Overlord (Episode 13) - Player VS Non Player Character

Shaltear survived Lord Ainz’s big attack, but that is exactly what he expected. In fact, even though Shaltear thinks she’s won, everything has gone the way Ainz expected it to. This fight is over!

Overlord (Episode 13) – Player VS Non Player Character

What happened?

Shaltear survived the attack that ended her copy and turned a large chunk of the forest into a desert. The fight was hers to be won. Well, at least that’s what she thought after forcing Lord Ainz to use up all of his MP. Of course, he had been hiding his true MP and that wasn’t the only thing. He bluffed his way through the fight, forcing her to use up all her skills and abilities. He pretended that fire didn’t hurt him and made it seem like holy magic was effective against him. In player versus player, it’s all about deception. You have to force your opponent to underestimate you. When they do, they play into your hands!

Ainz used the legendary items that the other guild members had left him before logging out of the game for the last time. With those, he was near unstoppable, but even that was just a plan to buy time. He knew that a super-tier spell wouldn’t be enough to kill her if she was at max HP. And with the time it would take to cast, she would be able to stop him or recover. However, he started the spell before the fight began and now his timer had run out. The spell was ready. Shaltear desperately tried to recover her HP, but it was too late. Ainz had to watch as she died before him. Then, he returned to Nazarick, hoping that the next part of his plan would go as well.

Overlord Episode 13 Lord Ainz weapon change

Overlord Episode 13 Lord Ainz weapon change bow

What did you think?

This was a thrilling conclusion to the fight. I loved how confident Ainz was and how he made Shaltear do exactly what he wanted. Of course, he has far more experience in player-versus-player fights. Shaltear is just working off her initial programming, which Ainz has access to and has been studying. It’s like fighting a boss in a video game. Once you’ve worked out the pattern, you just have to execute the plan and you succeed. I loved how Ainz explained it all to Shaltear, buying him a little more time. She really didn’t stand a chance.

And then, he resurrected her using vast amounts of gold. I think he’ll need to ensure that there is someone else who can cast that spell in the future. Should anything happen to him, it would be nice to know he has a backup plan. Anyhow, it all ended well with Ainz taking the blame for what happened to Shaltear. He let his guard down. That won’t happen again. I think this experience only served to make him more ruthless going forward.

Overlord Episode 13 Shaltear realises she's lost

Overlord Episode 13 Lord Ainz super tier magic

What have you learned?

This fight showed us how important it is to have good information about your opponent and how that can make for an incredibly uneven fight. Even with the deck stacked in Ainz’s favour, he still managed to make it an entertaining affair. You have to wonder if he couldn’t have finished things a little sooner, but of course, that wouldn’t have made for as good an ending… Or would it? I’m reminded of the final fight in Chivalry of a Failed Knight where it was between two swordsmen who were at the top of their game. The fight ended in seconds with a single attack, but it was tense and incredibly satisfying.

I mentioned earlier in the series about fights going on too long and the combatants going on with a seemingly endless supply of energy and they never get sloppy as a result. In reality, there are two kinds of fights. Ones that are finished quickly because you’re dealing with masters or ones that go on for ages as the two parties knock lumps out of one another until the other can’t go on. Those tend to get messy. The fighters get sloppy and it comes down to a lucky hit or who can keep their focus longer. This fight was actually less than three minutes despite spanning two episodes, so it wasn’t as drawn out as it might seem. Not that I’m complaining. It was a great way to end the first season.