Cedrick’s building crew finished the forge late on Day 94. Surprisingly the gnomes worked far into the night to finish the project, putting off their end of the day drinking. Partly, because they would rather not have to get up early to work on the project, but the gnomes were also interested in the forge. Sure, they had one of their own, but it was all the way back in their village and not near the potential high quality resources that could come from the magic mine. As far as Mark could tell they did have access to an iron vein, but based on the various conversations he could infer that there was not a whole lot. Definitely, not enough for the gnome leader to feel he had enough to spare, so the gnomes were very interested in new sources. They were also eager to see what the special feature would be, and if they could take advantage of it. It did not disappoint.
[Notice: Due to the nature of your Forge, forged items can take on properties from whatever liquid is used to quench the metal. Change to item qualities will be dependent on liquid used and equipment quality.]
The special feature was a little ambiguous on what properties forged items would take, but there would surely be some benefits as long as they found the right liquids to use. There was an entire realm of possibilities for them to try. Of course, Mark’s mind immediately went to their two liquid essence sources. The likely results of using them, Mark felt would be fairly straight forward.
Life essence might be good for making weapons against undead, or adding a healing element to armor. The only downside was that they did not have too much life essence to use. Toxic essence would likely add something nasty to weapons causing poisoning or wounds to fester. Off hand, he imagined it would be a great effect to add to arrowheads since it would likely take some time for the affect to take effect.
Of course, there would be other liquid sources for them to try. Mark’s mind had flashed to some more ominous sources like blood or the coagulated sludge that came from the reanimated corpses. Perhaps they could even use potions that they had researched. They would have to try them all.
Unfortunately, they still had not found too much ore from their mine. They had hit a vein of copper, but copper was not a great material by itself according to Cedrick. It was too malleable. It made sense to Mark there was a reason that the bronze age in human history was more well known than the copper age. To make bronze they would need to find tin as well to make the bronze alloy. Could they combine metals to make an alloy? Mark was uncertain. It seemed like something the interface might prevent till an appropriate level 3 tech was researched.
It was what it was. The goblins were working to extract the copper ore as well as extend their other shafts. The kobolds had not found anything yet, but it was not unexpected since they had really only been at work at it for one day. Although, Mark would say they were making remarkable progress. A couple dozen kobolds had already started and were making quick work. They had four small tunnels in their allotted wall and were quickly deepening them out, and this was just the initial crew. They were working to create some room for the hundred plus kobolds that would be coming in a day or so. Soon there would be a literal maze of tunnels expanding out from the mine’s right wall.
Two research projects had also finished on Day 94 including a healing potion and the rock skin pill essence project. Both were welcome additions, expanding their capabilities. Both projects also promised to get them into their new apothecary that had not really seen any use as of yet. Before that they had only the poison and manna recovery projects that were not really game changers.
Luckily, Mark had an easy answer for manning the apothecary. There were four red hobgoblin survivors from their latest attack. Mark formed a seventh patrol around one of them, along with two surviving legionnaires and the 23 green goblins, using MP to fill out the patrol with the rest of the required units. The other three surviving reds could work in the apothecary, joining the 30 reds he already had set aside to work as researchers (25) and crafters (5). Their auxiliary unit total was growing, although the 33 reds could be utilized as the mages that they were in a pinch.
Perhaps, today he would try his own hand at alchemy. Hopefully, he could be better at it than inscribing. Other than the looted gear, they had not gotten any new inscriptions recently, so there was not much Mark could do to improve their enchantments for now. As far as the loot went, Mark had already settled it.
The defensive inscriptions they had brought back were indeed products from the same enchantment that they already had. The designs were worse than his own, so Mark had dismissed them. The firecracker arrows were of course new. With a little help from Crouse, Mark found that they could indeed replicate them. Unfortunately, they were stuck with the one design that they had found on the kobold arrows. Any additions or changes Mark tried to make based on his inscription knowledge from other enchantments ended in disaster, arrow shafts exploding in his face.
It was not exactly something new. Mark had attempted to combine principles from various enchantments before, and had been met with the same results. It was almost like the interface, was working to prevent the incorporation of inscription methods between enchantment projects. Maybe they needed another tech? Or maybe it would always be impossible, being the interface's way of keeping contenders from effectively researching their own projects outside of the research lab.
Regardless, they were now able to reproduce the firecracker arrows, although they were having difficulty getting the inscription to go past average quality. In fact a majority of the ones they had found were actually of below average quality. It was likely due to a limit in the design. It would still be useful, however not content to accept the limit Mark had handed over a few of the arrows to the research lab. Perhaps they could serve as a good source of inspiration, to enable them to unlock the full enchantment themselves.
Meanwhile, they would still make use of the firecracker arrows. As long as they could hit average quality the interference would not be enough to prevent them from adding it onto an arrow along with the duplicate arrow enchantment. Instead of three duplicates created, there were only two, but it was still pretty good. The explosions were still on the weaker side, but they would be effective against weak units and for getting past shields.
However, they would still be limited in use. They would splinter wooden shields, but likely would do far less against metal shields and armor. Which is what progress was moving them into. Not to mention, Mark was unsure how they would do against constructs or undead. They would likely be better than the piercing enchantment, but Mark was doubtful whether the surface level explosions would cause debilitating damage against constructs or undead.
Mark set the thought aside as he saw Amelia approaching with a contingent of the entrance guard. Today they would unlock all four level 1 units from the plant branch. It was possible that they would offer a solution to dealing with undead or constructs. After all, the plant tree was almost the symbolic opposite of the undead tree since plants were usually associated with life. It was also possible that they could be effective against constructs, although Mark thought it was far less likely.
Perhaps, the entire thought process was a stretch, but Mark needed to tell himself something. Amelia was insisting for them to unlock the units, citing that it would basically only take one day’s worth of MP production to do so. Mark had still wanted to focus on other things before switching focus on their beast and plant branches. He wanted to push for Settlements II to increase MP production. Then of course their was the seemingly irresistible lure of unlocking higher classes. If they unlocked warrior 3 and the corresponding swordsmen advance classes, their units would get another 15% power rating boost. He was also more inclined to start with the beast bloodline options or unlock some more level 2 unit options and not start down an entirely new path. Basically, he wanted everything including the flower branch units, he just wanted the other things more since they promised a quicker return.
“You don’t have to look so sour. It will only delay your plans by a day,” Amelia said, taking place beside him. “We should just dip down below 100,000 MP if we unlock all four options.” She was right. They were sitting at 115,281, and would only need 15,500 to unlock all four units.
“Fine,” Mark sighed. “You can do the honors.”
“Very well,” she replied with a hmpff. A second later they were 500 MP poorer and had a new unit. Amelia built a sample unit a moment later for 50 MP.
Wild Lily 1 (1/625) (conscript) Power lvl: 0.4 Morale: 50 (content) Strength 3 Attack: 1 Defense: 0 Endurance 8 Abilities/Skills Agility 6 Vitality 8 Intelligence 3 Wisdom 4
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
The wild lily was the base unit for the flower branch. The unit stood about 4 feet tall, although its pink petals spread out making it look slightly bigger. The body or stem was narrow and green with leaf slits that could unfurl and act as arms, or function like green blades. The unit could morph all its roots together into knobbed furniture like legs or could use them to dig into the ground. At first Mark had felt that they had entirely been duped. The lily did not appear that dangerous, but instead looked very flimsy and vulnerable.
It meant he was caught completely off guard when the lily attacked a tree at Amelia’s behest. The lily leapt into the air twisting its body. The petals and green sleeve leaves formed dual saws that created gashes on the tree's trunk. The lily could keep up the attack hitting the tree at different angles. Its run speed was not great, but it looked like in combat they would be pretty mobile. After a few more tests the lily could also took root, although it was far from stationary. Its stem was highly flexible allowing it to whip back and forth and attack any height for which the flower could reach. It was an unusual fighting style that would definitely be surprising in battle. Mark would easily see it matching a handful of the weaker goblin types.
After a few minutes, Amelia unlocked the next unit, daisy.
Daisy 1 (1/312) (conscript) Power lvl: 0.8 Morale: 50 (content) Strength 4 Attack: 2 Defense: 0 Endurance 9 Abilities/Skills Agility 9 Petal Storm Vitality 12 Intelligence 4 Wisdom 5
The daisy was five feet tall with the standard white petals and yellow face that Mark would have expected. Similar to the lily, the daisy had a long green stem body sitting on a pile of roots that could form into legs. The green sleeves that served as the unit’s arms had far greater reach. Mark could easily see the daisy standing toe to toe against a swordsman, but it was a special ability that really attracted his focus.
A demonstration of the ability resulted in the daisy spinning its yellow head showering a tree truck with its white petal knife-like missiles. The trunk was left with a good 20 petals jutting out of it. The petals had stiffened to be as hard as metal. It was a small storm of violence, that Mark had not expected nor could he believe since it promised to be overly effective for a 0.8 power rating unit, until he noticed that the daisy’s vitality had dropped significantly with all of its petals gone. Having blown its load and sensing that Mark and Amelia were done with it, the daisy took root into the ground.
It was a common feature of the branch. The flowers needed to take root in the earth like regular units needed to sleep. Doing so would allow them to heal and regain their energy. Likely the daisy could regrow its petals if given long enough restoring its vitality. The petal storm was an exceptional attack, but each unit would only be able to do it once in battle, after which they would be basically useless until they were given a chance to recover. They would have to figure out the limits of these units. How long could they go without needing to take root? How long would it take to recover?
Snap Dragon 1 (1/208) (conscript) Power lvl: 1.2 Morale: 48 (content) Strength 9 Attack: 4 Defense: 1 Endurance 11 Abilities/Skills Agility 9 Vitality 14 Intelligence 5 Wisdom 6
The snapdragon was exactly what Mark had first pictured when receiving the class. It had a red bulbous head that resembled the plant from any of the Mario games. Except this plant did not grow out of pipes. Instead it stood atop an even larger mass of roots than the lily or daisy, and its head was more dragon shaped. It was filled with what looked like actual rotted teeth dripping saliva, Mark would have expected from any crocodile or well… dragon. Two thick leafy tentacles detached from the stem to serve as ape-like arms, when the unit was not planted in the ground. They would allow the unit to move quicker and to support its oversized head. They did not need a demonstration of this unit’s attack. The stem was more than double the thickness when compared to the other two units.
Creeping Ivy 1 (1/156) (conscript) Power lvl: 1.6 Morale: 50 (content) Strength 11 Attack: 3 Defense: 3 Endurance 10 Abilities/Skills Agility 11 Sedative poison Vitality 16 Intelligence 7 Wisdom 8
The creeping ivy unit had been the only one that Mark had had difficulty picturing before they summoned it. The rest looked about like what he had expected. The creepy ivy on the other hand looked like a 4 foot tall bush, with ivy like leaves and blue flowers covering its exterior.
But after Amelia ordered it to attack a tree the bush exploded. Whip like appendages covered in the leaves burst out securing the tree in a dozen coils. More tentacles whipped through the air striking the truck, easily chipping off bark and creating gashes in the trunk. The underlying body of the creeping ivy unit was a cord of thin brown flexible tentacles that the unit could also use for movement. Mark was surprised to find that it was the small blue flowers scattered across the vines that could pump in a sedative like poison reducing enemies strength. Of course it had not affect against its current opponent, the tree, but it would be promising against living unit types.
“What do you think?” Amelia said watching the unit continue to attack the tree.
“Well I don’t think we should put one next to our other units in battle. It is not overly destructive, but its binding capabilities are something else,” Mark said amidst the endless barrage of lashings.
“Maybe a good defensive unit to put at the bottom of our wall,” Amelia remarked.
“That's... actually not a bad idea,” Mark said. A line of them would be effective at delaying an opposing force.
“It was worth it to unlock them, then..?” Amelia said, flashing him a smug smile.
“Yes, they will definitely be useful,” Mark said, rolling his eyes. He had always been going to unlock them. He had just wanted other things first.
“So what do you want to do next? Watch a movie?”
Mark gave her a look. “It’s eight in the morning, shouldn’t we do something productive first?”
“Fine,” Amelia sighed, interlocking arms with him. “I can kick your butt at inscriptions again.
Mark paused for a second ordering the flower units deeper into the trees. No sense in making their new units obvious, although they had not exactly been discrete about it this morning. Enemy scouts might have observed them.
“Come on,” Amelia said, pulling him back toward the settlement.
“I’m coming,” Mark said, allowing himself to be dragged back.
Mark was kind of getting used to the uptick in physical contact. It had been a bit surprising at first. Mark had egotistically thought the girl was falling for his charm. It was always nice to be desired after all, even if there was no intention of returning the feelings. Which Mark most definitely would not… well for now.
But overtime as the rush of hormones settled down, Mark started to notice that the hugs, the handholding, etcetera.... All seemed to be more forced than actual manifestations of desire. So why was the girl forcing herself to do it? Mark did not really need to think too hard about it. After noticing that something was strange it did not take him long to think back to when she had first started doing it. The pats on the forearm and excited hugs all started abruptly at the beginning of the third month. Right after she had commandeered the chat feature with their PR representative, Cynthia.
The damn brat was doing things at Cynthia’s direction for publicity sake. The realization deflated his ego as quickly as it had inflated. In an instant Mark had gone from feeling like a champ to a chump, but it was not like she had broken his heart. Mark had just been annoyed by the scam, but now he was quite enjoying it.
Of the two, Mark clearly had more relationship experience. He was not a Casanova, but had a couple girlfriends in high school and one in college. Not to mention the host of other girls that he had been on a date or two with. Amelia on the other hand… likely had none. She had never said as much, but now he could tell from the awkwardness that he had initially mistaken it as a symptom of shyness. It might only be an act, but she was still new to it all.
Now to him, she appeared more like a kid sneakily thinking she was getting away with something. It was rather cute. Even now, he could feel the girl’s heart thumping away. It might be an act, but working up her courage to do it still got her heart pumping. Neither of them ever mentioned it. Mark felt it would be too awkward bringing it up, and it would kind of ruin the point of things if viewers caught that it was all an act. Amelia likely felt too embarrassed to bring it up.
“You know, It is kind of presumptuous of you to say that you are kicking my butt at inscriptions when you are using my designs,” Mark said, breaking the tension. He should be the bigger person and help the girl out. It definitely worked.
“Ha! Who should get more credit? The artist or the person who came up with the idea?” Amelia said triumphantly before adding. “Besides, no one cares about who taught the artist. They just care about the person able to make something amazing.”
“Oh really,” Mark’s eyes narrowed. “How about we see who is better at alchemy then?”
“Challenging a woman, to something akin to cooking, are you? I think it is obvious what the outcome will be like.” Amelia said, raising her nose in the air.
“Ha! have you ever even actually cooked something before. Besides I'm sure there is slightly more to it than adding the right amount of the right ingredients," Mark replied.
"Still going to kick your butt," Amelia said confidently.
"Save it for when you are actually victorious,” Mark said playfully, shoving her away.
“Fine, it should not be too long from now,” Amelia said, pushing ahead. Mark moved to keep up.