S1C8: Too Many Fronts
To my loyal subjects (who love and adore me),
Ok, I thought we were stretched thin before with all of our battles, but YOU once again misjudge the situation!
Oh, and by the way, my advisors told me to take photos of the battle map in our command centre so you can more easily follow battles. I think it’s stupid and makes it look like we’re playing some kind of wargame in a hobby shop, but I get their point. So enjoy some pretty photos, you simpletons.
The incursion into the Circuits started quite well, with our troops punching straight through the centre while the northern troops held back the Underworld Collective in the northern region (obviously). The only problem started when the Oasis Network got involved. They cracked through the gap we made and started firing at us instead. Now, despite my direct order over comms to ignore the metal soldiers and focus their fire on the squishy, flesh-built ones, the squadron ignored it. They’re dead now if you were somehow emotionally attached enough to them to care.
Now, at the same time, the Cultivation Society decided to get distracted from their very much more important fight in Rivers End and directed some defences from the Roots down into Overwatch. Perfect. Exactly what I needed. More distractions from the main target.
So we’re locked into some kind of three-way standoff with the Underworld Collective and the Oasis Network in the Circuits. The fighting goes on for about a solid portion of the night. Then what happens? Atiley decides to launch a Firestorm Missile, wiping out all of our squadrons in the southern portion of the territory. Oh yay! I love losing all of our ground in the target objective. It’s my favourite thing in the world, even! I would send the generals in those squadrons to the firing squad, but they are currently smoking corpses in a Bazaar that sells replacement parts for irrigation systems. Their families will just have to take their place.
If that wasn’t enough problems to deal with, here’s another one for me. The Oasis Network decided it would be funny to take potshots at the guards in Jeritopia. Now, when you hear over comms, “don’t push in further, they’re trying to bait you.” What’s the appropriate response to that? Is it A) Stand your ground and wait for reinforcements OR B) Scream “FOR THE GOD-KING JERIT” at the top of your lungs, push into enemy territory and leave your previous position entirely exposed? IF YOU CHOSE OPTION B: CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE A SPOT IN MY ARMY APPARENTLY!
On other fronts, we have better news; I decided to launch an EMP Torpedo at Atiley’s forces in Rivers End. I hoped that would have sufficed as a simple “fuck you, I have missiles too.” However, they seemingly brushed it off and kept moving.
While this was going on, the Cultivation Society decided to zero in on Overwatch with their forces from the Crates. They killed one of the other guard squadrons stationed there and were about to surround the other one stationed on the west of the territory.
The guard squadron fought valiantly, but they eventually got surrounded. Overwatch was captured by the planties, and my head sank further and further into my desk.
After that drastic loss, the unit that was dealing with the Oasis Network in Jeritopia got baited again by the Oasis Network as the androids pushed further into Jeritopia. They decided the best thing to do would be to follow them back into the territory instead of pushing further into Valhalla. The bots were then able to go deeper into the territory and almost cross the river. To attempt to distract the Oasis Network, I moved one of our squadrons from Atlas into the Smoke. This did nothing as KH47UN has a brain, as decayed as it may be, and didn’t take the bait.
Now, the more observant among you might notice that there is a dead unit in the heart of the Crates. “How did this happen?” you may ask. Well, the guards in the Crates decided to dash past our eastern forces and into Jeritopia. Then what do I hear over comms?
“THERE’S A GAP! FUCK IT, LET’S CHARGE!”
They were eviscerated by Dionea in a matter of 5 minutes and didn’t even land a single shot on the main temple.
The Circuits and Rivers End now entirely belong to the Underworld Collective. Additionally, the Cultivation Society now has full control over Overwatch. We’re in a pretty bad spot here, but I know that I can somehow get us out of this.
Oh, wait, I forgot you had input in our decisions. From here, we have a few choices:
The Reeds - Small and recently destabilised. The only downside to this is that the territory isn’t particularly strategically useful.
Full Defence - We could focus on defending Atlas and Jeritopia. It will be a tough fight, but we may have to just cop it if it means not sinking deeper into the pit we’ve dug ourselves in.
The Roots - The Cultivation Society has the majority of its army stationed there. It would be a tough fight, but it would catch them completely off guard. The Culties would also be squished between the Underworld Collective and us, making the rebels finally useful.
The Crates - The Cultivation Society’s main headquarters. They will fight tooth and nail for this place, but the strategic value of it is astronomical. If my army conquers the greenhouses, we can get our hands on Dionea. Although you saw how that went.
Valhalla - This would give my troops the ability to attack the Circuits from another angle. This would also mean pooling our resources into breaking the Oasis Network’s blockade of the western river.
The Smoke - The Smoke is the main production factory for the Oasis Network. Taking this would mean that I could restart production on our robot army. However, this would likely lead to a prolonged and bloody offensive.
Rivers End - The recent fighting means we can slip in easily and recreate the War of Rivers End from last year. Now that the Alliance of Fire and Vines has dissolved, the two factions can’t rely on a united front to kick us back.
The Circuits - Capturing this territory would be an amazing boon, but the defences of the territory will now be completely focused on us. They also completely eviscerated us in the last battle, but hopefully it’s better this time.
As always, we can fortify a territory, but that will mean letting this opportunity slip through our fingers. It might be worth it if it means researching new defences, though.
As always, the choice is yours. Just make sure you’re smart enough for me to take credit for it, yeah?
God Emperor Jerit