MMO Gamer Diary Day 1: Dragonica Online, The Typical Life of a Thief

Log. Day 1.

I have traveled through many worlds in the past. The land of Atlantica was so fearsome I had to recruit a number of mercenaries to accompany me. The world of Maplestory confined me to moving only left or right and had harsh penalties for dying. But nothing has prepared me for what I have faced today. Today, I entered the world of Dragonica, also known as El Grego.

I chose the lowly profession of a thief in hopes that I would get some front line action for once (my usual ways of the mage have started to bore me). I began my journey in the Back Alley, near Windia Plains. Here, too, I could only face left or right, but my movements were not restricted - thank the gods! I can move up down, even jump across huge distances thanks to jump portals. It’s very freeing.

I am a bit taken aback by the fact that everybody I speak to here referrs to me as “Thief.” Part of being a thief is being discreet… how can I steal anything if everyone knows I am a thief!?

No matter, I will figure something out. Anyway, as always everyone around me needed something or other done. Fetch me wool, get me some slabs of wood. You’d think that people would learn to do things for themselves. The main problem was the mayor’s missing daughter. She had been kidnapped by wolves! Go figure. Helping me along is a flying blue… thing. It’s named Poporing and so far it’s been very patient with me, explaining everything I need to know about this new world.

Once I stepped outside the town, I realized just how different this world of Dragonica is from everywhere else. I have gotten so used to spamming spells and attacks… not so, here! As my skills of a thief grew, I had to learn how to use them well. There was an art to attacking, a certain timing that I had to practice over and over on the lowly monsters outside the town until I got it right: throw a monster in the air, jump and spin attack, dive attack to the ground, spin attack again. Repeat. You’d be surprised at how long it took me to master it! I still fail at times.

Once I felt I had my skills down pat, I went in search of the mayor’s daughter. All around me were other adventurers, but the moment I entered the lair of the wolves, everyone vanished. I was all alone! In retrospect, it might have been a good idea to find a party… but I work on my own! Inside, I had to get rid of all the monsters to proceed. I found the leader of the wolf pack! A couple of minutes with me, and I had him crying for mercy. Then, to my complete surprise… I got evaluated on my performance in the dungeon! I had gotten a C. A C! Imagine that. I had to re-do the dungeon a couple of times before I finally managed to pull off an A (I’m a bit of a perfectionist, after all).

I discovered some pleasant things today, as well. For killing a certain amount of monsters, I get a reward. I reached 100 monsters killed, and got a warrior’s gauntlet. Not particularly useful for me, but it fetched a nice sum at the market. I also earned a few medals for completing objectives. There are so many to do!

All in all, it has been a trying day. I’ve finally found a place that can challenge me. I hope I will grow from this experience.

- Litto, level 5 thief, Vyvern Server.