Note: the days listed in the journal entries are completely fictional. But the total time spent on this run was nearly 5 hours in real time.
Day 1: Having aborted my initial foray into the dungeon due to lack of supplies, I have restocked myself with health potions, stamina potions, and food, while dumping blessed items and other nonessentials into the bank to make room for whatever phat lewt I get. Surely this will be enough to last me through the three floors that stand between me and the Succubus. Surely...
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Day 3: Things progressing rather smoothly. Thank goodness for Kitaek's skeleton guide - otherwise, I'd be chugging stamina potions trying to get these guys run into my counterattack, which they usually avoid half the time by stopping their attack after seeing it.
Unfortunately, these firebolts burn through my mana at a faster rate than I can regenerate, even during the nighttime. I literally have to beg these guys to try smashing me more often.
Found some firewood in a chest. Awesome. Sadly, 2 logs isn't enough for a campfire, but it's a start.
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Day 6: Found a wizard's cap to replace the one I had during a botched attempt in a room full of skeletons. Nothing fancy - just a plain old cap. Totally doesn't match my outfit.
Mental note: target stuff carefully. Also: rooms with orbs don't lock themselves if you hit the wrong orb. Good to know the next time I accidentally aggro a second skeleton.
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Day 8: Arrows hurt. A lot. Got careless with that one red skeleton. Never again. Makes me wish I had bought more bandages. I actually jumped for joy when I found some bandages in a chest. Oddly enough, the potions I found didn't elicit the same reaction. Probably because I still had around 30 of each.
I'm actually starting to wonder if bandages are even worth bringing to an expedition like this. You need a lot just to give yourself enough health to even remotely survive a combo from a skeleton.
On a happier note, more firewood! And by Nao's good graces, I have enough to make a campfire! I'll save it for the Succubus - no point patching up all my wounds just to lose them again before I get to her.
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Day 9: So I've learned a couple of things about fighting skeletons. First, never get too overzealous with interrupting their smash attack to the point where you push him back into a wall. That leaves you with no time to check if he's smashing or defending.
Also, it's not worth holding back on a firebolt against Metal Skeletons just to give yourself that extra second or two on mana regen. Those things are pretty aggressive. Runs up to you pretty frequently and pulls out that bow 90% of the time you move out of range.
Finally, NEVER stop to pick up something immediately after killing a skeleton when more of them are still around. Do it AFTER you engage the next one, while he's busy blocking or staring at you, and do it quickly.
Lesson of the day - skeletons wear clothing. You just can't see it until you beat the living daylights (har har) out of them. Apparently, Popo is the fashion designer of choice.
Easily the best find so far during my trip through this wretched place. But what the hell are fox crabs?
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Day 17: So... cold... weapon... broken...
And the chattering! And the howling! It never ends! But they won't get to me! Because I have my BOOM STICK! YOU WANT SOME OF THIS? HAVE AT YOU!
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Day 18: Ah, the wonders of a campfire. Pardon my previous entry. The stress was getting to me. But the ultimate prize lies ahead!
Unfortunately, the campfire wasn't quite as effective as I thought. This is how much life I had after the fire went out:
Also, some weapon observations. It seems that weapons continue to degrade even when you aren't swinging them. This happened while I was getting up from a quick break after clearing a hallway of mimics.
Weapon effects also remain even after their durability goes to 0. Specifically, the extra stun time from the warhammer. Comes in handy when fighting skeleton wolves, since they come back at you pretty quickly after getting knocked down.
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Day 19: Success! After 4 deaths (against the Succubus, plus nearly 10 from the dungeon itself), the title is mine!
I now understand how Sen's method of killing the Succubus works. I always wondered why an icebolt was necessary, since the firebolt already triggered the magic PD. Turns out that the firebolt switches her into magic attack mode, and you need an icebolt to get her to charge at you. I found this out the hard way after getting a face full of lightning from accidentally switching into a counterattack stance before casting the icebolt.
And the treasure? Some gold, a Stamina 50 potion, and this bracelet, which totally goes with the magic-oriented Succubus title:
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Day 20: Almost 6000 for a full warhammer repair? Damn you Nerys! Damn you!
Well, it could have been worse. I could have brought my 4x upgraded knife, which would have worn out 3 times as fast and cost 3 times as much to repair. And she DID repair my warhammer perfectly, so I suppose I'll forgive her.
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So was this trip worth it in terms of money and experience? Not really. I did complete a stack of Mimic and Gray Rat scrolls, but that plus the money from the dungeon itself was almost offset by the repair cost of my warhammer and the money I had to pay to get my shield back. As for experience, finishing the quest did shoot my exp bar into the 40s. But for nearly 5 hours of work? Maybe if I didn't die so much, which probably won't happen the next time around.
Still, making a solo pilgrimage to the Succubus is something that everyone should strive for. You'll come out as a much more confident fighter.
Then again, there's the alternative method of getting a group and having everyone else log off before you open the boss door. which Pker told me about after I got back from the dungeon. Oh well.