Sotarou

Name: Sokushi
Your Profession: Blacksmith
Your Rank: 1
Roll ID: 102253
Roll Result: 12 - Perfect
Item Type: Weapon - Katana
Tier: 1
Quality: Perfect
Enhancements: Accuracy 2, Damage 1
Description: 
This blade is made of a lightweight material that seems to glide through the air with grace and serenity. But the teeth-like jaggedness of the blade betrays its grace for a ferocity that can only come from a powerful bite.

Post Link: The Platinum Dragon

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Name: Sotarou
Your Profession: Blacksmith
Your Rank: 
Roll ID: 
Roll Result: 
Item Type: 
Tier: 
Quality: 
Enhancements: 
Description: 
Post Link: 

He wasn't going to be beaten by some lousy crafting... raising his hammer high... he brought it down hard enough to create a ring of sound from the material!

ID: 102253
Result: Perfect - 3 Slot Katana

The Material glowed white hot! No pixellating! It was happening! He was gonna finally have his blade! And... it kept glowing brighter... and brighter... and BRIGHTER... until the light was so blinding, he had to cover his eyes! Once the light had dimmed, Sotarou looked up... to finally see the fruits of his labor... it was a Katana! A very VERY powerful looking Katana... it was sharper than even some of his father's blades in the workshop! This could do some nasty damage... not to mention, when testing the weight of it, he felt it was a little lighter, making it less unwieldy and helping to increase its accuracy, if only a little. A sharp and powerful blade, it was the finest craft he'd done ever!

Sokushi - Katana
2 Slots - Accuracy
1 Slot - Damage

A new day, a newly brightened forge! He still had 12 pieces of material he could use for crafting... so he was gonna keep at it! Another attempt... Katana, here we come!

ID: 102252
Result: 8 - Salvage (Saved Material)

And once again... nothing. It was starting to get a little frustrating... he wasn't THAT out of practice... was he...?

Sotarou nodded to Macradon. It was kind of a surreal feeling... he was getting helped out by a member of the KoB! A year later, and the KoB was still helping him out! Even if indirectly... either way, Sotarou was glad for the help! If he was gonna get stronger quickly, this was the way to do it. Pulling up his map, he noted where the Warg and other Wolves were to be. "Alright. Seems simple enough. Just need to avoid getting poisoned for the most part. The wolves should be easy clean up, but... I don't know much about this Warg... just to be safe, we should try to keep him separated from the other Wolves. It'll probably do us more harm than good if they're all together." He really was walking in blind going into this... it was gonna be interesting, to say the least...

As the duo were walking towards the spot where the Warg was to be, Sotarou had just one thing on his mind at the moment... "Hey... Macradon... how did you join the KoB, if you don't mind me asking?" An innocent enough question... but an answer might at least help him understand the mentality behind the Guild that avenged his fallen friend... even if indirectly.

Stats

With Macradon in tow, Sotarou entered the town and headed towards the nearest pub in [URBUS]. Hearing about where the NPC is, Sotarou made his way over to the corner where there was a bearded fellow with a hat. He gives Sotarou and Macradon a pleading look. If he recognizes Macradon, he doesn't give it away.

"You come for the bill I posted? I am Gatsly. I work as a mercchant, making just enough to support me and my family, but lately all of my supply caravans have been destroyed or chased away by a ferocious beast." He looks down at the floor, "I don't have much, but if you could slay the beast, I would pay you."

A dialogue box opens up:

ACCEPT QUEST?
YES          NO

Sotarou obviously pressed yes, then pressed another button to mark it as the active quest. Once, done, Gatsly points to Sotarou's map and marks on it where the beast is located. He mentions that it's a mutated, venomous wolf, deadlier than any other in the forest. He hands a vial of green liquid to each Sotarou and Macradon. Sotarou looks at Macradon with a smile. "Seems easy enough. We just need to fight a bunch of Wolves and then this bigger beast should come out. That's usually how boss types work. Beat up the minions, big boss comes out to see what's going on." He looks at Macradon. "Ready?"

(( Summary: Accepted Quest <<The Venomous Warg>> with equipment listed in Signature along with 2 Healing Potions ))

And try again he did... bringing the material up to proper temperature... he gave the item a proper smack with his hammer and HOPED it didn't destroy the material...

ID: 102095
Result: 4 - Fail (Lose Materials)

And the piece started to form... but then de-pixellated in a shower of pixels all over. Sotarou sighed and set his tools aside. Oh well. Another day.

Sotarou decided to attempt to make his first craft in this shop. He had a few materials and he only had the Craft Points to make 2 of them a day. Maybe if he made a few Perfect pieces, he could level up in a couple days... but that wasn't likely. So instead, he opted to just take it nice and slow and give things a try for now. First... he needed to make himself a new blade. A Katana. So... he fired up the forge and started work on his first blade...

ID: 102094
Result: 7 - Salvage (17 on LD, Materials kept)

Well, that didn't go as planned... but at least the materials weren't destroyed. He could try again.

The Platinum Dragon

A little hole in the wall, the owner couldn't really afford a bigger establishment. And even with this, he was on borrowed money from an older friend. It wasn't much of a place... but it had a proper forge, and it had signs outside detailing it as a Smithy's shop, specializing in traditional Japanese style crafting, specifically Samurai blades in Katanas and Curved Blades to qualify for said Katanas. Several decorative pieces adorned the sides of the shop, not meant to be used... they were all just for show. A single hit on them would destroy them. He had other blades other than Curved and Katanas. He realized that even if he had a niche, the owner would have to be able to craft other pieces. But they're all stylized and custom-made for the individual entering and seeking a fine blade at a decent price! And that's what he promised: fine crafts for fine prices! 

A sign above the door reads: 'Welcome to The Platinum Dragon' with the insignia embossed below the words. The male shopkeeper bows to you as you enter. "Greetings! How may we arm you today?"

Stats

Prices (Negotiable)

Saved spot for current Commissions

Sotarou smiled and made sure to take all the loot and put it away in his inventory! Today was already looking up! He had a bunch of loot, he had someone to help him with questing... he didn't feel so alone now! And the Materials he got would go a long way in helping him get his craft started... and those Rare Consumables could be pretty nice! He was kinda curious about this Matriarch's Stinger, though... could be useful in some upcoming fights... And with a spring in his step, he finally headed onward to the Settlement to gather many more quests! The only question was... what quest was he gonna get...? There were several he remembered seeing in the guide book for Floor 2... it was gonna take some more research... Ehh, I'll figure it out as I go. I don't have to worry all that much! I've got some help now! Alright! Let's take the sky!

THREAD END!

Rewards:
Wasp Queen kill: Matriarch's Stinger for Sotarou, 3 SP for Sotarou
Treasure Chest Roll: 150 Col, 3 T1 Materials, 2 Rare Consumables, LD was rolled by Macradon, but all loot was given to Sotarou.

Request thread lock and Rewards release.

(( Playing this song as I type this for inspiration. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ak00Gb8_GJ4 ))

"Dunno. Figure we'll do them as we find 'em." He looks skyward with a big smile on his face. A single tear slowly eeks out of the eye opposite where Macradon was looking. I'm on my way to the top, J... keep watching. The best is yet to come! He stretched a bit, using the action to wipe his eye dry. "Well? Idle feet make for less EXP gain! Let's do it!" And Sotarou would head onward! He didn't know where exactly he was going... but wherever he went, it was gonna be adventurous... and even dangerous... but as long as he kept believing in himself and those that helped him here, he would never fall! Looking forward, not backwards, for the past was gone and the future was yet to be written! And he was gonna be the one to write his name in the sky!

(( Treasure Chest roll made, ID 101897. Loot 20 with +2 from Lucky Straights Accessory. ))

(( Record scrape the song with this sentence. )) As Sotarou started moving forward, he suddenly tripped on something that had been revealed in the scuffle of the fight with the Wasp Queen, causing him to faceplant... hard. Groaning, Sotarou turned his body around to see what had felled him and his eyes lit up! "Holy crap, a chest! Sweet beans!"

Sotarou would of course press the Accept button, being added to the party. "Oh, I don't plan on being stupid. I've played a couple of MMOs in the past. Simple tactic for the damage dealer, attack whatever the Tank is focused on." Sotarou was glad to hear that Macradon understood his plight about using a too-light weapon and smiled. "Yeah... I worked with my dad making Katanas IRL, so I've grown more accustomed to their weight than with the weight of this puny thing. It's kinda weird that Kayaba-dono actually made the weapons have realistic weight to them... I mean, with how he planned to trap us here... he put in a ton of effort into it. How long was he working on this game, I wonder... decades, at least..." He shook his head a bit and smacked his cheeks some. "Enough of those thoughts. We should get going before Ms. Queen decides to respawn or something..." He points to the sky! "Onwards to adventure!!!"

Sotarou shakes his head a bit. "Don't worry about me TOO much... just... if you can keep Hate on the enemies, I'm pretty decent at a blade... or... I would be, if I could actually use Katanas... stupid Katana skill being locked behind Curved Blades... I feel so uneasy using a 1-handed blade... like I'm off-balance. And the handle doesn't exactly lend itself to being used in two hands..." He pulls out his Bolt Blade to show his point. There's only really enough room for one hand and maybe a quarter of another hand. "If I could use a Katana, I'd feel so much more at home..." He sheathes his Bolt Blade and looks to Macradon. "Well, I suppose I should add you to my party... or you add me to yours. I can never figure out the proper etiquette for that sort of thing."

Sotarou just shrugged to Macradon. "Wasp Queen was the first one. I still need to turn it in, but... I suppose we could just grab all the quests here on Floor 2, then just run everything in one go. That would seem the best way to go, at least in my opinion. But you're more the expert than me." Sotarou would make sure his gear was secured well enough before looking quizzically at the experienced player. "So. Where would we go to start getting all the quests on this floor? I'll probably do them, then move on straight to floor 3 and do those quests and dungeons. Then just keep on going up and up."

Sotarou nodded to Macradon. "I would not say no to some assistance in leveling. Thank you." Then he went a little quiet as he seemed to be thinking about things... "Umm... that in mind... what would we do next? I mean... other than killing mobs and doing quests... what are some other ways I could level? Do I get more experience if I'm in a fight that's several levels higher than me? I never actually got answers to those questions when I was looking online about this game..." He chuckled a bit nervously, rubbing the back of his head. "I probably seem like a total noob, not knowing what many would consider basics..."

His thoughts lingered a bit longer towards Persephone... I mean... why did she leave like that...? She seemed nice enough... and she even had a green cursor... if she were leaving parties like that just to kill players, you'd think her cursor were at least Orange... but... she didn't seem like the type, either... and Sotarou was a good judge of character most of the time... maybe it was skewed because of the fact that this wasn't real life... ehh, who knows. All that matters now is that there's actually someone willing to help him level. And that was worth more than its weight in gold at the moment!

Sotarou took the Stinger and shook the hand of the Knight as he introduced himself. “The name’s Macradon, Vanguard Commander of the KoB.” Sotarou coulda sworn he'd heard that title before... somewhere... meh. Not important right now. Though the next question snaps him back to reality as he nods. "Her name is Persephone. I was looking on Floor 2 to help boost my level gain... been stuck in Floor 1 just barely making ends meet with my crafting... but I was starting to peter out with all of the players going to higher floors. Couldn't afford the Inn anymore, so I decided it was time to make my way out. And I have some pretty damn good gear, if I do say so myself... but with a recommended level of 8, I did wanna see about finding others to help me with the Wasp Queen. That's when Persephone showed up. She seemed nice, she had a Green Cursor... so... I thought it was okay. She added me to party... we got the Wasp Queen spawned in, she made the first hit and pulled Hate... then just as I was making an attack, she ran off and left my party! All the Hate she had was suddenly on me... so... thank you. Thank you again for saving me... I don't think I'd have been able to survive more than a couple of hits from that Wasp Queen on my own." He took a breath! He had been saying all of that without really taking a breath! But now that he did take a breath, he was breathing a little quicker before he slowed it down considerably. He did still seem rather calm about it, though. "Sorry. Bad habit of not breathing between sentences..." He chuckles a bit.

And suddenly, Persephone just up and ran off! What the- and then party left. And suddenly, he had a Wasp Queen who was only interested in fighting him! He wasn't geared to solo this! He... he was gonna die!!! He was-

Suddenly, from out of the bushes there was a 3-headed dog charging forward along with a heavily armored Claymore-wielding Knight! Looked like some sort of Templar type person from those classic parkour games... but he was powerful! Persephone hadn't even done a large chunk... and this guy ups and cleaves it in twain in one swing, making it look so easy! What... just what WAS this guy...?

“Sorry I took the last hit, you can have the item. Seemed like you were in danger” The man spoke up, and Sotarou was stunned as just after the attack and subsequent kill of the Wasp Queen, he fell flat on his butt! A rather pathetic sight from a Medium Armor wearing individual... he picked himself up, pushing himself to a standing position as he brushed himself off... "Well, that's what I get for trusting a random stranger to help me out..." He sighs in defeat. "I was hoping to get some levels off of that Wasp Queen... but I guess I'll have to live with just the quest reward experience... but yeah, thanks. I honestly would not have been able to defeat it on my own. At least, not easily..." He sheathed his jagged bolt-like Curved Blade and held out a hand to the obviously experienced individual. They had a green icon, so it was all good! "Thanks for helping me out. I'm Sotarou. Samurai in Training."

Sotarou nodded. "Alright then. Deal." He pulled out his Curved Blade, ready to fight. He saw Persephone jump into the fray and take a heavy swing to the Wasp Queen! And suddenly, the Queen was heavily paralyzed! Well! That made it easy! "Hey, maybe we can chain paralyze it then! My blade's a Paralyze one as well!" And then getting into his horse stance as he'd been taught by his father all those years ago, it was slightly different because he was using a one-handed blade instead of a two-handed Katana... he ran forward and slashed at the Wasp Queen.

As he extended his arm to make the slash at the beast... the blade dragged across the carapace but did no damage. He stopped next to the creature with his strike. "Oh come on! I've been practicing that for ages! That should have done something!" Sighing, he now had to wait for Persephone to bail him out...

ID# 90438

BD - 5

Sotarou misses the Wasp Queen, dealing no damage. (-2 Energy: Miss)

PERSEPHONE     220/220     EN: 18/20     HATE: 1

SOTAROU     120/120     EN: 0/2     HATE: 0

WASP QUEEN        102/110

Sotarou stood there and heard Persephone open up her menu, curious as to what she was doing... but he refrains from turning around. Then he felt something touch the back of his neck and he shivered as he suddenly felt a little more hardened than he had before. "Whoa... that was weird..." Then she explains what it did and he checked his stats. Indeed, he was now at 120 HP and his base damage was 2 higher than normal. He chuckled. "Alrighty, then. I guess that'll help quite a bit!" 

Listening to the plan of attack whilst they were travelling to the farmstead, Sotarou nodded a bit. "So in this instance, you're not just a Healer, you're the Tank. Got it. I love how you can pretty much be both in these instances." He fiddles with his bracelet a little bit while he just... looks slightly somber... but he stops immediately as Persephone said the last bit. "Deal. I'll even give you the Stinger. It's not useful to me." It was pretty much true. He used physical materials rather than alchemical ones. "But if we find any mineral materials, can I get those so I can get started on my Shop?" He looked rather hopeful.

Sotarou listened to Persephone's words and nodded in response to each. "And I'm Sotarou. Samurai. Or... at least, I'm trying to become a Samurai. Haven't had the opportunity to forge my own Katana yet, nor have I found one." He shrugs. But he does as bade him, pulling down his menu and adding Persephone to a party with him. "So... you help newbies with quests? Rather admirable in a death game like this..." He seems to trail off towards the end a bit and his face looks a bit somber, as if remembering something... then as suddenly as he went to depressive, he was just fine. "But either way, I would welcome the help all the same! I have some Potions that I can use to keep me topped up in the case that I'm hit."

Once Persephone was added to the party, Sotarou turned around as bade by the healer, curious about what exactly she was going to do...

It was a rather sunny day... Too hot on floor 1 and he was in relatively high level gear, so Sotarou decided to take a jaunt to Floor 2 instead, looking to get a leg up towards the higher floors. Slightly stronger monsters and he has experience killing mobs... At least a small bit...

Floor 2... Sunny as well, but less so than Floor 1 and he was in armor that didn't take kindly to warmer temperatures. If he was to find some stuff going on, he needed to hope the NPCs would give him quests. Luckily, one such quest giver was there!

After talking to the farmer about a gigantic queen bee terrorizing the fields where his farm animals graze, Sotarou was presented with a dialogue: Accept Quest 'Long Live The Queen'? Yes No. Of course he accepted. Should be easy enough... But after accepting the quest, it was added to his questlog with the warning of recommended level 8... He sighed. Maybe others were doing the quest as well.

Traversing the foliage on his way to the field where the bees were, Sotarou suddenly encountered life! "Good afternoon," the female said to Sotarou. Quick glance showed her cursor green so Sotarou smiled. "Afternoon. Hey, you wouldn't happen to be doing Long Live The Queen, would you? I would very much appreciate some assistance with it." A smile adorned his face as he awaited the woman's response.

( Summary: Accepted Long Live The Queen, interacted with Persephone and using equipment listed in Signature along with 5 Starter Potions )

Once again, here he stood. At the gates leading out of the city... he looked around... noone he could see nearby... which didn't say much. He wasn't that skilled... came from not leveling at all... as he took a few steps towards the gate, he felt that feeling again... like he was going to hurl. He fell to his hands and knees like he'd done so many times before this. "Why... why can't I..." His breath was coming out shakily... He closed his eyes... all he could see was his best friend getting stabbed between the eyes... by... that Laughing Coffin member... that big grin... the sadistic laugh...

... Why are you on the ground?

Because I lack the strength to stand...

You lack the strength to move forward, more like.

Same difference. What difference does it make...? I'm not strong enough... I wasn't strong enough to save my best friend...

So? What are you going to do about that?

... What do you mean?

Do you plan on being weak forever? Do you remember your first fight?

I remember... I came home with a black eye and a busted lip. And I was crying...

Do you remember what father told us when he heard what happened?

'The pain's there to remind you that you need to be stronger next time...'

And when that bully confronted you again...

I gave him a bloody nose.

You moved forward. Got stronger.

... yeah.

So? This feeling is just another bully... you've experienced the pain of loss... it hurts, yeah. I don't think we should ever want to endure that... but as father said, 'The pain's there to remind you that you need to be stronger next time.'

... so...

Exactly. Now get up, Kisuke... and honor your friend's memory by moving forward!

It took a little bit, but Sotarou did indeed stand up, facing the gate. And... he took a step. And another one. And the closer he got, the more confident he felt. And as he approached the gate... he saw a ghost image. It was of his friend, Jarron. Jarron flashed Sotarou a thumbs up and a smile before fading away into the sky. Sotarou looked to the sky and declared loudly: "Jarron! You just watch! I'll get strong for the both of us! You'll be here with me!" He put his thumb to his chest as he said this. "Now let's get stronger! Together!" And with that, for the first time in nearly a year... he stepped outside... to the wilds... of Sword Art Online.

(( I have this video playing during the last paragraph because it felt appropriate! Video in Spoilers ))

Summary

Sotarou: 0 Col

Thread Complete!

... It's been almost a year since that fateful incident... he later learned that the robed man was a member of a Guild that hopped from MMO to MMO, known as the Laughing Coffin. Notorious for Player Killing... they loved the kill. They didn't care about loot, they didn't care if it was a death game... they just wanted the rush of ending the life of someone! Well... either way, a big majority of the Laughing Coffin Guild was either locked up or killed in retaliation for their crimes... all by a Guild he couldn't think of the name of. But that didn't matter... he hadn't left the <TOWN OF BEGINNINGS> since that incident. He'd just peddled wares, earning money to buy materials and using those materials to get more money... using this cycle to keep himself afloat. He was mainly making and repairing low-leveled gear... so he didn't have any chance to level himself up in his Profession... he'd need better materials for that... of which he'd have to leave the safety of Floor 1 and explore the upper floors... but everytime he attempted to go to the gate to leave the city, he felt physically ill to his stomach... remembering his friend get killed like that... just for stepping out of the city... but lately, it was getting harder and harder to afford the Inn. He was getting less and less customers as they all found higher level gear in the higher level floors and better shops there. He had to... he had to go out again...

More grinding ensued, getting enough Col to stay at the Inn for the night. Once the next day rolled around, Jarron and Sotarou continued their grind-fest. Jarron also had been farming using his bracelet. Once he was finished, he went to a shop he'd been borrowing the services of and used it to craft an identical bracelet to the one on his arm. He then presented it to Sotarou. "Here. Because you're the first real friend I've had in a long time, Sota."

Sotarou accepted it with a smile, slipping on the bracelet. It complimented the sword and armor he wore rather well.

Jarron then ran out the shop door. "C'mon, Sota! We're so close to level 2! I can feel it! Just a little more!" 

They made it to the gate where they'd stood the previous day. "Another day... another grind-fest to become stronger."

Jarron moved forward towards the gate and looked back at Sotarou as he did. "You're too serious, man. Lighten up!" Just as Jarron passed the barrier of the city, suddenly there was a flash of movement from the side.

What happened next would shape Sotarou's life... for the worse. Suddenly there was a dagger stabbed right between Jarron's eyes. The look of shock and bewilderment on his face as he just stood there in shock from what had happened to him... and next to him just now standing in the city limits after the strike... was a player cloaked in all black and a cursor as red as the blood that would have been spurting from Jarron's face were this real. But this wasn't real... but it was, at the same time. Real enough that... Jarron's body started to lose its cohesion... before suddenly it poofed in an explosion of pixels... if Akihiko Kayaba was to be believed... Jarron... Sotarou's friend... was dead.

The man robed in black just laughed maniacally before running out of the city and off into the now glowing sunset diving down the west side of the city. Sotarou just stood there for a bit in shock... his friend... his friend just... died... right in front of him... after a bit, he dropped to his knees. Then the only thing that could be heard in the city was the wailing scream of terror coming from Sotarou...

Jarron screamed loudly in a mix of panic and anger! "What do you think you're doing to us, you lunatic?! DO YOU HEAR ME?! DAMNIT, KAYABA!"

"Jarron, calm down! We need to think this through!" His words weren't that convincing... he felt the exact same way as his friend right now... Jarron looked so much different now. He was a little younger. Not exactly young teens, but he didn't look like he was barely 16. Sotarou looked much the same, however. Short silver hair, thin-ish figure but toned musculature. The only difference was height. He inched himself up a few inches to not feel so short. But now he was his usual 5'6" self.

Jarron, with those words spoken to him, ran off in the direction towards the front gate of the city, Sotarou close at his heels... when they reached the front of the gate, Jarron stopped just shy of the boundary. Sotarou caught up, breathing a little heavily.

There was silence from the two for a little but... then Jarron broke the silence. "You know... I joined this game... left my house and body... because I was pissed off at my mom... wouldn't you know it, for something so stupid... she wanted me to think about going to College and become a doctor... all I wanted was to be a jeweler. Make awesome jewelry and other crafts of the like..." He gave a dry chuckle. "Needless to say, she wasn't all that thrilled... we had a fight... I slammed the door on her, and put on my Nerv-Gear, hopped immediately in here. It was such an escape... it felt great! I immediately just took out my aggressions on some of the mobs out here... it felt good just to get it out of my system. Then I returned and got my quest done as quick as I could. I've been doing these games for ages, so I knew what I needed to get for the quest. I already had it, so I got it... made my bracelet here, and... well... then I found you. And when we were partying together, it felt awesome. I... I forgot about how angry I was with my mother... and now... now all I can do is be angry with myself for being so angry with her... she'll never know... she'll never know how sorry I am!" By the end of this exchange, Jarron was crying his eyes out.

Sotarou took him in an embrace. "Hey... we'll get through this. Together... alright? We'll get you back to your mom, and you'll be able to tell her you're sorry. Don't go giving up yet."

Jarron wiped his eyes clear of the tears that stained them. "Thanks... Sota..." He sniffled a bit, wiping his nose. "Oh, I forgot. We got a bunch of loot from our farming earlier. I rolled pretty high on the chests we found, so I got some extra gear. It's stuff I don't use, though. You can probably break it down with your Profession, though." He gave Sotarou a couple of items: a sword and a set of armor.

"I could probably use these in a couple of levels." He chuckled a bit. He then gave his new friend a playful punch in the shoulder.

Jarron just laughed a bit. "Yeah, probably. So! Let's get you those levels, then!"