⬣//A SINGLE CRACK LETS THE LIGHT IN.

[cccorp]

>>UNTITLED ROOT TOWN // >>FUTURE // >>PROGRESS? // >>HE HUNGERS // >>Zelkova Corner

⬣//BRAVELY SAILING INTO THE UNKNOWN

As they say, fortune favors the brave. Five lucky players took part in a Limited Quest: The Mysterious Sky Islands, in which they discovered a brand new Root Town. While the team was largely successful in their efforts to make the mysterious floating town in the sky habitable, not everyone embraced the spirit of teamwork on this journey.

When you gate in to this shiny new Root Town, you'll notice something curious: it has no name. Its name simply displays as "???" in every context menu and there is no signage around the Root Town itself that points to its true name— rather, the name it had before they came along.

Whispers on the wind tell of an evil wizard in flowing white robes who ruthlessly boiled the village elder alive. With him died all of this mysterious Root Town's lore and history, and in its place are tales of the monster who robbed this land of its identity. The elemental sprites that populate this village refuse to speak their name, simply wishing you "good luck, have fun!" as you turn to leave.

While on your journey to check out the island, you'll notice how unstable the bridges are. Unstable might be putting it lightly, because for some unlucky souls, crossing the wrong bridge means plummeting to your death. It seems that whoever was put in charge of constructing these bridges didn't give a damn about structural integrity.

The local sprites are pleading with adventurers to assist them in building better, more stable bridges, but bridging the gap between one island and the next is not a job for a single person. If you have enough of a heart to heed the pleas of the sprites, you'll want to work with your fellow players to get the job done. All the wood, nails, and rope you need to construct better bridges has been helpfully supplied to you by the sprites. You could always sabotage the project too, of course, but what kind of person would you be if you did that?

⬣//BUILDING THE FUTURE

The professions system has been added to fragment. Rejoice, busybodies, for there is much furniture to be built and dubious potions brewed.

In celebration of the new crafting & gathering system, a crafts festival is being held in the Unnamed Root Town. Take care not to plummet to your death while traversing those rickety bridges.

Players are encouraged to set up a booth of their own and trade their unique handcrafted items with their fellow adventurers. In addition to being supplied with enough level 1 and level 2 crafting materials to give the crafting system a spin, the local NPCs are running a contest encouraging people to come up with their own for a chance to have their creations canonized as real crafting recipes.

To submit your own recipe ideas, you need only fill out this handy form:

Recipe name:

Recipe category: Alchemist, Carpenter, Chef, or Jeweler?

Which two items does your recipe call for? Choose two items to combine. Only gatherable items (refer to the professions page) can be used.

Effect: What does this item do, if anything?

Description: A brief description of your lovely new product.

<b>Recipe name:</b> <b>Recipe category:</b> <b>Which two items does your recipe call for?</b> <b>Effect:</b> <b>Description:</b>

Submit your recipe contest submissions here.

⬣//ONE STEP FORWARD, TWO STEPS BACK

Fragment's beta test has seen its fair share of unusual bugs and unintended features, and with the latest update bringing many new changes, it's inevitable that some things have broken behind the scenes.

If two players happen to log in at the same time, they might find their avatars swapped with one another's. Thankfully, this issue doesn't lead to the unpleasant exchange of deep-seated memories or anything of the sort, but getting used to a body that isn't yours takes time. Thankfully, this particular bug resolves itself when both players log out.

The windy town of Unnamed Root Town is generally quite scenic and pleasant, but there's just one issue. It's far, far windier than it should be. If the rickety bridges don't kill you, the gusts that intermittently blow across the sky islands might knock you off your feet if you don't watch your footing carefully. Thankfully, the crafts festival on the southernmost end of the island hasn't been impacted by the severe winds. Among them is one voice that you don't recognize: a voice that promises a death, gruesome and bloody, in the days to come.

To everyone's relief, the carnival and its notorious hall of mirrors has packed up and left Lumina Cloth, but your past hasn't finished haunting you. The foul winds carry whispers of the past along with them, uttering words and phrases uncomfortably familiar to you. They're the voices of your past, the voices of people you've known, loved, and lost. Covering your ears won't keep the voices out of your ears. Nothing will.

Finally, on the more mundane some of things, professions have a few kinks of their own that need to be worked out. Occasionally, a crafted item won't come out quite right, instead resulting in one of the following "items":

Alchemist: Truth Serum. Become unable to lie for 24 hours.

Blacksmith: Whatever you're enhancing transforms into a denim disaster. Introducing your new "body" armor, "leg" armor, "head" armor, and "arm" armor.

Carpenter: Mirror Mirror. Reflects the person you're most afraid of becoming.

Chef: Durian Delight. A succulent durian pudding that reeks so strongly that its stench can be smelled all across the Root Town or Area you're occupying.

Jeweler: Crystal Ball. Breaks after one use but allows you to read another player's thoughts for five minutes.

⬣//WHAT ARE YOU, AN IDIOT SANDWICH?

With crafting in full swing, a certain admin has been lured out of his hidey hole by the smell of delicious chef-prepared meals. Hien is hungry, and you will feed him.

Chefs are not limited by the recipes they know like some professions are, so players are encouraged to think outside of the box and combine unique ingredients to cook up something truly special.

Taste, however, isn't the only important part of a perfect meal. Chefs looking to impress the big man himself are expected to present their culinary delights to him with pomp and finesse. You need to impress Hien if you want to gain more from this venture than the participation prize of a chef skin.

Those who successfully woo Hien with their delectable dishes will be given an additional prize: a little black pomchi pet to accompany their avatar around Root Towns and Special Areas. Hien will be giving these out at his discretion, so you better suck up to the dogboss in charge if you want a pomchi of your very own. If you catch Hien in a good mood, he may even agree to give you a different breed of dog if you ask nicely.

Feed the local Hien here.

⬣//ZELKOVA’S CORNER

Hello, everyone! Can you believe it's been an entire month since our beta test began? Even though we've already been through a lot together, we've still got three months left! I'm rooting for you all!

As of today, the level cap has increased from 25 to 50. That means new armor and weapons will be available to you! Get out there to different Areas and start leveling up! But don't forget to stop every once in a while and enjoy your surroundings, too. Which reminds me—don't forget to check out the new Recreational Areas! We have a beach and hotsprings for you to enjoy now. I hope everyone continues to have fun exploring!

We've also opened up the GP shop, where you can create your own special armor set for a certain price, along with a few other things. Please check it out!

Oh, and don't forget to use these three new greeting cards I've made! Here they are! Make sure you use them so you can connect with your fellow players! We're all friends here, after all.

>>Navigation

Comments

[insinning]

1. Whispers on the wind (@ ???? Root Town)

[He's trying to have fun. He really, really is. But as he goes to explore the carnival, his mood plummets with each gust of wind.

Emil, it's your favourite! Ah, that's his--

Emil, you're making us all proud. Once you get into that engineering program, you wont have to-- No, dad. He never wanted that.

It's fine. It's fine. It's all in his head, even--

My Sinclair...from now on, you'll always be--

You might catch Sinclair standing along the periphery of the carnival, holding his head. He's half between tears, half between body shaking rage as the wind carries voices he doesn't want to hear at all.]

--stop it. STOP IT!

[Do you really want to talk to him when he's like this?]

2. Ikea Repair time (@ ???? Root Town)

[Despite appearance, Sinclair does have some idea of what to do to help fix the ladders. It's basic carpentry, right? He'll come by with a stack of planks piled up high. With the wind though, he's having trouble walking in a straight line, so he keeps on zigzagging until he walks straight into you!]

--I'm sorry!

[There goes the planks, taken away by the wind]

3.Recipe making (@ mac anu)

[A pomchi. A pomchi!!! He's only cooked a few times in school, and then when his room mates nearly burned down the work share house, but he's sure it should be much easier in a game when it's just a bunch of button clicking and tossing things into a pot, right??

Staring very seriously at a pot]

Mmm...I wonder if I can make something that looks like Kartoffelklösse....

4.wild card for plotted stuff

it wimdy

[weaseled]

[The familiar sight of Sinclair isn't what halts Yael's steps, but the ear-piercing shriek he's half convinced couldn't have come from such a willowy boy. No need to tell him you're not fine, Sinclair. He can see that clearly, his footfalls intentionally heavy to serve as Sinclair's warning that he isn't alone.]

Geez... What a pair of pipes on you.

[Yael gives Sinclair a moment to lift his head, look up at him, before extending a hand. A lifeline.]

[insinning]

Ah--

[It was Yael. He had moved over to a corner to hide. But even so...A shuddery gasp and he lowers his hands down from his ears]

...I didn't think anyone was nearby.

[Staring at the hand for a long moment.

You'll doubt everything

Be anxious of everything

Gritting his teeth against the buffeting winds, he reaches out and takes Yael's hand. It's as if he's drowning, and this is the only lifeline in sight]

[weaseled]

[He wraps his fingers firmly around Sinclair and doesn't let go, tugging him out of his slump to stand closer to him.]

I doubt there's anyone who didn't hear you. What's wrong?

[Yael knows what the issue likely is, his hand tensing around Sinclair's when a gust of wind blows and he's treated to a taste of his own sordid past.

I'm sorry, Sheza. I can't stay. If I don't obey them, they'll...]

careless whispers

[tablescraps]

( Mithrun hears the voices on the wind, too, and has since been traveling along ??? with those wordsat his shoulder, unwelcome passengers. They are what they are, though. He fails to find motive or desire to avoid ??? yet, so he's walked beside them, his claymore feeling a little bit heavier at his back.

That's when Sinclair's voice takes his attention. And Sinclair doesn't look good.

Should he hit him? Would that snap him out of it? Then again, Sinclair might shatter (metaphorically if not physically). Best to leave try that second, if the first thing doesn't work.

Perhaps not that much more reassuringly, he grabs Sinclair by the back of the neck, jerking him back a couple steps - and hopefully out of his stupor.

Firmly, while still gripping him: )

Sinclair.

( ... Huh. Was Sinclair always this short? Mithrun's noticing the change in Sinclair's avatar a couple weeks late. )

[insinning]

[ He hasn't lost himself completely yet. He gasps, stumbling back a few steps and looks over at Mithrun with wide, almost unseeing eyes. The wind continues to buffet them but at least for now, the whispers are quiet]

Morgan...

[tablescraps]

( He studies Sinclair for a few moments, determining, first of all, he no longer needs a smack; and, also, determining what the next step ought to be. Covering your ears doesn't work. He tested it.

Well, at least if Hien's up here, he'll probably be suffering too. Saves the players a bug report.

He lets go of Sinclair's neck finally before he grabs him by the hand and starts striding back in the direction of the town's Chaos Gate. )

We're going somewhere else.

what are recipes

[tylorific]

[ Tylor is here suddenly, glancing from pot to Vogel with a polite smile. Cheerily, because the translator gives up to pave the way for bad jokes, he greets him with-- ]

Oh, bless you.

suplexes

[insinning]

Eh?

[ Blinking at Tyler in surprise]

Do you mean...me?

1

[dissimulative]

[ Yes.

Yes, he does.

The winds have been saying all sorts of things to Oria too, but they're things that he's heard hundreds of times. Several more doesn't hurt at all. He rushes to Sinclair in the crafting festival. ]

Emil!

[ His voice is sharp, ringing loud and clear as he puts a hand to his shoulder. ]

[insinning]

[His mouth opens, half caught on another scream, when Oria's voice pierces through the wind and his hand steadies him]

O...Oria?

[Sinclair stares blankly at him, then his gaze slides away over Oria's shoulder, listening to something only he can hear.

You have to feel sorry for her, don't you. She did something horrible, but-

Eugh. He covers his mouth, doubling over as he begins to tremble in earnest]

iii

[notfunny]

You're carting what off?

[ if sinclair didn't notice at first, surprise! it's cyno who's standing right next to him, a hand to his chin and head slightly tilted in one direction. ]

That's a pot.

[ looks inside. there's nothing... ]

[insinning]

Ah-[ Almost. screaming. as he jumps a foot into the air holy Hell Cyno where did you come from. he clamps his hands down over his mouth just in case tho, draws in a deep breath and]

No, that's... I'm not carting anything off...

whispers

[tinged]

[ spotting sinclair is like catching sight of a rainbow. hani immediately turns to approach him - oh. he's covering his head, but that doesn't seem to be enough? so hani covers his ears and waits. ]

[insinning]

[Ah. He freezes for a second, blinking as another pair of hands clamp down over his ears]

...Hani?

[ It's enough to stop him from spiralling. For now]

3

[fluorite]

[ And here's Fai popping up right on the other side of that pot and peering inside. Sorry not sorry if he scares you, Sinclair. ]

Kartoffelklösse? It's been a long time since I've had that.

[insinning]

[It's just boiled potatoes now! Nothing else.

But also, jumping again. What is with people and doing that]

Ah, you've had it before?

[Brightening visibly. This is the first person not to make fun of the name. How nice]

4!

[userunfriendly]

[ It's a lovely (terrible) day in their new windy city, which makes it a prime time to be anywhere else. Michel isn't avoiding the new Root Town, precisely. He's been around there enough to try to work on the bridges at times. But he's tired of being tossed around by the wind, and tired of the constant whispers in his ear making it impossible to think.

He isn't exactly a person for animal therapy. But the constant chatter of the grunties at least drowns out any other, more unsavory, voices. He's settled himself at the grunty ranch with a charitable inventory of crafting materials as he idly works on carving little likenesses, eyeing any grunty that will sit still long enough to humor him. ]

[insinning]

[He really, really doesn't like the floating island right now. So he keeps to Mac Anu, wound up and exhausted as he makes his way to the Grunty Ranch. He's sure he can see Aitla and be distracted by its computer generated comforting words. He doesn't expect to see Michel there. He drifts closer, peering from around the tree]

Are you working on the carpentry profession?

wildcard lmao :)

[gluttoning]

[Time to step out of the Chaos Gate. Ahhhhh. Fresh combat over, a weird blessing given. Time to go get snacks. So Misteaks sets off down the streets of Mac Anu, letting his eyes wander.

They settle on Sinclair, bent over a pot. The light hits him just so off golden hair, the inquisitive and serious look on his face over whatever food he's considering making Misteaks' heart skip a beat deep in his chest.

How could he not have seen it before? Was he just blind????

...

Sinclair will hear the clearing of someone's throat behind him.]

Hey. Can I talk to you for a minute? It's important.

hello sir

[insinning]

[ Sinclair had been staring very seriously at his pot, wondering how his recipe had failed. His cooking is level 2?? The sunflower frappe should have worked??

So he definitely doesn't notice Mistakes until he clears his throat. Jumping a little into the air - at least this is Mac Anu, not Lumina cloth]

Ah...yes?

[Looking up with wide eyes of concern...why is Misteaks so tall]

1.

[threatmewted]

[What the fuck. Keeping a bit of a distance, but calling out:]

...You okay over there?

[insinning]

[ Sinclair draws in some deep shuddery breaths, his gaze unseeing for a moment as he looks right past Swallow. Then he realises where he is, and he nods]

... I'm fine. Sorry.

wildcard

[dissimulative]

[ When Sinclair doesn't look well, Oria conned him to go to a dungeon with him. He's been using his brain too much, so Oria figures that Sinclair would want some relaxation for once that isn't the hot springs. So after getting to a meadow-based dungeon, he pulls Sinclair to the side to ignore all the monster waves that are further down so that they can actually sit here and take in the scenery.

Sinclair also gets a free lap pillow because Oria will be Oria. ]

[insinning]

[ Just laying down on Oria's lap, absolutely perplexed. Lap pillow is nice but]

You know...this isn't what I was expecting when you said we should do a dungeon run together.

[He's cold, his head hurts and he's sleepy which...makes the lap pillow very enticing]