The Grand Game

The room beyond was as large as first chamber, but unlike the one before, it was not empty of furnishings. Stalls lined nearly the entirety of the room. Each overflowed with items and was manned by a single unclothed skeleton. 

Before I could move further into the room to explore its depths, I was stopped at the door by another skeleton.

“Stop,” the figure commanded. Whereas the other undead in the room wore little in the way of clothes, the one who had intercepted me was fully dressed in shoes, pants, shirt, and cloak. Everything he wore was some shade of red, even the staff he twirled in his hands was crimson.

As I turned his way, he beckoned me. “Come here human.”

Curiously, I stepped up to him.

“Hold out your hand,” he demanded.

I stared at him, making no move to comply.

“Do it,” Gnat hissed. “The gate keeper only means to issue you with the Master’s tokens. You will need them to buy your Class stone and other items from the vendors.”

I glanced from the bat on my shoulder to the stalls, having an inkling now as to what purpose they served. I held out my hand. Immediately the gate keeper dropped three chips of black glass into my outstretched palm.

Curiously, I peered at the small polished bits of glass that I held. They looked to be made from obsidian and stamped in the center of each was what appeared to be a crow. I drew one up for closer inspection. The details included in the crow was exquisite. Somehow the artist had managed—

“Enough gawking!” the red-clothed figure snapped. “Off with you now, you’re holding up the line.”

I clenched my fist around the tokens and glared at the gate keeper before moving away to drift amongst the stalls.

The first stall I stopped at was laden with plate armor: legs, arms, gloves, helms, and breastplates. Each piece seemed to be formed from steel and appeared to be poorly made—to my eye at least. I raised my gaze to the stall’s vendor. His gleaming red eyes seemed to be bright with excitement.

“Ah a customer,” the merchant said. “What can I help you with, sir?”

I waved my hands across the untidy heap of armor. “How does all this work?”

“Its simplicity itself,” the merchant said, rubbing his hands together. “In exchange for one of the Master’s tokens, you may take any one piece of armor.”

In the act of picking up a helm for closer inspection, I paused. “One piece only?” I asked disbelievingly. “Not an entire set?”

The skeleton chuckled. “No, no, no. Of course not. For that you would need far more tokens.”

I pulled back my hands and folded them behind my back. Considering that I only had three tokens, I was not going to waste any of them on a single armor piece. I glanced at the nearby stalls. Some were filled with weapons, others with shields, some with scrolls, and yet others with trinkets and jewelry.

Walking away from the armor vendor, I headed towards a weapon merchant’s stall, but was stopped as Gnat spoke up. “Human, I would not purchase any items until you’ve chosen your Class.”

“Why is that?” I asked, coming to a halt.

“Every item has a skill pre-requisite which you must meet in order to equip it, and it is your Class that determines what skills you will have access to.”

I nodded. I didn’t have to ask Gnat what he meant by skills. Somehow, I understood what they were already. I really must have been a player in my previous life, I thought.

“How many skills do I get from my Class?” I asked.

“Classes come in three tiers: basic, advanced, and master,” Gnat said. “Basic Classes give you access to three starting skills.”

My brows rose in surprise. That number of skills appeared low. “Only three?” I murmured. “You said starting skills though. Can I get more eventually?”

“You can,” Gnat answered. “Through skillbooks, you can add three additional skills to your Class.”

“I see,” I said. And I thought I did. The Class stones only started a player down a specific development path, it did not completely define him. Something else occurred to me. “Do the other Class tiers grant more starting skills?”

“They do,” Gant confirmed. “But for your primary Class you may only choose a basic Class.”

“Hmm,” I mused, rubbing at my chin. Recalling the Master’s words from earlier, I sought my familiar’s confirmation, “I can have three Classes, right?”

“That is correct, human,” Gnat said. “Every player can have a primary, secondary, and tertiary Class.”

“Call me Michael,” I said absently.

“As you wish,” the skeletal bat replied.

I closed my eyes, thinking. Seeing as how I would only enter the dungeon with a single Class, there was no need to deliberate on my choice of secondary and tertiary Classes right now, and I dismissed them from my thoughts. I would consider them later once I understood this world far better than I did now.

What mattered now was that I would only have three skills available when I entered the dungeon. That more than anything else would determine the strategy I pursued. Gnat is right, I thought. Before purchasing any items, I needed to select my Class.

I opened my eyes. “Where is the Class vendor?”