Classmancers - A MOBA Esport Story 70 Battle Preparations - Yuel's Side

"For real!?" Lars jumped before Yuel could finish. "We gonna be starters!? Sick, yo!"

"IF we can beat Howard's team, yes."

"You heard that?" Lars ran to July and shook her by the shoulders. "We're going to nationals this year!"

"Y-Yeah," Julia squeezed the words through her fl.u.s.ter. "It's great." She nodded with a smile, then shot a glare at Yuel. ["I also gonna be a starter, right? Right?"]

["Depends,"] Yuel answered by averting his eyes.

["I'll kick you."] Her glare continued to drill Yuel.

["I'll see what I can do..."] Yuel let out a sigh. He didn't want to make promises he couldn't keep.

It's not like Julia was a weak player, it's just Gilbert was a better player overall. Gilbert was a consistent player, whereas Julia had her ups and downs. She had a bad habit of overcompensating for her mistakes, which led to further mistakes and further overcompensating. Yuel has exploited that side of her many times when he played against her in practice matches.

Anyway, it's best to keep all of that to himself right now. Whether Julia could become a starter wasn't the main concern at the moment. The top priority was to win the match on Friday. Nothing will begin until they clear that first hurdle.

In the afternoon, Yuel called over the remaining members of his team: Roi and Dan. Howard already gave them the gist of it, so they were quick on the uptake. In fact, Howard apparently even ordered them to treat Yuel as their captain until and during the upcoming match, which made things a lot easier.

Lars, Julia, Roi, and Dan. With this team, Yuel will have to overcome Howard's lineup. Based on the individual strength of each team member, Yuel's team had the advantage. Roi and Dan were on the first string with their current positions, they were leagues above Taison and Gregory for whom Jungler and Top were secondary roles. Therefore, a.s.suming Yuel and Lars roughly balance out Howard and Ellen in Bot, the only disadvantage the team had was in Mid: Julia vs. Gilbert. But. even that didn't sound like a big deal because the skill gap between them wasn't that big.

All in all, Yuel's team was stronger. But, Howard was the one who suggested this match and he'll be leading the enemy team. Therefore, Yuel couldn't lower his defense. To secure victory in this important match, he'll have to prepare the team to the best of his ability.

"I prepared some notes," Yuel dumped a stack of papers he printed with copies for everybody. "It's a summary of useful observations I've collected about everybody on Howard's team throughout the year. Their preferred cla.s.ses, their playstyle quirks, their weak points. Anything that can give us an edge."

"Whoa," Roi exaggeratedly flipped through the stack of pages. "That's some intense research you got here, doc. Lol."

"I guess there's one about us too?" Dan asked after skimming the contents.

"Yes, I can make a list like that about anybody from the club. But, they're just scattered notes right now. It takes time to organize them into a comprehensive list."

"Haha," Lars laughed and shook his head. "Dude is a genius, I'm tellin' ya."

"More like a stalker." Julia jabbed.

"It was Aaron's suggestion," Yuel felt like defending himself for some reason. "I usually store all this data in my head, but he said it's a good habit to jot it down so I can share it with others later."

Thinking of it, maybe all the way back then Aron was already preparing Yuel for becoming the vice-captain. Either way, following that piece of advice paid off. Yuel didn't bother writing his observations on paper as Aron suggested, but he has been recording his thoughts on the phone during some club practices. He thought of it as a good way to sort out his thoughts, but nothing more.

Today was the first time he found a very practical use which extended beyond personal use. After he returned from Howard's place, Yuel started preparing for the upcoming match right away and that's when he remembered the notes on his phone. Except, they were a scattered jumble which would make little sense to anybody but him. Heck, even he wasn't sure what some of the notes meant.

Yuel didn't waste a moment and ported all his notes onto his PC, then organized them by players. It was done rather hastily, so the data still wasn't as perfectly organized as he wanted. Still, it became way better than the mess it was before.

After spending the whole night, and some of this morning, on this task - Yuel finally ended up with this pile of papers. Twelve pages, five copies of each. That's the result of taking notes throughout half a year.
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"Welp," Lars put down his copy. "This is cool and all, but now let's play some!"

"No," Yuel retorted. "First, I want to go over these notes. Before we begin practicing we need to understand who we're dealing with."

"Duuuuuude," Lars dropped back on his chair and closed his eyes. "I sleep."

"At least try to listen, okay?" Yuel sighed. [I doubt his selective memory can hold all this information anyway.]

"Okay, I'm listening. Zzz." Lars produced fake snoring noises; what a brat. Well, he'll definitely tune in during the important parts, so that'll be fine. Besides, by Friday, he'll probably forget like 90% of what they discuss today. He was a troublesome goof like that.

"First," Yuel a.s.sumed a lecturing tone. "About the enemy's overall strategy. Anybody who ever played under Howard knows he sticks to defense, so I'm sure that's what we're going to deal with. All their laners work well with that game plan."

Ellen was an infamous poke-and-run player. Gilbert was a balanced player who had both decent defense and decent offense. And of course, then there's Howard himself, the paragon of defense. This was an airtight defensive lineup alright.

Next, onto the lesser threats: Taison and Gregory. As a Top Laner, Gregory relied on tactics and counter-building, similar to how Yuel played Top. Gregory wasn't a defensive player per se, but he'd most certainly play defensively against an overwhelming opponent like Roi. Gregory had no chance of beating Roi in a straight 1v1, so Howard will surely make him play defense, no question about it.

As for Taison, that guy will most likely be the most aggressive enemy on that team. As a Jungler, he liked ganking lanes and getting into fights with enemy laners. He enjoyed that a little too much, to the point it was impossible to stop him even it was going to be a misplay.

Howard may try to force Taison into playing slower and safer, but that's like asking Lars to play defensively. Yeah, that's not going to happen. Besides, Taison almost exclusively played bruisers as a Jungler and those had better survivability than a.s.sa.s.sins. So, that'll probably be "defensive" enough to Howard's taste.

Long story short, it'll be a hyper-defensive lineup. And, to make the most of it, it'll most a.s.suredly feature mid/late game cla.s.ses. These were the cla.s.ses which typically didn't do well in the early game, but they compensated for that with a huge power spike in the mid/late game. Fights against defensive teams usually dragged on, so said teams benefitted the most from picking cla.s.ses which excelled in later parts of the game.

In a nutsh.e.l.l, that's what Yuel's team will have to deal with. There were no objections to his a.n.a.lysis. Everybody silently listened to what he had to say. Even Lars did his best to not doze off.

"As you probably know," Yuel continued. "I prefer more aggressive comps myself. So, unless I find another approach, Friday's match will boil down to whether our offense can break through their defense. If we can gain an advantage in the early game, we win. If the game drags into the late-game, we're in trouble."

"Nice and simple!" Lars nodded. "We're going go full aggro, yo!"

"You're quite the challengers," Dan smiled wryly. "You know how hard it is to penetrate Howard's defense."

"Of course." Yuel nodded. Back at the entrance exam, he was helpless against Aegis. Everything he tried was blocked, denied and negated. The countless practice matches throughout the year only further proved Howard boasted an amazing team-wide defense.

But, a whole year has pa.s.sed since they last serious match. Yuel has improved a lot since then. He was no longer the same rookie who barely knew left from right. He studied many different tactics, a.n.a.lyzed countless games, absorbed knowledge from his seniors and gained experience all across the board. As he was today, his refined tactics should be capable of piercing through Howard's Aegis. They had to.

To do so, Yuel had to utilize his team to the fullest. Any opening in Howard's team, no matter how small, shall be to be thoroughly abused. That's the only way to break through Howard's absolute defense.

"First, Roi," Yuel said. "Considering your skill compared to Gregory's, I think you should go hyper-aggressive from the get-go. For example, Dark Knight or Orc."

"Lol, that's indeed hyper-aggressive, alright."

"Gregory is nowhere near as mechanically skilled as you and he's lacking experience as Top, so that's where I want to strike. With a hyper-aggressive cla.s.s like Dark Knight you should be able to overwhelm him, maybe even s...o...b..ll off him."

"Sounds good and all," Roi nodded. "But, you really think something like DK is necessary? I mean, c'mon I'm the starter in Top. I can rek GG with any cla.s.s. DK gets clunky if I don't start rolling during the early game. There are more stable cla.s.ses out there, ya know?"

"Perhaps," Yuel agreed. "Even so, I want to strike as hard as possible at that weak spot."

[I'll be the one doing the "striking", though.] Roi shrugged.

"Gregory is their weakest link," Yuel explained. "And, luckily, he'll be facing you, one of our strongest players. I want to make the most out of this matchup advantage."

"Okay, okay," Roi shrugged. "I get it, you wanna bully the poor kid, lol. I still think DK is going too far with the aggro plan, but alright I'll play it during practice if you insist."

"And Orc too. It's a backup in case Dark Knight is banned."

"Had a feeling you'll go there... Okay, got it. I'll try getting my DK and Orc in shape during this week.

"Thanks,". Yuel said. "Next, Dan. As you said, Howard's defense is tough. Got any idea what kind of jungling can break through it?"

"Heh," Dan smirked. "Trying to extract Howard's weaknesses from one of his teammates? Savage."

"I'm sure he's doing the same." Yuel retorted.

"Not even doubting it," Dan nodded. "Okay, let's see. Howard always says Jungles are the hardest to defend against, so I bet he pays extra attention to them. One thing I noticed during practice is that he can deal with meta cla.s.ses way better than with off-meta ones."

"Makes sense." Yuel nodded. As somebody whose life purpose was to provide the team with perfect defense, focusing on the strongest meta Junglers was the most efficient way. It's similar to how the Leopards were trained by their coach, which resulted in Dan's unexpected Beastmaster and Chronomancer being rather effective against them in the scrimmage.

"In other words," Dan wore an impish smile. "I better play Jungle Cryo if we wanna win."

"Yeah, that's not happening." Yuel shot it down on the spot. There was such a thing as an "off-meta pick" which saw some practical uses, but then there was also a "meme pick" which was completely worthless. Unfortunately, Dan has always wanted to show off how well he played the meme picks. Sigh.

[Should we go with off-meta?] Yuel pondered. Dan was clearly trying to promote his services as Dan-of-all-Trades, but his a.n.a.lysis made sense. Howard's defense will likely have some holes against off-meta Junglers, just like the Leopards back in the scrimmage

However, there's one huge difference between Howard and the Leopards: Howard knew exactly who he'll be playing. There were five days until the match, so knowing Howard - he'll somehow cover up this weakness. He'll probably study all of Dan's most successful off-meta picks and will train his team to counter them.

The whole advantage of an off-meta cla.s.s was how it was rarely played, so the enemy didn't expect it and sometimes didn't know how to deal with it. On the other hand, such cla.s.ses usually posed little threat to an opponent who prepared for them, that's the whole reason they were "off-meta" in the first place. They were something akin to a gimmick and pro players had to know how to deal with any gimmick, which was why these cla.s.ses underperformed in the meta and became off-meta.

With all that considered, there's little hope to catch Howard off-guard with an off-meta pick. Maybe some bizarre meme pick will provide shock value, but it'll be short-lived. The best way to utilize Dan's versatility here would have him the most efficient [meta] cla.s.s against the enemy's comp.

"I think you should focus on meta cla.s.ses," Yuel concluded. "Knowing Howard, he won't let you surprise him with any weird pick."

"Hey now, don't underestimate me," Dan said. "You think a week is enough to learn how to counter all my stuff? I've been working on all my list of viable cla.s.ses for years."

"Perhaps, but he most likely knows your favorites. Even I can tell you're hoping to bring in Beastmaster or Chronomancer."

"Would be rad, not gonna lie. But hey, I got other aces up my sleeve."

"I rather not take the risk," Yuel said. "It's an important match for me and Lars. We must win no matter what."

"Hey now," Roi exclaimed. "You're saying me and Dan aren't here to win?"

"No, that's not what I..." Yuel pursed his lips. Honestly? A part of him was doubtful. Roi and Dan were Howard's soldiers, they spent more time with Howard and they probably thought Howard was the better leader. How motivated were they to win this match against Howard?

"Gonna admit," Roi said. "Howard is better-fit for leading the first string as far as I'm concerned."

[I knew it...]

"But, with that said, me and Dan are on your team right now. We're here to win."

"Yeah," Dan joined in. "And. if it makes you feel better, Howard personally told us to take this match seriously and follow you as our captain."

"He did?" Yuel blinked. Sounded like Howard wasn't planning to rig this match in any way. On the contrary, he desired a fair showdown. "So, you're really going to try and beat him with everything you got?"

"Yeah," Roi chuckled. "If he loses after telling us all that, that's on him, lol."

"I see." Yuel smiled faintly. That's one worry off his chest. If there's really no reason to worry about the possibility of a rigged match, Yuel could concentrate on forming the optimal strategy while trusting in Roi and Dan's skill.

"I apologize," Yuel bowed his head. "I admit, I had some doubts about how seriously you were going to take this. You're right, we're all on the same team here. Let's do our best to win."

"You got it!"

"Sounds good."

After that, the strategy meeting continued for a while. Yuel's plan was to make Roi play a hyper-aggressive cla.s.s during the early game and for Dan to counter-pick the enemy composition with a strong meta cla.s.s. They didn't show much enthusiasm regarding the plan, but after a long back-and-forth, they reached a compromise of sorts.

"Let's do it like this," Roi suggested. "I'mma play DK or Orc or whatever you want. But, if that blows up in our faces and we lose, lemme pick whatever I want the next game. Deal?"

"Alright," Yuel nodded. Not exactly his favorite idea, but this discussion was going nowhere otherwise. He'll just have to make sure they don't drop a single game. Easy, right? Well, worst case, Roi's picks should be decent anyway, so there's not much to worry about.

With this, Roi and Dan's game plans for the match were decided. As for Lars, there wasn't much strategy to discuss. Lars just had to be Lars. Meaning: pull off insane snipes, overpower opponents through strength and carry the team. All these things were natural for him, so there wasn't much to add.

"Just don't get baited by Ellen," Yuel warned.

"I know, dude. I'll only chase her when I'm sure I can kill her."

[With your baseless confidence, that's like 90% of the time.] Yuel sighed. It'd be up to him to lead Lars appropriately against Ellen. In term of raw strength, Lars was superior to Ellen, but she was a trickster of an opponent. Even after spending a whole year with her in the club, she still found ways to press Lars's b.u.t.tons during practice matches and lead him to death. Even Yuel struggled to grasp her intentions most of the time, so it won't be easy.

"By the way," Yuel said. "Do you have any second favorite cla.s.s after Trickshooter?"

"Hm?" Lars c.o.c.ked his head. "I'd say Gunslinger is pretty sick. Love that bad boy, but it's not easy to land these headshots all the time."

"I see." Yuel jotted it down. Howard will a.s.suredly ban Trickshooter every game, so Lars needed strong alternatives.

The last player to discuss was Julia and there was a lot to talk about. But, not so much of it was directly about her game plan.

"Listen to me without getting angry, okay?" Yuel cleared his throat. "In this match, our biggest weakness is going to be Mid-"

"Huuuh?" Julia shot him a glare packed with a thousand death curses. "You saying I gonna drag the team down!?"

"No, I'm just saying you have the toughest lane matchup." Yuel was quick to explain before something explodes. "Like it or not, but Gilbert is the starter for Mid and has been playing for way longer than you. Before things like skill or talent, he has way more experience and that'll play against you."

"Hmph, so what?" Julia scowled. "I just gotta beat him, right? I gonna become a starter too, ya know."

[I have my doubts about that.] Yuel kept that to himself. "Anyway, regardless of how your current skill compares against Gilbert's, I'm sure the enemy will consider Mid our weakest link."

"I'm telling you, I'll be fine!"

"I said [regardless] of how things really stand. No matter if you're stronger or weaker than Gilbert, they're going to a.s.sume you're weaker."

"Hmph." Julia crossed her arms and lifted her chin, but she was listening.

"So," Yuel continued. "At one point or another, they'll definitely gun for Mid. Dan, I need you to watch out for Mid rotations."

"Roger."

"I don't think Howard's offense will begin until mid-game, but we can never know for sure. Roi, since I'm sure you'll have lane advantage, it's best if you rotate frequently to Mid. If we can gain an early advantage there, we'll have nothing to fear."

"Strike before the enemy strikes, heh." Roi gave a thumb up. "I'm in."

Once everybody understood their game plans, the team practiced together in Ranked. They purposely picked team compositions which were similar to what they discussed and stuck as closely as possible to their agreed game plan. In a matter of days, this very team will be pitted against Howard and the fight for the first string will begin!