by Adam Horne
Critical hit!
Kelath was surprised to see there was no sneak attack bonus since the goblin was targeting Elora, but the critical hit added a special effect that was better than some extra damage. Whereas only the ground had been frozen when he mistakenly hit himself with a bomb earlier, this time the mob was encased in a block of ice and couldn’t move. Its arms were raised in the middle of casting a spell, like it had been interrupted in the middle of the action. The goblin stared at Kelath, and he wondered if it was targeting him now instead of Elora. He pulled a throwing knife and aimed for the stomach. When it hit, the ice shattered and shredded the flesh underneath.
Sneak attack success.
“Yes!” yelled Kelath. “I can sneak attack whenever they’re frozen.”
“How did you encase it in ice?”
“It was an added effect for a critical hit.”
While they were talking, the goblin thawed and threw a fire bolt. Kelath pulled out more throwing knives and kept attacking until the enemy finally collapsed from one of Elora’s spells.
Kelath pumped his fist in the air. “That was awesome!”
“Yeah, that’s a neat skill,” said Elora. “I don’t think it’s as good against a single target as my normal spells, but it would be good against groups.”
“And being able to sneak attack when the enemy is frozen is great for a rogue.”
“Yeah, that’s a nice benefit. A system message said the recipe for fire bomb was exclusive, so I’m assuming ice bomb was also. Do you want to trade recipes?”
“Definitely.”
Elora summoned extra flasks of water, and they took turns creating their own recipes so the other could see how they were made. He thought it was interesting that he hadn’t learned the fire skill first, but since he wasn’t planning on switching to the wizard class, that was a good thing. Hopefully there was a trainer in town who could teach him how to make new types of bombs. Since there were no other skills he wanted to learn from Elora, he changed his selection to focus on the bomb skill. He wanted to level it as fast as possible.
There was now a button next to the bomb skill to show the recipes he knew. He selected it to see the list and was surprised to find two different recipes for ice bomb. One showed how he’d made his own bombs by casting a spell on a flask of conjured water. A note at the bottom said that because a bomb made this way was a conjured item, it would disappear shortly after logout. The other recipe required a flower called icebloom. It created a permanent item, and the recipe was marked by a patent symbol with a timer counting down the thirty days. Because there was no patent with the first recipe, he assumed that meant anyone could learn the conjured version. There were two similar recipes for fire bomb. He conjured one to test out the recipe and dropped it in his belt pouch.
When they finished swapping recipes, Kelath said, “Let’s kill more goblins.”
Elora nodded, and they returned to their positions. Over the course of a half hour, they attacked every mob that spawned within their range. Kelath’s rating in the bomb skill rose quickly since he was throwing bombs at their enemies and pumping all the extra group experience he was receiving into it. When they killed the one that dropped the final necklace Elora needed to complete her quest, a series of system messages scrolled by too quickly for Kelath to read.
Congratulations! Your Bomb skill has increased to 5.
Congratulations! Your level in the Alchemist class has increased to 1.
You have unlocked the Alchemist class. This is an exclusive discoverable class for which you own a patent for the next 30 days.
To switch to the Alchemist class, you must visit a class trainer.
In addition to the system messages that only Kelath could see, a server-wide prompt appeared at the top of the screen.
Congratulations to Kelath for discovering the Alchemist class!
“Way to go!” Elora squealed with glee. “I’ve never seen anyone unlock a new class before. You may be the first one to do it!”
Kelath didn’t know if the game could detect blushing, but he hoped not. His face was surely bright red at the moment. “Uh…thanks.”
“That was exciting.” Elora went to retrieve the loot from the goblin they’d killed. “That’s the last one I needed.”
“Great,” said Kelath, “we can turn in the quest.”
Before they could leave, a voice behind Kelath yelled, “Hey!”
The cleric that had chased him earlier marched between the campsites in his direction.
“What do you want?” asked Kelath.
“I thought I recognized the name in that message.” The cleric stopped a few feet away and glared at him. “How the hell did you discover a new class?”
“That’s none of your business.” Kelath crossed his arms over his chest.
“Tell me how you unlocked the class, or I’ll kill you again.”
Kelath scoffed. “You didn’t kill me the first time.”
“That’s right. You ran away. That’s so much better.”
“Get bent!” Kelath turned to leave.
“I warned you.”
The cleric steepled his hands and bent over them while muttering words Kelath couldn’t hear. A ball of light formed at the tips of the cleric’s fingers then shot out in a ray that struck Kelath in the side. His health dropped by about a tenth, and he stared at the cleric in shock. He hadn’t realized they could cast attack spells. The cleric pulled out a mace and shield. A fire bolt streaked behind Kelath’s back to strike the cleric in the shoulder, and he looked around in surprise. He must not have realized Kelath was in a party this time.
The impact of Elora’s spell woke Kelath from his daze, and he cursed at the cleric while drawing his dagger. He was close enough to lunge and stab around the shield. It wasn’t a sneak attack since the enemy was still focused on him, but it did apply some poison. The cleric’s health was still mostly full, but it was dropping steadily from the combination of the fire left behind by Elora’s spell and Kelath’s poison. Over the next fifteen or so seconds, they traded blows, and Kelath slashed at an exposed shoulder to add a bleed to the other effects that were eating away at his opponent’s HP. When the bar dropped below half, the cleric started to cast a healing spell.
This was the moment Kelath had been waiting for. He grabbed an ice bomb and prepared to throw it. The aiming reticle appeared on the ground in front of him, and he moved to target the cleric. He felt certain the bomb would also affect himself if he was inside its range. Unfortunately, he didn’t have enough time to line things up in a way that would hit his opponent but leave him outside the effect. He pressed the button and hoped for the best.
Critical hit!
Luck check to resist. You have been frozen for 1 second.
Kelath thought it weird that the roll to resist bombs was based on luck, but in a way it made sense. The bomb’s extra effects only occurred on a critical hit, and as he’d just shown, it was quite easy to hit himself with the attack. His special attacks wouldn’t be very reliable, but when they did occur he wouldn’t be as adversely affected as other players if he accidentally hit himself with them. He didn’t have to worry so much about being inside the target area.
The timer expired, and his frozen condition went away. The cleric was at about a third of his HP, and Kelath didn’t intend to give him a chance to recover. He stabbed repeatedly, scoring sneak attacks on each hit, while fire bolts continued to fly in from the side. When the ice surrounding the cleric shattered and fell away, he began casting a spell immediately. Kelath kept attacking with his knife, making it harder for the cleric to concentrate, and the combination of poison, bleeding, and fire damage sapped the last of his health. He collapsed on the ground before he could complete the spell.
“Take that, you bastard!” yelled Kelath.
Elora ran up behind him. “Great timing with that bomb! But why did you break out so much faster than the cleric?”
“The resistance roll was based on luck, which is my highe
st attribute. As long as it took for him to become unfrozen, I would guess he lowered luck to put points somewhere else.”
“Well, aren’t you full of surprises?” Elora punched him on the shoulder. “You should check for loot.”
Kelath bent down and checked the body. He found no special items, but the cleric’s purse was almost overflowing with copper coins. He had either killed a lot of goblins, or more likely, taken the money from other players he had killed. Kelath dumped half the coins out and added them to his own before handing the rest to Elora, who giggled in delight at their windfall. He was about to suggest they head to the mine office to turn in their quests when a message popped up saying Througar had logged on. It wasn’t long before he received a tell.
“Hey, man,” said Througar. “What you up to?”
“Killing goblins,” replied Kelath. “I’ve got enough necklaces to finish the quest.”
“How about helping me collect the rest of mine?”
“Sure. I met a friend who helped me. Maybe she’ll stick around and help you too.”
“She? I leave for a day, and you’ve already got a girlfriend!”
“It’s not like that. A lot happened while you were gone. I’ll tell you about it.”
“It’ll be easier to talk when I get there. I’m passing the mining office now, so it shouldn’t take long.”
“Okay, see you soon.”
Elora had been sitting on the ground, drinking to regain her mana while Kelath was busy. He walked over and joined her.
“A friend of mine just messaged me,” said Kelath. “We started the quest to find goblin necklaces yesterday, and I told him I’d group with him to finish it. It would go quicker with three people, if you don’t have anywhere you need to be. Would you mind helping us?”
“I don’t mind.”
“Great! He should be here soon. Could you make me party leader so I can invite him to our group?”
“Sure.”
After a couple seconds, the little star indicating Elora was leader moved next to Kelath’s portrait in the party list. He sent an invite so Througar could join them. When his friend’s portrait appeared, his health bar was at about half and still dropping. An indicator flashed on the screen, showing which direction he was coming from.
“His health is really low,” said Kelath.
“Who’s attacking him?” asked Elora.
“I don’t know.”
The sound of heavy boots pounding the ground came from the direction of the cave entrance, the same way the indicator had pointed. In the distance, an angry voice yelled, “Traitor!”
* * *
“Oh, crap!” said Kelath. “There are people chasing Througar. We have to help him.”
He took off at a run before Elora could answer, but after a moment he heard the sound of her footfalls behind him. The other players nearby watched them warily as they ran through the middle of the goblin encampment. They found Througar near the entrance to the mines, being attacked by the two players who had been guarding it. A female, elven fighter was hacking at him with a two-handed sword while a male, dwarven cleric kept the fighter healed and prevented other players from trying to sneak past into the mines. Througar didn’t look good, his HP reduced to about a quarter of their total.
“We’re coming!” yelled Kelath, although he doubted they could do anything to save his friend with as low as Througar’s health was.
Before he could get within range to throw a bomb, another player in front of him cast a spell. A glowing mist enveloped Througar, and his health rose back up to about half. The unknown healer pointed the giant two-handed flail he was holding at the fighter.
“I will not stand by and watch this man be slain in cold blood! If you have honor, then make this a fair fight.”
Kelath skidded to a halt, unsure if he was more surprised that a random person would help them or that the person spoke in such a formal manner. He selected the new player, sent a party invite, and said, “We’re with Througar. Join our group.”
After a second’s hesitation, the healer nodded and a new portrait appeared in the party list. The player’s name was Galahad, a male, human cleric. While Kelath had never been much for studying Arthurian legend, he did know Galahad was supposed to have found the Holy Grail and was the only one pure and holy enough to carry it. That might explain the manner of speech he used.
“Thank you for the honor of doing battle with you,” said Galahad with a bow.
“You’re welcome,” said Kelath, unable to keep the irony he felt out of his voice. “Keep us healed and we’ll do the rest.”
Galahad saluted then cast another heal on Througar, whose health was growing critical again. Kelath ran past him until he was in range to throw a bomb. He pulled one from the pouch on his belt and lined up the reticle so it would hit both of their opponents. He could concentrate better this time because he knew with a healer to bolster them, there was no rush. When he finally threw the bomb, it hit exactly where he wanted, leaving Througar just outside the area.
Critical hit!
Kelath cheered, assuming that their opponents would now be frozen in blocks of ice for several seconds. Instead, flames flew out as the glass shattered, doing some damage to the two caught within, but also turning the ground beneath them into an inferno. He must have accidentally used the fire bomb he’d made when Elora taught him the recipe. When the two enemy players realized they were taking more damage from standing in the fire, they ran for the nearest safe ground. The cleric made it outside the burning area, but because he moved, he had to drop the healing spell he’d been casting. Througar lashed out with his shield and slammed the elven fighter in the side of the head, stunning her so she burned in the flames for several more seconds. Her health dropped fast but jumped back up to almost full when the enemy cleric cast another heal on her.
“Focus on the cleric!” Kelath yelled as he ran in that direction. “Otherwise he’ll keep healing them.”
“Got it!” yelled Elora, who turned her attention to their new target.
Kelath pulled a throwing knife as he ran, deciding an ice bomb was too much risk. If he used one and it didn’t critically hit, it would leave a patch of ice that would slow him down before reaching the cleric. He released the knife, striking the crease between where the breastplate and leg plates met at the hip.
Sneak attack success.
Poison applied.
The cleric readied his shield and focused on Kelath, who had hoped he would be ignored in order to get off a couple more sneak attacks. They traded blows while fire bolts periodically hit the cleric on the chest or arms. The enemy’s HP dropped quickly, mainly due to Elora’s spells, although Kelath’s bleed and poison damage helped. His stabs did little against the heavy armor other than to slow down the rate at which the cleric could cast heal spells. He figured this character was higher level than the cleric they’d fought before, because it took a lot longer for them to wear him down.
“You call that a beard?” yelled Througar as he charged in next to Kelath. “You might as well shave your face and call yourself an elf!”
“Was that a taunt?” asked Kelath.
Througar winked and hacked at the cleric with his longsword. “I could have just yelled, ‘Get over here!’ but I told you it works better if you tailor the taunt to the target.”
“The game can’t force him to attack you though. He’s not a mindless mob.” Kelath stabbed at the cleric’s neck.
Sneak attack success.
Kelath stared at the system message in disbelief. He’d gotten a sneak attack even though their opponent was still clearly focused on him.
“It can’t make him attack me, but there are some benefits. No matter who he targets, he’s considered to be engaged with me. Which means…”
“Rogues get their sneak attack!”
“Bingo! Also, he does less damage to anyone other than me. It only lasts a few seconds, so let’s finish him off.”
The cleric tried to run when it be
came clear he was outnumbered. Elora switched to ice bolt, freezing his leg and slowing him enough for Througar to catch up and stun him with a shield strike. Kelath lunged forward and drove his dagger into the small of the back, and the cleric toppled forward to lay unmoving on the ground.
Througar banged his sword against his shield and cheered. Kelath sheathed his dagger.
Elora ran over to Galahad. “You did great!” She squeezed his arm then backed away. “Thank you for healing us.”
“It was my duty.” Galahad rubbed his hands together nervously and looked at the ground. “I could not pass by and watch those two thugs gang up on your friend.”
Before Kelath could add his own thanks, a message flashed at the top of the screen.
Congratulations to Galahad for discovering the Paladin class!
“Way to go!” Elora beamed at Galahad, who stammered but couldn’t get any words out.
“Holy crap,” said Througar. “That’s got to be the first new class unlocked.”
Elora said, “Actually, that’s the second.”
“Really? What was the first?”
Rather than answer, Elora smiled at Kelath and motioned for him to speak.
“Uh…” said Kelath, who became flustered. “It was alchemist.”
“Are you kidding me?” Througar looked back and forth between Elora and Kelath. “You unlocked it?”
“Yeah,” said Kelath.
“That’s awesome!”
Througar punched Kelath in the shoulder, and he stumbled back a step. In regaining his balance, he looked past their small group and realized all the other nearby players had formed a circle around them to watch the fight with the two members of Noblesse Oblige who had been guarding the entrance to the mines. Elora followed his gaze and backed up next to him when she saw the crowd watching them.