Post by Toketsu on Jun 2, 2016 5:24:38 GMT
In Aincrad, there are over ten thousand unique weather patterns. And the Cardinal system is creating new ones as needed to fit events and real time seasons. "So why then did we have the three hottest patterns in a row!" Toketsu shouted to the field. He hated the heat. Anything above twenty two degrees Celcius was miserable. He laid back against the large tree he was using for shade, and sighed. Years of streaming from an air conditioned room were not being kind to him.
Off in the distance he could see other players grinding for exp against some of the local monsters. He noticed something quickly about how the monsters set aggro. Like Players, each monster had an icon above them that showed either green, yellow, orange, or red. Green monsters were non-aggressive unless you attacked them. Yellow and Orange would not attack unless you passed within a certain distance of them. And Red monsters would attack if they noticed you at all. Boars seemed to be pretty simple to deal with, even for the lowest level players like Toketsu. But grinding without a quest was often more trouble than it was worth, and doing so without a party was next to suicidal. Very few if any solo players succeeded.
I could always just head to the barns and see if there are any new quests. Doing chores for exp ins't exactly fun, but I don't have much of a choice right now. Toketsu stood up and began to walk away, but he stopped after just a few steps. He could hear the clangs of steel in the background, tell tale signs of people fighting for their lives, and trying to get stronger. "Damn it..." Toketsu took off at a run into the field. If they were fighting, then so would he.
It didn't take long at all for Toketsu to find a lone boar. It stood eating grass away from a larger group. Toketsu had the drop on it, but fighting with his body instead of a remote or keyboard was still a little awkward for him. "No time to be afraid. You'll only learn by doing," he said to try and psyche himself up. He drew his sword, a thin curved blade called a Sabre, and rushed in. With the element of surprise, his first strike lands without issue, a diagonal slash down the boar's flank. Toketsu jumps back as the boar turns to face him, holding out his sabre to defend himself. A quick look to the boar's health bar shows that he didn't do much damage, merely a fourth of the hp gauge was missing. The boar charged, and Toketsu waited until the last second to bolt to the left, letting the pig run right past. It only struck him afterwards that it would have been the perfect chance to land another blow. The boar turned for another pass, and Toketsu readied himself. This time however, the boar bucked his head as Toketsu dodged, carving his right leg with red lines. He cried out instinctively, but quickly noticed that it didn't actually hurt. Looking to his own hp bar, he noted it was reading about four fifths full.
The boar was learning quickly, even during their short engagement. The same trick wouldn't work twice it seemed. Toketsu thought back to the tutorial. What were they called again? Sword Arts? The boar charged again, but this time Toketsu ran and jumped over it, landing a slash across its back, and depleting another quarter of its health as he did so. "That's more like it! Now for the finishing blow!" Toketsu stood his ground as the boar came back around. He brought his sword back near his side, placing his hand over the guard. The blade began to glow a brilliant light blue, and he could feel the blade wanting to move him. When the time was right, he let it, shoving the blade forward with all his might. The boar caught it in the face, and recoiled onto its hind legs, exposing its belly. Toketsu took a step in, and with a spin brought the sabre across the pigs gut. It's hp bar plummeted to zero, and fell backwards to explode into sparkling confetti that quickly faded. a small "You Win!" appeared over the spot the body landed. "Woohoo! That was awesome!" he exclaimed, jumping with fist held high to celebrate. A small window popped up to let him know what he'd earned, and Toketsu quickly scanned it before swiping it away. There were plenty more Boar in the area, so why not do it again?
~784~
Off in the distance he could see other players grinding for exp against some of the local monsters. He noticed something quickly about how the monsters set aggro. Like Players, each monster had an icon above them that showed either green, yellow, orange, or red. Green monsters were non-aggressive unless you attacked them. Yellow and Orange would not attack unless you passed within a certain distance of them. And Red monsters would attack if they noticed you at all. Boars seemed to be pretty simple to deal with, even for the lowest level players like Toketsu. But grinding without a quest was often more trouble than it was worth, and doing so without a party was next to suicidal. Very few if any solo players succeeded.
I could always just head to the barns and see if there are any new quests. Doing chores for exp ins't exactly fun, but I don't have much of a choice right now. Toketsu stood up and began to walk away, but he stopped after just a few steps. He could hear the clangs of steel in the background, tell tale signs of people fighting for their lives, and trying to get stronger. "Damn it..." Toketsu took off at a run into the field. If they were fighting, then so would he.
It didn't take long at all for Toketsu to find a lone boar. It stood eating grass away from a larger group. Toketsu had the drop on it, but fighting with his body instead of a remote or keyboard was still a little awkward for him. "No time to be afraid. You'll only learn by doing," he said to try and psyche himself up. He drew his sword, a thin curved blade called a Sabre, and rushed in. With the element of surprise, his first strike lands without issue, a diagonal slash down the boar's flank. Toketsu jumps back as the boar turns to face him, holding out his sabre to defend himself. A quick look to the boar's health bar shows that he didn't do much damage, merely a fourth of the hp gauge was missing. The boar charged, and Toketsu waited until the last second to bolt to the left, letting the pig run right past. It only struck him afterwards that it would have been the perfect chance to land another blow. The boar turned for another pass, and Toketsu readied himself. This time however, the boar bucked his head as Toketsu dodged, carving his right leg with red lines. He cried out instinctively, but quickly noticed that it didn't actually hurt. Looking to his own hp bar, he noted it was reading about four fifths full.
The boar was learning quickly, even during their short engagement. The same trick wouldn't work twice it seemed. Toketsu thought back to the tutorial. What were they called again? Sword Arts? The boar charged again, but this time Toketsu ran and jumped over it, landing a slash across its back, and depleting another quarter of its health as he did so. "That's more like it! Now for the finishing blow!" Toketsu stood his ground as the boar came back around. He brought his sword back near his side, placing his hand over the guard. The blade began to glow a brilliant light blue, and he could feel the blade wanting to move him. When the time was right, he let it, shoving the blade forward with all his might. The boar caught it in the face, and recoiled onto its hind legs, exposing its belly. Toketsu took a step in, and with a spin brought the sabre across the pigs gut. It's hp bar plummeted to zero, and fell backwards to explode into sparkling confetti that quickly faded. a small "You Win!" appeared over the spot the body landed. "Woohoo! That was awesome!" he exclaimed, jumping with fist held high to celebrate. A small window popped up to let him know what he'd earned, and Toketsu quickly scanned it before swiping it away. There were plenty more Boar in the area, so why not do it again?
~784~