Chapter 8-18
The most common reward for any Quest is bonus Essence. In fact, if you ever get a Quest outside of a dungeon – the kind issued by local authorities through a Settlement Stone – the only possible rewards are either Essence or eagles. Unless you’re a fucking Paladin you won’t be getting Quests through the System on a regular basis, and the less said about those assholes the better.
Inside a dungeon, the possibilities are slightly broader. Essence, eagles, and items are the main categories. Item rewards come in two flavors – generic and attuned. Generic item rewards are given in a standard System chest and consist of the same random crap you’ll receive whenever you’ve accumulated enough Essence. The only difference is that any magical items in a generic reward will be unattuned, so anyone on your team can claim them.
If your item rewards are attuned, the System will clearly tell you. This is when it gets exciting! When you attune a System chest, you’re extremely likely to find at least one item inside suitable for your Class. Don’t ask me how it works, I don’t know and I don’t care either. Be grateful that once in a long fucking while the System actually does something nice for you.
Remember, occasional unexpected treats are a key part of any abusive relationship!
- Delver’s Guild Handbook, Section 11.2 – “Quest Rewards”
I was surprised when Wolf took the lead.
“You did well today,” he told us with a half-smile. “And congratulations on finding your first reward chests. I want you to rest up for an hour or so, have a late lunch, get your mana and stamina back, and then meet up with Squad Excel.”
I gave the Ranger my best inquiring look, and he continued. “Head into town and buy some new gear. Tara, you especially need new armor – the heaviest you can get. The rest of you should be looking to upgrade as well, aside from Az. I expect to see you ready for training tomorrow in your new gear, and we’ll pull you aside one by one for individual debriefs and assessments. Go on, get out of here!”
With a shrug, I led the way out of the watchtower and headed straight for the dining hall. There was a large pot of stew simmering, along with fresh bread, and we quickly filled our bowls and sat down. The conversation centered around the Levels that had been gained and items we’d gotten. The dungeon hadn’t given us a bunch of Essence when we left – the reward had been the chests instead.
Still, Zaire and Raylan had both caught up to me by reaching Level 7. They’d both taken defensive Skills – Raylan picked Elusive, a passive bonus to evade attacks. Zaire went with Elemental Armor, the same Skill H’ruk had, but since it was tied to his Earth attunement the effect was quite different. Instead of a shimmering coat of fire that provided limited protection but burned attackers, Zaire’s Earthen Armor was a thick, hard covering of conjured dirt. It proved much sturdier, but also significantly limited his mobility.
Tara and Arlo had reached Level 6, so now our entire team was within one Level of each other. I was convinced I was close to 8, but it was natural for lower Levels to catch up over time as each successive Level required more Essence than the one before. Jayce, H’ruk, and G’hala hadn't reached 7 yet, but likely they were also nearly there. We’d all received items – those that had Leveled had gotten two – but nothing terribly exciting.
Mine turned out to be an odd knife where pushing a small switch caused the blade to shoot out of the handle and lock into place. It bore a suspicious resemblance to my bayonet mod, which resulted in some teasing from the team. The only thing I found useful about it was that it fit nicely into the concealed holster in my boots. Sadly, the fact that my greaves covered the tops of my boots made it largely inaccessible, but I decided to hang onto it anyway. I’d need new boots soon and I’d make the old ones my regular pair for wearing without my armor.
We also went through our new mods. Only one of the two I’d received was interesting.