Unexpected Healer Book 2 -- Chapter 39

Chapter 39

As he took in all the information crowding the window that suddenly popped up in front of him, Thaden noticed that there were still two from his previous Class choice on the list, Experienced Healer and Deathbane, so he ignored those ones for now, concentrating on the new ones instead.  He took his time to read over the details of each one so that he didn’t miss anything before evaluating each one.

Please select your new Support Class from the list of following evolutions:

Experienced Healer (Uncommon)

Protection Specialist (Uncommon)

Deathbane (Rare)

Elemental Transformer (Rare)

Healthweaver (Epic)

Veteran Lifewarden (Epic)

Solitary Shaman (Legendary)

Evolutions not selected may or may not be available during your next Class evolution

Protection Specialist (Uncommon): A uncommon evolution for a Lifewarden, a Protection Specialist prefers preventative measures to mitigate damage rather than focusing on healing.  Their Defensive spells are much stronger and more diverse than those of a Common Healer or Uncommon Experienced Healer, while the Support spells they retain still provide enough healing to get by in case typical protection measures fail.  

·         Can learn new Defensive spells at Weak, Minor, Lesser, Major, or Greater strength

·         Can learn new Support spells at Weak, Minor, or Lesser strength

·         Automatically upgrades 4 previously learned spells at random to their next strength upon evolution, if possible

·         Has access to a greater variety of Defensive spells

·         Only the damage reflection bonus trait from Lifewarden is maintained

·         Obtains (3) additional Access Slots

Rereading each Class available three times to make sure he understood everything, he immediately discarded Experienced Healer and Deathbane for the same reasons he had during his original Class evolution.  The former was just a basic healer, which he thought was far beyond that by now, while the latter was still focused on the Undead.  Having experienced and learned more about the world, what had at first been a powerful Class that could help him keep developing through the means of killing countless Undead had now become almost useless.

Which brought him to his new Class options, starting with Protection Specialist.  He could only assume that it was offered to him because he tended to rely on his protective spells, not only for himself but when he was just recently in a party, over healing in most cases.  That was absolutely true, of course, because he’s rather not be hurt in the first place, but he was fairly sure that specializing in just Defensive spells was the way to go for his evolution.

What was interesting as he read about the details of the class was that there was a spell strength stronger than Major that was named Greater.  He could only assume that it was yet another jump in the cost and efficacy of the spells, and he was looking forward to checking them out.

Elemental Transformer (Rare): A rare evolution for a Lifewarden, an Elemental Transformer expands their expertise in healing and protection by branching out with methods to combine the two together.  Using specialized, element-focused spells, they can convert hostile magical spells and effects into healing by transforming the energy into something more useful.  As a result of this pursuit toward combining the effects of healing and protection, normal Support and Defensive spells are marginally weaker.

·         Can learn new Support and Defensive spells at Weak, Minor, Lesser, and Major strength

·         Can learn new Supportive spells as Weak, Minor, Lesser, Major, and Greater strength

·         Automatically upgrades 8 previously learned spells at random to their next strength upon evolution, if possible

·         Has access to a new Supportive Spellcasting Competency, which combines both healing and protection effects

·         All bonus traits from Lifewarden are maintained, though they do not affect the new Supportive spells

·         Obtains (4) additional Access Slots

Next up was Elemental Transformer, a rare evolution that he was fairly certain he had access to because of all the different dungeons he’d visited as well as the resistances he’d accumulated along the way.  From the death-like magic in the Mausoleum to the fire and heat from the Magma Dungeon, he’d encountered quite a lot of elements in his time on Tarth – and overcome them all.

As for the Class, it was interesting that he would acquire a new Competency, which seemed to be a combination of Support and Defensive Spellcasting; he was intrigued to see what such a thing could do, as the spells sounded like they could have some sort of heal-over-time effect on the protective spells, which would essentially do two things at once.  This Class was a possibility, even at its lower rarity, as leveling-up a new Competency could be advantageous with the number of powerful Advancements that it could provide.  The drawback to the new type of spellcasting was that the Lifewarden bonus traits, which was a chance to double healing spells or reflect damage, wouldn’t affect it.

Healthweaver (Epic): An epic evolution for a Lifewarden, the Healthweaver is a paragon of healing, specializing in Support-based spells over protection.  A Healthweaver is intimately familiar with what it takes to bring someone back from the brink of death after having experienced it for themselves time and time again, and there is nothing that they cannot overcome with the right powerful healing spell at the right time.  As a result of their focus on healing and Support-based spells, their aptitude in Defensive-based spells is functionally weaker.

·         Can learn new Support spells at Weak, Minor, Lesser, Major, or Greater strength

·         Can learn new Defensive spells at Weak, Minor, or Lesser strength

·         Automatically upgrades all previously learned Support spells by two levels in strength, if possible

·         All Support spells are now instant-cast with no penalties; if the Competency Advancement Instant Gratification was previously selected, a new Advancement selection will be provided

·         All Support spells now cost 50% less Mana; all Defensive Spells now cost 50% more

·         Only the Support spell double-cast bonus trait from Lifewarden is maintained

·         Obtains (5) additional Access Slots

The Healthweaver originally seemed like the opposite of the Protection Specialist, but given the epic rarity of the Class, it was simply more.  All Support spells would be instant-cast, which was something he could already do thanks to an Advancement, but there would be no penalty; what was amazing was that picking this Class would also refund his selection of Instant Gratification, which would allow him to pick something else. 

There was also a decrease in Mana cost for Support spells and an increase in Defensive spells, but that didn’t really bother him too much.  What was more surprising, but not as useful to him, was that all of his spells would increase by two levels of strength; since they would only go up to Greater, with almost all of his spells already one level of strength below at Major, half of that benefit would be wasted on him. 

What made it a deal-breaker for him was the loss of the damage reflection bonus trait from Lifewarden, as that was essential for actually damaging monsters.  Sure, he had the whole Wild Health Leech spell he could utilize, but when it was just him against a single monster, it wouldn’t work and he’d be screwed without another way to deal damage.

Veteran Lifewarden (Epic): A basic, yet epic, evolution for the Lifewarden Class, the Veteran Lifewarden continues to excel in their support role in a party, using their expertise in both healing and defensive spells to keep their party members alive, while also making many opponents think twice about threatening their charges.  Each support spell that a Lifewarden casts has a small chance to be cast twice on two separate allies, and each defensive spell has a small chance to cause a larger portion of the damage prevented to be reflected upon the aggressor.

·         Can learn new spells at Weak, Minor, Lesser, Major, or Greater strength

·         Automatically upgrades all previously learned spells to their next strength upon evolution

·         Has access to additional powerful healing and defensive spells

·         Obtains (5) additional Access Slots

While “boring” compared to the other types of Classes he saw, the Veteran Lifewarden was a top contender for his selection.  While he couldn’t say for sure what was different from his existing Class, it seemed as though at least the bonus traits of a double-cast of Support spells and damage reflection from Defensive spells had improved; the former trait now double-cast on two separate allies, while the latter simply said it reflected a “larger” portion of the damage that was prevented.  Whether that meant 6% or 20% instead of 5%, he didn’t have that kind of information, but he suspected that it was likely at least 10% or more.

Solitary Shaman (Legendary): Never before seen in a developmental world is the legendary evolution of a Lifewarden, Solitary Shaman.  Isolated and alone most of the time, this Support Class has somehow learned how to take care of themselves without the help of others, leading them to be better off solo when encountering the difficult challenges that await them.  With a solid foundation of both the physical healing and protective spells that categorize a supportive role, they have also branched out to the mental and spiritual realms in their pursuit of wanting to fix the world, be it in the form of correcting mental instability or investigating the underlying meaning behind emotional reactions. 

Solitary Shamans are exceptionally rare, even away from developmental worlds, because becoming one takes superior dedication to defying the norms of their Class, as foolhardy as that normally would be.  However, as a result of their penchant for remaining in charge of their own fate without relying on others to protect them, their entire method of spellcasting has undergone an evolution of its own, which can offer superior benefits… and devastating drawbacks.

·         Can learn spells at Weak, Minor, Lesser, Major, Greater, or Superior strength

·         Automatically upgrades all previously learned spells to their next strength upon evolution

·         All previously known channeled spells are no longer available, nor will there be any new channeled spells available to a Solitary Shaman; if the Double Team Defensive Spellcasting Competency Advancement and/or the Support Spellcasting Competency Advancement Extracurricular Toys were previously selected, a new Advancement selection will be provided for each of them

·         All single-target spells can now target anyone

·         All spells cast upon self have their efficiency increased by 50%

·         All spells cast upon allies have their efficiency reduced by 50%

·         PICK accumulation while in a party is reduced by 90%, including Quests completed and Achievements earned while in a party

·         Has access to additional spells that can target the mind and spiritual energy of a target

·         All bonus traits from Lifewarden are maintained only when spells are used upon caster

·         Obtains (6) additional Access Slots

Lastly, even as his eyes felt like they were going to bug out of his head when he saw that he had access to a Legendary Class, Thaden was of two minds about the Solitary Shaman once he read the incredible details.  First and foremost, accepting this particular evolved Class would eliminate all of his channeled spells.  For most of the channeled Support spells that were for healing, that wasn’t that big of a deal.

But both of his super-important, have-been-with-him-since-the-beginning Fields were channeled spells, and losing them would severely hamper his survival ability.

Of course, that was offset by the additional caveat that everything within his arsenal of spells was now useable on himself.  He’d already experimented with a few of the Defensive spells with his recent delve with a party, so he knew how effective they could be, but would it be enough to replace his bread-and-butter Fields that had kept him alive through so much?

It helped that his spells were 50% more effective when used upon himself, so all those protection spells would have 50% more charges or mitigate 50% more damage and last 50% longer; at the same time, those same spells would be 50% less effective when cast on someone else.  Added to that, it seemed as if the Class had evaluated all of his solo Achievements and decided that he was better off alone, as PICK accumulation would be cut by 90% while he was in a party; while he had been leaning toward that direction from the beginning, he had to admit that it had felt good being part of a group that needed him for his abilities and appreciated what he could do for them to keep them alive.  The sense of belonging to something greater than just himself was a draw that he wasn’t sure he’d be able to resist in the future, as even those who preferred solitary actions liked to partner with other people every once in a while.

Granted, he could still join a party, but he wouldn’t benefit from it as much as he would otherwise.  Plus, even with the reduction in his spells’ effectiveness, he would likely still be multiple times stronger than most other Support Classes, even if they were the same Level. 

It was a risk, but the more he looked at the details of the Solitary Shaman Class, the more stood out to him as it being more of a benefit than a detriment.  First, there was the note that he would have access to additional spells that targeted the mind and spiritual energy, whatever that meant, and he was intrigued to find out exactly what that meant.  But what made him the most excited from the additional information was the fact that he would be able to upgrade his spells to an even higher strength than Greater.

Superior.   

Even the sound of that type of strength in his head made him practically salivate at the thought, because it had to be good, right?  His spells would all increase automatically by one strength level upon selecting the Class, which would put all but a handful at Greater strength, so he would have to be strategic in what he chose for additional spells in the future because upgrading a few existing ones might be more important, but he’d have to wait and see what the future brought with it. 

He looked back at the other Classes one last time, double-checking that he hadn’t missed anything that would make them the better choice.  When he didn’t see anything that stood out to him, he turned back to the Legendary Class and hesitated for a moment before he made his final selection.

In for a penny, in for a pound – that’s what they say, right?  I’ve got this whole solo thing working for me so far, so I might as well go all-in.

Bracing himself because he remembered what had happened last time, he selected Solitary Shaman from his options.  The window disappeared immediately and he found himself falling forward, nearly unconscious from pain as his body seemed to catch fire from the inside, while at the same time it felt like something was being savagely ripped out of his mind.  A hollow thud reverberated in his ears and the sharp pain of his head smacking against the Representative’s desk was largely ignored, as all he could think about was holding onto the last bit of consciousness that hadn’t fled from the unimaginable pain as his body sprawled onto the floor.

The agony seemed to last forever, but it suddenly stopped, the lingering traces of the torturous pain fading over about 30 seconds, and he was finally able to groggily pick himself up.  It was then that he realized his head felt wet, and he reached up with his hand to feel what could only be blood coming from a cut on his forehead, which was starting to drip into his eye.  With a simple Major Regeneration—actually, it was Greater Regeneration now—he felt soothed by the healing energy as it fixed his head up and got rid of the lingering traces of pain throughout his body.  His face – and when he looked down, his robe – were still covered in his own blood, but he was already feeling better than he had in a long time.

As he looked back at the Support Class Representative, he heard in his head, “Good luck and don’t die, Contender,” before the Assimilator lifted its eyes from his own.

Glancing around, he found that his sudden collapse hadn’t gone unnoticed, though from the expressions on their faces they seemed more curious and amused rather than suspicious of him.  “Phew, guess I should’ve eaten something before I did that,” he said loudly, chuckling at himself, which elicited a few laughs at his expense.  It was a lame excuse and likely wouldn’t fool anyone who dug into him too far, but it was all he could think of to say at the moment. 

He walked unsteadily toward the hallway leading to his room despite feeling relatively fine after all that, keeping up appearances, and he spent the time focusing on everyone around him, trying to see if anyone had been paying too much attention to him.  He hated having to hide himself from others and was hopeful that one day he wouldn’t have to conceal everything, being able to walk about openly, but he didn’t quite feel like it was the time for that.  For now, at least until he learned everything he could about his new Class and how it operated, he would still be as cautious as he could be so as to reduce the likelihood of trouble. 

Not that he didn’t think he could escape from whatever ambush someone might set up for him, but he just didn’t want the attention that his notoriety would bring – good or bad.

While there were plenty of people who were looking at him as he escaped to his room, he didn’t see anyone following him.  He even cast his Greater Mass Healing spell a few times when he wasn’t sure if someone was stealthed following him, but it didn’t heal anyone hidden from sight as far as he could tell.

Of course, as soon as Thaden passed through the doorway leading to the Gold-Ranked rooms, he didn’t have to worry all that much.  He made it to his room, closed the door, and pushed his back up against the solid wood, letting out a deep breath.

I did it.  Now, let’s see what this Class has given me.