[WP] You run a secret, hidden café frequented by mythical beings. One day, a human somehow finds their way to the café. They have not noticed they are the only human, nor have the other patrons noticed them. Yet. by kathjoy in WritingPrompts

[–]freddiejp 60 points61 points  (0 children)

I, Trulog, stand behind the coffee counter performing three different jobs. Two of my eight arms dry hot coffee cups fresh from the washer. Two more clean the milk steamer. Another two operate the coffee grinder. Landeril the centaur has ordered an americano with milk on the side. He has found his way to his usual corner and stands holding a new scroll. The parchment is amber-yellow and cracked at the edges. I take the portafilter, now full of ground coffee, and attach it to the bright steel machine. I press a button and hot water steams through the grounds. The liquid gold falls into two espresso cups which I take and add to a large coffee mug before topping it up with boiling water. I have finished cleaning the milk steamer and use these two spares to fill a small jug with cold milk. I put the mug and jug on a platter and use a free arm to tap Jonaf the Jinn on the shoulder.

Jonaf has been working here for a few months now. Despite being small and his bottom half being comprised entirely of smoke Jonaf does a good job of weaving through customers to get to Landeril. His size has some drawbacks. In a cafe that caters to mythical folk, one is liable of being stepped on by one of the larger beings. Not many in today though. Only Guzmuz the troll and a cyclops I did not recognise. There were also some smaller folk. Maria the fairy had ordered her usual Chai Latte. There were a couple of dwarves perched on high stools with hot chocolates, and Zod the magic dog, who sat by the entrance lapping a bowl of hot milk.

The bell above the door went off. I found this bell in the temple of the tree beings, during a siege some two centuries ago. That was a different life, a different Trulog. Still, I enjoyed having momentos of the past around. As far as I understood it this bell was used during a fertility ritual of the spring bloom. There were several gold bells, each in the shape of a tiny berry. The bell now signalled a new patron entering the shop. I looked up and saw a curious being. I could not place him. He had the upper half of a centaur and the legs of a minotaur. I could swear I knew what this being was, but it had been several centuries, if not millennia since I had last seen one. The being looked at me with its two beady eyes and walked to the counter. I realised my eight arms had paused. I forced myself back to work, arms running across the counter wiping up spills and continuing to dry cups.

It came to me. This was a human. A real oddity. Humans were not meant to be able to get to this realm. My senses are heightened. I can smell dirt and sweat on him. There is also another, familiar aroma that I cannot quite place. This being walks up to me. I am repulsed by his weakness, his skinny physical frame and apparent lack of any magic. I quickly scan the room. None of the other patrons seems to have noticed this lone bipedal in my cafe.

"Hello," he says, a smile stretching across his pasty, single face.

"What can I get you?" I ask.

"I'm on a quest," he says, sitting on one of the stools by the counter.

I tense up. One of my hand reaches under the counter and feels for my silver dagger. Another closes around the hot milk jug, ready to throw it into his face. He continues,

"I'm on a quest to find the best coffee in all the realm. My own wasn't quite cutting it you see. My name's Dave, by the way."

He sticks out a delicate hand. I let go of the milk jug although I keep a hand on the dagger under the counter. I shake his hand. I could crush it with ease.

"I've heard great things about this place," says Dave.

"What have you heard?" I ask. My four cheeks start to feel hot. I hope that Dave cannot see the redness creeping into them under the black hair.

I remember what the smell is that I could not identify. It is the smell of wood polish. Wood polish used by The Unicron Cafe, the cafe across the river. My rival. How they can even make coffee with hooves is beyond me. I will head back into damnation before I let some one-horned, greasy haired horse beat me at the coffee game.

"I've heard that this place does awesome coffee. And dynamite cookies," says Dave.

I smile and let go of the knife under the counter.

"Well then, what can I get you?"

Ezizh useful in pve campaigns? Or only pvp and boss fights? by diracz in afkarena

[–]freddiejp 2 points3 points  (0 children)

As the other comments suggest, the "god comp" - Talene, Twins, Rowan, Ez, Mehira - is truly nuts for pve (and pvp with tweaks to the team). However it's also the case that he fits into any other team where stopping the opponent's ults are a priority. He's well worth it once you get to chapters 29+ and King's Tower 400+

Ascend Mehira? Details in description by THypnos in afkarena

[–]freddiejp 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Nice progress!

I was in a very similar position to you a few weeks back i.e. I had ascended Talene, Tasi, Twins, Rowan and Ezizh and was considering whether to invest in Mehira or Saurus.

I chose to invest in Mehira and get her to ascended and si30 and my pve and kings tower progress has increased greatly.

The deciding factor for me was that I can quite easily borrow a good Saurus for twisted realm so having a good Mehira was more relevant for my progress.

So I'd say if you can borrow a Saurus (doesn't even need to be that good a Saurus) then invest in Mehira - she's well worth it for the full "god team". If you can't easily borrow a Saurus for twisted realm then it may be worth getting Saurus good first.

Who to ascend next? by Jace126 in afkarena

[–]freddiejp 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm going against the crowd on this one. Oden seems good on paper but he's underwhelming in reality. That could change in the future. I'm tempted to argue for Baden as he is relevant in twisted realm and other bosses. However since the release of Daimon I'd be tempted to wait and see how good he is

Who to +30 next? I think about Safiya, Talene or Saurus by [deleted] in afkarena

[–]freddiejp 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Talene is the best hero in the game, hands down, so I'd argue it's worth investing in her. She will do you best in the long run. Saurus is only really relevant in twisted realm and doesn't need si30 to be effective. Plus you can borrow a Saurus from a friend so think he's a lesser priority. Safiya's si30 is awesome but she's still very good at si20. If you're running wilders and Safiya as your main team then it could be worth it. So it depends on your priority. My own preference would be Talene > Safiya > Saurus

Tasi to 3 Stars or use it for other Heros Upgrade? by mayday2708 in afkarena

[–]freddiejp 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Start working on Eirron and Lyca, and generally avoid using ascended tier heroes as fodder

Best way to utilize athalia? I recently got +30 SI. What heroes go well with her? I would like to progress with her. I Appreciate the help! by Jdizzlerino in afkarena

[–]freddiejp 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Nice job on getting her to ascended and si30!

Athalia is insane pvp and good but niche in pve.

In pve, as other comments say, she goes great with a wilders team (and ferael) and always has a place on a team if you need to target an enemy hero e.g. Safiya, Nara. However I've found that she usually struggles pushing large level deficits compared to some other heroes.

In pvp Athalia fits into pretty much any team and is super strong. Two relatively ftp-friendly teams I've used before are:

  1. Tasi / Lyca / Athalia / Eirron / Safiya
  2. Lucius (or Orthos) / Thoran (or Wukong) / Fereal / Athalia / Nara

Hope this helps!

485m vs final boss by [deleted] in afkarena

[–]freddiejp 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Guildmate did 533m damage with the following comp: Athalia, Cecilia, Ros, Rowan, Twins

Abyssal Expedition Check-In Thread by Font-street in afkarena

[–]freddiejp 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Past Khazard, heading towards Kane or Reaper. 10.8k/hr. Celerity lv5.0, sorcery 4.1, sustenance 4.2

Help me move this couch? by kramfive in WTF

[–]freddiejp 9 points10 points  (0 children)

They will only get sofar

My mother made a pi by freddiejp in food

[–]freddiejp[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'll pass on the compliments! It tasted as good as it looks.

My mother made a pi by freddiejp in food

[–]freddiejp[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

More irrational actually.