GUI (Gooey) Lessons [Mentor] [Closed]

[Izotz]

"Come on!" Izotz growled beneath his breath, stepping back and lowering his halberd defensively once more. His lips were pulled back in a half-snarl even as he glared at the Dull Green Slime across from him, jiggling menacingly. He had been exploring the areas surrounding Londinium proper, trying to familiarize himself himself with the his surroundings. He had made his way into the Windsor Greatwood, a supposedly easy place to start out leveling up, when the things emerged from the woodland depths and pushed towards him. A neophyte like himself had no idea they were attracted to magic users, let alone that they wouldn't attack. Seeing the creatures approach and fearing an ambush, he took the initiative and struck out with his weak polearm and engaged in a rather feeble battle. Between the newb player and the low-level fodder monsters, it was almost painful to watch him struggle in ineptitude. While no stranger to games, he couldn't quite seem to figure out how to call on his spells, and his own ignorance was proving to be even more of a frustration than the mild threat of the slimes. He manged to kill one, and even another with just his weapon, but that hardly satisfied him.

No, this won't do. He thought to himself as he watched it slide its round body towards him slowly. I need to figure out how to access my spells. Come on, stop being an idiot and figure it out! No luck though. Eventually, the thing pushed in for another attack and Izotz was forced to take another swipe at it, bringing the blade of his halberd down onto it as he swept backwards. At least this he knew how to do. Maybe he should've picked a warrior class. Something simple like a Guardian, but even they had their own skills. The weapon struck home, taking another decent chunk off the weak enemy's health bar, causing the gelatinous monster to gurgle in combined anger and pain before reeling back and hurling bits of itself in a ranged attack, splatting against the druid's dingy leather armor to reap it's own pittance out of the player's HP. What an embarrassment. A part of him hoped no one would ever see him so useless like this, struggling with a mere Dull Green Slime, but another, less prideful part hoped for a good Samaritan to tell him exactly whatever it was he was doing wrong.

---

Notes:
Words: 405
Tags:
Party Buff: Nature's Blessing

HP: 72%
MP: 100%

SPOILER: Click to show

{Available Skills}

Call Storm: The Druid calls upon the forces of nature to generate a temporary drizzle upon the battlefield. This drizzle is imbued with a high amount of mana, allowing for damaging spells to deal a greater amount of damage than usual. This reduces the elemental resistances of all players and monsters within the area of effect. This skill has a casting time of 7 seconds, a duration of 100 seconds, and a cooldown of 120 seconds.

Lightning Fall: The Druid raises their staff over their head and summons an electrical orb that generates chain lightning. The electricity generated from this orb travels toward the nearest opponent and then moves onto other targets if they are within 1 meter of the target. Additional targets affected by this attack are not aggroed. This skill has a casting time of 1.5 seconds and a cooldown of 10 seconds.

Willow Spirit: The Druid calls forward earth magic to quickly sprout plant vines from the ground. These vines latch onto the closest target within range and bind them to a short walking distance until they are either cut off or wear off. Any additional opponents who make direct physical contact with the vine are also injured by its sharp thorns. This skill has a casting time of 1.5 seconds and a cooldown of 15 seconds.

[Deleted]

"Always nice to find easy pickings out here in the Greatwood," the Shaman murmured to himself as he dug his scythe out from the ground, after having skewered it through a particularly nasty slime creature. He was taking a break from the Halloween mess that had managed to take up most of his time lately, and was just relaxing on managing a few lesser creatures in the Windsor Greatwood, a suggestion made by Skrowe earlier. Only a scarecrow spirit with a penchant for killing things would recommend slaying weak monsters as a good activity for rest and relaxation. But, Dorian had nothing to argue with, and so the two of them had ventured out into forest, Skrowe happily laying in wait in the back of Dorian's mind. But as they skirted speedily through the trees, the Shaman spied a peculiar sight; a newcomer, seemingly a low level, struggling ineptly with a trio of slimes. Dorian watched for a moment, seeing him slay two of the slimes before being pushed back by the third.

"Ah, to be young and level 1 again," he whispered to himself, remembering the time before when he had been a lower level; it had greatly helped him to have a mentor along, or in his case a few of them. Perhaps it was his time to share the knowledge he had gleaned, but first things first, he needed to step in and show the newcomer how it was done. Leaping with speed through the dense trees, he kicked off one of the trunks to spring out into the opening where the stranger and the slime were toe-to-toe, slashing his scythe in his two hands and cutting it through the slime's form; with a horrid shriek of pain, the slime burst into light bubbles, representing the data floating into the air as the monster was defeated, evaporating into nothingness. Settling down upon the ground gracefully, Dorian slammed the tip of his scythe blade into the ground to hold it for him, before approaching the stranger.

He gave the man a quick inspection, looking him up and down as he pulled his interface to get a good rid of his skills; judging from his appearance and the data on his screen, the new guy was a Druid, clad in leather and brandishing a halberd. A strange combination, but one not unlike his own, what with his scythe instead of a staff, the usual weapon used by a Shaman. Stepping around him in a tight circle, he stopped directly in front of the Druid, before extending his hand out with a beaming grin across his features. "Hello there! My name is Dorian. Sorry I jumped in there like that, but you looked like you could use some help." He kept his hand out ready, waiting for the stranger to take it as he continued. "You seem new to the world here; if you'd like, I could, perhaps, lend you a bit of aid in the forest here? The system allows me to mentor you, which means we'll both get a handy bonus to XP, which should help you gain levels quickly."

---

Notes: For future posts, don't forget to tag the people you are posting with; that way it'll come up as a notification so they won't miss the post. In order to do so, simply put somewhere '@suchandsuch', where suchandsuch should be their username; for example mine is serenityspace.
Words: 522
Tags: Izotz
Party Buff: Heavenly Defense

HP: 100%
MP: 100%

SPOILER: Click to show

{Available Skills}

Leaping Apricot Technique: This spell will instantly transport the user to a location a certain distance away, leaving behind apricot flower petals from where the user stood. What seems like a powerful technique actually has some drawbacks, including a maximum range of 6 meters and the ability to travel within eight directions, not to mention the in-game restrictions for using this skill. However, it seems that these restrictions have been lifted following the Catastrophe, allowing more striving Shamans to learn this skill with less constraints. Also, using this skill post-Catastrophe also gives off an apricot scent, giving it an aromatic purpose outside of battle. This skill consumes about 20% of the Shaman's MP, has a casting time of 1.5 seconds, and has a cooldown of 40 seconds. The MP cost decreases by 5% for every 30 levels.

Demon's Eye: This skill when activated will slightly increases accuracy rate of the user's weapons. It also causes the weapon to be immune to hit spirit-type mobs whom normally nullify incoming physical damage. Of course, a successful hit requires an active attack towards a desired foe regardless. There was one time when the developers received e-mails saying that "I've used the Demon's Eye and I still keep on missing on ghost mobs!" among others. For this reason, several balance changes were implemented. When used, this skill adds a blue radiance on one's eyes, a rather scary sight post-Catastrophe. This skill has a casting time of 4 seconds, a duration of 60 seconds, and a cooldown of 70 seconds.

Divine Subjugation: The Shaman's body is infused with the blessings of the spirits, increasing the damage of the user's physical attacks for the next 8 seconds. The Shaman's body glows a bright yellow at this time and all their attacks also contribute to an increased amount of aggro. It is oriented towards Battle Shaman builds that use swords or bows as primary weapons. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds and a cooldown of 20 seconds.

Damage Interception: A barrier skill known as the signature move of the Shaman. Forms either a stationary barrier or a barrier around a target that continues to exist until the "energy" of the barrier expires. Energy will decrease slowly over time and decrease from damage taken. This skill has a casting time of 1.5 seconds and a cooldown of 5 seconds.

Rebound Barrier: Affectionately known as “Pinball Barrier” by veteran adventurers, the Rebound Barrier skill casts a spherical barrier around the target. Upon hostile contact with the barrier, both the target and the hostile are tossed in separate directions. Any damage from the attack still lands. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds, a maximum duration of 10 seconds, and a cooldown of 15 seconds.

Soulcutter: A good contender in terms of Shaman DPS, this skill transforms the summoned Shikigami's body into a violent stream of magic energy. The energy is concentrated into a material form, creating a cutting-wave projectile as sharp as a sword. The attack is then shot up to 5 meters forward, after which the familiar spirit travels back to the Shaman. This skill has a casting time of 1 second, followed by an animation time in seconds equal to 0.2 x distance in meters traveled. Its cooldown time is 3 seconds. If Shikigami Astral Seal is active when this skill is used, it is temporarily disabled for this skill's duration.

Exorcism of a Cursed Lotus: A self-cast barrier that boosts the caster’s attack speed against a specific target without boosting movement speed. Upon taking any damage, the barrier shatters and the caster lose all benefits. Since this leaves the caster vulnerable to attack it is often better to combine this with attacks from other party members or with another barrier level underneath so as to keep the target preoccupied. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds, a maximum duration of 10 seconds, and a cooldown of 15 seconds.

Shikigami Astral Seal: This skill transforms the physical body of the summoned Shikigami into a ghost-like form, making it intangible to all attacks. Conversely, the Shikigami retains the ability to affect its environment, allowing it to move and control objects like a poltergeist. Many Shamans typically have their Shikigami control objects like weapons in order to make them appear as though they were possessed. Others tend to utilize the summon to grab an enemy's limbs and prevent their movement, but the generally low offensive specs of the Shikigami makes this strategy not quite as effective. The duration of this skill lasts for a full minute, but it will automatically cancel if the Shikigami's duration runs out. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds. There is a 30 second cooldown period after this skill's deactivation before it may be used again.

Pacifying Dance: A skill that allows the dancer to perform beautiful dances to momentarily captivate those who see it. For the next 30 seconds, monsters within 25 meters have their nature changed. Aggressive and Predatory monsters become Wary. Wary, Aloof, and Cowardly monsters become Docile. Docile monsters become Friendly. This effect does not work against monsters that are already engaged in battle when this skill was used.

[Izotz]

Despite the wishes he had but a moment ago, the sudden appearance of the strange Shaman took the Druid off-guard a little. With ease the seemingly younger man took out the remaining slime, dispatching it was a swift and deadly swing of his scythe in a manner that was more than a little dramatic. The final flourish sticking his weapon into the ground especially so, though Izotz could hardly give criticisms to one who came to his aid. The battle done, he raised his halberd and rested it casually against his side, pointed tip gazing towards the skies above as he half-leant on it. The youth approached and took him in from all sides, which the Druid allowed passively, eyeing his "good Samaritan" a bit himself with his one showing, deep green eye.

Simply by the way he handled himself, as well as the very look of him, it was easy to see the scythe wielder was not nearly as inexperienced as Izotz himself. Not to mention his manipulation of the interface meant he held precisely the kind of info the Druid needed. Which was to say,how to do more than swing a bloody weapon. At length the good Samaritan finally spoke up, having seemingly finished his estimations, taking the request right off the newbie's tongue by offering exactly for what he was about to ask. He'd be a fool not to accept the offered help, as well as the hand that went with it."Izotz." He introduced simply, taking Dorian's hand into his own and giving it a brief but firm shake combined with a respectful nod of his head. "I'd much appreciate your mentorship. I'm new to this type of interface, and can't quite seem to access my skills and spells. Basic hacking and slashing is no problem but..." He gave a bit of a smirk, tapping the butt of his weapon against the soft, verdant ground. "I get the feeling that's not quite going to cut it, if you'll forgive my pun."

With a sigh he ran a hand through a shock of his white hair, rather uncomfortable at sounding so inexperienced to games. It was hardly the truth, it was simply this game he was new to. Every game was different, with its own nuances and interfaces. Everyone was new to it at some point, but that didn't soothe his pride one bit. "I thought I picked some rather good ones too. Spells, that is. Call Storm, Lightning Fall, and Willow Spirit. Should work really well together, good synergy, but doesn't help any if I can't actually use them."

---

Notes: Ah, I see. I shall endeavor to use tags furthermore now that I know about them. See? I'm already learning from our mentor/apprentice experience.
Words: 434
Tags: @serenityspace
Party Buff: Nature's Blessing

HP: 72%
MP: 100%

SPOILER: Click to show

{Available Skills}

Call Storm: The Druid calls upon the forces of nature to generate a temporary drizzle upon the battlefield. This drizzle is imbued with a high amount of mana, allowing for damaging spells to deal a greater amount of damage than usual. This reduces the elemental resistances of all players and monsters within the area of effect. This skill has a casting time of 7 seconds, a duration of 100 seconds, and a cooldown of 120 seconds.

Lightning Fall: The Druid raises their staff over their head and summons an electrical orb that generates chain lightning. The electricity generated from this orb travels toward the nearest opponent and then moves onto other targets if they are within 1 meter of the target. Additional targets affected by this attack are not aggroed. This skill has a casting time of 1.5 seconds and a cooldown of 10 seconds.

Willow Spirit: The Druid calls forward earth magic to quickly sprout plant vines from the ground. These vines latch onto the closest target within range and bind them to a short walking distance until they are either cut off or wear off. Any additional opponents who make direct physical contact with the vine are also injured by its sharp thorns. This skill has a casting time of 1.5 seconds and a cooldown of 15 seconds.

[Deleted]

Happily accepting the hand, Dorian shook it gingerly before pulling his own back to his side, giving the stranger a welcome nod. "A pleasure to meet you, sir Izotz." Crossing his arms over his chest, the Shaman listened intently to the Druid's words, hearing him out as he explained the problem he was facing. A light chuckle escaping under his breath, Dorian bowed his head in understanding, making a simple gesture to once again pull up his interface. "This screen is what you'll need, just copy my movement and you'll bring it up easily." He waited till the human had gotten the hang of his interface before continuing. "As for skills, you'll likely see them around here..." Gesturing towards the skill list on his own interface, he directed Izotz to the corresponding spot on his screen. "For now, to get used to your abilities, simply press your finger towards the skill you want to use and your body will do the rest."

Before he resumed speaking, the Shaman sent a quick party invite to the Druid, not waiting for him to accept it as he spoke once more. "However," he continued, deactivating his interface to speak freely. "Using your skills in this manner can get tedious quickly, and you'll likely see other Adventurers... that's what we call ourselves... using their skills fluidly without a menu." He gave the human a beaming grin, gesturing again towards his skill list. "Your abilities are in-built into your memory as an Adventurer, and once you get the hang of them, you can call on them telepathically; without pushing buttons on your interface." Moving over to his scythe, he grasped on it with two hands, removing it swiftly from the ground, throwing up a few chucks of dirt in the process. "Once we start combat again, you'll see what I mean; but, as your mentor, I won't be doing much fighting myself. It'll be up to you, understood?"

---

Notes: N/A
Words: 323
Tags: Izotz
Party Buff: Heavenly Defense

HP: 100%
MP: 100%

SPOILER: Click to show

{Available Skills}

Leaping Apricot Technique: This spell will instantly transport the user to a location a certain distance away, leaving behind apricot flower petals from where the user stood. What seems like a powerful technique actually has some drawbacks, including a maximum range of 6 meters and the ability to travel within eight directions, not to mention the in-game restrictions for using this skill. However, it seems that these restrictions have been lifted following the Catastrophe, allowing more striving Shamans to learn this skill with less constraints. Also, using this skill post-Catastrophe also gives off an apricot scent, giving it an aromatic purpose outside of battle. This skill consumes about 20% of the Shaman's MP, has a casting time of 1.5 seconds, and has a cooldown of 40 seconds. The MP cost decreases by 5% for every 30 levels.

Demon's Eye: This skill when activated will slightly increases accuracy rate of the user's weapons. It also causes the weapon to be immune to hit spirit-type mobs whom normally nullify incoming physical damage. Of course, a successful hit requires an active attack towards a desired foe regardless. There was one time when the developers received e-mails saying that "I've used the Demon's Eye and I still keep on missing on ghost mobs!" among others. For this reason, several balance changes were implemented. When used, this skill adds a blue radiance on one's eyes, a rather scary sight post-Catastrophe. This skill has a casting time of 4 seconds, a duration of 60 seconds, and a cooldown of 70 seconds.

Divine Subjugation: The Shaman's body is infused with the blessings of the spirits, increasing the damage of the user's physical attacks for the next 8 seconds. The Shaman's body glows a bright yellow at this time and all their attacks also contribute to an increased amount of aggro. It is oriented towards Battle Shaman builds that use swords or bows as primary weapons. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds and a cooldown of 20 seconds.

Damage Interception: A barrier skill known as the signature move of the Shaman. Forms either a stationary barrier or a barrier around a target that continues to exist until the "energy" of the barrier expires. Energy will decrease slowly over time and decrease from damage taken. This skill has a casting time of 1.5 seconds and a cooldown of 5 seconds.

Rebound Barrier: Affectionately known as “Pinball Barrier” by veteran adventurers, the Rebound Barrier skill casts a spherical barrier around the target. Upon hostile contact with the barrier, both the target and the hostile are tossed in separate directions. Any damage from the attack still lands. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds, a maximum duration of 10 seconds, and a cooldown of 15 seconds.

Soulcutter: A good contender in terms of Shaman DPS, this skill transforms the summoned Shikigami's body into a violent stream of magic energy. The energy is concentrated into a material form, creating a cutting-wave projectile as sharp as a sword. The attack is then shot up to 5 meters forward, after which the familiar spirit travels back to the Shaman. This skill has a casting time of 1 second, followed by an animation time in seconds equal to 0.2 x distance in meters traveled. Its cooldown time is 3 seconds. If Shikigami Astral Seal is active when this skill is used, it is temporarily disabled for this skill's duration.

Exorcism of a Cursed Lotus: A self-cast barrier that boosts the caster’s attack speed against a specific target without boosting movement speed. Upon taking any damage, the barrier shatters and the caster lose all benefits. Since this leaves the caster vulnerable to attack it is often better to combine this with attacks from other party members or with another barrier level underneath so as to keep the target preoccupied. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds, a maximum duration of 10 seconds, and a cooldown of 15 seconds.

Shikigami Astral Seal: This skill transforms the physical body of the summoned Shikigami into a ghost-like form, making it intangible to all attacks. Conversely, the Shikigami retains the ability to affect its environment, allowing it to move and control objects like a poltergeist. Many Shamans typically have their Shikigami control objects like weapons in order to make them appear as though they were possessed. Others tend to utilize the summon to grab an enemy's limbs and prevent their movement, but the generally low offensive specs of the Shikigami makes this strategy not quite as effective. The duration of this skill lasts for a full minute, but it will automatically cancel if the Shikigami's duration runs out. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds. There is a 30 second cooldown period after this skill's deactivation before it may be used again.

Pacifying Dance: A skill that allows the dancer to perform beautiful dances to momentarily captivate those who see it. For the next 30 seconds, monsters within 25 meters have their nature changed. Aggressive and Predatory monsters become Wary. Wary, Aloof, and Cowardly monsters become Docile. Docile monsters become Friendly. This effect does not work against monsters that are already engaged in battle when this skill was used.

[Izotz]

The older man listened intently while Dorian displayed and explained the interfaces and how they worked. Distracted only in the moments he was called upon to mimic his mentor's actions, as well as to accept the offered party invitation. Of course, as soon as it all was said, Izotz felt quite foolish indeed for not having been able to figure it out himself, but everyone was allowed moments of... well, dumb. Still, there was at least one thing to the explanation that he doubted he would've figured out for, at least, a long, long time. This hands-free telepathic skill use system was a stroke of genius, and just what a game like this needed. A proper integration and immersion for the player into the game environment that made it seem that much more realistic. Not that magic was realistic, and not that anyone in this world craved for it to be any more of their reality than it already was. No doubt, so many craved the one they left behind. Perhaps I will too. He thought while the Shaman retrieved his weapon. At some point, at least, but for now this world is too interesting to long for the one I had before. But, maybe someday I will.

Summary complete, Dorian asked confirmation that his student understood everything imparted to him, to which Izotz nodded slowly. "Yeah, I get it. Best way to learn is by doing. By being thrust into a situation that forces you to learn." Hefting the haft of his polearm up against his shoulder, the Druid gripped it tight, enjoying the solid feel of the weapon beneath his hand. He could feel the excitement growing. The eager momentum of learning something new. A new strength, a new power, a new ability. It didn't matter how small it was; he could do something he couldn't before. Though it was just the first step on his path, it felt as empowering as taking the first lungful of fresh air into a brand new world. His lips curled slightly in a small smile, as his eyes shone with the light of his inward zeal. "To that effect, why don't we find something a bit more powerful than slimes? Something that will force me to use my skills in an effective manner. The slimes I could kill with just my halberd." He gestured to the loamy, woodland earth where just a few minutes ago he combated the now-dead monsters. "A challenge would be good for me, and you could always pull my bacon out of the fire before it gets burnt, as it were. But first, let's rest a bit and get me back to full health. Shouldn't take long, given my Nature's Blessing ability, as I understand it. Plus, we can talk tactics while we wait. Sound good?"

---

Notes: We can time-skip to after he's healed up, assume Dorian imparted some combat wisdom so Izotz is a little less ineffectual. Or we can play it out, your call. Either way, I think the time would be good so that some knowledge can be imparted, either way.
Words: 469
Tags: @serenityspace
Party Buff: Nature's Blessing

HP: 72%
MP: 100%

SPOILER: Click to show

{Available Skills}

Call Storm: The Druid calls upon the forces of nature to generate a temporary drizzle upon the battlefield. This drizzle is imbued with a high amount of mana, allowing for damaging spells to deal a greater amount of damage than usual. This reduces the elemental resistances of all players and monsters within the area of effect. This skill has a casting time of 7 seconds, a duration of 100 seconds, and a cooldown of 120 seconds.

Lightning Fall: The Druid raises their staff over their head and summons an electrical orb that generates chain lightning. The electricity generated from this orb travels toward the nearest opponent and then moves onto other targets if they are within 1 meter of the target. Additional targets affected by this attack are not aggroed. This skill has a casting time of 1.5 seconds and a cooldown of 10 seconds.

Willow Spirit: The Druid calls forward earth magic to quickly sprout plant vines from the ground. These vines latch onto the closest target within range and bind them to a short walking distance until they are either cut off or wear off. Any additional opponents who make direct physical contact with the vine are also injured by its sharp thorns. This skill has a casting time of 1.5 seconds and a cooldown of 15 seconds.

[Deleted]

At the mention of recovering health, Dorian made a quick glance at the party list on his interface, Izotz' details now highlighted underneath is own. "Ah, I see you took a few hits from those pesky slimes." He gave a chuckle under his breath, nodding in understanding of needing a rest. "No worries, you heal up a bit, I'll be back in a second," he quickly explained, before zipping over towards a particularly tall tree. If they were going to set up a doable challenge, he needed to pick out a suitable area with monsters big enough in their power rating to make it difficult for the Druid, but not life-threatening; he didn't want to kill his first student outright. Chucking his scythe up towards the trunk and skewering it inside, he began using it to climb, eventually reaching a branch quite a ways up. Perching himself precariously on top, he gave the surrounding forest and eagle-like scan.

It wasn't long before he spotted a small gathering of Pittered Boars roaming nearby where Izotz and himself had met. He couldn't quite tell what level they were, but they usually ranged in the upper half of the first 10 levels or so, easy enough for a level 20 and a level 1 to handle together. With the destination picked out, Dorian quickly descended back down the bark of the tree, landing gracefully on his dancing feet with a gentle thud. "I found us a good spot to practice, some meatier enemies to handle; they'll make the slimes look like squishy little pets." With a little bit more resting left for them, the Shaman accepted the earlier proposal, explaining the combat plan for when they would arrive. "So, I'm normally not a tanker, I'm damage-oriented with support on the side; however, I can adapt to a more tank-like role for this encounter," he began communicating, leaning against the staff of his scythe. "As a higher level, I'll naturally collect more aggro, so all you'll need to do is focus on taking them out while I have their attention drawn."

Once tactics had been covered, and the Druid sufficiently rested up, Dorian gestured for him to follow, resting his scythe carefully over his shoulders as he walked in the direction that he had spotted the boars; hopefully they hadn't moved on during the time they had been talking and waiting. "Keep quiet as we approach; Boars are wary, so they may attack us if they suddenly feel themselves being threatened." With that last bit of advice, the Shaman zipped forward a little ways ahead, keeping an eye out for the area he had picked out from before. Sure enough, as they neared a small clearing, in the small amount of sun that drifted in through the gap in the canopy above, a small group of 4 Pittered Boars was gathered, idly grazing on the long grass. Giving them a quick scan, he picked out their levels as seven, seven, seven and eight. Dorian, keeping himself patient, waited for the Druid to get into position before making any moves.

---

Notes: N/A
Words: 515
Tags: Izotz
Party Buff: Heavenly Defense

HP: 100%
MP: 100%

SPOILER: Click to show

{Available Skills}

Leaping Apricot Technique: This spell will instantly transport the user to a location a certain distance away, leaving behind apricot flower petals from where the user stood. What seems like a powerful technique actually has some drawbacks, including a maximum range of 6 meters and the ability to travel within eight directions, not to mention the in-game restrictions for using this skill. However, it seems that these restrictions have been lifted following the Catastrophe, allowing more striving Shamans to learn this skill with less constraints. Also, using this skill post-Catastrophe also gives off an apricot scent, giving it an aromatic purpose outside of battle. This skill consumes about 20% of the Shaman's MP, has a casting time of 1.5 seconds, and has a cooldown of 40 seconds. The MP cost decreases by 5% for every 30 levels.

Demon's Eye: This skill when activated will slightly increases accuracy rate of the user's weapons. It also causes the weapon to be immune to hit spirit-type mobs whom normally nullify incoming physical damage. Of course, a successful hit requires an active attack towards a desired foe regardless. There was one time when the developers received e-mails saying that "I've used the Demon's Eye and I still keep on missing on ghost mobs!" among others. For this reason, several balance changes were implemented. When used, this skill adds a blue radiance on one's eyes, a rather scary sight post-Catastrophe. This skill has a casting time of 4 seconds, a duration of 60 seconds, and a cooldown of 70 seconds.

Divine Subjugation: The Shaman's body is infused with the blessings of the spirits, increasing the damage of the user's physical attacks for the next 8 seconds. The Shaman's body glows a bright yellow at this time and all their attacks also contribute to an increased amount of aggro. It is oriented towards Battle Shaman builds that use swords or bows as primary weapons. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds and a cooldown of 20 seconds.

Damage Interception: A barrier skill known as the signature move of the Shaman. Forms either a stationary barrier or a barrier around a target that continues to exist until the "energy" of the barrier expires. Energy will decrease slowly over time and decrease from damage taken. This skill has a casting time of 1.5 seconds and a cooldown of 5 seconds.

Rebound Barrier: Affectionately known as “Pinball Barrier” by veteran adventurers, the Rebound Barrier skill casts a spherical barrier around the target. Upon hostile contact with the barrier, both the target and the hostile are tossed in separate directions. Any damage from the attack still lands. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds, a maximum duration of 10 seconds, and a cooldown of 15 seconds.

Soulcutter: A good contender in terms of Shaman DPS, this skill transforms the summoned Shikigami's body into a violent stream of magic energy. The energy is concentrated into a material form, creating a cutting-wave projectile as sharp as a sword. The attack is then shot up to 5 meters forward, after which the familiar spirit travels back to the Shaman. This skill has a casting time of 1 second, followed by an animation time in seconds equal to 0.2 x distance in meters traveled. Its cooldown time is 3 seconds. If Shikigami Astral Seal is active when this skill is used, it is temporarily disabled for this skill's duration.

Exorcism of a Cursed Lotus: A self-cast barrier that boosts the caster’s attack speed against a specific target without boosting movement speed. Upon taking any damage, the barrier shatters and the caster lose all benefits. Since this leaves the caster vulnerable to attack it is often better to combine this with attacks from other party members or with another barrier level underneath so as to keep the target preoccupied. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds, a maximum duration of 10 seconds, and a cooldown of 15 seconds.

Shikigami Astral Seal: This skill transforms the physical body of the summoned Shikigami into a ghost-like form, making it intangible to all attacks. Conversely, the Shikigami retains the ability to affect its environment, allowing it to move and control objects like a poltergeist. Many Shamans typically have their Shikigami control objects like weapons in order to make them appear as though they were possessed. Others tend to utilize the summon to grab an enemy's limbs and prevent their movement, but the generally low offensive specs of the Shikigami makes this strategy not quite as effective. The duration of this skill lasts for a full minute, but it will automatically cancel if the Shikigami's duration runs out. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds. There is a 30 second cooldown period after this skill's deactivation before it may be used again.

Pacifying Dance: A skill that allows the dancer to perform beautiful dances to momentarily captivate those who see it. For the next 30 seconds, monsters within 25 meters have their nature changed. Aggressive and Predatory monsters become Wary. Wary, Aloof, and Cowardly monsters become Docile. Docile monsters become Friendly. This effect does not work against monsters that are already engaged in battle when this skill was used.

[Izotz]

With a nod, Izotz watched easily as the Shaman left to scout out their next targets. As he did so, the Druid set himself aside, sitting against the solid trunk of a large, old tree. Now able to access his user interface, he decided to review the skills he had chose at the moment of character creation. As he remembered, they seemed to be pretty good ones, each working well with the others, in either a party or solo. Call Storm, an area of effect spell that boosted damage spells while lowering elemental resistance of all within the area; no doubt, an invaluable spell for any Druid. Lightning Fall, effectively a chain lightning damage spell that affected multiple targets within one meter of anything hit by it. Combined with the effects of Call Storm, it would cause some decent hurt, that's for sure. Lastly, Willow Spirit, a good crowd control spell that entangles and binds a single target to a spot, causing them to take damage from the thorns of the vines that holds them. If used appropriately, the three should make him a formidable opponent, but he was no threat to anyone without more experience under his belt. He was headed in the right direction though. What he had already learned from his ally, and what he would learn, would speed him down that path. I don't intend on being one of those players who sit back. Izotz mused silently. I won't be one who just want a quiet, pleasant life. Not in this world. This is still a game, and in a game, you're only as weak as you want to be. Anyone can be powerful, you just have to fight for it.

He was roused from his thoughts by the return of Dorian, who joined and explained what lay before them. The white-haired man listened in silence, nodding in understand to the knowledge laid before him. "Right. Before we aggro, I'll cast Call Storm. You should take that as your cue to engage them. Then, once they're on you, we'll work to keeping them together. Anytime they bunch up, I'll throw lightning down their throats. I'll keep my Willow Spirit in my pocket on the off-chance one of them attacks me. It'll give me the opportunity to slash them up with my halberd while it's trapped out of range to actually hurt me. If this all goes well, I shouldn't actually take any damage." With a grunt, he stood, taking weapon in hand again and giving a final nod of affirmation before they headed out. "Let's hope it all goes well."

They traveled easily enough, comfortable in the silence, until Dorian halted them, offering a last bit of advice before splitting up to take up position near the clearing ahead. The Druid would keep back, as discussed, waiting for his moment. He moved with as much care as he could muster, stepping softly, crouched in the rising grass. The undergrowth brushed his legs as he moved, emerald eyes ever on the enemies. A short distance away, he spotted the Shaman, ready to enter the fray. Their eyes met, and the time was upon them. Accessing the skills like Dorian had shown him, he felt the surge of magic as he cast the spell. The point of his polearm directed towards the heavens as he channeled the magical power through it and, after a few short seconds, storm clouds began to form directly above the boars, thick and heavy with the mana-infused rain that began to fall over the clearing. Now! He willed the Shaman, watching and waiting for the younger man's assault before joining in, himself.

---

Notes: Hard to estimate how much mana these spells cost, or what my stats are like, since there seem to be no definitive numbers. But figuring a general druid build and how powerful the spells are to my level, I'm trying to estimate correctly. Let me know if you have any criticisms.
Words:609
Tags: @serenityspace
Party Buff: Nature's Blessing

HP: 100%
MP: 76%

SPOILER: Click to show

{Available Skills}

Call Storm: The Druid calls upon the forces of nature to generate a temporary drizzle upon the battlefield. This drizzle is imbued with a high amount of mana, allowing for damaging spells to deal a greater amount of damage than usual. This reduces the elemental resistances of all players and monsters within the area of effect. This skill has a casting time of 7 seconds, a duration of 100 seconds, and a cooldown of 120 seconds.

Lightning Fall: The Druid raises their staff over their head and summons an electrical orb that generates chain lightning. The electricity generated from this orb travels toward the nearest opponent and then moves onto other targets if they are within 1 meter of the target. Additional targets affected by this attack are not aggroed. This skill has a casting time of 1.5 seconds and a cooldown of 10 seconds.

Willow Spirit: The Druid calls forward earth magic to quickly sprout plant vines from the ground. These vines latch onto the closest target within range and bind them to a short walking distance until they are either cut off or wear off. Any additional opponents who make direct physical contact with the vine are also injured by its sharp thorns. This skill has a casting time of 1.5 seconds and a cooldown of 15 seconds.

[Deleted]

The gentle movement of the Shaman's shifting form through the underbrush made little noise, easily identified as a light breeze to any unknowing monsters lurking in the forest; particularly the boars they had signalled out for death. Dorian's dancing feet kept him light, a twinkle in his steps as he motioned through the grass and bush and trees, coming up to the small gathering of pig-like creatures. Finding a suitable position - not too close so that they would easily spot him, but not too far that he would take too long to reach them - he remained idle in his lowered position, form hidden with the environment; he wasn't as good as an Assassin or any other stealth-oriented class, but he had his ways. Here he waited, patiently keeping watch for the signal of the Druid's spell appearing over the cluster. Make sure you don't hit them too hard. After all, we want the new guy to get his killing on, not watch us slaughter pigs. Skrowe's words were still irritating at times, but at least he had learned to make them irritatingly correct.

Sweeping his hand forward slowly, the Shaman delicately moved his fingers through the leaves of the bushes he had collected himself in, bringing his arm around to snag his digits around the firm wooden shaft of his scythe. Using the large weapon was making it wield-y, especially after he had told himself he would get a new weapon; he had to remind himself to get that longsword he had decided on after the Halloween Hunts were over. Alas, he could not remain on this train of thought, for Izotz had finally arrived to the scene, his Druid magic appearing over the boars in cloudy splendour. "That's my cue," Dorian whispered under his breath, grabbing a tighter hold of his scythe as he suddenly rushed forward. With the fleet bonuses in his equipment, his speed had been boosted a good 25% without skills, which helped him close the distance in a matter of seconds, his form suddenly zipping in to appear in the centre of the Pittered Boars.

"Here, piggy piggy piggy," he taunted with a wild smirk across his lips, holding his scythe out as he channelled 'Divine Subjugation' from his skill list. As the two seconds lapsed for the casting, his body developed a bright yellow glow, emanating like an aura from his body to entrance the boars. With this skill, not only would his attacks be increased in their damage for eight seconds, but they would all develop much more aggro. Spinning his body around on the spot, he swapped his hands upon the staff of his scythe, holding it so that the blade was facing in the direction towards his back. With another spin, this time with his scythe in tow, he swung the blunt staff end of the scythe blade around, knocking a hit on all four of the Pittered Boars; this way, he'd still only do a minimal amount of damage with his attacks, knocking them only 20% down - perhaps 18% on the level eight. Eyes trained on the Druid, he gave the human a signalled nod, as the monsters focused their attention on the Shaman between them, his yellow glow beginning to fade.

---

Notes: N/A
Words: 542
Tags: Izotz
Party Buff: Heavenly Defense

HP: 100%
MP: 85%

SPOILER: Click to show

{Available Skills}

Leaping Apricot Technique: This spell will instantly transport the user to a location a certain distance away, leaving behind apricot flower petals from where the user stood. What seems like a powerful technique actually has some drawbacks, including a maximum range of 6 meters and the ability to travel within eight directions, not to mention the in-game restrictions for using this skill. However, it seems that these restrictions have been lifted following the Catastrophe, allowing more striving Shamans to learn this skill with less constraints. Also, using this skill post-Catastrophe also gives off an apricot scent, giving it an aromatic purpose outside of battle. This skill consumes about 20% of the Shaman's MP, has a casting time of 1.5 seconds, and has a cooldown of 40 seconds. The MP cost decreases by 5% for every 30 levels.

Demon's Eye: This skill when activated will slightly increases accuracy rate of the user's weapons. It also causes the weapon to be immune to hit spirit-type mobs whom normally nullify incoming physical damage. Of course, a successful hit requires an active attack towards a desired foe regardless. There was one time when the developers received e-mails saying that "I've used the Demon's Eye and I still keep on missing on ghost mobs!" among others. For this reason, several balance changes were implemented. When used, this skill adds a blue radiance on one's eyes, a rather scary sight post-Catastrophe. This skill has a casting time of 4 seconds, a duration of 60 seconds, and a cooldown of 70 seconds.

Divine Subjugation: The Shaman's body is infused with the blessings of the spirits, increasing the damage of the user's physical attacks for the next 8 seconds. The Shaman's body glows a bright yellow at this time and all their attacks also contribute to an increased amount of aggro. It is oriented towards Battle Shaman builds that use swords or bows as primary weapons. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds and a cooldown of 20 seconds.

Damage Interception: A barrier skill known as the signature move of the Shaman. Forms either a stationary barrier or a barrier around a target that continues to exist until the "energy" of the barrier expires. Energy will decrease slowly over time and decrease from damage taken. This skill has a casting time of 1.5 seconds and a cooldown of 5 seconds.

Rebound Barrier: Affectionately known as “Pinball Barrier” by veteran adventurers, the Rebound Barrier skill casts a spherical barrier around the target. Upon hostile contact with the barrier, both the target and the hostile are tossed in separate directions. Any damage from the attack still lands. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds, a maximum duration of 10 seconds, and a cooldown of 15 seconds.

Soulcutter: A good contender in terms of Shaman DPS, this skill transforms the summoned Shikigami's body into a violent stream of magic energy. The energy is concentrated into a material form, creating a cutting-wave projectile as sharp as a sword. The attack is then shot up to 5 meters forward, after which the familiar spirit travels back to the Shaman. This skill has a casting time of 1 second, followed by an animation time in seconds equal to 0.2 x distance in meters traveled. Its cooldown time is 3 seconds. If Shikigami Astral Seal is active when this skill is used, it is temporarily disabled for this skill's duration.

Exorcism of a Cursed Lotus: A self-cast barrier that boosts the caster’s attack speed against a specific target without boosting movement speed. Upon taking any damage, the barrier shatters and the caster lose all benefits. Since this leaves the caster vulnerable to attack it is often better to combine this with attacks from other party members or with another barrier level underneath so as to keep the target preoccupied. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds, a maximum duration of 10 seconds, and a cooldown of 15 seconds.

Shikigami Astral Seal: This skill transforms the physical body of the summoned Shikigami into a ghost-like form, making it intangible to all attacks. Conversely, the Shikigami retains the ability to affect its environment, allowing it to move and control objects like a poltergeist. Many Shamans typically have their Shikigami control objects like weapons in order to make them appear as though they were possessed. Others tend to utilize the summon to grab an enemy's limbs and prevent their movement, but the generally low offensive specs of the Shikigami makes this strategy not quite as effective. The duration of this skill lasts for a full minute, but it will automatically cancel if the Shikigami's duration runs out. This skill has a casting time of 2 seconds. There is a 30 second cooldown period after this skill's deactivation before it may be used again.

Pacifying Dance: A skill that allows the dancer to perform beautiful dances to momentarily captivate those who see it. For the next 30 seconds, monsters within 25 meters have their nature changed. Aggressive and Predatory monsters become Wary. Wary, Aloof, and Cowardly monsters become Docile. Docile monsters become Friendly. This effect does not work against monsters that are already engaged in battle when this skill was used.