As the Psycho Slinger’s winged boots propelled him at Walt, Walt’s system interface lit up with some text in the upper right portion of his view.
[Examine]
[Psycho Slinger]
Ricky “The Z Fucker” Armada
Class: Necromancer
Rank: Psycho Slinger
Record this Tournament: 0-0-0
19 years old.
Walt felt the Wand of Green Skulls grow warm in his hand, as if it was signaling to him to use it. He pointed it at Ricky Armada and he felt it release a surge of energy. A flaming green skull launched from a dark portal that spun to life at its tip.
As it flew through the air, its jaw chomped like it was a skull Pac-Man. It exploded into the Psycho Slinger with a burst of green flames and Walt felt the impact of the bone scythe meeting his soul armor. There was a clang and the wind was knocked out of him. But he did not fall. His feet slid across the floor of the exposed ninth floor hallway. The armor imbue dissipated, the icon on his screen disappearing as the armor was depleted.
Ricky continued flying past him, but he was bathed in green flame that burned through ten points of his bone armor.
Walt looked at his opponent’s health.
Ricky “Z Fucker” Armada
Armor: 0
Health Points: 85
Which meant he had taken damage from the Blood Mirror cards Walt had played on the previous turns.
The gong sounded. The turn ended.
Turn 7
Vigor Stones 7/7
Draw?
Now Ricky and his minions could attack first. The Skeletal Hulkbeast took a tick of poison damage from the gnomesucker’s poison. But then it struck the succubus with one of its shatter fists. The demon lady crumpled and coughed blood, but she was still alive. Barely. She had three health points left.
Jesus. That thing was doing some damage.
His minions retaliated. The succubus’ tail lashed out, shattering the beast’s bone armor. Fragments of yellowed bone dusted the air. The gnomesucker drove its syringe into the exposed muscles near the thing’s knee. But it was still alive. It still had four health left.
And its cooldown would be gone in a few seconds and another one of his minions would be taken off the board.
To his surprise, Ricky flew down and finished off the succubus. He took her head off above the lower jaw. Blood squirted into the air and Walt’s minion finally collapsed.
But then Walt realized since this was a new turn, his own weapon was no longer on cooldown. The new turn had reset it.
Before the Skeletal Hulkbeast could wipe his gnomesucker off the board, Walt blasted a green skull at it. The enemy minion exploded in a ball of green flame when the skull hit it.
The gnomesucker attacked the necromancer. It drove his oversized syringe into Ricky’s back, dinging him for damage but also infecting him with poison. A poison debuff appeared over Ricky’s head, and he trailed black and green noxious fumes.
Walt drew for three cards and prayed for a minion. He needed to get something on the board. His gnomesucker wouldn’t last long. The deck shuffled and he looked at his hand floating over his gauntlet.
Life Leech
Desecrate X
Soul Fury
Grave Grunt
Void Fucker
He was familiar with Void Fucker, but quickly scanned the details on Soul Fury and Grave Grunt.
Soul Fury. Minion. Set: Darkened Soul Arts. Rarity: Common. The soul of a bard ripped from their earthly body. They have mad from the pain of being separated from their host flesh. Pure, melancholic rage.
War Whoop: Releases a Haunting Scream for 3 points of aural damage.
Psychic Shiv: 3 Attack, Cooldown: 5 seconds
Health: 4
Cost: 3 Vigor Stones
It was just a common card so it dealt middling damage. But it was board presence and it had a War Whoop effect which made it somewhat useful. It wasn’t exactly the powerhouse type of card he was looking for, though.
Grave Grunt. Minion. Set: Necromantic. Rarity: Common. Graverobbers who were slain by the necromancer tending to the cemetery for eventual necro-harvesting. Now raised from the dead and reanimated to do the necromancer’s grunt work of digging up corpses for potential minions and experiments.
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Shovel Whack: 6 Attack, Cooldown: 3 seconds
Health: 6 Health
Cost: 3 Vigor Stones
Walt frowned. It was a necromantic card. He could still play it, but he was worried that it might not be that great against a Necromancer. He was suspicious that it could be hijacked and used against him in some way, which could prove to be a fatal mistake.
Walt wouldn’t be able to play a card until his opponent chose his cards.
But the timer didn’t tick for long when the Necromancer released a card into the air. A black cloud roiled forth. A huge, sadistic looking skull pushed out of the cloud and streaked through the air towards him. The black smoke flapping on its back end like a ribbon.
[Examine]
[Bone Spirit]
He didn’t have time to read the description because the Bone Spirit exploded in front of him. He was hit with the shrapnel of exploding bones and teeth. He cried out in pain and kneeled, covering himself with his arms.
The gnomesucker let out a defiant shriek as it was also hit with the area effect of the bone shards. Bone shrapnel stuck out of his skin like the quills of a porcupine. Before his health dinged zero he managed to say, “I’ll see you later! In the afterlife it seems!” Then he disappeared in a poof of noxious smoke.
Blood trickled out of Walt’s arms. There were sharp pieces of bone sticking out of his skin. And his health had lowered.
Health Points: 71
“Like how that felt?” Ricky said. “That’s just a taste of things to come.”
Then the Psycho Slinger pointed at the ground and upturned his hand. A skeletal hand burst out of the floor. A skeleton minion pulled itself up out of the hole.
Walt realized Ricky hadn’t played a card. So this must be his Hero Power. Raising skeletons.
Walt gritted his teeth. His anger overpowering his pain. It was shocking, to feel actual hurt and danger from a card game, but he was focused on making Ricky Armada suffer.
Walt flung the Void Fucker card between him and his opponent. There was a burst of inky black smoke. A chorus of eerie screams sounded. When the smoke cleared, in its place was a writhing mass of purple and blue spectral souls, knotted and fused together in an amalgamation of spirit. Multiple heads let out cries of angst and pain, and a multitude of limbs flailed, looking to inflict pain.
It was inefficient Vigor Stone-wise. As he would be leaving one Vigor Stone unused. But he couldn’t risk playing the Grave Grunt card if it could be used against him. And he thought he would have better odds if he erred on the side of caution.
He didn’t want to use Soultap again. He didn’t want to risk the health just yet and also one extra Vigor Stone right now wouldn’t net him enough to play any of the remaining cards.
Walt just hoped the Void Fucker would be beefy enough to survive for a few minutes. Especially now that the flow of turns would be moving at nearly lightning speed because he was now face-to-face with the Psycho Slinger. There would be no more riding out the gong now that card duelist blood was being shed.
The Skeleton raked the Void Fucker with its fingers, dinging it for only two points of damage.
Turn 8
Vigor Stones 8/8
Draw?
Now Walt and his minions on board could attack first. He figured this wouldn’t be a duel of attrition, not when he was still learning the game and his life was on the line. He already had three Blood Mirrors in position. He figured his strategy from here on out was to hit Ricky ‘The Z Fucker’ Armada for as much damage so he could play the Life Leech card and finish him off.
The Psycho Slinger had [85 Health Points] left, so that meant Walt had to do [55 Health Points] worth of damage. He would get aggressive and go face. It didn’t matter if he was telegraphing his plan. He had to pour all his resources into it and hope the Necromancer couldn’t outheal him.
He shot another Green Skull from his wand. It exploded and doused the cocky streamer in green fire, dinging him for another [10 Health Points].
Walt drew three more cards. He looked at his hand.
Life Leech
Desecrate X
Blood Mirror
Blood Worm Bomber
Replicate
Blood Worm Bomber. Minion. Set: Darkened Soul Arts. Rarity: Common. Plump worms birthed inside the infernal blood red pomegranates whose trees grow on the shores of the Nether Realm. They are swollen with blood, threatening to burst.
Death Cry: Bursts and hits the enemy hero for 3 damage.
Blood Spit: 2 Attack, Cooldown: 2 seconds
Health: 2
Cost: 3 Vigor Stones
Not exactly a strong minion. But there was something odd about it that made Walt pause. The Death Cry effect caught his attention. That was most likely an effect that was trigged when the minion died. Most curious.
Replicate. Spell. Set: Thaumaturgy. Rarity: Rare. A spell from one of the most brilliant minds of the thaumatorlogical arts, Agnes Abhorsen. When cast, choose a minion (that cost 3 Vigor Stones or lower) in the battleboard arena to replicate.
Creates 3 copies.
Cost: 5 Vigor Stones
Walt had to read the card again quickly to make sure his eyes weren’t deceiving him. “What the fuck?”
Was he understanding this right? That Replicate could create three copies of one minion already on the battle board? What the hell?
“This is for sure broken,” he said.
“Are you the type of person who has to mouth his words when he reads?” his opponent said.
Walt looked at Ricky and realized he wanted him to hurry up and play his cards.
And this is when Walt discovered one of the nuances of Slaystone. He realized that Ricky couldn’t play his cards until Walt played his. And he had half the run, or 01:30 to play his cards. If he didn’t by then, then he would forfeit his hand and Ricky would finally be able to play his.
Which essentially meant whoever’s turn it was to go first, they could essentially ride out the clock for a minute and a half.
This was important for two reasons at the moment.
One. Walt currently had a stronger minion on the board. Which was proved when the Void Fucker grabbed the Skeleton with its many hands and ripped it apart, tearing at it with its tug o war attack for [8 Points of Damage]. And now that Ricky had no minions onboard, who would the Void Fucker attack next? It would attack Ricky. The Necromancer could defend himself with his bone scythe, but he’d be subject to the cooldown.
Two. Walt’s Wand would be off cooldown in another minute, which meant he could hit Ricky for another [10 Points of Damage].
So, that’s exactly what Walt did. He would ride out the clock, blast Ricky with another Green Skull, and then play his cards.
“You fucking noob.” Ricky said. “You really this slow?”
“Quiet, I’m trying to think,” Walt said.
The Void Fucker approached Ricky, but the Necromancer’s winged boots lifted him out of the way.
And here was another nuance.
The Heroes could protect themselves from minion attacks by keeping their distance from them. Ricky’s winged boots must have been an item that allowed him to avoid ground minions. And if it was an item, Walt surmised it was probably only active for a certain amount of turns.
“Why are you called The Z Fucker?” Walt said.
T7 00:55
Ricky spoke into his camera. “Should I tell him, Chat?”
The Necromancer took a few seconds to presumably read the replies on his interface. He nodded. “Alright then.” He looked back down at Walt. “In the duel that got me to Psycho Slinger rank, during the qualifier tournaments, my opponent’s handle was Z. It stood for Zania Miller. She was a Greenmage. She thought she was out of my league. Instead of fighting to the death, she yielded. But she was dead set on keeping her cards. So I let her hold onto all her cards. In exchange for a blow job.”
He laughed and looked into his camera. “Isn’t that right, Chat? You all loved it!”
And with that, the moment Walt’s Wand came off cool down, he blasted another Green Skull at Ricky. Replacing his stupid smile with a burst of green flames.