How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

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United States of America CurassierAndCurassier
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How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

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Post by CurassierAndCurassier »

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Struggling to drum up the courage to actually sign up for the Autumn Tournament? Have you had the sign up tab open but untouched for a week now like me? Trying to find a civ that will give stronger players the fits? Allow me to present the Sioux for your consideration.

Ironically, in the finals of last month's Warchiefs Classic the Warchief civs lost every matchup (that wasnā€™t a mirror) except for one. In game 4 Aizamk, hacker of cows, tamer of bears, rode the Sioux to a decisive victory over Diarougaā€™s Russians to take a commanding 3-1 lead in the series. This is the story of how he did it.

Openings

On the High Plains, a band of Sioux villagers begin their hunting season after a long journey to find the Bison herds. But they are not alone. To the North, an intrepid Russian colony, a long way away from the Siberian tundra. Soon the war drums sound. It is Aizamk that answers.

Aizamk uses his explorerā€™s speed to burst around the map in search of the best treasures. He stumbles across 140 food and attacks the guardian wolves, but apparently misses the outlaw rider hiding in the woods. It gets off a number of pot shots on Aizamkā€™s explorer, taking his health down far more than he would have liked, before he uses his convert ability on him.

ā€œDie, Injin. Get off my territory you damned... hey, youā€™re pretty cool man let me join ya.ā€ - Outlaw Rider, apparently

Darting off to the bottom of the map, Aizamk constructs a trading post while Diarouga picks up some coin treasures and rushes to build a commanding blockhouse on Aizamkā€™s side of the map with three villagers. It cuts Aizamk off from the trading post nearest his base, as well as one of his future hunts. A defensive war hut goes up in the Siooux base.

The Sioux certainly take a while to go through its hunts, with the bison they can ship from home and upon age ups. But as Russia is more than happy to starve an opponent out. Diarouga begins construction on a second blockhouse, right next to the first. If left unchecked, it will slowly squeeze the life out of Aizamkā€™s colony, like a python.

Aizamk Steps on Snek

Flitting back across the map, Aizamk cheekily picks up a 280 XP treasure by cleverly making use of his explorerā€™s splash damage. It will give him his next shipment almost immediately after his second one arrives. 4 Axe Riders storm through the plains, straight for the unfinished blockhouse. It goes down in a hurry. Diarouga, unfazed, goes right back to constructing it once the Sioux cavalry leave.

But Aizamkā€™s not done yet.

He returns with something of a mini-timing push. 7 War Clubs arrive from the home city, joining 5 trained ones as well as the Axe Riders. They overwhelm the small musketeer army Diarouga has made, destroy the unfinished blockhouse again and take down the already constructed one right after. A Trading Post goes down soon after, a lone, strangely hilarious teepee the only building left standing.

It is nothing short of a disaster of a start for Diarouga. Just six minutes into the game, heā€™s lost three blockhouses, a trading post, and control of the map. But heā€™s in the finals for a reason. Heā€™s a great player and not one to panic over a rough start. He throws down defensive blockhouses and digs in for a longer match.

The Snek Bites Back

Happy with having taken out the immediate threat to his base and driven the Russians back home, Aizamk booms. He ships 5 villagers, then 700 coin, adds a second Trading Post, and begins his age up while harassing the Russian base with what remains of his early army. He does not notice the musketeer mass growing extremely fast. Barely two minutes after the disastrous fight at the blockhouses, heā€™s massed an army five times as large as Aizamkā€™s.

And itā€™s moving straight for his base.

Caught in the middle of aging, Aizamk can do little more than make sure his villagers run to the North to gather food unseen, and distract the Russians with his explorer. The War Hut goes down without a fight. Perhaps Diarouga doesnā€™t realize how much of an advantage he has. Maybe he senses a timing coming. (Aizamkā€™s certainly good at those.) After being caught being overly aggressive in game 3, perhaps Diarouga was just on edge. Whatever the reason, he withdraws despite being right on top of his opponentā€™s defenseless base.

The Final Blow

Soon after the retreat of the Russian army, Wakina Rifles and Rifle Riders arrive for Aizamk. Iā€™m not sure if it would have been enough to repel the invasion entirely, but it certainly held the tech advantage. The skirm/goon combo on steroids is a nightmare for unupgraded Russian musketeers. He makes more and more rifle riders while Diarouga camps out in his base, trying to transition to Strelets and Cavalry Archers. Soon Aizamk goes full Yolo, and just slams his army into the Russian base, piecemeal.

So can we just take a second to appreciate the Rifle Rider? Just the sheer fact that it exists? That someone at Microsoft in 2006 sat down and brainstormed ideas for new units, and said ā€œyou know what sounds completely fair and balanced? A dragoon unit that also does triple damage to heavy infantry, six times damage to artillery, oh and I guess ships too while weā€™re at it?ā€ And on top of all that, they fire like three times a second and can kite forever.

Despite the even numbers and the piecemeal way the Sioux army converges on the Russian town, the battle is laughably one-sided. The Russian army is mowed down in moments. The only thing sparing Diarouga outright defeat are his blockhouses, and the fact that someone stopped that Microsoft employee before he coded in a 63 siege damage on top of all the other absurd bonuses Rifle Riders get.

But itā€™s not like Diarouga still has a chance. Aizamk just hasnā€™t bothered to finish him off yet. Strelets/Cavalry Archers are the poor manā€™s Skirm/Goon, which are the poor manā€™s Wakina/Rifle Riders. His already struggling economy is dealt a massive blow by a sneaky raid Aizamk pulls off at a gold mine. A desperation effort to break out of his base is repulsed as Axe Riders and Dog Soldiers swarm the field, tipping the scales even further in Aizamkā€™s favor. Diarouga has no choice but to resign.


Now it is autumn and the drums of war beat again. The call echoes down the high plains and through the Painted Desert, through the Ozarks and over the frost-covered Hudson Bay. The Sioux await. Will you be the one to lead them to victory? Sign up for the Autumn Tournament and give them a shot! :biggrin:
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Re: How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

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Post by MCJim »

Some hype for our newest news post writer! Excellent post, many thanks ;)
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Re: How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

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Post by JakeyBoyTH »

@Gendarme Nice to see you in the media team
Advanced Wonders suck

- Aizamk

Ugh Advanced Wonders suck

- Aizamk
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Re: How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

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Post by XeeleeFlower »

Awesome read! Thank you for the work you put into this. :flowers:
Time is wise and our wounds seem to heal to the rhythm of aging,
But our past is a ghost fading out that at night itā€™s still haunting.

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Re: How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

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Post by deleted_user »

all hail esoc!
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Malaysia Aizamk
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Re: How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

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Post by Aizamk »

we waz jus tryin' to make spanky happy
oranges.
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Re: How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

Post by fei123456 »

that's just because EP sioux IMBALANCE
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Re: How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

Post by ssaraf »

This write-up was soooo fuking good. Made me happy. Certainly was a Good Morning. :D

My favorite part from the post :
CurassierAndCurassier wrote:Strelets/Cavalry Archers are the poor manā€™s Skirm/Goon, which are the poor manā€™s Wakina/Rifle Riders. :biggrin:
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Re: How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

Post by jesus3 »

I'm def gonna give ppl the D after that
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Re: How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

Post by XeeleeFlower »

jesus3 wrote:I'm def gonna give ppl the D after that


Oh Jesus!
Time is wise and our wounds seem to heal to the rhythm of aging,
But our past is a ghost fading out that at night itā€™s still haunting.

http://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html
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Re: How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

Post by jesus3 »

XeeleeFlower wrote:
jesus3 wrote:I'm def gonna give ppl the D after that


Oh Jesus!


Halleluja!
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Re: How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

Post by spanky4ever »

:love: This is exacty how I remember that awsome fight. Nice one
Hippocrits are the worst of animals. I love elifants.
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Denmark crjensen4
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Re: How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

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Post by crjensen4 »

Great write-up! Made me laugh and get excited about the coming tourney!
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Re: How Aizamk Rode the Sioux to Victory in the TWC Finals

Post by Kaiserklein »

Nice and funny write-up, but honeslty rifle riders are just shit in most cases... Shouldn't mislead people like that
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