After the blinding light dissipated, Aaron rubbed his eyes, waited as they adjusted, and saw he was standing in a square. He found himself near a fountain with little angel statues, where he decided to sit and assess his surroundings. As he looked around he noticed there were both players and NPCs walking around. Aaron could tell which players skipped the tutorial by the way they stumbled. Aaron noticed all the other players had packs. He looked at his shoulders to find straps. He took his pack off and investigated its contents. Inside the pack there were 5 pieces of stale bread, a knife, and ten copper coins. Aaron closed the pack, looked around for a map, and found one pinned onto a board.
Aaron walked to the board and examined the map. He was in a small town that had only a fort, some shops, and a handful of houses surrounding the square. Feeling physically vulnerable, he scanned the map for training fields where he could learn the basics of fighting. Aaron located the field, gave the map a once-over, and headed south of the town. While he walked, he summoned the Status window. Aaron allocated his 8 attribute points among Strength, Agility, Stamina, and Intelligence.
NameAaronPrimary ClassN/AHealth50Mana50Level1TitleN/AHealth Regen/Sec0.1Mana Regen/Sec0.1Strength12Agility12Wisdom10Intelligence12Stamina12Vitality10Dexterity10FaithN/AFameN/A
Closing the window, he directed his attention to the shops selling swords, food, potions, and more. While most items were priced fairly, he needed to make some money first.
Aaron finally reached the field; players practicing with swords, long knives, and bows filled the expanse of the range. He decided to speak to the swordsmanship instructor first.
"Hello, good sir! Are you the swordsmanship instructor?"
The man turned to look at him with a stony face that scanned Aaron.
"Yes. I instruct a wide variety of weapons including the sword. Do you wish to learn the ways of the blade?" The instructor asks, crossing his arms and staring blankly at him.
Although the instructor was just an NPC, Aaron became nervous (as he usually did when speaking with people).
"Yes! I wish to learn the way of the sword, but I would also like to learn how to use a few other weapons."
The instructor seemed to think for a minute, his face becoming slightly gentler.
"A proud warrior always sticks with his sword; a true warrior learns how to use the many weapons at his disposal. There are practice weapons at each station that you may use, but you will need to either practice with a partner or with one of the dummies located on the far side of the field."
"Thank you, instructor; I will do my best to learn the way of the sword and the other weapons."
Aaron bowed his head and walked to the barrels full of wooden swords. He slowly searched through them and tried out their weight. Once he found a sword that suited him, he approached a dummy. Holding the sword in his right hand, he started to steadily slash and stab the dummy.
For over an hour, he continued to swing and slash the sword and became soaked in sweat. When his stamina bar flashed a warning that it was low, he swung a few more times, and then stopped to rest and look around. He noticed a few people pointing to the sky! Aaron directed his curious gaze upwards.
Up in the sky, he saw an angel flap its large white wings. More and more angels came to AaronÆs attention; some headed to and from town.
Flying through the sky would be fun! If I had a chance, I would love to be able to do that.
After he rested, he continued his practice. After practicing, resting, and repeating for a few hours, a few windows popped up.
You have gained +1 Stamina!
You have gained Sword Proficiency!
Aaron then switched the sword to his other hand, and continued practicing until another window popped up.
You have become ambidextrous with Blades!
He closed the message and sat down to rest. As he gazed at the sky, Aaron guessed that it was around noon. He looked at his status bars and saw that he needed to eat food or he would starve. He took off his pack and grabbed a piece of stale bread. He slowly chewed the hard bread. Finished with the bread, he stood and examined the stations to his right. At the stations, he saw axes, hammers, knives, and bows.
I think warriors use axes. Hammers are amazing, but they are simply too slow and heavy to use since this game is trying to be realistic. I guess I should head over to the long knives next.
Aaron strode to the long knives station to examine the wide range of impressive knives. He snatched up one knife that caught his eye, and began slashing, slicing, resting, and repeating. He continued to slash, slice, and dice the dummy until two windows came into view.
You have gained +1 Stamina!
You have become Proficient with Knives!
He sat down to eat again, and noticed that the players were starting to leave the field.
Looks like I'll be alone here in a while. Oh well, I like being alone anyways. Now let's see what we have at the bow station.
Aaron replaced the long knife and found his way to the bow rack. He picked up some bows to test their draw and weight, until he found one that was neither too easy nor too hard to draw. He took the bow to the archery range, and fired arrows into the target with careful 'some would even say precise' aim. After firing 10 arrows, he recovered them. Aaron's arrows were grouped nicely, with four embedded in the center, five stuck in the secondary ring, and the last arrow pinning the third ring.
Aaron continued firing and then retrieving the arrows until the instructor approached him.
"I've been watching you, young lad. While you are good with the basics of the other weapons, you excel with the bow!" He looked at the target with a slight grin.
"I have some practice with the bow from elsewhere. I love how it is relaxing to just shoot at the target." Aaron replied, cracking a smile. Aaron set the tip of the bow against the ground and looked at the instructor.
"That's good, but how would you like to have a little contest to see who gets the highest score?"
Quest Summary: Staying on Target
Difficulty Level: F
The instructor would like to have a little archery contest with you. The highest score wins.
Rewards: Unknown.
"I would love to, sir, but I am still new at this."
The instructor grabbed a bow. "Don't worry. This is just for some fun before I have to turn in for the night."
Aaron thought for a moment, and decided that he had nothing to lose by trying! He retrieved his arrows and took his place next to the instructor.
"How would you like to score this, sir?" Aaron turned to look back down at the target.
"We will have three rounds, each consisting of ten arrows. The scoring will be seven for the center, and one point less for each ring out."
"That sounds good to me!" Aaron exclaimed.
They both aimed at the target and carefully started to fire their arrows. After Aaron fired his seventh arrow, three windows popped up.
You have become Proficient with the Bow!
You have earned +1 Dexterity!
You have earned the skill Precise Shot!
Precise Shot (Combat)You are adept at directing ranged attacks.
Benefit: You can use ranged weapons on an opponent engaged in melee without penalty to your attack.
That's a nice skill, but I must keep on target.
Once they finished shooting, they walked forward to tally their scores.
Round 1: Instructor 57 | Aaron 53
This process continued for the two remaining rounds.
Round 2: Instructor 54 | Aaron 56
Round 3: Instructor 56 | Aaron 65
Total: Instructor 167 | Aaron 174
The instructor turned to Aaron and smiled warmly. "That was fun, young lad; it looks like you have won! Well, since that bow fits you so well, you can keep it."
A window popped up.
You have completed the quest 'Staying on Target'!
Reward: The beginner bow and thirty arrows!
In his surprise, Aaron was momentarily stunned; the instructor started to leave.
"Um, sir? do you know a good place for a beginner to hunt? Also, where could I learn the Identify' skill?"
The instructor stopped and looked back at Aaron.
"A good place to hunt . . . Well, there are fields just to the east of here that are good. If you wish, I can teach you the identification skill."
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
"I would love to learn the 'Identify' skill!" Aaron smiled and nodded.
"We can use your bow as an example. To use 'Identify", just poke the bow and say 'identify'."
Aaron poked it a few times until a window popped up.
Beginner bow:
A beginner bow with good balance and weight.
Restrictions: None
Attack: 2-8 Durability: 30/30
"It worked. Thank you!"
"You are welcome, lad, and come by anytime" the instructor responded.
The instructor walked back towards the town. Aaron looked back at the town, and logged off.
Alan pulled off the headset and sat up.
That was an amazing game, but it's going to be a while before it truly kicks into gear.
Alan got up and headed to get some breakfast. He looked at the clock it was only 7 a.m.! He had only played for just over 6 hours. He was surprised even though he understood the game time was accelerated.
Good thing it's the weekend!
Unedited version
Spoiler :
After the blinding light dissipated, Aaron rubbed his eyes, waited as they adjusted, and saw he was standing in a square. He found himself near a fountain with little angel statues, where he decided to sit and assess his surroundings. As he looked around he noticed there were both players and NPCs walking around. Aaron could tell which players skipped the tutorial by the way they stumbled. Aaron noticed all the other players had packs. He looked at his shoulders to find straps. He took his pack off and investigated its contents. Inside the pack there were 5 pieces of stale bread, a knife, and ten copper coins. Aaron closed the pack, looked around for a map, and found one pinned onto a board.
Aaron walked to the board and examined the map. He was in a small town that had only a fort, some shops, and a handful of houses surrounding the square. Feeling physically vulnerable, he scanned the map for training fields where he could learn the basics of fighting. Aaron located the field, gave the map a once-over, and headed south of the town. While he walked, he summoned the Status window. Aaron allocated his 8 attribute points among Strength, Agility, Stamina, and Intelligence.
Status Window
Name: Aaron
Level: 1 Primary Class: N/A
Health: 50 Health Regen./sec.: 0.1
Mana: 50 Mana Regen./sec.: 0.1
Strength: 12 Agility: 12
Wisdom: 10 Intelligence: 12
Stamina: 12 Vitality: 10
Dexterity: 10
Closing the window, he directed his attention to the shops selling swords, food, potions, and more. While most items were priced fairly, he needed to make some money first.
Aaron finally reached the field; players practicing with swords, long knives, and bows filled the expanse of the range. He decided to speak to the swordsmanship instructor first.
“Hello, good sir! Are you the swordsmanship instructor?”
The man turned to look at him with a stony face that scanned Aaron.
“Yes. I instruct a wide variety of weapons – including the sword. Do you wish to learn the ways of the blade?” The instructor asks, crossing his arms and staring blankly at him.
Although the instructor was just an NPC, Aaron became nervous (as he usually did when speaking with people).
“Yes! I wish to learn the way of the sword, but I would also like to learn how to use a few other weapons.”
The instructor seemed to think for a minute, his face becoming slightly gentler.
“A proud warrior always sticks with his sword; a true warrior learns how to use the many weapons at his disposal. There are practice weapons at each station that you may use, but you will need to either practice with a partner or with one of the dummies located on the far side of the field.”
“Thank you, instructor; I will do my best to learn the way of the sword and the other weapons.”
Aaron bowed his head and walked to the barrels full of wooden swords. He slowly searched through them and tried out their weight. Once he found a sword that suited him, he approached a dummy. Holding the sword in his right hand, he started to steadily slash and stab the dummy.
For over an hour, he continued to swing and slash the sword and became soaked in sweat. When his stamina bar flashed a warning that it was low, he swung a few more times, and then stopped to rest and look around. He noticed a few people pointing to the sky! Aaron directed his curious gaze upwards.
Up in the sky, he saw an angel flap its large white wings. More and more angels came to Aaron’s attention; some headed to town and some returned from.
Flying through the sky would be fun! If I had a chance, I would love to be able to do that.
After he rested, he continued his practice. After practicing, resting, and repeating for a few hours, a few windows popped up.
! You have gained +1 Stamina
! You have gained Sword Proficiency
Aaron then switched the sword to his other hand, and continued practicing until another window popped up.
! You have become ambidextrous with Blades
He closed the message and sat down to rest. As he gazed at the sky, Aaron guessed that it was around noon. He looked at his status bars and saw that he needed to eat food or he would starve. He took off his pack and grabbed a piece of stale bread. He slowly chewed the hard bread. Finished with the bread, he stood and examined the stations to his right. At the stations, he saw axes, hammers, knives, and bows.
I think warriors use axes. Hammers are amazing, but they are simply too slow and heavy to use since this game is trying to be realistic. I guess I should head over to the long knives next.
Aaron strode to the long knives station to examine the wide range of impressive knives. He snatched up one knife that caught his eye, and began slashing, slicing, resting, and repeating. He continued to slash, slice, and dice the dummy until two windows came into view.
! You have gained +1 Stamina
! You have become Proficient with Knives
He sat down to eat again, and noticed that the players were starting to leave the field.
Looks like I’ll be alone here in a while. Oh well, I like being alone anyways. Now let’s see what we have at the bow station.
Aaron replaced the long knife and found his way to the bow rack. He picked up some bows to test their draw and weight, until he found one that was neither too easy nor too hard to draw. He took the bow to the archery range, and fired arrows into the target with careful – some would even say precise – aim. After firing 10 arrows, he recovered them. Aaron’s arrows were grouped nicely, with four embedded in the center, five stuck in the secondary ring, and the last arrow pinning the third ring.
Aaron continued firing and then retrieving the arrows until the instructor approached him.
“I've been watching you, young lad. While you are good with the basics of the other weapons, you excel with the bow!” He looked at the target with a slight grin.
“I have some practice with the bow from elsewhere. I love how it is relaxing to just shoot at the target.” Aaron replied, cracking a smile. Aaron set the tip of the bow against the ground and looked at the instructor.
“That’s good, but how would you like to have a little contest to see who gets the highest score?”
Quest Summary: Staying on Target
Difficulty Level: F
The instructor would like to have a little archery contest with you. The highest score wins.
Rewards: Unknown.
“I would love to, sir, but I am still new at this.”
The instructor grabbed a bow. “Don’t worry. This is just for some fun before I have to turn in for the night.”
Aaron thought for a moment, and decided that he had nothing to lose by trying! He retrieved his arrows and took his place next to the instructor.
“How would you like to score this, sir?” Aaron turned to look back down at the target.
“We will have three rounds, each consisting of ten arrows. The scoring will be seven for the center, and one point less for each ring out.”
“That sounds good to me!” Aaron exclaimed.
They both aimed at the target and carefully started to fire their arrows. After Aaron fired his seventh arrow, three windows popped up.
! You have become Proficient with the Bow
! You have earned +1 Dexterity
! You have earned the skill Precise Shot
Precise Shot (Combat)
You are adept at directing ranged attacks.
Benefit: You can use ranged weapons on an opponent engaged in melee without penalty to your attack.
That’s a nice skill, but I must keep on target.
Once they finished shooting, they walked forward to tally their scores.
Round 1: Instructor 57 | Aaron 53
This process continued for the two remaining rounds.
Round 2: Instructor 54 | Aaron 56
Round 3: Instructor 56 | Aaron 65
Total: Instructor 167 | Aaron 174
The instructor turned to Aaron and smiled warmly. “That was fun, young lad; it looks like you have won! Well, since that bow fits you so well, you can keep it.”
A window popped up.
! You have completed the quest “Staying on Target”!
Reward: The beginner bow and thirty arrows.
In his surprise, Aaron was momentarily stunned; the instructor started to leave.
“Um, sir… do you know a good place for a beginner to hunt? Also, where could I learn the ‘Identify’ skill?”
The instructor stopped and looked back at Aaron.
“A good place to hunt . . . Well, there are fields just to the east of here that are good. If you wish, I can teach you the identification skill.”
“I would love to learn the ‘Identify’ skill!” Aaron smiled and nodded.
“We can use your bow as an example. To use ‘Identify’, just poke the bow and say “identify”.”
Aaron poked it a few times until a window popped up.
Beginner bow:
A beginner bow with good balance and weight.
Restrictions: None
Attack: 2-8 Durability: 30/30
“It worked. Thank you!”
“You are welcome, lad, and come by anytime” the instructor responded.
The instructor walked back towards the town. Aaron looked back at the town, and logged off.
Alan pulled off the headset and sat up.
That was an amazing game, but it’s going to be a while before it truly kicks into gear.
Alan got up and headed to get some breakfast. He looked at the clock it was only 7 a.m.! He had only played for just over 6 hours. He was surprised even though he understood the game time was accelerated.
Good thing it’s the weekend!