The key to losing his pursuers had been to shift direction regularly, twisting a confusing path that forced the hobgoblins to snake their way toward him. It wasn’t going to hold them off indefinitely, but, seeing as they weren’t able to bulldoze their way through the thousands of green shields that had landed on every house and half the other buildings in the neighborhood, they were forced to take more traditional routes, and that bought Ollie time.
His luck held when he finally found the kiosk nestled right in the middle of a pathway between two houses, jutting up through the gap as though some absurd vending machine bomber was dropping the things from the sky. He quickly approached the machine, calibrated to use it, and then purchased and used a medkit to heal the many scratches and gouges all over his skin.
It was a near thing too, because they had all turned an angry red and some of them were even beginning to darken. His right leg had also gone numb, and the skin surrounding a long cut on his left leg had started to split apart as though it might just fall off.
“Alright, I’ve got fifty Belch Bucks to my name and a bunch of psycho hobgoblin bikers chomping on my ass. Let’s take a look at what my class options are.”
Ollie’s face fell as he read through the details and noted the exorbitant cost for each class.
>> Soul Ledger Token used. Novice classes include:
+| Blue Chip Brawler [Warrior Archetype]: 5000 Belch Bucks
+| Market Manipulator [Mage Archetype]: 7000 Belch Bucks
+| Black Market Broker [Rogue Archetype]: 7500 Belch Bucks
+| Venture Capitalist [Summoner Archetype]: 8000 Belch Bucks
+| Treasury Paladin [Paladin Archetype]: 9000 Belch Bucks
“Fuck me, you guys are taking the piss! How the hell am I supposed to come up with that much money?”
[Nero] I’m afraid it is quite difficult during the earliest phase of the game to acquire sufficient funds to purchase a class. You should also consider that you will need to buy core Attributes; otherwise, you will not be able to begin increasing those attributes and acquiring Proficiencies.
Ollie rubbed his temples. “Okay, I’m starting to get the picture here. Pay to win. You boys have rigged the game against us. I get it.
[Nero] Oh, no, the game is certainly not rigged, Ollie. Every player has the chance to succeed. To begin with, there is a very steep learning curve, of course, and money is not so easy to come by as it will be at later stages of the contest should you survive, but the game is in no way rigged.
“Sure,” Ollie said sarcastically. “We’ll be given every possible chance to succeed, and you guys won’t change the rules on us. If everyone just works their little asses off, we’ll all have an equal chance of succeeding, right?”
[Nero] Well, it’s not quite that simple, but in essence—
“Bullshit! Don’t piss on my leg and tell me it’s raining! Hell, the world outside of this damned game isn’t fair, so why the hell should it be any different in here?” He held up a hand, shaking his head. “Don’t bother trying to tell me something different. You’re paid for by the damned game, so there’s no way in fuck I’m gonna believe you, anyway. Just tell me how to get as much money as possible as quickly as I can. Actually, let me rephrase that. What’s the easiest way in the early game to get cash?”
[Nero] There are two primary methods. Killing low-level enemies in the most spectacular way possible will grant you kill rewards as well as the potential to gain achievements, which may also offer monetary rewards. By killing these enemies in as entertaining a way as possible, you significantly increase your chances of amassing coin.
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“Got it. And what’s the other way?”
[Nero] This is a somewhat delicate matter, and I have already learned that many humans are distressed by this second path.
“I’m a big boy, Nero. Let me have it.”
[Nero] Very well. The Mammon System also offers significant early game rewards to those who choose to be a Reaver; those who choose to actively seek out and kill fellow players.
“Shit! Like, other humans?”
[Nero] Yes. For some reason, player-on-player violence tends to generate quite a lot of positive betting activity, particularly in the early phases of the game, so the System offers significant monetary rewards to those who kill players. Be aware, though, that following such a dark path may cause issues later on as you are less likely to attract lucrative sponsorships and—
Ollie waved away the comment. “Save your breath. I’m not gonna go around killing other humans. Screw that shit. Just let me snag a decent weapon and find me some more of those little rat bastards, and I’ll see how inventive I can be.”
[Nero] Very well. Perhaps now is a good time to mention that you are eligible to buy the Ultrimax Newbie Bundle despite the fact that you do not currently have the funds available.
“Bundle, huh? Alright, how much, and what’s in it?”
[Nero] One hundred Belch Bucks. Given you are unable to pay, you may take the bundle free of charge, provided you pay back the principal with an additional fifty percent interest within the next twelve hours. Here are the items included in the bundle.
+| Basic Inventory: A limited storage augment which will allow you to store up to one hundred items of any weight and quality, provided the item in question can be picked up with your bare hands. [Cannot be exchanged]
+| Translation Matrix: Allows a player to understand the language of all other contestants and NPCs in their native language. Applies as a passive after being purchased. [Cannot be exchanged]
+| Novice Arena Map: A gauntlet augment which shows the location of the closest Novice level arena and highlights key obstacles and potential loot caches nearby as well as Vend-o-matic machines. [Exchange value 100 Belch Bucks]
+| Starter Wallet: A Belch Bucks gauntlet augment which allows you to hold up to one hundred thousand Belch Bucks. [Cannot be exchanged]
+| Exchange Coupon: This item allows you to exchange one item in your possession for the equivalent value in Belch Bucks. Exchanges must be made at a Tongsly Belch Vend-o-matic machine.
+| Bailout Ticket: A single-use bailout which will pull a player out of a fatal encounter and re-situate them in the closest area of safety. [Exchange value 500 Belch Bucks]
“Nice. Okay then, what if I put the fifty Belch Bucks I already have toward it? Will that drop the amount of interest I have to pay? Or can I grab some of that stuff with just the fifty?”
[Nero] I’m afraid not. You must either pay the full amount outright or pay the full amount with interest.
“What if I head out and kill a few more goblins, scrape up enough coin to pay the full one hundred? Will I have to come back to this machine to do that, or can I do it anywhere?”
[Nero] In this instance, I will be able to sell you the bundle without you having to interact with a Vend-o-matic machine. And, yes, you can purchase it at any time if you wish.
Ollie hefted the crowbar he’d liberated from a car on his way to the Vend-o-matic machine and looked out into the street. “Good. Then I’m off to kill some goblins! How do I find them? And not those big bastards on the bikes. I need to find more of the little rat fuckers.”
[Nero] A Novice Area Map would be the easiest way to locate enemies. It will not provide specific details; however, it will show nearby enemies as red dots, which you can investigate. Given that you do not wish to purchase the Ultrimax Newbie Bundle, however, you will need to rely on luck to help you find enemies to fight. You have not yet acquired the Luck Attribute; however, so you will be limited to whatever native luck you brought with you, which, from my experience, will not amount to much. In fact, typically most new players bring negative luck into the game and have to acquire a few base points just to equalize.
He let out a heavy sigh. “Fuck me sideways. Looks like I’m gonna have to take that damned Newbie bundle after all.”
The roar of motorbikes began to increase, and he turned to face the direction of the hobgoblins that were clearly getting closer.
“With all the houses blocked off by these damned shields, only the streets and parks and shit are gonna be open, right? So, if I want to stay ahead of these guys, I need to stick to choke points like this. Force them through narrow spaces and just keep moving.”
[Nero] Players and NPCs are free to move about all public spaces that have not been designated as residential domiciles. You may find a number of facilities and structures that are also available if there were no humans in habitation at the time the contest began. Sticking to narrow paths through the residential zone is certainly a sound strategy if you wish to avoid the hobgoblins, but you will not gain any funds using that method. Also, if other, smaller enemies track you, sticking to these residential routes will not be so effective.
“Okay, give me the Newbie pack then so at least I can start hunting some of these small bastards. Also, do me a favor and keep your eyes peeled for any other ways I can score some cash.”
[Nero] Certainly, Ollie. Here is the Newbie pack. Also, I feel compelled to advise that the hobgoblin pack that is chasing you is currently only two hundred yards away.
“Fuuuuuuuuuuuck!”