A crystalline chiming brought Gus gently out of his snoring, a cheery blue light greeted him as he had a pleasant stretch and looked around his room groggily. He froze as his mind tried to decide if it what was going on was just another weird dream brought about from late night junk food and binge reading. He tried tugging at his beard and pinching himself as he became more and more exited. A bright blue box bounced before his eyes.
Hello Humans. Quite the mess you’ve made here after Magic moved out. No worries, the System is here to freshen things up. After all, Magic is just Intent and Energy having a lovely tea party to cheer up dull old Reality.
*PTHPPTLT*
Nothing like blowing a psychic raspberry to get high and mighty humans to pay attention. Listen up, you all have legends about things like dragons, goblins, fairies, and the like. Once upon a time magic did run and dance through the landscape, but you humans got boring. What with your fancy cities, your messy wars, and your silly taxes. Eventually you started not liking visitors, you wanted your yards to be bland and and grassy, your caves empty of surprises; so eventually the magical beings who lived here decided to pack up, move out, and turn of the utilities as you might see it. Well the lights are coming back on and all you scheming political cockroaches better scurry on off because djin don’t jive with taxes, dragons don’t care for zoning laws, and you can’t disarm a populous that throw fireballs like dwarves throw back drinks.
Lucky for you The System was sparked into being to help you crazy kids get your lives together as your cosmic neighbors move back in. Let’s give you a run down of what to expect.
1. Death is just an delay: Say you wake up one morning and think to yourself “Hmmm, that dragon in the next valley aught to have some shiny goodies. I could just take a peek while they are out to lunch.” Thats good way to get got. See you in a month when you Respawn at a random Bind Point in your region. While you were taking a dirt nap your neighbor down the lane managed to reach Level 40 in Gardening and used your yard as a test site. I hope you like hiking through talking toadstools to take your dog for a walk. Meanwhile his dog has grown to Level 30 and dropped some Uncommon loot on your drive way. Try trading it to the Toadstools to let you back in your house.
2. Ooooh numbers go brrrrt: Everyone gets a handy Menu, use it to admire your rugged good looks on your character sheet. Do things and not die to earn experience, skills, and lovely loot. Maybe gather a few friends and form a Party to take back the park from the newly monstrous Demon Goose. If you manage to push out the poultry you can claim the area and set up a Fishing Hut and catch some tasty catch to appease your now sentient pet cat.
3. Class is now in session: You humans may have trashed the place, but you came up with some cool ideas in the process. Many of you used your free time to escape with fictional worlds of games and stories. Those nerds and geeks are going to be your best bet to lead you through the crazy times ahead. Certain individuals will be selected to become Support Staff. The particular roles this Title will fill include things like teachers, trainers, counselors, coaches, mentors, and therapists. In exchange for guiding the clueless masses on the path to progress they will get a few Perks. First and foremost access to a Lounge on the moon. When not relaxing, there they can network and plan on how to best help humanity adjust to this bold new world. The Support Staff will help match people to Classes and convert their previous life experience into Skills, Titles, and Abilities recognized by The System.
This first year is going to be a little test for how well humanity can put aside their differences and work together with this life changing opportunity. To motivate good behavior here is a little Stick and Carrot combo. For this first six months Safe Zones are in effect at every place of worship, education, or celebration. If you all play nice and behave these will become a Feature of The System, should you be petty and idiotic the protections will fade and you will once again have to fear every bump in the night.
Have fun ;)
~The System
The Announcement screen popped with the sounds of party noisemakers and a rain of glowing confetti that evaporated as it hit the ground. Gus took great greedy gulps of air as he felt the return of childlike wonder and excitement in his life. He wasted no time and mentally pulled up his Character Sheet
Name:Gunther “Gus” Throckmorton Dean
Race: Human
Level: 1 (0/10 to next level)
Class: N/A
Titles: Eagle Scout, System Support Staff, Dungeon Master, Lifesaver, Animal Friend, Tinkerer
Health: 12/12 (+2 Lifesaver Bonus)
Stamina: 11/11 (+1 Animal Friend Bonus)
Mana: 10/10
Strength: 10
Fortitude: 10
Resilience: 10
Dexterity : 10
Grace: 10
Coordination: 10
Intelligence: 10
Wisdom: 10
Cunning:10
Introspection:10
Perception: 10
Imagination:10
Charisma:10
Sociability:10
Communication:10
Karmic Luck: +-0
Reputation: Decent Fellow
-System Tip: Stats are divided somewhat on three factors: External, Internal, and Adaptability.
Strength is a measure of how much you can push on the world
Fortitude is a measure of how much the world can push on you
Resilience is a measure of how much you bounce back after either
Dexterity is a measure of how finely you can move and interact with things in the world, such as dancing with a stick
Grace is a measure of how much you are effected by forces interacting with you, such as being tripped by a stick
Coordination is a measure of how well you can adjust to go with the flow, such as timing your step to avoid stepping on the stick
Intelligence is a measure of how much and how well you can absorb information
Wisdom is a measure of how well you can recall and apply that information
Cunning is a measure of how much information you put out and how you can shape it, such as bluffing during a game of cards, or not appearing like an easy mark for a merchant to swindle
Charisma is a measure of how much impact you can make on others such as Charming or Intimidating
Sociability is a measure of how well others can impact you such as getting angry with a crowd or being influenced by a speaker
Communication is a measure of how well you can cooperate and coordinate goals when working with others, this involves reading body language, thinking objectively, and being empathetic
Karmic Luck is a measure of how much you have impressed the system. Good and evil are objective the system is all about change. If you stir up drama be prepared for dramatic things happening to you. Try to live a quiet calm life, things might settle down in your area. Some say luck is just an opportunity meeting one who is prepared. Think of it like building a negative charge and having it dissipate as a static shock. With practice some can tempt fate to level the scales when you better handle it or store up good vibes to use in a moment of dire need.
Congratulations: You have been selected as a candidate for System Support Staff. Your Newbie Welcome Bundle has some bonus goodies to help you prepare for the Staff Meeting on the Moon tomorrow evening. Find or make something worthy to enter into the Show and Tell Contest for your Region. By the way, territory is currently divided as follows: Continent, Corner, Province, Region, District, Burb. As a Support Staff candidate you get the basics outlined on your Map. Take a look…
A compass icon highlighted in the upper right corner of the screen and expanded to reveal a world map. North America was set in a blinking rectangle that then zoomed in under the header:
Continent - North America
The lines that normally showed country and state lines were only dotted, solid lines seemed to mark off biomes from what he could assume from the color coding.
It zoomed in on the Gulf Coast states.
Corner: Gulf of Storms
Province: Texas *
Region: Dontmesswith
District: Hewn Stone Sprawl
Burb:Stellar Quandary
*System Note* From here on boundaries and names are subject to change based on the influence of what the majority considers as valid. For instance, in the time you have been awake, the Burb formally known as Detroit has collapsed and been redefined as New Steel City Refugee Camp. The Region previously known as Florida is now Flow Rider Swamp. The District coincidentally previously known as the Washington District of Columbia is now the District of Hot Air and Big Chairs. Humans aren’t the only one’s that make up the majority. It is actually calculated on a curve based on the Level of the inhabitants. The vast majority of humans are level 1, notable exceptions include: South Korea, Japan, Russia, and Flow Rider Swamp. The calculations are still running for Texas, your fellow citizens are still shooting, expect the price of goods such as Gator Hide, Wild Hog Bacon, and Nope Rope Meat to drop for the foreseeable future.
This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.
Quickly closing the map to open his Inventory and look at his Newbie Welcome Bundle. A shoe box sized present made of light floated in front of him the ribbon began to fizzle at the ends like a fuse that quickly burnt away causing the box to pop with still more thankfully illusory glitter. His Inventory Grid started filling in with the contents.
Utility Item: Water Skin with Regional Bonus- Condensation Enchantment
When you live in a place where the air is closer to broth than a breeze, keep cool as you sip chilled cloud juice.
Starter Weapon Voucher: Choose a self repairing Steel weapon of your choice
Staff Bonus- *Friendly Tap* This weapon will only deal 1 point of Damage at a time to yourself and allies.
Potion Sampler Pack: 10 each of Health, Stamina, and Mana Basic Potions- will restore 5 points initially and 5 more over the next 5 minutes
Random Stat Hat Voucher: Pick one- the style of hat or the Stat it will give +1 to.
Staff Bonus: Mine Your Manners Enchantment- the hat still supplies the stat bonus when stored in your inventory. You can also Once a Day tip your hat at someone to transfer the stat bonus to them for 10 minutes.
Bottle of Awesome Sauce: Add this miraculous gravy like seasoning to any food to make it safe to consume, at the cost of halving its flavor. Bottle recharges at local midnight.
Tidy Towel Set: A self cleaning bath towel, hand towel, and hankie. This linen trio will freshen up your life and make you feel just a bit more prepared to handle the world.
Staff Bonus: Color Change Once an Hour pick a new color for the three cloths to take. (*hint* clear is a color if you want to gross out your friends by blowing your nose for all to see)
Support Staff Exclusive Item: Distraction Ducky - Find yourself overwhelmed by questioning students? Being chased by a hungry beast? Need to occupy a toddler while you work? Just plop down this magical floating friend and it will be the object of attention for 1 MP per Minute. Will reappear in your inventory after the effect lapses and require 10 times the used duration to cool down. Capable of being locked into place for the duration of the effect.
So, Show in Tell Contest during the meeting on the moon, Gus had no idea what he was going to bring but he felt an instant drive to win. He pulled out the Starter Weapon Voucher and marveled at the shining foil ticket before it sparkled into bubbles and a new screen told him to envision his desired weapon.
He still had his clay pigeon shooting 12 gauge in his gun safe along with his 22 caliber pistol with an attachable suppressor for taking out cans and small game should the need arise. Thinking it over for a moment, Gus wondered how to get the most out of the Friendly Tap bonus enchantment. He could risk learning to handle a new kind of weapon if it had magical training wheels. Also, if it was crafted just from his mental image he could try and work in some complicated features and the self repair function could reset any mechanical failures that occured. He gazed at the Design Window in front of him and got a mental impression that there were limits on the size and weight. Oh well, no Warthog Gunship for his starter weapon.
He looked at his shelf of table top figures for inspiration. It seemed like a waste of the opportunity to go with a simple longsword or spear. The whip like Urumi held by his Gnome Blade Dancer seemed promising, normally that weapon was crazy dangerous to learn. But then his gaze was drawn to his trusty multi-tool sitting in its sheath on his dresser. He needed a weapon that could do adapt to the situation.
Given his current suburban environment he would like face both open area and closed quarter combat. He didn’t quite understand the Magic situation, maybe he would unlock spells as he leveled up or find spell books as loot. He looked next at his fishbowl filled with a variety of dice. Walking over to the shelf he decided to test the limits of his 12 current Inventory Slots half of which were full of the potions and other Bundle contents. He picked out a lime green D20 and dropped it into an open box it turned into a two dimensional picture then the borders of the box became striped and it moved to the upper left corner of the grid a Notification Screen danced into view.
Reminder: You may only place Mundane Items in 1 slot per every 10 personal levels. Like objects stack up to 10 for every 10 levels for Non System items. Support Staff Hint - Groups of items considered a functional unit may take up this 1 spot, for instance a deck of cards or sewing kit.
The insider information gave Gus an idea he plucked out the d20 and returned it to its shiny brethren. He went over to where his backpack sat on his desk chair and dug around until he found his first aid kit. While not magical he figured he could still patch himself or others up and maybe earn a skill for it. When he put the small pouch in the Mundane slot the border changed to gold, a new notification came to fore.
Eagle Scout and Lifesaver Titles give the following bonuses to this item:
1. First aid may be applied on yourself through your Equipment Screen. Just select where on your body you want them to be applied.
2. Individual items of this kit may be called by Intent. When applying First Aid to an Ally you may access their inventory for relevant items such as Potions, bandages, antidotes, ect. The individual will be notified during the process and can refuse if conscious.
Gus whistled to himself at the perks added by his Titles. He removed the books and laptop from his backpack and set them on the dresser next to the hoard of dice in the fishbowl. He looked at the cover of one of the fantasy novels and saw a pair of guards blocking access to a throne room with their crossed pole-axes. An idea for his Starter Weapon bubbled up in his head. He looked at the waiting Design window and mentally sketched out his new best friend. While the Voucher specified a Steel weapon it did allow a few other materials like wood and leather for handles.
After playing around a bit he also discovered that the weapon could separate somewhat though when he tested the limits by making a stack of throwing stars the screen reset, so he modified the build to the edges of the arbitrary limits. What he ended up he felt to be a worthy entrant for Show and Tell.
Blood Swimmer:
Unique Exotic Tinkered Poleaxe: An intricate series of telescopic and detachable segments allow the handle to be adjusted in several configurations.
Fully extended 2.5 meters as one handle
Separated two 1 meter handles joined by 1.5 meters of retractable braided wire.
Poleaxe head combines fuctions of a Spear (Skewering the sculpted fish), Hammer (head of sculpted fish) and Double Bearded Axe (tail of sculpted fish). Head can be detached and swung from retractable 3 meter braided wire. A counter weight on the bottom of the weapon serves as an additional piercing point with deployable barbs.
Sliding weights can be locked in place to allow variable center of gravity.
A series of adjustable sockets can grip various projectiles for flinging in an atlatl fashion.
Enchantments: Self Repair, Friendly Tap
The conjured weapon rose up from the Design screen like a shark surfacing to sample a seal. The satisfying weight of the Verne-esque staff did wonders for settling the nervous jitters Gus had been feeling since the System shenanigans started. The sharkskin inspired texture on the handles made his grip feel firm and he twisted the segments to tighten the projectile sockets and deploy the barbs. As much as he wanted to test it out, he still needed to actually leave his bedroom, so he plopped it into a free Inventory Slot and packed his backpack.
After mulling it over he stowed three of the lighter paperback books, they could make good trade fodder once the power grid dropped. Combing through his closet he added his cudgel like Maglight flashlight, some sturdy socks, and a thin rainjacket. After dialing in the combination on his gun safe he shouldered the sling of his shotgun bag then took out the gun itself and loaded in shells alternating between birdshot and slugs. He double checked the safety and latched on a trigger blocking velcro tie. Before zipping it back in the carrying sleeve he added a small field cleaning kit then carefully looped his pistol holster with its connected bandoleer belt that brought up memories of cowboy movies.
That reminded him, he still had the Random Stat Hat Voucher. Though he was sorely tempted to request a steampunk Stetson he quieted his inner child and selected Luck as the stat to boost. His head felt slightly warmer and was about to reach up to pull of his new acquisition when he recalled that he could just check his Equipment Screen. A T-posing action figure sized depiction of his current self smiled slightly from underneath a floppy forest green fishing hat. As his avatar spun in place he noticed lime green eyes and an drooping pink cloth tongue on the back face of the hat. Gus pulled up the items stat page.
The Lily-pad Lollygagger: +1 Luck (Support Staff Bonus- provides stat boost even when not equipped)
Need to keep the mosquitoes of your neck while you try to land your supper? This cheery cap has got your back. Literally, eye-spot markings are known to unnerve ambush predators. You’re sure to turn heads with this slick wingman.
With a dose of cuteness to further boost his morale, Gus adjusted the straps on his gun sling and backpack and locked his bedroom as he grabbed a handful of protein bars for breakfast and set out into the suburban sprawl.
No sooner had he turned the key on his apartment’s deadbolt, when a scuffling sound echoed out from the stairwell. Gus equipped Blood Swimmer, he didn’t want to risk sending a round through the walls and hitting his neighbors Chihuahua, as unfortunate an end to the yapping ankle-bitter would be. Quietly doing his best rendition of a sneaking crouch walk he shuffled forward toward possible combat.
Upon rounding the blind corner, the scent of trash marinading in the Texas sun percolated up into an eye watering bouquet. Remembering a bit of trivia about why so many police officers had mustaches, Gus mentally pulled up his Equipment screen and queued up the contents of his first aid kit. Focusing on the vapor rub gel he imagined swiping along the whiskers on his upper lip and sighed at the cool eucalyptus and mint overtaking the stank and settling his stomach.
A slick oily shape rose clambered up the steps to challenge the intruder over its newly claimed territory.
Level 3 Grime Rat
HP:?/?
Status: Territorial (will possibly disengage if you retreat)
Gus glared at the growling, knee high sack of XP. While it was still rearing up on its hind legs Gus steped and swung with the practice of hundreds of hours in a VR golf simulator. He angled his grip to lead with the blunt hammer nose and christened his weapon on its maiden voyage. The rancid rodent folded around the impact as a confirmatory crunch from its former skeleton started the transition to bone dust. Its Health bottomed out before it slammed into the wall of the stairwell and stuck briefly into place before peeling off and flipping down a few times like a child’s toy. As it flopped onto the steps it started to imitate a different toy as it slinked and sprung down the stairs. A combat summary popped into view.
Critical Hit: Bloodswimmer does 15 blunt damage to Level 3 Grime Rat.
Level 3 Grime Rat HP:0/12
Overkill!
Congratulations - You have earned: 12 XP, Temporary Buff - Nope, Narf: 50% Chance to Intimidate Rodent type creatures of Level 10 and under. Could cause hesitation or retreat. Duration 3 hours.
Touch any part of the carcass to access Loot. If not accessed within 10 minutes it will become claimable by anyone until it dissipates in 6 hours.
Gus was still posed in an upswing, enraptured by the cartoonish violence. He checked his surroundings to see if anything would come to investigate the rodent-cide scene. An exclamation mark wiggled for attention in the corner of the HUD like a kindergarten asking to go to the bathroom. The prospect of Loot had his full focus however. He strode forward with a hint of swagger then tapped the yellow fang still embedded in the wall amid a slimy silhouette.
Level 3 Grime Rat Carcass, Contents: 2 Copper, 2 Filthy Fangs, 1 Grime Rat Tail, 1 Copy of The Loot Mule Weekly Edition 1 - The System Official Magazine (*hint* Each Edition comes with a free Cantrip Spell redeemed by completing puzzle inside.)
Well, he took the poor beasties two last coins to rub together and scored some nice reading material. Hopefully the Cantrip would be more utility oriented than a parlor trick. He followed the trail of goop down to his slain foes final resting place. Since he had the wonderful self cleaning towel set he might as well try and field dress the thing to get more crafting materials.
He laid out the bath towel and used the hand towel to wipe the aftermath from Blood Swimmer. After he returned his combat tested companion to his Inventory, Gus unsheathed his multitool from his belt and flicked out one of the knife blades with his thumb. He sliced a capital ‘I’ in the rodent’s underside and peeled off the hide like a small furry vest. He again looked about in case of further scavengers then set about checking the contents of its last meal. Something snapped and lurched in the mobs belly and Gus felt his knife kick, he tugged it back out and if not for the gunk he would have scratched his head wondering how the thing swallowed a moustrap whole without setting it off. He wiped off his multitool then his hands as he evaluated his bonus haul.
Raw Rat Hide: Clean - Good Quality
Snap Trap: A spring powered trap for small creatures - Tinkerer Tip - Would make a good alarm or trigger for another trap.
Inventory space was running out. Only 2 free slots remained, but Gus wasn’t about to put these items in his backpack, even if the System considered them ‘clean’. He was about to walk away when his inner Hoarding Hamster pointed accusingly at the waste. With a few drops of Awesome Sauce for peace of mind he plopped the seasoned slab to join the rest in his Inventory. It might make a good distraction if he tossed it while being chased by something bigger. The Distraction Ducky would be a last resort measure, he still had to experiment with magic, he could tackle the puzzle in the Loot Mule once he regrouped with his gaming buddies.
Face met palm as he pulled out his phone and logged in to the Discord server they used to stay in touch. It looked like they had a significant lead on him. Four of them already somehow had Mounts, they were in teens for levels and posted a picture captioned The Four Horseman of the Apocalypse, with Nick, Brandon, Matthew, and Charles astride a horse sized, Grizzly, Lynx, Main Coon, and Koala respectively.
The plan was to clear the area around Alter Ego Comics and establish a base camp. It was set to be a nexus of nerds, most of the regulars had been selected for Support Staff anyway.
Gus brought his poleaxe back out and set it on his shoulder as he hummed a Monty Python song and skipped out onto the sidewalk.