DUEL 2 NEWSLETTER Date : 03/10/2022 Duedate: 03/23/2022 DAYLA KIV ARENA DM-74 TURN-735 This Weeks Top Honors THE DUELMASTER IS GOSHAWK FEROCIOUS ANIMALS (572) (74-4843) [13-3-0,104] Chartered Recognition Leader Unchartered Recognition Leader GOSHAWK POSITION IS EMPTY FEROCIOUS ANIMALS (572) (74-4843) [13-3-0,104] Popularity Leader This Weeks Favorite LORIS TEN JOLE LORIS TEN JOLE SAND DANCERS (251) SAND DANCERS (251) (74-4828) [16-12-1,85] (74-4828) [16-12-1,85] THE CURRENT TOP TEAM FEROCIOUS ANIMALS (572) TEAMS ON THE MOVE TOP CAREER HONORS Team Name Point Gain Chartered Team 1. FEROCIOUS ANIMALS (572) 27 2. SAND DANCERS (251) 12 FEROCIOUS ANIMALS (572) 3. SPROUT OF MY WAY! (555) 0 Unchartered Team 4. JESS SAYS (576) 0 5. SATAN'S SINGLES 2 (575) 0 (-1) The Top Teams Career Win-Loss Record W L K % Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns W L K 1- 1*JESS SAYS (576) 2 0 0 100 1/ 1 FEROCIOUS ANIMALS (572) 5 3 0 2- 2*SATAN'S SINGLES 2 (575) 6 2 0 75.0 2/ 2 SAND DANCERS (251) 5 10 0 3- 3 SPROUT OF MY WAY! (555) 191 68 10 73.7 3- 3 SPROUT OF MY WAY! (555) 4 0 1 4/ 4 FEROCIOUS ANIMALS (572) 35 17 1 67.3 4- 5*JESS SAYS (576) 1 0 0 5/ 5 SAND DANCERS (251) %1650 %1885 54 46.7 5- 4*SATAN'S SINGLES 2 (575) 1 1 0 '*' Unchartered team '-' Team did not fight this turn (###) Avoid teams by their Team Id ##/## This turn's/Last turn's rank DUELMASTER'S COLUMN Notes from the arena champ. I can fly. Can you? I have long sharp talons. Do you? I eat only meat. Do you? I am Duelmaster. Are you? -- Goshawk, DMIV SPY REPORT If you were disturbed from your beauty rest only to have to watch a bunch of DAYLA KIV brutes like you, you'd be grouchy, too. Of course, we're all terribly impressed to see BULL win a fight and gain 21 points, terribly. Tsk, tsk, DANGEROUS BON LOKAR beat HALO GREEN and HALO GREEN lost 9 points. You're breakin' my heart. And if variety is the spice of life, DAYLA KIV may be getting bland, as GOSHAWK stays top dog in the city. I'm not in a very good mood today, but why am I telling you this? You want to know what's new, don't you, DAYLA KIV? Well, let's take a look at some more misdeeds of you miserable sword-boys. DAYLA KIV, I am losing what little hope I had in you. SPROUT OF MY WAY! the most avoided team? What insult will suffice, I cannot say. And it looks like FEROCIOUS ANIMALS avoided them the most this turn. What a pack of would be losers, if you ask me. Hmph. Death and Taxes. The less death I see, the more it taxes my patience. Let's see if anyone's dead or dying. We're all going to die in the end, so why worry if the fate catches up with you sooner that later? I was about to buy a new quill pen the other day, but some fighter took it for an epee. Forgive me for writing with a dagger. Phlllt! Just had to do that before I leave the fine city of DAYLA KIV. I feel much better now. Paste this one in your scrapbooks, you'll need the kindling come this winter-- Snide Clemens DUELMASTER W L K POINTS TEAM NAME GOSHAWK 4843 13 3 0 104 FEROCIOUS ANIMALS (572) CHALLENGER CHAMPIONS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME -WHISKERS N' STRIPES 4822 12 0 0 117 SPROUT OF MY WAY! (555) CHAMPIONS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME LORIS TEN JOLE 4828 16 12 1 85 SAND DANCERS (251) TARAN TEN SALTH 4811 17 19 0 81 SAND DANCERS (251) -DIRTY WATER 4862 6 2 0 70 SATAN'S SINGLES 2 (575) CHALLENGER ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME ALDEN DENNY 4812 13 23 1 63 SAND DANCERS (251) BULL 4859 5 1 0 61 FEROCIOUS ANIMALS (572) -MONGOOSE 4847 5 4 0 58 FEROCIOUS ANIMALS (572) ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME -JANKY 4868 2 0 0 55 JESS SAYS (576) -ROSIE 4841 5 1 0 52 SPROUT OF MY WAY! (555) -EVIL MASCHA 4753 2 1 1 48 SPROUT OF MY WAY! (555) HALO GREEN 4842 6 11 1 39 SAND DANCERS (251) -SKUNK 4845 5 4 1 36 FEROCIOUS ANIMALS (572) INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME -REMY 4873 3 0 0 23 SPROUT OF MY WAY! (555) FELTER THE LAME 4886 1 1 0 16 SAND DANCERS (251) -RABID RAT 4879 0 1 0 1 FEROCIOUS ANIMALS (572) '-' denotes a warrior who did not fight this turn. THE DEAD W L K TEAM NAME SLAIN BY TURN Revenge? SHREW 4844 4 3 0 FEROCIOUS ANIMAL 572 HALO GREEN 4842 731 NOT REVENGED FIELDER 4871 1 4 0 SAND DANCERS 251 EVIL MASCHA 4753 733 PERSONAL ADS Goshawk -- Glad you won that. -- Loris ten Jole Dirty Water -- With all those skills, you should be able to clean it up. Do it now! No delay. -- Taran ten Salth Throw the Dirty Ruffian into the Dirty Water. He deserves it. -- Alden Denny Alden is such a wuss. The dirty ruffian wasn't so hard. -- Halo Green That damned nomad tried to bury me in the sands. It shouldn't be allowed. -- Felter the Lame LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS GOSHAWK devastated TARAN TEN SALTH in a 1 minute mismatched Title fight. LORIS TEN JOLE won victory over MADAME U-TANA in a 2 minute expert's battle. ALDEN DENNY was demolished by BULL in a 1 minute uneven fight. HALO GREEN was devastated by DANGEROUS BON LOKAR in a 1 minute one-sided contest. FELTER THE LAME overpowered SHAMELESS BEGGAR in a 1 minute mismatched match. BATTLE REPORT MOST POPULAR RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS |FIGHTING STYLE FIGHTS FIGHTING STYLE W - L - K PERCENT| |WALL OF STEEL 3 STRIKING ATTACK 19 - 7 - 1 73 | |STRIKING ATTACK 2 SLASHING ATTACK 11 - 6 - 0 65 | |SLASHING ATTACK 1 PARRY-RIPOSTE 5 - 5 - 1 50 | |PARRY-RIPOSTE 1 BASHING ATTACK 1 - 1 - 0 50 | |AIMED BLOW 0 LUNGING ATTACK 2 - 2 - 0 50 | |PARRY-LUNGE 0 AIMED BLOW 5 - 6 - 1 45 | |PARRY-STRIKE 0 WALL OF STEEL 14 - 21 - 0 40 | |LUNGING ATTACK 0 TOTAL PARRY 0 - 0 - 0 0 | |BASHING ATTACK 0 PARRY-STRIKE 0 - 1 - 0 0 | |TOTAL PARRY 0 PARRY-LUNGE 0 - 0 - 0 0 | Turn 735 was great if you Not so great if you used The fighting styles of the used the fighting styles: the fighting styles: top eleven warriors are: SLASHING ATTACK 1 - 0 WALL OF STEEL 1 - 2 4 WALL OF STEEL STRIKING ATTACK 2 - 0 AIMED BLOW 0 - 0 3 STRIKING ATTACK PARRY-LUNGE 0 - 0 2 LUNGING ATTACK PARRY-STRIKE 0 - 0 1 SLASHING ATTACK PARRY-RIPOSTE 0 - 1 1 AIMED BLOW LUNGING ATTACK 0 - 0 BASHING ATTACK 0 - 0 TOTAL PARRY 0 - 0 TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE FIGHTING STYLE WARRIOR W L K PNTS TEAM NAME SLASHING ATTACK GOSHAWK 4843 13 3 0 104 FEROCIOUS ANIMALS (572) WALL OF STEEL LORIS TEN JOLE 4828 16 12 1 85 SAND DANCERS (251) STRIKING ATTACK BULL 4859 5 1 0 61 FEROCIOUS ANIMALS (572) Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above. The overall popularity leader is LORIS TEN JOLE 4828. The most popular warrior this turn was LORIS TEN JOLE 4828. The ten other most popular fighters were GOSHAWK 4843, BULL 4859, HALO GREEN 4842, FELTER THE LAME 4886, TARAN TEN SALTH 4811, ALDEN DENNY 4812, 0, 0, 0, and 0. The least popular fighter this week was ALDEN DENNY 4812. The other ten least popular fighters were TARAN TEN SALTH 4811, FELTER THE LAME 4886, HALO GREEN 4842, BULL 4859, GOSHAWK 4843, LORIS TEN JOLE 4828, 0, 0, 0, and 0. NAME CHANGE-O-RAMA Algernon, who had NOT gotten the name change he'd asked for, looked at the latest petitioner. This was a typical gladiator, big, muscular, and scarred, with a frown. "Ah, what can I do for you?" "Name change. I heard we can do that. I'm tired of being Jane Doe." "I'd think you would be," Algernon said faintly. "The Commission has actually been thinking about this. It isn't FREE, mind you! It takes money to run our office, you know, and we want to buy some goats--" "I don't care about goats!" He made a crude suggestion about goats. "Or maybe chickens. Or bees--" Algernon took a quick step back at the look on the rough warrior's face. "Yes, a name change. Right away, sir. We can do that. Gladiators, teams, it will cost you two dollars to make a change--" "I had a talk with my manager. He'll find the money. I want to change my name to Jane Ralph. I'm no doe!" He thumped a fist on the counter. "Er, yes. Jane Ralph. Fill out this form, please." He pushed the paper across the counter. "The changes start on the 15th of April--that's the Ides, you know, and can be submitted through the end of May. With the payment. No change without the goat, ah, the gold." * * * * * Warrior and team name changes will be accepted beginning April 15 and continuing throughout the month of May. The cost will be $2 per name change. All proceeds will be used to buy goats via Heifer International and will be matched up to $500. If you have names you want to change, please contact Customer Service. -- RSI WINTER BLOODGAMES 2022 Back by popular demand, we will be hosting a new slow Bloodgames mailed arena beginning in late April. We also plan our usual Bloodgames arenas at the summer Face- to-Face. For those of you who always wanted the chance to manage the last warrior standing alive upon the arena sands, your day has come. At the end of the ten turns, even though several warriors, bruised and scarred, MAY yet live, only one will be crowned Champion of the Bloodgames. And in this game mere survival counts for little. A great general once said, "The object of battle is not to die for your cause, but to make your enemy die for his." This general would have greatly enjoyed the Duelmasters Bloodgames. Here are the particulars: Slow Bloodgames (DM 95): Turn 1 is due Weds April 27 Turns process every 28 days Strategy changes allowed, bloodfeud challenges only Gameplay proceeds according to standard DM rules, except for a few notable exceptions: BLOODGAMES ROLLUP -- Your Bloodgames team is ten warriors, one of each fighting style, each warrior designed from scratch! (All are DYOs (design your owns) with 84 points, 3-21, as usual.) To submit your rollup, just write/type them up and send them in. We'll mail or email your overviews and you can write up your strategies. DEATH -- As the name implies, the Bloodgames will leave the arena sands somewhat darker before they're over. It's a dangerous sport intended only for the tough and spirited. The Arenamaster will be less likely to intercede on behalf of a dying warrior. Even at a 1 kill desire, kill attempts will occur. REPLACEMENTS AND ROLLUPS -- There will be no replacement characters. CHALLENGES AND STRATEGIES -- In this turn-based bloodgames, there are no regular challenges, only bloodfeuds. There will be no DA challenges in either arena. TURN PROCESSING AND DUE DATES -- DM 95 is due April 27 and will process on a 28-day schedule. MISSED TURNS -- All warriors fight each round. Only the dead may rest. ERRORS -- If we make an input error, that warrior will be awarded a win and kill. Errors must be reported before the next turn processes. NEWSLETTER -- Warriors are ranked according to their number of kills. Champions of Bloodgames may write a column for the newsletter at the end of the games. FEES -- A Bloodgames rollup costs a $10 set-up fee. Managers may roll up more than one team but may run only one team in each arena. The fee for all ten rounds is $49. AWARDS -- The Bloodgames last ten rounds. Only warriors who survive to the end of Turn 10 will be eligible for an award. However, a consolation award of a Bloodgames T-shirt will be awarded to the dead warrior with the most kills. The living warrior with the greatest number of kills will be the Bloodgames Champion. Bloodgames Victor titles, 2nd and 3rd place, and Bloodgames Runner-up titles, 4th through 6th place, will be awarded to those living warriors with the greatest number of kills at the end of Turn 10, with one other important consideration: Each of these six warriors must be of a different fighting style. Win/loss records and, if necessary, recognition points will only be used to determine awards if there is a tie. A Bloodgames T-shirts will be awarded to the manager of the team with the most kills. The Bloodgames Champion fights for free in Advanced Duelmasters, and all Champions and Victors earn Tournament Victor status, which allows them to challenge once per turn with increased priority. These awards last for six months. The manager of the Bloodgames Champion, Victors, and Runners-up will receive Bloodgames T-shirts. AFTERMATH -- Warriors from the Bloodgames may not transfer to any other arena. Once the games are over, the arena and teams will be disbanded. The fighters have won their freedom and will never more be seen in the gladiatorial games. A special bonus will, however, be awarded to the 1st through 3rd place warriors. Lady Sheila Greywand, of the Isle of the Eye, has consented to allow the top three gladiators in each Bloodgames admission to the Advanced Duelmasters games. Any special training required to qualify those three warriors for Advanced Duelmasters combat will be conducted before transfer into ADM. Astute managers will note that this means that three warriors that are designed from scratch will survive the Bloodgames, win one of the top three places, and go on to immortal glory! One of those warriors could be yours! The challenge is yours to take. The final plans are yours to make. When the dust settles, remember: To the victor goes the spoils! MY TAKE ON THE PARRY SLASH I'm sure I'm not covering any new ground with my insights on the Wall of Steel. It is my best fighting style and a favorite. I have currently 3 in ADM, and about a half dozen active in the arenas with one currently undefeated and Duelmaster in DM 41. So a bit about my observations. Like most defensive styles it seems to work best to run these guys offensively while they are young so I outfit them and run them like a slasher. They favor the initiative, parry and attack skills which sucks a bit in ADM because they lack in defense skill and since defense is king in the late game, Walls of Steel fall back into the pack quite a bit. It stinks but done right they can hold their own vs anyone except end game lungers and aimed blows who seem to be way OP at that level. Anyway, stats are important of course. Strength should at least be 9+ to get slashing weapons. Con can be lower; I have gotten away with a con of 7 because I run them fast and furious anyway so if they get out jumped or crit dodged and ripped then they go down easy. Most fights are over in minute 1 anyway. Size is a thing; smaller sizes would be nice but you have issues with damage if you go low size and strength less than 11. I have an upper limit of around 14 size and a lower one of 5 in my current crew. Wit is a no brainer: 15+ is almost mandatory but I am running one with a 13 that is doing ok but learning slows down to a crawl if you have less than 15. Will is super necessary so I try not to go below 15 here with a build. Speed isn't really a priority, so I often go as low as 3 here and they still do very well. More speed would be nice, but speed is a luxury and not a necessity. Deftness is nice, I won't run a WOS with less than a 13 here; my highest is 21 with a current ADM build. Now how to run them. Well, minute one is offensive so I typically run 10-10-6 and then taper off to a high offensive effort and a low or moderate activity level. It seems that the majority of my ADM builds prefer a high-low pace. So a couple of current warrior builds to show off the style. Midnight, currently in ADM -- 9-11(2)-10-17-15-3-21, about to start stat raises but currently has ad masters in attack and initiative. Ishmail currently in Home Guard -- 12-9-6-15-17-9-15, currently at 93 skills and wont be stat raising for a minute. Average Joe in Mordant -- 11-11-14-13-13-9-13, painfully bad at learning and definitely not recommended for the faint of heart. Beowulf in Seam -- 11-12-9-15-17-3-17, currently at 54 skills and near the top of the arena. Has fallen on hard times of late because of diminishing returns on skill learns. Broken in Shadowspire -- 9-14-9-17-17-5-13, very new and probably going to be a .500 warrior when it's all said and done because of the low speed and deftness combo. Bender in DM 41 -- 9-7-14-17-17-3-17, currently undefeated and duelmaster, won't last long but he started out as a tourney warrior and has gone at best 6-3 and went 4-3 in this past mail-in as an adept. So for anyone who doesn't know, a speed and deftness of 21 total is needed to get normal coordination and a combo of 28 is needed to get the "fights well with either hand" tag on your roll up. So not really relevant to the topic but just thought I'd throw that out there. I like to keep this total at the very least 18 to get slightly uncoordinated on all my builds because coordination is vital to defense and attack. Okay, that's my take on this fun style. If I have enlightened anyone then you are welcome, I hope I at least entertained everyone. Take it easy. -- Eli