The title was incredibly arrogant and directly tagged the video of the platform's top-tier whale, PD. Once released, it was like a depth charge, instantly causing a massive stir within Global Network.
Countless players who had been following the trend on the forums, mocking FGO as a "pay-to-win reskinned tower defense," along with viewers who had just watched PD's live stream where he was solo-killed by a mob, clicked on the video with hearts full of doubt and a desire to watch the drama unfold.
Three minutes later, the entire video's comment section was completely overrun.
"Holy crap?! You can actually play the game like this?"
"Vanguards kill enemies to recover cost, Defenders drop down to tank damage, Healers on high ground to heal... This is a freaking perfect tactical loop!"
"So one-star and two-star cards aren't fodder; they're special ops units used for the early-game heavy lifting? This mechanic is genius!"
"The producer is a god! This is a real strategy game. If you spend money without using your brain, you deserve to be hacked to death by mobs!"
Meanwhile, in PD's room on the Shark Streaming Platform...
Just as PD's mental state was about to collapse under the torture of these hardcore mana mechanics, the style of the scrolling comments suddenly shifted:
"President P, stop feeding! Go watch Great God White Night's tutorial video! You've been called out and publicly executed!"
"Stop thinking about using five-stars; five-stars are for the late game! Go train your low-star cards!"
"Go copy the homework! Great God White Night has already spoon-fed you the solution!"
"White Night? Tutorial video? Copy homework?"
PD froze for a moment. Following the link sent by his viewers, he opened the video in his browser.
In the video, White Night's smooth "low-star opening defense line" was like a resounding slap across PD's chubby face.
He watched the video where a Lancer Cu Chulainn, costing only 10 points, wove through a swarm of monsters with a crimson spear, killing his way in and out seven times. Then he looked at the Gilgamesh in his own hand, stuck at a cost of 32 points.
PD's face turned pale and then flushed; he remained silent for a full half-minute.
Finally, he slumped into his chair like a deflated balloon, covering his face in agony.
"Oh, for heaven's sake..."
"I shouldn't have questioned the strategic depth of this game. This damn developer is literally teaching me how to play."
With the tycoon admitting defeat, the atmosphere in the stream reached a climax instantly:
"Hahaha! This is the first game to ever make President P admit he was wrong, isn't it?"
"Stop talking nonsense and go 'copy the homework' with that lineup!"
"Exactly, didn't you pull the entire collection? Hurry up and dig out your 3-star Cu Chulainn and 2-star Georgios!"
"Right! Copy the homework! Once you know the mechanics, clearing this stupid stage will be a piece of cake!"
PD rallied his spirits and immediately switched back to the game, opening his Servant Archive.
Because he had dropped a hundred thousand yuan on pulls, his Servant collection was dazzling. Forget 3-star Cu Chulainn; he had a mountain of low-star cards with max Noble Phantasms (max potential).
Imitating the video, he formed a team with Cu Chulainn, Georgios, and Andersen, then marched back into the Burning Fuyuki City with his head held high.
[Battle Start!]
"Cu Chulainn, get out there! Kill enemies and generate cost!"
PD confidently placed Cu Chulainn in front of the blue gate.
A level 1 Dragon Tooth Soldier wobbled toward him.
Cu Chulainn thrust his spear, successfully killing it, while a [Cost +1] prompt appeared over his head.
"See! Isn't that easy!"
PD was overjoyed, his eyes glued to the mana bar in the bottom right, waiting to save up 26 cost to deploy his Saber.
However, a few seconds later, three Dragon Tooth Soldiers and a larger Elite Skeleton Soldier charged forward in a row!
A level 1 Cu Chulainn was extremely fragile. Facing a swarm, he needed a Healer in the back to heal or a Defender in the front to share the pressure.
But... to deploy his beloved King of Knights as quickly as possible, PD hoarded his mana greedily. He was unwilling to spend any to deploy the low-star Georgios or Andersen, forcing the level 1 Cu Chulainn to tank the onslaught of three monsters alone.
With a scream, Cu Chulainn, who had been on the field for barely ten seconds, saw his health bar vanish instantly, and he dissipated into flecks of light.