Charging towards the goal in Tower Control (12-5, Splatterscope)

20th April 2017 – 7.00 am

Tower Control is more of my bag than Splat Zones, and after yesterdays salty times I think I'll pick up a Splatterscope and see if I can relax at the back of the map. Or if we are pressed back, blame everyone else for not holding enough turf. And I suppose it's possible that we'll all be relatively competent and have a good time.

I can see the tell-tale ink trail coming up the ridge and prepare my shot, laser sight hidden just below. I'm not quite prepared enough. I try to flush him out with ink, but maybe a squidmate got to him first. So I just hang back and provide the support I hope is expected of me. At least, until I see the Slosher causing a nonsense of himself. Splatting the out-of-reach inklings is the support that is expected of a charger.

The Slosher has already been flushed out by a good shooter, and thankfully they hang around to stop the Inkbrush from clambering over a ledge to surprise us. And with the coast looking relatively clear, my squidmates start pushing the Tower forwards. I make my push at just the wrong time, as the Tower starts coming back, and get caught in the middle of nowhere. I should be staying back a little longer.

There's that Slosher again. I focus on the Tower first, and with enough time I get the splat in one shot. Nice! The Slosher is forced away again, and we get to move the Tower forwards. An opportunistic shot at where inklings tend to loiter gets a lucky splat, as an Inkstrike forces a short Tower evacuation. One Bubblered inkling gets a boost back on to the Tower, thanks to a purple Splat Bomb.

My aim lets me down for a bit, failing to prevent inklings getting on the Tower, and failing to get them off. But a Killer Wail does my job for me, thank you, and I try to make amends with a Splat Bomb Rush straight down the middle. Of course, the Tower trundles behind me as I do this, but I try to make amends for that by going back and riding it for a bit.

I get another decent shot given time to aim, and I would like to think that 'Nice!' was for me. It's a short-lived feeling of being useful, and not just because I miss the jumping inkling, but my scoped sight means I miss completely the Splat Bomb that was apparently right next to me. Our lead remains unthreatened, though, and I manage to avoid taking a dive to stop the first purple push beyond the mid-point, and get the Tower moving again.

A nicely rolled Splat Bomb frustrates a super-jumper, but we have to bail off the Tower as a Kraken and Splat Bomb appear. A point-blank shot clears the Tower again, and I finally get a good shot on the Slosher on his perch. I'm okay with being splatted so close to the action after all of that. I'm not convinced that my squidmate shouting 'To me!' has the right idea, though, as he's heading down the wrong side to stop the Tower, as the purple team push it further than so far in the battle.

I choose the more direct route to intercept the Tower, but hold back so that my range is an advantage. I need to wait for my range to become that advantage, but get a good splat once it does, and by that point my squidmates have appeared from behind the Tower. Our lead wasn't threatened too much, but it often doesn't take that much for it to disappear. Now the Tower moves in the right direction again.

Shooting the tree makes me think this ridge isn't the best perch, but dropping down on to the plants might be better. Yep, it is better, although I probably should have been sloshed by then. I squid forwards when it looks like the Tower has stopped moving, but it hasn't. I hop up to drop a Splat Bomb, and by the time I drop back down my Splat Bomb Rush is ready. That should provide some inky support!

We get so close to the goal, but not quite there. That's fine, as it is a great score to achieve, and was the result of some good teamwork. With just seconds left in the battle, we just need to tidy up. I get back to a good perch and start splatting inklings off the Tower. And when it looks clear, I jump forwards to take control of the Tower in extra time and claim the victory! Except I forget to jump, and go swimming instead. Never mind, a squidmate does it for me. Woomy!

My Gamepad's power light comes on at the end of this battle. It's only my third battle of the evening, but this was good fun, and I've been playing too much for too long lately, so it seems like a good time to call it a night.

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