MMORPG: Shattered Land

Marius was plunged into a world of color as he fell through the world. Around him, he watched as various avatars dashed around him, colliding and doing battle with each other.

Battle Mages tore through the ranks, waving their flaming spears and punching thunder at their enemies. Summoners and Elemental Masters unleased their unholy might and Guardians plunged through the firefight, unharmed while the Healers and Oracles threw launched their skills with expert precision.

Then the scenery changed, appearing in a forest where a Swordsman and Assassin were doing battle, the Swordsman's blade sheared through the air as the Assassin danced around the Warrior. Hunters launched their assault from afar and trap exploded, revealing a Night Stalker who dashed through the smoke and trees towards the Hunter.

Then the scene froze.

A moment later the avatars faded and two avatars took their place.

"Welcome to the Shattered Lands. Please select your Class."

Before Marius, the eight classes appeared. Without hesitation, he chose the Night Stalker class.

"You have chosen the Night Stalker class. If you wish to change classes once you begin gameplay you will need to reset your account. Are you sure you wish to continue?"

Two options popped up "Yes" and "No".

Marius chose yes.

"Thank you. Please choose your Username."

After some consideration, Marius put in "Midnight Solitude".

'Welcome to Shattered Lands Midnight Solitude. Good luck and may you find the path you seek."

Marius' vision became white as the two avatars disappeared.

Next thing he knew he was in the beginner village.

"Welcome to Green Horn Village. Please enjoy playing the Shattered Lands."

Marius looked around at his surroundings, admiring the quality of the designs. It really looked like he had stepped into a new world. An odd feeling of ecstasy bubbled through him as he looked at his hands and legs. Not a wrinkle or a shake.

Bringing up the menu Marius looked at his stats.

Name: Midnight Solitude

Class: Night Stalker

Level: 0 (0/1000)

Occupation: None

Health: 100

Mana: 100

Luck: 0

Attack: 2

Defense: 2

Intelligence: 2

Spirit:2

Dexterity: 2

Skills: Basic Slash Level 1 (0/1000 proficiency) (Deals base damage. Cooldown none)

Binding Shadow Level 1 (0/1000 proficiency) (Binds target for 2 seconds. Cost 10 Mana. Cooldown 5 seconds.)

According to the data, Rajan had left him, Marius knew that a Night Stalker would have a decent increase in dexterity per level, but even so, starting with such a low baseline was going to make grinding difficult. But the skills weren't too bad.

Going through the menu Marius found the assist option.

This option allowed players to use the systems pre-set data to launch skills. The only drawback was that it made the skills easier to read.

Marius hadn't decided whether to turn this option off yet. It would be useful for learning how to operate the skills, allowing him to adapt them later. he would decide when he got into a fight with something.

Without any more ado, he took off, running towards the Village Leaders Hall. The fastest way to level up was through quests. When he made it to level 10 he could take the quest that let him go to one of the main cities. But that would take a lot of experience. to get to level 1 required 1000 experience and it doubled per level. This meant he needed 512,000 experience to be able to leave the beginner villager.

Since the game had been launched for four hours already the majority of people would be out in the field completing their quests, collecting goods and vying for advantages.

Marius knew this when he decided to start a little late, letting the more energetic players get ahead of him. This allowed him to get into the Leaders Hall without waiting in a line.

"Welcome Young Adventurer." The Village Leader said warmly.

"Hello, Village Leader," Marius replied. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Yes. There has been an outbreak of wild dogs attacking the villagers. Hunt down 10 Savage Dogs and bring me their pelts."

(Will you accept the quest "Hunting Savage Dogs?")

Marius accepted the quest.

"Village Leader, hunting down some savage dogs is an easy task, is there anything else I can help you with?" Marius asked politely.

"Yes. There are many feral cats that have been attacking the village children. Please exterminate 15 Feral cats from the fields."

(Will you accept the quest "Exterminating Feral Cats?")

Marius accepted the quest and looked at the Village Leader again.

"Hunting dogs and exterminating cats is a small task. While I am out are there any other quests you would require me to complete?"

"Yes. There is a swarm of Elemental Squirrels in the woods that have been destroying our traps. Please dispell them as soon as possible."

(Will you accept the quest "Elemental Squirrel Swarm?")

Marius smiled as he accepted the quest.

I will complete the tasks you have given me." Marius said politely as he left towards the woods.

Savage Dogs and Feral Cats were level 1-5 monsters and graded 1 and 2 respectively. Grade 1 monsters gave the least experience, while grade 3 gave the most. The grade 3 monster for the level 1-5 area was the Brutal Sparrow and it spawned at the end of the fields in an area just before the woods. If Marius guessed correctly then the fields would be packed with people hunting Feral cats and Savage Dogs, avoiding the Brutal Sparrows at all cost. According to the forums, the Sparrows did massive pierce damage which was sufficient to kill a level one warrior in two attacks.

It was safe to say not many people would bother grinding them if they had easier prey in the form of Savage Dogs and Feral Cats.

However, Marius didn't care about the first two quests he had gained. What he wanted was to quickly grind to level 2 and take on the Elemental Squirrels. Why? Because the larger the level difference the more experience he would be rewarded. The base experience of the Brutal Sparrow was 30. If he killed a level 5 one as a level1 Player he would be awarded 150 experience. That way he only needed to kill seven of them to level up to level 1.

it didn't take long for Marius to make it to the Feild. A slaughter ground would be a more apt name. There were thousands of players crowded into the Feild, each glaring at each other as they tried to get their hands on a Savage Dog or Feral Cat.

Dozens of eyes turn to Marius as he ran past, dodging players as he went. Marius couldn't actually complain too much as the crowded Feild allowed him to get used to the movement mechanics of the game.

It felt quite good zipping between so many people. He hadn't moved like this since he was a child and even then it hadn't as blissful as now. His child-self had never been shackled by an old body, have a spirit that desired to move recklessly but bound by nature.

He even started to feel a little giddy.

Maybe Rajan really had done him a favor. One last chance of feeling young before he ultimately took a permanent dirt nap.

So he ran, deeper into the Feild and into the territory of the Brutal Sparrow.

Excitement flooded his veins as he glanced around. A little to the west was a tree line that indicated the edge of the Feild and the beginning of the Woods. Beyond that were the Elemental Squirrels and the Grey Wolves.

But that was a problem for another time. After a moments pause, Marius heard a flutter of wings and instinctively steps to the side as a large ball of feathers zoomed past his head.

Brutal Sparrow Level 5

Health: 20

Mana: 30

Grinning, Marius sidestepped again, drawing his beginner sword from his sheath.

"Let's do this little bird," he murmured.

The Brutal Sparrow turned and shot at Marius again like a feather arrowhead.

"Binding Shadows." Marius released his spell, letting the Assist System aim the spell. In an instant, tendrils made of shadows flowed from Marius' palm and caught the Sparrow, binding it in place. Not wasting any time Marius attacked "Basic Slash".

-5 appeared above the Sparrows head.

Marius was stunned and struck again.

-2.

Damnit. The first hit was a critical hit.

Quickly, Marius jumped to the side and turned the Assist option off. With skills like that, he would need more flexibility than the system would allow.

The moment Marius moved the Sparrow was released and shot at him like an arrow again.

Sidestepping, Marius swung his sword at the Sparrow, missing by a wide margin. Cursing, he spun around, dodging the sparrow again and sending another slash at the bird.

"Missed again." Marius watched the Sparrow as it turned and attacked again.

This time, Marius took a little longer in dodging and slashed upwards, spinning out of the way at the last moment.

-2

Grinning, Marius advanced after the Sparrow, managing to slash the bird as it turned.

-2

-5

now he had gotten the hang of it. Marius grinned evilly as he dashed after the Sparrow again.

"Binding Shadow" He caught the Sparrow again and tore his sword through it with a horizontal slash followed by a verticle downward slash.

-2

-2

The Brutal Sparrow disappeared into a stream of light.

(Player Midnight Solitude has gained 150 Exp, 4 Bronze Coins and 1 Brutal Sparrow feather.)

Embolden by his success, Marius went looking for a second Brutal Sparrow. It had taken 7 strikes to kill the first one but if the crits were not counted then each sparrow was worth 10 strikes. The best part was that the battle lasted less than 15 seconds.

Now all he needed was another 6 Sparrows to get to Level 1 and likely another 8 to make it to Level 2.

The only problem was finding the Sparrows.

But Marius' luck was good and he managed to find the last 14 Brutal Sparrows he needed before the hour was out.

Marius was enjoying the Shattered Lands battle system. Without the lag that the assist system caused he could launch at least 3 strikes while Binding Shadow was in effect Also, he found that the third strike tended to be a critical hit.

But the best part was the increased damage he dealt after leveling up and allocating his attribute points

Name: Midnight Solitude

Class: Night Stalker

Level: 2 (2010/4000)

Occupation: None

Health: 120

Mana: 120

Luck: 0

Attack: 6

Defense: 2

Intelligence: 6

Spirit:2

Dexterity: 10

Skills: Basic Slash Level 1 (270/1000 proficiency) (Deals base damage. Cooldown none)

Binding Shadow Level 1 (60/1000 proficiency) (Binds target for 2 seconds. Cost 10 Mana. Cooldown 5 seconds.)

Each Level gave 10 attribute points and Marius had used most per level to increase dexterity, leaving the rest to be added evenly to strength and intelligence.

He even had even made a total of 60 bronze coins to add to his name. Though this amount wasn't worth much it would come in handy eventually. The main problem was mana. Binding Shadow took 10 mana per cast. It didn't seem like a lot but if it were apart of his main strategy then he would be in a lot of trouble if the fight went for more than a minute.

Marius shrugged, letting the exhilaration of the game wash away his concern. He would just need to be more careful with usage.

Smiling he walked towards the woods.

The moment he stepped over the boundary a system notification popped up.

(Player Midnight Solitude has entered the Level 5-10 Woods Area).

not far away, Marius heard a wolf howl echo through the shadowy trees.