#general
You locked your cat out??
Kitu Nilan
so I had to leave work to let my cat inside
yeah
most awkward moment in my life
but the police coming to check after someone called about potential animal abuse were very understanding
Teenam Mortana
I’M ALIVE BITCHES
Kitu Nilan
told me to be more careful not to lock my cat out next time
YO ITS REENAM
Chu Ghilon
i haven’t seen you in the guild cht in a while
Teenam Mortana
Work is so busy. sob sob The deadlines keep piling up.
Guild Leader Sorbanja
Aren’t you a freelancer? Just take less jobs
Vice Captain
You pay T’s rent, electricity and internet instead. Less work for T.
Doamannu Graolla
That’s a great idea! Teenam, start asking little lynxboy for $$ every month.
Guild Leader Sorbanja
WTF? No
Don’t encourage the fox!!
Vice Captain
I’ll help extort him every month if need be. Just give me some cash for the effort.
Kitu Nilan
i can
extortbeg leader for $$$?leader, pay my rent
see how friendly I am in my begging
give the money to me, or else
Guild Leader Sorbanja
NOT YOU. THE OTHER FOX. THE MOON FOX
Feni Kunas
Me??
I can get mlney??
Give it to me, Odyja
We’re good friends
Guild Leader Sorbanja
WRONG MOON FOX. THE OTHER ONE. THE MOON FOX BOY NOT MOON FOX GIRL
Also
Since when are we GOOD friends?
Teenam Mortana
You and I go way back, Leader. Help a weak little fox out, kitten
We’ll have a good time once you pay me, baby
Feni Kunas
Teenam, that sounds like a very different line of work
Teenam Mortana
I’m not picky. I still wouldn’t need to leave the house.
Papa Woohra
What a conversation to log into.
Teenam Mortana
Hi Papa!
Chu Ghilon
baby asleep?
Papa Woohra
Asleep
Chu Ghilon
vice captain said you might run a dungeon if i asked nicely. i need a party to carry me in dark cave. i don’t understand the mechanics and i got kicked twice.
am i asking nicely?
Papa Woohra
Sure. Let me log in.
Teenam Mortana
Look at our baby grow. Already asking Papa for help all on their own~
Papa Woohra
Wanna join?
Teenam Mortana
Sry, work
Kitu Nilan
im online to dps!!
He switched from out-of-game chat to open The Tales of Velkrinni and soon he could click on the character at level 357, with the knight job at level 68. The screen loaded with official art that had been released for the game over the years looping.
There were always at least two characters in the art. Very often in pairs of different classes or jobs. A Scout and a Thief. A Fighter and Rogue. An Alchemist and a Jeweller. A Wizard and a Sorcerer. A Leatherworker and an Armourer. Priest and a War Priest. A Mage and a Cleric. A Knight and Blood Knight. A Paladin and a Sentinel. A Bard and a Skald. A Knight and a Warrior.
Woohra Guorah soon appeared at the teleportation platform in S’daroa. The wolf avatar stretched.
You are now logged in.
[Guild] Woohra Guorah: I’m in.
[Guild] Woohra Guorah: Dark Cave was it?
[Guild] Chu Ghilon: yes!
[Guild] Woohra Guorah: Where are you?
[Guild] Chu Ghilon: {Toduunto} plaza
[Guild] Woohra Guorah: I’ll teleport over in a sec
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: im also there!
The job rune lit up and changed before the wolfkin’s knight armour change from black and simple to a different plate armour design with red marks. Instead of sword and shield, the wolf carried a halberd that glowed an eerie red colour.
He clicked the platform and found Toduunto.
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: Need a healer? Your husband Guura is in a raid.
[Guild] Chu Ghilon: ???
[Guild] Chu Ghilon: guura and woohra are married?
[Guild] Feni Kunas: No. They just have spent so many times as a main tank/support healer pair people called them married.
[Guild] Feni Kunas: They also joined the guild on the same day.
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: Entirely independent of each other and without knowing one another.
You have arrived in Toduunto.
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: Weren’t you just chatting off game? Can you keep track of more than one thing now?
[Guild] Feni Kunas: Come to think of it, can a bear and wolf mate?
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: Less stuff going on in that busy head?
A party invitation pop-up prompted Woohra to join, and he accepted. A party chat tab opened up but Woohra immediately switched back to guild chat.
Next to him a brown and red fox was running around him like a toddler on a sugar high, while a fae in a yellow and orange colour scheme stayed a little further away.
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: Or not.
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: never change feffie.
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: Did you really just literally ask if a bear and a wolf can **** each other?
[Guild] Feni Kunas: From a lore perspective. Can they?
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: Are you stupid?
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: How the **** would I know if the lore says a bear and a wolf can do the baby-making act?
[Guild] Feni Kunas: I’ll lok it up!
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: …
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: thats dedication to a bit alrigt
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: So… need a healer?
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: your going to ignore the lovemaking lore research?
[Guild] Woohra Guorah: Want to lvl a summon?
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: That’s the newest hyperfixation now, I guess. Leave it be.
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: I have students like that. It’s better to let them look it up and come to their own conclusions as long as it doesn’t cause them any harm.
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: Feni is an adult. I won’t stop an adult from researching something that might put them on some weird list.
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: @Woohra Guorah I got a few healer summons that are underleveled.
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: They’re between 15 and 32.
[Guild] Chu Ghilon: summons can heal?
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: some can. not all
[Guild] Woohra Guorah: If Chu is fine with extra members with a useless servant thta dies easily.
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: That’s the best description of me I’ve heard all year.
[Guild] Chu Ghilon: will vc really die??
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: No, I’ll stay standing. I’ll bring several summons so even if one or two gets knocked out, I can summon a new one.
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: In worst-case scenario, I have heals too and lots of hp potions. I just have no attack strength or attack skills.
[Guild] Chu Ghilon: oh ok i haven’t played with summons before so…
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: Teleporting to Toduunto.
Toduunto was a lively city. While Merteis and S’daroa were the only starter towns when the game initially launched, Toduunto was added later as an option when Brawler was added. Summoners started in Toduunto as well when they were added.
Any of this was hard to remember every time one saw the statues on either side of the plaza, if one knew the lore. On one side was The Lone Wolf, ready to take on the enemies with their fists, big and proud, and on the other was The Pack, featuring a summoner with four small wolf heads coming out of a cloud at the hind paws of the wolfkin towering above people.
[Party] Kitu Nilan: Toduunto. How does it feel to be back home?
[Party] Chu Ghilon: ??
[Party] Woohra Guorah: Strange. Doesn’t feel like home anymore. I’m more familiar with S’daroa.
[Party] Gituda Tuuk: I come back regularly to check in because all I know has been taught by my elders.
[Party] Gituda Tuuk: Oh, Kitu meant you.
[Party] Woohra Guorah: Oh, Kitu referred to you.
[Party] Gituda Tuuk: Toduunto is the wolf city of the south, wolf.
[Party] Woohra Guorah: But this is where you spent years to learn your craft, elf.
[Party] Chu Ghilon: i’m confused
[Party] Kitu Nilan: thats ok baby. theyre just immersed in lore
[Party] Kitu Nilan: LETS DO THIS IN VOICE CHAT
[Party] Kitu Nilan: oops accidental enthusiasm
[Party] Chu Ghilon: idk… haven’t before
[Party] Gituda Tuuk: I don’t mind.
[Party] Woohra Guorah: Baby is sleeping in my lap, but it’s fine if no one shouts.
[Party] Kitu Nilan: you play with the baby in your lap???
[Party] Woohra Guorah: Very good sleeping spot when Papa sits cross-legged, apparently.
[Party] Chu Ghilon: oh, that’s cute!
[Party] Gituda Tuuk: I can’t imagine the logistics of that position. How do you sit? Where do you place your arms?
[Party] Woohra Guorah: Baby is four months old. It’s not a big bundle.
[Party] Woohra Guorah: Fits really well in the space between my knees.
[Party] Woohra Guorah: I play with a controller while on the couch.
[Party] Woohra Guorah: Easy.
[Party] Chu Ghilon: that sounds so nice. is baby all snugged up in a blanket too?
[Party] Woohra Guorah: Yep
[Party] Gituda Tuuk: How do you even type?
[Party] Woohra Guorah: Screen casting to my phone.
[Party] Chu Ghilon: baby must love to be wrapped up and feels safe with papa.
[Party] Kitu Nilan: you sound like you have kids too
[Party] Chu Ghilon: no. i just like kids a lot. i like taking care of them.
[Party] Gituda Tuuk: So were we voice chatting or did Chu’s idk veto it?
[Party] Kitu Nilan: i veto the veto!
[Party] Woohra Guorah: Don’t do that. No one is forced to join voice or talk in it. It would be unfair to Chu if we three are in voice.
[Party] Gituda Tuuk: Why haven’t you been in voice chat before?
[Party] Chu Ghilon: no one asked
[Party] Chu Ghilon: and nerves
[Party] Gituda Tuuk: Kitu notwithstanding, Woohra and I are good people to do a first voice chat with. You don’t need to talk. You can just listen.
[Party] Woohra Guorah: It’s easier to explain mechanics too.
[Party] Chu Ghilon: what if its noisy in the background and I bother someone?
[Party] Kitu Nilan: you can mute your mic
[Party] Gituda Tuuk: When we played a difficult raid a while ago, we wiped while hearing Woohra’s baby wail in the background. We wiped because of the baby. Woohra had to feed it. But it was fine. It was still a fun run.
[Party] Chu Ghilon: oh. ok
[Party] Chu Ghilon: but can i leave if i don’t like it?
[Party] Woohra Guorah: No one is forced to be in a call. Text or call, we’re all capable of both.
[Party] Gituda Tuuk: Though not all can do both at once.
Woohra got invited to a call by Kitu—
“Hi Papa.”
“Hey there, fox kit. No need to whisper.”
—and soon Gituda was in the call too.
“Hi Papa and beautiful baby,” the vice captain said, voice steady. “Oh, and the fox too, I guess.”
“Hello to you too,” Kitu grumbled.
Woohra chuckled. “Hey Gituda. Sorry, I have to say it on baby’s behalf for several more years.”
It took a little while before the fae joined the call.
“Good time of your day,” Kitu said.
“Oh, um…” The voice was definitely that of someone very nervous. “Hi?”
“Hi,” Gituda replied.
“Hi,” Woohra echoed.
“I don’t know how this works.” The voice was trembling. This kid was definitely half-way to panic.
It did feel like it fit the vibe of the fae Woohra had chatted with a few times and seen far more messages by.
“You don’t sound as young as I thought you would be,” Woohra commented. “More like Gituda’s age.”
“Um…”
“I’m Gituda. And I’m pushing thirty… in a few more years.”
“Oh, um, I’m actually twenty-eight,” Chu Ghilon said. Then followed up with, clearly curious, “You’re younger?”
“Twenty-four,” Gituda confirmed.
“I thought you were older. Like, closer to forty-four. No offense.”
Gituda chuckled at Chu Ghilon’s comment. “I get that a lot.”
“I had the impression you’ve played for some time…”
“I was introduced as a teen by someone I know offline,” Gituda replied lightly.
“For the record, I’m thirty-three, turning thirty-four,” Woohra said. “Oh, and I’m Papa and I got baby right here. The bundle is still snoozing so no hellos from baby just yet.”
“I don’t want to say my age,” Kitu replied. “You’re all so young. Especially Vice Cap.”
“Well, that already says a lot, Kitu,” Gituda pointed out.
“So, um… how does this work?”
“First, who’s party leader? Send us into the dungeon for now,” Woohra asked.
“On it!” Kitu replied and a moment later there was a pop up in game.
“Okay, so, we’ll do like this,” Gituda said before explaining the basics of how the guild used voice calls in dungeon runs.
“So, if I have questions, I can just ask?” Chu Ghilon asked after a moment of silence.
“Yep,” Woohra replied. “I can explain general mechanics, but Vice Cap is best to ask for DPS advice.”
“What about me?” Kitu asked.
“You can just be quiet and listen too,” Woohra replied. “You frequently die on low-level dungeons too.”
“Hey! I’m a dancer. We’re not made for the battlefield.”
“Dancers in Velkrinni are literally doing war dances and use weapons to intimidate and injure. You’re more made for battlefield than me and my summons,” Gituda pointed out. “I’m just here with my cute pets.”
“Cute like that creepy doll?” Kitu asked.
“Rosalie is not a doll,” Gituda replied. “And she’s very cute.”
“Fine, puppet. That’s still not a pet.”
“Rosalie is a living puppet. That makes her a pet. She has feelings.”
Kitu had a smile in his voice as he asked, “And why is she alive?”
“Let’s not talk about that,” Gituda responded calmly. “Before Woohra pulls, let me cast a few buffs.”
The elf Beast Tamer on the screen summoned forth a small white fox spirit and then a flower spirit to have them cast buffs while Gituda himself cast Velkrinni’s Blessing and Embrace to increase the HP temporarily and to take less damage.
“Um…Can I ask…?”
“Sure,” Woohra responded
“Kitu is a Dancer, and Vice Captain is a summoner—”
“Beast Tamer, specifically,” Gituda interjected.
“—but what is Woohra? It looks like a Knight but I haven’t seen those markings on a Knight before.”
“A Blood Knight,” Woohra replied.
“What’s that?”
“Blood Knights are the opposition to Paladins. Where Paladins are Fighters who swear an oath to protect Mother through prayer and blessings, Blood Knights make sacrifices. They offer their own life… or someone else’s,” Gitudaexplained as his pets were unsummoned and two more were summoned to cast other buffs.
“Blood Knights also absorb enemies,” Woohra added, not wanting to sound that much of a villain. “Buffs done?”
“Yes.”
“Alright. I’mma pull now. Kitu, don’t die.”
“Woohra! Why am I singled out?? I’ve played this before!” Kitu protested.
“So just don’t die.”
“Quiet, you two. Blood Knights skills are very strong, but most of them require HP as a source. Playing with a Blood Knight can be a gamble,” Gituda continued to explain as they began moving through the long corridors of the Dark Cave of the Fallen God. “Ya-nya plays it like a madman. Dead in a few minutes if the healer isn’t proactive unless he uses his party’s life instead of his own.”
“Ya-nya?”
“That’s the nickname we have for the Guild Leader,” Woohra explained.
In game, he howled to stack aggro to keep the enemies focussed on him before the Blood Knight swung the halberd.
“Odyja Sorbanja,” Kitu expanded further.
The Dancer spun before lashing with a whip. It gave most magical damage. The little Rogue stabbed and stabbed with what looked like nothing more than a small needle next to Woohra.
“Papa plays it with the tradeoffs in mind,” Gituda added. “Though you could have picked Knight instead.”
“Playing a level 168 Knight in a level 21 dungeon is a bit of a waste of resources. I’m only level 39 on Blood Knight, so the downscaling of the job won’t feel as hard.”
“True. I sometimes forget that’s a problem people have.”
“How can you forget??” Kitu was incredulous.
“How many summons I can have is tied the rune I use,” Gituda explained, “and I can just choose not to use a summon above the level cap, and they won’t scale down. I already don’t have any attack power, so only my heal spells get scaled down.”
“Oh, that makes sense,” Chu Ghilon said.
Kitu was lost. “Does it?”
“Rosalie and Jerry scale down in this dungeon so I won’t use them. I use a weaker pet.”
They continued down the corridor to get more small fry.
“Ohh. I think I got it.”
“Rosalie and… Jerry?” Chu Ghilon asked, confused.
“I let the guild decide what my second drakeling would be called. They chose Jerry. The full name was supposed to be Jerry from Tech Support, but it’s far too many characters, so it’s Jerry.”
Woohra grunted to restrain the laugh that threatened to rise up.
“Chu, have you unlocked Sneak or Ambush yet?” Gituda asked, without warning.
“Ambush, yeah.”
“Move behind the boss coming up next,” Woohra said. “Wait until I have its attention and take the long way around. It’s fine if you take your time, just get up behind before there are any adds. Then use the skill when you’re close up and personal with the enemy’s back.”
“Why can’t I do that?” Kitu asked.
“You’re a dancer. You’re supposed to be performing for your audience, not behind your audience’s back,” Gitudareplied dryly. “Your intimidation skill only works if you’re within an enemy’s line of sight.”
“I have an intimidation skill? Where? I’ve never seen it in the skill tree!”
Gituda sighed audibly. “It’s passive and you gain it automatically when you’re past level thirty, I think.”
“Really?”
“Really. Check the skills, but only while we explain the mini-boss to Chu.”
The last enemy of the second pull fell.
Woohra hummed as he looked through the battle log. “Hey, Vice Cap, are you using the Rune of Commands?”
“No. It’s with Yeria Quur to have an upgrade to tier seven and eight after the patch added the possibility to have five summons. There wasn’t enough material, but I said I didn’t need it back right away. I’m playing with the Rune of Healing. Why?”
“Oh, I was just wondering. I tried to make a small sacrifice using your summon.”
“You did what?”
“It missed, so the attack just took my HP. It was only a level one sacrifice to Mother.”
“You used my summon?”
“It gives bonus experience,” Woohra realised the issue then. “Not the fox kit. The flower spirit. I didn’t touch the actual pet.”
“Oh, okay. Then it’s fine. If you want to try sacrificing summons, I got a higher level you can try it on. You want to use it on the last boss of the dungeon?”
Woihra chuckled. “You know me too well.”
“Why use a sacrifice on the last boss?” Kitu asked.
“…You really need to learn the mechanics of the bosses,” Gituda sighed. “You better listen closely while I teach the fae. You’ll have no excuses about dying in Dark Cave ever again after that.”
“Those are some high expectations, Vice Cap,” Kitu said lightly.
“With you, yes. Yes, it is. They’re so high they reach way past the canopy of the Mother Tree.”
“Why does that feel like an insult?”
This made Chu Ghilon burst into laughter. It was this very genuine, contagious type of laughter that had Woohrasnorting within seconds.
It seemed the kid had finally relaxed.
Chu Ghilon was actually quick to learn. If he got a bit of guidance, he figured out what to do and when.
…very unlike the brown fox who was causing problems and trying to brute force everything.
It was likely that Chu Ghilon was kicked by poor mentors, Woohra concluded. Or rather, they expected a newbie to know the mechanics because they didn’t know them either. Although it wasn’t many, due to how the game refused to nerf the earlier content, there were always people who didn’t know the mechanics and simply refused to learn. Chu Ghilon had the misfortune to encounter someone like that twice in an early dungeon. Chu Ghilon was an enthusiastic learner, and that was a benefit even if he made mistakes sometimes.
He was about to tell the kid this when he heard Gituda say, “Oh. It’s that time of the month,” in a serious tone.
“You mean your period?” Kitu asked.
“What? No!” Gituda exclaimed in clear knee-jerk indignation. The elf then added, confused, when seeming to process the suggestion. “What??”
“It sounded like you just realised it’s that time of the month for you.”
“I don’t have the biological time of the month, thank you very much,” Gituda said indignantly. “It’s the special items time of month.”
Woohra glanced at the time. “Oh, it’s already time for the weekly report?”
“Yeah. Yeria Quur posted the specifications for who is allowed to use the special items in the guild chest.”
“Oh!” Kitu exclaimed. “That time of the month! What are the specifications?”
“We’re in a dungeon run. Let’s get going,” Woohra reminded them. “Also, keep it down. Don’t wake up my little baby.”
“Sorry.” Gituda was quiet for a beat. “Hope baby stays asleep.”
“Still sound asleep. Let’s get this done. I need to start cooking dinner soon,” Woohra said as he moved toward the next boss. “Chu, make use of Ambush during the next boss. A Sunburst can help too after that. Kitu, you… just stay out of the way and swing your weapon, or something.”
“Why are the instructions to me so vague when you tell me what to do?”
“Because you don’t listen well to instructions,” Gituda said. “You have Whirlwind Stance, right? Use that. If you can, use your rogue skills as much as possible, too.”
Soon they were in the middle of the boss battle and the first thing Kitu did was essentially get one-shot by an AoE, and Gituda already had enough on his hands, so he didn’t try to resurrect the Dancer, and let Kitu complain in their ears until he eventually had enough seconds to find the resurrect item.
“That’s the fifth time already,” Gituda commented. “You need better armour.”
“Armour is for the weak,” Kitu replied proudly.
Chu Ghilon’s softer voice came through, “I would say you look pretty weak right now.”
Kitu sputtered and fell quiet.
Now and then Gituda or Woohra would give a command but it was otherwise quiet following this.
Until Chu suddenly asked, “Um… can I ask something? It’s not about the dungeon or anything.”
“Sure. Shoot away.”
“Who exactly is Yeria Quur? I’ve seen the name floating around and seen one or two messages by the character, but that’s it.”
“Our crafter,” Gituda replied. “But we don’t really know much. The character comes online at very specific times to gather, craft and make announcements about what they added — regular items or rarer or event items — to the chest once a month. That’s all we really know. Yeria Quur was part of the guild before I was, and I’ve only had exchanges for when I need something. The replies are always short, if any at all.”
“The character will sell items to you under market value. They also restock potions. As long as you aren’t stressing Yeria Quur, you can also request them to do something for you for a small fee, like getting upgrades.”
Woohra quickly switched to check the Guild chat right after he cast a larger attack that would use half of his HP to hit harder. After a little bit of scrolling, he found what he was looking for. He glanced at the screen between tanking and tracking what others did.
[Guild] Yeria Quur: SPECIAL ITEMS
[Guild] Yeria Quur: If you do not fall within the following requirements, taking any of the items is prohibited.
[Guild] Yeria Quur: Character lvl 20-45, any class, job no higher than lvl 5.
[Guild] Yeria Quur: {Earrings of Solar Flare}, lvl 20-30, upgraded to maxiumum, fae only item, fire and light damage increase 10%, experience boost 32%, water resistance increased because imbued water stone, HQ, ultra rare, tradable, unsellable.
[Guild] Yeria Quur: {Sword of the Aurora}, lvl 30-38, upgrade tier 3, chance of frozen 5%+crit bonus, HQ, legendary, untradable, unsellable.
[Guild Yeria Quur: {Spellbook}, lvl 44, upgrade tier 5, purple, suitable for Dark Mage and Necromancer, voidkin preferable, imbued with healing stone and dark stone, HQ, legendary, tradeable, sellable.
Woohra kept scrolling out of curiosity and paused at one of the later entries. In the long list of items.
[Guild] Yeria Quur: {Fireglade Blade}, level 20+, upgradeable, can be imbued, rogue and fighter only, HQ, crafter only recipe — mythic rarity, unsellable, untradable, can be dyed. For the fae with a small but important anniversary. Will accept immediate requests for customisation of item.
“Hey. How many fae does the guild have?” he asked as he felt the controller shake as the boss fell.
“Uh… five… six… eight, maybe,” Kitan suggested.
“Less than the amount of foxes, even with Chu and counting all of them,” Gituda said. “Why?”
“What level are you now, Chu?”
“I’ll probably hit level 20 after this dungeon, I think.”
“And how long have you played?” Woohra asked.
“Me? Uh… ten, eleven weeks or so, I suppose? I don’t have much time to play, though. Work is brutal.”
“You should check the guild log and the guild chest. You’re outgrowing your gear. You might find something that works for you. If you do, make sure to take it, no matter what it is.”
Chu Ghilon sounded confused, but still said, “Okay??”
The wolf made a trick emote with the halberd. “Race to the final boss, I think baby will want formula soon. Go!”
The Blood Knight sprinted ahead to pull while the other three scramble to come along, unprepared.
And that… was fine.