Aldrich entered the Nexus with his small undead entourage behind him. Gold and blue sparkles of energy danced around him, completely restoring his health and mana to full.
[HP: 33/33][Mana: 66/66]What he first did was go to the Wellspring – the platform and basin of ornately carved white marble where the waters of life spiraled – and refilled his restorative flask. When he saw that the clear, crystalline flask was filled with gleaming gold and blue liquid, he capped it with a diadem shaped golden stopper.>>Restorative Flask charges: 0/3 > 3/3>>After this, Aldrich spotted the stick figure entity standing behind a large work table of ashen stone where various smithing tools such as a hammer, anvil, and the orange light of a lit forge surrounded it. It had an ornately carved bronze hammer in its hand and it whacked away repeatedly at nothing, mimicking the idle motion of Sindri the smithing god.Aldrich leaped several meters down and landed right in front of the stick figure.“Oh, good Host, what can I do for ye today, eh?” said the stick figure, mimicking Sindri’s light and hearty tone, though its voice still had a neutral, emotionless timber to it that made it eerie. Like it was speaking in awkward text to speech.“What you said to me before I left, about the hunt, what did you mean?” asked Aldrich.“Hm? That ain’t a request I can fulfill,” said the stick figure, repeating Sindri’s dialogue for when he was given a task he could not perform.“Alright then,” sighed Aldrich. He had no idea what this stick figure was, and though it did bother him, he could not be picky about it. It seemed to be some sort of unfinished asset that was a placeholder for both the goddess Arama and the god Sindri, and as long as it fulfilled their roles properly, he did not have complaints. “I want something crafted.”“Craftin’, is it? Heh, ya ain’t gonna’ find anyone as good at that as me!” said the stick figure. “Now, what can I do for ye?”Aldrich found a menu of options appear in front of him. Specifically, this was for crafting. By offering up dropped materials, coins, and Souls, a player could have Sindri create items for them.Aldrich found the [1x Moss Beast Soul] in his inventory and offered it up. The glowing white orb that represented the soul appeared in his hand and then floated over to the stick figure.“I want a weapon,” said Aldrich. “Specifically, a two-handed staff that acts as a catalyst.”In Elden World, a player could ask Sindri for what type of equipment they wanted from a Soul, whether it was a piece of armor or weapon.In Aldrich’s case, he wanted a staff that worked as a catalyst, with a catalyst being a weapon that channeled magic and was thus appropriate for mage type classes.The actual stats and effects of the weapon, though, were randomized.Sindri would bring up a menu of three to six options, depending on the player’s level, and these options would have varying effects and stats.For example, giving Sindri the Soul of, say, a Fire Drake, would make him pull up three staff options, one that enhanced fire, one that had a fire breath type spell imbued in it, or one that simply just had high stats.Sometimes, in rare cases, a weapon would have all of these effects. In bad cases, it would have nothing.Basically, it was a dice roll system to get what you wanted out of a Soul, and by spending gold, one could reroll these options.The stick figure swiped at the soul with its glitchy black block of a hand, and the soul disappeared.“Ya got somethin’ good here! A soul, is it? Well, here’s what I can do for ya!”Aldrich saw three options flash in front of him.>>1. Staff of Grasping VinesRank: CommonType: Staff (Catalyst)Stats:+2 Vitality+2 MagicEffects:This staff can cast the spell [Grasping Vines] that shoots forth six binding, thorned vines.2. Staff of Iron BarkRank: CommonType: Staff (Catalyst)Stats:+5 VitalityEffects:No special effects3. Staff of Stilling PollenRank: CommonStats:+2 Magic+2 PerceptionEffects:This staff is able to cast the spell [Pollen Cloud] that paralyzes all units in its area of effect. Operates off a charge system with three charges. Each charge requires twenty-four hours to restore.==Forging Cost: 80 CoinsReroll Cost: 30 Coins>>Aldrich assessed the options. They were about what he expected. The item tiers were all at Common rank which was standard for an item crafted from a monster that ranged from levels 1-10. He recounted the item tiers in his head –Basic: These were items that had zero stats or special effects.Common: These items had a level threshold of 1-10.Uncommon: These items had a level threshold of 10-30.Rare: These items had a level threshold of 30-50.Epic: These items had a level threshold of 50-70Mythic: These items had a level threshold of 70-90. This was generally ‘endgame’ equipment.Divine: These were top tier end game items that held a level threshold from 90-100. Gear of this tier was rare enough that it was extremely difficult to be decked out in full Divine equipment as the materials needed to craft them were too finite in number.As for the options themselves, there was only one good choice.Aldrich reached a finger out and pressed the [Staff of Stilling Pollen] option. This would allow him to neutralize Ghost with the most efficiency. The Alter could just phase out of [Grasping Vines] and the +5 vitality from the [Staff of Iron Bark] would do nothing considering the fact that Ghost was strong enough to shatter a human rib with a casual finger press.As it stood now, Ghost could probably kill Aldrich in one good beatdown of physical blows, and without the stats and minions to back him up, +5 vitality meant precious little. It was just more health for Ghost to whittle down.On top of this, Aldrich needed to neutralize Ghost quickly. He could not afford Ghost just escaping with his invisibility and phasing.“A wise choice, good Host!” said the stick figure. It began to hammer rapidly down, the sound of clinking resonating through the empty temple.In a few seconds, it was done. A glowing golden orb with the icon of the item embedded within floated towards Aldrich.[-80 Coins][Coins Remaining: 20]Aldrich grimaced at how few coins he had. Since Variants did not drop coins, there was no easy way to farm them. He needed to find a way to get more if he wanted to use crafting and equipment system properly, and the only way was to obtain the ring known as the [Ring of Avarice] located within the First Trial.So, until he got to level 10, he needed to be conservative with his coin usage.“Thanks, System,” said Aldrich as he felt the [Staff of Stilling Pollen] fall into his inventory. “Just curious, but can I take a look at your wares?”Aldrich knew that Sindri had a list of items he could buy. Basic gear, mostly. Stuff that got outscaled later very easily. The higher the player’s level, the higher the rank of the gear, but as far as gear went, they were the worst of their tier.“Of course, lad!” said the System.A screen flashed in front of Aldrich. It was completely empty.“Hm,” said Aldrich. “That’ll be it, then.”“Good luck on ye journey, Host. If ya ever need me again, I’ll be hammerin’ away here!” said System as it turned its attention away from Aldrich and went back to hammering aimlessly at nothing.Aldrich walked away back to the exit Sign. It seemed that the System had no items available to sell. Not entirely a big hassle, considering the fact that Aldrich had no coin to buy anything with anyway, but it was noteworthy that that was another difference between now and how it was in the game.Aldrich stood atop the exit Sign, his small group of Undead gathering around him. He looked to Elaine and Adam and nodded at them. “Tonight, I’m taking the first step to making things right.”
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Combat Evaluation [BONUS] Catching a Ghost II
Adam and Elaine grunted at Aldrich because that was all their zombified vocal chords were capable of.Light enveloped the group, blinding away the Nexus and teleporting Aldrich back to the forest. He checked his wristwatch.10:10 P.M.Barely any time had passed.Good. Aldrich needed some time to get ready.He materialized the [Staff of Stilling Pollen] in his hands. It looked like a two-meter-long bamboo shoot that split off into three branches at the crown. A yellow, seed-like bulb the size of a baseball drooped from each branch, and the surface of each seed was scattered with tiny hairs and bright yellow pollen.Each of these bulbs had a cast of [Pollen Cloud] embedded within them, making them noxious gas grenades that could be remotely detonated.A near perfect tool for what Aldrich wanted to do –==“Stop me here,” said Ghost from the comfortably cushioned backseat of a commercial hovercar. He was the only passenger in a car that had enough seating space to fit in six, and he abus
Combat Evaluation Vengeance
Aldrich felt a strange feeling looking down at Ghost like this. The whole concept of looking down: this was entirely new to him.But he could not deny that it felt right. No, it was right.It was just.Yes, this was justice.Justice with consequences that this world lacked. Justice backed by actions, not idealism. Justice that Aldrich would make real.Justice he would rain down on all those deserving with vengeance.This was the first drop of that rain. That storm of vengeance and righteous purpose that Aldrich could now make real with his powers.As he looked down at Ghost, a screen flashed in front of him.A quest.[New quest: VENGEANCE obtained]The tab of his interface flashed with an indicator, and he mentally tabbed over to it. He raised a brow slightly, noting that the way the quest looked was…different. The words detailing it were colored in bright, bloody red, and their font looked like disheveled scratches. Distinctively sinister in appearance.VENGEANCE [ACTIVE]Difficul
Combat Evaluation Chosen Undead
Aldrich closed his eyes and sighed as he looked up to the pale moon above. Glowing waves of green energy flowed around him as he leveled up, wrapping him in an aura of power born from Ghost’s suffering.He heard the sounds of ravenous chewing, flesh tearing, and bones crunching as Adam and Elaine finally had their fill of Ghost. Their fill of vengeance. He let them eat up Ghost’s corpse to nothingness as a well deserved reward for their suffering, and also because Ghost had dropped a Soul.Aldrich would use the Soul and craft something out of it. If it retained Ghost’s powers, then an item, perhaps a cloak that could activate Phase, was going to be far, far more useful than a dumb zombie that could not reliably use the reflex and thinking intensive Phase power.In the meanwhile, Aldrich stabilized his newfound power by distributing his stat points. He started to invest more heavily into Attunement now as he had obtained the [Tome of Dark Arts Rank 2].The [Tome of the Dark Arts] were
Combat Evaluation valera
After what felt like an eternity, Valera finally put Aldrich down. She took off her bucket-like black great helm, finally exposing her face, and knelt into the grass before Aldrich. Her face was deathly pale just like Aldrich’s, showcasing that she was an Undead just like him.More specifically, a hybrid between Dullahan and Vampire. Her features reflected this. Her sharp, ferocious eyes possessed black sclera and the pupils centered within them were a bloody, glowing crimson red.Her hair was dark black and styled in a rough, messy bob cut that went down ever so slightly to her neck. Her bangs concentrated on one side of her face, forming a sort of veil of hair that obscured her left eye.Her lips were notably black, as would her claws be if Aldrich remembered her correctly.“You look as good as ever,” said Aldrich. In proper fantasy game manner, Valera was modeled to be stunningly beautiful, and real life did even more justice to her looks than what rendered graphics, no matter how
Combat Evaluation [BONUS] Getting Ready
"We have to leave this place soon,” said Aldrich. He gave a lingering look at the Sign he had inscribed. He could not stay here even if it meant abandoning the Sign and the safety of the Nexus.There would be investigations about Ghost’s death soon enough, and this part of the Variant forest was shallow enough that search parties would roam here.For the next several days at least, Aldrich needed to vacate this place.That meant no easy access to the Nexus.No quick refills on his [Restoration Flask] and access to crafting.Not until he got another Sign which he would get upon completing the first Trial Quest.“You three,” Aldrich clapped his hands and commanded the Strikers. “Scatter some of Ghost’s remains here and there. Litter this place with your tracks and claw marks.”Like this, Aldrich could ensure that anybody that found this place and Ghost’s remains would just think he had died to Variants. There would be no additional line of investigation past that.Beyond that, Aldrich h
Combat Evaluation Phantasmal Mask
Aldrich stepped onto the Sign and the white teleporting light enveloped him and everyone else. In the next instant, they were transported to the gloomy innards of the Nexus temple with its dull grey stone and towering, gothic style pillars.The only thing remotely colorful inside of it was the Wellspring of Life which, made of shining white alabaster and marble, positively sparkled with the blue and gold light projected from the glowing crystals hanging from the domed ceiling above.“The Nexus. To think I would return here once more with you, my master,” said Valera. She seemed happy at first, but then she narrowed her eyes. “But this place does not seem right.”“What do you mean?” said Aldrich.“The Nexus is a safe space forged by the twin gods Amara, goddess of light and life, and Sindri, god of flame and forge. There is a warmth to the Nexus that is reflected in their powers. The warmth of positive energy that is uncomfortable to Undead like us, but I sense no such thing now,” said
Combat Evaluation A Pack Problem
Aldrich and his ever-growing entourage of undead traveled through the Variant forest. He knew generally how to get to Haven, but since he had no Eye-Phone, he had no access to a reliable map.To compensate for this, he had the Evil Eye float in the air, above the tree line, to track their way through.Every so often, Valera would detect danger with her [Defender’s Vigil] passive, and whenever this happened, Aldrich would stand behind her shield and let the Evileye scout ahead with its permanent invisibility.It did not phase through solid objects, but it could squeeze through most tight gaps, and it’s omni-directional vision meant that it scoped out any threat quite easily.For the most part, Aldrich just found more Strikers for they were the most common Variant in the forest. These were easily dispatched – Aldrich himself could handily beat one with just his physical stats alone.In total, Aldrich had netted himself 5 kills and 50 EXP.[EXP Bar: 25/250 > 75/250]Eventually, after abo
Combat Evaluation Raising the Alpha
You did well. Very well,” said Aldrich to Valera. He paused and gave her a nod, hoping that this was enough to make her happy. He was unused to giving out praise because of how alone he had been.The only praise he had received was from his parents, and that praise had come from a place of warmth in their hearts.It had been many years since that same warmth had been snuffed out in Aldrich’s own heart.“Thank you, master!” said Valera with a proper bow. “Mhm. Mhm.” She nodded to herself, smiling and taking in Aldrich’s praise no matter how awkward or little it was.As Valera took in Aldrich’s praise, Aldrich was occupied by the experience flowing into him.[Alpha Striker slain!][+70 EXP][Striker x10 slain!][+100 EXP][EXP Bar: 75/250 > 245/250]Aldrich sighed. Just five points off from level 7. He hated the feeling of going through a fight and being just short of leveling up. But he could not let his mind dwell on that.“Now to raise this Alpha,” said Aldrich. He stepped over to th