A few hours later, a colorful group gathered at the entrance of a new dungeon.

Herrak stood there, his shield and axe shinning in the morning sun. Beside him, three of his party, the Aquamancer, the Pathfinder with his enormous crossbow, and the adept squeezing his gold medallion.

Opposite to them, Ingrid, in scale armor, petted Thumper her Warboar, chatting quietly with another woman in similar armor who held reins to a bit smaller yet still huge Warboar.

A few steps away from both groups, Goran, in his battle gear, scolded his daughter. Andria didn’t look anything like yesterday. The loose clothing was replaced with a tight black leather suit of armor. The fatigues were perfectly fitted to provide maximum mobility and protection. Metal blackened studs reinforced chest and arms, giving it a bit more stopping power. On her belt, freshly made twin axes dangled. Her long hair was tightened in a single braid which was secured by clasps to the armor, keeping it from distracting while in combat.

Then there was Sigrid, standing next to Horn. She wore a similar armor to Andria, but with the addition of a long hood covering her face. A bandolier with throwing knives across her chest and two large daggers, almost short swords, finished the outfit.

Next to them, Snouty sprawled on the ground, receiving petting from his spymistress. The boar was happily snorting. Her silvery fur was shinning a few hours ago, already mudded by her rolling in the undergrowth.

Finally, Horn was in his full gear. The leather armor, which had seen so many battles, was once again fixed and ready. His trusty axe added a calming weight to his hip, while a brand new heather shield hung from his back. A few vials of both healing and mana potions, one of the last in the clan, were slotted on his belt.

Four rings, two of each health and mana, sparkled on his fingers. His back was covered by the cloak made of the pelt of the mighty white wolf, a victory spoil from the fight against goblin shaman. On his neck, a chain disappeared under the chest piece with his newest addition to the arsenal. The Shadow heart. The item he found in his back was finally identified, and it was something. He pulled up the details, not believing what a treasure just gathered dust in his pouch.

Shadow heart medallion – Epic – Masterwork – min. 15 mind – A masterfully cut gem set into an elemental steel casing. It’s a conduct of magical energies of darkness. Allows the wearer to assume Gaseous Form once a day for three minutes. Allows the wearer to create a sphere of darkness within thirty yards twice a day, for ten minutes each. Increases power of all Dark magic spells. Increases wearers mana by 20 points. If willed can shatter, releasing a score of powerful Shadow Hounds that’ll follow the owner for twelve hours, this action would destroy the item. – made by Jonas Underwood.

Realizing what he had for the whole time made Horn curse. That item would save his ass so many times since the beginning. Hindsight was a powerful emotion, which he fought against. At least it was the lesson to never leave loot just out there.

For the last time, he checked his character sheet. He finished the book of Might, which left only the Reflex one remaining. His two hours of everyday training of both magic and combat also brought in some benefits. Less than what he hoped for, but it all added up.

Name: Horn Skysmith

Race: High dwarf

Allegiance: Lightforge Clan

Level: 10 (12789/??) /0/0

Current class: Battle Adept

Previous classes: -

Health [Regeneration]: 87 / 87 (97/97) [37/h]

Stamina [Regeneration]: 82 / 82 [32/h]

Mana [Regeneration]: 85/85 (125/125) [35/h]

Attributes: [0 free points]

Might: 25

Reflex: 12

Mind: 17 (18)

Endurance: 26

Spirit: 26

Ability: 18

Presence: 10

Skills [1 free skill slot]: Combat proficiency level 5, Cure Wounds level 5, Radiance blast level 3, Blessed weapons level 2, Riding (Exotic beasts) level 3, Inner Fire level 2, Lore level 2, Battle Caster level 4, Flame Strike level 3, Leadership level 4, Shield of faith level 3, Weakness level 1, Blessing of Might level 2

Traits: Chieftain, Dwarven Endurance, Low Magical affinity, Magical Resistance (Minor), Low light vision, Relentless, Undeath slayer

Titles: Outnumbered specialist, Slayer I, Dungeoneer I, Dungeon Master I, Against all odds III, Divine Architect

He liked his growth. The only sore point was his lack of Presence. He was a Chieftain, regularly giving speeches, leading troops into the battle, negotiating alliances, and completely ignoring that attribute. He recalled the feeling of being in the proximity of Gibbins, the man was a complete wuss physically, yet something he was generating a calming and trusting aura. Horn was sure that was a high presence attribute. It was something he needed to start thinking about shortly.

Horn also skimmed over his abilities. As he knew how they grew, the additional information about levels appeared. On top of that, he noticed some interesting facts. Increasing Practice levels gave him additional uses of the ability, while training decreased costs, cooldowns or increased the potency of the abilities. He didn’t know what theory did, as there wasn’t time yet to study it. Overall, the progress from the first moments in the game was tremendous.

Combat proficiency level 5 (Practice: 3, Theory: 1, Training: 1) – Passive – Gives a moderate proficiency in fighting with all weapon types. Grants combat instinct. Moderately decrease stamina expenditure while fighting. You gain an understanding of how to use your movement combined with armor to minimalize the damage. While fighting the enemy, you gain a chance to spot a weakness in their defense.

Riding (Exotic beasts) level 3 (Practice: 2, Theory: 1, Training: 0) – Passive – Gives a basic understanding of handling exotic land mounts. The more unique creatures might require a higher level of skill. While riding a beast, you gain minor bonus damage to all attacks. While on your mount, its speed, health, and might are slightly increased.

Cure Wounds level 5 (Practice: 3, Theory: 1, Training: 1)– 5 mana, 1-second cast, 10 seconds cooldown – Mind / Spirit – Heals moderate wounds, heals additional amount equal to base within next 60 seconds. Doubles increase natural health regeneration for 30 minutes. The spell can be cast on a visible target within 30 feet. The spell also neutralizes poisons up to Epic rarity.

Radiance blast level 3- (Practice: 2, Theory: 1, Training: 0) – 10 mana, instant cast, 1-minute cooldown – Mind / Spirit – Blast the nearby enemies (5 feet range) with a blast of divine energy, damaging, and pushing them back. Enemies further away can be disoriented and blinded. Friendly targets within the range, are healed for a small amount. Increase the range and the power of the blast for additional 10 mana per 5 feet.

Blessed weapons level 2 (Practice: 1, Theory: 1, Training: 0) – 20 mana, 10-second cast, 1-hour cooldown – Mind / Spirit – Imbue up to 5 weapons with diving energy for 10 minutes, giving them bonus damage and ability to harm ether beings. Increases damage against Undead and Demonic creatures. Spending twice the mana increase the blessing time up to 30 minutes.

Inner Fire level 2 (Practice: 1, Theory: 1, Training: 0 ) – 20 mana +5 per each additional target up to 3, 10-second cast, 1-hour cooldown – Mind / Spirit – Imbue the targets with righteous Might, increasing their resistance to most damages and increasing health regeneration for 30 minutes. Doubles mana regeneration.

Lore level 2 (Practice: 1, Theory: 1, Training: 0 ) – Passive – Mind – Gives deep understanding of his surroundings based on one’s knowledge. Grants knowledge of entity race and estimated level. Allows identifying items, scrolls, and potions up to rare rarity.

Battle Caster level 5 (Practice: 3, Theory: 1, Training: 1 ) – Passive – Mind/Spirit – Decrease cost of offensive (damaging) and supporting (buffing) spells by 35% mana. Increase the power of offensive spells by 20%. Once a day allows casting a below 2-minute cast spell as an instant cast.

Flame Strike level 4 (Practice: 2, Theory: 1, Training: 1 ) – 20 mana – Mind/Spirit – 3-second cast - Calls forth a column of fire for 5 seconds, striking at a chosen location within fifty feet. Deals damage based on the mind attribute increased damage versus undead and demonic entities. The fire clings to enemies dealing additional damage over the next 30 seconds. For additional 10 mana, you can shape the area of flame.

Leadership level 4 (Practice: 3, Theory: 1, Training: 0 ) – Passive – Presence – Gives the ability to form a party up to your presence score. Increase morale of your units, slightly increase regeneration rates. Increase maximum health by a small degree. Allows you to form a party with others with the established groups. Their numbers do not count against the maximum of your group. Allows you to know the direction and estimated distance to each of your party members.

Shield of faith level 3 (Practice: 1, Theory: 1, Training: 1 ) – 20 mana – 5-second cast – 7-minute cooldown – Mind / Spirit – Create a stationary dome absorbing a large amount of damage for 10 minutes or until destroyed. For additional 5 points of mana, you can manipulate the shield’s shape.

Weakness level 1 (Practice: 0, Theory: 1, Training: 0 ) – 20 mana +5 per each additional target up to 10, 10-second cast, 20 feet range, 30 minutes cooldown – Mind / Spirit – Curse the target with holy wrath, slowing it down, cutting his regeneration rates and resistances. The duration, base 10 minutes, and strength depends on the target’s power.

Blessing of Might level 2 (Practice: 1, Theory: 1, Training: 0) – 40 mana +5 per each additional target up to 10, 10-second cast, 20 feet range, 2-hour cooldown – Mind / Spirit – Imbues your targets with the Holy might, increasing their Might and Endurance attributes for 1 hour.

All in all, he was ready for whatever the dungeon had to offer. The ten of them, plus the three Warboars, would enter. This time he was almost sure that the animals would appear inside, as each of them was bonded. In the case of that not happening, Rockbitter had a few squads of dwarves patrolling the area and would take care of them.

Horn cleared his throat and loudly said, “Friends, allies, Herrak.” He winked at the adventurer and received a grin in return, “I’m glad all of you made it here on time. We’ll be delving shortly, but I believe that we need to establish roles before doing so. So let’s make a short round of introductions. Please share your general abilities, no need for the details unless you desire to. Let me start. I’m Horn, the battle adept. I’m a capable melee warrior, but I shine with my offensive and supportive spells. I can create columns of fire, stationary shields, increase Might and endurance, heal, and finally slow and weaken the enemies. I have a basic crowd control spell that disorients enemies and pushes back smaller ones. I’ll also be leading this expedition, but I’m always open to input, so don’t hold back!”

The newer dwarves shared a few surprised looks, but most of them saw him in action. Nodding to Sigrid, she spoke, “I’m Sigrid, the clan’s scholar. However, I’m proficient in reconnaissance and handy with the blades. I’ll be scouting ahead of the party.”

The short speech made a much bigger ripple through the gathered. Despite seeing her in action already, the dwarves were surprised. Before whispers could start, Horn pointed to Goran. “Aye Chieftain, I’m Goran and will be the main tank. I have several supporting abilities, but they have very long cooldowns. I’ll be using them sparingly when needed. Besides that, I’m a proficient fighter and can attract the attention of enemies. My presence will also bolster the speed of your skills development, thanks to our Chieftain and his newest choices.”

Before he could even finish, Andria started speaking, “I’m Andria, Goran’s daughter. It's an honor to join you all! We’ll beat this sucker, and songs will be made in our names!” A grunt from Goran stopped her. In a more somber tone, she added, “I’m a bard but not afraid of getting my hands dirty. Daddy trained me in close combat, and my songs can both empower the party and weaken the enemies. If we meet beasts, I can charm them if they’re able to hear my voice.”

Herrak took over the moment that the bard finished, “I’ll hear a song about me with pleasure, young lady. I’m the Guildmaster of Ardent Blades, the first adventurers guild in these lands. Name is Herrak. I’m the same as Goran, a tank but focused more on survival than bolstering others. I’ll be able to handle anything that this dungeon throws at us.”

Horn frowned at a very vague description, but he didn’t expect more from Herrak. The Aquamancer was next, “I’m Ulrik, an elemental mage of water and ice. I can freeze the enemies, slow them down, even drown if needed. I can create an ice barrier and allow us to walk on water or breath under it. One of my spells has a limited healing effect, but it's more for emergencies than combat.”

The Pathfinder quickly took over, “I’m a scout, but I think we have quite a few of these in here already. I can track, find traps and hidden passages, I’m never lost and can shoot a mushroom of your head from hundred yards. In combat, I’m usually focused on other ranged combatants or magic users. You can call me Badger.”

Then the adept spoke, “Father Cornelius at your service. I’m a priest of Victoria. My Lady blesses me with a multitude of supporting and healing spells. I’m also proficient in sensing and fighting undead and demonic creatures. I can neutralize poisons, dispel curses and debuffs and create a wall of blades.”

Horn took a note to talk to the dwarf during the dive. He wanted to know more about the gods, and he also had an empty skill slot. He wondered if he could learn a spell from someone to fill it up. That would open new development avenues.

The Valkyrie next to Ingrid said, “Brunhild Ironoak. I’m a Pretorian of Dawn Riders, me and Rock are proficient in fighting together, mounted and on foot. I’m a damage dealer but can hold some punishment if needed. In the time of need, I can call upon powers of our Mother, but once done, I won’t be able to repeat that for a few days.”

Finally, Ingrid spoke, “Call me Ingrid. I’m the head of Dawn Riders. I’ll take care of our animals, healing and empowering them in combat. I can hold my own in a fight and have some nasty surprises but of limited uses. However, my main task in the group will be keeping the pumpkin’s head cool. He’s bound to lead us into the trouble otherwise.” She finished nodding at Horn. A chuckle escaped some of their companions, but at least it broke the ice.

“I’ll keep in that mind,” Horn replied. Rising his hand, he added, “Accept the party invites and let’s get this dungeon started!”