by Galen Wolf
“Never to turn the back on a foe,” I quote.
“The Chivalric Code?” He asks. “Never read it myself. But then, I’m an alchemist.”
Then I see St Ninian’s chapel. It’s a low stone building made of grey limestone and it looks ancient. A cross stands proudly on the roof ridge, but the most extraordinary thing is there’s a glowing white forcefield around the chapel that’s keeping the corruption at bay. Just to see it lifts my heart. Good is not totally defeated here.
Adele is at the door of the chapel. A preaching cross, covered in grey lichen, stands outside. The designs on it look Celtic and very old. Tombstones of the village elders lie within the circular churchyard. I pass one particularly ornate tomb, and see the design of a sword inscribed on the sepulchre lid, the writing says: Here lies Sir Gugan, a true knight of his King and God.
We enter the chapel and an atmosphere of pure peace. Monks turn to look at us, alarmed at first, but then their faces relax.
“Thank God,” they say. “The King has sent us rescue.”
I glance around at my companions. Hmm. I’m not so sure.
At the end of the chapel, before the altar a grey haired man in a white cassock is on his knees. He stands. There is such a look of purity on his face that I know this must be St Ninian. His face breaks into a smile and he extends his arms. “Welcome, my children. In the name of our Lord and Saviour, welcome.”
I see my companions lining up to talk to St Ninian. They kneel as he blesses each one. I whisper to Gearhart, who stands in front of me in the queue. “What’s the blessing?”
He whispers, “St Ninian’s blessing adds cold damage to your weapon.”
That sounds good.
When it’s my turn, I kneel before the kind faced old saint. He asks, “Do you wish my blessing on your sword?”
I nod and lay out my sword on my two hands, still kneeling on one knee.
Ninian makes the sign of the cross and says, “I’m the name of our Lord, grant this holy warrior this blessing on his weapon so he may smite the servants of evil and bring glory to his God and King.”
I notice a blue shimmer to my sword. It keeps shimmering even when I’ve thanked the saint and walked away.
Plus fifty! That’s amazing.
Then there’s a commotion from the door as a young monk rushes in. “Father,” he says to Ninian. “The servants of the Evil One are here. They mean to destroy the chapel.”
Ninian smiles. “Don’t worry, my son. These brave warriors will protect us.”
I accept and turn to look at the door. Luc is already there, with Adele. Gearhart has already gone out. I hear shouting outside and the barking of what sounds like huge dogs. Bernard turns to me. “Come on, kid. Let’s go sort them out.”
5
Defending the Chapel
Adele stands at the door, beckoning for me to come out, but I don’t go. It’s not that I’m scared; I’ve got 100 skill points to allocate. I remember my dismal failures at hitting the boggle sergeant in the last fight and I don’t see the point in missing every time so I need to stop an allocate my points.
I hear the clash of battle outside - grunts, shouts, the smashing of steel against steel.
“Come on, Gorrow. We need everybody!” Adele yells at me, then seeing me still hesitate, she snorts in disgust and exits the chapel.
It’s probably a mistake allocating skill points when things are tense, but I need to hit so without hesitation I allocate 50 skill points to the swordplay skill.
Okay, that’ll do. I rush out of the chapel door. The holy forcefield still pulses faintly around the chapel, but something is happening to it. I see a swarm of boggarts and their larger boggle sergeants. They are set up in a shieldwall, their black and red bucklers painted with hideous and obscene symbols. Behind them is a taller creature. I check it out with my ranged targeting recticle, which I’ve never used up to now. It gives me a reading.
The Hobgoblin is spraying a dark energy from his hands. Where it hits the holy forcefield, there’s a battle between the dark and the light energy. The light energy resists but then is weakened. I see a saucer shaped hole appearing in the light forcefield. This must be their plan — get rid of the forcefield and allow their grunts into the chapel to slay St Ninian.
I look for my guys. Gearhart is standing back, aiming then loosing arrows. Some arrows find their mark, some end up in the boggarts’ bucklers standing out like porcupine spines. He looks relaxed. He’s not one shotting them but I see the odd one go down. Luc is in the lead on his horse. Adele stands behind him, rosary beads twisted round her hands which are in front of her in a gesture of prayer. Bernhard lobs flasks full of alchemical fire in high arcs that explode and stick like napalm to screaming boggarts.
“Bernard,” Luc calls out. “Smoke.”
The alchemist nods and takes out different coloured flasks from his inventory. The are full of a milky white liquid. He looks to the paladin and Luc nods, “Now.”
They must have done this routine before because Bernard knows exactly what to do. He throws a flask so that it hits the ground right in front of the enemy line. It smashes and a cloud of billowing smoke rears up, filling the space. Soon I can’t see the boggarts and that’s made worse when Bernard throws another flask.
Luc comes back on his horse, when he’s up to us he barks orders. “Gearhart, Bernard and Gorrow. Wait here. Keep them away from the chapel. They will try to advance. Adele come with me.”
“Where are you going?”
Luc pauses as if unused to being questioned. Then he says, “We need to take out the warlock before he breaches the holy wall around the chapel. You three stay here to lure them, I’ll go behind their line under cover of the smoke. Adele will support me by healing.”
I suck my teeth. He wants me to stay here as bait to lure them while he gets the glory. But like I said, egos aren’t going to help here so I nod. Adele and he go wide left under cover of the smoke.
The Warlock can’t see to target the holy forcefield, so as Luc predicted, the whole shieldwall advances under the orders of their sergeants.
Gearhart stands beside me, shooting as calm and relaxed as if this was the village fete. Bernard takes out a mauve potion. “Sip this.”
I raise an eyebrow.
“Just sip it. Trust me.”
I trust him, so I do. Immediately a buff notice appears on my HUD.
<+5 Holy Damage to Attacks: Duration 5 Minutes>
Okay that’s good. But it’s no good if I don’t actually attack, so with a roar of “For my King and God!” I rush forward. I don’t know if that’s the right battle cry, but it seems to fit the game.
The boggle line firms up as I’m about to hit it. I notice my copper sword is glowing a faint cold blue and snowflakes come from it. It also has a billowing of white, which I guess is the temporary holy buff.
I slice into a boggart.
That was pretty cool. The boggart falls in a heap. So I turn and hack the one to the right, with similar effect. This is too easy. Two of them take me one and one gets a sly jab in at me.
I cut that one down too. Seeing the damage I’m doing one of the big Boggles runs at me. He’s similar to the one I couldn’t touch in the Inn, but somehow more formidable. I sweep my targeting recticle over him.
Okay let’s try this.
Better than before. Then he hits me with his mace.
He’s fast. He brings another overhand down on me and I crumple.
I roll right and his heavy mace thuds into to mud. If he hits me again, I’m a goner. I roll up on my knees and go right, shoulder charging a boggle who careens into others of his kind. I’m fighting wild now, showing my panic and inexperience. I hack left at the Boggle Captain and more by luck than judgement, I hit.
A crit. Thank the Lord, but he still doesn’t go down. How much health has this critter got? But my hit has made him pause. I see him sip a blue potion. The NPCs get health potions! That’s not fair. As he sips his, I get mine.
I got to sip it again, but the dose is wasted because it has a two minute cool-down. I see an arrow embed itself in the Boggle Captain’s shoulder. The creature snarls, showing its tusks as it turns to face whoever shot it. Gearhart waves at it. He was deliberately distracting the Captain to save me. It throws back its head, spit flying from its discoloured teeth as it roars its challenge to Gearhart.
This might not be chivalrous but I stab it from behind with my sword. I don’t crit this time, but as it turns back to me, another of Gearhart’s arrows finds it target in the Boggle’s back. It goes to sip its potion but its on cooldown. I jab the wicked thing in its guts. I hit it for 15, but it’s enough.
The smoke is clearing. The boggles behind what remains of their shieldwall look like they’re wavering. Their morale is about to go, despite the yells of their sergeants. They’ve seen their captain go down and they don’t rate their own chances of survival. Luc is injured, he looks like the Warlock’s magic has burned him and his handsome face looks like a mix of charcoal and raw meat. Adele is playing a beam of silver light on him. Even so, he’s only just resisting the black handed magic of the Warlock.
Should I go and try to rescue him? Better clear out the boggles first. I roar and rush at them, chopping two down almost instantly. They break and run, haring down the despoiled streets of Alston. A sergeant turns to face me. He obviously thinks he’s got a chance. Maybe he has. I breath in, ready my sword and raise my buckler. Then Gearhart’s arrow flies over my shoulder and hits the sergeant full in the face, one-shotting him.
“Warlock,” Gearhart yells. I glance over to see Luc slide from his saddle. Adele yells, “No!” but the warlock blasts her with some dark magic, sending her flying like a rag doll and slamming into the broken wall of a house, where she lies in a pile.
Gearhart hits the warlock with an arrow and the Hobgoblin Warlock looks over to us, as if noticing us for the first time. I mutter to myself, “Here goes nothing,” and grimly jog over to take the creature on. Halfway there, I remember my health and sip a Health 30, taking me up to 90/100. Now it’s on cool-down again.
A fire flask from Bernard hits the Warlock and he fires at Bernard, who from some unknown skill of his own, manages to dodge the blast of evil energy. As I get close I see the warlock is wearing a robe embroidered in occult symbols in a glittering red thread. His tusks are yellow and his eyes smouldering pits of fire.
I don’t get there before he hits me. The blast knocks me off my feet and shoots me backwards so I fall into a garden. That actually is lucky, because the wall takes the brunt of his next blast, rocks and pebbles blasting into the sky.
I check my health and I’m down to 10. I wonder what it feels like to die. I hear the grunting and breathing of the monster as it walks over to the wall. My health potions are on cool-down. I roll right and get up, hoping someone else will distract the thing before it blasts me to hell.
I look over my shoulder. Luc is on his feet again, healed by Adele. He’s circling the warlock from behind. The thing raises its hands to fire.
Never turn your back on an enemy.
I sigh and turn. Then Adele hits me with a healing prayer, restoring me to 60/100. I might survive this. Gritting my teeth I give my battle yell and rush it.
It was worth a try. I steel myself for the end, but it doesn’t come.
The Warlock has taken a look around and seen he’s on his own. He turns and runs.
The extra xp tips me to Level 3
So I get another 100 skill points and 50 health.
I look to see the disappearing Warlock. “After him?”
Bernard is at my shoulder. “Loot!”
Gearhart nods. “Loot.”
Luc looks exhausted and Adele is at his shoulder as always, making him feel better.
So we leave the Warlock to escape and focus on loot and I get 23 groats a Round Wooden Shield (10) which is better than the buckler. There are also some Leather Greaves (5).
Then it's time to go to see St Ninian again to see if he has any further quests for us.
6
Beginning Smithing
We step inside the Chapel of St Ninian. The monks are grateful and the saint himself thanks us.
“I just wish I could offer you further blessings.”
I smile. “The 50 cold on my sword is pretty tasty.”
The saint frowns. “Tasty? I’m not sure I know what you mean.”
Adele says, “He means good.”
“Ah good. Of course. You’re welcome.”
We smile at each other.
The monks heal us up and as we stand there getting our breath back from the fight, I think about my skills. I’ve put 50 into my to-hit skill, swordplay. Of course I can always go more into that, especially as every now and again it gives increased crit chances. But I don’t want to be a glass cannon — I need to have some defence as well. I guess that the knight profession is intended to be the tank of the game, so I need to be tankier. I could always rely on finding better gear, and
I’m sure that would happen, but it’s unreliable.
I think about Prayer and Herbology, and even Alchemy. These skills will give me some healing capability, but better still is to avoid getting hit in the first place. The reliable way to do that is to increase my Mining and Smithing skills, then I can make and upgrade my own stuff. It might seem like this is a wasted skill allocation here and now as I don’t have a mine or a forge. Then I have a brainwave. “Is there a forge in the village?”
The monk nods but says, “The blacksmith is dead though.”
“I’m sorry to hear that, but I can use it myself.”
He gives me directions; the village isn’t big and I’m sure I’ll find it. Bernard comes with me, ‘for the walk’ he says, but I think it’s to watch my back.
We find the forge and it’s dead and cold. But there’s plenty of charcoal and I find flint and still as well as kindling wood. There’s a box of dry wood shavings that light easily in a shower of sparks from the flint. Soon I have the forge burning and I ask Bernard to man the bellows.
“Oh, okay, sure.” He wanders over to the huge leather bellows and begins to blow over the coals that start to glow red, then yellow.
While he’s getting the heat up I look around for any ingots that might have been left by the scum who raided the village. There are none and I guess they carried them all off.
The coals are still not white hot. I get out my copper ore and decide to commit points into smithing. I select Smithing.
The figure between the parentheses is the durability of the material. That little training session cost me twenty points, but I want to get better still so I put in another thirty.
I have a hundred skill points left. I really have an urge to be self sufficient so I put points into Mining.