The Kings of Ballista Royale

Ballista Royale. The ultimate Vana'diel tournament that pits adventurer against adventurer.

1350 people (252 teams) took part in this event, and for three months fought heated battles to become the first ever inter-world Ballista champions. In the end, it was the Siren World representative team "Lovehame" that emerged victorious.

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Lovehame (Siren)  Leader
 * Suteki (RDM)

Members
 * Seraphy (WHM)
 * Barlog (RNG)
 * Slayer (DRK)
 * Yosyua (MNK)
 * Rael (BRD)

Tournament Record
 * Final 33 vs 0
 * Semifinal 42 vs 0
 * D Block
 * 3rd Match 41 vs 16 / 2nd Match 25 vs 15 / 1st Match 45 vs 33

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''- How do you feel about being the first ever Ballista Royale Champions? ''

Suteki : It was an honor to win on behalf of our World. Barlog : The first thought in my mind was "All right!". Yosyua : I can only say that I was overjoyed when we won. Seraphy : I was so certain that were going to win, but when we actually did, there was just this tremendous feeling of relief. Rael : I guess all that training paid off lol.

''- So you were confident that you would win? ''

Suteki : There was never any doubt in my mind. Yosyua : With this team, I never felt that we would lose. Seraphy : I felt a lot more confident after winning our block tournament.

''- What would you say was your formula for success? ''

Barlog : Training, planning, and discipline. Suteki : We were just plain better. Yosyua : Teamwork. Seraphy : We played our strengths up well. Rael : Using our DRK as a decoy seemed to be an efficient tactic. Seraphy : We just really dug deep each time. Barlog : We certainly discussed strategy quite often. We changed our tactics several times even during the tournament. Suteki : They might have gotten in one point if they targeted the BRD.

''- Your strategies did seem to be carefully planned out. How much training did you actually put in?''

Suteki : About one to three times a week. Yosyua : We enlisted the help of some Ballista enthusiasts on our World.

''- You used Diorama Abdhaljs for your training? ''

Suteki : Yes.

''- Which would you say was your most difficult match? ''

Suteki : The preliminary tournament final. Seraphy : Yeah, that was a close one.

''- What was it that made that match particularly difficult? ''

Suteki : Both teams still lacked knowledge and experience. We just kind of left our weaknesses exposed. Basically, the only reason we came out on top there was because we were able to use one of our favorite strategies very well. Barlog : Also, the other team was just plain good. Rael : Running away seemed to work well, if I remember. Seraphy : They were good, and we weren't as good as we are now. Suteki : I bet they would have won the entire tournament, if we hadn't beaten them.

Barlog : We had the luxury of having a team like that on our World, that was willing to practice with us as well. That's probably why the finals were a breeze. Yosyua : I would say the Ballista skill level on Siren is quite high. Seraphy : It was so nice of them to help us train even after they lost to us. Suteki : They even came to cheer for us. Yosyua : This feels like a victory for our entire World. Seraphy : I'm sure every team in the tournament felt the same way, but we just couldn't afford to lose. Suteki : No, we would be letting too many people down. Rael : If we had lost that match, we would have done the same. Barlog : Our leader was talking about retiring if we lost lol.

''- What makes Ballista so fun and challenging? ''

Seraphy : Because you're playing against real people, you can't win with just routine strategies. Barlog : Not to sound philosophical, but there's a kind of intricacy in its simplicity. Suteki : It's hard to put into words...

Barlog : It's just a simple matter of picking up stones and throwing them, but there's so many ways of going about it. It's good old-fashioned fun. Suteki : I think that there's a lot of depth in Ballista that hasn't even been explored yet. We're still just newbies as well. Yosyua : You can discover something new every time you play. Different strategies with different jobs, etc.

''- What advice do you have for all the Ballista beginners out there? ''

Yosyua : Well, try it, for a start. It just takes a little bit of courage. Rael : Don't go too far out until you get some experience, although that's good advice for veterans as well. Barlog : I suppose it's good to just try it out in the beginning, but it's important to have a good understanding of the rules. Suteki : You get better every time you play, so there's a certain sense of satisfaction in that. Although some people just want to have a good time I guess... It's difficult to pin it down to one thing.

Seraphy : Watching can be just as important as playing. Barlog : Don't be discouraged is my advice. Suteki : Yes, I agree 100%. Seraphy : Some people get bitter after being KO'd, but the good players are the ones who get up and play again and again. Barlog : It's more important to enjoy yourself than worry about getting better. You'll naturally pick up skills as you go along. Yosyua : Yeah, it's all about trying different things and learning from your mistakes.

Seraphy : Just enjoy yourself. That's all I can say. Slayer : :)

Thus spoke the champions of this illustrious tournament. It is apparent that it was their dedication to research and relentless training that led to their victory.

Perhaps what is most important however is that they enjoy Ballista from the bottom of their hearts.

And that may really be the secret to conquering Ballista Royale.

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