ID: 219550 | CD: 5 | LD: 4 | Nothing Found | +3 EXP

+53 Fishing EXP this thread

[Wulfrin 0]

Wulfrin cast his line once more. This would be his last before he took to other methods of material gathering. His luck so far was terrible when it came to fishing. Even starting the profession was egregious. At the very least he wasn't doing it for nothing anymore as even a failed attempt at least awarded him with experience. The bobber lazily bobbed along the surface. Not even a nibble was happening. Either the fish truly weren't biting or Cardinal was toying with him. The silent staring contest continued for about an hour before Wulfrin retrieved his line. He had nothing to show for the attempt so he mad his way into the nearby field to attempt to find something he could take down. The fields had plenty of monsters in them he just had to make sure he only faced one at a time. "Time to hunt some more boars."

* * *

Fishing Attempt | ID: 219551 | CD: 1 | LD: 9 | Nothing Found | +3 EXP

+56 Fishing EXP this thread

Edited February 22 by Wulfrin

[Wulfrin 0]

It took a while, but finally Wulfrin located a pack of wild boars near where he was fishing. He patiently waited for one to break off from its herd, knowing they wouldn't attack unless provoked. Once the boar broke off he led the boar out of agro range of the others. He had fought these mobs before but he was definitely not prepared to face a full herd. Once he had the boar far enough away, he lunged outward. His sword glowed with the brilliant blue light of his sword art. Wulfrin slashed into the boar's flank as it let out a loud squeal. The HP bar dropped well into the yellow. It was definitely hardier tham the boarletts he had faced in the second lesson, but at least he could still dish out some serious hurt. The boar recovered from the strike and lowered its tusks for a charge. Wulfrin sidestepped the attack with relative ease. After he killed the boar, even if he did receive material from it and didn't meet his quota, he would return to fishing whilst he waited for his energy to recharge. It would be safer to always fight at full strength. 

* * *

Combat start

[0] Wulfrin | lvl: 7 | HP: 140/140 | EN: 32/32 | DMG: 8 | MIT: 20 | ACC: 3 | LD: 2 | REC: 1

(0) Boar | HP: 84/84 | DMG: 28

Post action: ST-I vs boar (6 EN) | ID: 219552 | BD: 6 +3 = 9 hit | 8 * 6 = 48 DMG
Free action: none

[1] Wulfrin | lvl: 7 | HP: 140/140 | EN: 26/32 | DMG: 8 | MIT: 20 | ACC: 3 | LD: 2 | REC: 1

Boar | HP: 36/84 | DMG: 28

Boar attacks Wulfrin | ID: 219553 | BD: 2 | Miss

 

[1] Wulfrin | lvl: 7 | HP: 140/140 | EN: 26/32 | DMG: 8 | MIT: 20 | ACC: 3 | LD: 2 | REC: 1

Boar | HP: 36/84 | DMG: 28

[Wulfrin 0]

The boar had left itself wide open. With a swift strike of another sword art to fully exposed flank, the boar let out another shrill screech as his HP bar fell to 0. The boar must have taken a critical injury, but it was hard to tell as based off Wulfrin's mental calculations, the boar would have fallen to even a regular strike from his sword art. The boar shattered into a confetti of tiny polygons leaving be hind a small pouch. Upon retreiving the pouch, an info panel appeared detailing the contents of the boar. "Let's see," Wulfrin said to himself as he browsed the contents of the boar. "A handful of col, a trinket, and ... two materials!" There was his five materials required for the quest. He still had some time before he should be heading back, so he decided to give fishing one more go before returning to Tolbana. 

* * *

Wulfrin regains: 2 EN (1+1 REC)

[0] Wulfrin | lvl: 7 | HP: 140/140 | EN: 28/32 | DMG: 8 | MIT: 20 | ACC: 3 | LD: 2 | REC: 1

(0) Boar | HP: 84/84 | DMG: 28

Post action: ST-I vs boar (6 EN) | ID: 219554 | BD: 10 +3 = 13 major critical hit | (8+2) * 6 = 60 DMG
Free action: none

[3] Wulfrin | lvl: 7 | HP: 140/140 | EN: 20/32 | DMG: 8 | MIT: 20 | ACC: 3 | LD: 2 | REC: 1

Boar | HP: 36/84 | DMG: 28 (36-60)

End of Combat

Looting Boar ID: 219555 | LD: 9+2= 11 | CD: 4

420 col ([84*2 = 162]CD even + [398*3 = 258])
+2 materials LD odd
T1 Rare Trinket 219555

[Wulfrin 0]

Wulfrin returned to the river. He welcomed the break, and it had helped him complete the quest. The boar wasn't that bad of a fight either. "Maybe," Wulfrin thought out loud to himself. "Maybe I could grind them for col and additional stock if I'm ever bored. It's also good to know for future hunting trips." He cast his line back into the river. This time he truly didn't care what happened at the end of the line. In the end he had already found the required materials, so everything else was just bonus. Getting this finished would allow him not only to craft gear of his own, but also get some amount of revenue. The end goal was a home to return to after adventures. He heard the twenty-second floor had a very nice cabin in the woods aesthetic. That would be the ideal place to settle down and open a shop. Wulfrin reeled in the line to find nothing at the end. One attempt down two more to go.

 

* * *

Fishing Attempt | ID: 219556 | CD: 1 | LD: 9 | Nothing Found | +3 EXP

+59 Fishing EXP this thread

[Wulfrin 0]

"Perhaps I'll take a trip to the various floors," Wulfrin said to himself. "See if I can find a plot of land I like." He started to think about his future as he cast his line into the river. The forge he planned to run would be simple and open to the elements. Completely enclosing the forge was a bad idea. Besides there was the view. If he was going to live somewhere he may as well enjoy the view while he worked. The higher he went the more likely to find other players looking for gear. He couldn't provide gear for the frontline players, but he was going to fast track his progress to that goal. Even if his personal level wasn't high enough for combat, his profession ranks didn't depend on that, meaning he could at least do something to help the effort in the mean time. He brought the line back to the surface to find nothing on the end. Two down only one attempt left before he called it a day.

 

* * *

Fishing Attempt | ID: 219557 | CD: 5 | LD: 12 | Nothing Found | +3 EXP

+62 Fishing EXP this thread

[Wulfrin 0]

Wulfrin cast the line for the final time. Success or fail didn't matter the only things he would keep were if he opened another chest. Any additional materials he managed to scrounge up would be confiscated by the system, but that was never his goal. He wanted a chest to expand his inventory a bit. The more options he had, the more he could offer to other players, or upgrade his own gear. A new future in Aincrad was withing reach he just had to catch it. He watched the bobber intently. Time seemed to elongate as he watched every small movement. Just as he was about to reel in the line, the bobber lurched beneath the surface. With a grunt through gritted teeth he brought the catch to the surface. Upon inspection of the catch he had a chest. Within was another handful of items to be identified at a later date. Satisfied, Wulfrin began his walk back to Tolbana.

* * *

Fishing Attempt | ID: 219558 | CD: 12 | LD: 19 | +1 Material | Critical Catch + 1 Treasure chest | +16 EXP

Opening Treasure Chest| ID: 219559 | LD:18

Unidentified T1 Perfect Weapon 219559a
Unidentified T1 Perfect Weapon 219559b
Unidentified T1 Rare Weapon 219559c

+78 Fishing EXP this thread

[Wulfrin 0]

The trip back to Tolbana was very uneventful. The paths were well traveled and monsters kept their distance allowing for a swift return. Wulfrin navigated to the back ally smith shop where Callum did his work. The sounds of metal being shaped with rhythmic strikes of a hammer filled the soot filled interior. The workspace was still cluttered, but as suspected there appeared to be a larger stock of scrap pieces. Callum was at the anvil shaping another ingot into a long thin blade. A rapier perhaps?

"Ah, welcome back," Callum said as he quenched his current project in the nearby barrel. "I take it your gathering session was fruitful? Come let's get you started." Callum lead Wulfrin to the forge. Its flames roared from the coals. Several half prepared projects lay in wait. "Go ahead and add your materials to the furnace. The ingots have to be white hot before you can mold them into your desired shape." As instructed wulfrin interacted with the furnace's inventory panel and added the materials he had gathered. More molten bars appeared in the fires. Callum handed Wulfrin a set of thick heavy cloves, an apron, a pair of tongs, and a hammer, all of which Wulfrin donned before proceeding. "Simply grab the ingot and start hammering away until it reaches the desired length and width. It takes a keen eye for detail to not over work the material."

Wulfrin took the ingot from the fire and began to strike it with the hammer. He wasn't sure what he was going to craft, but he simply entered a flow state. He found himself thinking of his friends from other games. One of them favored long slender fencing style swords. Wulfrin found himself elongating the ingot to a thin yet sturdy weapon. Using the tongs he quenched the blade in the nearby oil to help temper the blade before continuing his strikes. Then he quenched the blade in the water when he pulled it out the blade had been completed almost entirely. Using some hide from the boar and some leftover bits of metal, he crafted the hand guard. Once the weapon had finished receiving its finishing touches, Wulfrin presented his craft to Callum. "How's this?" He asked hopeful his first try was good enough.

* * *

Crafting One handed Sabers

ID: 219565 | CD: 10 | LD: 14

New Items
1 Uncommon Saber | ACC I | ID: 219565

[Wulfrin 0]

"Looks great," Callum said as he inspected the new blade. Judging by the stats of the weapon Wulfrin was certain the new rapier was not much better than a weapon that a first time player would receive. "Its a decent blade, a little rough on the edges and the blade is a bit warped, but for a first craft its not bad." Callum handed the weapon back to Wulfrin. Holding the blade, he could see the imperfections, but at least it was his own. He hadn't intended for one, but a small signet was cast into the blade. A phoenix with wings outstretched as if rising from its ashes. He always thought himself like the mythical creature, as he always seemed to rebound no matter how strenuous the situation became. "Now it's not worth much," Callum added. "But it's got my seal of approval. Good luck with your own smithy!" With that Callum returned to his own projects.

"Thanks Callum," Wulfrin replied. "And good luck with your father's smithy!" With a friendly wave Wulfrin left the smithy, as he did an info panel appeared with a congratulations on earning his new profession. With that Wulfrin headed towards the teleport gate in the Town of Beginnings to explore the floors above for a place to set up shop. 

* * *

THREAD CLOSING:

 

Wulfrin receives:

693 EXP (Word Count [3937/10*1*1=393] + Quest [300])
820 col (1 page [400] + Boar [420])

Gained profession <<Blacksmith>>
+78 Fishing Exp
+5 materials

Unidentified T1 Rare Trinket 219555
4 Unidentified T1 Perfect Weapon 219398a | 219398b | 219559a | 219559b
2 Unidentified T1 Rare Weapon 219398c | 219559c

Simple Rapier T1 uncommon saber | ACC I | ID: 219565

Edited February 23 by Wulfrin