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By
now you are approaching Lord or Ladyship, and
have started to make a name for yourself within
the local community. You have your favorite
folks to hunt with, areas to sit and chat with,
and critters and locations to hunt within. If
this is NOT the case, and you have more or less
been keeping to yourself, guess what? You either
need to start pronto, or face the fact that you
aredead meat on a hook. The areas a Warrior can
hunt unassisted are few and far between. Your
hunting productivity will stall, your cash
generation will drop,
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and
you won't even be able to afford your kindly
Empath a decent tip for patchin' you up after
that good arse whoopin you just took in
Zombies,Stone Giants, or Warcats. Interactions
and friendships are the entire basis and spirit
of the Lands, and if your still have that 'Me,
Me, Me' mentality, you won't enjoy the Game for
what it is supposed to be:
FUN.
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When
folks reach their 20th train or Title, they enjoy a
definite sense of accomplishment and confidence. Many
players don't make it this far, or are so unhappy with
their results they either quit or re-roll. You should be
looking forward to the future, and savor the fact that
you are only going to become more capable and fierce as a
Warrior, and if you have been training properly,
desirable as a hunting partner. Friends will be coming to
you for help, bringing you boxes to bash, or equipment to
assess. A well-trained and diversified Warrior is an
EXTREME asset on a hunt, as he keeps parties from having
to run back to town with a load of boxes or take rest
breaks for Mana. By now a Warrior should have sufficient
training in swim and climb to access any areas applicable
to his skills and experience level.
When
you are in a Party, the varied and diverse skills of its
members will often allow you to hunt well above what is
generally considered a safe age of critter. A couple good
casters may allow you to hunt Various Sprits or Hounds in
the Graveyard, or the beasts of Stone Valley. Tackling,
Ambushing, and general offense will keep your party
alive, and your Spirits high. Just remember that
accidents DO happen. If the weather in the Lands is
particularly bad, bring the age of the critters your
hunting down a notch.
Good
Areas
to
consider for hunting
18
to 24
- For undead try the Graveyard for Ghoul Masters, Arch
Wights, or Night Hounds. Potters Field is good for
Zombies. For living critters try Fire & Warcats in
the Caves of Lysierian Hills, Krolvins & Reivers in
Luinne Bheinn, or Trolls in Stone Valley & the
Glacier.
25
to 30
- For undead your choices are stick with what you already
have, or you can try Moaning & Tree Spirits which can
cast a nasty Boil Earth (Combat Maneuvers, Reflexes, and
Dexterity will save your butt most times) or Spectral
Monks & Lichs in the Monastery. The Spider Temple is
chock FULL of hunting goodness, from Giant Arachnids to
Priestesses. Minotaurs in the Labyrinth are fun, as are
Giants in Stone Valley. Most of these areas will put your
Combat Maneuvers training to good use.
30
to 40 -
Now it's time for your introduction to my favorite
hunting playground Castle Varunar, along the trail to
Solhaven. Not only will you find all manner of undead for
hunting here, but you learn your 1st lesson in TRUE Fear.
The creatures here are so Evil as to exude an aura of
pure malice so intense you will actually fall to your
knees and begin crying like a little baby. Even worse,
it's a Spirit Warded effect, so that nice new 6x Hauberk
your sporting won't do jack to help. To add insult to
injury, you will plummet from whatever stance you were
enjoying to full offensive, and since your on your knees,
your DS drops to diddly squat. This is where Empaths and
Clerics tend to make Legend, as its easy access, and
plenty of areas to get drawn & quartered. As your
training approaches that of the offending creature's age,
its effects become less pronounced. If the age difference
is within 8 years you might not even drop to your knees,
but rather will just stand there drooling for a short
period. The closer you approach the creatures age, the
shorter the time of your suffering, till eventually you
might just blink for a moment before whoopin some undead
heiny. Just remember, the critters get meaner the deeper
you enter the Castle, and a single type of critter's age
can vary as much as 5 years! Within the surrounding walls
you will find Rotting Corpses. They have Fear, and a
nasty AS, but are relatively easy to lop off a head. I
was hunting here by the time I was 25 and just danced a
lot.
I
love Varunar because it has what I call the 'Great
Equalizer'. Roa'ters are ferocious burrowing monsters 41
years in age, with a NASTY pop-out-and-kill habit. A
Warrior can be a godsend, as the only thing that is going
to save your sorry arse is luck and good Combat Maneuver
training, and luck runs out real fast here. I've seen
folks WAY past Legend, nearing their 100's, drop like
flies 'cause of Roa'ter ambushes. Many casters tend to
avoid Varunar. Folks who frequent the Castle have
nicknamed Roa'ters 'Tators', and are usually swearing in
the same sentence. Tators claim the lives of more casters
then even Darkstone. If one goes under (burrows), you
only have 2 choices: Stand your ground, or run like mad
for the only sanctuary in the Castle, the Great Hall.
It's located in the Heart of the Castle, surrounded by
its oldest tenants: Skeletal Warhorses (38-40), Skeletal
Lords (42-44), and finally Phantasmas (45-46). The only
problem is that a Tator can burrow as fast as you can
run, and will follow you the whole way, even into areas
Tators don't normally thrive. Better to stand your
ground. Folks are often screaming for a Warrior to come
pluck a Tator, after it having claimed a loved one or 3's
life. Ambush the head and it's all over.
If
this kind of gamble is not to your liking, then you can
try the Graveyards 'Ledge' as an alternative. Getting to
the Ledge is easy enough, the problems start AFTER you
get there. The Gods have seen fit to make the Ledge a 'No
Warrior Zone'. As soon as you arrive, you lose every
spell you have. Everything here can cast, and without a
casters' protective spells, your dead meat mucho pronto.
The MAIN reason for hunting here is the same for the Gods
changing it. A Warrior can hunt WELL over his level , as
EVERYTHING here is vulnerable to Voln-Fu. Fu can stun and
crit the denizens roaming about easily, preventing them
from casting for a moment or 2. By then your fellow party
members have either tagged 'em a few more times &
killed them, or renewed their stunned condition. Very
often you can give a fatal injury with a good 1-strike
crit. Very nice treasure can be found here, and with good
training in First-Aid, skinning can make you a wealthy
man. Hunting alone can be hazardous, as every room
supports swarming critters. The spells here are
formidable, as are the physical attacks. Your injuries
here can quickly pile up. Hunt wisely by staying alert
and protecting your Hunting Party's Casters. Send mana
often, give them the herbs they need to heal injuries
(injuries hobble a caster's ability), and pull them to
their feet if the Party gets 'E-Waved'.
Another
suggestion for hunting isn't any easier, and that is
Darkstone Castle. Darkstone is full of negative energy
waves which will suck away a spell or 2 every few
minutes. This area can be nasty for a Warrior, as these
'Pulses' can severely limit the time you safely expect to
continue hunting. Lots of Gargoyles wander about here, as
do Huge Mein Golems. Golems are wonderful for head
chopping, as long as you run immediately after, as they
tend to explode - killing everyone in your party. Despite
popular rumor, Golems do NOT have a fruit chewy center.
If you SHOULD stick around for the show, and you actually
survive, you are often rewarded with a mein shard worth a
nice chunk 'o change in town.
Finally,
you can give the Broken Lands a try. Hooded Figures,
Giant Fog Beetles and Magru all wander about here in
search of a fine meal. Don't be it. It's a bit of a walk,
and folks hate to run long distances to save foolish
adventurers.
40
and Beyond
- Castle Varunar, the Dungeons of Darkstone, the Broken
Lands, and even Shans along the Forest Road in the Foggy
Valley of Vornavis will continue to provide you with more
then enough challenges and opportunities. By now you have
mastered the art of hunting and survival, and have
slipped into comfortable habits that make adventuring so
much fun and a great time to share with friends and
comrades. Beyond lies the great Rift, of which I know
very little, except that dying THERE takes on a whole new
meaning. Just remember this one thing: No-one is coming
to your rescue, as you can't even enter till your
80.
GETTING
THE MOST
OUT
OF YOUR HUNTING
There
is more to hunting then just getting a few people
together and having a swinging 'Free-For-All' every time
something walks into your area. Warriors should be
prepared to Ambush an arm or leg to reduce the critters
offenses & defenses, and bring them down so they
can't run and make an easier target for the partys weaker
members. Casters should be prepared to restrain the
creature or reduce its ability to attack, both physically
and magically. Most undead will give up treasure to a
Clerics spells, that no other caster or blade can coax
forth. Remember to take your turns, spread the
experience, and most of all enjoy your time spent. Word
to the wise, use those wonderful Black Floating Disks to
cut down on the crap your dragging around. If everyone in
your party has one, you should have plenty of storage
space.
A
final note on training.
