Earth
Hillside Lake Dungeon, Ontario
August 17, 2019
13:33 EDT
[That's a Kobold Chieftain,] Ben said, pointing to the most distinctive kobold in the chamber.
The Kobold Chieftain was at least a head taller than all the other kobolds that surrounded him, though part of that may have been because he stood upright while the rest of the kobolds had a slight hunch. While the other kobolds wore nothing but loincloths, he wore leather armor and a necklace of bone. He was also much more heavily muscled than the rest and held a large axe in his right hand.
[Like the shamans, a chieftain is able to buff any kobold below it in the hierarchy, though they do it with shouts rather than spells. He also commands them. They won't just run at us with single-minded purpose, so what we did in the last room won't work. We could focus him down, but then that would enrage the rest of the kobolds, just like killing shamans will do.]
[How much do their stats increase when they enrage?] I asked.
[I'm not actually sure. It depends on the level of the kobolds, I think. It might be something like a thirty percent boost at this level, but a level forty kobold might get a fifty percent boost.]
The group was comprised of ten Kobolds, four Kobold Shamans and one Kobold Chieftain. I had wondered why it was smaller than the last group we had killed, but it made sense if the chieftain was able to give them commands.
[I guess I'll keep the Chieftain busy while you guys deal with the rest, then. Unless you think your earth elemental could do it, Mace?]
[Nah, it's on cooldown, and I don't know how intelligent it is. It could just go start beating on things and accidently kill it, or one of the shamans before we've taken care of the regular kobolds.]
[Alright, I'll take care of it then.]
*****
I ran in when we were ready, the footfalls of my large form alerting the kobolds to my presence almost immediately. They screeched and began to run towards me, but a growl from the chieftain made them stop. Instead, they turned around and retreated behind the shamans, grouping up behind the chieftain. It was as if he was baiting us to kill the shamans first, knowing that it would send the rest of the lesser kobolds into a frenzy, greatly increasing their damage and speed.
The chieftain was my target, though, so I just barreled through the four grouped up shamans. They went tumbling, but there wasn't any significant damage. I continued on to the chieftain who brandished his weapon as I closed the distance. He began running forward before leaping into the air and bringing his axe down in a two-handed overhead chop.
I had opted to go without weapons initially, relying on Mana Shield and my armor to keep me safe. Reaching out, I simply grabbed onto the axe haft, stopping his attack mid-strike. The chieftain looked up with wide eyes before I vigorously shook my arm. Unable to hold on, he fell on his backside.
I threw his axe as far as I could, which caused him to growl out his displeasure. He seemed to bark out orders, and all of the regular kobolds started their attack. That was the signal my friends were waiting for, each of them running in and finally joining the fight. Mason had to close the distance, while Ben, Anja and Sonja started sending spells or arrows flying.
The kobolds tried swarming me like they had Mason's elemental on the floor above, but they just bounced off my Mana Shield instead. I picked up two kobolds by the arm and tossed them behind me for my friends to deal with before finally activating my swords and striking at the rest of the kobolds around me. I was able to kill two before they gave up and went after the rest of my group, which made me look around the room.
I hadn't kept an eye on the chieftain, so I wasn't surprised when I saw him running back to join the fight, his axe in hand. I Blinked in his path and collapsed the sword in my right hand before lowering my arm and clotheslining him, once more dropping him on his ass. My job was simply to keep him out of the fight, at least long enough for my friends to deal with the regular kobolds.
He quickly got back to his feet, shouting something I couldn't understand before a red haze enveloped him. I looked around the room and saw that the rest of the kobolds had that red haze surrounding them as well. Well, those few left alive, that is.
I turned back to the Kobold Chieftain, my eyes growing wide in surprise. He had leapt into the air when I wasn't looking and was bringing his axe down in an overhead chop once more. His axe was glowing red like the rest of him, surprising me again when his cut pierced through Mana Shield like it wasn't even there.
The axe connected with my left shoulder, causing me to cry out in pain when it cut through my armor. Pissed, I punched him in the face using my right arm before feeling a brief jolt of pain in my chest. Suddenly the pain in my left shoulder spiked, causing me to look over where the wound was stitching itself closed.
Knowing I would be perfectly fine in a few moments, I grit my teeth and activated both my weapons, stalking towards the chieftain. He was already back on his feet, though I wasn't planning on toying with him any longer. I blocked a strike with one of my swords before thrusting through his chest with the other.
His eyes went wide in shock as he choked, some blood dripping out of his mouth. I put a booted foot on his chest and yanked my sword free, likely doing more damage coming out than it did going in. The chieftain fell back with a large jagged hole in his chest, blood pouring out of the wound and soaking the cavern floor around him.
I turned back to my friends and saw that there were only two shamans remaining. They were promptly dealt with, the fifteen bodies in the room disappearing soon after. I turned back around and picked up the Mana Gem before walking over to rejoin my friends, who were doing the same.
[What happened?!] Anja asked as she walked over.
[I looked away for a second and when I looked back the chieftain was bringing his axe down. Mana Shield was up, so I thought it would bounce right off. You can imagine my surprise when it cut through like it wasn't even there, before doing this to my armor,] I replied.
[It's healed already? How?] Anja asked.
[There are healing potions, or something like a healing potion built into the armor. They're in crush-proof cases, but if an injury is detected then one of them activates. I don't know what I'm going to do about the armor, though. I don't think it repairs itself.]
[Sounds like you were hit by Penetrating Chop,] Ben sent. [It's a Tier S ability able to bypass shields, and does pretty well against armor, too. It's a testament to the armor's durability that it didn't do more damage.]
[I didn't realize there were attacks that could go through shields. I guess I'll need to be more careful, especially when fighting against a chieftain.]
Ben nodded. [It's got a pretty long cooldown, so most of the time it will only be able to be used once or twice a fight. By the time we fight against high level kobolds, a lot of them will probably have the ability, though, so it's better to get used to it now, rather than then.]
*****
The third and fourth floors were more of the same, with Kobold Chieftains making regular appearances. The only new additions were weapon-wielding Kobolds that Ben identified as being Kobold Warriors and Kobold Archers. Actually, they were more like replacements than additions, as they outright replaced the regular Kobolds once we got to the fourth floor.
While the warriors and archers did add some difficulty, we were able to make quick work of the two floors. They were smaller than we were expecting them to be, with each only having five chambers to go through, without any of the branching paths we had come across on the second floor.
Each of us gained another two levels over the two floors, bringing us up to level twenty-four. We were also surprised that three Skill Gems dropped from regular enemies, but Ben said he was surprised it took us this long to have some drop. Apparently Skill Gems have a one in two hundred chance of dropping from anything other than a boss or a chest, so it was about time we got lucky on that front.
*****
We met another intersection with three branching paths and were deciding which way to go when we heard a noise coming from the right. As we crept forward, it sounded like metal hitting metal. Arriving at the source of the noise, we looked around the corner seeing a Kobold Chieftain overlooking a central pit. Inside the pit were two Kobold Warriors who were locked in fierce combat. Neither seemed to be pulling any punches, with both of them having numerous cuts from the other's sword.
Surrounding the pit were another ten Kobold Warriors, with a smaller amount of Kobold Archers dispersed in the group. All of them were cheering the duo on, watching with rapt attention. There were also three Kobold Shamans standing behind the Chieftain, but they were seated and watching in silence.
[What's going on here, Ben?] I asked.
[If I'm right, it's survival of the fittest. There are twelve Kobold Warriors there, and they probably take turns fighting to the death. When half are remaining, the Chieftain sends them to another chamber and waits until new kobolds spawn in. When they do, he repeats the process. Floors like this have increasing difficulty with every chamber since they are constantly weeding out the weak. It also means that there is probably a Kobold High Chieftain on this floor, likely the boss we'll be facing.]
[Kobold High Chieftain?]
[Think of them like a Kobold Chieftain on steroids. They're bigger, faster and are much more intelligent, able to strategize. They frequently setup floors the way this one is setup. By the time a kobold makes their way to the boss room, they're elites, and will be much stronger than the ones we've been facing. There won't be many kobolds alongside the boss, perhaps a half-dozen at most, but they will fight very well together.]
[Wouldn't a floor like this be quite easy if someone was patient?] Sonja asked. [People could wait until most of the duels have happened and then move in when there are only a few enemies remaining.]
[Nope,] Ben replied. [That paths branching off the intersection we were just at probably lead to different training areas. This one seems to be one for Kobold Warriors, which means that the archers and shamans in this room have likely been through a number of chambers so far, and this is where they have been stationed. It ensures that there are always a number of strong kobolds in each room. While waiting for kobolds to kill each other will make it slightly easier, it doesn't have all that much of an impact.]
