Current
As Spring grows, so too does the itch to dream, to imagine, and to create.
6 yrs ago
It's Christmas time! Put up the lights, and hold up your light! #LightTheWorld
7 yrs ago
And it's impossible to edit a status. Wonderful. I meant to say my hard drive is down; I'm working out of a flash drive now.
7 yrs ago
Whoops. That's one flash drive destroyed. Kids, take good care of your toys! For those concerned, thank you! I don't have any storage, but I do have access to a browser; roleplaying continues!
7 yrs ago
Driving on my lunch break when a random kid on the sidewalk yells, "It's the internet man! Hi internet man!" Spend the rest of Monday feeling like a champ.
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Bio
*Picks up the profile* *Looks at it oddly, as though it vaguely reminds him of something he read once* *Blows off a mountain of dust*
Ah! That's what this is! It's my old role-player guild account!
Hello, folks, from a friend new and old. Old in that I spent many happy hours fictating way back in Old-Guild before Lost Christmas, and then I spent some time in New-Guild during its beginning development; new in that I've been gone for two years, so a lot of the "faces" I was familiar with back then don't seem to be haunting the place these days. Whether you've known me before or not, I extend to you a hearty greeting and a virtual feast. If you'd like a name shorter than the full one, please call me Taro. I'm rather comfortable with that one.
Well, you didn't come here just to hear about my history. You're probably looking to see what kind of a role-player I am. Truthfully, I'm not totally certain right now; two years without practice does bring on a multitude of changes. Then again, even in those two years I've kept the creative spark fed and fanned, in isolation though it may have been, and I can tell you this much with great certainty: I like light-hearted laughter, soul-searching questions, and that precipice of commitment. My favorite settings would be: High Fantasy Modern Fantasy Science Fiction (new worlds, a newer Earth, even just in the immensity of space) I consider it a given that, where boys and girls coexist in a story, Romance will blossom. Horror I have a very weak stomach for. (I read the basic instructions for Betrayal at House on the Hill and had to consciously tell myself that night that everything was fine and I would sleep safely. I didn't even play a game; I only read the instructions!) I stay away from graphic violence, sexual depictions of any nature, and profanities. I'm very much a PG-rated writer; I plan on sharing everything I write as bedtime stories with my kids someday.
I play a convincing dude (I'm sure you never would have guessed that), but a vast majority of my favorite characters are female. So if you have romance in mind, I'm happy to play either party. If you don't want a romance, you will probably have to tell me that plainly. Then I'll just go with what feels right for the story, subject to a few personal whims which I hope will only bolster the plot and development.
I'm very picky as far as my own ideas go. I'll try just about everything I can think of to break the idea in order to insure there are no gaping plot holes. I invite everyone else to examine my ideas in a similar light--different people, different thought processes, different problems discovered--and to offer any compliments or constructive criticisms you have. As part of that, I absolutely love pushing the boundary of an idea as far as it will stretch, or looking for that odd, "I never thought of using it like that" approach to a character's abilities.
What else would I say with this space? I really like old poetry; reading Isaiah gives me the happy trembles. I hope I've presented a fair assessment of my writing style and capabilities through this brief introduction. I love creating--creating characters and bringing them to life from the page; creating worlds filled with fascinating lore and beautiful locales; creating stories, be they narrations of ordinary men and women facing their trials or epics of fated heroes overcoming every obstacle to save Dwarf-kind.
And, in closing, I'm excited for the chance to work with you. I should be able to post daily. PM me anytime, especially if you have a question about anything I've said here or elsewhere, but even if you only want to chat. You could even ask me about my mysterious two-year absence. I'll tell you now that I was in California, but that doesn't really answer the question. I'm happy to talk anytime.
Sweet water and light laughter until next we meet! -Taro
Koph raced after her partner, looking at all the walls with a panicked expression. As he threw the chest open, her fears came true; she spun around to face the rumbling, and felt her blood chill as monster after monster emerged. And finally... their Boss. There was no other name she could give him. There was no such thing as a floor boss on the second floor, but... That was no ordinary Kobold.
With the little time she had, Koph glanced back over her shoulder and into the chest. "Is that... a claw?" she asked aloud. Whatever it was, it didn't look particularly useful to her. It wasn't any weapon she had seen; maybe it was armor, but that would only protect one of them.
The Boss howled. His minions charged. They were out of time. "Yours! Behind the chest!" The wooden box was about waist-high when the lid was closed. Koph jumped around behind it and slammed the lid shut as soon as Voltaire had retrieved the item within. Then she braced one foot against it. "We need to get out. Twelve, fourteen...no, more. Here; we'll break the center, then move right. Push!"
Potion of Might - damage dealt increased by 50 Potion of Resilience - damage received decreased by 50
Holy Constitution (X/Title) - User gains increased magic resist when below 50% total HP. If User is below 10% total HP, User gains magic immunity. Passive. Thick Skin (1/Marauder) - User gains small damage reduction for a few seconds after being damaged. Does not stack with itself. Passive. Vengeful (5/Marauder) - User gains 25% additional Strength for a few seconds after being hit by a melee attack. Passive. Strong Stance (5/Marauder) - User gains resistance against being knocked off their feet. Passive. King Slayer (5/Marauder) - If User kills an opponent that has a higher level than the User, User immediately gains a permanent +2 bonus to the corresponding Weapon Wielding Skill. Passive. Blood Boil (10/Marauder) - User gains 10% increased Agility for a few minutes after using an Action. Passive. Battle Scars (10/Marauder) - User gains small damage reduction when not at maximum HP. Passive.
Large Blade Wielding: 70 Searching: 23
Potion of Might: All damage dealt is increased by 30 for one day. Potion of Resilience: All damage taken is reduced by 20 for one day. Green Potion: +10 Strength for 1 day Yellow Potion: +10 Agility for 1 day Lamellar Armor: (Broken) 15U / 18P / 25B / 10C Spell Resist Helmet: 5M Gauntlet of Might Power Treads
As soon as the shaman came to a stop, Karuu leaped and brought his sword down with all his strength, Decimating the creature. He followed up with a final swing for good measure, making sure the magic caster went down before moving on to another target. "Thanks, Willow!" he called over his shoulder.
With the ranged threat dealt with, and now feeling his blood pumping hot in his veins, Karuu went back to clear Tower's left. He was doing a great job of pulling all the aggro, but with the amount of damage these brutes were putting out that was a little worrying. Cecilia had just cleared away the brute he had been fighting with a truly impressive string of skills, so Karuu went for the next one, the one that had been on the far left of this fight. A slightly broken armor wasn't about to keep him out of the melee.
Pushing off the ground, Karuu charged into the brute blade first, stabbing his sword into the creatures chest and hoping to push it back and away from their primary tank. Still flying on the agility boost Blood Boil gave him, Karuu withdrew his sword and cut across the brute, then down, then back up, three powerful strikes to make sure the brute would regret not paying attention to him. Heavy Damage Decimate to Goblin Shaman Normal attack on Goblin Shaman Three normal attacks on Goblin Brute 1
Holy Constitution (X/Title) - User gains increased magic resist when below 50% total HP. If User is below 10% total HP, User gains magic immunity. Passive. Thick Skin (1/Marauder) - User gains small damage reduction for a few seconds after being damaged. Does not stack with itself. Passive. Vengeful (5/Marauder) - User gains 25% additional Strength for a few seconds after being hit by a melee attack. Passive. Strong Stance (5/Marauder) - User gains resistance against being knocked off their feet. Passive. King Slayer (5/Marauder) - If User kills an opponent that has a higher level than the User, User immediately gains a permanent +2 bonus to the corresponding Weapon Wielding Skill. Passive. Blood Boil (10/Marauder) - User gains 10% increased Agility for a few minutes after using an Action. Passive. Battle Scars (10/Marauder) - User gains small damage reduction when not at maximum HP. Passive.
Large Blade Wielding: 70 Searching: 23
Potion of Might: All damage dealt is increased by 30 for one day. Potion of Resilience: All damage taken is reduced by 20 for one day. Green Potion: +10 Strength for 1 day Yellow Potion: +10 Agility for 1 day Lamellar Armor: 15U / 18P / 25B / 10C Spell Resist Helmet: 5M Gauntlet of Might Power Treads
Karuu winced slightly as Cecilia came down on the totem. The entirety of it had been decorated with runes. There were good odds they were random carvings that designers thought looked both cool and pagan enough to use for a goblin religious relic; small odds that they were real runes, but put together in total gibberish; a moderate chance some nerd wrote a snarky message or reference to his favorite retro video game in a language he invented; and a tiny possibility that the soon-demolished writings held a clue about a part of this new world. No chance to find out which anymore, unless one of the other groups had fought off spawns long enough to copy down the runes before destroying the totem.
Lost puzzles aside, there was a job to be done. As Tower rushed forward to draw all the attention he could, Karuu moved up right alongside him. River's lightning flashed past them, the bright blast making Karuu flinch and avert his eyes until the chain died down. By then Tower was already in the middle, facing off with the biggest brute of the lot (probably; there was no way such an in-depth game made them all carbon copies, right?). The Marauder stepped up to be on his friend's left side, squaring up against Brute 2 and unleashing a full-powered Decimate. He followed up with another string of stabs and slashes, perfectly content to take blows in order to dish out his own.
Karuu gave Willow a nod. “Guess that makes it our turn,” he said to Kira. With nothing more than that, both warriors dashed forward. The electrified goblin remains surrounding them burst into light as they passed, ignored by the fighters intent on crossing the bridge.
As expected, once they stepped foot on it the Goblin Warriors rushed to meet them. The archers prepared to launch a volley, only partly disrupted by an agile lancer descending on their flank. Karuu pushed himself all the harder, hoping to be right up next to the goblins when he started taking those arrows.
The first arrow did little damage. The second did even less. And the first Goblin Warrior to step in front of him felt the full fury of a Decimate. It fell away in a shower of sparks. Another stepped up to try its luck; it fared little better, barely managing to trade a blow before falling to two of the Marauder’s.
Kira would not allow her ultimate rival to get ahead of her. She would not be the one to lose their bet! With speed that absolutely dwarfed the low-level goblins, she took position on Karuu’s right side and began the slaughter. The heat of battle was made all the sweeter from her title, which made her made her feel more alive. Her first opponent was taken down in series of five, decisive strikes. Talrae had made Akumi stronger than ever before, as the one called Ryu was no longer needed. Beautiful emerald eyes shined with a vicious appetite for more. The girl underneath falling prey to the ever growing hunger of the demon that controlled her.
“Zeke! Get back there to help Celia with the archers!” Karuu shouted as he cut his next foe down. Quieter, but loud enough that Kira would hear, he counted “Four.”
She gritted her teeth as Karuu’s count was brought to her attention and her grip on her swords became death-like. Driven by their competition, Kira broke off ahead and soon found herself surrounded by three of the goblins. They were too slow and weak compared to the great demon, who granted them the privilege of falling to her blades. Her longsword pierced the first’s chest then ducked underneath the second’s swing, using her katana to slice across its chest. The longsword was removed quickly and its grip was reversed. It was shot backwards piercing the bottom jaw of the goblin behind her while her katana struck the one in front, ending both of their insignificant lives before turning onto the last one. She sidestepped as it attempted in vain to strike her, before she pushed the full length of her katana into the creatures stomach followed by the longsword piercing its neck from. As the goblin’s body shattered, she spoke out “Five,” in direct challenge to Karuu.
He glanced at her, then found his next target to bring a Decimate crashing down on. As the goblin turned to pixelated dust, he gave her a grin. He didn’t have to say it out loud. The competition continues.
Koph hesitated a moment, then nodded. "Okay. Stay together; we'll move right. If the walls come down right away, we fall back and defend the tunnel mouth. If we reach the chest first, open it and use whatever you find. If they break mid-way...we probably fall back." Koph tightened her grip on her spear, then faced forward and took a step in.
Nothing happened. Not right away. She moved to the right, hovering a few feet from the wall and making her way around. "What do you guess? When will it attack?" she asked. Her voice was a little shaky, but her steps stayed steady. She knew he couldn't know any better than she when the attack would come, but she needed to speak and to hear Voltaire speak.
Potion of Might: All damage dealt is increased by 30 for one day. Potion of Resilience: All damage taken is reduced by 20 for one day. Green Potion: +10 Strength for 1 day Yellow Potion: +10 Agility for 1 day Lamellar Armor: 15U / 18P / 25B / 10C Spell Resist Helmet: 5M Gauntlet of Might Power Treads
"I agree with Cecilia on this one. Speed is important right now, and having everyone cross the river is a bad idea." Karuu cast a short glance at Prome, but tried to look away quickly before it was noticeable. "We can rush the bridge. Kira and I will lead, with Cecilia right behind. I'll split right, you two split left; just cut down everything. Tower, escort the healers across the bridge. Willow, left to help those two; River with me on the right. Tower, Prome, Dub: if anything else shows up that's your job; if nothing does, pick a side and zap some archers. Lastly, Zeke. Think you can ford the stream and flank the archers? One at their backs will cause confusion; just don't engage until you hear us hit their front. Any concerns?"
Potion of Might: All damage dealt is increased by 30 for one day. Potion of Resilience: All damage taken is reduced by 20 for one day. Green Potion: +10 Strength for 1 day Yellow Potion: +10 Agility for 1 day Lamellar Armor Spell Resist Helmet Gauntlet of Might Power Treads
It was something of a relief not seeing all the wargs crashing down upon River. Honestly, when they hadn't all gone to assault Tower together, Karuu had a moment of panic; but they went after Kira instead--on the Trainer's orders. That was both useful information and an unexpected complication. On the one hand, it looked like it would be important to deal with that Trainer as quickly as they could; on the other, he wasn't going down nearly as quickly as these wargs were.
"Celia, no shaming! Wounds are the warriors' way to show they do their job, and do it well! Kira, I'll walk you in; keep on that guy, and I'll try to keep at least some of those wargs off your back this time."
Well content to let Kira keep smashing the central mob, Karuu ran at her side into the fray. The wargs were dispersing, following their master's next command, but that wasn't anything like a deterrent; Karuu found one of the wargs he had been slashing before and picked up right where he left off. Karuu attacks Warg 4. x4 Puts himself at Kira's back.
Potion of Might: All damage dealt is increased by 30 for one day. Potion of Resilience: All damage taken is reduced by 20 for one day. Green Potion: +10 Strength for 1 day Yellow Potion: +10 Agility for 1 day Lamellar Armor Spell Resist Helmet Gauntlet of Might Power Treads
Well. The mages' initial blast was as beautiful as ever. As the melee fighters began their assault, Cecilia quickly making an untraditional flanking maneuver and Kira calling dibs on the biggest opponent, Karuu simply charged the two wargs to the right. He faced them head on and started swinging: one for this one, one for that one. As he swung, he back-stepped. His blows were heavy with an inflated Strength stat, plus the heat of the strength-enhancing potion coursing through him like artificial adrenaline--heavy enough to stop a simple warg in its tracks, certainly. Hit this one, force it back a step; hit that one, force it to stop its charge. Hit this one again--all the while, stepping back bit by bit to be sure they couldn't move around him. Herding and hitting--the simple life. Summary - Attacks farthest right warg (um... Warg 4?) - Attacks next farthest right warg (Warg 3) - Repeat step 1, then 2, then 1 again. (Deliberately keeping them contained)
"Cee!" Karuu cried, happy to see she had made it. "Yeah, I think it'll be enough. Got my extra swords repaired for when this one snaps. Glad you could join us! It'll be a relief to have you with Kira on the vanguard; that'll keep a lot of the pressure off Tower and I." He spent a few minutes filling her in on the strategy, pointing out on the map the section Last Genesis had been assigned to sweep.
Now their party was ready. "Alright, folks, let's move! Hit fast, hit hard, and don't stop to farm! We're going to be first done so we can help the other guilds. And Kira," he added, turning a grin on his guildmate, "Keep count. Loser buys dinner."
Following the instructions wasn't difficult, though it was a bit confusing. They turned left at the first intersection they found; that tunnel in turn twisted right until it seemed to be going the same direction they had been. Moving straight through the next intersection seemed counter-productive; but at Koph's insistence that this was what the Prum lass had said, they pressed on. Without much warning, the tunnel twisted back in a complete U; and when a new convergence of paths appeared, they turned left, which twisted right, and let out into...
A cavern. A rare occurrence in the top three floors. Also a potentially dangerous one. The wide open space made it all too easy for a group of monsters to totally surround you. On top of that, at the far end of the room was a treasure chest.
Though it was rare, the Dungeon would create these in difficult places. As traps. They always held something good, of course; if they didn't, Adventurers would never touch them. The original potions were said to have come from chests, which alchemists and herbalists studied and recreated. Sometimes special pieces of equipment came in these chests, things that could greatly improve an Adventurer's strength and chances of survival. But one and all, these chests were trapped, placed to lure Adventurers into dangerous positions where the Dungeon had a better chance of consuming them.
"Oh," was all Koph could say. She looked around the room cautiously, wary of what may happen once they put even one foot in. If the walls were entirely filled with monsters...well, a guess based just on surface area left her picturing dozens, a full horde against the two of them.
*Picks up the profile*
*Looks at it oddly, as though it vaguely reminds him of something he read once*
*Blows off a mountain of dust*
Ah! That's what this is! It's my old role-player guild account!
Hello, folks, from a friend new and old. Old in that I spent many happy hours fictating way back in Old-Guild before Lost Christmas, and then I spent some time in New-Guild during its beginning development; new in that I've been gone for two years, so a lot of the "faces" I was familiar with back then don't seem to be haunting the place these days. Whether you've known me before or not, I extend to you a hearty greeting and a virtual feast. If you'd like a name shorter than the full one, please call me Taro. I'm rather comfortable with that one.
Well, you didn't come here just to hear about my history. You're probably looking to see what kind of a role-player I am. Truthfully, I'm not totally certain right now; two years without practice does bring on a multitude of changes. Then again, even in those two years I've kept the creative spark fed and fanned, in isolation though it may have been, and I can tell you this much with great certainty:
I like light-hearted laughter, soul-searching questions, and that precipice of commitment.
My favorite settings would be:
High Fantasy
Modern Fantasy
Science Fiction (new worlds, a newer Earth, even just in the immensity of space)
I consider it a given that, where boys and girls coexist in a story, Romance will blossom.
Horror I have a very weak stomach for. (I read the basic instructions for Betrayal at House on the Hill and had to consciously tell myself that night that everything was fine and I would sleep safely. I didn't even play a game; I only read the instructions!)
I stay away from graphic violence, sexual depictions of any nature, and profanities. I'm very much a PG-rated writer; I plan on sharing everything I write as bedtime stories with my kids someday.
I play a convincing dude (I'm sure you never would have guessed that), but a vast majority of my favorite characters are female. So if you have romance in mind, I'm happy to play either party. If you don't want a romance, you will probably have to tell me that plainly. Then I'll just go with what feels right for the story, subject to a few personal whims which I hope will only bolster the plot and development.
I'm very picky as far as my own ideas go. I'll try just about everything I can think of to break the idea in order to insure there are no gaping plot holes. I invite everyone else to examine my ideas in a similar light--different people, different thought processes, different problems discovered--and to offer any compliments or constructive criticisms you have. As part of that, I absolutely love pushing the boundary of an idea as far as it will stretch, or looking for that odd, "I never thought of using it like that" approach to a character's abilities.
What else would I say with this space? I really like old poetry; reading Isaiah gives me the happy trembles. I hope I've presented a fair assessment of my writing style and capabilities through this brief introduction. I love creating--creating characters and bringing them to life from the page; creating worlds filled with fascinating lore and beautiful locales; creating stories, be they narrations of ordinary men and women facing their trials or epics of fated heroes overcoming every obstacle to save Dwarf-kind.
And, in closing, I'm excited for the chance to work with you. I should be able to post daily. PM me anytime, especially if you have a question about anything I've said here or elsewhere, but even if you only want to chat. You could even ask me about my mysterious two-year absence. I'll tell you now that I was in California, but that doesn't really answer the question. I'm happy to talk anytime.
Sweet water and light laughter until next we meet!
-Taro
<div style="white-space:pre-wrap;">*Picks up the profile*<br>*Looks at it oddly, as though it vaguely reminds him of something he read once*<br>*Blows off a mountain of dust*<br><br>Ah! That's what this is! It's my old role-player guild account!<br><br>Hello, folks, from a friend new and old. Old in that I spent many happy hours fictating way back in Old-Guild before Lost Christmas, and then I spent some time in New-Guild during its beginning development; new in that I've been gone for two years, so a lot of the "faces" I was familiar with back then don't seem to be haunting the place these days. Whether you've known me before or not, I extend to you a hearty greeting and a virtual feast. If you'd like a name shorter than the full one, please call me Taro. I'm rather comfortable with that one.<br><br>Well, you didn't come here just to hear about my history. You're probably looking to see what kind of a role-player I am. Truthfully, I'm not totally certain right now; two years without practice does bring on a multitude of changes. Then again, even in those two years I've kept the creative spark fed and fanned, in isolation though it may have been, and I can tell you this much with great certainty:<br>I like light-hearted laughter, soul-searching questions, and that precipice of commitment.<br>My favorite settings would be:<br>High Fantasy<br>Modern Fantasy<br>Science Fiction (new worlds, a newer Earth, even just in the immensity of space)<br>I consider it a given that, where boys and girls coexist in a story, Romance will blossom.<br>Horror I have a very weak stomach for. (I read the basic instructions for Betrayal at House on the Hill and had to consciously tell myself that night that everything was fine and I would sleep safely. I didn't even play a game; I only read the instructions!)<br>I stay away from graphic violence, sexual depictions of any nature, and profanities. I'm very much a PG-rated writer; I plan on sharing everything I write as bedtime stories with my kids someday.<br><br>I play a convincing dude (I'm sure you never would have guessed that), but a vast majority of my favorite characters are female. So if you have romance in mind, I'm happy to play either party. If you don't want a romance, you will probably have to tell me that plainly. Then I'll just go with what feels right for the story, subject to a few personal whims which I hope will only bolster the plot and development.<br><br>I'm very picky as far as my own ideas go. I'll try just about everything I can think of to break the idea in order to insure there are no gaping plot holes. I invite everyone else to examine my ideas in a similar light--different people, different thought processes, different problems discovered--and to offer any compliments or constructive criticisms you have. As part of that, I absolutely love pushing the boundary of an idea as far as it will stretch, or looking for that odd, "I never thought of using it like that" approach to a character's abilities.<br><br>What else would I say with this space? I really like old poetry; reading Isaiah gives me the happy trembles. I hope I've presented a fair assessment of my writing style and capabilities through this brief introduction. I love creating--creating characters and bringing them to life from the page; creating worlds filled with fascinating lore and beautiful locales; creating stories, be they narrations of ordinary men and women facing their trials or epics of fated heroes overcoming every obstacle to save Dwarf-kind.<br><br>And, in closing, I'm excited for the chance to work with you. I should be able to post daily. PM me anytime, especially if you have a question about anything I've said here or elsewhere, but even if you only want to chat. You could even ask me about my mysterious two-year absence. I'll tell you now that I was in California, but that doesn't really answer the question. I'm happy to talk anytime.<br><br>Sweet water and light laughter until next we meet!<br>-Taro</div>
Member
