Pugilists: The Tears We Shed Now Are the Water That Got Into Our Brains When We Chose Our Class
The major guild alliances have established numerous outposts on Planet Milton, each with a nominal main base, which is generally considered the first outpost built. In terms of rules, it is the same as other bases and has no special significance, but in the eyes of players, it is a symbol, similar to the existence of a main city.
Dragon Soaring Hills is a hilly area surrounding the main base of the Yanhuang Alliance. It is vast and originally had no name, but was named after the Yanhuang Alliance occupied the area.
On the day the war began, hundreds, even thousands, of battlefields appeared on Planet Milton, mostly conflict zones between strongholds. Among them, the most eye-catching was Dragon Soaring Hills. The reason was that the guild alliance of the Anti-Black Star Front had deployed its main force there, intending to take advantage of the encirclement to destroy the main base of the Yanhuang Alliance on the first day of the war and gain a good start. The Yanhuang Alliance was not to be outdone, and also placed its main force there, making full preparations for the counterattack, determined to fight a tough battle.
At this very moment, nearly ten million players from both sides gathered at Dragon Soaring Hills, eager and ready to fight. The vast military formations transformed the hills into a colorful ocean, with player units constantly adjusting their positions. The view from above resembled rolling waves, inspiring awe and fear.
The mixed colors came from the troops of the Anti-Black Star Front, whose equipment varied greatly. In contrast, the Yanhuang Alliance troops wore legion-standard mechs, which were black and silver, and were very neat, making them look like a ragtag army compared to a regular army.
The forces of the Pan-Commercial Union and other guilds were deployed in the east, south, and northwest directions, preparing for a three-pronged attack, while the forces of the Yanhuang Alliance formed a circular formation to protect the main base. The two armies were separated by a wide buffer zone, as distinct as the Chu-Han border.
In the main base's operations control room, a 3D satellite map of the battlefield floats in the center of the room.
Morning Snow and Evening Frost, who was in charge of the operation, stared intently at the map and kept issuing orders. A dozen or so military officers around her occasionally offered suggestions, while a group of assistants were responsible for relaying the orders to the lower-level commanders.
The battlefield is vast, and large-scale operations are inevitably the primary means of combat. A massive, uncontrolled charge would be suicidal, making the command structure especially crucial.
To prevent electromagnetic or virtual interference from preventing frontline troops from receiving orders, both sides unanimously chose the built-in chat channel on the control panel as the channel for issuing orders, maintaining constant communication.
The chief commander oversees the overall situation and is responsible for analyzing the situation with the division and regiment. Orders are issued point-to-point by the messenger in the command center to the senior commanders in charge. Senior commanders then flexibly adjust specific tactics based on instructions and the situation at the front, and issue them to their subordinate mid-level commanders. Mid-level commanders then relay orders to their subordinate squad leaders through the team channel. Finally, the squad leaders at the front line directly communicate with their teams and lead their troops to execute tactical orders.
The command structure is divided into levels, with more than 100,000 commanders at each level on both sides, the majority of whom are grassroots team leaders.
This process may seem complicated, but because the chat channel is not limited by distance and everyone has their own role, the whole process is quite quick.
If we consider all troops as a body, then the top commander and high-level commanders are the brain, responsible for issuing orders, while the middle and lower-level commanders are the neural network, responsible for making the body move according to the brain's instructions. This neural network is quite sensitive, giving this "body" remarkable "responsiveness."
"... The arrangements are basically complete. How much time is left before the war begins?"
Morning Snow and Evening Frost issued a series of orders, watched as his own troops began to adjust their positions on the real-time map, breathed a sigh of relief, and turned to look at the Azure Sky above the military headquarters.
"Six minutes and eleven seconds left."
"That's about right. Notify all units to preheat their weapons. Activate shields at the base and front lines. At the three-minute mark, have the mage units with the Enchanting school buff apply their buffs. Those with hormones and enhancement potions, use them."
The order was quickly issued, and a thick, light blue energy shield rose up around the main base, enveloping it.
The mage teams dedicated to defense at the front lines quickly began casting shields and amplification spells on surrounding troops, while the martial arts troops responsible for the charge also started receiving hormone injections and drugs. These buffs were time-limited, and their effectiveness was maximized by delaying the start of the battle.
The Anti-Black Star Front did the same thing, and for a moment, both sides were ablaze with light, like they were having a fireworks competition.
The final three minutes felt like an eternity. All the players present were both excited and tense, holding their breath and focusing intently. A chilling atmosphere permeated the silent battlefield.
The seconds incremented gradually, and at the peak time, it suddenly dropped to zero.
"Superior!"
At that very moment, the earth trembled violently!
The battlefield, which had been quiet just moments before, was suddenly filled with deafening battle cries, and the fighting erupted in an instant!
Two still oceans suddenly transformed into a roaring tsunami, sweeping out with a thunderous roar, covering the mountains and plains, stretching as far as the eye could see, with a magnificent and unstoppable momentum!
In an instant, dense energy rays formed a crisscrossing network of light in the buffer zone. Waves of players fell on their way to the front, enduring the enemy's ranged attacks. The black and mixed-color torrents rapidly approached and collided with a deafening roar!
BOOM BOOM BOOM!!
A series of explosions left cracks and craters in the ground, and Dragon Soaring Hills was instantly shattered.
The vanguard forces of both sides fell like wheat being harvested. In the blink of an eye, countless mechanical soldiers and Pugilist Class and melee Esper Class players were killed on the spot, a truly tragic scene!
This is not a personal stage. No matter how skilled a player is, once they leave the main group, they will basically be instantly killed. There is little room for maneuver. Everyone should do their job and stick together as a team.
"Quickly eliminate the psychic units in areas C5 and D2! Their area-of-effect attacks are too powerful; their shields are almost at the critical threshold!"
"The defensive mage squad keeps casting Arcane Protection and Mental Resistance Spell on the martial artists! Fire mages, poison mages, and lightning mages, unleash fireworks on the crowd and smash them to pieces! Earth mages, lay traps, and don't blindly follow along to attack! Summoners, hurry up and summon your pets... Where's the spirit mage squad in area B2? Someone's missed, quickly control them!"
"Mechanics in areas A1, A4, B2, B6, C1, and D1, quickly dismantle the traps! The turret in D9 has been damaged, go repair it! Legion and Mech Warriors, continue your charge! Gunners, keep firing! Control the enemy psychics and mages! Use the virtual branch to take down the enemy's gunships! Armed and energy branches, load up with heavy weapons and continue the firepower barrage! Focus on the enemy martial artists!"
"The telekinetic mage focused down the enemy mechanic, saving mana... Holy crap, nice! A burst of damage! The enemy team is wiped out!"
"Non-melee ability users, don't charge in. Just stay back and smash things. Once your mana is depleted, retreat and replenish it... I fucking told you not to charge in! Being cannon fodder is for martial artists! What the hell are you trying to steal?!"
"Martial artist in C2, slow down! Go back to your lane after you respawn, what are you dawdling for?!"
The battle quickly escalated to a fever pitch, with the chat channel buzzing with passion and commanders at all levels shouting themselves hoarse.
Players in the five class systems each have their own roles: Psychic Masters are responsible for AOE attacks and applying negative mental status effects; Psionicists are responsible for different intelligences based on their own abilities; and Mages are responsible for functions such as amplification, melee combat, ranged attacks, and board control based on their major school of thought.
The most tragic are the martial artists, who can only charge ahead as cannon fodder, using their own bodies to carry the load. As the saying goes, fortunes change, and next year it will be your turn to suffer. The more glorious and powerful the martial artists were in the early stages, the weaker and more helpless they are at this time.
Pugilist Class is, after all, a profession for ordinary people. Its advantages are that it is easy to learn, looks cool when fighting, and is not bad in one-on-one combat.
In this kind of large-scale battlefield, everyone is focused on killing martial artists, trying to deplete the enemy's resurrection count and leave them without any troops to hold the line. Under these circumstances, the martial artist's death rate is far higher than the other four classes, and even the fig leaf of "coolness" is gone. It's practically a competition to see who can die in the most flamboyant way.
Moreover, martial artists don't have any side jobs. Even if they went to do logistics or manual labor, no one would hire them, and their efficiency would be lower than that of various construction-related mechanical devices.
At this moment, the thoughts that arose in the minds of many martial artists were strikingly similar.
--Damn it, is this even a viable profession?!
Meanwhile, the Mechanic, who was weak in the early stages, shone brightly in the battle, becoming the busiest class on the battlefield. They handled both combat and logistics, could hold the line and deal damage, could single-target kills and group kills, could repair and produce, and their role was irreplaceable, making them highly sought after.
Because of the Mechanic's significant strategic role, the Yanhuang Alliance gained an advantage. Due to faction benefits, the most elite Mechanics in the player community were all in the Black Star Army, and were basically members of the Yanhuang Alliance.
The two sides' troops clashed in three directions, their black and mixed-color formations intertwined, locked in a fierce and relentless battle. As the battle raged on, the tide of war gradually turned, with the Yanhuang Alliance gaining a slight advantage and steadily expanding its lead.
High-level professional players enjoy concentrated resources and benefits from their clubs, so the gap between them isn't too significant. However, in terms of overall player strength, the Yanhuang Alliance and the Anti-Black Star Front have fallen behind.
The Black Star Army unified the Huaxia players early on, saving them the resources wasted by constantly switching factions. They also regularly provide faction benefits, making development more planned and far superior to the "wild" players who mingled between different factions in the first three versions.
After three or four versions, the Yanhuang Alliance players are generally slightly better in terms of skills and equipment.
Moreover, Han Xiao's early settlement of the simulated main storyline gave the legion players an extra sum of funds and experience. One or two people might not notice the difference, but on a battlefield with a scale of tens of millions, these small gains accumulate and the advantage becomes increasingly significant.
The death count is out!
In the main base command center, Morning Snow and Evening Frost, who was issuing orders, received a piece of intelligent statistical data, and her eyes lit up immediately.
"The enemy's average number of deaths is 0.742, while ours is 0.631. Excellent!"
The strategists and advisors present all wore expressions of delight.
This data represents the average number of deaths per player on both sides. Although the difference is only 0.111, in a battlefield with tens of millions of players, it's equivalent to dying 500,000 fewer times than the opponent!
"There are only ten resurrections in six days. Using them all before the end means elimination. Today is the first day of the war. The enemy's bottom line is estimated to be between 1.8 and 2.2, but their vanguard has suffered more deaths than the overall average, reaching 1.2. They won't be able to hold on much longer!"
Morning Snow and Evening Frost narrowed her eyes and said in a deep voice:
"Deploy fifty elite troops, on my command, launch a charge!"
Since it's not about fighting NPCs, there are no large-scale suicide attacks on either side, and everyone can revive multiple times. If not used properly, it might actually result in losses.
The Yanhuang Alliance stockpiled a large number of Evolution Badge during their preparations for war. The fifty elite battalions totaled 40,000 men, which translates to an average death rate of about 0.01. Now, with a huge advantage, they have every reason to make a bold move. The goal isn't to kill the enemy outright, but to use the high durability and melee bonus of the mutants to cut off the enemy's vanguard, allowing the damage dealers behind to focus fire and eliminate them, while also disrupting the enemy's formation.
The order was relayed, and a special force, protected from both sides, charged into the front line. With a flash of light, their bodies swelled up and transformed into aberrant mutants one after another, fiercely charging into the enemy ranks like a hot knife cutting through butter, unstoppable!
Forty thousand monsters, enhanced with defensive and amplifying spells, rampaged through the enemy ranks, instantly dividing up areas. Teams of enemy martial artists were isolated and killed or maimed by the attacks thrown in by the Yanhuang Alliance, dying on the spot.
The brutality of the Evolution Badge had already been recognized by all players; 40,000 Aberrations charged in unison, briefly disrupting the command and control of the Anti-Black Star Front.
It took them a considerable amount of time to focus their fire on and kill these aberrations. The resulting chaos directly led to an increase of 0.018 in the average number of deaths on the Anti-Black Star Front, resulting in approximately 100,000 deaths and further widening the gap. In particular, the martial arts forces suffered heavy losses.
"If we keep going like this, we can win!"
The morale of the Yanhuang Alliance players on the front lines soared, while the arrogance of the Pan-Commercial Union was noticeably diminished.
Large-scale battles are not so easy to turn the tide of battle; once an advantage is gained, it's a snowball effect that continues to grow.
With morale fluctuating, the situation continued to develop in a direction favorable to the Yanhuang Alliance, and the victory was gradually secured.
Just as the Battle of Dragon Soaring Hills was raging, Han Xiao, far away at the Black Star Palace, was holding popcorn and a sugary drink, watching Meat Bun's live broadcast on the forum with great interest.
However, his focus wasn't on the battle situation...
"Wow, that's brilliant! I used 40,000 Evolution Badge in one go, and the subsequent recharges will bring me another boost. I'll use it a few more times!"
"Haha, another hundred or so mechanized units destroyed, repair costs in hand."
Han Xiao was overjoyed, showing no concern for the losses suffered by the Yanhuang Alliance, and even wanted to laugh out loud.
In his eyes, every wave of resources lost by the Yanhuang Alliance represented a new achievement. If it weren't for the faction benefits not being allowed to be distributed indiscriminately, he would even have considered selling the weapons to the guild alliances of the Anti-Black Star Front.
"War profits are still the most lucrative!"
Han Xiao grinned.
At that moment, he felt like a cunning game planner, constantly finding new ways to extract resources from the players.
Only by emptying the players' hard-earned savings can they be motivated to continue creating value.