One neat feature of the quick-access menu is that it holds an item type, rather than one element alone.
If you put a potion there and the avatar drinks it, another vial will replace it.
You had a shield on and it breaks? Until there's a backup in the inventory it will appear in the same slot.
Thank God it does, - no matter how well-organized the inventory is, there's no chance to browse in this combat.
The opponent on the left has a greatsword that he spins over his head without a break.
It could slice the character in half with minimal effort, the gladius could do little to block it.
It's wedged into my shoulder, causing a three-point injury despite the brigandine.
He only pauses until he rips it off and the spinning continues.
The guy on the right chopped up the previous shield like it was nothing.
Well, it was a battered one, both in name and condition.
Blocking an axe with a wood is stupid regardless.
If they were the other way around...
Oh wait, there's a wide gap between them as both weapons need plenty of space to swing around.
It's risky to go near them as they're in constant motion, but they also try to flank, so there has to be a way to exploit this.
Remember what Tank said about melee, get up close and personal.
That heavy lump of steel spins around fast yet it's hard to change the direction of a swing.
If you find the right rhythm...
A strike against the axeman's head puts him on the defense long enough to dash forward and onto the other side.
The next shield appears on the avatar's right hand in time to block a huge slam from the greatsword.
That should do worse at breaking it, and in theory, the gladius has a fighting chance against the axe too.
While they're still close, another stab under his arm finds a way through his leather armor.
It's thinner than the swordsman's plates.
He recoils, delaying his response even further, and the sword still gathers momentum.
Okay, another stab then, nice, and precise as practiced.
The log shows that it dealt some damage, even if not much, and the guard did much better against the blade.
[03:21:33 Light Stab with Gladius on Mercenary. You lost 0.07 Stamina. It's a Critical Hit! +5 Damage.]
This swap might work, and it should put them between me and the crossbowman lurking in the shadows too.
The system calls them Mercenary though, not Poltergeist.
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Whatever they are, he missed his opportunity to counter-attack again.
Every strike that deals them damage takes away their momentum by the looks of it.
It was the same when he injured the character's shoulder.
The difference is that recovery is much faster with this light weapon.
[03:21:39 Light Stab with Gladius on Mercenary. You lost 0.07 Stamina. +2 Damage. You killed a Mercenary +570 Exp.]
Holy shit, he's done. That adds up to ten hit points, so they're indeed human.
And killing those gankers above level ten gave the same amount of points.
These are some serious opponents.
His body turns into pixels like usual, and his great axe drops.
It's tempting to pick it up and bash it against the plate armor.
That thing has to go through, but could the character wield it?
It's two-handed so you can't hold a shield with it.
It would have some strength requirements too, which means a debuff.
The other Mercenary won't wait to think it through.
It's impossible to go near that huge blade, he keeps it always in motion, reaching much further than a gladius.
It's scary to put even the shield in its way to create an opening.
The bang is so heavy, that the character's arm almost falls off.
This huge sword needs a lot of space to swing around, so the only way is to follow Tank's advice, and go up close and personal.
That Trainer knew what he was talking about, but the gladius still can't find a gap in his defenses.
Once the avatar slows down two more thuds on the brigandine show that the marksmen are still around.
One of them caused some minor damage too, though it's already a miracle that they didn't nail the head.
How much can these things dish out?
They seem weaker than the recurve bow. Well, that's not a complaint.
The counter still shows five people nearby.
So there is Sword Guy, the two crossbowmen, where's the other two?
How much can his plate block?
The two seconds I spend thinking is enough for him to take a step back, and swing at me with full strength.
His blade sweeps away the guard like it's not even there.
It no longer is, flying off the arm and cutting deep into the sides.
Shit, that was five HP, despite how the shield took the brunt of it, and the heavy brigandine the rest.
That weapon is OP, it's not possible to dance around him.
Forget the guard, run for that axe while drinking a potion, and...
There's one of the crossbow fuckers dead ahead, and I stare straight at a bolt flying this way.
He blocks the path toward the weapon, and if that shot lands, it might end this fight early.
And right when the shield flew off, what terrible timing.
The last backup is on the quick-access but equipping it now would be too late.
The gladius is the only hope, it's a short and wide blade, light enough to get there in time.
Even the attempt feels like using the Force and becoming a Jedi.
The bolt's too heavy to stop, yet a leftward spin can redirect its momentum.
It avoids the avatar's throat by a hair's breadth, and keeping the spin with the blade reaching out cuts the enemy.
The potion flies off from the force, but that few drops landing on the lips should be all the avatar needs.
There's no need to drink the whole thing before the devs patch it.
[Status effect: Healing Potion +5000% Regeneration Speed 0:02.]
Avoiding attacks for two more seconds should put me in the green, at least it would be nice.
The truth is, one clean strike from that greatsword would be deadly anyway.
Not even a heavy armor worth three hundred gold can stop that thing, so it's time to take the fucker out.
The marksman tries to run after the unsuccessful first strike, and he's fast.
He can't outrun the double-handed axe though.
Once it's in the hands, it takes all the strength the character has to swing it around.
At least it reaches far enough to knock him out.
[03:22:29 Heavy Stab with Great Axe on Mercenary. You lost 1.5 Stamina. +13 Damage. You killed a Mercenary +570 Exp.]
Holy fuck, okay, yeah, this thing has some heft to it.
A single swing took more stamina than the entire fight until now, though it also dealt that much damage.
It's a good thing the Mercenary turns into pixels because if the axe got stuck in his ribcage I couldn't rip it out.
This must be able to go through that plate armor too, if he doesn't land a hit on me first.