User blog:Tokugata Kuchikukan/Final Fight! The Newface's Last Dance!

"You can choose the path you want to take, BUT THERE IS NO HAPPY ENDING."

My first taste of an event was Winter 2015. The last day on Easy mode inspired me after seeing a bunch of rare drops. By then, I was merely concerned in getting the ship girls I liked. I wasn't interested in all the equipment, the medal and other things that came with completing higher difficulties. The reward ships were available in all difficulties after all.

The thought of doing Hard mode was way beyond myself that time, seeing as I was merely HQ Level 40 with a few notable ships that can actually participate in a real battle. It sounded like it required serious dedication, mental fortitude and a lot of time. But I did think that someday, I would be able to get on the same stage that everyone had fought in numerous times.

Here I am, on that day.

I've survived everything that was there to impede my progress... the ship class restriction, the combined fleet mechanics, the shiplocking, the extra operation... I'm now free to use the best and the finest girls I have at my disposal to tackle the strongest enemies of the operation, deep within the darkest depths of the sortie menu screen, via the event page.

This is what I was waiting for, the thing I was preparing for over the last couple of months. To confirm that my efforts over the previous battles were not wasted.

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May 3, 2015

E-6 Hard:
 * 1st run - Reached the boss, but I barely left a dent on her. The menacing aura, and those huge numbers and the chunky armor instilled a feeling of uneasiness. Am I really going to be able to beat that monster? It's just the first run and I already feel slightly intimidated.
 * 2nd run - I finally understood what people were talking about. CV Hime crushed Nagato at the preboss with the greatest of ease. She may have let me pass the first time to see for myself what horrors awaited, and at the moment of my hesitation, she sought to strike at my weakened spirit. That, or I just really suck.
 * 3rd run - The run went pretty well. Well enough that I managed to S Rank the boss. It's a great boost to my confidence. Chikuma dropped. Feels slightly like I still lost.
 * 4th run - CV Hime strike once again. This time, her victim was Kaga.
 * 5th run - Suzuya takes a beating from BB Hime at the night battle node and had to retreat. Here I thought that node doesn't do much.
 * 6th run - Reached the boss again, but not enough power to kill her.
 * 7th run - One of the destroyers at Node I lands a critical blow to Sendai. That night battle really backfired on her.
 * 8th run - Reached the boss, and this time, S Rank. Hiryuu dropped, which is very nice as I didn't have her yet and completed my 1stCarDiv+2ndCarDiv carriers for the quest. The boss is at half bar--a very significant progress.
 * 9th run - Once again, an S Rank at the boss. Chikuma dropped again.
 * 10th run - Reached the boss again, however, only managed to chip away half her health.
 * 11th run - Nagato once again becomes a victim at the preboss. I had thought the gatekeeper became lenient.
 * 12th run - Reached the boss and managed to pull another miracle S Rank. Mutsu dropped. I could see it, I was at last dance...
 * 13th run - Maya gets wrecked at Node G. That thing finally did something. Maybe they were inspired by the call of their boss, or I'm just really unlucky because it's number 13.
 * 14th run - Reached the boss once more. No boss kill at all, but hey, at least the bar's completely depleted... but it's still there.
 * 15th run - Just as I couldn't finish off the last dance at E-5, I employed the help of the boss support expedition... which did nothing notable, really. Failed to kill the boss again.
 * 16th run - BB Hime does a cut-in at the night battle node. My heart skipped a beat. 2 damage. Unfortunately, the destroyers did more damage and Kitakami was hammered badly.
 * 17th run - Once again, reached the boss and I was showed how futile my attempts were. Too many ships were hammered at night battle. Ooi was too hurt to seal the deal, but even then, I don't think it would have been enough.

I felt like I was out of ideas that time. My resources, especially my fuel, had dropped by 14,000 just to get her to last dance. I was gripped with a bit of despair, especially considering that I've heard of tales where some people would be stuck at last dance for weeks. Sure, Echo and Dechi, two of the most iconic producers of salt in the game, may have already cleared this time around, but I'm not a veteran like them. I mostly managed to get by through sheer luck. This may have been a cakewalk for most of the old players, but I'm a newface trying to conquer what people told me was crazy.

I had to stop right now before I lose more resources and my mind along with it. It would be unhealthy to impulsively keep trying without an actual game plan.

This is the first map that had me stop for the day, so it was tough on my psyche. I had to clear my mind and read more about the fleet compositions.

In my hour of need, the friend who introduced me to the game came to my aid. The answer was pretty simple: AP Shells all the way. I spent half of Monday crafting non-stop for AP Shells enough for everyone in the fleet who can use them. I'm lucky it needs minimal fuel. The next plan was to sparkle each and every girl I needed, from the combined fleet to the support expedition. Play my cards right, and it should pay off.

I was mostly trying to console myself. The last dance awaits!

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May 4, 2015

E-6 Hard (Last Dance):
 * 18th run (Final) - Made it all the way to the boss, and at the final moment... the last shot... Ooi secured the victory with an important clutch kill. E-6 cleared! It's over! It's over.

The slight delay between the explosion, the sunk line and the results screen felt like an eternity as realization washed over me. It was over. I was done. E-6 cleared on Hard mode. I received the rewards that came with it, and the one I really wanted the most (FuMO), and of course, my first ever "Maso medal".

The culmination of all the effort from March... stockpiling, preventing myself from doing LSC, listening to everyone in chat and my friend for tips and experiences. All the excitement, doubt, fear, anger, happiness faded. I was just simply relieved that it was all over. I cleared it in 18 runs, which probably falls under the category of "pretty lucky". Sure, people have completed it in less and smoother runs, but as my first event, this was an exhilarating experience I'm likely not to forget anytime soon.

My thanks really goes to the wikia and the people in the chat for all the support and information that even a dumb newbie like myself could comprehend and use. Without the wikia, I doubt I could have progressed as much as I did.

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In the end, that's around 40,000 fuel, 30,000 ammo, 30,000 steel, 10,000 bauxite and 300 buckets used in all maps. 3/4 of the new event ships found (Only Roma is missing). Ooi was the most outstanding girl to secure the final kill on the last dance against the E-6 boss. All maps cleared on Hard mode.

Do I feel like I won? Yes. Now I feel like I accomplished something in the game in my newbie career. Do I feel content? Not in the least. The game doesn't end here, and I can only improve now. All the doubts for the next challenge have been erased. I now have the confidence to take on more challenges, and it feels great that my ship girls also gained a lot more experience as we progressed through the event. In a way, I felt like we were growing together during the challenge.

For now, I'm the fool who got lucky. Next time, I'll be the admiral who passed the challenge. Maybe someday, I can become...

...Pretty Decent Player, I guess.

Thanks for reading.