Echoes of War is an amazing game. Flawless even, provided you ignore the flaws. Okay, sometimes command inputs fall off and you lose some troops and occasionally the NPC’s troops ignore the pacifist setting, but other than that, flawless. Besides, that’s what Liam is for. Anytime an NPC squad starts a fight they can’t finish or commands go awry, Tanner can just ping Liam to come in and sweep and clear; like nothing ever happened. Having a best friend that you can call upon in game to solve any micro problem you come up with makes it a lot easier to feel like the game is flawless. Echoes is unique; it combines real time strategy games and FPSs to create an amazing baby. Liam, Rake, Austin, and Tanner have been in a party for as long as they can remember. Tanner always played over-watch commander but can double as a front- line brawler when he doesn’t get the role. Austin is the ranger, put any kind of spell or ranged weapon in his hand and he becomes a quick menace. Rake, well, he does his best at filling support roles. They all loved the guy, but he’s the only one with a dumb nickname for a reason. When they were 15, they went around their neighborhood raking up leaves for money. Two times he stepped on the same rake and smashed his own face, on the same day. Some things you just can’t live down, but Rake does his best and they loved having him around. Liam though, the guy is a force. It doesn’t matter what role, in what universe, with what weapon. He’s mastered them all, and he is the best problem solver a guy could ask for. He’s just not much of a commander.
1pm rolls around and they decide one more round. Pre-game lobby turns out perfect; Tanner got commander, Austin is a wizard, rake selected bard, and Liam random rolled Barbarian. They got three randoms as the Ranger, Paladin, and Cleric. This version of the map is tanners favorite. It’s always procedurally generated maps with set themes; like medieval, futuristic, Hell, modern, and dystopia. The classes, weapons, and skills available each match is also always relevant to the selected theme. The problem with all this unique generation is that it eats up a lot of RAM. Tanners’ computer isn’t shit, but it also isn’t brand new. The loading screen, like most, takes a while to complete. Which creates more than enough time for complaining and trash talk. The Dev’s introducing voice chat in the loading screen must be the stupidest shit ever seen.
“Great, probably another garbage commander to deal with. This stupid fucking game never gives me the role.” The Cleric says.
Tanner just goes ahead and mutes him immediately but Rake just can’t help himself.
“You do realize that commander is the only position in the game that the lobby selects based on MMR Right? Clearly, you’re that garbage commander.”
A few silent seconds pass and Tanner realizes that he’s not going to be able to keep “RushTheKeep” muted cause Rake just keeps going.
“Tanner is obviously going to be the better commander, how about you shut the fuck up and play your role or just DC so we can avoid listen to you whine.”
“Guys, can we just chill out and play the game. It hasn’t even started; we are all here for a good time, just relax.”
The Cleric keeps going so he just messages the group chat and ask the guys to please just mute him so they can focus. We are mostly just here for a good time, but if tanner and Liam have anything in common, we don’t lose.
_ _ _ _
In each match, the goal is to destroy the enemy keep or force a surrender. The game has no time limit, and just demands results, Tanner’s favorite rule. Command and Conquer, or admit defeat. For Tanner, this isn’t a threatening notion, this is music played before a professional dancer, and it was his favorite song. The team’s stronghold is set into a corner of the map with three spawn points that can be selected by the commander for players and one at the back by the keep that allows an early spawn. The opposing team had a team set to counter the groups. They had two Paladins, a Warlock, two Assassins, and a Bard. Tanner set the spawn for Austin and the Cleric to the North gate, the Ranger and Rake to the middle gate, and the Paladin to the South gate. Liam, per usual, was set to his own spawn.
“Austin, you and Rush make an immediate push for the neutral zone, be wary of their assassins, they will probably be on the lookout for you. ‘RangeRidge’ please take rake and push out slightly to the left of your gate and maintain your position while you wait for Austin and Rush to push enemy forces into you. ‘icdeadppl’ please do your best to hold the gate while all the forces are slowly pushed down. Liam, do your thing.”
While each teams’ Lieutenants can respawn endlessly at their actively set respawn location the NPC forces are a set quantity. They were the pawns on the chess board, to be used for sacrifice and ignored for the bigger picture pieces, or they can the acting hand of the commander directing the flow of battle. Without anyone else in the game realizing, Tanner had set a small force of knights to spawn with Liam. He had expected an all-out assault at the South Gate because the enemy commander had shown his cards with the available Lieutenant roles. The enemy clearly intended to make a big push with their Paladins and Warlock on one of the three gates. Right gate being the most obvious once his scouts noted only one defender. Tanner was going to make a wheel route out of his other two gate teams and completely flank the enemy push. He sent out his scouts as well with the intent of lingering on the enemy middle gate to faint a delayed attack. The real force was Liam. While the wheel was rotating the fight to the right side of the map, Liam would flank the enemies North Gate and destroy it. Once into their stronghold he would destroy the spawn and, to their Clerics absolute glee, Rush the Keep. Once Liam was unleashed it was only a matter of time. The southern gate was expectantly destroyed much to the Paladins dismay, but he was unaware of the full force flank about to smash into the enemy. Austin, Rake and the other Lieutenants smashed into the side of the enemy force, tearing it in half and consuming it from the inside. Austin a blaze of light as he cast relentless spells and quickly dispatched their Paladins. “RangerRidge” landing a clean head-shot on their warlock. The Battle was over before the defending Commander had a chance to call a retreat. His forces were all but destroyed as he realized the cancer spreading within his stronghold. Tanner was tearing their base to ribbons when the while flag dropped from every enemy gate at once, signaling surrender.
In the morning, before the Sun is even given a chance to grace Port St John with its light, Tanner is busy making his breakfast. The same as most days, he's frying an egg in bacon grease for a breakfast sandwich. The empty table patiently waiting on the morning routine. Breakfast, shower, getting dressed, and off to work, the perfect creature of habit. Tanner gently ruffles his longer brown hair so it hopefully doesn’t look as perfect as it normally does when he wakes. He tosses on his blazer and put on some cologne that has a light vanilla scent. Its not that he really cares about his appearance, but he does care how people see him. It certainly doesn’t hurt that he is generally considered attractive, it just never really mattered? That isn’t to say, he wont use all his resources to his advantage. His district manager hadn’t done anything to hide her interest in him, nor that it was definitely a part of the reason for his promotion. Austin sure wouldn’t let him forget it.
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“Have you gone on the date with Ashley that shes been trying to get? Hell, you might get another raise out of it big guy.”
“Dude, how many time do i have to say I’m not interested. To both of you no less.”
“If you didn’t want the attention, why’d you take the job?”
“Because, i was the right pick. Why would i care what her motivations are as long as they get me what i want? She could have promoted me because she thinks me having big feet is qualifying, it really doesn’t fuckin matter. I am qualified.”
“Big feet? Yea you do.”
“Biggest feet in eastern Florida baby, they come from miles to see these puppies”
“Whats a guy gotta do to get you take off those shoes?”
“More than your salary can afford, i think.”
_ _ _ _
While True North made for a good paying job. It was never really a challenge, the problem with being in the home inspection and appraisal business is that its all so straight forward. No challenging problems to solve, hurdles to overcome, no enemies to out wit. Not even some good old fashion politics. Just endless old people looking for their new home away from the cold. At least two of his three friends worked there too.
“I’ve got two inspections to do, i have to do a review on that new guys appraisal, and not a single good coffee in sight. Bullshit. Its sad that coffee is the most excitement i can hope for in a day, and that i insist on talking to myself. You think that’s healthy? Hey Liam, you seen the new guy? Jason i think?”
“Hes probably in the breakroom getting some of that shit coffee Jessica makes”
“Dude, do you have to say that so loud? Someone could hear you, then id have to yell at you for being a dick rather than just agreeing with you.”
“So you agree that her coffee sucks?”
“I didn’t TECHNICALLY say that”
“Technically right is the best kind of right”
“Isn’t it though?”
Tanner found Jason hiding in a corner of the pretty large and open breakroom smashing a honeybun and, based on his shaking, fourth or fifth cup of coffee. Compared to Tanner, Jason was a smaller mixed guy of obviously some brand of Asian descent. Poor guy had a chin that could cut wrapping paper better than your favorite pair of scissors.
“Jason, can you resend me that email with the appraisal you finished yesterday. I need to do my review of it, and you didn’t attach the documents.”
“For you sir, I’d give my life.”
“Dude, relax you’ve been here like a week and probably don’t know my last name.”
“It’s not my fault you’re so pretty.”
“Why does everyone fuckin say that too me…” he muttered.
“Whatever, just get me the documents.”
Going over the paperwork, he found a few mistakes but nothing serious. The appraisal was fine, just a few technical errors that anyone could make. The one lower-level task that Tanner hung onto was training people. He loved it and was good at it, in fact, it was the primary reason for his quick climb to district manager, aside from Ashleys obvious infatuation with him. He made sure to alter his teaching strategy to cater to each employee, so he was very confident in all the people that worked for him.
Tanner also loved that challenge of it, trying to identify what enabled people to retain information and the apply it well was difficult. This made it one of the last few consistent challenges at work. He did feel kind of bad for Austin though. Austin was the one who got Liam and him their jobs. So, when Tanner quickly surpassed him, he could see a little jealousy from Austin but knew he wasn’t one to hold a grudge. Working for True North had also taught him the skills he needed to become a deft house hunter. He spent so much time appraising and viewing properties that he adopted a knack for finding high value property at a low cost. After only a few years in the business, he had saved enough money to now own his fourth home. A beautiful 3-bedroom home with a large kitchen, living room, and screened-in pool.
_ _ _ _
Queuing up for a new game, he spent the lobby and loading screen reminiscing with Liam about the old days of playing league of legends with the other guys. It’s where Tanner had found his calling in leadership and strategy. He played jungle Nocturne or Vi for most games. He relished in the gravity that one solid move could make to sway the outcome of the game and the best place for that constant action and control was jungle.
It hadn’t taken long for them to work their way through the ranks and getting a solid stream going for Liam. They had invested so much time into it, but I just got monotonous and boring. The value oddly increased for Tanner when Rake and Austin moved onto other interests. It was understandable, eventually you just grow out of stuff. It was all fun and exciting in the beginning but as they learned the game and mastered their preferred champions the only thing left to care about was progressing through the ranks and becoming the best. Which can be exhausting. Liam and Tanner continued to play for a few years after that, but it never really was the same. Not like it was in Highschool, nothing better to do with their times that just grind away at video games. He always had a distant interest in girls, but he never pursued it. It just didn’t matter; all girls would do is enable drama and hold him back from his aspirations.
“I do miss the simplicity of league though. Don’t get me wrong, Echos fits my niche better, but sometime these games can drag on and we aren’t really finding a challenge anymore. Simple mistakes are harder to make when you’ve got someone like me running overwatch over the whole field.”
“Did you just complain about the game while flexing how good you are at it?”
“Well, not intentionally. I just mean, it’s getting kind of boring not having that challenge of lacking some control.”
“Coming from the guy whose favorite thing is control.”
“You’re a pain in my ass you know that?”
“Listen man, I’m just saying, its hard for me to sympathize with you. Between your work and home lives, you kind of got everything you desire. You’ve got a solid job that pays handsomely, a nice house that most people our age could never afford to buy, and the hobbies that perfectly fit your interests in every way. I get that maybe causes some boredom from lacking most of life’s challenges, but you’ve definitely got it made. Now, stop fucking whining and command, Commander.”