Chapter 66: Card Game and Gossip (Part 2)
The situation on the field reversed in an instant. The knights who had been developing silently turned from defense to offense in an instant. Relying on this team of flower cavalry, they counterattacked into the magician's territory and occupied a large area of territory in one breath.
The hard work of continuously investing resource points and action rounds in the early stages, resolving various minor incidents for the initially assigned residents of the territory, finally paid off. Once the fight against foreign invasions begins, the righteous knights gain the full support of the people of the territory, and their popularity points are continuously converted into money points. With money, there will naturally be equipment and increased attack power.
Jiang You gradually understood that this was a game that combined management and combat. The initial map featured various random characters and events. By investing your point cards in these events, you could accelerate the development of these events and achieve their results. Completing these side quests with high ratings would earn you a chance to draw point cards or flower cards as a reward.
Flower cards may contain soldiers, extraordinary powerful fighters, special traps, magic skills and even special buildings. When combined with the bonus attributes of different characters, different effects can be achieved.
Each character has distinct strengths and weaknesses, and unique personality traits: merchants attract wealth, knights are loyal, magicians are good at research, and priests are dedicated... In addition, the magic map will comprehensively determine the outcome of events based on the character's "stereotyped" personality settings, their behavioral attitudes towards random events, and the resources invested in the events.
However, Jiangyou feels that rather than saying that this is a real-time calculation similar to AI, it is better to say that the magic map directly exports specific preset results according to the established table.
——Well, for a simple board game for the general public, this is more than enough.
However, this creates a deep-seated stereotype within the game. Coupled with the popularity value setting, Jiang You discerns a clear intention: the game developers completely discourage dark playstyles. If players choose to go against their character's will and make decisions that harm their subjects, they can easily be defeated by their own disadvantages and attacks from other players.
For example, the Knight class has two initial buffs: [Altruism] and [Loyalty]. According to the orthodox gameplay, by continuously contributing money and resources to the residents, you can gain popularity, which can then be converted into money and armaments, creating a healthy environment where the lord cares for his people and the people support him.
Once a knight abandons his people, he will fall into poverty and weakness under each round of financial exploitation, and his situation will deteriorate rapidly until he goes bankrupt.
However, Jiang You feels that, in this era, this stereotype isn't necessarily a bad thing. She believes the designers clearly have an intention to suppress evil and promote good. They probably designed this game not to encourage players to perform various tricks, but to educate the public.
"That's interesting." Jiang You picked up the black cat that was warming itself by the fire and asked quietly, "Jericho, who designed this leaf card?"
"It was the high priests of the Moon Worship Cult." Jericho was confused and answered honestly, "The main architect was my wife, the young master's mother, High Priestess Annina de Dresden."
"Wow," Jiang You thought he had probably guessed the creator's design intention. "So, this is a set of game cards that is both educational and entertaining, and encourages people to strive for progress?"
The characters on the cards are limited to magicians, merchants, knights, and priests—statuses that even commoners can achieve in real life through hard work. However, in the game, they assume the responsibilities of local lords. In other words, the card deliberately blurs the lines between the upper nobility and the lower classes, allowing players of all backgrounds to think and manage as local lords, creating a sense of "if you can do it, you can do it" appeal.
"Almost..." Jericho hadn't considered it from this perspective before, but after hearing what Takumi Yu said, it made sense. "Our wife is indeed committed to returning magic and power to the people. This is not only the teaching of the Lunari Cult, but also in line with the ideals that His Majesty the King strives to promote."
"That's amazing!" Jiang You praised. "The entry barrier to this game is very low. Even if you only know a few numbers, as long as you can understand the voice announcements on the magic map, you can play it. You can also learn the words by comparing the patterns on the cards. And through the game, you can also think and learn all kinds of things."
The entry threshold is low, but it takes a lot of investment to play well. It will also stimulate the desire to learn among talented people. In addition, it allows all ordinary people to become a "lord" in the game. No wonder this leaf card is so popular.
The magic map is also meticulously crafted. Each random point is half a universal magic circle, matching the other half of a magic circle on each card to create a variety of effects on the map. If Takumi Yu hadn't come from the modern era and possessed a natural affinity for magic, he probably wouldn't even have been able to understand this design.
"Is there any functional difference between the Leaf cards on the market and Andre's?" asked Jiangyou.
Jericho shook his head. "No, the general functions are the same. It's just that the material, pattern, and level of detail of the cards vary depending on the selling price. Even a three-coin deck played by ordinary people has the same magical effect."
"Wow, it can be mass-produced, this is really amazing! I really want to meet the designer!" Jiang You exclaimed.
"Oh, I'll see you." Andrei had completely completed his counterattack, breaking the alliance between the magicians and merchants with overwhelming force, and then taking out the servant priests who had been hiding, achieving the final victory. He handed the spoils to Jiangyou and took the opportunity to interrupt her conversation with Jericho, "My mother is already waiting for us in the capital. She looks forward to meeting you."
A thrilling round of the game ended. The two hunters went from being full of confidence to being defeated and leaving their weapons and armor in disbelief. They kept looking at each other in disbelief until they left the table.
Jiang You accepted the pheasant and hare, but also packed some mushroom cookies for the two men and handed them two flyers for his brewing workshop. "Victory and defeat are common in war. These are the cookies I made. If you like them, you can stop by my shop next time you pass by Eston West. We sell all kinds of meals, snacks, and sauces, and we also buy all kinds of high-quality ingredients."
"Okay, okay!" The two hunters were a bit unhappy about losing the game, but after taking a bite of the biscuits, their sullen expressions immediately cleared up. "Eston West City is very close to here. When the new lord takes office, we'll definitely go there to see what's going on!"
"Oh, I also brought a few trial bottles of soy sauce." Jiang You cheerfully pulled out a few 150ml bottles of soy sauce and began promoting it to the crowd. "It's delicious when dipped in meat. Would you like to try it?"
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