Follow along with the audio file! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ac0yrxR0k90&list=PLqDdUMMPmcNlyxfzZgSGDJvIbcZPmVUmS
Matthew had run into some trouble in the summer before starting college. One: He had no money. Two: He didn't have a job. Three: He didn't have a car. These three problems upset Matthew greatly, however, the third problem wasn't necessarily bad. He liked hoofing it. However, he, at some points had wished he hadn't purchased a capsule, and a 2-year subscription to Royal Road, which he hasn't even started playing yet. Matthew decided that before he went off to college, he would play to his heart's content. He just wished he had someone to play with, since none of his friends was interested in playing Royal Road.
He started up the capsule on the first of the new month, and hopped in, after the diagnosis test came through with pleasing green lights. As soon as he closed it, the lights flickered, and he heard a small, electric sound, like a shortage. However, this only lasted a second, and the whirring hum of the capsule came on, with the message:
Connect to Royal Road?
Yes|No
Of course he chose "Yes", and then he felt his body became weightless, as his conscious mind entered the game.
The scan on your iris and vein has determined that you are an unregistered user. Do you want to create a new account?
“Yes."
Select the name of your Avatar.
With this, he went with his favorite gaming name, knowing for sure no one else had this name.
"Mathgar."
Select gender. Male, Female, or neuter.
"Male, of course."
Every MMO has been like this with this expository jargon. It was time-consuming, but he guessed it was important.
Royal Road has 50 total races. You may select your race from the primary 32 races that are currently available.
Wait, Matthew thought, he was positive there were only 49 races in Royal Road. There must be a bug in his capsule, he concluded to himself. Nevertheless, he still searched through the available races.
"View Selection."
He was unimpressed by most of the races, which were typical vanilla races, like the elf, dwarf, gnome, human, etc. But, he saw in the list a race which he had NEVER SEEN before, even on the RR forums.
"View Initial Stats."
Then, the window appeared.
Humanus Prime Status Window
Health 50Mana 50Strength 7Agility 7Wisdom 7Intellect 7Vitality 7Luck 0Leadership 0Flow 10Attack 2Defense 0Humanus Prime, a race long since thought exterminated. Their connection to the universe is unmatched. Strong with any style of specialty. Starts weakened, due to no previous connection to the world, beforehand.
Matthew liked the sound of this race, even though the starting stats were frighteningly low. He could be killed very quickly at any time. He also hadn't seen a Flow stat anywhere before, either.
"Humanus Prime."
You may alter your appearance using the index.
Matthew viewed his character's base features. His character looked exactly like him, except, something seemed different, but he couldn't place it. He just decided to keep the looks the same.
Your account has been created. Your stats and class shall be determined while you are playing Royal Road.
Select a city and a kingdom you would to start in.
He hadn't thought of a place to start, but he didn't feel like leaving the pod just to look for a easy place to start. A name popped into his head.
"Khurt, in the Kallamore Kingdom."
Welcome to Royal Road, Mathgar.
The light that came from nowhere blinded him, and in response, he shielded his eyes with his hands. When his vision returned, he was standing in a field of scorched earth, surrounded by stone statues.
"Well, this is a new way to start a game." Mathgar said to himself, but his voice seemed to resonate slightly, which reminded him of some sort of great, powerful being. He went over to one of the statues and punched it, to test the pain mechanics of RR.
He felt a hard thud. "Yep, it is running fine," Mathgar told himself, while rubbing his knuckles in pain. A man in a dark cloak walked up to him, and said, "I see that you are new to this world. Would you like some help finding your path of destiny?"
*Ding*
The Path to Destiny
The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
A mysterious man has offered you the ability to start your destiny.
Difficulty: ???
Requirement: None
Reward: ???
Mathgar was unsure of this stranger, but he was the only other person in this garden of solemn stone. "Yes, I would like guidance."
Quest Accepted!
"Wonderful. Let's get started. Hit that statue, any way that feels comfortable, but hit it as hard as you can, for as long as you can."
How odd. This menial task was going to help his quest? Well, it was better than nothing. He punched the nearest statue as hard as he could, half expecting to break his hand. But, a blue aura surrounded his arm mid-swing, and he destroyed the statue......or so he thought.
*Ding*
Strength rises by 1. (+1 STR)
Flow rises by 1. (+1 FLW)
Fame rises by 15. (+15 FAME)
A stat point, for punching a statue? That was truly strange. After the stone shell fell apart, a man, who looked like an innkeeper, fell to his knees in a thud. He raised he head, and spoke. "You have saved me from the Curse of Ghal. I thank you!" He seemed like he was truly grateful, Mathgar thought to himself, and he had an idea. He knelt down next to the man, and asked, "Do all these other statues hold people inside?"
"Yes, they are all the residents of this village. We didn't even have time to escape from Ghal's horde of death....." he receded into a sobbing ball. This looked bad. But, he didn't want to stand by and watch these people suffer for an eternity.
"I will free these people, for you. I wish you to be reunited with your people." Mathgar echoed. He went off the free the others, before he could hear the quiet "thank-you" from the innkeeper.
Breaking the statues took at least 6 hours in game time. He was so glad he didn't use too much time. He wanted to keep looking at the world that was Royal Road. After he had freed the town, he looked back at his messages.
Strength rises by 25. (+25 STR)
Vitality rises by 10. (+10 VIT)
Agility rises by 6. (+6 AGI)
Flow rises by 39. (+39 FLW)
Fame rises by 350. (+350 FAME)
Life rises by 250. (+250 HP)
Mana rises by 50. (+50 MP)
You have gained the Perseverance stat. You cannot allocate points into this stat. Actions that are done that pertain to this stat will give points to this stat accordingly.
Perseverance rises by 30. (+30 PER)
New Skill: You have learned Unarmed Mastery.
New Skill: You have learned Strength from Stone.
New Skill: You have learned Critical Hit.
Cool, he didn't know that he got so many skills and bonuses from freeing the townspeople. He still didn't quite know what some of his skills and stats did.
"Status and Skill Window."
Status WindowAvatar Name: MathgarAlignment: True NeutralRace: Humanus PrimeTitle: NoneLevel: 1Class: NoneFame: 365Health: 300Mana: 100Strength: 33+5Agility: 13Wisdom: 7Intellect: 7Vitality: 17Flow: 50Perseverance: 30Luck: 0Leadership: 0Attack: 2Defense: 2Magic ResistancesEarth: 10
Unarmed Mastery Beginner Level: 2 [86%] Passive
Your skill with your fists and kicks has increased their combat ability.
Unarmed ATK Speed: +6%
Unarmed ATK Damage: +2%
Strength From Stone Beginner Level: 1 [96%] Passive
Your resolve to destroy stone with your bare hands has increased your physical capability.
Bonus STR: +5
Bonus Defense: +2
Earth Resistance: +10
Critical Hit Beginner Level: 1 [63%] Passive
Your ability to find vital points in targets is uncanny.
Critical Hit Chance: +1%
Mathgar chuckled. He is going to have a wonderful time playing this game.
The Next Chapter: http://www.royalroadl.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=465&t=4085