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⬣//A SINGLE CRACK LETS THE LIGHT IN.
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?
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.
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.
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.
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.
it wimdy
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.]
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[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]
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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...]
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I keep hearing my family...then her.
[Tears, then rage. His dead family's loving words. His sister's screams of agony.
then her
laughing]
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[Yael doesn't let go of Sinclair's hand. He wouldn't dare, remaining still as a sentry beside Sinclair in the hopes a solid presence might help ground him back in reality. Any time his attention begins to slip, Yael squeezes his hand as a reminder that he isn't alone.]
...We shouldn't stay here. Come on, kid. Let's go someplace else.
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[It's a lot to drop on someone. But he has a feeling Yael's seen and heard a lot worse. Every time his gaze drifts off, he feels Yael anchor him again. And that's a relief.]
Where should we go?
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The spa. Heard the water there's good for you.
[But that won't help with those mental scars. Nothing will. Still, going anywhere is better than staying here.]
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The hotsprings...?
[He nods in agreement. It wont help him forget. But maybe it'll lower the racing of his heart, keep his agitation at bay. Anything should be able to help, right?]
Mm. Lets go there.
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[With that settled, Yael shoots Sinclair a party invite and warps them over to the hot springs. He's been here before, though he doesn't admit to it, trudging forward into the inn proper to secure a room for them and a set of yukata.]
Let's get changed... unless you plan on soaking in your armor.
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I already had to do that before...it's actually really heavy in this area.
[Not on purpose, but. Well. He had a feeling he had to do some kind of rescue mission and lo and behold]
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Really? What was that about?
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[Thanks, Yael. Twinks indeed have privileges. He'll just collect his yukata and look for a place in the room to change. He does have a sense of modesty after all]
But I was definitely expecting that.
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Sounds like him alright. Don't follow his example.
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Mm. [don't follow his example - which one, the murder revenge quest or the failing to move when you're about to die quest] I'll try not to.
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With both of them toweled up and ready to go, Yael leads the way down the hallway and out into the hot springs proper. God damn, it sure do be hot.]
Think you'll faint if you stay in the water too long? You're on your own if you pass out and drown.
[But Yael wouldn't really leave Sinclair to drown... would he?]
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I'll be careful.
[He's not Mithrun1. He worries a lot more, for one]
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I don't doubt it. Still, you keep...
[...dangerous company. Wait. Is Mithrun dangerous? Dangerous like an unguarded cup on the edge of a table when a cat is present to knock it over, perhaps. Is Mithrun the cat in the equation, or is he the perilously perched glass cup? No no, maybe he's the surprisingly sharp table edge that you jam your knee on while rushing to keep both the cat and the cup contained.]
...
[Catrun? Cuprun? Yael hums, his unfocused gaze wading through the clouds above as he ponders this very pointless query. Sorry, Sinclair. You may have to hard reboot the old man if you want an actual answer.]
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[ Grandpa #2? Please clarify Sinclair cannot read minds
and into the water they both go so they can just not deal with life, yay!]
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...But really, Yael is just waiting beneath the water to see how long it takes before Sinclair surfaces for air. Please, baby boy. Don't make him deal with two suicidal clowns.]
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Yael? Where did you go?]
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While Yael himself has (temporarily) logged off, he made sure to unequip his swim suit first. When Yael fails to emerge from the water, a pair of army green trunks float up in his stead. Yael is dead.]
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Yelping and ducking under water---Yael, did you drown?? DID YOU DROWN??
GRANDPA NO]
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Boo.
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Mister Yael?!?
[ THEN. who do the green army shorts he's holding belong to??]
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[He expected his armor to put itself back on when he logged back in. It, uh, has not.]
Man, you really do scare easy. I almost feel sorry.
[Almost.]
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