PP - F04 - Do You Wanna Kill a Snowman «Absolute-Zero» Shield & Hikoru

[Shield 0]

Spoiler

<< Absolute Zero >>

This Quest Takes Place on Floor 4.

This Quest is repeatable for Zero Degree Icicle only.

 

 

It is said that many years ago a Respawning Boss was found by the name <<Avalanche>>... however players that have fought it before was surprised to not see it one day, eventually the boss was found again… but its disappearance worried many… they began to wonder if the defeat into floor 20 began to sink into the game changing everything as they knew it… well, they we’re right. As they explored the area they found a lake that seemed innocent enough, however as a group of players grew closer and closer the evolved form of Avalanche has rose out of the water and stood proudly in the center of the lake ready to attack the party… unknowing what to do the party fled to be able to share the tale and share the information about the new boss… “Avalanche the Absolute Zero”.

-----

 

<< Avalanche the Absolute Zero >>

HP: 850 - MIT: 75 - DMG: 200 - Freeze: 2 (Will Freeze on Natural Rolls of 8-10) - ACC: 3 - EVA: -2

Damage Increase on a Natural Roll of 9: 50 - Damage Increase on a Natural Roll of 10: 100

Abilities:

You must roll for this boss on a separate roll.

<<Grand Slam>> : On a CD of 12, this boss will raise its arm and slam against everyone in your party, dealing damage to everyone and freezing them in place.

<<Zero Degree Weather>> : The boss radiates negative weather that forces the players to have -2 in their evasion, this cannot be avoided with Survival.

-----

 

Rewards:

2 SP - 2500 Col - Zero Degree Icicle

 

Zero Degree Icicle (T2 Perfect Weapon of Choice) - Freeze / Accuracy / Accuracy - After one thread of use, the weapon will melt and become unusable.

-----

 

Recommended Level: 30

The snow drifted down around Shield as he waited on the bench in the main square of Snowfrost. He sat with his elbows on his knees and his fingers laced in front of his face, mist drifting through the air in front of him every time he exhaled. It had been a long time since he had taken on a quest with any guildies aside from Beat. Despite the love of family, things had been tense among the ascendants with the passing of their comrade. Shield hoped that hopping into proper quests again might help set things off on the right track. So far though, only Hikoru had replied to his message.

"Better than nobody, eh, Lilith?" he murdered to his bush viper familiar. The reptiles nose poked out of the cuff of his sleeve, extended a tasting tongue, and then retreated from the cold to refresh its body heat against the skin of Shield's arm. "Why do I keep choosing cold blooded familiars?"

Had he not gained the Survival skill, he would have probably been miserable in the cold as well, but despite the chill wind, Shield felt little more than a cool breath against his face. He did not even bother with the scarf he had worn the last time he had hunted the Snow Beast with Teion. He stood up and glanced around the square. Knowing Hikoru, he could easily already be present, but he trusted that the young Paladin would make himself known when he was ready. Absentimidedly, he dragged down his menu and opened the information he had recorded.

This one's a heavy hitter. My passive defense can't handle all of it, so I'll need to keep my guard up.

He swapped around his active mods, turning on Vengeful Riposte, but foregoing the other Parry mod. His damage relied on being hit, and a stunned opponent couldn't run into his thorns, or his blade. With a nod of certainty, he closed his menu once again.

@Hikoru

[Hikoru 0]

Hikoru received a message from the oldest member in his guild, then Sentinel Shield. He asked him to accompany him onto a quest he had done once before. He looked over the quest and knew it would be a tough fight, but he could do it. He didn't have any buffs on him, and he gave a small sigh as he approached the teleporter on the 21st floor. He decided to take yet another break from his daily grind to help him out, since he knew that it would be good bonding time, as things were rough the last time they had met. The Blue-cloaked player approached and stood on the teleporter, a few players eyeing him and backing away, or looking the other way as his cloaked head craned toward them. The look of fear and uneasiness was normal to him, as it did with the information about him. He gave a sigh as Rolland appeared at his side.

"Teleport, Floor 4." He said quietly. Soon he and Rolland appeared onto the fourth floor, where the blistering winds and the cold hit him like a brick wall. He had gotten so accustomed to the damp and musty air of floor 21, that the fresh air knocked the wind out of him for a moment. He held his ground and stood for a few moments, but his head spun rapidly. After a few moments, the feeling disappeared and he could breathe easily. He looked at Rolland who was visibly shaking, and he shook his head. "Better get used to it. We have to travel into the snow." He said. Rolland shook his head, wrapping his vine arms underneath Hikoru's armpits and tucking in the rest of his body, becoming a pumpkin-shaped backpack. He shook his head and made his way up onto the top of a building. He looked around and saw Shield sit down and finger the air, indicating he was going through his menu. He slid effortlessly down the building and next to the Sentinel. "Shield, good to see you. I trust you are doing well." He said in a polite mannerism over his shoulder, not trying to scare him in any way. Rolland squirmed his arms for comfort, and Hikoru did his best to ignore the sensation.

[Shield 0]

Shield turned his shaggy head at the arrival of his fellow Ascendant. After the time everyone had been having since the boss meeting, it was a relief to see family again. He turned himself to fully face Hikoru, extending a hand to clasp and his other arm to embrace the player around the back. Shield was rarely the expressive type, but then again, it had not been so terribly long ago that they had lost one of their own.

"I think we're all having a rough time of it these days," he said with a sigh. "I just spent the last week checking in on Teion in the aftermath of it all. While it was good for both of us I'm sure, it was an emotional roller coaster." He stepped back and allowed his dark eyes to focus on Hikoru properly. The young paladin would understand. There didn't need to be anymore said on the matter just yet. "I trust you're still familiar with the quest," he went on, taking another breath. "The only real concern is that special AoE attack, but even that has about an eight percent chance on any given attack, and its effects only last one round. Unless we get some bad luck, we should be in goo shape. Do you remember the way well enough?"

At this point, Shield knew the fourth floor relatively well. Hi favorite quest after all was on this floor, and he had completed that alone four times now, not to mention the dragon and the first ice creature. By all accounts, this fight was meant to be the bigger, meaner version of the first.

[Hikoru 0]

Hikoru smiled as the man turned around and stood to meet him, holding his hand out and putting a hand on his shoulder. He smiled and hood his hand, his hood falling back in the wind revealing his shaggy hair and his sideways goggles. He gave a small sigh and another smile as he said he met Teion to check on her. He gave a nod and looked down. Him and Teion had been in a relationship, so I knew that she was taking it hard. There was nothing that he could really do, so all he could do for now was wait until she either reached out or he got the chance to talk to her.

"I do hope she's well..." He muttered, then listened as he asked if he remembered the quest. It wasn't hard to forget, and he gave a nod as he asked if he remembered the location. "I have every quest on the floors up to 10 marked completely, plus the maps are one hundred percent completed... Here." He said, opening up his window and sending a copy of the completed map to Shield. "This should be useful to you. I planned to finish every single quest before starting to share... But this can make it easier." He said with a chuckle. He pulled up his cowl as a Vine grabbed his hand. he looked to see Rolland shivering, and he just rolled his eyes. "Overactor... Calm down you'll be fine. Just let go..." He said. Rolland gave a low gurgle then let go of his hand. He shook his head and started to make his way towards the area of the quest

[Shield 0]

Shield checked the map that Hikoru sent him, overlaying it with his own. It matched up cleanly, which meant there were no problems and the players would be on the same page.

"She's doing better than you might expect," Shield answered, turning to follow his guild mate to the encounter location. "She'd never been one to be particularly open, but she opened up some, and I think she's on the road to recovery."

As they came to the location on the map that had been marked for the encounter, Cardinal wasted no time in triggering the fight. A nearby cliff began to rumble, and from its snowy slope, there burst a great being of ice. It let out a deep, powerful roar and began lumbering its way towards the two players.

"Time to do that thing I do," he said, taking a deep breath. "Hey, snowball!" he bellowed. "It's been while since I've seen something look quite as hideous as you, but -"

His <Focused Howl> had already done the trick. The creature's eyes snapped onto him as soon as he began to shout, and with a raise of its mighty arm, he slammed the appendage down, sending e through Shield's veins. Both he and Hikoru had been caught in the area of the powerful attack.

"It can't be," he grunted under breath. "First hit and he gets in his special. That lucky sunuva..." 

 

Quote

Action: Focused Howl [-8 EP, +6 Hate]

ID# 91373 results: Craft: 6 - Recovery Proc! [+6 EN]

[H:6] Shield - HP: 1191/1225: EP: 116/118 | DMG: 1 | EVA: -3 | MIT: 166 | BH:61 | THN: 60 | REC: 6 | TNT: 1 [FROZEN!]

[H:0] Hikoru [FROZEN!]

<<Avalanche>> HP: 790/850 | MIT: 75 | DMG: 200 [9=250, 10=300] | Freeze: 2 (MOB: 8-10) | ACC: 3 | EVA: -2

ID# 91372 results: Attack Vs. Shield - CD:12 - Grand Slam proc! - MOB:3[3+3+3=9 - Hit! - 200-166=34 dmg]

ID# 91374 results: Attack Vs. Hikoru - MOB: 5[5+3+0=8 - Hit! - 200-66=154 dmg]

Abilities:
You must roll for this boss on a separate roll.
<<Grand Slam>> : On a CD 12, dealing AoE damage and freezing targets.
<<Zero Degree Weather>> : -2 to EVA [No negation]

 

Edited November 30, 2017 by Shield

[Hikoru 0]

Hikoru watched as they soon arrived, but before he had a chance to enter stealth, Shield ran ahead and the boss spawned, immediately using it's ability to freeze him and his comrade in place. He grit his teeth as he felt Rolland shiver on his back. This was bad. He was unable to move and at the mercy of this creature, and worse he would have to waste his Vanish, or enter stealth after this as he hadn't made it into combat yet. He kept his dagger sheathed as he covered his face from the falling snow. After it had passed, he looked to Shield with a bit of an agitated look

"I get you like to tank, but next time let me get a minute to prepare to fight. I can't use my Unique skill unless i'm in stealth, and it takes a minute for the mechanics to start." He said a bit bitter. They were already in a tough spot thanks to the Tank's blindness to what his DPS needed. "I hope this will serve as a lesson to watch for your DPS and to see if they are set for battles, instead of blindly charging in like an child to a toy store... Anyways what's past is past, but I need to enter stealth after this, so you'll have to take a few hits... I hope you can manage that." He said as he pulled his hood up as the Freeze enchantment wore off.

Spoiler

[H:6] @Shield - HP: 1191/1225: EP: 116/118 | DMG: 1 | EVA: -3 | MIT: 166 | BH:61 | THN: 60 | REC: 6 | TNT: 1 [FROZEN!]

[H:0] Hikoru  HP: 1289/1410: EP: 138/138 | DMG: 16 | EVA: 1 | MIT: 79 | BH: 28 | ACC: 3 | | [FROZEN!]

<<Avalanche>> HP: 790/850 | MIT: 75 | DMG: 200 [9=250, 10=300] | Freeze: 2 (MOB: 8-10) | ACC: 3 | EVA: -2

Abilities:
You must roll for this boss on a separate roll.
<<Grand Slam>> : On a CD 12, dealing AoE damage and freezing targets.
<<Zero Degree Weather>> : -2 to EVA [No negation]

 

[Shield 0]

Shield knocked the ice from his legs and lowered himself behind his Manticore Mask, his sword out and at the ready. He had been hasty, but he would need to have words with Hikoru later about how he chose to handle the situation. In the mean time, there was a large, angry ice beast who did not take kindly to his attack rebounding on him.

If he didn't like that, he's in for a rude awakening.

The Avalanche, triumphant after having frozen his adversaries, wound up for another attack. With a great glacial creaking of ice, it struck out at Shield, who drove his blade into the oncoming fist as his shield took the brunt of the attack. Cracks spider-webbed out from the tip of his blade, and with a roar of anger and confusion, even more of the boss' health fell away. It may have gotten the drop on the two players, but it was already definitely the worse for wear.

"Do what you need to do," Shield called back to Hikoru as both his health and energy gauges returned to full, save the sliver of damage that had managed to land on him. "I'm good for as long as you need."

Quote

Passive: [+1 EN] Battle Healing: [+61 HP] ID# 91632 results: Craft: 12 [Recovery Proc! +6 EN]

Action: Parry [-5 EN]

[H:6] Shield - HP: 1224/1225: EP: 118/118 | DMG: 1 | EVA: -3 | MIT: 166 | BH:61 | THN: 60 | REC: 6 | TNT: 1 [FROZEN!]

[H:0] @Hikoru - HP: 1289/1410: EP: 138/138 | DMG: 16 | EVA: 1 | MIT: 79 | BH: 28 | ACC: 3 | | [FROZEN!]

<<Avalanche>> HP: 705/850 | MIT: 75 | DMG: 200 [9=250, 10=300] | Freeze: 2 (8-10) | ACC: 3 | EVA: -2 - ID# 91633 results: Craft: 5 [No Grand Slam] MOB: 4 [4+3+3=10 - Hit! [200/2-166=1 dmg, THN: 60 dmg, Riposte: 100-75=25 dmg]

 

Edited December 4, 2017 by Shield

[Hikoru 0]

Hikoru watched as Shield dodged the oncoming attack well, in fact dealing a bit of damage back to the creature itself. He raised an eyebrow, then gave a sly smile as he pulled his hood up and unsheathed his dagger. Rolland realized what was happening and hid beneath his cloak, as he knew that his orange body would give away his location. Hikoru gave a nod, and he knew he would reward him for realizing that, and he gave a small chuckle as he initiated the stealth. He felt himself start to envelop within the shadows, and he knew he would get a solid attack off this one. He gave a breath as he prepared, and said one last thing.

"I have to say, if there were two Tank Paladin positions, I would probably have you take the second slot... I'm impressed." He said, then disappeared into the shadows. There wasn't much around for good position to attack from, but a few thrown ice boulders surrounded them, and he was able to hide behind one of them. It was far too bright to be cloaked by darkness, but he was able to get out of the way. He awaited his next chance to attack with baited breath, as he wanted to test his strength against this foe once more

ID: 91689 BD: 19+5=24 Stealth Rating

Spoiler

[H:6] Shield - HP: 1224/1225: EP: 118/118 | DMG: 1 | EVA: -3 | MIT: 166 | BH:61 | THN: 60 | REC: 6 | TNT: 1

[H:0] Hikoru - HP: 1317/1410: EP: 138/138 | DMG: 16 | EVA: 1 | MIT: 79 | BH: 28 | ACC: 3 | [+28 HP]

<<Avalanche>> HP: 705/850 | MIT: 75 | DMG: 200 [9=250, 10=300] | Freeze: 2 (8-10) | ACC: 3 | EVA: -2 

 

[Shield 0]

Quote

Passive: [+1 EN] Battle Healing: [+61 HP] ID# 91697 results: Craft: 10 [Recovery Proc! +6 EN]

Action: Parry [-5 EN]

[H:6] Shield - HP: 1224/1225: EP: 118/118 | DMG: 1 | EVA: -3 | MIT: 166 | BH:61 | THN: 60 | REC: 6 | TNT: 1

[H:0] Hikoru - HP: 1317/1410: EP: 138/138 | DMG: 16 | EVA: 1 | MIT: 79 | BH: 28 | ACC: 3

<<Avalanche>> HP: 655/850 | MIT: 75 | DMG: 200 [9=250, 10=300] | Freeze: 2 (8-10) | ACC: 3 | EVA: -2 -  ID# 91698 results: Craft: 11 [No Grand Slam] MOB: 9 [9+3+3=15 - Hit! - Parry Proc - 250/2-166= 1 dmg - Freeze Proc - Riposte: 125-75= 50 dmg

"Jonathan and I take different approaches to tanking," Shield called out. "I am only as strong as my opponents. If they don't hit, I don't really have much of a purpose except to pump energy into the DPS-ers."

Even as he spoke of strength, the boss' frustrations seemed to get the better of it, and it hunkered low gathering its weight towards its back foot before rocketing forward with the full force of its body. Shield sidestepped the strike, holding out his blade so that it ran the length of the attacking forearm. The counterattack left an angry red gash in the limb, but unfortunately, Shield had not been able to rely on his thorns damage to dovetail the extra damage from his riposte.

Shield glanced down at his sword hand only to notice that what had initially just looked like ice shards shaved from the Avalanche's arm were actually crystals growing up his own. He attempted to scrape them off with the edge of his shield, but even as he did so, he knew it was a fruitless effort. The crystals grew and overtook his body, stopping just short of his chin.

"I"m not hurt!" he called out to the invisible Hikoru. "This is going to happen during this fight. Keep on the attack!"

Edited December 4, 2017 by Shield

[Hikoru 0]

Hikoru waited and watched as the creature attacked Shield and he parried away the attack, and he quickly took care, but was frozen by the creature stiff. He said he was okay and mentally thanked the tank, jumping up top of the boulder, leaping into the air and charging for the creature, his attack landing on the large creature and his Unique Sword Art activated, poofing in and out of the area and dealing a large chunk of damage. He gave a small smile and took a breath as it cost a bit of energy, landing next to the frozen tank

"Alright Frosty the Snow-Tank" He said playfully. "Next turn I'll use Vanish and hit from stealth again. It won't be as strong but it should bring him down to the red for you to finish him off." He said. "So about two more parries for you, if it's possible. You good?" He asked, making sure that he was okay. He wanted to make sure he would be up for the task. He had barely a scratch on him which was good, and he gave a sigh as he hoped that his plan would be set and they would finish this creature off quickly.

ID: 91699 BD: 7+5=12 Hit!

Hikoru used Swarm: 22x14= 308x 1.15 = 354 - 75= 279 Damage to Avalanche

Spoiler

[H:6] Shield - HP: 1224/1225: EP: 118/118 | DMG: 1 | EVA: -3 | MIT: 166 | BH:61 | THN: 60 | REC: 6 | TNT: 1

[H:0] Hikoru - HP: 1317/1410: EP: 122/138 | DMG: 16 | EVA: 1 | MIT: 79 | BH: 28 | ACC: 3

<<Avalanche>> HP: 376/850 | MIT: 75 | DMG: 200 [9=250, 10=300] | Freeze: 2 (8-10) | ACC: 3 | EVA: -2 [-279 Damage]

 

[Shield 0]

Quote

 

Passive: [+1 EN] Battle Healing: [+61 HP]

[H:6] Shield - HP: 1190/1225: EP: 118/118 | DMG: 1 | EVA: -3 | MIT: 166 | BH:61 | THN: 60 | REC: 6 | TNT: 1

[H:0] Hikoru - HP: 1096/1410: EP: 122/138 | DMG: 16 | EVA: 1 | MIT: 79 | BH: 28 | ACC: 3

<<Avalanche>> HP: 316/850 | MIT: 75 | DMG: 200 [9=250, 10=300] | Freeze: 2 (8-10) | ACC: 3 | EVA: -2

ID# 91701 results: Craft: 12 [Grand Slam Proc!] MOB: 8 [8+3+3=14 - Hit! - 200-166=34 dmg - THN: 60 dmg]

ID# 91702 results: MOB: 10 [Auto Hit! - 300-79=221 dmg]

 

Hikoru emerged from stealth and struck a substantial blow, bringing the boss well below his yellow threshold and likely not far from the red. Unfortunately, that seemed to be the straw that broke its back. With a roar, it raised its fist, slamming it into the ground just beside Shield. Icy stalagmites erupted from the ground, sending lances of ice through both players' bodies and pinning them in place.

Shield grunted as he was impaled, unable to feel pain due to the ways of SAO, but still able to feel the uncomfortable sensation of something inside of his abdomen and chest. He was just glad that he had the Survival skill that he felt less of the cold, because that thought sounded unbearable to him.

"I mean," he grunted, trying to fight he way free. "Worst case scenario, he does that a half dozen more times and my thorns finish him off." He had never been an easy one to read, but the annoyance in Shield's voice was beginning to show through.

Edited December 4, 2017 by Shield

[Hikoru 0]

Hikoru grit his teeth as he took a large attack from the creature. He was unable to move out of the way, due to the deep snow around him. He looked at Shield who said his thorns would finish off the creature eventually, and he nodded a bit angrily.

"It would be dead if you hadn't charged in like a fool." He prodded a bit further. "You called me for backup and didn't give me a chance to tell you anything about it from my experience... Albeit, this thing is much angrier than when I had fought it... Do you look like its ex girlfriend of some sorts? That could cause a problem... " he laughed as his Battle Healing came into affect, healing a bit of the damage dealt to him. This fight was almost over, and he needed to add a bit of humour between the roars and the slams from the giant creature in front of him. He ignored it and awaited his chance to activate vanish, as his legs had just started to thaw from the frozen affect of the creatures attacks

Spoiler

[H:6] Shield - HP: 1190/1225: EP: 118/118 | DMG: 1 | EVA: -3 | MIT: 166 | BH:61 | THN: 60 | REC: 6 | TNT: 1

[H:0] Hikoru - HP: 1124/1410: EP: 123/138 | DMG: 16 | EVA: 1 | MIT: 79 | BH: 28 | ACC: 3

<<Avalanche>> HP: 316/850 | MIT: 75 | DMG: 200 [9=250, 10=300] | Freeze: 2 (8-10) | ACC: 3 | EVA: -2

 

[Shield 0]

Quote

Passive: [+1 EN] Battle Healing: [+61 HP]

[H:6] Shield - HP: 1191/1225: EP: 118/118 | DMG: 1 | EVA: -3 | MIT: 166 | BH:61 | THN: 60 | REC: 6 | TNT: 1

[H:0] Hikoru - HP: 1124/1410: EP: 123/138 | DMG: 16 | EVA: 1 | MIT: 79 | BH: 28 | ACC: 3

<<Avalanche>> HP: 256/850 | MIT: 75 | DMG: 200 [9=250, 10=300] | Freeze: 2 (8-10) | ACC: 3 | EVA: -2

ID# 92049 results: Craft: 3 [No Recovery] MOB: 4 [4+3+3=10 - Hit! - 200-166=34 dmg - THN: 60 dmg]

The ice from the prior attack that bound Shield was still in the process of thawing when another fist attack rocketed into his chest. In a burst of ice shards, the boss unearthed him, though it did more damage to both the ice and the boss than the actual player. Shield shook off the attack and crouched down into a lower stance, ducking behind his Manticore Mask. They were nearly at the end now. Even as he watched, the aftermath of his defensive damage trickled color away from the boss' health gauge until it dipped low enough to turn a bright, cherry red.

With a nod of satisfaction, he held out his sword, preparing to parry the next strike. If Hikoru could manage to land his hit, that would be all they would need to end this fight quickly. He could hear the criticism aimed in his direction, but for the moment, he left the accusations unanswered. He knew which parts of this had been his responsibility, but he also knew the actual level of danger, and either way, he knew how helpful the comments were in the present moment. His focus needed to remain ahead of him. If Hikoru was trying to get a reaction out of him, Shield wasn't going to capitulate.

Edited December 10, 2017 by Shield

[Hikoru 0]

Hikoru awaited a shot back at him, but received none. He raised an eyebrow and gave a small sigh. He didnt seem to have fun as much as he liked to at times. They had easily finished off this creature, with a few hiccups on the way. But he knew that now he could easily finish off the creature. He activated his Vanish ability and gave a small sigh. 

"Very well, I see you have no humour at the moment. I'll leave you to the creature for another moment." He said with a small sigh. He tried the break the ice with the tank, no pun intended, as they hadn't gotten off on the right foot in the beginning, he wanted to try to make it better, but apparently that wasn't possible. He gave a last sigh before the shadows enveloped him and he disappeared from sight. 

ID: 92051 LD: 8+5=13 Stealth Rating

Spoiler

[H:6] Shield - HP: 1225/1225: EP: 118/118 | DMG: 1 | EVA: -3 | MIT: 166 | BH:61 | THN: 60 | REC: 6 | TNT: 1

[H:0] Hikoru - HP: 1191/1410: EP: 124/138 | DMG: 16 | EVA: 1 | MIT: 79 | BH: 28 | ACC: 3

<<Avalanche>> HP: 256/850 | MIT: 75 | DMG: 200 [9=250, 10=300] | Freeze: 2 (8-10) | ACC: 3 | EVA: -2

 

Edited December 10, 2017 by Hikoru

[Shield 0]

Quote

Passive: [+1 EN] Battle Healing: [+61 HP] ID# 92053 results: Craft: 4 [No Recovery]

Action: Parry [-5 EN]

[H:6] Shield - HP: 1224/1225: EP: 113/118 | DMG: 1 | EVA: -3 | MIT: 166 | BH:61 | THN: 60 | REC: 6 | TNT: 1

[H:0] Hikoru - HP: 1191/1410: EP: 124/138 | DMG: 16 | EVA: 1 | MIT: 79 | BH: 28 | ACC: 3

<<Avalanche>> HP: 171/850 | MIT: 75 | DMG: 200 [9=250, 10=300] | Freeze: 2 (8-10) | ACC: 3 | EVA: -2

ID# 92054 results: Craft: 5 [No Grand Slam] MOB: 8 [9+3+3=15 - Hit! - Parry Proc - 200/2-166= 1 dmg - Freeze Proc - Riposte: 100-75= 25 dmg - THN: 60 dmg]

As the next strike came in, Shield turned his blade to the side, bracing its edge against his shield. The Avalanche struck with its fist, catching the blade between its knuckles. The edge bit in, diverting the direction of the blow like a rudder and taking a chunk clean out of the boss' fist. Red, angry pixels spilled forth from the edges of the gaping wound, and even as the remaining force of the attack grazed off of his shield, even that point of contact was battered and crosshatched with glowing red scratches from Shield's thorns.

"You're up!" he belted out with a focused determination to the now empty air beside him. "Get this one in, and even if he freezes us again, he should be history."

There was still a slim chance of a critical hit or a critical miss, in either which case, if they were frozen, Shield would find it more or less impossible to finish the job. Still, with each passing round, there was less and less health remaining to steal from the enemy. All they needed was to keep up that momentum. 

Doesn't matter if we're frozen, as long as that keeps up!

Even as he spoke, he felt an odd weight to his sword, glancing over just in time to see ice crystallizing on the blade again, slowly spreading to overtake his arm and chest, and eventually his whole body up to his neck.

Well, so much for getting in another parry. Up to you now, Hik.

Edited December 10, 2017 by Shield

[Hikoru 0]

Hikoru waited a moment until Shield had the full attention of the giant creature, and he took that moment to spring into action, using the games mechanics to jump onto a giant boulder, the shadows reaching out like tendrils beneath his cloak as he jumped, giving him an extra boost into the air, doing a full double backflip before stabbing the giant creature's heart from its back, sliding down and leaving a gash as the rest of the sword art activated, leaving the large creature into pixels. He gave a small sigh as the shadows returned beneath his cloak, and he raised an eyebrow. That was definitely a new thing, something he hadn't seen before in his time of using Shadowed Path. He made a mental note to go and test it later on by himself, but for now he came over to Shield through the deep snow.

"There, that's a easy job done. Only a few swipes and some thorns and he was done." He said with a large chuckle. "But, I am curious as to why it was so enraged, especially since the only difference was my partner..." he said, rubbing his chin. "Maybe it's because of your MIT and tanking abilities? If so, it knew it needed to deal more damage... Perhaps these creatures are smarter than anticipated..." He said as he opened up his HUD and brought out a notepad, scribbling some notes before returning. "Could be interesting info to give out..." He said, now only talking to himself and essentially forgetting Shield was there as he studied the terrain for any abnormal things that could have affected the boss.

ID: 92055 BD: 2+3=5 (Disregarded due to Sneak Attack)

Hikoru used Swarm: 14x17=238 x 1.15 = 274 Damage - 75 = 199 Damage

Spoiler

[H:6] Shield - HP: 1224/1225: EP: 113/118 | DMG: 1 | EVA: -3 | MIT: 166 | BH:61 | THN: 60 | REC: 6 | TNT: 1

[H:0] Hikoru - HP: 1191/1410: EP: 109/138 | DMG: 16 | EVA: 1 | MIT: 79 | BH: 28 | ACC: 3

<<Avalanche>> HP: 0/850 | MIT: 75 | DMG: 200 [9=250, 10=300] | Freeze: 2 (8-10) | ACC: 3 | EVA: -2

 

[Shield 0]

Quote

Swapping gear:
- Spirit Plate
- Spirit Spines
+ Finder's Keeper
+ Seeking Aura

Shield shrugged, navigating through his menus to replace his bulky armor with the thin, vanity gear that he preferred while not in battle in addition to his small hoop earrings that were his aids while searching for anything noteworthy.

"It's hard to say," Shield replied, looking over to the spot where the creature had last stood. "There seem to be odd moments where otherwise unintelligent mobs and bosses act as if there's more to their programming than would typically be. I doubt it's related, but the weaker iteration of this boss was actually quite a difficult fight for me. I was in no real danger," he said, clarifying as he recalled the long slog of an unproductive battle. "However, when a monster has no real accuracy bonus to speak of, it makes a defensive fight very difficult to fight successfully."

He turned up the collar of his canvas tunic against the wind, more out of muscle memory than anything else. With the Survival skill, even biting cold wasn't so bad.

"Well, how would you feel about a short jaunt up to the twenty first floor?" Shield said to Hikoru, holding out a fist to tap in congratulations for a battle fought and won. "I've been adding skill points to try to make finding and opening chests more feasible. It's one of the best ways for me to find items to identify for the shop."

[Hikoru 0]

Hikoru mumbled a few words as Shield spoke in the background. He wasn't listening whole-heartedly, as he was busy doing notes and checking the surroundings. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, the only thing that seemed to be different was his partner and how his Unique skill reacted towards the creature with that last blow. There was a possibility that it's AI was meant to scan it's opponents and their stats and plan accordingly, but he couldn't know unless he tested the theory. Which would mean bringing two more people on two separate occasions, one Tank and the other a DPS. He didn't know if it would be plausible, but the other reason could be his Unique Skill, which would make both tests null and void. He gave a sigh as Shield said something about floor 21. He nodded.

"Yeah sure...." He said while still jotting notes. After he was done he turned around to see Shield in different attire. He raised his eyebrow. "Wait why did you get changed? That your casual wear?" He asked bluntly. He had no clue as to why the tank had decided to change, or honestly why they were going to the 21st floor, but he decided to tag along for the ride. He gave a sigh and adjusted his goggles onto his head again, as they had slipped a bit while they were fighting. He knew that the day was almost over and they would probably split to go their separate ways, but he did somewhat enjoy the thrill of actually getting a bit of a challenge from the beast they fought today.

[Shield 0]

"Like I said," Shield reiterated, somewhat used to having to repeat himself around the  mercurial Beat, "my best odds to find anything worth taking back to the shop is up there, and I've got my best chances of finding things in chests." He gave one earring a flick as he began back towards Snowfrost. "The change was so I could equip my loot gear instead of my defensive gear. Increase my odds of finding a chest."

The walk back was uneventful. Even if something had ambushed them along the way, the two of them were far over-leveled for the common mobs of the floor. Winter wolves and ice golems could wail away at them all day and not produce any significant results. It was a little bit of a comfort to know that they were at least safe from such things. Then again, mobs were not the primary danger to experience players in general. True, most of the crossed out names on the monument of life were due to boars, but those who survived their early leveling were more likely to meet their ends at the hands of red players.

"Tomoika," Shield shouted to the teleportation grid. The two of them were whisked away to the twenty first floor.

Quote

ID# 92111 results: Loot: 3+6=9 - No Materials [0 total]

 

Edited December 11, 2017 by Shield

[Hikoru 0]

Hikoru listened and gave a nod. Apparently they were looking for materials and a chest. Sadly for him, the most he had was a Lucky Medallion, as he had gotten rid of his rank of Searching with the new update for the few SP he could put into Battle Healing, which could help heal the few times he was hit. He gave a small sigh and took a look around, seeing what there was but his eyes weren't trained to see materials, as he hadn't gone hunting in what seemed like forever. He just gave a sigh and pulled up his hood a bit more, his dagger put into it's hidden sheath as he followed the burly man towards the town. The quest was complete and usually he would go and train, but they were going in the same direction, and it was rude of him to disappear without a trace, especially to a guild mate of his. He gave another small sigh as they teloported to the 21st floor.

"Alright then... We're here..." He said simply, feeling a bit bored with nothing else to study around his mind was trying to find something to occupy itself. Sadly, it was failing and he didn't know what to do. "So...." He said, thinking of a topic. "What have you been doing since the last meeting?" He asked curiously.