[SP-F1] «Earning a Living» Smithin' ain't easy! (COMPLETE)

[Ishida 0]

Ishida was at an absolute loss on how to progress.  So far, his attempts to party up with some fellow adventurers had been a bust--but that wasn't going to deter him.  The dark-haired teenager knew his best bet at survival was to get in the good with some like-minded individuals but if that wasn't an option at the moment, he would just have to go about it on his own.  That's what he was used to, anyway--fending for himself.

"Hmmm," he murmured to himself, tapping a single finger against the curve of his chin while observing the ongoing hustle and bustle of the Town of Beginnings.  What was the best course of action for him to take?  He had already scoped out the local mobs on the Grasslands and deemed them too much of a risk at the moment, at least until he was able to acquire new equipment.  That's it!  Ishida needed a means to gear up and there was no finer way to do that then to craft it himself.

With the intent of gearing up in mind, Ishida stepped forward and began searching for the NPC in charge of teaching professions.

Edited December 16, 2015 by Ishida

[Ishida 0]

Nearly as soon as he set off on his search for the NPC, Ishida had to stop.  He had a dilemma.  Before he could choose which profession he wanted to excel at, he had to first decide what path he was going to take as character.  He had played enough MMOs to know that this would almost certainly be a permanent decision so he had to choose carefully.  What kind of role did he want to fit into?

"Well," he thought, "there is no doubt that being a damage dealer would be the most fun."  Ishida was basing his guess on his own personal experiences with gaming.  However, this was unlike any game he had ever been a part of before.  This was a game that revolved around life and death.  "Though.. fun shouldn't be my top priority.  Survival is--so I think I should go for a defensive build.  Besides.. who doesn't love a good tank?"

The decision he came to wasn't nearly as difficult as he thought it would be.  As he decided upon becoming a tank, it only seemed natural that he would pair that with the choice of becoming a Blacksmith.  Weapons, shields, heavy armor--the Blacksmith made it all and those are exactly the types of equipment that would set him up for success.  Invigorated by his resolutions, he turned around and started in the direction of the Blacksmith NPC.

[Ishida 0]

Ishida started into a run as his excitement got the better of him.  He dashed through the cobblestone streets of the Town of Beginnings as comfortably as he could while staying on the lookout for the Blacksmithing shop.  Unfortunately for him, he wasn't too familiar with the layout of the starting town yet, so he didn't have much of an idea of where he was going.  Though, he could have sworn he had seen the shop's sign once upon a time..

After several minutes of combing various streets, the undergeared teenager had to come to a skidding halt in the middle of the street while performing a double-take of a particular sign hanging above a shop he just blew by.  Emblazoned upon the wooden sign hanging above the shop's open door was a hammer clashing against an anvil.  The depiction burnt into the wood was almost universal across all things--this was the Blacksmith.

Back tracking the few feet he ran in excess, Ishida slowed into a normally-paced walk before proceeding into the shop.  As soon as he entered, his speculation was definitely confirmed by the blazing hearth, fiery forge, and polished anvil ready accessible in the center of the establishment.  The glow of the various flames illuminated the room clearly, bathing it with a comforting orange light that made the Blacksmith-to-be feel at home.

[Ishida 0]

"Greetings, adventurer," a bold, gruff voice called out.  Up until this point, Ishida thought he was the only one within the Blacksmith's shop, so the deep voice came as a surprise to the unsuspecting guest.  As he turned to find the source of the bearish growl, the raven-headed youth nearly walked right into the bearded mountain of man standing just to the side of him.

"Whoa!" he called out as he stumbled backward, not stopping until he backed into a display counter showing off the NPC's wares.  The tall, muscled Blacksmith laughed heartily in response to Ishida's surprised antics, only moving to cross his arms over the expanse of his barrel-wide chest.  Once Ishida made sure that he wasn't in danger of knocking anything from the shelves, he turned to the NPC and bowed in a quick, formal fashion.  As he straightened out, he noticed the Blacksmith's name lurking overhead.  "Hagrid" he was called.

"How can I help you, lad?" Hagrid bellowed.  It seemed like his voice only had one setting: loud.

"I'm looking to become a Blacksmith." Ishida responded calmly as he took a step forward and away from the display case.

"Oh-ho-ho, I knew it!  You had the look of a Blacksmith about you!"

Almost instantly, a quest dialogue entitled «Earning a Living» popped up before Ishida's eyes.  He read it carefully before his hand moved forward and, with only a little hesitation, accepted it.

Edited December 16, 2015 by Ishida

[Ishida 0]

"Excellent!  Let's get started, shall we?" Hagrid boomed as soon as Ishida accepted the quest.

"Yes, please!" Ishida excitedly replied.  "I'm really anxious to get out of these starter rags and into some equipment of my own design!"  This sentiment was one that was deeply rooted within the boy, calling back to his days as a child where he had no choice but to wear tattered clothes.  While in this case, the digital clothes equipped by his in-game avatar weren't nearly as bad as those he previously wore in the material world, they were still a step below what he had envisioned himself wearing.

"Great.  The first step is to take the materials you have collected and proceed to the anvil for a tutorial in beginner's crafting."

Already, Ishida was lost.

Materials?  He was a fresh start!  He didn't have any materials!

"Um, Mr. Hagrid--I don't have any materials."  His voice had never sounded so meek.  A second later, he followed up his original statement with one bearing a much more excited tone.  "..but I'm more than willing to go out and get some!  You just let me know what I need and where to find it--I'll get them!"

"No materials?  Hmm," Hagrid said while stroking his thick, red beard in mock contemplation.  "For low levels, your best bet is to search the West Field.  You are going to need ore of any kind you can find.  You will want to try looking in dirt or the sides of small hills.  For high levels, it is easy to find all kinds of ore in the mountains to the Northwest, on the other side of the forest!"

Ishida nodded enthusiastically.

"Very well.  Return to me when you have acquired the necessary materials.  Farewell, adventurer!"

Before Hagrid could finish his sentence, Ishida was out the front door of the shop and heading for the west path that would lead him out of town.

[Ishida 0]

Well, the mountains are definitely out of the question.  I heard about that forest--there's no way I'd get through there alive!  The grasslands, though.. I can just avoid the boars and search around.  It'll probably be the method that takes the most time but at least it is safe.  After I get my materials and become a Blacksmith, it'll be a different story!

Ishida took the time to think as he walked.  While the act of going out and farming low level materials might have been a nuisance to most, it was a monumental task to the slender teen.  You didn't just get from Point A to Point Z--there were important steps in between that needed to be accomplished before you got to where you wanted.  For Ishida, becoming a Blacksmith was one of those steps.

Before he knew it, the boy was stepping out of the side gate of the Town of Beginnings; he completely passed by the guards without regard and exited directly into the fields.  There were numerous low level players within eyesight.  Some battled boars, some foraged for materials of their own, others stood idly by and conversed--the latter, he had no time for.  He was on a mission.

That being the fact, he scanned the area and immediately crossed through the ankle deep grass to a little molehill blemishing the otherwise flat, surrounding ground.  Ishida took to one knee and began to search the dirt for anything worth while.

» ID: 42250
» LD: 16
» Success!

His fingers dug deep into the dirt and immediately hit something hard.  Ishida quickly cleared away the dirt and pulled out a fragment of some sort of ore that was indiscernible to his untrained eye.  Copper, perhaps?

[Gain: +1 Material]

Edited December 16, 2015 by Ishida

[Ishida 0]

"Great!" Ishida exclaimed.  He was absolutely beaming with excitement.  While he knew the odds of being that lucky and finding a material right off the bat were slim, that didn't stop him from letting it go right to his head.  How easy was this going to be if he could just steamroll finding materials?  Surely the crafting portion of the quest would be less troublesome.

The hunk of ore materialized from his hand and in its place, a loot acceptance window appeared.  Ishida quickly accepted the confirmation before going back to actively searching the area for another search node.  He took the roundabout way of going around one of the Frenzy Boars, even though it didn't appear that it was an aggressive monster.  The boy was completely uninitiated in combat and didn't want to take his chances with the unfamiliar and unpredictable nature of fighting.

After several moments of walking about the plains, he happened upon a hill with one side misshapen and composed primarily of earth.  There were many fragments of what appeared to be ore buried within but just the same, it could have been unusual rocks native to the world of Sword Art Online.  Stepping up to the hillside, Ishida began to dig through the clutter for another material.

» ID: 42252
» LD: 2
» Failure!

And what he pulled out was... definitely just a rock.  That wouldn't help him at all with his quest.

[Ishida 0]

Ishida tried not being immediately disheartened despite the disappointment that filled his head.  Grumbling something incoherent, he sidestepped further along the upturned hillside and began scavenging again.  His hands pawed effortlessly at the dirt, turning out anything and everything of consequence as he sifted through what was available to him.

As he clawed through the earth, he returned to his thoughts regarding the quest.  I completely forgot to ask how many materials I would need--or maybe he didn't tell me.  I hope it isn't a lot; I don't know how great my luck is going to be out here.  I bet if I was strong enough and had a proper pickaxe, I would be raking in the materials.

Before he could get much farther into his contemplation, his hands hit something solid.  Upon further investigation, it revealed itself to be...

» ID: 42254
» LD: 13
» Failure!

.. nothing but hardened sediment from an age gone by.  Ishida frowned.

Edited December 16, 2015 by Ishida
Roll

[Ishida 0]

This hill was definitely a dud.  He was probably better off searching for another node to investigate.  Before he did so, however, he took the time to embrace the scenery surrounding him.  The tall grass waved to the rhythm of the gentle wind that caressed all upon the grasslands.  The fields seemed to endlessly run in all directions--the only hint that said otherwise was the starting of the forest on the very edge of the horizon.

This was something he would never see within Ikebukuro.  Ikebukuro was a city of lights; one of those places that never slept.  Just having the chance to see such a sight as the one before his eyes was a blessing and he was thankful for it, despite being trapped against his will.

Ishida raised his hand to his brow as he adjusted his gaze to view upon the sun.  Judging by the placement of the brightly burning sphere generated by the system, it was barely noon.  He still had plenty of time to find the necessary materials to complete his quest before the sun set for the afternoon.

[Ishida 0]

All right, might as well keep this train rolling, he thought before starting to explore the area.

Ahead, he could see a small party of players taking on a group of boars.  They didn't look to have too much trouble which gave Ishida hope that he, too, wouldn't have difficulty dispatching the swine once he fashioned a new weapon.  He peeled his eyes away to focus on the task at hand and while he was still in the midst of not paying attention, he nearly tripped over a small, rocky outcropping jutting out from the ground below him.

"Hey?  What the..?"

On further inspection, it was another gathering node.  The same as before, he dropped to the ground to inspect the hard obstruction that looked so out of place among the fields of green.  Ishida worked at pulling it from the ground--employing all of his digital might to gather the object.

» ID: 42274
» LD: 11
» Failure!

It proved to be another rock. Oddly, he was reminded of that classic American Halloween movie "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown."

Edited December 16, 2015 by Ishida
Added roll

[Ishida 0]

Man, talk about RNG.  Those are the breaks when you're at the whim of a computer overlord.  Although, all jokes aside, Ishida didn't think he'd have much better luck mining for ore in real life.  His scrawny body probably wouldn't even be able to handle the labor required to lift a steel pickaxe.  That was more depressing than not securing the materials required to work his way through the Blacksmith's quest.

This was something that simply needed to be done.  Rising to his feet after the defeat of the last node, Ishida continued on his path through the tall grass in search of other outcroppings.  His arms were raised at both sides of him; his fingers spread wide for his open palms to graze against the tips of the green blades rising to the height of his mid chest.

In that deep of dense, tall grass--he probably should have been keeping an eye out for dangerous mobs.

Ignorantly, his focus was still on finding mining locations--one of which he happened to come across as soon as he exited the tall grass and returned to the clear plains.  Selecting the node, he settled into a crouch and began to search through its belongings.

» ID: 42276
» LD: 20
» Success!

What he overturned, turned out to be a dirt-covered, but still perfect, chunk of ore.  Finally, some good luck!

[Gain: +1 Material]

Edited December 16, 2015 by Ishida
Added roll

[Ishida 0]

That's the ticket.  Two materials down--uh, how many to go?  Ishida really wished he had paid attention to Hagrid when he was talking or at least read the quest description more thoroughly before he accepted it.  Maybe it was the excitement of setting off on an adventure that rattled his brain and dulled his memory.

Either way, would it be a bad thing if he came back with too many materials?  Of course not.  It would be terrible if he came back with not enough, though.

So, he continued to scour and search.  With enough diligence, Ishida would certainly obtain the items required by Hagrid to continue on the quest.  With that little pep of assertiveness behind him, he moved several meters from his last node to a new one.  His sights trained; his hands at the ready; he began to dig and uncover his next rock.

» ID: 42286
» LD: 16
» Success!

Fortunately, his pessimistic aura didn't get in the way of him obtaining another fragment of raw material to work with at the smithy.  With a satisfied grin, Ishida swiped at the loot window and accepted the recovered ore.

[Gain: +1 Material]

Edited December 16, 2015 by Ishida
Added roll

[Ishida 0]

Three materials?  Surely three was enough?  Like he indicated to himself earlier, though, he would rather err on the side of caution rather than end up having to come back out here to gather what he was lacking.  Three, though, seemed to be enough--at least to finish the craft required of him to complete the entry quest.  Still grinning to himself, he started back toward the Town of Beginnings, whose gate he was able to see once again now that he was out of the tall grass.

He found a nearby path and hopped onto it.  Judging by its direction and the quality of it, Ishida was pretty confident it would take him right to the gate.  While traveling along the path, he came across a final gathering node a yards off of the path.  It called to him; inanimately taunting the gatherer within him.

Before he completely exited the grasslands, he made the short trip to the mining spot and engaged it.

» ID: 42288
» LD: 20
» Success!

"Yes!" he exclaimed.  His time wasn't wasted excavating that little dirt mound.  Now, he was just thoroughly thrilled--another material accepted and dropped into his inventory.  Ishida wasn't real sure on what his odds of successfully obtaining this many materials via mining was but he wasn't going to question it.

His haul in tow, he hopped back on the path and continued toward the Town of Beginnings.

Edited December 16, 2015 by Ishida

[Ishida 0]

It wasn't long before he was passing through the gates into the Town of Beginnings once again.  The same, steadfast NPC guards stood at their posts, eyeing Ishida as he came strolling into the starter city, whistling a cheery tune at the overall success of his outing.

The realization dawned on him that any oaf could gather materials but did he have what it takes to properly craft a weapon?  What kind of skill was involved?  Was it just as random as loot drops or did it require a certain finesse to create perfection?  Ishida knew he would find out soon enough as he turned down the cobblestone street leading to Hagrid's Blacksmith shop.

Fire lit street lamps came to life as the high sun started settling toward the horizon.  The darkness of dusk began to creep into the shadowy corners and crevices of the town.  The day was coming to a close but hopefully the Blacksmith wasn't.

Edited December 16, 2015 by Ishida

[Ishida 0]

The Blacksmith's shop looked as inviting as ever.  Warmth radiated out from its glowing door as the fires of the forge roared with overwhelming excitement.  It was still peculiar to Ishida how he could feel the familiar chill of night in his bones, despite being thoroughly disconnected from the outside world.  Regardless, the blaze within was enough to draw the favor of the Blacksmith-to-be--you wouldn't find that kind of comfort from being a Tailor.

As soon as his plain, common boots hit the floorboards of the shop, Hagrid came out from around the corner and shouted his same, scripted greeting.  "Greetings, adventurer!"

There was only a momentary pause before he started again.

"Ah, it's you!  Were you able to find the materials required to undertake the Blacksmith's trial?"  The force of his loud voice resonated within Ishida's bones.

The dark-haired teenager approached the burly blacksmith and opened his menu.  After navigating through a few interactive screens, he displayed the gathering of materials he had acquired from his time in the grasslands.

"Oh, excellent!  You've obtained the one ore required to attempt the trial!" Hagrid exclaimed.

"Only one ore was needed?  Urrhhh~"

Ishida groaned and hung his head.  If one material was all that was needed, he could have been finished with the task already--providing he created an acceptable item.

[Ishida 0]

"Would you like to continue?  Are you ready to commence the trial?"

"Yes," he said.  There were hints of frustration in his voice.  "Yes, I would like to continue."

Ishida tried to push those feelings down.  Extra materials only meant he had more to play with when he became an actual blacksmith.  Taking a deep breath into his lungs, he exhaled and forced out all the negativity that he was harboring.

"So, where do we start?"

"Proceed to the forge and use it to refine your ore into a workable ingot.  Once you interact with the forge, you will find the instructions on how to proceed to be quite thoroughly explained."

Under Hagrid's instruction, Ishida moved to the forge and focused his sights on it.  He steadily extended his hand and engaged the fiery structure, completely weary of the radiating heat billowing off of it.  As the Blacksmith had mentioned, the actual act of refining ore into ingots was almost trivial.  The system did all the work, allowing him to simply sit by and watch as his ore melted away and solid ingots were produced in their place.  As soon as the process was complete, a loot window appeared informing him of the addition of ingots to his inventory--he accepted it without thought.

[Ishida 0]

"Very fine work," Hagrid commented as he stood over Ishida, inspecting the production of the ingots as they came out of the forge.  "Those refined materials look like excellent specimens to proceed with the next part of the trial.  When you are ready, head on over to the anvil and follow the interactive menu to detail what kind of item you would like to attempt making."

Ishida followed the Blacksmith's instruction to the letter.  Once he was at the anvil and engaged with it, he was overwhelmed with choices on how to proceed with crafting.  After a couple of moments of studying the choices, he realized it wasn't that complicated.  It all revolved around what type of item he was shooting to create, the materials he desired to use, and whether or not he would use any additional tools to help along the creation.

As he was a complete newb without any sort of skill on his own, he was only really allowed one set of options: A straight bladed sword, copper ingots, no accessories.

"Well, here goes nothing--" Ishida muttered as he made his selections and picked up the smithing hammer.

[Ishida 0]

The copper ingot was laid out on the head of the anvil and within his hand was the Blacksmith's heavy hammer.  It was laborious but Ishida managed to lift the hammer above his shoulder, hoisting it into the air while a faint, translucent white glow began to illuminate the bulk of the metal mallet.  In one fell swoop, the boy with the inky black hair brought down the hammer and smashed it into the posed ingot.

All at once, the glow that was humoring the hammer transferred to the struck material, causing it to radiate white until its defining characteristics were no longer distinguishable.  Soon, the material took on a new shape entirely different from the rectangular brick of a standard ingot, morphing and extending into the lengthened shape of a long bladed straight sword.

Ishida's eyes reflected the glowing object before him brilliantly, leaving him with an excited twinkle in his eye as he awaited the outcome of his crafting.  Was this is?  Was this going to be the greatest sword ever made?  Right on his first attempt?

[Ishida 0]

Of course not.  Before the luminous material finished glowing, it transformed once again into a malformed silhouette of what a proper sword should look like.  It was mangled at the hilt with leather scraps frayed on the handle.  The blade itself was wonky; bent at a curve that wasn't at all useful in the slightest.  There were nicks and unsightly blemishes all about the would-be sword.

At the sight, Ishida immediately frowned.

"What... what is that?"

"Ho-ho-ho!" Hagrid's bottomless laugh echoed.  "That is what we call "scrap," lad.  A mighty disastrous piece of scrap, if I might add!"

"Thanks, Hagrid..." the teen replied, dejectedly.

The red-bearded smith walked over to the mangled mess of a "weapon" and tapped it with a small ball hammer that he previously had stowed at his waist.  The same as before, it shined with a brilliant glow before reverting back to the shape of the copper ingot it originally retained.

"There you go--have another shot at it.  As much as a failure as that was, there are no failures here.  I am simply to instruct you on the method of Blacksmithing, it is up to you to master your craft."

[Ishida 0]

That statement Hagrid provided at the end seemed to boost his spirits.  His mess had been reverted and he was provided another chance at crafting a proper ware.  Ishida wouldn't make the same disastrous mistake twice.  At least, he hoped he didn't.

He stepped up to the anvil once again and hefted the hammer into the air like before, albeit more confidently this time.  The color the hammer took on this time wasn't the same boring white it had previously but a light blue instead--it was barely noticeable but to anyone truly paying attention, it was obvious.  Ishida brought the hammer down with a surprising vigor this time and struck the ingot; the sound of metal to metal rang out clearly in the entirety of the Blacksmith's shop.

The smith's hammer dimmed, the ingot lit up and began to transform.  It seemed to be in a constant state of flux this time as it cycled through various shapes and sizes, some of them being as gnarled as his first attempt.  Oh no... he thought, anxiously.

A final burst of bright light blinded Ishida in the moment, causing him to momentarily shield his eyes as the weapon finished crafting.  What was the result?!