[F01 - SP] <<The First Few Lessons Are Free>>

[Bahr 0]

(I will be using Yui's Grace for this thread.)

The quest for gaining the Tailor profession had been taxing, but it hadn't been a waste of time. In addition to having a storefront of his own established and a skill that would help him down the road, he had managed to craft a piece of equipment that would be invaluable in aiding him along with his upcoming quests. One such quest was infamous for being what was probably designed to be the standard player's first ever quest, <<The First Few Lessons Are Free>>. Evidently it was super easy and only required searching for materials with no combat. Bahr figured his handy dandy new Pantaloots could help him in this regard. To make the journey more interesting, he pulled out an item he had been holding onto for quite some time - Yui's Grace. Supposedly using the item would yield bonus SP gains.

As he meandered into Zachariah's lab, the NPC immediately piped up with its canned dialogue.

"Welcome! I've been waiting for a young adventurer just like you. I need you to-"

"Please, for the love of god, just give me the quest."

The quest prompt appeared a moment later in front of Bahr. It seemed that all he really had to do was collect some materials, the same as he had heard around town. Eager to get to work, he departed from the lab and mad his way to the edge of town, headed toward the fields.

 

Spoiler

• LEVEL: 3
• HP: 60 / ENERGY: 6
• EVA: 0 / MIT: 0 / ACC: 0 / DMG: 5
• LD BONUS: 2
•  
• SKILLS
• NON-COMBAT
  »
  
  PASSIVE
  »
  
  COMBAT
  »
  
  WEAPON SKILLS
  » TWO-HANDED WEAPONS
       ➥ +3 DMG

INVENTORY

WEAPONS
» [EQUIPPED] "MINOR OCULUS" - TWO-HANDED STRAIGHT SWORD (RARE)
     ➥ +1 DMG
     ➥ BLEED

ARMOR
» [EQUIPPED] VANITY CRIMSON OVERCOAT
» [EQUIPPED] PANTALOOTS 
     ➥ +2 LD BONUS

TOOLS
» 

BATTLE READY ITEMS
» STARTER HEALING POTIONS (3)
     ➥ HEALS 50 HP

 

Edited July 11, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

Imagine, if you will, the most boring place on Earth (or in this case, Aincrad). Did you think of the plains on Floor One? You did, didn't you? No judgement here, I'm just the voice inside your head. You know, the one that sounds out the words mentally as you're reading them. Oh, wow, look at that scrunched up expression you just made. Am I making you uncomfortable? Okay, I'll stop. 

Anyways, for someone who had spent the past two years in the exact same spot, the plains had definitely lost their zeal. What had once seemed relaxed, peaceful and tranquil was now desolate and uninteresting. How he had managed to lollygag around the first floor for so long was completely beyond him. That first taste of the outside had gotten him hooked, and now he was chasing that feeling as far as it would take him. Hopefully all the way to the frontlines. 

Part of that was making it past the first floors, however. Finishing these quests may have been boring, but it was basically free SP. And who could pass that up? For this quest, all he needed to do was acquire materials out of combat. Easy, right? He walked through the fields carefully, his eyes scanning the tufts of grass. 

Spoiler

ID: 118627

LD: 6+2 

Search unsuccessful. 

 

Edited July 11, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

He hadn't found anything so far, but that didn't discourage him. It was a nice day out, after all. Even if the scenery was familiar, repetitive and boring, the warm sunlight and light breeze were doing wonders for keeping his mood upbeat. Who could honestly be upset on a day like today? The only thing that could make it better was finding the materials he needed and completing this quest.

"Alright, Pantaloots, show me what you're made of," he whispered to his pants before continuing along. Some might think it was odd behavior, but Bahr honestly couldn't care less. Who wasn't a at least a little crazy after two years trapped in this hell?

Perhaps he was in like, because he spotted another rabbit hole similar to the one he had found materials in during his first quest. He shoved his arm into the orifice, feeling around for anything that remotely resembled an item. 

Spoiler

ID: 118635

CD: 18+2

(1) T1 Material found! (1/5)

 

Edited July 11, 2019 by Bahr
Roll results

[Bahr 0]

Once again, the rabbit hole trick had proven worthy. As he pulled his hand from the hole, out with it came a T1 Material, just like he had been hoping. What was with these rabbits and their hoarding habits? It was no wonder he couldn't find any materials anywhere else!

With the item pocketed, Bahr's eyes scanned the landscape once more. This time he was looking for these rabbit holes in particular, as they seemed to be offering him the most luck so far. After a few moments, he spotted one such hole and ran over to it. 

Without a second thought, he dove toward the ground and just shoved his arm right in there up to the shoulder. His fingers tickled the edges of the small tunnel, feeling around for anything that was distinctly not dirt. As he was doing this, his eyes met with that of a small rabbit, which tilted its head while looking at him. 

"Don't worry, I'll be out of your hare in no time."

Spoiler

ID: 118637

LD: 16+2

(1) T1 Material found! (2/5)

 

Edited July 11, 2019 by Bahr
Roll result

[Bahr 0]

"Woah, no way."

Like clockwork, Bahr pulled up another T1 Material. It was interesting how easy things had become since he just started focusing on the holes. He had to be on to something here. This couldn't just be coincidence, right? Were holes the key to every secret in all of Aincrad?

He hurriedly pocketed the item and pranced along to his next target: another hole. He gazed upon the orifice with glee, imagining what spoils he might find there. T1 Materials. T1 Materials were the spoils he was imagining. I mean, what else was he expecting to dug out of a rabbit hole?

As with the previous holes, he just jumped in and shoved his arm right in there without a care in the world. This time, he felt something different. Just kidding, it was still just a hole in the dirt. He fingered the hole hoping for it to produce its loot. 

Spoiler

ID: 118640

LD: 1+2

Search unsuccessful. 

 

Edited July 11, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

Alas, his hole streak has come to a close. Within the hole he found nothing bet emptiness, and a longing for more. Probably for the best, as things had been starting to get weird. If he had continued, it was likely he would have picked up some sort of disease. Then he wouldn't be able to search other holes, lest he spread it the ailment. Yes, it was best that he stopped now. 

But he still had a quest to complete, didn't he? Perhaps he would find something within the branches of that tree over yonder. Yes, that's exactly what he would do. He traversed the field and arrived at the solitary tree, eyeing it from top to bottom. It looked tricky, but he was confident that he could handle it.

He grabbed a branch with both hands, placed a foot against the trunk, pulled himself up and promptly lost his grip, faceplanting into the bark. After a bit of grumbling, he tried again, this time successfully pulling himself up into the branches. Once in the tree, he started looking around for materials. Perhaps a squirrel had stashed some somewhere?

Spoiler

ID: 118643

LD: 6+2

Search unsuccessful. 

HP: 59

 

Edited July 11, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

No luck, it seemed. Perhaps he had been off track earlier when he assumed animals were stealing the materials. But if they weren't, where could he find some?

As he attempted to climb down, he lost his footing on one of the branches and fell face-first toward the ground. He rolled over and groaned loudly after impact, embarrassed and in pain. Luckily, it was Aincrad-style pain, though. Not real pain. If that had been a real tree and a real fall, he probably would have broken his neck right there. Instead, he just lost a couple HP. Not too bad. 

While laying on the ground, something out of the corner of his eye caught his attention. It was another hole. But not just any hole, a hole in the trunk of the tree. If a squirrel was going to hide something anywhere, it had to be there, right? He stood up straight and looked into the hole for a moment before shoving his hand in there, feeling around for anything that resembled an item. 

Spoiler

ID: 118644

LD: 13+2

(1) T1 Material found! (3/5)

HP: 57

 

Edited July 11, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

Absolutely marvelous. Holes truly were the key. Wherever a hole lay, there was an 80% chance you would find something in it. Bahr had the power of RNG and anime on his side, and there was no reason to stop now. 

His eyes flickered excitedly about the environment, scanned for anything that even remotely resembled a hole. To his dismay, he couldn't find any. There was, however, a patch of tall grass no far off. Perhaps some clever creature had hidden something there. Or better yet, perhaps a hole was hidden in the grass. 

He meandered over to the patch poking through it with his sword. Becoming annoyed with the patch quickly, he swung his sword through the patch to cut it down, the clipping exploding into blue triangular pixels. With less grass in the way, he found it much easier to search around. 

Spoiler

ID: 118646

LD: 19+2

(1) T1 Material found! (4/5)

HP: 60

 

Edited July 11, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

No hole here, but there was a material the search was going much smoother than he ever could have imagined. He only needed, what, one more material? Too easy. In fact, which how quickly everything was going, it wasn't a stretch to imagine farming some loot off a couple monsters before heading back in. 

There was still the matter of the final material, though. Looking around, Bahr couldn't see any obvious spots where a material might be hiding. The narrator could, though. The narrator saw all. It was right under Bahr's nose. 

Then he finally noticed it. There was indeed another hole nestled within the grassy patch he had just trimmed. The Bloodedge was filled with glee, and promptly dropped to his knees and shoved his arm into the hole. You know the drill, he searched around it tenderly like he did all the other holes. Could he get lucky again?

Spoiler

ID: 118648

LD: 18+2

(1) T1 Material found! (5/5)

 

Edited July 11, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

He had done it. Yet again, the power of the hole proved its immensity. He triumphantly held the material above his head for all to see. Except nobody was there. Yes, the fields of the first floor were indeed desolate after two years of play. Who was sad enough to spend any length of time there anymore? Well, besides Bahr, that is. He was simply a broken man who had wallowed in apathy for several years following the announcement. Even if it was pathetic, he had an excuse. 

It dawned on him that he still had plenty of time on his hands before he needed to head back to Zachariah. Perhaps now was time to take on some of those monsters he had been thinking about before. Luckily, there happened to be a boar nearby that fit the bill. 

Spoiler

Encounter: Boar

HP: 30

DMG: 9

While the creature was distracted, Bahr's sword began to glow. He bent his knees before thrusting his sword forward. Almost as though by magical influence, the sword seemed to carry him as he rocketed forward toward the boar. 

Spoiler

[×2] Straight

ID: 118649

BD: 2 / MD: 2

HP: 60 / ENERGY: 4

EVA: 0 / MIT: 0 / ACC: 0 / DMG: 5

Both parties miss. 

 

Edited July 11, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

While the power of the Sword Art Straight was impressive, it was a bit too much for Bahr to handle at present time. Without the accuracy to back it up, Bahr simply ended up sailing right past the boar, which consequently became away of his presence. By the time Bahr had finally managed to collect himself and stand up straight again, the boar was charging straight for him. As luck would have it, however, the boar also completely missed its mark, flying right past Bahr and into a nearby bush. 

He was getting an acute sense of deja vu from all of this. It seemed the battles with his most noble adversary, the boar, always went like this. There was no straightforward way to fight a boar, only complete and unchecked randomness. Bahr cracked a grin as he regarded his rival, who had managed to get itself out of the bush. Without another thought, his blade began to glow and he charged the boar with Straight yet again. 

Spoiler

[×2] Straight

ID: 118650

BD: 1 / MD: 9

HP: 50 / ENERGY: 3

EVA: 0 / MIT: 0 / ACC: 0 / DMG: 5

Critical miss against boar. Boar lands critical attack on Bahr for 10 damage. 

 

Edited July 11, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

Another swing, another miss. Amazing how useless Bahr was without accuracy buffs. He could only hope that the trinket he had recently commissioned would be enough to make him a more worthy fighter. While he embarrassingly missed yet again, the boar had managed to find its inner focus, ramming directly into Bahr's side and sending him skipping across the ground like a stone across water. It would have seemed almost graceful if it wasn't so downright embarrassing. 

As Bahr picked himself up, his eyes flickered to his SP gauge. It was almost halfway depleted by this point, and he hadn't even managed to scratch the boar. How typical, he mused. As discouraging as it was to be seeing a repeat of his last encounter with a boar, only against a stronger one now, Bahr had no choice but to press through. He had started the fight, and he intended to finished it. 

Once again, his blade began to glow. Once again, he bent his knees. Once again, he lurched forward at incredible speeds, aiming the tip of his blade right between the boar's eyes. 

Spoiler

[×2] Straight

ID: 118652

BD: 1 / MD: 5

HP: 50 / ENERGY: 2

EVA: 0 / MIT: 0 / ACC: 0 / DMG: 5

Both parties miss.

 

Edited July 11, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

Unbelievable - another miss. Even though it looked like the attack was headed straight for the board's face, it diverted course at the last minute and whiffed entirely. Bahr spat in disappointment as he sailed past the boar once more. A second later, the ugly beast reared its head and charged after Bahr again. Bahr held out the flat part of his sword in an attempt to block the attack, managing to divert the course of the boar just enough to avoid damage. 

This was getting just a little ridiculous. Three sword skills, and not a single hit? The favor of the RNG gods had turned, and Bahr was none too happy about it. His destiny couldn't be as a gatherer, could it? No, he couldn't accept that. 

Once again, his sword began to glow, and that familiar whistle pervaded through the area. He targeted the boar, bent his legs, and shot forward like a rocket, hoping that this time the Straight would hit its mark. 

Spoiler

[×2] Straight

ID: 118656

BD: 4 / MD: 10

HP: 39 / ENERGY: 1

EVA: 0 / MIT: 0 / ACC: 0 / DMG: 5

Bahr's attack misses. Boar lands critical roll for 11 damage. 

 

Edited July 12, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

This time, things were a little different. Instead of Bahr just missing as he seemed to be so good at, the boar actually dodged this time. In a beautiful display of agilitic mastery, the board gracefully sidestepped Bahr's Straight and slammed its head into Bahr's ribs. His vision went blurry for a moment as the wind was knocked completely out of him, and he fell to the ground gasping for air. As he struggled just to breathe, he noticed that his HP still hadn't fallen into the yellow yet. That was good, but the fact that he didn't seem capable of hitting the boar, coupled with the fact that it kept landing critical on him with ease, had him reconsidering whether or not he should even continue attempting to fight the thing. 

But surely, things couldn't actually be that bad. After all, he wasn't even in the yellow yet, and he had been in similar situations before. Despite his SP dwindling, he was confident that if he just followed through, he could see the demise of this boar. Using the last of his SP, Bahr's sword began to glow and whistle once more, and he dashed toward the boar with yet another Straight. 

Spoiler

[×2] Straight

ID: 118658

BD: 5 / MD: 9

HP: 29 / ENERGY: 0

EVA: 0 / MIT: 0 / ACC: 0 / DMG: 5

Bahr misses. Boar gets ANOTHER FREAKING CRIT for 10 damage. 

 

Edited July 12, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

"Gwooooo-jesus..."

What the hell was that noise he just made? What a strange sound. Surely nothing like that purely guttural sound could come from a human. But here Bahr was, making the sound anyways, because he didn't care about what the narrator thought was possible. He had yet again managed to miss, and the boar had yet again managed to secure a critical hit against him. His patience had reached his maximum, and he would no longer tolerate these shenanigans. 

"That's it! I'm outta here!" he exclaimed between labored breaths. He wasn't willing to just sit around while a boar had it's way with him. No. As much as he hated the thought of retreating, he felt like he had little choice at this point. He had run out of SP and the boar was still untouched. Meanwhile, his health had just dipped into the yellow, and the boar officially had more health that he did. He resolved to retreat, get something with an ACC buff, and come back to put these boars through a hell that even Swine Jesus could not comprehend. 

Without further adieu, he turned tail and ran as fast and as far away as he possibly could. 

Spoiler

ID: 118661

LD: 12

Partial-failure for fleeing. No damage dealt. 

HP:29 / EN: 1

 

Edited July 12, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

After Bahr felt he had made it far enough away to be safe, he stopped and bent over, placing his hands on his knees and panting heavily. Whether in the real world or virtual, he had never run so fast in his entire life, or so far. In an attempt to ease the breathing process, he stood up straight and put his arms above his head. 

"Holy hell... I thought I was a goner for sure..."

And that's when we saw it. Coming up over the horizon was the silhouette of none other than Swine Jesus, angrier than ever, charging directly toward him. It was still following! Bahr groaned loudly and stomped one of his feet. 

"You have got to be kidding me! Argh!"

Without much choice, he turned tail and attempted to run again, pushing to go harder and faster than before. He couldn't believe he was still running from this thing. The aggro mechanics in this game were w lot more aggressive than he had anticipated. 

Spoiler

ID: 118664

LD: 7

MD: 4

Fail. Boar misses attack.

HP:29 / EN: 2

 

Edited July 12, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

There comes a point in every man's life where he has to look introspectively and determine what he's doing with his life, where his life is headed, what his virtues and flaws are, and who he truly is. This is a necessary tenet to fully becoming an adult. Moments of reflection like these, true reflection, are few and far between. It isn't every day you can sum up the courage to open your mind, take a good hard look at yourself, and truly come to absolutely objective conclusions about your being. Well this was one of those times for Bahr. 

He peeked back over his shoulder as he continued to run. Swine Jesus trailed not far behind. He readjusted his head to look forward again, keeping his rhythmic breathing going. It seemed he may have a long future of running ahead of him. 

What's that? You're wondering about the introspection bit from above? Oh, that was just filler. No way did Bahr have the time to think about any of that right now. He was ragged tired and practically begging for death. Did you really think he was going, "Hmm, this isn't how I figured my life would turn out,"? Well, to a certain extent, he probably was. But not consciously. Not on that level, anyways. 

Spoiler

ID: 118665

LD: 8

Partial-failure for fleeing. No damage dealt. 

HP:29 / EN: 3

 

Edited July 12, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

After running for long enough of a time, it almost starts to morph into something akin to meditation. You really start to get into your own headspace and feel the rhythm. Bahr wasn't even scared at this point. He was just wondering if he could run in a straight line right off the edge of of Aincrad before outrunning this boar.

It sure had a thing for him, Swine Jesus. Funny how it had received it's own moniker. Bahr had actually grown attacked to the pig somehow. Attached in the, "I'll definitely return to slaughter you when I have more ACC," sorta way. He detested this particular mob in a way he had never hated an artificial construct before. In all his years playing MMOs, he had never come across a foe so fearsome at such a low level. And it just so happened that, with this one, there were real consequences at stake. Hell, if it were any ordinary MMO, he would have just let the thing kill him by now so he could be over and done with it. 

But that wasn't an option, so continue to run he did. 

Spoiler

ID: 118668

LD: 8

Partial-failure for fleeing. No damage dealt.

HP:29 / EN: 4

 

Edited July 12, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

For the past four minutes or so, Bahr had been laughing hysterically. It wasn't a joyous laugh. No, this was the laugh of a broken man. How long had he been running? Three, maybe four hours? He was so tired he could barely decipher the clock. Around thirty minutes ago or so, he had gotten a second wind by thinking of the people he needed to get back to. The people he needed to survive to see again. But even that seemed ridiculous to him, now. He just wanted it all to end. 

He decided that if he didn't manage to outrun the boar soon, he would accept his fate and battle it to the death. His SP was almost fully restored, after all. He would press on running for a bit longer, but if he still failed to outrun the creature, he would finish the fight - whether that resulted in his death or the death of the boar. 

Spoiler

ID: 118671

LD: 3

MD: 4

Fail. Boar misses attack. 

HP:29 / EN: 5

 

Edited July 12, 2019 by Bahr

[Bahr 0]

"ALRIGHT, THAT'S ENOUGH!" Bahr shouted as he stopped dead in his tracks, turned on his heel, and deflected the boar's charge. "I AM SO SICK OF THIS. YOU'RE GOING DOWN, SWINE JESUS, RIGHT NOW!"

It was as though the pent up rage and aggression that had been building for the past two years had finally bubbled to the surface. Bahr hated this. He hated being stuck in this game. He hated how weak he was. He hated how he had just spent the past several hours running away from the most relentless boar in the galaxy. Enough was enough. Whether he lived or died, it was time they finished this. 

He didn't even assume the appropriate stance for Straight. He simply sprinted toward the boar as fast as his tired legs would carry him, yelling out over the hum of his Sword Skill activating as he thrust the blade out in front of him as hard as he possibly could. 

Spoiler

[×2] Straight

ID: 118672

BD: 5 / MD: 3

HP: 29 / ENERGY: 4

EVA: 0 / MIT: 0 / ACC: 0 / DMG: 5

 

Edited July 12, 2019 by Bahr