I'd love to talk about how amazing the talk dark tower was sitting there high on the hill. Sadly M60 was a first generation VR game so anyone seeing it nowadays would say it looked like shit. It was amazing that first time though. Wizard's Towers aren't like, Tower Towers, you know? They are basically lighthouses. I went cracked open the door and got my ass moving up those damn steps. Too bad I wasn't far enough into Bosonist to lower my weight and so forth. Gravity magic was awesome but it took a while to get going aside from Lockdown. Crush was good later because Gravity was a rare resist to have but it was kinda weak early especially since I hadn't learned and trained it.

I slowly got up to the top of the stairs to the main chamber and knocked on the door. I heard some loud yowls and realized my mistake. This is a not a huge tower. I dropped Boost and Quicken and then I triggered the door to get a look inside. How cliche. Werewolves. Fuck. Roll for initiative! Just kidding, I cast Lockdown. Like I said, small ass tower.The main room is only like 20 feet around. I need what's in the room and I can't use Worldstep cause there's nowhere to go. Perhaps I should have leveled my Illusion magic. 1 man vs 1.5 men and 1.5 wolves. Not the best odds and no type weaknesses.

Vampire Minion: Werewolf Level 14 EXP 1000

Health 800

STR 80 DEX 80 CON 80

Skills: Bloody Slash 80 | Foul Bite 80

With Quicken and Lockdown boosted I do have some time. Kinda wish I had Miasma Phase 2 right now. These guys were fast but Lockdown solved that problem. I had a time limit but I had enough mana to recast no big deal. 9 seconds. 8 if I want to use Boost again first. Alright, Boost it is. Now I was able to test my new toy. Clingfire. Too bad they weren't vamps so the stat damage didn't really matter.

Clingfire: 45 damage + 5 DoT/5s _ -10% INT/WIS | 3 targets Mark | ranged 40ft | Cast 2s | 30 mana

Clingfire was perfect mostly because of its target count. As a 3 target DoT I get very little from recast but I do have Pyromania. I cast it and then Clingfire. Both boosted. 45*1.9+19+30 for the DoT from Spellsage duration boost. Costs 11*1.85. So 20 mana for 404 damage spread over 3 targets. Not bad but gotta wait out the DoT and not something you can multicaste. Gotta deal 6x that much damage to win. 6 seconds on Lockdown.

I cast Boost, then Envenom twice, then Boost, then Lockdown, back to 9 seconds. then Envenom again. I'll get some levels after the battle. Boost. Another Clingfire. Splash. Down to 300 health each. Boost. Pyromania. Boost, Twin, Fireball, and Fireball.

Not the smartest enemies ever but if I hadn't had time to wait for the door to open I'd have been toast. So weak which is a problem when I'm trapped.

That's 1000*1.7*3 or 5100 EXP. Woohoo, level 8. Except the part where I don't get anything cool till the next level.

9600*5100=14700-12800=1900

+5100exp (14700/12800) (1900/25600) Lvl Up!!!

You have gained 10HP, 46MP, and 2 stat points!

You have gained 2 skill points + 1 magic point!

So yeah, 3 points to Miasma Phase 2, 1 to go, and 2 point to MEM. Need those spell slots. Health 158 and Mana 830. Once I get my boost from Phase 2 of Miasma and 5 of 7 skills plus the extra mana synergy really starts to take off. Best for everyone that I'm off to the capital. I'd burn through the Quest boards like nothing if I was stuck here.

I've got Perception as well as high INT and WIS so I ping off the relevant documents pretty quickly. Its your basic shit right. My wizard is in another castle. I mean yeah, there were no Vampires here so. The sub boss mob name was pretty telling. These guys don't sparkle but they are a level of "alabaster" that every pasty nerd dreams of being. The light is a lot more like a parking lot in the sun then a snazzy sparkle. Sadly Phase 2 of Miasma only has the same lame opaque fogs, nothing usefully translucent to wear as magical sunglasses. Bummer.

I slog through a dark forest and a bog and up a mountain at midnight. I wonder what they do if you come in the day time? But I've got a time limit on this beta test and can't afford to grind trash till daylight. Big old dark grey castle just like you see in the Carpathians. Not one of those lame Alpine castles. Also lines up with the Slavic theme of the area I guess.

This is much, much larger than a lighthouse. Thankfully the final confrontation takes place in a banquet hall. There is a dungeon but its 3 cells in a dank basement and not a Dungeon with a capital D. This castle is actually an excellent place to use my Illusion tricks to sneak around. Vampires might see through Phase 1 Illusion magic but not lame werewolf minions. Luckily for M60 the average player isn't a snob and loves a good Underwold rip off. Damn normies.

In any case Boost and Quicken hit use level 2, level 1 for Lockdown and Envenom and Twin and Fireball.

Boost primary effect 60->70 and then +35 from Highmage. +1.05. Spellcost mod +0.95 from +0.85.

Quicken +1s to 10 from. Lockdown +1s from 4 to 5. Envenom +1 on the DoT. Twin -.1 spellcost to 2.4x. Fireball -5 mana to 120. Not amazing buffs but decent.

Having read the secret documents I begin to trudge along to the Vampire castle, up from the hills, then the foothills, then deep into the mountains. Dreaming of the time when I hit level 9 for that sweet Miasma goodness.

On the way through the mountains I hit my first obstable. A mountain drake. That thing would crush me if it got near my. Only real hope is Lockdown.

Dark Mountain Drake Level 25 EXP 7000

HP 4000

STR 250 DEX 250 CON 400

Skills: Consume 400 damage | Skyfall 200 damage

One major issue that I have as a mage that is breaking the power curve is basically unless I wanna sit around grinding monsters get more and more intensely ahead of my physically. This drake takes 50% from fire as a Dark aspected type. That mean's no way in hell I'm going to use Miasma magic on it especially at phase one. Firebolt is good and all but it doesn't benefit from Haste or really Tricaster. My Cast time efficiency against high tier monsters is super low. But there's not much I can do for mana efficiency reasons. At least Perception allows me to catch sight of monsters easier.

I break out my standard strategy to start. Boost, Quicken, Pyromania. Boost again, then Lockdown. Pyromania has an absuredly long duration now, though that is bad news for my hitpoints. I basically die if I take any damage. Perhaps I need to avoid casting it boosted now. My health recovery will barely keep me above 0. At the time I didn't even think about it. I was such a newbie.

Since I only have one enemy with low WIS vs my 46 INT I'm pretty damn safe just recasting Lockdown. I've got one more spell under Boost so I throw Firebolt. This thing has an obscene 4000 HP. Im dealing 80+19 base with Pyromania. Boost is 2.05 and another 1.5 multiplier for type aspecting. I'm dealing 304 damage for roughly 12 mana. It's gonna take 14 hits under Boost for me to win.

That mean's one more Lockdown but Quicken and Pyromania will stay active. Insane. On the other hand if I got hit I would be dead in 0s flat and my own Pyromania almost killed me. Maybe I should have grabbed myself some sustain. It is probably for the best that you can't respect or startover like you would in a single player RPG because that would make min-maxing twice as effective. I would definitely have grabbed an Extraordinary support Template earlier if I had known. My second, Legendary, Template had some good utility buffs but not a lot of Support options. Synergized well with High Human though. Especially as far as min-maxing.

So, killing a monster 17 levels higher than me. Shit. If there were two of them I would have been in deep shit even if it was 2 slightly weaker ones. Now for the EXP. So drakes are draconic and have hoards but this guy was relatively lame. 10 gold plus some crafting mats I can't use. Better than the last hoard but relatively weaker now. Still at least I can afford some training when I get back to town.

7000 * 1 * 2.7 = 18900. That adds to my previous total of 1900 to put me at 20800. Just 4800 more to level. I clear trash mobs on the final approach to the castle and hit my goal. That drake was a stroke of luck. Bosonist is tier 1 for a reason. Lockdown is amazing.

+7000exp (27800/25600) (2200/51200) Lvl Up!!!

You have gained 10HP, 46MP, and 2 stat points!

You have gained 2 skill points + 1 magic point!

168 health, totally useless even with 20% damage mitigation, which is an awesome buff if you actually have health, but 876 mana is not bad. 2 more into MEM. I drop the last point into Miasma Phase 2 and I'm ready to pick awesome spells. Oh and I get Phase buffs of lower tier spells holy shit.

Miasma Phase 1 Spell List

Splash LVL 1-0-1-0: 30 damage + 6 DoT/3s + Con -10% | sphere 8ft | ranged 20ft | Cast 2s | 25 mana

Infect LVL 1-0-1-0: DEX/STR -15% + 5 DoT/10s | single target | ranged 20 feet | Cast 1s | 25 mana

Fester LVL 1-0-1-0: 4 DoT/10s | Infect+ 3 targets | ranged 20ft | Cast 1s | 20 mana

Envenom LVL 1-1-1-0 : 11 DoT/10s | single target | ranged 20ft | Cast 2s | 25 mana

Only Envenom has a use boost, the rest just have a single gold based boost. Sadly I'm away from town and I won't be able to do obscene training before I hit the castle. I'll also only have 2 of the 7 Miasma Phase 2 spells unlocked. On the upside the castle put me to level 11 counting the reward for completing the quest so by the time I reached the capital I was pretty damn strong. The Phase boosted stats of Phase 1 spells are below. Oh I don't use or train Smoke but it stills gets Phase boosts and is included below.

Miasma Phase 1 Spell List

Splash LVL 2-0-1-0: 45 damage + 3 DoT/3s + Con -15% | sphere 12ft | ranged 40ft | Cast 2s | 45 mana

Infect LVL 2-0-1-0: DEX/STR -20% + 7 DoT/10s | single target Mark | ranged 40 feet | Cast 1s | 45 mana

Fester LVL 2-0-1-0: 6 DoT/10s | Mark+ 3 targets Mark | ranged 40ft | Cast 1s | 40 mana

Envenom LVL 2-1-1-0 : 15 DoT/10s | single target | ranged 40ft | Cast 2s | 45 mana

Smoke LVL 2-0-0-0: Blind/LOS 6s | sphere 40ft | ranged 60ft | Cast 2s | 60 mana

The boosts to Miasma from Phase change are identical to Pyromancy. Mana cost increase, range increase, AOE boost if any, +50%+ on unmodified baseline primary effects as closely as possible. Now we get to the key boost. Phase 2 spells. Not quite as intense as for Pyromancy but still.

Miasma Phase 2 Spell List

Poison: DEX/STR/WIS -20% + 5 DoT/10s | single target Mark | ranged 40ft | Cast 1s | 40 mana

Taint: DEX/STR/INT -10% + 5 DoT/10s + Con -20%| sphere 16ft Mark | ranged 40ft | Cast 1s | 40 mana

Corruption: DEX/STR/WIS -20% + 10 DoT/10s | Mark++ 3 targets | ranged 40ft | Cast 1s | 40 mana

Putrefy: DEX/STR/INT -20% + 10 DoT/10s + Con -20% | Mark+++ 3 targets | ranged 40ft | Cast 1s | 50 mana

Plague: CHA -20% + 10 DoT/10s | sphere 16ft Proliferate Mark | ranged 40ft | Cast 1s | 70 mana

Blight: MIT -20% + 10 DoT/10s | Mark+++ 3 targets Mark | ranged 40ft | Cast 1s | 70 mana

Boil And Burst: 100(*) damage + 10(*) DoT/10s | Mark*(per) 3 targets NoMIT Mark | ranged 40ft | Cast 1s | 140 mana

Several of these spells are off limits for obvious reason. Clingfire gives Marks, as does Ignite as another Burn spell but I didn't take that, but I'd only be able to take a Mark spell and Blight *or* Putrefy or Corruption and a non 3 Mark spell. Most but not all DoTs apply Mark. Acid/Venom and Dark don't not for instance. Fire does. Weird design choice. Spells with Mark under the target info require the specified number of marks to trigger. All such spells hit 3 targets for some reason. Boil & Burst requires a minimum of one mark but multiplies its effects by the total. Plague causes Proliferate, which is a mechanic where all enemies hit spread dots with remaining time including stat damage.

Corruption does Dark aspected damage, Infect and Fester do disease, Splash and Envenom do acid, Putrefy, Plague and Blight do Rot damage, Poison and Taint do Poison damage, and Boil And Burst actually does Bleeding damage. It does apply Mark. Miasma would actually synergize well with a Rogue type Template since Rogues do Poison and Bleeding with some of their skills. Miasma would be pretty insane if I had taken Thoughtcaster since I could abuse Tricaster + Twin to max out my Marks. As it is I just have Twin. If I was facing more than 6 enemies though I would probably not use Miasma spells. Enemies would be week and direct AoE damage would probably be more effective.

Its sort of relevant to note that Vampires take reduced Dark damage. However they take increased Bleeding damage. They are immunse to Poison but Acid/Venom does standard damage and Disease does increased damage because it messes with their blood, which is the source of their power. They take increased Fire damage. For these reasons I grab Boil and Burst and Plague. I have 3 Marks already. 2 more will help. Also Blood damage and a large burst helps.

I am now ready to enter the castle. My goal is to retrieve the Mages Guild member and to either wipe out or somehow handle the Vampires. As a min-maxing piece of shit I'm going to do whatever gives me the most power without damaging my reputation.

Now as I mentioned before my social skills are going to come in handy. All NPCs regard me as having +1 reputation level. Vampires, but not Werewolves, count under this definition. I was later told there were certain circumstances under which I could have become a Vampire. In fact this was the reason I spawned here. The developers did not anticipate some of my decisions. Basically if I had picked up an Uncommon Bard type Social Template due to different actions in Atria and pursued Illusion as well I would have had CHA boosts and a Template Ability that would have given me the Reputation to gain a Legendary Template, Vampire Lord, from allying with and marrying a Vampire Duchess.

Yeah like I said Underworld, if you know what that is you whippersnappers, so Vampire babies are a thing. I'd have ended up as a Vampire Mage King and conquered Sarantium and the Kingdom of Arnor. Seriously, the developers were the worst name pickers... Ah well. I still got to do something crazy involved politics so I got over it. I also didn't have to dirty my hands with an Uncommon Template. Uhuhuh. Shivers. Not the good kind. I was in NCDOT. I am elite.

So I'm at the door of the castle, new empowered with vile and defiling magics. That seems like a good place to stop. The story of the castle and what I did instead of bring Darkness to the world is pretty long and not super awesome. Things get awesome in Sarantium. Which I did not invade. Or sail to.