The wait has finally come to an end!

A long season of AllianceConquest has concluded, during which HOH, the alliance to which the valiant warrior Neik belongs, completed the arduous journey with a historic record of four victories and two defeats. The final round was nothing short of exciting and decisive for them against NW1, ending with the brave fighters securing a spot among the top sixteen alliances in the realm. Their efforts have been rewarded, and thanks to that, they now find themselves here, among the sixteen participants in the final act: Ultimate Conquest! Succeeding where they had failed last season was a proud achievement for an alliance like theirs, but difficult times seemed now behind them.

The goal of every single member of the faction was to fight to carry their alliance's name as far as possible in the tournament, even though they knew it wouldn’t be an easy task the competition this season was fierce. Neik, with adrenaline flowing strongly, couldn’t wait for the match to begin. The battlefield was ready to host the start of the clash; on one side HOH, united under the wise leadership of members like Spimmer, AK0086, and others who would do their best to guide their comrades.

On the other side of the battlefield arrived today’s rival. Just seeing the unmistakable banners of the enemies, Neik began to sweat cold.

It was...

RoD

Among the alliances fighting for the championship until the last match, they were definitely one of them. Led by the incredible B3nni, Elfynox, and UrCandy, this fierce alliance aimed to prove they were the best fighters in Westeros this season, and the addition of several WxC members a surprising yet incredible move gave their roster that extra edge to compete on equal footing with alliances like BDR and NBe.

“Well, if we started the Alliance Conquest season against NBe, I didn’t expect anything different,” Neik said ironically, commenting on the streak of bad luck facing two of the three fiercest alliances right from the start.

“Unfortunately, luck hasn’t been on our side, but we’ll do everything we can to make their lives difficult,” was the leadership’s decision at HOH. Although they would likely take a conservative approach, they still wanted to test their skills against a rival of this caliber.

The battle was about to begin. Thick clouds covered the sky above them on this summer day. The fighters’ heavy breaths could be heard clearly on the battlefield, a mix of heat and tension for the match that was about to start. Neik was ready today in the racer position; he wanted to test his skills against those considered the fastest racers in Westeros. Their slim chances for a positive outcome today gave them the chance to experiment and, why not, discover hidden talents.

HOH couldn’t have had a worse start!

RoD managed to capture all the initial buildings on the battlefield, their racers’ speed was beyond logic.

After failing to challenge RoD’s racers, Neik and his teammates waited for a chance to intercept possible incoming swaps. UrCandy and their allies showed why they were among the top contenders in this edition of UC. Their synchronization and speed left HOH no time window to infiltrate and take control of their positions.

The ball then passed to Spimmer and his allies, who organized assaults to attack the nearest position: Targaryen Outpost, defended by CrimsonDawn a tough rival. But its proximity to their base made it the fastest target. When the rally leaders reached the outpost walls with gathered troops, they faced a harsh reality: RoD’s defense and quick reinforcements made the building unconquerable.

“I expected the rivals to be strong, but not this much,” Neik admitted, puzzled after seeing his attacks fail miserably.

“Let’s try to take the Ports,” was the leadership’s obvious strategy, hoping to get back in the game. Capturing them could be a good start after such a disappointing beginning.

At the opening of the Ports, once again it was RoD who took control of both.

Next, swaps were attempted again to secure these valuable point sources. Neik and his team were ready to strike at the right moment, waiting for that opportunity. But when RoD tried, once more they were almost perfect, leaving HOH no chance to seize them.

“Let’s try a siege on Targaryen Port,” Spimmer suggested after consulting with the leadership. They knew winning today would be very difficult, but the way they were losing was almost embarrassing against a rival superior in every aspect.

The gathered assaults launched an attack, reaching the walls of the target with good timing, but once again RoD’s defense, led by LordShorty, a fearsome opponent with his infantry, overpowered the attackers, who couldn’t break through. Even the following attempts were repelled easily. Neik’s spears and weakness formation were completely ineffective.

Just moments before Casterly Rock opened, HOH’s members set a personal goal to at least capture this building in a match that was going increasingly worse.

When it became available...

The unexpected twist happened!

After initially capturing their racers, RoD’s subsequent swap was far from perfect this time, giving MinchYoda the chance to intercept it without much trouble he didn’t hesitate for a moment! “Well done,” Neik exclaimed to his teammate.

Probably a lapse in concentration from the rivals who felt victory was within reach, a mistake not to underestimate in future matches.

But once again, the unexpected was just around the corner...

Something went wrong with the reinforcements’ arrival from HOH members during the swap attempt, probably still stunned by the gift their rivals had given them, which they quickly took back. If a glimmer of hope had opened for a possible comeback, it was immediately extinguished by UrCandy, who fixed his allies’ previous mistake by intercepting the swap attempted by Neik and his team.

“Let’s try to organize assaults on Mother,” was HOH’s leadership idea. Severely disadvantaged with almost no chances for a comeback, they still wanted to fight and try to snatch some points for personal satisfaction and pride.

At the arrival of the organized assaults, B3nni’s defenses proved unbeatable.

As widely expected, once again RoD executed an exceptional defense without mistakes. Today, they were clearly showing on the battlefield the huge difference between the two alliances.

With the match absolutely and decisively decided, Neik and his allies still decided to try to conquer the mines to practice for future matches. They aimed to get the best out of this first, disastrous round.

Once again, RoD’s racers prevailed, just like in every position throughout the match.

The alliance had gathered allies aiming to win the UC title, and this first round was sending a clear message to their rivals like BDR and NBe.

With the map completely dominated by RoD, there was nothing left for HOH but to wait out the sixty minutes. Although the match was never in doubt, Neik and his comrades never backed down and tried their attacks against a stronger rival both on paper and on the battlefield, without success.

When the match ended, the final victory went to... RoD!

MVP’s

The best fighters of the match were:

XABAP for RoD. His relentless attacks on HOH’s bases, almost as if to prove something to his teammates, earned him the title of best fighter of the match.

Asenherz for HOH. The small consolation of being the top scorer in a match dominated by rivals was his. He gave his best during offensive actions, achieving decent results.

“When we found out who our rival would be, we were almost certain of defeat,” began Spimmer. “But we tried as hard as possible, and even if things didn’t go as we hoped, in the second round we’ll show everyone what we’re made of,” he said together with the leadership members before returning to their realm.

A visibly disappointed Neik returned to K345, reflecting on what had just happened during the match. The harsh reality of the gap between RoD and HOH hit him hard. Although he knew how strong the rivals were, he didn’t expect to feel so powerless under their attacks. He absolutely had to leave this match behind and use it as motivation to do his best in the second round.

A heavy defeat suffered today by HOH. Who will be their next rival? We’ll find out together!