It’s been a tough week—after a grueling battle against HD!, another playoff showdown is coming up. This time we’re facing TIS (ThisIsSparta). The odds are in our favor, but it’s going to be a close one. I think our opponent plays at a similar level to us. We’ve been preparing for this battle for a few days now because we knew we didn’t stand a chance against HD!, so everyone is eagerly awaiting it. The playoffs are unique because there’s a cap of the top 70 from each alliance. I really wanted to improve my stats, so I bought a special weapon, but after 500 attempts, I still couldn’t reach the required stats. Everyone is motivated today. It’s calm—the quiet before the storm. Orders are given slowly and precisely. The boss knows what she’s doing. We’re making it to the playoffs more and more often, so our experience is growing too. We’re not quite on par with the top teams yet, but we’re learning fast. There are still a few minutes left, and I’m counting on a full roster today. Everyone knows this important match has been coming for a few days, and we’re giving it 100%. Fifteen minutes before the match, it’s 59 to 59 for us, so we’re still a few people short. There’s still some time left, or so I think. Once again, I make sure everything is set up and that I haven’t forgotten anything. Ten minutes to go, and it’s 63 to 59. So far, so good. Final preparations are still underway on Discord. It’s about to start—all the chaos, and all the armies will clash. I feel like this is going to be a beautiful battle right to the very end. Ultimately, we start at 70 vs. 69. This is the best option, though it’ll be a close fight. One player here won’t make much of a difference, unless it affects morale.

My mouse and keyboard are ready. I have only one goal: to capture as many buildings as possible. I know the alliance is counting on me. Capturing buildings quickly is key here. Then a good swap, and we can fight.

Here we go. This has to be a quick move. I’m ready for it, I know it. I quickly select my armies and hit the speed-up button. Those seconds feel like an eternity. I hold my breath—as always, there’s lag at the start. I look at the map and the building turns green. I’ve got it! First small victory. Time for the swap. I wait 5 seconds, 10 seconds; there’s a bit of chaos on Discord, but no one speaks up. The boss asks who’s going, and it turns out that one of our warriors assigned to this important task made a mistake and didn’t get out in time. Worried by this news, I check the situation at the other buildings and notice that the enemy has taken them all first. This really upset me because it was supposed to go completely differently. A total disaster right from the start. Plus, since I wasn’t in combat mode, as soon as a building unlocks, we lose it.

For now, TIS is outplaying us. They took full advantage of our slip-up and are taking the lead. We quickly rally and fairly efficiently capture the warrior’s building first, then another one. The fighting doesn’t stop, and it looks like it’ll stay that way until the end. They have a few very good players whose solo attacks are dealing us massive damage, so we have to stay focused the whole time. The next phase—the battle for the ports—is about to begin.

3..2..1.. and I’m charging for the port. Once again, the world has paused for a moment, and I wait, wait—and they can breathe a sigh of relief—I manage to capture the building. I know it’s not over yet, but information is coming in very quickly. I’m ready for a swap, and that’s exactly what we do a moment later. This is one of the hardest buildings to swap because it’s closest to the enemy. Fortunately, it goes very well. Unfortunately, the enemy captures the second port, so the map is balanced. We have to keep chasing because the enemy gained a slight advantage right at the start.

Just a moment more and the most demanding part will begin. A moment’s rest, and then I need to focus. Casterly Rock will be available soon, and it’s the most important one.

Another countdown, more seconds dragging on. Quick army selection, good speed boosts, and I see 00:00 on the clock—which means I got there very fast. I glance at the map and see that it’s actually the opponent’s building. I’m extremely surprised because it went pretty well for me. I wasn’t the only one who tried, so more people are surprised. Now we have to make a quick counterattack because the enemy is pulling far ahead of us. There are a lot of points behind Casterly Rock.

We’re preparing raids. We sent out scouts earlier and know that the enemy holding the building is within our range. The attacks have been launched. After just a few seconds, the building is attacked and easily captured by us. Finally, some success that motivates us to keep fighting. We’re also finally scoring more points than the enemy. The chase has begun.

By the 38th minute, we control the most important buildings. Solo attacks aren’t an option at this stage, so both alliances decide to form multiple rallies with a single goal: the enemy’s port.

It’s a very interesting, fast-paced, and impressive battle, but in the end, it turns out we’re just swapping buildings. We manage to capture the enemy’s port, and the enemy does the same to us. After this bloody slaughter, absolutely nothing changes.

There’s still some time left before the mines. Both sides are still targeting the ports, so after a few more minutes, we swap buildings again. We can afford a bit of leeway because we control more important buildings than the enemy. For now, we’ve managed to gain a slight advantage, but it certainly won’t be enough for the mines. We already know that the final battle will take place there.

That time has come. Everyone is already a bit exhausted, but the adrenaline is pumping. The next seconds and minutes will be decisive.

The final countdown, a quick attack, and the worst-case scenario plays out. The opponent captures both buildings. We frantically realize we have to do something about this or we’ll lose, so our mine becomes the first target. We see it wasn’t reinforced in time, so solo attacks are immediately launched against it. This traps us because the enemy quickly casts a bubble, and we’re just bouncing off it. That leaves us with the other mine. We know time is running out, so we also decide to launch solo attacks. Motivated, we capture it, and a moment later the second one too, because we took advantage of the enemy’s inattention.

We lost a few thousand points in the process. The opponent closed in on us dangerously. We managed to stop them for a moment, but they quickly form a rally and take one of our mines back. Then they try for the second one, but we manage to defend it.

The attacks don’t let up. Midway through the battle for the mines, the enemy regains control of both and scores valuable points. We can’t afford another slip-up now, or we’ll lose. A quick rally and a quick capture of the building. The mines are slowly running out, and TIS is already very close. The fight here isn’t over yet. Amid all this chaos, we lose the port and two more buildings. We can see that if we don’t do something, the enemy will win because, with 8 minutes left, they’re scoring more points per minute.

We quickly switch to offense and it works out very well. We retake key buildings and tie the score. Now we have to hold on and defend.

Three minutes remain. After a very tough fight, the opponent surrenders. We win!

Summary

A lot of people bet on us, and the start of the match showed that they could have been very wrong. We started off very poorly, and it lasted for a while. TIS fought for every building, and we had to stay very composed. The middle part of the game went our way, and we controlled the score. The tide turned when the mines unlocked and the opposing alliance closed in on us. Fortunately, we managed to regain control of the situation and, after a very tough and long battle, won by just 4,000 points.