The hidden attribute is Luck.
In competitive sports, skill is the only standard for determining victory. But accidents are always an indispensable and objective part of the game. This is especially true in matchups where the teams are closely matched. Besides on-field performance and a team's condition on any given day, a lucky break can be an unknown factor that determines the outcome of a game.
In ping-pong, it's a net cord or a lucky edge ball. In soccer, it's hitting the crossbar. In basketball, it's a shot that rolls around the rim and doesn't go in. In tennis, it's an unpredictable bounce off the ground. These uncontrollable factors are all parts of the game. In player-on-player clashes, countless mistakes and accidents can happen by a fluke, and they are both uncontrollable and unpredictable. The slightest error can have huge consequences, and this is an important part of the game.
Among many unexpected occurrences, luck can play an unpredictable role. After a quick look at the detailed description of the hidden attribute, Lu Ke immediately understood. Overall, the Luck attribute is consistent with Lu Ke's guess. It mainly affects unforeseen events that are beyond the control of the game. It can't be seen or touched, but it can genuinely influence the outcome of a game.
At the same time, Luck, just like Prediction, can only be used by Lu Ke himself. In other words, it can only affect a quarterback's passing and play-calling. For example, in the interception during today's game, a little bit of luck was missing. Any unexpected events involving the special teams and the defense are outside the scope of Lu Ke's hidden attribute. This is fair; after all, Lu Ke isn't a magical good luck charm whose luck can affect the entire team.
But the problem is...
"Little Seven, you've got to be kidding me. Are you sure the data is right? You're setting me up for failure here!" Lu Ke looked at his Luck attribute, completely dumbfounded. But Little Seven's calm voice echoed in his mind, "Luck is not constant. It changes subtly with different situations and circumstances. There's an old Chinese saying: 'Fortune's wheel turns, fortunes rise and fall.' That is the true meaning of luck."
"...You're sure it's not a feng shui?" Lu Ke was speechless and could only complain, but Little Seven didn't reply, choosing to remain silent. Helplessly, Lu Ke could only force a wry smile.
His eyes fell on the Luck attribute again. The value was a range: -25 to 75. First, this is not a fixed value but a fluctuating one. Second, the minimum value is a negative number, from negative twenty-five to positive seventy-five. This is a first and is different from any previous situation. But after calming down and thinking about it, it's understandable.
As Little Seven said, luck is not a constant. Otherwise, if a person's luck attribute reached its maximum value, every step they took would be a lucky one, they would be truly unstoppable, and it might even break the balance of reality. Then, all Lu Ke would need to do is put all his special points into this hidden attribute and sail smoothly down the path to success. But obviously, that's impossible. So, the luck for each game fluctuates based on the actual situation.
Maybe in a certain game, he's just particularly unlucky. Every pass is a mistake, and every catch is a fumble. In that case, Lu Ke can only sigh and say, "I was missing a little bit of luck."
At this moment, Lu Ke also felt lucky that when he completed the last hidden mission, he chose to increase his skills in a down-to-earth manner instead of opting for the luck attribute. Now, it proves again that his choice was the right one. In competitive sports, absolute skill is the right way to win.
The problem now is that the lowest limit of his luck is negative twenty-five. This number is genuinely shocking and gave Lu Ke a fright. "Little Seven, I thought I was a very lucky person, otherwise the system wouldn't have chosen me, right? Why is my luck a negative value?"
Little Seven didn't answer directly but calmly changed the subject, giving him another set of data. "The luck data range is from negative one hundred to positive one hundred."
"..." Lu Ke's next words got stuck in his throat. "You mean my luck is already pretty good? At least it's not as terrible as negative one hundred?" Little Seven remained silent, but Lu Ke knew that was exactly what it meant. Thinking about it from a positive perspective, at least the minimum value is only negative twenty-five, which isn't a disaster. And the maximum value of seventy-five is also quite good.
Moreover, the system has unlocked this hidden stat, which means that, just like Prediction, he can use special points from completed missions to increase the value. Naturally, his eyes fell to the top right corner of the system page, which showed: "Base Points: 27; Special Points: 1+8 (only for the hidden Luck attribute)."
Without any hesitation, Lu Ke immediately added the eight designated special points to the newly unlocked Luck attribute, but a prompt sounded in his mind: "Would you like to change the lower limit or the upper limit?"
As expected, the Luck attribute can be changed. By adding enough special points, the value can move out of the negative range and into the positive. But it's a pain that you can't change both the lower and upper limits at the same time and have to do them one by one. On one hand, Lu Ke was again glad he didn't greedily choose the Luck attribute earlier. On the other hand, Lu Ke mused that since changing the Luck attribute is so difficult, does that mean the effect in real life is very significant? The more difficult something is, the stronger the effect, right?
After thinking about it carefully, Lu Ke decided to change the lower limit. At this stage, he needs to focus on his own skills and improve them steadily rather than relying too much on luck. So, changing the lower limit to avoid catastrophic accidents is the priority. As for increasing the upper limit, he can do that later.
So, the Luck attribute became -17 to 75, a big step toward getting rid of the negative value.
Then, Lu Ke added the other special point to Prediction, which went from 81 to 82. This hidden attribute's impact on the game is undoubtedly more obvious, and it's a quality Lu Ke urgently needs to improve.
After adding those points, Lu Ke's eyes fell on his other stats. With 27 base points, he needed to use them where they mattered most to truly elevate his skills to the next level.
First, he added five points to Tactical Awareness, bringing it to 95. If all goes as planned, this will be the first stat Lu Ke maxes out. Deep down, he felt a little excited. However, this excitement only lasted for a moment because Lu Ke knows that even if all his stats are maxed out, it doesn't guarantee he'll win every game. Football is a sport that heavily relies on teamwork, and even a quarterback can't always perform at 100% of their ability in every game.
Second, he added eight points to Field Vision, bringing it from 82 to 90. This skill complements tactical awareness and has been a core part of Lu Ke's ability to lead the offense this season. Now, Field Vision has become the second stat to reach 90 points. Strengths need to be continuously optimized to increase his competitiveness.
Third, he carefully considered how to allocate points to the six sub-items under passing ability: Short Pass Accuracy, Medium Pass Accuracy, Long Pass Accuracy, Tactical Zone Accuracy, Passing on the Run, and Running with the Ball. Simply put, the six sub-items are a quarterback's passing skills. The first four are for stable passing in the pocket, and the last two are for passing accurately while scrambling after the pocket breaks or under pressure. In an actual game, the value of the last two items can, to some extent, affect the performance of the first four. Lu Ke's first instinct was to enhance his Passing on the Run and Running with the Ball abilities. In desperate situations, they can often create more passing opportunities.
However, the 49ers' offensive line has been playing more and more steadily recently, and the pocket has become more solid. The need for Lu Ke to voluntarily or involuntarily scramble out of the pocket is decreasing. Also, at his core, Lu Ke is still a traditional pocket quarterback, and running with the ball is a secondary option in his tactical awareness.
After careful consideration, Lu Ke decided to first strengthen his fundamental quarterback skills, which are his strengths as a pocket quarterback. So, Long Pass Accuracy increased from 82 to 85, Medium Pass Accuracy from 80 to 83, and Short Pass Accuracy from 80 to 83. The remaining five base points were all added to Tactical Zone Accuracy, which went from 70 to 75.
The 27 base points were used up in a flash. Lu Ke's strategy for allocating his base points is simple: focus on improving his quarterback skills, more specifically, the fundamental skills of a pocket quarterback. Maximizing his strengths and advantages has been the basis of Lu Ke's success in games, as proven in the past few weeks.
Now, most of his pocket quarterback skills have been raised to a new level, above 70. Moving forward, Lu Ke needs to shift his focus a bit and improve other stats, such as Play Action Passing (45 points), Ball Security (59 points), Injury Resistance (77 points), Stamina (80 points), and Recovery (75 points). These all need to be improved so Lu Ke doesn't fall behind in the second half of the regular season.
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