Posted by [Deleted] Zelten on October 9, 2000 at 12:23:18:
I created Zelten to be an explorer, to learn what I needed to learn in order to be one of the "elite" players. I had long ago figured out that being "elite" means two things, first is learning where all the cool stuff is, the second is having the brains to read your skill/spell list and figure out how to make the best use of everything there. I was always good at the second, but never bothered to actually find the cool stuff (damage reduction, proccing items, etc.) So, after a 6 month break from CF I decided to set out to learn what there was to learn. (The idea from the character came from a Master transmuter I met while I was playing my first character back. That master was a mage named Annabelle. Thanks Annabelle, you were a great example.) Zelten probably should have been sphere dedication instead of sphere Magic. 147 hours to get inducted, that just amazed me. My oldest character before that was 152 hours before I got bored with him (a 47th level conjurer right after they came out.) The real amusing part was the day Narlock inducted me my pfile got corrupted. So after 147 hours of trying to get inducted and finally getting accepted I couldn't play my guy for 3 straight days and wasn't sure if I'd ever play him again. Thanks for fixing that, imms. I've been on this mud for 6 years and there's so much I'd never done before. Never had an empowered character (I think waiting 147 hours for an interview pretty much covers that). Never had an Immortal interact with me before (still haven't really, only time Nep did was once and that was because his tattoo'ed bitch was there.) Never had a position in a cabal (still haven't but I don't really want one.) Never had a cool title (I really thought I'd get one for being one of the first people in the Silent Tower or at least some notice but the Imms never saw fit to waste time talking to me, I guess.) I had pretty much discovered all I needed to know with Zelten after around 250 hours when I heroed, I knew where enough was to make any future mage competitive and expanded my warrior knowledge a little bit. Only problem with doing serious exploration, of course, was my damn Ram form. Don't get me wrong, a ram rocks in it's place but it's not a solo killer/explorer for that I should have been a conjurer. (It must be fate because my one other hero was also a transmuter, who also had the ram form.) The only reason I didn't delete 100 hours ago was the Silent Tower. I lost 8 con points in there and/or trying to find it. (Well 7, I just lost the 8th due to hitting old age.) Plus, I had to do something to get out last time which made it impossible for me to get back into the Silent Tower after that the way I had gone in. I really thought being one of the first people to find it, if not the first master to sit there, was enough to make Zelten special but boredom was already creeping in. My playing times miss most of the other master heros and I hit the wall on what I could do in there alone. My official take on the Silent Tower: It's a lot of fun to even just sit in there but if you're serious about your character don't waste your time. Nep can talk about there being "no death traps you don't see coming and no where bad that will kill everyone." Bullshit. You will die there, a lot, with no warning most of the time and if you do the wrong thing you'll never get back in there the way you first came in which invalidates, without warning, all the work it took you to find it in the first place. Yes, I found a couple cool items in there, but nothing worth 7 points of con. Maybe my next guy, if there is one, will benefit from all this experience and come out the most powerful mofo in all Thera, but I'm still guessing it wasn't worth it. Go look at the Weald, that area rocks and I'd say here and now it's cooler then the Silent Tower and you don't have to worry about dying instantly just for stepping in the wrong direction. So, when I wasn't Master's "could you please slow me?" bitch I was off dying left and right for no good reason and for no real gain. I really wanted to play this guy til he con died or age died but it's just getting senslessly boring to hang around the empty Tower and watch my con slowly (well, quickly really) dwindle away. Anyway, at 334 hours with a 6 con I bid you all farewell. Frankly, I didn't know anyone well enough to think you'll care. Sure most of you saw me but I never went out of my way to make friends or to accept them. Heck my role was a cobbled together piece of crap because I thought this would be an 80 hour to hero transmuter who'd explore fast and con-die long before anyone noticed him. Guess it goes to show you to prepare for greatness at an early age so you can jump on it if it arrives. I'm guessing my horrible role is one of the things that didn't get me any imm attention. I will miss Zelten. My oldest character, the only one to go to a high-level cutting edge zone (I've never been to Hell, either), the only caballed hero i've had, the only one I've had to have a shot at being somebody important in Thera. It's just when I thought about it good and hard, being somebody important in Thera is really a pretty sad goal in life for me. So I wish him farewell. May you always find just the right book in the library you're looking for.