by Kit Falbo
“It’s nothing.”
Frank’s face flushes red, “It isn’t nothing? Beginners shouldn’t get such achievements.”
Sun sighs. “You’ll have your turn Frank. Casey, continue.”
“Gioachino’s chess program and all the skill-based games have achievements, but they are just that, skill-based. An expert, like a high-level chess player, can come in at any level and have a fair shot at beating him. Hell, the player that beat him named his character Chess. The quest is non-repeatable, and a player can’t stack up on multiple games. It is not going to be a common event.”
My peace finished, Frank almost jumps out of his chair to get his words in. “Except the player is not an expert, he’s a kid, fifteen and his name isn’t related to any chess master or tournament or player ranking searches online. Worse, his achievement has been posted on multiple sites.”
I give Frank my best stink eye. I know exactly who made those posts. Not that I could trace it to him. “We’ve had six variants of Gioachino active all night as players make a run to exploit him.” They aren’t true copies. But they all have the same chess skills rooted in their AI architecture. And slightly different backgrounds and names.
I clear my throat. “With hundreds of players making runs on him, not one of them except this Chess,” I refuse to use a client’s real name unless I need too, “have managed to get close to beating Gioachino. The farthest anyone has gotten so far is winning five games and losing the sixth. Players will soon dismiss those anonymous posts and move on to other aspects of the game.”
Sun turns to Sally. “How did your conversation go?”
“I had a nice conversation with Gioachino. He said that Chess seemed a little rough around the edges socially, but as a chess player he is the best he has ever played against. We have had several chess experts play against the AI in testing, and only one made it to the final game, which he did not win. We have actually considered making him less difficult but figured we could do that in a future patch, putting it on a to-do list.”
Sun looks everyone in the eyes. “We all know I don’t want this to be a bug. It’s bad press to go in and take a player’s achievement and gold away. More so with someone underage. Suggestions?”
Frank speaks up first. “Take the program offline, give it a thorough review. Remove the achievement and money, then comp the kid a few months free to leave him happy.”
“I believe in the AI,” Sally says firmly.
Sun looks at me, “Casey, this is your baby.”
I know he is testing me. My office still has that new car smell. “We have a log of all the games. I’ll take them to an expert to review, keeping the player’s real name out of it. Those forum posts are giving us a perfect test of the system with hundreds of players making runs at it. Someone else manages to win all ten games, and a flaw shows up, then I will take responsibility. Until then, I will verify the games and say everything will play on.”
Sun claps his hands together. “Well back to work everyone. I’ll expect the results as soon as you have them Casey and immediate notification if there are any continuing issues.” Frank grumbles and frowns as he leaves the meeting. That alone would put a big smile on my face. I know it’s best to save that for when I am back in my office.
With a search, I find Dimitri, though not a grandmaster he is a tutor who has had many of his students become chess masters, two of which became grandmasters. He is well respected and obsesses on chess games between grandmasters. Perfect for reviewing the games.
I even tell him the truth: I’m a programmer who helped develop an AI to gage the level of chess ability of chess players and want him to review the games of a player who defeated it. It costs five hundred dollars. While he is reviewing the games, I keep an eye on the in-game situation. One player has managed to win six games but decides to cash out instead of continuing and achieves the advanced chess player achievement. Other than that, most can’t make it past the fifth game.
That evening I grin after receiving Dimitri’s review and immediately text Sun. Dimitri’s requests to meet the grandmaster who played the AI. Chess really is an appropriate name picked by that player.
Chapter Five - Chess
Jasper and I hit the cafe right after I log back in. I think we’ll make it our thing. “Anti’s tits, we’re rich!” He stares at the bag of gold for a few minutes. “What did you do, rob that place?”
“Pretty much. I took my name to heart and wagered on it. Don’t think I’m allowed back though.” A pair of mugs hits the table. Jasper had ordered a drink called Saffri. Smells like strawberries. “How did you do?”
“Not as well as you.” His small purse has three silver and sixteen copper. The six items he pulls out are as unique as what he had gathered previously. I inspect them all and shake my head a little. No real rhyme or reason to crafting items here. I’ll need to do some research about whether anyone else has figured this out. That or go to the library Jasper had mentioned.
“Not bad.” Truthfully, I don’t know if it’s good, average or a poor use of him. “I want you to continue the same type of jobs today, though soon I may have you do something else. What do you know of politics, like how the High Council works?”
Jasper sips his drink. “They have the final vote on everything that happens in the kingdom, though honestly, I don’t pay much attention to politics. The king will be a member once he’s selected. I suppose as a candidate I really should know more. Though at the point when I decided I wanted to become a companion, I was really just willing to take any job.”
“Could you look into it for me, how it’s made up and how things are decided?” I sip in my drink and flavor coats my mouth. How does the game company add taste, I wonder.
“That will take a bit of time, depending on how detailed you want the information.” He eyes the bag of gold. “How about you give me a gold piece, and I’ll investigate it, and any other topic you want me too while you’re away. That way it doesn’t interfere with the odd jobs you want me to do.”
He can do things while I’m away? I grab a coin out and flip it to him. “Deal!” I can see him mentally cursing himself for not asking for more. I really do love the NPC in this game. “I’m going to head back to the smithy, Laslow wanted me to bring him something good that I’ve made and I’m not there yet.”
I head back to Byron’s smithy. The fact that it is away from most players suits me. Almost all the quests and fighting mobs are outside of the city, in the countryside. Players just don’t have time to explore the middle of the city if they want to level up. Hardcore gamers will focus on leveling up first in order to get the gem and win the two-million-dollar prize.
I’m hit with a little surprise to see two players working at one of the anvils in the smithy. They aren’t even at the first furnace Byron had assigned me, which I’m now sure is a starter one, with all the equipment a little on the used side. The worn status popped up whenever I inspected the equipment while working. The familiar gray leather outfits both bend over a glowing blade, with one player trying to work around the other. It is a tandem approach I have not seen before.
I walk up. I can hear them nattering at each other. “Watch the hammer. It tickles if you nick me with that.”
“Not like you’ll lose a finger in this game.” As I get closer, I can see one player pushing a small blue rat skull into a red-hot blade. The item is puddling into the metal. There is a light blue glow around his hand that I have come to associate with magic in the game.
The player wielding the hammer spouts, “That was one time, and it added character to your otherwise vanilla form.”
“They made my nickname pinky!” There is no anger in his voice, only mock outrage and amusement with a bit of friendliness. I did my best to remain unobtrusive as the blade cools and sets into a finished product. It would be rude if I made them mess up.
I clear my throat and smile, not that I expect my charisma to do anything here. “What are you doing? I wasn’t expecting to s
ee any other players in this area.”
“Enchanting!” He holds up the sword, the half-melted blue rodent skull throbbing as twisted blue veins creeped out from it to the edges. “This is the only smithy in Lusania that will let enchanters work, a least Touched ones. Some beef between them and the enchanter’s guild. Wasn’t like that before. Apparently, a player impressed the master smith here, showed them not all enchanters are lazy do-nothings. So, we get to work here on a trial basis.”
I inspect the weapon.
Queen mole totem, iron sword, 30 durability, decently crafted, decent quality, 6-7 slashing damage. Enchanted +3 earth damage. Earth splash ability.
I inspect that.
Wielder may use the sword against the earth to move some and splash enemies. A short-range Area attack that does 2-3 damage per target. It also has +5 damage vs. rodents. One use every 5 minutes.
It’s better than anything I’ve made so far, and that’s with stacking six enchantments on a blade.
The next thing the player smithing the blade says is, “Not bad for a first attempt post-release,” making me feel disheartened.
Post-release. “You were beta testers!” I look around to see if any NPC are around. You’re not supposed to slip up like that in-game. I let out a little sigh as they are all working on their own projects.
The smith leans in a little, seeming to enjoy my wide-eyed response. “Alpha testers actually.” It looks like he is about to say more when he suddenly clams up seeing Byron head this way. Those out-of-game response penalties are really harsh. Those who hear you think you’ve been infected by god-caused madness.
He looks the three of us over. “Glad to see you are meeting. Chess here has helped show me not all enchanters are lazily resting on the laurels of their magic. Though maybe being Touched has something to do with it. He is why you’re even getting this opportunity Marvlin.” He turns to me. “You’ll need to go back to the forge I assigned you when you start working. He brought a professional with him, and that has some perks.”
I nod respectfully, as do the other two players and he heads back to his area to start another project.
“You’re an enchanter too?” Marvlin asks. “I don’t know what I would have needed to do to open a smithy to me. They were all very cold. Then I heard of this one. I guess I owe you one.”
“You don’t owe me. I’ve just been working on my skills to gain the blacksmith profession. Seemed to impress them I was willing to work, though my spells aren’t the same as yours. What was it you were doing?”
“Not a wizard then? That was Imbue. It lets me add one crafting item that is holding power to another item, melding the two together in the process. Luckily, through alpha, I knew you had to do it during item creation to make it permanent. They have made it trickier though. I also have a charge ability where I can destroy a crafting resource to add a one-time special effect to an item or recharge a skill. It works better on wands and staffs. Some of the crafting materials will only adhere to better quality metals. That’s one reason why Hephesty here took smithing as a starting profession.”
“How do you tell if the crafting item is holding power?” I don’t remember any such notifications from any of the resources Jasper had brought me.
“One of the enchanter profession skills. Guess you didn’t get that one. Professions can be really important and powerful here. “
I only nod in response, since I hadn’t gotten to use any of my profession’s skills or even crafting materials yet. I reach to my bag and pull out my latest creation. “This is what I’ve managed to make.”
Searing Iron blade, decently crafted, poor quality. Durability 22, Slashing 4-7 damage. +2 searing damage with a 20% to ignite on hit. Immune to targeted durability effects, attempts to break have 25% chance to rebound.
Marvlin looks at it and then passes it to Hephesty. “You didn’t use any crafting materials with this?”
I shake my head, “None of my spells use them. I have Strengthen and True Nature which seem to boost whatever material I’m working on. The hot iron usually adds a heat-based effect once the blade is completed. I have to stack casting on them though, and it takes all my mana.”
Hephesty whispers something to Marvlin before handing the sword back to me. “Can you do us a favor? I have a crafting item and was wondering if you could cast those two spells on it, as sort of an experiment?”
“Uh, sure.” He pulls out a claw. It identifies as a wizened rat claw, probably another one of the drops from the training grounds rodent farming quest. The item glows a little when I cast my spells on it, but since it is not a weapon or armor, it doesn’t relay any obvious stat boosts. I hand it back.
After looking at it, he seems to bounce up and down a little. “It’s holding power now! I couldn’t enchant with it before and now I can. What class are you? That’s a powerful ability. It could make you rich.”
“I’m a sorcerer enchanter. It wasn’t a recommended class, so I’m not sure how many players took it. “
“Me and Hephesty here have had quite a few gaming economy successes. Pre-immersion stuff mostly, like Battletrax and Morpheus. Always been more of a side hobby than an actual job. We hit it big on the first quality immersive game Chrysalis though. That is one reason we were brought in on the alpha to help with how they’ll do the economy.”
The games start to click. I’d done a lot of research on my plan for Fair Quest. “Wait, wait, wait! You’re Able and Timmon. There was a Game Future article on you. You were going to retire.”
Hephesty, I don’t know if he is Able or Timmon, starts laughing and keeps going until he is out of breath. “Two days.” He wheezes. “Two days and one of the most privacy-paranoid companies ever and we get spotted.”
“I did give me a lot of details.”
“True,” he replies, finally catching his breath. “Able really doesn’t know when to shut up. We’d appreciate it if you keep this on the down low though. People can get a bit touchy if they know professionals—” He uses air quotes. “—are working a game. Though we do still consider it a hobby.”
I know that I’m worried my plans will fail with these ringers working here. The article was one of the things that inspired me and made me believe that this might be possible. Now I have to face them, or maybe join them. “With your abilities, we’d like to offer you a chance to join us. Usable enchanting items can be a pain to find.”
The offer is tempting. It would be money. Maybe not as much, but these guys know the business. These were some of the guys I studied before the game’s release, as I put together my plan. I’d read articles about them plus a few they had written
On the other hand, they might just have me in a room empowering items all day. How would they react to my other plan as well? Plus, I want to succeed, not just be a third wheel to those with success. “I want to try on my own a while. I hope you don’t mind the competition.”
Mervlin chirps in, “Oh, we got a player over here! We’ll keep the offer open for a while if you are still interested.” A player, yes, they have a player.
I thank them and head back to my furnace. I’ll need to gain the smithing profession in order to get the better materials and equipment to catch up. Hopefully, completing my artificer quest will give me an edge. If the enchanter profession takes this much experience I’ll be in trouble if I want that as well. My mana limits how much xp I can get there.
I wish I can say I work hard, kick ass and produce more than I have before. But just the time it takes to make a good blade and the mana needed for enchanting means it can’t be rushed. I keep on hoping that I’ll crack the smithing profession today, but at the end of the day it doesn’t happen.
In order to win I’ll need more knowledge. I need to see what the others have learned from the game. Outside the immersion center, a chill makes my breath fog up. It’s a strong contrast to the warm and sunny land of Lusania. A few more weeks and winter break will start, and the world will be flooded with students. I take out my phone,
a cheap one with prepaid minutes, and call Mel at Gamer’s Gate. “You still open? I was wondering if I could come by and look some stuff up?”
“Jay! I thought you died. It’s been so long. There’s a Battlecraft tournament taking place in half an hour if you want to join in, though if I tell some of the regulars you’ll be joining in they may drop out.”
“It’s only been three days. You can tell those scrubs I won’t make it in time, so they can keep their entry fees. Not that I want to stay up that late. The reactive rooms leave me sore. I’ll see you soon.”
Public transportation is unusually efficient this evening. I make it over in time to register for the tournament if I want to. Mel’s “Hey, Jay!” elicits a few audible moans from my former competitors.
“Don’t worry I’m not here to slaughter you guys.” The gaming units look pretty booked for the tournament. “Mel, do you mind if I sit back with you behind the counter and use your laptop for some research?”
“Sure, as long as you give me the dirt on what you’ve been doing in Fair Quest and your life as a gold farmer.”
I hop over, and he hands me his laptop. “I’m a crafter and I haven’t actually managed to sell anything yet. I want to access my profession’s abilities.”
“Slow down, what class did you decide on? What’s your character name? I’m Jediwalker, a dragon rider. Which really kind of sucks. Did you know you have to find your own dragon egg? My companion is required to start training as a dragon caretaker, so she’s off to school all the time, that I have to somehow pay for as well. The game has student loans.” He finishes with a shudder.
I can’t help but laugh a little, “Jediwalker? Was Luke Skywalker already taken?”
He looks at me deadpan, “Yes. Anakin Skywalker was taken as well.”
“I thought you were scared they would take all your business. And you’re playing now?”
“The wait’s so long at the center, and the headsets really restrict the amount of time you can play. Most of the people are just playing here until they can log on with their headsets. The six hours wait time between three-hour sessions is killer, one of the reasons immersion centers are popping up as quick as people can make them.”