Joe continued to listen and watch as the blacksmith kept turning out swords, Joe inspected the weapons through the ARS system and all he saw was,
[Iron sword
Rank: common
level: N/A
Durability: 50/50
Description: A common iron sword with average durability, good for new adventures]
As the evening came, the blacksmiths became less busy as people started logging off for the night, the blacksmith let the heat of his forge die off for the night as he continued to tend to the smeltery.
The blacksmith noticed that although most of the other apprentices had disappeared that Joe had remained there, unable to see his face to see his expression called out, "Hey! 0, you got a question or something?"
"Yeah I've been wondering a few things," Joe responded in an unmodulated voice that kind of startled the blacksmith, " Yeah, the modulator only engages when other outworlders are within hearing range, But first off, I don't think I ever got your name."
"Oh that, my name is Groric Emberbeard, but you can call me Rick for short," Rick responded lightheartedly.
"Ok then Rick," Joe responded," I was looking at all the swords you made, and the description of them said that they were all common rank, what determines the rank of weapons that you make?"
"HAHA, now that's a good question that all aspiring blacksmiths should be asking," Rick bellowed out in excitement," What determines the rank of a weapon or any object for that matter is the quality of the components and the quality of the tools used to make them, as well as the skill of the crafter. Common materials and common tools like the ones that I have here can only make common equipment, or maybe a piece of uncommon equipment if I spend a lot of time and effort making them, common equipment isn't particularly good at doing above basic tasks and can't hold up much against the use of skills and abilities cast from the equipment, uncommon equipment is either made of better materials or has an overall better construction that makes it capable of performing harder tasks, provides minor benefits and holds up to the use of skills better but still can't handle higher-level skills that well, and this is where magic comes in. Rare equipment is equipment made of magical materials or using magic tools to impart magical qualities into the piece, allowing it to fulfil most tasks, provide magical assistance via moderate stat increases or possess equipment abilities that can be used, as well as being able to hold up against all but the most powerful weapon cast skills, epic equipment is made by the masters of the craft using magically potent components and using their extraordinary tools, this rank of equipment is usually the best equipment many crafters can ever make, and will provide large benefits to stats and usually have at most two innate abilities, Legendary and mythic grade equipment are somewhat special in that regard having to be excellently crafted using materials that would befit such a status, such equipment performs flawlessly as well as providing major benefits to stats as well as having 3 or more inherent abilities. The only other rank you would find would be unique grade. Unique grade equipment is magical equipment that cannot be replicated by anyone else and has a special use or meaning to the person who crafted them or who wields them, usually carrying a symbolic meaning to either the owner, group or larger populous.
Rick went on his spiel as he knew that Joe was not from either their or the outworlders' world so obviously wouldn't know any of this stuff but also so that he could revel and fantasise about such wonderfully crafted pieces as who wouldn't dream about forging such equipment themselves.
Joe fell into thought after that as he paced around the blacksmiths while processing all of what rick just said and what all of that meant in actual terms, Rick let him ponder as he knew that whatever Joe was thinking about was something about smithing and not just about designing equipment concepts.
After a while, Joe stopped pacing around and immediately went over to Rick and started asking all sorts of questions about blacksmithing from shapes and designs of anvils to what tool in his shop gets used for what to how to design and make all sorts of different pieces of equipment to how to create all sorts of different effect to how equipment determines magic type and abilities, Rick wasn't conceded enough to think he was the best at smithing and he made that clear but Joe said that didn't matter as he valued the opinions of Rick as he has had years of experience to draw from as well as knowing what else he would want in his shop if he could afford it.
As the sky continued to grow darker, Joe noticed the time and bore his farewell for the evening as he headed over to vendors' street and once again found himself in the same alley as he logged off in yesterday as he prepared to leave.
"Exiting the alternate realm," Joe said before receiving the now-familiar notification.
{Alternate realm transfer routine wants to transport user's soul, does user wish to accept Y/N ?}
Joe's vision didn't go dark this time as he got transported, at first this stunned Joe a bit but he soon realised that due to his temporary lack of visual input his vision automatically focused on his spectator that had been active this whole time, but as soon as it came it left again as Joe was now back in his real body and immediately found a wave of hunger come over him, he took out some sausage rolls and some cooked soup from his inventory and sated his hunger before commanding, "verbal command: run visual studios"
His control room appeared in front of him and Joe immediately got to work solving the annoyance that he made for himself, that being the double confirmation every time he went to exit or enter the alternate realm
{world transfer protocol - connect to relevant authority through interaction porthole, request relevant authority transfer routine activation to specified worlds user body, grant exception to soul movement manipulation from relevant authority, if assert mentioned request relevant authority transfer routine activation with administrator credentials, if user's main body is harmed and user not in main body; auto-activate protocol, display {user's main body is in danger, auto transfer initiated}
Now that he had that in place all he would need to say was ': activate world transfer protocol, (Alternate realm)' or '(cardashia)' to transfer between the worlds, now with the added benefits of being able to apply administrator authority and in the case of his body here comes under harm that he can deal with it the next moment and the added bonus that he no longer needed to say it out loud.
Despite it being not that late at night, Joe still wanted to turn in early so he would be able to start the day early tomorrow as he had a lot that he now wanted to do and things he wanted to get done. Though due to yesterday Joe realised that he could actually fall asleep in his control room and decided to take advantage of it to not have to sleep outside on the floor. He quickly programmed the concept of a good bed onto the console and as soon as he finished the design Joe immediately stated, "verbal command: display bed"
As soon as he said that a bed appeared in the back left-hand side of the room that stood 80 cm off the floor with white quilts and liners with the consortium logo on top that made joe chuckle a bit before deciding to leave it on cos why not?
Joe went over and laid on the bed to find that it had the most comfortable mattress that he has ever laid on as a smug expression formed on his face as he knew that was due to the specific concept component that he made sure was added right.
Joe looked over at the at the screen and saw that the radar showed that no one was within a 1km radius of him, content with that he ordered "Verbal command: set light to 15 lux". The light level in the room dimmed significantly leaving a small amount of light so he wasn't in total darkness. Satisfied with the conditions in the room Joe fell asleep and got the best night's sleep since he got here.
Joe woke up at 8:30 in the morning as the light from outside was transmitted through the spectator onto the screen and into the room. He woke up slowly, partially reluctant to leave his bed that now he can actually call it his, but he knew that he had things to do and that as of now he has limited time to get them done. Getting out of bed he did some basic stretches before going to the main console, "verbal command: set lights to 150 lux."
The thing that Joe realised yesterday was that he had a distinct lack of spells at his disposal that he could use as and when he needed to and that was something that he wanted to resolve before mid-day before he went in to get the ball rolling on the progression to get to the level of tech that he wants.
"Verbal command: display spells and abilities"
{properties | user-visualisation & equipment | messages | inventory | SPELLS AND ABILITIES | quests}
spells:
attack;
magic missiles, burning hands
defence;
dome of protection,
battlefield control;
earthen wall, mud slide
utility;
healing grasp, healing word, mending, Invisibility
abilities:
active;
mana syphon, shield, spectator, telescopic vision, swift step, slowfall, light, spotlight, headlights
passive;
homeostasis, environmental control, hardened skin, regeneration, stabilisation, enhance body, weapon summoning array
Joe looked at his spells and abilities and saw his lack of versatility with his spells and knew that he needed to fix that as this lack of diversity is extremely bad, he only had one defensive spell for crying out loud, one! Now he needed to think about what types of spells he needed so he can add them to his magic toolbelt.
"Ok I need some restraint spells as well debuff spells, as pointed out by yesterday," Joe said to himself, " also a variety of elemental-based projectile spells, AoE spells as well as some basic mana ones, I will also need some close combat spells as well as I don't want to get swamped as soon as I get into close range, as well as some actual battlefield control spells and ones that can be used in different environments, and that a movement aid could be quite useful in combat as well, other that swift step, then also more defensive abilities and ones that don't just apply to me."
Joe went into thought for a couple minutes thinking about those different sorts of spells and thought of similar spells from things that he had saw in the past before he started implementing starting with ways to handle what happened yesterday.
{Mana bind - default power: 50 + 5cc, create external store of of mana 5cm in front of right index finger, apply targeting protocol, apply auto-tracking protocol, velocity 50m/s, upon contact, generate chains around entity, 2 per appendage, 8 around torso, bind to nearest relative unmovable surface, reduce length until 50 newton force is applied through length, apply mana syphon, lasts until dismissed}
{Mass Mana bind - default power: Mana binds default x generated , generate Mana bind: max = 7, circular pattern 7 cm above right index finger, release mana binds per spell instructions}
{slow - default power: 30 , send mana to target, generate counterforce opposed to motion by 50%, display timer 30 cm above creatures head indicating estimated time remaining when 15 seconds or less remains}
{slowness - default power 150, default range: 15 meter radius, blacklist: CCSS users, allies, friendly affiliations, generate feild at designated site that generates counterforce opposed to motion by 50%,display timer 30 cm above creatures head indicating estimated time remaining when 15 seconds or less remains, lasts until dismissed}
So now that he had that sorted at least he then went onto some of the other things he mentioned, "so now how about something a bit mine refined than magic missile"
{Mana bullet - default power: 1 , create mana store 3cm in front of left index finger 1cm by 1 cm by 2 cm, apply targeting protocol, apply auto-tracking protocol 1%cc, velocity 150m/s, upon contact 90% vaporise material directly in contact with store, 10%produce torque counterclockwise}
{Sniper's shot - default power 10 , create mana store 5 cm in front of left index finger 1.5cm by 1.5cm by 4cm, apply targeting protocol apply auto-tracking protocol 1%cc, velocity 2000m/s, upon contact produce radial force reflecting material approaching in direction of bullet travel}
{Burst shot - default power: 5, generate 5 Mana bullets, follow Mana bullet procedure}
"Ok, now that I have some basic ranged attacks, now onto some elemental and AoE attacks,"
{earth spike - default power: 5 , apply targeting protocol, generate earthen spike 2.5 meters tall base width 40 cm within 1 meter of target, protrude towards target.}
{earthen spikes - default power: 15 , apply targeting protocol, generate 3 earthen spikes 2.5 meters tall base width 40 cm within 1 meter of target, protrude towards target.}
{stone barrage - default power: 20 , use surrounding material to form stone balls 30cm in diameter, apply targeting protocol, apply auto-tracking protocol 0%cc max distance 120 meters, initial velocity calculated via tracking protocol to ensure arrival at target destination, randomise release time between 1 and 10 seconds for individual boulders}
{ice spikes - default power: 15 , apply targeting protocol, generate 3 ice spikes 2.5 meters tall base width 40 cm within 1 meter of target, protrude towards target}
{ice barrage - default power: 20 , use surrounding material to form ice shards 30cm in length, apply targeting protocol, apply auto-tracking protocol 5%cc, velocity 15m/s towards the designated area, randomise release time between 1 and 10 seconds for individual shards}
{ice sculpture - default power: default power: 20, apply targeting protocol, use surrounding material to form ice block centred on target 50 cm thick normal to entities surface, if head detected, leave face exposed}
{fire bolt - default power: 3 , apply targeting protocol, apply auto-tracking protocol 15%cc, generate mana store 5 cm in front of palm of left hand, velocity 40m/s, upon contact 40% generate combustion reaction, 60% generate infrared radiation in direction of motion}
{fire burst - default power: 5 , set environmental control temperature and pressure regulation to 5cm, compress air to 7 atmospheres radius 50 cm, rotate air around origin 5m/s produce combustion reaction while set environmental control to default}
{fire ball - default power: 50, create mana store 10 cm above left hand, apply targeting protocol, apply auto-tracking protocol, once at target generate combustion reaction, produce flames radius 5 meters}
{lightning bolt - default power: 3, apply targeting protocol, plot route to target avoiding other entities, create channel 5cm wide resistance = 0.000000001 ohms channel wall resistance 5 x 10^27 ohm resistance, end point 2 cm inside target, generate mana store 15 cm in front of left hand, channel end cap 10 cm in front of hand, convert mana into electricity.(note: use at 10% against huminiods)}
{chain lightning - default power: 21, apply targeting protocol max = 7, plot route to targets avoiding other entities, create channel 5cm wide resistance = 0.000000001 ohms channel wall resistance 5 x 10^27 ohm resistance, endpoints 2 cm inside targets, generate mana store 15 cm in front of left hand, channel end cap 10 cm in front of hand, convert mana into electricity. (note: don't use against party with only one poor sod in plate armour)}
{static shock - default power: 5 , create plane of resistance 5 x 10^27 at wrists diameter 7cm, generate mana store at targeted hand, convert store to electricity(note: 5% known humanoid safe) }
{wind blade - default power: 2 , generate store 1 cm in front of left index finger, generate completion edge using store in shape designated by store movement between cast and 0.4 seconds after cast, propagate in direction finger indicated}
After Joe created those he then thought for a while about some close combat spells he could use as he was following his list from before, but after thinking for a while there weren't any other close combat spells he could currently think of that weren't included in his elemental spells. So then his mind turned towards battlefield control spells and how he would want to control the battlefield and in different environments as well, and this made him go into thought for a while before coming up with,
{quicksand - default power: 2 , default radius: 5, apply targeting protocol, generate water in sandy materials in radius of centre up to 1.5 meters into surface}
for sandy or dessert areas,
{pitfall - default power:1 , apply targeting protocol, at designated area compress dirt and stone out of 1 meter radius going 3.5 meters deep}
{mass pitfall - default power: 10 apply targeting protocol, iterate pitfall 10 times randomly placed within 20 meter radius or designated area}
for otherwise dirt or rock-covered areas,
{unpredictable currents - default power: 2000, default radius 50 meters , apply mana syphon, apply targeting protocol, detect fluid, produce int(radius) areas of accelerated flow at 10m/s, every meter cubed can change flow direction up to 45 degrees chosen randomly, lasts until dismissed}
{blizzard - default power: 500 default radius 30 meters, apply targeting protocol,apply mana syphon, cool air in radius too -16 degrees C generate wind 10m/s in radius around centre, generate ice crystals in volume, if CCSS user detected in area set environmental control: temperature and wind regulation to 0.5 meters, set hud to radar view, lasts until dismissed}
{fog - default power: 250, default radius: 30 meters, apply targeting protocol, apply mana syphon, set air temperature to due point, set humidity to 100%, form fog, if CCSS user detected in area set environmental control: temperature and wind regulation to 0.5 meters, set hud to radar view, lasts until dismissed}
{tar trap - default power 100, apply targeting protocol, cover the designated area in magic coloured black that sticks with any creature that comes into contact with, if CCSS user detected in contact effect does not apply, lasts until dismissed}
being for open and urban areas, and with that being sufficient for battlefield control spells for now Joe went on to making an ability that he continuously thought of before he came here being,
{grasshopper - link to BMS, produce a flat green square inside another slightly big square 25 cm across, at point of focus, upon contact with foot, produce an impulse of 560 newtons (acceleration of 7m/s^2) acting on user entity normal to the direction of the square, fades when no longer focused on}
and now that he had that done, he now had the issue he had been putting off trying to think about, that being defensive spells,
{mage armour - set BMS to protrude 1 mm above skin upon contact with any non-equipped or worn object or entities(other than floor) to produce contact force equal and opposite to other entity, lasts until dismissed.}
{wall of force - default power: 400, create a translucent 10-meter high wall 100 meters across out of mana, provide contact force, blacklist CCSS users, Alies, friendlies, lasts until dismissed}
{anti-magic field - default radius 10 meters, link to BMS, cover area with mana, destructively interfere with all non-CCSS spells in the area},
After Joe added in the last ones he felt satisfied for now and he opened his spells and abilities page,
{properties | user-visualisation & equipment | messages | inventory | SPELLS AND ABILITIES | quests}
spells:
attack;
magic missiles, Mana bullet, Sniper's shot, Burst shot, earth spike, earthen spikes, stone barrage, ice spikes, ice barrage, ice sculpture, burning hands, fire bolt, fire burst, fire ball, lightning bolt, chain lightning, static shock, wind blade
defence;
dome of protection, mage armour, wall of force, anti-magic field,
battlefield control;
earthen wall, mud slide, quicksand, pitfall, mass pitfall, unpredictable currents, blizzard, fog, tar trap
utility;
healing grasp, healing word, mending, Invisibility, mana bind, mass mana bind, slow, slowness
abilities:
active;
mana syphon, shield, spectator, telescopic vision, swift step, grasshopper, slowfall, light, spotlight, headlights
passive;
homeostasis, environmental control, hardened skin, regeneration, stabilisation, enhance body, weapon summoning array
Now that he had that out of the way he could now move on to other matters.