[F21-SP] Desperate Gathering <Nature's Treasures>

[Itzal 0]

Food Consumable:  +3 LD
Slime Farm:  +2 SP
+3 LD cloak

Total LD:  5+3+3=11

 The boss fight between the players of Aincrad and the Leviathan was...  Well a washout, pun not intended.  They had gotten close, nearly reaching the final sixth of its health.  But the damage from the rain, minions, and it's three individual attacks were simply proving to be far too much for the players.  So in the end, since they valued their own lives over beating the literally impossible odds.  Sey, Zandra and Ariel teleported out, while Itzal let the boss's apparent idle mechanic to take him out of the fight without him having to die to do so.  Needless to say it was infuriating.  This was the very first time the players had to actually bail an entire fight due to not being able to kill it in one go.  The bosses were getting stronger, that much was very clear.  How longer would this be taking them?  Well, at any rate, they had the necessary knowledge to fight it properly this time.  He spotted a cluster of crystals and stuffed them into his inventory.  Hopefully he'd still have luck finding materials throughout the entire day.

ID#  118297  CD:  10  LD:  9+11=20  +5 Materials

[Itzal 0]

Itzal looked at the crystals carefully.  They were all in really good shape, and were all different shades of blue.  Dark blue, baby blue, navy blue, cyan blue.  Interesting.  He sighed as his thoughts focused once again on their failure to defeat the floor boss.  He had barely made it out of there himself, he would have hated it if anyone else failed to escape.  He shivered as he thought of how he was thrown into the ocean and immobilized until everyone had left the boss room.  He hated being forced into not doing anything for a moment or two.  But to be completely and utterly immobilized for a lengthly amount of time was real bad.  He did not want to experience it again.  Next time he was making sure everyone had a teleport crystal.  He narrowed his eyes as he thought of it.  How could they be so stupid walking in without a teleport crystal in hand?  It was a basic necessity, their only lifeline.  Why did they forsake it in the first place?  He rummaged around for any extra crystals and found a few more.  Shades of blue that were on the verge of becoming purple.  Taking them into his inventory he continued on.

ID#  118308  CD: 2  LD:  11+11=22  +2 MAT

[Itzal 0]

Standing back up and walking away from the pile of rocks and stones to look for more materials, his thoughts dwelled on the meeting.  He had stepped forward and told everyone what the risks were.  He told them what happened at the event, and he told them that if they stepped into the boss room that there was a good chance they could very well die.  And despite the fact that Hestia most likely hates him for having revealed the truth, he'd rather they knew the risks and prepare than them walking in overconfident and arrogant, with little to no buffs or equipment.  He made the right choice and he would gladly take on Hestia's wrath if it meant saving lives.  She wanted to make the frontlines look like some higher group who can accomplish anything, but that was asking for people to take risks.  That was throwing naive and innocent lives and minds at a dragon...  Even still, apparently people didn't take his word for it.  He needed to be the frontline's voice and make sure people knew what happened.  Hestia could try covering it up but he would make sure the truth stays in the light.  He spotted four stones which he almost passed over until he stepped on one and found purple gemstones hiding within it.  A geode huh?

ID#  118312  CD:  11  LD:  1  +4 MAT

[Itzal 0]

As he squatted down to take the geodes, he thought about Hestia and how she'd been changing.  It started during that cursed boss fight when Hirru actually defended the floor boss instead of fight it.  Hestia actually took his side which he couldn't believe.  It was nothing but ones and zeros for crying out loud, code that could easily be rewritten and replaced.  On top of that, they were placed there as the enemy for a reason.  These floor bosses weren't just random enemies they had to fight, they have their own story interwoven into the lore of each and every floor.  The council of elves was made up of corrupt individuals who murdered the queen.  But they believed that just because they had a humanoid shape made it wrong to kill them?  What about the giant moth who had children in her eggs?  There was too much hypocrisy in their words, and even worse it demanded they forsake their own lives in favor of those that have none.  He noticed a shine and spotted some metallic shards hidden in the gravel.  He dug them out and put them in his inventory.

ID#  118313  CD:  7  LD:  20  +4 MAT

15 Total

[Itzal 0]

His eyes opened wide when he saw the flavor text for the metallic shards.  Mithril?  Huh, well I'll be.  He smiled before continuing his search.  Standing back up, he continued to walk.  When Itzal had found out that Hestia genuinely sided with Hirru and that they should protect humanoid bosses who don't seem all that bad because it was inhumane to just slaughter them when every player was being held hostage, he reacted badly.  He hated the idea of agreeing with Hirru and was angry with Hestia for it.  Admittedly he was still a bit bitter about it.  However...  He knew that he should never react out of anger, and he should have talked about it with her once the two of them had cooled down.  Still, he couldn't do much about it right now.  If he approached her as Itzal the first thing she'd do is scold and lecture him on having left and abandoned everyone.  And he didn't need that, not now at least.  His eye caught what looked like a plant.  When he investigated closer he found his suspicions to be right and picked the four of them.

ID#  118314  CD:  9  LD:  6+11=17  +4 MAT

[Itzal 0]

Itzal thought it odd that there would be green vegetation down here.  Mushrooms yes, but not actual leafy plants.  Interesting..  Moving past the issue between him and Hestia at this time, fact of the matter was that after said event, she'd been trying to cover up the frontline's failures and glorify them to no end.  She even lied about Adrian's level and that he was a child, just stating that Hidden was working with someone.  What the worst part about all of this was that Itzal loved to help people.  Yet here he was helpless to correct her onto the right path..  He shook his head as he focused his thoughts again.  Hopefully they didn't need to have another meeting and just come back with a fury.  They knew what was coming now, so they could be more prepared.  DPS players needed to be able to focus their targets on the water crystals, segments, and when it pushed forward the boss itself.  AoE players needed to focus on handling the multitude of monsters that emerged every time the segment was destroyed, while also helping out with the water crystals and segments.  He spotted some more minerals as he walked by and added them to his inventory.

ID#  118317  CD:  2  LD:  2+11=13  +2 MAT

21 Total

[Itzal 0]

Ever since the fallen event, the game had changed.  No longer was it simply 'get strong and slaughter'.  They had to start implementing legitimate strategy now.  They couldn't just charge forward with thought out teams.  They had to be able to adapt to the fighting grounds.  Assess what enemies were there, what effects and abilities it had, and determine from there who should attack what, when they should attack, when to pull back, when to heal, etc.  And the greatest issue with this, was that the frontlines needed strong bonds of trust.  No one was ever going to trust him as Are, that was a fact.  He had to gain people's trust through Zandra, and Zandra alone.  And he doubted anyone would listen to him if he tried to give another speech.  Whichever path they took however, trust and respect had to be established.  Otherwise the infighting would never cease and they would get nowhere. And Itzal was not about to let that happen.  As he continued to walk he spotted another large cluster of materials.  This time mushrooms.  He wondered what kind of foods a cook could make with this as he harvested them.

ID#  118801  CD: 10  LD:  4+11=15  +5 MAT

26

[Itzal 0]

At this point the idea of a counsel of Aincrad was looking stupid.  There was just too much bitterness, too much disagreement.  As much as he liked the idea and had hoped and wished it would become a reality, that just wasn't going to happen anymore.  So he was just going to focus on what he alone could do.  He hated working alone, but at this point he couldn't really see many other options...  That is, he had Zandra and Domarus, but with Domarus being in a bad place right now, and Zandra not really all that good with stealth.  Though it was possible she could help  him set up traps and such...  He wondered if she'd even want to take down pkers with him.  Questions to be answered at a later time however.  Itzal took a second to think about the name Zandra had given him during the frontliners meeting.  Are...  He noticed some herbal plants and began to harvest these.  He wondered if these were ingredients for potions...  He was curious as to what the flavor text had to say...

ID#  118966  CD:  12  LD:  12+11=23  +5 MAT

31 Total

[Itzal 0]

As he opened the material's menu, he noted that the herbal plants were known as Dragon's Breath.  His eyebrow raised for a little moment but he supposed it made sense.  The entire religion and culture on this floor was based and focused around the concept of a massive black dragon acting as an overlord.  Itzal inserted them into his inventory before continuing onward.  He wondered for a little bit what the name Are even meant.  He was going to have to ask Zandra the next time they met up.  And why she felt the need to call him that.  At any rate he would now be known as Are, and not Itzal, for quite some time in the frontlines.  Or perhaps forever depending on what happened.  He looked around but wasn't seeing Velnia.  He stopped moving and started looking around some more, even using his searching skill and mods.  But she wasn't anywhere to be seen.  So, Itzal whistled for her to come back.  He saw a sparkle of silver shoot into the air in the distance before zipping towards him with a bundle of Dragon's Breath in her jaws.

ID#  119138  CD:  10  LD:  20  +5 MAT

36 Total

[Itzal 0]

Seeing Velnia shoot towards him caused his eyes to widen and duck down to the ground.  Just as he did that she zoomed over him and curved in the air, gliding around.  Itzal stood up again and turned his head, watching her as she glided in for a landing.  Sighing as she floated onto his shoulder he held his hands out for her to drop the plants into.  Another bundle of five huh?  This day was turning out to be pretty fruitful.  "So.  Good on you for finding materials...  But why did you have to just vanish without letting me know?  You worry me, you realize that right?"  Velnia just grinned and nuzzled her head against him.  Itzal couldn't help but chuckle and pet her in response.  His dragon was practicing being quiet and stealthy, but still.  It could be difficult at times but still.  As he stroked her he noticed some moss growing on the cavernous wall.  He wondered...  Would that count as materials?  He took it off and it did in fact register.  He ended up getting two materials worth of them.  Interesting...

ID#  119139  CD:  3  LD:  16  +3 MAT

39 Total

[Itzal 0]

Itzal decided to take a better look at the moss.  It was really weird looking if he was honest, and kind of sticky.  Not the kind of sticky that stays on your hand though.  The moss was pale, and seemed to almost have tendrils.  He looked at the name of the material.  Spider moss?  He opened the flavor text to have a peak.  'This unusual moss grows in a way that can easily be mistaken for a spider’s web.  Stretching across the walls, it grows onto the ceiling, falls down and lets the wind catch it, so that it latches onto another wall or ceiling and so forth.  It is very sticky, and as such useful for both Tailors and Artisans who need to stick materials together. Alchemists use this to make Over-Health potions.'  Itzal blinked as he read this..  Well that was definitely interesting.  He'd never encountered something like this before.  Spider moss huh?  He looked around to see if there were any other materials lying around this area.  He looked around corners and cracks and crevices, and ended up spotting five more spider moss.  Crawling into the crevice he went ahead and collected all the spider moss he could...  This was, a change of pace.

ID#  119300  CD:  12  LD:  4+11=15  +5 MAT

44 Total

[Itzal 0]

Itzal looked at the spider moss before having a thought.  He picked a sixth one and tried to use it like a hook shot.  Throwing it onto a large boulder and trying to pull on it like he would a rope.  But the moss tore rather quickly and the material was lost.  So the moss wasn't as strong as a web, just as sticky.  Interesting.  It's been a while since he had experimented with materials or the way the systems of the game worked...  He missed this.  He walked back outside and continued to search the area.  If Kayaba was adding in unique materials, giving them interesting name and flavor texts, then this might not be so boring after all.  He needed to find out where these materials resided, where they didn't belong, and so forth..  Maybe he should write a catalogue.  As he walked he wondered if certain mushrooms were gather able and others were not.  He went to ones he assumed were just decor and tried to take them.  Yup. It was a material after all.  All this time he could have been collecting them and he didn't...  What kind of scout was he?

ID#  119301  CD:  8  LD:  9+11  +4 MAT

48 MAT total

[Itzal 0]

Itzal pulled up the mushroom's flavor text to see what it was.  Cave shroom?  Not very creative, but it was supposed to be super common he supposed.  He doubted it had any really special properties but it wasn't going to hurt him to check.  Itzal thus opened up it's flavor text.  'No one knows how these mushrooms glow, but whatever the reason they are how players can navigate the cavernous floors.  Upon being tested, these plants are in fact edible. Furthermore, unlike most mushrooms, Cave Shrooms seem to help block toxins entering the body, making them an ideal ingredient for antidotes.'  He blinked.  Alright, antidotes made sense.  He looked at the glowing mushroom for a little bit while thinking about how he'd seen this in many caves throughout Aincrad.  Perhaps there were generic materials and floor specific materials?  That would be interesting to come across for certain.  Itzal went ahead and picked a few more of these cave shrooms, wanting to have as many materials of each category he could.  Both for crafting and for research purposes.

ID#  119303  CD:  9  LD:  8+11  +4 MAT

52 Total

[Itzal 0]

Itzal was now thinking less of just hoarding as many materials as he could, and more focused on any new materials he could find.  This was actually getting a little bit exciting if he was being honest.  He really looked forward to-  his thoughts were interrupted as he heard Velnia freaking out.  Itzal drew his sword and aimed it at the sound.  The last time his familiar died it was protecting him and Ulises from a seriously oversized warg.  This time however, it seemed she got herself tangled up in some of that spider moss.  Itzal's eyes widened for a short moment before he started chuckling.  He cut down the moss which destroyed it, allowing her to be free and move around again.   "You know, this is really starting to become interesting.  The world is starting to flesh itself out."  Velnia just snorted, though instead of smoke it was a tiny cloud of iron dust that poofed out.  Itzal chuckled again before he went ahead and gathered the rest of the spider moss in this area.  Might as well right?  No point in wasting it...  Spider moss.  What an interesting choice.

ID#  119304  CD:  9  LD:  8+11  +4 MAT

56 Total

[Itzal 0]

As he continued to gather materials he wondered what type of materials would be in other floors.  What would the materials be on the Greek floor?  Pegasus mane?  Celestial bronze?  He chuckled as he imagined something out of the ordinary like bottled greek fire.  What could someone even make with that he wondered?  Physical fire made into weapons or armors maybe?  That would be interesting for certain...  He wondered for a moment about the floors that held little to no lore at all within them.  There were many floors that were either generic, lack luster, or just vague at best.  What kind of materials would be put in those he wondered.  Was this material list being made by the cardinal specifically to flesh out the world?  He could only wonder...  Eventually he spotted another material, but this was one he was familiar with:  Glowstones?  Wait, were they gather able now?  What about them being able to nullify the affects of darkness?  It didn't seem like Cardinal would be handing them out anytime soon.  He picked up four hand sized crystals and checked the flavor text.

ID#  119635  CD:  8  LD:  10+11=21  +4 MAT

60 Total

[Itzal 0]

The crystals were all a light blue shade.  One of the stereotypical glow stone colors.  Itzal hit the flavor text in order to see if his question would be answered:  'Glowstones are a common staple in caves and caverns, and provide enough light to see when clustered in a large group.  By themselves they aren’t enough to illuminate a player’s path unless fermented by merchants. They are often used by Artisans to act as glowing gemstones and are a common staple by Performers who want a bit of flare to their work.'  Itzal looked up from the stone at the cluster, then back down to his stone.  Huh.  That's actually smart.  Fermented by merchants eh?  That way anyone could gather them, but only merchants could give away the potent glowing ones that actually did anything.  Additionally, it made an excellent point that artisans could use these to add a bit of glowing or shining flare to their work.  It's quite genius actually.  He went ahead and collected more to add into his inventory.  Adding in a total of five additional crystals or materials to his collection today.

ID#  119636  CD:  10  LD:  13+11=23  +5 MAT

65 Total

[Itzal 0]

How much did that make today?  Sixty five?  Dang and it wasn't even that long.  This was a great haul.  If he had someone with him however, this would probably go a lot faster.  Maybe Zandra would be interested in material gathering.  Or just gathering loot drops off of monsters together...  He wished he had better damage so he could help her out with that, but still.  Maybe his high looting abilities would be enough.  They would have better chance for col, and if they burned through mobs like butter they could gather a hell of a lot of gear.  If they did that, they could decide what they wanted and send it to Dagger for appraisal.  Hopefully they'd get unique equipment out of it too.  He noticed another cluster of crystals, this one being a light green instead of blue.  He went ahead and took as many as he could, which ended up being another nice pair of five materials.  This was a very good day for Itzal.  A very good haul indeed for the frontliners.  He was happy that the crystal he'd been using so long for making songs with was finally an official material in Aincrad....  It felt really good, and fulfilling for some reason.

ID#  119637  CD:  12  LD:  6+11=17  +5 MAT

70 Total

[Itzal 0]

As he stood up again from gathering the materials he thought about what he'd collected thus far.  He had spider moss, which apparently was a unique moss that followed air currents so that it could be blown onto other areas, spreading like a spider's web.  Evidently usable for making over health potions, but that kind of made sense seeing as how it stuck together.  Cave shrooms as well, which were the staple for caves.  Hence the name.  And now he had glow stones which were now a staple material for underground caves.  So the question he had now was....  What next?  What other materials would he come across?  He was about to come up with theories when he noticed an odd plant that he nearly stepped on.  He pulled his foot aside and kneeled down to look at it closer.  It was a dark green plant, with it's leaves shooting up then curving back to one side.  The flower on it looked odd and when Itzal inspected it, he was shocked to see that the flower pedals were made entirely out of, silk...  Pedals made of silk???

ID#  119638  CD:  5  LD:  11+11=22  +3 MAT

73 Total

[Itzal 0]

As the scout inspected this odd material, he decided to just pick it up and read it.  Evidently it was called Dragon Fur.  He looked at the flavor text: 'No one anticipated a plant such as this one.  The leaves reminding one of a dragon’s horns and wings, the flower petals themselves are made of pure silk.  This silk being extremely strong and durable, Alchemists can make mitigation potions from this small material.  Even Tailors manage to use silk to bind their works together to create a durable and strong fabric.'  Itzal blinked a couple of times.  Kayaba was getting really creative as of late.  Silk from a plant that's strong enough to bind clothing and create a potion of mitigation?  Made sense why they named it dragon's fur.  Itzal shook his head as he added it to his inventory.  He looked for more of these materials and spotted a few more.  There didn't seem to be many in this area but still.  He went ahead and picked two more of the materials and added them to the collection, making a total of seventy five.

ID#  119640  CD:  1  LD:  9+11=20  +2 MAT.

75 Total

[Itzal 0]

Itzal looked at his collection of materials.  The combination of many many mushrooms, spider moss, glow stones, and now the new dragon fur flowers.  He wondered what other kind of materials lie in wait for him in this floor.  But that would have to wait.  He had seventy five materials which was enough to start off for a bit.  He could always gather more when doing quests and such.  Before he left however, he figured he may as well try and find a chest or two.  As he looked around he gestured for Velnia to help him look for it.  She started flying in circles around the area as he walked around, keeping his eyes peeled for it and keeping reveal active.  Eventually he spotted it, which Velnia spotted at the exact same time.  She thought she was the only one who saw it, so he'd smile and pretend he didn't see it.  Itzal walked over to it and pulled out his lock pick and tools.  Hopefully he'd be able to get a decent reward from this.  

ID:  119641  LD:  12+11=23

Chest Found!