[F20 | SP] Cat's Cradle | <<Scent of the Wild: Pouncing Puma>>

[Acanthus 0]

Dear Pinball, |

Her fingers hovered over the virtual keyboard, directionless. It had been months since she last laid eyes on her friend. (At least, it felt like months. Time always seemed to move oddly in Aincrad.) Acanthus wasn’t terribly worried about the absence: he still showed up as online—in other words, alive—whenever she began a message to him. And his company had been sporadic even on the first half of their journey together. Pinball had a way of disappearing at the drop of a hat, and turning up whenever he felt like it. And as someone that preferred her own solitude, she knew better than to judge for those quiet times.

Her conscience flailed because she had never really talked with Pinball before. She’d messaged him to coordinate for these quests, and they had chatted lightly during those quests. But they’d never *talked*. It was because I acted oddly during the colossus thread, isn’t it. Her hands still froze over the keyboard. Maybe if I message him something about that, then he’ll respond.

Maybe he’s off killing more people. The nastiness of her thought immediately disgusted her. You know that’s not like him at all. You’re just bitter that he vanished. Turning her attention to the task at hand, she delved into the jungle.

Acanthus | Lvl 72 (38/34)  HP: 1056/1056 | EN: 120/120 | DMG: 26 | MIT:220 | ACC:4 | AA  | FL.AURA: 16 | THORNS:72 | Immolation: 40 | BH:58 | HB: 46 | LD:6

Spoiler

Equipment and Consumables

Spoiler

All enhancements reflected in the stat block unless otherwise specified.

Equipment
Weapon. botan. AA | ACC 3
Armor (Heavy). Corpse Flower's Kiss  MIT II | Thorns II
Shield. Fractured Heart | Holy Blessing 2 | Flame Aura 2

Consumables
Immolation Potion | When used, successful non-critical attacks against you deal (10 * Tier) unmitigated damage to the attacking enemy. Must be of the appropriate tier to use. Effect lasts for one thread.
Ass-Kicking Absinthe | 231995-2 | DMG III
Bingsu | T4 | Mitigation III
Bento | T4 | Overhealth III Filled

Abilities (Skills, Shifts, Masteries, Add-ons, and Mods)

Spoiler

Combat Mastery and Shift
Combat Mastery: Damage R3
AoE Shift

Skills

• Battle Healing R5
• Energist
• Heavy Armor R5
  • Addon: Precision
  • Addon: Iron Skin
  • Mod: Impetus (1/5)
• Searching R4 + 1 (Skylight: Searching)
  • Mod: Night Vision (2/5)
  • Mod: Tracking (3/5)
• Straight Sword R5
  • Addon: Ferocity
  • Addon: Stamina

Extra Skills

• Forgotten King's Authority
• Survival
• Assault Mode
• Block
  • Mod: Shield Bash (4/5)

Inactive Extra Skills

• Photosynthesize
• Disguise

Addons

• Ferocity
• Iron Skin
• Precision
• Reveal
• Stamina

Mods

• Shield Bash
• Meticulous
• Night Vision
• Tracking

Battle Ready Inventory (7 Slots)
Dimensional Backpack + Item Stash

Spoiler

1. Lama Sabachthani | 236687 | Consumable - Soundtrack | Hypnosis 2 | Lullaby 2 (Instant)
   Pain deeper than words, engraved by a hand that does not know its own heart.
2. Edict's Threnody | 236686 | Consumable - Soundtrack | Perpetuate (Instant)
   If my suffering will not end, then neither will yours.
3. Bear Trap | 236686 | Consumable - Reusable | Once per combat as a free action can reduce a targets EVA to 0. Effect ends at the start of the user's next turn.
4. Teleport Crystal | General Merchant | Use a post action to activate a teleport crystal. Teleports the player to the town or designated teleportation area they specify.
5. Random Dungeon Map | [235668b]
6. [Empty]
7. [Empty]

Housing

Spoiler

House Name: Villa of Coruscating Flowers (The Villa)
Location: Floor 24 - Paradise Islands
Description: See above
Plot Size: Estate - PK Accessible
Rooms: Listed below. All rooms are assigned to Acanthus.

• Master Bedroom
  • Well Rested | -1 energy cost for the first three expenditures of each combat.
• Greenhouse
  • Green Thumb | +2 Gathering EXP per Attempt and additional +1 LD & CD to gathering attempts.
• Extended Workshop: Recording Studio (25,000 col)
  • Hard Working | +2 Crafting EXP per crafting attempt and +1 crafting attempt per day.
• Mega Slime Farm
  • Advanced Training | +10% EXP to a thread. Limit one use per month. Must be used on a player's first post in a thread. Cooldown begins counting down when used in a post.
• Living Room:
  • Relaxed | Increases out of combat HP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts.
• Attic (Bedroom)
  • Skylight (Searching) | +1 Expertise to declared utility skill (Searching). Cannot boost a skill without ranks, or increase a skill past its maximum rank. Cannot boost a skill the user has not learned yet. Ranks obtained using this buff will make the mods of that rank available for purchase. Mods obtained this way are unusable if this buff is removed until the skill is returned to the appropriate rank by way of SP purchase.
• Basement:
  • Multipurpose | Gain +1 to LD, Stealth Rating, Stealth Detection, or Prosperity to one post in a thread. Can be applied after a roll.
• Storage Closet: (10,000 col)
  • Item Stash | +1 Battle Ready Inventory Slot
• Master Bathroom: (25,000 col)
  • Squeaky Clean | The first time you would suffer DoT damage in a thread, reduce damage taken from DoT each turn by 25% (rounded down)
• Basic Kitchen (15,000 col)
  • Filling | Increase the effectiveness of a single food item consumed in a thread by +1 T1 slot. This can exceed normal Cook enhancement caps. Ex: A perfect T2 MIT food gives 35 MIT instead of 30.

Crafting and Gathering

Spoiler

Performer | Rank 5
Apollo’s Metronome | Crafting Tool | Meticulous: +1 CD when crafting in one’s workshop.

Forager | Rank 5
Demeter's Cornucopia | Gathering Tool | Bountiful: +1 CD to gathering attempts.

 

 

Edited 43 minutes ago by Acanthus

[Acanthus 0]

It had been long enough since the colossus that she had gained quite a few levels. Enough that the puma wouldn’t pose any kind of threat to her anymore. Her mind wandered back to that first leg of the quest, Kumatetsu. She’d done nothing except survive that quest, while Pinball did all the killing for her. Although she couldn’t pinpoint the feeling back then, she could now—helplessness. And she hated that feeling of helplessness.

Thank Cardinal, she wasn’t helpless anymore. Acanthus had survived a floor boss. She had run quests and field bosses with the strongest players the game had to offer. Day by day, that familiar feeling of control came back into focus. The feeling of power the game had graciously returned to her made her feel good. The totems were another source of power for her. They would be the objects that kept her moving forward, one quest at a time.

The trees grew taller and more dense the deeper she went. She had almost made it to the temple.

[Acanthus 0]

Acanthus navigated the deep jungle terrain with the help of her quest map. Normally, she would enjoy the process of exploring. It was a good way to stumble into new farming locations, or even a quest previously missed by the other players. Today, her goal was singular, and that was to kill the guardian that resided in the temple on floor twenty.

The jungle temple jutted up from the decaying undergrowth as a reminder of a long-lost civilization. A civilization that has been around since the start of this game, Acanthus joked dryly. But the creators had done a stellar job with the details. The faded stone etchings looked thousands of years old. Rocks had tumbled off the tops of pillars organically, and the passage of time appeared as genuine as any authentic ruin in the real world. Someone really did their homework on this level. Maybe Tiye would have some thoughts about how accurate this was to ancient civilizations.

[Acanthus 0]

A presence approached from behind her. She felt a tingle in her spine as the game warned her of the impending boss. The reaction was purely physical; mentally, she was no more alarmed than if she’d seen a cat in an alley. She angled her body slighty, trying to spot the puma without spooking it. “One-hundred and twenty five damage,” she said. “You can try to break through my defenses, but I think you will be hard pressed. The only question for today is how long the fight will last. And that’s entirely up to you, Suturesu.”

The shadows became solid as the lithe boss prepared to attack. Acanthus shrugged her shield up into position, waiting for the inevitable attack to inevitably bounce off of her.

Sure enough, the puma leaped onto her shield, hissing and scratching. Acanthus kept the thing at bay, allowed the thorns and flames to do their work before she counterattacked.
 

 

Spoiler

Begin Combat!

Free Action (Item): Bear Trap->Suteresu
EVA set to 0 for one turn.

Post Action: TECH-D -> Suterusu (-11 EN)
244135 | BD 1 + 5 - 0 | Hit! Shatter Applied. 26 * 12 = 312 - 35 = 277 damage.

Monster's Turn: Attack -> Acanthus
244136 | BD 4 + 2 | Hit! 125 - 220 = <0. 1 damage. Suturesu takes 128 damage (16 + 40 + 72).

Acanthus | Lvl 72 (38/34)  HP: 1056/1056 | EN: 109/120 | DMG: 26 | MIT:220 | ACC:4 | AA  | FL.AURA: 16 | THORNS:72 | Immolation: 40 | BH:58 | HB: 46 | LD:6
<<Suterusu>> HP: 895/1300 | DMG: 125 | MIT: 55 35 | ACC: 2 | EVA: 3 0 | Shatter I (1/2)

Abilities:

• That's Cute, Human | Debuff effects last half their normal duration.
• Stealth | Every three rounds, <<Suterusu>> will enter stealth as a free action following its attack. Using its LD, with +3 stealth rating. If the players are unable to keep track of <<Suterusu>>, it will leap from stealth on the following turn and attack, gaining a +25 damage for the attack. Also, if a 9-10 is rolled, it gains a Partial Phase, bypassing 25% Mitigation.
• Cunning Dodge | On a player's natural attack roll of 9, it is not guaranteed as a hit, and is still affected by Evasion and Accuracy.  If the attack included the Focus attribute, this effect ignores critical rolls on a natural 8 instead.
• Unsteady Ground | This fight takes place on treacherous terrain with many large stones, broken statues and fallen trees scattered, giving a -1 Accuracy to every player due to the area where they are fighting. Survival Negates this effect. Survival is active!

 

 

Edited 20 hours ago by Acanthus

[Acanthus 0]

Standing here, unassailable against one of the later bosses, Acanthus almost felt bored. She still appreciated the sense of control these predetermined fights had, but they didn’t excite her. It was the equivalent of being the low-level employee forced to go out and get coffee, or the unfortunate clerk stuck with refiling a disorganized cabinet. It was necessary work, but it was the kind of work that didn’t leave you feeling like you’d done anything useful.

Suturesu melted back into the jungle, and Acanthus’s mind wandered. The thing would be back on its own time, out of the darkness to hit her for another single point of damage. The heavy armor had been a good choice. Ever since she had removed the evasion from her light armor, there was no reason not to abandon the suit altogether. It served her well, and so she kept it well-maintained in her armory in case she ever returned to it.

Spoiler

Recovery. +4 EN. +104 HP.

Free Action (Item): Edict's Threnody->Suturesu
ACC -2. EVA -2.

Post Action: TECH-D -> Suterusu (-11 EN)
244135 | BD 2 + 5 - 1 | Hit! Shatter Applied. 26 * 12 = 312 - 15 = 292 damage.

Monster's Turn: Attack -> Acanthus
244136 | BD 8 + 0 | Hit! 125 - 220 = <0. 1 damage. Suturesu takes 128 damage (16 + 40 + 72).

Acanthus | Lvl 72 (38/34)  HP: 1055/1056 | EN: 102/120 | DMG: 26 | MIT:220 | ACC:4 | AA  | FL.AURA: 16 | THORNS:72 | Immolation: 40 | BH:58 | HB: 46 | LD:6
<<Suterusu>> HP: 475/1300 | DMG: 125 | MIT: 55 15 | ACC: 2 0 | EVA: 3 1 | Shatter I (1/2) | Lullaby (1/1) | Hypnosis (1/1)

 

Edited 20 hours ago by Acanthus

[Acanthus 0]

But as the cat leapt from the shadows again, its paws barely grazed her half-plate armor. And Acanthus was reminded that in a worst-case scenario, mitigation was always important. Evasion was useful until the boss cornered you, and you had nowhere to go. Then, what was protecting you?

Some people made it work. Jomei had survived Callisto’s wrath using speed and wits. But Acanthus didn’t have much of either. She was best suited for simplistic probabilities and pessimistic outcomes. And her pessimism strongly led her to a single point; she was always going to get hit at the worst times. Why put her faith in evasion, when mitigation would always have her back? And should the game ever introduce a boss that chewed through mitigation, there would be some way out. As much as she hated to admit it, Cardinal’s systems were ultimately self-balancing and fair.

Suturesu hissed and charged her again. Oh, that’s right. I’m in a boss fight. She turned and stunned the creature with a quick sword art.

Spoiler

Recovery. +4 EN. +104 HP.

Free Action (Item): Lama Sabacthani->Suturesu
ACC -2. EVA -2.

Post Action: TECH-D -> Suterusu (-11 EN)
244137 | BD 2 + 5 - 1 | Hit! Shatter Applied. 26 * 12 = 312 - 15 = 292 damage.

Monster's Turn: Attack -> Acanthus
244138 | BD 8 + 0 | Hit! 125 - 220 = <0. 1 damage. Suturesu takes 128 damage (16 + 40 + 72).

Acanthus | Lvl 72 (38/34)  HP: 1055/1056 | EN: 102/120 | DMG: 26 | MIT:220 | ACC:4 | AA  | FL.AURA: 16 | THORNS:72 | Immolation: 40 | BH:58 | HB: 46 | LD:6
<<Suterusu>> HP: 475/1300 | DMG: 125 | MIT: 55 15 | ACC: 2 0 | EVA: 3 1 | Shatter I (1/2) | Lullaby (1/1) | Hypnosis (1/1)

 

 

Edited 9 hours ago by Acanthus

[Acanthus 0]

The cat’s health moved down steadily, while Acanthus’s could barely go down before her battle healing brought it back up. And with her high energy reserves (which she appreciated having after the meager EN granted in the player-killing tournament), Suturesu would be dead before she even realized it. The only frustrating thing about the fight was how quick the puma was to dodge her attacks. Of course when Cardinal has evasion, it always works. But when players use it, Cardinal just chews through their defenses anyways with lucky hits.

Her songs unleashed their baleful cries, but the boss had a natural resistance to their effects. The window to strike would be brief, and she would need to capitalize on it as best as she could. Grabbing Edict's Threnody from her waist, she held it aloft so that the wails could seep through every surrounding branch and bush. The rustling in the distance slowed.

Spoiler

Recovery. +4 EN. +104 HP.

Free Action (Item): Edict's Threnody->Suturesu
Perpetuate.

Post Action: TECH-D -> Suterusu (-11 EN)
244139 | BD 2 + 5 - 1 | Hit! Shatter Applied. 26 * 12 = 312 - 0 = 312 damage.

Monster's Turn: Attack -> Acanthus
244140 | BD 7 + 0 | Hit! 125 - 220 = <0. 1 damage. Suturesu takes 128 damage (16 + 40 + 72).
<<Stealth>> triggers. 244140 | LD 3 + 3 = Stealth 6

Acanthus | Lvl 72 (38/34)  HP: 1055/1056 | EN: 95/120 | DMG: 26 | MIT:220 | ACC:4 | AA  | FL.AURA: 16 | THORNS:72 | Immolation: 40 | BH:58 | HB: 46 | LD:6
<<Suterusu>> HP: 35/1300 | DMG: 125 | MIT: 55 15 | ACC: 2 0 | EVA: 3 1 | Shatter I (1/2) | Lullaby (1/1) | Hypnosis (1/1)

 

Edited 9 hours ago by Acanthus

[Acanthus 0]

Acanthus leveled her sword and issued a challenge to the cat. “Pspspspspspspsps.”

With a touch of lethargy, the cat leapt from the foliage to attack once more. Reflexively, Acanthus moved to dodge the attack. I should be letting myself get hit. It hurts the boss more than it hurts me. But she found it difficult to suppress her instincts. Scared or not, when something giant leaps out of the bushes, its only natural to try and move out of the way.

Batting away the thing’s swiping paws, she brought her sword up, and drove it between the cat’s shoulders. It yowled and leaped back into the bushes, waiting for a better time to strike.

Annoyed, she moved into a more open position to tempt the cat back out. “Come here. We’re not done yet.” Suturesu decided to wait, biding its time for the perfect opening that would never arrive. Stupid cat.

Spoiler

Recovery. +4 EN. +104 HP.

Post Action: Search for Suturesu
244142 | LD 7 + 6 | Found!

Monster's Turn: Attack -> Acanthus
244143 | BD 2 + 2 | Miss.

Acanthus | Lvl 72 (38/34)  HP: 1055/1056 | EN: 99/120 | DMG: 26 | MIT:220 | ACC:4 | AA  | FL.AURA: 16 | THORNS:72 | Immolation: 40 | BH:58 | HB: 46 | LD:6
<<Suterusu>> HP: 35/1300 | DMG: 125 | MIT: 55 0 | ACC: 2 | EVA: 3 | Shatter III (2/2)

 

Edited 9 hours ago by Acanthus

[Acanthus 0]

She could hear the boss’s labored breathing through the dense green leaves. One last attack would finish it off. Charging into the brush, she prepared to end the fight.

The cat, unused to its prey charging into its domain, waited a brief moment before turning into a ball of teeth and claws. It scratched and bit at her gear, but no amount of rage would penetrate her armor. She let the thing tire itself out before delivering the coup de grace. She was careful to avoid looking at its eyes. She hadn’t shaken how pitiful Kumatestu appeared in its final moments. She had no doubt the game would try and pull the same nasty trick now. The closer to real life, the more the game tried to ply her emotions against her. She would not allow it.

With a final thrust, she buried the blade in the cat’s back. It froze and shuddered, the collapsed to the ground, flaking away in a cloud of blue dust.

Spoiler

Recovery. +4 EN. +58 HP

Post Action: ST-I -> Suturesu (-12 EN)
244144 | BD 5 + 5 - 3 | Hit! 26 * 12 = 312 - 55 = 257 damage.

Acanthus | Lvl 72 (38/34)  HP: 1056/1056 | EN: 91/120 | DMG: 26 | MIT:220 | ACC:4 | AA  | FL.AURA: 16 | THORNS:72 | Immolation: 40 | BH:58 | HB: 46 | LD:6
<<Suterusu>> HP: 0/1300 | DMG: 125 | MIT: 55 | ACC: 2 | EVA: 3 | Shatter III (2/2)

 

 

Edited 9 hours ago by Acanthus

[Acanthus 0]

That did the trick. And in about sixty percent of the time she had allocated for the task. What to do next? If Pinball were here, then they could go pick up some lootable mobs and wipe them out for easy col.

You idiot. You don’t need him for the loot minimum mobs anymore. Just go out and do it yourself. She almost opened her map to look for some high-level areas she’d previously marked. Instead, her finger brushed up onto her inventory, pulling up a list of disorganized junk that made her spine shiver. She’d get around to organizing it someday. Right before she closed it, the pile of unused dungeon maps caught her eye.

Her level had grown substantially since her initial foray with Morningstar and Freyd. She took a moment to scroll back to her notes about the encounter, carefully studying the health and damage of the monsters. According to her sources, most of the dungeons kept the same stats.

A few quick number crunches told her all she needed. Even if things start to get bad, I should have enough time to crack a teleport crystal. Besides, without dungeons, her level would start to stagnate. In the world of Aincrad, you could grow or die.

[Acanthus 0]

Acanthus blinked a few times, wondering how to summon her new skill. It supposedly made dungeons much easier to find. But how was she supposed to use it? She blinked again. Maybe there was some kind of pattern? Surely it didn’t involve going into and out of the menu to activate it. What if the solution was painfully obvious?

“Reveal.” Her normal vision washed away, replacing objects with faint outlines of themselves. Some objects flashed green or white; those appeared to contain trace materials or col that she could gather. But she’d already established gathering was a waste of time. Monsters dropped far more than some random tree on floor twenty.

There she went, getting distracted by loot again. She was tired of loot. What she wanted right now was a challenge. Something she was fairly certain she could handle, but was interesting enough that she needed a teleportation crystal in case things went south.

Energy Recovered! (2/2 Out of Combat posts)

[Acanthus 0]

A streak of red dust vanished in the distance, ending at a stony wall. Finally.

The next question was obvious: how do I get inside? Had it not been for reveal, the cliffside appeared perfectly normal: its jagged face climbed up and out of sight, crowded by trees and other greenery that hid the sky. No blemishes or smoothness marked an entrance. Perhaps a pass phrase was required.

As she opened her mouth to speak, she felt static on her tongue. Her lips rolled backwards at the unpleasant feeling, and her hand reached up to feel what was the matter. Nothing felt out of place; a quick look from a small mirror showed that her face was in order. As she started to return the mirror to her inventory, she noticed it; a strange, blurry light emitting from her chest. Her necklace, the shard of the crystal she had inherited from Edict, was glowing. The static in her tongue began to spread to her cheeks, then her nose, then up to her head and all the way down until she felt like her body was a swarm of ants in a fleshy container. The sensation was similar to her pain indicators, but somehow worse. She closed her eyes, doing her best to shut out the feelings. “Stop it. Stop it.” She clapped her face with both hands over and over. “Stop it!” Her last invocation echoed in a vast room. Curious, she opened her eyes.

Using Random Dungeon Map | [235668b]

Edited 9 hours ago by Acanthus

[Acanthus 0]

She was no longer on floor twenty. Or, if she was, it was somewhere she had never been before. She recognized the slate black walls and glowing blue lines as the default dungeon aesthetic. But the space was far bigger than the info brokers led her to believe. Without thinking, she drew her sword and shield.

A shower of pixels fell from the air, forming solid shapes. Acanthus held her breath, anxious at what sort of creature would spawn in such a mysterious place. She scoffed out loud to see it was nothing more than a boar. The same kind of monster she had killed on her first day out in the wilds of Floor 1. The same idle animations, grunts and squeals. But this boar had a much more intimidating health bar. Then, a second boar. And a third, and fourth.

“I’m not really sure what kind of dungeon this is.” Acanthus cocked her head at the creatures. “But I’m going to take this seriously, boars or not.”

Spoiler

 

Combat Begins!

Post Action: AoE 1 -> Boars 1–4 (-20 EN)
244148 | BD 3 + 5 - 1 | Hit. 26 * 15 = 395 - 60 = 335 damage.
244149 | BD 8 + 5 - 1 | Hit. 26 * 15 = 395 - 60 = 335 damage.
244150 | BD 3 + 5 - 1 | Hit. 26 * 15 = 395 - 60 = 335 damage.
244151 | BD 6 + 5 - 1 | Hit. 26 * 15 = 395 - 60 = 335 damage.

Monster Action: Attack -> Acanthus
244148 | MD 6 + 1 | Hit! 180 - 220 = <0. 1 damage. Boar 1 takes 128 damage.
244149 | MD 8 + 1 | Hit! 180 - 220 = <0. 1 damage. Boar 1 takes 128 damage.
244150 | MD 8 + 1 | Hit! 180 - 220 = <0. 1 damage. Boar 1 takes 128 damage.
244151 | MD 9 + 1 | Minor Critical! 181 - 220 = <0. 1 damage.

Acanthus | Lvl 72 (38/34) | HP: 1056/1056 | EN: 100/120 | DMG: 26 | MIT:220 | ACC:4 | AA  | FL.AURA: 16 | THORNS:72 | Immolation: 40 | BH:58 | HB: 46 | LD:6

Boar 1 | HP: 0/400 | DMG: 180 | MIT: 60 | ACC: 1 | EVA: 1
Boar 2 | HP: 0/400 | DMG: 180 | MIT: 60 | ACC: 1 | EVA: 1
Boar 3 | HP: 0/400 | DMG: 180 | MIT: 60 | ACC: 1 | EVA: 1
Boar 4 | HP: 65/400 | DMG: 180 | MIT: 60 | ACC: 1 | EVA: 1

 

 

Edited 28 minutes ago by Acanthus

[Acanthus 0]

Squealing, the four boars charged and attacked her all at once. She side-stepped the first two, and brought her shield up to bounce the third before slicing the last one with botan. Their health bars and damage were much improved over the first-floor counterparts, but Acanthus had also come a long way since then. She recalled struggling to fight them one-by-one all those months ago; now, she was dancing with four without breaking a sweat. Her armor made her near invincible.

But it was more than that. Her confidence in the game had grown as well. She learned more and more, studied the rules, the flow of combat, and anything else she could pore over. Knowledge was her weapon, and she had spent her time well.

The pigs rebounded, and Acanthus calculated, letting the weakest one through while pushing back on the other three. Flames consumed two of the pigs, and the thorns from her armor impaled the weakest, leaving Acanthus with a fraction of damage her Battle Healing would quickly repair.

Spoiler

(Note: I forgot that Crits bypass Thorns and Aura, so I moved onto the second round before coming back to clean up this last mob. My b)

Recovery. +4 EN. +104 HP.

Post Action: ST 1 -> Boar 4 (-11 EN)
244154 | BD 4 + 5 - 1 | Hit. 26 * 15 = 395 - 60 = 335 damage.

Acanthus | Lvl 72 (38/34) | HP: 1056/1056 | EN: 93/120 | DMG: 26 | MIT:220 | ACC:4 | AA  | FL.AURA: 16 | THORNS:72 | Immolation: 40 | BH:58 | HB: 46 | LD:6

Boar 4 | HP: 0/400 | DMG: 180 | MIT: 60 | ACC: 1 | EVA: 1

 

 

Edited 27 minutes ago by Acanthus

[Acanthus 0]

Acanthus swept the room for traps or hidden exits. Content that there was nothing to reveal, she moved towards the alcove on the far end of the room. A small black pedastal rose to her waist, offering a small indentation for her hand. “No other way to go,” she mused, and pressed her hand into the space.

Her vision stuttered, then warped blue. When her vision finally adjusted, Acanthus took stock of the room again. It was the same shape, size, and aesthetic of the previous room. “Lazy effort,” she said absentmindedly. “But I guess the developers were phoning it in at this point. Which means the mobs will be phoned in too.”

Her guess confirmed itself when two slightly larger boars materialized in front of her. Even their stat block was lazy. “Boar_2”? There’s no way they got away with this. Maybe it was a bug.

The slightly larger boars took one look at Acanthus, and pawed the black slate ground. At least her tactics wouldn’t need to change much.

 

Spoiler

Recovery. +4 EN. +104 HP.

Post Action: AoE 1 -> Boar_2 1–2 (-16 EN)
244152 | BD 10 | Major Critical! 28 * 15 = 420 - 120 = 300 damage.
244153 | BD 9 | Minor Critical! 27 * 15 = 405 - 120 = 285 damage.

Monster Action: Attack -> Acanthus
244152 | MD 7 + 1 | Hit! 280 - 220 = 60 damage. Boar_2 1 takes 128 damage.
244153 | MD 1 | Critical Miss.

Acanthus | Lvl 72 (38/34) | HP: 996/1056 | EN: 81/120 | DMG: 26 | MIT:220 | ACC:4 | AA  | FL.AURA: 16 | THORNS:72 | Immolation: 40 | BH:58 | HB: 46 | LD:6

Boar_2 1 | HP: 272/700 | DMG: 280 | MIT: 120 | ACC: 2 | EVA: 1
Boar_2 2 | HP: 415/700 | DMG: 280 | MIT: 120 | ACC: 2 | EVA: 1

 

 

Edited 21 minutes ago by Acanthus

[Acanthus 0]

The slightly bigger boars worked in tandem to flank Acanthus. The first charged, forcing her shield up and front while the second worked around to the side. With a quick sideways glance, she decided she would have to take the hit. Working her blade into the first boar, she heard the second charging at her side, just outside of her vision. Gritting her teeth, she dug her heels in as best she could.

The boar connected, rattling her entire body inside the suit of armor. She watched as her HP ticked down—thankfully, not by much—and saw the boar sustain reciprocal damage. As much as she wanted to take her revenge on the flanker, she had to work at the monster in front of her first. With a kick, she twisted away from the tusks of the second boar, and channeled an area of effect sword art. Her attention stayed focused, eager to whittle the pair down to nothing as quickly as possible.

Spoiler

Recovery. +4 EN. +104 HP.

Post Action: AoE 2 -> Boar_2 1–2 (-19 EN)
244155 | BD 8 + 5 - 1 | Hit! 26 * 18 = 468 - 120 = 348 damage.
244156 | BD 5 + 5 - 1 | Hit! 26 * 18 = 468 - 120 = 348 damage.

Monster Action: Attack -> Acanthus
244156 | MD 5 + 2 | Hit! 280 - 220 = 60 damage. Boar_2 1 takes 128 damage.

Acanthus | Lvl 72 (38/34) | HP: 996/1056 | EN: 66/120 | DMG: 26 | MIT:220 | ACC:4 | AA  | FL.AURA: 16 | THORNS:72 | Immolation: 40 | BH:58 | HB: 46 | LD:6

Boar_2 1 | HP: 0/700 | DMG: 280 | MIT: 120 | ACC: 2 | EVA: 1
Boar_2 2 | HP: 0/700 | DMG: 280 | MIT: 120 | ACC: 2 | EVA: 1

 

 

Edited 21 minutes ago by Acanthus

[Acanthus 0]

Rest 1

[Acanthus 0]

Rest 2

Relaxed | Out of Combat for 2 Posts. EN recovered!

[Acanthus 0]

Smack 1

 

Spoiler

 

Combat Begins!

Free Action (Item) Bear Trap -> Boar3
Evasion set to 0

Post Action: AOE I -> Boar3 (-14 EN)
244157 | BD 5 + 5 - 0 | Hit! 26 * 15 = 390 - 160 = 230 damage.
244157 | CD 12. ST-B unlocked!

Monster's Action: Attack -> Acanthus
244157 | MD 1 | Critical Miss.

Hit. 360 - 220 = 140 damage. Boar3 takes 128 damage.

Acanthus | Lvl 72 (38/34) | HP: 1056/1056 | EN: 106/120 | DMG: 26 | MIT:220 | ACC:4 | AA  | FL.AURA: 16 | THORNS:72 | Immolation: 40 | BH:58 | HB: 46 | LD:6

Boar3 | HP: 1770/2000 | DMG: 360 | MIT: 160 | ACC: 3 | EVA: 3 0
Critical (MD 9): Deals 400 DMG to the target with the highest hate. Also deals 240 DMG to every other player.
Critical (MD 10): Deals 440 DMG to the target with the highest hate. Also deals 340 DMG to every other player.

 

 

Edited 9 minutes ago by Acanthus

[Acanthus 0]

Smack

Spoiler

Recovery. +4 EN.

Free Action (Item): Lama Sabatchani -> Boar3
Evasion -2. Accuracy -2.

Post Action: ST-B -> Boar3 (-19 EN)
244158 | BD 4 + 5 - 1 | Hit! 26 * 20 = 520 - 160 = 360 damage.

Monster's Action: Attack -> Acanthus
244158 | MD 3 + 1 | Miss.

Acanthus | Lvl 72 (38/34) | HP: 1056/1056 | EN: 91/120 | DMG: 26 | MIT:220 | ACC:4 | AA  | FL.AURA: 16 | THORNS:72 | Immolation: 40 | BH:58 | HB: 46 | LD:6

Boar3 | HP: 1410/2000 | DMG: 360 | MIT: 160 | ACC: 3 1 | EVA: 3 1 | Hypnosis 2 (1/2) | Lullaby 2 (1/2)
Critical (MD 9): Deals 400 DMG to the target with the highest hate. Also deals 240 DMG to every other player.
Critical (MD 10): Deals 440 DMG to the target with the highest hate. Also deals 340 DMG to every other player.

 

 

Edited 9 minutes ago by Acanthus