novelzi 3.60: Post-Coital Clarity II
3.60: Post-Coital Clarity II
“As far as recruiting combat oriented players goes… I think we need to break down the members we currently have into what basic role they play and then focus on recruiting people to shore up the gaps in our roster.”
“I do not understand, Allie. What do you mean what role they play?”
I laughed softly through my nose at Gehenna’s question and did my best to explain.
“In other games, characters are broken down into specific roles such as tank, healer, damage dealer, support, and so on. While Holy Damnation is quite a bit more nuanced than that, there are still enough similarities to be able to put each person into one category or another.”
Gehenna looked thoughtful for a moment then nodded.
“I believe I understand. What are the various roles?”
“Hmmmmm… I would say… Tank, Damage Dealer, Offensive Support, Defensive Support, Healer, and…”
“Crowd Controller?”
“Yes, Em. Good one.”
I resisted the urge to laugh at Gehenna’s confused expression and instead gave her a warm smile and traced my finger down her shoulder.
“For example… you would be a Damage Dealer primary and… Tank secondary… because of the defensive spells in your arsenal.”
“Up until my most recent transformation I would have considered myself a Crowd Controller primary and Damage Dealer secondary. But now I feel like those two roles are swapped for me.”
“Yeah… that storm of ice shards you summoned was absolutely absurd, Em. Plus… Don’t think I missed your ridiculous close combat skills that you have now.”
“It’s a bit of an adjustment, actually. I’m still learning how to fully control this body. It plays way different than my Demonspawn or Snow Demon body did. Especially when I’m close to you. But… back to roles… Who’s next?”
“Do me! Do me!”
I raised an eyebrow and smirked at Nialla.
“I think all of us ‘did you,’ kitten. Unless you’re already hungry for more.”
Nialla stuck her tongue at me and then looked thoughtful as she considered my words.
“I mean… I won’t say no to more sex… but you know what I meant. Meanie.”
“I do, kitten. But… let’s see… I would definitely say you are a Damage Dealer primary and… possibly evasion based Tank secondary?”
She nodded enthusiastically and gave me a fanged smile.
“I agree. I wouldn’t have even considered the Tank part, but yeah, when you put it like that I can see that. So… what role are you?”
I laughed softly and returned her grin, baring my own fangs in the process.
“I’m a true hybrid. OK… not really… I am a Damage Dealer primary. But… I tried to make it so I can fill any role as needed. I have shield and heavy armor proficiency along with several defensive skills and spells that make me an effective tank. I have a blood magic based healing spell and a general one that I can use for healing, although both require me to have physical contact for them to work… so I’m more of a burst healer than anything. As far as Offensive and Defensive Support go, I have several enchantments that increase my own combat strength or whoever I cast it on, a few hex spells, along with an area wide skill that buffs allies and debuffs enemies. I can use my [Demonic Chains] as a sort of Crowd Control… although not nearly as effectively as Em’s ice or Jade’s bones.”
The others looked at me with slightly wide eyes and I gave them a sheepish grin and shrugged.
“I am level 213. Although… it’s likely a shit ton higher now after that ambush. I haven’t actually saved my progress yet, so I can’t be sure. But… Being that high of a level means I have a lot of skills. Not to mention the fact that I get one every time I corrupt someone.”
They all gave me curious expressions and I rolled my eyes as I opened my character menu.
“From you, Em, I got the spell [Coldfire]. From you, Nialla, I got [Blastburn]. From Mellic I got [Demonic Chains], and from Tifa I got [Shifting Superiority]. Jade gave me [Empowered Blood], and Tesrif gave me [General’s Prowess]. Oh, and from Hana I got [Efficient Corruption]. Which apparently lets me corrupt people without needing those potions.”
Gehenna practically beamed at me as she absorbed this information.
“This is the exact reason I wanted you to be my successor, Allie. The ability to gain both power and skills from every ally you corrupt will make you far more powerful than I could ever hope to be.”
I let out a long sigh as I considered the source of my [Corrupting Touch]. Had I not allowed Mellic to corrupt my Angelspawn body and change me into a demon, I would never have received the skill that was now the reason I had half the game against me and the other half ready to serve me. Instead of dwelling on that thought for long, I forced my brain to focus on what we had been doing before. The four of us discussed at length what role each of our members fit into, and then what roles we should look for first when we started recruiting more players.
Jade: Healer/Damage Dealer
Braylon: Tank/Damage Dealer
Scythe: Tank/Offensive Support
Aeryn: Damage Dealer/Defensive Support
Ikelos: Offensive Support/Defensive Support
Tifa: True Versatile except Healer
Areandra: Damage Dealer/Offensive Support
Ghost: Healer/Defensive Support
Ash: Damage Dealer/Crowd Control
Judas: Damage Dealer/Tank (evasion)
Tesrif: Tank/Defensive Support
Hana: Non-Combat Primary/Versatile
Kyra: Non-Combat Primary/Versatile
“So… It seems that we have a lack of Healer primaries and Crowd Controllers. We could also use a few more Tank primaries as well. To be more specific, I think we need more members who can use stealth effectively for both scouting and ambushing enemies. Right now we only have Judas and Ash… and Areandra somewhat.”
Emelia nodded and tapped gently on her lip as if she were making a mental list of everything.
“So, Healers and Crowd Controllers are first, then Tanks. Stealth-type players are at the top of the list. Anything else?”
“We don’t actually have a lot of truly long range fighters besides Areandra. Maybe more archer types or spell casters who focus primarily on long range?”
Em nodded and as she made a quick gesture with her hand I realized that she was making a list.
“Anything else babe?”
I thought for a moment and then shook my head.
“OK. Gehenna, Nialla… anything to add?”
When they both shook their heads, she closed her list and gave me a smile. As I recalled my conversation I had had with Kyra about recruiting lower level players, I figured I would bring it up and see what my ‘wives’ thought about the idea.
“So, Kyra actually made a really smart suggestion when it comes to recruiting. She suggested that recruiting lower level players and then power-leveling and equipping them with better gear would be a great way to build teamwork and trust. As they level up, It would encourage them to pick skills and classes that fill any potential gaps we may have. Now… I’m not saying we stop recruiting players with powerful characters, I’m saying that we should focus more on the player overall and less on their character’s current level.”
“I know you said you prefer to keep the clan relatively small, but how many new players are you thinking of recruiting, Allie?”
I pursed my lips and let out a small sigh.
“Yeah… about that… I’ve changed my mind. While I am not overly thrilled about the idea of being in a massive clan, as Gehenna said… I need a fucking army. In addition to the crafters and harvesters, I think we should start by recruiting at least 10 new members. Once we reach 30 combat primary players, we’ll start really grinding to get everyone up to at least level 100 and get them outfitted with the best gear we can find or make. For the stronger members, I think we should aim for level 200 and be fully geared in legendary crafted items or legendary loot drops with class specific bonuses.”
I turned to Gehenna and grimaced slightly.
“I know you and I talked about me using my corruption abilities on my clan members, but I’m not sure I’m fully prepared to sleep with fourteen more people. I think we need to