The Histories are a series of articles that recounts past periods of World of Warcraft, experienced from my point of view on Saurfang playing my mage Nastre.The match took place on Gilneas which was relatively fresh for all concerned, having shipped with the expansion only a few months ago. As a result, the strategy played by both teams was very predictable; take closest node and then meet for a massive scrap at Waterworks. I distinctly remember the moment we came across our opponents, having dropped into the river following a failed communication with our Death Knight to path of frost (great start I know). It was then, in the midst of their numbers that I saw him.
Reckful. Mutliple rank one Gladiator, superstar from Tichondrius. He had just released Reckful 3 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aU8pOwuqt3k) and his popularity was enormous. Immediately I knew we were in for a tough time, not discounting the other mutiple gladiator players he had with him on his team. It was almost merciful that most of the Ajantis members did not know who Reckful was, for they entered the fray with healthy optimism. That would all be shattered in moments.
Firstly, I can say one thing about the great players in this game. The pure, simple and unadulterated damage they put out is just insane. They make you wonder if they have a secret, some gear or talent or hack that lets them bypass all the limitations you find yourself restricted by. The damage they put out on us in the opening moments of the waterworks skirmish was literally jaw dropping. We immediately lost a healer and dps. Pressure was felt everywhere with the spread of dot damage and one Death Knight that seemed hellbent on breaking our combat logs. To summarise, things were going as I expected them too as soon as I recognised our opposition.
Yet, we fought on. While it is just a game, there was something hopelessly romantic about the way we continually ressurrected and ran back to the waterworks to throw the bodies of our characters in the way and we somehow managed to stop them gaining an early cap. Eventually, the tide of death told. We had managed to land a total of 3 killing blows, yet suffered upwards of 12 deaths. At this point one could be forgiven for thinking it was an insurmountable task. However, something happened next that gave me hope we could actually compete.
Reckful was with a group of extremely talented players but they were a group that was obviously lacking in communication. It had the appearance of a trade group, put together like a 'dream team' from Tichondrius but with no glue or substance to hold them together. As a result of some poor communication from their team, one of our players managed to retake Waterworks from under their nose. We did not hold it for long and they did recap, but it did show a soft underbelly to their play.
The game progressed in the direction of a reasonable loss. We were down 1300 - 800 and 2 bases to 1 midway through the match. Then we... well, we lifted. The damage incoming was still insane, but the healers somehow managed to keep us alive. We were still struggling to land killing blows, but we were winning where it mattered and slowly began to create small opportunities to take Waterworks. We had numerous capping attempts interrupted at 5 or 6 seconds in. Reckful was being at his mobile best, harrasing many of our players as effectively as three rogues working in sync. Then, after sustained pressure on the flag, we managed to take Waterworks... and hold it!
The scores rapidly converged. It was going to be close. The Tichondrius team began to get reckless and they were scattered. We were boldened. At that moment we galvanised as a team. Shortly after, a moment of inspiration struck me. In what was probably one of my best tactical decisions as a rated battleground leader I left waterworks and struck out to Lighthouse, gambling on the idea that the other team had left it undefended in their attempts to take Mine and Waterworks.
It was effectively the coup de grace. I capped solo and held. The scoreboard was almost unbelievable, we had them 3 capped. So it stayed until the end and the win was comfortable. Our ratings grew significantly, while Reckful's 3000 rating did not drop at all (gg Blizzard). I was very proud of what we had just accomplished. Yes they were a trade group and yes Reckful was just one of ten, but considering the hand we had against the one we were dealt... it was significant at least for us.
The aftermath was perhaps more interesting than the actual match. I decided to advertise the win as a method of attracting the remaining pvp substance on Saurfang to join our squad. The posts on the realm and guild forums were met mostly with sincere congratulations and nods of approval but they also brought some extremely 'hurt' posters from other servers. The resulting flame wars were harmless enough and only proved the fact I had known as soon as we had won; it stung some of those Tichondrius players and they had to make excuses for it. Regardless, the threads achieved their goal and we had a number of high profile applications to the team in subsequent weeks.
The original screenshot of the scoreboard for the match is available here, but at a reduced quality.
So our season had suddenly taken a huge upswing and the push for titles began...
To Be Continued.
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