NOVEL FROG Chapter 3: Overpowered
Jordan Cash Character Sheet
Basic Information
Name: Jordan Cash
Age: 31
Level: 10
Class: Battle Scholar (Legendary)
Current Experience: 1650
Experience to Level 11: 550
Species: Human Changeling
Hit Points (Endurance X Level): 190
Mana (Magic + Level): 23
Attributes
Advancement Note: Tablet Wielders gain 5 attribute points per level but may not assign more than 3 to a single attribute at a time.
Strength: 21 (Add 5 to 10 to your weapon damage; this is multiplied on a critical attack)
Endurance: 19 (You are supernaturally durable and can resist magical attacks normal humans cannot)
Agility: 17 (You are incredibly agile and can jump three times the standard distance, with twice the peak movement speed for one of your size)
Cunning: 16 (You naturally resist many low-level illusions and mind-influencing effects)
Discipline: 14
Magic: 13
Notice: You have inherited the attributes of the deceased adventurer. You have also acquired his familiarity with these attributes. Normal people have attribute scores around 6 or 7, with a pinnacle of 15. This means you are supernaturally strong, tough, agile, and cunning. Thanks to the inherited understanding, you won’t go around crushing people’s hands when you shake them.
Core Skills
Advancement Note: Tablet Wielders get 3 skill points per level. Each skill point represents 1 year of focused, idealized training.
Adventure Historian: 11. This skill grants you extensive familiarity with all things related to adventuring.
Dungeoneering: 11. This skill grants you specific insights into dungeons, including the knowledge required to create or disable traps.
Potion Brewing: 11. This skill grants you exhaustive insight into how to create and brew non-magical and low-level magical potions. Touch for more details about the potions you know how to brew.
Additional Special Abilities
Your body has been upgraded with the best enhancements of the deceased adventurer. Your race has been classified as a “Changeling.” As a result of this fusion, you may wield his weapons and armor. You also can see in the dark as well as you can in the day.
Equipment
Weapons
Axe of Felling: This axe deals 5 to 8 base damage. This damage is doubled against inorganic material, or plants. This includes plant-type monsters.
Fast Sword of Bloodletting: This sword deals 2 to 6 base damage. Any enemy with blood struck by the sword continues to bleed for 1 to 4 damage every 6 seconds, or until the wound is healed or treated. As a Fast weapon, your normal rate of attacks is increased by 50% while wielding it.
Bow of Sight-Blinding: This magical bow enchants any arrow shot from it to deal 2 to 4 damage. There is a [significant] chance any enemies struck by it will be blinded for 10 seconds.
Accurate Dagger of Cruelty: This throwing dagger has its critical attack threshold doubled. It deals 2 to 6 base damage if thrown, or 1-4 with a melee strike. If you throw it, and it deals a critical attack, it lodges itself inside the opponent, causing them to bleed for 1 damage every 6 seconds. Removing the Cruel weapon causes it to deal critical damage again.
Armor
Tyrant’s Armor: You are immune to all [Common] and [Uncommon] environmental and magical effects. These include [scorching] and [freezing] environments. You also take significantly reduced damage against [Epic] or [Legendary] environmental and magical effects, such as being immersed in a pool of acid.
Gauntlets of Grappling: You cannot be grappled or held against your will, unless the being doing so is [3 or more] levels higher than you.
Trackless Boots of Levitation: Your movement rate is doubled and your footsteps no longer leave footprints or evidence of your passage. These boots can levitate 1 inch over any substance, effectively allowing you to walk over the water, or pools of acid or lava, etc.
Cloak of Shadows: You gain the Stealth skill. It is equal to your level.
Belt of Rejuvenation: You heal 1 hit point per minute. Note: This belt is attuned to you. Attunement requires 24 hours of continuous wear.
Other Equipment
Platinum: 750
Gold: 12,933
High-Quality Magic Gems: 12
Storage Pouch (X10): Each of these pouches can hold 100 pounds of material in an extra dimensional space.
Adventuring Kit: This basic kit includes rope and pitons, bedding, and rations for three days.
Arrows X 500 (in storage pouches)
Vials of Healing (Greater): 5
Map of the Area
Teleportation Scroll (Keyed to Vanduul)
Fae Lodging (One-Night Accommodations): 5
Chapter 3: Overpowered
I didn’t lose consciousness—at least, I didn’t think I did. But suddenly, my awareness snapped back into place, and I felt an incredible well of life experience waiting for me.
Thoughts that weren’t mine filled my head, yet they clearly were mine at the same time. I, Jordan, remembered a thousand stories as if I had lived them myself.
I recalled climbing the heights of the Datorsion mountains and fighting the ice trolls at its peak. Afterward, I invaded their lair, claiming their Dungeon Core. In another memory, I traveled the swamps of the Dead Basin, conquering the undead who had drowned in its waters. That Core had refused to submit, attempting to self-destruct before I could extract it, but my quick thinking won me the prize.
These memories weren’t associated with their previous owner—I didn’t even know the fallen man’s name or class. Instead, they felt like my own experiences, as if I, Jordan, had truly lived them.
Beneath it all, I still knew I’d come from a place called Earth, a world of computers and cars. But overlapping that truth was another reality: I was Jordan, the adventuring Battle Scholar.
Rolling effortlessly to my feet, I looked down at my body. What had been pale, soft skin encased in pajamas was now bronzed and hardened. This would have been my body if I’d actually lived all the memories I now possessed.
The armor I was wearing was a comfortable, familiar weight. I also knew exactly how to move in it, and how to wield every weapon I carried with precision. An overwhelming urge to draw my Fast Sword of Bloodletting to swing it around and test this knowledge was swallowed. Especially as the Dungeon Core made a noise like it was clearing its throat.
“Is that better?” The Core floated over, inspecting me with that giant piercing eye. “You don’t have any inclination to destroy me now, do you?”
I felt a flash of insight. Killing the Core could allow me to create a new Tablet, perhaps another Legendary one.
A Tablet like that was worth a king’s ransom.
Even if the Core didn’t manifest a Tablet, its material components would be useful to a craftsman. Every piece of enchanted gear I concurrently wore came from a Core I’d defeated.
That’s not who I am going to be. Despite the knowledge, I was still myself.
“You’re fine.” I smiled. “We made a deal. Besides, like you said, I’ll be going after another Core. It’s not like helping you costs me anything.”
“Especially not with the class you selected,” the Core said, its magical eye scanning my Tablet’s screen. A sound like a chuckle filled the room. “That’s an interesting choice. Few would take a class so reliant on others.”
I opened my mouth to justify myself, and then stopped. As friendly as I was with this Core, it was still a Dungeon Core. If it didn’t like my answer to something, despite the Pinnacle Blessing, it could end me here. That knowledge made me choose my next few words carefully. “I like the versatility it offers. Spending the rest of my life in dungeons might have appealed to the other guy, but not me.”
The Dungeon Core made a humming noise. “All good points. Are you ready to go now? I’m afraid that the adventurers won’t last much longer without intervention.”
“Yeah. Mind giving me directions to the closest one? Wait, I have maps. Can you just mark my map and show me where to go?”
“Sure,” the Core said in an amused tone. “I’ll even outline shortcuts to get them out.”
“Good. Let’s start with the one in the most danger. I’d like to rescue as many as I can.”
“Very well. But you must remember, other than the boss monsters and some of the traps, I don’t control the denizens of the dungeon. You’ll need to fight your way through them, even with my blessing.”
My hand slid to my side. The leather hilt of my Fast Sword of Bloodletting felt natural in my palm. Even the motion of resting my hand on the hilt felt right, almost habitual.
Lifting my hand, I studied the skin. I’d gained size and strength, but the skin was still mine. Memories surged, telling me what was likely to happen next.
“Honestly, I’m less worried about the monsters than the pain of growing calluses again.” Memories flashed, of training with my new sword until my hand was blistered and raw.
The Core cleared a non-existent throat.
My Tablet buzzed, and I lifted it to see several notifications:
***
Notice: Local map has been updated. The Dungeon Core has labeled the surviving adventurers, color-coding them based on their need for assistance.
***
Quest Gained!
Gather the Adventurers.
Assigned to: Jordan.
Estimated Time to Completion: 6 hours.
Estimated Risk: Low-to-Medium.
Potential Rewards: High.
***
Quest Gained!
Form a Party
Assigned to: Jordan.
Estimated Time to Completion: Unknown.
Estimated Risk: Low.
Potential Rewards: Low-to-Legendary.
***
Quest Gained!
Defeat the Invasive Demon Core
Assigned to: Jordan.
Estimated Time to Completion: Unknown (Maximum duration 3 years).
Estimated Risk: High to Ultra-High.
Potential Rewards: Legendary.
***
With a rolling gesture and an effort of focus, I dismissed my Tablet. It was bound to me now, and my inherited memories told me how to use it as easily as breathing.
Drawing my sword, I walked to one of the hidden doors at the side of the chamber. I pushed the secret release lever, using a combination the Dungeon Core provided. When the doors opened, a wailing monster leaped into view.
It looked like a five-foot-tall monkey covered in bone spikes. The spiked creature glared at me with wild, red-rimmed eyes and bared sharp teeth in a rabid snarl. Claws reached for my face as it flew toward me.
I darted to one side, moving with supernatural grace. The tip of my sword licked out, slicing across the monster’s ribs. That was four points of damage, one of my memories suggested.
Blood gushed from the wound as the monkey thing fell to the ground, clutching its side. Still screaming, it turned, whipping its tail around.
There will be a spike at the end. The insight came from deep within, in my own mental voice, and triggered my instinctive response.
I dodged, lifting and twisting the sword to deflect the dangerous tail. My razor-sharp blade nearly severed the end of the appendage and added a second bleeding wound.
The monkey drew back, snarling and hissing at me. Sullen, angry eyes hooded as the monster gathered itself for another attack.
My hand whipped down and up, sending the Accurate Dagger of Cruelty flying. The tip of the sawtooth blade speared into the monster’s neck, lodging deep.
That was a critical strike.
The monkey let out a gurgling screaming, then fell over. As it collapsed, its body produced a vibrant, chaotic spray of magical light that churned into the air before vanishing into the floor. My dagger clattered to the ground.
“It vanished?” I said out loud a moment before I remembered why.
The Dungeon Core responded anyway. “Any monster who lives within a dungeon with a Core gains levels, just like an adventurer. In exchange, when they die, their experience merges with mine. Unless someone has a harvesting skill, or manipulates the body before it vanishes, that is. Death is what allows me to grow the dungeon and acquire new abilities.”
Even before the Core had explained why, my new memories had explained things to me. I’d need to get used to that, referencing new insights before asking questions.
“It looks like I’m helping you in several ways,” I said. Fetching my dagger, I slipped it back into its sheath as I walked back to the secret tunnel. “See you around, Corey.”
“What did you just call me?”
The door slid shut on my vanishing figure.