Apr 30, 2017 8:26:21 GMT -5
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Apr 30, 2017 8:25:11 GMT -5
Post by index on Apr 30, 2017 8:25:11 GMT -5
Sand wasn't his thing, but he was here nonetheless. He wasn't out in Dione exploring caves and ruins like the selling point of most desert areas in RPGs, and instead, he was in a small village, relaxing in an establishment like he had no problems. No one could blame him though, especially when it was an inhospitable environment outside. There was that, and there was also this quest that caught his attention above all.
He sat nicely on one of the chairs, fingers gripping the edge of a round table. A few chairs were open at the beginning, but people eventually started filling the seats. NPCs began to crowd them as well, which probably was an event triggered by the quest, or so he hoped. Playing poker online was definitely easier than playing it in person for the fact that maintaining an emotionless face was not one of his strong suits. NPCs probably aren't coded to read expressions at the very least.
If the heavy scent of alcohol did not get to him, the stares probably would. Upon hearing cards getting shuffled, all negative thoughts were brushed away however. He wasn't good at poker or any luck based games for that matter, but that doesn't mean he didn't like a game of chances.
//open. thanks!
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Apr 30, 2017 15:10:04 GMT -5
Post by whirlwind on Apr 30, 2017 15:10:04 GMT -5
Whirlwind stared at the cards everyone, including herself, held, yep, she had absolutely no idea how to play this game. Was she even old enough to play this poker game, she was old enough to play Go Fish, so that probably meant she was, right? All she knew was there was definitely mostly adults here, since there was some cheap booze smell all around, jeez, even she could tell whatever alcohol they were serving here was cheap, and all she could do was smell it! She shook her head, she had to get back to the matter at hand, the fact was she joined this without knowing how to play, she would have to ask someone for help. She frowned, she hated always being the stupid one! Unfortunately that seemed destined to be her fate even in this video game so she should probably just accept it. With that thought she lifted her head, looking for the most friendly face. Not that one, he kinda looked drunk and even a friendly drunk can't properly explain much, and not that girl, she just looked really uncomfortable here, maybe it was her boyfriend's idea or something. So that left... the silver-haired cute guy next to her, of course it did. Because of course she had to talk to someone that make her even more nervous! "Just, just talk normally, like an adult...!" She feebly raised her hand into what she hoped was a wave, griping her cards tightly in her other hand. She opened her mouth to speak, and to her horrer her voice came out extremely high-pitched, "Hi!... Um, c-can you just show me real quick how to play this game?" She had to start working on her people skills, why was she so weird and bad at them anyway!? index
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May 1, 2017 10:03:06 GMT -5
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May 1, 2017 10:02:38 GMT -5
Post by index on May 1, 2017 10:02:38 GMT -5
His attention was directed solely at the dealer, or more specifically, the cards that he was handling. Soon, the cards were distributed evenly among the players along with the community cards at the center of the table. He took a peek at his cards, then seeing a hand that has no way to become at least a straight, before settling it back at the table face down. The face up cards showed both high cards, none of which matched a pair with his hand. It was safe to say that he lost this round.
He heaved a sigh before taking a glance at the people playing with him. Most of them displayed the usual NPC words on the interface, making him wonder if their poker face was part of them playing a card game or if it was because their life as an unimportant character in the game sucks. Soon, his eyes wandered to a bird girl beside him, her voice wavering and her nervousness clearly showing. "I, er, me?" He pointed to himself, clarifying if she was talking to him. A few glances around and then finding no other player around confirmed it.
If she was playing in the same game as him, that meant they shouldn't be working together at all. Was he supposed to teach her how to play when not teaching her means that he got one less opponent to beat? Is she even old enough to gamble? Instinct quickly disregarded the previous questions in his mind though. "You just need to have the best arrangement of cards in your hand out of all of us. Basically a game of luck, or counting skills if you're good with that."
He took another glance at the cards he left on the table and back to her. "Or you can fold if you think you'll lose."
whirlwind
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May 1, 2017 19:46:58 GMT -5
Post by whirlwind on May 1, 2017 19:46:58 GMT -5
Whirlwind let out an awkward laugh, waving her hand exaggeratedly, "What...! I'm so not going to, uh, fold, I just needed to get a little refresher, you gotta know that, you know!?" Unfortunately she began to ramble, she was trying to look like she knew something when she was probably a know-nothing-at-all, after all. Realizing her voice was going high all over again, she fumbled for her cards, holding them close to her face. So there were hearts, and diamonds and stuff, so she was just supposed to match them up in combinations, that had to be easy, right? "See, see, I'm good, see!?" She held up two red heart cards towards the silver haired cute guy, feeling pretty proud, she probably looked like she learned super fast! Suddenly many people started crowding around as the rest at the table began shuffling their cards. "Oh no! Are we starting or something!?" Clamping her mouth shut after that latest outburst, she attempted to copy the people in front of her, she had to look like she belonged! index
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May 2, 2017 10:56:22 GMT -5
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May 2, 2017 10:56:02 GMT -5
Post by index on May 2, 2017 10:56:02 GMT -5
He smiled as she fumbled with her words, albeit in a manner that seemed as if he was just being patient with her. "Yeah, sure." It was an awkward position that he was in, teaching the rules of the game in the middle of a tournament, though he could tell that the girl was equally as awkward. It would be demeaning for her if he was to ignore her call for help after all, especially when she started to act independent in front of him now. It's not like the quest details required him to win a game to recieve the rewards anyways.
Index peered closer when she showed him two cards. Seeing as the community cards were all not in the same suit, it was clear that a flush was not possible. "You still need at least five of the same suit for it to be worth something. Try again." The smile grew into a grin afterwards. He wondered if teaching her the game as they played would result to something, though he assumed that watching her try would be amusing at least.
The current cards were shuffled and were redistributed. This time, Index got a pairs in with his hand. It wasn't the highest in terms of other combinations, but it was better than last round's. He held his cards face down on the table, before turning back to the girl beside him. "Whatcha' got?" Normally, it was not a question you'd ask in poker. This does not seem like a normal game though.
whirlwind
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May 2, 2017 19:55:14 GMT -5
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May 2, 2017 17:01:21 GMT -5
Post by whirlwind on May 2, 2017 17:01:21 GMT -5
Whirlwind almost whimpered as her cards were taken to be redistributed, she felt almost attached to those little, sweaty pieces of paper, they were going to help her through this increasingly stressful time! Still, she had to move on, and grabbed a new, cool to the touch deck, because whoever had them last probably wasn't sweating up a storm like she was. Alright, so she only had a bunch of spades, was that bad? Her mom always said variety was best, so if that was true, this must really bad! It would be just her luck to get a bad card deck while playing for the first time! Upon the question on what she got, Whirlwind answered in a way that could be considered very whiny, but at least wasn't talking all that loud, "I don't know! I just have a bunch of spades for some reason... Look, that spade's just a one, then a two and three, that's so little, isn't it? I must've gotten bad luck just because I'm new, you know?" index
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May 2, 2017 20:55:29 GMT -5
Post by index on May 2, 2017 20:55:29 GMT -5
Poker was a game of luck and psychology, especially if you aren't good with the former. Unfortunately for Index, he wasn't good at both of them. He knew numbers though, and how to get the probability of when the cards will appear each round depending on the cards he already saw appear. Without luck on your side, it was as effective as a Grass-type attack on Heatran though. At least this was just a poker game and nothing life threatening like the current predicament every player was in.
And then there's this so-called beginner's luck. As soon as the girl beside him told the contents of her hand, he immediately called the dealer to fold for this round. Although her cards didn't form the highest combination of cards, it was enough for a flush if they considered the community cards in the middle of the table. At least two were spades after all. He took a glance at the other participants, who all seemed to still be contemplating on whether to play their hand or not.
"Well, it's not called beginner's luck if beginners were supposed to be unlucky." He held his hands on the edge of the table with his fingers rapping rhythmically as he looked at her. "Most card combinations require five cards. See if you can form one with the ones in your hand and those four face-up cards on the table. You know card combinations, right?" The last part was more of a tease than an actual question.
whirlwind
[/blockqupte]
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May 3, 2017 18:10:55 GMT -5
Post by whirlwind on May 3, 2017 18:10:55 GMT -5
"Wait, what are you doing? Why're you, uh, folding?" Whirlwind really did not understand what the silver haired guy was doing, didn't he want to win!? Everyone loved winning! This confusion only continued with the comment of beginner's luck, "Luck? I'm lucky? How, I thought I got a bunch of bad cards!" Still, she listened closely in his explanation of card combinations, and did an odd 'shoo shoo' motion with one of her hands as she tried to dismiss his question of her knowledge of combinations. "O-Of course I know that stuff... seriously, just watch me- I mean, my cards!" Since Whirlwind didn't have much of an idea on how to play her cards, she simply placed them face up on the table before anyone else, then tried to speak. "I... uh... I think I got a good enough combination, so... d-do I win or something?" Ugh, someone hurry up and answer, she felt like she was about to explode from a combination fear of getting things wrong again and the potential of embarrassing herself during her first time playing. index
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May 4, 2017 20:14:28 GMT -5
Post by index on May 4, 2017 20:14:28 GMT -5
Index could only chuckle as an initial response to the girl's question. "Cause I'd lose more money if I played a losing hand. Well, if this involved real money, I guess." On retrospect, they might as well consider in game currency as real money until they get out of the game. With death being so easily achieved in this world, it was possible that he won't be able to see the real world again. At least the space in front of them looked much cleaner that it was supposed to be in real life, with amounts of currency being deducted from their inventory automatically every round instead of physically placing whatever they're betting in the table.
As soon as she revealed her hand to the other players of the game, everyone else started folding much like Index. He guessed he won't be seeing what other cards were already in play. "You won. Congrats!" It was more optimal to let others raise their bets before showing your cards, but that works. It wasn't like the game was serious to begin with. "Try for a raise next time. You might win a larger prize." He wondered if it would be better to tell most of the beginner mistakes before she committed them, but then again, he was already losing to someone who had no idea of what they were doing.
whirlwind
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May 6, 2017 10:59:12 GMT -5
Post by whirlwind on May 6, 2017 10:59:12 GMT -5
"I won? Yay!" Whirlwind let out a squeal and clapped her hands, maybe a bit loudly, but come on, she was really happy, she can't remember the last time she ever won anything, even by chance! Unfortunately the happiness she was feeling was quickly dampened at the new way to play this game, a raise, and she let a groan and dramatically put her head in her hands. "Why does this game got so many things to do or rules!? This feels more complicated than this video game, you gotta agree with me, Silver hair!" Wait... did she really just call the guy Silver hair!? Way to give stupid nicknames all over again to people she barely knows! Thankfully everyone started to prepare for the next game and she joined them, maybe she'll get lucky again, then the silver haired guy can explain more stuff so that she'll get more stuff too! She had to remember not to throw out anymore weird nicknames like before, stuff like that made people think whoever did that is a weirdo after all! index
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May 6, 2017 20:17:53 GMT -5
Post by index on May 6, 2017 20:17:53 GMT -5
The disappointment was expected the moment he decided to slowly reveal the other poker rules to the girl. He could say more, but he figured it would be better to teach them one by one instead of blurting out a whole rulebook for her. Besides, keeping up what he was doing right now was already hard enough in the middle the game. After all, he learned most of what he knew about them through those old video games that introduced gambling in casinos to kids below the age of twelve. He had all the time in the world back then.
"Silver hair kindly asks..." He briefly opened up an interface, then continued, "Whirlwind to refer to him as Index. Thanks." A smile indicated that he wasn't offended, though the tone still had a tinge of teasing. Of all nicknames he got, silver hair was probably was one of the longest and most unusual in his opinion. He guessed that's how people below his age group thought now. Shrugging the topic, Index decided to wait until the cards were distributed. Before it finished, Index added another rule for the girl.
"Oh, and betting happens clockwise. Only check once it's your turn." Now that he realized it, Poker did have a lot of terms involved.
whirlwind
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May 7, 2017 18:40:05 GMT -5
Post by whirlwind on May 7, 2017 18:40:05 GMT -5
"Index? Awww, that's better than my name, you know, all I did was name myself a literal type of wind, all, whoosh, whoosh!" Whirlwind childishly did an imitation of the winds, doing a pretty bad job at imitation, but at least did the imitation had some enthusiasm in it, especially since it also literally blew away any awkwardness she might have still been feeling from the weird nickname. She tilted her head, thinking, "Isn't Index something in a book, like at the end of the book? Why did you name yourself that, seriously, it doesn't go with being a Paladin at all!" The only other reason she could think of, other than going with your type of class, was some sort of special reason, and Index didn't sound like it could have a special reason! Finally, the cards were redistributed, and Whirlwind quite blantly leaned over to see Index's cards, whispering, "What did you get? Maybe I can help you, since I already won a bit." She actually meant this, though part of this offer definitely was there so she could ignore more of poker's rules, sure she asked to learn, and Index was really nice to explain, but honestly, she wouldn't be surprised if her head burst after Index told her every rule under the sun. index
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May 7, 2017 22:45:02 GMT -5
Post by index on May 7, 2017 22:45:02 GMT -5
Index scratched the back of his head, smiling sheepishly as he tried to recount the moments during his game registration. "Er, yes. I, uh, just flipped a book and used the first usable word as my username." He had been too excited about the prospect of a new virtual MMO game that the pages went all the way to the end of the book. That was how he always made his aliases. Other methods include choosing a random card from a deck of Cards against Humanity, but of course, that wasn't as advisable as the former.
As the distribution of cards concluded, Index took another quick look at his hand before facing it down on the table again. With the cards on the table, the best he could get was another pair. It was bad compared to another combinations, but it wasn't the worst given that it was one of the higher valued ones. When whirlwind asked a question similar to the one he asked earlier, his shoulders gave a shrug. "Thanks, but my hand's usable. I might even get this round depending on everyone's reaction." When everyone checked for the initial bet, Index had a different stance for the round. "Raise."
The faint smile on his face betrayed the real value of his hand right now. NPCs in this game shouldn't be mind readers, right? "You should fold. Well, as a help, or something," he instructed to the girl beside him. Having her fold after he called for a raise might affect the AIs behavior after all.
whirlwind
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May 9, 2017 17:51:43 GMT -5
Post by whirlwind on May 9, 2017 17:51:43 GMT -5
"It's usable? You sure, 'cause I literally couldn't help you if you make a mistake." Whirlwind definitely meant that, she only knew that one card combination that helped her win the last round, but any other combination would be as hard to understand as another language to her. She looked down at her cards, besides, it's not like she could really learn, due to the fact her cards looked kinda useless with all their randomness. Whirlwind instantly folded upon Index's suggestion, drumming her newly free hands rather loudly on the table while looking between Index and the rest of the players, trying to get some sense of what was going on right now. "Sooo... what are you going to do now? I folded, I saw some guy fold, but that's about it. Are you just going to, you know, instantly win if your hand is best? Is that how this is going to work?" index
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May 9, 2017 21:24:43 GMT -5
Post by index on May 9, 2017 21:24:43 GMT -5
"Just watch."
Others folded, and a few held on with their cards and called. One other NPC called another raise, challenging Index's hand. He raised a brow afterwards, before confidently calling another "Raise," to the table. Others finally folded, leaving him and the NPC that called for the raise betting for the pot. The NPC stared intently at Index, to which the paladin responded by glaring back, before looking back at his cards. His forehead wrinkled before finally giving up with a sigh. Feeling defeated, he threw his hand on the table and folded.
A smug smile covered his face as soon as he was the last person betting. He even opened his interface to watch the money roll in, closing it as it ended. The betting ended earlier than he expected and he didn't quite managed to get much out of it, but he still won in the end. That's what he got for entering the bracket that allowed the cheapest bets, he guessed. Maybe the AIs for the quest were also scaled down to allow easier wins in case beginners attempted to take it on.
He revealed the cards on his hand that contained only a pair to Whirlwind. The cards thrown by the NPC that lost formed a straight with the community cards, which was superior to Index's combination. "You don't always have to have the best cards to win in Poker, by the way."
whirlwind
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