Hero

by W Borne

  Tinkerbell paused for a second, “You mean you don’t know already?”

  “No, I was pretty much thrown into this as is. I don’t know anything about the game.”

  “Ok,” she said after another pause, “You understand that you are entering Olympus, right? That the Gods are real and control the world?”

  “All right,” Earl said.

  “You must live, fight, and die for the Gods. You will get quests and mighty challenges to test yourself and your worth. Those who succeed, and survive, will be rewarded.”

  “Rewarded how?” This was more like it! Earl loved getting gear and titles, just like any other gamer.

  “You shall have to find out.” The answer was infuriating.

  Earl changed tactics. “So how does the character selection work?”

  “you must select your avatar. Choose carefully, as you cannot choose again.”

  “Ever?” Earl was surprised. Most MMOs allowed you to choose more than one character.

  “Ever. Olympus is not like other worlds you have visited. You must choose one avatar, as that is who you will be from now on. Just as you cannot choose another life in your current world, you cannot choose another in Olympus.”

  That made…. sort of sense. Earl wasn’t sure about the note of finality in her statement. Then he recalled Shark-man’s words about the feeding tube and the “washing away of excrement” and realized that they planned for him to be in that pod long term, possibly for the entire six months of his agreement. “Damn,” he thought. “I don’t think I signed up for this.” He turned to Tinkerbell to object and came face to face with a floating picture of the contract he had signed, with the relevant words highlighted.

  Section 42 – Part C, Paragraph 2 – Subject agrees to full immersion in the world known as Olympus to a period of not less than 6 months without interruption or disconnection, except in cases of life-threatening conditions that require such.

  Earl glanced at Tinkerbell, and saw the smug look that was already getting on his nerves. “Alright,” he conceded, “one choice?”

  She agreed. “One choice. You can choose whatever you want. This one is simply what we have guessed you would prefer, although you can review anything you want.”

  Earl sighed. “What are my choices?”

  Tinkerbell said, “Touch the pillar and you will enter the interface.”

  Earl approached the pillar as his contract disappeared and touched the light. Immediately his vision changed, zooming in on the pillar, with the avatar image getting larger and more details appearing:

  Race – Human

  Class – Barbarian fighter

  Specialty – Rage

  Characteristics – each level gives +2 to Strength, +2 to Constitution, +1 to all other characteristics except Intellect.

  Earl touched the Characteristics word, and it expanded again to offer a better explanation of the characteristics.

  Strength – controls physical power. Affects weight avatar can carry, including armor. Each point increases physical damage done by 1% of base damage. Small physical change to avatar. Max strength (250 points) allows access to special moves, purchased with extra characteristic points. Special moves dependent on multiple factors. Barbarians receive 2 base points in Strength per level.

  Earl nodded. Pretty basic. “What are the factors that the special moves are dependent on?” he asked. “You will have to find that out,” Tinkerbell replied. The finality in her voice told him that while she would answer basic questions, the more advanced parts of this game he would need to find out for himself. He continued.

  Intellect – controls mental power, mana pool, and mana regeneration. Affects power of spells cast. Stronger spells require higher levels of intellect. Small mental speed change to avatar per point. Max intellect (250 points) allows access to special spells, purchased with extra characteristic points. Special spells dependent on multiple factors. Sorcerers receive 2 points in intellect per level.

  Stamina – controls amount of activity that can be performed. All actions consume stamina. Higher level actions consume more stamina. All classes receive one base point in stamina per level, except sorcerers and assassins, who receive 2 points per level.

  Constitution – controls base health. Controls speed of health regeneration. All classes receive one base point in constitution per level. Barbarians receive 2 points in constitution per level.

  Agility – controls base speed and reflexes. Allows use of agility-based abilities and weapons. Affects attack speed, defensive abilities, and flexibility (both mental and physical). Max agility (250 points) allows access to special abilities, purchased with extra characteristic points. Special abilities dependent on multiple factors. All classes receive one base point in agility per level. Assassins receive 2 points in agility per level.

  Charisma – Charisma directly affects the way the rest of the world views you. It affects all personal interaction skills, along with the ability to learn new skills and gain reputation. It also affects your interaction with other players. Charisma can only be raised by special means: extra points, potions, items, or abilities.

  Earl finished reading the characteristic descriptions. Nothing out of the ordinary, even pretty basic for such an advanced game. He felt, however, that there was enormous potential in building a class based on these points, that there were in fact a lot of different things he could do. The use of “extra” points after max level was the main thing. Another point, the mysterious “multiple factors” that the max level stuff was dependent on, could be anything, Earl realized. Reputation, allegiance, factions: all were potentially able to affect your build, depending on what they allowed you access to on the ability tree.

  Earl pushed the “Race” button. Nothing happened. He glanced at Tinkerbell, who answered the unspoken question, “Other races than human are planned for the future, but are not available right now.” Again, the finality in her voice discouraged questions. Earl sighed again. Guess he couldn’t be a minotaur or an elf or something. Wait, were there elves in Ancient Greece?

  The “Class” option opened another window, with a new list of selections.

  Barbarian – This group of humans is considered uncultured and wild by most standards. Fierce warriors, they are known for their berserker tendencies in battle. Centuries of combat have allowed these warriors to unlock the “Fury” attribute, which is based off a class-specific resource of Rage. Unique to barbarians, Rage adds power to physical attacks while correspondingly reducing defense by the same amount. Rage builds during combat, and rage generation can be affected by items and potions. Actions affected by Rage require zero stamina, but Stamina is reduced to 1 after Rage expires. Barbarians receive 2 base points in Strength and Constitution for every level. Can only use 2 handed weapons and longbows. Can use Armor up to Chainmail. Unique to barbarians, they have no intellect and zero mana pool, and are completely unable to use magic.

  Sorcerer – Sorcerers are magic users, exclusively. Centuries of study in the magic arts have allowed these fighters to use mana at a level impossible for all others. All types of magic are available, depending on the choice and training of the Sorcerer. Both offensive and defensive spell types can by learned by the sorcerer. Intellect is the main stat for Sorcerers, and they receive 2 points in Intellect and Stamina per level. Can use Cloth armor only. Can use wands and staffs only.

  Assassin – Assassins are thieves, rogues, and scouts. Assassins are based around the unseen world and ranged combat. All paths are available to a skilled Assassin, and they are highly dependent on their equipment and skills. Assassins can use up to Chainmail armor, but experience penalties to stamina and agility with armor above Leather type. Assassins can use all ranged weapons, along with short swords and daggers. Assassins receive 2 points in Agility and Stamina per level.

  Warrior – Warriors are physical fighters, similar to Barbarians. They are typically outfitted in Plate Armor, and use melee weapons of all types but not typically 2 handed weapons. They
are the only class that can use Shields in combat. A skilled warrior can fill multiple roles in combat. They are the only class with “Unique” skill paths available. Warriors receive 2 points in Strength and an unassigned point per level.

  Craftsman – Craftsman are the jack of all trades. They are capable of all roles in Olympus, but their specialties are involved with crafting support items. Properly developed, a Craftsman can excel beyond any dedicated class in Olympus. The path, however, is difficult. A Craftsman receives 1 point in all stats per level, and all skills are learned at a 10% bonus to base. Craftsman are capable of using all weapon and armor types, with no penalties. Due to the extra stat point per level, experience gain is reduced by 20%.

  Earl finished looking at the different classes and was impressed. There was definitely potential in the different classes, and he noticed the subtle differences from older MMOs. The lack of a “healer” class such as a priest or druid was noticeable, although from the description the Sorcerer class was capable of healing if that person so chose. He doubted many would, at least at first, and he assumed that this would result in the lack of healers early in the game.

  Same thing with the traditional “Tank” role. Warrior was obviously a choice for this, although Craftsman could conceivable do it as well. But what made the Warrior powerful was the unassigned bonus point per level – that could really change a character quickly depending on how it was used. Earl imagined that this flexibility would make Warriors the go-to class for mid-game leveling. And then there was the Craftsman. Earl had never been interested in the crafting side of MMOs. He knew several players who loved that part – they would rather craft weapons and armor, pick herbs and brew potions than fight. They usually ended up with most of the gold, too. But Olympus seemed to offer a unique side to this, in allowing that class to multi-task. The extra bonus point per level would help develop skills faster, but the experience penalty would make leveling slow. Earl imagined that a dedicated enough Craftsman player could become incredibly powerful and popular with the game population, it would just take longer.

  Earl knew he had to pick one, and of course the Barbarian drew him in right away. It was the perfect choice for his preferences, and yet he kept going over the descriptions.

  Obviously, the Sorcerer was out. He had no interest in a mana-based class. Same with the Assassin – rogue gameplay bored him, although the idea of building a Thief or a Scout was sort of intriguing.

  Warrior tempted him. He disliked being a Tank, a Sword and Board fighter was just not interesting for him. But the warrior wasn’t necessarily a tank – a dual wielding sword fighter in full plate armor could be a force hard to stop. He was also curious about the “Unique” skills that were available to warriors. What could they be? He had no clue, and knew that asking would get the same flat answer from Tinkerbell.

  Finally, Craftsman was really interesting. The extra stat points would really help in building a well-rounded character. The 10% bonus to skills was also tempting – it may not seem like much, but every 10 levels of a skill you get an extra free level. At max level, that would make your character potentially 10% stronger than anyone else. Add to the fact that it was a jack of all trades type and the possibilities were endless. But that experience penalty seemed too harsh.

  “Ahem,” Earl heard. He turned to Tinkerbell. “You do need to make a selection to move forward.”

  Earl realized he had been thinking for over 15 minutes straight.

  He straightened, and turned back to the pillar. Quickly he chose his selection: Male, Human, Barbarian. Despite the others, he felt he needed to stay true to his roots, and more importantly that he would have the most fun with his traditional choice.

  “Confirm.” The word floated in front of Earl. He selected it, and the window vanished. A new window appeared, with his avatar floating in midair. The heading said “Appearance” and there were various selections.

  Hair

  Eyes

  Skin

  Size

  And so on. He quickly changed the appearance to his normal character type – tall, about 6’5. Muscular, yet lean so his muscles were readily visible. Black hair, long, about shoulder length. He looked for something to add tattoos or scars, but found nothing. He questioned Tinkerbell about it and she just shrugged and said, “you want a scar or tattoo, you will have to find it in game.”

  “really,” Earl thought. Interesting tip there, that actions that changed his in-game appearance appeared to be permanent.

  “I’m ready, then,” Earl said. “Confirm?” again appeared and again Earl clicked it.

  “Enter Name” appeared, with a blank spot.

  No need to think about this one: “Jaxx the Conqueror.” He entered his name from previous games, specifically his current character in Hyboria.

  “Error. Titles must be earned.” Earl turned to question Tinkerbell, but she anticipated and just said, “All form of titles are conceivable in Olympus, but you must perform the actions first. If you conquer, you might earn the Conqueror title.”

  Okay. “Just Jaxx then.”

  “Confirm name – Jaxx”. Earl clicked Confirm a final time and the pedestal and selection interface disappeared.

  As the room began to fade around Earl, Tinkerbell gave him a smile and said, “Good luck, Jaxx. Maybe I’ll see you again.”

  Earl felt giddy with excitement as the room faded to black. Finally, he was starting his new adventure in Olympus Online.

  Name

  Jaxx

  Race

  Human

  Level

  1

  Strength

  1

  Intellect

  0

  Agility

  1

  Stamina

  1

  Constitution

  1

  Charisma

  1

  Skills

  None

  Chapter 6

  The world faded into focus for Earl. At first, he heard the sounds of a forest. Birds calling, brush rustling, the wind blowing through the trees. He began to feel something pressing on his feet, growing stronger, almost as if gravity didn’t exist for him and was slowly asserting itself, pushing his feet further into the grass.

  Light brightened, as he saw the sun shining down through the trees, forming a mottled appearance on his eyes. He looked around and saw that he was standing in a clearing. His bare feet felt the cool grass…. wait a second, bare feet?

  He looked down and realized he was wearing a set of pants, rough spun and bare of ornamentation, that ended halfway down his calves. No shoes, with large feet that showed hair on the wiggling toes. He spent a few seconds staring at his feet, as he could feel the difference in the grass as he watched his toes move. He dug them into the ground, felt the coolness of the dirt and the almost sliding feeling as the dirt slipped between his toes. The grass tickled his calves as he stomped up and down for a few seconds. Looking up his body, he was wearing a rough-spun shirt, almost a burlap material that was crudely sewn. A quick check showed he was wearing no underwear.

  He glanced around and noted again the incredible realism. He could SMELL the forest – the fresh smell of plants coupled with the slight smell of decay from fallen trees and dead leaves. He moved a few steps, noting that his feet disturbed some flying insects that flew up around him in a small cloud. The crash-rustle of a rodent or small animal, disturbed by his movement, moved away from him through the trees.

  “Wow,” Earl thought. Once again, the realism struck him like a hammer. This was so far ahead of anything he had ever experienced or even heard of before. He wandered around the glade, noting the variety of trees and plants.

  On the side of the glade, behind where he had spawned, was a small stone, shaped sort of like a sign or a flat, artificial sign. It had the words “Forest Glade” on it. After a minute, he realized that it looked like a tombstone. He approached and a small window popped up;

  “Respawn point – Forest Glade”

&nbs
p; “Ah,” he thought. One question answered: what happens if he dies? Apparently in keeping with similar games, there was a resurrection system that would allow him to respawn after he was killed. Any penalties or costs to his stats or equipment upon respawning remained a mystery, however.

  He considered his situation – clad only in rough pants and shirt, no equipment, no food or water, and no weapons. Not very ideal, but he had begun games like this before. First things first, he knew, was a weapon. He had to be able to defend himself before long, as he had no doubt that there were some low-level animals that he would encounter, and they would probably not be friendly. Then there was his character, or Avatar as Tinkerbell had named it. How did he track his progress? There was no HUD, no display of his health or mana or stamina evident. He began to experiment, saying out loud various words that he hoped would trigger his stats.

  “Stats.”

  “Character.”

  “Inventory.” – this one popped up a small display that had a blank box. “Inventory – 0/0 items.” Well shit. Apparently, he had no way to carry anything right now. He considered. Okay, assuming this is an ultra-realistic game, he needed a way to carry something.