I stood at the threshold of the hallway and the chamber. The room was a half sphere about 75 strides across. The grey granite flooring of the hall I had come down continued straight ahead. The path formed a Y with two other granite pathways joined in the center of the room. The rest of the floor in the room was mostly white marble with highlights of black marble. Around the edge of the room were nine other tunnels, a brass doorway, and an alcove with a pedestal. The two granite pathways connected to the brass doorway and the alcove.
I began tapping with my pole as I walked up the pathway. I reached the fork in the middle of the room and headed toward the brass doorway. It had a handprint in the center of the door. Now that I was closer I could see the line dividing the two halves of the door. I tapped it a few times before touching my hand to the hand print.
Warning! You have not reached Level 1. You may not exit the Dungeon until you have completed the task assigned to you.
At least I knew how to get out. I backtracked and went to the alcove. The pedestal had a handprint too. After 'checking' for traps, I touched it.
Welcome to Elfandrael! You are being given your first Quest, 'Learn to Quest!'
Follow the instructions of the Quest and learn how to Quest.
Rewards: XP, Karma, and access to the the Divine Helpdesk.
You may not refuse this Quest.
Quest Item 1 of 27: Find the name of the goddess with with symbol below. The answer is somewhere in this Dungeon. Return here with the answer.
I recognized the black dot with the three black rays coming from it as the sign of Bastel. I touched the handprint again.
Say the name of the goddess with this symbol
“Bastel,” I answered.
Correct! Quest Item 2 of 27: Find the name of the god with with symbol below. The answer is somewhere in this Dungeon. Return here with the answer.
I couldn't remember the name of this god. I had to walk all the way back to the first room with the statues. I read over the names and tried to memorize them the best that I could before returning. His name was Saadis. I managed to work through naming the gods for the first nine items of the Quest.
Quest Item 10 of 27: Find the pathway of your Path and visit the first room on your right. Find the name of the creature in the room and return here.
I guess Path could mean my Alignment, or maybe something to do with Celestium. I looked around the room and finally noticed the symbols of the gods above nine of the tunnels leading away from the main chamber. The hallways of [Good] gods, the [Neutral] gods, and [Evil] gods were separated by the gray, granite, Y-shaped pathways. To my right, between the alcove and the tunnel to my lair were the halls of the [Good] gods, with Celestium's pathway being right next to the pedestal.
I tapped with my pole before stepping off of the gray granite. The white marble continued into tunnel. Even the walls were marble. There were no torches. The ceiling had gold trimmed recessed lighting. The marble was white, but the lighting gave it a warm golden tone. The framing around the doors was decorated with a repeating pattern of raised geometric relief, about nine inches wide. I walked to the door on the right and looked in.
The room was 10 strides square. On either side of the room were sets of wooden pews. A small raised platform with a podium was framed by the aisle between the dark, stained, wooden pews leading up to it. The room and podium were of the same white marble. Stained glass windows glowed with light around the perimeter of the room. There were images of Celestium, but also of people in blue robes with halos around their heads. There were scenes of people farming, fishing, and crafting metal. On top of the podium, a glowing ball of light rested. I touched the handprint and it said, “Sanctuary Sentinel.”
I wasted no time and returned to report my findings. Next, I was sent to Bastel's tunnel. When I got right up on the [Evil] tunnels, I noticed a smell. It was musty and slightly sour, like unwashed flesh. The inside of these tunnels were dimly lit. The [Lawful Evil] tunnel had shiny black marble everywhere. The [Neutral Evil] tunnel had flat-black stone on the floor. In Bastel's tunnel, the tunnel of [Chaotic Evil], the floor wasn't flat. It was rock and dirt. It was more of a cave than a hallway. There were red-orange torches in the tunnel, but they were spaced far apart at irregular intervals. It was five strides to the first door on the right. I was two steps inside the tunnel when the ceiling came down on top of where I had been tapping with my pole.
I froze. The ground was strewn with boulders, each over a foot across. That would definitely have hurt. “10 foot pole for the win,” I whispered. I felt much better about my paranoia now. Wait, was I comforted by my paranoia? I said, “Maybe I should start talking to myself. That way the voices won't just be in my head.”
No sooner had I said that out loud, than a shrieking erupted from the door on the left. A short green man was fighting to get through the golden covering. I think he was yelling in some language, but I couldn't understand what he was saying. The ears and nose on his oversized head were pointed. The nose reminded me of a carrot, lumpy and sticklike. His stubby legs and arms looked powerful. He was wearing a loincloth and carrying a dagger. I waited for him to calm down. Even the tiger stopped struggling after a while. Not this guy.
I started moving again. Without talking. Stealth was apparently a thing now. When I got to the door on the right, something in the room started moving toward the door. The lighting in the room was very dim. I forced myself not to step back. I had to trust in the door covering and not risk stepping onto a trap. When it reached the light, I still couldn't figure out what it was. A lump of something just moved. I couldn't make out legs or limbs or anything. It wasn't moving fast, and it didn't slow down when it got to the door. It ran up against the shimmering shield and pressed itself flat against the opening. It squirmed and sloshed around there, coming up to about four feet high.
I touched the handprint next to the door, “Acid Slime,” it said.
The Quest sent me around the chamber. The first creature in the tunnel of the [True Neutral] goddess, Gaia, was a Toodstool Brownie. It looked like a scabby, dirt covered mushroom grew arms and legs. For [Neutral Good], Valoria had a Snuggle Ferret. It was all white and jumped around in front of the doorway, being inviting and playful. Of course [Lawful Evil] Fel had a Vampiric Bat. Not a vampire bat, a Vampiric Bat. The bat kept running into the...might as well call it a force field. It kept trying to get at me. Evil creatures didn't seem to like me at all. Fortunia had a Celestial Badger, in the [Chaotic Good] tunnel. I didn't see it though. The room was heavily vegetated. There were some white stone benches and tables. The room had the appearance of a formal garden. The [Lawful Neutral] tunnel of Mindal had a library for the first room. The description said, “Book Sprite,” but I couldn't figure out which book it was. The room for the [Chaotic Neutral] goddess of Sorcerers and Magi-tech, Enches, had a Rage Pixie. It reminded me of an angry version of Tinkerbell zipping around the room.. There was a dart trap, presumably from Saadis, in the [Neutral Evil] tunnel. I didn't check for poison, because I didn't know how, or at least how not kill myself if I made mistake. The creature was a Poisoner Toad. After I was standing in front the door for a moment, it charged me. It slammed into the force field over and over. [Evil] creatures were very aggressive. When I got back the pedestal with the name of the last creature, the difficulty level went up a notch.
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Correct Answer!
Quest Item 19 of 27: Enter the room with the Sanctuary Sentinel and then return here.
I wasn't worried about the Sanctuary Sentinel, but if the pattern held, I was going to have be in the room with an Acid Slime. And the Vampiric Bat, and the Poisoner Toad, and even the Rage Pixie. One step at a time. I went the room with the Sanctuary Sentinel. I jumped in the room, and right back out of the room. The glowing orb didn't move. I returned to report my brave game of hopscotch to my taskmaster.
Congratulations for engaging with a magical creature!
Quest Item 20 of 27: Enter the room with the Acid Slime and then return here.
Knowing it was coming didn't stop the feeling of being punched in the gut. I tried to sneak a peak at the Acid Slime. All that did was make it start moving toward the door as soon I stuck my head around the corner. The screams from the goblin across the hall didn't help the situation. I backed into the main room and waited for the goblin to quiet down. I took my pole and charged into the room, trying to skewer the Acid Slime.
[Measure Soul], autotrigger, 1 life, Slay this dastardly beast!
I felt a sense of rightness. Of justice being done. I was the instrument of Celestium and this thing deserved to die. Then I realized the Acid slime probably weighed as much as me, and I thought maybe it could stay alive another day. Once I crossed the threshold I stopped as quickly as I could and jumped back. The pole helped a little. It just went in without having much effect. The slime focused on the pole instead of me. I lost my pole, but it had poison dart on it anyway. I went back to the rabbit room and got another one. Even the trees in the room had reset.
I tried to bat the bat with my pole, but the minute I tried to strike it my pole bounced off the forcefield. I felt the righteous justification for wanting to kill it, but apparently I couldn't attack from outside the room. I backed up and tried my charging trick. It sort of worked. The bat was faster than the slime. I swung at it and the bat evaded instead of attacking. I made it back out safely. I waited for the Poisoner Toad to hit his head on the force field. The time it took him to get back up and charge again was enough for me to get in and out.
I watched the Rage Pixie for a while. It would fly over and bang into the forcefield every once in a while. This thing might have some Magic. I had no idea what to expect. I waited for it to charge. It had a habit of flying to the far corner after it banged against the forcefield. I jumped in and back out. I got away with it, but when the pixie caught a glimpse of me leaving it got mad. It buzzed around the forcefield making angry noises. I finally got tired of watching it and moved on.
Most of the other creatures didn't do anything when I came in their rooms. The Snuggle Ferret did though. I can confirm snuggle ferrets are [Good], can snuggle, and are really good at snuggling. This Dungeon came with a therapy animal. I expected I was going to need it. I even got a [Good Karma Point] for playing with the little guy.
The Poisoner Toad was the last creature. When I returned to report I got-
Congratulations on Completing the Learning to Quest Quest!
Rewards: 10% of Level XP, 10 [Law Karma Points], and access to the Divine Help Desk.
I stared at the notification. I was expecting something more. I touched the handprint again.
Welcome to the Divine Helpdesk. Ask your question.
I asked, “Does this thing let me talk to Celestium?”
The Divine Help desk communicates to the subordinates of Celestium, your requests for information. You do not need the Divine Helpdesk to communicate to Celestium. Pray and he will be made aware of your request.
It didn't sound like I was going to get to talk to him directly. I expected that. I touched the handprint and asked my next question, “Why did I earn [Chaos] and [Evil Karma Points] for killing rabbits?”
You earned a [Chaos Karma Point] for killing animals because of the violent nature of the act. You earned an [Evil Karma Point] for killing a rabbit for the selfish reason of earning XP and wasting life.
“Will I always earn [Chaos] points for killing things?”
You will always earn a [Chaos Karma Point] for killing animals, even for food collection. It is violent. While you are [Lawful Good], just kills against aligned creatures will not produce [Chaos] or [Evil Karma Points], no matter how violent or disturbing the kill is. Animals are unaligned.
“What's a just kill?”
You will know whether kill is just because [Measure Soul] will trigger and let you know if it is a just kill.
“Why didn't [Measure Soul] warn me killing the rabbit was Evil?”
[Measure Soul] must target an aligned soul. Animals will not trigger [Measure Soul]. To evaluate the [Good] or [Evil] in actions like killing animals, target yourself with [Measure Soul] and then consider the action.
Celstium could have mentioned that. Oh well. Lets see how well this things works. “What advice would I give myself to do next?”
The Divine Helpdesk does not have the precognitive power of Celestium.
Well that sucked. “Is there an instruction manual, or frequently asked questions guide that I can read for what to do in a Dungeon?”
The Divine Helpdesk has access to all material ever published on Elfandrael. The most common and up-to-date guide for delving Dungeons is Crundal Hardforge's
The book title had the look of a hyperlink, so I touched it.
The Dungeon Delving Handbook, by Crundal Hardforge
Table of Contents
Reconnaissance and Planning
Provisioning, logistics, and resupply
Team Structure, Classes, and roles
Tactics and Strategies
Solo Delving
Healing
Magic and Magi-tech
Questgivers
Loot, Costs, and Expedition Financing
Important Laws and Guild Rules
Dispute Resolution, Head Knockin', and Asskickin'
Mapping and Maps>
The chapter on dispute resolution looked like it would be fun to read. I understood everything else, except for the chapter on Questgivers. I opened it.
Questgivers
Questgivers like being difficult. They like giving hard to figure out clues. They like being difficult to find. They like being harsh in judging whether a Quest has been finished or a reward will be paid. They like upping the difficulty of a Quest they give until people start failing the Quest on the regular. The most difficult thing about dealing with Questgivers is when you and the party ignore them.
Forgetting to check for Questgivers when you arrive on a new Dungeon Level is an idgit thing to do, and everbody's done it at least once. Killing everything without thinking about secret Quest goals can even trigger Boss events. Don't go saying you ain't got the time, or the Magic, or it's boring. You can't afford not to do it. Just cause the Guild ain't got no record of a Questgiver in some part of a Dungeon, don't mean it can't change and spawn something new. You got to...
I stopped reading and asked the Divine Helpdesk, “Are there any Questgivers in this Dungeon?”
Yes
Trying to get little more specific I asked, “How many Questgivers are there in the Dungeon and where are they?”
There are 910 Questgivers in this Dungeon. Here is the [Map] of Questgivers in this Dungeon.
The [Map] showed ten spokes leading away from the central chamber. Each room on the right side of the 9 hallways had a blue dot. There was a blue dot at the end of each hall, and blue dot on the pedestal in front me.
“What kind of Quests do they give?”
The little blue box that popped up had a scroll bar on the side. I needed to start making a shopping list!