No Cutting Corners

[Ryuuketsu]

This Is A Wonderful World

No Cutting Corners

Usually with an MMORPG, and almost especially with your average RPGs, the player doesn’t have a lot of leeway in where they’re allowed to go at any given time. Back in the early editions of Final Fantasy, this sort of thing was dictated by the difficulty of enemies that you were to encounter. Ryan remembered vividly the time he was a child and spent the better part of an hour trying to head North into an area populated by enemies who could kill his entire party in three turns or less when the game was trying to steer him to the West with its bad conveyance of travel destinations.

What did a fork in the road mean? Well, it meant that game designers would have to spend twice the resources on areas meant for characters of the same level. After the area, literally nothing would have changed between a character who chose route A and a character who went down route B if they were of the same class and started and finished both paths at relatively the same level. The net change to the game would be nothing so long as both paths led back to the same place.

When posed with the budget and time restraints of making one game or two, the creators would almost always pick one. So why was it that there was a crossroads before Ryuuketsu at the moment?

The left path lead to a cavern – it was slightly ominous looking, and the interior of it was probably dark throughout. It wasn’t a good option as entering a cave without any sort of light source would grant a vision debuff that just didn’t work. Sure, Ryuuketsu had a passive hearing skill that would have enabled him to monitor his opponents purely through the sounds they made alone, creating a white shockwave wherever they started walking and automatically bringing them into view when they were preparing an attack, but a challenge wasn’t exactly what he was looking for right now.

The path to his right seemed to be much more peaceful – almost boring in comparison to the idea of going through a cave. There were probably more boars, slimes, and snakes that were to be fought down that path, presenting familiar enemies and next to no increase in difficulty.

In short, this would be a hard division between the people who couldn’t handle a challenge and those that were looking to break the mold and strike out on their own into a harder environment; a more rewarding environment.

Of course Ryuuketsu and Ryan were going to go left. Was there even a question as to whether they would? They were always weak to a challenge.

HP:

MP:

Word Count: 450

[Ryuuketsu]

This Is A Wonderful World

No Cutting Corners

Upon entering the caverns, Ryan’s screen instantly blackened until it almost looked like he wasn’t even playing on a computer that was displaying anything at all. The low light of the area would have been unbearable if it weren’t for Ryuuketsu’s Hearing Aptitude. The shockwaves that were generated by his footsteps gave Ryan a decent look of the area. He could see far enough around him that he didn’t need to worry too much about focusing on his mini-map, and could pour his attention into sniffing out enemies that Ryuuketsu and he might run into.

The predominant creature of the caverns this low underground were Goblins. They were aggressive little devils, and would oftentimes charge any group of adventurers they came across in a group as big as they could assemble – though that was usually only about five or six. Their primary strategy would be to have one or two archers in the back to stack on the damage while the adventurer’s skills were on cooldown. However, despite their higher attack power and potential, they also had significantly lower health than their battle hardened brothers and sisters.

Thankfully the game hadn’t hit its night cycle just yet; dealing with goblins that all dealt ten percent more damage every time they successfully hit would be a pain, no doubt. Underground, they had the vision advantage, but Ryuuketsu’s hearing would level the playing field by quite a bit.

The first thing that alerted Ryan to the presence of a grouping of the creatures was the shrill cry that resulted from Ryuuketsu drawing aggro. Almost instantly after that, three of the small creatures were upon him with slashing daggers coming right at him. Thankfully, Ryan was quick enough to activate Fold Step, and Ryuuketsu blinked out of the way of the attacks, and it put him in just the right position to unleash his counter-attack.

Both of Ryuuketsu’s katana spun and whirled through the air as Shuffle Windmill was activated, clawing into the bodies of the three Goblins as they cried out in virtual agony. Ryan’s focus was quickly averted to the two archers a few meters away from his current position as they fired simultaneous arrows which travelled too fast for him to properly dodge around.

Did that just wipe out ten percent of Ryuuketsu’s HP? Well, he was going to have to be a lot more careful about that, now wasn’t he?

HP:

MP:

Word Count: 400

[Ryuuketsu]

This Is A Wonderful World

No Cutting Corners

”Yeah, I’ve been busy getting this new character up on his feet. Haven’t made much leeway in terms of getting my main over in NA back up off the ground. Look, I’m kind of level thirteen and in the intro caverns right now. Goblins are legitimately up my ass so far they can see out my mouth….Yeah, I’ll catch you guys later.”

Another voice call ended, and Ryan was back in the fray, throwing Ryuuketsu at the Goblins with all the vigor and frustration he’d built up until that point in time. While he had several options as for which attack skill to use, the game of cat and mouse that involved Ryuuketsu dodge rolling out of the way of anything that came his way while instantly countering with a sword slash or two was much more fun.

Slowly but surely, Ryan was working his way over to the archers. Arrows whizzed past Ryuuketsu’s hitbox, barely grazing him and thankfully not dealing any damage as he positioned himself in front of them. Within melee range, archers were useless. That didn’t mean the dagger users weren’t already at Ryuuketsu’s flank, but it grouped the targets together nicely enough that spending the mana on another Shuffle Roulette was worth it for the amount of damage he was dealing.

Ryuuketsu leapt into the air after that, dodging a few more dagger slashes as Ryan motioned for him to impact one of the archers with Viper Raise, and then another with Dart-Tack Target. One archer fell to the damage over time effect put out by Viper Raise, and a Mirage Dealer was enough to finish off the last one as well as take Ryuuketsu out of the range any of the dagger users could immediately counter his actions with.

In and out, quick deaths handed out like penny candy from the local five and dime; just the way they liked it.

”Come on, you guys can do better than that. There’s hardly a scratch on me,” Ryan commented. Who cared if his mana was dropping like wildfire? He was taking care of business with little to no trouble, and if he needed to kite the Goblins around the map until he could get back enough of the blue energy to fire off a few more finishing blows, then so be it. He wasn’t going to run from a good fight if he could help it.

HP:

MP:

Word Count: 403

[Ryuuketsu]

This Is A Wonderful World

No Cutting Corners

With the archers of the group down, the remaining melee-oriented Goblins would be a breeze. The relief that came from not having to worry about whether or not a projectile was coming Ryuuketsu’s way meant that Ryan could focus solely on his three-on-one duel. Well, it wasn’t so much of a duel as it was a massacre, but Ryan wasn’t one for semantics anyways.

Ryuuketsu flashed behind one of his targets with Fold Step, only to turn and shoot off in another direction with Mirage Dealer. The afflicted Goblin shrieked as the damage set in, but it didn’t look like it was down for the count quite yet. Ryan decided to fix that.

Some more auto attacks and well-timed dodge rolls later, the Goblin was thoroughly done bothering Ryuuketsu. As for the other two…Well, they were as feisty as ever, it seemed. They slammed their daggers against their small wooden bucklers as they circled him, now fully aware that they were outmatched.

Ryan smirked before tapping the key that activated Straights. It would be a useful skill for what he had planned.

As the two Goblins’ circling pattern lined up, He prompted Ryuuketsu to thrust the blade effected by Straights forward, resulting in what could affectionately be referred to as a Goblin-kabob. Before they even had time to react, Ryuuketsu withdrew the blade and followed up with a slashing attack, striking both opponents once more due to the increased range of the strike.

That seemed to be enough to finish off the remaining two members of the Goblin horde that Ryuuketsu had encountered. The environment around him darkened to its near pitch-black surrounding once more, but when Ryuuketsu began to move again the familiar white shockwaves fixed the visibility issue. Hearing Aptitude had its uses after all, it seemed.

Continuing through the caverns, Ryan and Ryuuketsu were on high alert just in case more roaming groups of Goblins were on their way to attempt to stop them in their attempt at getting to the next area relatively unscathed. Having to make the trip all the way back here from whatever town Ryuuketsu would respawn in would be way too much of a hassle. Dying simply wasn’t an option.

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MP:

Word Count: 368

[Ryuuketsu]

This Is A Wonderful World

No Cutting Corners

The caverns were an interesting place to walk around in if you had so much as a torch to light the way, but when you were pretty much going through the area with nothing but the sounds your steps made to guide you, a whole new world opened up. Shortcuts hidden behind collapsible walls, secret pathways obscured by moss, and the ability to hear your enemies coming before anyone else even would have normally seen them were all big advantages to the skill itself. Even without eyes, Ryuuketsu’s ears would make this trip possible.

The sounds of more Goblins shrieking in the background was an early warning for Ryan as Ryuuketsu entered what looked to be a room in the shape of a half-sphere. The dome had high cliffs on either side that looked to be perfect vantage spots for archers. Rolling his eyes, Ryan started counting back from five in his head as he approached the center of the room. This totally didn’t look like an ambush waiting to happen or anything like that. Anyone who thought otherwise must have been crazy, paranoid, or both.

The first arrow flew, and Ryuuketsu’s auto-attack knocked it out of the air before it could deal any damage. The six archers made themselves known at that point, blowing a war horn that echoed loudly throughout the cavern.

That was bad. Because he was only relying on Hearing Aptitude, the loud sounds generated by the instrument were enough to flood Ryan’s screen and Ryuuketsu’s “vision” in white. Now with nothing to rely on but instinct, Ryan was in a bit of a pinch.

Come on, think. Where were the Goblins before the white-out hit? How far and how high was that jump to get on their level? What was his jump radius given his acrobatics subclass?

The screen flashed red around its borders and Ryan knew he’d have to move fast if he wanted to get out of this. Moving Ryuuketsu out of reflex more than anything else, Ryan managed to hop up on the ledge that contained the six archers successfully just as his screen began to clear.

Ryuuketsu let loose on his targets once they were in melee range, and their squishy nature as archers betrayed them. Knocking them off the ledge with a flurry of quick sword combinations was simple enough. A low slash to take out the legs followed by a kick or an upward attack with both blades produced enough force to knock them to the ground below, and the fall damage mixed with the lethal strikes from his initial attacks were enough to kill the creatures.

He’d gotten lucky, but luck was part of any strategy.

HP:

MP:

Word Count: 448

[Ryuuketsu]

This Is A Wonderful World

No Cutting Corners

As he cleared out the room, Ryan took note of the pathways that the Goblins had come out of when they would have first attacked. Two tunnels branched off in opposite directions from one another. Another split path, huh? Did they both lead to the exit? Did one have more enemies than the other? Which one was Ryan supposed to choose to get the most out of this area?

The questions posed by a simple choice between which path to take were interesting, if not obvious. Ryan could head back the way he came, but this time at a higher altitude; a different “floor” so to speak. That could either take him back out of the cave – an element the designers may have included as an easy out for the players who weren’t faring so well. Then again, if anyone wanted to leave the cave at this point they could simply turn around and walk back out the same path that led them to this room.

The other path branched off to the left, and upon further investigation of the contents, seemed to be relatively free of enemies. Then again, they could have heard Ryuuketsu’s swords cut against the wall and reverberate throughout the cavern. If there were any groups of Goblins within earshot, they’d likely be on their way now.

So it was settled, then. For now he’d make as much noise as possible, and whichever cave produced enemies first would be the path he travelled down. This was supposed to be a challenge, and that meant taking anything that came his way to task no matter who they were or how numerous they ended up being.

The familiar shrieking sounds of Goblins came from the southern path – the one that came back from the way he had first entered the dome from. Ryan smirked as he prompted Ryuuketsu to dash down the tunnel, swords drawn and ready for battle the second an enemy popped up.

As it turned out though, the shrieking of the Goblins had been a lie. The enemy that Ryuuketsu had encountered was a club-wielding pack of Kobolds. Four of them glared as Ryuuketsu and lifted their clubs as their eyes flashed red.

Well, this was an unexpected surprise. Still, Kobolds and Goblins weren’t much different. You still needed to avoid their attacks and hit them in their openings. The only difference was that the clubs of the Kobolds moved a modicum slower than the daggers or arrows of Goblins.

Either way, the fight was going to be kept interesting, and there was absolutely nothing wrong with that.

HP:

MP:

Word Count: 433

[Ryuuketsu]

This Is A Wonderful World

No Cutting Corners

Clubs were easy to dodge. Well, that wasn’t necessarily true. Bosses that used clubs and higher level enemies that had attacks using club-like weapons were a little harder to get around just because of the range and patterns that came with their attacks. Kobolds? Those were easy enough to work around. In fact, they were some of the slowest attacking enemies in the game aside from snails and golems.

Either way, Ryuuketsu was light enough on his feet that Ryan’s commands to dodge were followed with the efficiency to not take any damage from the attacking creatures. Counter-attacks were easy enough to dish out as well. Even when the creatures reared back and swung in a pattern that might have made it a bit harder for players who didn’t know the benefits of getting far away from your enemies even as a melee class, Ryan was able to maneuver around the swings and finish every target off simultaneously with a Shuffle Windmill.

The battle ended shortly after that, and Ryuuketsu sheathed his blades. Ryan sat back in his chair as the light on the screen generated by the sounds of combat faded until the screen was that familiar pitch-black once more.

The tunnels after that had a few enemies scattered every here and there. It wasn’t too much of a challenge, and while Ryan was glad that there was a change of pace from the usual boars and snakes in the area he’d chosen to go down, he still acknowledged that it simply wasn’t enough of a challenge. In a game like Elder Tale where – if you played things perfectly – you were able to kill anything at level one with nothing but your starter equipment, the attack patterns of enemies could get very complex and very hard to dodge. Giant bosses with huge AoE attacks also liked to leave only small parts of the map vulnerable at any given time, meaning that large parties would have to prioritize those positions for their healers and the badly wounded.

Kobolds didn’t have the advantage of making a party take strategic losses, though. They were there to be dominated, and they were there to grant EXP to those who did the dominating.

As Ryan and Ryuuketsu emerged from the cave, the screen became awash with light. Colors opened up around the two that they’d been secluded from for what felt like days, but in reality it was probably only an hour and a half or so.

The next area was laid out before them after that, but a quick glance at the clock revealed that midnight was already upon the two. Ryan sighed as he motioned over to the options window to log out of the game. He needed to be up early tomorrow; he had a lot of things to do. It looked like his solo session was over for the night.

Hopefully he’d be able to show his face to a group sooner or later. Maybe after the Novasphere Pioneers reset.

HP:

MP:

Word Count: 500