Dodge Tank

by Rick Scott

  Thankfully I’m level 5 by then and my days as a mage are over. I’m sure the class must be awesome to some people, but staying in the backline just doesn’t suit me. It’s not as heart pumping I guess. Or maybe I’m just an idiot who likes to take blows to the head every once and a while.

  I dump all of my extra points into Agility and Dex in preparation for my next real job, Thief. I head back into town and look for the NPC that issues the Thief class and realize I don’t really know where the thief’s guild is. Or if there even is one. I hit up the Ragnarok chat to see if anyone there knows. I’m sure someone must.

  (RNG)Reece: Hey guys, do you know where I have to go in Timberdale to unlock thief?

  I don’t get a response, but it’s early, so perhaps no one else is quite logged in yet.

  (RNG)Jax: Head to the markets and look for an NPC next to the dude selling fish.

  (RNG)Reece: Cool thanks!

  (RNG)Jax: Gratz by the way. Heard you got warrior to 15 already.

  (RNG)Reece: Yeah thanks!

  (RNG)Jax: Looks like you might be able catch us up to fight the beast kings after all. ;D

  After all? Was there some betting pool against me?

  (RNG)Reece: Thanks.

  I think.

  I head to the markets. The crowd here too is thin of players. I guess everyone has to take a break from playing Crystal Shards sometime. I spot the NPC Jax was talking about. It’s a stereotypical Halfling wearing a hooded vest and padded armor named Schmitty. I probably could have spotted him as the Thief Class NPC even without Jax’s help.

  As I approach, Schmitty beckons to me. “Hey, could you do me a favor lad?”

  “Sure,” I say.

  You have been offered a Quest: Jail Break

  “Excellent,” Schmitty says. “I’ve got a friend who’s had a nasty run in with the magistrate. He could surely use a helping hand to get an early release, if you know what I mean?”

  Okay? I laugh at the dialogue. “Help how?”

  “Glad you asked.” And the Halfling produces a key. “I’d do this personally but, let’s just say I’ve had a ‘nasty run in’ with the magistrate not too long ago myself. But a fresh face like you would barely turn a head.” He then points toward the city center. “Head down to the garrison and slip past the guards to reach the stockades. Give this key to the fella in cell number three.”

  “Cell number 3. Got it.”

  You have accepted the quest: Jail Break

  You have received a key item: Small Cell Key.

  Avoid the city guards and deliver the cell key.

  “Good luck, mate,” Schmitty says. “And if you get caught, you don’t know me.”

  Quest objective: Head to the garrison and sneak past the city guards to deliver the cell key.

  I smile. Seems like a fun and easy quest. The garrison is at the center of the city within a small keep. An indicator on my minimap shows me which way to go. When I reach, I see the main gate to the garrison is wide open. The guards outside seem to be on a set pattern of rotation. It’s dead easy to wait until they turn their backs for a second and then for me to slip by and into the keep. I repeat the process a couple more times getting to the back of the keep where the cell blocks are.

  I see three thick wooden doors with only a small slot to deliver food in each one. I drop the key through the slot of the door marked #3 and a gruff voice from behind the door says, “Good on ya, mate! Give old Schmitty my thanks.”

  Quest Objective updated: Sneak out of the Garrison and return to Schmitty to let him know the job is done.

  I do so easily and have another chat with Schmitty when I arrive.

  “Well done mate,” Schmitty says. “If you’re ever in the need for a hustle come look me up anytime.”

  Congratulations! You have completed the Quest: Jail Break

  Congratulations! You have earned the title Jail Breaker!

  You have received 100 experience points.

  You have received 100 credits.

  Congratulations! You can now become a Thief.

  I laugh at how easy that was. I hope obtaining Ninja will be as easy as this, but I got a feeling it won’t be. I change classes to thief and take a look at my new stats.

  Reece

  Class: Thief

  Level: 1

  Strength: 6

  Dexterity: 20

  Agility: 23

  Intelligence: 4

  Mind: 6

  Vitality: 8

  HP: 22/22

  Stamina: 18/18

  TP: 13/13

  My dex and agility seem to be coming along nicely. I’m eager to see how they perform on a class that’s actually built to use them. I dash over the auction board to pick up some new gear. I reuse my leather armor from warrior since it’s still all I can wear at level 1, but I purchase two daggers. A cheap level 1 dagger for about 30 credits and a top notch Dagger +3 for when I hit level 8 that sets me back 1500. If Gilly and I go adventuring in that swamp again, a weapon like this should really help out.

  I hit the forest to take on some of the wildlife and am immediately disappointed with the results. It doesn’t feel much different than warrior, except I hit for much less damage with the dagger than I did with my short sword. And I have less hit points when I get hit by the stupid rabbits.

  “What the heck, man?” I grumble to myself. “I thought this was supposed to be better.”

  “Maybe you should try actually avoiding the hits instead of standing there like you’re Val Helena.”

  I stiffen and glance over my shoulder to see Aiko standing right behind me!

  I jump half a foot in fright and she laughs at me with her creepy cackle.

  “Did I scare you?” She gives me a wicked looking grin that makes her violet eyes sparkle. “Sorry about that, pretty boy.”

  “I ah…” I’m still lost for words as I recover from the surprise visit. But when I do some, I’m immediately taken aback by Aiko’s statuesque elven form. She’s much shorter than Val and just a bit taller than me. Her deep blue bob matches her dark ninja garb perfectly, which is now accentuated by a red scarf that billows from her neck with a wind of its own. Hanging from her curvy hips, are two dagger-like blades about the size of my short sword. She stands there with her arms crossed, leering at me with a smile that tugs suggestively on her black painted lips.

  I really don’t know what to make of her. Where Gilly is definitely cute and lovable, and Val Helena powerful and imposing; this woman is like a living embodiment of sex itself. I half wonder if she doesn’t have some kind of secret stat for it. But even still, that jacked up laugh of hers has me cringing every time.

  “You should try moving more,” Aiko says in her sing song voice. “Agility based classes allow you to do that. What is yours, by the way?”

  “Um… thief?”

  “I meant, what’s your agility, pretty boy.”

  “Oh! 23.”

  “Not bad. You’ll need a lot more than that to tank Vulnar, but it’s a start.”

  “How much do you have?” I ask.

  She only winks. “Enough to tank Vulnar. Why not give those rabbits another shot. At 23 agility you should have slightly more responsiveness than you would in real life.”

  “Okay,” I say and tackle another hare.

  “Don’t try to hit it, just practice avoiding its attacks.”

  I nod and do so. I wait for the hare to spring up and then shift.

  The Forest Hare misses you.

  Your evasion skill increase by 0.3

  “Whoa, that seemed much easier than before.”

  I get it to miss me a couple more times, and get another skill up before I finish it off with my dagger.

  “That’s because you were dodging before. All classes get dodge. It’s an active skill that uses stamina. But agility based classes like thief and ninja get evasion as a passive ability. You can bob and weave through easy attacks and save your dodge for tough ones. Of course, knowing which ones to bob and which ones to d
odge is a bit of an art.”

  “So is that how you dodge tank?”

  Aiko grins at me. “A small part of it. I’ll have to teach you more if you’re going to join me in a month’s time. But you’re off to a good start.”

  Oh crap. I wonder if I should mention to her about my deal with Val Helena. But I don’t want to tick her off either.

  “You should really consider streaming your progress you know. I have tons of viewers who are begging me to join you just so they can watch you level.”

  I forgot about her streaming. “Are you streaming right now?”

  “Of course,” she says. “You’re not shy now are you?”

  How can I not be? The thought of a million people watching me gawk at her is embarrassing enough, but how am I supposed to break it to her that I’m now joining Val Helena for the world boss? I fear the kind of reaction that would be caught on camera for that one.

  “It’s great secondary income too,” Aiko says. “Not that you’ll need it once we take down Vulnar. Come on, I’ll show you a great spot where you can level up thief.”

  Aiko invites you to join her party.

  Do you accept? (Y/N)

  My heart skips a beat as I hesitate. I wasn’t expecting to run into this today! Suddenly I start getting tells from a million random people at once.

  Vilhelm: Yo! What you waiting for man???

  Dressy: Join her!

  Althena: Join her please! I want to see you level up, hot stuff! <3

  Injinho: Dude! You know how many guys would kill to be you right now? This is Aiko!

  Kukuklub: Hurry up! lol

  Crap what am I going to do?

  “Come on,” she says again with a playful smile. “I’m not going to bite. I just want to show you a secret area. You’ll thank me later, I promise.”

  Injinho: Dude!! WTH is wrong with you?!? Go!!! GO!!!!!

  “Okay fine,” I say and hit yes. And immediately my stomach sours like I just made a huge mistake. “This won’t take too long right?”

  “Not unless you want it to,” Aiko says with another wink and then she laughs with that cackle of her and that totally gives me the creeps.

  What the heck have I gotten myself into now?

  Chapter 17 Thief

  Aiko and I fast travel to the port city of Swifttide which sits on the eastern edge of the main continent Anderrun. It’s a mid-level area not far from Timberdale and thankfully I already have it unlocked.

  We emerge on a weather worn pier that extends out into a bay of deep blue water. Tethered alongside the pier are tall-mast sailing ships that have all manner of NPCs running about them, given the impression of a busy harbor. Sailors climb rigging, while longshoremen haul cargo onto the warped and gnarled deck. The smell of the salt air and the chirp of seagulls completes the décor, transporting me from forested woodland to thriving sea town. This was another great thing about Crystal Shards, the variety of landscapes always gave a sense of just how big the online world was, and how much there was to explore. It reminds me that I’ve barely explored anywhere within Nasgar yet, besides all the mines of course.

  I don’t see any other players about as we’ve traveled to a rather remote part of the city. Swifttide is a much bigger place than Timberdale and contains several spawning points. This one is far from the central hub of the city and used primarily for people boarding the ships to travel to the other continents in the game. I haven’t been to those either.

  “Kill some of those seagulls to hit level 5,” Aiko says and she points to the white feathered birds sitting on the half rotted decking of the pier.

  I take a look at one.

  Seagull

  Level: 5

  These noisy birds can be the bane of all seamen, but a blessing if you happen to be lost at sea.

  Affinity: Air

  “Remember to focus on evasion,” Aiko says and un-parties with me, so that I can gain xp. Then she folds her arms and nods for me to commence.

  Four levels higher than me, but what the heck. I can do this.

  I equip my dagger and lunge at the stupid bird. I hop from foot to foot as it squawks back at me and pecks it’s hooked beak in retaliation. My stabs with the dagger are much faster than the short sword and even though I’m doing less damage, I whittle the bird down 10% with each poke. Then the bird flies into my face and gives me a nasty bite on my cheek which draws blood!

  Ahhh!

  It doesn’t hurt but it feels totally weird and my health drops to 30%!

  I can’t take another hit like that! And it’s still at half!

  I start to panic.

  Aiko must notice because she says, “Don’t worry about your health. Just keep moving, that’s your defense not your hitpoints. At higher levels you’ll be one shotted by almost everything you fight against. So whether you have 100% or 1%, it really doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is to not lose focus and keep evading. Remember! Don’t get hit!”

  Easy for her to say!

  Her words do little comfort as I keep dancing with the gull. I dare not break eye contact with it, watching to anticipate it’s every move and avoid its attacks. I finally get in the last few stabs and the bird croaks.

  You defeated the Seagull!

  You gain 300 experience points.

  Congratulations! You have gained a level!

  You are now level 2.

  You have gained 1 attribute point.

  “Not bad, pretty boy,” Aiko says as she sidles up next to me and I feel almost uncomfortable with how close she pressed into me from behind. “You might have the moves yet. Put everything into agility from now on.”

  “All into agility?” I ask. “What about dex?”

  “You can worry about that later. Your top priority should be getting to 50 agility as soon as possible.”

  “Why 50?”

  “At 50 your attack speed doubles and you’ll have enough agility to evade attacks from king’s guards.”

  I want to ask what those are, but I don’t want to keep sounding like a complete noob in front of 1 million viewers. (Even though I am). So I just nod like I know what she’s talking about and drop my new attribute point into Agility.

  “A few more of those should get you to level 5.”

  It takes me three seagulls in total. I come close to death a couple of times, but with each level they get easier to kill. At level three I gain a new ability called sneak. And at level five I get something that looks really interesting.

  Congratulations! You have gained a level!

  You are now level 5.

  You have gained 1 attribute point.

  You have learned the ability “Backstab”.

  Backstab

  Attack an enemy from a hidden position to perform a debilitating critical attack.

  Activation: Instantaneous

  Cooldown: 45 seconds

  Cost: 10 TP

  Now we’re talking.

  “You should have three abilities now,” Aiko says. “Hide, sneak and backstab.”

  I don’t remember seeing hide, but I pull up all my abilities to check.

  Level 1: Hide Blend into darkened surroundings by remaining still.

  Level 3: Sneak Move stealthily without being seen or heard.

  Level 5: Backstab Attack an enemy from a hidden position to perform a debilitating critical attack.

  “That’s all you’ll really need to hit level 15,” Aiko says and then she adds with a grin. “That…and a bit of guts.”

  I’m not sure if I like the sound of that.

  “Come with me,” she says.

  I follow Aiko off the pier, somewhat mesmerized by the sultry walk she has in her high heeled boots. The boots are something impossible and impractical in real life, but in the game, fashion didn’t have to play second fiddle to function. In fact, Aiko could easily pass for a fashion model herself; strutting down some catwalk, instead of a rickety old pier.

  We enter a large warehouse stacked with crates and boxes. Moving about
are more dockworkers dressed in overalls similar to my mining gear. Aiko leads me further into the back, away from the main entrance. It’s darker here and my eyes take a moment to adjust from the bright sunlight beaming outside.

  “This is your hunting ground,” Aiko says and then she points to a couple of dockworkers in the area. “That’s your prey.”

  I take a look.

  A strong dockworker

  Level: 30

  Lugging crates and cargo all day makes this worker as tough as they get! Probably best not to mess with him.

  Affinity: Water

  “What?” I say. “But he’s level 30!”

  “Right. So don’t let him hit you. Allow me to demonstrate.”

  Aiko doesn’t draw a weapon. She instead readies her fist as she slowly approaches the dockworker and circles behind him. He then cries out and falls to his knees as Aiko punches him in the kidney. The worker’s HP is down to a sliver but he recovers from the blow quickly, and stands to give chase to Aiko as she darts away the opposite direction.

  “I’ll get you for that!” he screams.

  Aiko then crouches behind a crate and disappears. The worker immediately stops and then looks about confused. He reminds me of that Mountain Troll when it stopped on its set pathway and then turned around to go back the way it had come. The worker turns to do the same thing. Then Aiko emerges silently from behind the crate and with a swiftness I don’t expect, she dashes forward in a crouch, moving right behind the worker again. She gives him another punch to the back and he falls to the floor dead.