{SP - F01} Shake off the Doldrums (First Lessons)

[Reytac 0]

Reytac ran his fingers through his hair, pushing some of the sweat-damp locks away from his face as he looked around. It was a bit surprising to him, even now, how many people were walking around the Town of Beginning. It seemed a lot of people still used it as a place to come back to, not to mention all the people who were like he had been until recently - lost, directionless. His jaw tightened as he shook his head, teeth grinding against each other for a moment. 

 

It would be all too easy to slip back into that hopelessness - to let that dark pit of despair wrap around him and pull him back into the apathetic nothing he had become. But he couldn't let that happen, had to focus. Once he got used to moving again, to being something more than a numbed out shell of a human, hopefully, that icy weight wouldn't creep over him as easily. Reytac pinched his nose and took a deep breath, pushing away the melancholy thoughts, until a voice pulled him from his internal monologue. 

Quote

"You there! Stop, please!" A man approached him with long, purposeful strides. "Pardon me, but I am in need of some assistance, and you appear quite capable."  Reytac turned to look at the man, watching as he heaves a quick sigh, adjusting the monocle over his right eye. "My name is Dorian, and I am the mayor of this town. As part of those mayoral duties, I issued a small loan to a member of the community a few months ago. Well, the time to collect had come around and I-" Flustered, Dorian systematically runs his fingers over his perfect moustache. 

Reytac blinked and looked down at his outfit, then back to the man who was claiming to be the mayor. He had an NPC tag floating over his head confirming it but also - Reytac looked to be capable? He had three potions on his belt, along with his money and the materials he'd hoarded slowly. Aside from that, he was wearing the most basic cotton clothes, scarcely better than wearing nothing at all! If this looked 'capable', Reytac shuddered to think about just how bad someone would have to look before the Mayor would ignore them. Half dressed, looking like a wild child? Or would even Tarzan have passed the Mayor's inspection? 

 

Nonetheless, he nodded to the Mayor, prompting Dorian to continue speaking. 

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"You see, I've forgotten who it was I loaned the money to. Terribly embarrassing, I know, but I am a very busy man, and I cannot keep track of everything that happens. I'm sure you understand." With a wave of his hand, Dorian continues, "Should you be willing to track down the loan recipient for me, and collect the col, I would be eternally grateful. Just, maybe don't let anyone else know I forgot who the loan went to?"

It was - not quite a fetch quest, but at the same time it was. As much as he hated it, he had to give it to the devs, at least he wasn't having to gather five flowers, or kill ten rats. Collecting a debt was at least someone unusual. Reytac opened his mouth to speak, then frowned at the raspy, disused tone that came from his lips. He cleared his throat a few times before answering. 

"I can do that, Mayor." Though - wouldn't it have been supremely easy to just... Note, who he had loaned the money to? Writing took all of a few seconds. Before Reytac could voice his question, though, the Mayor plowed on. 

 

Quote

"Excellent, I knew I could count on you! You might start with Zackariah, the alchemist. He's often doing projects for the town, so it may have been him that borrowed the money."

 

Well, at least Reytac had somewhere to start with. Before he could say anything else, Dorian had taken off, vanishing around a corner faster than the player could track. He shook his head once, bemused, before turned around. From what he remembered, he had passed an Alchemist's shop not long after he had come out of his fugue. Even if it wasn't Zackariah's, the alchemist inside would hopefully know where the man's shop was. 

 

 

Spoiler

Reytac | HP: 20/20 | EN: 20/20 | DMG: 1                                

Inventory: Starter Health Potions (50HP) 

Col: 2000

Materials: 25

 

[Reytac 0]

Getting to Zackariah's shop was more of an ordeal than Reytac had expected. The shop he had passed earlier was not the one he wanted - it had belonged to one of the man's former apprentices, who only half-remembered where his teacher was working now. But Reytac had eventually managed to find it, after two false starts, and he felt a slight headache behind his eyes that faded as a faintly sweet scent hit his nose. The store was filled with shelves with brightly colored jars, holding unguents and pastes all over. He paused, fascinated, looking over them as he stared around. The place was a bit jumbled for his taste, but that didn't make it any less interesting. 

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 potions in various vials and jars. 

 

“Oh, hello," comes the distracted greeting from behind the counter. A man with a long, snow-white beard glances up from a bubbling cup of sweet-smelling purple liquid. "Are you here to order something? I’m sorry, but I am currently swamped with orders, and I’m running out of supplies.” Light comes into the man's dark eyes, a lightbulb going off to signify a brilliant idea. “Would you gather a few materials for me? Flowers, herbs, rare woods, whatever you can find outside the city walls. I promise I’ll help you fill your order as soon as you return. In fact, I would be willing to show you how to do it yourself.”

Reytac opened his mouth to say that he wasn't here to get a quest - only to realize that maybe he was. He frowned and shook his head, that was just a distraction. "Actually, sir, I'm here about - 

"Come, come back here my boy. If you're to head out to get me some reagents, the least I could do is give you a bit of pep for your step! Here lad, try this out!" The bearded old man waved off Reytac's words as he interrupted him, beckoning him over to where was behind the counter. Forcing back an eye roll at the NPC's attitude, Reytac walked back to join him - over a pot of bubbling... Cheese? He blinked as the man snagged a cracker and scooped up the fondue, then held it towards Reytac. 

"Here lad, give it a try won't you?" At least he had an option to decline but - well, honestly, he had no reason to. Shrugging, he took the offered sample and downed it, wincing - it was hot enough he could barely taste the cheesey fondue, and he suppressed a shudder. In the real world he had issues with dairy, and even now, after who knows how long in the game, sometimes the flavor of cheese caught him off guard. That said, it wasn't terrible. 

"Now, shoo, shoo, I'll show you how to fill out your order when you get back, lad. I've much to do!" Before Reytac could argue against it and explain why he was actually here, he was pushed out of the store back onto the streets of the town. He blinked twice before rubbing one hand against his face in exasperation. 

 

It looked he did get a fetch quest after all. 

 

Spoiler

Reytac consumes Zackariah's Fondue: +3 to LD scores for duration of quest

 

[Reytac 0]

Getting out into the fields where some of the materials might be found didn't take Reytac long - getting past the gate guards was a simple matter, checking his player tag to make sure he wasn't wanted for anything, and then he was out, into the wilderness near town. But this was where he got concerned. While he had joined the game to get used to it before his wife joined, he hadn't actually finished getting everything ready before things turned sour. And he had no gear on him, at all - just the starter clothes that everyone had. Which meant that fighting anything right now would be an absolutely terrible idea. 

So, avoiding things was the name of the game here, as he hunted for the materials. He'd been sent a short list of things to grab, and thankfully none of them were mob drops. With a sigh, he started searching through the grasses near the town - the only place that was almost sure not to have mobs that would attack him while he was defenseless. 

But Reytac was far from the only person who had apparently had that same though. His first search proved fruitless - all he found were useless weeds, though at one point he did let out a yelp of shock when one of the things that he grabbed wasn't just normal weeds, it was a small sticker plant. The jolt against his skin of the tiny stabbing plants made him fling his hand around, and he groaned in frustration when he realized that was just spreading the seeds of the annoying plant far and wide. 

Spoiler

Roll id: 251128  LD: 14 (11+3) Fail

 

Edited August 20 by Reytac

[Reytac 0]

The sun was beating down on Reytac and the world around him, filling his nose with the scent of sunbaked soil as he moved through the fields around the wall of the Town of Beginnings. Once upon a time the thought of having a vr game be so realistic that he could feel the heat of the sun had excited Reytac, the advancements in gaming technology luring him in like a moth to a flame. But that was before it became a new life to him, one where he didn't have sun screen or ac. Where he couldn't log out. 

 

He wiped the sleeve of one arm against his face, catching the salty droplets of sweat before they could fall into his eyes and start stinging them. As he did, he looked to one side and his eyebrows raised, and he had to blink and shake his head in disbelief, before looking again, just to make sure he wasn't seeing things. But it wasn't a trick of the light or the heat getting to him, no, there beside him was a nearly picture perfect copy of one of the herbs he had received a request for from Zackariah. 

 

Almost afraid to move in case it vanished from sight, Reytac slowly inched over and knelt down beside the plant. There was no description on how to harvest the herb, so he just decided to be safe rather than sorry, and dug down, getting not just the topside of the plant, but the roots and dirt around it as well. It all went into his inventory the same, thankfully. 

 

Spoiler

ROLL ID 251129    LD: 15 (12+5) 

 

Edited August 20 by Reytac

[Reytac 0]

Reytac sat back and dusted off his hands, looking around as he did so. Finding the herb had been a stroke of good fortune, and he wanted to see if he could manage to find another. But he doubted it would be close by, if he could find another one, since that'd be too easy. It wasn't like he had stumbled on a field of herbs to just harvest a node or something, and he doubted it even worked like that in this game. 

 

He shook himself and stood up then started walking through the grasses again, using his hands to push the brush out of his way as he went. The entire time his eyes were peering around trying to see through the high grasses and choking weeds as he looked for any of the reagents he'd been tasked to find. At one point he thought he saw one and worked his way over to it, only to have it crumble apart in his hand as he tried to pick it up. 

 

“Oh come on, they aren't that fragile, are they?” He grumbled to himself as he shook the remnants and dirt of the plant from his hand. He had already been pondering what kind of gathering profession he wanted to try his hand at, and while this wasn't exactly a large sample size, it did make him inclined to try out the foraging one. If it helped him get materials to push onwards and not have them fall apart because he looked at them wrong, he would be all for it. 

 

 

 

Spoiler

Roll ID: 251166.   LD: 12 (9+3) Fail

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 21 by Reytac

[Reytac 0]

Reytac knew he could call it here, and head inside and back to the alchemist. He had put in his good faith effort on finding the materials that the alchemist had requested, and had even managed to find one. So at the very least he wasn't coming back empty handed. But he felt like that was not good enough, that there was more he could do. 

 

And so even as the sun started to dip downwards, he kept searching, hunting for any more of the materials that he could use for the quest. At this point he didn't even know that he was looking in the right place for these things, for all he knew they could be growing on the other side of the town altogether. But he had to keep searching, at least until it was closer to actual nightfall, when the mobs outside the gate got more aggressive and numerous. 

 

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted another match, and his heart leapt. That was great, if he had two in hand he felt like had actually accomplished something. He turned and started hurrying over, time was starting to run out before he had to give up and head back inside the town's walls for safety. And then his foot caught in a hole in the ground that he hadn't seen in his rush towards the herb, and he sprawled forward, slamming into the ground. 

 

For a moment he laid there, dazed, before he finally managed to push himself back up lifting from the ground and coughing out a clod of dirt. Reytac looked around and his heart sank into his stomach - he didn't see the herb anywhere. With that sinking feeling getting worse, he rolled to one side and looked towards where his torso had been. Sure enough, the plant was there, smashed into an entirely unusable state. 

 

“Ah.” He bit back the curses. This was his own fault - he'd been in a rush. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spoiler

Roll Id: 251179 LD: 7 (4+3) Fail 

 

 

Edited August 21 by Reytac

[Reytac 0]

"Just - just one more." Reytac promised himself that as he got himself back to his feet. The sun had nearly fully set now, and soon, probably sooner than he would really like, night would fully settle and the nighttime mob rules would kick into effect. He knew that this was probably a stupid idea, he should just call it quits and head in, he already had an herb that could complete it. And that was - he didn't even have to succeed, the searching had been enough to make progress in the quest. But he was stubborn, and he felt the age old call of 'just one more couldn't hurt'. 

So he kept searching, hunting through the grasses for just one more of the plants or something, anything that might give him some level of vindication for his efforts out here. But with every passing minute, the sun sank lower and lower, and the shadows crept over everything, covering the fields he was searching through in a blanket of darkness. Finally it got to a point where he just had throw in the towel - he hadn't expected this to take any kind of serious time, so he hadn't even bothered to get a torch. If he headed in now, he would be able to just barely make it before the floor fully shifted over to its night settings.

 

"Friggin fetch quests." He grumbled to himself as he turned and started heading for the gate.

 

 

 

 

Spoiler

Roll ID: 251218

LD: 11 (8+3) Fail

 

Edited Thursday at 11:24 PM by Reytac

[Reytac 0]

Reytac trudged back through the city gates with defeat in his heart. Even pushing until he walked in the gates as night settled over the city, he hadn’t been able to find another herb anywhere. Or any of the other materials that might have counted for the quest, no roots or minerals - just that one, single plant that was sitting in his inventory with its dirt still around the roots. Still, it wasn't all bad. He hadn't gotten attacked by anything out there, so aside from the sticker plant and tripping, his pain settings hadn't been tested. 

 

His boots clacked on the cobbled street as he made his way back to Zackariah's shop. Hopefully the NPC was still there - if he had to wait until the next day to actually finish this quest, he might get annoyed with his decision to stay out so late. It wasn't like he had any time constraints right now, but he did want to progress. Rey felt a deep, burning need to get better and grow, and time locking himself didn't exactly help with that goal. 

 

The bell above his head chimed as he was able to enter the store, and he felt a jolt of relief at that. Zackariah was no longer at the pot, but instead sitting at his counter, glancing through some kind of ledger. He looked up when Reytac entered, and a kindly smile stretched his lips. 

 

“Welcome back my boy, I hope your efforts proved fruitful?” Reytac nodded and walked over to the counter. Before he pulled out his prize, he paused. 

 

“Ah, it has dirt still on it, is there like, a rag or something for me to place it on?” Zackariah tilted his head to one side before nodding and pulling a cloth from somewhere, setting it on the counter. Reytac promptly deposited the herb into it, warning a nod from the alchemist. 

 

“Excellent, excellent! Now, let me show you how-” 

 

“Actually, I'm not here for that.” Zackariah froze, his gentle eyes going wide. “Sorry! I'm actually on a task from Mayor Dorian, he's having me track down who he made a loan to and retrieve it.” The old man sat back in his chair with a roll of his eyes. 

 

 

 

 

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"Leave it to Dorian to forget something so important. No, I'm afraid it wasn't me that borrowed the col. You might try Lyle, the blacksmith. I've seen him talking with the mayor frequently the past month or so, and he's just up the road. I wish you luck!"

 

[Reytac 0]

Reytac let the door to Zackariah's shop close behind him as he let out a long sigh that made him sag slightly. The alchemist had handed him a bag, telling him to only open it once he’d finished up his quest for the mayor. Rey felt a burn of curiosity at what was inside, but he held off.

 He had thought this quest would be a fast one, find someone who owed money and grab it quick before returning to the mayor. And now, he could already see that this was turning into a travellogue - he just had to wonder if this next stage would be having him go on another fetch quest, or do something else. But, whatever he might be doing for the next stage would have to wait. It was now late enough all the normal npc shops were closed, giving way to the night operations. Reytac headed to the rinky-dink inn he was staying in for the night. 

The next morning, he made it to Lyle's smithy, chewing on some of the cheap, hard bread that was available for a pittance. He made sure to finish and dust off his face and hands of any crumbs before heading inside.  The smell of hot iron and dust washed over him, making him snort as his nose was irritated. The sound made the man who was standing a short distance away, sorting metals near a furnace, turn and look at him.

“I’m busy.” He turned back, placing the ingot he’d picked up into the forge, watching it heat up. Rey started to speak up, and the man gave him a glare.

 

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"I don't do anything without payment. Go deal with a few of those pesky boarlets for me, and bring them back whole or else just their tusks. I don’t care which.  They're pretty weak, so even you shouldn't have any trouble.  Do that, then I'll hear you out." 

 

Rey’s eyebrow twitched. It wasn’t a fetch quest - but ‘kill random pest’ was nearly as ubiquitous. He sighed, his shoulders slumping. “Here, I see you don’t even have a weapon worth the word. And these truffles are treated by Zack to knock the runts out.” Lyle said dismissively, and Reytac looked up in time to see a hammer tossed his way. He barely caught it before a bag was thrown at him too, and he gave a staggered bow as Lyle pulled the ingot from the furnace, red hot, and started hammering it against an anvil.

Reytac stepped outside and attached the bag to his hip for easy grabbing, and looped the hammer through a loose loop on his belt. This - well, he'd never imagined himself as a hammer wielder, but he could work with it. “Heh. Hammah.”

Spoiler

Reytac gets and equips:

Battle Hammer (T1 Perfect Weapon DAM +3 ((Enhancements: damage +3)))

Bag of Tranq Trufs (puts a boarlet to sleep on BD 5+, requires a post action to attempt using)

 

Edited 2 hours ago by Reytac

[Reytac 0]

Reytac stepped out into the grassy plains, testing the weight and feel of his new hammer as he moved through. It was hefty and had weight to it - straight forward and simple enough to use without training. Sure, swords might be 'sharp end go in baddie' but a hammer was 'hit it' easy. He knew that there could be more to the weapon than that, especially if he took enough of a liking to it that he wanted to learn the Sword Arts for it, but that was a concern for another time. For now, he just had to find the boarlets, and smash the boarlets. 

 

It did seem like his luck in finding the piglings was slightly better than his luck in finding plants for Zackariah had been, at least. Almost immediately after he started searching for them, he spotted one of the small boarlets, rooting through the grass not far away from him. The animal was about the size of a small dog, and had its attention away from him as it snuffed along the ground. Rey spun his wrist around, twirling the hammer through the air a few times, as he approached. 

 

The boarlet heard the sound, either of his steps or the hammer, and spun around. It pawed at the ground a few times, letting out a loud snort as it lowered its head. Looking at its face, the beast was much less cute than when it had its back to him - even young, it had sharp tusks jutting out of its mouth. When Reytac kept approaching, it lowered its head and charged. If it had been larger, he would have described it as 'thundering across the grass' but - that large, all he could think of it was running menacingly. 

 

Before he even had a chance to step to the side, the piglings stumbled, it's feet tripping over themselves, and it plowed into the ground in a tumble. It came back up just in front of the man, who looked down at it with a gleam in his eyes. 

"Oink?" The sound, confused, was almost cute as he shook his head. Reytac hauled back and slammed down before it could move away or attack him again - and blinked in shock when the boarlet shattered into a showerof pixels, leaving behind a set of tusks that he knelt down to put away. 

"Uh... Beginner's luck, I'm guessing." He knew from the horror tales when this abominable game began, that these boarlets had killed many people who got cocky. 

 

 

 

Spoiler

Roll ID: 251695

BD: 10( MAJOR CRIT SUCCESS +2 DAM)

MD: 1 (MAJOR CRIT FAIL)

Reytac: HP: 20/20 DAM 3 HITS Boarlet, Major CRIT +2. Deals 5 DAM. 

 

Boarlet: HP 5/5 DAM 3 Misses Reytac. Loses 5HP. Deceased. Boarlet Drops Boarlet Tusks. 

 

 

 

Edited 2 hours ago by Reytac

[Reytac 0]

Rey rolled his shoulders, feeling the muscles stretch and settle as he did. He didn't get the pop he once would have out of his right shoulder - that was a thing of his real body, and this avatar despite looking the same, just didn't.. Match it quite right. Still, the motion relieved some of the tension he felt as he looked around. The boarlet had been alone, at least that one had, but he still wanted to be careful. He had to get home, and to do that he had to be alive to do so. 

 

Reytac started walking again, his eyes sweeping the fields as he looked around. He could see Npcs moving around, doing their daily routine tasks, but not many players. "I guess most of them don't hang around the Town anymore." He didn't blame them - he knew he'd fallen into a dark place, and that he was probably far behind where the people who were actively trying to get home already were. All he could do was push on and try to catch up. 

 

He spotted another boar as he moved, again, thankfully, alone - trying to handle more than one at a time would probably be a terrible idea. A glance down at his pouch and he shook his head. Trying to use the Truffles could come after he'd gotten at least two sets of the tusks. He knew that Lyle had said he'd accept either, but he wanted to prove to himself that he wasn't scared to fight. His hand tightened around the handle of the hammer that he had been loaned, and he took a deep breath before approaching the boarlet. 

 

This time, he managed to get the drop on the animal, moving up behind it while it was distracted. He didn't waste time hesitating, and reared back and swung his weapon like he would have a golf club. The head of the hammer skimmed across the ground then came up into the boarlet's side. It let out a squeal of pain and anger and spun around. "Ah f-" He managed to get out before the boarlet slammed its tusks into him, sending him staggering back as pain washed over him. 

 

 

Spoiler

Roll ID: 251728 BD: 7 MD 9 (Minor CRIT) 

 

Reytac: HP 20/20 EN 19/20 (+1 Combat Regen) DAM: 3

Uses Basic Attack, HITS. Deals 3 DAM. Uses 1 EN. 

 

Boarlet: HP 5/5 DAM 3 HITS, deals 3 DAM. MINOR CRIT +1 DAM

 

Combat Turn End:

Reytac: HP 16/20 EN 19/20

Boarlet: HP 2/5

 

Edited 1 hour ago by Reytac

[Reytac 0]

Reytac recovered, holding one hand across his stomach as he winced in pain. While it wasn't like he was left with a gaping wound from the injury, having a boar tusk shoved into his stomach was far from pleasant. He wheezed out a pained gasp before he glared at the source of his pain, the little boarlet in front of him stamping one of its feet and tossing its head. Even young, the things were malicious as all get out. He could swear there was a gleam of triumph in its eye for hurting him. 

 

"Bad boar." He squeezed hard on the hammer to keep it from flying out of his hand as he darted forward, pushing past the pain to fight back. This time he stuck to an overhead strike, swinging down at the pest. The boarlet let out a squeal as his hammer came down on the center of its forehead. For a moment they stood there, before the young beast slumped down and shattered apart into drifting pixels, leaving its loot behind. Reytac slumped down and grabbed the tusk, letting the head of the hammer fall to the ground. He leaned on it for a moment, using it to prop himself up as he caught his breath. 

 

"Armor. Armor would be nice." His free hand rubbed the spot where the tusk had got him, and he could easily imagine it doing worse - or if he'd been reckless and challenged multiple boarlets at once, being overwhelmed by dozens of hits like it. "Definitely need armor." 

 

 

Spoiler

Roll ID: 251729: BD: 10 (MAJOR CRIT DAM +2) MD: 2 (Miss) 

 

Reytac: HP 16/20 EN: 19/20 (+1 Turn Combat Regen) DAM 3

Uses Basic Attack, CRIT success. Deals 5 DAM. 

 

Boarlet 2/5. Misses. Takes 5 DAM. DEADED. 

Reytac gets: Boarlet Tusk

End Combat Stats:

 

Reytac HP 16/20, EN 19/20.

 

Two boarlet tusks. 

 

Edited 1 hour ago by Reytac

[Reytac 0]

Reytac knew that it would be smart of him to wait before he tried to find another of the boarlets to fight. That pushing on now, before he had a chance to recover, would be stupid. He had to stay alive to get home after all. But - he couldn't stop himself. If he slowed down now, then he would never really get momentum going. The black pit of despair would drag him back down. He had to keep moving - keep fighting. 

 

So he stood back upright, ignoring the stab of pain through his stomach, and kept moving. There had to be more of the boarlets around here, he'd already found two relatively easily. While he still wouldn't try to fight any that were moving in groups together, he felt that he could, hopefully, still manage at least one more. 

 

And then he saw it. It was, unfortunately, facing him this time, and aware of him well before he was aware of it. In fact, by the time Reytac knew that the boarlet was there, it was already mid charge at him, stomping across the field as fast as its little legs could take it. "Nononono" He stammered out as he swung his hammer, trying to ward off the strike he knew was coming. Despite his effort, or possibly because he was panicking as he made the effort, his swing missed, going over the boarlet's head. The beast didn't miss, though, and slammed into him. Reytac let out a gasp as the tusks dug into him. 

Spoiler

Roll ID: 251730 BD: 2 Miss MD: 9 (Minor CRIT DAM +1)

 

Reytac: HP 16/20, EN 19/20. (+1 Combat Regen) Uses Basic Attack . Misses. Uses 2 EN. 

 

Boarlet 5/5 HP. Dam 3. Hits, Minor CRIT +1. Deals 4 DAM. 

 

End of Turn:

Reytac: 12/20 HP. EN 18/20.

 

Edited 1 hour ago by Reytac

[Reytac 0]

Reytac was hurting, badly. These boarlets - he could very well see why so many people had died to them. Not counting his first, lucky, fight, two of them had taken him down nearly half way in just two hits! There was nothing pretty or easy about fighting in a death game - just misery, and apparently it was mostly on his part. Doing his best to focus through the waves of pain coming from his body from the impact points, he twisted, putting weight into the next swing of his hammer. 

 

The metal head of the weapon dug into the boar, and he could almost swear he saw its flesh deforming around the spot where he struck it. The boar let out a downright murderous squeal as he hit it, enraged by the fact that its 'prey' wasn't already dead. Reytac's continued existence seemed to offend the boarlet deeply. One of its legs lashed out into his knee, slamming into him and making him grunt. If he could trade blows with the blasted thing, that was fine. 

But it had to stay a trade. If this beast managed another hit on him, he'd have to take one of his potions. Because in no world was he going to die to a boarlet. 

 

Spoiler

Roll ID: 251731 BD: 7, MD: 8

 

Reytac: HP 12/20, EN 18/20 (+1 Combat Regen) Dam 3, Uses Basic Attack, HITS. Uses 1 EN. 

 

Boarlet: HP 5/5 DAM 3.  Hits

 

End of turn:

Reytac: 9/20, EN 18/20. 

Boarlet: HP: 2/5.

Edited 1 hour ago by Reytac

[Reytac 0]

The math in his head was quick and dirty. Even if this boar hit him as hard as it could, he would live. He could take another hit, one almost twice as powerful as anything he'd been hit by so far. Which meant Reytac didn't have to slow down. He just had to hit the blasted thing. If he could just hit it, even if it lived, he should be able to take it out before he died. He wasn't paying attention to health bars, though the thought to make sure to turn the things on after this. 

He grabbed the boar by the tusks that were jabbing into him, and wrenched it around, slamming it to the ground. The smashing wasn't pretty - he wasn't a trained fighter, didn't know any fancy sword arts to use. What he did know was beating a nail into a plank. And right now, the boarlet was a might big nail. The arm holding the battle hammer came up, and dropped down hard, driving the head of the weapon into the boarlet. Then it came up, and dropped again, striking like a falling rock as Reytac slammed the weapon down over and over. 

 

At some point the boarlet had vanished into pixels, but he didn't recognize it. He kept slamming the hammer down, tears burning in his eyes. "I won't die. I won't die. I won't die. I need to get home to her." 

 

Eventually he managed to get himself back under control, and wiped his face with his sleeve as he stood back up on swaying, shaky legs. He scooped up the tusks, and started staggering down the nearby path back into town. He ignored the looks from the gate guards, or the other passers - the boarlet hadn't beaten him. 

 

Spoiler

Roll ID: 251732 BD 10 (MAJOR CRIT) MD 5

 

Reytac: HP: 9/20. EN 18/20. Dam 3. 

Regains 1 EN Combat Regen 

Uses Basic Attack. Hits. Dam 3. +2 MAJOR CRIT. Deals 5 DAM. 

 

Boarlet HP 2/5. Takes 5 dam. Dead. 

 

Reytac Gets Boarlet Tusks (3/3)

 

End Combat Stats:

Reytac: HP 9/20. EN 18/20. Boarlet Tusks 3/3.

 

Edited 46 minutes ago by Reytac

[Reytac 0]

It was, thankfully for Reytac, still daytime when he managed to make his way back to Lyle's smithy. He had thought about going ahead and popping one of his health potions, but decided against it. If this didn't finish the quest, he was just going to rest until his passive Regen had ticked enough to heal him back up - he might be desperate to keep moving forward, but he wasn't so far gone as to be suicidal. Not yet, at least. He shook that thought off as he pushed into Lyle's shop. 

 

The sound of metal ringing on metal filled his ears, and he easily spotted Lyle working at his anvil, pounding his hammer down on a glowing piece of metal. Reytac let the door close behind him, and quietly waited, pulling the tusks from his inventory as he did so. Even though the man was an NPC, Rey wasn't going to be rude enough to just interrupt him. Besides, this gave him a chance to catch his breath while actually standing still, instead of walking through town. 

 

Soon enough the Smith stopped his work, and turned his attention to Reytac. The adventurer stepped over and handed over his loot. 

 

"Now, sir, I'm here about Mayor Dorian supposedly lending someone money."

 

Quote

"Now, I'll have you know that I don't take loans from anyone, especially men the likes of Dorian White. You might try old Pete Larkin. He spends all his time fishing for river monsters or some such nonsense." With a scoff, he adds, "Without a real job, the man could probably use the charity." Lyle turns back to his work.

 

Reytac stared for a moment, and slowly shook his head, before trying to hand the hammer back to Lyle. The smith pointedly ignored him, going so far as to turn when Reytac stepped around, so he continually kept his back to him. 

"Keep it, brat. You look like you could use all the help you can get." He finally said after Reytac went to leave the hammer on one of the racks without handing it over to Lyle directly. The player hesitated for a moment, before nodding once. 

 

"Thank you." He was met with a dismissive grunt, and he gave a final shrug before stepping out of the smithy. Now he just.. Had to track down a fisherman. With no indication of where the man might be. No problem, right? 

 

Spoiler

Reytac: HP: 9/20. EN 18/20. 

Out of Combat Regen: 

+10 HP (Tier (1) x 10) 

+1 EN

Reytac: 19/20. EN 19/20.