In a new series, writer Will Borger joins our AlbionTV crew as he tries to work his way up from rookie Albion Online player to hardened warrior. This is part one of his journey. By Will Borger The first week of Albion Onlines current season feels like a dream. We were winning then, you see. Our merry band was crushing it, walking around the Crystal Arena like we owned the place and beating other teams like they owed us money. We were, at one point, 18-1. That seems like a very long time ago. I dont remember the last time we won a game. Part of it, of course, is me. I dont know what Im doing, and the schedule of a freelance writer who spent the last month wracked with illness and overloaded with deadlines that leave me little time to practice doesnt help.
But the real issue, of course, is that I dont know what I dont know. I dont know what the weapons that arent mine do. I dont know what abilities I need to watch out for. I dont know what visual cues I need to look for that tell me when, for example, people are immune to damage. It would be a bad idea to attack them at that point, right? Well, you dont know what you dont know. And then theres the positioning game. Its easy to get out of position in Albion, and Ive been guilty of it more than a few times. Being out of position usually means youre dead. But its hard to be in position when you dont know what the other team is doing, what their builds are, and so on.
I cant expect the team to carry me. I never really did - games like this are too dependent on everyone pulling their weight - but if Im struggling and another member of the team is struggling? Thats bad news, and not something I can necessarily fix. Then theres the stuff beyond your control. Were an hour-long show, and I dont always know who Im going to get for teammates. Theres not a lot of time to practice with them. A decent, well-coordinated team that knows each other can beat a better team. Im not saying were not well-coordinated, but, well maybe watch our last stream, where everyone is yelling about whether or not Shozen is at fault for one play (he was: love you, Shozen).
Speaking of stuff beyond my control, sometimes we fight one team over and over and over again in the arena and they have our number. Not much you can do there, either, except laugh as you get one-shot by a meme build or stunlocked to death or, my personal favorite, stunned and then one-shot. As we say in fighting games, It can happen to you. You may read this column and think Wow, Will, you sure are making a lot of excuses, but thats not the case. Im trying to figure out what I need to do to improve: what I can do, and whats beyond my control. Talking out loud, as it were. I cant control my teammates or how well they play. I cant control who we draw in the arena. But I can control how much I practice, what I know, how well I position myself, and how much damage I do (more or less). Maybe I need a new weapon. Maybe I just need practice. Maybe the answer is somewhere in between, but Ill need to play more to find out.
Before our last show, I said When you hit rock bottom, the only place left to go is up. Its not entirely true: you can stay at rock bottom forever. You can get a jackhammer, and start drilling down deeper if youre really determined. I dont mind losing in Albion Online, or any game. Were making capital-C Content down here, after all, and despite it all, Im having fun. More importantly, it teaches me what Im doing wrong. You dont learn at 18-1. But you do down here. And I dont plan to be down here forever. Want to see how Will'sjourney unfolds? Follow his journey every Saturday at 19 UTC on AlbionTV.