4 Prologue (4)
The next part required deeper contemplation than just the race, since this was going to constitute the larger portion of the game for me; how I was going to play, and most importantly, how I was going to fight.
See, I could pick any race and find a way to live a normal life anywhere, even if I picked a race that had terrible detriments and moved to a place I was discriminated against in; I could likely find ways to make a good living and just exist, but making myself excellent was a challenge.
I couldn't just pick something willy nilly, and I needed to play to my benefits, which was specifically Fae Magic.
[Fae Magic : An Ancient, Lost School of Magic known only to those with Fae blood in their veins, capable of deceiving and disorienting those with a weaker will, or damaging the psyche of the enemy through mental damage. Some of the best wielders of Fae Magic could control the strongest warriors and mages of their generations into doing whatever, whenever, and wherever the Fae Magician told them to do. Perfect for utility or close combat. Benefits from the CHA stat and skills related to CHA]
A charisma build was a fun one to play, especially since it offered so much utility in and out of combat; lower prices at shops, persuasion/deception/intimidation checks were easier, spoken spells were smoother and stronger, allowed for a tricky combat style.
Because of that, my options for my class and subclass were limited, and I looked over the three that I wanted to play that offered a variety that would make me deadly to go against.
Paladin, Rogue, and Spell Sword.
Paladin casted spells through CHA and was efficient with medium or heavy armor, as well as an expert with one handed weapons that paired with shields, like maces, swords, or axes.
Tanky characters that hit hard and had incredible magical versatility, the only downside that came with Paladin's was the obligation to behold yourself to some kind of Deity or Force of Nature with an Oath, and breaking that Oath held consequences; it was slightly restrictive, but could be useful.
Next was the Rogue, who specialized in sneak attacks and overall stealth, which would compliment the Fae Magic quite a bit, the use of CHA for normal skills requiring it to be high, while my DEX and WIS would need to be high as well to benefit my build, meaning I would take more damage per hit and deal less damage.
The idea though was to rely on the increased critical chance and damage from stealth attacks to make up for that loss in raw damage, and use my footwork and lighter frame to avoid taking any hits.
Finally, Spell Sword was a healthy mix between Paladin and Rogue, giving me more spells to access and efficiency with bladed weapons, as well as decent damage and health with my middle of the road gear.
It was a good all rounder class, but I instantly dismissed that as I found that class to be boring, preferring the thrill of either a Paladin's chaotic melee play style or the Rogue's patient play style.
Debating them in my mind took a mere moment though, as the desire for something fresh and interesting popped into my head, making me select the Rogue class, opening a new menu.
[Class : Rogue
Stats (Racial Benefits Included) :
STR : 3
CON : 3
DEX : 6
INT : 3
WIS : 4
CHA : 6]
[Ancestral Ties detected : 2 Stat Points available to be allocated]
This was the foundation of my beginning, and I placed the two points into CHA and STR, wanting that extra point in my physical power early on since a lack of it tended to feel... terrible in gameplay, so that brought my CHA and STR up to 7 and 4 respectively.
[Please pick a subclass and five (5) talents]
Rogue was a broad class, just like Paladin and Mage were broad classes, and as such every class had a subclass available to you that gives you more benefits to your stats and access to talents that further make your class powerful.
Of the subclasses, there was one that caught my eye, and it was one that gave me many, many options to play around with the further I got in the game, and it was [Swashbuckler]
[Swashbuckler : A variant of Rogue that relies less on stealth and more on guile to get them by, these swaggering swordsmen use their wits and sharp tongue alongside their excellent blade work and swift spells to get them through any engagement, be it evading the law or fighting against other ruffians.
Benefits : +1 to CHA, DEX, and STR; Efficiency with One-Handed Blades; Choice of either Intimidation or Deception talents
Detriments : Inefficiency with Two-Handed Weapons and Heavy Weapons; Inefficiency with Advanced Magics; Law Enforcement is more wary of you]
This allowed me to explore the Fae Magic I now had, use some other Magics inside my fighting styles, and understand and benefit from a one handed fighting style, all while I could navigate my way through some of the unnecessary engagements using my words instead of my fists.
For my talents, I selected Deception through the benefits and began to browse the talents that were available to me, eventually deciding on these five.
[Acrobatics (DEX) : Your body is more in tune with itself than the average person, making it harder to knock you off balance and easier for you to move around]
[Stealth (DEX) : Melding with the shadows and blending in comes to you naturally, decreasing the chances that someone will spot you when you don't wish to be spotted]
[Perception (WIS) : Your eyesight is more accurate and allows you to spot things usually hidden to most people]
[Performance (CHA) : Acting is apart of your nature, and any time you try to convince someone that you are something you aren't, your natural charm and talent makes it believable]
[Persuasion (CHA) : A tongue of pure silver, the right words flow out from your lips to make the person you're speaking to believe whatever you want]
They weren't the most specialized talents, nor the flashiest, but they were more foundations that would build up my character to be a worthy Swashbuckling Rogue who cut and talked her way through life.
[Pick your Starting Gear]
I chuckled softly as I saw the very limited options listed before me, and I noted the number (3) sitting atop the list, meaning I had three choices from this already small list.
Of course, my first choice was a weapon, and it was between two things.
[Short Sword : Two feet of tempered steel, this straight, doubled edged blade is perfect for slashing and stabbing; +3 DMG]
[Falchion : Three feet of curved tempered steel, this blade is perfect for cutting through lighter armor, its weight making it an excellent weapon and tool; +3 DMG]
Stats wise, the two blades were similar, but after a moment of thinking I selected [Falchion], wanting to have a tool with me and a longer reach, since I could purchase a shorter blade for less money than a longer one.
Then I picked out my other two, thinking on it for a moment before going simple again.
[Leather Armor : Simple boiled leather shaped into a cuirass, bracers, boots, and pants to protect the vitals; +3 DEF]
[Grinders Whetstone : Uncommon stone used to sharpen and hone your weapons, granting a (10%) DMG buff for five minutes]
Things that most games gave away at the start for free, these were things that I needed to pick at the beginning, since the game never held your hand or coddled you; you needed to scrounge for yourself if you selected something besides weapons and armor, so most people viewed this as an arming stage in the character creation.
Thankfully though, the Ancestral Ties made my choices a little easier, since without it I was stuck with truly basic choices; no Falchion, and a basic whetstone that increased damage by 5%, not 10%.
With that though, I gasped after I confirmed everything and confirmed that confirmation, sending me out of the cool water and back into the forest.
My body had already shifted to my characters, and I felt a moment of dissonance as I shrunk just a bit and packed on a tad more muscle, while the sharp pain in my eyes and limbs flashed for a brief moment before fading away instantly, the changes from my talents taking root as well.
Taking a deep breath, I looked down into the pool and smiled as I saw the vibrant pink eyes that stared back at me, already liking what I was seeing.
