TERA news » Canyon Clash Winners Share Strategy

If you’re interested in knowing how the first-ever winners of a TERA battlegrounds tournament managed their exciting victory, then you’re in luck! We got their leader to reveal their winning strategies in this fascinating interview.

Minea: So first things first: congratulations again for becoming the Canyon Clash champions! How does it feel?

Overpower leader: Thank you, and it feels fantastic to have conquered this year’s Canyon Clash tournament!

M: Could you tell us a bit about the team?

OP: Sure thing. Let’s start with the preparation for the tourney. I knew this would be a very important event to win for our guild as it’s En Masse's first official tournament. With the importance factor in mind, I directed my attention to what major factors my team would need to consider for this tourney. With all gear equal and the “loser buff” eliminated, it would change the normal strategy Overpower is used to running. I decided that moving quickly through the map with two separate groups would maximize our points and still let us engage in PvP which we are eager for.

M: What is the “normal” strategy, if you don’t mind sharing secrets…

OP: Our normal strategy is to overpower/overwhelm our opponents with our furious rush/push tactics when clashing head to head.

M: Very fitting tactic with the team and guild’s name, I must say!

OP: If the enemy doesn’t stretch their lines, they normally pull back. If this happens, it essentially exposes their rears, which will amplify our back critical crystals—which makes for a huge advantage.

If we win the opening clash in the middle of the map, it places the opposite team in a “negative morale position,” forcing them to argue or rethink their approach when facing us. That’s OP’s normal strategy.

We did not use this for Canyon Clash tourney. Why? Well, it’s known that OP pushes and forces PvP as much as possible. However, this time I decided to be more tactical in my pressure tactics. Splitting the force into two groups of seven and one solo player, I could cover more map and essentially dictate the pace and battles.

The solo player (aka Clash, my ninja master) gathered quick intel on enemy positions while our scans were down. With Clash as my main comm, I could make quick calls to either capture free pyres or force a battle far from a pyre.

Mitski led one of the two groups; I led the other. It’s much easier to direct 6 players rather than 12—especially since my main goal was map coverage. Instead of going middle at the start of the match like we normally do, we took the north and south pyres, giving us an instant point advantage and keeping pressure very high for the opposing team.

The goal was to have the opposite team think that OP was everywhere on the map, which I believe we succeeded at.

Once we were capping points and having Clash relay vital intel on enemy movement/direction, I would convert the intel and with haste send an assault team to stop them. With two groups roaming, the closest would get there first, while the second would follow up to ensure we wipe the battle points. Every time we killed two enemy targets at a battle, I would direct one of us to break off and move to another pyre, keeping the map coverage in mind while keeping advantage in players in the battle.

M: What was the most difficult part in the tournament?

OP: The most difficult part of the tournament was keeping everyone calm after watching our opponents drop out against us. Just kidding! No, it was during the finals against Man Up, as they played us well in the semifinals.

M: It was certainly an exciting match to watch.

OP: They knew our “entrance strat”—capping two points. They countered it by splitting themselves as well, putting them in a lead position at the start. However, with quick decisions and even quicker reaction from my team, we retook the lead shortly thereafter.

You asked the hardest part? Man Up took the teralith buff from us with a ninja during the final match. I had to choose: dodge them or fight them head on while they were buffed. With solid intel provided to me, we knew we had them split on the map and I had all my group at the teralith.

The call was made to “STAY AND WIPE THEM”—essentially to remove their teralith buff advantage. We took a lot of deaths in the process, but as we were holding the lead in kills throughout the match, I knew we could overpower them. Even with their teralith buff advantage, we kept pace with them.

In the end, we were able to outmaneuver and direct the battles the way we wanted them, which in turn led us to our win. There was nothing but positive chatter over the comms, which maintained stability in group work. It’s essential to lead players to victory.

M: Would you say the moment of victory was the most rewarding part of the tournament?

OP: Well, I’m sure plenty have heard Adrenaline’s YouTube recording of the final moments before the win.

M: I know we did in the office.

OP: And I’ll have to concede that it was exhausting to cheer that much!

M: What plans do you have for the team in the future? Do you guys plan to continue to reign as champions in future tournaments if we have more?

OP: We plan to keep a competitive edge to strengthen the community’s outlook in how rewarding PvP can be. Time will tell, and there are plenty of players in TERA that will rise to bring a great challenge. All I can promise is that Overpower will be there to meet/greet and battle to have fun, win or lose!

M: We're all looking forward to it.

OP: It was refreshing to see so many players come together, making a huge effort to be present for the tournament and bring forth a great competition. It really felt like a breath of fresh air went through the community! Took me back to beta days when there was so much challenge and competition. En Masse did a fantastic job giving the community this opportunity, and keeping things fun (like the announcers) and organized!