I entered the Southern Forest in the early afternoon, and everything was quiet except for the sound of rabbits and the occasional deer. One grove of trees looked particularly tall and strong, so I spent the afternoon securing tightropes and setting snares. I wasn’t sure I was ready to take on a pack of wolves, but I was satisfied with my preparations.
As the sun fell, I explored the forest, making sure to stay close to my base. If the wolves in this game were like regular wolves, they’d wait until twilight to start hunting. They could see in the darkness, and so could I.
I thought I’d found a pack of wolves gathered near a ridge, but it turned out to be a colony of giant ants. Hundreds of insectoid monsters feasted on what looked like a family of fallen humanoids. I shuddered and stepped away.
I walked nearly the entire perimeter around my wooded area, and then I saw a group of gray wolves emerge from a ravine. I counted five and none looked particularly large. Perfect.
I left my hiding place, making no attempt at stealth. The wolves turned to face me, yet instead of running or snarling, they came to a halt, their tongues lolling and their eyes shining in the moonlight. We stood facing each other until three more figures stepped out of the ravine: a black wolf the size of a Great Dane flanked by two gray wolves who looked like puppies in comparison.
My stomach clenched as I realized how badly I’d misjudged the situation. I was facing seven wolves led by a dire wolf. Orla’s warning resonated in my mind: Those are wolves you don’t fight. When you see a dire wolf, run.
There was no way that I could make it back to Raven’s Rest, so I’d have to execute my plan despite the change in circumstances. Now that I had the wolves’ attention, I turned and sprinted to my grove of trees. The wolves followed behind, howling with obvious joy.
Using the hooks in the toes of my boots, I climbed the tallest tree in my grove until I was well over ten feet off the ground. Then I took my crossbow, which had been resting on a tree branch, pulled back the prod, and waited.
My snares snapped, and two of the wolves screamed as they flew into the air. At the same time, other wolves leapt upward, howling with their teeth bared. None could reach me. I fired repeatedly at the ensnared wolves, but only half of my shots hit their targets. Finally, both health bars dropped to zero. +700 XP! +700 XP!
Next, I fired into the mass of gray wolves at the base of the tree. I was rewarded with several cries of pain, but none of the beasts fell. After I’d shot ten bolts, they finally seemed to grasp what I was doing. The wolves stepped away and spread out, but their yellow, hate-filled eyes remained fixed on me. The dire wolf stood farther back, appearing neither angry nor impressed.
I walked a tightrope to a smaller tree, and the wolves followed close behind. A snare caught one of them, and it shouted as the rope snapped it upward. Three out of my five bolts hit their target and the wolf fell silent. +700 XP! Just four more and the dire wolf.
After reaching the second tree, I descended to a lower branch. The wolves snarled and jumped, but they couldn’t reach me. After loading my crossbow, I leaned forward and dangled my leg. A wolf leapt up, and I fired point-blank at its forehead. To my shock, I missed.
I only had twelve bolts left, and if I kept missing, I’d have to fight with Ebonclaw. Finally, I noticed the shimmering plus sign in the upper right. The familiar dialog popped up, its title reading WELCOME TO LEVEL 4! SELECT ONE OF THE FOLLOWING ABILITIES:
1. Improved Evasion – run twice as fast when fleeing enemies
2. Animal Communication – speak to animals for up to ten minutes each day
3. Weapon Specialization – become more skilled with a weapon
In that moment, I needed Weapon Specialization more than anything. The next dialog asked for the weapon type, and I scrolled down and selected Light Crossbow, which meant I’d be more accurate with the weapon and do more damage. After the dialog vanished, I climbed to my original branch.
Now my plan worked. I waved my foot at the remaining wolves and shot them as they jumped. Pull, load, dangle foot, fire. The remaining gray wolves took turns trying to tear my leg off, and I killed each of them, receiving a +700 XP! message each time.
Throughout the slaughter, the dire wolf never snarled leapt at me. It sat on the ground, far out of the range of my crossbow, and watched. Orla was right: dire wolves had ice water flowing through their veins.
I was down to my last three bolts. After loading the crossbow, I climbed to the lowest branch, dangled my foot downward, and called out to the dire wolf.
“Come on, big guy. Now’s your chance.”
To my shock, a loud, high-pitched cackle filled the night air. I looked up, expecting to see the Wicked Witch of the West flying around on a broomstick. Instead, I beheld a huge bird-like shape speeding straight toward me. The head of a human female grinned from between black, condor-sized wings.
“Venabel’s greetings, coward! AHAHAHA!”
The creature extended its bony arm toward me and a glowing orb flew out of its hand. I tried to avoid it by climbing to a higher branch, but the orb hit me in the side and threw me to the ground.
Now the dire wolf moved. The black wolf dashed toward me at incredible speed, teeth bared. Just before it pounced, I fired my crossbow into its chest, knocking it backward. Terrified, I threw aside the crossbow, ran farther into the forest, and climbed one of the taller trees.
After finding a perch, I took in what was happening. Venabel had sent a monster to punish me for killing her wolves. I’d played enough fantasy games to recognize the half-bird, half-woman creature as a harpy—a spellcasting demon that was far too powerful to be beaten by a Level 4 Rogue. Paralyzed with fear, I watched the demon glide through the nearby trees.
“The Lady of Murder demands your life, human, and not just because you've slain her beloved wolves. Oh no, she loathes your cowardice. What kind of warrior climbs trees when faced with danger? No warrior at all, but a pussycat! A craven pussycat! Show yourself!”
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It was only a matter of time before the harpy found me, and she’d probably kill me with a single spell. As I came to terms with my imminent death, fear lost its grip on my mind. My thoughts turned to El Gato, who had never faced anything like the demon sailing through the trees. How would he fight a harpy?
He’d start by looking through his resources to see what he could use. For me, this was a quick search. My crossbow lay on the ground and Ebonclaw was useless until the harpy came within arm’s reach. I had a belt, a purse, and Gorlis’s rope tied around my midsection.
Rope, the rogue’s best friend.
The harpy glided closer, inspecting the nearby trees. “Where are you, you pathetic jackanapes?”
I uncoiled Gorlis’s rope and tied a loop at one end, just as he’d taught me. Silently and carefully, I swung the loop in a circle.
“I beg your mercy!” I shouted. “I’m nearly dead. I just… want to go home!”
More cackling filled the forest. “Fear not, pussycat! Your troubles are about to end!”
The harpy flew toward me, roaring with laughter. I leaned back, steadying myself between two branches, and waited. As soon as her glowing eyes emerged through the leaves, I threw my lasso and caught the loop around her neck.
“What? How dare--”
The harpy gasped as the loop closed around her throat. She flapped her wings, struggling to fly, but I jumped from my branch, still holding my end of the lasso. She couldn’t support my weight, and as I fell, I pulled her down with me. Her neck caught between a pair of thick branches and her health bar dropped to two-thirds.
I climbed up the rope and unsheathed Ebonclaw. Before the harpy could defend herself, I drove my blade into her right eye. She screamed as her health bar dropped to one half, and screamed even louder when I pierced her left eye. Two stabs later, a +1,600 XP! message flashed. Another plus sign shimmered in the upper right. I’d risen to Level 5 only minutes after reaching Level 4.
Exhausted, I downed a Potion of Lesser Healing, which raised my health to 18, but then something odd happened. I found it hard to breathe, as though something was clutching my throat. My health bar changed from red to green and started to shrink—my health dropped to 15, then 12, then 9. According to my character sheet, I’d been poisoned. How?
I looked at my hands, and drops of the harpy’s black blood writhed on my fingers as though still possessing life. I frantically wiped the blood on tree leaves until all trace of the liquid was gone. Then I drank my Potion of Cure Poison. My health bar returned to its normal red color, but my health was down to 8. After two more potions of Lesser Healing, my health rose to 17.
Despite my success against the wolves and the harpy, one major problem remained. Looking down from my perch, I saw the dire wolf seated about six feet away from the base of my tree. Judging from its placid expression, it had all the time in the world. If I didn’t come down and fight, I had no doubt that another pack of wolves would arrive in due course.
I had to come up with a plan, but first, I focused my attention on the shimmering plus sign. The dialog read WELCOME TO LEVEL 5! SELECT ONE OF THE FOLLOWING ABILITIES:
1. Early Warning – receive premonition of sneak attacks before they occur
2. Backstabbing – quadruple damage when stabbing an exposed area on the target’s back
3. Weapon Specialization – become more skilled with a weapon
Early Warning would have been great before the harpy attacked, but right now, I needed to deal damage. So I chose Backstabbing, which multiplied damage dealt when a target was stabbed in the back. After the dialog disappeared, I drank a Potion of Lesser Stoneskin and drove Ebonclaw deep into the harpy’s corpse, making sure both sides of the blade were covered with its blood.
I climbed to the ground and faced the dire wolf, Ebonclaw outstretched to my side. “Come and get me!”
The beast didn't need encouragement. It dashed forward, its yellow eyes lit up like candles. It leapt at my throat, its open jaws revealing fangs longer than Ebonclaw. It might have torn through my neck, but thanks to my Acrobatics skill, I stepped aside and sliced into its belly. This barely lowered its health bar, but I’d cut deep enough to draw blood.
I tried to get behind the wolf to try my new Backstab ability, but it was too fast. It turned and slashed at me, and would have done serious damage if it weren’t for my snakeskin armor and the stoneskin potion. As it was, my health only fell to 14. I drove Ebonclaw into the muscle below the wolf’s right shoulder, and the beast howled.
I made another attempt at a backstab, but the beast fell back on its haunches and sprang, driving its head into my chest and knocking me off my feet. It thrust its head forward, and I drove my left forearm into its mouth to keep it from tearing into my neck. I screamed as its teeth bit into my elbow, and my health dropped to 4. The pain was overwhelming and the edges of my vision started to darken. But I mastered myself. With my right hand, I drove Ebonclaw into the wolf’s throat.
The wolf slashed again, but its movements were slower now and less forceful. The fury drained out of its eyes, which turned sickly and pale. The beast started to choke, allowing me to extract my left arm from its jaw. Its health bar had turned green, which meant it was poisoned—the harpy blood on Ebonclaw was doing its work.
The wolf fell onto its side, choking and crying. As I staggered to my feet, I watched the green bar fall to nearly nothing. For a moment, the dire wolf looked at me with a pleading expression, and then its head dropped to the ground. +1,000 XP!
I drank my last Potion of Lesser Healing, which stopped my left arm from bleeding but only barely dulled the pain. Given all the experience I’d earned, I thought I’d feel a sense of triumph. But as I looked at the blood covering me and the bodies lying dead at my feet, I felt numb. I just wanted to get back to the tavern and pass out.
I carefully wiped the harpy blood off Ebonclaw and cleaned it a second time to be sure. Then I extracted fangs from the eight wolves. That finished, I climbed up to the harpy’s corpse and, very carefully, filled a flask with its blood.
I retrieved my crossbow, most of my bolts, and all my lengths of rope. Then I headed back to Raven’s Rest.
⚔
When I returned to my room at the tavern, I lay on the cot and studied my new flask of poison. Most gamers hated playing rogues because of the limitations—rogues can’t wear the best armor, use the best weapons, or cast the best spells. That meant an experienced rogue couldn’t inflict nearly as much damage as an experienced knight or wizard.
But everything changes when poison enters the game. Unlike regular weapon damage, poison damage continues over time, draining health with each passing moment. If the poison is strong enough and the victim can’t neutralize it, a single cut can be lethal. With the right weapon and the right poison, a rogue can slay a dragon.
I held up the flask of harpy blood and whispered, “I will defeat Prince Galliel, save the kingdom from invasion, and find the Medallion of Darnok. I will beat this damned game.”
Before resting for the night, I looked through my character sheet.
Dylan, Level 5 follower of Motiacca
XP: 12,450 out of 20,000, Health: 30 out of 30, Mana: 13 out of 13, Stamina: 22 out of 22
Coin: 4 silver
Weapons: Ebonclaw (+4/+6 with specialization), Light crossbow (+2/+4 with specialization)
Armor: +2 Snakeskin Leather
Skills: Stealth – 4, Acrobatics – 10, Locks and Traps – 7, Dagger – 6, Alchemy – 3, Crossbow – 4
Abilities: Dark Vision, Weapon Specialization: Dagger and Light Crossbow, Backstab
Quests: FIND THE MEDALLION OF DARNOK