McBride and Alos were using a God-perspective to command their respective five subordinates, engaging in a battle on a massive, waterless map in Age of Empires II.
Wayne watched for a while. To be fair, while these two were not particularly skilled in game mechanics, they were outstanding in macro-management and overall strategic grasp. For example, they arranged resource collection based on the distribution of materials near different camps.
Those near gold mines focused on gold, while those with abundant food gathered food. They coordinated resources comprehensively rather than having every single player do a full set of gathering, which would have wasted efficiency.
At the same time, based on scout reports and the positions of their respective camps, they established integrated tiered defense and reconnaissance systems, allocating unit compositions according to the strengths and weaknesses of their civilizations. This mirrored the strategies they used in reality when commanding different professions, units, and even races within their own armies. Their professionalism lived up to their titles as Marshal and Legion Commander.
Their five executors were the frontline commanders who usually led armies into the fray; it was their duty to execute the commander's strategy with the best possible tactics.
On the other side, the remaining officers—ignoring whether it was 1 gold per hour for a lobby seat or double the price for a deluxe booth—grabbed any available spot. Led by their temporary leaders, Cantrely and the Theramore Naval Captain, Geran Vimes, they plunged into the endless sea.
This Geran looked like a tough man. His white hair hung behind his head like a lion's mane, but his skin was tanned so dark he looked like an obsidian statue. That said, while these two were experts at commanding navigation and naval battles, they were completely in the dark regarding trade. Unfortunately, neither side had brought a quartermaster responsible for procurement and supply, so they had to fumble through the mechanics with their teammates.
The starting areas chosen by both sides were also interesting. The Second Legion chose to start as "Kyotaro Saiki." This start focused on the Southeast Asian waters colonized by Western powers in the sixteenth century—a vast region with numerous ports and rich resources. While there were two powerful local factions, they were not initially hostile.
The Northshire group chose the North Sea, which also shared the word "North" in its name. Although much smaller than other sea regions, it was bordered by Britain to the west, Germany, Holland, Belgium, and France to the south, and Norway and Denmark to the east. These were almost exclusively maritime powers of the pre-Industrial Revolution era. It was a crowded area with four existing factions.
Two characters were available in the North Sea. Some Northshire officers chose the Dutch female character, Lil Agott; her trait was straightforward—selling goods for 5% more profit. Others chose "Hodram," representing the Swedish Royal Navy. His traits included the ability to tow back remaining enemy ships after a naval victory (shared with Kyotaro) and receiving a bounty from the Swedish royalty after each win, equal to 1/20 of the value of ships sunk or captured.
Regardless of their choice, the Hanseatic League represented by "Schpeyer" would become their enemy. Generally, the goal of both sides in choosing these two regions was clear: combat. Whether it was Kyotaro or Hodram, their traits focused on "fighting to support the war." The North Sea also had Lil, who held a trade advantage, allowing them to earn money faster and pool funds for their allies to buy superior warships.
Wayne, meanwhile, continued his trade runs between Naha, Seoul, and other cities while switching screens in the background to see what everyone was playing. By comparison, the pace of Age of Empires II was much faster. The speed of building structures and producing troops was far beyond the multiplayer online version of Uncharted Waters IV.
However, the more their development took shape, the more it showed that the commanders were treating this game as a real battlefield. Since the game lacked a trench-digging function and stone resources on a single map were relatively limited (stone was needed for castles and technology research in the mid-to-late game), the two sides only built stone walls at key locations as defensive works.
Since this was a five-on-five match, unlike a one-on-one where one could use sneak attacks or rush tactics, the total number of troops was large. Even if one or two factions attempted a long-distance raid, it was difficult to gain any advantage against a clustered defensive force; it was more likely they would be walking into a trap.
On McBride's side, the army marshal used an arrangement of stone walls supplemented by large numbers of wooden fences and outposts. This was a textbook "positional warfare" mode from a real battlefield—"building strong camps and fighting slow battles." Although there were no logistics supply lines in the game, he commanded his subordinates to quickly establish a defensive area every time they advanced a certain distance, ensuring his troops—especially ranged units—would not be fully exposed to the threat of enemy cavalry charges.
Alos, however, stuck to his old style of chasing Bloodsail Buccaneers and hacking them down. As a Second Legion commander usually bound by orders, he hadn't had the chance to command direct combat in recent years outside of routine sea drills and escorting transport fleets. But now, in the game, he was uninhibited, bringing out the entire "Great Guns and Big Ships" philosophy.
What does a navy compete for? Tonnage, speed, and firepower.
In terms of tonnage, one of his players chose the Persians and rushed to the Castle Age, doing almost nothing but gathering resources to build castles and train Persian War Elephants. These giants were responsible for frontal breakthroughs and soaking up fire, acting like boarding ships in a naval battle—closing in under ranged fire, dropping the gangplanks, and seizing the enemy ship directly.
Firepower came from the Mangudai. These fast, mobile ranged units could cause massive damage to almost any other unit, except for heavy cavalry in a frontal clash. They could use their mobility to pull and kite repeatedly, disrupting the opponent's positioning.
Speed was easy to understand—under his command, there were no two-legged combat units. Two Huns players produced "Tarkhan" cavalry; these were light, fast, and possessed decent defense. They were responsible for protecting the flanks of the ranged units. Even without Persian War Elephants, they could coordinate with the Mangudai to handle most situations.
Half an hour passed. The advancing fortifications on one side had approached the Second Legion's camp. Both sides had reached the mid-Castle Age, and a major battle was imminent.
Meanwhile, things were not peaceful in the world of Uncharted Waters either, and the scene was much noisier than in Age of Empires. In Age of Empires, the commands came from the official army leaders, so the ten officers remained silent, doing exactly what their bosses said, just like on a real battlefield. However, because the two naval commanders were temporary and didn't understand maritime trade themselves, the twenty-odd people were constantly discussing and arguing with their teammates.
"North of Lübeck, coordinates North 55 East 9! Engaging Schpeyer! Someone come support!" "Coming!" "Hold on a bit, I don't have enough cannons. I'll head to port, refit two more guns, and be right there!" "Refit what guns? Real men don't use cannons; we go straight for the bayonets!"
The players using Hodram were fighting happily, while those playing Lil were busy doing business.
"Brandy is trending in London! If you have stock, bring it out now!" "Anyone want to leave port together? Let's go unlock the port of Nantes to the south."
The excitement in Southeast Asia was no less intense. Wherever a trendy item appeared or wherever prices were being driven up, it was immediately reported in the game by shouting. They shouted fiercely, but other solo players didn't mind; in fact, they profited quite a bit from it.
For instance, Chen, who had been wandering the Mediterranean, took the opportunity to sail toward the North Sea. Although he didn't have Brandy in his cargo hold, since the overall price of "Alcohol" was being driven up, he sold full loads of wine bought from Nantes to London. He even managed to recruit the red-haired female crew member, Christina, in London.
However, at that moment, someone tapped him on the shoulder.
Chen took off his glasses and saw Li Li.
"What is it?"
Li Li tilted her head toward Wayne's direction. Chen looked over and actually saw Shadowbreaker.
When did this guy get back?