The amount you can carry in Dungeon Quest is determined by a complicated set of equations based on each of the physical attributes. Strength is the most influential - one point in strength can improve carrying capacity by multiple kilograms. It takes a couple points of agility to do the same thing. From a biochemical perspective that makes sense - the ability to move quickly is a type of power movement, and requires explosive force. Higher amounts of explosive force would necessarily mean muscles that can handle more in the first place. Dexterity and endurance also factor in somehow.
Either way, the game has a model that impacts movement speed when you are encumbered. There is no "maximum weight" that can be carried, but carrying anything over your maximum capacity makes you move more slowly and puts you at risk of injury - anything from tripping and falling to literally getting crushed flat.
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1092483314847330346/1103802059855241276/konacj_infographic_on_how_strength_dexterity_agility_and_endura_adb58b68-8dc9-49ac-b3e6-1a5055f4639a.png]
Also, if you die while carrying stuff beyond your carrying capacity, anything that didn't "fit" in your inventory just drops. Same thing if you log out. That way, if someone tries to steal the central fountain of fountain square, for example, logging out would just drop the fountain where they stood.
If I had known that, I would have left my stats with at least one point of strength.
My strength is 0. My dexterity and agility and endurance are also 0. Which means that, no matter the exact numbers of the equation, my carrying capacity is also zero.
Long story short, the moment I die in the dirt outside the city, everything I have drops off my body.
And when I respawn a few in-game hours later, I reappear at the fountain square of Fountain City.
Yet again, wearing only underwear.
It only takes me a moment to realize what has happened, since a dialog box appears, overlaid on my vision.
You have returned to life.
You were carrying weight above your carrying capacity.
You have dropped all items you were carrying, beginning with the heaviest, above your carrying capacity.
Again, fountain square is packed with people. It's the respawn point for all beginners in this area, the centerpoint of the business district, and a popular meeting place. There are literally millions of people who are starting this game today. And this is the second time I've appeared wearing nothing but underwear.
This time I just run for the alleys. I'm awful with directions, but somehow I don't trip. I pull up a map of Fountain City and place a mark of approximately where I think I died. I'm hoping that the clothing I got hasn't gone anywhere in the past few hours.
The most direct route out of the city is through Fountain Green - the massive park that stretches from the palace out to the city walls. But there is no way I am going to run through Fountain Green without any clothes. I can't go get more clothes either, since I still don't have any money. I just have to get back to where I died and pick up what was dropped there.
I chart out a pathway through the alleys and back streets of Fountain City. There are still far too many people though, and within just a few minutes I find myself literally running through the streets with my face on fire. I'm actually close to tears. I get to a side gate and run through, ignoring the questions and stares from the gate guards. I'm sure they meant well, but I'm really not in a position to talk right now.
The field looks similar to earlier in the day, with tinges of color as the sun is beginning to set. I've heard that creature types shift depending on the time of day... so maybe the slimes that led me to my death will be gone.
Or maybe they'll be replaced by something even worse.
And since I've already learned that I can't run while wearing clothes, I have no chance of outrunning anything.
The slimes are still there, grouped up in another part of the field. My last attempt at stealth went so poorly that I decide I'm not going to try to hide. The back of my mind agrees with me - maybe the game won't check my 0 scores if I'm not attempting to do anything in particular. I tell myself: Take note of that! I nonchalantly walk a large circle around the group of slimes. After what seems like forever, I reach the pile of my ragged clothing, pick it up, check that the Haruka seed is still intact, and slowly begin walking approximately away from the group of slimes, in the direction of the forest outside the city.
Once the slimes are out of sight, I pull on the pants and shirt. And then I realize something.
My inventory capacity is still zero.
Which means that if I log out to go to sleep in real life (my initial plan), when I log back in my clothes will be on the ground again.
Logging out in the city means that I'll come back without clothes, and it's likely that my stuff will get picked up by a street sweeper or another player during the extended time I'm gone. I didn't see any trash on the streets... and it's likely that all my stuff would be gone for good.
I can sleep in the game, and the game gear will allow me to go into as deep a sleep as I normally would. It'll also keep me primed for disturbances in the game world or in real life. But sleeping on the streets of the city isn't safe, or allowed - I'd have to find money to spend the night at an Inn. If I had a room to sleep / stash my stuff in, then I could log out and come back, but I have no idea how much an Inn costs... and I have no money at all.
On the other hand, sleeping in-game here in the forest would just be asking to die again. I may be close to the city, but it would probably only take one hit, or a bad misstep, for me to die. And my perception is a little low for me to be hoping for a stat check to wake me from a monster attack.
I decide to hide my clothes here in the forest, log out, sleep, and log back in. Hopefully it'll match up with morning. At least from my very cursory knowledge of the game, I should log in back in the same place where I logged out. As long as a monster hasn't chosen that spot, I'll be ok. That way I can explore in a safer environment, and I only have a small chance of logging back in around other people.
And hopefully I get a stat adjustment in strength sometime soon.
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I log back in shortly after waking up the next day. I've got work in 2 hours, but I should be able to explore a bit before then.
The time expansion of Dungeon Quest is still a mystery. Sometimes one hour in the game is one hour in real life, and sometimes ten hours in the game is one hour in real life. I'm not sure if the AI is experimenting with different speeds, or if there is actually a purpose or a pattern behind them.
It's midday in the game. I reach over to the bushes where my clothes are hidden and suddenly stop.
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1092483314847330346/1103808191592157355/konacj_large_green_bush_completely_covered_in_tiny_green_insect_efcc0aa7-25d3-440b-aecd-bfef96bf12a7.png]
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
The bushes are covered in crawling green bugs.
It's possible that they were there last night... just that they were asleep. I feel a surge of mild fear. They look like miniature Pokémon and I know this world can be danger.
But they're bugs. Like 1-inch bugs. What's the worst they can do to me? As long as they know I'm not a threat, I should be totally fine. And I'm not a threat. I save spiders and take them outside when I find them.
I carefully reach in and begin to part the bushes for my clothes. One of the bugs falls onto my exposed arm. I stop moving. It crawls around for a few seconds, stops, then rears up and releases a tiny puff of some kind of orange gas. I carefully keep searching for my clothes (why can't I find them?) but within moments I hear the sound of buzzing. I look around and see dozens... no, hundreds of flying insects headed my way.
I look down at the little caterpillar on my arm. I'm guessing it smelled me, licked me, liked the taste of me, and called all its friends to throw a party. That puff of orange gas must have been a pheromone. Which means even if I get away they'll follow me.
Yeah, I'm dead.
I try running towards the city. The first insect lands on me before I even leave the forest, and the sting is excruciating.
You have been stung by an unknown insect.
HP -5
Minus 5 HP. What?!? It stings me a second time. The pain is awful. I keep running, but my steps are slowing down quickly. A dozen insects land on my exposed back and legs and neck and arms. They all sting me at once. My body feels like it has caught on fire.
You have been stung numerous times by unknown insects.
You will die within 5 seconds.
You have died.
Yet again.
I pull the game gear off my head.
Is this really going to work? This game seems pretty harsh toward noobs like me... and I haven't found much to do as a pacifist. It's been less than a day and I've died twice. Which means I need to rethink my methods. I've just run in, expecting that my awesome gaming skills would let me dodge whatever comes my way, but I don't have any knowledge or skills yet. And the more times I die, the longer it'll take to actually gain those, along with any stat upgrades.
I guess I haven't really looked in the right places. I should ask the adventurer's guild about quests, or ask other NPC's or players about stuff to do. I could learn a trade maybe? Or try to do something in the city where it's safer.
No. I want to actually *play* this game. Not cower in a city where it's safe. I want it all. I want to be a pacifist and be good enough that I can crawl through a dungeon and get the final treasure chest, without ever killing a slime. That's what I want.
I head to work and try to keep my thoughts up.
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I text my best friend as I walk to the office.
"Best fren."
"Best fren. How is game"
"Game so good. So hard. Die so much"
"Wow fren. I no die. What weapon choose?"
"No choose weapon. No get nothing. No have clothes nothing."
"Wow. Much bamboozle."
"Yeah. I'm pretty sure I glitched the game. My stats are the following: 10/5/0/0/0/0/0/0/0/0"
"Wait what"
"Yeah. Meet me in game sometime and I'll show you."
"Well I no have time to play today. Maybe tomorrow? After work."
"Cool. Cya at fountain square around 6?"
"Ya that works. Love you."
"Love you too."
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I log back in after work. It's night, and Fountain Square is lit up, but the area outside is dark. I jog towards the alleyways I used to run away before. I hear rustling, and suddenly a fist comes from the shadows and hits me in the side.
You have been punched by an unknown assailant.
HP -12
You will die within 5 seconds.
Man that hurts! I go down. "Now just come along with us nicely and we won't hurt you..." Minus twelve HP, and I only have 10... I fall to the ground and begin to fade to dust. Yeah that didn't work.
Lol I wonder what the robbers / kidnappers / whoever hit me thought when a single hit killed the person they were trying to get.
I wait out the relog penalty after death. What's my plan? Dying over and over isn't useful or entertaining.
I'm gonna be extremely careful any time I'm outside the city, as well as anytime I'm inside the city at night, and try to focus on getting a stat upgrade before I do anything big.
I log back in and it's the early hours of the morning. The sun hasn't risen yet, so hopefully the streets will be empty and the bugs still asleep. I make the familiar exit from Fountain Square without my clothes. At this point I know the route. Hopefully no one is dumb enough to try to mug me again. I make my way out of the city and reach the edge of the forest. I carefully find the bushes - (there are no bugs? I hope they don't suddenly come back) - I pull my clothes out of the bushes and pull them on.
In the corner of my vision I see something shimmering. I turn, and the trees here at the edge of the woods are sparkling slightly in the dawn sunlight. Carefully inspecting the tree reveals that some of the leaves, twigs, and even berries are shimmering. And they can be picked.
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1092483314847330346/1103810693083430973/konacj_tree_with_leaves_twigs_and_berries_each_berry_shimmering_b0131800-2fc4-4a22-8156-04850774ee7b.png]
Oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh!!!!!!
These are actual drop items!
The trees must regrow the leaves / twigs / berries, and anyone who comes along can pick them to use them during the game.
I wonder if maybe there is an herbalism talent. Or a cooking talent. Or a gathering talent. Gathering and herbalism were always two of my favorite things to do in games. Beside the obvious of course.
The honeymoon is short though.
My excitement at finding drop items is thoroughly crushed when I realize that I have nowhere to put the stuff that I'm picking up.
"Inventory."
"Open Inventory."
"See Inventory."
"Open Backpack."
"Spatial Storage."
"Spatial Pocket."
Nothing works.
It's very possible that one of the first items you get in this game is something that allows you to carry stuff. But since I didn't get the starter equipment (I almost regret it now, but at this point why go back?) I don't have any such thing. If it even exists. Either way, since I haven't found a way to increase my inventory carrying space, I'm limited to what I can stick in my pockets and hold in my hands.
At least these pants have pockets.
Oh yeah. I still have the Haruka plant seed. I need that to stay safe.
I carefully stack leaves before placing them in my pocket, and only choose twigs that are straight enough that I can hold them together in a bundle. The berries, after thinking that I probably shouldn't eat something I randomly found outside before identifying it somehow, I leave behind.
I've gotta figure out inventory in this game. There is no way on earth that it treats stuff like real life. Otherwise how am I gonna get 99 potions I never intend to use?
Wait. If I leave the berries behind there is 100% chance that I won't be able to use them. Even if they're not edible, I'm sure they'd be useful for something, right? Even if it's just to fertilize a houseplant or feed a bird or something. I carefully hold a handful of berries in my right hand, a handful of twigs in my left, and stuff my pockets full of leaves.
I feel like I'm 5 all over again, gathering treasures to show my mom. This is total bliss.
My hands and pockets are full. I guess I go back to the town now? Maybe figure out exactly what I've picked, and, if possible, sell it to someone who needs it?
I'm not very far from the starting city, but my movement is incredibly slow. I hope it's worth it. Maybe there are rare items, or plants that require some type of skill to harvest, or are actually guarded by ferocious beasts. The bugs were pretty ferocious. Maybe this stuff is worth something. Then again, my luck has been pretty bad.