He stepped out from the shadow of the ancient Alvari watchtower, the [Artisan's Focusing Charm] safely stowed in his inventory. The detour had been fruitful – a level gained, a rare and potent consumable acquired. But his [Ground Stomp] skill, still locked at a measly 76% SCR from its initial learning, felt like a glaring weakness in his otherwise highly optimized combat repertoire. The brief stagger it provided was useful, but its damage was negligible and its reliability in terms of hitting multiple targets or triggering the stagger consistently felt subpar.
"Can't rely on finding magic charms to fix every skill. Need to get Ground Stomp into the 90s at least, like Slash and Defend. It's my only AoE control right now. The foothills near Silverhaven should have plenty of Level 19-20 mobs to practice on."
He consulted his [Cartographer's Route Maps] again, identifying a pass through the Silverwood Foothills that, according to the map's annotations, was frequented by aggressive Grizzly Ravagers (Level 19 bears) and small encampments of Foothill Pillagers (Level 20 humanoids). This seemed like a suitable, target-rich environment for some focused grinding.
He journeyed towards the marked area, the outskirts of Silverhaven visible as a distant smudge on the horizon. Reaching the designated zone, he found it teeming with the promised mobs. A Level 19 Grizzly Ravager, a massive bear with matted fur and wicked claws, immediately spotted him and charged with a deafening roar.
Drake stood his ground, perfectly defending against the initial charge ([Defend] << Perfect Defend! Damage Taken: 0! >>). He countered with his flawless [Basic Slash], [Relentless Assault] stacks building with each 100% SCR hit, and dispatched the bear quickly. The combat against single, predictable targets felt almost trivial now. The challenge was integrating and improving [Ground Stomp] effectively.
He found a small group of three Foothill Pillagers (Level 20) clustered around a makeshift campfire. This was his chance. He charged in, planning to use [Ground Stomp] as an opener. He focused on the skill's activation – the brief wind-up, the timing of the stomp itself, the feel of the shockwave. << Skill Success! [Ground Stomp] SCR: 76%! Minor AoE Damage! Pillager x2 Staggered (1 sec)! >> One Pillager, on the edge of the small radius, was unaffected.
"Okay, 76% SCR. Two out of three staggered. Damage is still poor. Need to catch them all and hit a higher execution quality for a longer stagger." He then quickly cleaned up the Pillagers with his sword and shield, [Relentless Assault] making short work of them once engaged.
This became his new, frustrating routine. He would seek out small groups of mobs, try to position himself perfectly for [Ground Stomp], and focus all his mental energy on improving the SCR for that one skill. The problem was, live combat was chaotic. Mobs moved erratically. Archers shot at him while he tried to stomp the melee. One good stomp at 76% would be followed by three where mobs simply walked out of its small radius before it hit, or where he had to cancel the wind-up to block an incoming attack, or where his focus on timing the stomp perfectly made him slightly mistime a [Defend] and take unnecessary damage.
[Eidetic Execution] was a double-edged sword for learning new skill timings in this chaotic environment. While it ensured any successful attempt at a higher SCR was locked, it also meant he couldn't easily "feel out" the skill by trying slightly different timings if his baseline was already set. To improve, he had to consciously try to execute better than his current locked 76%, essentially fighting his own talent's consistency.
Hours passed in this painstaking endeavor. He cleared countless packs of Ravagers and Pillagers. The EXP gain was steady, inching him closer to Level 20, but his progress on [Ground Stomp] SCR felt glacial. After one particularly messy fight where his stomp missed all but one target, he finally managed a slightly cleaner execution against a follow-up group: << Skill Success! [Ground Stomp] SCR: 78%! Minor AoE Damage! Pillagers x3 Staggered (1.1 sec)! >> << [Peak Performance Replication] updated: [Ground Stomp] SCR 78%! >> "Seventy-eight percent. Finally. Took about fifty stomps to get that 2% increase. This is brutal."
He continued the grind. The sun set and rose in the virtual world. He pushed on, fueled by his ingrained persistence. Another few hours, another tiny improvement. << Skill Success! [Ground Stomp] SCR: 80%! Minor AoE Damage! Pillagers x3 Staggered (1.2 sec)! >> << [Peak Performance Replication] updated: [Ground Stomp] SCR 80%! >> Then, after what felt like an entire day dedicated almost solely to this one frustrating skill: << Skill Success! [Ground Stomp] SCR: 84%! Moderate AoE Damage! Pillagers x3 Staggered (1.4 sec)! >> << [Peak Performance Replication] updated: [Ground Stomp] SCR 84%! >>
Drake slumped against a rock, virtually exhausted. Tthe progress on [Ground Stomp] felt disproportionately small for the immense effort. 84% SCR was decent – providing 98% of the skill's potential effect [50% + (24*2%)] – but it wasn't the 90%+ he aimed for with all his core abilities.
"This is... incredibly inefficient for improving a skill's base SCR. Trying to nail perfect timing while mobs are actively trying to kill me, moving around, using their own skills... it's a nightmare. My talent locks the improvement, sure, but achieving that first higher percentage is the real bottleneck with these more complex skills. There has to be a more focused way to practice raw execution."
He sat there, thinking. He recalled Browse the Legacy of Alvari forums extensively before launch, and even occasionally since. He remembered players in other MMOs talking about Training Halls in major cities – dedicated facilities with static training dummies, designed for players to practice rotations and test damage output without any external pressure or retaliation.
"Training Halls... of course! Static dummies. No movement, no incoming damage, no chaotic battlefield. I could focus 100% on just the activation timing, the phantom guide for Ground Stomp. If I can land a 90% or 95% SCR just once in that controlled environment, Eidetic Execution will lock it in permanently, and I can immediately use that improved baseline in real combat."
The realization struck him with the force of a revelation. Grinding against live mobs was essential for EXP, loot, and learning enemy patterns. But for pure, raw skill execution practice aimed at increasing his fundamental SCR baseline, especially for skills with complex timings or AoE placement like [Ground Stomp], a Training Hall would be infinitely more efficient.
He stood up, his frustration from the inefficient grind replaced by the excitement of a new, smarter strategy. He abandoned the Grizzly Bear Ravine immediately. The EXP and potential loot here were no longer his priority.
"Silverhaven. Find the Warrior Training Hall. Master Ground Stomp there. That's the path."
With this new, clear objective, Drake turned and began walking purposefully towards the great northern road.