by Matthew Kent
“Aye you get on the bellows,” were his only words when he saw me.
I smiled and pumped the bellows to heat the metal he had in the forge. These nothing like losing yourself to the arts of creation.
It looked like we were making a plow. Most people don’t know this but few smiths spend their days crafting fine weapons. Most of them make hinges, wagon parts, gears and tools for a town. Few can afford the training it takes to become a great weapon or armor smith. I had always thought there was something honorable in a fair days work. Again, the game game mechanics meant that my time on the bellows was measured in minutes, not the hours of exhausting, back breaking labor it would have been in the real world. But, I think I learned a few things watching his hammer work on the share. I looked at my stat sheet as I continued to pump the bellows. I had already made five points into journeyman.
We finished the work on the plow share and he set it aside. “So, I take it you are ready to forge tools?”
I reached in my bag and handed him one jar. “Yeah, Dale, I made the best steel I could for it.” As he took the jar, he had a puzzled expression as he examined the it, then threw it to the ground, the fired clay shattering. Inside was an oblong shape of greenish-gray steel.
Star steel: Quality A:
Crafting ingredient: +10 to finished quality.
Dale gave me a shocked look as he bent down and picked up the steel. “How?” He asked me, a strange look in his eyes.
“Old knowledge, new ways, and luck” I replied. I laid out two of the other jars. “First, I’d like to make a hammer, then tongs, and some leather working tools.”
He shook his head. “I’m done for the day. That was the last piece.” He rubbed his chin, “There are still a few hours left in the day. Mind if I watch?” He asked.
“Sure," I agreed. “Though, I don’t know what you can learn from me.”
“Wisdom is where you find it,” he said with a wry grin.
I laughed and started to work.
First, I sketched out a design. I’d thought about it, and went with a Brazeal style hammer, one end was rounded and the other flat. “This is the type of hammer I’m going to make,” I said pointing it out to Dale. “The whole sticking point will be a fine enough wood for the handle.”
“Fine woods are hard to find. You might check with the forester here about. But me I always preferred a good hickory handle”
I nodded at his suggestion. “I’ll do that, but first let’s get to making.”
With the design firmly in my mind, I got to work. First, I took the steel and placed it in the coal, then I worked the bellows. It took a while, but soon the metal was a dull orange. I shaped it then placed it back in the forge to heat, and mounded the coals over it. I kept at the bellows. After another few minutes, it was glowing an orange-white. That was forging temperature. I took it out, and brought it to the anvil with Dale’s tongs. I began forging, keeping in mind the image I had of the hammer I wanted. I had to let that be my guide, and let my hands follow through with my mind’s desire.
Again the game mechanics saved me hours. After five to ten strikes, I had the head of my hammer forged. It still glowed so I set it near the forge, but not in the full heat, to cool and temper. After a while I reheated the ends of the hammer and plunged them into the oil bucket. Then, I examined my work before attaching the handle I had fashioned from some hickory that dale had on hand. I checked its fit before I pegged the handle into place and trimmed the excess wood. I got a system notification:
You have gained a soul bound item:
Fine quality star-steel smithing hammer:
Quality A. +10 to crafted quality, +10 strength, +10 Endurance
You have gained 1000 xp.
Dale came over to look at my creation and whistled. “I’ve heard of legendary weapons, but that's a legendary smithing hammer.”
“Yeah, and I’m just getting started,” I said with a grin. “Just wait until they see the weapons I can make.”
I saw him shudder. “Just be careful, there are some unsavory characters around.”
“I’ve run into a few of them.”
“I heard about the inn the other night," Dale said. “But there are more of those nasty customers about than you realize.”
“I know. But I can only be true to myself.” I picked up my hammer and gave it a test swing. “And being true to myself means making things people lose their minds over.”
He laughed. “I know more than one smith that would kill for your hammer: I think I may make my own in that design.”
“Here,” I said. I offered him one of the six crucible steels I had left. “That should be fine steel for you.”
He took the jar with a stunned expression on his face. “Thankyou” he stammered as he put the jar away in his shop.
I smiled and worked on the tongs I had envisioned. From the metal I had, I produced two sets: one a narrow jawed set and the other a wide jawed set. They both would give me greater control of the pieces as I worked, but they too were soul bound.
You have gained a soul bound item:
Fine quality star-steel smithing tongs; Quality AA. +15 to crafting quality. +10 agility, +10 Endurance.
You have gained 1000 xp.
I noticed my endurance bar was low, so I set and rested. Dale and I talked about the black smithing trade, the best items to make for sale. When my endurance was at its fullest, I took the third and second to last bar of star-steel, and shaped the leather working tools I would need. I roughed out the blanks. I beat and folded the steel. When I could, I drank cool water to keep my endurance up, and all the while I thanked the worlds mechanics. After a half hour I had finished the set of leather working knives.
You have gained a soul bound item:
Leather working tool set: Quality AA. +18 to crafting quality, +12 Agility., +12 Endurance.
You have gained 1000 xp.
“I’ve never seen the like,” Dale said. “I think I even learned something from you.”
You have completed the hidden quest: Teaching the teacher.
+20 to blacksmithing level.
+20 to respect with Dale the black smith.
You have gained 1000 xp.
You have gained level 10.
You have access to the auction house.
The notifications stunned as they rolled across my screen. I looked up at the sky and noted the time. “If I can, I’d like to wish you a good evening. I have a few things I still need to look after before it gets dark.”
Dale nodded, then examined my sketch. “Good evening to you, Lorcan. I think I may try out this new design before my wife calls me in.”
I left to the sound of a hammer on the anvil as Dale beat out a new tune.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Chapter 13
After I returned to the inn and logged off for a while, I decided it was time to research guilds, patents and the auction house. When I pulled up the forums on guilds, there were page after page describing them, other players that had searched for guilds, and guilds that would be the right fit for your playing style. There was even a program you could enter your information in and it would provide a list of guilds for you. I decided I’d give that a try first and see whom it suggested. I came up with a short list of five guilds: The Freeworld League, House Davison, Wardogs, the Exotic Corps and the Free Company.
Each of the guilds boasted of having in house crafters, that they did farming and raids, and were feared by PKers. The Exotic Corps was reputed to have hunted a clan into extinction and taken its leadership down to level zero. The Wardogs were more militaristic, but were always hunting for better equipment and again aggressively hunted Pkers. With that short list I found that there was another list of gamers I would never work with collectively, or singly, they were under the banner of the Goon Squad nation. They had been around in one form or another across many games. They tried to dominate a game and were responsible for much grief and angst by players the world round.
I decide
d to apply to the Exotic Crops. Hunting down their site; I put in an application. I put in my character name, race, class, specializing in what craft, I had multiple crafts. I also had specialty combat buffs and crafting. Plus I currently held five patents in-game.
Now, the patent aspect of the game was interesting. Anyone could make the object, if they could learn the pattern. I could sell the pattern, though, and they would pay me for the right to produce it at a set price per item. I could make one silver per piece made, on top of whatever I charged for the pattern, for the different steels. Not bad. I could write up the patterns, then sell them through the auction house. Also I could sale the initial steels through the auction house first to generate interest. Looking at the auction house, I noted that there was steel and teeth and bones available, I still had about twenty gold available, so I bought up lots of the materials. I also purchased coal, charcoal, and the crystals.
It was dinner time, so I went and ate. It was quiet, and I could get in and out before anyone saw me. I was still conflicted about Eira and the Valks. I needed to learn how to shut up around beautiful women. Right now it was best to avoid the situation.
Two hours had elapsed since I had logged out of the game. I had almost the entire night left in my room, so I sat down for some serious crafting. First, I thought about the materials I had. I had leather, cured hides, uncured hides, and the brain tanned leather that was so much more supple than the rest of the leather.
My first thought is how well this would work for gloves. I pictured in my mind a pattern I had worked with a few years ago, for some leather gloves from around the Elizabethan era. The gloves would be longer, and slide up the arm giving greater protection. To add to that, I would take regular leather and add a backing along the top of the hand, and behind the wrist. I marked out the pattern on the leather, then used my new knife to cut the pattern out. The leather cut like butter, and with in moments I had who halves of the glove from the brain tanned leather. Then I cut out the other pieces I needed, and did a separate piece for the thumb to make it a little more dexterous.
I stitched the gloves with some silk thread I had purchased from the auction house. To finish the piece, I worked on tooling the leather with a Celtic knot design I recalled it was the symbol of a dragon, with its tail shaped into a tri quatra.
You have discovered the patent for Mage gloves.
You gain 1000xp.
You have created Mages gloves: +5 to fire magic. +5 to Intelligence. Durability 100. +5 ac
You gain 100xp.
For the next hour I made gloves. Only another fifteen pairs, but still that was fifteen hundred experience. There was something more here that I needed to think about. I searched the market, but wasn’t able to find anything similar to them. I set up the auction house to sell them one set at a time. I needed to study the auction house more. I needed more time to do things like crafting in the day, and I needed a shop and studio to work.
Having a guild would help, I thought. I was restless, so I went down to the tavern part of the Inn. There were few patrons there. I took out my lute and practiced. I was in my third, or maybe fourth, song when I heard someone yell “Hey you.” I looked up and saw my old pals Ahohako and Bruce. At the same time, I heard a ding and saw the flashing light that showed a private message. The Inn’s patrons got restless as the two made their way toward me.
“Hold on just a second, Incoming call.”
Morner: You sent an application to the Exotic Corp?
Lorcan: Yes I did
Morner: And you have Five patents in-game?
Lorcan: I just got a sixth about two hours ago. But those are for sale on the auction house.
Morner: The patents are?
“Hey, meathead, I’m talking to you,” stormed Bruce. Heh see what I did there.
I looked up at them both. “Look, you two have threatened me, mistreated other players, attempted extortion of other players, and just been all around festering rashes to everyone around you.”
Lorcan: crucible steel, star-steel, brain tanned leather, and leather mage’s gloves. Hold on I have two pkers here.
“As far as I’m concerned, you two suffered a case of Kharma” I looked at the crowd. “If you will excuse me, I have practicing to do.”
Morner: I’ve never even heard of those.
“This isn’t over,” Bruce yelled. The patrons were giving him a hard look, as Ahohako tried to drag him back.
Lorcan: Check out the auction house for the gloves.
I sat back to practice, but I noted the Bruce and Ahohako were in back discussing something, presumably me.
Morner: And what do you expect from us? Your level is low are you wanting us to level you? Can you send me your stats and character sheet?
rom Lorcan: ok Character sheet
Name: Lorcan Race: Wood Sprite Class: True Bard
Statistics:
19-Strength
21-Agility
23-Endurance
18-Intelligence
12-Wisdom
21-Charisma
13-Luck
Mana Pool: 360
Hit Points: 250
Energy Points: 240
Lorcan: Don’t make me laugh, I can do that myself. I can create for myself, and I can collect materials for myself. But, what I can’t do is stay free for myself once people realize I’m a lowby with skill…and I need a place to work.
Morner: Good God, I can see that. So all you want is our name to help protect you from PKers and griefers?
Lorcan: Pretty much.
I saw Bruce gesticulating at me wildly. Ahohako arms were crossed, and he shook his head. I think I could guess what he was suggesting for them both to attack me while the crowd was settled down. Then kill me and any patrons who attacked them instead.
Morner: Like the PKers messing with you right now?
I saw Ahohako start to nod his head in agreement. I saw furtive glances from them both, then I saw them get set.
Lorcan: Nah, I’ve already helped kill them once, but they aren’t that bright.
Bruce started a charge from the doorway a distance of fifteen to twenty feet. Ahohako popped out. Prepared a spell, and loosed it. I saw a bolt of some kind of energy streak toward me.
Morner: No, usually they aren’t. We’ll accept you provisionally.
You have been sent a guild request: Do you wish to join the Exotic Corps?
Yes/No
I selected ‘yes’ and my name icon changed to reflect my new guild affiliation mere moments before the bolt of energy struck. Bruce slid to a halt, his eyes wide, and then he tried to escape. Since Bruce hadn’t touched me he was left alone but Ahohako… Have you ever seen what happens to an angry crowd when they get a hold of someone with murder in their eyes? Is seven people considered a crowd?
Lorcan: So, who can I send plans for the steels to? And would the smiths like plans for the new hammers and tongs?
“Bruce, I trust that this will put an end to things.”
He glared at me as his only reply.
Morner: New hammers and tongs?
Lorcan: Yeah, I came up with new designs. But you can’t sell them, they are soul bound.
Morner:????
Lorcan: Fine quality star-steel smithing hammer; Quality A +10 to crafted quality, +10 strength, +10 Endurance
Morner: Can we hold off on releasing those plans to the general gaming forum? That would give our crafters a huge leg up.
Guild message; Morner: Look alive people we have a new member to the guild. I’d like everyone to welcome Lorcan. Blacksmiths and crafters, get with him. He has some goodies you will all want.
Guild: Broderick: Seriously I thought there was a freeze on members joining.
Guild; Harperion: Only on people you recommend for the guild
Guild: Broderick: Seriously, what can he offer to us that my brother can’t
Guild; Lorcan: Hi everyone. Thank you for having me. I look forward to working with everyone
Guild; Jam
mie: I’m the black smithing group lead, Morner. I just checked the only Lorcan listed is a level 10! WTH?. At least with Broderick's brother, we know he sucks, and probably swallows afterward.
Guild; Lorcan: So Jammie, you don’t want a Fine quality star-steel smithing hammer?
Guild; Evangeline23: What…
Guild: Trancy: That's…
Guild: Jammie: Broderick, shut your pie hole! He stays!
Guild: Evangeline23: Lorcan, welcome to the guild! And Uh can I get one of those?
It seemed that the crafting side of the guild wanted me for sure.
