DUEL 2 NEWSLETTER
Date : 07/23/2005 Duedate: 08/05/2005
NOBLISH ISLAND ARENA
DM-93 TURN-188
This Weeks Top Honors
THE DUELMASTER IS
NIN QUAYNE
MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374)
(93-7959) [6-3-0,69]
Chartered Recognition Leader Unchartered Recognition Leader
POSITION IS EMPTY NIN QUAYNE
MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374)
(93-7959) [6-3-0,69]
Popularity Leader This Weeks Favorite
NIN QUAYNE MALLE PENNELIS
MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374) MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374)
(93-7959) [6-3-0,69] (93-7958) [7-2-0,46]
THE CURRENT TOP TEAM
MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374)
TEAMS ON THE MOVE TOP CAREER HONORS
Team Name Point Gain Chartered Team
1. TEMPESTUOUS SWINE (1381) 53
2. MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374) 2 BANE'S CHILDREN (235)
3. MATERIA MAGICA (1376) 0 Unchartered Team
TEMPESTUOUS SWINE (1381)
The Top Teams
Career Win-Loss Record W L K % Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns W L K
1/ 0*TEMPESTUOUS SWINE (1381) 4 1 0 80.0 1/ 1*MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374) 10 5 0
2/ 1*MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374) 29 16 0 64.4 2/ 0*TEMPESTUOUS SWINE (1381) 4 1 0
3- 2*MATERIA MAGICA (1376) 14 11 2 56.0 3- 2*MATERIA MAGICA (1376) 4 6 0
'*' Unchartered team '-' Team did not fight this turn
(###) Avoid teams by their Team Id ##/## This turn's/Last turn's rank
TEAM SPOTLIGHT
+ ]H[ + ---:--- + ]H[ The Lighthouse ]H[ + ---:--- + ]H[ +
Where do you go when you leave Noblish Island?
After ten turns, just when you're getting used to the everlasting rain here on
Noblish Island, you're going to have to leave forever. Everyone (except me) leaves
after ten turns.
You have to go, but you get to choose your destination. Out of sixty or so
possible arenas, how do you choose?
Some of you will be following friends who have already gone, and for you this
question is moot. Otherwise....
Fast or slow? Noblish Island is a "fast" arena in that the fights are run every
two weeks. For some of you, this may not allow enough turn-around time. "Slow"
arenas run every four weeks. The slow arenas are 8, 28, 31, 39, 45, 47, 50, 52, 54,
59, and the three slow transfer arenas, 71, 72, and 73. You may have an unlimited
number of teams in a transfer arena, and many managers do; I would not recommend
choosing a transfer arena for your first non-Noblish home.
Regions--the world of Duelmasters is divided into four regions, which have
slightly different preferred style of management.
The Andorian region as a general rule tends toward a role-playing, non-killing
style of play. By "non-killing," I mean that Andorian managers perfer not to seek
kills and disapprove of down-challenging. In most (but not, alas, all) cases,
Andorian arenas will have lively personals. The Andorian arenas currently open are:
8 (slow), 11, 14, 22, 24, 25, 26, 30, 40, 41, 46, 52 (slow), 60, 63, and 71.
The Delarquan region, except in the case of some of the slow arenas, is not much
prone to role-playing and convesation. For Delarquans, the win is all. Down-
challenging is an accepted tactic used when desired by any manager. Deaths may be
more frequent than elsewhere. The Delarquan arenas currently open are: 1, 2, 3, 4,
5, 6, 7, 10, 18, 21, 36, 38, 39 (slow), 42, 51, 54 (slow), 59 (slow), 62, and 72.
The Free Blades region tends to be very active in the slow arenas and less
dogmatic in either direction about style of play. Free Blades arenas currently open
are: 9, 12, 15, 16, 17, 19, 28 (slow, currently hosting a contest), 29, 31 (slow),
32, 33, 35, 43, 45 (slow), 47 (slow), 50 (slow), 56, 61, and 73.
The Lirith Kai region is the youngest and is currently very small, having only
arenas 65, 74, 75, and 78 open at the present time. There is a tendency to prefer
the Andorian-style, "no down-challenges and no deliberate killing," but the managers
seem to be less dogmatic about it.
Note that currently contests of various kinds are being held in several arenas.
Some are just starting, some are just about done, others are in the middle. Contest
arenas will tend to be bigger than others while the contest is going on, and full of
often-confusing personals.
Large arenas or small ones?
There are advantages for a new manager in either choice. In a large arena,
there are lots of managers who will be willing to help a novice. There will be a lot
of variety in the kind of competition your warriors come up against--varieties in
style, management, levels of skill. You can learn a lot in large arenas. But there
are drawbacks, too. You can get lost in the crowd, maybe find no one or only a few
of the available responding to your personals. You can get caught between feuding
factions.
In small arenas, you soon get to know every manager's playing style and what to
expect from their warriors. If you write personals, they will be noticed and
probably responded to. But just as you get to know all the managers and warriors
sharing the arena with you, so will they get to know you. You may see a lot of
standbys fighting, and while they are relatively easier to beat, they don't teach as
well. After a while, you won't meet with many surprises.
If you have access to the internet, I strongly recommend that you check out
RSI's website and sample the newsletters of various arenas to get the flavor of them.
If not, ask for advice. Diplo managers mentioned in the Regional Arena News from
arenas you're interested in, as they are likely to be leaders in those arenas. Ask
questions here, in the personals or by diplo. I'd like to see you all have the best
possible Duelmasters experience that's consistent with other people doing the same,
and I ALWAYS have opinions!
Jorja
The Middle Way
+>]H[<+-----+>]H[<+ Question of the Week #1 +>]H[<+-----+>]H[<+
Hanibal, manager of Cannibalz in Aruak City (DM 11) and formerly of Noblish
Island, has asked a series of questions of the experienced managers of that arena. I
believe you might find these questions and answers instructive, or at least
interesting. Feel free to comment or question in response. That goes for other
experienced managers, too; I'm sure your input would be valuable. -- Jorja, The
Middle Way
Question, turn 396:
All -- If 2 identical warriors (theoretically) ran 10-10-2 and 10-10-8, who
would swing first? Would they both have an equal chance? -- Hanibal's question of
the week
Replies, turn 397:
Hanibal -- Of the three numbers, I think KD is least influential in determining
who swings first. I'm not discounting its involvement entirely, but there are many
factors that weigh more heavily. I ran aimers 10-10-1 for a long time, when it was
the 'in' thing to do, and they fought quite aggressively. KD might be more important
in determining who swings LAST. -- Generalissimo Puerco
Hannibal -- I firmly believe that 10-10-2 will sometimes outjump 10-10-8. And
vice versa. -- Kennelworth The Seasoned
See also Captain K's article on "Getting the Jump." It was printed in this
newsletter a few turns ago, but if you want a copy and don't have it, email me at
jputney@zianet.com and I'll send it to you. Okay, okay, if you don't have email,
request it in the personals or even send me a diplo. -- Jorja
P.S. I believe this may now be included in the regularly cycling articles.
Question, turn 397:
All -- If two warriors have a good damage rating, one has 11 str. and one has 13
str., would it make a difference in the amount of damage they do? -- Hanibal's Q.O.W.
P.S. Warriors are same size.
Replies, turn 398:
Hanibal -- Regarding your QoW, it is a very good question. I think that there
is a difference in damage done between warriors with different strengths but similar
damage comments. Of course the attack rating a warrior has can make a world of
difference too. I've got a piker (the Consortium may know Lustra from DM 52) that
has a 5 str. and does normal damage with a blow. Yet, she performs like a warrior
that does little damage. (And I have a lot of experience with those.) Not only
that, she has normal endurance, too, but she seems to get tired awfully quick for a
piker with normal endurance. So that's one example. Another is my overall look at
warriors that do 'little' damage.
If you take one with 9 str. and another with 13 str. I think a clear Difference
can be discerned. On the high end, my experience doesn't go much past 'good' damage.
But what I can say is that my warriors that do 'good' damage seem to do more damage
than my few warriors that have done 'tremendous' damage. That is probably because
those big strong warriors have relatively lousy attack ratings. So in a nutshell I
would say yes, there is a minor but still noticeable effect. What you might be
finding is that there seems to be differences within those broad categories given on
the warrior overview. It's just like if you raise con you improve your warrior's
ability to sustain damage a little bit, even if the comment on the overview stays the
same. Your questions are getting at some of the interesting subtleties of the game.
Keep asking them! -- Generalissimo Puerco
Q.O.W. (Hanibal) -- I don't think so. -- Adie
Pagan's replies:
Question, turn 396:
All -- If 2 identical warriors (theoretically) ran 10-10-2 and 10-10-8, who
would swing first? Would they both have an equal chance?
This is a loaded question. There are a number of factors which will determine which
warrior swings first. In speaking of this I can only tell you what I have a 'feel'
for. In no way does anyone know all the factors or how this works exactly unless
someone gets to look at the source code for the program. I will ignore the KD
dispute simply because I don't know.
The Factors:
1. At warrior creation, the program initiates a random string class to be used for
your warrior. Each string has a series of numbers that are pre-generated and always
the same. It however appears random except for the facts that some strings are good
for some warriors and bad for others. You'll notice this only over time. This
string class is permanent and not all of them are created equal. This is above and
beyond any total number of skills.
2. At fight time, the program calls a random string to be used for BOTH warriors.
This string affects the string of the warrior. This is why you will never see two
fights that are line-by-line exactly the same. But if the fights were constantly run
with exactly the same string, and no strategy changes are made then you will
consistently have the same fight line-by-line.
3. Fight-String modified Warrior-String# are taken for each warrior and #Decise-
skills + OE + string# + tactic + weapon-weight + style-adjustment equates to a
number.
4. These bonuses could be negative in adjustments also: IE. Running responsiveness
would be the addition of a negative number equal to warrior's Decise. Running decise
would increase a lot, running lunge, slash, or bash use initiative instead of Decise
if higher than current #decise skills.
4. Biggest controllable factors are OE, tactic, & weapon-weight
5. If the number for JUMP does not have a disparity of a specific number then a
continued clash will occur until that disparity is shown. Then the fight actually
begins. You can have a series of 8+ clash statements until the program finds who
starts and initiates the fight sequences. Example: fighterA ends up with a jump# of
60 and fighterB ends up with a jump# of 65; if the disparity had to be 10 points then
what would happen is a clash statement would be printed and the steps repeated. The
next number from the Fight-String is called along with the next number in each of the
Warrior-strings ; the computation is done again until the disparity (for the computer
anyway) becomes true. Then the fight sequence is activated. -- Pagan
Question, turn 397:
All -- If two warriors have a good damage rating, one has 11 str. And one has 13
str., would it make a difference in the amount of damage they do? -- Hanibal's Q.O.W.
P.S. Warriors are same size.
Most definitely. Weapon damage is equated to Strength + damage class. So damage is
done like this:
1. Armor weight + 12 + any bonus it has vs weapon type is a negative to the damage
done. (How the hell did he get 12!?)
2. Damage done is strength + damage class variable + weapon variable.
3. Slashing & Bashing increase the damage done.
4. When the damage done equals 1 or less then there is a weapon bounce statement.
The minimum damage a blow can do is 1 point of damage. The program knows there's a
hit before it knows damage so you can't reverse a hit, you merely take a minimum of 1
point of damage to your hit-points.
5. The lower your strength then more bounces you will see. The lower your damage
class the more bounces you will see. The lighter weight a weapon is vs the armor its
hitting the more bounces you will see.
6. In reverse to #5, all of those secondary-damage statements (often referred to as
extra-damage statements) such as "it was a devastating blow"... "what a massive blow"
-- these merely show that you hit your opponent with enough damage to exceed the
computer secondary-damage statement threshold. Your warrior caused enough damage to
exceed a programmed set number (whatever that number may be) and the fight is only
showing that you exceeded that number. The programmed number for the secondary-damage
threshold is a Hard number: it is constant within the program and is used for all
fights and all warriors. It is not random. It has nothing to do with how much
damage you did in relation to your opponent's hit-points either. If you exceed that
number in damage, you get a printed statement showing that to be the case. There is
no such thing as Extra-Damage. -- Pagan
Question, turn 398:
All -- If you lower your kill desire in desperation, do you have less of a chance of
being killed? -- Hanibal's Q.O.W.
Replies, turn 399:
Q.O.W. -- I think that if your KD is lower in desperation, you're more likely to
surrender than draw out the fight. Drawing out the fight by having a higher KD gives
the attacker more chance to kill you. But you could defend and make a come-back.
But that higher KD also lowers your defensive ability somewhat. -- Adie
Hanibal's Q.o.W -- Yes, lowering your own KD helps keep you alive and allows you to
surrender...hopefully in time. -- Armalias
Hanibal -- The choice of kill desire in desperation seems to be a very tactically
important one. I do believe that lowering kill desire will tend to preserve a
warrior's life by making him give up (and end the fight) sooner. This also means
the warrior may end up losing fights he could have won if he had hung around. I
think scum strategy is a good example of this. While it may be counterintuitive, a
good scum strategy involves using a moderate to high kill desire. This is done to
prevent them from giving up prematurely. Also, most managers don't care too much if
their scum gets killed, so there's no point to running with a low KD. There's a very
good article on the total parry written by Scrag, in which this scheme is discussed.
Maybe you saw it in Noblish. Personally, I either lower or raise KD in desperation,
based on my expectations for a particular warrior. I think it was Miles that first
wrote on this way of looking at kill desire, and I believe it to be the most correct.
Other published theories, such as Jessie Jest's, are variably more questionable.
(But then, everything Jessie Jest wrote should be taken with a grain of salt.) --
Generalissimo Puerco
Question, turn 399:
All -- If you have 18 HP and cannot take a lot of punishment and raise con once to
normal--20 HP, does the rating affect the rate at which you take damage or do you
just have 2 more Hit Points? -- Hanibal's Q.O.W.
Replies, turn 400:
Hanibal's QOW -- I think you just get a bump in hit points. But that little bump
makes a big difference. I think armor and warrior experience are the only factors
that affect the rate of damage per blow. -- Adie
P.S. There's a new chart for hit points that is more accurate and does not involve a
luck factor.
Hanibal -- I think the amount of damage a warrior can take is not variable but
constant. The variables in the equation are: the weapon being struck with and the
armor it is striking, and the attack and damage-dealing ability of the warrior doing
the swinging. Not to mention kill desire, as discussed last turn. -- Generalissimo
Puerco
DUELMASTER'S COLUMN
Notes from the arena champ.
You know, this is really meaningless.
Nin Quayne
Duel2Dudette by Default
SPY REPORT
Hail and well met warriors of NOBLISH ISLAND! Know me for who I am, Zontani
Sharp Eyes, Spymaster extraordinaire of all Alastari. I could not but notice the
fine record for TEMPESTUOUS SWINE (4-1-0) after their first round of combat. May the
gods of war favor you in NOBLISH ISLAND! DUROC DON caught the eye of many in the
gladiatorial commission as he skillfully bested PERSISTANT BEGGAR and was awarded 16
points in recognition. In one of the week's more notable duels, AMBITIOUS GUARD put
down KIRLUA NORIS, causing her to lose 9 points of recognition in the process. Our
Duelmaster has lost, folks, lost to VENEMOUS CONCUBINE, BUT NIN QUAYNE is still the
Duelmaster because she has the most recognition points! Informants "close" to the
city champion have told me that he never fights without pantyhose on beneath his
armor. Watch out!
I have been in deep conclave with my spies who watched all that has recently
transpired. Indeed there is much I would report.
What warrior does not hone his years, impatiently waiting for the moment of his
foe's mortality? Some say a warrior is judged by the way he bears arms. One thing
is sure, better a dagger in hand then a sword on the belt!
A thought before I go. Each warrior practices one style, but must not the wise
manager learn the secrets of them all? Sadly warriors, now longer can I keep thy
company nor savor the ale of thy fine city. Depart I must and soon! Till next we
meet remember - the pen is mightier than the sword, but a maul is a different
story!-- Zontani Sharp Eyes
DUELMASTER W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
NIN QUAYNE 7959 6 3 0 69 MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374)
ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
MALLE PENNELIS 7958 7 2 0 46 MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374)
-HARBRINGER 7970 5 0 1 46 MATERIA MAGICA (1376)
CHALLENGER INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
POLI SARCHIS 7971 5 2 0 31 MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374)
KIRLUA NORIS 7956 6 3 0 29 MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374)
-TOOTHSMASHER 7968 3 2 0 25 MATERIA MAGICA (1376)
LUGG OPAR 7957 5 4 0 24 MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374)
INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
DUROC DON 7995 1 0 0 16 TEMPESTUOUS SWINE (1381)
HAMPSHIRE HARRY 7994 1 0 0 15 TEMPESTUOUS SWINE (1381)
-ZORT 7966 3 2 0 14 MATERIA MAGICA (1376)
POTBELLIED PAUL 7996 1 0 0 13 TEMPESTUOUS SWINE (1381)
-IRONHORN 7967 1 4 0 11 MATERIA MAGICA (1376)
-IRONBEARD 7969 2 3 1 10 MATERIA MAGICA (1376)
CHESTER CHARLIE 7998 1 0 0 8 TEMPESTUOUS SWINE (1381)
LANDRACE LARRY 7997 0 1 0 1 TEMPESTUOUS SWINE (1381)
'-' denotes a warrior who did not fight this turn.
THE DEAD W L K TEAM NAME SLAIN BY TURN Revenge?
PERSONAL ADS
Toothsmasher -- My dentist says that you're a very bad boy, but if I beat you up,
she'll do me a free crown. I just hope she's not thinking of cutting a party crown
out of gold paper.... -- Kirlua Noris
P.S. You might want to slow down a little in the second minute, or even the first.
That "slows his pace to conserve his energy" bit is a clue. Of course, it wasn't
exhaustion which brought you down, so then again, maybe you DON'T need to slow down.
It's a tricky call.
Ironbeard -- Yes, well, if it was me, I'd wear more armor. Yeah yeah, I know, I'm
NOT wearing more armor. Think I like that? I keep telling Jorja I'd rather be slow
than dead, but does she listen? As if! Or maybe you should carry your arms out on a
pole, since that's what I was aiming for, not your chest, which is what I hit. Or
maybe try a defensive tactic? I don't know. It might be worth trying. -- Malle
Pennelis
Zort -- Hmm, looks like you might have some kind of problem, holding out that long
and giving up. I mean, I was staggering, and no two ways about it. Of course, you
were exhausted, too, and you shouldn't have been, all things considered. Maybe you
need to raise your CN to improve your endurance AND your ability to take damage. --
Lugg Opar
Do you know what that thief was convicted of? Stealing sheep! And he SMELLED like
sheep. He must have been a thief in sheep's clothing. -- Poli Sarchis
27 June 2005
ATTENTION ALL YOU ALLIANCE-TYPE PEOPLE:
For the purposes of tourney newsletter alliance listings (when I am able to do them),
you may only be listed in ONE alliance. In other words, you have to choose! If you
are a part of Englebert's Alliance and Englebert's Alliance is "part" of Ruthrauf's
Alliance, I will list you EITHER as part of Englebert's Alliance OR as part of
Ruthrauf's Alliance, NOT both. The default would be the top-level alliance,
Ruthrauf's, in this example. If you'd rather be listed separately, let me know and I
will do so, but that will be the only listing you get. -- The Saint, keeper of ever-
more-complicated lists
29 Jun 2005
The Company of Brothers (TCB) welcomes two new members to our alliance...Liam the
Goth and Buddy Lee. We have no doubt that they will prove to be assets to our
alliance and the general dueling community. -- Baphomet, co-founder, T.C.B.
LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS
NIN QUAYNE was viciously subdued by VENEMOUS CONCUBINE in a 2 minute Title fight.
KIRLUA NORIS was demolished by AMBITIOUS GUARD in a 1 minute one-sided melee.
MALLE PENNELIS savagely defeated CAPTURED ORC in a crowd pleasing 4 minute duel.
LUGG OPAR was overpowered by DANGEROUS CRIMINAL in a 1 minute one-sided fight.
POLI SARCHIS vanquished EMBEZZLING SCRIBE in a 1 minute mismatched fight.
HAMPSHIRE HARRY overpowered PERSISTANT BEGGAR in a 1 minute mismatched brawl.
DUROC DON overpowered PERSISTANT BEGGAR in a 1 minute uneven melee.
POTBELLIED PAUL vanquished CONVICTED THIEF in a 1 minute uneven duel.
LANDRACE LARRY was savagely defeated by EMBEZZLING SCRIBE in a 4 minute duel.
CHESTER CHARLIE beat MORDANT DESERTER in a 3 minute novice's melee.
BATTLE REPORT
MOST POPULAR RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS
|FIGHTING STYLE FIGHTS FIGHTING STYLE W - L - K PERCENT|
|WALL OF STEEL 4 PARRY-LUNGE 6 - 0 - 1 100 |
|PARRY-RIPOSTE 3 SLASHING ATTACK 6 - 0 - 0 100 |
|LUNGING ATTACK 2 WALL OF STEEL 21 - 11 - 0 66 |
|STRIKING ATTACK 1 PARRY-RIPOSTE 12 - 7 - 1 63 |
|AIMED BLOW 0 TOTAL PARRY 5 - 3 - 0 63 |
|PARRY-LUNGE 0 STRIKING ATTACK 9 - 8 - 0 53 |
|PARRY-STRIKE 0 LUNGING ATTACK 2 - 2 - 0 50 |
|SLASHING ATTACK 0 AIMED BLOW 4 - 6 - 1 40 |
|BASHING ATTACK 0 PARRY-STRIKE 1 - 5 - 0 17 |
|TOTAL PARRY 0 BASHING ATTACK 0 - 6 - 0 0 |
Turn 188 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:
LUNGING ATTACK 2 - 0 AIMED BLOW 0 - 0 5 WALL OF STEEL
PARRY-RIPOSTE 2 - 1 PARRY-LUNGE 0 - 0 2 LUNGING ATTACK
WALL OF STEEL 2 - 2 PARRY-STRIKE 0 - 0 1 PARRY-RIPOSTE
SLASHING ATTACK 0 - 0 1 PARRY-LUNGE
STRIKING ATTACK 0 - 1 1 STRIKING ATTACK
BASHING ATTACK 0 - 0 1 TOTAL PARRY
TOTAL PARRY 0 - 0
TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE
FIGHTING STYLE WARRIOR W L K PNTS TEAM NAME
WALL OF STEEL NIN QUAYNE 7959 6 3 0 69 MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374)
PARRY-RIPOSTE MALLE PENNELIS 7958 7 2 0 46 MIDDLE WAY 12 (1374)
Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above.
The overall popularity leader is NIN QUAYNE 7959. The most popular warrior this turn
was MALLE PENNELIS 7958. The ten other most popular fighters were DUROC DON 7995,
NIN QUAYNE 7959, POLI SARCHIS 7971, POTBELLIED PAUL 7996, CHESTER CHARLIE 7998, LUGG
OPAR 7957, HAMPSHIRE HARRY 7994, KIRLUA NORIS 7956, LANDRACE LARRY 7997, and 0.
The least popular fighter this week was LANDRACE LARRY 7997. The other ten least
popular fighters were KIRLUA NORIS 7956, HAMPSHIRE HARRY 7994, LUGG OPAR 7957,
CHESTER CHARLIE 7998, POTBELLIED PAUL 7996, POLI SARCHIS 7971, NIN QUAYNE 7959, DUROC
DON 7995, MALLE PENNELIS 7958, and 0.
MAIL-IN TOURNEY XXXIX
ROOKIES TOURNEY W L K TEAM NAME
CALLIOPE 7948 (0-0-0) 4 3 0 GRACES MUSES
AGLAIA 7947 (0-0-0) 3 3 0 GRACES MUSES
HOLD THE DATES! (FACE-TO-FACE XXXV AND XXXVI)
Summer Face-to-Face Tournament XXXV in St. Louis!
Our next summer FTF will be held in downtown St. Louis, July 29-31, 2005. It will be
at the Radisson Hotel & Suites, St. Louis (800-925-1395--ask for the Reality
Simulations room block). Room rates are $99.00 per night, 1-4 occupancy. The rooms
are blocked--please make your reservation by mid-June before the block is released!
Look for transportation info in the tournament information sheet. See you there!
Winter Face-to-Face Tournament XXXVI in Tempe!
Our next winter FTF will be held in Tempe, Arizona, January 20-22, 2006. It will be
held at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Tempe, Arizona (480-894-7444), the same hotel as
last year by popular request. Room rates are $139.00 per night (same as last year!),
1-4 occupancy, which includes full cooked breakfast, complimentary manager's
reception, free airport shuttle, free parking, high speed internet (for extra charge),
fitness center, jacuzzi, and pool. The rooms are blocked--please make your
reservation soon before the block is released! (This is prime season for Phoenix, and
several people were unable to book rooms last year because they waited too long.)
Look for transportation info in the tournament information sheet. We hope you're all
looking forward to it and that we will see you there!
The Defensive Lunger
Perfect Minimums Actual Characters
ST 13 11 11 13
CN 7 3 3 11
SZ 4 4 10 6
WT 21 17 17 17
WL 17 13 17 19
SP 5 5 9 5
DF 17 13 17 13
The lunger, in my opinion, makes a much better defensive fighter than offensive
fighter. Fighting defensively will compensate for the speed at which lungers burn
endurance. They will still attack whenever possible but their defensive ability will
allow them to dodge most attacks. The most important part is their initiative. When
they do dodge, they'll usually steal the initiative and attack. I haven't been
fighting lungers defensively for long but my record is 14-5-0. Don't fight
defensively against other lungers as they will usually win.
The strategy I use is:
Min 1 2 3 4 5 6 Desp
Off 4 -------------------------> 9 Weapon: Any lunging
Act 6 4 --------------------> 9 No armor if low con
KD 4 -------------------------> 9 APL/H if average con
O.T. ---------------------------> L
D.T. -------------------------------->
You can attack any location you wish but I suggest protecting the body. The
third character listed started with experts in attack, defense and initiative. The
last character had an expert in attack.
The Wild Boar, manager of Things (5) and many inactive teams.
Top 10 Things to Do to Have a Better FTF!
10. Have at least one meal that doesn't involve either McDonalds or Domino's Pizza.
Bonus points if that meal includes the use of utensils. (Double bonus points if you
already knew how to use utensils)
9. Recycle all those cover sheets and unwanted roll-ups into ammunition for the next
great paper ball fight! (And don't assume that because you don't have any ammo,
you're not in the game. When these things break out, ANYONE is a potential target!
Don't assume that I'm going to throw AROUND you to get to my target, if you're sitting
there in the middle of things trying to read your fights as the paper balls fly in all
direction, you're not only likely to get hit by a misfired projectile, but I will be
aiming for you!)
8. Showering at least once a day is not an option. REPEAT: Showering at least once
a day, is NOT AN OPTION!!!
7. Much like a watched pot never boils, asking if your overviews or reprints are
there yet every three minutes will only make the person sitting behind the desk
irritable (or even more so than usual). They'll be there when they get there.
6. Yes, the printer will break down, the hard drive will crash, and RSI will undergo
some sort of catastrophe. This is normal. Be prepared for long delays. Some people
like to play Magic while waiting, some of us prefer heavy drinking.
5. For you first timers, it is customary to do a triumphant little war dance each
and every time you win a fight, complete with whoop-whoops. That's what the raised
platform is for, so the rest of us can see you. If you don't do the dance, RSI will
take away your TVs and you will forever get 3 WT roll-ups. Would I lie to you?
4. Converse with your fellow managers. Take the time to chat, and introduce
yourself to at least one complete stranger. "Have you seen this warrior?" is not a
good way to introduce yourself. "Hi, my name is _______ and I run _______; nice to
meet you!" is a much better way to introduce yourself.
3. When the run off fights are being read, I want to hear a lot of noise! Cheer
every time a brilliant parry is made, shudder at the impact of a horrific blow, laugh
derisively when a warrior falls down. Cheer those who read a good fight, and heckle
those who can't. Get crazy. MAKE SOME NOISE GOLDURNIT!!!
2. Conversely, if you insist on reading your fights out loud and you don't have an
audience, go back to your room until the urge passes.
1. Buy your good ol' buddy Forge a beer!
As always, your own tips and comments are appreciated. *LOL!* Hope to see you all
there!
-- Forge
WARRIOR ENDURANCE
Greetings, joy and happiness to everyone! I hope you have had pleasant dueling.
This article is about endurance and some things to think about when you're designing
your warriors. Below is a chart showing the different endurance levels a warrior may
have. This chart may be a little off of due to the fact it isn't possible to have all
the variables as a manager, but it does give you idea of the amount of endurance a
warrior should have.
The formula for endurance is: E = (ST+CN)WL
With the result of that number use the chart below.
000-180 = Very Poor
181-240 = Poor
235-390 = Normal
391-509 = Good
510-639 = Great
640-699 = Tremendous
770+ = Awesome
Here are some examples of warriors with their Endurance ratings:
1) Slasher ST 5 CN 7 WL 15 (5+7)15 = 180 Poor
2) Striker ST 7 CN 13 WL 9 (7+13)9 = 180 Poor
3) Parry-Rip ST 7 CN 10 WL 11 (7+10)11 = 187 Poor
4) Basher ST 13 CN 9 WL 9 (13+9)9 = 198 Very Poor
5) Striker ST 13 CN 9 WL 9 (13+9)9 = 198 Poor
6) Aimed-Blow ST 9 CN 15 WL 9 (9+15)9 = 216 Normal
7) Striker ST 10 CN 5 WL 15 (10+5)15 = 225 Normal
8) Slasher ST 13 CN 10 WL 10 (13+10)10 = 230 Normal
9) Wall/Steel ST 13 CN 12 WL 17 (13+12)17 = 425 Great
There are several factors such as warrior style, RSI random factor, and there is
some evidence that SIZE has some effect on a warrior's endurance. In any case the RSI
LUCK factor can be around 7 to 8% in your favor or 2-3% worse than average. These are
just estimates, but are still factors nevertheless.
Some styles that are HIGH BURN endurance, like lungers, slashers and walls of
steel, are more likely to be UNLUCKY with the endurance rating.
Every action your warrior does consumes endurance. Attacking seems to use more
endurance than any other action. Once a warrior's endurance is used up, he will make
an endurance check against his WILL. If he fails the roll, he will either stop to rest
or collapse to the sand, depending on how badly he failed the roll. When a warrior
stops to rest, he gets back some endurance. When he gets enough endurance back, he
will start attacking again. This is just a theory that I have developed from
observations. It maybe completely off, but it gives one something to ponder.
That's it for now lords and ladies, I must go entertain elsewhere. If you would
like to chat about DM or other things, you can EMAIL me at 103260.3347@compuserve.com
or visit my DM website at
http://ourworld.compuserve.com./homepages/jessisjest/homepage.htm
You can also diplo me at DM 11 "The Lords Of the Abyss (319)" or any of the
Joker's Wilds scattered about.
Cheerio,
Sir Jessie Jest
Member of the Ivory League
Presenting, by Popular Demand (from 1989)...
THE NUMEROLOGY OF DUELMASTERS
by The Ghost of Eldrid
Character Generation
Hello, I am the Ghost of Eldrid, and I have an important message that directly
effects how well your team may do in the future. Some managers will not take this
important article seriously (some people don't believe in ghosts, either), and their
records will suffer for it. I have played Duelmasters for four years and searched
through all of my old turns and painstakingly researched every important fact in this
article, and I have discussed my conclusions with about ten different managers (named
managers such as Phido, Doctor LeGrand, Silk, Russ, and Biff Frothingslosh) who all
agree on the validity of my arguments. The results of my research are both startling
and magnificent. THERE IS NUMEROLOGY IN DUELMASTERS!!! Whether it was programmed in
or it exists on a higher plane, it matters not. IT EXISTS!!! And I plan to share
some of its amazing secrets with you, starting with character creation.
Remember in the realm of character generation the powers favor odd number stats.
NEVER, EVER have an even number on stats, except, of course, for size, which,
obviously should be even since everyone can tell what size your character is by his
description in the fight. Do you want people thinking your warrior is odd? I should
hope not!! But in case you decide to keep your odd warrior, DO NOT MAKE ANY OTHER
STATS EVEN!! Write a letter to the commission stating that you forgo the rights to
the last point and you want it to be sacrificed to the benefit of Alastari.
Always start adding points to wit and will first. Either make them 13, 17, or
21. Why? Under 12 wit is worthless, as any good manager will tell you. A 13
understandably gives your opponent bad luck, a 17 has the ever-lucky "7" in it, and 21
is BLACKJACK, and you get twice the number of winnings you would normally get. Why
not 15 or 19? Is it not obvious to everyone that 15 is unlucky? The only President
of the United States not married was the 15th, James Buchanan (who?). Lincoln was
shot on April 15th, and the clincher... my brother was born on the 15th of May. If
these "coincidences" don't prove to you that 15 is unlucky, I don't know what will.
19 is an evil number. It tries to deceive you into thinking it is better than 17, but
actually, it is an "11" with a small zero placed on the second pole, and we all know
that a zero is nothing. So what do we get for our extra eight points? In effect,
something smaller than nothing.
Next, make every other stat odd. Add the other points to make the style you
want. Deftness is the key to character generation.
Deftness (min)
5 to make a basher (ST 13+)
7 for a lunger
9 for a striker
11 for a wall of steel (ST 11+, WL 17+)
13 for a parry lunge (ST 11+), slasher (SP 11+), parry-strike, and total
parries (these styles depend on the opponent's bad luck.
17 for a parry-riposte (WT 17+)
21 for an aimed blow (this style needs the double winnings)
The last thing to remember is that luck is a big factor in this game and I don't
know if you noticed, but when warriors have even ID numbers they are luckier than odd
ID characters. Look at the best warriors in Primus: Wallbanger, Donatello, Epitaph,
Chaos Knight, Villiage Idiot, Silverflash, Khorga Khan, Jake the Snake, Sly, Max,
Stormbringer, Teetotaler, Raphael, Selleque, Kiri, Constance, Hangover, Eve, and Sam
Spade. All have even-numbered IDs. Now you say, "But Yoda and Necron-99 both have
odd IDs, and they are the best aimed blows of the game!" Yes, but they are AIMED
BLOWS and they are members of an odd style, so of course they do better with odd
numbers. So remember if you want your warriors to be best in all Alastari someday,
Dark Arena all your odd-numbered characters, unless of course they are aimed blows.
Good luck, and may the numbers fall your way.
-- The Ghost of Eldrid,
retired
PARRY-STRIKE, ANOTHER FUN STYLE
There have been several articles about fighting styles, some say theirs is the
best, or ultimate, one said theirs is the most fun style. Well, I feel that parry-
strikers are just as much fun to play as any other style.
First, let's start with the run down of what they say in the "RED BOOK". The
book says that parry-strikers are defensive, using small quick movements in their
actions (sounds like you could say that about some other styles as well.) The book
says that some managers swear that a high wit is critical to the style (only those who
have no brains would disagree with that.)
Let's get to business. First and foremost this style is deceptively aggressive,
making them a very good offensive type of fighter, or deadly type of defensive
fighter. Offensively they tend to get the jump on their opponent. I had a parry-
striker that was only jumped 3 out of 11 fights, before he died. To prepare and run a
parry-striker can be quite confusing, so I will try to help make it as simple as
possible. Here are my feelings on roll-ups for the parry-strike style:
ST: 11-15, I'll explain later.
CN: who cares.
SZ: 10-14, don't go over 14.
WT: 13-17, 17 is the best.
WL: 13-17, to get good endurance.
SP: not important.
DF: 11-15, I'll explain later.
Here are some good roll-ups for a parry-striker: 11,7,10,17,17,7,15;
15,7,11,17,16,7,11; 11,7,14,17,13,7,15; 15,7,14,17,13,7,11. Now, if you have a decent
wit, the way you run this fighting style will depend on strength and deftness. For
example: if your fighter has a high DF and a low ST it would be to his/her advantage
to be defensive, since the speed would benefit the ability to move in reaction to
their opponent. If the ST is high, and DF low, it would be better to fight
offensively like a striker, trying to get the first, and only blow in. If they don't
have a decent wit, you're on your own. I can't help you on that. Remember this style
of fighting is the same as a striker except for added knowledge of parrying, as well
as bein a little more aggressive. I would not suggest a low ST and DF, it will take
away from your WT & WL, and you don't want to do that, but if you do, good luck. You
don't need much CN if you have a good WL, which gives you your endurance. SZ; you
don't want it to be above 14, it would hurt your fighting style more than your
attributes. WT; it is the same as it is with strikers, the higher the WT the faster
and deadlier they become. Raise WT to 17 if you don't have it at the start, then
don't worry about it again until ADM. WL; this is where you get your endurance. 13
is fine to start out, but I would suggest 15, then bump it up to 17 in basic. SP; it
is what you need to riposte, but PSers have this "one strike one kill" attitude.
Meaning that there isn't much time to riposte with a killing attitude, so do whatever.
DF; what is there to say, it helps, but is not crucial to be a great PSer. Now to
running a PSer. If he is an offensive fighter 10-10-10 Dec. all the way through the
fight, even in desperation. If Defensive, 1st 10-10-10 Resp., 2nd 10-7-10 Dec., 3rd
10-10-10, 4th 10-10-10 Dec., 5th 10-10-10 Dec., 6th 10-10-10, Desp. 10-10-10 Resp.
Remember, first you want to assure your defense, and to do that, you should go
defensive the first minute. By the second minute you will be secure enough to go on
the offensive, but experiment. 6th minute on, leave blank, for by that time he/she
will know what to do (if their WT is high that is.) The best thing you could do for
your fighter is watch the fights, if you are getting more defensive skills than
offensive, run the def., or change weapons. That is the best advice I can give you
about PSers. About armor, I like to use ringmail or nothing, but experiment. I know
that there is someone that will disagree with me, but I feel that I have given you
some ideas about this fighting style that can be used, even though I am a new manager,
playing for just over a year. No matter who writes a style article, it is just
advice, not the bible. Just use the articles as a point of reference, not as sworn
law.
This is a very fun fighting style, try it out. I have written this in answer to
Foreign Legion Arena 31, and The Spartans Arena 8. I challenge any Primus Manager to
correct my writing of PSers. It is not my favorite style, but it is as fun as any
other that I have used, including my favorite one (Which is a STRIKER!!) If there are
any comments, please Diplo The Priest, the manager of The Heroes of XIAN DM-10, or The
Crucifiers DM-46.
'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE TOURNEY...
'Twas the night before Tourney, And all through the place
Many managers were drinking, Getting smashed at the Face;
The staff were all busy, The computers were humming,
Rollups were bought, for the deadline was coming;
Soon managers were nestled, all smug at their tables,
With visions of TC's coming from their stables;
And NAIMT doing massages, while A-Sop caused trouble,
An hour before deadline, the workload just doubled,
When by the computers, there arose such a clatter,
All eyes turned to them, to see what was the matter.
Sue glaring at the screen, Lee's fingers just flew,
Oh, the computer was down, so what else was new?
The lights in the room were too bright, someone said,
Nah, it's just the reflection from off Hoffa's head,
Then, what to our wondering eyes should appear,
But Soultaker and Sentinel, once again here this year,
Yes, we heard "No more Faces!", We hear this each time,
But we know it's a farce, like this parody's rhyme.
More rollups are bought, more warriors are made,
Names are thought up, and carefully weighed;
"How 'bout FREE WILLY? Or RODMAN? Or PUSSY? Or KNOCKERS?
Or SHEIK T'WEEZEL? Or BALLSY? Or TAKE OFF THEM DOCKERS!?
Not a chance say the censors! Nice try, bub, but no!
Now it's HAPPY, and BARNEY, and WE LOVE YOU SO!
The managers groan, but undaunted keep trying,
The censors all laugh, and just are not buying,
The RUGS altars are burning, offerings are gifted,
With hopes that the rollup curses soon will be lifted.
And then, in a twinkling, we hear down the hall,
A Lunat!k roar and Fusion chased with a maul.
You see, he'd heard about Fusion's campaign for the Prez,
Now it's "Off with his Head!", so Lunat!k says.
At the Dark Circle table, 6'7" down in height,
With their arrogant statures, their great show of might.
Yet amidst all the notebooks, are nerf toys and giraffe,
Such silliness there, NAIMT can't help but laugh.
At Aradi's table -- how they giggle, at the cartoons and stories
Of the FONZ done by Nuln, in his infinite glories!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a ring,
And Barb drew his beard as straggly as string;
The new guys at Duelmasters, some call them a rookie,
Making names for themselves like Jessie and Bookie;
The regulars are here, The Boss, PUG, and TUM
Carapace, Sensei, and lots more to come
Doc Steele and his legends, even now in the making,
If there weren't many witnesses, I'd think he was faking.
The paperball fight, and the chaos ensues,
Clean it up, says Lee, or your heads you will lose!
The independents and alliances, speaking more than a word,
NAIMT's resounding giggles can also be heard;
But the hour before deadline is soon at a close,
And giving a nod, on a chair Sandy rose;
Okay guys, she says, no more inputs to be made,
And away goes some managers for a Bourbon Street raid.
But ere I end this bad poem, I just want to say,
"GOOD LUCK TO YOU ALL, AND TO ALL A GOOD DAY!"
****Hey, what do you expect for a quickie?... <grin>
THE ARMOR PIERCING PARRY-LUNGE
When you think "attack" what style comes to mind? Bashing? Definitely lunging?
Of course. Parry-Lunging? Excuse me? Yes, the parry-lunger! Few people realize the
fact that parry-lungers are attack gods waiting to be born. All it takes is the right
warrior and lots of guts. This warrior is not for the weak of heart. We'll begin
with stats.
Range Perfect
ST 9-11 11
CN 5-9 5
SZ 6-11 8
WT 17or21 21
WL 17or21 17
SP 5-8 5
DF 15-17 17
Why?
ST(11): This is your optimum PL strength. It puts your warrior in the normal to
good damage range. Also, you have the best PL weapon at your disposal--the LO!
CN(5): Yes, his life expectancy is low. What'd I tell you? Guts, right? He
gets his endurance from WL. If you want to make trains, make them here.
SZ(8): Our most flexible stat. A high SZ (i.e.11) allows you to skimp a bit on
Str (9).
WT(21): If it's not a 21 you're not going to get the attack this fellow counts
on. His learns will be awesome and a 21 WT will make him a better warrior out of the
chocks.
WL(17): End/Att are dependent on this one being high. Keeps you on your feet
when you should drop from exhaustion.
SP(5): Not a big requirement. Init and Parry will come from elsewhere (WT/DF).
This is not a lunger mimic.
DF(17): Combine this DF with a 21 WT and you will have a massive attack.
Pinpoint accuracy is the byword. Parry, init, def and riposte will all benefit
immeasurably. At 15 you have access to the EP, a fine lunging weapon this style can
put to devastating use.
Strategy (General, but effective in most cases)
2 9 9 7 6 5 10
6 9 9 7 6 5 10
2 7 7 7 5 5 10
HE ---------------------------->
HE BD ----------------------->
- - - - - - -
P - - - - - -
Minute 1: This fellow won't get the jump on offensives, so we'll just go
defensive and render their "mad minute" fruitless. This PL's counterattack will be
amazing at even 2-6-2 P due to the high AL. Keep the parry tactic until Adv Expert
parry is gained.
Minutes 2 and 3: These two will end most of his fights. When he starts landing
precision blows in his opponent's face it will usually be over quickly. Keep the kill
desire relatively low as to avoid sloppy attacking.
Minutes 4 through 6: If you haven't won by now you've got to depend on your WL
to carry you until you finish the job. He'll probably top out at the five min. mark.
But we want to keep the attacks coming so we do so at his endurance's expense.
Desp: If your opponent is an offensive he's probably blasted through your min. 1
defense. Your best bet is to go spastic and hope to take him out in one shot or so.
If he's some super-defensive (scum) this PL is probably exhausted and you're hoping
the super-offense will put him over the edge. After all, it's better to burn out than
fade away.
Always aim for the head to maximize the impact of your blows. If it tickles your
fancy, aim for your opponent's weapon arm and beat him senseless when he's unarmed.
Protecting the head in min. 1 is strictly odds playing on my part. My offensives aim
head so I assume everyone else's do too. After min. 1, we forget defense.
Weapons and armor are simple. APL/H or ARM/H (if you're challenging a real
heavy-hitter). I prefer swords for armament. My combos are usually LO/SM, LO/SH,
SC/DA etc. Against heavy armor go with LO/SH. Always aim for the head.
Philosophy: This guy clings to life by luck, early on, and will never be free of
the spectre of death. In his first few fights stay away from lungers and bashers.
Both have high attacks and usually do substantial damage. Prey on strikers, PS, PR
and slashers. As he progresses, his attack, parry and defense will equip him with the
tools to handle most everybody but always remain cautious of those bashers and
lungers.
A PL of this calibre should begin with around a 90 att, 70 par/init and 60-70
def. Decise and riposte will be slightly lower. Riposte 50 and decise anywhere from
35-50 depending on how lucky you get. Train skills exclusively from fight one and on.
Use tourneys if you must raise anything at all (including con).
Don't be discouraged if he's around .500 early on. By ten fights he'll be
sporting three Adv Experts at least (att, par and init) and will begin to dismantle
those scum/finesse styles that managed to beat him. Feel free to write or diplo me
with comments/criticisms/or questions.
Fight the Good Fight,
or: Agath
CPL Michael Dockus Lunatic Fringe (23)
H Co BLT 2/8 Circle of Five (51)
24 MEU (Det F) Slaves of Power (52)
FPO NY NY 09502-8531