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Rebuild of Sword Art Online

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Razor One said:
More seriously, it'd be interesting if the mechanic worked completely unlike the Master / Pet relationship most MMO's use and utilises a more equitable relational model. The Dragon will only team up with you if it likes you, if it's young enough to be impressed with you, and will treat you like an equal only if you do the same. Abuse the dragon and it flies off or tries to eat you. Treat the dragon like a person, it works with and protects you as best it can, but isn't outright suicidal unless it knows just how far you're willing to go on its behalf.
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Animal taming in SAO was very poorly understood, but what you describe isn't that different from how it seemed to work.

A beast tamer wasn't a class or skill given by the system, but a term used by the players.

On rare occasions, aggressive monsters would show interest in players. If you didn't miss the chance, you could successfully tame the monster by giving it something to eat. The monster would then become the player's «Familiar» and serve as a valuable ally who supports the player in various ways. Players referred to those who had succeeded in doing so as beast tamers with a mix of praise and envy.

Of course, not all monsters can become familiars; only a very limited variety of small monsters could. The conditions to trigger the event weren't all that clear, but the only one that everyone was sure about was that the event wouldn't occur if the player killed too many of the monster type.

This was a rather hard condition when you think about it. Even if one tried to get a familiar by repeatedly meeting them, the monsters were aggressive and the player can't avoid entering a fight with them. In other words, if one wished to become a beast tamer, they would have to keep meeting with the monster, and if the event didn't occur they would have to keep running away. It wasn't hard to imagine just how annoying all that would be.

With no knowledge of this, [Silica] had entered some forest without any reason on a floor she visited just because she felt like it. The first monster she had met didn't attack her, but merely approached her. She then gave it a peanut that she had bought the day before without much thought, and it just happened to be a food that the monster liked.

The monster was a «Feathery Dragon». Its whole body was covered in soft, pale blue feathers, and it had two long feathers instead of a tail. The small dragon was a very rare monster to come across. Perhaps Silica had been the first to succeed in taming it, as it immediately became the subject of much interest when she went back to her hometown «Friben» on the eighth floor with it sitting on her shoulder. The next day, countless players had attempted to tame a Feathery Dragon after listening to Silica's information, but none of them managed to succeed.
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I was imagining something a bit more involved than:

1. Meet Creature
2. Feed Creature
3. Pet Get!

It also still reads as something more akin to Master / Pet rather than an equal partnership.

Something like say...

It circled her for the third time. It didn't attack, but neither did it retreat despite several attempts to drive it off with thrusting attacks. It just kept circling, looking at her with those metallic eyes alight with an otherworldly intellect beyond the ken of any beast.

Dragon, she thought, even with those feathers, that's all this thing could be.

"What do you want?" she asked, feeling the need to try something different.

The dragon stopped its pacing and looked at her, cocking its neck and head in a curious fashion, its gaze intensified, no longer merely peering at her but into her and through her. She felt like it was reading her like a book, seeing her for all she was, all she had been, and all she would become. Just as quickly as it had arisen, the piercing gaze fled the creatures face, leaving behind only that otherworldly intellect in its place. It nodded its head as though coming to a decision, and with a fluid, lightning fast motion, plucked a single silvery feather from its hide with its mouth and laid it upon the ground.

Sensing her reticence, the dragon backed off. When it had doubled the distance between her and itself, it inclined its head towards the feather and snorted encouragement. Slowly, carefully, eyes never wavering in case of attack, she stepped forwards and warily lowered herself to collect the feather.

An item prompt screen appeared.

Accept Item: Pina's Feather Y/N?
Y
​
A flash like lightning rippled through her. Wordless thoughts and feelings that weren't her own invaded her mind. The world span with the suddenness of the sensation and she found herself falling. She shut her eyes and thrust her hands forth to break a fall that never came. Draconic claws gripped her arm and firmly but gently helped her find her balance as her heart and her mind caught up to the world around her once more. It struck her as odd that she now felt no fear from the dragon, where before she had been so wary. She tried to think back, but could not fathom a reason for fearing it as she once did. Its presence, so near to her now, felt as natural to her now as the armour on her body. She knew something fundamental had changed in them both. The presence of the dragon alongside her notwithstanding, the part of her mind that babbled a constant stream of wordless thoughts and feelings that could only be labeled dragon, spoke volumes as to the size of that change.

With a few swift strokes, she adjusted her overlays and looked to the dragons name plate.
​
Pina
<Silica's Companion>
​
Did... did I just tame a dragon?

She gasped sharply at the thought, then checked her character sheet. She'd never heard of anyone taming a dragon, and Aincrad had a habit of dealing out unique titles to anyone who managed a unique feat. She was not disappointed.
​
Silica
<Pina's Companion>
​
Or maybe the dragon tamed me?

The dragon, Pina, seemed to sense the thought in her companions mind and uttered a guttural trilling sound that ought to have disturbed and frightened her if not for the draconic part of her mind issuing forth a feeling of mirth.

​


Okay, went on a bit there, but I figured it was important to get out what was going on in my head. Spoilered it since this is Zerban's thread and not the place for my ramblings.​
 
Razor One said:
I was imagining something a bit more involved than:

1. Meet Creature
2. Feed Creature
3. Pet Get!

It also still reads as something more akin to Master / Pet rather than an equal partnership.

Something like say...

It circled her for the third time. It didn't attack, but neither did it retreat despite several attempts to drive it off with thrusting attacks. It just kept circling, looking at her with those metallic eyes alight with an otherworldly intellect beyond the ken of any beast.

Dragon, she thought, even with those feathers, that's all this thing could be.

"What do you want?" she asked, feeling the need to try something different.

The dragon stopped its pacing and looked at her, cocking its neck and head in a curious fashion, its gaze intensified, no longer merely peering at her but into her and through her. She felt like it was reading her like a book, seeing her for all she was, all she had been, and all she would become. Just as quickly as it had arisen, the piercing gaze fled the creatures face, leaving behind only that otherworldly intellect in its place. It nodded its head as though coming to a decision, and with a fluid, lightning fast motion, plucked a single silvery feather from its hide with its mouth and laid it upon the ground.

Sensing her reticence, the dragon backed off. When it had doubled the distance between her and itself, it inclined its head towards the feather and snorted encouragement. Slowly, carefully, eyes never wavering in case of attack, she stepped forwards and warily lowered herself to collect the feather.

An item prompt screen appeared.

Accept Item: Pina's Feather Y/N?
Y
​
A flash like lightning rippled through her. Wordless thoughts and feelings that weren't her own invaded her mind. The world span with the suddenness of the sensation and she found herself falling. She shut her eyes and thrust her hands forth to break a fall that never came. Draconic claws gripped her arm and firmly but gently helped her find her balance as her heart and her mind caught up to the world around her once more. It struck her as odd that she now felt no fear from the dragon, where before she had been so wary. She tried to think back, but could not fathom a reason for fearing it as she once did. Its presence, so near to her now, felt as natural to her now as the armour on her body. She knew something fundamental had changed in them both. The presence of the dragon alongside her notwithstanding, the part of her mind that babbled a constant stream of wordless thoughts and feelings that could only be labeled dragon, spoke volumes as to the size of that change.

With a few swift strokes, she adjusted her overlays and looked to the dragons name plate.
​
Pina
<Silica's Companion>
​
Did... did I just tame a dragon?

She gasped sharply at the thought, then checked her character sheet. She'd never heard of anyone taming a dragon, and Aincrad had a habit of dealing out unique titles to anyone who managed a unique feat. She was not disappointed.
​
Silica
<Pina's Companion>
​
Or maybe the dragon tamed me?

The dragon, Pina, seemed to sense the thought in her companions mind and uttered a guttural trilling sound that ought to have disturbed and frightened her if not for the draconic part of her mind issuing forth a feeling of mirth.

​

Okay, went on a bit there, but I figured it was important to get out what was going on in my head. Spoilered it since this is Zerban's thread and not the place for my ramblings.​
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From what I know of, writers tend to enjoy (and even oft reward) omake.

:V I know I do.
 
Razor One said:
It circled her for the third time. It didn't attack, but neither did it retreat despite several attempts to drive it off with thrusting attacks. It just kept circling, looking at her with those metallic eyes alight with an otherworldly intellect beyond the ken of any beast.

Dragon, she thought, even with those feathers, that's all this thing could be.

"What do you want?" she asked, feeling the need to try something different.

The dragon stopped its pacing and looked at her, cocking its neck and head in a curious fashion, its gaze intensified, no longer merely peering at her but into her and through her. She felt like it was reading her like a book, seeing her for all she was, all she had been, and all she would become. Just as quickly as it had arisen, the piercing gaze fled the creatures face, leaving behind only that otherworldly intellect in its place. It nodded its head as though coming to a decision, and with a fluid, lightning fast motion, plucked a single silvery feather from its hide with its mouth and laid it upon the ground.

Sensing her reticence, the dragon backed off. When it had doubled the distance between her and itself, it inclined its head towards the feather and snorted encouragement. Slowly, carefully, eyes never wavering in case of attack, she stepped forwards and warily lowered herself to collect the feather.

An item prompt screen appeared.

Accept Item: Pina's Feather Y/N?
Y
​
A flash like lightning rippled through her. Wordless thoughts and feelings that weren't her own invaded her mind. The world span with the suddenness of the sensation and she found herself falling. She shut her eyes and thrust her hands forth to break a fall that never came. Draconic claws gripped her arm and firmly but gently helped her find her balance as her heart and her mind caught up to the world around her once more. It struck her as odd that she now felt no fear from the dragon, where before she had been so wary. She tried to think back, but could not fathom a reason for fearing it as she once did. Its presence, so near to her now, felt as natural to her now as the armour on her body. She knew something fundamental had changed in them both. The presence of the dragon alongside her notwithstanding, the part of her mind that babbled a constant stream of wordless thoughts and feelings that could only be labeled dragon, spoke volumes as to the size of that change.

With a few swift strokes, she adjusted her overlays and looked to the dragons name plate.
​
Pina
<Silica's Companion>
​
Did... did I just tame a dragon?

She gasped sharply at the thought, then checked her character sheet. She'd never heard of anyone taming a dragon, and Aincrad had a habit of dealing out unique titles to anyone who managed a unique feat. She was not disappointed.
​
Silica
<Pina's Companion>
​
Or maybe the dragon tamed me?

The dragon, Pina, seemed to sense the thought in her companions mind and uttered a guttural trilling sound that ought to have disturbed and frightened her if not for the draconic part of her mind issuing forth a feeling of mirth.​
​
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But seriously, realtalk.

Argh. I feel really bad for shooting you down like this, 'cause it's still a really nice omake, but it's not what I had in mind for the story. The psychic mind-link between Silica and Pina and the sub-header are just a bit much, you know? I mean I'll still add it to the frontpage as an omake, but I'm gonna have to mark it as non-canon.

That you'd go to that much effort for little old me is still appreciated though!​
 
Sunder the Gold said:
No, Aincrad only crumbles if someone triggers the pre- programmed "Aincrad crumbles" event animation.

The servers crashing would mean everyone is instantly plunged into total sensory deprivation.
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No, their minds are also being run on the servers. The servers crashing would instantly result in total cessation of any level of consciousness for the players, including those in dead storage until the server was rebooted.

It's not just shutting down their world, it's shutting down their brains.
 
Delusionist said:
No, their minds are also being run on the servers. The servers crashing would instantly result in total cessation of any level of consciousness for the players, including those in dead storage until the server was rebooted.

It's not just shutting down their world, it's shutting down their brains.
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So, essentially, they'd be dead then.
 
Delusionist said:
No, their minds are also being run on the servers. The servers crashing would instantly result in total cessation of any level of consciousness for the players, including those in dead storage until the server was rebooted.

It's not just shutting down their world, it's shutting down their brains.
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kylina said:
So, essentially, they'd be dead then.
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Families & Friends: Crying for their loved ones as they die due a 'black out'

Kayaba: Meh.
 
I like the idea of him uploading himself and continuing to watch them all. OTOH, I also like the idea of him actually being dead. Like Socrates keeping to his principle.

and I've completely forgotten what the original topic was​
 
HIMP_Dahak said:
Soooo it fries their brain like usual, I assume you mean there? Because reducing a person to a vegetable (in the absence of external stimuli) requires brain damage.
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Everything that makes them who they are has been cut-and-pasted to Aincrad's servers. The point is that, at this point, removing the helmet does nothing. The only hope is to leave it on so that their minds have a way to come back to their proper bodies.
 
ZerbanDaGreat said:
Everything that makes them who they are has been cut-and-pasted to Aincrad's servers. The point is that, at this point, removing the helmet does nothing. The only hope is to leave it on so that their minds have a way to come back to their proper bodies.
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Fake Edit: Well, what Sunder said. I'm mostly just asking/checking that this is a handwave, not a "... but that's how it normally works, isn't it?" moment.
 
I was under the impression that
that was brain damage?
 
Sunder the Gold said:
Basically, magic. Soul-sucking SCIENCE!mancy.

Like Hack/Sign.
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Hey at least there are't any equivalent to the game's gods there.... You know that would explain Kirito's horrible luck and his pain. The gods love to see him struggle.

Edit

Actually let's see how right I am.

Edit 2

I see must be ROB.

Edit 3

Definitely ROB.
Hadiz threw 2 100-faced dice. Reason: The Gods Hating Kirito Total: 124
26 26 98 98
 
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Kirito is mr. PTSD in this. But I quite like the story, the characterization is deeper than in the original work.

Very gitsy feel with the time dilation and mind uploading, the players really seem to avoid that topic.
 
ghost792 said:
Animal taming in SAO was very poorly understood, but what you describe isn't that different from how it seemed to work.
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Nobody tried Beast-taming on Level 22? The level with the lake and no aggressive mobs?

If you could somehow coax the critter into getting close to you... But non-aggressive mobs will probably suck as summons in combat and levelling.
 
Somebody said:
Nobody tried Beast-taming on Level 22? The level with the lake and no aggressive mobs?

If you could somehow coax the critter into getting close to you... But non-aggressive mobs will probably suck as summons in combat and levelling.
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Just use the non-aggressive mobs to practice your Beast Taming up to a really high level, like catching Magikarps over and over and over, until you can go to the forest with a piece of meat and get a wolf or six.
 
Half the problem with that approach is that there doesn't seem to be such a skill in SAO.

Silica didn't practice, she managed to get the little blue dragon by pure luck. It liked peanuts for some reason.
 
Somebody said:
Half the problem with that approach is that there doesn't seem to be such a skill in SAO.

Silica didn't practice, she managed to get the little blue dragon by pure luck. It liked peanuts for some reason.
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So, just wander around with a Master Ball/21 leaf clover in your pocket and hope a fully grown dragon has gotten bored and decides to hang out with you while you go adventuring?
 
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