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marurun
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Maru, Son of Ortega: A Dragon Quest III Story

by marurun Sun Apr 04, 2021 9:18 pm

This weekend Maru and his band of merry fools set forth to become the Hero from Aliahan who would carry on Ortega’s legacy. Unfortunately, Maru ended up hiring a bunch of buffoons at the local bar as his martial backup. Aiding Maru the Lewd was warrior Ack the Lazy, fighter (monk style) Pidg the Stubborn, and cleric Popo the Stubborn.

They quickly learn that there is a Thief Key they must recover from some sleepy old dude in a tower, so they head out. Indeed, after battling through some tunnels and up the tower, the old dude happily forks over the key, no drama. They then hear about a magic gate in the east that will grant passage but that has been blocked. Rumor is a magic bomb will clear it, so the questers head to the village of Reeve in search of someone whose hobby is apparently magic bombs.

Along the way the party finds enough TinyMedal tchotchkes to get Maru a spiked whip and enough money to deck everyone out in the latest battle fashions. Except Pidg. They are too cool for the likes of weapons and lots of armor. Everyone else, however, is a jangling mess of defensive bits and bobs.

They visit the gate and the bomb works, naturally, so the questers are let loose on a new continent to pester the citizens of Romaly.
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Re: Maru, Son of Ortega: A Dragon Quest III Story

by Ack Sun Apr 04, 2021 9:45 pm

Wait, hang on. You're the heir to the Ortega salsa empire? Man, what are we slumming for a new whip for then?
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Re: Maru, Son of Ortega: A Dragon Quest III Story

by marurun Sun Apr 04, 2021 9:55 pm

Salsa, taco sauce, and all the crispy taco shells you care to crunch! Unfortunately, most of the family fortune is tied up in the brand, so there’s little left for adventuring and world-saving.
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Re: Maru, Son of Ortega: A Dragon Quest III Story

by marurun Mon Apr 05, 2021 9:34 am

I realize I forget to set the scene (what little I know of it). The evil Baramos is going to destroy the world. Maru's father, Ortega, went to face Baramos but fell in a volcano (I don't know how everyone seems to know this so well). So now Maru's 16 and off to follow in his father's footsteps and face Baramos. Hopefully Maru won't make the same mistake of falling into a volcano.
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Re: Maru, Son of Ortega: A Dragon Quest III Story

by marurun Tue Apr 06, 2021 11:12 am

There's been some action and some soul-searching for Maru and his fellow adventurers. Though their hard work battling has been starting to pay off, Maru realized his stubborn and lazy compatriots needed a new attitude. Maru attempted motivational speeches but Pidg and Popo wouldn't budge; Ack wasn't even paying attention. So instead, Maru gave them some books to read. Ack remained unconvinced, but did decide to load up on some new gear. He's rocking some chain armor and a spear, and is quite the durable tank, when he can be bothered. Pidg read a book on cheating and became much more Alert. Pidg also picked up some new gear, which makes a HUGE difference, given how little gear is made for monk-like fighter. They are clawing their way through baddies with iron claws. Popo is as well-equipped as Ack, and is now Sharp as a tack (or a spear), and while he might not be able to dish out like Ack, he's the glue keeping this party healed and operational. There was an incident at the TinyMedal collector's place, however, and Pidg is now rocking a new set of garters. They are now far less Alert and much more Sexy, which in typical Dragon Quest fashion, means they are now a stat-building machine (seriously, this personality system is weird AF).

In-between the meditation, rousing speeches, and book learnin', there's been some solid adventuring, too. The team is now level 10 all around and tangling with tougher foes. Pidg and Maru are the early strikers, while Ack is the heavy hitter. Popo is on cleanup. This arrangement seems to be working for everyone as they try move beyond the land around Romaly. They found a village to the north and a shrine to the west, and it's clear that the thief key wasn't enough. They must now seek out a Magic Key. Where might this Magic Key be? Possibly in a tower. We'll know for sure (hopefully) in the next episode!
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Re: Maru, Son of Ortega: A Dragon Quest III Story

by Ack Tue Apr 06, 2021 12:09 pm

*yawn* I'll tank if you want, but right now I'm over here enjoying this coffee. Call me if you need me.
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Re: Maru, Son of Ortega: A Dragon Quest III Story

by MrPopo Tue Apr 06, 2021 12:34 pm

So you should pay attention to the overall shape of the terrain and the town names.
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Re: Maru, Son of Ortega: A Dragon Quest III Story

by marurun Tue Apr 06, 2021 1:16 pm

MrPopo wrote:So you should pay attention to the overall shape of the terrain and the town names.


Yeah, I see that they are pastiches of real-world locations. It's cute but not actually all that interesting to me.
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Re: Maru, Son of Ortega: A Dragon Quest III Story

by PartridgeSenpai Tue Apr 06, 2021 5:29 pm

I'm a nervous, sexy, stat-building machine! Just like real life :lol:

These are awesome, Maru. I love reading them ^w^
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Re: Maru, Son of Ortega: A Dragon Quest III Story

by marurun Wed Apr 07, 2021 10:41 am

Lewd Maru, Lazy Ack, Sexy Pidg, and Sharp Popo are still making trouble in the expanded area around Romaly. The King tasked them with returning his crown which was taken by Kandar, but they also know they need the Magic Key to open access to a portal in the west. Kandar may be hiding out in the Tower of Shanpane, but the Magic Key? That's another issue. In an effort to build experience and funds the crew roll around in the wilderness attracting monsters and beating them up. With some careful spending, Ack has become a tank. He doesn't have the strongest defense, but he has more HP than anyone else by far and hits like a truck. Pidg and Maru continue to be fast strikers, but fast doesn't mean weak, especially now that Maru has given up the whip for a sword. No more fun in the "dungeons", I guess. Popo continues to be mediocre as an attacker and absolutely essential as a healer. He burns through MP like mad, and he almost has enough of them to pull it off.

As part of this quest to get stronger and buy the best equipment available, the team expanded their explorations north and discovered the town of Kanave. Maru picked up a poison needle there, but nobody can use it, so the party is simply making due with spending money and hoping bigger numbers make for an easier adventure. Temporarily forgetting about their mission for the king and desperate to make fast cash, the goons continue to roam further afield, eventually stumbling into a frightening encounter with 4 BombCrag. They look like rocky bombs and merely sit and wait as Maru, Ack, Pidg, and Popo wail on them. They are incredibly durable and it takes quite a while, but the rewards are rich! (I'm pretty sure they're on a timer or something so I go to town and take down all 4 for massive XP and coin. I check online later and realize how foolish this was. They have massive hitpoints and explode to kill if they start their turn at 25% HP. I lucked out on that battle.) Eventually this band of buffoons discovers a town called Noaniels, where all except 1 villager are asleep where they stand. Maru and co. are tasked with returning the Dream Ruby to the Elves to lift this sleeping curse. Seems the elf princess ran off with one of the Noaniels yokels and took the ruby with her. The elves are pissed, first as losing their ruby and second because humans, yuck!

Still neglecting the Tower of Shanpane, Maru's merry band ventures into a cave in search of the ruby and successfully retrieve it. The elf king is thankful and gives you powdered energy drink (I kid) to wake Noaniels. The elves still won't sell you their cool stuff, though, because humans, yuck! In Noaniels you awaken the town to find that they all fell into their deep sleep the day after your father, the legendary Ortega, left to continue his mission to defeat Baramos. A 15 or so year sleep is quite a nap! The townspeople also tell you where you might find that pesky Magic Key: a place called, quite unfortunately, Assaram.

At this point the party remembers that whole king's crown thing and decide a back-tracking hustle may be in order.
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