by Sean Oswald
“Now as to the future, you may all have heard rumors, but I want to speak to you directly. Those of you who are founders will remember that we have survived one goblin battle and, in fact, rose out of it into greater growth and strength. Most all of you were here a few short days ago as the brave men and women of this town repelled not one attack but two. We have been forged together in the crucible of combat, and I truly believe that nothing exists which can overcome our unified effort. But you all deserve to know that we have reason to believe a much larger goblin army is on its way. The scouts have not yet returned, but we believe that, for an army of that size, they are probably a week’s march away through the forest. We also believe that they will not attack until spring as the snow is coming all too soon, and further north it has already started to fall. But you must all know that we cannot guarantee that they won’t be at our gates in just a few days.”
Dave waited for his words to sink in before continuing, “Many of you are here with families, and I will not condemn any child to be in a war zone. Nor, however, will I push any family to leave as we are stronger together. Thus, I will make an offer, and I will make it only once. Anyone who wishes to leave Eris’ Rise may do so as a free man with the blessing of myself and my wife. More than that, they may do so with 10 silver pieces per person, whether that person be human or elf, man or woman, adult or child.”
Gasps and murmuring went through the crowd. Nobles didn’t simply allow people to leave. Free people were the exception not the rule, and most of these people were accustomed to being bound to the land they lived on. Even those who had been allowed to leave their prior places to take up a home in Eris’ Rise had assumed they would be treated as serfs.
More than that, nobles took money from their peasants. Call it taxes or tithes or plain old seizures, the one thing nobles never did was give money to their people. Dave figured that 10 silver had roughly the buying power of $1,000 back home, although the price of things varied quite a bit from home. Yet he knew it was more coin than many of them had ever had at one time.”
“This offer is good through noon tomorrow. After that, you must make your decision. I know this is not much time to decide, but we need to know who is with us and who wishes to strike out on their own. Eloria is, after all, a harsh world, and if we are to survive in it, we must be stronger. It is with this in mind that I call our town leaders Sir Morganthal and Ozakai to distribute magical weapons to some of our most deserving defenders.”
After saying that, Dave went and sat on the bench next to Emily and the children while the two leaders called up the designated twenty four men one by one and gave them either one of the new magical swords or a magical bow. They handled it with all the pomp and formality of a military ceremony. It accomplished the desired results as warriors for the church forces, noble forces, elven forces, and even some of the forest wardens were rewarded for the diligent work and provided the means to better defend the town.
After all those were handed out, Dave stood up again. “Now I am going to be gifting my children with some further magical items. I do this not to flaunt our position but so you know that each of us, my wife, daughter, son, and someday even our youngest daughter will all be equipped to protect you. Our leadership is not a one-way street. Rather, we will work to prove ourselves worthy and will defend you with all our might.”
He then called Emily up and made a show of giving her the spatial container and the wand while explaining to the crowd what each item did. He then let her give him the tome as she likewise explained its power. After that, they jointly gifted the ring to Sara and bracelet to Mira. Then they did the same with the two rings and gloves for Jackson. Most of the crowd had no way of understanding the significance of the gloves being given to Jackson or what a set item was, but they still cheered and reacted suitably in awe based upon the reactions of their leaders.
Once all the items were handed out, Dave took center stage again. “Today we will be taking a group to the dungeon that many of you have heard lies a couple of hours to the north in the Murkwood forest. The purpose of this mission today will be two-fold. First, we will be trying to map out as much of the dungeon as possible, learning its secrets. Secondly, we will be attempting to power level Jackson before he must return to the royal academy as the representative of Eris’ Rise. If our efforts are successful with Jackson, then we will work to develop a strategy for leveling up any and all who wish to be leveled.”
Dave was forced to pause at that point because of the cacophony of noise coming from the crowd. If giving money had been unheard of, then helping to level up the serfs was unthinkable. The entire paradigm that most of these people lived by was thrown out of whack.
Finally, Dave had to shout for quiet. “As you know, everyone has a limit on how high they can be leveled, and we will be leveling those in the military first, but it is our opinion that our town would be safer with level nine farmers working in the fields rather than level zero. However, it is for this reason as much as any other that you must make your decision. We will not invest this time and energy into you unless you are willing to use the might you acquire for the betterment of Eris’ Rise. Even if you do not wish to fight, think about what you might be able to accomplish with the extra Strength, Agility, and Endurance you can acquire by leveling up.”
The noise in the crowd had died down to a low roar as people shook their heads, unsure what to believe. Some men clapped their neighbors and friends upon the backs, remembering childhood days of playing Nobles and Monsters. Each of them had dreamed, as children, about being mighty nobles who could slay monsters. Now, they might have matured and have different desires, but this promise still sparked that same bit of imagination within them.
Even more so when Dave continued, “Further, there will be a requirement placed upon all who wish to be leveled up.” The crowd got silent when he said this, each waiting to hear what fel price would be expected of them. “Actually, two requirements. You will swear an oath of loyalty to the rulers of Eris’ Rise and all its leadership, and second, each of you will be tested for your affinity for magic.” Again, Dave had to stop as the noise burst out of control.
Magic was rare and precious, and while it was somehow conceivable that their strange rulers might be willing to strengthen them, most had never considered the idea of having magic. Now though, farmers were having visions of moving the earth with a wave of their hand while housewives imagined all types of conjured magics to make their lives easier. Others thought of blasting monsters with fire or ice, and still others dreamed of healing the sick and wounded just like the blessed Daughter of Redemption.
After a reasonable amount of time, Dave raised his voice again, “We will not require that you follow a path of magic, but if you have an affinity for a type of magic that could be useful, then we will strongly request it of you. Imagine, if you will, when the goblins come upon us, instead of a small, skilled army standing in between them and a town full of brave but weak farmers, cooks, and lumberjacks, they are greeted by volley after volley of magical power and farmers with the strength of ogres.”
Dave knew that some of the imagery that he painted was pie in the sky. From what he had been told, most of these people would cap out at level nine, but even that would be a fundamental difference from what they were now. Another 18 stat points and a host of character points could go a long way. And he wasn’t exaggerating the impact that a couple rows of cooks and leather workers could have if they were firing spells over the shoulders of the trained soldiers rather than cowering in the town awaiting the worst.
When it became clear that Dave was done speaking, the audience slowly broke into wild applause and chants. “Baron Murkwood!” and “Lady Emiri!” went up from all over the audience. Dave then left it to the other leaders to get the crowd of hyped up people back to work, so he could sit down with those who would be leading the dungeon dive today to discuss the final details.
“You know you have just given Ozakai and Morganthal the task of
corralling 2000 toddlers with a sugar rush, right?” Emily asked with a smile.
“It’s good for them,” Dave said, “It makes them feel in control.”
“Maybe, or maybe you just don’t want to do it.”
“Well you know what they say, it’s good to be the baron,” Dave said as he winked at his wife.
The final plans were put into place, and it was determined that they would be taking fifty of the soldiers to help secure the area around the dungeon along with a dozen lumberjacks to help clear the trees and vegetation. Ultimately, Dave wanted to build a wall around the entrance with towers to secure and control both anything going in or coming out of the dungeon. Steffen had convinced him of the value of access to the dungeon, and he planned to make the most of it.
Emily had a further surprise for him after the leaders went to get everyone organized. “I want Mira and Sara to come along too.”
“You don’t think they would be safer here in town?” Dave asked.
“Not really. The walls are nowhere near finished, and with the most powerful of our people either inside or patrolling around the dungeon, I would feel better if the girls were there. The last time I left Sara in town to go in that dungeon, they were attacked, and it’s only by the grace of Shanelle that you ended up arriving in time to help out.”
“Well if that is what you want,” Dave began.
“It is, and I will make sure that my entire Meiyo Eihei is there along with Rak’kar, and hopefully Balayria will agree to go too. If they have to hide in the forest, they will be well taken care of,” Emily said.
“Krinnk protects Sara tooz,” the goblin chimed in. Sarah said, “And don’t forget about Snowball,” from Sara.
“Well I guess that settles it. Get your stuff together, and let’s go smash us a dungeon,” Dave said with a great deal of enthusiasm.
It was only as he was walking down with family in tow to meet the rest of the forces that he realized he still hadn’t assigned his stat points.
Chapter Twenty-Two
“Mystery and terror often share one mother: ignorance. – Jayfen Tarzen former Chapter head of Theriot Adventurers’ Guild
Dungeon: ? - Mira and Emily Nelson
Two hours later, Mira was fuming as she sat against a tree near the dungeon entrance. She was still trying to figure out a way to get into the dungeon and resented being left to babysit Sara. In her mind, the nearly hundred soldiers, lumberjacks, wood shapers, and druids here should be more than enough to keep the area safe. That was the mental justification she used for slowly edging over close enough to be able to hear the conversation her parents were having with the various leaders and those three newcomers from the adventurers’ guild.
The first voice she could clearly overhear was from the adventurer in blue robes. “Begging your pardon your Lordship, but what you are essentially saying is that you don’t know anything about dungeons, least of all the one you are about to go into, and yet you chose to exclude the most experienced dungeon divers around.”
“You know that isn’t what I said at all. I simply said that something could be worked out for you once we make a contract with the guild. Right now, we simply can’t spare spots in our party.” Dave stared at Tode and the other adventurers.
“But …” Ro’Billo tried to interject.
“But, to be blunt, we don’t trust you yet,” Dave said cutting him off rather roughly.
Emily nudged Dave hoping he would calm down.
“I’m not going to risk the lives of you and Jackson in the dungeon with half the party being people we don’t know yet,” Dave said. The sharp edges of his tone softened up some since he was in part addressing Emily now.
“What I’m trying to say is that you may be able to take in more than a single party of six.” Tode spat the words out as quickly as he could, trying to preempt an interruption from Dave.
“How is that, Adventurer Yuso?” Emily asked.
Turning towards what he now perceived to be the more receptive ear, the blue robed mage said, “Not all dungeons are the same. There are basically three classifications of dungeons. First, there are those that can only be cleared one time. Those are usually a naturally occurring monster nest or perhaps a ruin which hasn’t acquired enough magical essence. Then there are dungeons which are created by some powerful event or accumulation of mana which occurs but which have no central intelligence. Finally, there are dungeons which form over many years, and the mana
pools into magicyte, which ultimately leads to the creation of a dungeon master. This is a sapient creature who controls the mana of the dungeon and overtime can learn to create new rooms and even new creatures in the dungeon.”
“What does any of that have to do with how many people can go into a dungeon?” Dave asked.
“Baron Murkwood, as much as it pains me to say it, this human may have valuable information. Please give us a few minutes at least to learn what he has to teach,” Daichi answered.
After Dave begrudgingly nodded at the elf, Tode continued, “The first type of dungeon is arguably a faux dungeon. The guild doesn’t even worry about them as they don’t tend to have loot like the other two types. The first type of dungeon is sought because whoever gains control of them can stimulate the growth of monsters and resources. This is what happened when you mastered the mine type dungeon from what I have been told.”
Dave and Emily looked at each other. It was just another one of those things that they hadn’t had time to deal with yet. “Okay so how does this affect how many people can go into a dungeon?” Emily asked.
Thare are twa more factors usit tae determine the value o a dungeon beyond the origin o the dungeon. Beyond thon ye didn’t let tode finish explainin the significance o true dungeons wi a dungeon master.”
Dave growled a bit under his breath, but Tode just started talking over it. “Dungeons with a master eventually form a core. That core allows the dungeon master to be reborn repeatedly as long as the core isn’t destroyed. This allows the dungeon to continually grow in power by absorbing ambient mana. Even more important for the growth of the dungeon is that it absorbs energy in various forms from those that come into it. The dungeon can give us loot, but by diving into the dungeon, we provide it with what it needs to grow.”
Emily scrunched up her nose and said, “I don’t get it.”
“Don’t worry. I think I understand what he is talking about. I’ll explain later. It’s one of those things that you didn’t like to talk about back home,” Dave said.
Ro’Billo took over again then, “The other elements o a dungeon are its tier an then the specific type o parties thon it can allow i. It isn’t hard an fast thon the party rules aye have tae be the same but thare are a few options. The more power an knowledge the core gets the more it can allow for different options. Basic options are for ane party at a time an allow it either tae be a free access dungeon, meanin thon the party can freely zone i an oot or a quest basit dungeon which requires ye tae complete a task i order tae be able tae exit. The most common task is killin a boss monster or explorin a certain amount o the dungeon, sae on.”
“That is like what you described the mine dungeon as, right dad?” Jackson asked.
“Yes, but now I’m worried. Can a dungeon switch between free access and quest based?” Dave asked.
“There are no instances of such a thing happening, but I can’t say it’s entirely impossible,” Tode answered.
The dwarf coughed to get everyone’s attention back. “The advanced options are instanced, race, and raid.” When everyone looked at him for an explanation, he continued, “Instanced means that more than one party can enter into the dungeon, but each one of them enters into their own unique version of the dungeon. There can be some variance between the instances but only within a limited range. My people control the only dungeon on Talos, which is known to be instanced.”
“Okay so what about the other options?” Dave’s impatience was starting to show again.
“A race d
ungeon is where more than ane party can enter the dungeon but they are racin tae complete a quest or goal an only ane o thaim can win. They can have some o the best rewards but the consequences for losin can be severe. The only known ane is controllit bi the minotaurs far tae the south sae ye can speir yer pet bullman aboot thaim.” Ro’Billo snorted as he looked at Rak’kar.
“Short one know nothing about the honor of the Labyrinth, and Rak’kar is paying a Zois, but the bearded ones only lust after gems and shiny metals. True warriors live by the Kodikas under the all-seeing gaze of Dikastis,” Rak’kar bellowed.
“C’mere 'n' it’ll be me who’s cutting ye doon tae size!” Ro’Billo shouted back while his hand wandered to the twin axes across his back.
Emily swung her left hand down into the palm of her right hand in a chopping motion. “Cut it out, both of you. I swear, supposedly grown men are worse than my children when they were little.”
“Pardon me, fair Lassie o' th' Nightfolk 'n' Daughter o' Redemption. Me folk 'n' th' bovine folk don’t see eye tae eye very often,” Ro’Billo said with a short bow and flourish of his hand.
Dave made an exaggerated gesture of looking up at Rak’kar and then down at the dwarf, “I doubt that it’s even possible for your people to see eye to eye.”
Everyone else in the group laughed, and eventually even Ro’Billo snorted while Rak’kar just walked away mumbling.
“And I assume a raid dungeon is one that can be done by a raid group rather than just a single six-person party?” Dave queried.
Tode took over answering, “Yes. According to the old records, anywhere from 12 to 72 people. There is a dungeon under the sun elves’ control which is considered a Tier 2, 18 person raid, but that is the strongest raid dungeon on Talos.”
“So you think that this dungeon could be a raid dungeon? Is that what you mean?”
“It’s not quite that simple. Based upon the descriptions from your two forays into it, this dungeon is still evolving and isn’t fixed. My hope is that it can form into the rarest of all dungeons, one which we only know about from the records about the old world–a multi-form dungeon.” Tode’s voice took on a keen note of excitement as he spoke.