Health does not recover on leveling. You might want to run.

"To where??!"

No time to read new abilities. No time to allocate stat points. I only have enough time to remember where I dropped the makeshift spear and maybe enough dexterity to grab and throw it before mamma spider tries to shove its entire face into the cell.

"Frost Armor," I scream as I grab the spear, but instead of protecting me, I feel the power surge around the spear as it becomes cold to the touch. In panic and frustration, I throw it as hard as I can, watching the wasted spell and my only weapon go hurtling through the air before lodging itself inside the colossal spider's eye.

You did 55 Damage

It screams.

You've taken 10 Damage.

I drop to the ground screaming in agony, holding my ears in a futile attempt to numb the pain and stop the bleeding.

Character Status

Health : 10/56

Stamina : 24/34

Mana : 35/75

Conditions : Chilled, Deaf (Lose 80% hearing in one or more ears), Bleeding (Lose 1 Health and Stamina every 50 seconds)

You lost 1 Health

FuuuCK! I scramble to my feet and blindly make it to the farthest corner of the cell. Blood drips through my hands and from my ears as I slam into the stone in pain and exhaustion, only able to catch my breath before all hell breaks loose, as my heart literally stops, watching that thing's hairy leg come crashing into the cell like the world's most nightmarish freight train. And where it lands, it demolishes, and the entire cell loses integrity as the walls and the floor collapse in on themselves as it rakes its leg through stone like brittle leaves.

Oh, this will be a bad time to find out if I can take fall damage on 9 HP! Aww, fuck fuck fuck fuck. The world seems to dip into dust, stone and the chaos in between, leaving me to half fall, half slide, as I tumble down the floors of this dungeon, as debris and dead bodies, and oh, the giant fucking momma spider, follow me down.

I have to cast Frost Armor. I have to cast Frost Armor. I have to cast Frost Armor, but the three-second remaining cooldown seems to be four years as I barely avoid getting skewered by twisted iron and brained by falling stones. I have points. Oh god, I have 10 points. I begin to shove all 10 points into Constitution before I realize that the first point I allocated didn't move my current health at all. Wait, no. Fuck. FUCK!

UnAllocated Points : 9

So I shove everything else into Luck and lose any hope of min-maxing. I hear the queen spider scream in frustration as I continue to fall down the prison. I try to grab anything and everything to break my fall, but anything I hold on to breaks under my weight or is simply losing structural integrity due to the thrashing of the giant spider picking through the prison to find me. Only when empty and nothing comes rushing at me do I desperately scream for a spell that's on cooldown.

"Frost Armor!"

Still on cooldown

"FROST Armor!"

Still on Cooldown.

"FROST ARMOR!!!"

The spell rushes to my right hand before I touch myself in a panic, not wanting to waste it on a random loose brick. Then I hit the ground hard.

You took 25 Fall Damage!

I hit the stone floor so hard that I bounce like a tennis ball made of lead. Before the floor crumbles and gives way, I somehow fall even further.

You took 15 Fall Damage!

You took 9 Fall Damage!

You took 28 Damage from falling debris

You gained the Status Concussion.

...

....

.....

......

"Awwwrrrghhh..."

You've applied FrostBite to ArchFiend Spider.

You've applied FrostBite to ArchFiend Spider.

You've applied FrostBite to ArchFiend Spider.

You've applied Chill to Archfiend Spider.

You've applied FrostBite to ArchFiend Spider.

You've applied Chill to ArchFiend Spider.

You've applied-

I had to shut my eyes to stop the status messages flooding the limited space in my mind. My whole body hurts, and I can barely move, but everything screams at me to at least crawl, so I do that. Slowly, excruciatingly slowly as my world is pulped, bloody hands, shredded and broken back, and eyes shut with crusted blood and swelling. I cough up blood as the last of Frost Armor expires, my Character Status screams my remaining Hit Points at me.

Character Status

Health : 7/56

Stamina : 20/34

Mana : 15/75

Conditions : Chilled, Bleeding, Mild Concussion, Deaf

I stay low, crawling underneath the stones and mortar, gingerly taking my time through the rubble and being careful of the jagged edges that threaten to cut me open and leave me bleeding out. I wonder if getting a serious infection is a thing in this world as I crawl through the muck and dirt of what I can tell is an underground cavern or sewer going by the smell.

"Is there any way to regain HP?"

In your current state? No.

"You can't be serious!"

The Void makes an audible sigh.

You require a bonfire and a safe location to make one.

"You want me to REST?!"

The Void's utter silence is deafening, and I scream in frustration at the ridiculousness of it all. But there has to be a way, something I didn't—

And then it comes to me, a stupid, moronic idea that won't work, but in this happy sack shit sandwich I'm stuck between maybe can. What's safer than being underneath the rubble of a collapsed dungeon? I start to laugh now.

"I'm going to die."

But that statement is funnier than the dour acknowledgment of a predetermined fate. I survived three giant spiders, their mom, and a significant chunk of a building landing on top of me. Yet I'm still here, with 7 HP, and being asked to start a fucking fire.

So I started gathering supplies. Pieces of wood, pieces of broken glass, pieces of cloth, and bed filling. Miscellaneous groupings of rusted iron and unidentified metals. Ok, so none of this makes a fire. And I also don't know how to make a fire.

Gather these pieces closer together.

I listen as I scoop together the wood, the cloth, the filling, the iron, and whatever else I find into a giant pile of junk and garbage.

Sufficient materials gathered, resting here will not confer any bonuses. Will you continue?

YES!!

My hand sparks and fire seems to leap from my hand and into the gathered assortment of wood and trash. The fire blooms, but there is an absence of heat, just a soft, soothing glow that puts me to sleep.

...

....

.....

.......

I wake up to the sound of digging. It would be a soothing sound save for the fact that I know what is still trying to kill me, and now my groggy limbs are barely responding to any commands to move!

You have rested. Please use any Unallocated Class and Attribute Points before continuing.

Really? I just spent all my points in fucking Luck! Then my mind coalesces around the 2 points of Unallocated Class Points, and I realize that my Wizard class didn't automatically gain levels with my Class level. The digging sound becomes more persistent.

"VOID!"

I feel a large slab being moved, and the rubble and debris around me shift and start to collapse inward.

"Ok fuck, oh fuck—" I jam every point available into Wizard and feel new life spread through my limbs as I proceed to scramble away from the sound of impending doom.

You have Leveled UP Wizard

You have Leveled UP Wizard

You have Learned Identify Lv 1

You have Learned Reduced Spell Cost Lv 1

You have Learned 1 Int

You have Learned 1 Int and 1 Dex

Title Novice Dwarven Caster has been unlocked

No time to consider what any of that means as I crawl away from the collapsing shelter in a desperate bid to put as much distance between me and whatever is strong enough to throw aside hunks of stone. And I have a good idea what that could be, so I try to move even faster through the unstable maze full of snapped iron supports and jagged rock faces. I move body parts of dried spider husks and atrophied human limbs. I crunch bone and try to elbow my way through broken glass. When fresh but putrid air reaches my lungs, past the haze of fine dust and gravel, I squeeze my round body through the narrow hatch of escape between a prison door and a destroyed wall.

I take long, ragged breaths as I crawl further and further away from the destroyed ruin of the prison. The heap of shattered stone walls, twisted iron, and miscellaneous woods and bedding looms over me in a giant junk pile. Chills run down my body as I realize how easily all of that could have collapsed while I was resting for god knows how long. I almost did. No, I probably should have bit it then and there. And then I hear a voice that reminds me that it's not too late for that to happen.

"Dwwwaaaaaaaaarffffffffff" a voice hisses from the junk heap with malice and unsubdued rage. And as my breath catches in frozen terror, I watch it slowly crawl over the pile one leg at a time until it stands on top of it all, staring down at me with all eight of its hateful red eyes. Except one of those eyes are black and dull with the wooden table leg sticking out of its center. And if my eyes aren't fucking with me, I can still see the hum of Frost Armor on the impromptu spear.

"Your deeaath will feed my voooid."

I shut my mind off to the Status messages, but a brief blink lets me know that I have six pages worth of repeating text waiting for me. And it's growing. Suddenly something urges me to use Identify, so I do.

Monster : ArchFiend Spider

Health : 77 / 1575

Stamina : 5 / 1876

Mana : 690/700

Status : Near Sighted, Chilled x 55(stacks), Frozen x 67 (stacks), Insane

"Your death will remove my suffering! Your death will ease my paaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin!!"

And then it rocks back, and my Identity sees its mana drop by several points before suddenly its HP drops to zero, and it collapses and diess.

You have Gained 1700 EXP from Killing ArchFiend Spider

You have Leveled UP

You have Leveled UP

You have Leveled UP

You have Leveled UP Frost Armor

You have Leveled UP Frost Armor

You have Learned FrostBorn

You have Learned Extended Touch Range

You have Learned Multicast

I finally open my mind and let the seven pages of Status menus flood over me, giving me a mild headache, as FrostBite and Chill being applied messages cover my vision and nearly drown all other thoughts. Once that sensation ebbs and my mind is clear again, I walk toward the pile of unstable rubble and shattered stone to inquire about a reward. I cast Frost Armor as a precaution as I proceed to climb up the pile and make my way to the spider's corpse that is now noticeably blue and leaking of a substance that hisses on contact with open air. Even rapidly shrinking in size as its body curls up and atrophies, it's still the size of a greyhound bus, and I gingerly pace around its body in hopes of finding something obvious. Then my right hand starts to glow as something in my consciousness begs me to touch the thing. The ArchFiend proceeds to glow before something white coalesces in its center and shoots toward my chest when I do. I don't have time to panic, but when it hits me, nothing happens. Then I notice what happened and begin to smile.

You have Gained Armor of The ArchFiend

I look down at my new clothes, which are essentially a full set of boots, gloves, and pants, and shirt, all in the brown and spotted red that dotted the ArchFiend Spider in life. It's lined on the outside with fur, and it comes with a cloak that is also brown and red and covered in fur. I've gotten LOOT! Oh fuck, oh yes, oh fuck yes! I want to dance, I want to SING! I need to run.

I need to run!

Oh yes, in my moment of celebration, I almost didn't notice that the hole above me is filling up rapidly with spiders. Lots and lots of spiders...

***********

Character Sheet

Name: Mike Sammons

Race: Dwarf

Origin : Hills

Stats : Level 6

Strength : 7

Dexterity : 6

Intelligence : 7

Wisdom : 10

Constitution : 7

Charisma: 1

Bonus Stat Luck: 12

UnAllocated Points : 15

UnAllocated Class Points : 3

Character Status

Health : 63/63 Elemental Armor 95/95

Stamina : 39/39

Mana : 65/85

Conditions : Rested, Frost Armor

Class Sheet

Class : Wizard

Level : 3

Spells Book : Tome of Mike

Cold Extremities_Lv 3:: Active Spell_Cost 14 Mana_ 1 Second Cooldown_You remove the warmth from things you touch. Deal 16 Cold Damage per second with a 25% chance of causing Chill and Frostbite. Lose 3 health per second the longer this ability is active. You can activate this ability on each extremity. Scales with Intelligence and Constitution.

Frost Armor. _Lv 3:: Active Spell_Cost 25 Mana_ 5 Second Cooldown_ Give a protective layer of Ice on a target object or creature you touch. Target gains 95 points of Elemental Armor however they lose 3 Stamina per second. Has a 52% chance of applying Chill and a 17% chance of applying Frostbite to Melee attackers. Scales with Intelligence and Wisdom.

Cause Fear. _Lv 1:: Active Spell _ Cost 10 Mana_ 3 second Cooldown_ Your perceived combat prowess has allowed you to manipulate the hidden Stat Will. Enemies you target within a short cone are forced to reconsider attacking you and have a 20% chance of being affected by Terror. Scales with Wisdom and Charisma.

Passive Skills

Identify. _Lv 1 :: Allows you to see the first page of a Character Stat Sheet.

Reduced Spell Cost Lv 1 :: Spells you cast cost 5 Mana less.

FrostBorn :: You have an increased chance of applying FrostBite and Chill. Also anytime you apply FrostBite or Chill to a target above 3x stacks gain 1 Health, 1 Stamina, and 3 Mana.

Extended Touch Range :: Spells in touch range can either remain touch spells or shoot out in a straight line for 1 meter (about the size of a baseball bat).

Multicast :: Reduce the effectiveness of a spell by 40% to increase the number of times that spell is cast by 2 at no additional cost.

Race Sheet

Race : Dwarf : A hardy race often hailing from planets known for their frigid temperatures and dangerous untamed wildlife. They are ingenuitive enough to carve into Mountains with stone tools but also diverse enough to flourish in any climate and Temperate Zone.

Racial Bonus Stat : Luck

All dwarves are born with an innate ability to Level UP the Bonus Stat Luck.

Racial Passives

Dark Vision : Can see perfectly fine in the dark. Though some users can suffer nearsightedness during the day.

Hard Body : Rarely notices extreme cold or heat, Status effects and Damage related to Fire and Cold Damage is reduced by 2 and have 30% reduced duration.

Novice Dwarven Caster : Haven slain many larger opponents with sorcery, your spells against enemies bigger than you have a 10% chance of dealing double damage.

Origin Bonus

Hill Dwarf : Having grown up in the rolling hills and not the deep mountains, the Hill Dwarfs gain +1 Luck every 2 Levels. Good luck.

Equipment

Armor of the Archfiend :: Armor set derived from the corpse of an Archfiend, minor bonuses to physical resistance and poison is the most it offers

Armor class : Light

Total Defense Rating : 10+ Physical Resistance, ÷20 Poison Resistance

Trait : ??? (unlocked at level 15)

Glossary of Status Effects

Concussion : The body loses consciousness from anywhere between 1 minute to 2 hours

Chilled : The body becomes so cold that you lose Stamina at a rate of 2 points per second.

Elemental Armor : It is temporary HP that provides no additional resistance against physical attacks, but bonus resistance against all other elemental attacks. Also confers 80% elemental resistance against attacks from a particular damage type. For example Frost Armor gives the target 80% resistance against Cold Damage.

Frostbite : The body becomes so cold that some parts lose circulation all together. Enemies with Frostbite lose 4-7 health per second.

Terror : The drastic loss in Will has caused the afflicted to flee in fear. 10% chance at inflicting self harm. 80% chance to recover or not be affected if Wisdom is high.

Bleeding : Lose 1 Health and Stamina every 50 seconds

Deaf : Lose 80% hearing in one or more ears

Mild Concussion : Chance of getting a another Concussion is near 50% on the next blow to the head.

Insane : Expect irrational decision making

Near Sighted : Lose 20-50% of your ability to see long distance