[X][Fault] ...Heathcliff slowly stands to his feet, his face as impassive as ever.
[X][Boss] Go fight Illfang.
[X][Group] Heathcliff is standing alone, impassively watching every else form groups.
Ah that sucks, but it makes sense as well After all 1-11 are 10 level
Well as long as we stick to fighting the Ruin Kobolds we should be fine
That means we should avoid being part of a 6 man party, since those are slotted for Ilfang
Because there is a sizable difference between a level 9 and a level 11 player, and I'm not just talking about Stats but money and thus upgraded equipment
Due Hearthcliff bullshit I'm inclined to believe that he will pull this of somehow
But it would give him additional Fame
Allowing him to Take over the Frontline even earlier
[][Fault] ...Nothing. Wait. Since when have you been on your feet? Why was everyone staring at you now?!
- [][Fault] Write-In what you are going to say.
Man I would really like to join that group, but for safety reasons I think it would be better to stick either with Diavel, who would have a bunch of other tanks to switch out when it gets dangerous or Hearthcliff who has cheated himself some plot-armor
These two I think would be the best, for reasons mentioned above,
But I think I will go with Hearthcliff, if only to score some friendship points with him, so that we can stay in contact with him afterwards
Even if I honestly don't want to join his guild, given who it is that we are talking about
It depends, mostly on whether our simple spear +1 also provides +1 on attacks like in dnd or only on damage rolls,
If it does then for the current boss fight it makes no sense to buy it, since it would be a downgrade
However the enchantment on the floatwood spear is definitely the mechanically most powerful, since in DND the biggest issue for damage dealers is to overcome the AC of the enemy
And in this setting with the Swordarts it's even more important
But at the same time, usually items from the next area are more powerful then the items from the starting Area in MMO's and while the Huntsmen Mark looks like a special store, I don't think it hurts to wait one more turn and see whether the store magically expands once the second floor is unlocked
We don't even have the basic spear fighting trait and you guys want to risk going to the Boss fight? I'm a fairly reckless voter but even I'm hesitant here guys.
I think you are misunderstanding the basic spear fighting trait,
From my understanding this trait has nothing to do with SAO itself but represents the fact that Kishi is currently teaching us RL martial arts that involve the usage of a spear
Which makes Kishi kinda like Kirito, somebody who was taught a special martial Arts style, however unlike Kirito, Kishi doesn't leverage that experience and knowledge to chesse the weapon system, by using the same weapontype that they learned in RL
Which means that once we have maxed out the basic trait, we will know how to use a spear in RL and then can apply that knowledge to SAO, to increase our abilities with the spear
I disagree here, mostly because Hearthcliff interest is in others playing the game, so I would find it rather out of character for him to let the one player die, whose name he actually remembers
I wouldn't say that @veekie, mostly because all those level 11 players will have way more money then us and thus will have their equipment much further upgraded then we have, even if they lack our epic shield
I would however say that we are above the average player here in terms of equipment
Tactics-wise, (if we fight one powerful minion like in canon instead of many weaker ones) we should stand 10 feet away from our enemy, with Heathcliff on the other side. This means that if the enemy wants to go anywhere it has to eat at least one opportunity attack, from whichever of us it is running away from
They could always take the disengage action, preventing opportunity attacks this way, and trying to cage it in with only two players might backfire, in case it block our line of sight and/or overwhelms one side
[X][Fault] ...Nothing. Wait. Since when have you been on your feet? Why was everyone staring at you now?!
-[X] "Dude, pull that head out of your ass. This is the first real game I've played, you can ask just about anyone who's spent more than five minutes with me to confirm that. "
-[X] "There was this guy back on day five. He knew what he was doing, he went out there to go after , hes probably a beta tester if he was so sure. He never came back. I never even learned his name and he's dead as sure as anyone else. The game is different from the Beta, things change, and thinking you know better gets you killed."
-[X] "Hell, how many people here know someone who would be dead if not for the tips given out in the Guide? Where do you think the information about quests and bosses come from? Newbies like me? They come from people going out there, to the most dangerous unknown places, and coming back with information on how not to die doing those quests. The very thing you're railing against. What they can get is a lot more than the nothing we have. They take the risk for us."
[X][The Mark] Don't buy anything right now. [X][Boss] Go fight Illfang.
[X][Group] Heathcliff is standing alone, impassively watching every else form groups.
While I'm not 100% agreeing with veekie's write in, it's close enough, so it got my vote
I wouldn't say that @veekie, mostly because all those level 11 players will have way more money then us and thus will have their equipment much further upgraded then we have, even if they lack our epic shield
I would however say that we are above the average player here in terms of equipment
I mean, I'm comparing to Kirito as of canon boss fight, he had a maxed out Anneal Blade, and the rest are generics. So...huh you're right, they're further upgraded because they didn't have to putter around trying to figure out how to make money solo.
This isn't the case for this quest though. We know for a fact that the generally increasing difficulty of increased levels is being implemented by a penalty to player stats rather than by inflating hp and damage numbers, which doesn't obsolete equipment nearly as fast. For example, right now we're using the Basic Spear(+1), and we do 1d10+6 damage per hit - going up to the next floor would add cut our strength by 5, dropping us to either +2 or +1 instead of +5, so that barely upgraded Basic Spear would still be doing 1d10+2 or 1d10+3 damage per hit.
I wouldn't say that @veekie, mostly because all those level 11 players will have way more money then us and thus will have their equipment much further upgraded then we have, even if they lack our epic shield
Eh, not really - as an example, the Simple Ironwood Spear is mechanically halfway between the Basic Spear's (+3) and (+4) upgrades for expected DPS, so it's comparable to the maxed out generic (though much cheaper). If we'd bought the Masterwork Basic Spear instead of upgrading our Armor it'd be strictly better than a maxed generic (also cheaper), and stuff like the Floatwood and Thundershock Spears have incomparables that are probably equivalent to the raw stat boosts on offer.
So while those level 11 players probably have invested more col into their equipment, chances are that got spent on stuff like the Ring Mail's extra HP that isn't super useful - the amount of improvement you can eke out of generic equipment isn't all that much. Honda may not be one of the very best equipped players, but I'd be very surprised if he wasn't in the top quarter or fifth overall.
This isn't the case for this quest though. We know for a fact that the generally increasing difficulty of increased levels is being implemented by a penalty to player stats rather than by inflating hp and damage numbers, which doesn't obsolete equipment nearly as fast. For example, right now we're using the Basic Spear(+1), and we do 1d10+6 damage per hit - going up to the next floor would add cut our strength by 5, dropping us to either +2 or +1 instead of +5, so that barely upgraded Basic Spear would still be doing 1d10+2 or 1d10+3 damage per hit.
In order to simulate the increasing strength/difficulty of higher floors, there will be malus applied to the player character for each floor he climbs.
[STR], [DEX] and [CON] will receive a -5 malus per floor climbed.
Equipment will receive a -1 to -3 malus per floor climbed beyond where the equipment was originally found.
Huh, apparently I'm completely blind. Anyways, the point remains that rarer/higher quality/highly upgraded equipment is likely to still be better or equal to the first available equipment found at a higher floor/level, depending on how old said gear is and what sort of quality it is.
[X][Fault] ...Heathcliff slowly stands to his feet, his face as impassive as ever.
[X][Boss] Go fight Illfang.
[X][Group] Heathcliff is standing alone, impassively watching every else form groups.
[X][Fault] ...Heathcliff slowly stands to his feet, his face as impassive as ever. [X][Boss] Don't go fight Illfang. [X][Group] Heathcliff is standing alone, impassively watching every else form groups.
[X][Fault] ...Nothing. Wait. Since when have you been on your feet? Why was everyone staring at you now?!
-[X] "Dude, pull that head out of your ass. This is the first real game I've played, you can ask just about anyone who's spent more than five minutes with me to confirm that. "
-[X] "There was this guy back on day five. He knew what he was doing, he went out there to go after , hes probably a beta tester if he was so sure. He never came back. I never even learned his name and he's dead as sure as anyone else. The game is different from the Beta, things change, and thinking you know better gets you killed."
-[X] "Hell, how many people here know someone who would be dead if not for the tips given out in the Guide? Where do you think the information about quests and bosses come from? Newbies like me? They come from people going out there, to the most dangerous unknown places, and coming back with information on how not to die doing those quests. The very thing you're railing against. What they can get is a lot more than the nothing we have. They take the risk for us."
[X][The Mark] [Simple Floatwood Spear +0] : 4000 Col
[X][Boss] Go fight Illfang.
[X][Group] A black-haired kid around your age is chatting with someone wearing a cloak.
[X][Boss] Don't go fight Illfang. I give my vote to Honda NOT participating in the Illfang fight, mainly because I really don't want Kishi and Sayaka to be mad at us. Given that we're going behind their backs doing something dangerous, they're definitely going to be mad, and since our chances of getting them to forgive us is based on rolls, even if we're friends, I don't wanna risk it. Also, we really might die. Then again, with that speech we gave Argo, not going would be pretty embarrassing....
Is there the option to inform Sayaka and Kishi if we're goin before it's too late? Mayhaps??
If we do end up going, my votes are thus
[X][Fault] ...Heathcliff slowly stands to his feet, his face as impassive as ever
[X][Group] Heathcliff is standing alone, impassively watching every else form groups.
[X][Fault] ...Nothing. Wait. Since when have you been on your feet? Why was everyone staring at you now?!
-[X] "Dude, pull that head out of your ass. This is the first real game I've played, you can ask just about anyone who's spent more than five minutes with me to confirm that. "
-[X] "There was this guy back on day five. He knew what he was doing, he went out there to go after , hes probably a beta tester if he was so sure. He never came back. I never even learned his name and he's dead as sure as anyone else. The game is different from the Beta, things change, and thinking you know better gets you killed."
-[X] "Hell, how many people here know someone who would be dead if not for the tips given out in the Guide? Where do you think the information about quests and bosses come from? Newbies like me? They come from people going out there, to the most dangerous unknown places, and coming back with information on how not to die doing those quests. The very thing you're railing against. What they can get is a lot more than the nothing we have. They take the risk for us."
[X][The Mark] [Simple Floatwood Spear +0] : 4000 Col
[X][Boss] Go fight Illfang.
[X][Group] A black-haired kid around your age is chatting with someone wearing a cloak.
I say we go on the other end: make the meeting so depressive and outrageous that we can postpone the raid for a week so that everyone can get ready better.
I like where you are going with this. Honestly at lot of us were pretty adamant about not fighting and then we got swept up in the moment.
[X][Fault] ...Nothing. Wait. Since when have you been on your feet? Why was everyone staring at you now?! -[X] "I remember someone that I saw passing-by. There was this guy back on day five. He knew what he was doing, he went out there to go after ,he was probably a Beta Tester since he was so sure. He never came back. I never even learned his name and he's dead as sure as anyone else on the wall. This game is different from the Beta; things change, and thinking that you know better gets you killed. Everyone here should know how hard this game is: you've all experienced it for a month now. If there are any beta testers here, can someone confirm for a newbie like me how things are different from the beta? I feel like we're doing what that newbie did at the Beginner's guide book: jumping into an opportunity without really analyzing what we're up against."
-[X] "What do we lose from waiting for a week? We get more people, we improve coordination, we level more, we upgrade more gear. This first push will be the determining factor of this game: everyone will gain hope from us taking the first step out of this prison. However, if we fail, that will mean the very best of the players wasn't enough. We will lose people, forever, etched into the damn wall, our morale shattered and the morale of everyone trapped in here even more so, hearing the only hope having failed will reinforce their belief that we are trapped here forever. If so, how will the future raiding team ever form? Will we break it or will it break us? Let us prepare more for it."
-[X] "We should train in teams. I just arrived here after hearing your call, and I know just about nobody here. There must be more people like me. How will we even succeed against a floor boss without knowing our teammates' capabilities?" [X][Boss] Don't go fight Illfang.
[X][Boss] Don't go fight Illfang. I give my vote to Honda NOT participating in the Illfang fight, mainly because I really don't want Kishi and Sayaka to be mad at us. Given that we're going behind their backs doing something dangerous, they're definitely going to be mad, and since our chances of getting them to forgive us is based on rolls, even if we're friends, I don't wanna risk it. Also, we really might die. Then again, with that speech we gave Argo, not going would be pretty embarrassing....
Is there the option to inform Sayaka and Kishi if we're goin before it's too late? Mayhaps??
I don't think there is time to tell them we are going with the raid. We didn't even tell them we were going to the boss meeting right? Also, Saturday implied we are going in immediately.
Also, we told Argo we would decide on seeing the team, we didn't say we were definitely going to go. I don't think embarrassment is worse than death in any case. Remember: Argo actually warned everyone about the increased difficulty. I would like to re-iterate my idea of attempting to postpone the raid by a week. That way, we can at least talk with everyone and then go, maybe even recruit some and form our group.
I think Saturday is playing tricks with us to break us out of the safe methods we have been using so far. Implying it will go terrible without us straight up makes the hive mind panic and go with the flow. However, how will we, a newbie with some good items, could change the outcome of a fight where there are at least 5 groups of sizes between 2-6. It simply doesn't make sense, sure, we can tank some damage and take some stress off our group, but there has to be at least 15 people in here, another body doesn't nearly make enough of a difference.
Actually, just how many groups and people are currently there at the meeting? Can you tell us Saturday?
I think Saturday is playing tricks with us to break us out of the safe methods we have been using so far. Implying it will go terrible without us straight up makes the hive mind panic and go with the flow. However, how will we, a newbie with some good items, could change the outcome of a fight where there are at least 5 groups of sizes between 2-6. It simply doesn't make sense, sure, we can tank some damage and take some stress off our group, but there has to be at least 15 people in here, another body doesn't nearly make enough of a difference.
Actually, just how many groups and people are currently there at the meeting? Can you tell us Saturday?
Keep in mind just how many people are needed for Diavel's plan, though - it calls for at least 2 full parties to switch out on the Boss itself as well as another 3-4 half parties to be able to switch out with each other on the primary adds. That's 16-18 people at the absolute minimum, and a full group would have 24-28 people. Having less people means that the people left are going to have less time to back off and pop healing potions in order to be able to keep fighting fit.
We have confirmation of 15-19 people participating right now including Honda (Agil's party of 5, Kibaou's party of 5, Kirito + Asuna, Honda, Heathcliff, and then Diavel + up to 4 others in his party) based on the choices available to us. Honda, as a better than average tank, makes a big difference when current participation looks to be the bare minimum and dropping one more tank risks a cascade of groups being stretched beyond their limits as soon as one of these groups (any of them) fail.
It's possible that generic people from level 9-11 will fill out existing groups or add more to counter that risk, but that'd depend on how the response to the [FAULT] question goes because if the general atmosphere is bad a lot of those generics are going to do what Honda thought about and not participate in the boss fight as well as the boss planning. If it goes as canon and has a generally cooling effect on morale/participation than it's not really all that unlikely that an overconfident/underprepared raid like we see is forming could go really badly.
I think Saturday is playing tricks with us to break us out of the safe methods we have been using so far. Implying it will go terrible without us straight up makes the hive mind panic and go with the flow. However, how will we, a newbie with some good items, could change the outcome of a fight where there are at least 5 groups of sizes between 2-6. It simply doesn't make sense, sure, we can tank some damage and take some stress off our group, but there has to be at least 15 people in here, another body doesn't nearly make enough of a difference.
While I don't deny playing a bit of a trick, by 'making a difference' in the battle, I mean that in case of catastrophe you'd have a chance to maybe save some named character's life/rally morale or something. Not that Honda'd be a one-man army who can jut show up and save the day by himself.
It's more of a chance to slightly tip the scales than anything else.
(Also next time, if you want to ask a question, can you @ me? I didn't even notice that you asked a question until just now)
[X] Plan: Don't Be Hasty
[X][Fault] ...Nothing. Wait. Since when have you been on your feet? Why was everyone staring at you now?!
-[X] "I remember someone that I saw passing-by. There was this guy back on day five. He knew what he was doing, he went out there to go after ,he was probably a Beta Tester since he was so sure. He never came back. I never even learned his name and he's dead as sure as anyone else on the wall. This game is different from the Beta; things change, and thinking that you know better gets you killed. Everyone here should know how hard this game is: you've all experienced it for a month now. If there are any beta testers here, can someone confirm for a newbie like me how things are different from the beta? I feel like we're doing what that newbie did at the Beginner's guide book: jumping into an opportunity without really analyzing what we're up against."
-[X] "What do we lose from waiting for a week? We get more people, we improve coordination, we level more, we upgrade more gear. This first push will be the determining factor of this game: everyone will gain hope from us taking the first step out of this prison. However, if we fail, that will mean the very best of the players wasn't enough. We will lose people, forever, etched into the damn wall, our morale shattered and the morale of everyone trapped in here even more so, hearing the only hope having failed will reinforce their belief that we are trapped here forever. If so, how will the future raiding team ever form? Will we break it or will it break us? Let us prepare more for it."
-[X] "We should train in teams. I just arrived here after hearing your call, and I know just about nobody here. There must be more people like me. How will we even succeed against a floor boss without knowing our teammates' capabilities?"
[X][Boss] Go fight Illfang.
[X][Group] A black-haired kid around your age is chatting with someone wearing a cloak.
Waiting for a week sounds like a really good idea. Being able to level up a bit more and training in teams for a bit before the fight will really help. Honda in particular is very close to the next level. Honestly, team training may make more of a difference than Honda himself fighting. That being said, Don't go fight Illfang seems to imply that we don't go at all. In order to maximize the amount we can do, we should both make sure that the raid waits a bit AND show that we ourselves are going. If the guy who urged caution still wants to go once we've prepared adequately, it will boost morale, causing more people to go.
Saturday said that we might be able to save a named character, so it's best to party up with someone who may need it. Kirito and Asuna are both high powered players who will be important for the front lines in the future, and unlike Heathcliff they can die. Since they are damage dealers they'll benefit greatly from having a tank, and we can pull them out once things start going to pieces.
Suggested Tactics For Fighting With Kirito And Asuna:
First off, they're DPS in canon. We're a tank, so we want to take advantage of that to keep the enemy focused on us and not them.
Unfortunately, it's difficult to force an enemy to only attack you in DnD 5e. Opportunity attacks are a thing of course, but other than that we don't have much that can incentivize the enemy to attack us instead of the relatively unarmored damage dealers.
Instead, we should get creative. We could try and knock the enemy down and doing damage by attacking their legs. In 5e attacking a prone enemy gives advantage on the attack, so it will make it much easier for Kirito and Asuna to hit. Furthermore, if we keep knocking the enemy down every turn it will probably get pretty frustrated and focus on us instead of the others. We should attack the legs with both normal attacks and our sword arts so that we still do as much damage as we can and have a chance to knock it down every turn.
[X][Fault] ...Heathcliff slowly stands to his feet, his face as impassive as ever
[X][Group] Heathcliff is standing alone, impassively watching every else form groups.
[X][Fault] ...Nothing. Wait. Since when have you been on your feet? Why was everyone staring at you now?!
-[X] "Dude, pull that head out of your ass. This is the first real game I've played, you can ask just about anyone who's spent more than five minutes with me to confirm that. "
-[X] "There was this guy back on day five. He knew what he was doing, he went out there to go after , hes probably a beta tester if he was so sure. He never came back. I never even learned his name and he's dead as sure as anyone else. The game is different from the Beta, things change, and thinking you know better gets you killed."
-[X] "Hell, how many people here know someone who would be dead if not for the tips given out in the Guide? Where do you think the information about quests and bosses come from? Newbies like me? They come from people going out there, to the most dangerous unknown places, and coming back with information on how not to die doing those quests. The very thing you're railing against. What they can get is a lot more than the nothing we have. They take the risk for us."
[X][The Mark] [Simple Floatwood Spear +0] : 4000 Col
[X][Boss] Go fight Illfang.
[X][Group] Heathcliff is standing alone, impassively watching every else form groups.
[X] Plan: Don't Be Hasty
[X][Fault] ...Nothing. Wait. Since when have you been on your feet? Why was everyone staring at you now?!
-[X] "I remember someone that I saw passing-by. There was this guy back on day five. He knew what he was doing, he went out there to go after ,he was probably a Beta Tester since he was so sure. He never came back. I never even learned his name and he's dead as sure as anyone else on the wall. This game is different from the Beta; things change, and thinking that you know better gets you killed. Everyone here should know how hard this game is: you've all experienced it for a month now. If there are any beta testers here, can someone confirm for a newbie like me how things are different from the beta? I feel like we're doing what that newbie did at the Beginner's guide book: jumping into an opportunity without really analyzing what we're up against."
-[X] "What do we lose from waiting for a week? We get more people, we improve coordination, we level more, we upgrade more gear. This first push will be the determining factor of this game: everyone will gain hope from us taking the first step out of this prison. However, if we fail, that will mean the very best of the players wasn't enough. We will lose people, forever, etched into the damn wall, our morale shattered and the morale of everyone trapped in here even more so, hearing the only hope having failed will reinforce their belief that we are trapped here forever. If so, how will the future raiding team ever form? Will we break it or will it break us? Let us prepare more for it."
-[X] "We should train in teams. I just arrived here after hearing your call, and I know just about nobody here. There must be more people like me. How will we even succeed against a floor boss without knowing our teammates' capabilities?"
[X][Boss] Go fight Illfang.
[X][Group] A black-haired kid around your age is chatting with someone wearing a cloak.
[X][The Mark] [Simple Ironwood Spear +0] : 4000 Col
[X][Fault] ...Nothing. Wait. Since when have you been on your feet? Why was everyone staring at you now?! -[X][Fault] "Dude, pull that head out of your ass. This is the first real game I've played, you can ask just about anyone who's spent more than five minutes with me to confirm that. " -[X][Fault] "There was this guy back on day five. He knew what he was doing, he went out there to go after, he's probably a beta tester if he was so sure. He never came back. I never even learned his name and he's dead as sure as anyone else. The game is different from the Beta, things change, and thinking you know better gets you killed." -[X][Fault] "Hell, how many people here know someone who would be dead if not for the tips given out in the Guide? Where do you think the information about quests and bosses come from? Newbies like me? They come from people going out there, to the most dangerous unknown places, and coming back with information on how not to die doing those quests. The very thing you're railing against. What they can get is a lot more than the nothing we have. They take the risk for us."
[X][Boss] Go fight Illfang.
[X][Group] Heathcliff is standing alone, impassively watching every else form groups.
024: The Kobold Lord
- - - - -
[ 1d20 + 1(Friendly N00b) + 3(Good reasoning) = 11 ] #How well is the argument recieved?
"Dude, please pull your head out of your ass." comes a voice. Your voice.
You don't know when you got up from your seat, just that you did. Everyone at the meeting was now staring at you, but you honestly didn't care one bit. All that mattered was cactus head, and how utterly wrong his statement was.
Squaring your shoulders, you glare down at the center of the area and continue speaking "This is literally the first video game I've ever played." You gesture to yourself. "Spending more than five minutes with me would prove that statement true, so don't go thinking I'm a disguised beta tester."
Cactus head goes to speak, but you just barrel right over him. "I remember this guy way back from day five. He was a nice dude, gave me some money to buy food when I was starving. He seemed so sure of what he was doing, going out there day after day full of confidence. A beta tester if I ever saw one. One day, he mentioned something about a treasure trove of a quest and left town." You laugh bitterly. "He never came back. This dude helped me at my lowest, and I never even got to know his name. He died before I could ever hope to thank him."
You jab a finger down directly down towards cactus head. "The point is, it doesn't fucking matter if someone was a beta tester or not. We all die the same out here. In fact, his self-confidence was almost one-hundred percent the reason he died! He died because he was a beta tester!"
"The game is different from the beta, things have changed, and thinking you know better isn't going to help! It's only going to get you killed!" you say, voice rising in anger.
"And hell, how many people here know someone or are someone that would've died without help from this thing?" You pull out the Player's Handbook and wave it above your head. "Where do you think the info about quests and bosses comes from? Do you think it comes from newbies like me?"
You let those questions hang in the silence, before answering the last one yourself. "No. No, it doesn't."
"It comes from those beta testers who go out there every day, who explore the most dangerous unknowns and complete the most lethal of quests, and who bring that information back." you spit out. "What you're railing against? That's the very thing that has kept most of us alive in the first place!"
You stand there, huffing from the impromptu speech. Cactus-guy just stares in furious shock, opening his mouth to say something multiple times, but shutting it every time.
Just when it looks like cactus-guy has recovered his wits and is about to respond, Diavel coughs loudly, drawing all attention to himself. "Well… bringing the meeting back onto topic, I need to explain a critical piece of information to all of you. I have found out from a very reputable source that Illfang, and most of the future bosses, have been altered in some way. I theorize that not only will the fight be harder but..."
Gained 3 reputation with Diavel!
Gained 3 reputation with ???!
Gained 1 reputation with Heathcliff!
Gained 1 reputation with Agil!
Lost 8 reputation with Kibaou (Cactus head)!
- - - - -
Diavel had just finished explaining how he believed that Illfang would most likely be tougher than he originally was, and how he wanted everyone to be prepared if anything unusual happened during the fight. With that, the meeting was declared officially over.
Everyone immediately stood up and began congregating into groups, trying to figure out who would party with who.
Since you obviously couldn't party with Kishi or Sayaka, you begin to frantically look around for anyone to party with. You see a couple of groups forming that you could possibly join, only to realize that an option is literally right next to you.
Heathcliff has stood up from his seat and is calmly watching everyone form groups. After a few moments, he nods to himself, before turning around and beginning to walk out of the ruined theater.
"Heathcliff! Got a sec?" you call after him.
He turns around, a questioning look on his face. "Yes?"
"Do you want to party with me for the raid? My regular party kinda... isn't here right now."
"Ah. I am sorry for your loss." Heathcliff solemnly says, bowing his head to you.
You nod your thanks, before actually registering what he said. "Wait no you've got it all wrong! They're not dead or anything! It's just that they can't currently participate in the meeting or the actual battle!"
At this Heathcliff straightens back up to his full height, and the two of you just sort of stare at each other in awkward silence. After a few moments, you look off to the side and cough uncomfortably, "So... party with me?"
Heathcliff lifts his head to the sky and thinks for a bit. "Well, in any case, fighting alongside someone would be… interesting." Heathcliff pauses for a moment, before continuing on, "Why not? I'll be glad to party with you."
"Awesome! Let's go tell Diavel!"
Heathcliff has (temporarily) joined the party!
Heathcliff's character sheet has been (temporarily) added!
- - - - -
It is the next day. The sun is shining merrily in the sky, but even it's artificial warmth isn't enough to break through the cold worry that grows in your core.
Once again you go to that ruined theater, quietly greeting an already arrived Heathcliff.
One by one, players start to trickle into the theater, congregating into the already decided upon groups.
[ 4d8 + 7(People who are 100% showing up) = 29 ] #How many people show up?
By the end, there are three separate groups of six. One is being led by Diavel, one is being led by cactus head (who you found out is called Kibaou), and the final one is being led by someone you don't know.
Agil seems to be leading a group of four, not counting himself.
A group of three stands off by themselves in one corner of the gathering point.
A black-haired kid stands next to someone who is wearing a full-body cloak.
And of course, you and Heathcliff stand by side in the ruins of the theater.
Seven groups altogether. Twenty-nine players total. All of you are gathered at this point, ready to take the first step towards freedom. Or die trying.
- - - - -
You wait as the last of the raiding party gets ushered into the room by one of the exploration players, one of the members in Diavel's party.
You out a quiet breath at the sight of the massive twin doors, each at least twenty feet high and carved from solid stone. This was it. The boss waited on the other side.'
Final preparations are made, players fall into their appointed groups, and everyone forms up near the entrance. Diavel makes his way to the doors, turning around to face everyone when he reaches them. "Well… this is it, guys."
The blue-haired man reaches back to rest one hand flat on one of the doors. "Stick to the plan, and remember what we are fighting for. We are fighting for ourselves, our hopes and dreams that not even Kayaba's twisted game can hold back!"
Diavel's voice grows stronger and louder as he says "We are fighting for our loved ones, who wait for us at the top of this castle! We are fighting for each other, making sure everyone will see the light at the end of the tunnel!"
"And no matter how things turn out behind this door, remember this." Diavel's voice echoes throughout the room, not one person daring to interrupt. "I am proud to fight alongside each and every one of you! Stay strong! Stay brave! And never ever lose hope that we can do this!"
And with that, Diavel turns around and heaves, his words still hanging over the silence. The twin doors swing open with silent grace, smoothly showing the path ahead.
Swiftly pulling out his sword and shield, the raid leader advances into the darkness, everyone else following behind.
- - - - -
The air inside is cold, piercing straight through your armor and chilling your very core.
Most of the crude stone architecture of the massive chamber is illuminated by glimmering strands of light, shining from torches set in small niches all along the walls. The back of the chamber remains enshrouded in shadows.
Monolithic obsidian pillars are scattered around the chamber, serving as some kind of structural support, rise into the darkness up above.
A deafening silence fills the room. Nothing seems to be happening.
Just as Diavel opens his mouth to speak, in the far back of the chamber, a low chuckle emanates and two blood-red eyes open.
Once unseen torches light up in a loud swoosh, light flooding into the back of the chamber, revealing the horrors that await hidden in the darkness.
Covered from head to toe in armor stand four creatures. Long red ears stick out of metal helmets, the only visual indicator that these things are Kobolds. Two of them heft halberds, swinging them around with an easy grace. The other two hold rough-looking maces, their strength revealed by their causal handling of the heavy weaponry. The Ruin Kobold Sentinels.
But even though each and every one of these monsters looks infinitely stronger than the Kobold Knight that had almost killed you not that long ago, they are nothing before what lays behind them.
A gigantic throne, crudely hewn from solid rock, stands rigid and firm. And on that throne, sits a monster.
Nearly a meter tall while reclining on its seat, muscle and sinew ripples just under its reddish fur as it shifts in its seat. Razor-sharp curved teeth are pulled in a snarl just underneath a large snout. Eyes burning with hate slowly sweep over each and every player, measuring each one's worth, and finding all wanting.
Almost lazily, it stands, the floor shaking as it slowly rises to its full height. A clawed hand reaches out to loosely grab the titanic ax that had been leaning on the throne, hefting it onto its shoulder with nary the slightest bit of effort.
A name slowly fades into existence over its head, along with a series of smaller titles just underneath.
<<Illfang, the Kobold Lord>> <First of Many> <Hopeslayer>
It smiles.
What was the plan you and Heathcliff came up with for the Sentinel you find yourselves fighting?
[][Ruin] It's a spear-wielding Sentinel.
[][Ruin] It's a mace-wielding Sentinel.
[][Plan] Heathcliff's even more armored than you. He'll tank the blows while you flank the thing.
[][Plan] The two of you should just move in circles around the thing, keep it on its toes.
[][Plan] Go aggressive, just try to kill it before it can even have a chance to do anything!
[][Plan] Go defensive, both of you should just hide behind your shields and slowly whittle it down!
[][Plan] Heathcliff's mentioned something about 'switching'? Follow his orders and do that!
[][Plan] Write-In?
You told Kishi and Sayaka that you wanted to fight the boss, they just don't know that you're actually going to do just that
After all, Kishi said she would be open to fighting the boss, but Honda promised Sayaka not to pull the party (and by extension Kishi) into the battle. As a result he's just gonna keep mum about the whole situation for now.
