Spear of Destiny The Archemi Online Chronicles Volume 5 By James Osiris Baldwin Published by Tamtu Publishing LLC Dedication Spear of Destiny is dedicated to You: the fans of the Archemi Online series. Thanks to you all, 2020 was a much better year than it could have been. A huge thank you to all my Patrons on Patreon: Zohatu, Anira, Rhea, Jed M. Ryan C., Jordon W., Jo M., Heather, Max S. Jakob M., Gary S. and others. Your ongoing support of this series is just incredible – thank you! A special thank you to all those who helped with the editing and development of this book: My wife, Canth; Mimi, Kirri, and G.M.M.A Hamish, and Pete. I owe you all a beer and/or book of your choice, no questions asked. Table of Contents Dedication Preface I: Important Characters Preface II: Important Game System Concepts Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Chapter 39 Chapter 40 Chapter 41 Chapter 42 Chapter 43 Chapter 44 Chapter 45 Chapter 46 Chapter 47 Chapter 48 Chapter 49 Chapter 50 Chapter 51 Chapter 52 Chapter 53 Chapter 54 Chapter 55 Chapter 56 Chapter 57 Chapter 58 To be Continued… Author’s Note List of James’ Books Copyright Preface I: Important Characters Player Characters: Hector Park (Park Jeong-Ho, Dragozin Hector) – Dark Lancer, Lvl. 25 Suri Ba’Hadir – Berserker, Lvl. 27 Rin Lu – Arcane Engineer, Lvl. 24 Baldr Hyland (Possessed by ‘Ororgael’) – Spirit Knight, Lvl. ??? Lucien Hart – Unknown Path, Lvl. ??? Violetta DeVrys – Elemental Sorceress, Lvl. ??? Nethres of Gilheim – Valkyrie, Lvl. 23 Casper Willis – Sharpshot, Lvl ??? NPCs Karalti, the Black Opal Queen – Queen Dragon, Lvl. 15 Vash Dorha – Baru (Dark Monk), Lvl. 35 Istvan Arshak – Dragoon, Lvl. 31 Ebisa, the King’s Blade – Assassin, Lvl. 42 Rutha of Vasteau – Primal Sorceress, Lvl. 44 Ignas Corvinus II – Volod (King) of Vlachia; Swashbuckler, Lvl. 48 Andrik Corvinus III – Former Volod of Vlachia (deceased) Owen & Kira of Lyrensgrove - Healers Sergeant Anya Blackwin – Captain of Fort Palewing Jasper – Mage at Fort Palewing Pavetta Blackwin – Primera of the Church of Kyrie Taethawn the Bleak – Meewfolk Exile, mercenary commander Count Lorenzo Soma – lord of Litvy County, Arcane Engineer, Lvl. 30 Masterhealer Masha – Arcane Physician, Lvl. 50 Lazar Skalitz – General Physician, Lvl. 23 Ashur of the Thousand Swords, AKA The Demon of Myszno (deceased) Preface II: Important Game System Concepts Archemi Archemi Online, colloquially known as ArchOn, is the world’s first hyper-immersion VR-RPG, though it is not the only VR-RPG extant in Hector’s world. ArchOn was not designed to be an MMO in which millions access a single world: to support the massive memory demands of processing human brain data in a full-immersion VR, Archemi supports capped ‘cells’ of players, to a maximum of 5000 players per cell. Due to cataclysmic plague on Earth, there is only one cell supporting approximately 2389 players, almost all of whom are ‘virtual refugees’ uploaded to escape their death from the HEX Virus. Paths & Advanced Paths Rather than set, static classes, Archemi has an organic Path system that evolves with a player’s interests and abilities. New players initially select one of four base paths – Warrior, Specialist (Rogue), Mage, or Artificer. At Level 5 and Level 10, characters are offered the chance to choose an Advanced Path, which takes them down a specialized stream from their initial Path. Advanced Paths are offered on a per-character basis by the game’s system, which reads into a person’s play-style, quest choice, and other factors to offer Advanced Paths the player is suited to. Advanced Paths themselves have customized progressions that unfold for players as they advance. Renown Renown is the measure of fame or infamy you possess in a locale. In every location where you complete (or fail to complete) quests, you can potentially gain renown. Renown is important for players interested in Mass Combat. Like most things in Archemi, Renown is accrued through points. After accumulating a certain number of renown points, you gain bonuses or penalties to dealing with people in your locale. The size of the locale where you command fame or terror varies depending on your renown tier. The tiers are as follows: 0-300 - Stranger: Unknown and unnotable. 301-700 - Adventurer: Some people have heard of you, and neighborhoods where you completed adventures are friendly/hostile. You can gain the alliance of small units. 701-1081 - Local Hero/Villain: You are a person of note in your city, able to command respect, fear, or both. You can potentially command loyalty from a medium-sized organization. 1080-2217 - Public Figure: You are well-known everywhere in your locale. Bards begin composing and singing about you, spreading the news of your deeds. You can command small armies under a General or other important figure. 2219-5628 - Idol: You are known across your nation and are sought after for your abilities. You can potentially command larger armies as a general. 5629-12450 - Celebrity: Your deeds have spread internationally, and your fame is recognizable across borders. You may command generals in warfare. 12451+ - Legend: Your deeds will go down in history, heroic or villainous. You may qualify to rule a kingdom. Chapter 1 The self-styled Emperor of Archemi was a lot bigger than I remembered. Baldr Hyland was nearly seven feet tall, dressed in silvered armor that reflected the desert sun. A great helm that resembled an eagle’s beak shielded his
