Chapter 1.
Hello and congratulations on choosing our new flagship project:
* * * Realms of Altherra Version 5.1. * * *
You'll be able to explore the captivating world of magic and mystery
with minimum fuss and maximum entertainment.
Buzzdome would like to thank you for choosing our product!
Daria glared at the screen. CHOOSING! As if I had a choice!
It was Dad's fault that she ended in this situation. He expected that moving to Lawndale can solve his problems, but Morgendorffer Consulting was barely making ends meet; all the niches for consultant work were already taken. Desperation led Jake to accept Buzzdome's offer, only to realize he was over his head. When Noah Barkman asked Jake to test the new version of their MMORPG Realms of Altherra, Dad could no longer hide the ignorance of all things related to computers and Internet. He panicked and decided to solve the problem by delegating.
Daria didn't know what was worse - Dad ignoring her warning that she only played simple games like Cannibal Fragfest before, or Mom convincing her to help by using the combination of bribery and emotional blackmail.
She was right though; I don't want Dad to have another heart attack, and only a decent paycheck from Buzzdome can stop his blood pressure from skyrocketing. The first one was bad enough; Hell, even QUINN was upset.
With the irritated sigh, Daria clicked the mouse button to start the game.
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Choose your Race / Random Choice.
Daria opened A Guide to the Races to see her options.
Dwarves and Elves? Thanks but no thanks. Fantasy worlds are overpopulated by them, and Daria hated to be a part of the crowd. She crossed out Orcs and Drow for much the same reason; the legions of 'Dark' kids were just as annoying as 'Noble' Elves.
Giants were strong and tough, but slow and dumb. Not to mention that race was disliked by pretty much everybody.
Halflings? Daria wasn't going to play a midget with hairy legs and listen to the endless Lord of the Rings jokes.
As for the Humans, they were poster boys for mediocrity with little or no special traits.
Daria discarded several more exotic races – Fairies, because the only way to unlock their trademark ability to Fly was an oath of allegiance to Seelie Court or Unseelie Court; Mermen, who were somewhat interesting, but the huge penalties they've got every time they stepped on dry land made playing them almost impossible; Werewolves, who came with a lot of perks, and a full package of disadvantages, including the horrible reputation, the weakness to the silver and the forced transformations during the full moon.
It was a coin toss between Lizardmen and Kobolds, when Daria stumbled upon another new race… Half-Aliens. Daria checked the guide once again to confirm there's nothing wrong with her eyes.
As she found out, about two thousand years ago a colonist spaceship crashed in the middle of the Gray Mountains. Part of the crew survived, but lost the advanced technologies and was assimilated by the local tribes through marriages. Daria even checked the forums devoted to Realms of Altherra to find more about that race. As she learned, Half-Aliens weren't terribly popular. A lot of players had chosen them decided to erase their characters and start anew, because the materialistic legacy of Half-Aliens left them skeptical about magic, preventing from learning the art properly.
Well, if they missed what I noticed straight away, it's their loss.
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Race - Half-Alien
RACIAL TRAITS
Hollow Bones
Logical Mind
SKILLS
Meditation (LOCKED)
Once Daria read about the specifics of Half-Aliens, it was easy to understand the developers' logic. They wanted to separate Half-Aliens from the other Altherran races, so their Racial Traits were chosen deliberately to complicate playing by most of the Character classes. Hollow Bones made the character faster and more agile at the expense of his durability. Logical Mind was perfect if you planned to study Mind Arts, but meant the penalties for the magic users and the priests.
Armed with that knowledge, it was easy to choose the ideal Character classes for Half-Alien – Psionicist and Monk. The Meditation skill at the beginning of the game, even if in the Locked state, was a giant red arrow that pointed at the Psionicist. As for the Monks, they couldn't wear heavy armor, relying on speed and agility. Hollow Bones gave them an edge. Monks, very conveniently, were the only 'religious' class that didn't have to choose the patron god, walking the Path of Enlightenment instead.
The choice between Monk and Psionicist was easy to make. I'm not going to pass up the chance to mess with people's minds and make their brains explode. Becoming some kind of a Shaolin nun doesn't seem like a fair trade off.
The rest of character creation took less than thirty minutes. Half of the time was spent on the appearance - Daria took a photo of herself without glasses, downloaded it, elongated the auburn hair and made it darker without changing the haircut, altered the eye color several times and clicked 'SAVE'. She softly chuckled when the editor automatically gave her almond-shaped eyes and the pale white skin as a sign of Half-Alien heritage.
NAME – Darlene.
RACE – Half-Alien.
CLASS – Psionicist.
LEVEL – 1.
CURRENT EXP – 0. EXP NEEDED FOR THE NEXT LEVEL - 100.
LIFE POINTS – 40.
MAGIC POINTS – 10.
CHARACTERSTATS
Strength – 3.
Dexterity – 4.
Perception – 5.
Intelligence – 9.
Wisdom – 5.
Endurance – 4.
STAT POINTS AVAILABLE - 0
RACIAL TRAITS
Hollow Bones
Logical Mind
SKILLS
Meditation (LOCKED)
SKILL POINTS AVAILABLE – 0.
SPELLS / SPECIAL ABILITIES
None.
ACHIEVEMENTS
None.
Begin Game?
Yes
No
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Tom Sloane started to suspect that his soon-to-be-former best friends Fred Setti and Julian Haggerty were a part of Fielding's criminal underworld. That was the only explanation of his latest bout of stupidity.
Getting suckered into a bet was bad enough; then Tom had to open his big mouth and make the situation worse by upping the stakes. Not only he was forced to delete his Half-Elven Adventurer and start anew, he had to play for a year using the abomination created by Fred and Julian.
The perfectionist in Tom cringed every time he saw the stats of his new character.
NAME – Solano
RACE – Kobold.
CLASS – Knight.
LEVEL – 1.
CURRENT EXP – 0. EXP NEEDED FOR THE NEXT LEVEL - 100.
LIFE POINTS – 64.
MAGIC POINTS – 5.
CHARACTERSTATS
Strength – 4 (-50% Bonus).
Dexterity – 7 (+100% Bonus).
Perception – 4.
Intelligence – 2.
Wisdom – 2.
Endurance – 6 (-50% Bonus).
STAT POINTS AVAILABLE - 0
RACIAL TRAITS
Armored Skin (+Level*5)
Night Vision
Resistance to Poisons 100/100
SKILLS
Unarmed Combat – 1/1000.
Short Blade – 1/1000.
SKILL POINTS AVAILABLE – 0.
SPELLS / SPECIAL ABILITIES
None.
ACHIEVEMENTS
None.
The race of Kobolds had Racial penalties in Strength and Endurance; as compensation, they had bonus in Dexterity and a thick hide that gave them natural armor. Throw in the immunity to poisons and the ability to see in the dark and you'll get the picture.
If he was a Thief or at least Ranger, he could find a way to work around his… disadvantages. Sadly, there wasn't much space for maneuvering if you choose the Knight; you'll be expected to stand tall and absorb a lot of damage, protecting the party. But as a Kobold, Tom's height didn't provide much of a cover, the good armor for his Race was almost impossible to find, and he was forbidden to use Tower Shield or Kite shield.
Usually Knight pledged himself to one of the Orders and moved up the ranks by fulfilling the assignments (another word for quests) from Grand Master. But Tom doubted he'll find the Order crazy enough to accept Kobold. Which meant that getting stronger by moving up the ranks was out of question, so was the chance of earning special weapons and armor forged in the Order's armory.
In desperation Tom checked if he can be advanced to Paladin. While it was possible for the ordinary Fighter, the Knight didn't have the same option. The manuals explained it as a conflict of the Oaths.
Another way to advance was joining a local tribe of Kobolds and proving his worth to their Chieftain. Once again, that path was out of question; Kobolds despised Knights. As a race of liars, thieves and backstabbers, they saw following a code as a sign of weakness and stupidity.
Tom couldn't help but admire the cunning and creativity his 'best friends'. They effectively neutralized both perks of his Class, while effectively closing all the ways of advancement for Solano.
Despite the setbacks, he was still determined to have the last laugh doing the impossible - turning Solano a character worth keeping.
At least I have a decent nickname. I wonder if 'Solano' is anagram for 'Sloane', or they named me after Chief Solano?
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Darlene, welcome to Altherra!
The introductory message transformed into a stylized map of the central continent (in Daria's opinion, it looked like an upside down version of Africa that had an encounter with a giant meteorite).
Please pick the starting location.
Eternalis - the village in the middle of Skull Island, created by the Priests of Wingham as a place of exile for heretics and unbelievers.
Drammarstadt - former Dwarven outpost near the Ashhorn mountains. It was destroyed during Second Blood War and partially restored by refugees from Gardariki.
Wolke Hills - the small town built after Wood Elves and Humans signed a Non-Aggression Pact. Wolke Hills is known for its mixed population.
It wasn't difficult to make a choice. Even for the money, Daria had nothing good to say about Theocracies; and Wood Elves were the most xenophobic of the Firstborn, almost as bad as the extinct Mountain Elves.
So Drammarstard it is. At least sounds like the town has a long history.
Daria didn't get her hopes high; she understood that her chances to find something worthwhile to report was slim; the generic Tutorial Villages were already searched with the fine-toothed comb by the hundreds of players.
Your Journey Begins Now!
Darlene entered the game in a whirlpool of bright colors… and immediately stepped back to avoid the disfigured corpse staring at her with lifeless eyes.
What. The. Hell.
Darlene looked away from the dead body when she heard the footsteps.
"A newcomer? Hey, Hugo, that's the first one since…"
"Shut up, Orville!"
The voices belonged to a pair of spear-wielding Halflings in ridiculous-looking magenta-colored armor.
"Follow us, and don't make any sudden movements," Orville demanded with a face he probably thought was fierce, but Darlene thought he looked constipated.
"Orville, don't scare the lady!" Hugo bowed to Darlene, "Ma'am, you MUST see our Healer. It's mandatory; the Major himself said so."
"And you'd better listen, or else…"
"Shut up, Orville!"
More amused than annoyed by their constant bickering, Darlene allowed the Halflings to escort her to the First Aid Tent.
The middle-aged Fairy in the blue robes of Healer flew around Darlene's head three times, casting diagnostic spells.
"Don't let these two clowns confuse you," she said. Only the crow's feet around Fairy's hazel eyes gave away her true age. "There's a reason why medical check-up is mandatory for all the newcomers. It's important to find out if you are susceptible."
"Susceptible to what?"
You have been attacked by the Magical Plague.
Your body fends off the plague. Resistance to Magical Diseases 1/100
"And that's the answer I was looking for," The Healer allowed herself to smile in relief, "Your Alien blood is stronger than your human blood, and you'll be able to survive. That's not always the case, you know. A couple of Half-Elves died. I restored their health again and again until I was out of mana, but curing the Magical Plague is beyond my abilities."
I guess I'm luckier than Wells' Martians...
Before Darlene could ask the Fairy about the plague, they were interrupted by the sound of the large war-horn.
"To arms! To arms!"
"Gnolls at the gates!"
Attention – Siege Mode On.
You can't leave the game until the siege is over and all the enemies are dead.
Dammit! Dammit, dammit, dammit!
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The Gnolls started the assault without the preliminary bombardment; ignoring the hail of arrows from the squad of Elven archers and several Dwarven crossbowmen, they placed ladders up against the Drammarstard walls and started climbing.
The Healer jabbed her elbow into Darlene's side, "Don't stand here gaping at me! You can either help us or stay out of the way!"
Quest – help the people of Drammarstadt to withstand a siege.
Reward – varied.
Punishment – no.
Accept – Y/N?
Still stunned at the revelation that she can't leave, Darlene automatically accepted the quest and was immediately sent to help several Kobolds to drag the cauldron full of boiling water on the wall. It was immediately grabbed by the Half-Giant and poured down on the attackers. Darlene marveled at his strength; she could barely lift the heavy cauldron with the help of three Kobolds.
For a few minutes she helped the defenders with replenishing the equipment; sometimes with the cauldrons of boiling water, sometimes it was burning oil or heavy rocks, once she was asked to bring the spare quivers. But the canine humanoids ignored the gruesome deaths of their comrades; when one of them fell, another took his place.
You have been attacked by the Magical Plague.
Your body fends off the plague. Resistance to Magical Diseases 2/100
Darlene quickly got rid of the system message. Not now, dammit!
When the first Gnolls managed to climb up the wall, the Half-Giant who already stuck out like a sore thumb because of his height and the bright crimson sash wrapped twice around his waist was joined by two equally peculiar characters – the old toothless Lizardman and tall dark-skinned man in turban. First Gnoll was flattened by the heavy barbell in the Half-Giant's hands. The man in turban met the canine invaders with debilitating strikes to the limbs and chops to the neck. The old Lizardman was twirling the staff; he was surprisingly fast and agile for his age.
Darlene and her 'crew' were reassigned to take care of the wounded soldiers and drag them to the Healer's tent. She was relieved nobody asked her to get in the way of the real warriors with her non-existent fighting skills.
Attention! The enemy army is inside the city!
Darlene turned around and saw very tall Gnoll who managed to get past the defenders; with his hyena-like features distorted by rage he looked like a rabid dog. Gnoll's beady black eyes locked on Darlene and her 'crew' and he let out a horrible yell.
Demoralizing Scream! You were paralyzed!
The Kobolds decided that discretion is the best part of valor and deserted the motionless Darlene.
Note to self – don't trust Kobolds.
Darlene shrugged off her paralysis just in time to avoid the horizontal slash of the Gnoll's axe. Her own dagger barely made a scratch on the fur-covered torso.
She had no illusions about the winner of their duel. Darlene's attacks were like mosquito bites, annoying but almost harmless; while Darlene did her best to dodge, using her increased Dexterity to maximum, two of the Gnoll's glancing blows almost killed her.
But running away was out of question. Her last assignment was 'Protect the wounded in the medical tent until the help arrives' and the penalty for the failure was bad enough to erase the character.
When Darlene missed another blow and was down to 1 LP, she abandoned the attempts to prolong the fight and prepared herself for the final desperate charge.
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The Gnoll warrior, already used to Darlene's evasive fighting, wasn't ready for the girl throwing herself at his feet and thrusting the knife upwards with all the force she could muster.
Critical Hit!
The Gnoll slumped lifelessly to the ground.
You have earned 20 Exp.
You have unlocked a new Skill - Short Blade (1/1000).
Darlene didn't have time to pat herself on the back. She heard a growl of fury; apparently, another Gnoll warrior saw what happened and wanted to avenge his fallen clansman.
No way is this trick with groin attack going to work twice.
Gnoll's charge was stopped by the spinning axe kick.
Darlene blinked as the familiar dark-skinned man appeared beside her and offered his hand to help her up. Then he turned to the dazed Gnoll and let loose a barrage of punches and kicks. Gnoll's wide swings were easily avoided. Finally, the canine warrior received a brutal blow to the head and fell dead.
The man in turban looked at Darlene, still stunned by the unexpected help, "You are wounded; let's see what I can do."
Singh the Invincible uses Chakra Healing to restore your health (40/40)
Singh waved away Darlene's thanks with a smile.
"Just keep the Gnolls out of the First Aid Tent, this will be enough. I'll deal with the breach in our defences."
'Keep the Gnolls out'; he makes it sound so easy. I barely dealt with one of them, dammit!
Darlene's hopes that more experienced fighters will leave all the fun to themselves were dashed to smithereens very soon. She saw the dynamic duo, Hugo and Orville, pushed back by the Gnoll armed with mace and the wooden shield. The newest Gnoll looked smaller and weaker than the ones Darlene already faced and yet the spears of Halflings barely held him back.
Quickly coming up with a plan, Darlene hid under the overturned vegetable cart; for once she was thankful for her small stature. As soon as the Gnoll's legs were within the striking distance, she viciously stabbed his foot. His yelp was worthy of Wild E. Coyote. Two Halflings, as dim as they were, didn't miss the chance to stab the distracted enemy, leaving him with just enough Life Points for Darlene's next attack to be the last.
Too much work for the measly 10 EXP.
She climbed out from under the cart, tuning out the shouts of grateful praise from Tweedledum and Tweedledee.
Attention – Siege Mode Off.
The Fairy poked her head out of the tent, "Stop yelling you two morons…!" Her eyes widened when she saw Darlene, "Wait, you are still here..? Well, congratulations on surviving your first brush with death."
Darlene suspected the Healer wanted to say something else but clammed up at the last moment. Before she could try and figure out what's going on, a system message erupted in front of her.
You have been attacked by the Magical Plague.
Your body fends off the plague. Resistance to Magical Diseases 3/100
No longer concerned about the Healer's bizarre reaction on her survival, Darlene's only thought was, That's it, I'm out of here!
Quit Game?
Yes.
No.
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The innkeeper said, "That'll be one silver piece please."
With a sigh Darlene took a coin out of her purse and tossed in on the counter.
If I didn't stay here I could be already in the office of Buzzdome, demanding explanations.
When Darlene tried to quit the game, she was stopped by the game message with recommendation to find a safe place to stay before leaving. Normally she could ignore the advice and leave anyway. But surviving the Gnoll attack by the skin of your teeth gives you an entirely different perspective on things. She wasn't willing to get killed and lose her meager belongings because of the carelessness.
Darlene quickly scavenged the corpses of the fallen Gnolls. Her trophies were nothing to brag about – a crude wooden shield, two torches, a tinderbox and a handful of coins. But it was enough to rent a room in the local inn without making a dent in her wallet.
The innkeeper returned with a big bronze key held with a chain.
"Room number nine. I hope your stay in our hotel will make your stay in Drammarstadt even more enjoyable…" After Darlene's incredulous look he left the last sentence dangling in mid-air and laughed nervously, "Sorry, force of habit."
Looks like somebody was practicing in front of mirror too much.
Darlene brushed off the innkeeper's inane apologies and was climbing the stairs to have a look at her new room when the door to the inn creaked open, letting in the important-looking Dwarf wearing a red doublet and a golden chain with a medallion around his neck. The old innkeeper bowed to him.
"Good evening, Major Wayland. What brings you to my humble establishment?"
The dwarf dismissed him, "No need to be so formal, Bill. My position is only temporary."
"Sir, I lived in Drammarstadt since it was rebuilt." Darlene blinked in surprise. Just how old is the innkeeper? "I'm speaking from experience; you are the best Major we ever had."
The Major replied ruefully that he had no choice in the matter, and he'd rather spend his time in the smithy. The innkeeper nodded his head but made no response.
"Bill, where's your new guest? I must talk to her; it's very important."
And so it begins, she thought with a sudden sense of impending doom. I didn't escape in time and now Altherra is trying to sink its claws into me.
Of course the Major could be after somebody else, but Darlene was willing to bet it's not the case.
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Darlene's worries were completely unfounded. The Major of Drammarstadt wasn't going to offer her a world-changing quest. It was merely a business proposition.
Wayland revealed that he was one of the town's blacksmiths before he was forced to fill the position of the Major. Unfortunately, all the other blacksmiths in Drammarstadt were killed by the Plague.
"I try to repair as much as I can in the time free from Major's duties, but that's not enough. So we need all the replacements we can get. Even the shoddy craftsmanship of Gnolls," the jagged scar on the Dwarf's cheek twitched in irritation.
Quest – sell the trophy weapons and armor from the Gnolls to Major Wayland.
Reward – 5 EXP per item.
Penalties – none.
Accept – Y/N?
Darlene easily agreed to part with the wooden shield; it was useless for her anyway.
+ 5 EXP (95/100)
Wow, I'm five EXP away from a new Level. And I didn't even notice.
"Major Wayland? Where have you been? I've looked for you everywhere."
The Dwarf groaned after seeing a tall Elf in black chain armor entering the inn.
"That's Razorfin, the captain of the town guard. I swear he must have magical means to track me. Every time I try to shake him off he just finds me again."
The Elf approached their table and bowed to the Dwarf, "Major Wayland, we have problems with the ballista on the northern wall. Something is wrong with mechanism; they asked if you can spare some time to have a look."
The Dwarf emptied a mug of grog in a single gulp.
"See what I mean? The Major's job never ends," the Dwarf shot the newcomer a look of contempt, "It's my cue to leave," The Major kissed Darlene's knuckles and said, "Once again, let me welcome you to Drammarstadt. I wish it was under different circumstances."
"You and me both."
After Wayland left the inn Darlene expected the Elf to do the same. Instead he took the Major's place in front of the girl and ordered a glass of red wine.
"You don't mind if I ask you a question or two?"
"Sure, why not?"
"I've seen you during the attack. It's your first battle, isn't it?" Darlene nodded, "You noticed something unusual, something that doesn't make sense for you?"
It was a thick question.
"I expected worse," I didn't notice it until he asked, but the hindsight is truly 20/20, "I don't think we saw their strongest warriors."
Razorfin smiled, "I can only applaud your intuition. Their Chieftain fell out of favor with Prophet; his soldiers are too young and inexperienced, or serving a punishment for some misdemeanor. That's the only explanation why we are still here. If we faced the Prophet's elite warriors…"
"I understand," she had a good imagination, thank you very much.
Remember, to volunteer is to say "use me".
Ignoring the warning bells chiming in her head, Darlene steeled herself and asked, "Is there anything I can do to help?"
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(From the Entertainment column of the Lawndale Sun-Herald)
Hello to all my readers. Today I managed to get a short interview with one of the people responsible for the well-known multiplayer role-playing game Realms of Altherra. His real name is kept secret for safety reasons, so I'll call him Ernst Gruber, after the character he used as a beta-tester of the game.
SH: "Tell me, what was behind Buzzdome's decision to branch out and create a new role-playing game?"
EG: "Some of us felt that the genre of MMORPG is suffering from a chronic case of stagnation. The exploring of the dungeons, gathering the artefacts and building up your character is getting old very fast. If your crowning achievement is being the first to kill the unique monster or getting The Flaming Sword of Fire, the game isn't worth your money."
SH: "And what's the difference between the games you've mentioned and the Realms of Altherra?"
EG: "We wanted to give ALL the players a chance. You don't have to be uber-strong Barbarian with level 100+ to make a difference. It wasn't an easy feat, but we managed."
SH: "Can you give a specific example?"
EG: "Sorry, I can't. Once you start playing, you'll understand."
SH: "What else you can tell us about the new version of Altherra?"
EG: "Your actions have consequences."
SH: "I'm sorry?"
EG: "Some of the people start playing MMORPG because they feel they can do whatever they want. In Altherra the players learn the hard way that their actions have consequences. The failure of Warlock's summoning ritual not only kills you, but can result in a demonic invasion. Unrepentant Player Killers get a hefty price on their heads. If the village is destroyed with the area effect spell like Meteor Strike, it's a question of time before the burnt ruins will be occupied by monsters or undead. Somebody wants to change players the way he changes clothes? Be prepared for the new players to be weakened by the Bad Karma."
SH: "Speaking of consequences. Where did the Gamer heresy come from?"
EG: "It's our countermeasure against the irresponsible players who spoil the game process for the others by not treating Altherra seriously. We don't want ancient Elves using slang or the proud Dwarven warriors talking like characters from teen sitcom. If you decided to enter Altherra, have the decency to be in character. Or you can ignore our warning and find yourself in the world of trouble. The choice is yours."
SH: "Aren't you afraid to lose players because of the increased difficulty level?"
EG: "We compensate for it by offering more opportunities to our players. In the Realms of Altherra you can affect the trade balance and influence the local politics. You can change the outcomes of the wars. You can overthrow a king and start a new dynasty. You can declare a crusade in the name of your patron God.
In summary, if you are tired of the endless dungeons and sword measuring contests, if you want to make a difference, the Realms of Altherra is what you need."