Season 3: Chapter 281. Triple Down (5)
The triple build strategy was extremely radical for resource production, leaving the military almost completely inactive during the early and mid-game. Until now, only two bows had been produced in the hands of Carrot and Latte among the entirety of Joseon's forces.
Almond’s bow was simply the one stored at the watchtower, yet he managed to chase down and take out multiple enemy units from crossbowmen to spearmen with that single bow. Now, he even used the enemy’s own spears to bring down more foes.
"Woaaaaahhhhhh!!!"
The audience erupted in cheers.
"Almond! Almond takes down yet another one! Is there anyone who can stop this player!?"
"Almond is basically saying, ‘Scouting? Who needs it? Just trust the triple and gooooooo!’"
— LOL, bring them down
— Exactly, man!
— When Almond was born, the Mapo Bridge collapsed...
— Bring in the Great Master to beat this guy!
— LOL just trust the triple and let’s go~
"The crowd is going wild! It's so loud in here that my ears are ringing!!"
With over two-thirds of the audience supporting Korea, they completely drowned out the Chinese side.
However—
"Oh no, oh no!?"
Almond faced off against yet another spearman with another spear he picked up from the battlefield.
"What is this!?"
Thud!
Their spears narrowly missed each other, but Almond’s landed the fatal blow.
"Aaaaaahhh! Almond did it again!"
Although Almond didn’t directly hit a vital point, he twisted the spear and managed to finish off his opponent in one slash.
Slash!
A spray of crimson blood filled the air as the lifeless body fell to the ground.
"Another one is down!!!"
Almond’s relentless onslaught of spearmen continued. Even if some of the outcomes were partially due to chance, his victories made an undeniable impact.
"Wooooaaaaahhhhhh!!!"
"Almond! Almond! Almond!"
The crowd chanted Almond’s name once more.
— They said China was strong! Where is that strength now!?
— Wow, amazing...
— If you don’t listen to your mom, you’ll grow up to be a Chinese spearman!
— Almond’s gotten even better, hasn’t he? Wow...
"He keeps fighting... and he keeps winning!?"
The commentators couldn’t quite grasp how Almond made such bold decisions.
"On some level, an element of luck is definitely involved. Some of these moves seem outside the realm of calculation, but Almond still pulled them off! Is there something special going on with him!?"
"He must have some kind of primal instinct we’re not seeing!"
Their confusion was understandable. Even Liu Bei, the expert enemy commander, couldn’t make sense of it.
‘Is this some kind of freak accident?’
The camera zoomed in on Liu Bei’s furrowed brows. To him, this was nothing short of a disaster. It was hard to place any blame. It was just one of those situations no one could have predicted.
Only one person with a faint smile had expected this outcome: Cookie.
‘He did it. Just as I thought.’
Cookie had been the one to release the leash that restrained Almond. He had seen this result coming all along.
‘He’s grown.’
What Cookie had said in the interview wasn’t just to reassure the fans. Joseon had grown through their losses, improving as they ascended. They had to in order to survive.
China, on the other hand, hadn’t grown at all. They didn’t need to. And now the consequences of that difference played out before everyone’s eyes. Of the eight spearmen, only two remained.
"There are only two spearmen left!"
"Yes! Now’s the time! If the barbarian soldiers charge in, they can finish this!"
"Without forming a proper formation, even Chinese spearmen aren’t much to worry about!"
The minimum number of soldiers required to form a charging formation was five. Without that, China couldn’t utilize the full strength of their tactics. Thanks to Almond using all his arrows, the spearmen had now fallen below that critical number and lost their formation power.
"The barbarian soldiers were waiting for this! They’re charging down now!"
The Joseon barbarians had been cautious to avoid losing too many lives against the spearmen. Now, they received their orders.
[Charge]
Without hesitation, they rushed down the mountainside and wildly swung their clubs.
"Well, there's not much to see here. No matter how skilled the spearmen are, with this kind of numbers difference..."
"For the barbarians, this is like playing a game of tag! They’ll just smack them down and get it over with!"
"This is Joseon’s traditional punishment!"
Wham! Wham! Wham!
The barbarian soldiers mercilessly pummeled the spearmen.
— LOL
— A brutal group beating
— Reminds me of school fights...
— Oh man, they’re wrecked LOL
— Korea, the land of the hunters
Despite holding their spears, the Chinese soldiers became helpless under the relentless beating and quickly died.
"Joseon has taken them all down! China couldn’t confirm the triple build strategy!"
"Joseon managed to stop them! They did it!"
Having failed to complete their scouting mission, China made another strategic decision.
[Jin Dynasty → Song Dynasty]
Thud.
They switched back to the Song dynasty.
"Wait! They’ve gone back to the Song dynasty! This must be some sort of temporary truce, right!?"
— ??? Temporary alliance it is.
— They’re going back to gather resources again, LOL
— They’ve retreated!
China's shift back to the Song dynasty could be seen as them taking a step back, but OrangeKing’s eyes widened in realization. It was actually quite a strategic move.
"It looks similar, but China is making a really smart decision here! They know that Joseon has lost slightly more resources while defending!"
While China lost soldiers, Joseon also expended a significant amount of resources defending against the scouting attempt. The number of barbarian soldiers that died would make it difficult for them to quickly replenish their forces.
Liu Bei knew this. He realized that China could come out on top by widening the resource gap. Even while being ambushed, Liu Bei calculated the costs. It was an impressive feat to maintain such careful calculations while under pressure.
"Liu Bei is no pushover!"
"Yeah! Cookie fights with fiery, aggressive tactics while Liu Bei counters with cold, calculating precision. This could still go either way!"
"Cookie’s strategies often include psychological warfare, but when the opponent doesn’t break, well... it can be tough."
Cookie’s tactics frequently involved shocking reversals that could completely shift the battlefield in his favor. However, the numbers didn’t lie when Liu Bei refused to be shaken.
Although Almond had taken out all the spearmen, Joseon still lost a considerable number of soldiers. Not everyone could see the situation in pure numbers, but Liu Bei was someone who could. He had what could be called absolute numerical sense.
"What’s more concerning now is that it looks like China is almost certain Joseon went for a triple build. And China’s likely preparing to build a double of their own!"
Liu Bei’s current decision indicated he was convinced Joseon had gone straight for a triple build. He didn’t need to see everything to deduce it.
"Yeah! They’re starting to build up resources! China is confident Joseon won’t retaliate anytime soon!"
"And there really isn’t much Joseon can do to retaliate right now! They’re also in a rush to hit the third era! Liu Bei knows exactly what’s going on!"
A great commander could read the layout of their opponent’s forces and deduce the bigger picture. Truly elite commanders could strip away any deception, leaving only the truth.
Even when a false move or misdirection appeared, experienced commanders could pinpoint when something critical was being protected. This was how Liu Bei identified Joseon’s true intentions. Not all commanders could do this, but only the best reached the semifinals of the world championship.
"The semifinals are truly on another level!"
"China is building up their resources again. The resource gap between the two sides is starting to widen! Will Joseon’s triple build strategy lose to China’s double build!?"
Liu Bei completely focused on resource management, confident that Joseon wouldn’t strike back. He focused solely on maximizing the efficiency of his tax officers, using them to collect taxes and increase the speed of worker production.
"China has their tax officers and the Song dynasty’s resource bonus! When left unchecked, their resource gain is insane!"
"Exactly! But their consumption rate is high too. If they manage to build up like this though, their resources could snowball out of control!"
“Wooooooaaahhhh!!!”
A roar erupted from the Chinese crowd.
"Even without any major battles going on, the Chinese crowd is cheering loudly for their resource buildup!"
— LOL, superplay
— Right, that’s hilarious
— Are they just cheering for fun? LOL
"Exactly. The Chinese fans understand the game very well. They know exactly what’s happening! They understand that if China is allowed to accumulate resources unchecked, it will be impossible for Joseon to win in the late game!"
China's Civil Empire community had been well-established for a long time. Many fans were extremely knowledgeable about the game, especially the ones who traveled abroad to support their team. They were die-hard fans who knew the intricacies of gameplay.
They didn’t need to see a flashy battle to understand that China was gaining a huge advantage by building up resources.
"Ah, I see. So the Chinese fans are aware that China is gaining a massive upper hand. Joseon needs to be cautious about this."
China's fans believed in their country’s superiority in the late game, but OrangeKing hinted that a wildcard was still in play.
"But, hold on! There’s an important variable here, isn’t there? Joseon started building their triple build faster than Liu Bei anticipated, right!?"
"Yes, that’s correct!"
"Liu Bei knows Joseon went for the triple, but he doesn’t know that Joseon skipped the double altogether and went straight for the triple. He doesn’t know they pulled off a crazy rush strategy!"
"Right, Joseon didn’t go through the double stage. They went straight for the triple!"
"So right now, the worst-case scenario Liu Bei could be thinking about is Joseon’s upgrade path. Even if China is ahead in resources right now, those are just the current income rates!"
Joseon had already stabilized their triple economy. They were raking in three times the resources. Even though Liu Bei meticulously managed his tax officers to maximize China’s income, he couldn’t outpace Joseon's massive head start from producing at triple capacity since the first era.
"Joseon’s retained resources are far greater than China’s! Joseon’s stockpile is massive!"
— Wow, this is crazy!
— LOL, corporate reserves!
— The tax collectors must be thrilled.
— It’s like the audit department is smiling.
Joseon had been operating with three town halls since the first era, stockpiling resources while barely producing any military units. They had been saving up an enormous amount while producing almost nothing. Now that stash of resources was ready to be unleashed.
"When are they going to use all those resources!?"
All of that stockpiled wealth would be unleashed the moment they reached the third era.
"And now! Joseon is advancing to the third era!"
Boom!
[Joseon - Third Era]
With the thunderous sound of a large drum, Joseon officially entered the third era. Cookie had been waiting for this moment to overturn the game. Numerous dots immediately appeared on the minimap, converging on training camps and forges.