AoH: From Last to First in 60 Seconds – House Lannister’s Gamble

Since last weekend we couldn’t play AoH because of... reasons... it feels good to finally get back in this weekend, especially since these are the two Arena of Honor weekends back-to-back from the end of the month. Most of us had spare tickets from the previous weekend, so we decided to play two slots now. That’s how we ended up here at 12:00, trying to form a roster in the middle of the day.

As you can guess, it’s not smooth sailing. We start pulling in alts just to fill the gaps, and even then we’re nowhere near a “proper” roster. Still, with some perseverance and the right advertisement, we manage to find ten accounts. Not the perfect team, but enough to get us going without strangers.

I'm going in with mixed feelings. Our team rating isn’t that high, which usually means easier opponents... but half of us are playing two or even three accounts, and a few of these accounts aren’t exactly top tier. So I’d call it a balance between rating and actual team strength. Either way, I’m just glad we filled all the slots. Now the question is: how well can we pull this off?

True to my typical nature, I waste time at the start and land on the map late, but just in time to race for the first row of buildings.

Once we secure a few strongholds, the decision point comes: do we gamble on Troop Camps or play it safe with Trade Posts? We look and see another team going for Troop Camps. This makes it risky business for us to chose Troops too, especially since we’re already stretched thin with so many alts. So we fall back on our usual safe play: Trade Posts.

But that hesitation costs us. By the time we start building Trading Camps, a few minutes have passed and we’re sitting dead last. Now it’s all about the climb back. It would be nice to finish first, would make a nice story arc, from last to first in 60 minutes😀

And as soon as we secure the second row of strongholds and convert them to Trade Posts, the tide flips. Suddenly, we’re jumping straight into first place. From last to first in 60 seconds, lol. Now we only need to stay in first place, no biggie.

After we secure our two rows of Strongholds, I mean Trade Posts in our case😊it’s time to expand the glory of House Lannister. We begin contesting other houses for their altars, and I try to make myself useful wherever I can. Securing Altars of the Maiden is always priority number one, so when I spot one I think I can contest, I go for it. Right now, it’s more of a “fingers crossed” moment than anything else… and the outcome proves me right. My first attempt translates into a devastating loss. I still can’t prove my worth just yet.

Soon after, an opportunity appears in the form of the Sept of the Seven. A building my team usually ignores and I know from experience this is a chance for me to contribute. I don’t even have a full march of Spears, but I send what I have and manage to clear the guards. Two minutes later, our entire team enjoys cheaper heals. Small win from my side, but a golden chance to help.

The game starts heating up as we approach the midpoint and the opening of the City of Glory. Pressure rises across the map, and I’m finally finding my rhythm. For the first time this match, I can really contest other accounts and take buildings.

I even manage to bully T5 players out of buildings we want... with my T4 account😱. Who would have thought? Moments like that give me a boost of confidence and make the fight even more fun.

As we approach the second half of the match, strategy talks begin. The first half has gone very well. It's clear we’re fighting for a podium spot. Our main rivals are House Tyrell (who went for Troop Camps) and House Greyjoy, who play a similar style to us but with weaker execution.

So the question becomes: do we risk going for the City of Glory? Could we hold it against rallies if all houses turn their attention to us? On paper, we’re light on players so we can forget about quick heals and reinforcements. But we do have one monster Cav account, and I haven’t seen a single top Spear on this map.

It feels like an all in moment. If we take the City, we’ll be stretched thin defending our Maidens, and we’ll almost certainly fall behind on the small mines. That means if we lose the City before the end, we probably lose the podium too. If we skip it and stick to Maidens plus two or three small mines, we’re nearly guaranteed 3rd place, or maybe even 2nd.

Risk versus safety. And I’m really glad I’m not leading this event. But Hotep clearly is set on the City so it looks like the decision has been made. For me, it’s not so bad. I’ve got a Cav march ready just for spam marches and rally work. So I'm ready to help when "Center" opens.

As pressure ramps up and I’m running wild across the map, the City of Glory finally opens. Our lead launches the rally, but I’m so caught up defending another altar from a sneaky Baratheon that I almost miss it. In the last seconds, I send my march, managing to both defend the altar and joining the City rally at the same time.

And it pays off. The City falls into our hands. The reports start rolling in, and relief spreads quickly: no scary Spear accounts here, and even the stronger Cav players can’t one shot us out. For the first time all match, we’re not just in the fight, we’re dictating it.

With the City of Glory secured, smaller waves of attackers crash against us and break. Inf accounts bounce off, hybrid setups crumble, and even the bigger Cav players sacrifice their troops with no real results. From now on, the City of Glory becomes our anchor, the center of gravity around which the rest of the match begins to tilt.

That doesn’t mean the map quiets down. I continue to play the cat and mouse games on altars, like kicking the same account out four or five times from the same altar. Each win is clean and decisive, but eventually time is my biggest enemy.

Perseverance is key and one time they manage to slip my attention long enough for the bubble to come up just as my army arrives to contest. I can’t believe I bounced, but I also can't be everywhere at once, and fatigue starts to set in. Still, with the City secured, we have the upper hand.

As the small mines approach, we remind ourselves: the game isn’t won yet. We’re leading, but careless mistakes could still cost us. At the same time, we’ve built such momentum that we’re more comfortable taking risks.

That’s when the idea strikes me. I announce I’ll grab the mine nearest to us, beside our Dragonpit. But when I glance at the Dragonpit itself, it looks too tempting. Why not go for both?

I launch my first attack at the Dragonpit. The anxiety hits, these NPCs can sometimes feel like brick walls, but my troops smash through and the Dragonpit is our once more.

A few seconds after Center takes a hit from NPCs probably in a Catapult or Tower, but we tank it without any problem.

No time to linger for me. I recall instantly recall from the Dragonpit and resend to the small mine. Since I missed the start, in those few seconds I was late coming back from the Dragonpit another player went for the mine and took it. As I'm already going and seconds away from hitting the mine myself, I'm a bit worried about the bubble mechanic so timing was crucial.

I watch the bubble come up, heart pounding, and my march lands just after the bubble drops. I kick out the owner and secure the mine, mere seconds after capturing the Dragonpit. Two prizes, back-to-back. Hand down my best personal play of the match.

But the mines are a prized possession so the chain of attacks doesn’t end there. I’m immediately kicked out by a strange Inf/Female/Weakness build.😒

And that player gets kicked out by Cav, that I have no problem kicking out myself.😀

And it's not long before Inf comes back to chase me out again. It turns into a comic little loop, but by then it hardly matters.

The real prize, the City of Glory, is firmly in our hands, and as long as we hold the center, victory is already ours. We just need to run out the timer now.

From here, everything else is just bonus fun. I even land a marvelous hit on a Hybrid Cav/Weakness T5 player, adding another highlight to my evening. But with the City locked down, nothing can stop us.

By this point the match was already super late, but with constant reinforcements sent to the City of Glory, sending back wounded marches and sending back full battalions, we held safely until the very end. What started as a shady match and with a strategy gamble turned into a clear triumph. Victory was ours. And not just any victory: a City of Glory first place win, which made the whole thing feel that much sweeter.

And let's not forget, I get a nice Glory Rank increase as a bonus for all my hard work this match.

Even better, I find myself in the top 10 for Total Eliminations, something I don’t think I’ve ever achieved before. So close to a podium finish, too.

This was a surprising, amazing game for the 12:00 slot, something I'm not used to in AoH. Between securing the City, the Dragonpit & small mine combo, and bullying T5s with T4s, this was one of my best Arena of Honor performances to date.

A proper win for us representing House Lannister, and one I feel I definitely deserved.