[SP-F4] Road to Recovery <<Essence of Steel>> COMPLETE

[Seul 1]

Somehow the knight found himself trekking through the snow covered land that was the fourth floor. Another quest had caught his attention, one that actually came with a useful reward for completing it. The snow beast as most called it was known for its rare item drop, something that would be able to increase the quality of an item and even allow for new enhancements to be placed on it. The coat, Regret, he wore was fancy and all with it's unique power, but it was still only just an uncommon item. Seul thought long and hard about what he wanted to do with the remaining two slots and ultimately he decided to round out his build he'd need a certain power added to the piece if he was going to use it as his main suit.

Edited May 11, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

He'd need to travel north... Far north of Snowfrost in order to reach the cave where the snow beast lived. Old rumors said the monster rivaled that of the floor bosses in terms of strength, but then again that was when there were only four floors cleared. He wasn't too worried about facing it. Having just finished another quest not too long ago on a higher floor, he was certain this one would be at least a little simpler. The hardest part would probably be finding the cave seeing as how the barren wasteland of ice and death that made up the fourth floor had a tendency to look the same at times.

[Seul 1]

He walked and walked, the whole time leaving his map data open to make sure he was going the right way. What would the snow beast be like? Despite others defeating it in the past, there didn't seem to be any descriptions of it. None that went into depth other than saying 'it was huge' anyway. Large or not he would kill it the same as he had the others and use the essence to further grow. It  was poetic in a way how the players thrived off the misfortune of the monsters that lived in this world. If they were more than just data he doubted half the people in the game would still fight as much as they do now. Humans were weird like that. They always thought too much and let emotions cloud their judgement. Seul wasn't any different in that regard and in a way he was thankful for that. Being a stone cold killer was not exactly the most pleasant of things he could imagine being.

[Seul 1]

His mind would wander to other things at the mention of killing. Mainly the people who have died thus far because of it. Many have fallen by various means. Floor boss deaths and player killing becoming as frequent as the rain these days and there were still over 80 floors left to go before this was all over. Why did people kill each other. Some do it for sport... The sick ones. The ones the game broke. He didn't want to end up like that. There were so many things to look out for in this world and yet here he was on a lonely trail to fight some monster that wasn't even 'real'. Maybe his recent progress was starting to get the better of him and go to his head.

[Seul 1]

He would shake all other thoughts aside though as he finally arrived. Or at least he thought so anyway. Half buried in snow was the skull of an enormous monster. Presumably the one used to summon the snow beast from its cave. The fight would most likely start after he struck it, but before hand he would need to make some room in his inventory for the essence once it dropped. He spent a moment or two fumbling through his menus until he managed to produce the <<Tiger Rage>> potion. He drank it down in a single swig, sighing afterward at the taste before chucking the vial aside. Despite the horrid taste of the brew, he would be stronger now for the battle and that outweighed the cons of using such an item.

[Tiger Rage potion consumed: +2 damage | Base DMG is 14 for the remainder of the thread.]

Edited May 11, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

There was no telling how long the buff would last and he would hate for it to go to waste so he hurried to grab a nearby bone to tap the skull with. When the two pieces collided a sound seemed to reverberate throughout the area. One so loud he was certain you'd be able to hear it from miles away. All went quiet, but then from the cave came... Something. If he had to describe it, the monster looked like an abominable snowman. With antlers. Now he had truly seen everything. Regardless of how it looked though, he needed to beat it if he wanted the item. The Snow Beast would the first to attack. in the form of a charge that he easily avoided by rolling to one side. When he sprang up he hit it with a the Cross Edge and knocked off a large portion of its health in the process.

Party

• Seul: 125/125 HP | 22/30 EN | (-8 EN)

Enemy

• Snow Beast: 138/250 HP | 40 (24 Min) DMG | (-112 HP)

Rolls

• ID: 58724
• BD: 6 | Sword Art: Cross Edge | 14 x 8 = 112 DMG
• MD: 1

Edited May 11, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

Despite raising his shield to block, the snow beast's attack was equipped with a dangerous ability. Though most of the damage was mitigated over half of it passed through his defense like it wasn't even there. Partial phase; an ability that ignored mitigation regardless of how high it was. A tank's nightmare, but thankfully he came well equipped with a healing enhancement to negate the severity of the attacks. The snow beast would probably put up a good fight if he didn't have it, but thinking about such things now would be pointless. Another Cross Edge knocked the monster's health into the red zone, leaving Seul feeling satisfied knowing the fight wouldn't last much longer.

Party

• Seul: 119/125 HP | 15/30 EN | (+1/-8 EN) (-24 HP) [Holy Blessing: +18 HP]

Enemy

• Snow Beast: 26/250 HP | 40 (24 Min) DMG | (-112 HP)

Rolls

• ID: 58726
• BD: 7 | Sword Art: Cross Edge | 14 x 8 = 112 DMG
• MD: 9 | 40 + 1 Crit - 79 Mit = 24 DMG (Partial Phase)

Edited May 11, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

In a final act of desperation the Snow Beast struck once more, knocking off even more of his health thanks to its phase only to have it restore a second later thanks to his holy blessing. He sighed before walking over casually. The thing was so weakened that a simple rank 1 sword art would be enough to take it down. His dagger glowed a faint color as he used Side Bite. The art hit the monster just hard enough to shave off the remaining sliver of health before it perished as a bunch of pixels in the wind.

Party

• Seul: 113/125 HP | 14/30 EN | (+1/-2 EN) (-24 HP) [Holy Blessing: +18 HP]

Enemy

• Snow Beast: -2/250 HP | 40 (24 Min) DMG | (-28 HP)

Rolls

• ID: 58729
• BD: 6 (5 + 1 Conc) | Sword Art: Side Bite | 14 x 2 = 28 DMG
• MD: 10 | 40 + 2 Crit - 79 Mit = 24 DMG (Partial Phase)

Edited May 11, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

With the essence now his he was free to use it whenever he pleased to upgrade his coat. Now it was just a waiting game for the boss to respawn so he could kill it once again. He hated waiting. Most of the game revolved around waiting around like this. Whether it was for bosses to spawn or for crafting to be done everything had a time limit on it that kept the players from doing certain things. If he could he would simply kill the boss here again and take another essence. But no. He had to wait. Maybe killing some other mobs would help pass the time. He was still buffed after all.

[+6 HP | 119 HP Total]

[Energy Regen: 1/3]

[Concentration Timer: 1/5]

[Seul 1]

He decided to have a seat on a mound of snow and ice. The comfiest pile he could find. Hopefully the survival skill would keep him from freezing to death out there. Sleeping outside wasn't something many players did. Not without a group at least. But given the location he was in and the amount of mit he had any low level players that stopped by would have a harder time finishing him off before he woke up. "I'll just rest for a bit then do some hunting." He mumbled while closing his eyes. It didn't take long for the dreams to set in and with them the comfort of escaping to a better place.

[+6 HP | 125 HP Total | HP Fully Restored]

[Energy Regen: 2/3]

[Concentration Timer: 2/5]

[Seul 1]

When was the last time he slept this peacefully? It must have been a while. It was wonder that he was able to sleep at all given how unstable most things were. The world was constantly changing and with it so did the players. His time spent traveling Aincrad was rewarding through his eyes. Not only has he met a multitude of neat people, but he also has become strong with their help and through his own efforts. It seems like just yesterday he was trying to learn the ropes of combat, but now he can face down the field bosses on his own in a matter of a few hits. It really was something.

[Energy Regen: 3/3 | EN Fully Restored]

[Concentration Timer: 3/5]

[Seul 1]

When he awoke he felt refreshed and raring to go. A little walking would bring him to a group of snowman based mobs that seemed ripe for the killing. Of course he allowed the monsters to notice him and each take turns pelting him with snowballs. The damage he sustained was minimal, so he had no scruples about jumping in and finishing off the first snowman with the cross edge. It dropped a good some of col as a result and his eyes gleamed as the other two neared. Little treasure troves was what they were and he was ready to rob them all blind at the cost of their virtual lives!

Party

• Seul: 125/125 HP | 22/30 EN | (+1/-8 EN) (-3 HP) [Holy Blessing: +18 HP]

Enemy

• Snowman: -12/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT (-92 HP)
• Snowman: 80/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT
• Snowman: 80/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT

Rolls

• ID: 58734
• BD: 8 | Sword Art: Cross Edge | 14 x 8 - 20 = 92 DMG
• MD: 8 | 40 - 79 Mit = 1 DMG (x 3)
• LD: 12 | Total Loot: 400 Col

Edited May 11, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

The snowmen would each take turns pelting him with more snow, only for the minor damage to heal back a second later. He ran in with his shield raised high before unleashing a seven hit combo on the closest snowman; the Starlight Splash sword art. The attack knocked the monster down into the red zone and almost into oblivion, but hadn't killed it. He would wait for that. If he was going to hunt these things there might as well be some extra loot in it for him and he had a feeling that if he ended it now there would be none to be had.

Party

• Seul: 125/125 HP | 16/30 EN | (+1/-7 EN) (-2 HP) [Holy Blessing: +18 HP]

Enemy

• Snowman: -12/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT
• Snowman: 80/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT
• Snowman: 02/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT (-78 HP)

Rolls

• ID: 58736
• BD: 7 | Sword Art: Starlight Splash | 14 x 7 - 20 = 78 DMG
• MD: 10 | 40 + 2 - 79 Mit = 1 DMG (x 2)
• LD:  | Total Loot: 400 Col

Edited May 11, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

The frozen monsters would not let up in their attacks though. They through even more snow in his direction despite the futility of such an attack in terms of being able to actually kill him. He stopped in his tracks, lashing out anyway just to try and ward off the snow, but failing to actually hit anything of course. He enjoyed fighting like this, but often times it became a tedious thing to do alone thanks to his low accuracy. Once they were done, he would sigh while readying his shield for the next onslaught of ice to be hurled his way.

Party

• Seul: 125/125 HP | 15/30 EN | (+1/-2 EN) (-2 HP) [Holy Blessing: +18 HP]

Enemy

• Snowman: -12/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT
• Snowman: 80/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT
• Snowman: 02/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT

Rolls

• ID: 58744
• BD: 2 | Sword Art: 
• MD: 10 | 40 + 2 - 79 Mit = 1 DMG (x 2)
• LD:  | Total Loot: 400 Col

Edited May 11, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

The snowmen attacked again but he decided to spare the other's life as well. For now anyway. The fight was starting to drag and he was losing interest in continuing the battle any further. He just wanted to take his essence and be done with it, but no, something compelled him to remain there longer. To continue on fighting despite the quest being done ages ago. This was the problem with being to o hasty in finishing off opponents. The wonder of battle would disappear and instead this was what remained.

Party

• Seul: 125/125 HP | 9/30 EN | (+1/-7 EN) (-2 HP) [Holy Blessing: +18 HP]

Enemy

• Snowman: -12/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT
• Snowman: 02/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT (-78 HP)
• Snowman: 02/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT

Rolls

• ID: 58745
• BD: 7 | Sword Art: Starlight Splash | 14 x 7 - 20 = 78 DMG
• MD: 10 | 40 + 2 - 79 Mit = 1 DMG (x 2)
• LD:  | Total Loot: 400 Col

Edited May 11, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

He couldn't seem to get the right footing as the snowmen were being absolutely ruthless with their attacks. Each one pelted him with snow for what was the third critical in a row. This had been another monster he would have been dead by now, but thankfully the mobs were weak enough that the attacks were just annoying rather than actually harmful to his health. He sighed. The battle was becoming tiresome now. Was asking for the essence just too much? He didn't think so.

Party

• Seul: 125/125 HP | 8/30 EN | (+1/-2 EN) (-2 HP) [Holy Blessing: +18 HP]

Enemy

• Snowman: -12/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT
• Snowman: 02/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT
• Snowman: 02/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT

Rolls

• ID: 58746
• BD: 4 | Sword Art: 
• MD: 9 | 40 + 1 - 79 Mit = 1 DMG (x 2)
• LD:  | Total Loot: 400 Col

Edited May 11, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

The time was finally right and with that being the case Seul swung his blade twice to whip up two tiny storms that would hunt down the snowmen. The winds alone were enough to kill of the monsters and each one dropped some pretty good loot as a result of his patience. It was time to call it a day. His energy was spent and he got what he needed, so there was not much of a reason to stick around anyway. With his spirits high he took off back toward town.

Party

• Seul: 125/125 HP | 8/30 EN | (+1/-4 EN) (-2 HP) [Holy Blessing: +18 HP]

Enemy

• Snowman: -12/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT
• Snowman: -06/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT (-8 HP)
• Snowman: -06/80 HP | 40 DMG | 20 MIT (-8 HP)

Rolls

• ID: 58747
• BD: 8 | Sword Art: Round Accel | 14 x 2 - 30 MIT = 8 DMG + AoE
• MD: 6 | 40 - 79 Mit = 1 DMG (x 2)
• LD: 19 | Loot Earned: 800 Col + 2 Mats | Total Loot: 1200 Col & 2 Mats

Edited May 11, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

The walk back to town was quiet enough. A light snowfall had began somewhere along the way. It was times like these when Seul was impressed by just how realistic the world was in its beauty. The winter wonderland of the fourth floor was unique and many people identified with the atmosphere it presented. At one time he debated building his shop there but eventually opted for the bustling city on the second floor. Speaking of locations, where was he going to build his home? Would he ever be able to afford a home in the first place? He wasn't sure. Housing in the game was expensive and he only have about 8000 col to his name at any given time.

[Seul 1]

There were so many other things that evaded him as well. Demonics being one of them. He never really cared much for the unique skills or demonic weapons others competed for. Having such things would only make him a target. By now it was no secret that two of the skill holders had fallen at the last raid and if he was being honest, he expected as much to happen eventually. No, he was fine with having Regret... As strange as that might sound. The coat was what allowed him to fight like this. The mitigation didn't hurt either. He'd need both to make the most out of his build.

[Seul 1]

From here he would go on to take out the remaining two field bosses that arrived with the new quests. The experience they'd grant would be good for him and even improve his skills further. The fights would most likely be easy to complete, but then there was the matter of the other quests he hasn't completed. He would do those as well and gain as much experience as possible in order to rise in the ranks. He was close to having his ideal build, but still so far away. The next few days would be eventful, but he'd really need to apply himself if he wanted to get ahead.