Dungeon Crawler Quest(Original Fantasy)

Raising the team size raises the difficulty in managing that team. This also makes it more stressful and difficult to do a dungeon run.

Going to assume there probably aren't infinite noob friendly dungeons within range of town. Also, even if there are enough dungeons, people get tired, travel times back to sell stuff, etc.

It's also much eaiser to start with a small party and add more than start with a big party and kick people out.

 

There are a decent number of dungeons not necessarily noob friendly ones, but no each parties instance is separate, so there's no waiting times.

 

Eh, I am okay with going with more for practice, then saying that so-and-so combination does not work after we see it in practice.
+shrugs+

Also, I was planning on sampling the whole of the characters' personalities, and pick those that mesh well with Alice to deepen some bonds with, instead of trying to bond with the initial team. It is entirely possible for friction to happen in a smaller team anyway.

+wonders if Rolf will turn out to be the broest of bros that is forgotten because of his looks+


Also, errands and quests aside from raiding Dungeons?
Or will going into a Dungeon use up all timeslot?

 

Mah, there are non dungeon quests, but Alice is too excited to consider those right now. Also slow drip on introducing mechanics. Number of delves per day relies on a bunch of thing I don't quite feel like typing up on my phone.

 

[X] First, approach Maya. Then double team Seraphine, before descending like a flood of estrogen over Jack and Anshelm.

 

The argument that we can invite more people later also applies in reverse. We can just split off if we don't like it. Better to play it safe at first.

I am curious what traits Anshelm and Jack got for their backgrounds though.

 

No we fucking can't. "Splitting up" means abandonning comrade and creating tension within the group IC, and meta-wise we will never, ever, ever see a Quest character just giving up minion/his-old team he has insisted on.

This is why we are taking a tank and a level 3 in our team. Keep in mind that the high priest said "even taking one other people help wonders". Groups aren't necessary from the get go, and our team is geared toward defense (CC Mage, Tank, and Higher-level Gal) with some decent attacking power. The "full team" will have even more defense for no more attacking power, and will get us slower progression.

Yes, indeed, and you are going to the root of the problem. People see companions as pokemon. GOTTA GET THEM ALL. This is why we shouldn't take them all first and then throw away the bad ones- because it will never happen.

 

Dude, I don't appreciate you swearing at me. I understand that it is easy to get worked up over this stuff, but it would be much easier to converse with you if you turned down the enthusiasm just a little.

 

Winning Vote is Full Party, 2 Potions and an Amrita

Ugh, well you have to admit there is some draw to having someone who’s clearly been to at least one dungeon around… and if you want to convince others you should probably start with Maya… You expect she won’t have a hard time convincing most of these guys of anything. Apparently the gods are perv’s cause her starter armor(is it starter armor?) looks more like a something you saw in the window of a fetish shop once before Mom dragged you away and yelled at you for wandering off.

She cocks her head to the side as you approach her table, her narrow eyes widening just a bit as you approach her. She has rather pretty red eyes. Wait no. that’s irrelevant. You also feel like a mouse in front of a cat, or maybe a piece of meat in front of a predator…. Do you need an adult?

No, no, no stupid brain, you are an adult, and you will handle this in an adult fashion. You approach her table with what you are pretty sure is a confident stride, and take a seat across from the other woman before speaking, deliberately lowering your voice a bit to sound more masculine. “You should totally form a party with me.” You say bluntly. Ah wait… you’re pretty sure you’re supposed to start with something like Hi, or maybe by introducing yourself, crap, you knew you should have put points into charisma, and now she’s going to think your weird…

Wait she’s laughing, is that good or bad? It doesn’t sound mocking. You recognize mocking. She raises a hand to cover her mouth muffling the sound, and once she has herself under control she speaks up. “Ah, how bold. I suppose that can be fine too. You’ll have to excuse me, I was surprised.”

“Yeah it’s fine, that was kinda abrupt.” You reply sheepishly, at least she wasn’t put off by it. “So um… anyway, Are you interested?”

She regards you for a moment and you fidget in your seat, she kind of makes you feel like a little kid even though you are pretty sure that both of you are the same age. “I would be fine with that. I was hoping to get an early start today, and I suppose it can’t hurt to reward your boldness a little. You already know, but I’m Maya, Please take care of me.” She holds out her hand for a clasp as she finishes speaking, and offers you a small smile.

You fumble for words for a moment and awkwardly clasp her hand. Wh-what the hell, it’s got to be some kind of witchcraft, you don’t even like other women, is this the power of a high charisma? How terrifying. “Al, I’m Al, I’ll be in your care too, I guess?”

“Nice to meet you. Did you want to get going now then? Or were you looking to get a meal first?” A pane of mystic script appears in the corner of your vision, something about a party being formed, either way you can see Maya’s Health and SP now, she actually doesn’t have much more health than you do, she must have used her stats differently.

“Wait go now? I thought we would want to get more people first?” You ask, tearing your eyes away from the new information displayed.

Maya purses her lips and shakes her head, “Really the low level dungeons aren’t very difficult, it seems a waste to have to split the rewards more than necessary. You can only access each dungeon once a day after all.”

Oh, you didn’t know that, crap, you look like a total newb. “Still a few extra hands can’t hurt right?” You aren’t really sure of your ability to convince anyone else to join you , so you want Maya on board for this.

“Ah, I suppose it couldn’t hurt. I could use an easy day…” She replies, casting a considering eye over the rest of the tavern, “Who else did you have in mind?”

“Well I was thinking we could talk to the girl in the corner there.” You respond, nodding in Seraphine’s direction.

Maya glances discreetly at the other girl and cocks her head to the side, “Why? She’s a fire elementalist, that means you’ll be competing for the same treasure…” She pauses looking at you oddly, and it just makes you even more fidgety, wait, why are her eyes sparkling like that. You don’t like that expression. “Ah I see, no wonder you were so bold in approaching me. You want to make sure you have someone higher level in your group to her impress her, right?”

“Uh… what, no that’s…” You fumble over your words, and she pats you on the head, still smiling that weird smile.

“That’s adorable, I’ll help you out, but we’re snagging the cutie by the bar afterword, That way we can both get what we want!” She is way too cheerful, but she’s already getting up and walking to Seraphine, you hurry and follow, feeling vaguely like you’ve just been run over by a wagon.

The other elementalist for her part blinks in surprise at Maya’s approach and blushes heavily when her eyes flick down to the Hunter’s mostly exposed… assets. You are never equipping a job with equipment like that, nope, not at all. “Um.. hello, did you need something miss…?”

“Oh, my friend and I were just wondering if you wanted to join our little party. Even with the job matching I think it could be pretty fun, right?” Maya asks easily, sliding into a chair across from the embarrassed elementalist.

“I-I guess? I haven’t actually been to a dungeon yet, I did some quests with my friend. Why did you want me in your party if you already have an elementalist though?” She asks, her voice gradually growing quieter as she talks, until you can barely hear her.

“Well, Al here wanted to talk to you. He seemed pretty interested in grouping with you. Why don’t you speak up Al, you’re part of the party too.” Maya goes right on, as if the girl wasn’t shrinking into her robes more by the second.

Wait, what is even happening, does she think…. You can’t keep up with this lady. You manage to at least remain composed this time. You manage to catch Seraphine’s eye and try to give a friendly smile, “I just figured it would be good to have twice the fire power you know? Even if our effects counter each other a bit, if we just aim at different targets it won’t be a problem. I um… I don’t mind splitting any elementalist stuff with you.” You actually didn’t think of that as an issue, but you can hardly back down without looking like a jerk now.

Stop giggling Maya! You’re starting to regret this, you have a feeling she isn’t going to let this idea go. “So there you have it. Partners for the day?”

Seraphine’s eyes dart between the two of you, and she nods very slightly, “Sure, if the two of you don’t mind? I’m Seraphine, I’m pleased to make your acquaintance, Maya… Al.” She still sounds kind of nervous and subdued.

You catch Rolf walking across the tavern as Seraphine begins to get up… ah crap he’s going to talk with Jack, Maya wants to get Anshelm first though… you suppose it was a little arrogant to think you could get almost everyone free on your team right away, you kinda didn’t think of any of them pairing up on their own and oh crap you have to catch up with your group, they’re already on their way to the bar. You catch up in time to hear Maya greeting him.

“Hello there, I couldn’t help but notice that you’re all alone up here. My friends and I were hoping we could convince you to party with us, we could use someone tough to take the front lines.” She gives him that smile that makes your stomach feel fuzzy, and you can’t help but wonder once again what you’ve gotten yourself into.

For his part he holds his composure at least as well as you did in the face of concentrated charm, but his scowl slips a little and he blinks, tearing his eyes away from the woman smiling at him to glance over at you and Seraphine, you smile weakly, and Seraphine bows her head, “Is- is that so.” His voice sounds about as high as yours normally does, at least until he recovers, it’s kind of funny watching someone else use the same voice deepening trick. “I guess I might be able to help you out. You three look like you could use a warrior.” He seems to brighten up a bit at that, and you catch him glancing at the other warrior in the establishment, the much larger Rolf.

“We really do, the three of us just aren’t made for that kind of thing, we definitely need someone willing to brave the enemies blows for us. Isn’t that right?” Maya says cheerfully.

You blink and answer without thinking, “Yeah, I mean both of us are really kinda squishy ya know? On the other hand Seraphine and I can really help you out with groups and Maya should be able to kill tough enemies really fast.”

Seraphine speaks up quietly as well, “We would really appreciate the help sir.”

Maya casts an amused glance over at you two and leans forward, drawing Anshelms eyes inexorably to her chest, its kind of hard to ignore…. Those when they’re right at eye level, “Like they said, we would make a good team, and besides the sooner we get started the more we can get done today, right?”

Anshelm remains rather admirably composed, even if he is kind of talking to Maya’s chest at this point. “Yeah, sure, that seems like a pretty good idea. I don’t really know anyone around here, so getting a party together was going to be a pain.” He trails off sounding like he just noticed what he said and scowls, eyes coming up to meet Maya’s and staying there as his scowl resurfaces. “I mean, yeah, you obviously need someone strong to protect you.”

OH he’s adorable when he puffs out his chest and tries to look manly! You clamp down on your urge to squeal and hug him. Something tells you that would be counterproductive right now. His name pops up under yours on the party pane….. cripes he has as much health as you and Maya combined, he must have really stacked constitution.

“Great! I’m Maya, and this is Al, pleased to be working with you.” You blink and turn your eyes away from the numbers and nod a greeting yourself.

Seraphine bows her head again as she introduces herself, “Seraphine, pleased to meet you.”

Anshelm grunts and thumps himself on the chest… well the dinged up metal breastplate of his starter armor, “Anshelm. I’m the best warrior you’ll meet.” You glance back over at the others… it looks like Rolf and Jack partied up. You’ll get your full party another day it seems…

The four of you set out from the tavern, Maya had been ready to go by the time you got there and Anshelm and Seraphine had already eaten, and well… you’re kind of hungry but you can eat the quick meal the Innkeeper gave you before you left while you walk, nice guy that one, said something about a first time freebie. Anyway You’ve been fed… or are in the process of feeding, and are listening to Maya discuss which dungeons are in your level range and are relatively close to the city. No point in wandering too far just yet. Wandering Monsters are a real threat the further out you go, and they can be all sorts of high levels sometimes.

“…So since we have a nice little group here, I think our best bets are one of these three.” You tune back in fully to what Maya is saying. She has a panel up that all three of you can see… some kind of party function, it has a short list of dungeons, ones Maya has encountered herself? You think so that’s pretty helpful.

“First is the Goblin Glade, its very good for beginners, I think it’s been left uncleared just so new branded can get a little practice. The level cap on the E rank version is three though, so I won’t be able to go much longer.”

Your curiosity wars with your desire to seem knowledgeable for a moment and fails utterly. “Level cap? E Rank? What does any of that mean, isn’t a dungeon a dungeon?”

Anshelm nods, it looks like he wants to know too even if he’s too proud to ask. Maya blinks and looks sheepish, “Right, you three are completely new. Dungeons have caps on the level of people who can enter them. Its why the really high level branded can’t just endlessly beat on weak dungeons for treasure. As for E rank… that’s the rank all dungeons start at. Once you’ve beaten it at that rank it unlocks the next rank, if you clear a dungeon on S rank it’s possible to clear and disperse it! That’s a bit beyond us at the moment though.”

You nod seriously, and catch Anshelm copying you, you stick your tongue out at him, and he scowls back, Seraphine is too shy to do more than nod now and then to acknowledge Maya“Alright that makes sense, I was wondering how there were any dungeons left if just clearing them once made them go away. Anyway, what are the other dungeons?”

Maya looks rather amused at your byplay with Anshelm, but doesn’t say anything, “The next one is the Wailing Cavern, it’s mostly beast type enemies but the level cap is a little higher, so they tend to be a little more difficult than the goblins. Third we have the Crystal Lake… it has a cap of seven though and I haven’t been inside, we might not want to do that one first.”

You frown and point out the other two dungeons on the list, “What about these ones? The Lost Graveyard and the Devil’s Eye?”

Maya shakes her head, "Those ones would be a bad idea to take on right away… The Graveyard is… dangerous, and the enemies ice resistant and the Devil’s Eye has a reputation for killing new branded who try it, plus it has a level cap of twelve. I really think we should begin on one of the other three. Probably the Goblin Glade so we can get used to each other.”

Funny, she isn’t laying on the charm or being playful right now, she also looked kind of sad when you mentioned the graveyard. Your great social skills tell you maybe you shouldn’t poke that. Anshelm speaks up, “I think we could handle going right to the caverns.” He boasts, “I can handle whatever a bunch of monsters dish out.”

Seraphine fidgets, both hands clutched nervously around her staff, “I, um. I like Maya’s idea, if we do the easy one first we can still do the others later right?”

Ah, now they’re looking at you, where do you want to go first? And if its an odd choice, how will you convince them?

[] Write In

Party UI

Al Lv1
Ice Elementalist E
Health 50/50
SP 50/50

Maya Lv3
Dual Blade Hunter E
Health 53/53
Sp 30/30

Seraphine Lv2
Fire Elementalist E
Health 44/44
Sp 55/55

Anshelm Lv1
Spear Warrior E
Health 110/110
SP 25/25

 

Now THAT was awkward.

 

[X] Wailing Cavern. There are four of us here as is, and you wouldn't mind wetting your feet on something of a fair strenght since theres almost a full party here.

 

[] Goblin Glade
-[] All three of us are pretty much new Brandeds, so we're probably going to try not to trip each others
-[] Share your Skills and invite others to do so as well, but follow Maya's directions for the most part

[] You aren't aiming to clear the Dungeon in one go, just coordinating with each other
- [] If the party finds their rythm soon enough, or if Maya levels, then move on to Rank E Wailing Cavern

 

[X] Wailing Cavern
-[X] All three of us are pretty much new Brandeds, so we're probably going to try not to trip each others
-[X] Share your Skills and invite others to do so as well, but follow Maya's directions for the most part
[X] Try to pace yourself so you can clear the conditions in one go and coordinate with each other
- [X] If the party finds their rythm soon enough, or if Maya levels, then move on to Rank Crystal Lake

 

[X] Goblin Glade
-[X] All three of us are pretty much new Brandeds, so we're probably going to try not to trip each others
-[X] Share your Skills and invite others to do so as well, but follow Maya's directions for the most part
[X] Try to pace yourself so you can clear the conditions in one go, remember you only have one Escape Orb
- [X] If the party finds their rythm soon enough, or if Maya levels, then move on to Rank E Wailing Cavern

Guys, and especially Xicree, remember we can only leave the dungeon by clearing whatever condition it needs or using an escape orb, and the escape orb should be a last resort. We have no idea how difficult this will really be, so let's start easy and not waste our orb on the first dungeon we enter.

 

[X] Goblin Glade
-[X] All three of us are pretty much new Brandeds, so we're probably going to try not to trip each others
-[X] Share your Skills and invite others to do so as well, but follow Maya's directions for the most part
[X] You aren't aiming to clear the Dungeon in one go, just coordinating with each other
- [X] If the party finds their rythm soon enough, or if Maya levels, then move on to Rank E Wailing Cavern

Let's begin with easy mode to get to know the system.

 

[X] Goblin Glade
-[X] All three of us are pretty much new Brandeds, so we're probably going to try not to trip each others
-[X] Share your Skills and invite others to do so as well, but follow Maya's directions for the most part
[X] You aren't aiming to clear the Dungeon in one go, just coordinating with each other
- [X] If the party finds their rythm soon enough, or if Maya levels, then move on to Rank E Wailing Cavern

 

Hahaha, Maya thinks we're a guy who has a crush on Seraphine

quieter?

[X] Goblin Glade
-[X] All three of us are pretty much new Brandeds, so we're probably going to try not to trip each others
-[X] Share your Skills and invite others to do so as well, but follow Maya's directions for the most part
[X] You aren't aiming to clear the Dungeon in one go, just coordinating with each other
- [X] If the party finds their rythm soon enough, or if Maya levels, then move on to Rank E Wailing Cavern

 

Yeah, typo there. Thanks for pointing it out.

 

Okay what's up with all this "You aren't aiming to clear the Dungeon in one go" stuff? Unless I misread it we need to clear the dungeon to leave it, or use the Escape Orb, which are expensive and should be reserved for emergencies. Could someone explain this please?

 

Hmm, need clarification then? I thought Escape Orb is just getting out ASAP, like when low in health, ambushed by high levels, etc., and getting out was simply backtracking to the entrance?

 

No, it's pretty clear you can't leave a dungeon without either using a escape orb or clearing it.

This is why it would have been better to have less people as there are much higher odds of getting more gear/xp per dungeon that way.

OTOH, escape orbs work for the whole party, and we can escape Seraphina and Answhen to have one (we don't know about Maya).

 

Spoiler: Dungeons

Dungeons are essentially enclosed combat encounters consisting of a varying number of distinct [rooms] containing enemies.

Some dungeons will have rooms in the single digits, others could have dozens! Some dungeons require all rooms to be cleared, others simply require that you defeat the [boss] there may even be dungeons with more esoteric conditions for completion. It is impossible to leave a dungeon, without special items allowing for it, without completing its victory condition.

The two main points of commonality in dungeons are the [Level Cap] and the Rank. Level Cap is the maximum level a character is allowed to enter the dungeon at, attempts to enter a dungeon too low for you will simply fail. There is no minimum level for dungeons though, but be careful! Higher caps mean much more difficult foes.

Ranks follow the same scheme as skill and Job ranks, with the exception of EX rank dungeons being both exceedingly rare and often entirely distinct from their lesser bretheren. You won’t have to deal with those for a long time, so we can come back to those later.

When you clear a dungeon in its initial E Rank form, it unlocks the D rank version. Clearing the D unlocks the C and so forth. Each iteration is significantly harder than the last, and comes with a higher level cap. You may only enter each dungeon once every twenty four hours though, no matter which rank you choose to do, so pick carefully!

Loot and Experience

Gilder dropped by enemies will automatically be divided evenly among party members. Any other drops, be they equipment or items will have to divided manually.

Experience and Job points are rewarded at the end of the dungeon and are based on rooms cleared [bosses] and [sub bosses] defeated, as well as extra encounters and other factors. Have fun discovering the secrets of the dungeons!

Well you're in luck. have a brief tutorial box on Dungeons

 

Well, drat?

[] Goblin Glade
-[] All three of us are pretty much new Brandeds, so we're probably going to try not to trip each others
-[] Share your Skills and invite others to do so as well, but follow Maya's directions for the most part

[] If you manage to clear the E-Rank of Goblin Glade but still have time remaining, then try out the E-Rank of Wailing Cavern

 

[X] Goblin Glade
-[X] All three of us are pretty much new Brandeds, so we're probably going to try not to trip each others
-[X] Share your Skills and invite others to do so as well, but follow Maya's directions for the most part
[X] If you manage to clear the E-Rank of Goblin Glade but still have time remaining after heading back to town to sell or store loot, then try out the E-Rank of Wailing Cavern

Hey look, the more experienced character thinks grabbing a whole party and going after the fire elementalist were bad ideas (we have to share drops.)

Also, we don't want to go on to another dungeon. Look at the loot mechanics, we will be entering a higher reward area while already full up on loot. The item limit is going to make it challenging to spam run dungeons when we don't know the number of total drops.

 

[X] Goblin Glade
-[X] All three of us are pretty much new Brandeds, so we're probably going to try not to trip each others
-[X] Share your Skills and invite others to do so as well, but follow Maya's directions for the most part
[X] If you manage to clear the E-Rank of Goblin Glade but still have time remaining after heading back to town to sell or store loot, then try out the E-Rank of Wailing Cavern

Also -25% EXP and our status effects cancel each others.

Yup.

 

[X] Goblin Glade
-[X] All three of us are pretty much new Brandeds, so we're probably going to try not to trip each others
-[X] Share your Skills and invite others to do so as well, but follow Maya's directions for the most part
[X] If you manage to clear the E-Rank of Goblin Glade but still have time remaining, then try out the E-Rank of Wailing Cavern

 

Right, right, get all the grievances out now.

[X] Plan Darkened (Glade, sell loot, if there is time, Cavern)

 

I seriously doubt we'll complete this dungeon and then move on to activites after completion without another vote in between.

 

Just the initial planning, they can change. We're not that anal to keep to a plan when there are circumstances that effectively changes its outcome.


. . . Maybe.

 

“I think Goblin Glade is the best bet too.” You say after a moment. While you are pretty eager to level up, you haven’t even cast a single spell yet.

Anshelm looks a bit put out, but Seraphine seems relieved. “I guess that’s fine.” He grumbles. The four of you set out then, since its going be a little bit of trip according to Maya, only an hours march, but still. You idly listen in on the conversation that springs up between Maya And Seraphine as you walk.

“…Um… why do you wear something like that Miss Maya? I’ve seen a few other hunters around, and the starting armor isn’t… that. Aren’t you embarrassed?“ The other elementalist asks your apparent party leader.

“Oh? Yes, it is a little too revealing, but the stealth bonus is pretty nice for me. A lot of the equipment for women is like this though.” She frowns, glancing down at herself. “It’s really kind of annoying.”

You catch Anshelm looking at the same thing she is and blushing, he catches you watching and jerks his eyes away. You end up laughing under your breath… until it really processes that one day you might have to choose between your dignity and stats, ugh. Stupid pervy gods.

Seraphine seems downright distraught, “Ah… isn’t there any way to change how it looks?”

Maya pats her comfortingly on the shoulder. “Sure, the disguise skill is surprisingly popular for that. Of course that also means that it’s expensive, unless you can loot the skill crystal, and I’m not sure where to find one.” She pauses, “I’m sure you could pull any of the equipment off though Sera. “ Which leaves the other girl stumbling over an assurance that she doesn’t want to pull anything off.

That does make you consider something, mostly that you don’t know any of your companion’s skills. “Hey, now that I think about it, we haven’t told each other about our skills. Shouldn’t we do that before we head into the dungeon?”

“That does seem like a good idea.” Anshelm cuts in, perhaps too quickly, you think he just wants to change the current subject, “I get a bonus to defense for each enemy in striking range, and a free shot at any of them who try to leave it from Spears. Shield makes me harder to push around and lets me draw enemy attention.”

You shrug, whatever his intention, it gets things on the track you wanted… and away from bad thoughts. “I Can do a blast of ice damage in an arc, or a chill aura to get anything near me. Staves just gives me more power and range.”

Maya shrugs and goes along with it. “I already know most of the starting skills, but sure. Twin Knives removes the penalty for using two weapons and lets me do double damage to opponents who can’t see me. Stealth does what you would think, and lets me make a single enemy lose interest for some SP. I also picked up Appraise, so I can tell the value of lower tier items just by looking.”

Seraphine fidgets a bit and responds a little slower. “I have Staves like Mister Al. Fire magic lets me target two enemies with burning rays or do a burst of fire that knocks close enemies away.”

You nod, seems like a pretty good mix, you kind wish your chill aura had a knock back effect. “So what about your personal skills? Mine are an all around magic booster and a bonus to searches and extra encounter rates.”

“My, trying to steal all of a ladies secrets on the first day Al? You just get bolder and bolder. Personal skills are kind of private you know?” Maya responds after a moment. “Still, an extra encounter boost? That’s pretty useful, they have the best drops of all, even if they are harder enemies.”

Anshelm shrugs, but speaks up. “It’s no big deal. I get stronger the less health I have, and get an experience multiplier when I party with higher level people.” Hmph, is he trying to upstage you?

Maya hesitates a moment, and then shrugs, returning to smiling cheerfully. “Mine is an increase to all charisma based actions.” She admits. “The other is an all around stat boost, but the trigger is…” She pauses, and you lean in anticipating the response, “…A secret!”

Ugh, your eyebrow twitches. That’s annoying, and cliché, but mostly annoying. Seraphine is blushing heavily you notice, but she does manage to squeak out a response, “Um… mine makes me harder for enemies to notice, and the second increases the effect of any skill that deals fire damage.”

Wow, no wonder she chose fire elementalist. Threat reduction and a boost to her element, that’s pretty decent. Not as good as yours of course. She looks like she needs reassuring though. “Those are pretty good ones Seraphine, you shouldn’t be embarrassed about it.” You respond seriously… then immediately scowl at Maya as she starts doing that weird laugh again.

You reach the city gates after that and begin your trek out to this dungeon. You’ve never actually been outside the city before. You know the area close by is relatively safe, bu the further out you travel the thicker the monsters become. Save for the Great Road connecting Alkhot to Morrlyn, and that takes constant effort from branded to keep clear.

The land is odd and patchwork. A forest might cut off suddenly and segue into a swamp, or flat plains suddenly become jagged spires of rock… it makes navigation a little difficult, but since Maya knows her way, you don’t have to worry about getting lost.

The trip is quiet, none of you really know each other well, Maya makes an effort to get you all talking though… with some mixed success. Either way you reach the dungeon pretty quickly, Goblin Glade is only perhaps an hours walk outside the city, and you don’t have to traverse anything weirder than a freakishly hot stretch of sand to get there.

You can see as you approach a floating pane of mystic script in front of a small woodland glade… and the distortion in the air around it that indicates the presence of a dungeon.

Goblin Glade
Level Cap: 3
Ranks Unlocked: E
Condition: Defeat the Goblin Boss
To Enter Select your Rank

“Here we are!” Maya calls, you might have lagged behind a little, it’s not your fault that desert was so hot! Stupid chaotic climate. “The first room is pretty easy, its just a bunch of goblins, the numbers vary sometimes, and a few of their warg pets. Anshelm, you should concentrate on getting them to fight you. Seraphine, you and I will target the wargs. Al, help Anshelm out with the group of goblins.”

Anshelm grunts an agreement and Seraphine nods, you nod confidently as well. “Got it, these things won’t know what hit ‘em!”

Maya smiles cheerfully and reaches out pressing her finger to the boldly lettered E on the dungeon map.

Oh gods, why is everything turning inside out and upside down. It feels like you’re falling in an empty void for a moment as the world melts away around you. It only lasts a few seconds though before you find yourself in a pleasant woodland clearing. The sun appears high in the sky, despite the fact that it is early morning outside.

As you regain your bearing Maya gestures for you all to be quiet, and gestures forward toward where you can hear the grunts of savage creatures arguing… and just sort of fades out of sight. You can kinda still see a shimmering outline, but glancing at your companions its clear that they cannot see her at all. Go Perception!

Anshelm sets his shoulders and walks forward with you and Seraphine trailing behind. Your fingers tighten around your staff, and you can’t help but feel a little nervous, this is your first combat after all.

The enemies when you see them are almost comical. Short green skinned creatures with long noses and pot bellies, armed with spears that are little better than sharpened sticks. There are only three of them…. But each sits astride a big black furred wolf creature with glowing eyes and oversized teeth.

They spy you roughly the same time Anshelm clashes his spear and against his shield and yells, “Come get some!”

It isn’t just bravado though, You watch a sliver of his SP drain as all the enemies turn toward him and attack, voicing vicious war cries and beastly snarls. You blink away your surprise and raise your staff willing your spell to emerge. A spray of icy frost erupts around Anshelm and his enemies as they engage him, wooden spears clinking off of his armor, even as one of the Wargs worries at his spear. Cold washes over them and frost spreads across skin and hide, drawing yelps of pain from the combatants and leaving Anshelm unharmed. That was sweet!

For his part, he bashes the warg occupying his spear in the face with his shield, knocking teeth loose and sending the creature reeling back, how many points did he put into strength? The warg continues to have a bad day as a searing bolt of red fire strikes the Warg lighting its fur on fire and drawing another pitiful canine yelp.

You glance over and see Seraphine holding her staff out as well… she’s smiling too, and you don’t really want to consider just how happy she looks while the warg burns.

Then Maya simply appears from thin air among the group, two silver daggers driving into the base of a wargs throat and drawing a spurt of blood as the beast spasms and dies, dropping its rider atop its corpse… for the moment it takes for said corpse to waver and shatter into black smoke. She vanishes again almost immediately afterword.

The fight goes pretty fast after that. They can barely scratch Anshelm, and you notice that even when they do, teeth and weapons leave only fading streaks of red light in their wake along with minor damage dealt to his Health bar. You and Seraphine each expend another spell… and like that its over.

Maya fades back into view, nodding in satisfaction, “Good job. That was an odd arrangement, I’ve never seen them riding the wargs before in this room. Usually there are more Goblins though.”

“Hah, if that’s all there is to this I could have done this myself.” Anshelm boasts, he’s taken a very small amount of damage, but nothing to worry about yet.

As he speaks a new pane of light shimmers on the opposite side of the clearing, baring a simple arrow in bright red pointing the way onward…. Wow these early dungeons are really idiot proof huh?
You glance around… isn’t there supposed to be treasure? “Hey what about the loot, did these things just not drop any?”

Maya shakes her head, “We don’t know yet, Treasure is given after dungeon completion, at least in these ones. I’ve heard higher level dungeons are divided by ‘checkpoints’ though. Where treasure and experience is compiled before the end. Anyway, the next couple rooms are close to the same…”

You listen as Maya as she points things out. You absolutely want to be in able to make the decisions for your party one day, but for now you’ll watch, learn, and make sure you learn your role well. Your job right now is to make sure Anshelm doesn’t get swamped by enemy groups by slowing them down and keeping their mobility low.

The next couple of rooms, are as Maya said similar, they contain a lot more goblins though, and starting with the next one, the goblins are lead by a bigger one wearing a patchwork set of armor and wielding a real spear. The room after that even has a spellcasting Goblin. You actually have to duck under a flung firebolt before Maya puts it down.

The third room contains the ruins of a merchants wagon and a few chewed on human skeletons… which makes the three of you… that is the level ones a little green. Maya explains that its only a bit of scenery manifested by the dungeon though, normal people can’t get in here and even branded just kind of… fade away when they die.

That’s a little sobering. The next room is a huge clearing containing only Wargs and is easily the hardest room yet. Two of the six wargs are half again the size of the smaller ones, and you have to admit, it’s a little bit impressive and absurd that a tiny guy like Anshelm can stand his ground against their charge and push them back. It still goes pretty well, Anshelm gets a little hurt and you have to dive to the side to avoid a Wargs teeth when your damage drives the beast to attack you, taking a minor scrape in the process.

As the last warg falls though, a gigantic sign in the Mystic script appears in midair, the lettering bright red.

Bonus Encounter Triggered
The Warg Alpha Comes

Maya screams, “Look out!” and that is all you have time to hear as an ear splitting howl sounds over the clearing and a white warg the size of a horse lunges as if from mid air, nearly bowling Anshelm over. Its teeth clench around his shield arm and his Health immediately drops noticeably.

“Don’t hold back! This one is too strong for that, hit it with everything!” Maya appears on the wolfs back as she speaks, driving her daggers into its spine and drawing a vicious snarl from the creature. Anshelm true to form stabs it in the belly even as it locks his shield down, and you and Seraphine blast away with fire and ice. Alternately searing it with cold and lighting it aflame.
To his credit Anshelm keeps its attention even when his health drops down first into yellow, and then into red. Finally the creature falls, his spear jammed into its mouth as you all finally drain the last of its Health.

Anshelm gasps for breath now that its over, a potion matierializing in his hand as he gulps down the healing liquid.

Seraphine and you both need an amrita as well, you blew most of your SP on that.

“What the hell was that? This isn’t the boss room yet.” Anshelm asks after he gets his health back into the yellow.

“I never imagined that would happen.” Maya sighs, “I’ve never even seen a bonus encounter before. That skill of yours is scary Al.”

You rub your hand through you hair sheepishly, “Um… at least it probably means more treasure too?”

“Maybe so… bonus encounters are harder than the normal Dungeon boss usually, so at least there shouldn’t be any problems there.” Maya responds after a moment. Anshelm has taken another potion, putting his health comfortably in the green.

Seraphine looks a little scared after that though and you offer a reassuring smile, which she returns… a little, “Don’t worry, like she said, we already took down a guy harder than the boss, the rest will be easy!”

“I guess you’re right… Still I was really scared at the end, when Anshelm’s health got low.” She answers, and you can tell by her white knuckled grip on her staff she still is.

The rest of the dungeon does as predicted go pretty easily, the next room is a mix of all of the goblin types you faced before, and while multiple casters are a little problem, they die fast enough to not be much issue.

The boss room is a crude encampment of wood and thatch huts, and its occupant is a small army of goblins lead by a comically fat member of their breed… until the thing pulls out a cleaver the size of your arm anyway. The boss has a couple of interesting attacks, like an ability to release a cloud of stinking gas that briefly stuns Anshelm… you refuse to call it a fart, that is just gross, goblins are gross, why does this whole place smell like an outhouse?

Anyway, after the warg Alpha and with Maya along the fight goes pretty quickly, yout spells really cut down the regular goblins ability to move and attack, and very few of them ever break away from Anshelm successfully, you do take a couple of spear pokes though, the sheer number of them ensures that.

When the last Goblin falls, a weird congratulatory bit of music plays, and pane listing your rewards pops up.

You Have earned the following [Al]
50 Experience
8 Job points
57 Gilder

The party has Looted the following
6 [Potion] Heals twenty five Health on consumption. Value ? ?
2 [Amrita] Restores Fifteen SP on Consumption. Value ? ?

Goblin Chainmail: Patchwork Chainmail scaveneged from Savages, Provides a small Health Bonus when Equipped. Value ? ? Cannot Equip
Goblin Spear: Shoddily Made, the jagged tip can cause further wounds though. Value ? ? Cannot Equip
Warg Cloak: Fluffy and warm, stylish too. Adds to Defense Value ? ?
White Warg Cloak: The Hide of a great white warg. Resists fire and adds to defense. Value ? ?
Warg Spine: A staff carved from the Spine of a giant Warg: provides a bonus to SP and a boost to spell damage. The user is more threatening though. Value ? ?
Warg Teeth: Fine daggers carved from the two largest teeth of of a giant warg. They thirst for blood increasing the chance of critical hits. value ? ? Cannot Equip
Goblin Spell Pouch: Provides three extra inventory slots when equipped to the [Bag] Slot
Goblin Staff: A goblin Shaman's staff, carved with sorcerous runes... probably, it might just be Graffiti. Increases Spell range. value ? ?
Mogo’s Helm: Might just be a modified cooking pot. Adds to defense and threat generated. Value ? ? Cannot Equip

As you finish reading over it, the others do the same as your loot shimmers into existence in front of you. maya seems pretty surprised, she glances your way and smiles, "You really are good luck Al, I've never seen this dungeon pay out so well. I would like the daggers obviously, and I wouldn't mind the either of the cloaks."

Anshelm shurgs, "Lots of stuff I can use. Spear, Chainmail and the helmet, I won't ask for anything else since thats already plenty. I could use the potions though, I had to use up four."

Seraphine glances at you nervously. "I... um don't really want the Warg staff, I like not being noticed. So you can have it if you like mister Al. I would really like the Pouch though, I don't have very many inventory slots. If you don't mind, we could split the Amritas since we both used one."

You consider your options.... what do you want to try and claim?
[]Write in

Once you have split the Loot you exit the dungeon through the pane Helpfully marked 'Exit' You receive another message congatulating you for unlocking the Goblin Glade Rank D, and a popup telling you how long you have before you can enter again.. Now outside you can see that it seems to be around high noon, going by the sun.... what do you want to do?

[]Go to another Dungeon
-[]Which one? (Wailing cavern/Crystal lake/Look for a new one)
[]Return to Town

You used 1 Amrita during the Dungeon

Party UI

Al Lv1
Ice Elementalist E
Health 40/50
SP 35/50

Maya Lv3
Dual Blade Hunter E
Health 48/53
Sp 24/30

Seraphine Lv2
Fire Elementalist E
Health 36/44
Sp 42/55

Anshelm Lv1
Spear Warrior E
Health 80/110
SP 16/25