Archerous' R2M5 Delib

Quality
Though this would usually be a time of mourning, you can’t quell the fighting spirits within our combatants for that long, especially given the guy whose life we’re remembering. Brick really knows how to put the ‘fun’ in funeral! Honoring our beloved Brickwell is his fellow Cause for Concern, Amelia Flores, alongside Esmond Root of the Lotus Street Manifold! Joining our combatants are Bonnie “Diamond” Wes, local bartender, and Minali Meteora, local yoga instructor, respectively. Both sides hope to honor Brick’s will, so how do they hold up?

Starting with Ameila and Bonnie, they move to turn this 2v2 into a 3v2, and upon having Cigarette Daydreams grab Brick’s coffin, transform it into a 4v2! What an opening move. From there, the two attempt to divide their opponents, prioritizing their own targets, with Bonnie on Minali and Amelia on Esmond. Amelia makes a point to start attacking his vitals in an effort to bleed him out. This is a smart play, especially when you know your opponent is already spilling his own blood to make attacks. Bonnie, on the other hand, is taking every opportunity to stay within close quarters of her opponents, making sure she’s always in the midst of a brawl. Meanwhile, Cigarette Daydreams is using Brick to provide support, be it on hand removal duty or backup whenever a teammate is in trouble.

Once priorities are in order, Bonnie will try to take on both foes while Amelia takes a backseat to the combat. She’s busy setting up a wrestling ring, after all. I find that this section highlights great teamwork from the duo, allowing Bonnie to take hits and build meter while Amelia rounds them up, making the arena smaller and smaller until the final showdown. Once they have their foes where they want them, they send Brick on one final attack, blowing him up with the Brick Bomb, as well as a tattered Esmond and Minali.

Overall, I’m giving this duo an 8! I find the strategy to be rather to-the-point, but incredibly efficient. They waste no time in confronting their opponents and keeping that pressure up until the explosive finale. Well done!

Onto Esmond and Minali, we start with a simple (yet effective) set up, with Esmond’s focus on converting as much ground as he can into territory and Minali providing support with her Chair Snares to protect the duo from oncoming projectiles and bartenders. The versatility of the Snares in particular are nothing to sneeze at, offering an immediate, though admittedly limited solution to many problems at once, good for trapping and disrupting as good as they defend, giving the crew even more time to set up.

Once the field is ready, the next phase of their plan comes into motion, using the Breaking the Habit/Figure.09 combo to charge up ways to further disrupt their foes. Using Esmond’s sap arms for mobility, while charging up a Habit is a pretty efficient way to play keep away from their opponents, all the while biding your time until the time is right to strike. The Absence Engine is a wonderful use of teamwork, giving this team an edge against their enemy combatants.

Finally, the two divide and conquer, stunning Bonnie before taking out the smaller, more evasive threat. Once Amelia is dealt with, they finish Bonnie off, ending the game. Like the strat above, its not a complex strat. Its direct, even when they’re playing keepaway. And even if I would’ve liked to see a little more attention on dealing with Bonnie’s intense amount of power and durability, especially once the stun goes down after a beatdown, I think this strat is solid, landing it a solid 7! Well done!

Jojolity
As for Jojolities, I don’t have much to say, so I’ll be brief. I think both teams understood the assignment when forging their strats. Brick would’ve wanted a simple brawl, and both teams delivered splendidly! Beyond that, I appreciate that Esmond and Minali sought to understand and explore his philosophy of fighting. Thus, I’m giving them a 7! Well done!

Onto Amelia and Bonnie, it’s clear they infused Brick’s very being into the strat, going so far as to bring Brick into the fray one last time, sending him out as he lived. In their execution, Brick truly lives on, thus I’m giving an 8 Jojolity! Well done!