Hanzoku 0 Posted August 7 #1 Share Posted August 7 (edited) Having prepared himself for the quest by securing his gathering skill ahead of time, it was time for Hanzoku to take the plunge and pick up his actual profession. He had asked others what was in demand, as well as looking for what advertisements were hung out and what felt right. At the end of the day, he decided to make something of his musical talents and see where that led. His decision took him to the a small street near the center of the Town of Beginnings. While it felt like it was off the beaten path, for those who knew what they were looking for, it was a short and easy walk from the teleportation circle for all their shopping needs. The shop was almost literally a hole in the wall, its advertising the music that wafted out from within. Currently, it was a rolling metal guitar riff, and Hanzoku's burning question was... how?!. Stepping inside, he stopped and stared. "Yeah, OK. That'll do it. The power of rock compels the game's level of technology." The man grinned as he blasted out another hard riff. "Magic gear, it's amazing what you can do with it!" The enormous man finishes the chorus, rakes a hand through his pointed white hair, then grins at you. "I take requests!" "Ha! maybe later, but I'm looking to get the <<Performer>> class myself." Hanzoku explained as he admired the man's tricked out power lute. "Not the kind of request I was expecting, but yeah, I'll help. Problem is, I've got a few more orders to fill, and I'm getting low on recording crystals. If you go pick up the mats I need, I'll finish up my work, and we can meet in the middle. Deal?" Hanzoku nodded - this was what they were warned about. If he didn't have <<Forager>> or <<Fishing>>, this quest would have stalled out and he'd have to abandon it and try again later. "Sure thing, I can understand that. How many do you need?" "Five or so will do - I need to get a big order of healing songs out this afternoon." Landon said as he stroked his beard. "THAT... was a healing song?" "Of course it was!" "Awesome!" "I know!" "Anyway, you have yourself a deal. I'll be back later with the mats." Stat Line: Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 60/60 | EN: 24/24 | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 Spoiler Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 60/60 | EN: 24/24 | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 Equipped Items: Humble Aspirations | T1 Perfect Weapon (SS) | DMG III Squire's Ardor | T1 Perfect Heavy Armor | MIT III Valorous Spite | T1 Perfect Shield | REGEN II | THORNS I Battle-Ready Inventory: Starter Healing Potion (3/5) | Tier 1 Potion | +60 HP sound crystal recorder. | [#222158] | TIER 1 TRINKET | AMBITION wolf pendant. | [#220941-2] | TIER 1 JEWELRY | ACC III laurel earcuffs. | [#221709-1] | TIER 1 JEWELRY | LD III Consumed Items: Skills: Straight Swords | RANK 1/5 Curved Swords | RANK 1/5 Heavy Armor | RANK 1/5 Sword Arts: [x4] ST-I (4 EN) | <<Fourfold Strike>> A single-target sword art. [x3] AOE-I (1 + [2 * targets] EN) | AOE | <<Cleave>> A sword art that strikes multiple targets at once. [x4] TECH-A (5 EN) | STUN | <<Cheap Shot>> A single-target sword art that stuns an enemy. Misc. Buffs: Edited August 7 by Hanzoku Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #2 Share Posted August 8 Hanzoku left the City behind for the plains of the first floor, winding his way around the wandering mobs. Having leveled several times from his first quest, he was no longer nearly as interesting to attack for many of the beginner mobs, who weren't normally that overly aggressive to start with. He kept an eye out anyway to avoid becoming the victim of a boar stampede or avoid drawing the ire of a wolf pack - even with his heavy gear, he didn't want his first combat experience to be pulling a full group of enemies down on himself. Though, if he was careful, he was fairly sure between his heavy armor and starting potions that he could fight a group of enemies and win. Whether that was a smart idea was another question, of course. Either way, for now he made his way through the high grass of the plains, parting the grasses at random to look for any hidden resources underfoot. He was glad that one thing Kayaba hadn't modeled in game were ticks - at least regular sized ones. He'd heard that there were all sorts of giant insects elsewhere on the floor, though they tended to fight among themselves instead of bothering the players. As the player rose from a crouch, he heard a deep growl in the distance and cautiously drew his sword and readied his shield, the bulwark teleporting from his back to its position on his arm, straps already tightened in place. Post Action: Gathering Materials Roll ID: 224649 | LD: 8 CD: 8 MOB 9 => No materials found. +3 <<Foraging>> XP! => Mob encountered! Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #3 Share Posted August 8 (edited) The wolf threw itself at Hanzoku in a rushing flurry, snarling and snapping. He could count its ribs, and its eyes were maddened with hunger - something only reinforced by the name that floated above it. He dove out of the way of its first change and came to his feet as it slid to a halt, panting and snarling as it threw itself at its intended prey in another frenzied rush, neglecting even the basic concept of self preservation. Hanzoku's hand tightened on the hilt of his weapon. Humble Aspirations. A weapon for a novice, one who strives to become more. Humble aspirations indeed. The weapon glows as he activates a sword art for the first time. "<<Fourfold Strike!>>" he snarls as he thrusts forward, the sword's blade replicated in a flurry of three extra attacks. The wolf barrels into the attack with not an ounce of self-preservation, all four blades striking deep into its vitals, blood splattering the ground beneath as it takes the blows to bite into Hanzoku's forearm, teeth biting furiously at the heavy metal vambrace of Squire's Armor and inflicting nothing more than scratches on the metal. Instinctively, Hanzoku punched forward with his shield, the sharp spikes tearing into the wolf's mangled body and finishing the job, turning it into sparkling motes. Start of Combat [0] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 60/60 | EN: 24/24 | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 vs Starving Wolf | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Round #1 HANZOKU | ID: 224651 | BD: 10 = 10 | <<ST-I>> vs Starving Wolf | The strike lands! There's a major critical! (-4 EN) | 7 + 2 = 9 DMG | 9 * 4 = 36 DMG - - - - - Starving Wolf | ID: 224652 | MD: 7 | Attacking Hanzoku! 12 - 32 = 1 DMG THORNS I activates! 9 DMG received! [2] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 59/60 (-1) | EN: 20/24 (-4) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 Starving Wolf | HP: -5/40 | DMG: 12 Combat ended! Edited August 8 by Hanzoku Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #4 Share Posted August 8 (edited) Hanzoku slowly relaxed from his battle ready crouch and cracked his neck left and right. His pulse was racing, but his breathing was calm - there hadn't been time enough for any emotions to set in. The fight - if he could call it that - had lasted only moments. With the gear he had been given, it wasn't even a close match. Though he had been quite lucky that the beast had almost literally walked into his attack, its teeth were far from threatening, and he basically had had all the time in the world to fight it. He reached down and poked the glowing crystal that represented the monster's loot, and it glimmered and pulsed for a few seconds before turning into a pile of Col, a pile of wolf-related materials (two sections of pelt, a tail and a string of fangs), and a trinket who's properties were obscured. Hours of searching were cut away in moments, and he smiled. "Huh. That's worth mixing it up." he said cheerfully. Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 60/60 (+1) | EN: 21/24 (+1) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 | (1/3 to full regen) ID: 224633 | LD: 17 | CR: 11 | Looting Starving Wolf | [BASE COL] 40 * 3 = 120col | [CD BONUS]: 2 Materials | [LD BONUS]: 2 Materials | [LOOT TABLE]: Rare Unidentified Trinket (1), 40 * 3 = 120col Total Loot: 240col, 4 materials, Rare Unidentified Trinket (1) +240col +4 materials + Rare Tier 1 Unidentified Trinket (1) Edited August 8 by Hanzoku Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #5 Share Posted August 8 (edited) Less wary of the creatures around him, Hanzoku decided to experiment and swapped out his shield for (ironically) the wolf-head pendant that he had bought in NIGHT's shop. While the THORNS effect had been nice, he didn't need the health regeneration that badly, and he figured that it was far better to severely lessen his chances of missing in the next fight - if only to keep them short and within the limits of his energy pool. While he waited for his energy to regenerate back to full, he had a lot more enthusiasm for searching for materials using his <<Forage>> skill, seeing the bouts of foraging as a useful way to spend time between battles instead of periods of monotonous activity. He started working his way towards a group of enemies, the ease of his battle perhaps making him overconfident as he figured he could easily handle a set of four wolves of this level without getting slaughtered. Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 60/60 | EN: 22/24 (+1) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | ACC: 3 | (2/3 to full regen) Post Action: Gathering Materials Roll ID: 224672| LD: 15 CD: 11 MOB 3 => 2 Materials found. +16 <<Foraging>> XP! => No encounter! Edited August 8 by Hanzoku Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #6 Share Posted August 8 (edited) The scruffy player straightened up and considered the material in his hands. Together with what he earned from his first wolf, he had enough to bring back to Landon already. But on the other hand, he really wanted to try taking on a group and see how well it worked out. Between his heavy armor and backup potions, it wasn't much of a threat, and the rewards from his first kill were addictive. He earned almost as much as his first quest had given him in about five seconds. It was easy to see how the game suckered players into being overconfident and greedy. At the same time, properly managing that risk would be the fastest way to grow. With the need for caution firmly kept in mind, he stalked closer to his chosen pray - a small wolf pack of four of the starving critters that were worrying the virtual corpse of one of the boars, fighting and snapping at each other for the choicest bits. He stayed just outside their aggro radius as he waited for his regeneration cooldown to expire so he'd be fully ready for the battle, and spends the time looking around for any other materials. Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 60/60 | EN: 24/24 (+2) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | ACC: 3 | (3/3 to full regen) Post Action: Gathering Materials Roll ID: 224681 | LD: 6 CD: 12 => No material found. +3 <<Foraging>> XP! Edited August 8 by Hanzoku Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #7 Share Posted August 8 (edited) He took a deep breath and set his feet, breathing in and out slowly as he calmed himself, let his focus sharpen on the task. His feet dug into the ground and he took off into a sprint, letting his momentum build as he transferred from an easy loping stride to a full out charge. The wolves looked up in surprise as he burst into their midst, sword drawn back as it glowed with his charged and ready ability. "<<Cleave>>!" he shouted as he lashed out, a slash of energy striking at all four wolves at once. However, he had misjudged his angle, and the strike only hit one of the wolves, sailing over the heads of the other three. The wolves were quick to attack in return, though they found that their teeth could barely injure this prey, mostly tasting the tang of cold metal, bitter on their tongues. Start of Combat [0,0,0,0] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 60/60 | EN: 24/24 (+2) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | ACC: 3 vs Wolf #1 | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Round #1 HANZOKU | ID: 224682| BD: 2 + 3 = 5 | <<AOE-I>> vs Wolf #1 | ID: 224683 | 4 + 3 = 7 | <<AOE-I>> vs Wolf #2 | ID: 224684 | 1 + 3 = 4 | <<AOE-I>> vs Wolf #3 | ID: 224686 | 2 + 3 = 5 | <<AOE-I>> vs Wolf #4 | The strike lands! (-9 EN) | 7 * 3 = 21 DMG - - - - - Wolf #1 | ID: 224687 | MD: 5 | Attacking Hanzoku! Miss! Wolf #2 | ID: 224688 | MD: 9 | Attacking Hanzoku! Hit! Minor Critical! 12 + 1 - 32 = 1 DMG Wolf #3 | ID: 224689 | MD: 10 | Attacking Hanzoku! Hit! Major Critical! 12 + 2 - 32 = 1 DMG Wolf #4 | ID: 224690 | MD: 2 | Attacking Hanzoku! Miss! [0,1,0,0] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 58/60 (-2) | EN: 15/24 (-9) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | ACC: 3 Wolf #1 | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Edited August 8 by Hanzoku Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #8 Share Posted August 8 (edited) Having only managed to hit the nearest Wolf, Han grimaced. "You know, I totally saw that going differently in my head." he lamented to the wolves as they growled and began to split up to circle around the foolish player to offer himself up as a sacrifice to their insatiable hunger. "Now I'm going to have to stab you all to death one by one instead of cleaving you apart in two rounds." He moved quickly, using a tree to prevent them from flanking him and attacking his heels as he readied a sword art. As the wolves gathered together he lashed out once more, hoping for greater success this time. His wishes were granted in true monkey's paw fashion - he managed to hit two instead of one, though he managed to tag the same wolf a second time, sending it crashing to the ground, and only one of the wolves managed to nip at him in return. [0,0,1,0] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 58/60 (-2) | EN: 16/24 (+1) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | ACC: 3 Wolf #1 | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Round #2 HANZOKU | ID: 224700 | BD: 2 + 3 = 5 | <<AOE-I>> vs Wolf #1 | ID: 224701 | BD: 3 + 3 = 6 | <<AOE-I>> vs Wolf #2 | ID: 224702 | BD: 2 + 3 = 5 | <<AOE-I>> vs Wolf #3 | ID: 224703 | BD: 4 + 3 = 7 | <<AOE-I>> vs Wolf #4 | The strike lands! (-9 EN) | 7 * 3 = 21 DMG - - - - - Wolf #1 | ID: 224704 | MD: 4 | Attacking Hanzoku! Miss! Wolf #2 | ID: 224705 | MD: 5 | Attacking Hanzoku! Miss! Wolf #3 | ID: 224706 | MD: 7 | Attacking Hanzoku! Hit! 12 - 32 = 1 DMG Wolf #4 | ID: 224707 | MD: 3 | Attacking Hanzoku! Miss! [0,2,0,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 57/60 (-1) | EN: 7/24 (-9) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | ACC: 3 Wolf #1 | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: -2/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Edited August 8 by Hanzoku Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #9 Share Posted August 8 Hanzoku was panting now - the <<Cleave>> technique pulled heavily on his energy reserves. Three of the wolves were still on their feet and two were uninjured - so he definitely wasn't ending this in one strike. He could switch to single target strikes, but even as critical hits, those weren't enough to kill them in one strike, so left or right he'd be down to fighting with his basic combat skills after this. He figured it was worth the risk and struck again before the wolves could scatter, cleaving one last time at them. His blow scatters the group, injuring the two uninjured wolves, who took the blow to keep their wounded comrade safe. It leapt over them and bit into Hanzoku's forearm, once again barely scratching him past his heavy armor. The two groups broke apart and eyed each other warily. This prey was hard to wound and hard to bring down. The pack was all wounded now, but the hunt must continue. On the human's side, he panted as his energy meter hovered near zero - sword arts were out of the question now, and this would be brawn against brawn. [0,2,0,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 57/60 (-1) | EN: 8/24 (+1) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | ACC: 3 Wolf #1 | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: -2/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: 40/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Round #3 HANZOKU | ID: 224716 | BD: 4 + 3 = 7 | <<AOE-I>> vs Wolf #1 ID: 224717 | BD: 8 + 3 = 11 | <<AOE-I>> vs Wolf #3 ID: 224718 | BD: 2 + 3 = 5 | <<AOE-I>> vs Wolf #4 | The strike lands! A major critical occurs! (-7 EN) | 7 * 3 = 21 DMG, 7 + 2 = 9 * 3 = 27 DMG - - - - - Wolf #1 | ID: 224719 | MD: 3 | Attacking Hanzoku! Miss! Wolf #3 | ID: 224720 | MD: 3 | Attacking Hanzoku! Miss! Wolf #4 | ID: 224721 | MD: 9 | Attacking Hanzoku! Minor Critical! 12 + 1 - 32 = 1 DMG [1,2,2,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 56/60 (-1) | EN: 1/24 (-7) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | ACC: 3 Wolf #1 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: -2/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: 13/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #10 Share Posted August 8 Ignoring the wolves, Hanzoku opened his menus, humming to himself as he sent his amulet to his inventory. It wasn't its fault, but seriously, the chance that he missed the wolves across three cleaves in such a way irked him. As his shield materialized on his arm, he shifted his stance as two of the wolves tugged back and forth on his legs. "OK, let's do some math guys. With amulet, I had a 20% chance of missing versus each of you. So for you survivors, I missed twice out of three times. Doing some mental math here... Yeah, that was a 4% chance per enemy that I missed. Weird. Anyway, let's ignore the whole missing thing... bite me." he says with a somewhat deranged grin. The wolves growled as they tried to ignore the prey. They didn't incarnate as wolves to deal with math! If they wanted to deal with that, they'd have been something else, like dark elves! [1,2,2,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 56/60 (-1) | EN: 2/24 (+1) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | ACC: 3 Wolf #1 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: -2/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: 13/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Round #4 HANZOKU swaps his accessory for his shield in his battle-ready inventory - - - - - Wolf #1 | ID: 224760 | MD: 1 | Attacking Hanzoku! Miss! Wolf #3 | ID: 224761 | MD: 9 | Attacking Hanzoku! Minor Critical! 12 + 1 - 32 = 1 DMG Wolf #4 | ID: 224762 | MD: 7 | Attacking Hanzoku! Hit! 12 - 32 = 1 DMG [1,2,2,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 54/60 (-2) | EN: 2/24 () | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 Wolf #1 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: -2/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: 13/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #11 Share Posted August 8 "Come on, hit me! Go for the throat, go for the throoooooat!" the prey cried out in deranged joy. And to be fair, they were happy to - trying to! But he was playing keep away, and making them work for it! Only one of them managed to set his teeth in the annoying prey, and got a smash from the metal slab the prey had attached to its arm for its troubles. Worse though, far worse - the scrapes they was all the prey had to show for their great efforts started healing. It was like the prey was healing almost faster then they could damage it all together... but that couldn't be right. Right? For whatever level of intelligence that was assigned to the AIs piloting the wolves, they began to have a sneaking suspicion that this wouldn't end the way they were hoping it would. No, that couldn't be right. Ripping his throat out would do the trick! [1,2,2,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 54/60 (-2) | EN: 3/24 (+1) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 Wolf #1 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: -2/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: 13/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Round #5 HANZOKU | ID: 224764 | BD: 2 | Normal Attack vs Wolf #3 Miss! (-2 EN) - - - - - Wolf #1 | ID: 224763 | MD: 5 | Attacking Hanzoku! Miss! Wolf #3 | ID: 224764 | MD: 8 | Attacking Hanzoku! Hit! 12 - 32 = 1 DMG THORNS I ACTIVATED - 9 DMG taken! Wolf #4 | ID: 224765 | MD: 1 | Attacking Hanzoku! Miss! [1,2,2,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 53/60 (-1) | EN: 1/24 (-2) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 | REGEN ACTIVATED (+2 HP) Wolf #1 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: -2/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: 4/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #12 Share Posted August 8 "Now see, all I need you to do is hit me two or three times more. That'll get us done in three more exchanges. Or if I can figure out how to stick the pointy end of the sword in you, then we can shorten this right up. Either way, I'm functionally immortal against you assholes because just as soon as one of you drops, you just can't do more damage then I can heal. Sadly, you don't recognize futility and explode early to make things faster, but what can you do?" the prey nattered on, bashing those who touched it with that annoying shield even as it waved the stick that it refused to throw at them. A passing player pauses and shakes his head. This is why newbies shouldn't get into big fights like this - they just don't have the energy to go the distance. He moved on after making sure that the newbie wasn't going to die - it wouldn't be right to killsteal, after all. [1,2,2,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 55/60 (+2) | EN: 2/24 (+1) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 | REGEN ACTIVATED (+2 HP) Wolf #1 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: -2/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: 4/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 19/40 | DMG: 12 Round #6 HANZOKU | ID: 224766 | BD: 2 | Normal Attack vs Wolf #1 Miss! (-2 EN) - - - - - Wolf #1 | ID: 224766 | MD: 8 | Attacking Hanzoku! Hit! 12 - 32 = 1 DMG THORNS I ACTIVATED - 9 DMG taken! Wolf #3 | ID: 224767 | MD: 4 | Attacking Hanzoku! Miss! Wolf #4 | ID: 224768 | MD: 10 | Attacking Hanzoku! Major Critical! 12 + 2 - 32 = 1 DMG THORNS I ACTIVATED - 9 DMG taken! [1,2,2,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 53/60 (-2) | EN: 0/24 (-2) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 | REGEN ACTIVATED (+2 HP) Wolf #1 | HP: 10/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: -2/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: 4/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 10/40 | DMG: 12 Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #13 Share Posted August 8 The pack knew! If they attacked as one, they would bring the Prey down and could pull it apart. It would only take a couple of minutes of dedicated chewing to end the Prey! Of course, no plan survives contact with being enthusiastically beaten with a metal shield, laughing maniacally while stabbing one of them. The last survivor was trying to drag himself away from the monster that they thought was Prey, a single HP left to his name. This was no normal creature, its reaction to pain was to laugh and invite more, taking each attack as an opportunity to punish the attacker rather then avoid pain. "Hey, well done guys! That moved my schedule right up!" Hanzoku said cheerfully to the dying wolves as he approached the last survivor. "And just think about it, if there were another dozen of you, you might even have been a threat!" [1,2,2,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 55/60 (+2) | EN: 1/24 (+1) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 | REGEN ACTIVATED (+2 HP) Wolf #1 | HP: 10/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: -2/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: 4/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 10/40 | DMG: 12 Round #7 HANZOKU | ID: 224769 | BD: 8 | Normal Attack vs Wolf #1 Hit! (-1 EN) | 7 DMG - - - - - Wolf #1 | ID: 224769 | MD: 6 | Attacking Hanzoku! Hit! 12 - 32 = 1 DMG THORNS I ACTIVATED - 9 DMG taken! Wolf #3 | ID: 224770| MD: 7 | Attacking Hanzoku! Hit! 12 - 32 = 1 DMG THORNS I ACTIVATED - 9 DMG taken! Wolf #4 | ID: 224771 | MD:8 | Attacking Hanzoku! Hit! 12 - 32 = 1 DMG THORNS I ACTIVATED - 9 DMG taken! [2,2,2,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 52/60 (-3) | EN: 0/24 (-1) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 | REGEN ACTIVATED (+2 HP) Wolf #1 | HP: -6/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: -2/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: -6/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 1/40 | DMG: 12 Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #14 Share Posted August 8 The two survivors of the battle continued to fight, sword and fang clashing without end. For the last Wolf, the battle was no longer for food, but to avenge his pack mates lost fighting the Great Enemy. For Hanzoku, it was definitely reinforcing the value of being able to quickly switch back and forth between items. He was banking on the Wolf managing to either hit him or him hitting the wolf sometime soon. He considered how lifelike the world was - the sunlight through the trees, the smell of trampled grass and flowers as they struggled. The hot breath of the wolf on his face when they clashed near his face. He wiped the saliva off his face and sighed. "Ok, that part could be a little less realistic. I wonder how much worse it would be if you were bigger?" The Wolf snarled! It didn't need to be bigger! It just needed to bite that annoying creature's FACE OFF! [2,2,2,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 54/60 (+2) | EN: 1/24 (+1) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 | REGEN ACTIVATED (+2 HP) Wolf #1 | HP: -6/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: -2/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: -6/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 1/40 | DMG: 12 Round #8 HANZOKU | ID: 224772 | BD: 3 | Normal Attack vs Wolf #4 Miss! (-2 EN) - - - - - Wolf #4 | ID: 224772 | MD:4 | Attacking Hanzoku! Miss! [2,2,2,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 54/60 (+2) | EN: 0/24 (-2) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 | REGEN ACTIVATED (+2 HP) Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #15 Share Posted August 8 In the end, the battle came down to chance. The Prey had let its guard down in weariness, and the wolf gathered itself for a last lunge, springing high into the air over the Prey's guard, teeth reaching the Prey's throat, starting to close on the metal of the gorget guarding that soft, vulnerable tissue. Victory was at han- The shield came up and smashed into the wolf's jaws, propelling it away. Discarding his sword, Hanzoku grabbed his most reliable weapon and started beating the wolf with it like a pro wrestler with a folding chair and their last fuck long given. It was probably complete overkill - at only 1 HP remaining, the Wolf was already well on its last legs, but it was incredibly cathartic to finish his battle. Finished with battle, Hanzoku sank down against a tree and panted for breath. "Whew. OK, good to know for myself - pick up some source of energy regen if I want to try that sort of thing again, but I can at least reliably survive being ambushed by groups on this floor. It probably also means that I can push up a couple of floors without issue... probably no where near mid floors. Definitely need to stick to safe zones there for a while longer. But the heavy armor is worth its weight in gold, I don't like to think about how much damage I would have taken otherwise." [2,2,2,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 56/60 (+2) | EN: 1/24 (+1) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 | REGEN ACTIVATED (+2 HP) Wolf #1 | HP: -6/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: -2/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: -6/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: 1/40 | DMG: 12 Round #9 HANZOKU | ID: 224773 | BD: 1 | Normal Attack vs Wolf #4 Miss! (-2 EN) - - - - - Wolf #4 | ID: 224773 | MD:10 | Attacking Hanzoku! Major Critical! 12 + 2 - 32 = 1 DMG 2,2,2,1] Hanzoku | Lv. 3 | HP: 55/60 (-1) | EN: 0/24 (-2) | DMG: 7 | MIT: 32 | REGEN: 2 | THORNS: 1 | REGEN ACTIVATED (+2 HP) Wolf #1 | HP: -6/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #2 | HP: -2/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #3 | HP: -6/40 | DMG: 12 Wolf #4 | HP: -8/40 | DMG: 12 Combat finished! Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #16 Share Posted August 8 (edited) After resting for a few minutes, Hanzoku levered himself back to his feet and took a deep breath, almost giddy for the best part of fighting mobs - popping the loot pinatas they leave behind and seeing what you collected. He wasn't disappointed for his efforts - nearly a thousand col, more materials and a few trinkets that he could hopefully have an appraiser combine or sell for even more col - overall quite worthwhile for his time. But he had what he was looking for, and now it was time to head back to town and get on with learning the <<Performer>>'s craft. He quickly made his way to the shop and was greeted by a hearty laugh from Landon Axel. "What happened to you, man? The bushes fight back or something?" Hanzoku grinned as he brushed at his scuffed and lightly chewed armor. "Ah, you know how it is. Boy meets wolf, wolf bites boy, boy cleaves wolf in half." ID: 224781 | LD: 8 | CR: 5 | Looting Wolf #1 | [BASE COL] 40 * 3 = 120col | [CD BONUS]: 2 Materials | [LD BONUS]: 40 * 2 = 80col | [LOOT TABLE]: Rare Unidentified Trinket (1), 40col Total Loot: 240col, 2 materials, Rare Unidentified Trinket (1) ID: 224782 | LD: 10 | CR: 5 | Looting Wolf #2 | [BASE COL] 40 * 3 = 120col | [CD BONUS]: 2 Materials | [LD BONUS]: 40 * 2 = 80col | [LOOT TABLE]: Rare Unidentified Trinket (1), 40col Total Loot: 240col, 2 materials, Rare Unidentified Trinket (1) ID: 224783 | LD: 4 | CR: 7 | Looting Wolf #3 | [BASE COL] 40 * 3 = 120col | [CD BONUS]: 2 Materials | [LD BONUS]: 40 * 2 = 80col | [LOOT TABLE]: - - - Total Loot: 200col, 2 materials ID: 224784 | LD: 14 | CR: 2 | Looting Wolf #4 | [BASE COL] 40 * 3 = 120col | [CD BONUS]: 40 * 2 = 80col | [LD BONUS]: 40 * 2 = 80col | [LOOT TABLE]: Rare Unidentified Trinket (1) Total Loot: 280col, Rare Unidentified Trinket (1) Loot Summary: + 960col + 6 materials + Rare Tier 1 Unidentified Trinket (3) Edited August 9 by Hanzoku Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #17 Share Posted August 8 Landon raised a white eyebrow expressively. "That doesn't account for the rest of it." Now Hanzoku grimaced. "Boy gets overconfident, takes on wolf pack, runs out of energy midway and needs to let them bite themselves to death on his THORNS aura." Landon nearly laughs himself sick, though he dispenses some sage advice once he recovers. "It'll get better as you get more experienced, but you should look into some consumables to prop up your energy regeneration. If you can regenerate enough to use a basic sword art every few seconds, it'll make it a lot easier on yourself." "Yeah, I was already figuring the same. I'll have to see what I can get from the alchemists or cooks - but at least the wolves have given me enough to pay for some items." "Yeah, they're good for that - though speaking of materials-" Landon said, looking a bit embarrassed. "About five minutes after you left, my supplier came through with enough supplies to cover me for the rest of the week. You didn't actually need to go out and tussle with wolves for me." Hanzoku's dead-eyed stare was expressive enough. Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #18 Share Posted August 8 Landon helped up his hands placatingly. "Now now, how about I let you use my shop to practice making your first sound crystal? I can loan you some of my equipment as well, but the music is going to have to come from yourself." Hanzoku took a deep breath and shook his funk off. "That's kind of you. Well, I had something come to me, so I'll take you up on that." Luckily, Landon didn't do all of his work in the middle of his shop, and he had a quiet recording booth in the corner of his shop. Hanzoku took out the recording crystal he had commissioned and set it up, figuring out what he wanted to sing as his fingers moved over the recording crystal to produce the background music. As the upbeat sounds of nightcore began to fill the space, he growled from his throat, launching into a death metal rendition of "Who let the wolves out? Who? Who?" Roll ID: 224785 | CD 3 | LD 2 => Materials Lost Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #19 Share Posted August 8 (edited) Hanzoku coughed as he waved the smoke away. Those... had definitely been the wrong settings. Instead of recording the song, the crystal had cracked. And exploded a little. Landon stuck his head in the booth and sniffed at the air. "Ah, yeah, that happens a lot - especially at first. Those crystals are a bit on the delicate side - they need to be usable in a hurry in combat, yet remain stable outside. Keep on trying, you'll get there." Hanzoku nodded at the words of encourgement, and noticed the handbroom and dustpan at the side of the table, alongside a wastebasket that was half-filled with similiar crystal fragments - signs that even an experienced performer like Landon had his own failures still. After sweeping up his work space, Han put a new recording crystal ready and flexed his fingers as he prepared to make his next attempt. To be fair, he was fairly sure if he changed up the beat a little, the end result would be a lot better anyway... Roll ID: 224786 | CD 1 | LD 17 => Materials Lost Edited August 8 by Hanzoku Link to post Share on other sites
Hanzoku 0 Posted August 8 Author #20 Share Posted August 8 ...Nope. Nope. Well, the music was definitely better, but instead of cracking, the crystal had outright exploded, and Han wiped a trickle of blood from his forehead as he eyed the crystalline shrapnel embedded in the walls, the table, his chestplate... "Whoa! I haven't seen that happen in a while!" Landon said, wincing at the damage. "Try to be more careful with the settings, picking crystal fragments out of your eyes so they can regenerate is painful - ask me how I know." "No thanks, I can imagine it just fine. Do they.... detonate like that often?" "Nah, not too often. Too bad - if we could get it down consistently they'd make decent explosives in combat, wouldn't they?" "I'd certainly toss a cluster like a frag grenade at the next group I'm fighting." Hanzoku said in agreement as he set up again. Third time's the charm, right? At least his throat was getting that raspy sound that was iconic to death metal from constant repetition. Roll ID: 224787 | CD 2 | LD 17 => Materials Lost Link to post Share on other sites
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