NOVEL WEB 16 - Leaving Biltmore
Chapter 16: Leaving Biltmore
Edward was the first person I released from the cells. He then told me all this information as he helped me free the other villagers. This explanation as we freed the other villagers allowed me to form a rough plan. I am assuming that the “Great Game” or whoever is in charge will alter memories to explain a new village like they have done for everything else. So know I just need to get them to the village. That should be easy enough, a couple of little white lies, some phone calls and money should take care of the transportation.
“Alright Edward, here is what we are going to do. Technology in my world still works for another month, so you might see some unusual things. I need you to inform all of the villagers and warn them not to look too surprised. Next, do you all have access to the inventory system?”
“Yes my lord we all have inventory. It is given to everyone over the age of 8. Your level and class determines how large it is so there is some variety among the villagers.”
“Excellent, then here is the plan. We are going to take everything that we can fit into our inventories before we leave this dungeon. 20% or 2 out of every 10 items that you grab will be donated to the kingdom. Everything else is yours to keep as compensation for having to go through this ordeal.”
Looking completely bewildered Edward asked, “My lord, are you sure?”
“What, am I asking for too much?”
“No my lord you are very generous. Never would I have expected this much consideration.”
“Edward you need to understand something about me. First off I have more than I need, I will only take a minimum because I feel that it is only fair that you help provide funding for defense and protection in the kingdom. I will set taxes low, but I expect everyone in my kingdom to help each other out so we can grow stronger and stay safe. I will only adjust these policies under special circumstances. Second, I really do not like to have a lot of people around, so as long as nothing major happens do not expect to see me a lot. I will be doing my own thing most of the time leaving you in charge of your village. Now stop crying and thanking me and let’s loot this place.”
The next few hours were interesting to say the least. These villagers looted that dungeon like professionals. Everything from chairs, to beds, drapes, linens, candle sticks and vases made it into their inventories. I even saw one guy taking the already cut firewood from next to a fire place. I even asked the guy what he was doing. He just looked at me and said, “I have inventory space my lord and every piece I get here is one that I do not have to cut myself later.” This was a man after my own heart. The villagers picked that place clean. I led them all to the entrance and addressed them one more time.
“Ok people here it is. When we step outside we should exit the dungeon. There might be other people around. They may talk, act, and dress differently than you do. So remember the story I gave you. You are reenactors waiting for you tour bus. I will arrange transportation and we will get you settled back in your village as soon as possible.”
As soon as I opened the door I was greeted with notifications and weird looks from other tourists.
“For leading an entire village in looting a dungeon you are granted the title, Not Nailed Down +1, For completely wiping out all denizens of the dungeon you are granted the title, Scourge of the Undead +1, for completing the dungeon in a unique order you are granted the title, Thinks Outside the Box +1. Calculating all experience and monetary rewards, you gain 5 levels, 1093 gold, 463 silver. You are also granted 3 common magic items, 2 uncommon magic items, 1 rare item, and 1 unique item or skill from the “Great Game” store for defeating a dungeon boss 5 levels or higher than you with only one hit.”
This dungeon is the gift that just keeps on giving. I love it. I start making some calls to tour bus companies as soon as get the villagers collected all off to one side. I feed them a line about mechanical troubles with another bus service and tell them I will pay them a premium to get 6 tour buses to transport just under 200 villagers back to their village.
The village by the way appeared on my world map about 5 miles away from my “castle”, nestled in a little valley in the Pisgah National Forest. The village and what looks like 400 to 800 meters of surrounding land is now registering as my property. I am going to have to remember to claim all the land between my castle and the new village as soon as the “Great Game” starts.
Ok things to do. Settle in the villagers, claim my prizes from the “Great Game” store, and write a quick dungeon guide to Biltmore for others to use in the future. Also I really need to get to as many dungeons as possible before the changeover. These titles are giving me a huge boost and should help me and mine stay safe. The weapons I designed work wonderfully, but I need to reserve some time to make more before the changeover.
In fact I need to check my status and assign my points. It’s been a while since I have leveled up. I have been increasing my skills, but leveling opportunities are harder to get just through skills after level 15. I mean I get a few points every time I reach a new mastery level in a skill. For a while I was learning skills just for the experience. With the dungeons now available I think I should start to specialize soon.
Status:
Name: Mark Anderson
Titles: Survivor +1, Quadelementalist +4, Lucky One +1, Master Thief +1,
World Traveler +1, Wealthy +1, Dungeon Explorer +3, Unstoppable +2,
Army of One +1, Arsonist +1, Manifest Destiny +3, Not Nailed Down +1,
Scourge of the Undead +1, Think Outside the Box +1
Level: 23 - 41% Unspent Attribute Points: 28
Strength: 43 HP: 430
Intelligence: 68 +20%MP MP: 1732
Wisdom: 68 +20% MP/Regen HP/Regen: 47% per 15 min.
Agility: 43 MP/Regen: 81% per 15 min.
Constitution: 43 +10% HP/Regen Luck: 53
Affinities: Earth - 100% Fire – 100%
Water – 100% Air – 100%”
Wow those titles really make a difference. I gained 23 points in all stats across the board just from my titles. That’s 138 stat points or just over 27 levels worth. Most of the titles seem to be awarded for doing something or discovering something first. With me being the only surviving beta tester this is an amazing opportunity for me. I feel that levels are going to be harder to acquire as your level goes up. This means the more bonuses I have the more powerful I will become compared to other people. I mean in stats alone I should be hitting around level 50 even though I am only a level 23 character.
Some of the titles even seem repeatable. Not for me but for my family and friends to get bonuses as well. Think Outside the Box and Unstoppable for sure seem to be something that multiple people can earn. As long as they defeat a dungeon in a unique way and/or beat the old time record they should win those titles.
Now the question is how I should spend my attribute points. From what I figured out earlier the average person starts at around 10 points in each attribute. Doubling points doubles your abilities. So 20 points is twice the normal human, and doubling again to 40 points is three times a normal human. Basically there is a diminishing return almost forcing people to start to specialize after level 20 or so. If it was not for all of my titles I would only be around twice as strong as the average human instead of 3 times as strong. This means that I need to earn as many titles as possible for the free points. With the 28 unassigned points I still have I think I will round everything to -5 and take my Intelligence and Wisdom to 75 to get the next bonus. That will leave 6 points left over in case of emergencies or new discoveries. This should bring me to Str-45, Int-75, Wis-75, Agi-45, Con-45, and Luck 55.
This puts me at 3 times the average human in all areas, and close to 4 times the average person in Intelligence and Wisdom. This should act as a surprise to many people both friend and foe. Most will look for a specialization and since I am so well rounded with my titles switching between magic and physical attacks could really surprise people and win a confrontation for me. It also seems to me that some skills are either easier to obtain or can only be obtained in the “Great Game” situations or dungeons. I picked up marksmanship and leadership in the Biltmore dungeon. I thought if they existed I should already have had them due to my time on the firing range and leading what is now a large corporation. In fact I have not earned any new skills lately until the dungeon, I have only leveled them up. Maybe there is a limit to the number of skills you can have based on your level? I mean I went up five levels in the dungeon and suddenly picked up skills I had been using. Oh well time will tell.