Chapter 205. Summoned Shopping.
“I should mention that I have some class ability scroll markers, as well as a couple of personal equipment ones,” I told the clerk as she guided me through the labyrinthine store.
“Excellent, let me take a look at those if you don’t mind,” Cambre said. I dug the scrolls out of my pack and passed them to the clerk. She looked them over, nodded, then waved for me to follow her. Eventually we wound up at a large display counter full of odds and ends. I did get a little excited when I saw that there was a small collection of summoning figurines.
“Why don’t we start with your gear. Is there anything in particular that you were hoping to find, if not, I can try to make some suggestions,” Cambre offered.
“I’m open to any suggestions you might have. I was wondering if you had any other pieces for my current set,” I told her. Cambre examined my Commander’s Regalia set, asking me details about how it functioned.
“Does your current gear work well for you, or would you be open to something new?” Cambre asked.
“I’d be open to something new, I suppose the set bonus for the Commander’s Regalia isn’t as valuable for me anymore,” I replied, telling Cambre about my class change and not having a gear score cap.
Reducing the gear cap was the main reason for adding pieces to the set. Cambre pulled a scroll from behind the counter and perused the glowing symbols on it. My system language translation didn’t kick in, so it must have been written in some kind of proprietary language for the Summoned Market.
“I think we have something that will be a better fit for your new class. The chest piece is in stock, and I can have two other pieces transferred over from the other store tiers the day after tomorrow if you’re going to be staying in the city for a while.
“I don’t mind sticking around if the gear is a solid upgrade, can I see the chest piece?” I asked.
“Certainly, one moment, I’ll be right back. While I’m gone, here are a selection of class scrolls for you to consider. If you cannot find three that you want to keep, we can always look at some of the more standard skills and abilities,” Cambre said, pulling five scrolls from behind the counter. While I waited for her to fetch the armor, I looked at my class options.
1. Template Hunter. This ability allows the Foe Summoner to mark an opponent to improve the chances for a version of it to become a permanent minion selection in the future. In addition, a consumable figurine of the marked foe will be added to your reward chest each time you rank up. If the marked foe is not offered as a permanent minion option during your next selection opportunity, a final consumable figurine of veteran status or better will be added to your rewards chest.
Only 1 foe may be marked at a time, though you can change your target at any time.
Not bad, I could steer the system toward offering me minions that I wanted, not just what it randomly threw at me. There was a chance that the system would veto my choice, but if that happened, I’d get a consolation prize of a veteran consumable or better. To sweeten the pot, it looked like I’d get a normal version of the marked foe as a consumable each time I ranked up.
It was a good class skill, but it was hampered somewhat by how long it would take to unlock a new minion. I’d only get a new choice every five ranks, and I wasn’t sure that the consolation prize and the bonus consumable were enough of a benefit to counteract the wait.
2. Shared Burden. This ability allows you to link with the life force of your minions. When you take damage, 10% of that damage is transferred equally among any active minion. Another feature of this ability is that you can reverse its effects at will, opting to take upon yourself 10% of the damage your minions are receiving. If you choose to absorb part of your minion’s damage, the ability will automatically deactivate if you’re in danger of serious injury or death.
Another good option. Anything that mitigated the damage I took was a solid pick. It was just 10%, but when combined with my other resistances, I would become quite a bit tankier. There was also the chance to take some of the damage that my minions were receiving, but that seemed counterproductive unless I was in a position where I could heal myself, but not them.
3. Beneath Notice. This ability makes you a less attractive target to most foes, making it more likely for them to focus on your minions rather than you. The intelligence of the foe plays a part in this ability, and the more intelligent the opponent, the more likely they are to ignore the ability’s effects.
It seemed like a decent survival option. Sure, it wouldn’t make a human assassin suddenly shift away from me as a target, but against most monsters, I’d be quite a bit safer. It was too bad the system didn’t give me a better idea of how intelligent a foe had to be to ignore me. Did the ability cut out if the opponent was your average humanoid, or would some dumb goon also be fooled by it?
4. Switch. The Switch ability allows you to instantly change positions with any of your active minions. This ability can only be used 1/minute and requires 10 mana to activate.
Switch was going to be a keeper. I could use it to escape certain death, and I could even see me using it as a movement boost. All I needed was a fast minion, or one like my drone that could climb walls and get into hard-to-reach places. Just cast this spell, and boom, I was right where I wanted to be. It could also be used offensively, luring a bad guy to face me, then Switch with my most powerful minion to deal with him.
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5. Command Lesser Foe. This ability allows you to temporarily take command of a hostile enemy up to Tier 1, Rank 0 in power. The ability lasts for 1 minute and the affected target will become your bound minion for the duration of the spell. Please note that once the ability has expired, the target will no longer be susceptible to it for some time and may experience hyper aggression toward the summoner.
The spell has a 1-minute cooldown, and only one foe may be commanded at a time. A mana cost of 10 mana is required to activate Command Lesser Foe. This spell may be upgraded further to affect more powerful foes. Foes with exceptional intelligence may resist some or all of this ability’s effects.
It was named after my class; how could I not take Command Lesser Foe? All the options were good, and it wouldn’t be a case of trying to find one I wanted, I wanted them all. I had lost two of my previous class abilities, which, along with the open slot I already had, should give me three open slots to match up with the class ability markers. Taking a look at my information in the system, I could see that there were actually four open class ability spots. I must have gained one upon reaching tier two, and with all that had been going on, I hadn’t realized it until now.
I could always use my summoning points to purchase a fourth ability. That brought up another question I had for Cambre, who I could see was walking back toward me. In her hands she held a studded leather breastplate that looked far less impressive than the current chain shirt of my Commander’s Regalia.
“Cambre, I had a question. If I have a class skill that I no longer want, is there some way to remove it and free up space for something else?” I asked.
“The system can have restrictions on such things, but we do have an item that will remove a current skill. It’s called an Ability Nullification Stone, and removal is a longer process, not an instant one. The stone is offered for 100 summoning points. Just let me know if you wish to purchase one. While you consider it, here is the piece of the armor set I mentioned. One of your equipment markers will be enough to cover its cost,” Cambre said.
“I think I’ll hold off on the Ability Nullification Stone for now, let me take a look at the armor before I decide on the other ability scrolls,” I said.
1. Summoner’s Breastplate of Resistance. Part of the Summoner’s Resistance set. This breastplate is magically reinforced, and the leather is as strong as a steel breastplate. A 5% fire resistance is granted by this armor. This resistance stacks with all other forms of resistance. Part of a 5-piece set, you will gain an additional 5% fire resistance for each additional piece you have equipped. Each piece of the set will unlock an additional resistance type.
If the bearer has 3 or more pieces of the Summoner’s Resistance equipped, their summoned minions will be granted a lesser version of the resistances that the bearer enjoys from this set.
Nice, it was going to be as strong as a steel breastplate and the fire resistance, while minor, was always a welcome addition. It also stacked with my other resistances, so combined with the moderate fire resistance I gained from Gary, I wouldn’t be burning myself anytime soon. It was a straight upgrade over my other armor, and if I could acquire the other two pieces that they had in Somhagen, it would become even better.
“I only have two equipment markers, how much would the third piece cost me?” I asked.
“It is priced at 50 summoning points. Do you wish me to acquire the other two pieces for you?” Cambre asked.
“Yes, do you know what they are and what resistance they offer?” I asked.
“I know only that one is a pair of bracers, and the other is a pair of boots. We won’t know what resistance they offer until they arrive. As I mentioned before, I need at least a day before I can get them delivered,” Cambre replied.
“I’ll just have to wait, if you don’t mind, I need a moment to decide on my ability scroll choices. If I wish to purchase one of them, how many summoning points would it cost me?” I asked.
“These are specific for summoner classes, and the cost would be forty summoning points.”
I had some decisions to make. Of the five options, I wanted to keep Switch. Command Lesser Foe was also a keeper. It was limited to tier one or lower, but it also mentioned that it could be upgraded somehow. Maybe Cambre would know.
“Cambre, this scroll is supposed to be upgradable. Is there something I can purchase here to upgrade it?” I asked. She looked over the scroll before replying.
“There is, I have an item here that can upgrade it to a certain extent. To upgrade it further, you would need to go to the third tier of the city. The system restricts certain items we can offer by the tier of the city that the store is located in.”
“How much would the upgrade you have here cost?” I asked.
“This one can be upgraded for forty summoning points, but be advised that the cost will increase as you go up in tier,” Cambre explained. She excused herself again, and rooted through the shelves until she found another scroll that she passed over.
Enhanced Command Lesser Foe. This scroll upgrades the Spell, Command Lesser Foe, to affect enemies up to Tier 1, Rank 5. It may be cast on foes of up to Tier 2, Rank 0, but the chances of a foe resisting the spell increase based on their Tier and Rank.
I’d take the upgrade, it was something I could continually improve as I made my way through the city tiers. The spell could be a great help when facing large numbers of lower tiered foes. Someone turning traitor in the middle of the fight could swing things to my advantage.
Out of the remaining scrolls, I wanted Template Hunter and Shared Burden. The Beneath Notice could be helpful, but the straight damage reduction of Shared Burden, and the chance to influence my next minion pick were hard to pass up. I could have purchased Beneath Notice and held it for when I got a free ability slot, but I would probably find other things here to spend my limited funds on.
By purchasing one scroll, one piece of gear, and the upgrade for Command Lesser Foe, I was down to 94 summoning points. I hoped they had some selections of the less costly type here.
“What else can you show me Cambre?” I asked as I activated the scrolls I’d purchased.
You have acquired the ability Template Hunter.
You have acquired the ability Shared Burden.
You have acquired the ability Switch.
You have acquired the ability Command Lesser Foe.
You have upgraded the ability Command Lesser Foe to Enhanced Command Lesser Foe.