by J D Astra
I thought before I took the plunge into V.G.O. that I’d picked my class kit. I was going to be a Stonewall, the earth elemental sorcery tree. Now, I wasn’t so sure. We killed the second to last Balrigon I needed for the materials, and I held a hand up to request a break to refill my Spirit. There weren’t any more Balrigon nearby, so I popped open my character sheet to bask in the greatness one more time.
The scroll Naitee gave me activated all four trees and applied temporary points in the first two abilities for each. In the end, I’d only have access to one class kit, but for the moment, I could see the trees for all four: Hydromancer, Firebrand, Frostlock, and Stonewall. I panned over to the Hydromancer Tree:
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<<<>>>
SKILL: Jinker
Draw on the agile powers of water! Your body is swift like the coursing river, ready to flow around any obstacle. Increase your Dexterity by 5%, your Luck by 5, and your Evade chance by 10%.
Skill Type/Level: Passive, Level 1
Cost: None
Range: N/A
Cast Time: N/A
Cooldown: N/A
Effect 1: Increase your Dexterity by 5%.
Effect 2: Increase your Luck by 5.
Effect 3: Increase your chance to Evade by 10%.
<<<>>>
Pretty cool stuff. But that wasn’t all.
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Skill: Drain
Suck the very life out of your opponent. Whether it’s blood or a blood-like substance, you drain away their fluids, dealing 20-45 damage to the opponent and converting that damage to .5 x the damage done in Spirit.
Skill Type/Level: Spell, Level 1
Cost: 50 Spirit
Range: 10 meters
Cast Time: Instant
Cooldown: 3 seconds
Effect 1: Deal 20-45 points of water damage to an enemy with a liquid regulatory system.
Effect 2: Convert damage dealt x .5 into Spirit.
<<<>>>
Now that was wicked. An instant cast spell with a chance to gain back nearly half the casting cost in Spirit, just by casting it! Seemed a little OP to me, but then when I panned over to Frostlock, I understood why:
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SKILL: Ice Lance
Use the power of frost to create a spear sharp enough to slice through thick leather hide. The spear deals 40 damage with a 5% chance to inflict Numb. If the spear enters and leaves the enemy’s body, over-penetrating, deal an additional 10 points of frost damage with a 15% chance to inflict Numb.
Skill Type/Level: Spell, Level 1
Cost: 30 Spirit
Range: 25 meters
Cast Time: 2 seconds
Cooldown: None
Effect 1: Deal 40 points of frost damage to an enemy. If the spear enters and leaves the enemy’s body, deal an additional 10 points of frost damage.
Effect 2: 5% chance to inflict Numb, reducing enemy movement and attack speed by 10%, and reducing Health regen rate by 5%. Numb will last 20 seconds. Numb can stack up to three times on any one target.
<<<>>>
Three times! Numb would stack, three freaking times! That was just ridiculous, and the Frostlock passive, Chilled Bones, made it even cooler.
<<<>>>
Skill: Chilled Bones
You’ve weathered some serious storms. Increase resistance to ice damage and cold conditions by 15%. Increase Spirit regeneration by 10% and ice damage dealt by 5% when the ambient temperature is below 40 degrees. The cold never bothered you anyway.
Skill Type/Level: Passive, Level 1
Cost: None
Range: N/A
Cast Time: N/A
Cooldown: N/A
Effect 1: Increase Cold and ice resistances by 15%.
Effect 2: Increase Spirit regeneration by 10% and ice damage dealt by 5% when the ambient temperature is below 40 degrees.
<<<>>>
Some seriously impressive stuff, and I was enjoying every second of it. Stonewall, the class kit I thought I was going to take, was next:
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SKILL: Hardened
Your core is strengthened by the essence of earth. Increase your base resistances to all elements by 5%, and increase your base Stamina by 2.5 x character level. No matter your power, be wary of parchment...
Skill Type/Level: Passive, Level 1
Cost: None
Range: N/A
Cast Time: N/A
Cooldown: N/A
Effect 1: Increase all Elemental resistances by 5%.
Effect 2: Increase your base Stamina by 2.5 x character level.
<<<>>>
That passive ability alone was the reason I’d wanted to be a Stonewall. At a high level, with that maxed out, my Stamina would be increased by 12 times my character level. Which, at level 30, would be like having an extra 30 points of Constitution worth of Stamina. The direct damage ability was still cool, too, and had saved my butt on the first Balrigon, but the passive took the cake, for sure.
<<<>>>
Skill: Boulder Dash
Call on your Stamina to hurl a massive boulder at your enemy. Deal 30 points of blunt damage to an enemy within range. If the enemy is out of range, you may still strike them, but inflict less damage. On a successful hit, have a 5% chance to cause disorientation, reducing Accuracy by 20% for 10 seconds. If struck in the head or brain center, increase the chance to cause disorientation to 30%.
Skill Type/Level: Spell, Level 1
Cost: 20 Stamina and 15 Spirit
Range: .05 x Stamina in meters
Cast Time: Instant
Cooldown: None
Effect 1: Deal 30 points of blunt damage to any target in range. Deal less damage to a target out of range due to Stamina exhaustion.
Effect 2: 5% chance to cause disorientation on a strike to the body, 30% chance on a strike to the head. Disorientation reduces the target’s Accuracy by 20% for 10 seconds.
<<<>>>
From what I could tell, several of the Stonewall abilities had a dual Stamina/Spirit cost, because a lot of them required feats of strength. Fine by me! With the Hardened ability, that wouldn’t be a problem.
Last was Firebrand. I was personally enjoying hucking flaming balls of doom at enemies and watching them catch fire, but I knew in my heart that Firebrand was too damn squishy to solo with—it was a glass cannon. I didn’t know how long I’d have Otto for, and I didn’t know if Jack, my IRL friend from college, was going to take me up on the offered capsule to transition into V.G.O. I could be completely alone on my trek.
I dismissed the morbid thought and checked out the tree:
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<<<>>>
SKILL: Fire Inside
You feel the presence of fire in your belly! Fire spells are 5% more potent. When activated, all spells are 50% more potent for 30 seconds. Your Spirit regen is reduced by 25% for 60 seconds upon activation.
Skill Type/Level: Passive and Spell, Level 1
Cost: Spirit regeneration reduced by 25% for 60 seconds
Range: N/A
Cast Time: Instant
Cooldown: 30 minutes
Passive Effect 1: Increase Fire spell damage by 5%.
Active Effect 1: Increase all spell potency by 50% for 30 seconds.
Active Effect 2: Decrease Spirit regeneration by 25% for 60 seconds.
<<<>>>
It was the only spell I’d seen in V.G.O., so far, that had a passive and active effect. Not only that, it was the only spell where the price was a Spirit regen hit. I could see further down the tree the Leaching Smolder ability actively stole Spirit from the enemy target based on the number of Burning Afflictions on them. It seemed like the designers had really put some effort into creating awesome combos for the Sorc classes.
Then, lastly, there was a standard Fireball.
<<<>>>
Skill: Fireball
Channel your fury into a globe of flame! Deal 30 fire damage on hit with a 15% chance to inflict Burning Affliction level 1,
causing an additional 30 damage over 10 seconds. Burning Affliction stacks up to 3 times on any one target.
Skill Type/Level: Spell, Level 1
Cost: 30 Spirit
Range: 20 meters
Cast Time: 3 seconds
Cooldown: None
Effect 1: Deal 30 damage to an enemy on hit.
Effect 2: 15% chance to add Burning Affliction to the target, dealing 30 damage over 10 seconds. Stacks up to 3 times on any one target.
<<<>>>
Out of all the base abilities, Fireball was far from the coolest, but I could tell further down the tree there was a lot of “synergy,” as Osmark would say... Fireball’s cast time would be reduced with further upgrades, and the chance to add Burning Affliction would increase. Leveled-up Burning Affliction would increase the chance to land critical hits with fire damage and increase its duration. Leveled-up Leaching Smolder would increase the amount of Spirit stolen from the target per Burning Affliction. They all played off one another.
Lastly, was the General Sorceress tree, and while I thought I would want to save all my points for my class kit, this thing was pretty badass. I’d decided to drop 4 points out of the gate, just to get me a leg up.
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SKILL: Magnus Armor
Every good Sorceress wears the best armor and shares with her friends, too! Magnus Armor shields your party members from up to three magical blows, all adding up to or equaling your Spell Strength + your Intelligence.
Skill Type/Level: Party Buff, Level 2
Cost: 20 Spirit per Party Member
Range: 4 meters
Cast Time: Instant
Cooldown: 20 Minutes
Effect 1: Allow party members to absorb up to three magical blows that equal your Spell Strength + your Intelligence.
<<<>>>
Skill: Caster’s Spark
Your party’s spirits may be down, but you’ve got the spark to light the fire of their inspiration. Caster’s Spark will increase your party’s Spirit regeneration, including your own.
Skill Type/Level: Passive, Level 1
Cost: None
Range: 10 meters
Cast Time: N/A
Cooldown: N/A
Effect 1: Increase party members’ Spirit regeneration by .1 x your character level/second.
<<<>>>
.1 times my character level was a bit weak right now, but it would improve with every level up without me doing a thing, so that was nice. I didn’t know what kind of abilities and spells Otto had, but I had to assume he used Spirit, and this would be good for the both of us. Elemental Fury, however, only helped me right now.
<<<>>>
Skill: Elemental Fury
Like a tsunami, or raging inferno, the more there is, the stronger it gets. Party elemental damage is increased by 5% when you’re within range. When there are multiple party members with the same Element, increase that damage type by another 2.5% per party member who shares the type.
Skill Type/Level: Passive, Level 1
Cost: None
Range: 10 meters
Cast Time: N/A
Cooldown: N/A
Effect 1: Party elemental damage is increased by 5%.
Effect 2: Increase elemental damage of a type that more than one party member shares by 2.5%
<<<>>>
“You done fuffling around yet? This is the third time you’ve stopped to admire yourself,” Otto called, and I snapped the character sheet closed, the beautiful mountainside landscape coming back into full view. Pine needles crunched as I marched toward him with a scowl on my face.
“I wasn’t fuffling,” I declared, “I was making sure I know how to use my abilities so I don’t accidentally kill you and ruin my chances of finishing this quest. And my Spirit needed to regenerate.” I checked the bar to see it was full and probably had been for a little bit.
He laughed. “I don’t think you could accidentally kill me with any of your little spells.”
I raised a brow at the provocation. The deep roar of a Balrigon echoed through the tall trees and drew our attention. I back-burnered the challenge, focusing on the massive beast who’d taken notice of our presence. The creature lumbered toward us on all fours, looking something like a gorilla crossed with a bear, but instead of fur, the thing was layered thick with ashen soot. The very soot I needed to collect.
Surprise, surprise, Balrigons didn’t like having their soot removed from their bodies while they were alive, so it was a painful slog to kill each one and collect a good sample before the corpse blew away in the breeze. That was interesting the first time it happened.
Fortunately, the Balrigons were weak against frost damage, and Ice Lance was very effective in slowing the creature’s relentless assault on Otto as he tanked for me.
I conjured a cool spear and shot it toward the Balrigon, which had accelerated from a lumber to a gallop. The spear of ice hit and shattered. A shower of sparkles that clung to the creature’s quills informed me the Numb debuff had procced. The creature stumbled and skidded to a halt, eyes locking on me. The mob looked me up and down, then charged, its thick limbs lumbering under the Numb debuff.
“Let me draw aggro, Crazy!” Otto swiped at the creature’s legs at it rushed past him, and I smacked it with another Ice Lance.
I grinned. “Try to take it from me if my little spells are so weak!”
I shot one more Ice Lance, another Numb proccing and slowing the beast a bit more, but it was still coming for me much faster than I had anticipated. The creature’s massive fist barreled toward me, and I yelped, cutting off a fourth spell mid-cast. The wind of its powerful punch blew my long curls as I dove into a roll, evading the blow by the grace of Jinker.
Otto leapt over me, plunging his sword into the Balrigon’s back. The thing howled and shook itself, throwing Otto and the sword across the clearing into a bushy pine tree. I heard an “Oof” and a snap, hoping the latter was a broken branch and not Otto’s broken neck.
The Balrigon whirled around, eyes flashing in every direction until they found me. It bellowed, meaty fists pounding the ground as it charged again. I needed some distance and time, but had neither. I triggered Boulder Dash over and over, smacking the creature with three good hits, one to the head, which did exactly what I needed.
The creature skidded past me, shaking its head as it wobbled on uncertain legs. I tried to conjure an Ice Lance, but was alerted to a red flashing bar in the corner of my vision. Only 15 Spirit left, though slowly climbing from my decent regeneration rate. The Balrigon had maybe 40 HP left—if I could stall long enough to get off one more Ice Lance, I could put it down for good.
I pulled my staff from the handy holster on my back and whapped the Balrigon on the head. My Stamina dropped by 10 points, and the Balrigon took no damage at all.
“Shit.”
The creature reacted near instantly, batting me in the gut with a hard backhand. I soared ass-first through the clearing and tumbled as I landed. I gasped to fill my lungs as a notification appeared.
<<<>>>
Debuff Added
Stunning Blow: You have sustained a stunning blow! Attack damage -15%; Stamina regeneration reduced by 30%; movement speed reduced by 35%; duration, 1 minute.
<<<>>>
“Ffff.” Air leaked from my mouth as I tried to curse.
My Spirit was back up to 30, but I still needed 10 more to finish this thing off. The Balrigon ate up the distance between us in a rage-filled sprint and flipped me into the air with both fists. My body trembled in agony as it socked me in the gut on the way down, tossing me into a tree. The HP bar in the corner of my vision flashed an angry red, WARNING! WARNING! I begged for a few more seconds of Spirit regeneration.
37.
The Balrigon beat its chest, then the ground, preparing to charge.
38.
It dug into the earth, powerful back legs launching it toward me.
39.
The Balrigon wailed in agony a
nd dropped to the dirt, sliding to a hard stop right in front of me. Otto stood thirty feet back, his sword pinned in the beast’s back. I dropped to my knees and sighed.
“That was close.” I gasped, the effects of Stunning Blow still making it hard to regenerate my depleted Stamina.
Otto tromped across the clearing and jerked his sword free from the dead Balrigon, then leaned down toward me.
“Let me”—he grabbed my hand and pulled me to my feet—“get aggro first.”
“I almost had it. Just one more Spirit and I would’ve lanced the thing.”
He shook his head and growled, “One more second and you would’ve been Wode jelly.” He marched off, his shoulders bunched up near his ears with his head hung low. Then he stopped, turned around with his hand up in an accusatory point, and glared at me.
“If you’re going to work with me, you have to work with me.” He spun back around as the Balrigon corpse crumbled and blew away on the wind.
The Stunning Blow debuff finally dropped, and I kicked at the pile of ash, cursing. I’d always been able to solo other RPGs effectively, but V.G.O. was far harder than I’d anticipated, and the debuffs so punishing. If Otto died, and Jack didn’t take the leap, I’d be alone forever... and I’d just have to figure out how to solo it. Stonewall would be my only option, everything else was too squishy, easily taken out by a Balrigon backhand, and who knew what else.
“Are you coming?” Otto shouted from the next clearing. “Or are you going to pout all day?”
I gritted my teeth and followed after him. I wasn’t pouting, just thinking. Not like a big, stupid oaf like him would know anything about that.
“Yeah, yeah. Let’s get this over with so I can pay you to get out of my hair. We only have four hours left, you know, so I’d appreciate it if you would stop dallying.”
Otto rolled his eyes. “Sure thing, Crazy.”
Wayward Caverns
WE’D FINISHED OFF A final Balrigon just as we’d reached the black arch of the entrance to the Wayward Caverns. Right at the entrance had been a rich Rose Quartz vein, supplying me with more than enough for the quest. I told Otto he could keep everything I didn’t need to give to Naitee, and he seemed happy with that arrangement. It hadn’t even been two hours yet and we’d collected most of the ingredients. All in all, the quest was shaping up to be done in only half the required time.