Chapter 64: First Round Tactics
On stage, the announcer gripped the microphone, his gaze sweeping over the contestant area:
"Welcome to the second annual Southern California Collegiate Mystic Warlords League! Sixteen teams have gathered once again—
We see that the defending champions, Stanford's Quantum Ghosts, are already positioned, and last year's participants, Caltech's 'Justice League Squad'—
This unusual non-student team composed of researchers and engineers—has returned this year. Notably, their roster has 'upgraded' again, with the addition of a new professor. Can this unique team redeem themselves after their first-round elimination last year and successfully advance? Let's find out."
His tone was upbeat, and he didn't dwell, immediately raising his voice:
"There's only one goal—the championship trophy! The format is brutal, single-elimination, no do-overs—"
He raised his arm:
"Now, Round One—begins!"
Almost as his voice fell, on the big screen, the game countdowns for all eight match lobbies simultaneously hit zero.
Click.
Dozens of sharp mouse clicks, nearly overlapping, sounded like a delayed starting pistol.
Immediately afterward, the previously sparse and sporadic keyboard tapping suddenly became dense and intense, like a calm lake instantly whipped into a storm.
"Whoosh—" A spine-tingling wave of mechanical sounds swept through the entire competition area, instantly drowning out the audience murmurs into indistinct background noise.
The real battle had begun the moment the first command executed.
The Justice League Squad's station was in the southeast corner of the venue. David put on his noise-canceling headset, and the external chaos instantly receded, leaving only the clear breathing of his teammates and the game sound effects.
"Remember the game plan," his voice came through team comms steadily. "Mirror opening, Sheldon and I need to keep sync error within 2 seconds. Howard, first harassment at the five-minute mark. Raj, your performance begins at seven minutes."
"Roger." Three voices responded in sequence.
They were facing the "Coastline Rangers"—a team from a community college.
This team was known for solid macro play and mid-game timing pushes, lacking top-tier mechanics but with strong team coordination.
The match began.
Map loading: The derelict space station "Cassini Ring," with complex terrain and a central circular corridor connecting four spawn points.
The key to this map was controlling the central high ground for vision, but taking it recklessly would expose you to crossfire from multiple angles.
"Mirror opening, execute Plan A," David commanded.
On screen, David and Sheldon's "Protoss" bases expanded simultaneously at two symmetrical map positions.
Pylons, Forges, Gateways... the build order and construction timing were nearly perfectly synchronized.
Howard's "Zerg" base chose a hidden corner, rapidly spawning Drones.
Raj's "Terran" base displayed a standard but slightly sloppy opening—exactly as planned.
The first five minutes passed quietly. Four scout units crisscrossed the map, probing each other's builds.
David noticed their opponents chose the classic "double expansion fast tech" strategy, meaning they intended to play conservatively, leveraging an economic advantage to reach the mid-game.
"Five minutes," David glanced at the timer. "Howard."
"Copy that." Howard's voice carried a hint of excitement.
Six Mutalisks launched from the base, splitting into two groups to hit the opponent's two expansions.
His micro still had flair—the Mutalisks danced along the edge of anti-air range, precisely targeting isolated workers, then elegantly retreating before the opponent's main army could respond.
"Harassment effective," Sheldon stared at the stats panel. "Opponent's economy damaged by approximately 8%, but their response is measured; they haven't pulled their main force to defend."
David nodded. This was precisely the Coastline Rangers' style—refusing to be thrown off by small-scale harassment. But this was exactly according to plan.
"Seven minutes," he said. "Raj, begin your performance."
Chapter Unlock Conditions
500 Power Stones → 1 Chapter
10 Reviews → 1 Chapter
20+ advance chapters on P4treon: DarkFoxx