[The Same Evening]
"Ok, are you guys ready to do this?" Arthos asked as he looked around at his friends. Although they were now living in a large building with 51 bedrooms, the entire gang was all gathered together inside of Arthos's bedroom for this special occasion.
"Yes! We are ready. Remember, all you have to do is hold the Promotion Stone in your hand. A system window will pop-up and guide you through the promotion process. It should be easy and intuitive," Wain explained.
"Ok, let's do this!" Kristan said with excitement.
Job promotion was a big deal. Most players recorded, streamed, or uploaded videos of their promotion because it was both a significant milestone and it was also somewhat of a surprise. No two promotions were ever the same…some players saw significant boosts to certain stats while other players underwent the same exact promotional choice and ended up with less. Some players went into the promotion process wanting a certain class only to change their minds at the last second.
In Avalor, there were two promotions. The first was at level 50 when a player transitioned from an "initiate" to a specific hero class such as Tank, Warrior, Archer, Mage, Assassin, or Healer. In addition to the stat boosts, each class also made it possible for players to learn unique skills that aligned with their class.
The second promotion opportunity occurred when players reached level 100. Further unlocking more stats and unique skills. The skill system in Avalor was very unique, for example, two "tanks" could have similar but different tank-related skills. How exactly skills were assigned was unclear but the common theory was that skills were assigned/acquired based on playstyle.
Arthos, Hector, Kristan, and Wain each grabbed a Promotion Stone holding it in their right hand. A bright light enveloped each player as each went through the promotion process at the same exact time.
Hector selected "Healer" and received bonus stat points to his Intelligence and MP, along with small stat point boosts to his HP, Strength, Speed, and Agility.
Kristan selected "Tank" and received bonus stat points to her Strength and HP, along with small stat point boosts to the rest.
Wain selected "Mage" and received bonus stat points to his Intelligence and MP, along with small stat point boosts to the rest.
"Hey guys…it's not working for me." Arthos said somewhat worried.
"What do you mean it's not working?" Wain asked.
"Nothing happened…just a bright light…nothing else happened."
"Here is another Promotion Stone…try it again." Wain suggested.
Similar to the first time, Arthos held the Promotion Stone using both hands. As expected, he was then covered in a bright light that lasted for a few seconds, then dissipated quickly.
"Anything?"
"Nope…nothing happened again." Arthos said frustrated.
He used up the remaining three Promotion Stones with no success.
[…]
[LAST STOP ORPHANAGE]
[Later That Same Night]
"Will you please sit down? I feel like you are going to make a hole in the floor with all your pacing." Wain said in an agitated voice.
Arthos couldn't help it…his mind was filled with worries and fears that his account was broken. He had spent the entire evening on the phone with the NAVA helpdesk. They simply told him to submit a ticket explaining the problem in detail. No mention was made to when the issue would be addressed.
"What if I stay as an initiate the rest of my life? What if I never manage to promote into a job class? That means that later I will not be able to pick a specialized job class when I reach level 100!" Arthos said as he frantically refreshed his email on his phone checking for updates.
"Just chill. You are being unreasonable. Just think about it, NAVA is a trillion dollar company. They will fix this…the help desk will look into the problem and run a patch or send you special instructions. In the meantime, we can ask around…maybe the info-brokers know something that can help." Wain said as he tried to comfort his friend.
[NAVA IT HELPDESK]
"Sir, we received an unusual ticket. It's from a player claiming they are unable to promote job classes? I've never seen that problem before."
"Let me see that…hmm…he's a fairly new player. The promotion system is a core system and fool-proof…there is nothing wrong with the system. I guarantee it's a user error. My guess is that he used the wrong stone…it happens all the time. Just send a reply saying we are looking into it."
"Should I escalate this ticket?"
"No, no need for that. He will probably figure it on his own. I guarantee that right now he is looking up videos on YouTube. By tomorrow morning, his issue will be resolved on its own."