Part 65: Fortress of Stone
Chapter 48 Fortress of Stone
Video: Overview / First Fort
Video: FF Dragon Gameplay
Video: The Greenery
Video: Island 5 Surface and Dungeon
Video: Xanlosch
Video: General Stone
This update took a long time. PLEASE watch the videos. Most of the update is fighting, and its hard to get a sense of what its really like from screenshots and description alone.
Fortress of Stone
Black Ring Dungeon
Nasty Creatures (And Restless Guard)
Yaras Current Auras
-
Static Charge Aura Enemies have an 28% chance of suffering 1 shock of 48 magic damage. (Ring 1)
- Static Charge Aura Enemies have an 28% chance of suffering 1 shock of 48 magic damage. (Ring 2)
- Static Charge Aura Enemies have an 28% chance of suffering 1 shock of 48 magic damage. (Belt)
- Poison Aura 11% chance of 48 poison damage over 3 seconds. (Earrings)
- Damage Aura 13% Chance of 3 shocks of 24 damage (Ring 1) (NEW)
-
Magic Damage Aura 8% Chance of 1 shock of 42 damage (Belt)
- Magic Damage Aura 9% Chance of 2 shocks of 24 damage (Gauntlets)
- Spontaneous Combustion 12% Chance of 42 damage over 1 second. (Bracelet) (New)
- Spontaneous Combustion 12% Chance of 42 damage over 1 second. (Amulet)
Music: Fortress of Stone
Video: Overview / First Fort
Excerpt from The Last of the Dragon Knights, by Zixzax the Almost-Wise:
The Dragon Knight emerged from the portal to a scene of vast devastation. Large chunks of the ground had been violently ripped out of Rivellon. They were being used as floating platforms for armies and siege weapons: the infamous Flying Fortresses of Damian.
I once read about things such as these existing in the age of Maxos. These are cruder and simpler, but they serve the same purpose.
Welcome to the first of the Flying Fortresses. These are GIGANTIC dungeons which have fighting in both human and Dragon form. In Ego Draconis, they were quite different, but Ill explain that in a separate own update after this one.
The Dragon form is used to take out towers, fliers, and to move from island to island. Thats the easy part, its really hard to kill the Dragon. The human form is to take out the ground troops on each island. Thats the hard part, because there are a LOT of fucking enemies, and they are ASSHOLES.
The videos of the dungeons will start with an overview of me flying around to give you a sense of the islands.
To the left of the Dragons wing is the entrance portal. Right above the Dragons head is the first fortress area. Above that is the second island, attached to the first one. Above it is another island, this one is covered with an Anti-Dragon field which can only be accessed through a teleporter. Top left island has the teleporter to take you inside, top right island has a teleporter to another interior dungeon. Not pictured: a tiny island above which has a portal to Broken Valley.
Introducing the Lightning Tower. These will become more common. They deliver a hefty punch, but have a long recharge time and are slow to track, so get in close and strafe around it with fire breath.
The island it is on is notable for having a chest containing the Scorpion set belt.
Yara headed for the fort-like structure ahead of the entrance portal.
What makes the Flying Fortresses really difficult is the enemies. They all have a lot of HP and do a lot of damage. They also have some really dangerous abilities:
Magic Missile the homing missiles which are hard to dodge. Most enemies can shoot four at once.
Magic Blast Several hits which stun-lock you for a second.
Fireball Has some strong fire damage if it hits you.
Firewall Even stronger fire damage if you stay in the circle.
Whirlwind Has a good chance of knocking you down, which is bad.
Rush Attack It also has a knockdown chance, but this one is worse because enemies tend to surprise you with it from many angles.
Healing Heals themselves or other enemies. It is very hard to out-damage an active heal on an enemy.
Curse Lowers your damage and resistances, all very bad things for you. It lasts for a long time and cant be dispelled.
Rarer, but still seen are these ones:
Battle Rage - Increases the enemy damage - bad news, as they already do quite a lot. Luckily this ability isn't used too often.
Stun Arrows Stuns you for several seconds, unable to do anything. This is extremely dangerous given how fast damage stacks up in this game. (Armour is fucking worthless.)
Explosive Arrows They do a lot of damage and have a chance to knock you down.
Fear Mostly only used by Demon enemies, this strips you of control for several seconds, and you run in a random direction, which may be into a crowd of enemies.
On the bright side, the loot you can find here is top shelf. Enemies are starting to drop epic-quality items. Epic-quality items have 3 attributes, 3 charms slots, and 2 enchantment slots.
I just reached Level 27. I am at 69 strength, so I went 3 Vitality/1 Strength. All future level-ups will be split 2/2 Vitality/Spirit, or maybe 3/1 Vitality/Spirit.
I also purchased some upgrades from Hermosa I raised the skill cap of Thousand Strikes, Unarmed, Battle Rage, and Life Leech to 13.
Because I level up 4 times this update, Im saving the image of how my stats and skills change until the end.
Video: FF Dragon Gameplay
The first island clear of Black Ring presence, Yara flew up to the one directly above it.
Level 28. I entered at level 26 and a half, so Im getting a TON of experience.
I replaced my Annihilator helmet with this. I forgot to replace the enchantment on it until after the Flying Fortress was done.
Where the Lightning Tower used to be. Ill show that chest in a second
Level 29. Yes, really.
In Ego Draconis, you used to find the entire set of either Hunter/Scorpion/Archmage in one Flying Fortress. DKS spread most of the stuff out, but there are still occasional pieces to be found in a fortress.
A teleporter on the fourth island. I skipped showing any shots of me clearing it out, I dont have the time or screenshot budget for that.
Music: Black Garden
Video: The Greenery
(Yara) This place its lush and green and humid, not like the hot devastation outside.
This is a short dungeon full of vegetation. Its got armoured boars, Dragon Elves, but theyre not important.
Indoor trees. Huh. Well, whats in that chest?
The chest contains buds for the following plants: Black Rose, Fanny Blossom, Holy Basil, Moonshine, and Oak Tears.
What an odd fountain.
Heres the list of combinations and what they do.
Oak Tears + Black Rose: Bow
Oak Tears + Moonshine: Nothing
Oak Tears + Fanny Blossom: 5k Exp
Oak Tears + Holy Basil: 5 attribute points
Black Rose + Moonshine: 1 skill point
Black Rose + Fanny Blossom: a broom (cannot be looted)
Black Rose + Holy Basil: Axe
Moonshine + Fanny Blossom: Sword
Moonshine + Holy Basil: Hammer
Of those, only the 5 Attribute points and 1 Skill point are worthwhile.
Nearby in a chest are the Plate Leggings Dragon Armour.
It also had a Divine quality Spirit charm (+5 spirit). Divine Quality is the highest quality of charm. In Ego Draconis, it ONLY dropped from bosses, and they didnt always drop one, making them very rare. Theyre much more common in DKS and can be found and bought now, but theyre rare enough that Ill be saving all of these for my ultimate equipment.
Video: Island 5 Surface and Dungeon
This is the only other island we can reach. Its actually a smaller island connected to a larger one with ramps. The large one has troops, the smaller one has the teleporter we need to progress.
Level 30.
Life Leech is pretty inconsistent, but when it does work, it can be pretty good. I hit that skeleton for 353 damage, and refilled 72 health instantly. Unfortunately, its still not good enough to keep me alive consistently, but I suppose thats the point.
Music: Black Ring Dungeon
The lava in this short connecting dungeon is safe to touch. The treasure chest, however, is NOT. Save your game, and be prepared to do a backflip. It contains a Dragon Skill book, and
A nasty fireball will spew from the Dragon Elf skeleton and blast you if youre standing NEAR the chest. It does a lot of damage. Moving on, theres a locked-room-enemy-spawn trap and a teleporter leading to the island protected by the Dragon Shield.
Video: Xanlosch
Yara emerged from the teleporter to the last island. The Anti-Dragon bubble shimmered overhead, and the generator for it was directly ahead. However, standing between her and the generator was a Black Ring whose face was scarred like mud long-baked in desert heat.
Mind-read him for your only chance at a set item.
(Xanlosch) Yes! You made it! Welcome, Dragon. I have awaited you! So good of you to come!
And you are?
Damians Elite Summoner Extraordinaire Xalosch!
Bless you.
Hahahahaha! Funny! I like that! Well done!
(-3600 XP) Ulthrings gauntlets are powerful, yes, but uncomfortable! Maybe I should give them to Isabelle.
The creature by the scarred summoners side snarled.
Oh, I almost forgot to introduce you to Isabelle! Shes a good little creature, isnt she? Arent you, Isabelle? Yes you are! Come, say hello, Isabelle! Say hello to the Dragon Knight!
The creature growled again.
Oooh, poor thing! Shes so shy in front of strangers! But once she has the taste of blood in her mouth, shell take to you like bloodsuckers to a plump girls legs.
Shes adorable. Now: lets finish what business we still have, shall we?
Aah, yes! Yes! I tend to get carried away sometimes. Silly old me! Now: first, a word of warning! Do not take your Dragon form, for my defences will obliterate you. Of course you can always deactivate it, but that just wouldnt be fair, dont you agree? So, no cheating, okay? Right! Isabelle Isabelle go for those plump Dragon legs!
This is the only anti-Dragon bubble remaining in all the Flying Fortresses, and it is here only because of Xanlosch.
Your creature can distract Isabelle nicely. Xanlosch is a dangerous foe, though. He uses both Stun and Explosive arrows, which can be trouble I lost 121 health from a single Explosive Arrow. And if you decide to make things easier by bypassing Xanlosch and taking out the Anti-Dragon generator, then he gets MAD. Ill show that off in the next update.
However, my Creature with the upgraded head is nicely whittling Xanlosch down, I havent even touched him yet.
If Jonelath is your necromancer, his second quest is to retrieve a body part from Isabelle. (His first quest is along those lines as well). So none of the Necromancer quests really offer much benefit.
(Talana) Im relieved you and your plump little legs survived that maniacs cabal.
One hit from any weapon will destroy the shield generator and make it safe for Dragons. Theres an animation bug where the thing will appear to vanish, and then appear and disintegrate. Theres nothing else on this island except a second fortress with another teleporter to a small dungeon where General Stone lurks. The teleporter inside General Stone's dungeon deactivates once you start the fight with him, so dont go in expecting to run away to safety.
The nearby chest had a rank 9 (Fresh) Dragon Elf head, which is very nice except that I found one a little earlier in the dungeon. Its a major damage increase compared to the difference between 6 and 7.
Magic Missile
- 3 missiles / 38 damage each -> 4 missiles / 45 damage each
- Total Damage: 114 -> 180
Magic Blast
- 4 Hits / 28 damage each -> 5 Hits / 39 damage each
- Total Damage: 112 -> 195
The Ulthring set is an all-class set consisting of four pieces of armour. Each piece can only be obtained by mind-reading the appropriate Black Ring general. Since theres no associated weapon, this set is suitable for any class, although its probably best for a warrior type.
Video: Stone
Mind-read Stone for another part of the Ulthring set.
(General Stone) Stay away from me, accursed beast! How could you have made it this far?
(-3600 XP) This Cuirass of Ulthring will protect me! His spirit will guide me.
You sound afraid, stooge of Damian.
You dare accuse a Black Ring General of cowardice? Ill make you swallow those words and Ill use boiling tar to make certain they go down easily.
This is a hard fight. Im level 30 and Stone is 28, which means hell still do a hefty amount of damage to me. Plus he has a lot of support troops around him. Whats worse, by now slogging through the fortress has drained me of most of my health potions, and this still isnt the end of this damn place.
You you have become strong, Dragon
The Black Ring make for easy pickings.
You may think so, but this is not over yet! Come. Follow me, if you dare!
He dashed off into a teleporter. Yara had no choice but to follow.
Music: Nasty Creatures and Restless Guard
Hahaha! Welcome to my arena!
Nice spot.
Thank you. Im very proud of it. Tens of thousands have died here in almost as many ways. And you will become one of them. But dont worry, you may face me again if you can defeat Bascuul, Gryphon, Munin and Hugin!
Go ahead, hide behind an army.
That is exactly what I intend to do. Best of luck. Hehehe!
Yes, after the solid hour-plus of fighting my way through hundreds of Black Ring troops and two boss fights, there is more. Two fights against a pair of mini-bosses and their minions, and then I fight Stone a second time. Sheesh. Round one is a Troll and Imps plus a big Demon and some littler Demons.
Round two is a Beholder and Skeletons plus a creature we havent seen before and some ghosts. All four bosses give boss drops, so theres treasure anyway, and thankfully you cant fall into the lava because of invisible walls.
Die already.
A spectacle like that deserved a greater audience, but rest assured I was pleasantly entertained.
Enjoy the victory while you can, Dragon Knight. But no matter how well you fight in the Fortresses, continue on your present course and you will meet your doom.
Stone only has a ring on him if you have Igor's quest. If you chose Jonelath, the ring doesn't even exist.
Video: Overview / First Fort
Video: FF Dragon Gameplay
Video: The Greenery
Video: Island 5 Surface and Dungeon
Video: Xanlosch
Video: General Stone
This update took a long time. PLEASE watch the videos. Most of the update is fighting, and its hard to get a sense of what its really like from screenshots and description alone.
Fortress of Stone
Black Ring Dungeon
Nasty Creatures (And Restless Guard)
In one of the ramps in the arena is a chest.
It contains a mysterious Invoker jewel. Return to Stones chamber, and follow the second corridor out. It will pass by a bench with a book on Stones ring.
At the end is a chamber which constantly spawns Walking Armour soldiers. There are four more jewels on thingees. Take them and use the machine to shut it down. Youll want to have the fifth one from Stones arena before messing with this, because
Using four jewels just shuts the machine down, but using FIVE jewels shuts it down AND spawns a treasure chest. And thats it for Stones Flying Fortress.
Next update will probably be the Ego Draconis version, and what happens if you defy Xanloschs request for a fair fight. After that, Ill do the treasure hunt, get Zeppelin parts, and take on the Rivertown Gorge Flying Fortress, followed by a trip to Aleroth.
Yaras Current Auras / Equipment Updates
Since I levelled up 4 times, I decided to just show the difference with Level 26 Yara and Level 30 Yara.
I had 6 skill points to spend BEFORE the Flying Fortress.
Unarmed
Increased from Rank 9 to rank 11
Damage Bonus: +121% -> +138%
Battle Rage
Increased from Rank 8 to Rank 10 (from rank 10 to rank 12 with bonuses)
Mana Cost: 111 -> 135 ( 135 -> 159)
Duration: 120 (120 -> 180)
Melee Damage Bonus: +90% -> +110% ( +110% -> +130%)
Melee Armour Penalty: -21 -> -15 ( -15 -> -9 )
Thousand Strikes
Increased from Rank 6 to Rank 9
Mana Cost: 178 -> 208
Damage multiplier: 1.3x -> 1.5x
Knockdown Chance: 35% -> 50%
Life Leech
Increased from Rank 5 to Rank 7
Leech Chance: 18% -> 22%
Life Drained: 15% -> 20% of damage done
Death Blow
Increased from Rank 1 to Rank 3
Critical Chance: +3% -> + 6%
-
Static Charge Aura Enemies have an 28% chance of suffering 1 shock of 48 magic damage. (Ring 1)
- Static Charge Aura Enemies have an 28% chance of suffering 1 shock of 48 magic damage. (Ring 2)
- Static Charge Aura Enemies have an 28% chance of suffering 1 shock of 48 magic damage. (Belt)
- Poison Aura 11% chance of 48 poison damage over 3 seconds. (Earrings)
- Damage Aura 13% Chance of 3 shocks of 24 damage (Ring 1) (NEW)
-
Magic Damage Aura 8% Chance of 1 shock of 42 damage (Belt)
- Magic Damage Aura 9% Chance of 2 shocks of 24 damage (Gauntlets)
- Spontaneous Combustion 12% Chance of 42 damage over 1 second. (Bracelet) (New)
- Spontaneous Combustion 12% Chance of 42 damage over 1 second. (Amulet)
Yes! You made it! Welcome, Dragon. I have awaited you! So good of you to come!
You have been waiting for me? Why?
But of course! You are here to play, are you not? Play with one if the Black Rings mightiest. Damians Elite Summoner Extraordinaire Xalosch!
D.E.S.E.X? You could have tried to form an acronym a bit more neutral, and less neuter.
Hahahahaha! Wheres the fun in that?
The creature by the scarred summoners side snarled.
Oh, I almost forgot to introduce you to Isabelle! Shes a good little creature, isnt she? Arent you, Isabelle? Yes you are! Come, say hello, Isabelle! Say hello to the Dragon Knight!
The creature growled again.
Oooh, poor thing! Shes so shy in front of strangers! But once she has the taste of blood in her mouth, shell take to you like bloodsuckers to a plump girls legs.
Ive met my share of besotted Black Ring, but with you I reach new heights of madness.
Now, now! Dont get all nasty. I eat the eyeballs of those who are nasty to me!
Ill show what happens if you ignore his warning and destroy the Anti-Dragon field first in the next update.
Stay away from me, accursed beast! How could you have made it this far?
What stands in my way, I obliterate.
That much we have in common. Now first Ill take care of you, then move on to your Battle Tower.
Stay away from me, accursed beast! How could you have made it this far?
The ambition to own your ring is what drove me here.
If I had known people would make such a fuss about a ring, Id have thrown it in the lava the moment I obtained it! Which incidentally is exactly what Im going to do to you!
You you have become strong, Dragon
This is indeed the end for you.
Not just yet. I have a few more tricks up my sleeve! Come. Follow me if you dare!
Reader Participation
This one is freeform. I want to know what you thought of my presentation of the Flying Fortress, and what you think I should do differently for the other Flying Fortresses.
Unless the videos in this update get a shitload of views, I wont be doing a lot of video work for the rest. I normally record all new content, but for future Flying Fortresses, I wont be fully recording them, because this update alone was over 90 minutes long worth of video. I'll still record selected sections and interiors.
Right now, my idea is to stick with the format of wide shots of the islands as an overview, and randomly scattered shots throughout, and whenever I level up which shouldnt happen all that much from now on, actually. I should only gain about 5 more levels or so in the entire act.