Monday 10 August 2009

A Mixed Blessing

CaptainScarlet pet-levelled through the night for one final time before the white horse gets too high-level and hungry for that sort of thing, and SirPerivale joined him fairly early in the morning - before breakfast time, anyway. It was lucky that an archer called CrystalClearr didn't visit Merac until later, as she was the type who doesn't just "ks" the Berserker that a pet-leveller is using, she sticks around and does the same to the next one, and the next - but eventually she tired of her mischief and moved on.

After coffee MistressSabina headed for Prokion Temple; the Auzura-4 back room was in use again, so Sabina and Cap had to move across to Auzura-3. Luckily the only couple of visitors showed the same consideration that Sabina had shown for the Auzura-4 occupant and quickly moved on, so that as expected level 32 was reached, and the hour, using just a double skill exp psp, added 260 skill points, as well as 15.27% experience and 900 pet points, which were enough to get Sabina's drake into level thirty.

Back in Randol, MistressSabina spent 865 skill points on the new level 32 skills Astral Energy (200 more health, when a wand is equipped), Mana Barrier (25 more physical evasion) and Stone (turning the target to stone for ten seconds, and removing all buffs/debuffs - or, at least, an 80% chance of so doing), a witch's main attack skill.

After lunch, while CaptainScarlet continued work on the white horse, which apparently is now going to be given to the archer Jacqueline rather than the cleric Thabitha, MistressDomina headed down to level five of Maargadum Jail again. There wasn't time to use a three-hour boost, but MD did at least use a one-hour 30% extra experience potion, which presumably added about 1% to her total - which came in at 9.43%, plus 49 skill points and 1184 pet points. The good news was that MD did pick up a level 47 boots manual, which is a pretty rare and desirable drop, as well as two more heaven stones; the bad news was that a resurrection scroll did have to be used at the end, when a mis-click targeted a Beast Crawler, bringing swift magical attacks from all of those nearby and a speedy death. Ah well, it was about time for the session to end, anyway.

For the evening session, the plan was to go across to the Cariae server, and finish the job of getting that new healer LadyAuzura up to level 31, so my level 100 archer Barbarienne logged in on Cariae-3, and teamed up with LadyA, who was already in charge of my Scra-Chi pet SkrappY. We headed for the Tomb of Theos, and, once LadyA was safely close to the wall, she started one of the "beginner" + 150% platinum blessed irises, and Barb began shooting Screaming Zombies.

It all went smoothly, though there was only "4 hours" left of a second pbi when LadyAuzura finally reached level 31, meaning that even with the platinum blessed irises it had taken almost three hours for Barb to get LadyA there - which would have been just about seven hours without their use! On level thirty, each Zombie kill had added just under 2.5% experience. Still, while Barbarienne must have gone up less than 1% overall, both SkrappY and Barb's reindeer-horse pet got useful experience.

Our old guildie Limey got in touch almost as soon as Barb had arrived on Cariae, eager to hear how I was getting on - and before I'd reached the Tomb Astarael messaged me as well. The plan there is to at least reach level 109 before September, apparently, when the Katar guild he's in has plans for a mass migration to the new mmorpg Aion. Paying a £8 monthly fee ought to work out cheaper than buying lots or aeria points, the theory goes...

Back on Auzura after our excursion, CaptainScarlet was soon back in action pet-levelling, while there was just about time for Galahad to head for Prokion Temple. Before heading for Merac Cap passed over the last ten of Chuck's stash of skill boxes, out of which Galahad got a couple of the 15% training spells and three pssps, plus scrolls and skill point boosters, so, once he reached the Prokion Temple back room, Gal started a pssp and a 15% red-and-white pill, so that at level 32 the Orc Axemen gave 5162 skill exp and the Orc Sergeants gave 12127, and settled in.

Unfortunately, when there was a little under "10 hours" left on the pills, or 25 minutes in real time, the announcement came up that the servers were going to have to be shut down for a reset in five minutes - so both Cap and Gal had to log out. It's best not to wait for the actual disconnection, as you can lose recent experience and skill exp gains that way, not to mention recent loot. The servers didn't stay down for long, so I was soon able to log Cap back in and send him back to Merac, and then rush Galahad back to the Temple, to finish what was left of the skill pills - which was now reset to about "20 hours", which was a bit useful.

What wasn't useful was an announcement that there was to be an hour's worth of double experience and skill exp, as the skill exp wouldn't "stack" with the 215% extra I was already getting, while double experience just meant that there'd be less time in Gal's current level for sp-farming... he has his experience gain reduced to 50% for a reason, after all. Still, it all meant that during his rather extended "hour" Galahad added 448 skill points, as well as 23.34% experience and 1349 pet points.

Ratel had visited CaptainScarlet soon after our return from Cariae, and passed over the replacement platinum blessed iris, as well as 150 quality stones towards the pet-levelling involved. Cap had been ignoring a nearby Pandora's Box, as I was focussing on Galahad's sp farming, but Ratel opened it - and I was right to ignore it, as it unleashed a level 50 Pandora's Beast. That of course was no problem for Ratty, who has killed the Grand Red Dragon before now, and he quickly despatched it. A little later, he reported that he had been down to the far end of Maargadum Jail, and fought its level 52 boss, the Death Knight of Iris - which had killed him with two hits. He plans on getting a few more levels before going back and teaching the big guy the error of his ways, the way he did with "the fat spider" Baal.

The white horse had just reached level 32 by then, so Ratel was suitably impressed with the progress. My own horse, being raised by SirPerivale, is going through level 21 now, so it won't be long before both those pets start to get hungrier. perhaps in a level or two I should stop Peri levelling that horse, and wait until Cap is ready to take it on. Peri could start on a new drake, perhaps, I'm sure I still have characters who need one.

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