Town Builder

Chapter 24: Legendary

The morning atmosphere was cheerful as Jaesmin made breakfast for us. Galana came and visited and partook in what Jaesmin had prepared: cut fruit and fried ham steaks. Galana spoke with some food still in her mouth, “Lord Tallis, the two orc prisoners are asking to join the town. The one Kytalia’s sister-wife vouched for wishes to join the guard. The other wishes to apprentice to the smith, Manarag.” Galana grabbed some toast and smeared a large amount of jam on it.

“That is fine if Manarag approves. He is the guild master, so it is his decision. Do you think the other one will be a good guard?” I asked, imitating Galana’s actions on another slice of toast.

“His name is Bohai. He is level 26, so I would welcome him based on that. I think Tanguin wants him for his army, though. Bohai is a good horseman and decent enough with the blade and bow. Talking with Tanguin last night, he thinks Bohai might eventually make a good captain for the calvary. A calvary of one.” Galana added jokingly. I smiled at her joke.

“Okay, make it so. I have a long way to go on the barracks, and we still need to recruit a fine tailor for the village. I think…” The village alarm bell went off, and we raced outside.

It took time to locate the danger. High in the sky, an oblong shape was heading toward the village. Galana spoke first, her analyze still being far superior to mine. “It is an incursion beast. I identify it as Milos Colony Warrior Beetle Riderand his mount.”

My own skill wouldn’t even work at this range. I could finally make out the beast. It was a giant flying beetle with an ant man riding it. “The beast and rider are injured. The beetle is level 56, and the rider is level 74.”

As I was thinking about what I should do, Manto cast a massive lightning bolt at the approaching enemy from his tower on the river. The bolt flashed toward the enemy, striking it, and thunder followed the bright flash. The flying beetle crashed like a smoking aircraft out of fuel. Manto casually walked back into his tower.

The beetle and rider crashed outside of town. “Galana, call Tanguin, and let’s make sure they are dead.” It seemed like the city to the south won, and the remnants of the invading force were dispersing, as Simba had said.

I jogged with Galana and Tanguin toward the downed bugs shortly after. We approached cautiously, the beetle was smoldering and oozing blue-green blood. The rider was extracting himself from the mess. Its chitin appendages looked bent oddly, probably broken. I was thinking of trying to capture the antkin, but Tanguin raced ahead of me, his sword drawn. Guess we were doing that. The injured ant man was soon beheaded.

“Tanguin, we could have captured the soldier and learned something.” Tanguin’s eyebrows arched at my statement.

“Lord Tallis, this was a drone warrior. I have fought them before, but not from this particular colony. Only those Milosian’s with blue carapaces have enough individuality to talk with. Remember that in the future. They are vicious warriors, and thankfully, most colonies have no access to magic beyond their brood queens.” Tanguin went on to educate Galana on how to harvest useful loot from the beetle and ant man, probably.

I left my two warriors and was extremely happy that the giantkin were on my side. My thought was at the rider’s level, though…level 74? Did that mean a player had already reached those heights? I found Jaesmin and the townsfolk waiting, prepared to fight the threat. I calmed them, “All is well. Tanguin has dispatched the warrior. Galana will call more militia to help watch the skies.”

The people returned to their daily tasks, and I went with Jaesmin and Sanso to work on the barracks and town hall foundations. Jaesmin reminded me that the alchemist was due to arrive in two days, and the enchanter was due three days after that. I grumbled. Too many things to do. I decided I would cut some lumber this morning and send Jaesmin and Sanso to work on the enchanter tower. The alchemist shop/residence just needed furniture…which meant I needed wood.

Both Galana and Tanguin watched me as I worked quickly. They were having a lively conversation about something, but I was too far away to hear. None of the Darkskull goblins bothered me, but an enraged apex grizzly bear did. It was a level 50 elite beast that took a third of my health on the first attack. Thankfully, Tanguin took the agro immediately, and the two warriors quickly whittled the beast down. I sheltered behind them because, well…level 50 elite. Tanguin apologized as the beast had a special rush attack, and he couldn’t reach me in time. I told him it was fine.

It looked like Galana and Tanguin were getting along. They joked as they skinned the bear and harvested the meat. Thankfully, it wasn’t as gory an undertaking as it was in the real world. They were done five minutes later, and I was sure the two NPCs would be going to a couple soon. I patted myself on my back as the matchmaker.

In the end, I cut 23 trees before lunch. With my lumberjack skill, I selected the best trees for crafting furniture and building structures. There were four primary species of trees in the Shiverwood forest: golden walnut, iron oak, white oak, and common hickory. The golden walnut was the best for furniture, and the iron oak was the best for building. My harvest should be sufficient to keep the village going for days. The townsfolk skilled in using the sawmill brought the trunks there.

I ate lunch at the inn with Laeron, the shipwright, and Gwen, my master of guilds. The meeting was set up, and apparently, there was a discussion about making Laeron the Guild Master of the Shipwrights.

There seemed to be more arguments against doing this than for it from Gwen, who was adapting to her new role as Master of Guilds. We had no oarsman or sailors in town and only one shipwright. I sided with Gwen and told Laeron that we could revisit this if there were two shipwrights in town with at least expert rank. He nodded at my comment and said he would work on it, which made me nervous.

Lunch was a bear roast smothered in a buttery gravy with roasted garlic smeared on a hearty rye toast. The boon from Fareth’s cooking was +12% to strength and constitution for 8 hours. It wouldn’t help me much today, but it was still impressive.

I joined Jaesmin and Sanso on the enchanter’s tower after lunch. Thankfully, finishing it was not as big of a project as the barracks/gatehouse or town hall. Toward the evening, I dragged them both downtown. I wanted to build a small barber shop for Zion today. I wasn’t sure when he would arrive, but I wanted it ready. Jaesmin was making excellent progress with her own magic, and the single-story structure was quickly completed. I didn’t have any plans to work from but I just designed the interior with stonework to mimic a real-world barber/salon from memory.

Uncommon Barber Shop, Health 2,000, Bonus +3% to effects from barber

The plans were now accessible from my interface. I should have taken the time to draft actual building plans, but this would have to do. The barber shop looked really nice on the inside anyway. The sun was fading, so it was time to head home. I thanked Sanso and left with Jaesmin. I checked my masonry skills as I walked.

Masonry

37

Str

Masonry: Foundations

33

Con

Masonry: Structures

27

Stam

Terrible. Just +1 to masonry structures today. Tomorrow, after working on the barrack’s foundation in the morning, I decided to go hunting with Galana and Tanguin in the afternoon. Jaesmin and Sanso could finish the enchanter’s tower. It was basically complete, just a few minor details here and there. My absence wouldn’t affect the final structure…at least, that was the impression I got from my skills.

That night, Fareth sent over a dessert. It was a lemon curd pie.

Lemon Curd Pie, +10 to Luck for 4 hours

Luck was one of those weird stats that could do a lot or nothing. We shared the pie, and I felt something overcome me. It was an inspiration for the library! I rushed to the drafting table and opened the drafting interface to work with both of them in tandem. I had four hours, and maybe I could finish the plans!

I was sweating as I worked furiously, and Jaesmin watched over me. The fine tuning here and there came immediately to me, and I raced to complete the massive work that I had vested so much into over the past months in the game. Even after the buff expired, I continued until I finally finished! I identified the plans.

Tallis’ Legendary Grand Library, Health 2,500,000 Bonus +20% to all pool recovery, +100% skill advancement from texts, double the effects of skill books (once a day per player)

Requirements to build: Woodcraft: Carpentry 67, Masonry Foundations 67, Masonry Structures 89, Arborist 67

I was shaking in excitement as I read the description, and a world announcement followed.

Worldwide Announcement: Tallis’ has crafted the first legendary object by a player! Everyone rejoice! All players advance craft skills at 20% faster for the next three days!

My own personal announcement gave me +6 stat points, +6 skill points, and 100,000 experience!

I was in shock. And even more so as Simba came barreling through the door. A stack of papers the size of a table was before me, the library plans detailed on them. Simba looked at me and then at the plans. “Tallis.” He paused. “I don’t know what to say. I think you may have made a mistake!”

Confused, I asked, “I don’t understand.”

“Crafting legendary items was supposed to take at least two years of real-world time! The developers and programmers are in a tizzy trying to figure out what the hell you did to bypass your limits!” As if a premonition, a ghost-like woman materialized. I recognized her from before, but she ignored me and went to examine the plans I had on the drafting table. I let her as she tut-tutted and paged through them.

Finally, she looked at me. “You can’t have these. I will take them, and we will find some way to compensate you for them.”

I was shocked. I didn’t understand. “Why?” was all I squeaked out.

“For one, you managed to craft legendary plans with just a skill of…” she paused, “oh. I guess that makes a little more sense, but still…” I stopped her.

“What makes more sense?” I asked, getting anxious.

“Your drafting skill reached level 43, making you a master. You get a short explosive skill boost when you achieve a new rank. But still, you shouldn’t have had a prayer of doing this,” she indicated the plans, “until you had at least level 67 in the skill. Even then, it should have taken you hundreds, if not thousands, of attempts. At level 89…this would have made some sense. But legendary items were to be crafted by skill levels of 109 or higher, and even then, it was supposed to be a monumental undertaking! You just cannot possess this.” She seemed determined.

I looked back at the notification, “But I can’t even build it…the requirements. Why does it matter that I have this?”

She looked me over with a discerning eye before speaking, “It would unbalance gameplay. You may not be able to build this, but it will attract NPCs who could. Legendary objects are foci in the game… they bring about change. We can deposit these plans in one of the capitals…” She was thinking.

“No,” I said, and she snapped her attention back to me.

She looked angry, “Look, players are causing us all sorts of headaches right now, and I don’t need another one. You are not aware, but in that incursion test event…the NPC cities should have easily repelled all the rifts. Unfortunately, a band of players banded together to attack the city at the same time, drawing enough of the defenders away and giving one of the Brood Matriarchs the city! You have no idea what a clusterfuck this is! It wouldn’t have been a big deal, but the player population is too low right now, and the matriarch will spread her power rapidly!”

She sighed in resignation. “What if we downgrade the plans to epic? You can keep one of the three bonuses of your choice. That should keep a lid on this problem for now until the programmers can examine the code for crafting legendary items.”

“Couldn’t I just draft them again?” I asked, slightly confused.

“No, legendary items are unique, as are artifacts and divine items. The governing AI wouldn’t allow you to reproduce them. You must start back at the beginning of your process. I can throw in something else. What do you need? Something within reason.” She was almost pleading to resolve this issue and seemed anxious to move on to the next problem.

I thought for a moment. I really wanted my legendary plans, but my small village needed defense. “I want my barracks completed and filled with troops. Loyal NPC troops.” She tapped away, and I could see the image of my barracks gatehouse before her. “And they have to be affordable!” I added anxiously. She gave me a sour look.

“I can do two hundred infantry, sixteen cavalry, sixteen scouts, and ten officers to fill your barracks. The officers would be level,” she checked something else, “40. The rest of the troops level 20.” I saw Simba waving his paws; it looked like he was pointing his paw up. Of course, this was a lowball offer to start the negotiation. Watching Simba carefully, I went back and forth with the female game administrator.

I ended with new plans for the library.

Epic Grand Library, Health 500,000 Bonus, +100% skill advancement from manuscripts

Requirements to build: Woodcraft: Carpentry 43, Masonry Foundations 43, Masonry Structures 67, Arborist 23

I selected the skill advancement because NPCs could also use it.

My barracks/gatehouse would be built for me, and it would have a minor upgrade.

Rare Barracks Gatehouse, Health 250,000, Requires Masonry Foundations 23, Masonry Structures 43, Woodcraft: Carpentry 23 (Bonus: +20% skill advancement for martial skills, +10% health and stamina recovery during sleep)

The skill advancement had jumped to +20% from +12%, and health and stamina regen had jumped from +4% to +10%. If I had built the building myself, I would have gotten close to those bonuses. Unfortunately, the health of the building remained the same, and I wouldn’t get my building health bonuses as foreman.

The NPCs stationed in the building would be the following:

Angelkin Captains x 10, Level 60

Giantkin Warriors x 200, Level 30

Elven Scouts x16, Level 40

Orc Cavalry x 16, Level 40

The angelkin had bonuses to leadership, morale, and a variety of useful buffing magic, so that was why Simba steered me to them. The giantkin warriors had numerous bonuses to melee combat. The elven scouts the same type bonuses for their duties. The orc cavalry had horsemanship bonuses. So, all in all, I thought I did pretty well. Essentially, I had a military force equal to a small city of 7500 according to Simba. Their levels were not impressive, though. That was the give and take I had in terms of being able to afford the group. Almost an entire platinum coin a month for wages and that didn’t include outfitting them. They would arrive with some gear but not completely outfitted.

The soldiers would start with perfect loyalty, and it would be up to me to maintain it…well, for Tanguin to maintain it. The barracks gatehouse would take five game days to complete. The soldiers would arrive about thirty days after that. The programmers would have to facilitate the NPC migration from a new area currently being generated. They couldn’t just program the game to create the NPCs as the governing AI was ‘resistant’ to such actions. This didn’t make much sense to me, but I was fine with the delay as long as I didn’t get cheated in the end. When the soldiers arrived, we could easily expand across the river.

I found even a bigger boon: I got to keep my rewards, +6 stat points, +6 skill points, and 100,000 experience! The experience went immediately to buy all my accolades. I now had 14 free skill points! The stat points I dropped into charisma…it was Simba’s suggestion to help retain my NPC soldiers. Wait…14 skill points? Shouldn’t that be 12?

I found the accolades and found three changes.

Master

1

+100 to ?? Pool

Raise a skill to the master rank, next tier at 5 master skills

Legendary Crafter

1

+10 free stat points

Craft a legendary item, next tier at 5 legendary items

Crafter

6

+1 Skill Point

Create an object in rarity scale, next tier at artifact

So, I had gotten credit for the legendary item. Also, the master accolade needed to be assigned a pool type, I chose magic. Finally, there are ten bonus stat points for crafting the legendary item! All bonus stat points went to channeling to increase my magic pool regeneration.

I was a little bitter about losing the plans to go to the legendary library, but I wasn’t going to be allowed to keep them anyway. To make this feeling worse, Simba said the NPCs it would have attracted here to build the library would have far exceeded what I had gotten in my soldiers. No crying over the spilled milk, and the town defense boost eased my huge worry. The consensus was that if I had built the library, then armies would have arrived to conquer Malcum and seize it.

Fourteen skill points. Two points went into masonry, and ten into masonry structures. I saved the last two.

Masonry

39

Str

Masonry: Foundations

33

Con

Masonry: Structures

37

Stam

I was also knocking on the door of level 18. Well, I would have made level 18 if I hadn’t spent experience to gain the accolades. It was now clear that it would be best to level up, as I needed just six more skill points, which equaled three levels. The question was where I should focus my efforts. The dungeon or the forest?