Once it hit midnight and Yunya was finally able to log in, he got put into the central square of a small village, surrounded by tons of other players. And yet, instead of rushing out like everyone lese, he spent a few minutes just looking at the settings and the game interface. As MENS had said earlier, his minimap was mostly grayed out due to the fog-of-war.
“That should be my first goal, I think. A map. Otherwise, it’ll take forever to find out where I need to go. After all, knowledge is power,” decided Yunya. “Maps… I could probably get them at the library?”
Approaching an npc, Yunya asked him where he could find a library, to get a map of the village.
Laughing, the npc explained “A library? In our small Red Reef village? Ha, you’re hilarious. As for maps, I’m not too sure. But you could probably ask at the archer outpost. They know the area around here like the back of their hand. If anyone has a map, it’ll be them.”
Thinking for a second, the npc then added, “Actually, speaking of library, the mayor has quite a few books. Maybe he or one of the people around him could help you?”
Somewhat embarrassed, Yunya thanked the npc and decided to make his way to the mayor first. “I might be able to score some starter quests there. As for directions, I just need to follow the crowd, seeing as they’re all going towards that same building.”
Once inside the building, Yunya saw a plump old man being hounded by players from all over.
"And that would be the mayor, I assume. But with the amount of players surrounding him, who knows how long it'd take for me to be able to ask him a question that might not even give me a helpful response. Let's see if I can’t find someone else to talk to first.”
He spotted a room on the left, with a few bookshelves visible. Upon entering, he found an older looking npc at a desk behind the corner. Either the npc hadn’t noticed Yunya entering or he was just ignoring him, as he kept writing on the parchment in front of him.
Clearing his throat, Yunya asked “Excuse me, can I ask you something?”
Finally, the stoic npc raised an eyebrow, gesturing at Yunya to continue.
“My name is Ashen Fall. I was wondering if you know where or how I could acquire a map of this village?”
“For Red Reef or the surroundings of it? Because those are two completely different things, young man.”
“Well at least for the village itself, but preferably both. Didn’t know those were separate.”
“I’m afraid I will only be able to help you with a village map. If you want one for the surroundings, you should go ask at the archer outpost. They often go hunting outside, they should have a map like that. If they are willing to help you, that is. As for the village map, I can always use some help. Apologies for not introducing myself earlier, but my name is Eldwin and I am the village elder. You can consider me the right hand man of the mayor, who’s just outside this room. As long as you help out 3 different people in my village, I'll give you a map for free.”
Quest
Village map
Description
In order for Eldwin to give you a map of the village, you need to help out 3 different npcs in Red Reef 0/3 Reward Map for Red Reef village
Yunya thanked the village elder and went outside. Taking a look at his quest log, it was no longer empty, displaying his new quest.
“Three different npcs, shouldn’t be too hard. Although without my archetype, I should try to avoid combat if possible. As for who to help, let’s go to the blacksmith. With a little luck, I might get a weapon as a quest reward from him. Right now, I just have the clothes on my body.”
Grinning, Yunya suddenly had an idea: “If I go to the archer outpost, I might be able to do a quest there to get a map of the surroundings, while also counting towards one of those three npcs.”
He first made his way to the blacksmith, who gave him a quest to gather 10 whiskerkin fangs. Yunya then made his way to the alchemist, who wanted him to gather some herbs.
On his way to the archer outpost on the outskirts of town, Yunya was getting annoyed at the fog-of-war. While a nice system and a breath of fresh air while out in the open, it was annoying in a village or town, with so many POI’s so close to each other he didn’t know about.
“From now on, every time I get to a new settlement, a map is the first thing I’ll get.”
When Yunya arrived at the lodge that was the archer outpost, he spent some time looking at an npc practicing their shots. They must’ve felt his gaze and turned around.
“What are you looking at?”
“Just admiring your skill, sir,” replied Yunya.
The npc sneered: “Piss off, djinn. As if a magic being would know anything about archery.”
Taken aback at the harsh words, Yunya frowned: “Alright Mr. Judgemental. If you really think a djinn would be so bad at archery, why don’t you train me then, to see if it’s true or not?”
Without an archetype, Yunya was still free to pick whichever he wanted. And magic archer actually was an option he was willing to try out. Even if just to spite the douchebag in front of him.
“As if I would train anyone other than a dark elf in archery. Without that dexterity, you’re not worth my time. Now either get your ass into the lodge or leave. But don’t linger around me any longer than you already have.” With those words, the dark elven npc turned around and continued his practice, ignoring Yunya.
Annoyed, Yunya entered the lodge, where a receptionist called him over.
“How can I help you today? I’m afraid you’re not strong enough to pick the archer archetype yet, sir.”
“I’d like to know if there is any way I might be able to get a map for the surroundings of Red Reef. As for the archetype, I’m aware I’m not strong enough just yet. However, would I be able to get a basic bow and some arrows? I’m still weighing my options, but I would like to at least have tried out archery before I decide.”
“We do have some maps of the surroundings, but only if you can help us out first. In the southeast of the nearby forest, the boars have become too big a population. If you can bring back 20 of their tusks, I’ll give you a map. As for archery equipment, sure. But only after you spend some time here first to prove you know how to use a bow. I’m not giving it to you if you’re gonna use it as a beating stick,” laughed the receptionist.
“No worries, I appreciate the opportunity. But are you sure a djinn like me can become an archer?” Yunya asked, gesturing at the rude npc outside.
“I see. You can ignore him. He can be a bit of a uh…”
Finishing the receptionist’s sentence with “Asshole?”, Yunya got a nod and a laugh as a response.
At the training ground, Yunya spent about half an hour shooting arrows before the receptionist said Yunya was good enough to wield a bow without absolutely embarrassing himself.
Thankfully, the quests had all given him rough pointers towards the locations he needed to go to. And the herbs he needed for the alchemist just so happened to be at the same location as the boars he needed to for their tusks.
When he arrived, Yunya first took some time to observe other players fighting the boars. The boars were pretty straightforward animals, with as their most noticeable attack a charge. But as demonstrated by a player right in front of him, if you managed to dodge it, the boar had trouble turning around, giving you plenty of opportunity to attack. And really, that was all there was to it.
“Bait out the charge, dodge it, then attack the boar. Bait, dodge, attack. A simple pattern."
Yunya then flinched as he saw that same player being flung into the air after the boar hit him, "Until you fail to dodge that is."
And that’s what Yunya did. Due to him not being used to a bow, it took a while and more arrows than he wanted, but he eventually killed the first boar.
Wiping the sweat off his forehead, Yunya exhaled, “At least I managed to dodge every hit. My damage isn’t that high, but then again, with a basic bow and without magic, I can't exactly expect more than that can I. At least I didn't get hit.”
Looking at the dead boar, Yunya frowned, “Even in a starter quest, it looks like the boar tusks are not a guaranteed drop. How fun.”
Nearly an hour and a half later, Yunya had all the boar tusks he needed. As for the herbs, he had gotten quite a few of them while looking for boars, so after only 20 more minutes, he get enough for the herbalist's quest as well. The whiskerkin lived on the edges of the forest, only a little distance away.
“The blacksmith said whiskerkin were felines, right?” Yunya pondered as he was looking at a cat that was just way too big. He quietly approached, but something must’ve tipped off the big cat, causing it to turn around and look him straight in the eye.
The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
“For a low level monster, its instincts are pretty acute,” Yunya exhaled. “And considering their feline nature, they probably possess high offensive prowess as well. Their health better be low enough to compensate for that.” Where a boar took 3-4 arrows, a whiskerkin would probably only need half. At least, that was what he hoped.
With a snarl, the whiskerkin suddenly pounced towards Yunya, its paws eager to tear apart his body. Thankfully, Yunya had long since nocked an arrow. He shot it straight ahead, not even dodging. While whiskerkins were known to be agile, that was when they were on the ground. Being mid pounce had left them suspended in the air, without any chance to display their agility. Yunya scored a lucky headshot, instantly killing it.
"Instead of comparing them with a big cat, they’re more like a small jaguar. I better be-”
Without any warning, another whiskerkin had appeared and ambushed Yunya. That attack alone took away nearly a third of his health.
“Damn it!” Yunya retaliated with an attack of his own, killing the whiskerkin easily. However, he’d only be able to take two more attacks like that.
“I hate ambushers. These cats are not that hard to kill in direct combat, but it’s gonna be hell to stay focused and not get ambushed by them. And with MENS not giving us any starter potions nor money, I’m screwed. At least I was able to relatively easily acquire a basic bow at the archery outpost for free.”
While it eventually took Yunya as long as the boar quest, it was way harder. He had to constantly keep his concentration up and even then, he was ambushed a second time. At least his familiarity with a bow had increased, making combat a little easier. Thankfully, he had gotten everything he needed to fulfill the quests for the blacksmith, the alchemist and the archer outpost.
Back at the archer outpost, he handed in the drops from the whiskerkin and got the map he wanted. It got rid of the fog on his minimap and even added quite a few POI’s. Yunya then handed in his other two quests, getting a dagger and a few health potions as rewards.
“Good, looks like the three needed quests for Eldwin are complete as well,” Yunya said as he looked at his quest log and made his way back to the mayor's home. “Archery seems fun, but I for sure need to be able to be a magical archer first. As a djinn, my normal arrows deal too little damage. Besides, once something gets too close, bow and arrow hold you back. Some of those whiskerkin got too close for comfort. At least I now have a dagger from the blacksmith’s quest.”
“Thank you for helping out the village. But helping out the archer outpost to get a surrounding map as well as counting it towards fulfilling my request, do you think I would not get to know this?”
Arriving at the mayor’s home, Yunya got confronted by an expressionless Eldwin, who then grinned, “Smart lad, people who think like you are people I like. Here, take this as a little something extra. But if you like maps like this, perhaps you should consider learning how to make them yourself.”
Quest
Village map
Description
In order for Eldwin to give you a map of the village, you need to help out 3 different npcs in Red Reef 3/3 Reward Map for Red Reef village. Bonus exp
Achievement
Double Map, Double Fun
Description
Acquire both a map for your starter village as for its surroundings Reward Additional POI's have been added to your minimap
Reached level 1, 2 free attribute points have been awarded.
All sorts of notifications suddenly entered Yunya's sight, startling him a little.
“Oh, there are achievements in this game?”
Yunya checked his minimap to confirm and sure enough, it was more densely populated than before.
“Some small caves, the names of certain npcs,” he mumbled.
“Oh, it now shows that the rogue outpost is somewhere underground? I’ll probably need to visit them, to see if they have any magic related classes. Same with warrior. And mage as a whole needs some attention as well.”
Yunya then looked at his personal information:
IGN Ashen Fall Level 1 Race Djinn Archetype / Class / Profession / Vitality 1 Endurance 1 Strength 1 Dexterity 1 Mind 2 Charisma 1 Luck 1 Free attribute points 2 Skills /
"Let’s hold off on using my attribute point until I have my archetype. If I don’t pick mage, I’ll need to boost either strength or dexterity to have good combat prowess before I get a class.”
Yunya then logged out, to have an early breakfast.
“Alright, I have both maps now. That should easily last me until I get to the big city. After ‘knowledge is power’, it’s time for ‘power is knowledge’?”
Those last few words left his mouth somewhat hesitantly, but Yunya knew what he needed to do. To pick an archetype.
“So there’s magic archer and undoubtedly some magic warrior classes. Rogue might have some, whereas mage should have some classes that aren’t just about pure magic. As for healer, I’m not interested. Way too supportive.”
Grabbing a screenshot of his “double maps double fun” achievement, Yunya made a post about it on the forums, since he hadn’t seen anyone mention anything about that topic.
“A little giving back to the community is never a bad thing. Karma better give me something back in the future,” he remarked with a smile as he went back online.
“I’ve already visited the archer outpost,” Yunya said as he looked at his minimap. “Up first is mage, then warrior. Then maybe rogue.”
The mage outpost was about what Yunya had expected, it being a literal tower. Thanks to his race, he met with the npcs without any trouble. But that was as far as his easy journey into the tower went.
“You want magic to help augment your combat!? A djinn would do that? Why? You have plenty of mana to cast, why have magic be secondary? Don’t be ridiculous.”
Yunya frowned, “While they aren’t straight up racist like that dark elf npc at the archer outpost, they’re not helping either. Why would a djinn not be able to do something besides magic?”
“Because you would be turning your highest attribute into a secondary attribute?” a player laughed nearby.
“I’m aware of that, but my profession could balance that stuff out though.”
Giggling, the woman in front of him didn’t respond anymore, instead shrugging her shoulders.
Disgruntled, Yunya left the mage outpost and made his way over to the local arena.
“Surely, the warrior outpost will be more helpful right?”
Making his way over to the counter, Yunya asked his questions about magic augmenting combat.
“A djinn wanting to become a warrior? Are you sure you-”
Before the receptionist could finish her sentence, she got shoved aside by a different one, who smiled at Yunya, “Sir, please ignore her. But could you be a bit more specific with your question?”
“More specific?”
“Yes, when you say magic augmenting combat, what part do you want to augment? Your offensive prowess, your defense, perhaps all around support?”
Looking at Yunya’s raised eyebrow, the npc continued, “I meant that ‘magic enhanced combat’ is a really broad term. For example, it is possible to light your sword on fire, use earth magic to enhance your shield, use wind to speed your kicks or even have water orbs floating above you to restrict people who come near. Frankly, the possibilities are endless, but you need to know what direction you want to go.”
“Damn. I hadn’t yet considered that,” Yunya mumbled. In a normal tone of voice, he asked, “Any chance I could get a demonstration?”
“I could ask around, but don’t get your hopes up.”
Five minutes later, the receptionist returned with a bored looking npc.
“Sure, I could show you. As long as you do something for me first. I just so happen to be in need of boar tusks.”
Quest the ways of magic combat Description gather boar tusks for the mage outpost 0/20 Reward the mage outpost will give a demonstration of magic combat
“Thanks. By the way, any chance I can get some free pointers on how to use this?” Yunya said as he pointed at the dagger on his waist. The archer outpost had given some basic archery lessons, so he was hoping he could get some here as well.
“Didn’t you already get some teachings about archery? Don’t play coy with me. Besides, daggers are more something for rogues. We might be able to use weapons like that, but that doesn’t mean we’re the best with them.”
Thanking the npc once again, Yunya made his way over to the rogue outpost. He had initially been on the fence about visiting them, since a magic rogue didn’t sound as viable as a magic warrior. But if he could get some dagger lessons as well, it was two birds with one stone!
“Minimap says the outpost is in the bar, but it should be underground?”
Walking behind the bar in search of a basement, Yunya saw a dark elf player being scolded by an npc when he had triggered his own tripwire trap. Shaking his head in amusement, Yunya had spotted a hatch at the side of the building.
“Found it,” he smiled, but that smile soon turned into a gloomy look. The entrance to the rogue outpost was a labyrinth. Cursing them, Yunya kept his right hand on the wall and made it out of the maze without that much trouble.
“Thank god the minimap updates by exploration. Next time, it shouldn't be too hard to navigate this maze.”
Once inside though, it wasn’t that different from other outposts. Yunya went to the receptionist, but the answers he got were disappointing.
“Stealth, illusion, disguise, more stealth. That’s what rogues use magic for?” Yunya summarized, to which the receptionist confirmed.
“By the way, is there a way for me to learn how to wield a dagger in here?”
“No there is not. You already got archery lessons, no?”
Yunya shrugged in response and left the rogue outpost.
“I guess the receptionist must’ve sensed I wasn’t that interested in the rogue archetype? Clearly, that warrior npc will teach me warrior stuff even after he also remarked about me knowing how to use a bow, I’d just need to do a quest for him. Maybe I should ask him again.”
Yunya was about to cull the boar population once again when he realized something.
“Don’t archers usually also know how to handle small weaponry? Besides, I never did ask about what magical archery really is all about. Back to the archer outpost it is.”