Chapter 6: Reason and Action
(Aerix POV)
Pinatubo Encampment - Nightfall
Five adventurers huddled around the campfire resting their tired bodies and recalling the day that was. Syth started off the conversation with his usual "I am the best" banter.
"Did you see the way I killed that boss? I was good, wasn't I?"
"We heard you the first time, KS King."
"No fair, I even said something cool before using my skill."
"Yeah, you could have at least given him the spotlight that time. He rarely gets the chance for it."
"See, even they know that I deserved that last shot. But, NOOOO, you had to do your last-hit moves. I swear someday, people are going to hunt you down for that."
"If they can catch me, that is."
The replies from Cerby, Giznow and Aerix were often the usual jabs and complaints. They have always thought that Syth should have been an assassin with his keen eyes for getting the last hit. But he was always one to stray from conventional means of getting the kill, and in the process found a unique style of his own. That, much to the chagrin of others, is also uniquely irritating.
"We could go longer about this but, I need to know how you two managed in the game so far". interjected their tank.
"We're still adjusting, I guess. This character is at least two-thirds my height in the real world."
"I regret not levelling with you guys when you were into this game back then. Real-time grinding is harder than it looks than when you are just using your keyboard and mouse. From our pace, I'll get to 81 by the end of the week."
"That, we can help with.", answered their tactician.
"How?"
"There's still three more days, why not make the most of it? We'll help you to get to 82 by the end of the event. Mentor mode is still available anyways."
"We have to start early in the morning to get the most out of it. We'll also come out as richer scumbags." added their cleric.
"That reminds me, what brings you three here?" asked the archer.
As this was his idea in the first place, Aerix stated his reason in the form of a question to the two.
"Let me ask both of you a question first. Do you still remember our promise back when we all went our separate ways?"
"Who hasn't?"
"I couldn't forget even if I tried"
Aerix half-expected those answers from Giznow and Syth. He would remind them either way.
"Well, what do you say we get all our acts together and make another run to wherever the game would take us?"
"Eh, why not. We'll all be doing this eventually anyway"
"Anywhere you guys go, I'll go as well. Beats being bored."
"Then, welcome aboard. We still have to look for three more before we officially start over."
"So, who's next on your list?" asked Syth
"Demon."
"*whistles* That battle maniac talks more through his weapon than in words. You need him to be beaten to a pulp to listen to you, which rarely happens. That's a very tall order." said Giznow
"Which is why we went to you guys first. In an open field, he'll just be a sitting duck to you two. Then again, who knows what that guy can do once pissed off."
Even Cerby was unsure of the extent of Demon's skill considering that he has already thought of some countermeasures on any member of the guild should they become his enemy.
"But in a limited space, that man is to be feared." added Aerix.
"Case in point, the "Gate Keeper Incident"." inserted Dreadnaught.
{Metzger} once fought an alliance of seven guilds in a free-for-all, Aerix, Dreadnaught and Demon held a narrow corridor for hours before the rest of the guild encircled the enemy. Not a single person crossed their defensive line. Their unbreakable line so destroyed the morale of the enemy that they named it the "Gate Keeper Incident".
"Hahaha, Those were fun times. Demon attacking, Dread defending and me supporting. They just kept coming."
"And kept dying."
"And the others thought I was crazy for letting you three hold the line." said Cerby.
"But when you think about it, leaving your best defender, attacker and healer at an area where only frontal assault is possible is a pretty good roadblock."
"Precisely the plan Syth. You can think of it as sending the enemy into an unbreakable meat grinder. And the rest of the guild would act as the hand that pushes the meat when we got around them."
"Demon got around 150 kills or so. He still gloats about it whenever we get together back then."
"Once he starts, he won't stop easily. Same case that happens with Syth over here" wisecracked Giznow
"Setting that aside, aren't you guys hungry?" asked Aerix.
"Now that you mentioned it Card, I'm kinda starving."
"But everything tastes like mush so it's not that appetizing."
The complaints coming from Giznow and Syth were to be expected. Mimicking the taste of cooked meals is still a mystery to be solved in this game.
"We all miss the taste of real food. Hey Card, mind asking around at the underground if anyone found out a way to make food taste like food and not flavorless mush."
"Noted on that request Clown. I'll be willing to trade the secrets to getting our subclasses for that information."
"Not that they would find it easy to acquire anyway. For instance, who of the many clerics in the server could accumulate 10 million hit points healed in order to unlock the "Field Medic" subclass?"
"None that I know of apart from myself."
"Perhaps the hardest to get would be Demon's {Crimson Avenger} and the Khergan's {Brawler}."
"Yeah, I have to rank the requirements for those subs as above {Legion Raid} Rank. Even with all the money I have, buying that kind of information is out of my reach. Glad I'm the one selling, heh."
"That gives me an idea. Why don't you purchase the marketplace zone? With your funds, you will still have enough to maintain it for at least a year."
"Hmm. Maybe when the market is already lively. Placing a tax rate and stall placement fee. Yes. I can see it. I'll have a fixed source of funds to set me up in the game. I think I need to open up another gold vault when it happens. Yes. More gold. Yes."
Through all the years of them playing together, they understood the kind of look Aerix makes when he is fixated on acquiring wealth.
"He's zoning off again." pointed out Giznow.
"That's what happens when you involve him in sure-fire money-making schemes." added Dreadnaught.
"But when he does see something worth spending on, he won't hesitate shelling out the required amount."
"Very typical of him. He does have a good sense with money though, I'll give him that. That would be one of the reasons he has strong {Artifact-Class} gear to compliment the {Phantasmal-Class} gear we hunted, once he saw the things he wanted back at the auction, he immediately bid an absurd amount. No one dared to outbid him."
"Even if someone did, he would top that amount. He would stop at nothing to get what he wants once he has his sights on it."
"That's even before we talked him into selling information on the underground. Now he can even outfit a small guild with {Artifact-Class} items if he so wanted."
"It's nice to have someone who is neither thrifty nor careless with their spending. No matter what happens, he won't have a problem with gold anytime soon. Unlike a certain strategist who's always in debt." said Syth.
"Hey! I already paid everyone back." cried Cerby.
"Which left you penniless. Then you borrow gold again from us if you want to buy something."
"You can't even save money to save your own life." added Giznow.
"You're both lucky, you can out-run your debtors if it comes down to it."
Butting heads was something common in their companionship. Everyone can poke and take jabs at each other's quirks and faults. No one takes it personally after so many years.
"Should I break it up?" asked Dreadnaught.
"Leave them be, it's entertaining to see them bicker once in a while." replied Aerix.
"We'll have more of that once the last three are on board. Especially Demon. His ego can't handle losing especially on conversations with Fist."
"It always ends with both of them fighting. Then laughing about it later on."
"Those two are nutcases."
"In a sense, we all are. Think about it, a scheming, money-hungry cleric, a tactless guardian with weight issues, a gluttonous and always in-debt swashbuckler, a panicky and overly-dramatic assassin, a mischievous sorcerer with a penchant for last-hitting, a self-absorbed, muscle-brained guardian, a hilariously-failing assassin and a very unpredictable enchanter for a guild master. Don't even get me started on the other members"
"I wonder how we ended up fighting together?"
"Probably because we're friends both in and out of the game. Birds of a feather, I guess."
"But have you ever thought of us being in separate guilds?"
"Of course, each member in our guild could potentially be the ace in another. I mean, one of the big reasons why Khergan decided to group us up in Metzger is that he prefers us to be on his side"
"We would give him hell if he was on the enemy, and he would give us hell as well"
"We all have our strengths, that of which he does not excel in. And that which he tends to avoid fighting against."
"That and we know each other inside and out."
"To be fair, he's also a nightmare in his own right. A jack-of-all-trades, his quick thinking and versatility is invaluable in our guild."
"Right. I don't know about you but I'll be sleeping ahead. I'm tired."
"Go ahead, this is a {Safe Zone} anyway. I still have some minor planning to do."
("This'll be a long four days, but at least it won't be boring")
{Safe Zones} are areas that prohibit PK. Resting players are immune to status effects while inside. Skills such as {Steal} wherein items from a player's inventory are taken by another player are also not allowed. This prevents pickpocketing players that are unconscious.
Any violations committed in the area summons the {Royal Guard}, a powerful unit made to enforce the rules of the zone. Any player targeted by them would be mercilessly killed. They are designed to be stronger than players. Of course {Metzger} tangled with them before in a town riot incited by rival guilds and took down dozens of guards before they were eventually sent to the cathedral. Since then, no one would even attempt to mess with the guild in safe zones.
("That was back then. I wonder if the guards are stronger, well, not that it matters. Heh, I'm thinking like those battle freaks again.")
Sleep was a very valuable commodity for players. Even if their in-game bodies are stronger and healthier, rarely can one stay up for days. The sandman would knock over everyone sooner or later. There's also the mental factor involved. A well-rested person would make better decisions and react faster in a heated situation. Even a short nap would make the difference between a scrape in the neck and a decapitated head.
But for Aerix, sleep eluded him this night. A sense of restlessness of what lies ahead, unease slowly chipping away his initial resolve. He walks around the outskirts of the encampment trying to figure things out.
("What if I can't pull them together? What if I can't help them? Is keeping the promise worth it?)
Questions like these rarely come often in his mind but they are often left unanswered.
("I wonder what Khergan would have done if he were in my place").
In the nearby forest, a symphony of flashes catches his eye.
("Hmmm… Something's up?")
In a small open area, he saw Syth practicing his movement skills underneath the moonlit sky. Blinking left, with a spell in hand, then doing to motions for releasing the spell without actually releasing. Then warping back to his original position using {Rook Slider}. The process repeats time and again. Normally, spellcasters cannot move while casting but thanks to his "special" boots, he can cast while moving at a cost of increased casting time.
("Is he practicing feints? Never knew you could do that with spells. But I guess with the game being reality, I guess some bending of the rules might be possible given the right setup.")
He watches for some time, analyzing his method of attack, trying to think up suggestions. Once he has seen enough, he proceeds toward his friend.
"Your skill alternations need some work."
"I figured it was you. You are the only that is awake at times like these. How long have you been watching?"
"Probably an hour. Good thing you weren't releasing your spells, the others would wake up easily. Nice feints though, I think that would be a battle-usable skill. Keep practicing that."
"Thanks. I couldn't sleep so I practice a little bit."
"That's not a "bit". From the amount of sweat, looks like a lot. Don't worry, I won't tell them. Mind if I stay around?"
"Go ahead. Well, at least now that you're here and no one is around hearing this conversation, let me ask you something that's been bothering me for a while."
"Shoot."
"Why did you ever pick a support class? I mean, even back then you wanted to be a {Summoner} or a {Pesilat} but in the end you chose a {Cleric} as your main. I mean, me and the other guys picked whatever we wanted, I just don't understand why you had to bite the bullet just for us."
"That's the first time anyone has ever asked me that question. Do you really have to know why?"
"Let's just say that I'm half-curious and half-concerned."
They never talked seriously back in their heyday. Aerix was a bit surprised of Syth's curiosity on his personal background since he rarely asks anything of him and most of his questions if he does ask are more on technical concerns.
("Might as well kill time by answering. What harm would it do?")
"Alright, you see, even from other games, I always pick classes that can do well without a party and be decent in one. Be it a warrior, magician, or support, as long as I can solo effectively, I can handle it. Khergan knows this well as he has been my online gaming buddy since college."
"Yeah, judging from your personality, you do seem like someone who can do fine by alone."
"That was until {Elder Tale} came along. I actually did not expect all of you guys to play. Remember when I asked around to see what classes you are going to pick?"
"Yeah, that was a few days before the start of beta testing. Giz was screaming "RANGER RANGER RANGER", Dread was already set on the tanking Guardian, Cerby called dibs on the Swashbuckler. Demon was still undecided on Assassin or Damage-Type Guardian, Khergan initially picked a Pesilat due to the teaser video and Gramps picked Assassin just because he doesn't want to lose to Khergan."
"And you were still deciding between an Assassin or Sorcerer."
"Right. So you were saying our choices affected your decision?"
"Correct. From my experience in other online games, an effective party should always have a decent support. It's non-negotiable. Let me break down your playstyles first based on my observations to make a point.
Khergan's style is very unconventional, he tries to bring the best out of a character in which he thinks can win a fight almost every time. He's the sort that would experiment with multiple characters to find out the best combination.
Dreadnaught's style is straight-up defensive. He's the sort that wins by outlasting the enemy in a battle of attrition.
Opposite to Dread, Demon's style is attacking up-front. He's an in-your-face player that relies on brute force to break through anything.
Giznow's style is a "ranger". Attacking from a distance, setting traps, out-running the enemy.
Cerby's is a tricky one. He prefers characters that involve "gimmicks". Nimble movements combined with his innate gaming sense are the heart of his style to "outwit" others.
Gramps' style is the easiest to read. He likes characters that deal burst damage from unexpected places. Probably molded from the desire to compete with you guys on kills.
You on the other hand, are more of a quick-hitting damage dealer. You can be flexible enough to attack up front or from the mid and back lines. An offensive support if you will.
See where I'm leading you at?"
"No, not yet."
"The common point among you guys is that no one knows how to play the full support role. Don't get me started on you and the others' attempts at support. Needless to say, if I have to grade each one of you in effectiveness as a support class, you all fail at my marks. A full-support class acting as the main damage dealer? Really?"
"What's wrong with that?"
"I get it that you guys proved to me that it is possible but here's some news for you, one, that works when your opponents are so weak, you don't even need to support. Two, when the enemy is smart enough to know that you are capable of dealing damage, they will mercilessly grind down your front lines. You will only have the advantage in blitz-type scenarios but on a prolonged battle with decent supports on the enemy, trust me, you will fail."
"But with another damager, we can kill faster."
"You are thinking just like Demon. It usually doesn't work that way. Do you honestly think the enemy attackers would just let their supports be easily massacred? Do you think that the supports are going to let you kill their front lines."
"If you put it that way…"
"No attacker can last without a support character backing them up and no support character can last without protecting them. They go hand in hand."
" Wouldn't it be better if we had recruited outsiders as support players?"
"It is plausible but the time in which a support would spend time getting to know the playstyle of his team hinges around 2 weeks to a month. This does not include getting along and dealing with the attitudes of the team. Also taken into consideration is the proficiency of the support involved. Lastly, recruiting an outsider is unpredictable since they may leave at any time with or without notice."
"So you're saying that rather than taking the time to train someone who might leave, why not make yourself who already has the above criteria into one?"
"Precisely. I took the most certain route, I chose the {Cleric}. That way, the burden of supporting you guys would fall solely to me. I'm used to being the odd man out anyway."
"You could have told us that when we were deciding. I could have helped you."
"I know you'll lose interest if you stuck with it so I never said anything. The other guys would just say "It's ok if we don't have a support, we're very strong anyways". Of course, I won't believe that one bit since once in the thick of battle they always scream "Heal me", "I don't have buffs", "You could have picked support instead", "Noob support" stuff like that."
"Guilty as charged."
"I just did you all a huge favor. I gave up my chance to enjoy the class I want so you guys can."
"You must have had it tough this whole time."
"No kidding. I can't even count the number of times I've been berated by other players. I have taken the blame for not doing my role even if I already tried my best. Even if it was not my fault, players would blame the healer just to save face. Even if I tried defending myself, they would always find ways to pin the fault on me."
"We're also guilty of that."
"I've always had thoughts of giving up and re-rolling but I kept thinking of you guys and how lousy it would be to miss out on the good parts of the game without a good, consistent support character by your side. And so I tried and I tried.
I took every abuse, worked hard and came out a better player. I'm not saying I don't like this character but I've learned to embrace this role over the years of playing {Elder Tale}, you guys are even saying I got good at it but in reality, I'm not doing anything special. I just know now what I need to do at the right time."
"That's exactly the thing that makes you the best. You do what most support players dream of effortlessly. Take it from me, no support player I've ever grouped up with matched with your level of skill."
"Call it the result of training with you guys. Putting it simply, you guys are the epitome of unpredictability both in attitude and action and I'm the only one that can put up with it for the long run. I guess I'm stuck with you people as much as you're stuck with me."
"Hahaha, I see. I'll try not to cause you any further trouble."
"Have I satisfied your curiosity?"
"And then some"
"Might as well turn in, we still have much to do in the morning"
"Agreed. Thanks for the chat."
"You're welcome."
They seldom took him for granted but having vented his pent-up frustrations felt somewhat liberating. It was new to him that someone would listen to his tirades willingly and not overreact. For all the hardships through the years, having someone to confide with was something he needed.
Night quickly cascaded into day, as the five journey back into the {Lake of Fire} in order to help out Syth get two levels ahead. Cerby started off the briefing.
"Okay listen up gents, the main goal for the next three days would be two things. One, to help Syth reach 82 by the end of the event. Two, to familiarize ourselves on open-world tactics.
The fights you all have experienced so far have been fairly different from when it was just a game. There will be the actual intimidation of facing big-ass monsters not to mention feeling the actual environment. Experiencing real-time battle strategies are vastly different since your bodies will be the ones acting. We need to get used to this as quickly as possible as our enemies will likely do the same. This process will be easier on the count that we know the strengths and weaknesses of each other, the only thing we need to work on is the timing, execution and proper positioning.
Pain from hits are very tolerable, if we die we could always resurrect at the nearest cathedral but it will cost you exp which is something we have to avoid whenever possible. Syth, as you are the lowest level here, our {Mentor Level} would be set at 84 so our skills would be expected to be at that level.
We can train at the {Lava Giant} part of the area. Those things are at levels 79 to 82 so this would be a challenge to solo but manageable for parties. First we take them down one-by-one, gradually increasing the number according to mastery.
In our initial activity, I'll be giving you individual assignments to accomplish. All the same, I want you also to monitor my progress on my own task. Here's what we are going to do:
Aerix, you have to work on casting priority of healing and defensive skills. You often cast the same types in succession. While effective, it could still use some tweaking in order to balance out if you need someone to hold for a few moments when you heal other targets.
Dread, you have to work on monitoring your taunt durations. Often I see you stack taunts even if there's a few seconds left. I'm not saying that's wrong since the hate generation stacks linearly but there are times where we need to maximize the taunt time in order to execute multiple attacks to other targets.
I will work on mastering my debuffing rotations. I usually end up casting the same sets which would be bad if the enemy can quickly figure out my attack pattern and react accordingly.
Giz, you will work on estimating your distance versus time it would take the opponent to get to your location. Consider your trap setting and charge-up time for skills. Include more variety in your attacks so that the opponent would not always stay back or charge at you. Always keep them guessing.
Lastly, Syth, while your "Magic Shotgun" style is very strong, there is a small window for reaction to avoid your hit. You need to eliminate that. Considering your equipment, practice casting while dodging enemy hits and also practice your movement skills at obstructed areas so that you can have a grasp on the degree of freedom you can safely cast your spells and still get away.
Any further questions?"
"Nope" answered the rest in unison
"Glad you got it so fast. Let's go to the {Lava Giant} area shall we?"
{Lava Giants}, 3-meter tall human-shaped elementals. These creatures roam a certain area at the {Lake of Fire}. They are deceptively fast despite their bodies of molten stone. Like all elementals, they are resistant to their nature which makes spells and skills specialized in earth and fire, ineffective. The giants do not have a modicum of cooperation and will usually take on targets by themselves unless affected by area skills. For the next few days, these will be the medium for training the five adventurers.
"Target spotted. 50 meters ahead."
Noting the observation by Giznow, Cerby provided an additional briefing.
"Here's what to do on solo-killing scenarios. Since we have the advantage in sighting the enemy first, we can prepare traps and do some formations.
Dread as always, will be at front. Taunt the enemy once at range. Remember to be mindful of the taunt duration.
I'll be at center providing mid-ranged damage as well as debuffs.
Aerix would be with me to minimize attacks on behind. Use fast-cooldown skills. We won't need to use your emergencies or your angel on this scenario unless I call for it.
As for you two, Giz, since this is a pre-emptive strike, you can set traps on a location you are luring the monster on. Do not use skills that would generate enough hate to outweigh Dread's taunt. Avoid using strong skills as an initiator, use them if you have estimated that the hate generated by your strong skills gets outweighed by Dread's overall hate.
Lastly, Syth, the same with Giz, do not use strong skills that generate hate that outweighs dread's. Focus on last hitting. There, I said it. Last hitting grants better exp and since you need it more, just go nuts. However as you have ally weapon buffs, keep casting them to me and Giz.
Everyone got their roles? Let's begin.?
"Trap set."
"Use {Fatal Ambush} first. Unless we have a clear idea of what generates a larger hate between the taunt and your skill, depending on the result, you can have more freedom in choosing your skill. Before that, Syth cast {Energy Weapon - Ice} to Giz."
"{Energy Weapon - Ice}"
"{Fatal Ambush} all charged up."
"Go."
"{Fatal Ambush}"
The arrow with the dark red trail sped towards the target making a snapping sound. Due to the effect of the weapon buff, it dealt at least 10% of the target's HP as a critical hit. The molten enemy rushed towards the party with the intent to kill.
"Okay, assume formation in front of the trap. That dealt a bit too much damage to outweigh the taunt hate. We need to kill it within the duration of the bind. Everyone prepare your strongest attack skill."
The elemental headed to the designated point and was surrounded with metal chains as the trap activated.
"Hit it now!"
"{Shield Smash}"
"86%"
"{Judgement Ray}"
"73%"
"{Energy Weapon - Ice}"
"{Early Thrust}"
"{Rapid Shot}"
"58% {Viper's Thrash} {Quick Assault} {Round Windmill} 35%"
"Damage Toggles Set {Blink} {Frost Spear} {Freezing Liner} {Rook Slider}"
As the waves of ice hit the giant. With the HP down to 0, it turned to ash leaving some gold.
"Target Down. Good Job."
"That was fast." said Giznow
"Let's try it again, this time with Giz using {Fatal Ambush} without weapon enchants. Any targets nearby?"
"Trap set. Next target, same distance."
"Fire."
"{Fatal Ambush}"
Without the weapon enchantment, the damage only took 5% of the target's HP. The elemental surged towards the party.
"Within acceptable parameters. Taunt once in range. Aerix, set-up."
"{Taunting Shout}"
"{Reactive Heal}"
The taunt diverted the attention of the elemental and focused its movements on the guardian. Dreadnaught moved towards the trap.
"{Snare} triggered."
{Snare}, a lesser trap capable of restricting movement for 5 seconds by binding the opponent's legs.
"Commence Beatdown. Giz, alternate between {Rapid Shot} {Paralyzing Blow} and {Spark Shot}. {Venom Shot} won't work. Syth, assist Giz in DPS using {Frost Spear} at range."
As the elemental broke from the trap, its stone hands smashed into Dreadnaught's shield. Orange light glowed around his body to negate the damage caused by the attack.
"{Taunting Blow}"
"5 seconds too early Dread. HP at 93%"
"Sorry"
"{Spark Shot}"
The giant kept the attack on Dreadnaught chipping small amounts of HP.
"90%. Minor Heal on Dread.".
"{Healing Light}"
"{Frost Spear} {Energy Weapon - Ice}"
"85% {Viper's Thrash} {Quick Assault} 72%. Good job forecasting the next attack rotation."
The giant scooped out the nearby lava preparing to throw.
"{Paralyzing Blow}"
The shot interrupted the action and froze the movements of the creature for a few seconds.
"Good call. HP at 68%. {Early Thrust} {Quick Assault}. At 60%".
"{Shield Smash}"
"56%. Keep stacking the hate. Dread. Giz, {Rapid Shot} while moving."
"{Energy Weapon - Ice}"
"{Rapid Shot}"
Giznow ran around the battlefield keeping the skill up as he went. His {Gale Armlet} glowing stronger with every step.
"45% Giz, fire at half-charge. Press the attack. {Round Windmill} 35%."
The creature intensified its attacks on the tank dealing noticeable damage due to additional fire damage.
"Throw out a big heal"
"{Heal}"
"Fire now."
"{Storm Shot}"
At half charge, {Storm Shot} unleashes weaker winds from the point of impact, knocking back the target. But the damage is not to be underestimated.
"15%"
"{Shield Swing}"
"at 12% Syth, end it."
"{Enhance Code} {Frost Spear}"
"Target Down. Nice Work."
"That was a bit easy." said Aerix.
"Now, lets try fighting a cluster of them. We only have to change up a few things.
Firstly, we cannot avoid area of attack mob skills anymore with the increased number. I leave the discretion of using area heals to you Aerix but prioritize single-targets on Dread. You need to use your {Sanctuary} if ever the party's average HP reaches 70% or lower.
Dread, use {Anchor Howl} once in range. Again, remember your taunt durations. Build up a lot of hate. I think {Counter Break} works on a dual-shield build so use as needed.
Syth, take the role of main area damager with your {Freezing Liner} and {Serpent Bolt}.
I'll be at the mid-guard providing supporting fire and giving out orders.
Giz, use normal attacks to lure. Use {Rapid Shot} for area damage.
The plan is to kill them simultaneously. Everybody got their roles set?"
"Yeah." replied in unison.
"Good. Let's get going."
Moving some distance away from their first encounter, they spotted a group of seven {Lava Giants} in close proximity with each other.
"Okay" said Cerby "This time, each of us will pull one monster in separate positions. Then we kite them towards Dread. Giz, as this is your specialty, you'll have to kite at least 3. Dread, as you have the least mobility, wait around 5 seconds before you taunt your target"
"Got it"
"Everyone get to your respective places, on my signal, hit the mobs with a single-target skill and begin kiting"
""Roger""
Kiting is one of the skills in MMO gaming that is easy to learn but difficult to master. One must take into consideration the distance of the enemy, the maximum range of skills and normal attacks, attack speed, cooldown times, obstacles, enemy stats and skillset and more importantly the player and the target's movement speed. One can easily say a distinguishing characteristic of an experienced player is in his ability to consistently execute kiting while sustaining minimal to zero damage.
"I really hate kiting. Why can't I just go near dread and wait for the pulls?" said Aerix
"Because you can run faster than dread". chimed Giznow
"Because dread is a fatass in plate armor and you are not" jabbed Syth
"Give me a break!" exclaimed Dread
"Break it up gents. Everyone in position?" asked Cerby
"""Yeah"""
"Go!"
"{Holy Light}"
"{Quick Assault)"
"{Frost Spear}"
"{Rapid Shot}"
"1.. 2.. 3.. 4.. 5.. {Taunting Shout}"
As the rest of the party converged towards Dreadnaught's location, he observed the ground waiting for the lured group of monsters to pass his pre-determined mark.
Cerby is also keeping this in mind just to keep tabs on the main tank's capability to control all incoming mob aggro and to prepare some countermeasures should there be any deviations from the initial plan.
"All yours man". shouted Giznow.
Once he was certain that the last monster was safely in range, Dread wasted no time calling on the next skill.
"{Anchor Howl}"
Tanking is a role that is often misunderstood as well as mis-managed by a sizable chunk of the playerbase in any MMORPG. The mentality of associating high hp / defense / resists / dodge / blocks with a tank is very prevalent. While those aspects are certainly worth considering, there are also aspects that plays a big factor in determining the effectiveness of a tank namely:
In-Depth Knowledge of the Limitation of the Tank's Hate-generating Skills
Control of Mob Hate
Consistent Aggro Generation
Knowledge of his Team's Skills which Generate Large Hate
HP Management
DPS control through communication
Teamwork with the support classes
There is a popular saying in MMO cultures, tanks are easy to find, but finding a tank that thinks is worth a thousand times more. In Metzger, Dreadnaught is tanking personified. His unyielding defense and mastery of the guardian earned him the title "Steel Heart" among his peers.
As the seven {Lava Giants} converged towards Dreadnaught due to his area taunt, his team positioned themselves nearby in order to proceed with the next phase of the plan.
"Ready your area skills ladies! We have to finish this quickly"
"Let's see. Damage toggles active. {Lattice Syntax} active {Lamination Syntax} active"
Syth's new toggles focused on maximizing damage on multiple enemies. The former, increases the radius while the latter, turns single target, chaining and line spells into area-of-effect skills (with 20% of the original damage splashed).
"{Rook Slider} {Serpent Bolt}!"
As the purple lightning hit the first target, 20% of the damage, went around the adjacent monsters then it chained to the second target, impacting the same effect of the skill toggle used by Syth. While {Serpent Bolt} gradually decreases in damage on succeeding opponents, the effects brought on by the damage toggles balanced the drawbacks.
As soon as the spell dispersed, the first {Lava Giant} hit increased its hate towards the caster. However, the effect of {Anchor Howl} prevented the giant to attack the caster lest they be subjected to a strong counterattack by the tank.
"Dread, lock that first target in"
"Got it! {Shield Smash}"
With a strong swing of Dreadnaught's shields, the giant flinched and resumed attacking the tank. At some distance away, Aerix was monitoring the health of the tank as the attacks of seven monsters can be significant to the tank. As soon as he sees his health go to a pre-determined level, he casts {Healing Light} or {Heal} to keep him standing all the while taking note of all the hate his heals generate being careful not to draw the monsters away from the tank.
"Need a boost here Syth"
"Oh, sure. {Energy Weapon - Ice}"
"Thanks, {Rapid Shot}"
Giznow's {Rapid Shot} can either bring a torrent of arrows to multiple targets or focus entirely on a single target. Backed by Syth's support spell, the hail of arrows was very effective in thinning down the HP of the attacking giants.
On the instance of the attack, Dread is already aware that the hate needs to be stacked on him otherwise the mob would go to Giznow. Then he prepared his next skill.
"{Counter Break}"
Adapting a more aggressive stance {Counter Break} allows the guardian to match every attack the opponents make blow-for-blow. This is especially useful if the guardian in question is facing multiple mobs. The skill allows the guardian to sustain the hate of the mob.
As the HP of the {Lava Giants} decreased to half, their arms glowed with fire and began to attack more furiously. Each hit they deal deals a stacking fire damage-over-time effect.
"Okay, was not expecting that to be happening that early. I thought they would do that around 30%."
Experience dictated most of the strategies Cerby implements on the battlefield. Deviations from the plan are often expected. He is aware that there might be changes made from the time they were active. From these changes come "reactions" that of which he is already all too familiar with. In a span of seconds, he revises his strategy to adapt to the situation.
"Card, {Energy Protection}"
"{Energy Protection - Fire}!"
{Energy Protection} envelops the cleric and his party in an aura similar to the element to be faced. In this scenario. a red aura radiates from their bodies which would last up to five minutes. This aura decreases the damage received from the elemental attacks of opponents of the chosen type.
Damage reduction was one thing, but restoring health due to the accumulated damage is another. Aerix noticed the tank's HP going down to 65% from the aggravated assault of the {Lava Giants}, he had to be quick. Repositioning himself to maximize the range while minimizing the hate, he casted {Heal} and {Reactive Heal} consecutively.
As the heal spells resolved, one of the giants reacted to the hate generated and ran towards the cleric.
"Dread, we got one straggler"
"Ok. {Taunting Shout}!"
The giant stopped for a moment and turned back to the guardian.
"Sorry, my bad" said Aerix.
"Eh? Don't be. The heals were a good call." replied Cerby. "Hold your fire for a few seconds, I'm going to try something"
All members complied and assumed a defensive stance. Preparing his throwing axes, he charged up his skill.
"{Early Thrust}!"
As each axe hit the targets for minor damage, the debuff marker resembling a playing card surfaces.
"Try this on for size {Break Trigger}"
As soon as the skill was invoked with a snap of the fingers, the markers explode dealing sizable damage. As the smoke cleared, the giants are still standing, albeit on critical HP levels.
"Oh right, they are resistant to fire. Thought that would have finished them for sure. Oh well, you take the finish Syth, Line em up Dread"
Dread ran a few paces away from the mob to which the giants followed in a clumped line.
"Damage and Area Toggles Set!, {Freezing Liner}!"
The torrent of ice hurled towards the monsters dealing enough damage to kill.
"Great job guys, a bit rough on the edges. Take a few mins of rest and then on to the next targets."
This exercise continued for the rest of the remaining days of the event. Teamwork needed a little polishing but it would be enough to last them battles. They also exceeded their target level for their friend as Syth reached level 83. Ending the last day at the {Lake of Fire}, the five adventurers went back to the encampment, discussing matters for the days ahead.
"I have to hand it to you Clown, your grinding methods are very effective." said Aerix.
"Naturally, I'm that good."
"Thanks guys, I got that much levels in a shorter time." said Syth.
"We also had a good haul of {Volcanic Diamonds}. These are sure to sell for a hefty sum. Or we could just use them." added Giznow.
"Now for the things to do tomorrow. We head back to manila at first light. We will not go for the old route last time. We'll charge straight. The flight should only take 5 hours. We have much information gathering to do and I want to meet up with "Maestro" to discuss some things."
"We need to sleep early. The past few days were tiring. I mean we never left the lake area. Good thing Cerby found a safe spot nearby to rest." said Syth.
"Already marked that spot on my map. This should sell for a good sum."
"Always the opportunist with money, huh." said Dreadnaught.
"Can't waste a potential source of income."
"Where do we grind next? I can't wait to catch up with you guys."
"That would depend on the next destination Card would pluck from the underground." replied Cerby.
"In any case, let's take a rest. We have much work tomorrow." said Aerix.
At dawn, the five adventurers mounted their respective flying creatures and set out back to the Capital, where the next part of the adventure continues.