It was the sound of crickets chirping in the night that woke Ryan. He slowly came to under the branches of an oak tree, dazed. How did he get here? Why wasn't he in his comfortable bed in his little shack? He rolled his head to the side to get his bearings and came face to face with a dire panther's snarl. He jumped back, startled, but the cat didn't move. Then everything came crashing back to his memory. He'd fought and killed this beast yesterday. He'd...he'd actually survived? Relieved, he looked at his feet to begin a scan of his injuries.
All told, he looked to be in good shape. He suspected he had a fractured rib or two from the beast's strikes, and he'd definitely been concussed by the slam against the tree, but he felt strangely fine now. Looking in the puddle beside him, reflective in the light of the two moons, he could see his face had healed unnaturally quickly, leaving four deep scars in his left cheek where the cat's claws slashed him. They looked older than they should. Interesting. He wondered how long he'd been out. He continued his scan of the clearing.
To his right was the body of the Dire Panther, with a pool of lung blood around its midsection and mouth. He couldn't see the doe carcass, but it was 30 yards away at least. Otherwise, he was in the middle of the woods, at night, with a dead animal. Not exactly the best place to be, when other larger predators roamed. He shifted himself up, groaning a little bit at the effort, and pulled his two knives out of the panther. He wiped them off on its fur, and began his walk to the doe carcass. His body felt stiff and heavy, like he'd been bruised, but he showed no sign of it.
Arriving along the trail were the doe carcass once was, he was greeting by the scampering of scavengers. They'd been working on the carcass in his absence, specifically the head and cavity. Lacking the ability to drag the partly ruined carcass any further, lest he be slowed down and targeted by a creature seeking an easy meal, he drew his stone hand axe and removed the two hams, cutting away the shinbones. These he tied into a yoke and slung around his neck. He didn't waste time to look for his bow but instead, knives in hand, he trudged down the path to his encampment, eager to find a secure place to fall asleep again.
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Dawn broke far to early for Ryan's liking. His body, still a little stiff, felt strangely better. He'd made it to camp last night and hung the hams in his drying shed before passing out on his bed. His clothes, what were left of them, were covered in the blood from his wounds yesterday. His cloak, however, seemed good as new. He rolled off of the low frame and onto the packed earth floor of his shack, and checked his status. With the dawn's light upon him, he remember he'd been rewarded for his challenges yesterday.
Ryan Callahan Champion of Luris Class N/A Title Champion of Luris Race Human HP/MP 200(+.2)/40(+.1) XP 448 SP 1 LVL 3 STR 16 AGI 19 END 20 CHAR 14 WIS 8 INT 10 Skills Trapping (Lvl. 3), Tanning (Lvl. 3), Enchant Trap (Lvl. 1), Gathering (Lvl. 1), Leatherwork (Lvl. 1), Assaination (Lvl. 1), Melee Combat(Knife) (Lvl.1) Items Tusk Dagger (2) (Fair), Demonic Boar Skin Cloak (Fair), Flint Arrows (6) (Fair), Leather Quiver (Poor), Stone Hand Axe (Fair), Woven Pack (Poor), Woven Cord (Fair), Stone Skinning Knife (Fair)
It appeared that he'd leveled up and gained a new skill point. It also seemed like the unnaturally fast healing was a result of the recovery statistic of his HP. Though his body still felt the effects of the fight and was tired, all his wounds were healed. This was all good news. He was only two levels away from being able to class up, which would probably be very useful, and he'd gained a useful skill out of the encounter. Melee Combat (Knife) allowed him to deal more damage with each knife strike, which was fantastic news in case he ever had to get into a knife fight again, which would hopefully be never. He'd stick with the bow, thank you very much.
Speaking of which, he'd lost his in the tussle yesterday, which meant it was probably with the remains of the cat. Since he'd also been screwed out of a fair amount of deer meat by said cat, he was going to go back and drag it back for crafting materials, and possibly food. He wouldn't eat the livers, heart, and tongues like he did with the deer, but he'd probably cook the hams and backstrap to sample the flavor. He'd have to cook it really well and pray the equivalent of trichonosis on this planet wasn't hardier than the variant on Earth. Also, he needed to replace his clothes, and for that he needed a hide and some brains. He had to brain tan a few things to gain Tanning Lvl. 4, and he needed to make a few more things out of leather to gain his Leatherwork Lvl. 2 skill, so he had a busy day ahead.
As he set off to recover the two carcasses, Ryan reflected on the nature of skills. Since he'd arrived in Aurora 64...no make that 65...days ago, he'd added quite a few. However, Assasinate seemed to be the first one that granted an actionable bonus, like one would expect in a videogame or tabletop RPG. Since he knew The Championship was essentially a board game for Luris, he figured it would incorporate a few similar mechanics. That said, his other skills weren't useless, and in fact gave two distinct bonuses; knowledge and passive skills.
Trapping, Tanning, Gathering, Enchant Trap, and Leatherwork all gave him access to some sort of mental library. In that mental library was knowledge of new designs, methods, and techniques that took his skills to the next level. Gathering, for instance, told him that the mottled berries around his campsite were safe to eat. He'd gained it by harvesting and using three different types of wild plants. However, each skill also gave him some sort of passive bonus. He'd first noticed it with leatherworking. Aside from some moccasins he'd tried to make at 13, he'd never been much for leatherwork. However, he'd perservered and gained the Leatherwork skill. He noticed that as he practiced the skill, his technique improved rapidly and the quality of his items rose from (awful) to (poor). Gathering, on the other hand, allowed him to somehow fit more things in his pack and identify potentially poisonous plants easier using his nose. He noticed if he smelled a plant and felt a small gag reflex, even if it smelled quite good, it would probably be poisonous. After he "gathered" it and checked his library, he'd find out that he was right.
Assasinate was completely different. His assasinate skill activated when he took the shot on the dire panther. He'd been so focused on killing it in one strike that it triggered. However, he could now feel the ability to trigger the skill in his mind for use, and he somehow intrinsically knew that the use would cost him 10 MP. He decided to investigate the Assasinate skill further.
Assasinate
Add 10% damage to an attack where the opponent does not detect you. Stacks with suprise damage (10%).
*Assasinate effects vary based on weapon used.
Cost: 10 MP
So, the assasinate skill would essentially allow him to add 20% damage to an undetected attack. Surprise damage was a variable that could add up to 10% damage, but the assasinate skill automatically added another 10%. Would it stack with his Melee Combat(Knife) passive that added 2% to all knife attacks? He doubted he'd be able to sneak up close enought to any animals in these woods to find out, and if he did and didn't kill them outright, he'd be in a lot of trouble. Best not to test that until the conditions warranted. Finished with his investigation, he arrived at the panther carcass.
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The carcass looked intact and undisturbed. Luckily it was cool out, so he hoped the guts didn't spoil the meat by sitting inside the carcass all night. First things first though, he needed to find the bow. Casting around the fight scene, he noticed the claw marks and turned earth. Honestly, he was surprised he hadn't met some other creature scavenging when he arrived. But no matter, he'd have plenty of time to skin and quarter it out after he found the...ah, there it was. He bent down and picked up his bow, inspecting it.
It was a simply made switch of hickory with a braided twine string. It wasn't too large, and therefore lacked range and power, but made up for it in portability. According to his item scanning, it was a (Poor) level item. Since he'd resolved never to get caught in a knife fight again, if he could help it, he needed to upgrade that to a (Fair) at least. He turned and walked over to the panther carcass, pulling out his skinning knife. As he rolled the carcass over to get to the belly, a notifaction appeared in his mind's eye.
To the victor go the spoils! You claim a random monster encounter's loot drop!
Ryan Callahan claims Dire Panther Carcass (Lvl. 4)!
Looted Items: Dire Panther Hide, Dire Panther Tusk (2), Dire Panther Hams (2), Cat Gut (crafting material), Dire Panther Femur (2) (Crafting Material)
In a short glimmer of light, the panther dissapeared and in its place stood a neat pile of items, matching what was listed on the notification. The fur lay at the bottom, and on top of it was two large teeth, two hams wrapped in ferns, a pile of intestine also wrapped in ferns, and two yellowed femur bones. Ryan looked on in shock. He'd planned to spend most of the day cutting up that cat to get what was now laid out nicely in front of him. Random monster encounter? Loot drop? And if he got a loot drop from a random monster encounter, did that mean the Demonic Boar wasn't a random monster? Or did trapping it not count as defeating it to get the loot drop? Putting the questions out of his head, Ryan gathered up the items in his arms and placed the intestine in his pack. He strung the hams over his shoulders in yoke fashion and began his walk back to camp. He'd come back later to skin the deer and collect its brain, but right now he needed to hang the meat and figure out what to do with these intestines....and spend the skill point.
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East of Ryan in the Forest of Silence, a pair of yellowed eyes appeared, floating in midair. Soon, the rest of the body they belonged to followed. It was a vaguely man shaped creature who finally appeared, though it stood a little shorter than Ryan. Its forked tongue darted out to sample the air in this new place. It was newly born, and hungry. Stepping out of the mottled shadows of the tree and onto the King's Road, its purple skin was exposed to daylight for the first time. It hissed. It did not like that at all. So instead, it retreated deeper into the shadows. Its long ears, positioned atop its head, pivoted at the sound of horse hooves clopping in the distance. Tasting the air again, it could smell the horse's sweat in the noontime heat. A delicious smell. It crept closer to the King's Road, careful not to overly expose itself to the sunlight.
Down the King's Road came a caravan of traders, bound for the Shimmering Shores. Rumor had it that a new cult, to the God of Nets of all things, sprung up there recently. If there was anything Pan McTavish knew about cults, it was that they often needed three things; building materials, knives, and lots and lots of rope. So she'd gathered her men, filled her two carts with the required materials, and set off for the Shimmering Shores post haste. If there was anything that she knew about being a trader, it was that speed was of essence. Which is why, at level 5 and under her father's tutelage, she'd classed up as a Caravaneer. Now, her own little two cart caravan was clopping along happily down the King's Road to bring Pan her fortune, and to show the rest of Clan McTavish that she truly was a merchant to be trusted!
The beast in the shadows waited anxiously as the caravan approached. The horses of the caravan were far bigger than it first smelled them to be. Too big for it to snatch, as it hoped. But, as the noisy and gawdy scene drew closer, it noticed there were smaller things in the big boxes on wheels. Small, bipedal things that looked like it but with fair skin and green hair. Their ears were on the side of their heads as well, not on top, and did not appear to rotate like its did. Of course, it was a wonder they could hear anything how those wheel-boxes clanked, painted gawdy colors and covered with bells. It hissed uncertainly. It was hungry, and the two-legs smelled...delicious. It had to do something. One of the two legs looked in its direction at the hiss, and it felt tremendous pressure to hide, right now. Unknowingly, it turned invisible and the two leg's gaze swept through it. Its body feeling weird, like it was dipped in ice, it looked down on itself. Not being able to see itself, but knowing its body was there, the beast quickly deduced its power. Naturally a monster born for invisibility is not surprised upon becoming invisble, and the Wendigo was such a creature.
In the caravan, Pan's guardsman caught a glimpse of some creature in the bush and heard a hiss. Looking closely, he saw nothing besides the bush itself. He was an older gentlemen, and rather distinguished mustachios drooped from his face to frame his chin, as was Clan McTavish's tradition. He'd been assigned to Pan's crew by her father's brother, the Chieftan. The King's Road was a safe trip, and the Shimmering Shores were civilized parts as well, so he was the only guard. He turned his gaze forward, reassured he'd merely seen a snake or some other small monster, driven off by their lightly enchanted bells. He was so close to retirement. In fact, he was thinking about putting in for it after this very trip with Pan. Then he heard a shout.
The Wendigo coiled up and launched itself onto the driver of the rear caravan, shedding its invisibility upon contact with its victim. Its clawed fingers and element of surprise did the trick as it gouged the eyes of the driver, penetrating their sockets into the fleshy brain material behind it. The driver was instantly killed, but the footman at the rear of the column, riding the spare mule train, saw the whole thing. Before the Wendigo could gather himself for another leap, he shouted. It would be the last thing he uttered, as the terrifying purple creature flew through the air and ripped his windpipe from his throat with a fearsome grab. Not content with halving the manpower of the convoy, the Wendigo pivoted to leap again, this time to the front cart. However, the old Guardsman stood in his seat sighting down the barrel of a blunderbuss at the creature.
In that moment, the two mules realized the fearsome creature that was on their backs and bucked hard to disloge it. The horses, blindered and startled by the sounds and smell of carnage, decided to bolt. The Wendigo lurched violently in the air as the Blunderbuss cracked, a peice of shot catching its leg, but otherwise avoiding it entirely. It wailed with pain and rage, and landed awkwardy. Its wounded leg made a sickening crunch as it snapped under the impact. But the Wendigo would not be denied, and it gathered itself for another leap at the guardsman, who was busy reloading the blunderbuss with powder, wad, and shot.
The old guardsman was no Musketeer, however, and his fate was sealed. Though he'd managed to score a lucky hit on the Wendigo, thanks in part to his secret LCK attribute, he had never classed and was no match for the creature. It landed heavily atop him, knocking him to the ground, and screamed in victory as it disembowled him with its sharp claws. Pan McTavish, seated in the cart next to the guard, froze in shock. The creature, complete with its killing, looked up at her and smiled. The Wendigo could taste the fear of this two-leg, and it tasted...good. Its eyes lit with feral greed as it willed itself slowly invisble, leaving only its teeth visible until they too vanished like some sort of horrific cheshire cat. The Wendigo began to stalk forward along the ground towards the cart, tongue darting out to taste the delicious fear. However, the blindered horses of Pan's cart had no intention of letting that thing near them and Holly, the right mare, lashed out with a hoof.
The hoof impacted the thing with a crack and flung it into a tree, rendering it visible. The attack, and the skittishness of the horses, brought Pan to her senses and she grabbed her whip and reigns. Cracking the whip over the backs of the team, she shouted, "Molly, Dolly, HUP HUP!" The command rang through the clear air, imbued with some of her mana and the two horses sped along down the path, away from the scene of carnage, assisted by Pan's skill. Behind them, the Wendigo shook itself and crawled to the body of the old guard. Though it hurt, it knew something that would make it feel better.
Getaway
Immediately get the attention(s) of your mount(s). Speed of mount increased 10% for 30s. +5s per level of skill.
Cost: 10 MP/Mount