GoTWiC [CCS] S69 "Second"

The new season of Champion City Siege has arrived. Stanko stood there, waiting to see who the opponents would be. His alliance was quiet, many of his teammates were offline, and he found himself at a crossroads.

"Who are we fighting this time?" he whispered to himself while checking the potential enemies.

Two names immediately caught his eye: AfV and TQL. The rivalry between these two alliances was legendary, especially in this event, and Stanko had seen it firsthand. They had faced off four times in just the last few seasons.

He knew that TQL, led by the relentless HankHill, was highly motivated by their past losses.

Their drive for revenge was obvious, almost visible through the diplomatic channels. TQL wasn't just coming to win; they were coming to humiliate AfV.

Stanko made his decision. AfV used to be his home. His personal goal was clear, he wanted the 60 Battle Diamonds, which he could only get by eliminating enemies. But there was one change. This time, AfV wasn't led by the old general, but by MissanDIE.

On the left side, acting as a third power, the BLP alliance was lurking, led by elite ROD players. This was going to be anything but an easy match.

The sirens signaled the start. MissanDIE managed to rush into the castle before anyone else.

That was the first goal, but Stanko knew the real fight was just beginning.

"Send your troops now! Don't give them a chance to breathe!" MissanDIE's voice echoed through the command channel.

Stanko didn't hesitate. He was in luck, MissanDIE set a Spearman formation. As a Spearman specialist, Stanko could send his best army without needing to quickly recruit new types of units.

However, TQL and BLP were attacking at the same time. From the north, the ROD players were hitting hard, while from the south, HankHill led waves of cavalry and infantry.

"HankHill was causing a massacre even when he was countered. His biggest advantage was the sheer number of troops he had, which dealt us huge losses.

Stanko had to play it smart. Every time he saw Hank’s march, he would pull back his troops for a second, waiting to strike at TQL’s weaker links to save his men and hit his elimination quota.

Half the match was over. MissanDIE was undisputed in first place and had known for a while that he would win, but AfV’s plan was more ambitious: 'The top 3 spots must be ours.'

'Time to swap!' MissanDIE commanded.

The plan was precise but dangerous. They needed to switch the leader in the castle so others could gather points too. That’s when nerfmisandei stepped onto the scene.

But that’s where the problems started. nerfmisandei was an infantry player. For Stanko, this was a blow. His spearmen weren't compatible with nerfmisandei's tactics, and suddenly, Stanko found himself unable to send his full troop capacity."

"I don't have any infantry left!" Stanko shouted in the chat, as he watched HankHill and others brutally smash into nerfmisandei's defense.

nerfmisandei wasn't as strong as MissanDIE. The opponents sensed this. TQL turned up the pressure. Every second spent in the castle was paid for with thousands of soldiers' lives. Stanko defended desperately, sending the few troops he had left just to make sure the castle didn't stay empty.

He made it. His personal goal of 60 diamonds was finished. He could have pulled back to heal his wounds. But he looked at the leaderboard. myiako, their third player, still needed to secure 3rd place.

"We aren't stopping now," Stanko thought. "We're going all the way."

The last ten minutes turned into a living hell. myiako took over the castle, but he didn't have the defensive power of the ones before him. TQL knew it. HankHill sent everything he had in one last, desperate charge.

Just a few seconds after myiako took the throne, a hit from the ROD players and TQL kicked him out. "I'm out! They're too strong!" myiako shouted.

At that moment, MissanDIE showed why he was the leader. Instead of just playing it safe to keep his first place, he went back into the castle. "myiako won't have enough time in the castle if they keep kicking him out," MissanDIE analyzed. "I’ll hold the castle. I’ll hold it until the last second, and if things stay like this, he’ll take 3rd place by just a few seconds."

It was a sacrifice. MissanDIE was burning through his resources, exposing himself to constant hits from Hank, who just wouldn't stop. Stanko finally got his moment, spears were back in style. He sent every last soldier from his barracks to support MissanDIE.

2 minutes left. Stanko had no army left. His camps were empty. He became a silent observer of his own fate. He stared at the timer ticking down: 119, 118... Every time it looked like they would hold the defense, a new red TQL march would appear on the map.

About 30 seconds to go. The castle fell! TQL managed to kick MissanDIE out in the literal final moments. Chaos broke out. Nobody knew who was holding the castle or who was getting points anymore. The screen was flickering from all the attacks.

"Is it over? Who’s third?!" someone asked in the chat, but there was no answer. The silence that followed once the timer hit zero was deafening.

Everyone waited for the leaderboard to refresh. Stanko kept refreshing the results page, his heart pounding in his chest.

And then... the result appeared.

1. MissanDIE (AfV)
2. nerfmissandei (AfV)
3. myiako (AfV)

"WE WON!"

Incredibly, myiako managed to keep third place by a lead of literally one second over a TQL player. MissanDIE's plan worked, his holding of the castle in those key minutes gave myiako the chance to keep third place by just a few seconds, which ended up being the deciding factor in this photo finish.

Stanko took a deep breath. He had his 60 diamonds, but the feeling of the alliance’s victory was much sweeter. He looked toward the horizon where the TQL troops were retreating in defeat. HankHill, despite his strength, hadn't managed to break AfV’s teamwork.

"Good fight," Stanko wrote in the global chat as he left the battlefield. He had chosen the right side. Not because of the rewards, but because of that feeling when your flag is flying at the top in the very last second, despite all the counters and losses. The CCS season had just begun, and Stanko was already ready for the next one. He was proud to have witnessed such a dynamic situation.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YlehWFz9KM