Battle Spire

by Michael R. Miller

  Key Stats: Constitution, Might

  Roles: Tank, Damage

  Class Benefits: +3% increase to Health, +2 Shield Skill, +2 to all one-handed melee weapon skills

  Berserker

  Discipline doesn’t suit the berserker. Armor just slows them down.

  Key Stats: Might

  Role: Damage

  Class Benefits: +5% increase to melee damage, +2 to all two-handed melee skills, +2 to all one-handed melee weapon skills

  Monk

  Extreme inner discipline helps trained monks to dispel pain or hit far harder than they should. Favoring their fists and feet over blades, these fast-moving fighters can quickly change from dishing out punches to bolstering the spirits of allies in the heat of battle.

  Key Stats: Reflexes, Willpower

  Roles: Damage, Off-tanking, Utility

  Class Benefits: +30% increase to unarmed damage, +5 Unarmed Combat Skill, +2% Regen p/s

  Everything I read was tempting, with so many possibilities. I found what I was looking for at the end of the list.

  Scavenger

  They flit from town to town, battlefield to battlefield, gathering the remnants and then crafting wonders from the ashes. Some just call them junkers. A mysterious sort and often overlooked, scavengers forge their own path more than most. Although weak in combat, they make up for a lack of raw power with powerful creations and upgrades of their own.

  Key Stat: Intelligence

  Role: Utility

  Class Benefits: Whereas other players are locked to only 2 primary professions, Scavengers have access to 7 – Blacksmithing, Leatherworking, Tailoring, Jewel crafting, Engineering, Mining and Skinning. The core stat linked to all the professions is consolidated into Intelligence.

  There was a line in the description that stood out to me, ‘scavengers forge their own path more than most’. With access to so many profession trees, I had an inkling as to why. Everyone bad mouthed the class because it had only one or two combat abilities and was weak enough besides. Yet, with the capacity to create so many items and improve them, smart players would be able to carve out their own playstyle.

  I’d like to think I was such a player.

  I selected the scavenger class.

  The Wizard chuckled. “Oh, you will be one who takes what others have foolishly neglected; build where others destroy. You won’t be powerful in your body or the arcane, yet power can come in many forms and gold is perhaps the most influential power in the world. And if not gold, then it shall be your wits that will serve you; an intuition to combine and use materials in ways that no others would. For this is the life of the scavenger – to thrive on the outskirts, to turn the waste of others into your own treasures.”

  He made it sound almost romantic and I supposed there was something uniquely cool about the fantasy behind the scavenger class. I hadn’t come across something like this in any other RPG I’d ever played. Although I was here for a task, I was excited to find out how my character would ultimately play.

  The Wizard pushed a piece of parchment across the desk and followed it with an inkwell and quill.

  “The last task will be to decide upon your name while in the mortal plane. I await your decision.”

  I skimmed the flowing words, beautifully written out as though in calligraphy. But they held no roleplaying value, just a list of the conditions required on naming a character. Don’t be offensive, don’t be racist or rude, don’t, in a nutshell, be an asshole. I had been thinking about what I’d call myself for a while now and had checked on the Hundred Kingdoms player roster to make sure it was still available.

  This was to be a new beginning and after some time, I’d landed on the name Zoran. It was a name from Eastern Europe that meant ‘dawn’ and felt fitting. Plus, a name beginning with Z would help me to stand out in a busy game market square; easier to remember than ‘InstaKills2038’ or ‘JawumbaWafflesMcGee’. I picked up the quill, dabbed it into the black ink and wrote out my character’s name.

  As I confirmed it, the game presented me with my character’s starting stat sheet.

  Character

  Zoran Human Scavenger Level 1

  Attributes

  Constitution 10 – Intelligence 10 – Reflexes 10 – Might 10 – Willpower 10

  Combat

  Health 100 – Mana 100 – Attack Power 17 – Spell Power 17 – Regen 1.3 p/s

  “It is an honor to meet you, Zoran.” The Wizard waggled his fingers and the parchment rolled up and zoomed to his hand. “I wish you luck in the world. You’ll need it.”

  And with that, the Wizard snapped his fingers and the world around me began to spin again. I was greeted to more concept art and voiceover work by way of a loading screen, all specific to the human starting zone.

  It lingered for a time upon an in-game clip of a tall yet plump man in regal purple robes and a jewel-encrusted crown upon his head. He had the thick brown beard of a scholar, but his hair was already thinning beneath his crown. His green eyes were soft and inviting, and it was evident enough from his frame that his shoulders were rounded and slouched under those robes. A voice-clip spoke over the scene like in a movie trailer.

  “Emperor Aurelius grew up in peaceful times, pursuing the path of the philosopher rather than the warrior. However, storm clouds gather on the borders of the Imperium; elven allies speak of demonic and undead horrors from the south, while the dwarves warn of giants stirring in the north. Closer to home, kobolds have become an infestation right outside the gates of the Imperial Capital of Argatha.”

  The scene progressed to show the Emperor sitting in a heated council meeting, his face buried behind his hands.

  “Aurelius is a soft-hearted ruler and now the vultures are circling. If his words should fail, the Imperium might splinter into pieces, leaving humanity vulnerable to the many evils rising in the world. Now more than ever, the Imperium needs willing citizens to take up arms for the sake of all who dwell within it.”

  The cut-scene ended and I materialized into the game world.

  5

  I knew where I was. This was Rusking, a small town where human players would begin their journey in Hundred Kingdoms. Around me were buildings that could have been pulled straight from sixteenth-century Europe, thatched roofs and all. Directly before me was the town hall, with a pointed wooden spire rising far above the rest of the settlement. Human architecture in Hundred Kingdoms often had spire motifs, paying homage to the grand Imperial Spire in the heart of Argatha where the Emperor lived.

  I took a moment to flex my fingers, stretch my limbs and get a feeling for the movement in-game. It felt flawless. Frostbyte had really taken it to the next level here. I could smell bread from the bakers, hear the rhythmic clang of hammer on metal from the smithy, feel the breeze upon my face. Immersion was further aided by the minimal user interface.

  A semi-transparent red health bar sat in the bottom left of my vision and a blue mana bar beside it. Both sharpened and brightened if I focused on them and I saw both were sitting at a basic 100/100. In the bottom right-hand corner was an area earmarked for the combat log. In other games, bringing up the menu was simply a matter of thinking about it. I tried this now. Even knowing Hundred Kingdoms was the hallmark of modern VRMMOs, I was still taken aback by the speed at which the system responded to my thoughts. Using abilities worked the same way, meaning that combat would be fluid and exciting.

  From the menu, I checked my abilities book. I knew broadly what scavengers started with from my research but I wanted to double-check the specifics. My abilities book looked sparse right now. There was, in fact, only one ability present.

  Scavenge – Rank 1

  You search a corpse for additional items that others were too proud to take. Awards 5% of the experience that killing a creature of equal level and power would grant. Some corpses may require tools to fully search.

  Shame. I thought the experience gain would be a bit higher than five percent. Perhaps it had been patched. Still, it would add u
p over time and be a nice boost to my overall exp. I had no direct combat abilities right now but scavengers only got a few anyway. That wasn’t what they were designed for.

  My stats wouldn’t have changed from logging in and I wouldn’t have any additional points to distribute until I leveled up. I was, however, curious to check whether I already had this myriad of extra professions already or whether I’d have to train in each one separately. I found the professions tab and opened it.

  Professions

  Class Note: As a Scavenger, your profession trees are locked until you visit your class trainer at level 3.

  Crafting - Locked

  Blacksmithing – Rank 1 – 0/100 EXP

  Leatherworking – Rank 1 – 0/100 EXP

  Tailoring – Rank 1 – 0/100 EXP

  Jewel crafting – Rank 1 – 0/100 EXP

  Engineering – Rank 1 – 0/100 EXP

  Gathering - Locked

  Mining – Rank 1 – 0/100 EXP

  Skinning – Rank 1 – 0/100 EXP

  Sure enough, I couldn’t select any of my professions. When I tried tapping on Blacksmithing, all I got was a clunky noise for my troubles; the game’s way of telling me that I couldn’t do that.

  Well, I always had to do a bit of leveling anyway, so no harm done. I’d just visit my class trainer as soon as I hit level 3.

  Finally, I inspected what gear I had equipped: a green commoners tunic, brown hose, and basic leather shoes, all of which gave me no additional armor or stat bonuses. In my right-hand weapon slot, I held a ‘brittle dirk’ which had a damage range of 3-5 and a shockingly low durability of 10. Upwards was truly the only direction I could go in.

  I rubbed my hands together. Time to get started.

  Doing the starter quests seemed the obvious thing to do as they’d award some copper and silver coins that I sorely needed to buy the various tools for crafting and scavenging. I’d need a hammer for blacksmithing, a needle and thread for weaving, a knife to skin animals with, that sort of thing.

  My research had also gleaned that an early quest could be gained by speaking to the Mayor inside the town hall. So in I went, skipping merrily up to the Mayor as my anticipation built for the adventure to come.

  The Mayor was dressed like some nineteenth century gentlemen of leisure, with a heavy blue coat over a frilly dress shirt and capped with a dark top hat. His cheeks were rosy and he smiled broadly.

  “Ho hum,” the Mayor said jovially. “A new adventurer in Rusking is it? Might you be of assistance in our time of need?” His eyes quickly scanned me, taking me in in all my noob glory.

  “Can I be of any help around town?” I asked. My voice sounded exactly like my own in here too.

  If you’re wondering how players are supposed to know what to say to an NPC, such as the Mayor, don’t worry. AI in previous games had been good enough at imitating real life and the one running Hundred Kingdoms was state of the art. I could probably sit and have a conversation with the Mayor on how best to make an omelet if I wanted to, although I suspect even his jolly character would eventually tell me to piss off and make myself useful.

  The Mayor sighed in extravagant relief. “Yes, indeed young sir. Our town is beset by troubles, although I fear my citizens will district you from the main issue of the day – kobolds,” he blustered and shook a meaty fist for effect. “Damnable kobolds infesting the woods and causing all manner of mischief. I’m in need of adventurers capable of facilitating their… removal.”

  I smirked. “I believe I can handle this task.”

  “Excellent young man. Go forth and slay those pests. For Rusking!”

  Quest Accepted – Into the Woods

  The Mayor of Rusking is deeply troubled by the kobolds in the area. Traders have reported their wagons being attacked on the way in and out of town and believe the kobolds are hiding in the woods. You have agreed to investigate and slay the enemies you find.

  Objectives:

  Investigate Rusking Wood

  Slay kobolds 0/15

  I couldn’t help but smile. My first quest in such a long time. Ah, I’d missed this feeling and I hadn’t even got to the good stuff yet. Without delay, I left the town hall and brought up my map by mimicking opening a scroll in mid-air. A roll of parchment materialized into my hands with a stylized map of Rusking and the surrounding area for my perusal.

  I appeared as a small golden arrow in the middle of the town, the point of the arrow indicating the direction I was facing. Exact distances weren’t shown, nor were any quests marked. You had to use your brain in this game, which was just the way I liked it, but it was easy enough to find Rusking Wood, as it was labelled in scrolling letters some way to the north of the town.

  Also upon the map was the server time and clock, illustrated by an animated sun and moon. It was 8:21pm server time. Luckily for me, the US servers were set to Pacific Time due to Frostbyte Studios being based on the West Coast. Server time was useful because having a set time to schedule around made it easier to coordinate with guildmates spread across different countries. All maintenance and resets were also on the server time so they would stay at a constant time for all players.

  Night was now fast falling over the town of Rusking. That might make this quest more dangerous for me than it needed to be. The sky looked to be clear, so the moon and stars would help. Still, I wasn’t playing a fighting class and any disadvantage I faced while being out in the woods wasn’t ideal.

  But there was nothing for it.

  I snapped the map shut, the scroll fading away into the digital ether, and began my journey north. Characters in Hundred Kingdoms had a base movement speed that was akin to a light jog, only this time I didn’t feel out of breath doing it. Other games I’d played had employed a stamina bar or a similar resource drain if you ran and you could make your character fitter over time. Frostbyte had decided to brush over this, focusing on other aspects of gameplay. This suited me just fine. My time was precious enough without having to stop every few minutes to recharge a stamina bar.

  Passing out of town, things got a lot darker without the ambient light from buildings or the watchmen with lanterns. I referred to my map to check that I was still heading in the right direction. The parchment of the scroll was just visible, as though it had a backlight effect. Not far to go now. Indeed, looking ahead, I could make out the treetops as black canopies against the starry night.

  When I reached the tree line I slowed to a walking pace, being careful not to go crashing through the undergrowth and alert a pack of kobolds to me. Being so weak, I’d have to take them one at a time for now and if I managed to get the jump on one of them, then all the better. Scavengers didn’t have proper stealth or ambushing abilities like rogues did, but the game did reward players who were able to sneak up on an opponent nonetheless. Wearing heavy armor while clambering through the woods, for example, would make more noise than if you were in lighter garb. A heavy plate-wearing warrior was unlikely to ambush anyone for good reason.

  My knowledge of this quest from Let’s Plays was hampered due to the darkness. I knew there was a camp not too deep into the woods which would complete the exploration segment but my difficulty in seeing anything clearly was making it far harder.

  Crouching low, I moved as quietly as I could from trunk to trunk, from bush to bush. After about a minute, I was awarded a notification. It appeared in my central field of vision, semi-transparent and unobtrusive like my health and mana bars, but if I focused on it, it became clearer.

  Sneak Unlocked!

  Level 1

  You tricksy rascal! Trying to take someone by surprise? You’ll need to get a lot better than this.

  The unlock was welcome, but the real gain was knowing that I must be close to some kobolds and had so far evaded detection. I closed my eyes, focusing on the sounds around me, trying to hear my enemies. Hooting owls and the general rustle of the forest obscured most sound but I soon heard a twig snapping not far to my right. When I opened my eyes, I found I could see a li
ttle easier.

  Night Vision Unlocked!

  Level 1

  Afraid of the dark? You should be. You’ll need to keep eating your carrots.

  The tone of these notifications was certainly on the lighter side. Hundred Kingdoms didn’t spell out how you could unlock and advance skills but it worked like many recent RPG games. The more I did an activity, the more skilled my character would get at it, which made a good deal of sense. Take Night Vision, for example. A rogue specializing as a thief or assassin might end up operating largely at night, and so it made sense that their character’s eyes would ‘improve’ in the dark over time.

  For me, in the here and now, it meant I could just make out the outline of a squat figure I hadn’t seen before. It’s hunched humanoid form marked it clearly as a kobold. The kobold had its back to me as it ferreted around amongst the low growing plants. I approached as silently as I could, drawing my dirk.

  “Shroomie, shroom, shrooms,” the kobold muttered breathily as is scoured the earth. Now I was within striking distance, I could better make out the creature’s ash-colored skin, which was hard like hide, and its weasel-like face bushy white eyebrows and whiskers. It wore a patchwork of different clothes except for the neat red cap on its head with two holes for its long pointed ears to poke through.

  “Shroomie, shrooms,” the kobold went on, sniffing eagerly. “Ah,” it said satisfied. A sound of munching followed.

  I admit I found the kobold oddly cute up close and in person. In most of the Let’s Plays, the streamers just barreled through this early quest in daylight, slaughtering at will. It was a nice touch that the game’s AI gave even these lowly mobs some personality; no wonder this game was drawing in players by the millions.