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F07/SP <<Arabian Nights - The Second Night>>


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Oscar - Lvl 46
940 HP
92 Energy
2 Accuracy (+1 Weapon +1 Precision)
3 Evasion
16 Base Damage - (1 Base +7 Skill +1 Ferocity +6 Familiar +1 Athletics)
61 Mitigation 

Items
Chaos Eater ............ // Bleed, Bleed, ACC
Librarium Overcoat ................. // +3 EVA
Plated Azure Tights ............... // +36 MIT, +3 Recovery

Leeroy & Jenkins - Familiar ............. // +3*Tier DMG


Battle Ready Inventory
Teleportation Crystal .............. // 
3 Healing Potions   ............ // +30 HP Recovery
3 Healing Potion of Healing Healingness ............ // T2 HP Recovery
Empty Inventory Slot ............. // 
Empty inventory slot ............ //
Empty inventory slot ............ //

Buffs
Rested ........................... // -1 energy cost for the first two expenditures of each combat.
Filling .......................... // Increase the effectiveness of a single food item consumed in a thread by +1 T1 slot.
Relaxed .......................... // Increases out of combat HP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts.

Skills
2HBA                      | Rank 5: +8 Damage
Light Armor                | Rank 5: +12 Damage Mitigation
Concentration                   | +1 to your BD (3 turn cooldown)
Survival                   | Heal 15*Tier HP when out of battle
Parry                        | 2-turn CD, 5 EN Half damage of next attack and remove Stun/Paralysis effects

Skill Mods
Ferocity                   | Increases Base Damage by 1
Athletics                  | Increases Base Damage by 1, Max HP by 10*tier
Precision                 | Increases Accuracy by 1
Justified Riposte      | Successful Parries Stun Opponent

Oscar awoke one morning to a PM from Ali. He vaguely remembered the quest in which he rescued the NPC's brother from some bandits that had captured the poor fellow. Apparently, the man wished to meet on Floor Seven this time, at the Drunken Crane. Oscar wasn't all too familiar with this particular establishment, but then again, he didn't spend a huge amount of time in Deepedge. Nevertheless, given the man's close location to his home, it was worth checking out. At the very least, this would lead into a quest which would result in some much-needed SP. He was right on the cusp of Tier 3, so close that he could almost taste it. Any sort of boost at this point would be extremely welcome. He gathered his things and headed for the door, careful not to wake Cordelia. He left after giving her the softest of kisses on the forehead and a note as to where he would be today. He honestly hoped to have this wrapped up before she even woke.

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It didn't take Oscar long to arrive in Deepedge. As much as he would have loved to bring Cordelia along on this adventure, he felt like it would wind up being a waste of time for her. Something told him that the previous Arabian Nights quest had to be cleared before one could undertake this one. He didn't know if she had it cleared, but somehow he doubted it. Otherwise he'd hear her complaining more about how garbage Katana cleave damage was. So, Oscar entered the Drunken Crane and scanned the area. Ali saw him enter and threw up his hand, beckoning the tall blonde man over. Oscar strode over to the man and sat down opposite him, admittedly eager to hear what the man had for him. For a long moment, there was silence between the two of them. It was as if Ali was hesitant to even mention this to Oscar. Finally, the man cleared his throat and looked Oscar dead in the eye. There was a determination in his gaze that immediately caught Oscar's interest.

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"Have you heard," he began, his eyes darting back and forth as if checking to see if there were any people prying into their conversation. There wasn't. The tavern was mostly populated with NPCs milling about on their preset paths and tasks. Nevertheless, the man's actions gave off an air of suspense and tension. Once the NPC was seemingly satisfied that there were no eavesdroppers, he continued. "They say that those bandits have tamed a legendary being, some strange mixture of a lion with the wings of a dragon, and the tail or a scorpion. They captured it from the other side of Nimbus, high up the mountain." 

Oh boy.

So not only did Oscar need to tussle with those thieves again, but he also had to deal with a boss. Fun, he thought. Ali then asked Oscar to check it out, just as he thought the man would. Wouldn't be much of a quest otherwise. At that moment, the quest prompt popped up. Oscar tapped the green circle and headed out of the tavern. Nimbus was a fair distance away. Definitely well out of his usual route. But once you've trekked one mountain, you've pretty much trekked them all. 

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Oscar 940/940 HP | 70/92 EN | 16 DMG | 2 ACC | 3 EVA | 61 MIT | 24 BLD

Explode Catapult vs Senior Thief1 ID: 134456 BD10 Deal 209 DMG
Explode Catapult vs Senior Thief2 ID: 134457 BD4+2 Deal 176 DMG
Explode Catapult vs Senior Thief3 ID: 134458 BD6+2 Deal 176 DMG

Senior Thief1 0/186 HP | DMG 9 | MIT 43 | 2 ACC | 2 Savvy | 24 BLD
Senior Thief2 10/186 HP | DMG 9 | MIT 43 | 2 ACC | 2 Savvy | 24 BLD ID: 134459 BD5+2-3 Miss.
Senior Thief3 10/186 HP | DMG 9 | MIT 43 | 2 ACC | 2 Savvy | 24 BLD ID: 134560 BD4+2-3 Miss.

Oscar didn't make it very far out of town before the thieves were upon him. Apparently, these dudes were attracted to Ali like flies to [censored]. Oscar readied Chaos Eater and sized up his enemies. They covered their faces with masks, as to be expected. Couldn't have any witnesses to their larceny, after all. They were also all rather tall and lanky, which lent itself well to their weapon of choice. They weren't about hitting hard. Instead, their energies would be focused upon finding openings and stabbing at weak points. Oscar would make sure not to give them any. Quick as a flash, he rushed in. Chaos Eater glinted in the sunlight as he cleaved through the thieves, killing one of them outright. Its companions stepped forward, their daggers raised. But Oscar was already gone when they brought their weapons down to penetrate his flesh. He had somersaulted over their heads and landed nimbly behind them. If they had the capacity for learning (they didn't, being NPCs) and would survive this encounter (they wouldn't, Oscar was annoyed), this would be an important lesson for them.

Cardio isn't all it's cracked up to be.

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Oscar 940/940 HP | 58/92 EN | 16 DMG | 2 ACC | 3 EVA | 61 MIT | 24 BLD

Ordinal Cleave vs Senior Thief2 ID: 134461 BD9 Deal 88 DMG
Ordinal Cleave vs Senior Thief3 ID: 134462 BD7+2 Deal 80 DMG

Senior Thief2 0/186 HP | DMG 9 | MIT 43 | 2 ACC | 2 Savvy | 24 BLD
Senior Thief3 0/186 HP | DMG 9 | MIT 43 | 2 ACC | 2 Savvy | 24 BLD

In one fluid motion, Oscar turned on his heels and swung his axe in a wide arc. Chaos Eater's deadly edge didn't even catch as the weapon tore through both of the thieves at once. Oscar watched the shower of glass-like polygons and then slung his axe over his back once more. The mere fact that they had attacked him so quickly after Ali telling him of the creature stalking the mountains lent credibility to the man's story. Honestly, the whole conspiracy angle was well over Oscar's pay grade. Indeed, he didn't actually get paid to consider what the thieves were planning with such a beast. He was just here to kill the thing. Truthfully, he was here to locate it and bring back evidence of its existence. Oscar couldn't imagine that he was going to parley with the beast and convince it to come into town without slaughtering half of its inhabitants.

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Oscar 940/940 HP | 59/92 EN | 16 DMG | 2 ACC | 3 EVA | 61 MIT | 24 BLD
Searching for Manticore ID: 134463 LD16 Manticore found.

"Christ," Oscar swore between heavy gasps of air.

Bear in mind, dear reader, that Oscar wasn't the pinnacle of human physicality. But neither was he indolent. Oscar was a fit man, more active than most. The terrain was rough near Deepedge. But compared to the area nearer to Nimbus, it was like Deepedge was on a rolling plain. The slopes were steep, outright vertical in some places. He took a seat at the top of one such cliff and looked around. Mercifully, it seemed the terrain was evening out. But that perhaps wasn't a good thing. Oscar could just barely clock the beating of wings in the distance. He frantically looked around for something to mask his presence. This came in the form of a large boulder jutting out of the ground. He quickly made a dash for it, diving behind the rock just as a giant beast appeared from behind one of the distant peaks.

That must be the target, then.

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Oscar 940/940 HP | 60/92 EN | 16 DMG | 2 ACC | 3 EVA | 61 MIT | 24 BLD

The beast landed on the other side of the rock. Oscar waited for a moment and then tentatively peered around the side. The creature was just how Ali described it. Body of a lion, tail of the scorpion, wings of a dragon. Ali had neglected to mention that it possessed two heads, but then this wasn't Oscar's first encounter with a multi-headed creature. The beast - called Manticore by the game - had come here with its latest catch. The catch of the day seemed to be one of the thieves Oscar had fought earlier. It struggled to get away from the Manticore, but was helplessly pinned by one of the beast's mighty paws. The poor guy was screaming bloody murder. The Manticore let out a roar, reared back, and the screams went silent. All that Oscar could here was the sound of crunching bones and tearing flesh.

Apparently those thieves don't have as much control over this thing as they thought...

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Oscar[BRN] 888/940 HP | 80/92 EN | 16 DMG | 2 ACC | 3 EVA | 61 MIT | 24 BLD

Screw Dimension vs Manticore ID: 134464 BD10 184 DMG 
Bleed Activates

Manticore [BLD]439 (-184)(-24)/647 HP | 65 DMG | ACC 3 | 2 EVA | 50 MIT ID: 134465
BD6+3-3 Deal 28 DMG
Burn Activates Deal 24 DMG
MD4+3-3 Miss.

Oscar slowly crept out from behind the rock. There wasn't really any reason to fight this thing. His instructions were to observe and report after all. He definitely didn't feel like tangoing with such a beast right now. He was just about to creep away when the wind shifted. The Manticore caught his scent. One of the heads turned towards him, its eyes narrowing to slits, even as the other head fed. 

"Luzrov! Fresh meat!" The first head said, its voice low and guttural.

The other head ceased its mastication and then both heads were focused directly on Oscar. It slowly began to pad over to him. Oscar took a fleeting look at the cliffside. Maybe he wouldn't die if he made a leap of faith? Stupid. Even if he didn't die, there was no way he was going to outmaneuver a flying beast in these mountains. Which left him with only one option...

"Surrender and we promise to start with your he-" The second head - Luzrov - had begun to speak but was quickly cut off by a sudden attack from Oscar. Chaos Eater carved a long, jagged scar over Luzrov's snout. Screw Dimension had found its mark. The Manticore snarled and the first head managed to dig its fangs into Oscar's shoulder. It felt as if the wound were on fire. To punctuate this, a icon for a Burn debuff appeared on his status bar. Oscar managed to wrest himself free of the Manticore's jaws and tried his best to ignore the searing pain in his right shoulder.

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Oscar[BRN] 845/940 (-19) (-24)HP | 68/92 EN | 16 DMG | 2 ACC | 3 EVA | 61 MIT | 24 BLD

Screw Dimension vs Manticore ID: 134466 BD8+2-3 184 DMG 
Bleed Refreshes 

Manticore [BLD]257 (-158)(-24)/647 HP | 65 DMG | ACC 3 | 2 EVA | 50 MIT ID: 134467
BD10 Fire Breath Activates Deal 40 DMG 
Burn Refreshes Deal 24 DMG
MD9 Fire Breath Activates Deal 40 DMG

If there was one saving grace it was that Oscar had also left a mark on the Manticore. Though, it was small comfort given the actual searing pain in his shoulder. But it wasn't enough to keep him from giving the Manticore the business. The business, of course, being another Screw Dimension. He slammed the Manticore hard, taking a heavy chunk out of its health bar. It even refreshed Bleed, which was nice. But then the Manticore started spewing fire at him. Fire. 

I don't know what's more insulting. The fact this thing is breathing fire on me right now or the fact that it doesn't hurt.

Oscar was currently lit up like a bonfire and he felt nothing. And no, not like the "oh I'm in so much shock, I can't feel anything and am actually dying" sort of way. It was the "these two mouths breathing fire at me do less damage than them just biting me" sort of way.

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Oscar[BRN] 821/940 (-24 BRN)HP | 56/92 EN | 16 DMG | 2 ACC | 3 EVA | 61 MIT | 24 BLD

Screw Dimension vs Manticore ID: 134480 BD10 Deal 184 DMG 
Bleed Refreshes 

Manticore [BLD]49 (-184)(-24)/647 HP | 65 DMG | ACC 3 | 2 EVA | 50 MIT ID: 134481
BD1 Miss

MD4+3-3 Miss

The flames finally abated and Oscar was still standing. And the Manticore was absolutely livid. They heads started arguing amongst themselves about "why is the meat not screaming" and "is he a wizard." Which he was. He was a wizard. A wizard with an axe that was about 20 levels higher than whatever the hell this boss was supposed to be threatening against. Both heads of the Manticore were so enraptured by their own argument that they didn't even notice that Oscar had just stuck Chaos Eater where the sun don't shine and was flailing it about like a baby rattle. They didn't even make any effort to attack. Oscar merely took a step back, shaking his head. He couldn't really believe what he was seeing.

Who made this thing? Why is this eating up my entire morning? I left my girlfriend home alone for this?

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Oscar 821/940 HP | 44/92 EN | 16 DMG | 2 ACC | 3 EVA | 61 MIT | 24 BLD

Screw Dimension vs Manticore ID: 134482 BD6+3-2 Deal 158 DMG

Manticore [BLD]0/647 HP | 65 DMG | ACC 3 | 2 EVA | 50 MIT

Having had his fill of the constant bickering between the two heads of the Manticore, Oscar decided that he was going to put an end to this nonsense. And he did so in the most brutally efficient way he could think off. With one fluid motion, he removed both of the heads from the Manticore's body. Much to his surprise, the two heads still didn't seem to notice. They continued arguing until their body shattered into a million pieces and took both heads with it. An item was placed into Oscar's inventory. But he didn't really care. He cared more about the fact that the heads kept arguing after they were decapitated than he did about some weird-ass item he probably wasn't going to even use anyway. Around this time a couple of the thieves had caught up to him, apparently having been struggling to run the Manticore down. Oscar groaned loudly and started walking towards them.

MANTICORE MASK ACQUIRED

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Oscar 821/940 HP | 44/92 EN | 16 DMG | 2 ACC | 3 EVA | 61 MIT | 24 BLD

Explode Catapult vs Senior Thief4 ID: 134838 BD10 Deal 209 DMG
Explode Catapult vs Senior Thief5 ID: 134849 BD10 Deal 209 DMG

Senior Thief4 0/186 HP | DMG 9 | MIT 43 | 2 ACC | 2 Savvy | 24 BLD
Senior Thief5 0/186 HP | DMG 9 | MIT 43 | 2 ACC | 2 Savvy | 24 BLD

"Oh, you're approaching us," one of the thieves asked. He seemed quite offended that his useless-ass monster had been eradicated and his buddy was currently lying on the ground half-eaten. But that did remind Oscar of a very familiar show he used to watch way back in the day. He couldn't believe that he had actually been set up for a one-liner like this. Honestly, it made this whole outing completely worth it.

"Yeah, I can't kick your ass from all the way over here," he replied. You know in those old cartoons where the guys would jump into the air and clap their heels together. That was basically Oscar right now. Just... in his head. And then he promptly chopped off their heads. Apparently the secret to getting reliably criticals was quoting Jojo's Bizarre Adventure.

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Now that all of that nonsense was over with, Oscar decided to make his way back to Deepedge. It didn't make much sense but it was just as steep heading back the way he came as it was to get here. Sure, there were a few places where it was downhill. But those places ended at the edge of a cliff. If he lost his footing, Oscar would go tumbling off the edge and smacking the ground. Then, his NerveGear would turn his real brain to Jell-o and he would have completely wasted his amazing one-liner. After all, what good is a situation that stepped right out of an anime if you can't tell anyone about it? So, he had to find a different path. One that allowed for a more gentle slope downward. Problem was, those gentle slopes were on the other side of steep-ass hills. Up and down, up and down. Oscar might have considered cardio to be overrated but he was certainly getting it in today.

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Seriously, who made this floor? How can it be uphill both ways? Oscar was cursing his rotten luck. He would have never taken the quest on if he had known he would be dealing with so. many. hills. Sure, he figured getting to the Manticore would be literally the worst thing he had done all week. Never would he have imagined that the entire quest would the literally the worst thing that he had done all week. The hills and cliffs were endless. Progress was slow. If he didn't almost blunder off of a whole-ass cliff, he was redirecting himself away from a steep decline that ended at a whole-ass cliff. He never imagined he would find himself lost on his actual home floor. How did he know so little about the terrain when he lived here. The answer was simple. Only assholes came over to this side of the floor. All the normal, pleasant people stayed close to Deepedge. At least around the city there wasn't much danger of falling to your death.

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And then the bad situation got worse. You see, Oscar wasn't happy that the terrain he had to traverse was so unforgiving. But he could understand it. It made sense. But then he chanced upon a path. A road, if you will. He could have found himself at any point on this path. Perhaps if he'd traveled just a few hundred meters downhill before chancing upon it, he wouldn't have completely ruined his day. For you see, found this path by walking into a crossroads. On that crossroads, there were two wooden signs in the shape of arrows. One arrow was labeled Deepedge and the other was labeled Nimbus. Oscar took a moment as realization dawned upon him. He blinked slowly and clicked his tongue. Finally, he let out a heavy sigh. There was a road connecting Deepedge to an area very close to his destination. This road made sense. The gradient that headed towards Deepedge was actually downhill while the one heading towards Nimbus grew ever steeper as it winded its way through the mountains.

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It looks like there was a road here all along, Oscar thought. His face contorted with rage. Now, I should mention here that the words Oscar screamed to the heavens are not suitable for pleasant company. They aren't suited for any company. They probably shouldn't even be said in the wilderness like Oscar was doing. He probably invoked some eldritch entity through the curses he was spewing. If the world gets devoured by an Old God sometime in the near future, the chain of events that led to that Old God's rise could probably be traced here, to the sheer vulgarity of Oscar's screaming. You see, he wouldn't have been happy with the fact he had to fight the floor's terrain all the way to and from Deepedge. But it made some sense in the grand scheme of things. But the fact he did so without realizing that there was a much easier path he could have taken placed the blame purely on his own stupidty. And that was absolutely infuriating.

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Eventually, Oscar managed to calm himself down. He didn't know how he managed it. Perhaps some part of him, some primal part devoted almost sole to self-preservation managed to pipe up and say something to the effect of "hey dude. You're literally cursing in tongues right now. Maybe don't invoke some cosmic, interplanar deity because you're pissed that you didn't know a road existed." Or maybe Oscar just tired himself out. Who knows. But eventually, he stopped cursing and started trudging back towards Deepedge, this time taking the road. Not only was the trip more pleasant, less dangerous, and less taxing on his body. But it was also quicker. What took Oscar an hour was accomplished in roughly fifteen minutes. Another pinprick that almost sent him over the edge again. But he bit it down and stepped through the gates into the city. He really wished there was some functional whiskey around here right about now.

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"Here you go," Oscar said with finality as he dropped the Manticore Mask on the table in front of Ali. "Pay up."

Ali's eyes widened with surprise. He opened his mouth to say something to which Oscar held up one finger and gave him a warning glance. "Skip. Pay up. I wanna go home now." Ali closed his mouth and thought for a moment before opening his mouth again. Clearly the NPC had to say his lines. Oscar sighed in defeat and zoned out while the man went on and on about "Oh lawd it was real all along. Sweet baby Jesus that thing is ugly. Here's your money." At least, that's what Oscar wished the dude said. Instead, he droned on and on about how the thieves were becoming more bold and this truly had to be a ferocious and dangerous creature. Truly. It was more dangerous to itself than others. Finally, Ali slid Oscar some Col and the blonde haired gentleman was able to go on his merry way.

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Oscar left the tavern and headed on back towards his house. He wanted nothing more than to crawl back into bed and sleep for the rest of the day. This quest was simply depressing. This entire outing was actually depressing. Oscar didn't know if he would ever be able to find the motivation to get another quest done after this massive disappointment. From the travel to the enemies to the boss to the unskippable speech at the end. His disappointment was immeasurable and his day was ruined. At least he could look forward to Cordelia being home. It was still rather early. There was still time for breakfast if he hurried along. But despite his best efforts, he just didn't have the energy left to "hurry along." He kept up the same slow, agonizing pace all the way home. This quest really chuffed his bits. 

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After what felt like an eternity, Oscar finally arrived at his house. He wasted no time heading inside. The familiar air of the house did much to calm his nerves. Making a beeline for the suite that he'd made for himself and Cordelia, he set his axe down next to her katana outside the door and stepped inside. Thankfully, she was still asleep. He silently slipped into the kitchen and busied himself with making something to eat as quietly as humanly possible. Finally, once breakfast was done - simple eggs, toast, and oatmeal - he set two placements on the table and gently nudged Cordelia awake. The act of cooking helped rid himself of all of the pent up tension. Breakfast would be his "reset button" for the day. There was still a lot of time left and he didn't want to ruin it all over one bad experience. Unfortunately, the Old God he had awoken today would see to it that, eventually, the world would be plunged into 1000 years of darkness.

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