Immediately, Ethan remembered what the organizer's receptionist had told him before entering the game:
"This time, we've placed the competition entirely within the game period, which means players will face intense rivalry and even kill each other from the moment they land. We're only providing players with extremely limited development resources, and they must take huge risks to fight for them. In fact, many players may not only fail to obtain a single point of resources from the auxiliary system but also become exhausted due to certain mechanics."
The receptionist's words clearly hinted at the absurd difficulty of the main mission. Otherwise, why would they say, "a large number of players are unable to obtain resources from the system throughout the entire process"? Ethan slapped his forehead.
"If we can't get points by completing tasks, then to avoid being targeted by the assassination mechanism due to being at the bottom of the rankings, we'll have to earn points by hunting other players?" Thinking of this, Ethan felt a chill run down his spine.
With mounting pressure weighing on him, Ethan didn't dare waste another second and quickly continued reading.
He remembered hearing the mission update prompt twice, which meant that the bounty mission had been updated at the same time the game officially started.
[Bounty Mission 1: First Blood]
Mission goal: Complete the first player kill
Mission reward: 3000 gold dragons (2500 provided in the form of gold bars), 3 attribute points, 3 skill points, and 2 (in the area) S level NPCs of your choice
Note: After the task is completed, it will be announced to other players with a delay of one day
"???" Ethan stared at the absurd reward in disbelief, his breath caught in his throat.
Was this what the receptionist meant by "extremely limited development resources that require players to take huge risks to compete for"?
Since completing the main mission was almost impossible early on, any player who secured the "First Blood" resource would undoubtedly develop much faster than anyone else.
Not being able to obtain development resources from the system was a significant disadvantage in this kind of game. Unlike single player time travel scripts, where the traveler might rely solely on knowledge of the original work and their modern experiences to thrive, here, every player was equally informed.
In this 100 player game, all participants were familiar with the original story. If any player suddenly appeared in a context they didn't belong, others observing the situation would immediately recognize them as players.
Without the strength to back it up, exposing one's identity was practically suicide.
For example, in their plans, most players likely considered defecting to the Targaryen siblings early in the game, thinking they could ride the wave of the protagonist's storyline by aligning with Daenerys.
But that was clearly wishful thinking.
More than 50 players out of 100 were probably eyeing Daenerys. The moment any player appeared before her, their identity would be immediately exposed.
Unless one was strong enough not to fear the schemes of other players, they likely wouldn't survive the next chapter.
Even if someone was willing to take the risk, they still lacked the ability.
A player starting with mediocre strength and no influence had no realistic chance of getting close to Daenerys.
Why was that?
In the original timeline, only Jorah Mormont and Barristan Selmy both Westerosi successfully reached Daenerys in the early and mid stages. Why?
Were they the only ones with such intentions? Of course not.
When word spread that Khal Drogo would marry Daenerys, adventurers, mercenaries, illegitimate sons, and even second sons of disgruntled lords flocked toward Essos like vultures to war, hoping to secure a future with the wandering prince backed by the Horse King.
Yet none of them appeared in the original story. Why?
Clearly, Illyrio, the governor of Pentos and protector of the Targaryens, blocked them. Perhaps he feared assassins among them or simply deemed them useless. Either way, he kept nearly everyone away from Viserys.
From start to finish, only Jorah Mormont former Lord of Bear Island, introduced by Varys, Illyrio's old friend and the world renowned Barristan Selmy, the fearless former Kingsguard, were introduced to Daenerys by Illyrio.
Without a reliable identity or valuable strength, seeking out Daenerys was a fool's errand.
That was also why Ethan didn't choose to start on the continent of Essos.
"Hmm, that got a little off track," Ethan muttered, shaking his head and returning his focus to the First Blood mission. "I'm a bit confused."
"Speak," replied the Annie instantly one of its greatest advantages. It always responded promptly, just like when Ethan had fallen in love for the first time.
"First of all, this is a real world, right?"
"Right."
"So there won't be a health bar above the players, and NPCs won't have names floating above them, correct?"
"Correct."
"And the organizers also prepared realistic life stories for the players and provided them with relevant knowledge and memories, right?"
"Correct."
"Then how are we supposed to find other players?" Ethan spread his hands. "A hundred of us were randomly thrown into Westeros or maybe even Essos. It's like tossing a handful of salt into the ocean. How could we possibly encounter each other early on? And even if we do, how would we recognize who's a player?
Sure, I can guess the five most popular player professions and so can others but that's not very helpful when trying to find someone to hunt early on.
How many hedge knights are there across Westeros? How many wandering mercenaries? You might say we can stay alert, but actually hunting them down with such vague clues is fantasy!
Realistically, only when a player develops enough to stand out would others begin to suspect them since they wouldn't exist in the original story. But by then, the game would've entered the mid stage at least. That doesn't fit with your claim that 'players will start fighting from the beginning.'
So, what am I missing?"
"I won't answer questions beyond my authority," Annie replied mechanically.
Ethan hadn't really expected an answer. He was actually thinking aloud, trying to figure out the hidden method for locating other players.
The so called "finding players" had two parts: encountering them, and seeing through them.
Westeros had over 10 million square kilometers of land, and Essos was several times larger.
Even ignoring how scattered the players' landing points might be, gathering all 100 in King's Landing wouldn't guarantee encounters in a city of half a million people.
Unless… the players' movements were heavily restricted say, they were all sent to the same tavern.
"Damn it! Allies! The ones who formed alliances beforehand and agreed on a meeting place!" Ethan suddenly exclaimed and slapped his thigh.
Because his own allies had withdrawn from the competition, he had overlooked this possibility.
So, how do players find each other in the early game?
Not by chance.
But if you've made a prior agreement with another player to meet somewhere…
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