In this world, Magic is Everything. All people, all races, are granted with the power to perform mystical and magical feats via grimories, mystical tomes granted to each and every child on their 15th birthday. Those blessed by the mana can have their names written down in legend.
Shattered Grimoires is the work of the mind(s) of Ardere & Shattered Grimoire's staff. All characters and content are copyright their creators, and may not be replicated without their creators' permission. Black Clover is owned by Yuki Tabata and published by Viz Shonen Jump. All images belong to their original owners. The theme you are currently viewing was made by Eliza of ElizaCodes exclusively for Shattered Grimoires.
RANK: Senior [break] LOCATION: Aristaeus’ Basin [break] MIN-MAX PLAYER GROUP: 2-4 [break] OTHER REQS:
Grand+ Characters can only enter if a Senior or below Character pairs with them
[break] In the deep stretches of the Basin, a grove of fantastical, mystical trees has appeared. Upon approach, everything seems to be bathed in an angelic, rainbow-colored light, giving an otherworldly feeling to this mystical place. Mana is condensed here, felt in the very air that one breathes. Overall, it appears eerily serene, like the calm before a brewing storm. [break][break] **Floors of the Dungeon are broken into [Areas] rather than determined rooms. Each area functions exactly like a room with wordcounts required to complete each area. Upon the completion of an area (word count reached & enemy encounters defeated), the trees will magically part and beckon the players to move to the next area. [break][break] The entire Dungeon area is open air forest, but if an adventurer attempts to fly [40 m] above the ground, they will become lost and constantly find themselves at the beginning of the dungeon. [break][break] Upon Completion of this Dungeon Players will receive the Notable Achievement [MASTER OF NATURE]!! [break][break]
[attr="class","dungenfloor"]FLOOR #1 - SPRING
[break] NUMBER OF AREAS: 2[break] WORD COUNT PER AREA: 2,000[break] FLOOR DESCRIPTION [break] Upon entering this first forested area, the sunlight is low here, as if in constant twilight or dawn. The eerie glow continues, as if beckoning the adventurers further inside. The forest is a lovely greenscape, with bright pink, uncategorizable yet beautiful flowers bloom in the trees. It smells like spring, fresh, and invigorating. Birds can be heard chirping, but it is otherwise eeriely quiet with no apparent signs of life.
Applerounds drop from the trees, if a player is standing underneath them, they will immediately bonk them on the head! Their main attack is to roll like a tumbleweed and crash into enemies. They are some rather sturdy, hard and sour apples. They come in groups with every intent of running adventurers out of their orchard.
Fluffy but rather skittish sheep-like mana beasts, sheeple gather in large flocks. At signs of danger or intruders, they stampede! A stampede causes anyone on the ground to trip or fall. When attacking intruders, sheeple use their fluff to tumble into opponents and cause minor debuffs. [break][break] Sheeple fluff will cause one of the three following debuffs: 1) -5 power, 2) temporary blindness, or 3)-5 control. Players roll a 1d3 to determine the debuff if hit by a sheeple. Sheeple Fluff debuffs only last for 1 post after being hit. [break][break] If hit by multiple sheeple, these debuffs can stack.
[break]
[attr="class","dungenarea"]AREA #1
[attr="class","dungenencounters"]ENCOUNTERS:
4 Applerounds per player
[break] After walking through the forest initially, the group will come to a small grove of apple trees. There is a spacious area in the center about [35 m x 35 m] in dimensions. The trees bear red-colored fruit that looks extremely delicious. If a player eats an apple, however, they will receive one of two effects bad apple or sweet apple which lasts for the rest of the floor. Bad Apple results in minor food poisoning and the player will receive a -2 debuff to their power and control. Sweet Apple will result in a minor refreshment with +3 m/s to their speed stat and an extra +5 mana regen per turn they remain in this floor. To determine the effects of the consumed apples, a player will roll a 1d10, with 6 or above resulting in sweet apple and 5 or below resulting in bad apple. The effects do not stack if you eat multiple apples, you can only be granted one effect at a time. [break][break] Whether or not players decide to eat the apples, moments after entering the grove, suddenly the apple trees will start to shake violently! The mana beasts Applerounds will drop from the trees, very unhappy about adventures wandering into their orchard! [break][break]
[attr="class","dungenarea"]AREA #2
[attr="class","dungenencounters"]ENCOUNTERS:
1 Applerounds per player & 6 Sheeple
[break] Once exciting the orchard, the group will travel a short path through the forest that leads them to a small meadow. The meadow is roughly [35 m x 40 m], with gentle elevation and tall waist high grass. Some pink and blue flowers are scattered around with a gentle breeze pleasantly blowing. Here, the players will see a small flock of Sheeple. Upon entering the meadow, the Sheeple will stampede! The stampede will shake the earth and cause any player that is standing on the ground to trip or fall (causing superficial damage). If a player is trampled by a sheeple, they will receive a sheeple fluff debuff! (See Sheeple Beastiary). Some sheeple will remain behind and the area encounter begins! Additionally, some Applerounds are still around!
[break][break]
[attr="class","dungenfloor"]FLOOR #2 - SUMMER
[break] [break] NUMBER OF AREAS: 3[break] WORD COUNT PER AREA: 2,000[break] FLOOR DESCRIPTION [break] Upon exiting the Spring Forrest, the group now moves on the Summer forest. Here the sunlight shines brightly down from above and the heat picks up, making the air rather muggy and humid. The trees are very green and the soft sounds of bugs buzzing can be heard throughout the forest. Be careful! If you are traversing the ground, you might get a case of poison ivy. Oils of plant's leaves will rub off on your skin, causing red rashes and uncontrollable itchiness that will last for the whole floor! All players affected will have their mana regen reduced by -5 mana for the rest of the floor! A healing spell of at least intermediate rank must be used to be rid of the rashes and of the effects of the ivy. [break][break] The ivy can be avoided if players do not traverse the ground (ie they are able to fly). [break][break] FLOOR MAP
Buzzbills are the killer bee mana beast. They are fiercly defensive of their home best and when approached, will act aggressively! They fly through the air, letting out loud, screeching buzzing noises to distracts enemies and will swoop in close to attack intruders with their large stingers!
Cockatrice are the chicken mana beast! They use their big beaks to peck and tear at enemies! Be wary of their 7 ft wingspan as well, they bash at targets with their strong wing bones!
Spritelys are summer faerie mana beasts. With their wings, they flutter about scattering powders that cause various effects. They use wind-base attacks to create scythes of pure wing to launch at target. [break][break] Sprite Powder has 1 of three Effects: 1) a senior rank illusion that causes a player to believe their ally is a spritely (can be seen through via normal illusion rules), 2) a sleepy powder that causes a player extreme fatigue and a speed debuff of -10 m/s (can be cleansed via normal healing rules), 3)a poison powder that causes junior rank damage (can be cleansed via normal healing rules). Players roll a 1d3 to find out what effect the spritely powder has!
[attr="class","dungenarea"]Area #1
[attr="class","dungenencounters"]ENCOUNTERS:
4 Buzzbills per Player
[break] The first area is another open meadow, [40 m x 40 m]. There is a large tree on the far east side and players will hear the rather loud buzzing of bees! A sweet smell of honey fills the ai and Buzzbills will descend from the tree ready to attack the players, believing they are there to get their sweet honey! [break][break]
[attr="class","dungenarea"]Area #2
[attr="class","dungenencounters"]ENCOUNTERS:
4 Buzzbills, 5 Cockatrice
[break] The second area is another open meadow, slightly larger [50 x 50 m]. There a clearing in the middle that has a giant sized chicken coup (about the size of regular sized house!). There will be feathers scattered in the grass and suddenly the group will hear the call of a rooster! A flock of Cockatrice will come flooding out of the coup as well as some Buzzbills that live in the coup's attic! [break][break]
[attr="class","dungenarea"]Area #3
[attr="class","dungenencounters"]ENCOUNTERS:
3 Cockatrice, 2 Spritely Per Player
[break] After defeating the flock of Cockatrice, Players move on to the next area [60 m x 50 m], which is noticeably more woodsy and is surrounded by trees with pink and green flowers. The air smells of sweet flowers and vines are scatter about the ground. From the canopy, the group will hear the laughter, almost like that of playful children. The air will be filled with [Sprite Powder], this is an unavoidable attack unless a member of the group has Wind Magic in order to blow away the powder. The Spritely's will descend upon the ground! The Sprite powder will have one of 3 effects, players individually roll a 1d3 to see which effect they have on for the remainder of the time spent in the room! Note that continuous attacks by the spritely's can result in more Sprite Powder effects and these effects CAN stack. There are also some wild Cockatrice's here! [break][break] When all the creatures are defeated, the greenery of the area will fade to orange and brown....
[attr="class","dungenfloor"]FLOOR #3 - AUTUMN
[break] NUMBER OF AREAS: 3[break] WORD COUNT PER AREA: 2,500[break] FLOOR DESCRIPTION: [break] Upon leaving Summer, the group now enters Autumn! The surrounding greens turn to the bright oranges and reds of a fall forest. Sunlight shines through the canopy and leaves continuously fall to the floor. It is quiet in the forest as always, and the air is tinged with a late autumn orange. Shadows grow longer and the temperature drops to a cool brisk chilly day. [break][break]
As the group enters Autumn, they follow a path that is beside an autumn creek. The water runs clear over black and grey stones, with fish popping out from the currents. [break][break] FLOOR MAP
Moosharea are the poison mushroom mana beasts! They hop around and bash enemies with their large mushroom heads! Be careful of their spores! When they are defeated their bodies break apart into poisonous spores that can cause various debuffs if you are standing within a 2 meter radius of them when defeated. Moosharea spores cause three major debuffs: 1) temporary blindness, 2) a -5 to the power stat, 3) a -5 to control. Players roll a 1d3 to find out what effects happens to them. These effects stack if multiple Moosharea are defeated nearby. These are temporary effects that only last 1 round or can be cleansed with an Intermediate Rank Healing spell.
Chipperskee are the squirrel mana beast, they hop from tree to tree, dropping their acorns on weary victims below! Beware of their alrge fangs, which they use to knaw and bite at enemies!
The Fall Guardian is the Keeper of Autumn, it takes the shape of a majestic buck that has branches of autumn leaves as its crown of antlers. It can summon gusts of wind to blow enemies off their feet and causes earth-shaking quakes with stomps of its feet. Fight it honorably and it will respect you and your party as warriors. When defeated, its body crumbles into autumn leaves that are blown away by the wind...
[attr="class","dungenarea"]Area #1
[attr="class","dungenencounters"]ENCOUNTERS:
3 Moosharea per player
[break] Follow the river downstream and the group will be taken to a large damp, rocky outcropping [60 m x 50 m]. Moss covers the rocks and mushroom are a plenty, glowing with a mysterious light. However, some of these mushrooms will be rather gigantic! And then, they will begin to move! The Moosharea dislike being disturbed from their slumber! When defeated, a line of trees will separate in the northern side of the rocks
[attr="class","dungenarea"]Area #2
[attr="class","dungenencounters"]ENCOUNTERS:
3 Chipperskee per player
[break] Heading northward the group will head deeper into the Autumn Forest with trees becoming thicker and bushier. [60 m x 50 m] The group will begin to notice that the ground is littered with acorn shells and other nuts. Above in the trees, the group will hear the chattering of squirrels! Acorns will rain down upon the group (causing intermediate rank damage, this can be avoided by having an intermediate rank or higher defense or endurance buff) and then the Chipperskee's will commence their attack. [break][break]
[attr="class","dungenarea"]Area #3
[attr="class","dungenencounters"]ENCOUNTERS:
2 Moosharea, 3 Chipperskee, 1 Fall Guardian
[break] Once defeating the Chipperskee's, the trees will part to the West, to a large open meadow-area, the grass tinted yellow and orange with the colors of Autumn. [70 m x 70 m] The grass comes roughly knee high and waves in ever-present wind. In the center of the meadow is a large oak tree that towers above all other trees the party has seen and its branches reach out with leaves colored vibrant red, oranges, and yellows. Nestled at the base is the sleeping Fall Guardian, who stirs awake as the group enters its domain. [break][break] The Fall Guardian will approach the group and ask them a question "Who are you travelers, to take the path not taken?" Answer the Guradian honestly (or not!), and then your battle with the Keeper of Autumn will begin! The Keeper has summoned other beasts of the Forrest to assist in this fight, defeat them all and continue on to the next Floor! [break][break]
[attr="class","dungenfloor"]FLOOR #4 - WINTER
[break] NUMBER OF AREAS: 3[break] WORD COUNT PER AREA: 2,500[break] FLOOR DESCRIPTION: [break]
When the Fall Guardian is defeated, the colors of Autumn will fade away and the leaves of the trees will fall. The air around the group immediately becomes colder, dropping to near freezing temperature, and snow will begin to fall. The leafless trees separate ahead of your party becoming you to the Winter Forest. [break][break] The Winter Forest is quiet, snow muffles your footsteps as you trudge through the snowy landscape. The biting winds nip your noses and any mage who doesn't have a heat or fire-based element will lose -5 to their control stat and -5 m/s to their speed per area that they traverse in this Winter Forest. Fire or Heat based mages CAN warm up their allies with their magic, negating the debuffs, if applicable. (A Heat-Based element is any element that naturally causes a rise in temperature) [break][break] FLOOR MAP
The Freezer fox is an icey fox-like mana beast. The freezer fox has a signature ice-flame move, using illusions to trick targets into seeing multiples of themselves. (A sensory stat of at least 30 or a sensory spell of intermediate rank is required to determine the fake foxes from the real ones) When they throw their blue colored will-o-wisps at enemies, the fire will cause frostbite rather than burns!
The Mawsercat is a fearsome bobcot manabeast that is ferocious with a wild temper. It pounces on enemies and slashes at prey with its huge clawed paws and tears into flesh with its fearsome jaws. Be wary of its snow breath, as it can summon gusts of icy wind with a roar!
The Giant Frost Owl is a friend of the Winter Guardian. It lies dormant in the trees above until it is deturred from its slumber. The Frost Owl will use its eerie voice to cause great confusion among allies, lulling them to feel tired and urging them to surrender to the cold. The Frost Owl will shoot feathers from its wings, which are sharp as blades, as it soars above enemies.
The Keeper of the Winter, this Guardian takes the form of another majestic stag whose antlers are like that of white ash trees and its fur is pure white like snow. Like the Fall Guardian, when the Winter Guardian rears and stomps to the ground, the earth will shake and cause a massive snowdrifts to fall onto the group. The Winter Guardian will charge directly into enemies to bash at them with its branches of antlers and toss them away. It fights valiantly and once defeated, will fade into snow that is carried away by the wind...
[attr="class","dungenarea"]Area #1
[attr="class","dungenencounters"]ENCOUNTERS:
3 Freezer Fox per Player
[break][break] The first area that the group will encounter is a small clearing of of the forest where the snow has piled high on some rolling hills in the meadow [80 m x 80 m]. The group will see there are pawprints in the snow that lead to a small burrow. Once the burrow is approached, the Freezer Foxes will come out and the encounter begins! [break][break]
[attr="class","dungenarea"]Area #2
[attr="class","dungenencounters"]ENCOUNTERS:
6 Mawsercat
[break] Moving on through the winter forest, the group will find themselves following along a large frozen riverbank. The water has frozen solid and the rock outcroppings of the riverbed are covered with ice and snow, be careful not to trip! The group will come to a large frozen over pond [80 m x 80 m] that has an entirely frozen waterfall flowing into it. From above, the rock ledges, the growling of a pack of Mawsercats can be heard! The Mawsercats will pounce upon their targets and fight viciously, like predators hunting down their prey! [break][break]
[attr="class","dungenarea"]Area #3
[attr="class","dungenencounters"]ENCOUNTERS:
2 Freezerfox, 2 Frost Owls, 1 Winter Guadian
[break] When the Mawsercats are defeated, the group will see snow covered ashen trees part ways, beckoning them on to the next area, a clearing [90 m x 80 m]. To the north is a large wall of snow and beneath it, lies the sleeping Winter Guardian who awakens at the appearance of the party. Above, the group can see that Frost Owls, friends to the Keeper of Winter, lie in wait in the treetops. [break][break]
The Winter Guardian will pose one question to the adventurers. "Do you desire power for yourself, for others, or for no one?" The Winter Gaurdian will rise to its feet and stomp heavily on the ground, causing an avalanche! Players will roll a 1d7, to determine if they are buried in the snow. With a 5 or above meaning they were able to avoid being buried, but a 4 or below meaning they were caught int the snowdrift! If you are caught in the snowdrift, you will be dealt junior rank damage and you must focus to struggle out of the snow for your next post! [break][break] Additional Freezerfoxes are also here, defeat all the enemies to prove your trial against the Winter Gaurdian! [break][break]
[attr="class","dungenfloor"]SPECIAL FLOOR #5 - ALL SEASONS
[break]NUMBER OF AREAS: 1[break] WORD COUNT PER AREA: 3000[break] FLOOR DESCRIPTION: [break] The final area of the magical forest is one that appears quite similar to its entrance, [100 m x 100 m] once Winter has been cleared, the group will find themselves in a forest that is filled with green and mystical colors fill in the air, mana lives and breathes condensed in his sacred place. The final confrontation is that of Allmother Nature, who has observed the adventures as they have traversed her forest. An entity of the forest itself, Allmother Nature provides the final stepping stone to defeating this dungeon. She takes upon the shape of a giant tree, her face protruding from the bark, her hair its leaves and greenery, and her endless limbs are the roots and branches. She challenges you with a question, "Do you defy your nature, or do you master it?!"
[break][break] Allmother is accompanied by the two remaining Guardians, the Keepers of Summer and of Spring. Defeating all three final enemies will grant result in a blinding aura of light as Allmother Nature fades away into the trees... [break][break] The party finds themselves at the beginning of the forest once again, its challenge awaits the next group of adventurers. [break][break] Congratulations, you've defeated the Dungeon and gained the title [Master of Nature]! [BREAK][BREAK]
Allmother Nature is the master of the Four Seasons, she takes the form of a giant oak tree and with a human-like face etched on to her bark. She is your final trial in this mystical forrest! Allmother Nature uses her branches to restrain and grapple enemies, throwing them across the grove and smashing them into the ground. Beware of her roots, which can burst from the ground and grap hold of you! She launches seeds at targets that blow up into spiked thorns and will also use her green leaves like projectile blades to launch at enemies in waves.
The Spring Guardian is a giant stag whose antlers take the form of branches covered with spring flowers. The spring guardian rushes at enemies to stab them with its antlers. Be wary of its sweet smelling aroma, it can cause illusions to trick mages into thinking it is not the enemy, but another ally! It requires 60 sensory to see through this illusion, or a senior rank sensory spell.
The Summer Guardian is a giant stag who antler-branches are covered in the lush greens of a vibrant living tree. It is far more agile than any other guardian before it, and will use a variety of ramming, kicking, and stomping to directly attack and fight its challengers. It can launch its leaves from its antlers, which cut like fine blades.
If there were a few things that were set in stone with regards to Griswold, one of them was the fact that he held a lot of love towards the nature of this world. Another fact was that he had managed to build up a certain dislike towards dungeons, especially so after both Hania and Verena had at some point reasoned that they were in a way alive. Though not being alive in the general sense, they meant that it was alive in that it fed on the mana and strife of those inside, that they would restore themselves by reverting to their original state, along with all of the inhabitants inside of it. At first, he had been against believing in such old wives tales and floaty reasoning, though there was no denying what he had seen with his own two eyes. Of the dungeons he had been into, there were two he had ventured into twice, and in so doing he more or less proved the people he hoped were wrong to be right.
The first dungeon he had returned to after burning much of the place down, and not entirely by accident, was the one that had become known as the Cursed Forest. When he returned to it a second time, the things he had burned down when he was but a junior knight had all grown back. More importantly, none of the damage he had done to it with his solar magic had remained, not even a singed spot. This also became evident when he went into the tower of quinteps a second time, finding that the door he had personally burned free of vines with his magic had grown back in a ridiculous amount of time, while the creatures he had killed the first time around had also just come back to life somehow. So to say there was something extremely unnatural about these places would not be much of an understatement at all. That said, it did provide a rather unique opportunity.
Whether it was to be a deer or a cow, a wolf or a bear, Griswold had always had his reservations when it came to killing animals. Even when he took on missions during his time as a magic knight that had him kill creatures so as to make the area safe for humans again, he always focused on injuring and scaring them enough to the point where they would never return. Even if it meant getting injured himself in the process. In that regard, he had a greater concern towards the lives of animals than he did for humans that wished to do him or others harm, knowing humans had a choice to make and the mental capacity by which to make them. Animals just acted out of basic instincts, so they could not really be held accountable for their actions. As such, to this day, Griswold still felt no shame nor remorse for the serial killer he had put to death in Raque.
That man was a trained killer, one that had started out by murdering critters before moving up the ladder by using chain magic to restrain and torture civilians until he got bored with them and died. Refining his craft up to the point where he could move on from civilians to junior knights, there was no doubt in Griswold’s mind that he would eventually tire of that too and seek out stronger, more thrilling hunts. Feeling that the guy had had enough time to freely kill who and what he wanted, taking him to jail would likely just give him the idea of a vacation in which he could think up interesting new ways to further refine his skills and learn from the mistakes he had made that led up to his incarceration. Sure, he had been penalized by receiving several black stars for what should have been a capture only mission, but that was a price he was willing to pay for making the country that much safer.
As for the unique opportunity these dungeons offered, that much was quite simple. If everything that he killed in such a place would come back to life shortly after, most likely not even remembering what had happened, it presented a prime location for Griswold to truly test his own skills and not hold any reservations towards putting something to death. Normally, he would have never considered such drastic measures, though the Royal Knights exam and the training session he had done with Hania prior to it had opened up his mind to the presence of a few problems within himself. Thanks to Hania, he knew more than most ever would with regards to Lilith, Ammon and Asmodeus, things like their magical powers and possessing a general idea as to the upper limits of their powers, which way outclassed anything he could do. Because of that, he had trained hard to get to a point where he could stand up to someone like Verena in battle.
While he had really only managed to win because she had overexerted herself and triggered some kind of event that caused her to pass out in the heat of the moment, Griswold had at the very least stood up to someone who was leagues above him but a few weeks prior to the fight. But even as he fought Verena and miraculously won, he knew that it would still not be enough, that it was not ever going to be enough to take on an archdemon and expect to win. And it was for that exact reason that he deemed the more drastic of measures to no longer be quite as drastic, but considered them to be more of a thing born from necessity. For the people back on the farm, he could not risk dying and leaving them without a somewhat steady income, so he had to keep pushing himself to get stronger and stronger until he reached a point where he wouldn’t just be chewed up and spit out by an archdemon within the first three seconds of the fight.
It was for that reason that he had reached out to one of the spectators of his fight, another Royal Knights that already had the reputation and the rank to be considered a Royal Knight by proxy and would therefore not need to prove himself worthy of anything. And so, following up on a lead, he had asked him to join him at Aristaeus’ basin, a place that was rich in mana and basically had it’s own ecosystem that supposedly housed a strange magical forest that people had come to consider as a dungeon after a bit of experimentation. Knowing firsthand what a large concentration of mana could do to the local wildlife after prolonged exposure, there was no telling what kind of monsters they might encounter within the place. Believing that it would be the best possible place right now for him to focus on getting stronger, asking another Royal Knight that had seen him fight would probably be a good pick for a dungeoneering partner.
Besides, since there was really no telling what one might encounter at the end of the place, they ran the risk of finding some ancient weapon of mass destruction, or maybe just a really pointy stick. Whatever his reasons for coming were, Griswold was glad that he wasn’t going to be going into this place on his own. Standing by the side of a nearby lake, he awaited the man to arrive so they could slowly start making their way into this strange magical forest and face whatever might await them.
POWER 120 DURABILITY 2 SENSORY 60 STAMINA 41 CONTROL 52 MANA 135
Heart of the Forest
Rank & Element: Senior ¦ World Tree Class & Type: Magic ¦ Weapon Magic Specializations: Attack Creation ¦ Restraining Appearance & Lore: This bastard sword is rumoured to have been crafted by the first witch queen and held by a hidden glade guard within the witches forest, whether this is true is not is still up for speculation even amongst witches. The hilt is made of a specialized iron wood that had been treated to make it stronger, while the blade is said to be the crystalized spirit of the forest itself.
Type & Uses: Trigger ¦ 6 Uses Rank & Specialization: Senior ¦ Attack Creation ¦ Restraining Mana Cost: 24 Per Trigger ¦ 45 Recharge Range & Speed: 80m ¦ 40 m/s Stats Affected: -5 m/s, -10 mana, -50% cast limit Description: With a single swing of the sword twisting thorned root seems to escape the sword and aim to restrain the enemy by wrapping around one of the limbs, if this succeeds not only will it do senior rank damage but will cut the persons spell limit by half. Debuff their speed by 5 m/s and reduce their mana regeneration by 10 each round. To get free of the restraint you need to do senior rank damage to it. With every 50 the holder has in control they will be able to make an additional root each time this ability is triggered.
Price: 25,000
MADE BY NOVA
Last Edit: Jun 8, 2021 17:14:13 GMT -5 by Griswold
"When you spend so long trapped in darkness, you find that the darkness begins to stare back."
Once again Hans found himself soaring through the skies of Arisaeus' Basin on top of his raven golem. The last time Hans was here, it was to help train one of his friends, Verena in how to utilize dark magic to form dark golems...but the training session didn't go as planned. The dark mage still feels bad for not being able to successfully help the summoner out like her previous trainers, but he plans on correcting that soon. Admittedly, the dark mage was not prepared then...but now, he felt that he was more than capable.
This wasn't the only time Hans set foot in this area, however...
The first time Hans was here was when he and his fiancee, Suna were invited to a picnic by Verena along with Valo. It was supposed to be a pleasant time...or at least Hans assumes since he has never been to a picnic before...but the unexpected happen. First Verena and then the others were drawn to a powerful source of mana and ki which lured them into a bizarre forest...which was later declared as a dungeon. The group of four didn't manage to get far into this mysterious dungeon however as Suna and Verena started to get sick from the apples they have eaten there, causing the group to retreat. Still, a part of Hans was curious about what lies at the end of this particular dungeon, and quietly declared that he would return one day to see for himself, but he wasn't expecting his return to this place to be so soon...nor was he expecting such an unlikely partner.
Hans was surprised to be contacted by Griswold about exploring a dungeon. Sure the two were part of the current roster of Royal Knights, but other than that, the dark mage barely knew a thing about him other than what he has seen during the exams. The two weren't even part of the same squad, so Hans was a little curious about why he contacted him instead of someone he's going to be working closely with. The dark mage wasn't arguing though. Not only was he getting that chance to explore this dungeon once more, but he would also get to see what else this dual elemental mage is capable of...especially with that sword of his.
With his ki active, Hans had no problem locating the entrance to the dungeon again as well as his partner for this exploration. The dark mage commanded his raven golem to descend before hopping off. He then summoned it back to his grimoire and walked the rest of the way there which didn't take long at all. He sensed that familiar, yet mysterious ki draw closer the further he got before setting his eyes on the mage waiting for him.
"Griswold correct?" Hans asked as he approached the guy. He then stopped and extended his hand out for him to shake, giving the guy a small smile in greeting. "Hans Walker. Guess we haven't properly met." the dark mage claimed. The man has come quite far from being quiet loner who only cared about getting the job done. He still held some of that reserved nature, but he is now putting in effort to be a little more welcoming. He then looked up at the dungeon's entrance, that small smile of his slowly vanishing. "Hmm, ready?" Hans asked, and if the man was prepared, Hans would nod before stepping inside.
Just like before, this area's atmosphere was vastly different from the rest of the Basin. The sunlight was low, as if in a constant state of twighlight. The glow coming from within had a hint of a beckoning pull almost as if it were a predator trying to lure its prey into a trap. Birds were chirping and the area felt calm for the most part. Hans almost forgot how relaxing the place was, but as soon as he set his eyes on one of the nearby apple trees, Hans instantly remembered what was to come next. "I wouldn't recommend eating the apples by the way." Hans said, but the choice was entirely up to Griswold. Hans only knew of the negative properties of the apples and not the potential positive ones.
Whether any of the apples get eaten or not, the trees would soon start to shake, immediately causing Hans to grip the hilt of his sheathed katana. Before they even fell, Hans counted eight separate ki signatures coming from the trees, and shortly after, those signatures made themselves known.
They were not so adorable little apple creatures...
"Careful..." Hans slowly unsheathed his sword. "They attack by hurling themselves." Hans said calmly and just like he said, one of the angry little apple beasts attempted to roll towards the dark mage before launching itself! The moment it was close enough however marked its end as Hans effortlessly sliced the apple in half! Despite what happened, the other apples didn't appear to be discouraged by this and three of them attempted to charge at Hans all at once while the other four appeared to have set their sights on Griswold!
Hans weaved his head out of the way of another incoming apple and managed to knock the second one out of his way with his free hand formed into a fist. The first two apples fell to the ground, a bit rattled but still alive. The third one attempted to roll around Hans to try and attack from behind, but as it launched himself, the dark mage twisted his upperbody around just enough to slash the flying apple into two as well! With another down, Hans properly turned himself around to face the other two apples who were both fuming in anger. The two then launched themselves at Hans at the same time, but the dark mage made quick work of them with two well-timed slashes in an X-like manor.
Once done, there were now pieces of apples laying around the Nightfall Swordsman. The dark mage looked around before relaxing a bit, setting his attention on Griswold to see how he was doing.
N O T E S
Floor 1 Room 1 WC: 2,305/2,000
T2 Ki Active (Speed reduced to 20 m/s)
Sliced through 4/8 of those apple thingys using Hans' Dark Edge sword, dealing x1 Grand Dmg to each.
S P E L L S
Cool spell descriptions here
WC 1,028 || TOTAL WC 1,028
TAGSGriswold ITEMS Dark Edge, Cosmic Blessing PERKS List 'em here
Shaking the man’s hand firmly so as to not appear weak, very little time was wasted before he wanted to make his way into the place, which was alright by his standards. Usually people insisted on having this kind of discussion or pep-talk with regards to how they would be handling specific situations, which was very much a magic knight thing to do, not to mention that it was incredibly deluded. To think that one could plan for what was going to happen inside of a dungeon was nothing short of it after all. To imagine that a place made up from mana and the sort would abide by the rules and laws of nature was not a given, so to plan for the unplannable was just a stupid waste of time in Griswold’s opinion. So at least in these regards, he was already liking the way in this guy went about his business when it came to dungeons.
Not too long ago, he had been asked, or rather told that he wasn’t much of a crimson lion, and that he was more reckless than most black bulls. Not entirely sure at the time whether this was something he should have considered an insult or praise, considering the fact that his actions did get the job done at the time, it did lead up to him eventually stepping down. Being a commoner, or rather a peasant among nobles was generally not the finest combination, and judging by his own grievances with the nobility of Clover, he had spent the vast majority of his time as a crimson lion in the forsaken realm. Having always believed that the largest of the three realms should have the most magic knights and other forms of protection, many often considered him to be a deranged idiot that had no idea what he was talking about.
But the fact of the matter was that the largest and arguably most powerful of the magic knight squads were all located in the royal capital, while stationing such squads in the poorest and most needy area would be far smarter. That, and they would be right there at the border in case anyone would ever want to invade the country, as very few invasions seemed to come from the ocean. But that aside, he was quite glad that he wasn’t a magic knight right now, allowing him to put his focus on other things without having to actually go through the trouble of having to justify himself and his actions to anyone. So as the two ventured on into the enchanted forest, Griswold wondered if this was going to be yet another horror show like the cursed forest had been, in which case he would not hesitate to try and burn the whole place down again.
Right from the get-go, it seemed like Hans had been here before, which seemed entirely possible given his status. Making it clear that it was somewhat unwise to eat the apples here, Griswold nodded in acknowledgement, letting the guy know that he wasn’t going to try and do something so reckless. For as reckless as he was considered to be, the elven mage actually thought the vast majority of his actions through quite well, it just didn’t always show it on the outside. Perhaps what was made to seem like recklessness was just there to hide the fact that he was more bright than many would believe, as it was always better to be underestimated than to be overestimated. In the past, he had been called out on not communicating a lot outside of using hand gestures and nods, so now, he wanted to try something different.
“No need to worry, an altogether different and far more evil-looking dungeon than this one taught me not to ever eat anything growing in such a place. Things rarely are as they seem in these places.”
No sooner than he had said these things, he felt something moving. Possessing a fair amount of skill when it came to being able to sense out mana signatures, he wasn’t nearly as good as most others that were at his level, but he was at the very least good enough. So when Hans jumped into action, Griswold waited for a moment to see how he handled himself, making short work of these adversaries. So when a group of those same strange apple creatures came for him, Griswold placed his hand upon the handle of his sword before drawing it as soon as one of the apples threw itself at him. Using the momentum of the draw to perform a downward strike, he smashed the apple with the blunt and flat side of his greatsword, turning it into a mushy applesauce. Not to eager with seeing one of their own fall, the others began attacking too.
Though not as fast as his current dungeoneering companion, Griswold was at the very least fast enough to keep up with these annoying critters. With a single motion, he used what little speed he had been able to build up by taking about three steps forward and put it a sideward slice. Bisecting the three apple creatures without remorse as they would likely just reincarnate as soon as the two of them made their way out of the dungeon and gave it the chance to revitalize itself, Griswold was rather set on leaving the orchard behind them. Not wanting to give these trees the chance to shake out more of these enemies, the time had come to press on and look for the stronger, more resilient enemies this place had to offer.
FLOOR 1 | ROOM 2
Leaving the orchard behind them, the two ventured down a path that was leading up to a meadow up in the distance. Not being quite what he had imagined to find in a place such as this, it just went to further prove that there was really no point in discussing anything prior to going in. All it really took was people being on their guard, not taking any unnecessary risks and calmly assessing the situation before barging in and just killing anything that seemed like it would even remotely try to hinder their progress or might try to injure them. Even though that made him sound incredibly violent, he knew quite well what dungeons were designed to do to people, and he had adjusted to it accordingly. With how this place appeared to be set up, it reminded him a lot of the Cromwell farmlands, even seeing several sheep up in the distance that seemed to just be grazing. How very strange.
“If you don’t mind me asking, which of the archdemons have you been assigned to? I’m still trying to figure out how they decided who would fit in best with who in terms of establishing the teams, and why one person would be considered a solid pick against a specific threat.”
Deciding to just throw the question out there, he didn’t think it could hurt. After all, it was in his nature to question things, regardless of whether someone was a commoner, a noble, a knight, a captain, the queen or even the wizard king himself. So while he did not exactly think that the captains in charge of the anti-demon squads picked people all willy nilly, he still wanted to know their reasons for it. That, and he really did not understand why they would bring people who were nowhere near his own level, seeing as how he considered himself to be far too weak to match up to a demon, let alone an archdemon. It was for this reason that he saw some of the potential magic knights taking to the arena that he just thought to himself “What idiot allowed such powerless individuals to take part in such a taskforce.”. Aside from being cannon fodder, he could not see why they would be allowed in.
There were likely to be plenty of liabilities involved in the whole ordeal that would come into being once the fighting actually started. And that was not even mentioning the amount of collateral damage that would spring from it. Given how Hans was someone considered to be on a level where he became a Royal knight by proxy, Griswold figured that he had likely given some thought to these things himself, which was but one of the reasons why he had asked him to come with him today. The two did not know one another, so they had no reason to keep things to themselves in the knowledge that saying something might tear open old wounds or might inflict harm upon someone’s ego, simply because they had no idea when and where one might cross the line. So for now, he would just move forward and wait for whatever it was that he had to say, hoping that if he had some answers to give, that he wouldn’t refrain from doing so.
1504 (2731)
Floor 1 Room 1: Completed Room 2: 553 / 2000
Tldr: Killed the remaining 4 applebois, entered into the next "area".
POWER 120 DURABILITY 2 SENSORY 60 STAMINA 41 CONTROL 52 MANA 135
Heart of the Forest
Rank & Element: Senior ¦ World Tree Class & Type: Magic ¦ Weapon Magic Specializations: Attack Creation ¦ Restraining Appearance & Lore: This bastard sword is rumoured to have been crafted by the first witch queen and held by a hidden glade guard within the witches forest, whether this is true is not is still up for speculation even amongst witches. The hilt is made of a specialized iron wood that had been treated to make it stronger, while the blade is said to be the crystalized spirit of the forest itself.
Type & Uses: Trigger ¦ 6 Uses Rank & Specialization: Senior ¦ Attack Creation ¦ Restraining Mana Cost: 24 Per Trigger ¦ 45 Recharge Range & Speed: 80m ¦ 40 m/s Stats Affected: -5 m/s, -10 mana, -50% cast limit Description: With a single swing of the sword twisting thorned root seems to escape the sword and aim to restrain the enemy by wrapping around one of the limbs, if this succeeds not only will it do senior rank damage but will cut the persons spell limit by half. Debuff their speed by 5 m/s and reduce their mana regeneration by 10 each round. To get free of the restraint you need to do senior rank damage to it. With every 50 the holder has in control they will be able to make an additional root each time this ability is triggered.
Price: 25,000
MADE BY NOVA
Last Edit: Jun 11, 2021 8:55:50 GMT -5 by Griswold
"When you spend so long trapped in darkness, you find that the darkness begins to stare back."
With those apple mana beasts dealt with, Hans and Griswold had made their way to the next area. The dark mage was able to catch glimpses of the other guy's battle with his share of beasts and just like with his performance in the Royal Knight Exams, Hans commended Griswold's use of his greatsword. He was able to take down those beasts with ease while showing some of his skill. But just like Hans, the dual elemental mage did not use any of his magic. Of course, it was obviously not needed, but Hans was still curious to see the other guy's spells in action again. He has a feeling that he'll get to see some of it soon as the duo continues to dive deeper into this enchanting forest.
This area still appeared to be about the same as the last time Hans was here. A calm meadow filled with flowers as a gentle breeze danced through the air. This place is the farthest Hans had gotten last time...which ended with him and the others that he was with at the time getting trampled by some sheep-looking mana beasts, leaving the dark mage temporarily blind. Hans was still a complete amateur at the time when it came to ki, so he couldn't completely rely on it back then, leaving the poor guy at a disadvantage. The dark mage's ki sensing although not perfected has grown greatly since, so he felt that he wouldn't have the same problem if it happens again. But so far, Hans' ki senses haven't picked up on any hostile ki. All he felt was his own, his partner's...and the ki of the various plant life around them which admittedly felt beautiful and exotic. Never has the dark mage been able to appreciate such things with mana sensory before, but then again, he has never been truly in touch with mana like most other mages which may explain it.
A question was then thrown Hans' way by Griswold, catching the dark mage's attention. He listened closely and quietly to the guy before he finished then Hans went back to looking forward. "I don't believe they informed us of that yet. I imagine that they will tell us when the day draws closer." Hans claimed. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't curious about which Archdaemon Lydia's team was assigned to, but that would be revealed to them eventually. He then thought a little about the other things Griswold said before looking back over at him. "The captains may already know. They would be the ones more informed about this, so they must have chosen their members in accordance to whatever information the Wizard King gave on their targets." The dark mage looked forward once again before continuing. "Can't give you a proper answer, but I can at least say with confidence that we were chosen for our respective squads for one specific reason or another...Guessing those reasons will be made clear soon." Hans was just as in the dark about this stuff as Griswold but he was determined to do his role...whatever it may be.
The dark mage then stopped in his tracks. His expression got a bit more serious as he felt several ki signatures, quickly approaching the duo! Just like before, a horde of sheep-like mana beasts was heading their way! "Hmm..." Hans did not appear to be too phased about this compared to the last time. It appeared very unlikely that they would be able to just move out of the way of this fluffy stampede, so there was no point in trying. Whether Griswold wanted to attempt to get out of the way of the horde was up to him, but Hans...he just stood there...menacingly.
The sheep horde nearly trampled over the dark mage, but he was able to keep on his feet. Some of the magical fluff however managed to get into Hans eyes yet again. He winced slightly, forgetting how it stung a little, but once again, the man has been blinded. The dark mage kept his cool however since he didn't need his eyes to see...not when he has his improved ki senses.
The stampede soon passed and all was calm...for a good few seconds...
Not only did six of those sheep creatures remain behind...but apparently two more of those apple beings made their presence known, most likely have come from the previous area to get some revenge. The eight mana beasts had their sights on the duo, but Hans currently had his back to them with his eyes squinted shut. He could still sense them though..."see" their ki.
One of the apples thought this would be a perfect opportunity for a sneak attack, and attempted to launch itself at the dark mage, but it was caught completely off guard as Hans unsheathed his sword once more and immediately turned around, slicing the apple once in half before slicing through it again, leaving it in four pieces! After this happened, those sheep let out a battle cry...which sounded more like adorable little 'baas' before three of them decided to rush at the dark mage. Hans shook his head lightly before preparing himself. Forward rushes, one of the most predictable moves. The dark mage shouldn't be surprised though since this is what most mana beasts did.
The closest sheep attempted to tumble into Hans, but the dark mage stepped out of the way in time and swiftly impaled the sheep in the back with his weapon, holding his sword in a reverse grip as he did this! He then slid the sword out of the sheep and quickly slashed upward with the sword still in that grip, slicing the second incoming sheep vertically in half. The dark mage then followed up his follow up by thrusting the sword downward, timing it so that it would pierce through the third incoming sheep's head, stopping it in its tracks!
N O T E S
Floor 1 Room 2 WC: 1,549/2,000
Temporarily blind from sheep debuff
T2 Ki Active (Speed reduced to 20 m/s)
Killed 1/2 of the apple doods, and 3/6 of the sheep with Dark Edge
S P E L L S
Cool spell descriptions here
WC 996 || TOTAL WC 2,024
TAGSGriswold ITEMS Dark Edge, Cosmic Blessing PERKS List 'em here
Hearing him out on what he had to say, it did not really do a whole lot to help him out. All this meant was that Hans knew just as little about the situation as he did, which was somewhat odd to him as he was a royal knight before Griswold had become one. In a way, he had imagined it to be a well-oiled machine that communicated and planned a lot prior to the things that were going to be happening soon, the fight against the archdemons. He had hoped that once new members got drafted into it, that they would get put through some kind of special training regiment and would be given a rather extended briefing on who they were fighting, what they were capable of, who was standing next to them in the field and why the teams had been distributed in this particular fashion. It was rather disheartening that this did not seem to be the case.
“Hmm… I see. I guess that means we all pretty much know just as much as the next guy at this point. Not a very motivating thought when taking into consideration that we need to fight an archdemon with so little actual preparation..”
He obviously hoped that he was wrong and that there was a lot still to come, but with the date of the first of these anti-demon missions getting closer and closer, it did not really feel like they were going to be succeeding right now. Sure, they had Ardere and the Salamander spirit, which was supposed to be a creature of such immense power that a quarter of the church was devoted to it, but that was but one side of it. The church was also quite outspoken in regards to how demons were supposedly the enemy, so when dealing with an archdemon, which was more or less a leader down in their underworld, perhaps one of the great spirits would not even be enough. This in turn gave rise to the thought regarding the other captains, and why they did not sign up for it in larger numbers than the two and a half they had now.
Surely having a bunch of captains filling out the attack squads would do more than having to fill it out with those who were not even around Griswold’s own level of skill. The more he thought about it, the more the inconsistencies in the story as a whole stumped him. Getting somewhat lost in thought, he had barely managed to register the fact that the ground had slowly started shaking more and more heavily as the sheep turned out to be a form of mana beast that had turned hostile for seemingly no reason. But just as he had just stood there as a stampede happened, so did Hans not make any efforts at avoiding it. Had he used a spell, he could have certainly stunted the entire stampede and turn it on its ass, that would not be the kind of action that would get him to grow as a fighter. So as the strange wooly substance clogged up his eyes, Griswold fully prepared to deal with this meadow by utilizing only his sword and his senses.
Luckily for him, he did not need to see everything with his eyes to know what was going on. Possessing a fair amount of skill when it came to sensing mana signatures, the blindness caused by these fluffy opponents only held him back so much. That said, it also helped him a little in the sense that he would not need to see how his blade would rend and tear through the remainder of the hostile sheep critters, not to mention the angry apple that came charging. While he could not accurately tell due to the temporary lack of sight and having to go off of sound and a disappearing number of mana signatures, it seemed that Hans had already cut down his adversaries before he could really even begin to go on the offensive. But that much was to be expected when taking into consideration the gap between the two of them.
With the cute looking sheep critters turned into lamb racks with a side of apple sauce, his sword was undoubtedly going to be quite filthy with blood and grime, though he couldn’t exactly clean it and place it back over his shoulder right now. Such things were quite tricky when one couldn’t actually see after all. Leaving it for a later point in time since there were most likely going to be a lot of other creatures out there that needed to be cut up into bite-sized chunks, it was at times like these that he wished his weapon was of a smaller caliber so he could do what those fancy sword wielders did where they removed the blood from their blade before placing it back into the scabbard. But as that was not possible for him right now, the only thing he could do was just keep moving while doing his best to rub the wooly crap out of his eyes.
FLOOR 2 | ROOM 1
By the time his sight returned, they had made their way to the outer borders of the meadow, at which point something rather interesting seemed to take place. Opening up a path through the surrounding forest that was not there before, the path ahead appeared to take them into a far more brightly lit place. Even as he approached it, he could feel a kind of heat radiating from the place, not something like stepping into an open fire, but more like wandering out of a frozen storage room and out directly into the oven room of a bakery. That was how much of a difference in temperature there seemed to be between the meadow and the forest. While trying to make sense out of how this might have come to be, he knew better than to try and make sense out of a primarily magical space such as the one they were currently in.
Rubbing his eyes once more just to make sure all of the cottony wool stuff was out for good, he could only imagine the struggles those with an allergy to pollen felt, believing the things to likely be quite similar. So as they stood at the precipice of what he could only assume was going to be the next room or level or whatever it was called, Griswold was rather glad that this place was in no way similar to the cursed forest, that being a place he dreaded to this very day. This in turn also made him wonder as to what exactly they would be encountering once they went into whatever space or dominion these archdemons called their home away from home. After all, there had to be some place where these beings dwelled while not in the underworld, especially since one of them had taken up residence in the witches’ forest. Thinking about the forest, he looked at his grimy crystal sword.
“Have you always fought using a sword, or was it something you gradually developed into? I ask because I only received this sword during the time of the exams, and the only things I’m really capable of doing happen more so out of instinct than out of actual skill. Though I guess it is quite nice to have a decent weapon for those moments where you don’t want to, or simply can’t rely on your own brand of magic.”
While it might have seemed like a somewhat random question, especially since the last thing he had asked about was related entirely to the royal knights exams and the things that came out of it such as the formation of the squads that would battle the archdemons, this particular matter had been on his mind for some time now. Seeing as how the sword he wielded seemed to originate from the witches forest, he did not know a whole lot about it aside from the fact that it could seemingly create thorned branches from the crystalized blade in an effort at incapacitating and injuring those that got caught up in it. But by going into that direction, he was already taking away from the blade’s ability to be used as just that, a sharp object capable of destroying constructs and enemies alike. At least, that was what it could do in the hands of a prominent user, which at this point did not entail Griswold.
Being quite well aware that he was just someone brandishing a fancy new toy during the royal knight exams and getting lucky with it a few times, thus leading up to his victory in that particular fight, there was a ton he still needed to learn. One such thing was properly distributing the weight of the massive slab of crystal which was its blade. Hopefully by the end of this dungeon, he would have learned at least a few new things either through experience or otherwise. Believing this sunny, humid and just overall high temperature forest might provide just that, he could only hope for the best at this point. Because the way things were now, he would not be facing down any archdemons and living to tell the tale.
POWER 120 DURABILITY 2 SENSORY 60 STAMINA 41 CONTROL 52 MANA 135
Heart of the Forest
Rank & Element: Senior ¦ World Tree Class & Type: Magic ¦ Weapon Magic Specializations: Attack Creation ¦ Restraining Appearance & Lore: This bastard sword is rumoured to have been crafted by the first witch queen and held by a hidden glade guard within the witches forest, whether this is true is not is still up for speculation even amongst witches. The hilt is made of a specialized iron wood that had been treated to make it stronger, while the blade is said to be the crystalized spirit of the forest itself.
Type & Uses: Trigger ¦ 6 Uses Rank & Specialization: Senior ¦ Attack Creation ¦ Restraining Mana Cost: 24 Per Trigger ¦ 45 Recharge Range & Speed: 80m ¦ 40 m/s Stats Affected: -5 m/s, -10 mana, -50% cast limit Description: With a single swing of the sword twisting thorned root seems to escape the sword and aim to restrain the enemy by wrapping around one of the limbs, if this succeeds not only will it do senior rank damage but will cut the persons spell limit by half. Debuff their speed by 5 m/s and reduce their mana regeneration by 10 each round. To get free of the restraint you need to do senior rank damage to it. With every 50 the holder has in control they will be able to make an additional root each time this ability is triggered.
Price: 25,000
MADE BY NOVA
Last Edit: Jun 14, 2021 16:36:26 GMT -5 by Griswold
"When you spend so long trapped in darkness, you find that the darkness begins to stare back."
With another area cleared, the duo made their way onto the next. At this point, Hans was going into this blind, going further into this dungeon than he has previously. The area here felt drastically different compared to the previous. The first thing most people would notice is how bright this part of the forest was. Not only that, but there was more wild and plant life along with the sound of various insects. The place felt hotter compared to the previous one as well. To Hans, it felt like it had just become summer which didn't seem right...but soon he will figure out the secrets of this dungeon.
The dark mage walked for Griswold for a bit, keeping his eyes forward as he quietly observed the area with his ki. Hans was thinking a little about what Griswold said earlier regarding the Royal Knights. He did have a point, they all should've been debriefed about their opponents by now, but the dark mage didn't dwell much on the thought. He wasn't expecting them to keep the squad in the dark about this forever. He imagines that all the needed information will be given once the mission draws closer. The guy then asked Hans another question that piqued his interest. "Hm?" Hans looked over at the guy, giving him his undivided attention. Hans is a reserved person, who tends to not speak a lot...but when it comes to the subject of swords...
"I was trained to wield a sword during my early teens." Hans claimed before looking forward. "I was trained...in hand to hand before that, but ever since I lifted up a blade, it felt a little more natural to me..." Hans claimed, most of this stemming from the different mentors he had in both of these. The one who taught him how to fight with his body was his father...a man he holds great disdain for. Then there was Barret, the one who took Hans under his wing after his mother died. He molded Hans into the swordfighter that he is today...and is someone he would truly consider a dad. "My swords are just as important to me as my magic." Hans claimed. "In fact..." Hans then glanced over at the sword Griswold has. "I believe I have a greatsword just like that.." The dark mage added. If it really is the same kind of sword, Hans found it a bit odd considering the background of the sword, but he didn't focus on that for long.
"The more you practice with that sword, the better you will perform with it." Hans added before unsheathing his own blade. "They are more than just a decent weapon. With the proper training, you will find that they are as much an extension of yourself as is your mana." At least, that's how Hans sees it.
To say that Hans likes swords is an understatement. He adored not only their usefulness , but their craftsmanship as well. A truework of art, coming in various shapes and sizes!
Unfortunately for Han, he was a little too distracted by this that he didn't even pick up on the poison ivy he and presumably Griswold ended up stepping onto....not until his foot started to itch. It was then that Hans stopped and looked down, scratching his ankle before finally picking up on the poisonous plants with his ki. Not only was this effecting his skin...but his mana as well! "Tch...dammit..." Hans muttered, not at the situation he is in...but mostly because of the blunder he made from getting distracted by swords...again. "We need to fly." Hans said, and after that, his four-leafed grimoire floated out of its holster for the first time since they started. An aura of darkness surrounded it before opening up, landing on the desired page. Another dark aura manifested in front of the two, forming into a large raven-like golem. The golem stood there and lowered itself a bit so that its master and Griswold if he wanted to could get on. Hans climbed onto its back and assuming that Griswold did as well, the raven would flap its wings and hover up from the ground before turning around and continuing forward.
Despite Hans' smart thinking, it appears that the effects of the poison ivy had already set in, causing the dark mage to scratch his leg once more. He then rubbed the back of his neck before looking over to his partner. "How are you holding up?" Hans was still a little upset with himself for missing this, but this would soon become the least of their problems...
Buzzing can be heard coming from behind the golem...and it was coming in fast! Hans already sensed it, but he still wanted to confirm with his eyes. He turned around to see big, bee-like mana beasts descending from the trees they were passing. The dark mage could also smell the sweet scent of honey, meaning that these creatures thought that they were intruding on their territory.
Eight of them were making their way to the golem, and at this rate, they would catch up with no problem. Hans then looked down at his golem and gently placed a palm on its head. "Defend, and assist Griswold." he commanded his golem, before standing up and jumping off of the raven. The golem was now temporarily Griswold's to use, while the dark mage summoned a different kind of golem to aid him. This one looked more like a sword, and was smaller, but still big enough for the dark mage to ride on as a board.
With his own sword out, Hans sliced right through one of the bees as he flew past, followed by a downward slash on another bee that attempted to fly straight at the dark mage. Two more of those bees were now trying to catch up with Hans, but then the dak mage summoned an additional sword-like golem and used his mana tether to have it cut straight through one of the pursuing bee's underside. The golem then with after the fourth bee, slicing through its abdomen!
That was four bees down...but the other four had their sights on Griswold.
Name of Spell: Dark Golem Creation: Hunter's Guard Spell Element: Dark Spell Rank: Senior Mana Cost: 30 (Initial) - 15 (Sustain) Type of Golem: Guardian Applicable Perks: Ease of Creation, Armament Description:
Based off of a spell the user had on one of their old weapons, the user summons a dark raven with menacing red eyes and clad in dark armor. This golem reaches up to 12 meters in height and is used mainly for defending purposes, using its wings or even its entire body to guard. Despite its specialty in defense, the golem can use its sharp wings, talons, or beak to attack those who get too close to whoever it's suppose to be protecting, but no matter how many attacks it does at once, it cannot exceed its current rank in damage. I can also be used for transportation (speed remaining at 7 m/s, and can hold up to three people). (Can summon an additional golem per 30 Control (Ease of Creation), maxing at three.)
Name of Spell: Dark Golem Creation: Hunter's Blades Spell Element: Dark Spell Rank: Senior Mana Cost: 30 (Initial) - 15 (Sustain) Type of Golem: Balanced Applicable Perks: Ease of Creation, Armament Description:
With their grimoire, the user summons a dark sword golem(s) that resembles a hunter blade. Being a balanced type, this golem has no specific specialties, but can be used for various purposes like attacking with its blade or ridden on as a mode of transportation (speed remaining at 14 m/s, and can hold up to two people). Unlike most other golems of its type, it only stands up to 2 meters, but that does not make it any less intimidating. If not careful, it can harm allies with its sharp blades. (Can summon an additional golem per 30 Control (Ease of Creation), maxing at three.)
Type
Power
Durability
Sensory
Range
Speed
Health
Balance
80
80 (+10)
80
60m
14 m/s
Senior + Junior
WC 1,054 || TOTAL WC 3,078
TAGSGriswold ITEMS Dark Edge, Cosmic Blessing PERKS List 'em here
It seemed that the topic regarding swords had brought about something in the man that had not exactly been there before, the means for an actual conversation. Sure, they had exchanged a few answers and questions up until now, but nothing had really been elaborated upon to the extent that was being given at this very moment. In a way, this made Griswold want to be more talkative too, though it would be rude to speak while Hans was speaking. Even if he had grown up in an enclave in the fringe, even if he was but a peasant in the eyes of the country and considered to be too reckless by many who had met him, that did not mean that he had no manners. In fact, there had even been times where he had to point out the proper manners to those that had been raised with an army of nannies and private teachers, which was saying something.
Sure, he could be a blunt object at times, a lot of the times in fact, though he was far from daft. So as he listened to how his compatriot spoke about having been taught the ways of the blade since he was a teenager, it proved to Griswold how much of a difference there was between them and how much he had to overcome if he was to get on a similar level. Right now, all he could really do was swing his blade and slice things to death by using the weight of it, or angle it just right so he could knock someone unconscious with the blunt side of the blade. In a way, he had already started practicing with how to use the blunt portion of the blade as a shield to protect himself against projectiles of physical and magical origins alike. Judging by Hans’ story, he would be in for quite a few hours of training if he was to actually become the kind of combatant that could make a difference.
That said though, he had at least one thing going for him. While he would not use the word prodigy as a means of explaining it, he had always possessed a knack for rapidly learning new things in the midst of battle or combat oriented training. This was also a big part of the reason why he had figured coming here would be a good idea, seeing as he’d go along with a well-trained wielder of the sword into a dungeon where they could just about kill anything that as much as looked at them the wrong way. They would just be brought back once the dungeon restored itself, meaning very little of what they did here really mattered in the grander scheme of things. This obviously made it into the perfect training space for those who learned quickest when faced with a plethora of threats. Judging by how proficient Hans was with his sword, it made him wonder just what kind of magic he even used.
Someone so proficient with a sword hardly seemed to need any magic if he could just infuse his sword with mana and cut loose, or so he thought. That said, Griswold hadn’t exactly tapped into the upper echelons of magic just yet, so he had no idea about the exact limitations and outer boundaries of magic, magical weapons and mana infusion. Where he was at right now, it seemed like using a sword without relying too much upon magic was a legitimate choice for those who had the capacity, because it had been that which pulled him through most of the Royal knights examination fight against Verena and her small army of golems. So when things progressed with the two of them marching further and further into the forest and getting to take in the scenery, he saw how the path was starting to become more and more overgrown, though he could not tell exactly which genus this was. At least, not until Hans brought it up.
Stating that they needed to fly, it was around that time that he felt an itch at his feet, meaning these plants were most likely a form of poisonous shrubbery, but more than simply that. Strangely enough, it seemed to also affect his mana, though he did not really understand yet to what extent, imagining they would figure that much out soon enough. With a burst of dark mana, a large avian was created by using a form of magic he had never seen before up until now. Being jet black in appearance, he knew enough to know that this was not shadow magic or obsidian, though he knew that this was a golem for sure. It was strange to think that this guy was a golem creator just like Verena when the two were so very different when it came to fighting. Aside from her last ditch effort against him, he had never seen Verena move very fast, let alone resorting to fighting in close quarters. Hell, he had seen her struggle with stairs.
Judging by how she fought, he imagined that the average golem user did not exactly fight in close proximity and would use them to hide behind, barking orders from a distance while utilizing other mid to long ranged magic types. So far, he had met three mages that utilized golems, and two of them had not exactly been fighters like Hans and Griswold were, which made it that much harder for him to grasp. So as he tried to wrap his head around it, he could hear a faint buzzing coming from the trees as the black bird took to the skies and began making its way deeper into the forest. Still feeling the annoying itch on his leg, he fought the urge to scratch it, knowing from experience that that would only end up making it feel worse. It was one of the things one picked up when living in the forest, and a lesson one would not soon forget as a child.
“I’m fine. Comparing this to being bit by a Grindylow, i’ll pick an itchy rash any day.”
Remembering the time quite well when he had to go to a small island in the middle of an equally small lake located in the witches forest for a special kind of medicinal herb, only to get bitten in the arm by one of the aquatic little monsters, just thinking about it made the still relatively fresh wound itch again. But as the buzzing got louder, Griswold did not have the time to ponder on it as a swarm of large hostile wasps had seemingly set their sights upon them and the bird they rode on top of. With his sword still in hand, he watched as the swarm broke off into two groups that attacked him and Hans alike, which was rather convenient for them. If they all came out once, they might have posed a threat, but in this fashion, there did not seem to be a whole lot to worry about as another golem was called into being. Preparing to defend himself, Griswold was temporarily shook when Hans seemed to just leap off of the bird.
Telling it to aid Griswold as he himself would fend off the wasps, Griswold utilized the length of his blade to swat them out of the air and onto the golem with a loud thump. Figuring a golem of this caliber would be able to take a few of these minor hits, he ran his blade through one of the airborne wasps, causing limbs to fly off as it fell to the forest below in pieces. Running up to the one he had just smacked out of the air, he waved his blade in a circular motion, relieving the wasp of its wings before striking down another that came for him from the side, using the momentum of his own rotation to cut it in two halves. Because the one with the severed wings winced and writhed in pain, it allowed Griswold to kick it off of the bird golem with one hard kick. Without wings, it would certainly fall to its death, leaving only one of the creatures to worry about.
So as the last of the wasps came at him, the elven knight used the blunt side of his blade as a means of angling the stinger away from himself, more or less pushing the creature back into the air and forcing it to come back for another round. This time however, Griswold would not aim to deflect another attack, because this time he was ready for it. Again making use of the length of the blade to use its own momentum against it, he impaled the wasp as it came rushing at him a second time. Oozing weird insectoid blood, he swung the blade to toss yet another corpse off of the bird, causing him to at least be safe for the time being as they flew deeper and deeper into the forest. Now, he would wait for Hans to make his way back to the bird as he had a few questions about this kind of magic he used, and why his fighting style was so different from other golem users he had encountered.
FLOOR 2 | ROOM 2
Cleaning some of the gross insect blood off of his blade, he waited patiently for Hans to make his way back on top of the large black bird golem. As he kept an eye on his surroundings, it was quite clear that the scenery was yet again changing from that of a forest into that of a meadow, which seemed to be somewhat of a running theme he did not yet understand. Because this was often the case with dungeons he had ventured into, this one seemed different from them. The cursed forest was a place that was basically just the lair of a hag, possessing increasingly stronger foes that protected a passage through a forest and eventually a cavern system that led up to her home at the very end of it. The Tyrant’s castle was just that, a castle one needed to venture through while facing increasingly large and strong bands of knights and soldiers that protected their king, who awaited in the throne room at the heart of the massive building.
And finally, there was also the tower of quinteps, which seemed to be a truly ancient place that took those who ventured inside into a world where dinosaurs had not yet gone extinct. That one still did not really seem clear to Griswold in terms of what the general idea behind it was, other than providing those animals with a place where they could still exist freely. If nothing else, it went to show the vast difference between dungeons as a whole, and that there was still very much to learn before one could truly say they understood them and what they represented. As he pondered on what was to come next, Griswold saw a building up ahead, which was likely where whatever roamed in this corner of the dungeon would be coming from once the time was right. Still not being quite close enough for them to strike before the building could release its enemies to the world, Griswold turned to Hans.
“Now that we have a moment before we’ll undoubtedly be assaulted again by whatever might be in there, I have to ask. I’ve never seen this type of magic before, and I know that it isn’t shadow or obsidian, though I don’t know anything else that could possible appear in this manner.”
Figuring he might as well pop the question now, his overall curiosity towards a plethora of things often got the better of him. So while he would not exactly lose his focus while in battle, he could not promise that he wouldn’t be pondering on things even if he was fighting someone. As such, he imagined it was likely better for the both of them to just get it out of the way so he could stop trying to figure it out for himself.
POWER 120 DURABILITY 2 SENSORY 60 STAMINA 41 CONTROL 52 MANA 135
Heart of the Forest
Rank & Element: Senior ¦ World Tree Class & Type: Magic ¦ Weapon Magic Specializations: Attack Creation ¦ Restraining Appearance & Lore: This bastard sword is rumoured to have been crafted by the first witch queen and held by a hidden glade guard within the witches forest, whether this is true is not is still up for speculation even amongst witches. The hilt is made of a specialized iron wood that had been treated to make it stronger, while the blade is said to be the crystalized spirit of the forest itself.
Type & Uses: Trigger ¦ 6 Uses Rank & Specialization: Senior ¦ Attack Creation ¦ Restraining Mana Cost: 24 Per Trigger ¦ 45 Recharge Range & Speed: 80m ¦ 40 m/s Stats Affected: -5 m/s, -10 mana, -50% cast limit Description: With a single swing of the sword twisting thorned root seems to escape the sword and aim to restrain the enemy by wrapping around one of the limbs, if this succeeds not only will it do senior rank damage but will cut the persons spell limit by half. Debuff their speed by 5 m/s and reduce their mana regeneration by 10 each round. To get free of the restraint you need to do senior rank damage to it. With every 50 the holder has in control they will be able to make an additional root each time this ability is triggered.
"When you spend so long trapped in darkness, you find that the darkness begins to stare back."
With yet another area effortlessly cleared, and whatever mana effects that poison ivy had subsiding...save for a few itches maybe, the duo was onto the next area. Hans was starting to ponder the difficulty of this dungeon at this point. Hans' past experience with dungeons was normally a lot more...challenging than this. The dark mage had nearly lost a leg to that sentient void hat back at the Eldritch Home, he had gotten his fair share of injuries at that ice dungeon that temporarily emerged in his hometown of Aries Garse, and he even had to retreat that Nest dungeon that used to be around the Witch's Forest. This only further proved how strong Hans has gotten since those days, but he was still confident that there are dungeons out there that will prove to be challenging to him.
Once his sword golem got close enough, Hans jumped off of it and got right back onto his raven golem with Griswold. He then took a cloth he had neatly folded in a small case found in his pocket and used it to neatly clean the blade of his sword off. The dark mage could've just swung the blood off, but when it comes to cleaning and taking care of his swords, Hans tends to be a little more gentle with them. There was a point in time, back in his early days of being a swordsman where he would swing his sword to clean it off...or even forget to clean it altogether, but over time...and thanks to his mentor's scolding, Hans learned to appreciate swords more, see them more as mere tools for combat. Hans couldn't help but smile lightly as he glanced over to see Griswold cleaning his sword as well. That alone made the dark mage think that his partner was already off to a better start than he was when first starting out.
The dark-haired man was inspecting his sword a bit after he finished cleaning it when he heard Griswold's question. The dark mage stopped and looked at him before looking down at the raven they were flying on. "It's dark magic...The element of darkness to be exact." Hans said before sliding his sword back into its sheath. "It's considered a rare form of magic, so it's not surprising that you may not have heard of it before." Hans claimed, even though there might be possible logs about this and other forms of rare magic in the Archives, but for all he knows, that information might be scarce as well. "It's impressively durable...but also hard to use." Hans claimed as he started to look forward, using his ki senses to scan the area as he spoke.
"It takes a little bit more time for me to cast spells." Hans said as he glanced over at his grimoire, floating beside him. His spellcasting used to be a lot worse, but over time, the dark mage was able to improve on this. He still isn't able to cast his spells at the same speeds as most mages, but he has still proved himself to be someone who shouldn't be taken lightly. Hans only scratched the surface of the strengths and weaknesses his element possesses, but the dark mage felt that could be discussed at another time. "From what I saw back at the exams, you use solar magic, yeah?" Hans asked. A form of magic that harnesses the power of the cosmos itself, solar magic is truly impressive as well.
The pleasant little moment of repose would soon come to an end as the duo approached the large structure. From a distance, it came off as a house, but the closer they got, the more obvious it would soon become that the structure isn't a house...Though it is a home for something...
"Is that a...." Hans muttered, but didn't finish. It was in fact a giant chicken coup. But, why was to ut here in the middle of this meadow? At this point, Hans should stop questioning the workings of some of these dungeons...but things like this still baffle him. "There's something inside." After getting over his initial shock, Hans was able to focus on the ki signatures coming from within. "About five, no...nine creatures." So it was still about the same amount as the previous areas. The swordsman then placed his hand on the handle of his sword, slowly unsheathing it as he felt the creatures inside growing more active.
Suddenly, about five large chicken-looking mana beasts burt out of the entrance to the coup! They were growling and hissing, not sounding at all like your usual chicken.
But that wasn't all....
Bursting out of the top of the coup were four more of those bee mana beasts, buzzing angrily! They appeared to be working with those chickens which didn't seem like a likely team up, but again this is a dungeon...and some dungeons tend to not make any sense. "Good grief..."
Hans commanded his raven golem to land, and be on stand by before hopping off of it, his sword-like golem floating next to him as he did so. He then looked up at Griswold and gave him a nod, before charging towards the foes with his dark sword golem right beside him! Hans wanted to get some distance from his golem and also meet the mana beasts halfway, and the moment he believed he was close enough, the dark mage stopped just as one of those chickens continued to rush at him. The chicken attempted to aggressively peck at Hans face, but the dark mage took a well-timed step back before lunging forward enough to impale the chicken in the neck with his sword, killing it. With his mana tether, Hans followed up by commanding his sword golem to slice itself right through another incoming chicken, penetrating it and slicing itself right out of the poor mana beast!
A bee attempted to swoop in and sting the side of Hans' face with its large stinger, but the dark mage sensed it and turned himself just in time to parry the stinger with his sword, before slicing it off with a horizontal slash and then impaled the beast, ending the creature. Another bee was currently chasing Hans sword-like golem around, nearly catching up to it, but one it got close enough, the golem spun around rapidly, cutting that mana beast to pieces before flying up into the air and diving straight down through the neck of a chicken that was about to attack Hans from behind, cutting its head off! The decapitated chicken started to run around in circles for a few seconds before finally keeling over, but as all of this happened, Hans didn't appear to be the least bit phased.
N O T E S
Floor 2 Room 2 WC: 1,838/2,000
(310 - 15 - 15 + 70 = 310 Mana)
T2 Ki Active (Speed reduced to 20 m/s)
Killed 2 bees with Dark Edge
3 Chickens and 2 bees killed through the use of Dark Edge and Hans' Hunter's Blade Golem
Name of Spell: Dark Golem Creation: Hunter's Guard Spell Element: Dark Spell Rank: Senior Mana Cost: 30 (Initial) - 15 (Sustain) Type of Golem: Guardian Applicable Perks: Ease of Creation, Armament Description:
Based off of a spell the user had on one of their old weapons, the user summons a dark raven with menacing red eyes and clad in dark armor. This golem reaches up to 12 meters in height and is used mainly for defending purposes, using its wings or even its entire body to guard. Despite its specialty in defense, the golem can use its sharp wings, talons, or beak to attack those who get too close to whoever it's suppose to be protecting, but no matter how many attacks it does at once, it cannot exceed its current rank in damage. I can also be used for transportation (speed remaining at 7 m/s, and can hold up to three people). (Can summon an additional golem per 30 Control (Ease of Creation), maxing at three.)
Name of Spell: Dark Golem Creation: Hunter's Blades Spell Element: Dark Spell Rank: Senior Mana Cost: 30 (Initial) - 15 (Sustain) Type of Golem: Balanced Applicable Perks: Ease of Creation, Armament Description:
With their grimoire, the user summons a dark sword golem(s) that resembles a hunter blade. Being a balanced type, this golem has no specific specialties, but can be used for various purposes like attacking with its blade or ridden on as a mode of transportation (speed remaining at 14 m/s, and can hold up to two people). Unlike most other golems of its type, it only stands up to 2 meters, but that does not make it any less intimidating. If not careful, it can harm allies with its sharp blades. (Can summon an additional golem per 30 Control (Ease of Creation), maxing at three.)
Type
Power
Durability
Sensory
Range
Speed
Health
Balance
80
80 (+10)
80
60m
14 m/s
Senior + Junior
WC 1,144 || TOTAL WC 4,222
TAGSGriswold ITEMS Dark Edge, Cosmic Blessing PERKS List 'em here
When it was explained to him, it turned out that it actually made a whole lot of sense that he hadn’t actually heard about it up until this point. The whole concept of dark magic seemed odd at first, especially when there was such a thing as shadow, though he imagined there was a rather distinct difference to be made between the two if one really delved into the concept. Shadow was something that was made in the presence of light, where darkness was something that existed within the absence of light. So the two were inherently different and unique, though one could not exactly be faulted for believing the two to be similar to some degree. Having already seen light magic used by at least two difference mages so far, he imagined dark magic was just that much more rare as he had never encountered it up until now. That said, it did make him wonder about a few things.
When it came to the more rare forms of magic, it was usually a rule of thumb that the one wielding it was rather powerful in a particular field, as had been the case with Lydia at least, which was more or less the only person he could use in the department of pure power. Then there was Verena, who utilized what he could only imagine was a rare form of golem magic that allowed her to control various golems. This particular form of magic was something he had gotten up close and personal with on several occasions, these being the two dungeons he had seen through alongside her, as well as their battle in the royal knight exams. When they killed the tyrant king James, he had seen quite well how she used these golems, as well as her protective spells as a means by which to defend themselves from harm while having her creations doing most of the dirty work.
This became even more apparent when they fought against one another in a one on one fight, which eventually became into something more along the lines of a fifteen on one fight instead. But that was what he had come to imagine from the average golemancer, which just made Hans stand out that much more. He handled himself very well in close combat by using his own physical training and swordsmanship mastery, which was more than could be said about Michail and Verena. If nothing else, it just proved that in the world of magic, one could never settle on stereotypes as there were always those select few that chose to break the mold and head in their own chosen direction. Maybe some day, Griswold could also become the kind of person someone looked up to as one of the mages that helped shape the country in some way, shape or form, even though he really had no idea how to just yet.
“I see, I had never heard about that one before. I’ve seen the use of shadow magic once, which looks like it to some extent, as well as light magic, which I imagine is like the antithesis to your dark magic? Makes me wonder how things like that work to be honest, the clashing of light against darkness.”
If there were ever something he would want to see at some point, this was something that was going to be very high on that list. Because he had only seen someone use light magic in order to create a blade of magic by which to more or less murder someone far weaker than herself, he knew that it was the kind of magic that could be used to create mana structures. This knowledge was further amped up when he saw an altogether different user make use of it in order to create magical arrows that moved at blinding speed, not to mention having the ability to actually blind those that looked straight at it. Regardless of how they had used their abilities, there was one thing that connected the two, and that was the fact that they both utilized light magic in order to greatly increase their physical speed in order to catch their enemies off-guard or simply outpace them when plotting their own attacks.
Not being the kind of person that was easily impressed when it came to fighting and whatnot, or how someone managed to put their own magics to the best use, he felt that credit should be given where it was due. And so far, seeing these light magic users going at it in battle was quite the sight to see, simply because it was so very hard to properly keep track of them to begin with. So while his own sensory capabilities were neither in the upper echelon of the Clover country, nor in the lowest regions, the fact that he was having a hard time keeping up with it meant something to him. It made him want to both not fight them and fight them at the same time, just to see how he would be able to match up with them if it were to ever come down to a real fight. But the more he thought about these rare types of magics, the more his mind got pulled back towards the archdemons they were facing.
Aamon and his Beast magic was one of those things that bothered him a lot because he had seen a rather young mage use it, allowing him such physical strength and speed that he could keep up with more powerful opponents, actually outpace them and even overpower them when it came to brute force. If something like that could be further buffed by using demonic mana, which was something Hania had insinuated might very much be the case, he wondered how anyone was going to have a shot at standing up to such raw power and speed. But as per usual, he was getting way ahead of himself by pondering on something that wasn’t to happen for several weeks or maybe even months. Broken out of his train of thought when Hans mentioned something up ahead, which was likely the building he had seen, he stated that there were several magic signatures inside of it.
This being more or less what he had already imagined would be the case at this rate, especially since the last region they were in had a meadow such as this filled with rather aggressive sheep, he wondered if they’d be stopped by murderous cows or psychotic pigs this time around. Judging however by the chicken coup, this seemed highly unlikely. Once they saw exactly what they were going to be fighting, which seemed to be the same kind of wasps they had encountered before mixed with a strange breed of chicken, Griswold wondered for a moment if these might be the mythical beast known as the cockatrice. Having only heard stories about them, the body type of these creatures did not really check out with what he had heard, meaning these were most likely exactly what they looked like: chickens turned into large mana beasts.
When they were taken back to the ground by the golem as it landed, it came as no surprise that Hans was the first to make his way into battle again, with Griswold hanging back for a moment to see how things went before planning his own introduction to the fight. While it was true that he had little to no defensive means, he did have a few spells that could be utilized in order to protect himself and others by more or less excluding them from the hit itself. In a way, it was the embodiment of “A good defense is a strong offense”, though that was likely taking things too literally. However, it did give him an idea by which he might be able to get rid of at least some of the aggressors. Thanks to most of the mana beasts converging on Hans, Griswold was given a moment to mold his mana into several spheres which he then rained down around the dark mage.
Using his mana control to keep allied individuals and objects from being harmed, the spheres rained down and erupted in a fiery explosion of solar mana. While it was not one of his most powerful spells, it was the kind that really did the trick in situations such as these, or so he believed. So as the intense heat raged and incinerated several of their enemies that Hans had not already disposed of before the spheres got a chance at landing, Griswold figured that this was actually a rather solid way of going about it in the future. If they were to be attacked by increasingly more capable adversaries that made his swordsmanship obsolete, he would still be able to help Hans out by simply blowing up everything around him while removing the “Collateral damage” angle entirely. With that settled, all that remained after this attack was a bunch of severed and roasted chickens and wasps.
About to say something regarding the last fight, his ears picked up on a strange laughter coming from up ahead. Turning his gaze towards Hans, he was about to ask him if he had heard it too, but figured that that would be a rather stupid question. So far, the guy had constantly been the first to notice threats coming their way, so there was no way he wouldn’t have heard something as obvious as that. As such, he just gestured that he was going on ahead to see what was going on as he did not know whether he wanted to keep using his golem or not. Since the poisonous flower seemed to be gone, they could probably just continue on foot from here on out.
FLOOR 2 | ROOM 3
Following the path he hoped would lead them out of the meadow, Griswold started seeing even more similarities with the previous space. When they fought the sheep in their meadow, they had to move out in the same direction that they were moving now, which simply could not have been a coincidence. Still hearing the annoying laughter that was getting louder and louder, Griswold was having trouble pinpointing where it was coming from. Leaving the meadow behind for what seemed like more of a woodland again, he could not say that he would be missing it as these meadows they had encountered up until now had been nothing but trouble. At the same time, the forests hadn’t exactly been all that kind to them either, though the ambushes they faced there had not been as difficult or annoying to overcome as the others. And that was when he noticed it with his own two eyes.
A strange white dust lingering in the air, entering his body with every breath. As if being the kind of thing that took effect the moment it was noticed, he began feeling a burning sensation inside of his airways, causing him to grip for his throat. Poison. Doing the only thing he could really do in this case, he used the only healing spell he had at his disposal in order to destroy the poison by burning it out of him. As small flames started forming around his body, the activation of his healing spell would become notable, likely alerting Hans to the fact that there was something going on here that they would need to protect themselves against. Having undoubtedly used the moment of confusion that was befalling him, one of the chicken creatures suddenly dashed out of the tree-line and made his way straight for Griswold, who was having none of it.
If there was ever something he hated with a passion, it was the use of underhanded means such as poison and trickery of the mind in battle, followed up closely by those who would choose to benefit from it and attack when someone had no way of defending against it. It was cowardly, lacking all forms of honor, and it deserved to be punished in kind. With a powerful cut, Griswold severed the beast’s torso, causing its head and wings to launch across the road and dip it in blood as its legs and lower body just dropped in place. From the looks of things, this was to be the only creature that wanted to take a shot at them as they entered into the area, though there wasn’t a single doubt in his mind as to whether or not there were more laying in wait. After all, this airborne poison had to originate from somewhere as it was clearly not a natural occurrence.
“I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but there’s something in the air here, something toxic. If you’re able, you should try and burn it out of your system. If that’s not something you can do, I could try doing it for you.”
Offering his aid in case Hans was to be affected by the white dust in the same way he was, he figured now would be one of the only times where he could actually make himself useful without just throwing about a whole bunch of heat and burning his enemies to death. Regardless of how things were going to continue, one thing was for certain. The incessant laughter that was coming from seemingly all direction was going to stop one way or another, even if it meant using a solar spell to incinerate most of the area, which was something he was actually quite capable of at this point.
Tldr: Griswold uses Solar flare to kill the remainder of the enemies. Moved into the next area. Rolled a 3 on the Sprite dust, used healing spell to try and clear the poison effect. Killed 1 out of 3 Cockatrice in the area.
POWER 120 DURABILITY 2 SENSORY 60 STAMINA 41 CONTROL 52 MANA 135 (135 - 20 - 10 + 30)
Spells Used: Name of Spell: Solar flare | Lunar swirl Elemental Type: Solar Rank & Spell Type: Intermediate – Attack Creation Range & Speed: 40 meters (20m AoE) | 20 m/s (AoE does not extend out of Max rank range) Mana Cost: 20 mp | 10 mp sustain Stats Effected: +4 to Power Applicable Perks: “Overpowered” Description: A spell that was not so much designed to be used in one on one combat, but rather to limit the amount of terrain advantages one might have over the user. By compressing and firing a small bolt of sun(moon)fire similar in appearance to “Sun(Moon)bolt”, this spell either travels its given distance or collides with a solid surface, causing it to erupt in a burst of flame. As it sets flammable terrain, objects and living beings on fire, it can quickly turn a building used by someone to hide or hole up in from a safe haven into a furnace one will want to quickly escape. For every 20 control, the user is capable of firing an additional sphere in the same salvo, thus following the "ammo" rules. During the day, the spell takes on an orange hue, taking on a silver blue hue after dark.
Name of Spell: Sunrise | Waning Moon Elemental Type: Solar Rank & Spell Type: Junior | Healing Range & Speed: 25 meters | 10 m/s Mana Cost: 10 mp | 5 mp sustain Stats Effected: +2 to Control Applicable Perks: "Cleanse" Description: A rather basic healing spell that uses fire magic in order to heal either his own wounds or those of someone he can touch. Capable of healing junior level wounds, it may seem painful as the wounds are covered in magical flame, though this is not the case. For every 10 control, an additional person can be healed. When used, it will attempt to cleanse the target (self or other) from a debuff or curse following the cleansing rules. During the day, the flames takes on an orange hue, taking on a silver blue hue after dark.
Heart of the Forest
Rank & Element: Senior ¦ World Tree Class & Type: Magic ¦ Weapon Magic Specializations: Attack Creation ¦ Restraining Appearance & Lore: This bastard sword is rumoured to have been crafted by the first witch queen and held by a hidden glade guard within the witches forest, whether this is true is not is still up for speculation even amongst witches. The hilt is made of a specialized iron wood that had been treated to make it stronger, while the blade is said to be the crystalized spirit of the forest itself.
Type & Uses: Trigger ¦ 6 Uses Rank & Specialization: Senior ¦ Attack Creation ¦ Restraining Mana Cost: 24 Per Trigger ¦ 45 Recharge Range & Speed: 80m ¦ 40 m/s Stats Affected: -5 m/s, -10 mana, -50% cast limit Description: With a single swing of the sword twisting thorned root seems to escape the sword and aim to restrain the enemy by wrapping around one of the limbs, if this succeeds not only will it do senior rank damage but will cut the persons spell limit by half. Debuff their speed by 5 m/s and reduce their mana regeneration by 10 each round. To get free of the restraint you need to do senior rank damage to it. With every 50 the holder has in control they will be able to make an additional root each time this ability is triggered.
"When you spend so long trapped in darkness, you find that the darkness begins to stare back."
Taking care of those oversized chickens and bees, the duo marched on to the next area, but before that, Hans called his raven golem back to his grimoire seeing that there was no use for it now. As the golem morphed back into a shapeless mass of darkness and went into the book, Hans smiled lightly at the page of the spell, giving it a small nod as a token of gratitude. Golems may not be truly alive and sentient, but the mana coursing through them, and any other spell at least have some form of sentience, at least, that's what Hans believes. As for his sword-like golem, it remained on the dark mage's side, following the man until it was ready to be used again.
Griswold was right in his earlier theory about light and dark magic's relationship. It was something the dark mage was unaware of at first until he met a Ravencrest by the name of Athan about two years ago. The boy utilized light magic, and from him, Hans learned about the relationship between their magics. His light magic can outspeed Hans' darkness, but in return, Hans' dark magic can snuff out Athan's light. It was through their brief rivalry that Hans was able to learn more about his magic...He still wonders to this day of what became of him. Perhaps he should ask Lydia whenever he gets the chance.
Speaking of Lydia...
It was also through that woman that Hans found out that the relationship between light and darkness wasn't that simple. Darkness magic does have the potential to cancel light magic, but if the light mage is strong enough, their light can potentially overpower the darkness, and engulf it in its rays. This is why Hans will never take a light user....lightly because elemental weaknesses aren't as set in stone as some folks would think. The dark mage knew from a young age to not take his opponents lightly, even if they appear weaker for whatever reason. Who knows what tricks they may have up their sleeves....
But that was enough pondering...Hans needed to focus on the path ahead...as well as that ominous laughter. The laugh itself did not sound evil or ominous, but more like a bunch of children playing...but that made it no less suspicious, especially coming from a dungeon. So far, his ki senses could not find the source of this laughter, making this all the more dangerous. Perhaps the source was out of his range, or it could very much be an illusion, one strong enough that Hans couldn't even see through.
But there was something Hans' ki started to pick up on....
The dark mage stopped and looked up, watching as powdery substance descended from above. The man grit his teeth a little, already thinking that this wasn't good, and unfortunately, it appears to be unavoidable. Hans turned around to see Griswold struggling with his throat. With a hint of worry on his face, Hans was about to help him, until he witnessed the guy use a healing spell on himself. Before he could ask if his partner was alright, Hans noticed one of those chicken creatures rushing at the solar mage from behind! Hans was about to draw his sword, but paused when he saw Griswold going into action, taking care of that foul fowl himself! But while this occurred, the powder was starting to affect Hans as well, but it did not burn his throat like Griswold. Instead, Hans was starting to feel drowsy.
"Th-this powder..." Hans' tone was low, and sleepy. His body staggered a little as he brought a hand to the side of his head. He looked over at Griswold and shook his head a little. "N-no, no I got it. J-just s-save...your strength..." Hans claimed, looking sluggish. The dark mage could just use his mana to burn away this curse, but he only had a limited amount of uses for that technique before it goes into a very lengthy cooldown. Fortunately, he brought his necklace with him, the one that coincidentally shares the same element as Griswold here.
Hans was bout to use the necklace until a rustling from the nearby bushes caught his attention. The focus Hans had on his ki was diminishing from the drowsiness, so he couldn't properly sense what was coming. Out of those bushes was another one of those chickens, trying to take advantage of Hans' predicament to attack! The beast ran in at full speed towards Hans..."Atta-" Hans tried to command his sword golem, and was also trying to go for his own sword, but the man quickly had to stop to jump out of the way! Hans was at least fast enough to not take a direct it, but the chicken's beak still managed to make contact with the dark mage's leg, bashing it enough to cause the man to trip over! Hans nearly fell on his face, but his reflexes were still fast enough to have him catch himself with his hands.
The chicken was now slowly approaching Hans, and it kaaw'd angrily at the man, but was able to take this opportunity to send his sword golem straight to the beast's mouth and through the back of its head, destroying it! "Hnngh..." Hans slowly stood back up, staggering from his sleepiness still. "I-I call upon the cosmos..." Hans muttered, causing his necklace to glow. Small stars could be seen forming in the obsidian-like jewel and a similar starry-like aura formed around one of Hans' hands. He placed his palm by his chest and it started to cleanse the curse on Hans. With it, the merc was starting to feel less and less drowsy as he regained his strength.
Hans was able to stand fully back up, and right on time as another chicken beast was in the middle of trying to rush Hans from the side! The man sighed in relief before glancing over at the beast, and he quickly drew his sword! Once the beast was close enough and it attempted to impale Hans with its beak, the dark mage sliced its head off with one swing and quickly impaled it in the chest! Once he slid the sword out, Hans stepped to the side as the lifeless body fell forward. Hans' mana skin was a bit disrupted from the earlier attack, but it slowly reformed as if nothing happened.
The dark mage looked back over at Griswold, but was interrupted but the sound of that childish laughter growing louder. The sources of the laughing made their presence known....Four faerie-like mana beasts. A powdery aura surrounded them, revealing them to be the source of this. "Try and avoid making physical contact with them." Hans suggested before sending his sword-like golem towards one of them. The sword was going in at full speed, but the faerie it was aiming it, was able to barely dodge out of the way, but it didn't seem shaken by how close it was. "Tch." Seems, that these creatures were slightly faster than Hans' golem, only reminding the dark mage of the burden that his dark magic has to suffer. Still, he believes that it was fast enough to still be effective if he plays it smart.
Hans commanded his golem to circle around and come back down to the faerie it missed which was too busy laughing to realize until it was stood late! The sword-like golem sliced off one of the beast's wings, causing it to start falling but as it fell, the golem descended with it and got under the creature just in time to cause it to fall onto the blade, impaling it all the way! The golem then released itself from the corpse, but was too slow to react to an incoming wind-based scythe attack from one of the faeries still floating above! It was enough to rattle and damage the golem, but it didn't take as much damage as it should've. WIth a few cracks here and there, the golem was still ready to fight!
Through Hans' command, he sent the golem flying again, and just like before, this faerie dodged out of the way, but since Hans was expecting this, the dark mage caused his golem to spin horizontally at the right time, catching the unsuspecting faerie in its range, and was able to slice it to pieces!
N O T E S
Floor 2 Room 3 WC: 1,883/2,000
(310 - 15 - 8 + 70 = 310 Mana)
T2 Ki Active (Speed reduced to 20 m/s)
Hans was struck by one of the chickens, dealing Int. Dmg to his Mana Skin, but was recovered thanks to Regenerating Skin
Cleansed the Sprite Powder effect from Hans with New Beginnings
Killed 2 Chickens with Dark Edge
Hans' golem received Senior (Reduced to Int.) Dmg from one of the Faeries, leaving its Health at Int + Jr
Name of Spell: Dark Golem Creation: Hunter's Blades Spell Element: Dark Spell Rank: Senior Mana Cost: 30 (Initial) - 15 (Sustain) Type of Golem: Balanced Applicable Perks: Ease of Creation, Armament Description:
With their grimoire, the user summons a dark sword golem(s) that resembles a hunter blade. Being a balanced type, this golem has no specific specialties, but can be used for various purposes like attacking with its blade or ridden on as a mode of transportation (speed remaining at 14 m/s, and can hold up to two people). Unlike most other golems of its type, it only stands up to 2 meters, but that does not make it any less intimidating. If not careful, it can harm allies with its sharp blades. (Can summon an additional golem per 30 Control (Ease of Creation), maxing at three.)
Name of the Ability New Beginnings Type & Uses: Flow ¦ 3 (uses) ¦ 2 (overheating) Rank & Specialization: Junior ¦ Healing Mana Cost: 8 ¦ 4 Range & Speed: 25m ¦ 10 m/s Stats Affected: N/A Description:
The barer of this necklace need only bring their hand towards it to activate this ability, once active the purplish-pink opalite seems to glow and the entire necklace seems to show small stars within even the obsidian like encasement. This ability allows the bearer to heal for their rank damage, with the use of ammo rules they may be able to heal allies so longs they are within range of the bearer of the necklace however they must bring up their hand towards the ally in question and have a clear line of sight meaning if an enemy or someone else is in the way they could get the healing instead. While active and healing the ability will also actively try to cleanse poison, venom, debuffs, curses, hexes and any other negative status effects in accordance with the healing and clashing rules.
WC 1,410 || TOTAL WC 5,632
TAGSGriswold ITEMS Dark Edge, Cosmic Blessing PERKS Regenerating Skin
Watching as Hans struggled with the white dust more than he did, it made him wonder if the little bit of healing he could actually do for himself was worth expanding upon in the future. It was no surprise that he had focused entirely on his combat prowess and dropped behind on his other potential capabilities, so maybe that was something he would need to begin working on once the two cleared out this particular dungeon. Since it was clear that the guy did not want Griswold’s help in dealing with the poisonous dust that was lingering in the place, he would not force himself into it either. At times like these, people wanted to show what they were worth without becoming dead weight to be heaved onto someone else’s shoulders, a feeling he understood all too well. For quite some time, he had always been the one that needed to be carried from place to place because he was not strong enough to do things on his own.
But that was exactly what had allowed him to become stronger, as the feeling of not being good enough was the kind of thing that could either steer one into a downward spiral, or make them want to become stronger. For Griswold, it had been the latter, or he wouldn’t have bothered asking someone like Hans to come with him to a place such as this one. By seeing how he handled himself in battle, what he did to make sure he remained on top in a tricky and hostile location such as this one, and adjusting how Griswold personally would have responded in case his approach was wrong, the elven knight did the same thing he had always done when in a dungeon. Whether it was with Verena, Hania or Hans, there was always room for improvement and personal growth. Luckily for him, the chicken that had attacked him had just been the tip of the iceberg.
Mere moments after he had severed the top half of one of these attackers from its lower half, it seemed that there were yet other that wished to try and assault Hans in the same way as they had done him, using the poisonous white pollen as a means of attacking their target when they believed them to be off-guard. Clearly though, the dark mage was not the type to just take things laying down as he swiftly made short work of his attackers, even if it took him a bit of extra trouble due to the poison. Truth be told, even if Griswold had gotten around to healing him as well as himself, chances were that this fight would have been just as unsightly as it had been now. For once the source of the incessant laughter had made itself known to also be the source of the white powder, the former Crimson Lion would not hesitate for a second to unleash one of his more signature movies.
Releasing a burst of solar mana that would be directed to only destroy those Griswold perceived as enemies, he hoped that the heat would also incinerate most of the pollen out of the air. Even though there were only a few enemies remaining when he got around to using the spell, he was still quite glad to have been able to do something about the incredibly annoying fairies, their equally annoying laughter and their far more annoying poisonous powder. Things like these proved the point that not everything that looked nice and cute were harmless, and as far as Griswold was concerned, they looked a lot better when they had been burnt to a crisp as they laid on their backs in the grass. Grinning a bit as he huffed out a bit of air, he could only imagine how the dark mage was likely just as eager as he was to be getting out of this bit of the woods.
FLOOR 3 | ROOM 1
Once the place darkened almost as soon as the fairies met their end, it would not come as much of a surprise that the dungeon was changing, most likely breaking open another box of tricks to throw at them. But it did not matter. Up until now, nothing had managed to keep them from pushing onward and killing everything that got in their way, which was something he was honestly quite proud of. When he spotted a river up ahead, he gestured at Hans to follow as it seemed like the likeliest route away from the meadow and whatever poisonous pollen might yet linger there. Moving on ahead for a bit to give Hans a moment to rid himself of the effects of the pollen, it was around the same time that Griswold finally realized exactly what was going on here. The first section of the dungeon they had been in was fairly bright and full of life.
Once they cleared it, they made it into a part of the forest that was a lot brighter and warmer, though it did not exactly show anything blossoming or blooming, as everything they encountered was already in that state of being. So now that the temperature dropped a bit, the amount of light dimmed out a lot and the leaves on the trees and plants were starting to brown out, that could only mean one thing. Every space within this place so far was modeled after the seasons, as the one they were in right now was clearly meant to signify fall, what with the trees losing their leaves and the temperature and light both dropping to far lesser levels. Even though he was glad to have figured it out by this point, that really did not give either of them an edge here, as it would not allow them to prepare for what was coming in any way or shape.
Spotting large amounts of moss along the trees once he made it up to the river, it was for the first time that he could get some sense of his bearings, or so he hoped. As an elf hailing from an enclave of forest dwellers, he had learned a long time ago that moss primarily chose to grow on the north side of trees and rocks due to this being the more dark and humid area. For a moment, he felt like that might be helpful to some degree, but that was before he realized yet again that they were in a dungeon, and that places like these did not exactly stick to the logic of the real world. Before he pressed on deeper into the place, he waited for Hans to make his way over to him as he just scouted the area up ahead. Noticing various large mushrooms that seemed to be rustling ever so slightly, he instantly experienced flashbacks of the tower of quinteps where he had also encountered living mushrooms.
As those fellows had been quite poisonous, it made him wonder if these might be too. That said, he could almost slap himself across the face. Of course they were going to be poisonous, almost everything they had encountered here had poisonous features to them, so believing these things would be the exception to the rule seemed rather daft. Once Hans arrived, he made sure to inform him of the potential threat awaiting them up ahead, as he had no real love for poisons and ambushes, let alone after the ones they had already walked into so far.
“I’m not entirely sure if they’ve noticed us yet, but I’m rather certain those mushrooms up ahead are very much… alive. I’m almost positive that they are just as poisonous as some of the other creatures we’ve encountered so far, so maybe it’d be a good idea to just bombard them from a distance and hope for the best? I mean, it may pull other threats our way, though I’ve gotten rather sick and tired of poisons and toxins.”
Tldr: Griswold uses Solar Burst to kill the remainder of the enemies. Moved into the next area. Figured out the general idea behind the dungeon and scouted out some large, seemingly alive mushrooms up ahead.
POWER 120 DURABILITY 2 SENSORY 60 STAMINA 41 CONTROL 52 MANA 135 (135 - 10 - 20 + 30)
Spells Used: Name of Spell: Sunrise | Waning Moon Elemental Type: Solar Rank & Spell Type: Junior | Healing Range & Speed: 25 meters | 10 m/s Mana Cost: 10 mp | 5 mp sustain Stats Effected: +2 to Control Applicable Perks: "Cleanse" Description: A rather basic healing spell that uses fire magic in order to heal either his own wounds or those of someone he can touch. Capable of healing junior level wounds, it may seem painful as the wounds are covered in magical flame, though this is not the case. For every 10 control, an additional person can be healed. When used, it will attempt to cleanse the target (self or other) from a debuff or curse following the cleansing rules. During the day, the flames takes on an orange hue, taking on a silver blue hue after dark.
Name of Spell: Solarburst | Lunarburst Elemental Type: Solar Rank & Spell Type: Intermediate | Attack Creation | Sensory Range & Speed: 20 meters | 20 m/s Mana Cost: 20 mana | 10 mp sustain Stats Effected: +4 Power Applicable Perks: “Overpowered” Description: Solar(Lunar)burst is a burst spell that uses the caster as the epicenter, moving outward in a 20 meter radius. The burst of solar magic creates a bright amount of light that will blind anyone looking at it within the range of the spell according to the "blinding" rules. Crossing the distance in the blink of an eye, it deals an Intermediate amount of solar damage while knocking those hit by it back for 4 meters + an additional 5 meters for every 10 power the user possesses. Using the ammo rules, the caster is capable of preventing allies of being hit by the burst. During the day, the spell takes on an orange hue, taking on a silver blue hue after dark.
Heart of the Forest
Rank & Element: Senior ¦ World Tree Class & Type: Magic ¦ Weapon Magic Specializations: Attack Creation ¦ Restraining Appearance & Lore: This bastard sword is rumoured to have been crafted by the first witch queen and held by a hidden glade guard within the witches forest, whether this is true is not is still up for speculation even amongst witches. The hilt is made of a specialized iron wood that had been treated to make it stronger, while the blade is said to be the crystalized spirit of the forest itself.
Type & Uses: Trigger ¦ 6 Uses Rank & Specialization: Senior ¦ Attack Creation ¦ Restraining Mana Cost: 24 Per Trigger ¦ 45 Recharge Range & Speed: 80m ¦ 40 m/s Stats Affected: -5 m/s, -10 mana, -50% cast limit Description: With a single swing of the sword twisting thorned root seems to escape the sword and aim to restrain the enemy by wrapping around one of the limbs, if this succeeds not only will it do senior rank damage but will cut the persons spell limit by half. Debuff their speed by 5 m/s and reduce their mana regeneration by 10 each round. To get free of the restraint you need to do senior rank damage to it. With every 50 the holder has in control they will be able to make an additional root each time this ability is triggered.
"When you spend so long trapped in darkness, you find that the darkness begins to stare back."
The area around the duo started to darken and change form. The greenery has started to fade, being replaced by a more orange and brown color. Just like Griswold, as Hans looked around, he was starting to piece together what was going on with this dungeon. With his previous venture into this dungeon, the dark mage did not get in far enough to notice the changes, but now he was certain about it. This dungeon appears to have a theme related to the four seasons. The first area that the two went through resembled spring while the second was summer. They were in the Autumn area now which was obvious by the change in scenery, from the orange tint to the now cooler temperatures.
Hans was following the solar mage, but trailed back a bit to get the remainder of that powder from out of his systems. It didn't take long, and the man was fully back to normal. Still, he stayed back a bit to take a look at the scenery. Out of all the dungeons Hans has been to so far, the theme of this one felt the most interesting. Hans wasn't much of a fan of the warmer seasons, so this was a nice change of pace in his eyes. There was something about the chilly air that comforted the guy a bit, putting him at ease, but he knew better than to lose focus, especially within a dungeon. He did not forget where exactly he was, and upon looking at his beaten-up sword-like golem which continued to float beside him, Hans was reminded about the battle in the previous area. A part of Hans was internally scolding himself for letting such an underhanded trick get the best of him. Curses and illusions were a big reason why the dark mage decided to learn how to sense ki since he was lacking in proper mana senses. Still, this proved that he hasn't exactly mastered the technique yet. If he had, Hans would not have had that moment of weakness...he would not have faltered to those beasts.
The dark mage stopped in his tracks to reflect a bit, sensing nothing hostile so far. He sighed before taking a deep breath, trying to take in his surroundings a bit. His eyes then rested on his sword-like golem once more, giving it a small smile before gently caressing the side of the damaged black blade. It sort of made sense if Hans were to do this to one of his more animal-like golems...but this was a floating sword. Still, Hans felt sorry for the pain it had to endure even if it didn't feel a thing. To him, it almost felt like that his golems were alive, that they felt what Hans felt, and perhaps vice versa. Perhaps this was all just in his head...or maybe there is a little to his thought process. Hans isn't aware of it yet, but he has a special connection with his mana, one similar to that summoner, Verena. The connection didn't run as deep as hers, but it was still something special...and something that Hans will find out soon enough.
Feeling that he has spent enough time reflecting, Hans took his attention away from his golem and started to head towards where Griswold was.
Upon arriving, Hans' attention went from the solar mage to a group of particularly suspicious mushrooms. Through the untrained eye, these fungi looked like ordinary oversized mushrooms...but not to people like these two mages. Even though Hans sensed them with his ki, he could just tell from his eyes alone that these weren't ordinary mushrooms. He kept his eyes on those fungi and listened to Griswold, nodding slowly in agreement to what he said. This wasn't the dark mage's first time dealing with fungus-like beasts either, so he was very much aware of the large possibility of them being poisonous. Just like with those faeries, keeping a distance would be the best course of action. The man looked over at his golem once again, and decided to summon an additional one to assist it since it still had those damages. With the range they had, the duo had the element of surprise....
...Or not.
The wiggling from those six mushrooms grew aggressive until they each popped their heads out, revealing their true forms! The mushrooms looked around a bit before setting their sights on the two intruders. They didn't exactly have a hostile look on their faces...but the way they licked their lips indicated that they saw the mages as a snack. They started to hop their way over, but Hans wasted no time with trying to keep them at bay. "Strike." He pointed at the mushrooms, commanding his uninjured golem to attack!
The sword-like golem rushed in blade first, but due to the distance, the mushroom it was aiming at was able to dodge out of the way in time! Now, two of those mushrooms were distracted by the flying sword golem, looking at it in a bit of wonder as the other four continued their way to the mages. The sword-like golem continued to fly away, the two mushrooms bouncing after it from behind. They were able to keep up...only because Hans wanted them to. With his mana tether, Hans caused the golem to fly up into the air which stopped the other two fungi from following. They looked up at the golem, their eyes following it as it started to descend, moving faster and faster until it collided with one of the curious shrooms! The impale caused the mushroom to burst open...releasing poisonous spores which didn't come to a surprise to the dark mage. Fortunately, he was still out of range so those spores weren't going to be an issue.
The second mushroom did not appear to be pleased about seeing its comrade get killed like that and attempted to bash itself against the sword, but it floated back up just in time to avoid the attack. This caused the mushroom to fall to the ground, which the golem took opportunity of to swoop down and impale this beast, bursting it into poisonous spores as well.
"Seems that they can only release their spores upon death." Hans added as his attention went to the remaining four.
N O T E S
Floor 3 Room 1 WC: 1,724/2,500
(310 - 15 + 70 = 310 Mana)
T2 Ki Active (Speed reduced to 20 m/s)
Hans summoned an additional Hunter's blade Golem and used it to kill two of those shrooms
Name of Spell: Dark Golem Creation: Hunter's Blades Spell Element: Dark Spell Rank: Senior Mana Cost: 30 (Initial) - 15 (Sustain) Type of Golem: Balanced Applicable Perks: Ease of Creation, Armament Description:
With their grimoire, the user summons a dark sword golem(s) that resembles a hunter blade. Being a balanced type, this golem has no specific specialties, but can be used for various purposes like attacking with its blade or ridden on as a mode of transportation (speed remaining at 14 m/s, and can hold up to two people). Unlike most other golems of its type, it only stands up to 2 meters, but that does not make it any less intimidating. If not careful, it can harm allies with its sharp blades. (Can summon an additional golem per 30 Control (Ease of Creation), maxing at three.)
Type
Power
Durability
Sensory
Range
Speed
Health
Balance
80
80 (+10)
80
60m
14 m/s
Senior + Junior
WC 1,054 || TOTAL WC 6,686
TAGSGriswold ITEMS Dark Edge, Cosmic Blessing PERKS Regenerating Skin
Because of the rather useful discovery Hans made when he used his golem to slice up two of the mushroom creatures, it did indeed turn out that they only excreted what seemed like a poisonous vapor when they died. So if they got rid of their problem by killing it from a distance, that just meant that they would be able to just walk around the actual issue without experiencing the negative effects of whatever this particular poison had to offer. Holding out his hand in front of him, Griswold aimed his solar flare spell near the golem that was actively carving up shrooms. Utilizing the spell in a manner that would keep it from harming the golem, which was a fun little extra something he had been able to practice a lot more in this dungeon so far, he set fire to the mushrooms and kept them from getting close to either of them. As such, Griswold imagined that their poison would stick with their corpses, especially with the extreme heat hopefully eradicating it as it came.
“Aye, a good call. It seems their poison does come out upon death, making this by far the most effective way to deal with them. Guess it’s a good thing we’ve got more going for us than just our swords right?”
While it was the kind of question that more or less answered itself, it was still something he felt like saying for the hell of it. After all, they were doing quite well in this place, covering a fair amount of ground and killing a plethora of enemies without really getting injured all that much. But that was to be expected of them, seeing as they were both royal knights now. And if royal knights were having trouble facing down oversized chicken, mushrooms and some dancing, floaty, giggly fairies, they really had no place trying to face down any actual archdemons. At the end of the day, this was very much a test of their own skills, as well as them pruning a dungeon before it could run rampant and spill out into the surrounding area. And as much as the latter was required of those who sought to protect the realm, Griswold could not help but believe that the former of the two reasons was really why he had come here. In the end, being capable of dealing with the archdemons was more important than stomping some mushrooms.
Speaking of stomping mushrooms, the six mushrooms that had been sliced up and burned to a crisp seemed like an area the two should actively walk around, which was exactly what Griswold did. Not seeing the point in triggering any other poisons, he crossed the river by leaping from one boulder to the next so as to be able to move on without crossing the mushroom infested area. Looking at the trees, Griswold followed the direction that had the moss growing in it, which was supposed to be the north side. Even if it would lead them deeper into the forest where there might be more of those mushrooms, them knowing how to better deal with them now would make that into slightly less of an issue. For whatever it was worth though, he began to see why people would choose to focus on golem-based magic, as the one Hans was using was essentially just a range controlled blade that could behead his foes without him having to actually get close to them himself. But there was more to it than that.
He could use it as a means of transportation, allowing him to get close or away from something so he could fight them with his own sword, as well as occupying one or more of his opponents with the bladed golem. Being the kind of person that was rather combat-oriented and not exactly the scholarly type, he could see a plethora of ways in which this kind of combat would be able to provide a large amount of backup. While he would most likely never be able to conjure up any golems of his own, getting more insight into how they worked and how they could work when adding a bit of imagination was also worth something. Because even if it would not help him make any golems of his own, in case he ever had to fight one of them again like during the royal knight exams, he would at least know what to expect. Already having a few ideas as to some new spells he might be able to conjure up once he had the time to sit down and actually work it out because of all the things they had encountered here so far, they drew closer to the forest.
FLOOR 3 | ROOM 2
As the road ahead had already promised, as the two men pressed on, they eventually wandered into a much thicker section of forest, both in terms of how large the trees had gotten and in terms of how close they were to one another. By this point, determining the road ahead was made rather difficult as the actual road had more or less been obscured, leaving them only the moss on the side of the trees by which to tell the direction they were headed in. Truth be told, he had never imagined one of the skills he had learned from his elven relatives would ever be able to help him out in the middle of a dungeon, but he was ever so glad that things turned out this way. In truth, Griswold was one of many who had been affected by Asmodeus and his shenanigans which had displaced his entire family and the enclave they lived in. It was also the main reason why he had signed up for the royal knights, so he could figure out if they had been sent to another continent, to another timeline or to another dimension.
Regardless, at this point, they might as well all be dead as he would never get to figure it out. He had been assigned to Aamon after all, so the chances of him coming face to face with Asmodeus were slim to none. But maybe it was better that way. This way, at least his own personal feelings would not get in the way of the mission, as he was very much the kind of person that might let things willfully escalate if it meant getting the information he sought. But it didn’t matter, not anymore. The whole subject had been taken out of his hands, and now that he knew exactly which of the archdemons he was to be fighting, he would at the very least know what to expect at some level. That, and he would be able to plan accordingly by training himself to become stronger in certain fields he was currently lacking in. Which was exactly what he was doing now.
“Did you hear that?”
Breaking free from his own thoughts when he heard something rustling in the leaves above them, Griswold stopped in his tracks in an attempt at better hearing what they were dealing with. When he stopped moving however, the noise coming from above also ceased, almost as if whatever was up there was waiting for them to start moving again too. How annoying. With that thought in mind, he took a few steps forward while keeping his ears peaked. Almost as soon as he did, the leaves above them began moving too. So in an attempt at pre-emptively striking at what was undoubtedly another band of marauding woodland creatures or mana beasts, Griswold released a burst of solar mana from himself and into the surrounding area. Again making sure not to hit Hans and his golems, he could feel that his attack had hit something for sure as the wet tree tops heated up to the point where they more or less shriveled on the spot.
Knocking a total of six oversized chipmunks out of the trees above them, four of them had clearly taken the full brunt of the blast as they landed on the ground without any hair and second degree burns all over their bodies. In a way, it made Griswold feel sad for them, but he knew that these creatures were not exactly animals like the ones they were used to. They were being driven by whatever force controlled this dungeon into attacking them, even killing them if they got the chance. As such, there was no room for him feeling bad, the only feeling one had room for in here was the one that was willing to take lives with extreme prejudice. And that was something he was very much willing to do, especially when the things he faced had no room for forgiveness towards them either. Dungeons like these were vicious like that.
As the remaining two squirrels landed, it seemed that whatever they had going on in the treetops had paid off as a rain of large acorns and nuts began coming down on them. Not really having the means by which to protect himself from it, he fully prepared to take the hit and continue on towards the remaining two. However, it seemed they had different plans altogether as they both made their way straight towards Hans.
Tldr: Griswold uses Solar Burst to kill the remainder of the enemies. Moved into the next area. Figured out the general idea behind the dungeon and scouted out some large, seemingly alive mushrooms up ahead.
POWER 120 DURABILITY 2 SENSORY 60 STAMINA 41 CONTROL 52 MANA 125 (135 - 20 - 20 + 30)
Spells Used: Name of Spell: Solarburst | Lunarburst Elemental Type: Solar Rank & Spell Type: Intermediate | Attack Creation | Sensory Range & Speed: 20 meters | 20 m/s Mana Cost: 20 mana | 10 mp sustain Stats Effected: +4 Power Applicable Perks: “Overpowered” Description: Solar(Lunar)burst is a burst spell that uses the caster as the epicenter, moving outward in a 20 meter radius. The burst of solar magic creates a bright amount of light that will blind anyone looking at it within the range of the spell according to the "blinding" rules. Crossing the distance in the blink of an eye, it deals an Intermediate amount of solar damage while knocking those hit by it back for 4 meters + an additional 5 meters for every 10 power the user possesses. Using the ammo rules, the caster is capable of preventing allies of being hit by the burst. During the day, the spell takes on an orange hue, taking on a silver blue hue after dark.
Name of Spell: Solar flare | Lunar swirl Elemental Type: Solar Rank & Spell Type: Intermediate – Attack Creation Range & Speed: 40 meters (20m AoE) | 20 m/s (AoE does not extend out of Max rank range) Mana Cost: 20 mp | 10 mp sustain Stats Effected: +4 to Power Applicable Perks: “Overpowered” Description: A spell that was not so much designed to be used in one on one combat, but rather to limit the amount of terrain advantages one might have over the user. By compressing and firing a small bolt of sun(moon)fire similar in appearance to “Sun(Moon)bolt”, this spell either travels its given distance or collides with a solid surface, causing it to erupt in a burst of flame. As it sets flammable terrain, objects and living beings on fire, it can quickly turn a building used by someone to hide or hole up in from a safe haven into a furnace one will want to quickly escape. For every 20 control, the user is capable of firing an additional sphere in the same salvo, thus following the "ammo" rules. During the day, the spell takes on an orange hue, taking on a silver blue hue after dark.
Heart of the Forest
Rank & Element: Senior ¦ World Tree Class & Type: Magic ¦ Weapon Magic Specializations: Attack Creation ¦ Restraining Appearance & Lore: This bastard sword is rumoured to have been crafted by the first witch queen and held by a hidden glade guard within the witches forest, whether this is true is not is still up for speculation even amongst witches. The hilt is made of a specialized iron wood that had been treated to make it stronger, while the blade is said to be the crystalized spirit of the forest itself.
Type & Uses: Trigger ¦ 6 Uses Rank & Specialization: Senior ¦ Attack Creation ¦ Restraining Mana Cost: 24 Per Trigger ¦ 45 Recharge Range & Speed: 80m ¦ 40 m/s Stats Affected: -5 m/s, -10 mana, -50% cast limit Description: With a single swing of the sword twisting thorned root seems to escape the sword and aim to restrain the enemy by wrapping around one of the limbs, if this succeeds not only will it do senior rank damage but will cut the persons spell limit by half. Debuff their speed by 5 m/s and reduce their mana regeneration by 10 each round. To get free of the restraint you need to do senior rank damage to it. With every 50 the holder has in control they will be able to make an additional root each time this ability is triggered.
"When you spend so long trapped in darkness, you find that the darkness begins to stare back."
The duo was now heading north, and the first thing Hans noticed was how thick the trees were getting, making this path a little more narrow than the previous ones. The dark mage silently wondered about the nature of this dungeon, specifically why it formed some sort of nature theme. This only made him think more about dungeons in general, and why some of them form one way while others form another. So far, every dungeon that Hans has come across has been unique in themes and enemies. It served to remind Hans just how unpredictable mana can be. No two dungeons are the same...just like ki. Everyone's ki was different, that also goes for the ki of non-living things. With such a difference between everything, a blind person could even see if their ki senses are sharp enough. This is what Hans enjoys about being able to sense ki, is that he can truly be in touch with his surroundings, get a better feel of things...and even read the emotions of others at times.
This wasn't the only thing on the dark mage's mind though. At this point, Hans believes that he has a better understanding of how Griswold handles his magic in combat. The elf seems to have good control over his magic as he's able to avoid harming the dark mage when using wide-area spells. Admittedly, Hans does not have the same control over his own magic which is why most of his spells do not cover an area. He focuses on making his spells simple enough and easy to control to not harm allies, but make them effective enough to deal with the strongest of threats. The dark mage believes that such control over area spells lies within a mage's sensory. They must be able to properly feel and sense their mana to be able to control it in such a way which is something that the dark mage is lacking in, unfortunately. Hans had felt his sensory deteriorating over time which started off subtle...which would soon become a lot more obvious. This was another reason that the merc learned how to sense ki, to counter his growing weakness. He still isn't quite sure why his sensory had started failing him...but he did notice that this was happening as his magic got stronger. The dark mage needed to research this still, but it could wait.
As the dark mage continued to traverse this new area, he glanced down at the various acorn shells and nuts riddling the leaf-covered ground. This was something most people would normally see on the ground during autumn other than the crunchy orange-colored leaves. It also meant that squirrels or chipmunks were in the area, something that Hans didn't think much of when he probably should've given the nature of this dungeon and its previous beasts.
Griswold wasn't the only one to hear things. "Yeah..." Hans kept his answer short and simple to avoid adding more noise. The rustling above the two had stopped the moment they stopped walking, but Hans wasn't fooled. He looked up, and sensed six ki signatures that stuck out. There was no reason to warn Griswold as it appears that he already suspected something. The dark mage just glanced over at his partner as he unleashed more of his solar magic which made its way to the suspicious trees. Just like that, Griswold was able to stir these creatures out of their hiding spots, killing most of them in the process!
As they fell to the ground, Hans was able to see what they truly were, squirrel-like mana beasts which explain the acorns everywhere.
"Nice." Is all that Hans could say, still impressed by the elf's control over his magic. The dark mage's attention quickly went back to the trees however as they started rustling again with a lot more aggression. Acorns were now raining down to the ground...and towards the duo! This was probably what the beasts were attempting from the start, trying to hit the mages with a surprise attack just like those faerie beasts in the previous season. But unlike before, Hans was a little more prepared.
"Sinister Protection..."
Hans muttered the magic words, causing his dark grimoire to turn back a few pages before being surrounded in that dark aura again. A simple dark outline formed around Hans and after that he quickly rose a palm up in Griswold's direction, coating him in the same dark outline. The raining acorns would either bounce off or break upon impact with the mages, not harming them at all. Hans honestly didn't think he would need to use any defense spells here, not even his weakest one, but it looks like he was wrong. At least he gets to give a small demonstration on how durable his dark magic is...
Hans also placed the same spell over his still intact sword-like golem, but he, unfortunately, couldn't stretch this spell out far enough to protect the already damaged golem. That golem took a bit more damage, causing it to falter a bit, but it managed to keep afloat.
With this handled, Hans was able to give the two incoming squirrels his full attention. They were coming in fast, moving at the same speed as the dark mage currently! But this wasn't a problem for Hans.
Timing it just right, the dark mage performed a spin kick on one of the squirrels as they were in mid-leap, sending it flying back with a tiny squeal! He then caught the second incoming squirrel by the tail, and chucked it into the air and as it started to fall back down, Hans used his mana tether to send his damaged golem flying across, slicing right through that squirrel! It then fell to the ground...in two pieces. That was one squirrel down, but the other still remained.
After getting itself together, the remaining squirrel targeted the damaged golem and struck! With one strong bite to the blade, the golem shattered into pieces which formed back into a dark aura that flew back into the grimoire. Hans appeared to be slightly annoyed with it, but the expression was barely noticeable. Hans placed his hand on his sheathed katana and started walking slowly towards the small beast. It looked up at Hans menacingly, not faltering at the man's presence. "Attack." Hans commanded his remaining golem to strike, but it was too slow for the squirrel! The beast moved out of the way and then attempted to lunge at Hans, but just like before, it was pointless. Quickly drawing his sword, Hans chopped the thing in half just like he did with most of the previous enemies here. With that marks the end of these crooked critters.
"Hmm..." Hans then took his cloth out and gently wiped his sword again. "You're good at controlling your area spells." Hans claimed as he continued cleaning his sword. It was most likely clear that Griswold was already aware of this, but the dark mage felt that a proper compliment was due.
As this happened, more of those squirrels showed up, jumping tree from tree, with some of them eyeing the two from above. Whether they would attack or not was unclear, but either way, Hans was aware of their presence despite it not looking that way. He would be ready for them.
N O T E S
Floor 3 Room 2 WC: 1,993/2,500
(310 - 20 - 15 + 70 = 310 Mana)
T2 Ki Active (Speed reduced to 20 m/s)
Hans used Sinister Protection to protect himself, Griswold and his intact sword-like golem from the raining acorns
The already damaged sword golem suffered Int. Dmg from the falling acorns, leaving it at Jr Health
Killed one of the two remaining squirrels with the damaged golem, but the golem was destroyed by the other squirrel.
Name of Spell: Dark Golem Creation: Hunter's Blades Spell Element: Dark Spell Rank: Senior Mana Cost: 30 (Initial) - 15 (Sustain) Type of Golem: Balanced Applicable Perks: Ease of Creation, Armament Description:
With their grimoire, the user summons a dark sword golem(s) that resembles a hunter blade. Being a balanced type, this golem has no specific specialties, but can be used for various purposes like attacking with its blade or ridden on as a mode of transportation (speed remaining at 14 m/s, and can hold up to two people). Unlike most other golems of its type, it only stands up to 2 meters, but that does not make it any less intimidating. If not careful, it can harm allies with its sharp blades. (Can summon an additional golem per 30 Control (Ease of Creation), maxing at three.)
Name of Spell: Dark Magic: Sinister Protection Elemental Type: Dark Rank & Spell Type: Intermediate - Defense Creation Range & Speed: 40 meters - 25 m/s Mana Cost: 20 (Initial) - 10 (Sustain) Stats Effected: +6 Durability, (+10 Durability from Dark element) Applicable Perks: Self Repair, Quick Shot, Skilled Sniper Description: Using their grimoire, the user coats themselves and/or others with a dark aura the comes off more as a dark outline around them, simply serving as minor protection towards damage. When more than one of these are summoned, its durability buff will lower by one rank. (User can summon an additional one per 20 Control they have.)
WC 1,237 || TOTAL WC 7,923
TAGSGriswold ITEMS Dark Edge, Cosmic Blessing PERKS
[break]
[break]
[break]
[break]
[break]NUMBER OF AREAS: 1[break]
