Artisan Knight 3. Combat Skills

The streets of Gram were pretty much like the picture at the character creation screen had shown him. Of course, now that he stood in the city in person the aesthetic of the city was only more pronounced to him. He frequently found himself stopping and admiring the carvings on the walls and the statues that lined the streets, coming off as some sort of exaggerated Greek society of sorts. That, mixed with the technology like holographic screens and even a number of vending machines between buildings, gave off a modern fantasy feel that was equal parts familiar and magical.

According to his map he was currently walking through the residential district. Where the majority of the buildings in Gram generally went downwards into the ground, the residential district was marked by buildings that shot towards the sky. NPCs and players alike preferred a view rather than the bunker-style design of the rest of its infrastructure. A concession made at the cost of protection, according to the lore. Of course, Gabriel guessed that the real reason was the the developers wanted to show off their artistic skills, since the residential buildings were given a clear, unmarred view of the valley walls that surrounded the city, separated a bit by the thick forest just outside the city walls. 

The valley walls themselves were not left untouched, for numerous carvings were spread out across its canvas. They seemed to tell a story, starting with a depiction of some wayward travelers arriving in the valley. It then transitioned to the same travelers in combat with monsters that Gabriel couldn't quite name but were familiar nonetheless. The monsters ranged from grotesquely large wolves to wyverns and even large worm-like creatures that were covered in scales. Eventually, the carvings grew peaceful, depicting scenes of celebration in what he assumed was Gram itself.

He eventually realized that it was a depiction of the settling the city, though the work on the valley wall seemed to just be getting started. The latter half of the walls were littered in scaffoldings and numerous people hanging off ropes working in other carvings, and there was still plenty of room on the other side to tell the city’s story. It was awe inspiring, and Gabriel was content to sit down at a nearby bench and admire the sight before moving on.

Like anything else in Gram, the apartment buildings themselves were a sight to behold. They were light in design embellishments on its walls, but the white stone construction of the building stool in clear contrast to the staggered hanging gardens that were on each floor of the building. The windows were large as well, spanning the face of the building to the extent that the only stone that could be seen were tiny slivers between the glass. This was only one side of the building, as the rest was covered by white stones.

He was unsure of the number of buildings, but from what he could see they were laid out in a pattern of concentric circles. There was a tall middle building, Complex A, according to the map, and  the surrounding buildings gradually got shorter so as to not the inhibit the views of the buildings in the inner circle. Filling in the space between these buildings were various landscaping projects, presumably from other players, that made the entire zone feel like a mix between a city park and an apartment complex.

    Gabriel’s apartment was located in Complex X, one of the outer buildings of the zone. Next to it, there was a particularly large zen garden, its lines through the sands untouched and wrapping around the many rocks that littered the area, and a small stream running through it. He could have sworn he saw some koi fish swimming in it, but didn’t get closer to look. Across from that, there was what looked like a stone paved, Greek-inspired garden with a still pond in the center of it, surrounded by a number of pillars and overgrown with ivy. An interesting contrast, for sure, but oddly fitting considering his environment. He walked into Complex X, and was greeted by a rather minimalistic interior. There were no other players in lobby, strangely enough, and when his boots knocked against the ground it echoed through the room. He didn’t take much time to look around the lobby, and opted to head straight his room on the top floor.

His apartment was, like the interior of the building, minimalistic in style. He guessed this was on purpose, so it would be left up to the player to customize their own apartment how they want to. To his surprise, however, the layout was just like an apartment he’d find in the real world. He supposed that shouldn’t have really been that much of a shock, but he’d been used to player houses in other games to be rather… lax on the details. The largest room was his living room, which was large enough that he would be able to hold a pretty big party, if he was into that sort of thing. This room was also the one with the large window, giving him a good view of the city down below. There was nothing in this room, yet, and he suspected if he wanted any furniture he’d have to get it himself. His bedroom was very much the same, except that there was a small bed in the corner. He didn’t know what he’d need it for in a videogame, but he’d supposed that he’d find out soon enough. There was also a small chest at the foot of the bed, when he opened it another menu screen popped up, similar to the inventory screen from his Smart Box. It held a total of 120 inventory slots, which seemed generous for a beginning chest, not that he was complaining. There was also a bathroom and kitchen, both pretty sizable, but there wasn’t much beyond the usual appliances that he was all that interested in.

His survey of his apartment done, he decided to stop by the Barracks to take Dom up on his advice. The Barracks were, like the residential district, a mish mash of different aesthetics that, for the most part, fit together pretty well. It was sectioned off from the rest of the city by a large stone wall, and while the wall itself suited a western castle wall, the embellishments and designs in the interiors felt more at place at some sort of imperial palace. It wasn’t a large area, not even taking up a tenth of the city map, but it was bustling with activity. There was a large center area, where a large amount of who he assumed were other players were going over basic drills. There was a group going through motions with swords, others firing guns at targets, and a final group going through a number of simple punches and kicks. There was a ring in the center, surrounded by a waist high stone wall. It was big enough to hold two combatants, and was currently occupied by a couple of people wrestling on the ground. As a general curiosity he observed the match, but his attention was more drawn to the supervisor, an Infernal woman who was sitting cross legged on the wall across from him. She rested her chin on her hands, held up by a rather long wooden training sword. She had silver hair, and an eyepatch lay over her right eye. Her tail poked through the back of her cargo pants, and she wore a tan t-shirt that wrapped around toned, muscular arms.

    “Quinn, lower your stance, Marius over there keeps shooting at your legs because you’re leaving them exposed. The lower you are the more leverage you have.”

    “Yes Instructor.” One of the men said. He took in a deep breath before sinking lower to the ground.

    The two resumed their match, and Gabriel walked around the ring, approaching the woman. His Smart Box wasn’t vibrating or glowing, meaning that she wasn’t a player.

    “May I help you?” she said without looking at him.

    “I’m actually looking for a Cera, Dom told me she could teach me a few things.”

    “Oh? If Dom said it then he must have seen something in you. You a military man?”

    “I’ve got some experience, yeah,” he said, giving a shrug.

    She turned to him, her eyebrow quirked up as she looked him up and down, “You carry yourself like one.”

    He wasn’t sure how much of that was a scripted response or a result of the NPC’s own nutrition, but either way it was very surreal.

    “Old habits die hard I guess.”

    She smirked, “Can you fight?

    He smiled back, “A bit, why do you ask?”

    “Because I’m trying to decide if you’ll be worth teaching or not.”

    “Oh, I guess that makes you Cera then.”

    “The one and only,” Cera said, hopping off the wall and clapping her hands, “Alright Quinn, you’re done for now, I want to see what this guy here can do.”

    Quinn nodded and walked to the edge of the ring. Cera motioned to Gabriel, which triggered a window to pop up in front of him.

+++

Quest: Combat Demonstration

Cera wishes to test your skills. Will you accept?

Yes/No

Rewards:

Combat Skill: Hand to Hand Combat

+++

    He selected yes and stepped over the wall, taking off his jacket and hanging it over the stones. Cera motioned the other combatant, Marius, to the center of the ring

    “You’re gonna be sparring with Marius here. Last a minute with him and I’ll show you the ropes. Think you can handle that?”

    Gabriel nodded and looked over his opponent. Marius was built, but more in the lean sense, meaning that the most likely capitalized on speed and precision. His Smart Box wasn’t having a reaction to him either, so he was also an NPC. Marius settled into a stance, digging his feet into the soft sand of the arena. He wasn’t sure what martial arts it belonged to, but he’d been taught not concern himself with such things. He raised his hands in front of him, keeping his muscles tense but not rigid.

    Gabriel struck first, a quick jab to the face that Marius barely managed to dodge. Marius threw a punch in response, but he was anticipating the move. He caught the blow at the elbow and wrapped around his opponent. The movement was quick, taking less than a second before Gabriel had his arm wrapped around Marius’s throat.

    “Enough,” Cera said, “You obviously know what you’re doing.”

    Gabriel let Marius go, who rubbed his neck with a groan.

    “I know a little bit,” Gabriel said with a shrug.

    “Yeah well you can always do with a bit of practice, what’s your name?”

   

+++

Combat Skill: Hand-to-Hand

Hand-to-Hand combat is considered a gateway to a variety of combat skills, and is something every adventurer must have if they wish to survive out in the wilds.

Level 1 Proficiency:

5% Increase in damage to bare handed attacks

Will you accept this skill?

Yes/No

+++

    He selected yes and looked up at Cera, “It’s Gabriel, but Gabe will do just as well.”

    “Well then Gabe, follow me and let's take a look a what we have for you.”

    Cera motioned for him to follow, and guided him over to the walls of the Barracks. She led him inward to a large iron door with the word ‘Armory’ painted over it. She punched a combination into the keypad next to the door, making it slide open and giving way to a large room that was a mix between something he would have seen on the set of Lord of the Rings and Starship Troopers. A variety of guns, some small and familiar, some large and outlandish, hung from the walls on magnetic pads, while a number of melee weapons were displayed on racks at the center of the room. A further ways away, at the far end of the room, he saw some suits of armor on display. The looked most similar to power armor, but their designs were inspired by old knight and samurai armor alike. Cera looked over the weapon racks, hand on her chin as she hummed to herself. She plucked a broadsword from one of the racks and passed it at Gabe. He caught the blade by its scabbard, a smooth black sheath that had a clip that would attach easily to his belt.

    “Draw it,” Cera said.

    He did, the satisfying sliding noise ringing in his ears as he did so. The blade of the sword was simple, barely the width of three fingers with a smooth fuller down the middle. The guard of the blade was straight, and covered the width of his hand. There was a denseness to it, but one that felt balanced in his hand.

    “Looks like it suits you good,” Cera said with a satisfied smile, “Unless you’d like to look around some more.”

   

+++

Broadsword

Stats:

+5 to Attack

40/40 Durability

A simple broadsword that is standard issue to the Gram city guard. Functional, but a weapon that fades quickly in the travels of an adventurer.

Will you accept this weapon?

Yes/No

+++

    Gabe was not familiar with the use of swords. The urge to use one wasn’t something he was all that big on in the real word, but he was always open to new experiences. He selected yes and sheathed the blade, clipping it to his belt. Another window popped up as he did.

+++

Combat Skill: Swordsmanship

Versatility and efficiency are the principles of the Gram swordsman. Proficiency in swordsmanship opens increases effectiveness with swords as well the opportunity to utilize future synergies with other skills and weapons.

Level 1 Proficiency:

5% increase in damage with swords.

Will you accept this skill?

Yes/No

+++

The term synergies raised some questions, but Gabe decided to look that up later. He hit yes again.

    “Gonna need some instruction on this one,” Gabe said, patting the new weapon at his waist.

    “That’s what I’m here for, now let’s get you a ranged weapon…”

    “Mind if I look for that myself? I’m pretty particular about my guns you know.”

    She shrugged, “Sure, take a look, marksmanship is something you gotta refine yourself for the most part anyways…”

    He scanned the pads on the walls, taking in the arsenal that was available. From what he could assume, marksmanship was a skill that would apply to all of these weapons, but it was mainly up to the player to decide which type of weapon they’d like to use. He could be wrong, so as he scanned the weapons he kept in mind that he could be stuck with whatever he chose for quite a while. It was a daunting task, especially since each weapon he looked at was enticing in its own way. Of course they would all be beginners weapons, like his broadsword, so the odds of finding something overpowered were pretty low. There were shotguns, assault rifles, pistols, even a grenade launcher, or something that he thought was a grenade launcher. His eyes were at first drawn to a small folded up weapon that sat at the corner of a pad. When he picked it up, in unfolded into the shape of a bow. It wasn’t quite a compound bow, but there were more bells and whistles to it than a simple longbow at the same time, giving it a distinctly futuristic feel. There was no bowstring, but that was solved when Gabe pressed a button on the side of the bow a string of solid light blue energy materialized at the the nocks of the weapon. He tugged at it experimentally, eyes widening as an arrow of the same energy materialized, ready to fire. He slowly returned the string to its resting position, and the arrow dissipated into the air.

+++

Energy Bow

Stats:

+5 to Attack

40/40 Durability

Advances in technology have eliminated the need to quivers in Gram, but the use of bows is still a relatively rare practice in the industrial city, making this a weapon of intrigue rather than practicality.

Will you accept this weapon?

Yes/No

+++

    Tempting as it was to appear unique in Gram by using a bow, the weapon didn’t feel right in Gabe’s hands. He selected no and put the weapon back onto the magnetic pad. No, he preferred something he was familiar with already. To that effect, he picked up an assault rifle, one that was similar in aesthetic to an M27 assault rifle, but with a few differences. The iron sights were replaced by two thin pieces of metal that, when he pressed a button near the safety, emitted a small reticle like a holographic scope, and instead of a solid black color it had pieces of a white, metallic substance dispersed throughout the frame.

+++

N32 Automatic Rifle

Stats:

+5 to Attack

40/40 Durability

0/3 Attachment Slots in use

Perhaps a result of practicality, the N32 has been in the service of Gram for decades. The weapon is ideal for mid to far range combat, and is capable of switching between single shot and automatic fire. There are no frills to this weapon, but it’s effectiveness makes it staple of both the city guard and adventurers alike.

Will you accept this weapon?

Yes/No

+++

    Gabe moved the window out of his way for a moment and shifted his feet, settling into a shooting stance. Keeping his finger off of the trigger, he looked through the sights of the rifle. The solid energy sights were easy to focus on, and the weapon itself was a comfortable weight.

    “Looks like you’re familiar with that,” Cera said, an inquisitive tone to her statement.

    Gabe brought the weapon down and examined it some more. “Yeah, you could say that.
He hit yes on the window, prompting another one to pop up.

+++

Combat Skill: Assault Rifle Proficiency

No tricks, no frill, just you and your gun. Proficiency in assault rifles increases their effectiveness and opens synergies with other skills and weapons.

Level 1 Proficiency:

5% increase in damage to Assault Rifles.

Will you accept this skill?

Yes/No

+++

    Holding the assault rifle over his smart box, he selected Yes on the window as his gun digitized into his inventory. Adjusting his gloves, he looked up at Cera.

    “Now then, mind if we start some training?”

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