[SP-F4] Blood in the Snow <<Avalanche>>

[Guest]

Each step took him deeper into the biting gale, and Alkor winced in the face of it. The information brokers had sent him out to the fringes of the floor, promises of a hidden boss and experience that could be utilized for increasing one's strength giving him the tenacity to move forward. He rested a hand on the hilt of his blade. It was still there.

"My fingers are numb," he muttered aloud, still unused to the harsher effects of this floor's worst environments. "It's such a realistic affliction. Like the pins and needles you'd get from sleeping on your hand."

Avalanche, the boss' name, was a large creature with 50 health, and who did a healthy amount of damage with each strike. "I'll just have to be nimble," he reassured himself. His armor and speed were durable and great enough to help him survive anything short of a floor boss. At least, that's how he felt about it. The damage dealt by the greater creatures Aincrad had to offer was nothing to scoff at.

Really, this fight was mostly about the Skill Points. In order to increase his damage output, Alkor would need to both train and allocate SP until he had "maxed out" the skill. At Grandmaster rank, his damage would cap, short of skills that added damage or weapons that increased strength.

[Guest]

There were a number of mobs that appeared frozen in place in every direction, though Alkor knew that the second he got close, they would undoubtedly attempt to ambush him. For that reason, he stayed to one straight and narrow path through the deepest part of the snow drift, not wanting to lose any health before he got to the boss.

Without expending any money on potions prior to the fight, it would be more like a gamble than a sure thing. Alkor preferred a real challenge- he made them for himself wherever he could. It had come close to killing him multiple times now. But, here he was.

The large, open field of ice was empty for miles when he walked out onto it. He had heard that a certain distance in, the boss would trigger on its own; hopefully, there was a measure of truth in that. He disliked having to solve puzzles to get where he needed to be. It was meticulous.

Alkor checked over his avatar status- still green, unaffected by any status ailments- and made sure all of his skills were allocated and hotkeyed. The boss was going to show up when he wasn't ready if he didn't get prepared now.

[Guest]

The sky had stopped falling when he reached the center of the frigid plain. Alkor glanced up in disbelief at the gray-white sky, as if at any moment it would resume the storm just to mock him. It never did.

Alkor slid the weapon from his sheath and took a deep breath. "It's coming," he said in a quiet voice. The world was supremely still. For miles around him, no creature came near, and the silence that came with absolute loneliness sent his mind reeling.

Then, the world burst into motion. Lurching and rocking as the very ground beneath him shivered and came to life, Alkor threw himself backward fast as he could manage. The beast yawned mightily as it awoke, a massive roar breaking free of its gaping maw.

"You're an ugly little bugger," the golden eyed swordsman muttered to himself. Dropping into a fighting stance, Alkor took a breath to steady himself. "Here I come!"

Alkor: 19/19

Avalanche: 50/50

[Guest]

In a blur of motion, Alkor skated forward through the ice and drilled into Avalanche as hard as he could. The blade skirted along the outside of the boss' rigid exterior, but dealt a healthy amount of damage. The beast stared down at Alkor with feral hatred in its expression.

Beneath his hood, Alkor's eyes watched the boss' massive frame for the telltale hints of motion. If there was a chance he could chain together attacks or back off before getting hit, he would seize the opportunity.

Rolled a 6 on the d10 (battle) dice.

Rolled a 5 on the d12 (craft) dice.

Rolled a 6 on the d20 (loot) dice.

Alkor deals 5 damage. (3 skill + 1 weapon + 1 base)

Alkor: 19/19

Avalanche: 45/50

[Guest]

[Avalanche's turn]

The hulking mass of frigid rock hefted one of its mighty arms, then swept it across the snow covered ground. It watched in frustration as the player moved quickly out of the way and avoided damage altogether. Leaning it's head back, the beast let out a mighty roar.

Rolled a 4 on the d10 (battle) dice.

Rolled a 8 on the d12 (craft) dice.

Rolled a 10 on the d20 (loot) dice.

Avalanche misses.

Alkor: 19/19

Avalanche: 45/50

[Guest]

As he tumbled back and out of the way of what could have been a potentially devastating blow, Alkor ducked low to ensure that he would take no damage, even from the environment. Unfortunately, his foot slid with the snow and he lost his footing.

Because of this slip up, the boss was able to recover, and Alkor lost his opportunity to land another strike. He would have to wait for an opening to present itself before rushing in again.

Rolled a 1 on the d10 (battle) dice.

Rolled a 12 on the d12 (craft) dice.

Rolled a 14 on the d20 (loot) dice.

Alkor misses

Alkor: 19/19

Avalanche: 45/50

[Guest]

[Avalanche's turn]

The beast swiped for the fleet footed player again, and the frustration took a tighter grip on the boss. This small player had hurt him, yet he had been unable to exact any amount of vengeance. It made the frozen blood of the beast boil.

With another howl, Avalanche shook the world and slammed both hands into the ground, attempting to take Alkor off balance. Anything to make the player easier to kill, and the program to get back to.

Rolled a 2 on the d10 (battle) dice.

Rolled a 10 on the d12 (craft) dice.

Rolled a 1 on the d20 (loot) dice.

Avalanche misses.

Alkor: 19/19

Avalanche: 45/50

[Guest]

In the instant that the boss slammed both hands down, Alkor seized his moment. The beast's thick arm created a perfect target for Alkor's heavy attack, and the player ran his blade deep into the white-blue mass.

With a grunt of effort, the golden eyed player ripped his blade upward and sliced cleanly out of the beast, causing it to let out an angered roar. Alkor smirked with satisfaction, though he knew there was no cause for celebration yet.

There would be time for that when the beast was felled.

Rolled a 9 on the d10 (battle) dice.

Rolled a 12 on the d12 (craft) dice.

Rolled a 13 on the d20 (loot) dice.

Alkor deals 6 damage. (Critical)

Alkor: 19/19

Avalanche: 39/50

[Guest]

[Avalanche's turn]

Despite the closeness of the boss' strike, the player seemed a step ahead. The beast was furious by how easily the small human eluded his wrath, and he slammed the frosty ground once more to give his anger a voice.

With thundering fists shaking the level, ice and snow ripped down from the cliffs above and slid across the plain, creating hostile terrain for the player to overcome in conjunction with Avalanche's attacks.

Rolled a 7 on the d10 (battle) dice. (Miss, Alkor's Evasion stat)

Rolled a 7 on the d12 (craft) dice.

Rolled a 16 on the d20 (loot) dice.

Avalanche misses.

Alkor: 19/19

Avalanche: 39/50

[Guest]

Struggling to maintain what footholds he had, Alkor rushed forward quickly and darted between the boss' legs. Stationary as he was in spite of his flailing, Avalanche provided a makeshift shelter from the chaotic elements as the monster caused a total shift in the floor around them. Alkor watched the devastation with a grim look plastered on his face. In the face of that, a direct attack may as well have been suicide. Quick thinking and fast feet had saved his life.

Before the boss could recover, though, he plunged his blade into the meat of Avalanche's leg and the behemoth cried out in agony, tilting forward and falling with an even louder crash. Alkor hurried out of the way of any further detritus that would threaten to take away his footing or sending him off the edge of the world. If he could avoid death on this trip, he was going to do it.

Rolled a 8 on the d10 (battle) dice.

Rolled a 7 on the d12 (craft) dice.

Rolled a 15 on the d20 (loot) dice.

Alkor deals 5 damage.

Alkor: 19/19

Avalanche: 34/50

[Guest]

[Avalanche's turn]

As he slid out from beneath the boss, Alkor slipped onto his back and lost control of his footing. He let out a wild yell and held up his Anneal Blade defensively, just in time to block the heaviest of Avalanche's damage. The fist connected with his sword and the impact transferred, but the player's strength was enough to stop from being overtaken.

"You're a real pushover, ain't you?" Alkor asked the creature rhetorically. It howled in response, clearly outraged at the simplicity with which the small creature had stopped its attack. Beneath his hood, Alkor was smirking. This was going over way too easily for a boss fight. Was he that well built as a character?

Best not to get cocky, he'd decided. Instead, once he found his footing, he adopted a stance and looked for an opening to attack.

Rolled a 8 on the d10 (battle) dice.

Rolled a 10 on the d12 (craft) dice.

Rolled a 18 on the d20 (loot) dice.

Avalanche deals 1 damage (2 mitigation)

Alkor: 18/19

Avalanche: 34/50

[Guest]

When the boss began to beat on the floor again, Alkor knew a second attempt at going beneath the beast would end badly. Instead, he took to the debris falling toward him, climbing it as best he could at top speed.

Though his movements took him further from the boss, thus robbing him of an attack that turn, in the long run it had saved him from the possibility of taking massive damage. Avalanche himself might not have been particularly powerful... but the avalanche that he created could cause Alkor to die immediately.

Alkor had no intention of dying.

Rolled a 5 on the d10 (battle) dice. (Miss)

Rolled a 8 on the d12 (craft) dice.

Rolled a 9 on the d20 (loot) dice.

Alkor: 18/19

Avalanche: 34/50

[Guest]

[Avalanche's turn]

The behemoth's fist once more lashed out for Alkor, and again he stopped it short with his sword, taking a fractional amount of damage. "You're going to have to do better," Alkor muttered. With his armor and skills, he was already getting to the point where weaker creatures no longer posed a threat to him. It was perfect moving forward- his speed was his pride and joy.

Now he just needed to work on his lethality. Eventually, he would find items to optimize his damage, as well as ways to bolster his accuracy. Until then, he was content with the way things were progressing. As long as he kept moving forward.

Rolled a 8 on the d10 (battle) dice. (Hit)

Rolled a 12 on the d12 (craft) dice.

Rolled a 15 on the d20 (loot) dice.

Alkor: 17/19

Avalanche: 34/50

[Guest]

Dodging between fallen tree trunks and crashing snow, Alkor eluded Avalanche once more. The arm stretched out toward him, and Alkor watched the it creep behind him in what felt like slow motion.

When it swept across, he jumped up and seized the opening. His weight slammed into the rocky arm of the boss and his sword dug deep. As the are reeled and the jerking motion loosed him, he found himself flying toward a snowy mound.

He landed in the cushioning powder with a subdued thud, and when he rose from it, the swordsman was flicking snow out of his hair. "Guess that's what I get for being cocky," he laughed.

Rolled a 9 on the d10 (battle) dice. (Critical hit)

Rolled a 9 on the d12 (craft) dice.

Rolled a 18 on the d20 (loot) dice

Alkor: 17/19

Avalanche: 28/50

[Guest]

[Avalanche's turn]

This time when Avalanche lashed out at him, Alkor shrugged out of the way and watched the arm pass him by. In a wild attempt to slice the boss' arm open, Alkor trudged out of the massive snow drift, only to fall flat on his face.

"Well, that was embarrassing," he muttered as he struggled to regain. Thankfully, he was well out of the way before the boss had time to recover. Alkor let out a sigh, then smirked with confidence.

Rolled a 1 on the d10 (battle) dice.

Rolled a 9 on the d12 (craft) dice.

Rolled a 17 on the d20 (loot) dice.

Alkor: 17/19

Avalanche: 28/50

[Guest]

In a blur of motion, Alkor ripped deep into the boss' chest. The beast sagged backward and lurched over, but remained standing. It gave a low growl, and Alkor threw himself backward, but the boss seemed to be getting ready for something more.

It took in a deep breath, the hissing sound of air filling it's lungs rapidly stealing his attention away from everything else. He felt something very wrong with the situation. "Something bad is about to happen," he said plainly, and there was.

Rolled a 7 on the d10 (battle) dice.

Rolled a 6 on the d12 (craft) dice.

Rolled a 9 on the d20 (loot) dice.

Alkor: 17/19

Avalanche: 22/50

[Guest]

[Avalanche's turn]

Alkor danced out of the way of yet another monstrous blow from the boss. He held up his blade and swatted the strike wide, training his gaze on the frigid beast. Alkor let out a ragged, frosty breath and ran a finger down his weapon idly. "Your time is coming," he muttered.

Rolled a 3 on the d10 (battle) dice.

Rolled a 10 on the d12 (craft) dice.

Rolled a 12 on the d20 (loot) dice.

Alkor: 17/19

Avalanche: 22/50