[F1-SP] Killing time [Complete]

[David_Black 0]

Location: Grasslands North west of the Town of Beginnings.
Time: 1:02 AM

The wind whipped through the grassy hills outside of SAO's starting town. The fields were dead quiet of player activity, and this marked the perfect time for David to get in a little bit of hunting on his own. He had not yet tried to fight anything within Aincrad as he had thought it foolish to risk his real life over this game; however boredom was starting to get the best of him. Surely some occasional grinding in the lower level zones would be safe enough, or at least that is what he thought. Mobs dotted the hillsides, wolves, boars, insects, and other creatures with bright red cursors floating above their heads to signify that they were hostile. David knew he had to be careful. Getting too close to a pack of even these lower level creatures could mean certain death.

As the mobs shifted along their AI driven paths David chose his quarry for the evening; a level one Juvenile Wolf. It was close, and far enough away from other mobs as to not aggro them. With a few deft movements of his fingers David cycled through his menus, and equipped his Iron shod Oaken Maul. Gripping the war-hammer tightly David began to close the distance between himself and the Wolf. Bringing the beast into aggro range.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Stats at start

Spoiler

My Stats

Level: 1
HP: 20
EN: 2
DMG: 2
Mit: 17

Skills

Heavy Armor RK I ((+8 MIT))

Inventory

    Armour: Battered Breastplate ((T1 Uncommon Heavy Armor)) <<Mitigation +1>>

    Weapon: Iron Capped Oaken Maul ((T1 Uncommon Warhammer) )<<Damage +1>>

Consumables: 5x Starter Healing Potions (50 HP) [Battle Ready]

Juvenile Wolf

HP: 20
Dmg: 3

Stats after battle damage

Spoiler

Roll ID# 89360
BD: 5 Miss!
MD: 7 Hit!

David_Black  [HP 19/20] [ EN 0/2] (3 Dmg -17 Mit=1 Damage) (2EN-2EN from Missing Basic attack)
Juvenile Wolf [HP 20/20]

As David grew closer the beast in his sights lowered itself to the ground with it's tail pointing straight back. Baring it's teeth the wolf let out a fierce snarl, and ropes of glistening drool slopped away from it's maw. Within an instant the creature rose up from it's perch, and lunged for David's armored right leg. The teeth found their mark, but did not manage to penetrate his stout defenses. However the beast held on for dear life, and the weight of him kept teacher turned hunter quite still.

"Let go you mutt!" David roared as he swung his hammer wildly at the enemy latched on to his greaves. Somehow even with a mouthful of steel the animal managed to sidestep the blow aimed for his skull. It was disheartening to be sure however there was not much that could really damage David's mood at this moment. His armor while less than stellar for most players was more than enough to completely protect him from most beasts here.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black
Added rolls

[David_Black 0]

Stats After battle damage
 

Spoiler

ID#: 89361

BD: 10 Crit +2 BD!
MD: 7 hit

David_Black [HP 18/20] [EN 0/2] (19-1bd after mit) (Gained 1 EN at start of turn, Spent 1 EN on attack)
Juvenile wolf [HP 16/20] (20-2BD-2crit)

"Thwack!"

David aimed another solid blow at the Juvenile wolf with his wooden hammer, and sent the poor creature flying backwards about three feet. The wolf yelped with pain as it came crashing down into the dirt. David smiled at his handiwork, proud to have even landed a single blow on this animal. His prideful moment was over in an instant however as the battered beast rose from the ground, and charged in once more. It lunged this time for his left wrist, and the terrible teeth struck steel with a reverberating "Ping!". This time however the animal's teeth glanced off, and it dropped back down to the ground without taking hold.

Though his attack appeared effective David wondered why he was having such a hard time causing damage. When he had made his avatar in SAO he was given a certain number of skill points to spread around. The guide had recommended he take a weapon skill, but David had decided to take proficiency in heavy armor instead. What a great choice, eh?

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black
Didn't meet WC requirement.

[David_Black 0]

Stats after Battle Damage

Spoiler

ID#: 89362

 BD: 8 Hit
 MD: 3 Miss

David_Black [HP 18/20] [EN 0/2] (Gained 1 EN at start of turn, Spent 1 EN on attack)
Juvenile Wolf [HP 14/20] (16-2BD)

The wolf reared back up for another lunge at David, but the heavily armored man was able to sidestep the beast just in time. As it passed him by the man seized his opportunity, and aimed another strike at his foe. "Wham!" The heavy hammer collided with the wolf's right hind leg, and sent it on limping. The beast now whimpered with each step, and tried it's best to maintain composure with weak little growls. David almost felt sorry for it. Almost however was not enough to keep him from squaring off with it again. He had come out in order to prove to himself that he could survive in this game, and so survive he would.

That was an easy enough thing to think of course, but in practice it was proving much harder than he anticipated. Even though he was scoring hits the damage was not rolling in fast enough. Every moment that he spent out in the wild was another moment that an entire gang of these beasts could swarm on him, and end his gaming permanently.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Stats after battle damage

Spoiler

ID#: 89363

 BD: 6
 MD: 7

David_Black [HP 20/20] [EN 0/2] (All Damage mitigated) (Gained 1 EN at start of turn, Spent 1 EN on attack)
Juvenile wolf [HP 12/20] (14-2BD)
 

Enraged the wolf charged again. The seething blood lust gripping it's mind was obviously on the brink of boiling over, and yet there was nothing that the beast could seem to do against the tower of rusted out steel that was David. His teeth clashed against that metal as they had before with little effect. David's hammer however was as effective as ever at finding it's target. With any luck the wolf would be dropping soon, and David would have the opportunity to get away. This battle was beginning to get tedious, and David was concerned that he hadn't properly planned out his build correctly. He had thought that piling his skill points into heavy armor was a grand idea, however with such low damage being dealt to even this low level monster he feared that there would be little that he could do against a real threat, and there were some very real threats to be found in Aincrad if the stories were true.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Stats after battle damage

Spoiler

ID# 89364 results:

 Battle: 5
 MOB: 5

David_Black [HP 18/20] [EN -1/2]  (Gained 1 EN at start of turn, lost two due to miss.)
Juvenile wolf [HP 12/20]

Once again the wolf charged but this time David took a wild swing at it, and buried the head of his hammer into the dirt. The momentum of the swing sent David off his balance, and he found himself flat on his butt. Looking up however he noticed that the wolf had jumped clear over his head. A stroke of luck that was as he wasn't sure that in his prone position the beast could not get to one of his more vulnerable spots. 

For the first time David started to notice the faint buzzing sensation all over his body, and took a glimpse at his health gauge. Little by little bits of his health had been trickling away. The His armor was keeping him pretty safe, but it wasn't fool proof. He needed to get some sort of advantage on this creature, and fast before it took away all of his hp.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Stats after battle damage

Spoiler

ID# 89365 results:
 MOB: 1

David_Black [HP 20/20] [EN 0/2]  (Gained 1 EN at start of turn)
Juvenile wolf [HP 12/20]

After a few moments the prone warrior was able to get himself back on to his feet. Such an act wearing heavy armor was a chore to be sure, and required a little extra effort on his part. When he had time David would have to remember to explore the skill list to see if there were any modifiers that might help him maneuver better in his steel skin.  The wolf lunged again, but already on his toes David was able to side step it with ease.

This type of "agility" would have been laughable to the DPS type players that wore light armor and stacked on all the evasion that they could. for David however it was a miracle that he was able to even move at a normal rate considering the heft of his protective harness. Quickly though he cleared all thoughts of improving his build from his mind, and prepared for what was to come next.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Stats after battle damage

Spoiler

ID# 89367 results:

 Battle: 8

 MOB: 1
David_Black [HP 18/20] [EN 0/2]  (Gained 1 EN at start of turn)
Juvenile wolf [HP 10/20] (12-2)

Thwack!"

Retrieving his hammer David batted away the charging wolf once more. It rolled as it recoiled, and kicked up dust. David figured that the creature had roughly half of it's hit-points left. In it's ragged state there was no way that it was going to come out on top, but this fight was dragging on for quite some time. Other players were able to take out mobs like these with a single sword art at level one, but he had foolishly forgotten to take any of those special skills.

"Give up now while you still can mutt." He said truly wishing that the animal would back off. Sometimes it was hard to remember that the creatures in SAO were just random bits and bytes, and that they had no will of their own. Some of them were even quite cute, and those that had learned to tame them often had fantastically complex bonds with them.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Stats after battle Damage

Spoiler

ID# 89368 results: Battle: 3 MOB: 8
David_Black [HP 17/20] [EN -1/2] (18-1 after mitigation) (Gained 1 EN at start of turn, -2 from missing)
Juvenile wolf [HP 10/20] 

"

"Damnit! I thought I had you!" David shouted as the wolf avoided his next strike. It was learning however, and jumped straight at his chest at that moment. The beast used it's powerful paws to push the steel covered behemoth of a man down to the ground once more. While the razor sharp claws of it's front legs did no damage, he certainly wasn't going to be attacking again right away. In either case while he wasn't exactly afraid of the beast David was getting rather annoyed.

Then David remembered how suddenly the sensation of "pain" that the Nerve gear simulated had come on before. Turning his eyes to his HP gauge his worst fear was realized. Even though he had been ignoring it this whole time Health was still falling away quicker than he was comfortable with, and most of the time he was still missing his shots against the wolf.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Stats after battle damage

Spoiler

ID# 89369 results:

 MOB: 10

 David_Black [HP 16/20] [EN 0/2] (17-1 after mitigation)  (Gained 1 EN at start of turn)
Juvenile wolf [HP 10/20]

David learned the meaning of fear as the wolf jumped for his throat. With no time to think about his reaction the warrior threw his arm in front of his throat to guard it from the beast's powerful jaws. The wolf's teeth gnashed down on the steel of David's left bracer. With all of the force that the animal was exerting on the armor David thought that it might shatter. After a few moments of wriggling back and forth, and trying to destroy the man's arm the wolf let go.

David's eyes darted again to his health meter. Nearly a quarter of it had drained away by this point, and the faint buzzing sensation meant to symbolize pain was becoming sharper. His stoic nature was great, and all but this was starting to become a truly dangerous encounter for him. For the first time thoughts of running away passed through his mind. 

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Stats after battle damage

Spoiler

ID# 89370 results:

Battle: 3

MOB: 2

David_Black [HP 16/20] [EN -1/2]  (Gained 1 EN at start of turn, 2 lost due to miss)
Juvenile wolf [HP 10/20]

Using this chance to strike David swung his hammer hard, but without the proper skill to wield it only managed to launch it high into the air.

"What a shame." David panted. He knew that there was no way he was going to win this fight. It was taking far too long, and he had no real idea what he was doing. Not to mention the fact that the Nerve-gear was starting to simulate a great amount of fatigue for him given the time. At this point he made up his mind. As soon as he could catch his breath, the warrior was getting out of there. He wondered if his running speed would be too low to escape the wolf while wearing the armor. Sure he could easily take it off, but no sooner than he did would he make himself vulnerable to the wolf's fangs. It was certain death.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Stats after battle damage
 

Spoiler

 ID# 89371 results:

 LD: 9

David_Black [HP 15/20] [EN 0/2] (16-1 after mitigation)  (Gained 1 EN at start of turn)
Juvenile wolf [HP 10/20]

The wolf lunged again for an attack on David_Black, but he was ready this time. David took off to the northwest running as fast as the game's engine would allow him to move. Looking behind him periodically David noticed the beast still hot on his tail. Mobs in SAO didn't generally have boundaries, so once they are aggressive towards you getting out of their threat range is the only option other than defeating them. Since slaying the beast was proving to be more difficult of a task than David had imagined it would be all he could do was keep running, and pray that he didn't trip.

A chorus of "Bad, bad, bad bad bad!" could be heard echoing off the surrounding hills. Oh how David's father would have laughed to see his son running and screaming like a little girl. This would have been the ultimate shame for him. Thankfully in the dead of night no one was around to see his terror.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Stats after battle damage

Spoiler

 ID# 89372 results:

 Loot: 5

 MOB: 10

David_Black [HP 14/20] [EN 1/2] (15-1)  (Gained 1 EN at start of turn)
Juvenile wolf [HP 10/20]

Hot on David's heels the Wolf closed in for his strike. Leaping, and lunging forward he planted both fore-paws into the center of the warrior's back. He toppled, and began to roll down the hill he was in the process of descending. Another point of damage was taken away from his meager total. Such a sacrifice he could not afford.

"Crash!" "Bang!" "Bong!"

David's armor was truly getting beaten up as he managed to strike every large stone on the way down the hill. Thankfully though none of them had hit his head. Fighting wasn't working. Running wasn't working. The man was starting to run out of ideas. He only hoped that some higher level player saw his predicament and spared him the shameful agony of having to continue this fight any longer. Perhaps this was how it was supposed to end though. Perhaps he was just acting too foolishly.

Edited October 15, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Stats after Battle Damage

Spoiler

 ID# 89373 results:

 Battle: 10
 MOB: 1

David_Black [HP 14/20] [EN 1/2]  (Gained 1 EN at start of turn, spent 1 EN to attack)
Juvenile wolf [HP 6/20] (10-2BD-2crit)

As David shook off the cobwebs he noticed something rather peculiar by his hand. His hammer was sticking up out of the ground by the haft. Seizing it David regained his footing, and squared off with his charging foe. If running wasn't going to work then he would have to give this one shot everything he had. Foot by foot the Wolf got closer, and David drew the hammer back in a wide arc.

"Slam!"

The head of the hammer collided with the snout of the Wolf, and sent him reeling. Now he had time. Time to look at his health gauge once more. It was sitting at fourteen points out of twenty. Not the worst total in the world to be sure, but still far too low for comfort. He thought of drinking one of the potions that Hiro had lent him, but in the end decided not to. It was better to save them until they were absolutely needed.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Stats after battle damage

Spoiler

ID# 89374 results:
Battle: 6
MOB: 6

David_Black [HP 14/20] [EN 1/2]  (Gained 1 EN at start of turn, spent 1 EN to attack)
Juvenile wolf [HP 4/20] (6-2BD)

While his quarry was still reeling from the last blow David approached, and "gently" caressed the fiend about the face with his blunt implement of destruction. The impact must have given the beast a burst of adrenaline as it quickly got up, and shot forward to nip at the warrior's heels. The animal's fangs must have been nearing their breaking point as they clanged against David's left sabaton.

"You're not very bright are you pal, you're never getting through my defenses. Might as well give up." David chuckled as he wound up for another vicious assault. His bravado was false, and he knew it. His life was trickling away before his eyes, and the wolf was a fierce opponent indeed. Whoever had designed their A.I must have wanted them to be the bane of all new players. Fierce, angry, tenacious, and proud. This was a monster worth respecting. David shuddered to think what the full grown versions could do.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Stats after battle damage

Spoiler

ID# 89375 results:

 Battle: 6
 MOB: 8

David_Black [HP 13/20] [EN 1/2] (14-1 after mitigation)  (Gained 1 EN at start of turn, spent 1 EN to attack)
Juvenile wolf [HP 2/20] (4-2BD)

"Obviously not"

David sighed as the beast switched ankles, having no better luck with this one than the first. His pity, patience, and the cover of nightfall was beginning to run thin however. Soon these hills would be filled with players, and he would be discovered desperately trying to kill one of the lowest level monsters in the game. There were worse things to be caught doing he mused as he kicked the beast off of his leg.

"Not gonna happen" he said taking another violent swing at the Wolf. It connected, and made a sickening sound as it caved in the creature's ribs. Another blow might be all that David needed to end this nightmare for good. However he might not have the time to land that blow. The wolf was rabidly nibbling away at his health points. He could feel his heart racing in his chest, but there was little that could be done about it.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Stats after damage

Spoiler

ID: 89376    
BD: 3
MD: 10

David_Black [HP 12/20] [EN 0/2] (13-1)  (Gained 1 EN at start of turn, spent 2 EN to miss attack)
Juvenile wolf [HP 2/20] 

The injured animal was not backing down. It latched on to one of David's greaves, and tried with all it's might to cause even the slightest bit of damage. David had to try incredibly hard himself not to laugh seeing this pathetic creature gnawing on the steel that encircled his leg. Cocking his arm back David took another swing with his wooden hammer.   A bit overzealous with his swing David missed his mark again, and instead struck the ground just by the dog. He needed to focus. 

Dawn was beginning to creep up over the horizon. This battle with the wolf had lasted all night. Little did the beast know this was going to be it's last sunrise, or at least that's what David had in mind. The dwindling nature of his health ever present he steeled himself against the possibility that this might be his own last sunrise on earth. The shame was, it wasn't even real.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Rolls and Stats

Spoiler

 ID# 89377 results:

 Battle: 1

 MOB: 7

David_Black [HP 11/20] [EN -1/2] (12-1)  (Gained 1 EN at start of turn, spent 2 EN to miss attack)
Juvenile wolf [HP 2/20] 

"Swing and a miss!"

Thats what David's father would have kept yelling had he been watching his son's failure at hitting this wolf. It was no matter however as try as the beast might he still could not seem to get his fangs past David's armor. The poor creature had spirit, and since this was not going to end without him dying David decided right then to do something big to honor it.

"Clang!"

David couldn't help but let out a good, deep belly laugh at this point. The poor thing was still struggling. Now it was tugging at the chainmail chauses underneath David's greaves. He was feeling just as ragged as the wolf must have. Nearly half of his health was gone. In human terms half of his blood; his vital essence. The thoughts of failure, or fears of death that filled him before faded in this instant as David prepared to shake off the gnawing mongrel.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Rolls and stats

Spoiler

-
 ID# 89378 results:

 MOB: 6
 

David_Black [HP 10/20] [EN 0/2] (11-1)  (Gained 1 EN at start of turn, )
Juvenile wolf [HP 2/20] 

David could sense this affair coming to a close. The wolf's movements were slowing, and the HP gauge below it's red cursor was flashing erratically.  David took this moment to pause. He had seen, and heard of many that had died since they started playing SAO yet here he was dressed in a skin of steel weathering every attack this creature could throw at him. Most of them had perished for no good reason. Player killers, zerging through floors too quickly, and yet here he was just playing with his life like they were.

"Real life was dangerous too. what matters is I'm alive, and I shouldn't just hang around the bar anymore doing nothing. It's time to give this world some hell." David said aloud before cocking his hammer back for one final swing. His arm swelled, and he wished (not for the last time mind you) that he had put skill points into Warhammers. The fight would have been over ages ago.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black

[David_Black 0]

Rolls and stats

Spoiler

ID# 89379 results: (battle roll)

 Battle: 7

 MOB: 9

David_Black [HP 9/20] [EN 0/2] (10-1 after mitigation)  (Gained 1 EN at start of turn, )
Juvenile wolf [HP 0/20] 

 ID# 89380 results: (Loot roll)

 Craft: 10

 Loot: 20

+4 T1 Crafting Materials

+60 Col

The hammer fell, and so did the wolf. It exploded into millions of red crystalline shards which quickly faded into the new dawn. A white menu materialized in front of David's eyes. It denoted a sum of Col earned for slaying the creature, and four interesting crafting materials: Wolf skull, Wolf Hide, Wolf fang, and Wolf heart. David eagerly pressed the accept button on the menu which transferred the loot into his inventory. 

Scanning the horizon David noticed that he was pretty far from where he intended to originally go hunting at. A tall coniferous Forrest began just over the next hill, but at its foot stood something interesting. One of the massive trees must have fallen and rotted away some time ago because a hollowed out section of log sat just ahead. This log was big enough for a grown man to take shelter in, and whats more it appeared to have something carved into it. Having thoroughly quenched his thirst for battle David headed off to investigate the object.

Edited October 14, 2017 by David_Black