[x] Wait on your current platform. It's better to not be attacked while jumping around, and the Tired Eyes aren't too strong for your other teammates to handle.
-[x] Pay attention to the boss's movement and attack habits. After your teamwork with Cascade begins to wear down the boss, and after your other teammates have thinned out the Tired Eyes further, find an opening to sneak up to the high platform. Cascade distracts the boss and lures him into a predictable pattern. Then, you go for the jump for massive damage. Be prepared to disengage safely after the jump.
I'm too entertained by the proffered jump-attack idea to ignore it. :3
[x] Wait on your current platform. It's better to not be attacked while jumping around, and the Tired Eyes aren't too strong for your other teammates to handle.
-[x] Pay attention to the boss's movement and attack habits. After your teamwork with Cascade begins to wear down the boss, and after your other teammates have thinned out the Tired Eyes further, find an opening to sneak up to the high platform. Cascade distracts the boss and lures him into a predictable pattern. Then, you go for the jump for massive damage. Be prepared to disengage safely after the jump.
I'm too entertained by the proffered jump-attack idea to ignore it. :3
[x] Wait on your current platform. It's better to not be attacked while jumping around, and the Tired Eyes aren't too strong for your other teammates to handle.
-[x] Pay attention to the boss's movement and attack habits. After your teamwork with Cascade begins to wear down the boss, and after your other teammates have thinned out the Tired Eyes further, find an opening to sneak up to the high platform. Cascade distracts the boss and lures him into a predictable pattern. Then, you go for the jump for massive damage. Be prepared to disengage safely after the jump.
[x] Wait on your current platform. It's better to not be attacked while jumping around, and the Tired Eyes aren't too strong for your other teammates to handle.
-[x] Pay attention to the boss's movement and attack habits. After your teamwork with Cascade begins to wear down the boss, and after your other teammates have thinned out the Tired Eyes further, find an opening to sneak up to the high platform. Cascade distracts the boss and lures him into a predictable pattern. Then, you go for the jump for massive damage. Be prepared to disengage safely after the jump.
I assume we're making sure we have somewhere to land AFTER offing the boss?
I honestly wouldn't bet on the boss getting killed so quickly. Odds are it would take three or more of these sneaky/jumpy attacks to completely kill it.
Yup, that's why I included the last line. Even if it might be initially funnier that she does massive damage, then realizes she's stuck on the boss's back as the boss goes berserk. ^_^
I honestly wouldn't bet on the boss getting killed so quickly. Odds are it would take three or more of these sneaky/jumpy attacks to completely kill it.
I honestly wouldn't bet on the boss getting killed so quickly. Odds are it would take three or more of these sneaky/jumpy attacks to completely kill it.
[x] Wait on your current platform. It's better to not be attacked while jumping around, and the Tired Eyes aren't too strong for your other teammates to handle.
-[x] Pay attention to the boss's movement and attack habits. After your teamwork with Cascade begins to wear down the boss, and after your other teammates have thinned out the Tired Eyes further, find an opening to sneak up to the high platform. Cascade distracts the boss and lures him into a predictable pattern. Then, you go for the jump for massive damage. Be prepared to disengage safely after the jump.
[x] Wait on your current platform. It's better to not be attacked while jumping around, and the Tired Eyes aren't too strong for your other teammates to handle.
-[x] Pay attention to the boss's movement and attack habits. After your teamwork with Cascade begins to wear down the boss, and after your other teammates have thinned out the Tired Eyes further, find an opening to sneak up to the high platform. Cascade distracts the boss and lures him into a predictable pattern. Then, you go for the jump for massive damage. Be prepared to disengage safely after the jump.
[X] Wait on your current platform. It's better to not be attacked while jumping around, and the Tired Eyes aren't too strong for your other teammates to handle.
-[X] Pay attention to the boss's movement and attack habits. After your teamwork with Cascade begins to wear down the boss, and after your other teammates have thinned out the Tired Eyes further, find an opening to sneak up to the high platform. Cascade distracts the boss and lures him into a predictable pattern. Then, you go for the jump for massive damage. Be prepared to disengage safely after the jump.
Now for some other stuff. I have the rough draft for this update pretty much complete; I still need to go over it to catch any obvious mistakes or mess ups, but other than that it's pretty much done. As such, if anyone wants to help beta it (you get a free question if you do!) now is the time to volunteer.
Also, I figure that I should probably elaborate some on how the questions work exactly, since it seems like it could lead to some false impressions. When I say that you get a question, I mean that you can generally ask pretty much anything and get an answer. The only questions I won't answer are ones that are major spoilers--i.e. "What will happen if Spring Rain reveals her true age?", "What will the floor boss fight be like?"--stuff like that.
This does not mean that you can't ask other questions normally. So if you have a question about some piece of mechanics or want to know some other bit of information, feel free to ask--I'll probably answer, and it'll definitely make me happy.
Now for some other stuff. I have the rough draft for this update pretty much complete; I still need to go over it to catch any obvious mistakes or mess ups, but other than that it's pretty much done. As such, if anyone wants to help beta it (you get a free question if you do!) now is the time to volunteer.
Also, I figure that I should probably elaborate some on how the questions work exactly, since it seems like it could lead to some false impressions. When I say that you get a question, I mean that you can generally ask pretty much anything and get an answer. The only questions I won't answer are ones that are major spoilers--i.e. "What will happen if Spring Rain reveals her true age?", "What will the floor boss fight be like?"--stuff like that.
This does not mean that you can't ask other questions normally. So if you have a question about some piece of mechanics or want to know some other bit of information, feel free to ask--I'll probably answer, and it'll definitely make me happy.
[x] Wait on your current platform. It's better to not be attacked while jumping around, and the Tired Eyes aren't too strong for your other teammates to handle.
-[x] Pay attention to the boss's movement and attack habits. After your teamwork with Cascade begins to wear down the boss, and after your other teammates have thinned out the Tired Eyes further, find an opening to sneak up to the high platform. Cascade distracts the boss and lures him into a predictable pattern. Then, you go for the jump for massive damage. Be prepared to disengage safely after the jump.
[X] Wait on your current platform. It's better to not be attacked while jumping around, and the Tired Eyes aren't too strong for your other teammates to handle.
-[X] Pay attention to the boss's movement and attack habits. After your teamwork with Cascade begins to wear down the boss, and after your other teammates have thinned out the Tired Eyes further, find an opening to sneak up to the high platform. Cascade distracts the boss and lures him into a predictable pattern. Then, you go for the jump for massive damage. Be prepared to disengage safely after the jump.
The situation tumbles in your head as you try to consider every possible aspect. Your eyes are unfocused; you have a moment of calm, and you are desperate to take advantage of it.
Insidious and Query should be fine dealing with the Tired Eyes for now - you and Cascade don't need to rush back to help them. The boss... your eyes refocus on the health bar. Its attack patterns have been pretty simple so far—so simple that it's almost guaranteed to unveil a new set once it hits its second health bar.
You nod. There's a plan taking shape in your head, and you like the look of it. If you and Cascade work to wear the boss down, then land a stunning blow just before it reaches its second health bar—
Yes. You'll be able to enter the second phase of the battle with a decent chunk of the second health bar gone, which should make any unpleasant surprises a good deal more manageable.
"We'll keep wearing the boss down, then land a big hit once it's close to the second bar." You pause; that sounded a little demanding. "Does that make sense?" There, that's a little better. You aren't sure why you feel the need to soften your phrasing even in the middle of battle, but you figure that it's a holdover from previous MMORPGs.
You almost lose yourself in your memories, but Cascade's answering nod snaps you out of them. That's probably—no, certainly—a good thing. There's a boss circling around for another attack, and you can't afford to be distracted.
Things quickly fall into a reassuring rhythm, though you take a few blows here and there. The boss' main attack seems to just be diving in and sweeping out with its wings—you suspect that it'd be a lot more dangerous if you were moving around or on a more unstable platform. The periodic nature of the fighting would be hypnotic were it not for the long pauses between passes. They give you just enough time to fall out of the hair trigger mental state that you always enter when pushing your reflexes to the edge, and you hate them for it.
You glance to the right, where the others are. They seem to be doing well; Insidious is kneeling, launching powerful swings that devastate large clumps of Tired Eyes while Query fends off any stragglers. You can't help but feel a little jealous of the Great quality longsword that he has. Even as you watch he launches a sweeping horizontal that shatters three different attackers.
You pause; something seems odd about that. If Insidious and Query are—
The mini-boss! It launches into a silent dive, all six wings spread out and pumping. You scold yourself in the back of your mind for getting distracted even as you slam your body into a forwards roll that just barely allows you to avoid an overhead wing.
You end up coming up right beneath the beast's belly as it flies overhead. After a moment, you bring your longsword up and across in a movement that carves a thick streak of glinting red crystal through the monster's underside.
One Handed Longsword leveled up!
Cascade ravages the beast's side even as you struggle to disembowel it, her dagger leaving red pockmarks all across the swath of purple fur. One of the wings sweeps forwards, forcing Cascade to drop to the ground in order to avoid it.
It clips her shoulder, taking a decent chunk of health off of her bar. You guess that she has about four fifths of her health left, but you aren't sure. You grimace; earlier on you'd taken a hit to the chest after fumbling a dodge, forcing you to down one of your two small health potions. Nearly a fifth of your health gone in one hit—for all its predictability, the «Schultang of Despair» is a dangerous boss, and you can't afford to forget that.
Still, you have most of your potions left, and you've since gotten the hang of the thing's rhythm. The truly dangerous part is going to be the second health bar. You're confident in your own skill, but... it's a death game. If you mess up, if the boss goes berserk, if you miss a jump or someone else misses a jump—
You end that train of thought. You relax your white knuckled grip on the hilt of your longsword, then slow your breathing. Your eyes are wide; if you had kept going on like that, you could have panicked. You take another deep breath, feeling previously unnoticed tension draining away.
That... that was a close one. You begin to wonder what such an event implies, but you refocus yourself with a force of will. You can deal with it when you aren't in the middle of a life and death battle.
A glance to your right reveals that Cascade is fine; her health is rapidly climbing upwards, and you guess that she drank one of the tiny potions she carries.
Your stomach swims with butterflies, but you ignore them. Your gaze turns next to the retreating figure of the «Schultang of Despair». It looks strange, a six winged blob of bluish-purple with a white readout hanging above its head.
==================== ====================
Schultang of Despair
Lv.1 Mini-Boss
You take another deep breath, willing your non-existent heart to be still. Now... now is your chance. The boss is almost on its second health bar; if you're going to land that jumping strike, then now is your chance.
You look back to Cascade. "Distract it!" you yell, already turning to the series of platforms you'd previously identified.
Your longsword slides into its sheath on your back with a reassuring click.
Cascade hesitates for a moment, before visibly steeling herself. Her nod is the last thing you see before you have to focus on the jump before you. You've spent more than a few free moments planning out how to climb these platforms, and now you have to actually do it. Adrenaline and nausea rushes through you in equal parts. Your feet leave the edge of the platform, and you almost laugh. You don't.
Your mind races as you move through the air between you and your target. Are you hurrying too much? Trying to distract yourself from—
Then you land on the next platform, and you're too busy moving to think. It wobbles for a moment, but by the time it starts to get too off balance you're already gone. The next one is more solid—you don't pause. A crouching leap launches you towards the next platform. This is the hardest jump, the largest vertically. Your chest impacts the edge, your hands scrabble for purchase.
It tilts; you scrabble even harder. Endless milliseconds later you get some kind of grip, and then you're up on the platform. It rocks about like a buoy in a hurricane, but your adrenaline gives you clarity. You sink low, riding out the worst of it before standing up and leaping forward.
There! Your foot finds purchase on the final disk, and you almost sigh in relief as it fails to sway beneath your weight. Stability will make it a lot easier to land a strike on the boss from up here.
...You want to fall to your knees. You have no idea how you managed that desperate dash, those moments of jittery calm. You... you feel like you should want to collapse. Your body should be sweaty, your muscles should be aching—but they aren't.
It's unsettling, the uncanny valley at its finest, and you can't help but shiver imperceptibly.
Still, you have a role to play, a plan to execute, and you can't afford to fail. Your off hand shakes as you walk forwards.
The platform is wide, unusually so; if you had to guess you'd say that it was bigger than the one you and Cascade were fighting on. It takes you four long strides to reach the other side, by which time the boss has dipped down for another attack run on Cascade.
You take a deep breath and draw your longsword. You're going to have to time this perfectly. The boss is drawing closer; Cascade is moving to meet it. It's a feint—once it's committed, she'll dodge to the side and rake her dagger down one of the wings.
Your feet tense; your breathing evens out.
Cascade shifts, her hair flowing behind her as she dances to the side. One of the boss' wings comes up—
And then you're too busy falling to pay attention. The sound of whooshing air plays in your ears. It's oddly repetitive, and it takes you a moment to figure out why: it's pre-recorded. Your lips twitch into a smile.
You're aiming for the center of the platform. Your hands wrap around the hilt of your longsword, bringing it parallel to your falling body as it begins to glow with purple light.
The promotional material* for SAO had emphasized the dynamic nature of the game, the innovative freedom made possible by the Cardinal system. One of the oft-repeated selling points had been the ability to empower strikes through clever use of the environment and terrain.
You suspect that a falling «Stab» from this height is going to be pretty empowered.
You land unevenly on the back of the «Schultang of Despair». Your knees flex, trying to compensate for the roundness of its torso even as they absorb the impact, aided by the beast's thick fur. The coarse, nearly transparent hairs are bathed in a shower of purple particles as you drive your longsword deep into the false flesh of the monster.
There's no sensation of resistance, something that just lends to the air of unreality surrounding the situation. Your longsword sinks to its hilt, and the «Schultang of Despair» lets out a drawn out howl of pain.
You roll off the top of the creature, unable to maintain your balance as it writhes in pseudo-pain. Your sword comes out easily, tearing another streak of red down the boss' side. You feel your back hit the ground with that strange sensation of painless-pressure that happens whenever you register damage. A good tenth of your lifebar is gone, taken away by—
You bring your longsword up just in time to deflect the attacking wing. It grinds against your blade in a shower of red particles, slowly pushing you to the floor. You feel your shoulderblades touch the platform and you redouble the pressure behind your blade, forcing the wing up and away.
You let out a huff of exhaustion. What were you thinking about again? You aren't sure—you hope it wasn't anything important. That's the annoying thing about losing your train of thought, you can never quite be—
You shake your head and grimace. You need to focus. You scramble to your feet, keeping one eye on the «Schultang of Despair». It's stunned, lying prone as its wings lash outwards.
==================== ====================
Schultang of Despair
Lv.1 Mini-Boss
Wow. You must have done a lot of damage with that strike. Then, right before your eyes, it's health ticks down again.
==================== ====================
Schultang of Despair
Lv.1 Mini-Boss
Oh. Cascade must be attacking it from behind, taking advantage of its stunned state to get in as much damage as possible. You wonder for a moment what it's second stage attack pattern is—surely this can't be it—but you discard that line of thought in favor of moving in to capitalize on its current vulnerability.
Slash. A «Vertical» rips through one of the boss' wing joints, and you watch as its health bar ticks down. A bottom wing swings forwards, and you skip out of the way. Another strike, this time a «Horizontal» that cuts across the beast's featureless face.
You catch sight of Cascade. She's working on the monster's back, slowly shaving away another chunk of health with every blow.
Your spine is tingling. This is just... too easy. It's just sitting there, thrashing around!
The thrashing redoubles as your longsword leaves another slice down the beast's top wing. The bottom and middle wings swing out, the membranes held perpendicular to the floor. Your eyes widen in surprise as you hear a familiar sound: wind, whistling in your ears.
You dodge backwards, bringing your blade up to parry whatever attack is incoming. Your cheeks sting as a sudden pressure buffets you, pushing you towards the edge and making your skin tingle from lost health. You grit your teeth and try to bear it, leaning into the wind in an attempt to decrease its effect, but all that does is speed your health loss.
The «Schultang of Despair» is still thrashing around, but it seems more purposeful now, and you can guess why: Cascade.
You cast a glance behind you; the edge is about thirty centimeters away from your back heel, and it's only getting closer. Your skin flushes, your heart pounds. You can't—no, you won't—die now!
The boss slumps down and the wind falls with it. You quickly take one step forwards, then another.
Then the «Schultang of Despair» rallies, letting out another flap, and your heart plummets. You won't be able to withstand another one of the those attacks.
For a moment you think that this is the end, but then you notice that the wings aren't facing towards you. It's not attacking, it's taking off!
You push forwards, feeling the wind weaken even further and then cease. If the «Schultang of Despair» is taking off, then that means that it's dislodged Cascade. Fear courses through your mind—What if she got pushed off? What if she died?—but you reign it in. Fear will only prevent you from helping Cascade if she needs it.
Part of your mind whispers that if she's dead—smashed into meaningless blue pixels that drift to the floor like freshly fallen snow—she won't... she won't need...
You catch sight of her, lying on the ground as the boss takes off into the air.
==================== ====================
Schultang of Despair
Lv.1 Mini-Boss
You reach Cascade in a matter of moments. Her health is halfway gone and she's close to the edge, but as her eyes flicker open you know that she'll be fine.
"What... what was that?" She says, staring up at the labyrinthine ceiling above.
"The boss' second form," you say grimly as you offer a hand. She takes it gingerly, and you easily pull her to her feet.
"Well, that wasn't fun," she says, cracking her neck as she looks around for the «Schultang of Despair». You point with a finger; it's still gaining altitude, circling above the two of you.
"Ah," Cascade says. You nod, for lack of anything else to do. You... you shake your head. Everything feels off, like someone took the world and tilted it five degrees to the left.
One of your hands slips inside your jacket as you think—your stamina took a pounding from parrying that gust attack, and you don't have much left.
It's almost certainly shock that's causing you to think strangely. The dispassionate manner in which you note this only provides further evidence for your theory. Still, you can feel yourself slowly returning to normal, so you hope that this won't have any lasting effects.
"You should... probably drink a potion," you say as you carefully uncork your stamina potion and down it in one go.
Your stamina glows, then begins to shoot back up to a reasonable level. It stops at the two thirds mark, and you sigh before grabbing a health potion.
You proffer it to Cascade, but she waves it off.
"Nah, I've got my own," she says, holding up a small health potion. You nod, watching as she drains it in a single gulp. The glass shatters into blue particles moments later.
You eye the potion in your hand for a moment before slipping it back into your pink and red jacket. You don't need it after all; while you did take some damage from the wind, it was pretty minor. You guess that you're still at ninety, ninety-five percent capacity.
You glance back towards the others. Insidious and Query look like they're doing fine, and... you twist your head upwards. The «Schultang of Despair» is still circling.
[X] What do you do?
Name (IRL): Chiyoko Mori
Username (IGN): Spring Rain
Gender: Female
Age: 13
Birthday: July 13
Date: November 8th, 2022
Time: 11:44
Level: 3
XP: 7/32
Money: 4868 col
Avatar: Redhead with two pigtails wearing a red tunic, brown pants and black pectoral armor. Over that you wear a pink jacket with red ivy stitching, a pink fedora with a red band, and red leather gloves. You carry a shortsword at your side and a longsword on your back. You have a selection of health and stamina potions which you carry on your belt and in your jacket. You keep a teleport crystal to hand at all times.
Sword Arts:
Horizontal:
Motion: A large horizontal strike.
Cooldown: Small
Stamina Cost: Small
Vertical:
Motion: A large vertical strike.
Cooldown: Small
Stamina Cost: Small
Diagonal:
Motion: A large diagonal strike.
Cooldown: Small
Stamina Cost: Small
Stab:
Motion: A quick stabbing strike, best for daggers and shortswords.
Cooldown: Small
Stamina Cost: Tiny
Skills (2 slots):
One Handed Dagger: lv. 0
One Handed Short Sword: lv. 4
One Handed Longsword: lv. 5
Sprint: lv. 3
Search: lv. 4
Hide: lv. 0
Mind:
Mental State (Poor): Separation, Concern, Adrenaline.
Personality: ???
Traumas:
- Shattered Pedestal (Realized): You idolized Kayaba, and then he locked you in a cage to fight to the death for his own amusement.
- A Caged Castle (Realized): What used to be entertainment is now a death game. Have fun!
- The Party Must Stay Together (Nucleus): When the time came, you chose to put your faith in shared strength. It's just the beginning, but in time it might blossom into something more.
Quest Log:
Sewer Quest (Average): lv. 0
Recommended Party Size: 1-8 Players
Recommended Level: lv. 0-2
Type: Repeatable
Cooldown: 6 Hours
Description: The city guard has been complaining about an infestation of sewer rats. Maybe you could do something about it?
Wild Boar Hunt Quest (Average): lv. 1
Recommended Party Size: 1-8 Players
Recommended Level: lv. 0-2
Type: Repeatable
Description: Mr. Reynald said that one of his suppliers might be interested in Wild Boar Hides and Tusks. Go talk to the supplier for more details.
Bloom Flower Quest (Average): lv. 1
Recommended Party Size: 1-4
Recommended Level: lv. 0-2
Type: Repeatable
Description: Ms. Argentia wants you to go to the Vance Forest, which lies to the south-south-east of the City of Beginning to pick some Bloom Flowers for her.
Swamp Tome Quest (Average): lv. 1
Recommended Party Size: 1-8
Recommended Level: lv. 1-2
Type: Gateway
Description: Someone wants you to go to an old abandoned town deep in the outer parts of Guldath Swamp to retrieve a book.
Reward: An unspecified Sword Art
Sword Shipment Quest (Good): lv. 1
Recommended Party Size: 1-6
Recommended Level: lv. 1-3
Type: Gateway
Description: Reynald wants you to take a shipment of swords up to a Dojo he has a contract with. He's heard that there've been a lot of goblin attacks in the western forests lately though, so he wants some people that know their way around a fight.
Reward: Dojo location, ???
Courier Quest Giver (Poor-Good): lv. 1
Average Recommended Party Size: 1-4
Average Recommended Level: lv. 0-2
Quest Types: Courier-Escort
Description: Archibald runs a Courier Service out of a shop in the City of Beginning on the First Floor. He occasionally gets requests to deliver packages to areas that his normal couriers can't deal with, and he's offered to pay you to handle these if you get a chance.
Average Reward: Poor-Good
Friends List:
Insidious (Great Friends): lv. 4
You and Insidious have really bonded in the hours before Kayaba's announcement. Time will only tell if that bond will survive the deathgame of SAO though.
Insidious wants to use a Strength/Health Broadsword/Shield tank build.
Query47 (Good Friends): lv. 3
While your bond with Query47 and Cascade isn't as strong as your bond with Insidious, it still has the potential to ripen into something great - so long as SAO doesn't choke it to death beneath its shadow.
Query47 is dating Cascade IRL, and you're fairly sure that his name is Kubokoi.
Query wants to use a Strength/Stamina daisho (katana & wakizashi) dual wielding Sword Art focused build.
Cascade (Good Friends): lv. 3
While your bond with Query47 and Cascade isn't as strong as your bond with Insidious, it still has the potential to ripen into something great - so long as SAO doesn't choke it to death beneath its shadow.
Cascade is dating Query47 IRL, and you're fairly sure that her name is Midori.
Cascade wants to use an Agility/Stamina Dagger/Martial Arts skirmisher build.
Condor127 (Acquaintances):
You met Condor during a sort of spontaneous low key party in the first week of SAO. He helped work on the soundtrack for SAO, and he feels guilty for the role he played in helping to create the death game.
Map Data:
[lv. 1] City of Beginning (Great): Completely mapped out, know of all major shops and most small ones. General idea of where to find most of quest vendors, with a few specific ones identified.
City of Beginning [Sewer Dungeon] (Average): Filled with vicious rats and other such monsters, you've explored about half of this area.
City of Beginning [Market District] (Average): A prosperous and crowded place, you've explored about half of this Market District.
- Reynald's Weapon Shop
- Archibald's Courier Service
- Welton General Store
- Agrendale Blacksmith's Shop
- Adventurer's Supply Store
- Argentia's Apothecary
[lv. 1] Guldath Village (Poor): You don't know much about this place. At most you have a general idea of it's layout.
[lv. 1] Guldath Swamps (Poor): You don't know much about this place. At best, you've explored maybe a fifth of it.
Guldath Swamps [Outer] (Average): You don't know much about this area, though you do have a general idea of a few paths you can follow. It's mostly inhabited by Skithers, bizarre crosses between a snake and a crocodile, though you feel certain that there's something else that you just haven't seen.
Guldath Swamps [Abandoned Village] (Horrible): An abandoned village out on the border between the inner and outer Guldath Swamps. Ten years ago it was a bustling village, despite its obscure location. Then a dense white fog rolled in, and when it rolled out the place was abandoned. Now everyone avoids the place.
~~~ Footnotes: ~~~
* SAO Advertisement and Promotion:
As the first major game to be released for the FullDive system, Sword Art Online has been the recipient of a great deal of free advertising. The total coverage, according to one estimate, adds up to nearly 2.7 billion dollars USD. When paired with an ambitious marketing campaign focused on a broad demographic appeal, SAO managed to achieve a level of popular recognition that many considered unprecedented for a video game.
Interestingly enough, despite the marketing of SAO as a "game anyone can play," the marketing and development team were both very insistent that SAO was still a game. This focus, combined with concerted outreach efforts to the gamer community, allowed SAO to avoid the fan alienation that similar efforts to pull in a wider audience have incurred.
~~~ Notes: ~~~
Whew. Sorry about the delay, but it was definitely worth it! A big thanks to @veekie, @kfrar, and @TurtleDucks for their help! This chapter would have been a lot poorer without them.
In other news it's pretty late for me so I'll probably be heading off to sleep soon (as in, the next few minutes), but if you guys ask any questions I should be around to answer them in the morning tomorrow. (No promises though; I have school, and stuff can come up at the damndest times.)
What the hell is this?
Google thinks its a mispelling of Sachultang, a korean food of some sort.
I'm wondering if its a mispelling of Sultan.
I seem to have missed an update. Or completely forgot what was going on.
[X] Split up, but stay within 2-3 platforms of each other. Maintain eyes on each other so that you can see and warn the other when the boss swoops down again. Cascade stays on a platform with good positioning for another dropstab. Heh, dropstab.
-[X] If it attacks Cascade, you'll go upwards and repeat the same falling <Stab> strategy while she fights defensively, switching to fighting to pin as you get into position for a jump.
-[X] If it attacks you, you'll prepare a Sword Art to slash it with its own momentum on the dive attack while evading, then fight defensively and reposition so that Cascade can approach it's rear unseen.
-[X] Once it takes the posture for the wind attack, whoever is fighting it will disengage immediately and attempt to move to another platform.
-[X] If possible, ensure that there's a stable platform to retreat to quickly in the event of a wind attack.
Pretty stressed there.
Mind:
Mental State (Poor): Separation, Concern, Adrenaline.
Personality: ???
Traumas:
- Shattered Pedestal (Realized): You idolized Kayaba, and then he locked you in a cage to fight to the death for his own amusement.
- A Caged Castle (Realized): What used to be entertainment is now a death game. Have fun!
- The Party Must Stay Together (Nucleus): When the time came, you chose to put your faith in shared strength. It's just the beginning, but in time it might blossom into something more.
Probably want to finish this soonish.
The falling <Stab> did 6 ='s worth of damage earlier.
Cascade attacking it alone while it's stunned does 1 = worth of damage.
Both Chiyoko and Cascade pounding it at once while it's stunned did 4 ='s worth of damage. So Chiyoko probably does 3 ='s of damage(which means the dropstab doubled the output).
It has 10 ='s left.
One Falling <Stab>(6) by Chiyoko, followed by a combined attack(4) should do it before Crobat does another Gust. If it cooperates
If it doesn't cooperate, then we're going to face at least one more attack cycle while we hit it for Chiyoko(3) and combined(4).
[X] Split up, but stay within 2-3 platforms of each other. Maintain eyes on each other so that you can see and warn the other when the boss swoops down again. Cascade stays on a platform with good positioning for another dropstab. Heh, dropstab.
-[X] If it attacks Cascade, you'll go upwards and repeat the same falling <Stab> strategy while she fights defensively, switching to fighting to pin as you get into position for a jump.
-[X] If it attacks you, you'll prepare a Sword Art to slash it with its own momentum on the dive attack while evading, then fight defensively and reposition so that Cascade can approach it's rear unseen.
-[X] Once it takes the posture for the wind attack, whoever is fighting it will disengage immediately and attempt to move to another platform.
-[X] If possible, ensure that there's a stable platform to retreat to quickly in the event of a wind attack.
Hmm. Not sure how to deal with a flying opponent. Might need to bait the boss to the ground somehow. That wind attack is nasty for this environment. Veekie's vote seems like a decent bet, given the situation.
[X] Split up, but stay within 2-3 platforms of each other. Maintain eyes on each other so that you can see and warn the other when the boss swoops down again. Cascade stays on a platform with good positioning for another dropstab. Heh, dropstab.
-[X] If it attacks Cascade, you'll go upwards and repeat the same falling <Stab> strategy while she fights defensively, switching to fighting to pin as you get into position for a jump.
-[X] If it attacks you, you'll prepare a Sword Art to slash it with its own momentum on the dive attack while evading, then fight defensively and reposition so that Cascade can approach it's rear unseen.
-[X] Once it takes the posture for the wind attack, whoever is fighting it will disengage immediately and attempt to move to another platform.
-[X] If possible, ensure that there's a stable platform to retreat to quickly in the event of a wind attack.
Gonna support this for now, so that einargs has a vote to use for the next update.
I presume that "disengage immediately and attempt to move to another platform" will be done in a way that doesn't risk getting hit by the wind attack while shifting between platforms.
