A Small Giant Problem 3 (2/2)
“Your stead? Why did ya put a perfectly good dungeon in my land!”
“Hyour land? Ve vas here first!” Greta scowled, and nudged one of her groaning subjects with a foot. “Come on, get up, ve gots some claim jumpers to run off.”
“Now hold on here, you great blue tart!” The King snapped, shaking an aged fist. “Pretty sure we were here first, just underground, that's all! It's still our land!”
“May I speak, please?” Threadbare offered from the giant’s shoulder.
“Vhat?” She turned to glare at him, a glare that softened as he patted her face reassuringly.
“You’re using an outside part of these lands. He’s using an inside part. I really don’t see the problem.”
“De problem is he’s on my land, pointing der little boomsticks at me.”
“The problem is that it isn’t her land in the first place!” The King said, glaring around. “And look at this loot! I know half of this loot! It belongs to my people, who died in your deathrap of a dungeon!”
“Hey, not my fault hyu little guys kept crashing my party!”
“The party that you made illegally in my lands!”
“Ahem,” Cecelia cleared her throat. “Sir?”
“What is it, my dear?”
“Guys!” Garon said, jumping up and down.
“Hold on,” Cecelia said. “I was going to point out, sir, that you’re at war.”
“Yes! Which is precisely why we don’t need a tribe of troublesome giants-“
“A tribe of troublesome giants who my Father definitely would not be expecting to fight.”
Silence, then, broken by Garon’s wooden quivering.
“Huh. Huh!” Grundi said. Then he looked up at the frowning Jarl, who had her arms crossed, leaning on her club. “That’s… a point. Hum.”
“Fight who to the vhat now?” The Jarl said, confused.
“Someone we’ll pay you a lot of money to fight.” Grundi said.
“Bah. Money ve gots.”
‘And three kegs of Sunfire mead.”
That made her pause.
“Hyu ain’t got nothing like that,” she said, staring at him like he’d announced that he’d bottled the sun. Which was a pretty apt comparison, as anyone who'd ever been fortunate enough to actually taste the stuff could tell you.
“Oh, I do. It’s the last of my private stock, from the northern breweries before we were cut off.”
“Hyu svear to me it’s real. And mine if ve fight for you.”
“It’s real. By my beard and axe, it’s real.”
“Done!” She said, offering her enormous hand for a shake.
That settled, Threadbare and his friends turned to Garon.
“Guys, I just got a job unlock.” Garon said. “A tier two.”
“Okay. So what’s the fuss?” Madeline asked.
“It’s for Guild Master.”
That brought silence. Silence that spread to where the giant and the dwarf were settling terms.
“I can make guilds. It… I need to read the help screens, there’s so much stuff here. This… this changes everything.” Garon sat down with a bump.
“How?” Cecelia asked. “Just… how?”
“You have to be a Ruler, enough to assign or share a King’s Quest. Then you have to lead a party and use both mercenary and ruler skills to complete it. And it has to be a challenging one, requiring multiple parties to complete, and you have to lead one of them. Well…” Garon gestured around at his friends, and himself. “We did that. We can do this. We can form a Guild. We can crack level twenty five.”
“No,” King Grundi said, rolling over. “I’m sorry lad, you can’t.” Behind him, the Jarl went to try and rouse her people, not realizing just what kind of hangovers they’d gotten from decades of continuous partying.
“What? It says right there,” Garon pointed at nothing. “All I have to do is say “Form Guild The Threadbarren, and… what? What the hell?”
“Aye. It did the same thing when I tried,” King Grundi sighed.
“But…” Garon looked around, and the valley, and at the oblivion rolling in the distance. “We’re not in a dungeon.”
“Garon?” Threadbare asked, as suspicions rose in his mind, “What exactly happened when you tried?”
“It told me that I can’t create a guild while I’m in a dungeon.”
“Aye. Just as it told me when I discovered the job, four years ago, and tried it myself.” Grundi said, looking at Garon with sympathy.
“Maybe this counts because Jotunher was so close?” Madeline said, rubbing her muzzle with one claw. “We could go somewheah else, and-“
“No,” Grundi said. “There’s no place in Cylvania that isn’t in a dungeon. The whole land’s a dungeon.”
“He’s a midboss. That’s why he can die and come back,” Threadbare realized, pointing at the Lurker’s corpse, which was already fading.
“Aye, and King Melos, damn his foolish eyes, is the dungeon’s master.”
“How?” Cecelia asked, turning her ceramic eyes to the ancient dwarf. “How do you know this?”
King Grundi turned, painfully, staring past them. And as one the group turned, to follow his gaze…
…but there was nothing on the horizon, save for the black sheet of the Oblivion.
“We helped turn it into one,” King Grundi said. “They came to us for help, you see. It all started with the Seven, with their wizard, Grissle…”
QUICK REFERENCE: THREADBARE'S NEW SKILLS
Spoiler: Spoiler
DISARM
Level: 10 Cost: 20 Sta Duration: Instant
Has a chance of disarming a foe's wielded item. The foe must be in melee range.
RIPOSTE
Level: 10 Cost: NA Duration: Passive Constant
Whenever you successfully parry an attack, you have a chance at riposting, triggering a free attack with whatever weapon you are currently wielding.
THREADBARE'S CHARACTER SHEET
Spoiler: Spoiler
Name: Threadbare
Age: 5
Jobs:
Greater Toy Golem Level 16
Cave Bear Level 13
Ruler Level 13
Scout Level 8
Tailor Level 11
Model Level 10
Necromancer Level 11
Duelist Level 10
Animator Level 13
Enchanter Level 10
Golemist Level 18
Smith Level 11
Sculptor Level 13
Attributes:
Strength: 147 Constitution: 163 Hit Points: 388(488) Armor: 57(71)
Intelligence: 251 Wisdom: 224(231) Sanity: 475(634) Mental Fortitude: 47
Dexterity: 171(178) Agility: 144(151) Stamina: 339(439) Endurance: 67
Charisma: 126(155) Willpower: 237 Moxie: 363(492) Cool: 20(55)
Perception: 131 Luck: 101(108) Fortune: 232(339) Fate: 15(22)
Generic Skills
Brawling - Level 50 (+34)
Climb - Level 13
Clubs and Maces - Level 19
Dagger - Level 9
Dodge - Level 13
Fishing - Level 1
Magic Item 1 - Resist Fire 13
Ride - Level 9
Stealth - Level 17
Swim - Level 5
Greater Toy Golem Skills
Adorable - Level 35
Bodyguard - Level 9
Gift of Sapience - Level NA
Golem Body - Level 32
Innocent Embrace - Level 17
Magic Resistance -Level 17
Cave Bear Skills
Animalistic Interface - NA
Claw Swipes - 44
Darkspawn - NA
Forage - 13
Growl - 2
Hibernate - 37
Scents and Sensibility - 21
Stubborn - 10
Toughness - 24
Ruler Skills
Appoint Official - Level NA
Emboldening Speech - Level 19
Identify Subject - Level 10
It's Good to be King - NA
King's Quest - Level 15
Noblesse Oblige - Level 37
Organize Minions - Level NA
Royal Audience - Level 22
Simple Decree - Level 15
Swear Fealty - Level NA
Scout Skills
Alertness - Level 3
Best Route - Level 3
Camouflage - Level 13(20)
Firestarter - Level 10
Keen Eye - Level 12
Sturdy Back - Level 13
Wind's Whisper - Level 15
Tailor Skills
Adjust Outfit - Level 5
Clean and Press - Level 20
Recycle Cloth - Level 2
Tailoring - Level 54(69)
Model Skills
Adjust Weight - Level 14
Call Outfit - Level 5
Dietary Restriction - Level 50 (+100 to all pools)
Fascination - Level 9
Flex - Level 21
Makeup - Level 11
Self-Esteem - Level 21
Sexy Pose - Level 2
Strong Pose - Level 16
Work it Baby - Level 50 (+50% to raw item bonuses)
Necromancer Skills
Assess Corpse - Level 12
Command the Dead - Level 28
Deathsight - Level 9
Drain Life - Level 8
Invite Undead - Level 12
Mana Focus - Level NA (+11% to sanity)
Skeletons - Level 19
Soulstone - Level 45
Speak With Dead - Level 24
Zombies - Level 3
Duelist Skills
Challenge - Level 11
Dazzling Entrance - Level 17
Disarm - Level 1
Fancy Flourish - Level 13 (20)
Guard Stance - Level 21
Parry - Level 22
Riposte - Level 1
Swashbuckler's Spirit - NA (+20 to cool)
Swinger - Level 2
Weapon Specialist - Level 38 (Brawling +19)
Animator Skills
Animus - Level 41
Animus Blade - Level 10
Animus Shield - Level 4
Arm Creation - Level 7
Command Animus - Level 19
Creator's Guardians - Level 33
Dollseye - Level 18
Eye for Detail - Level 20
Magic Mouth - Level 18
Mend - Level 41
Enchanter Skills
Appraise - Level 30
Boost+5 - Level 14
Boost +10 - Level 2
Disenchant - Level 7
Elemental Protection - Level 9
Glowgleam - Level 26
Harden - Level 36
Soften - Level 31
Spellstore I - Level 25
Spellstore V - Level 4
Spellstore X - Level 1
Wards - Level 2
Golemist Skills
Bone Golem - Level 1
Call Golem - Level 4
Clay Golem - Level 2
Command Golem - Level 24
Golem Animus - Level 48
Golem Guardians - NA
Invite Golem - Level 12
Mend Golem - Level 55
Program Golem - Level 43
Toy Golem - Level 56
Wood Golem - Level 12
Smith Skills
Adjust Arms and Armor - Level 10
Refine Ore - Level 13
Smelt Down - Level 6
Smithing - Level 50
Sculptor Skills
Detect Clay - Level 8
Mend Ceramic - Level 6
Refine Clay - Level 18
Sculpting - Level 60
Equipment
Journeyman Tailor's Apron of fire resistance (+6 Armor, +10 Tailoring, Resist Fire 9)(+3 Armor, +5 Tailoring, +4 Resist Fire from WIB)
Okay Quality Bling
Ringtail Master's Coat (+5 CHA, +5 LUCK, +5 Armor, +5 Fate)(+2 CHA, LUCK, Armor, Fate from WIB)
Rippen Tear Cloak (+10 to brawling, +5 Armor)(+5 Brawling, +2 Armor from WIB)
Rod of Baronly Might (+5 CHA, +5 WIS, +10 Cool)(+2 CHA, WIS, +5 Cool from WIB)
Sneakypants (+5 Camouflage)(+2 Camouflage from WIB)
Yellow Belt of Bravado (+5 AGL, +5 DEX, +5 to the Fancy Flourish skill)(+2 AGL, DEX, Fancy Flourish from WIB)
Toy Top Hat (CHA +10)(+5 CHA from WIB)
Inventory
A Folded-steel Dagger (Dagger Level 10)
Tailor's Tools
A small jewelry box, now empty.
1 bead of Mend Golem (Level 15)
Minorphone (Enhances voice and social skills focused through it twice per day)
Quests
Unlocked Jobs
Air Elementalist, Berserker, Cleric, Cook, Cultist, Grifter, Spirit Medium, Tamer, Wizard