The night passed peacefully, none of my trippers were set off. I woke up energized and ready to explore the cave. I needed to find a better source of food at some point but for now the ethel bread was keeping me feeling full. I moved back to the town interface and reviewed the floor 1 layout.
There were 5 areas that qualified as rooms, the entrance was just the entrance of the cave. For each room there were sub menus that indicated upgrades but nothing was accessible yet. Next was the common room which was the large area between the entrance and the town interface. This in theory would have many people going in and out and exchanging supplies. The foreman's quarters were currently locked and would have to be purchased as an upgrade. The cost was 50 gold, I had no idea what the value of gold would be in the future or how easy it would be to continue to earn.
The mess hall was the communal kitchen that could be used to mass produce meals and hold a large amount of people at one time, it was also locked for 50 gold. Finally the room I was most excited for was the crafting room, it was locked and was even more expensive at 100 gold. I decided to just unlock all three, it wasn’t like I was spending the gold on anything else.
Congratulations! You have unlocked the Foreman’s Quarters!
Congratulations! You have unlocked the Mess Hall!
Congratulations! You have unlocked the Crafting Hall!
See Guide for more information.
I brought up the guide and started reading about the crafting hall first. It could contain multiple types of crating equipment, anything made inside had bonuses to speed and quality tied to the level of the camp. I currently had three crafting related skills; skinning, rigging and unorthodox. I walked down the hall and the previously shut and locked door was now open. I walked in the room, which should have been pitch black but was lit by a large fireplace on the far wall. The fire was burning brightly despite me not having started it or feeding it wood. There was no heat from the fire, it was a part of the room and just for light.
There were 5 clearly designated areas and another interface in the middle of the room. I touched the interface and it brought up a crafting hall menu. I could choose 1 crafting specialty at the current town level and benefit from the equipment and bonuses. I looked over the list that included the most common types of crafting such as blacksmith, woodworking, leatherworking, alchemy, fabric etc. I chose alchemy to work with the framework explosive guide and watched in amazement as the corner farthest from the fireplace turned in to an alchemist's workshop.
A large table appeared with a collection of containers in different sizes, heating devices and other tools I didn’t know. Walls sprung up to close off the area from the rest of the hall. I walked over to the open doorway and through it, the transformation was mind blowing. The materials just appeared out of thin air. I opened the guide again and it listed a few of the supplies available at level 1, it would be restricted to whoever I gave access to through the crafting interface. There were now two skylights on opposite corners of the room that could vent the fumes and provide some meager light, still blocked mostly by the canopy above. I worried about the skylights safety but the guide said they would not be visible from above. There was also a supply closet that came restocked with a small amount of different reagents for use.
Rather than begin experimenting with the alchemy workshop I went over to the mess hall. The mess hall was a large open room with enough tables and chairs to seat 50 people comfortably at one time. I walked back to the kitchen and there was another interface. I knew from the guide that these bases were meant to be operated by multiple people doing many different jobs, it would be a strange experience for me doing it by myself.
When I opened the interface I was able to choose from three different options; ethel bread, mystery meat, mystery vegetable. I opened the guide and read more about the mess hall. It would be able to accommodate any new beasts that I hunted and brought in as well as new types of fruits, vegetables or berries. It could create meals out of ingredients without a cook. Only a cook could benefit from leveling by working in the kitchen. For now each meal would have a cost until I hired a cook to work the kitchen.
The cost for each meal was 5 silver which again meant nothing to me. I used the guide and found that 100 silver would equal 1 gold, I currently had 300 gold left after buying the base upgrades, I had enough for meals for years. I decided to make one of each type of food and a little countdown appeared in my vision indicating it would take 20 minutes to complete.
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Next I moved over to the foreman’s quarters. This was a large and spacious room with its own anteroom, office and bedroom. It was sparsely decorated and more utilitarian than comfortable. I nearly cried when I realized there was a bed in the room, I hadn’t slept on a bed in what felt like years. There was an interface in the office, this time it was wedged in the wall rather than in the middle of the room. I had two choices this time; utilitarian or decadence. If there were a lot of low paid miners living in the same compound I could see the logic in wanting it to be utilitarian so as to not upset everyone else. I, however, was completely on my own and selected decadence before I even finished reading the prompt. The room transformed, soft light from candles on the walls, curtains, a rich wooden desk with a large chair. The bed looked like the softest thing I had ever laid eyes on and I knew if I laid down I wasn’t getting back up for two days. I still had too much to do.
Back to the main town interface I selected the entrance category. I could select a few upgrades to this that would increase the security of the mine cave opening. I could close it off except for a door for 200 gold. I could also narrow the opening down which would make it more defensible, the narrower it got the more expensive it was. There were options for guard posts in the walls, arrow holes, or a small guard outpost outside the cave.
None of the other options appealed to me as much as closing the cave off and having a sturdy door. It would be obvious to anyone in the area that someone or something was behind the door but it would be so much more secure than just leaving it open as it currently was. It would leave me with only 100 gold left. I selected the option and it sounded like the ground itself was groaning as the walls of the cave pulled towards each other. A thick wooden door now hung from the cave wall across the only gap in the solid stone. I walked over to the entrance and closed it, barring the door behind me.
I left the common room unchanged as I had plenty of usable space as it was. It was time to look at the other levels. The town interface had indicated that there were 5 levels to this mine with only the first one being unlocked. I approached the door at the end of the hall that would lead down to level 2. As I went to turn the handle and open the door I got a notification.
Congratulations! You have encountered your first Survival Event! Old Mining Camp Dungeon Level 1! New base upgrades available upon surviving. You have 24 hours to clear the first level of the dungeon or the event will be considered a failure. If you die or leave the Old Mining Camp the event will be considered a failure.
I stood staring at the door. Everything had been going so well up until this point. I wasn’t sure what would happen if I failed to clear the dungeon level, if it was locked off forever or if there were harsh penalties. I opened the guide to a newly appeared dungeon section.
Dungeons are populated in wild areas of the framework. They are structured in levels and each level will have a main objective and level boss. Each level will have a time limit for completion. Each dungeon will have a dungeon boss on the lowest level, dungeon bosses are not restricted to the lowest level. Failing a dungeon will lock out attempts from the subject for one week. Dungeons are not scaled to the level of the subject, they are predetermined by the area and dungeon boss.
Well that confirmed that at least it wouldn’t be a disaster if I failed it. I checked over my supplies to see what I had to work with. I was out of trippers as they were all used to secure the front of the cave. I had 2 more poppers that likely wouldn’t help me here as they were more for alarm and distraction. I had 3 manglers, useful if I could set them up in time but not much use in active combat. 8 throwing knives would be great, my accuracy had greatly improved with my agility. I had 5 bangers and 8 smokers as well as my bow and a full quiver of 20 arrows. I walked back to the mess hall and ate my meal of mystery meat and vegetables with ethel bread. The kitchen could also supply enough water for a few people a day. I was as prepared for this dungeon as I was going to get.
I stood in front of the door to the dungeon and took a deep breath. I had everything prepared as best as I could. I had my bow ready and an arrow in my offhand ready to be knocked. I slowly turned the handle and pushed the door open while stepping backwards into the well lit hall. There was no movement on the other side. I slowly crept forward keeping my bow up and ready. There was a torch on the wall that I could carry for light but I would have to put my bow away. There was nothing I could do about it as it was pitch black down the hallway.
I started forward with a knife in one hand and the torch in the other. The hallway turned in to a large ramp that went down a small slope. I could see doors in the walls leading off to other areas but they were all locked. I made it to the base of the ramp and rounded a corner to see eyes reflecting off the torch back at me. My heart leapt in to my throat and I shouted “ahh”. I triggered identify as the eyes started moving in my direction and I started to back up.
Ghoul - Beast - Level 6 - Health 50/50 - Old miners corpse repurposed by framework. Strong and sturdy but slow and stupid.
I counted 12 of them turning in my direction and walking towards me, holding old rusted mining picks. I turned and ran back up the ramp and through the door, shutting it tight and locking it. I sighed as I slid down with my back against the door, my heart racing. I knew what was waiting for me down there but it didn’t matter. I was terrified.