by R. A. Mejia
“The golem is so weak he can’t even gain stats from working the forge,” Gujek commented.
Atulg slapped his cousin on the back and added, “We got at least two points in both strength and constitution our first week as our uncle’s apprentices, and we still gain more every month or so.”
“Yes, how else do you expect to work tough metals like adamantine?” Gujek teased.
“Hold your tongues, you two,” Master Deanly said sternly. “We all have our strengths and weaknesses. You’ve seen how he can work for hours and hours on end without taking a break or growing weary. Perhaps his kind don’t grow like us, but that doesn’t mean they don’t improve in their own ways. Now, back to the forge with you. We have orders to fulfill.”
The two shut their mouths with a click and did as they were ordered and returned to their work.
While I appreciated my teacher’s intervention from the teasing, the apprentices’ words were still a cause for concern. I had not gained a single extra point in any stat since I’d woken up in this world. When I made an inquiry to the Metalman OS about it, I was informed that Metalmen do not gain stat increases through strenuous work or training like organics. Instead, they gain stat increases through abilities, leveling up, or from special upgrades. The mention of upgrades made me realize just how important my class really was to the Metalmen. Artificers were the ones that helped increase the stats of their people through the ability Improve Stats.
Improve Stats - Can increase physical stats by use of fabrication. Requires Fabrication IV. Requires 3 class skill points.
The unstated drawback to being a Metalman was quite frustrating. I knew there were other benefits to being a Metalman--I did not breathe or eat or drink, I couldn’t be poisoned, get sick, nor did I get tired or ever need to sleep--and yet, stats were the foundation of the system. They affected everything from how quickly you learned something, to how hard you could swing your sword, to how much health you had, to if you’d get gored by a monster or be able to dodge. Until I got the ability Improve Stats, it meant that I was behind even the lowest level adventurer, much less the elites that were going to be put forth as competitors in the Ultimate Research Warrior Competition. Gaining the ability Improve Stats would not only require the stated 3 class skill points, but it meant I needed to have the prerequisite ability Fabrication IV which would cost me 7 additional skill points to get. I sighed in frustration when I thought about just how many class points I had to save up and how much time I’d have to spend attaining them.
Though I could not gain stats the way biologicals could, I used one of the Metalman’s greatest advantages to my benefit. I did not need to sleep or eat, so instead. I used every minute of the day and night to grind away at improving my crafting skills and completing my class quests. From sunup to sundown, I worked at the smithy with Master Deanly and the other apprentices to learn new blacksmithing techniques and increase my Metalworking skills, which I desperately needed to do if I was going to forge my own firearm. Master Deanly was a good teacher, and I was pushed to expand both the theoretical understanding of metal and the practical experience on how to shape it. Each day there also challenged me in other ways.
Each new item I learned to forge or practiced increased my skills, but I failed several projects when Atulg and Gujek sabotaged my work by bumping my elbow while I swung a hammer or added extra flux to a weld when I was forging. Whether it was out of jealousy at my rapid progress or hazing from fellow apprentices, it was frustrating to have the two work against me when they would be better served focusing on their own skill gains.
A few days later, I got a chance to prove myself not only to the apprentices but also to my blacksmith teacher.
“Today is challenge day,” Master Deanly said to the three of us after we opened up the smithy. Atulg and Gujek chuckled and looked at each other with smug smiles.
“The golem doesn’t stand a chance against the two of us, does he cousin?” Gujek asked.
“No, he doesn’t,” Atulg said.
“Repair, since this is your first time here for challenge day, I’ll explain. On challenge day, I give my apprentices a specific task. The one that does the best gets a special lesson or the day off to pursue other interests.”
“What is the challenge today, uncle?” Atulg asked.
“Today is a test of strength. I will heat metal bars and stack them to see how many you can cut through with a single strike of the wedge hammer.”
Atulg was the older of the two nephews and by far much stronger than I was--which he proved when he lifted a thirty-pound hammer with one hand and used it to cut through five thick bars of heated metal in a single strike. Gujek could only manage three, and I could barely cut though one. Atulg won that day and spent an hour with his uncle while Gujek and I worked on an order of horseshoes for a farrier.
Still, I was not outclassed by the more advanced apprentices in every respect.
Another day I arrived at the smithy early in the morning to be greeted by Master Deanly. “Repair, good that you’ve arrived early.” He held a stack of papers in his hand and waved them in my direction. “A builder just put in a large order that needs to be filled immediately.”
“Large?” Atulg asked sarcastically. “He wants two thousand nails made by the end of the day.”
“Yes, apprentice. That is what the customer wants,” Master Deanly said with a scowl. Atulg lowered his gaze and the master continued, “He’s also paying a premium to get the work done quickly. He says his last supplier made a mistake and only made two hundred.”
“So, we’ll be doing this all morning?” I asked.
“Yes. And to make it a bit more fun for you three, I’m making it a challenge day. “The one to make the most nails by the end of the day wins,” my teacher said.
The announcement caught all of our attention, our competitive spirits took the challenge and we all got to work.
Atulg and Gujek quickly took the lead, churning out nails quickly as they took their metal pieces from the fire and with practiced hands swung their large heavy hammers down hard and drew out the metal. Not nearly as skilled as the nephews, I worked more slowly and used a smaller hammer to work the metal with machine precision and regularity.
Hours passed and Gujek started to slow. Finally, Atulg growled, “Do not show weakness to the golem. Push through your fatigue, Gujek. Show him what a real orc smith can do.”
Gujek shook his head, sending beads of sweat from his brow to pop in the hot coals of the forge. Then he raised his hammer with renewed vigor and slammed it down on the metal he’d been working with.
I ignored their words. Despite the repetitive work, I wasn’t tired in the least. I was used to creating piles and piles of nails and had long ago learned that the key to making the most in a given time was not the weight of the hammer but the efficiency of each movement and phase of the process. Turn just enough to put the metal in the fire, watch it till it’s heated to just the right color. Hit it just hard enough in just the right ways to quickly draw the metal out and shape it. No more hits of the hammer than are needed, and no wasted time taken to make the nail.
Despite their greater strength, first Gujek and then Atulg were forced to take a break or risk overheating and passing out at the forge. They eagerly gulped water from a nearby barrel and then sat panting, regaining their strength. While they were still ahead of me with their quick start, I did not stop for a moment and continued to work the forge.
The two watched me work and Atulg said, “See the golem’s weak strikes? How many it takes for him to shape the metal? He will never catch up to us. Let us rest for a moment to regain our strength and we will get back to our work.” Gujek nodded, but he was too out of breath to speak.
I ignored them and worked, the sounds of my hammer falling with such regularity you could dance to the rhythm.
They returned to their anvils and continued to work. But as the hours passed, they took longer and more frequent breaks as the lactic acid in their musc
les built up.
“That’s it, boys!” Master Deanly called out, and I heard a clatter of metal. I looked up from the forge, a slight afterglow of heated metal in my vision for a moment, and saw that Atulg and Gujek had dropped their tools and sat on the floor, exhausted. Looking around, I saw that evening had come, and the sky outside was pink and turning red. The master smith went to each of the boxes by our anvils that we’d been dropping our nails into. His eyes glowed blue as he poured them into a larger barrel, and I saw his mouth moving, counting as they fell.
“Gujek has made six-hundred and seventy-nine nails. A fine day’s work.” He patted the orc on the shoulder. Then my teacher turned to Atulg and me. Atulg pushed himself off the ground and stood up on shaky legs but straightened up and puffed out his chest. Master Deanly nodded at the sight, undoubtedly proud that his nephew still had the strength to stand after such a grueling day of work. He gestured to the two empty boxes by Atulg and my anvils and said, “You both did tremendous work today, and I’m proud of you both. We more than fulfilled the order for our client and will likely receive even more orders from him in the future. But there can be only one winner of the challenge.” He pointed at Atulg and said, “You produced almost a hundred and fifty nails more than your cousin,” and the sweaty, tired Atulg turned his head to grin at me triumphantly, then Master Deanly continued, “But it was Repair who beat you both with over a thousand nails made.”
Atulg’s shoulders sagged, and he looked down for a moment and saw his cousin Gujek, who was still too tired to stir from the place he’d sat on the floor. He looked up at me and nodded once, and I thought I saw a look of respect in his eyes for a moment before he turned and helped his cousin to his feet.
As a reward for winning the challenge, the next day, Master Deanly let me help him with a set of knives someone had commissioned for an up-and-coming chef.
The orc blacksmith had me heat a leaf spring steel bar in the forge until it was almost white, and then he hammered a general shape of the blade out against the anvil. He then shortened and drew out the metal behind the blade for the tang, the piece that would become the handle. It took several reheats in the furnace to keep the metal hot enough to shape, but my teacher worked with an impressive efficiency while explaining why each step of the process was important.
His hammer glowed as he used its rounded edge to smooth out the curves and bevels until we had a straight, unsharpened knife without a handle. He filed down the edge of the blade, but not enough to have a cutting edge yet. He paused to grab a handful of sparkling dust from a box on the workbench and then carefully sprinkled a layer of stuff on the edge of the blade before having me insert the entire thing into the forge again.
He explained that the dust was ground Scrivner spine, a monster that lived on the ninth level of the dungeon. The dust would protect the edge of the blade while the rest of it heated up to the proper temperature to harden it. He pointed out the red coloring on the spine and tang of the blade and then had me dunk the whole knife into the barrel of oil. I’d learned in an engineering class that this type of heat treatment actually locked the crystalline structures of the metal in place due to the rapid cooling, thus hardening the metal. However, that treatment would only apply to the heated part, and as I pulled the knife out of the oil, I noted a distinct curve on the spine thanks to it having been heated differently. The blacksmith then took the blade from me and carefully but quickly finished sharpening its edge and attaching the wooden grip. When he was finished with the knife, I used Inspect on it.
Excellent Steel Knife of Sharpness
12-13 damage
Weight:1.3 lbs
Durability: 11/11
Special: Knife deals 15% more damage to unarmored flesh
I was seriously impressed by my teacher’s work. Not only had the knife’s quality gone up several levels beyond what I was capable of, but the material he had used made it do more damage. In addition, using the special monster part gave it the added ‘Sharpness’ ability. When I compared it to my own attempts at knife making, the differences were staggering. It was no wonder Master Deanly could charge gold for every item he made. I, on the other hand, was making knives barely a step above the worst quality level.
Fine Copper Knife
3-4 damage
Weight: 0.8 lbs
Durability: 7/7
Seeing the difference and being especially interested in the special quality that he’d brought to the blade, I asked for an explanation of how he added magical effects.
The orc blacksmith gathered his nephews before explaining, “Magic or special effects are brought into play several ways. There are many mage classes that can temporarily give a weapon or object a magical effect, but those will only last a few hours at most. Enchanting is a special skill that casts a permanent magical spell on an already-finished product. Magical Smithing is a specialty of a blacksmith and adds special monster parts into the actual creation of an object. In reality, it’s no different than creating an alloy by using the proper mixing of specific parts during the blacksmithing process to get a particular effect. How strong the effect is will depend on the skill of the blacksmith.”
Gujek scratched at the scar above his left eye and asked, “Is the magic we put into something permanent like an enchanter?”
“It is and it isn't.” Our blacksmith teacher picked up the knife he had just made and showed it to us. “The Scrivner spine is what allowed the blade of this knife to take and keep an extra level of sharpness. As a trade-off, the knife is less durable than it should be, and the edge will chip more easily. It’ll have to be brought back in for me to resharpen it with Scrivner spine when it starts to dull. So, the effect isn't temporary but has to be renewed over time as the object is used. It’s the same mundane principle of wear that would be applied to anything.”
“I’ve seen lots of people carrying monster parts out of the dungeon. Are blacksmiths the only people that use them?” I asked.
Master Deanly shook his head. “No, many crafting professions use monster parts. An Alchemist might use the same monster part in a potion that adds the Sharpness quality temporarily, or they might want to create a poison from the Cactucus monster to make even more potent poisons or low-level antidotes. There is no magic involved for effects, just experimentation to see what parts have what effect.”
Atulg scrunched up his noses in confusion as he asked, “Then how do we know what we can do with a monster part?”
The blacksmith put down the knife and ruffled Atulg’s hair as he answered, “Besides listening to your Master and learning the recipes he’s created?” Atulg looked down in embarrassment at the obvious answer, but Master Deanly continued, “The source monster generally gives a hint at what it can be used for, and it just takes some time and experimentation to figure out how best to use it. Low-level monster parts have small effects, maybe a point of extra damage, but higher-level parts can do powerful things. Combined with the fact that these effects stack with magical enchanting, the possible combinations are endless, although you’d have to be careful of certain interactions.” He chuckled to himself for a moment before explaining, “I once saw an enchanter put a heat enchantment on a blade that already had a cold effect. He’d hoped the expensive blade would do both fire and cold damage. Instead, the first time the blade was tested, it shattered into thousands of tiny pieces. The blade couldn’t take the stress of going from freezing cold to burning hot so quickly, and the enchanter was known at Brittle Brian from then on.”
The explanation and anecdote showed both the power and potential pitfalls in combining different spell effects.
I took that lesson and each one that I learned and applied it to my work at the forge each day. Working with my hands to shape metal and create useful tools felt more fulfilling than simply fabricating them. It felt like part of me was going into each piece as I shaped and refined it. It was the act of creation and it was what I’d longed for in my old life.
The daily toil and excellent t
eaching from Master Deanly paid off, and I eventually brought Metalworking skills up to 20 where I chose Strength of the Forge I as my new skill ability. The second ability cost me 30 silver, but the boost to my strength meant that I’d do more damage when I was in melee combat and that I’d increase my carrying capacity by another 15 pounds.
Not only did I bring my Metalworking skill up to 20, but I also brought my Woodworking skill up to 10. There were several more skill-based abilities as well.
Smooth Operator - Increase speed of finishing, sanding, and scroll work by 5%.
Speed of the Forest Wind I - Increase dexterity by 1.
Long Roots - Increase stamina by 15%.
Power Chop - Power of next axe attack or blow is increased by 15%. Cost 5 mana.
Steady Hands - Increase crafting quality by 10%.
I grabbed Speed of the Forest Wind I for the obvious dexterity increase. I briefly thought about learning every crafting skill I could if it gave some kind of stat boost as an ability option, but then I learned that stat increases from abilities didn’t stack. So, even if I did get another that gave a boost to strength or dexterity, it wouldn’t further increase that stat unless it gave a +2 instead of +1.
