Chapter 44 – Gizmo of Doom
“Need a hand with that, boss?” Cobra asks as I’m currently balancing on top of one of my half-orc Thugs, trying to attach the last of the release mechanisms above the door. “It wouldn’t look good for the boys if our fearsome leader broke his neck doing manual labour you know.” He chuckles.
I snort. “If I let your clumsy fingers anywhere near this thing, we would all end up with severe acid burns, and you know it.”
“Oy, these clumsy fingers are well known in every brothel from the Shanty Town all the way north to the Crafter’s District. Don’t underestimate my fine-tuned accessories like that.” He muffles his laugh.
I smirk. “Whatever you say, Cobra. I should have named you Ten-Thumbed Thompson when I had the chance.”
He gasps in mock outrage. “You wouldn’t dare!”
“Hah. It’s never too late you know…”
He snickers. “Allow me to apologize and offer you some assistance getting down from there. Wouldn’t want my dearest boss to sprain an ankle or break a nail. What sort of bodyguard would that make me?” He grins as he extends a hand.
“Cheeky minion…” I mutter, grabbing his offered hand and lower myself back down to the ground. Looking up, I admire my recent work.
“So… What is it?” Cobra asks, inspecting the odd contraption I placed above the wooden door.
Hehe. The result of my idea looks rather magnificent if I have to say so myself. “I like to call it my super-special-enhanced-penta-trap. Everything you need to take down any foe.”
“A super-special-what-now?” He scratches his dirty beard. “Kind of a mouthful, isn’t it? Couldn’t you make it into an acronym or something?”
I sigh. “It’s not that easy. Do you know how hard it is to come up with an acronym that ends with the pee-tee sound that sounds both amazing and terrifying at the same time?”
“Uhm… how about Inventive-Enhanced-Penta-Trap, or INEPT for short?”
...
“Shut up Cobra. Nobody asked for your opinion.”
Scoffing at my underling’s sudden rudeness, I take some extra time to make sure I didn’t make any mistakes when I set up my newest INEPT-class trap. Yeah, I’m stealing his idea. What is he gonna do about it? Sue me? He’s a computer program. He has no rights.
I really feel the need to pat myself on the back for this contraption though. I got the idea back from when I connected the glue trap to the wooden door at the Plaguebringer’s lair. The fact that I can attach traps to other objects was an eye-opener for me. So I thought… Hey? Why can’t I attach a trap to another trap? And then another trap to that trap? Could something so ludicrous actually work? I don’t see why not. I definitely want to try it though.
I did a little research to see if the idea isn’t quite as far fetched as I fear. I haven’t seen anyone actually trying this yet, at least not of what I found on the forums. Not that there are many other Trap Makers out there to begin with. While the idea seems simple in theory, when it comes to games, even simple ideas can easily be discarded as impossible because of gaming logic. Luckily enough, it often works both ways. That’s why trying dumb shit can sometimes open up a whole world of opportunities in games like this. This INEPT invention of mine is my newest mind baby, and there are a lot of different aspects I need to take into consideration when combining the different elements of the trap.
First of all, the amount of materials I have to use in the trap is the exact same as an equal amount of singular traps. This means that if I want the trap to release for example five different payloads, then I need to invest the same amount of trap mechanisms as I would have needed to place five individual traps. This is because I’m basically circumventing the built-in system for how traps are supposed to function, and the trick I’m trying to do shouldn’t technically be allowed. This means I need to add at the very least five release mechanisms, as well as five different trigger mechanisms.
The second challenge is that there usually isn’t enough room to place five different traps in the same place to deal physical damage, like launching flails, javelins, or darts at the enemy, so I need to utilize gravity with liquid substances from above. The difficult technicalities here are that there needs to be enough room above the unsuspecting enemy for five different release mechanisms to trigger at once. The disappointing thing here is that it really limits the potential locations I can use this type of trap, but when it does work out, the potential is almost endless. It may be exciting and expensive, but the potential for trying out a lot of different ideas is very alluring to me.
What I could try to do is load all the traps with my most damaging liquid, like for example acid, and see the enemy melt in front of my eyes. With the trap being the overkill that it is, I see no reason not to experiment a little though. I want to test a few different combinations and see how they affect the enemy. It may not deal the maximum amount of damage, but I’m sure the different elements can cause a certain level of chaos among the ranks of the enemies.
I have decided to load the five different release mechanisms with different types of damage. The first mechanism, the one closest to the ground, I load with a standard wooden flail. It’s not my most deadly type of trap, but I decided to add a little blight poison to the sharp tips of the flail to check how much the damage increases. The other four mechanisms I load with glue, oil, liquid fire, and acid respectively. The glue for immobilizing the enemy, the acid for dealing raw damage, and the final two for a little experiment. Technically, the oil by itself doesn’t do any damage to the enemy, but it has the rather nasty side effect of enhancing the damage dealt by all fire-type damage. Combined with the liquid fire, I’m sure the enhanced burning damage might potentially trump the damage from the acid. If it doesn’t, the constant damage will certainly throw a whole lot of chaos into the mix. I don’t think any enemy can keep calm if their entire body is on fire.
The final challenge with using five traps in the space of one is the difficulty of keeping the trigger mechanisms hidden from the enemy. A trap is a contraption based around surprise and stealth after all, and while it may be difficult to spot a single tripwire, it should be much easier to spot five. Therefore, my main challenge is to come up with a way to limit the possibility of enemies spotting my trap before it’s too late. This is where my success with the Plaguebringer comes into play. The traps I make are only effective against low-level enemies around my own level. Even though the Plaguebringer probably had an abysmally low Perception score, he is still a far higher level than I am. He is bound to have a skill or some equipment to make up for the lacking attribute. Therefore, he shouldn’t have much trouble spotting my traps ahead of time. This is of course, if he has time to spot my traps before it is too late.
Attaching my tripwires directly to an object they have to pass, like for example a door, eliminates the risk of the trap being spotted before it’s too late. You would have to have an insanely high Perception score to even have a chance of spotting it, and even then, it might be too late if you were in a rush. Like for example, chasing down a dangerous and vulnerable enemy like myself.
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
So here I am, admiring my newest INEPT trap that consists of five traps stacked on top of one another, with five tripwires attached to the handle of the ominous-looking door at the other side of the storage room. The result isn’t pretty, and I wouldn’t stand a snowball's chance in hell of surprising an enemy who approached from this side of the door, but that’s beside the point. What I need to do now is to find a test subject for this deadly gizmo of doom. Huh. Gizmo of Doom. Should I call it a GoD trap instead? That’s much cooler…
I digress. It’s about time for me to figure out what’s on the other side of this door. There better be an enemy back there, or else I would feel pretty damn stupid after spending all this time setting up this GoD trap. Mmh, yes. I like this name better.
Making my way over towards the door, I gently place my hand on the handle, slowly opening the door just enough to get a peek inside while simultaneously trying very carefully not to trigger the trap. My heart threatens to leap from my chest as my eyes are glued to the wires that vibrate ominously as the pressure on them increases. I eventually manage to open the door just the right amount though. Holy crap. I probably shouldn’t be the one to try this…
Anyway, my poorly thought through recklessness aside, I finally get a glimpse of the room beyond. The room is a massive domed hall, with cobbled stone making up the entirety of the interior. The walls and floors all seem to blend into one another and there are several large stone columns at the center of the room, circling a wooden long table. Along the walls, I spot several flimsy wooden beds and shelves, and a series of lit torches illuminate the glum hall. I spot three other doors connected to this room, all looking similar to the door I’m peeking through. At first glance, the room looks deserted until I spot four figures near the far door at the opposite side of the room.
[Human Elite Thug(10). HP: ???/???.]
[Half Elf Elite Prowler(10). HP: ???/???.]
[Dwarf Elite Thug(10). HP: ???/???.]
[Gnome Elite Cutthroat(10). HP: ???/???.]
Oh, shit. Four elite ranked enemies? At the same time? Djeezes christ. This quest isn’t going easy on me. I still can’t spot the final boss, and considering it’s a staple of video games to have an increasing difficulty rating as I progress, I can only imagine the number of enemies we will face further on. I’m really glad I decided to test out my new trap now. If this is what I can expect from future fights, then I can’t be stingy on my preparations.
So, how am I doing this? Naturally, I need to find a way to draw them towards me. Not only do I need them to trigger my trap, but when I’m fighting against several more powerful enemies, I need to exploit every advantage I can get. The most natural thing to do in this situation is to try to limit the amount of enemies I’m fighting. Using this solid doorway as a bottleneck should make this fight easier, but I’m wary of the enemy Elite Prowler. The amount of damage he can dish out from the back row is concerning, and I don’t want their Cutthroat to get free reign either. I need to take out at least one enemy as quickly as I can, and then just use sheer numbers to pin down the rest.
I scratch my chin. Looking around me, I see my entire squad of ruthless killers looking back, a glint of bloodlust in their eyes. Cobra looks particularly savage. I guess I don’t have to worry about my underlings slacking off. It’s comforting to know, really. Since I can’t do much during the actual combat, it’s good to have reliable fighters doing the fighting for me. I need to do my part though, which is to lead them. What I really need to do is find a way to increase their chances.
The storage room is pretty cramped with all nine of us in here, and I don’t think it will get any better as soon as combat starts. We should clear a space around the door. Maybe use the wooden crates and barrels to our advantage?
An idea strikes me as I order my underlings to start moving around the boxes. My biggest goal in this fight is trying to utilize the space. This means I need to have as many of my own underlings striking the enemy as possible, while simultaneously restricting the enemy’s capabilities to hit back. Having the bottleneck around the door helps, but why should I stop there? There are more things I can do to improve my advantage.
I have my underlings start stacking the crates a little way behind my front line. These will serve as platforms for my Prowlers and me, giving us a clear line of sight of the enemy while minimizing the risk of friendly fire. I also have the possibility of creating a small wall we can hide and reload behind between shots. I also decide to place a few crates along the side of the door, creating a barricade and further narrowing the space the enemy can move around in, funneling them into a killing zone. It takes us a couple of minutes to create some defences I’m satisfied with, and we soon prepare ourselves to pull the enemies in. This is all after having them apply some Blight Poison to their weapons, of course.
I send my two Prowlers forward to peek through the door, their jobs being to put a few crossbow bolts through one of the unsuspecting enemies. Their bolts are soon loosened, and the two Prowlers quickly scurry backwards and climb onto their platforms.
I can hear angered shouts from the other side of the door, and I grit my teeth as I realise I haven’t considered the possibility of enemy reinforcements. Whatever happens, this only makes it more crucial to deal as much damage as quickly as we possibly can. Oh, god. I hope the trap works…
The door slams open as the human Thug barrels through. A brief flash of shock crosses his face for the split second it takes for the wooden flail to launch itself downwards, impacting his face with a sickening crunch. A soft gurgle escapes his lips before all hell lands upon him. The glue hits first, immediately locking up his flailing arms. The oil follows soon after, drenching his body with the thick liquid. The oil hardly gets time to soak him, however, before the liquid fire falls upon him, causing his entire body to combust into a violent inferno. The flames are so wild and powerful, I can’t even see the acid that follows after as I struggle to keep my eyes from blinking due to powerful heat that washes over my troops.
“Oh, fuck off!” Cobra bellows as he takes a step forward, planting a solid kick towards the burning Thug’s torso. The Thug, unable to defend himself, is launched backwards, crashing into the elite Cutthroat that followed him. “Get em’ boys!” He shouts with glee, immediately crossing swords with the second elite Thug who managed to squeeze himself past his torched companion.
It takes a few seconds for my attention to snap back into place, and I try to locate the enemy Prowler at the back of their line. My heart leaps in joy when I notice the burning Thug managed to knock his crossbow aside, and I don’t waste any time throwing a ‘Calm’ spell in his direction. The spell takes hold, and it buys me a split second to get an oversight of the battle below. Cobra has taken center stage and is currently fighting the non-burning elite Thug mano-el-mano. The enemy Cutthroat is trying to press himself past the crates we stacked at the side of the door.
I frown. This isn’t going as I planned. I have them cornered, but the majority of my troops aren’t doing anything. I’m about to shout an order when my Lieutenant starts laughing. “Tough little bugger, aren’t ya? Let me introduce you to my boys!” He grins as he quickly parries the Thug’s blade. He follows up with a solid punch that connects with the enemy’s jaw. The Thug stumbles backwards, and Cobra wastes no time. He grabs the Thug’s sword arm and yanks him towards himself. Losing all sense of balance due to the unexpected pull, the Thug falls forwards, past Cobra. Before the Thug even hits the ground, the rest of my underlings pile onto him, stabbing at the prone Thug with vicious abandon. Yikes. That ought to hurt.
“Your turn!” Cobra bellows as he sets his eye on the Cutthroat who is trying to climb past the side barricade. The Cutthroat’s eyes go wide in surprise at the sudden shift in the battle before Cobra’s blade stabs him through the neck. Cobra yanks his sword back with a spray of blood from the Cutthroat’s open wound. “All yours, boys!” He shouts as he grabs the Cutthroat and throws him back where my two half-orc twins are waiting for him. Cobra’s bloodthirsty eyes soon find the only enemy who is still left standing. The elite Prowler is gaping at my blood-drenched Lieutenant. His muscles twitch as soon as Cobra takes a step forwards, and he raises his crossbow in panic. He manages to loose a bolt that connects with Cobra’s shoulder. My Lieutenant’s health bar drops slightly, but not nearly enough to make any difference.
Casting a glance at the bolt embedded in his shoulder, Cobra raises an eyebrow in mock surprise. Grabbing hold of the bolt, he forcefully yanks it out and carelessly throws it over his shoulder. Glaring back at the now shaking Prowler, he sneers.
“You better run, boy.”