DUEL 2 NEWSLETTER
Date : 10/28/2006 Duedate: 11/10/2006
NOBLISH ISLAND ARENA
DM-93 TURN-220
This Weeks Top Honors
THE DUELMASTER IS
SINSTER MINSTER
MARIONETTE PETS (1433)
(93-8277) [5-1-1,59]
Chartered Recognition Leader Unchartered Recognition Leader
ANGUS SINSTER MINSTER
MISFIT CREW (1417) MARIONETTE PETS (1433)
(93-8280) [4-2-2,37] (93-8277) [5-1-1,59]
Popularity Leader This Weeks Favorite
AGASAYA VECTOR
GODS OF WAR (1446) FOLLOWER'S OF XOAN (1441)
(93-8355) [4-0-0,26] (93-8370) [1-1-0,6]
THE CURRENT TOP TEAM
FOLLOWER'S OF XOAN (1441)
TEAMS ON THE MOVE TOP CAREER HONORS
Team Name Point Gain Chartered Team
1. MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454) 40
2. GODS OF WAR (1446) 34 MISFIT CREW (1417)
3. ORDO HERETICUS (1420) 26 Unchartered Team
4. FOLLOWER'S OF XOAN (1441) 25
5. MARIONETTE PETS (1433) 13 ORDO HERETICUS (1420)
The Top Teams
Career Win-Loss Record W L K % Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns W L K
1/ 1*ORDO HERETICUS (1420) 15 8 1 65.2 1/ 6*FOLLOWER'S OF XOA (1441) 9 3 0
2/ 7*GODS OF WAR (1446) 12 8 2 60.0 2/ 2*GODS OF WAR (1446) 9 6 1
3/ 3*INDIGO CIPHER (1445) 12 8 0 60.0 3/ 9*ORDO HERETICUS (1420) 6 3 0
4/ 0*MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454) 3 2 0 60.0 4/ 7*MARIONETTE PETS (1433) 6 4 0
5- 4*DEATH BREATHERS (1447) 3 2 0 60.0 5/ 3*INDIGO CIPHER (1445) 5 6 0
6/ 6*FOLLOWER'S OF XOA (1441) 10 7 0 58.8 6/ 8*CANOE CLUB (1434) 5 10 0
7/ 5*MARIONETTE PETS (1433) 16 13 2 55.2 7-10*DEATH BREATHERS (1447) 3 2 0
8/ 8 MISFIT CREW (1417) 17 20 6 45.9 8/ 0*MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454) 3 2 0
9/12*CANOE CLUB (1434) 12 21 0 36.4 9/11 MISFIT CREW (1417) 2 4 1
10- 0*THE DAIKEN TADA (152) 2 10 1 16.7 10- 0*MARAUDER'S FIVE (1443) 1 6 0
11- 0*MARAUDER'S FIVE (1443) 1 11 0 8.3 11- 0*BONECRUSHERS (1444) 0 5 0
12- 0*BONECRUSHERS (1444) 0 5 0 0.0 12- 0*THE DAIKEN TADA (152) 0 1 0
'*' Unchartered team '-' Team did not fight this turn
(###) Avoid teams by their Team Id ##/## This turn's/Last turn's rank
TEAM SPOTLIGHT
"How to push an arena...." Jorja looked thoughtful. "I guess, just talk about
it. Point out to people the benefit of going where there's already someone they
know--"
"Don't look now, but that's nine out of ten arenas, if they want to pick one
where they know, for instance, you," Gilia said. "You're everywhere."
"Not quite."
"Nearly. How about, they should pick an arena where people are friendly and
helpful? Which would that be? Other than you being generally friendly and helpful
everywhere, of course."
"That's an easy one. Aruak City (dm 11). Lots of teams, quite a few managers
paying attention, several who write personals and will cheerfully answer questions."
"Okay, then, Aruak City is a good arena. Why aren't we pushing it?"
Jorja was silent for a moment. "Two reasons," she said finally. "Or maybe two
and a half. First, it really does seem to help make the experience enjoyable for new
managers if they move from here to an arena where they know people already. It's
more fun if you can feel that you belong, that you're dealing with some familiar
faces and attitudes. And, by going to an arena that has a very small population at
the moment, and doubling or tripling that population with new managers, a whole new
arena environment is created. It's...invigorating. The place gets lively. Other
managers show up, because everybody likes a party. Pretty soon, the scene is
jumping, and the arena is back in the Big Time. This is good for the managers, good
for the arena, and good for dueling as a whole."
"Got that. What's the other reason?"
"Well, as I said before, mostly the Andorian arenas aren't quite as rabid on the
subject of down-challenging and killing as they used to be. But, Aruak City still
is. The old, core managers are still active there, and they CARE about the way
people operate in their arena. This is actually good. But some new managers find it
hard to settle into the Andorian style of dueling, and sometimes the older managers
aren't cutting much slack."
"Oh. Well, Solven (dm 22), then, and Xochithlan (dm 39). So, what do we do?
Tell them about the areas, the must-see attractions, the local cuisine, the--" Gilia
stopped as a thumping from the taproom below became louder. A semi-drunk gladiator
thumping on the table, that's what it sounded like at first. That kind of thing
happened in any bar frequented by gladiators. Very physical people, gladiators. But
now, the whole tavern was vibrating like a drum. Probably not a normal occurrence,
and if she hadn't thought so herself, the way Jorja was standing up, radiating
outrage and fury, would have to be a clue.
"That will be my new team," she said. "They haven't quite grasped the house
rules here." She bared her teeth. "I'll explain it again. ONCE more."
<)]H[(> + -----:----- + <)] Getting the Jump [(> + -----:----- + <)]H[(>
One of the most common questions that new players ask is what they can do to
defeat a certain warrior from another team who always attacks first and beats their
own warrior before he can get an attack in. Attacking first in a fight is called
"jumping" your opponent, and it decides the victor in a majority of fights between
two offensive warriors. By offensive, I mean Strikers, Bashers, Lungers, Slashers,
and Aimed Blows, although any style can be run offensively.
In this article, I will teach some of the more common things you can do to make
your warrior get the jump.
Part 1, the setup: To design a fast warrior, you must take into account Decisiveness
skills. Decise is gained from only three statistics: Wit, Will, and Speed. Of these
three, Speed is the only stat that has a large number of Decise skills in it. So if
you design a rollup with a high Speed stat and/or a high Wit and Will, it will be
fast.
Styles are also an important consideration. Strikers, Bashers, and Aimed Blows
start with more Decise skills than any other style. Slashers and Lungers have
slightly less, followed by Parry-Strike, Parry-Lunge, and Wall of Steel. Total
Parries and Parry-Ripostes have very low starting Decise scores.
Each style also learns Decise skills at different speeds. Strikers learn Decise
the fastest. Parry-Strikes also learn it quickly, and Bashers learn it reasonably
well. The other styles fall into the "don't count on learning it unless it's your
favorite learn" category.
Part 2, the strategy: What you put on your strategy sheet drastically affects your
chances of getting the jump.
Offensive effort: As high as possible (10). The more your warrior tries to
attack, the more likely he is to take the first opportunity offered him.
Activity level: As high as possible (10). The more your warrior moves around,
the more chances he will see to attack.
Note that running at these levels will tire your warrior out very quickly, and
your warrior may not fight at his best. Most styles prefer a much lower activity
level as their "favorite". But this article is about getting the jump, not fighting
efficiently. :)
Kill Desire: Kill desire is one of the most intangible factors in Duelmasters,
but one of the common theories is that each number of KD corresponds to a certain
skill, maximizing that skill. Seven is supposed to be the magic number for
Decisiveness. Try it and see if it works for you.
Tactics: Obviously, the Decisiveness (D) tactic increases your Decise. Other
tactics may increase your Decise, like the Bash tactic, but they don't increase it as
much as Decisiveness does.
Armor: None. Nada. Zilch. Armor weighs you down. Even if you have the
ability to carry a large load, you will still be faster running naked. Of course,
you will take much more damage if you get hit, so you'd better make sure you can put
your opponent down before he hits you back. With this strategy, you either win big
or you die.
Faster weapons: Lighter weapons are faster than heavier ones, but there are
certain weapons that are considered to be "faster" in general. Warhammer and Hatchet
are some of the best. Dagger and Bare Fist (FI) are probably the fastest, but
fighting bare-handed is dangerous.
So you've designed your warrior, probably a Striker or Basher with a good speed, wit,
and will. You're running him 10-10-7 Decise with no armor and a Warhammer. And that
same enemy warrior *still* outjumps you. If that's the case, he's probably running a
similar strategy and just has more Decise skills than you. So you have one more
trick up your sleeve: the Responsiveness tactic ('S' in the defensive tactics
section). If your opponent is using Decise and you use Response, you will probably
win. If your opponent is not using Decise, you will probably lose. It's like a
rock-scissors-paper relationship:
Decise beats no tactic; no tactic beats Response; Response beats Decise.
There are some other minor factors in getting the jump that are beyond the scope of
this article. Hopefully this will give you a better idea of how the warrior who
attacks first in a fight gets chosen.
Captain K., manager of Men of the Sea in DM 12 and assorted others
+<]H[>+-----+<]H[>+ Question of the Week #2 +<]H[>+-----+<]H[>+
For those of you who came in after I started this series of questions and
answers, they are being taken from the newsletter for Aruak City, DM 11. The
questions are being posed by Hanibal, a relatively new player and Noblish alumnus,
and the answers are offered by any members of that arena who care to respond.
Question, turn 400:
All -- I think I have a basic grasp on most aspects of this game, but one Thing I
have no clue about is how to maximize skill learning. I had an 18 wit TP challenge
up to a warrior who had 21 more fights than me and I only learned 2 skills. The next
fight I was matched up against a less experienced warrior And I learned 5 skills.
This is not an isolated incident. Any tips on skill learning? -- Hanibal's Q.O.W.
Answers, turn 401:
ADIE'S ANSWER -- Theoretically I think, learning has so many variables affecting it,
that sometimes the number of learns appears random. Some suggested variables include
fight experience differences between combatants, total skill differences,
intelligence level of one or both combatants, what each's favorite learn may be, what
styles the two warriors are.... There are so many, it's difficult to say. Sometimes
you can see the effect of one variable more than another. Other times, one has
absolutely no clue. -- Adie
Hanibal -- In your example of warrior learns, did you lose the fight against the more
experienced opponent, but win the fight against the less experienced opponent? The
outcome of a fight may affect learning, with the winner being bonused and the loser
being penalized. I believe that the best way to make a warrior learn well is to give
them a 21 wit. That's why wit is my favorite stat to have a 21 in! (Not to mention
all the base skills it gives.) -- Generalissimo Puerco
Hannibal -- Skill learning is mainly a derivative of the warrior's wit--obviously the
higher the better. But luck (die roll) plays a big part, as do what the other
warrior can teach, how many skills yet to learn and a few lesser factors. --
Kennelworth
Hanibal, re the question of the week -- The main thing is to TRAIN skills. Okay,
everybody stop laughing. You people (Hanibal, too) already realize this, but there
may be a new manager reading this reply who doesn't. Seriously, I once had a manager
whose team had just chartered (i.e., he'd been playing for ten turns) diplo me and
ask why one of his warriors hadn't learned any skills. He sent me the warrior's
numbers, and a little simple math revealed that this warrior had eight stat increases
in those ten fights! He hadn't been TRAINING skills. Lesson there, never overlook
the obvious.
As to a more useful answer, I don't have one, but I do have some secondary
questions.
For instance, I was once told that a warrior learns better with an odd-numbered
WT. Since I have never personally run a warrior with an even-number WT that I can
recall, I don't know. It sounds unlikely, but then, who knows how a computer thinks?
Challenging up increases the ODDS of learning but is not guarantee. Does
anybody have any information as to whether a lower-ranked warrior who teaches well is
one with lots of skills? My own information would tend to contradict that, as I have
some excellent teachers in other arenas who have yet to receive their first rating.
I have heard that there is an increased chance of learning when the fight is a
long one. Anybody know whether this is true or just wishful thinking on the part of
those matched against scum?
Is the caliber of a warrior's teaching on a given fight reflected in his point
gain in the rankings? I have been given to understand that points gained in excess
of the basic minimum reflect how well above the average the warrior performed. In
theory, a good performance means better demonstration and thus better teaching, but
does it work out that way?
Do warriors of a given style tend to teach a specific skill or group of skills
better than other skills, as for instance, do total parries teach parry and defense?
I've heard it said that when facing an opponent who has only one skill left to
learn, a warrior teaches best that skill he learns best. Does this hold true in
other circumstances? -- Leeta
Question, turn 402:
All -- I understand that Deftness is the ability to better protect and attack your
chosen location. I could care less if I hit my attack location as long as I hit.
Does Deftness have any effect on connecting? I believe it is your attack skills vs.
your opponents def/parry skills that determines this. -- Hanibal's Q.O.W.
Answers, turn 403:
Hanibal -- Deftness contributes a lot of attack skills to a warrior's base skills.
This will increase your warriors' chances of hitting. Shot placement accuracy is
said to be based on coordination (DF+SP), but I think having a good attack rating can
lead to better shot placement as well. Kill desire may well influence shot placement
also. It has been suggested that a warrior's chosen location to protect is the
source of the "luck parry" comment that often results in broken weapons. While I
personally fancy this theory, I think it would be difficult to prove or disprove. It
sounds like a good project for some LP aimers to tackle. -- Generalissimo Puerco
Hanibal -- Re the QOW, probably. At least, I notice that those of my warriors with
very low DF (and I've got some doozies here and there) spend a lot of time flailing
wildly and missing. -- Leeta
SPY REPORT
The sages err'd not in their foretelling of a god descending upon NOBLISH
ISLAND, for I, Novgorodny Vir, have returned! HELLSWORN? Who? FOLLOWER'S OF XOAN
is the top team these days, buddies! Nothing works for a team like victory (How's
that for a perceptive observation?) as ORDO HERETICUS can attest... GODS OF WAR
posted a nice gain, to come in 2nd. Everybody loves a winner... Practice pays for
SINSTER MINSTER, who pummelled ANGUS, to pocket 19 points. A certain someone should
cut down on the drinking and practice more, after losing 15 points to SINSTER
MINSTER. (Discrete enough, ANGUS?) Now I can't insult SINSTER MINSTER, as it has
gloriously dueled to the top. Oh great new Duelmaster!!! (Stop me if I lay it on
too thick) Word has it one team in NOBLISH ISLAND is taking speech lessons to try to
bore their opponent to death. I'll bet it works.
So much to report, so little time! If challenges were horses, ANGUS could open
up a fast food joint!
Ah, the duel! The roar of the oppenent, the smell of the crowd! Ask not a
spymaster for counsel, for he will pontificate long after you have fallen into an
unconscious stupor.
All good things must come to an end. As if buffeted by forces of nature beyond
my control, I must take my leave of this place. Do not despair! I shall return!--
Novgorodny Vir
DUELMASTER W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
SINSTER MINSTER 8277 5 1 1 59 MARIONETTE PETS (1433)
ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
XIAN THE BLACK 8353 5 0 0 48 INDIGO CIPHER (1445)
ANGUS 8280 4 2 2 37 MISFIT CREW (1417)
CHALLENGER INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
TOBIUS 8209 5 0 0 27 ORDO HERETICUS (1420)
PIER 8326 4 0 0 27 FOLLOWER'S OF XOAN (1441)
AGASAYA 8355 4 0 0 26 GODS OF WAR (1446)
-OBERON 8349 4 0 0 26 INDIGO CIPHER (1445)
MORRIGAN 8382 3 0 0 26 GODS OF WAR (1446)
GULLET 8207 4 1 0 25 ORDO HERETICUS (1420)
INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
JON 8286 4 3 0 23 CANOE CLUB (1434)
WILDCHILD 8369 2 0 0 22 FOLLOWER'S OF XOAN (1441)
WONGA 8385 2 0 0 21 FOLLOWER'S OF XOAN (1441)
RHAPSODY RHYME 8275 3 3 0 19 MARIONETTE PETS (1433)
MEAN TEA 8190 4 3 1 18 MISFIT CREW (1417)
MENTU 8354 2 2 1 18 GODS OF WAR (1446)
-LI LONG 804 1 2 1 16 THE DAIKEN TADA (152)
-CALUMOR 8366 1 0 0 16 DEATH BREATHERS (1447)
SOLEMN GOLEM 8278 4 2 1 15 MARIONETTE PETS (1433)
INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
MYRA 8191 3 4 2 15 MISFIT CREW (1417)
CAMULUS 8358 2 2 1 15 GODS OF WAR (1446)
YOUSEFF 8208 2 3 0 15 ORDO HERETICUS (1420)
RICK 8284 2 5 0 15 CANOE CLUB (1434)
BEQUIN 8206 2 2 0 15 ORDO HERETICUS (1420)
TILLISE ULAM 8411 1 0 0 15 MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
GROTHEN 8194 3 4 1 14 MISFIT CREW (1417)
CROCKER 8192 3 4 0 13 MISFIT CREW (1417)
ROEKFORT SIMS 8410 1 0 0 13 MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
ARVIN LARN 8289 2 1 1 12 ORDO HERETICUS (1420)
LIONHEART 8288 2 5 0 11 CANOE CLUB (1434)
LOATHING MAULER 8279 2 4 0 10 MARIONETTE PETS (1433)
YAREON ZED 8413 1 0 0 10 MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
ROLNANDO 8359 2 2 0 8 CANOE CLUB (1434)
-DEATH ROSE 8365 1 0 0 8 DEATH BREATHERS (1447)
-STEEL 8341 1 1 0 8 MARAUDER'S FIVE (1443)
VECTOR 8370 1 1 0 6 FOLLOWER'S OF XOAN (1441)
-LUTHER 803 1 1 0 6 THE DAIKEN TADA (152)
VENGENCE SWORN 8361 1 1 0 4 MARIONETTE PETS (1433)
-SKUMM 8364 1 0 0 3 DEATH BREATHERS (1447)
-SNAKE 8340 0 3 0 3 MARAUDER'S FIVE (1443)
-SENIOR BOB 806 0 3 0 3 THE DAIKEN TADA (152)
-SHANK 8337 0 3 0 3 MARAUDER'S FIVE (1443)
-HAZARD 807 0 2 0 2 THE DAIKEN TADA (152)
PARLEN QUIR 8409 0 1 0 1 MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
-BLACK DEATH 8363 0 1 0 1 DEATH BREATHERS (1447)
VERELLE WIST 8412 0 1 0 1 MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
URTHON AEDAR 8386 0 1 0 1 INDIGO CIPHER (1445)
-DEATH BLOW 8362 0 1 0 1 DEATH BREATHERS (1447)
-COLD CHARLIE 8345 0 1 0 1 BONECRUSHERS (1444)
-FINEOUS FINGERS 8346 0 1 0 1 BONECRUSHERS (1444)
-HARD HAROLD 8344 0 1 0 1 BONECRUSHERS (1444)
-MIGHTY MITHUZAK 8348 0 1 0 1 BONECRUSHERS (1444)
-SPEEDY SAM 8347 0 1 0 1 BONECRUSHERS (1444)
-NIGHTSHADE 8376 0 1 0 1 MARAUDER'S FIVE (1443)
'-' denotes a warrior who did not fight this turn.
THE DEAD W L K TEAM NAME SLAIN BY TURN Revenge?
GRIMJAW 8343 2 3 0 CANOE CLUB 1434 MENTU 8354 220
SEPTU 8356 1 3 0 GODS OF WAR 1446 MEAN TEA 8190 220
STRIKER 8339 0 1 0 MARAUDER'S FIVE 1443 CAMULUS 8358 217
PERSONAL ADS
Silky -- You're welcome. -- Drake
Drake's Comments on Last Turn's Articles:
Note that I'm specifically writing about the articles that appear at the end of the
newsletter as they tend to be a bit dated and thus misleading. Those articles that
appear under the Team Spotlight heading are going to be far more recent and thus
accurate in the info they provide. So, with that in mind, here we go:
'AVERAGE' by Jeff Hannah -- Well, if your minimum stat was a 0 it would be true that
9.5 was the average (actually I don't think that's the proper term, but I'm not a
statistician). However, your minimum is 3 and thus 12 is right in the middle of your
stat range. Unfortunately, this will get your warrior nowhere as most warriors will
excel in 2 or more areas and use a strategy that specifically emphasizes their
strengths. The all 12 warrior has been tried and the results were less than
impressive. BTW, a 9 SP + 9 DF leaves your warrior "Slightly Uncoordinated", so you
do get at least 1 negative statement going by this article's theory. I'd suggest
ignoring it.
'EARTHWORM FLAMBE A LA THAIGYN' by Thaigyn (shocker) -- There is no evidence that
your diet has any impact on your DM record. ;-)
'DEATH INTENT STATEMENT EXPLAINED' by Gary Triplett -- Mr. Triplett is a legend in
the game and the originator of the 'Triplett' theory of warrior design (17s in Wit,
Will & Deftness in any way possible). He did more research and discovered more about
this game in his day than pretty much anyone else has ever done. Basically, nearly
all the currently accepted 'truths' about this game originated from his theories.
However, this article is a few years old and there is more detail about this aspect
of the game now. I believe Pagan has an article in circulation covering this, so I'm
not going to go into it here unless someone specifically asks. In any case, killing
is part of the game. I don't worry about the morality of going for the kill. I
worry about the bloodfeuds it incurs.
'REBUTTAL TO "THE LITTLE BASHER"' by Vanion -- His counter-points to the "Little
Basher" design are pretty much on target. Now, a few points about his basher design
-- 13 ST is too low for the ML, GS and HL; CN is unimportant to all offensive styles
unless you're building a tank; Bashers make good use of the Decisiveness a moderate
SP gives them (say 7-11); DF is mainly important from an Attack skills standpoint,
which can be gained from a higher WT, WL & ST. Higher than DF 11 is probably
unneeded.
'THE UN-SCUM' by Buri -- This is an okay article. The sample designs given would be
good at any defensive style and a few offensives. The strat is all right (except for
the Responsiveness tactic; which should be used only on opponents running
Decisiveness), but I personally prefer my "offensive" TPs to be either of the "get-
them-on-the-riposte" or "wait-till-they're-tired-and-beat-the-snot-out-of-them"
variety.
'Duelmasters for Dummies' by Jorja -- A nice article that covers the basics. It's a
solid place to get started. I really don't have anything to add to it other than it
can be helpful to concentrate on running a few styles (3 or 4) fairly exclusively
until you get used to them. Each style has different nuances that you won't pick up
and take advantage of until you've run several of them. I'd suggest a couple
offensive styles, the TP and maybe a finesse style to start you off.
Another general note for everyone: I strongly recommend those with internet access
check out www.terrablood.com for all kinds of useful charts, tips & hints to help
with this game. Also, visit the Forums on www.duel2.com where you can converse with
many of the more experienced managers in the game. If you don't have internet
access, contact me with a mailing address and I'll see about putting together a small
'D2 Care Package' with some of the more commonly used charts. -- Drake (who can be
reached by diploing Drake's Bar-B-Q in arena 101, emailing dm_drake@sbcglobal.net or
you can find me on the Duel2 website posting under the name Drake; who'da guessed)
Well, by the time you see this newsletter, the Middle Way 15 will be gone to Solven
(dm 22). Middle Way 16 should be here, or next time for sure. Carry on. -- Jorja
P.S. In case you wondered, no, you can't put another team in here yourself. I'm the
training cadre, such as it is. A long-time manager put here (for my sins?) to answer
questions and offer advice.
Stratus -- I see that you, too, are about to leave--gone by now, in fact. Still, on
the off chance that you may get to hear of this newsletter, I will write you the
personal for which I signed a contract, being a little drunk at the time. And what I
have to say is (unprintable) (censored) damn. Good work on your part. -- Chucker
Istta
Vrancelle -- Well, you're leaving on the same boat, eh? Oooo-kay. Still, a personal
is apparently the order of the day. (sigh) You're dangerous. Good work, though it
didn't feel like it to ME. -- Belissa Hough
Jon -- Good gods, man, lose the shield! Yes, I know you won, but you won't win many
if you drag that garbage can lid around with you all the time. -- Edgiles Kapp
P.S. Contra-indicated for your style.
Sarjski -- I hate being buried in the sand. Especially cold wet sand like we have
here. -- Dortha Janetto
P.S. I'd swap out that backup for another example of your primary, if I was you. Or
should that be "if I WERE you"? Not that I am.
Death Blow -- Oh, gods, where to BEGIN. Um, okay, armor. You will notice that I'm
wearing a lot of armor? I'm a defensive style, it's expected that I should wear a
lot of armor. You are NOT a defensive style, you might want to come out in light or
no armor, okay, you might not WANT to, but it might be a good plan anyway, because
you're supposed to go all-out, win fast, or quit before you get minced, see? You
notice where it said you were running out of energy? That's a clue, you're carrying
too much and/or running too fast. Since, for your style, there is no such thing as
"running too fast," the problem is most likely the weight you were carrying. Get rid
of some of it, okay? -- Dolby Jossel, feeling benevolent after getting the only win
on the team
P.S. Check out the last page of the newsletter #219 for the weapons chart and get
yourself one you can handle. You'll do better.
All -- Tis but a fine day for death and destruction. Welcome me to Noblish, and
welcome your demise. Myself and my sisters will cut through the ranks of you all!
All who are ready for the new additions to Indigo Cipher think twice before you
challenge! -- Urthon Aedar (Indigo Cipher)
Jorja -- Thank you for the offer of help. Drake has been of great influence upon my
playing as have other managers with their articles. Sorry to hear the Middle Way 15
is moving on, but I'm looking forward to your next troop. -- Orellon Silver-cloak,
mgr. Indigo Cipher
Maorakith -- Your stats are far from impressive. Your reign was simply based on
timing. As you can see clearly, you were next on the hit list for my warrior. Maybe
we will meet again in another arena. Oh yeah, cream floats, that's the only reason
it's on top. No credit gained for beating standbys! -- Orellon Silver-cloak, mgr.
Indigo Cipher
Xian The Black -- Have your boss diplo me after our next bout. After that, first
round's on me. -- Eisenhorn, mgr. of Ordo Hereticus
Obbo -- No probs. I do try sometimes...just so you know. -- Bequin
Jorja -- Thanks for the heads up. -- Eisenhorn
5 October 2006
*Turf War IV Rules*
Everyone may participate; known alliances, new alliances, or temporary alliances
created to compete in the Turf War! However, to participate, each alliance must:
A. Announce the alliance and the Captain of the alliance in the North Fork (DM
47) newsletter.
Captains are responsible for:
a. verifying those who wish to participate under the banner of their alliance;
b. distribution of prizes should their alliance win the Turf War.
Managers must:
a. Submit one (1) RSI Roll-Up Gift Certificate to participate to:
Baphomet, mgr. Knights Templar (568), DM 47 -- North Fork, or
Rick Stringer
13 St. Michael's CT
Elkton, MD 21921
b. Announce their intent to compete with manager name, team name and alliance
they will be fighting under in the North Fork (DM 47) newsletter.
Rules:
1. No scoring will begin until a Gift Cert is received. No exceptions.
2. Before a manager can compete, he/she must declare and be verified by the
Captain of the alliance he/she has claimed for;
3. Only one (1) team per player may compete. NO multiple aliases please.
Violations will result in disqualification.
4. The contest will begin on the turn following the January F2F and run for 12
turns.
5. The turn a declaration and verification will begin the scoring process.
6. No declarations or verifications will be accepted after Turn 10 of the Turf
War 5.
7. For the purpose of scoring, I reserve the right to make all final decisions.
Scoring:
Win Loss Kill Die
Challenge +2 -2 +5 -5
Match-Up +1 -1 +1 -5
Bloodfeud +2 -5 +5 -10
Champion x2 x2 x2 x2
Downchallenge -10 xx -10 xx
Dark Arena +10 -5 xx xx
Special Scoring:
a. Each mention in the Spy Report is worth 2 points (team mentions only!)
b. Each Style Master is worth 2 points.
c. Duelmaster Throne is worth 2 points
Champions:
a. Champions may be declared, but are not mandatory. If declared, the Champion
must be in the Adepts or lower brackets on the turn they are declared
without having gone above the Adepts bracket at any time...including
transferred teams. (I'll be watching for this occurrence!)
Bloodfeuds:
a. Bloodfeuds count for all four (4) turns. However, the same warrior may not
be used all four turns. 4 turns means 4 separate warriors. A penalty of
-10 will be given to the team who violates this.
Special Conditions:
a. I reserve the right for all final decisions.
b. If I make a mistake, I'll multiply the points by 2.
c. If you claim I did, and *YOU* are wrong, I'll subtract points at the rate of
x10.
d. Each alliance begins with zero (0) points.
e. Dark Arena may be used on the first turn of every warrior with no penalty
(this means a warrior with 0 FE).
f. TVs won after the contest begins gain a 25 point one time score once the
tourney reports are posted in the NL.
g. TCs won after the contest begins gain a 50 point one time score with the
same conditions as noted for TVs.
h. NO switching alliance once verified by an alliance that a team has declared
for.
i. Only 7 teams are permitted per alliance for the Turf War 5.
PRIZES:
Turf Wars are a "Winner Takes All" type contest. All prizes and 100% of the RU
Certs will be given to the Captain of the winning alliance and it is his/her
responsibility to give these to the alliance membership.
I have requested from RSI the following:
a. renaming of the orth Fork (DM 47) arena;
b. renaming of Dark Arena Monsters;
c. known favourite rhythms for one warrior on each team of the winning
alliance. This warrior would be in the Initiates or above brackets on the
last turn of the Turf War (they must have at least one arena fight to
receive this award).
Baphomet, Host of TW5
Special Note: A downchallenge is considered from a higher bracket to a lower
bracket. Same bracket, more recognition points? Not a downchallenge!
20 October 2006
In accordance with those rules set forth by the Lady of the Realm, I hereby announce
the formation of a small group of managers calling themselves "The Outsiders". The
group consists of the following members:
Doc LeGrande
Apex
Street Legal
Carnage
Ghoti
Roadkill
Valamond
This group has only one rule. Respect the play of the managers of this
alliance. We have no worries about not playing by the rules set forth by others. We
fight the way we like, and all those in this group appreciate what tools each manager
brings. We have managers from the Delarquan, Andorian and Free Blade regions. We
have managers that focus on the tournament arenas, and we have those that focus on
the regular city arenas. We have those in our ranks that fight with honor and
respect for all, and we have those that have a bloodlust that cannot be quenched.
Our goal is simple. To create a ensemble of managers that will show their
prowess in the land of Alastari, and to bring a new level of competition to all those
that share the sands with our warriors. Our warriors are many throughout the land.
We have no home arena. We have no pacts we abide by. Our fighters range from
Mordant to Talcama, from Lapur to Lyratilan, Aruak City to Valamantis, the Primus
arena to Talahya, and many more arenas throughout the land.
Whether we are sought out or ignored makes no difference to us. We are what we
are. We fight how we fight. And we do it however we wish. We have no rules. We
have no leader or ruler. Be prepared. We are.
20 October 2006
The Dark Knights of the Desolate Empire respond thus to the Avengers of the Light:
Where are you? EACH AND EVERY Dark Knight can be found in arenas 31 and 52. Your
pretty words mean less than nothing if you won't fight. EVERY Dark Knight is more
than willing to back up their talk. So...we give you three turns in either 31 or 52,
REPEAT 31 or 52 to show up or shut up. If you don't show we'll let all of Alastari
know the Avengers are indeed cowards! -- Dark Knights of the Desolate Empire
LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS
JON was devastated by XIAN THE BLACK in a 1 minute mismatched Challenge fight.
CAMULUS won victory over LIONHEART in a 2 minute Challenge battle.
MENTU put to death GRIMJAW in a popular 1 minute gruesome Challenge match.
ROLNANDO was devastated by WONGA in a 1 minute one-sided Challenge contest.
ANGUS was overpowered by SINSTER MINSTER in a 1 minute mismatched Title match.
MYRA was bested by RHAPSODY RHYME in a 3 minute duel.
CROCKER was outlasted by TOBIUS in a tiresome 14 minute struggle.
GROTHEN was bested by GULLET in a 2 minute competition.
BEQUIN defeated VECTOR in a 4 minute melee.
YOUSEFF was vanquished by WILDCHILD in a 1 minute uneven duel.
MEAN TEA barely slew SEPTU in a 3 minute gruesome fight.
SOLEMN GOLEM was viciously subdued by PIER in a popular 8 minute brutal fight.
LOATHING MAULER was handily defeated by AGASAYA in a 1 minute one-sided bout.
RICK subdued VENGENCE SWORN in a 3 minute bloody match.
ARVIN LARN was overcome by TILLISE ULAM in a 1 minute brutal novice's contest.
MORRIGAN devastated VERELLE WIST in a 1 minute mismatched bout.
URTHON AEDAR was handily defeated by YAREON ZED in a 1 minute uneven fight.
PARLEN QUIR was defeated by PERSISTANT BEGGAR in a 2 minute beginner's struggle.
ROEKFORT SIMS handily defeated MORDANT DESERTER in a 1 minute mismatched bout.
BATTLE REPORT
MOST POPULAR RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS
|FIGHTING STYLE FIGHTS FIGHTING STYLE W - L - K PERCENT|
|LUNGING ATTACK 7 SLASHING ATTACK 29 - 16 - 4 64 |
|BASHING ATTACK 6 TOTAL PARRY 30 - 20 - 2 60 |
|SLASHING ATTACK 6 BASHING ATTACK 35 - 30 - 3 54 |
|AIMED BLOW 4 LUNGING ATTACK 31 - 30 - 3 51 |
|TOTAL PARRY 4 STRIKING ATTACK 20 - 22 - 1 48 |
|PARRY-STRIKE 4 PARRY-STRIKE 11 - 14 - 0 44 |
|STRIKING ATTACK 3 AIMED BLOW 13 - 18 - 1 42 |
|PARRY-RIPOSTE 1 PARRY-RIPOSTE 9 - 23 - 0 28 |
|WALL OF STEEL 1 PARRY-LUNGE 4 - 11 - 0 27 |
|PARRY-LUNGE 0 WALL OF STEEL 3 - 11 - 1 21 |
Turn 220 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:
PARRY-RIPOSTE 1 - 0 PARRY-STRIKE 1 - 3 3 BASHING ATTACK
AIMED BLOW 3 - 1 LUNGING ATTACK 1 - 6 2 TOTAL PARRY
TOTAL PARRY 3 - 1 PARRY-LUNGE 0 - 0 2 LUNGING ATTACK
STRIKING ATTACK 2 - 1 WALL OF STEEL 0 - 1 1 PARRY-STRIKE
BASHING ATTACK 4 - 2 1 STRIKING ATTACK
SLASHING ATTACK 3 - 3 1 AIMED BLOW
1 SLASHING ATTACK
TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE
FIGHTING STYLE WARRIOR W L K PNTS TEAM NAME
BASHING ATTACK SINSTER MINSTER 8277 5 1 1 59 MARIONETTE PETS (1433)
PARRY-STRIKE XIAN THE BLACK 8353 5 0 0 48 INDIGO CIPHER (1445)
Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above.
The overall popularity leader is AGASAYA 8355. The most popular warrior this turn
was VECTOR 8370. The ten other most popular fighters were SOLEMN GOLEM 8278, PIER
8326, MENTU 8354, MEAN TEA 8190, PARLEN QUIR 8409, CAMULUS 8358, SINSTER MINSTER
8277, RHAPSODY RHYME 8275, SEPTU 8356, and RICK 8284.
The least popular fighter this week was TOBIUS 8209. The other ten least popular
fighters were CROCKER 8192, URTHON AEDAR 8386, VERELLE WIST 8412, ARVIN LARN 8289,
LOATHING MAULER 8279, YOUSEFF 8208, ANGUS 8280, ROLNANDO 8359, GRIMJAW 8343, and JON
8286.
NEW GRADUATES--FROM ALL ARENAS (INCLUDING CLOSED ARENAS)
For those of you who keep track of such things, 5 additional warriors graduated
from regular DM arenas (including closed arenas) since the last tournament.
TONY TWILO (5-4525) of HOUSE OF PANCAKES
MARCIE (36-6076) of MER DE NOMS
WAR EAGLE (55-3289) of DRAGONFYRE
WIPEY (82-12634) of UNJUSTLY RENAMED
FORMIDABLE (82-17495) of F-TROOP
Congrats to the grads. -- Green Eyes
FAXING IN TURNS
If you fax in your Duelmasters turns, realize that most fax machines have a
border on the right and left side of the paper where no image is transmitted or
printed. When you put your strategy sheet in the fax machine, make sure you allow
extra room on the right side, especially if you are challenging that turn. When the
ID# of the warrior you are challenging is cut off, we are unable to enter the
challenges. There are four possible solutions to this problem:
1) Load the strategies farther to the left, so the Duelmasters dude is cut off,
rather than your challenges,
2) Write the ID# of the warrior you're challenging in the space for the name,
3) Load the strategies long-wise (but then you have to be careful about
overlapping the sheets, which can also cut off the ID#s), or
4) Face the fact that you won't get all of your challenges through.
We'd prefer solutions 1-3, but it's your choice.
Also, please be careful that your fax machine isn't transmitting too darkly or
lightly. If you write your turn in pencil, some fax machines will transmit the
pencil so lightly we can't read it when it gets here. If your fax machine can make
copies, it's a good idea to try making a copy first to make sure it's readable, adjust
the darkness if you need to, and then fax it to us. Be especially wary of the
Advanced Duelmasters Strategy Sheets, because if your fax machine sends the grey
shading too darkly, we won't be able to read those lines at all.
Good luck!
-- Green Eyes
STRENGTH AND WEAPON DAMAGE
by Pagan
Weapon damage is equated to Strength + damage class. Damage Class is
categorized by Size. So damage seems to be done like this:
1. Armor weight + 12 + any bonus it has vs weapon type is a negative to the
damage done.
2. Damage done is strength + damage class variable + weapon variable.
3. Slashing, Bashing, & Lunging 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, if it does not bounce, is 1 point of
damage. The program knows there's a hit before it knows damage, so it can't reverse
a hit, you merely take one point of damage because the weapon bounced off the armor.
5. The lower your strength, the 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 it's 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, simply because it cannot be
random and keep any consistency with the Damage-Classes. It has nothing to do with
how much damage you did in relation to your opponent's hit-points, either. If you
exceed that hard number in damage, you get a printed statement showing that to be the
case. There is no such thing as Extra Damage.
Pagan
TEAM AND CHARACTER MAINTENANCE SERVICE
As a service to all managers, we offer team and character maintenance. This
option allows you to make sure your team or selected warriors will never miss a turn!
Team Maintenance: This will cause all warriors on that team to fight every
turn; if it's an AD arena, any new warriors who arrive on that team will
fight the turn they arrive. In A.D. or in transfer arenas where you have
multiple teams, each team will need to separately be on Team Maintenance.
(The only exception is new warriors; they will not fight until they have had
their initial strategy input.)
Character Maintenance: This will cause only that warrior to fight every
turn. If the character graduates or changes arenas, he/she/it will stay on
Character Maintenance.
In either case, you may submit strategy sheets for your warriors each turn, if
you wish. The Team/Character Maintenance will make sure your warriors fight each
turn, and they will always use their most recently entered strategy.
Remember that challenges, avoids, and challenge/if challenged strategies will not
carry through from turn to turn. These sections are only used on the turn they are
entered. In order to continually challenge or avoid you will need to submit a
strategy sheet each time.
One other thing to remember about maintenance: Maintenance is not something
that you write on your turnsheet (like in demo tourneys). In order to add or remove
maintenance for a team or warrior, you must send a note to Customer Service. If you
just write things like this on your strategy sheet, they may or may not get done.
Likewise, don't write it on your personal ads. Please, please, please put it on a
separate piece of paper with "Customer Service" written on the top. If you don't,
well, you can imagine.
Thanks for your time. Good luck in Duelmasters! -- Green Eyes
The Perfect Scout
We all know them. We all hate them. What am I talking about? Scum. But there
is nothing better than a scum to scout at your enemy's weak points. You can see if
they'll last long, what weapons they use, where they attack, their style, etc. And
you typically don't have to fear a loss. Picture this. You see a guy on the listing
10-5-2. Well, you don't want to send your best warrior with his perfect 5-0-1 because
you want to keep winning. So you send in your scout. Now you know if you can beat
him. The scout will enable you to better pick and choose your fights. Also if you
feel like getting back at someone these scum are great.
How to design:
ST13+ can go as low as 11
CN17+
WT5-7 no more
WL17+
SP3 as low as possible
DF7 is perfect
So a perfect set up would be 15-19-13-7-19-3-8 to start train CN till 21 then WL
21 WT 8 DX 9 then whatever you want. This guy is not for ADM he's just for regular DM
and to be used to scout. Don't worry about skills until you've 3 raises in everything
then go to skills. Oh yeah strategy.
1-1-1-1-1-1-1
1-1-1-1-1-1-1
1-1-1-1-1-1-1
HE---------HE
BD---------BD
Parry-------P
Get rid of him when they get up high. Then they've already scouted everything.
Brought to you by Mr. Drake DM#5, Mgr. of Pirates
THE BRAINY, LOW WILL STRIKER
Like many others, I have experimented with the striker style, though I waited
nearly two years into playing this game before doing so. Recently, while preparing
for a tournament, I was reviewing the many roll-up sheets I had ordered in hopes that
I might find a warrior or two who might have a good chance at a TV, or even a TC
prize. Most of the roll-ups were born losers, or mediocre warriors at best, so I
decided to experiment with the striker style.
Most managers will agree that in order for a warrior to have a long-term
potential (Primus), you need a will of at least 15. I wouldn't know, never having
gotten a warrior that far. However, not all roll-ups will give you the opportunity
for a 15+ WT/WL/DF combo. With that in mind, I made a few high WT, high DF, low WL
strikers and hoped for the best. I was relying on their superior decise to get in the
first blow, and hoping to finish off the opposition before they had a chance to swing
back. Before you mega-managers say it, yes these guys would have made good, albeit
extremely fragile aimed blows with the stats such as the following. I know, I had one
with similar stats TV at the same tournament with a 9-1-0 record. However, I am
writing about the low-will striker, not aimed blows.
The result:
11-12-10-19-9-6-17 & 9-12-12-19-7-4-21
These guys have absolutely no realistic long-term potential once past basic,
assuming they live that long (that single digit will is a killer). However, #1
managed to go 8-2-1 in the tournament, picking up an impressive 18 skill sin the
process. he also managed to take out all 4 TP scum he faced, going 9 minutes in one
fight, and 5 in another (his overview claimed "poor endurance"). #2 started with very
"little endurance," yet managed to last 8 minutes vs. a TP-ratings, and had no problem
sending those pesky TP-scum desperate before the end of the first minute.
Give your striker a scimitar and let him go out 10-10-7 decise. With the high-
decise style advantage strikers get, he should get in the first, and hopefully last,
blow. Slow him down to about 6-4-6 minute 2, then go 6-1-1 thereafter. He'll either
have won or lost by the end of the 3rd minute vs. most opponents. Have him come out
at 6-4-6 (min 1), 6-2-6 (min 2), and 6-1-6 (min 3+) vs. TP-scum. I aim for the legs
(I don't know of anybody who protects the legs, especially at tournaments), though if
you want to go for the kills, aim for the head.
Will these kind of rollups TV every time? NO! Their problem is a distinct
aversion to pain, one blow will usually do them in. It is, however, a far better way
of enjoying those frustrating low WL warriors than simply writing DA on the strategy
sheet.
If you are really gutsy, run these guys in the arena. They are a sure bet to be
killed before their 15th fight, but will probably have a winning record when they die.
Comments, derision and just about anything else welcome.
Diplo Blind Man, Red Branch (3)
AND NOW, FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT. . .
Are you tired of all the articles on the so-called Un-scum TPs and kill-at-will
strikers? While I always appreciate input from more experienced managers, it seems
some of the best styles are completely passed over when the articles come out in the
last couple pages of the newsletters. In this case, the lunger. In the first ten
fights of my arena, lungers held an average of 55% wins, and had a kill rate second to
strikers, tying with bashers (if killing is your goal). Experienced managers agree,
starting with offensive styles benefits newbies, because they tend to be a little
easier to run and more consistent at lower levels play.
In way of disclaimer, I'm by no means a mega-manager. I've been at this for a
little over two years, and don't have a record that you'd write home about. This is
because I do a lot of experimenting, DAing even a good fighter, just to try something
new. Though I haven't run a lot of lungers, I have learned that they tend to do best
with a fairly even spread of stats.
ST: Usually somewhere between 9-13, 13 is nice because it lets you use the long
spear (an obviously superior lunging weapon), but 9 or 11 can free up the points for
other stats, if need be.
CN: While everyone will tell you to never put points here, this is a style
which, like the TP, can benefit from decent constitution. Try not to go any lower
than 9, with something in the 13 range preferably. Given you can train this without
skill loss, a 10 works all right, though you're going to have to finish your foes in
the first minute.
SZ: 9 is all you need for any of the weapons, but it seems hard to get a good
damage rating with anything under a 12.
WT: I've gotten some good bases with as low as a 12, and a 17 didn't seem to
improve them appreciably. 15's seem to do pretty fair. Granted, given the quickness
of their fights--if they're run right--they may take a little while to develop.
WL: As with con, you're going to need that drive and endurance. A 12 con, 12
will gives normal endurance, and even will as high as 17 doesn't seem to give them all
that much more stamina, so again, I'd say in the range of 15.
SP: I'm an advocate of the low speed school, overall, and I've had them as low
as a 7 with some decent response, but an 11+ is better, and they make use of speed
better than most, given wit and deftness to use it.
DF: Again, 11+, I've heard that lungers favor the legs as a target, so you need
to be able to hit a reasonably small, mobile target.
The really nice thing about lungers is their spread of skill bases. I've had
four decent lungers, who ran in the .500 range, and probably could have done a lot
better if I'd pegged their rhythm. My best overall spread of skills came from a 13-
10-9-15-15-11-11, with 50% in initiative and attack, 30% parry, 35% defense and 20%
riposte. I've had them go as high as 60% in riposte (9-15-8-15-13-11-13), but with no
parry, it was sort of useless.
As one of the highest endurance burns in the game, obviously, the strategy is the
key, and the one place I must admit lacking. I know the armor can make a big
difference for them, so you want to go as low as possible, naked if you think you can
get away with it. Like a striker, you really don't want to get hit at all. I usually
run them hi-hi-mod (with exception of some of my defensives, I always run a 5-8 KD).
Unlike strikers and bashers, they don't seem to respond as well to the hi-lo-hi in the
later part of the fight. The weapons for a lunger are pretty obvious; epee,
longsword, short spear, or long spear. If you build one with less strength and con,
you can boost the speed and deftness enough to make the epee standards, but given my
experience with their damage ratings, I'd advise against it. As I noted in the
beginning, an even spread seems to work well, and one of my first ever was 13-12-12-
12-12-12-11, with 65% ini, 35% att, 15% rip, 15% def. No godling, by any means, but
could do some wicked things with that longspear, and very nearly won his DA match.
Again, I make no claims as being a great manager, only one with a lot of time on
his hands, and one who saw a notable lack of info on what I consider to be one of the
best potential styles in the game. Their flashy style can lead to great gains in the
popularity and recognition, and their well spread skills can probably lead to great
things in development. I would greatly welcome any form of questions, comments or
complaints, and particularly other managers experience with this--or for that matter
any other--style. Good fighting.
Elder Snorri
The Aesir (22)
Miroi Chang (DM 79)
WARRIOR HANDEDNESS
by Pagan
There has always been something FISHY about ambidextrous warriors and what hand
they hold their weapons in. If you ask anyone but me, most will tell you the same
old line about Ambi's holding their weapons in their left & sometimes in their right.
WRONG.... The computer program does something weird here, and I will explain in the
program format:
FIGHTER1 is right-handed
primary hand = WEAPONA
FIGHTER2 is ambidextrous
primary hand = Epee
off-hand = Dagger
back-up = Epee
1. FIGHTER1 swings WEAPONA
2. various computations for attack, parry, defense...
3. FIGHTER1 hits/misses (let's say he hits)
4. computations for attack area/protect area (hit or parry or save)
5. selection of attack area or impossible parry save or random area
6. FIGHTER2 is struck on LEFT ARM
7. selection on warrior file for handedness then correlate with weapon carried;
RE_ROUTE --> If ambidextrous select handedness
8. check for fail at hit-points level vs. damage done
9. FIGHTER2 drops his Epee
{at this point you'll never notice much difference. You may even think that the
computer at this time, or at the beginning of the fight, designates the weapon side
an ambi warrior is carrying. But you'd be wrong.)
10. check for initiative, if yes then check for back-up
11. if no on initiative then continue (current offensive warrior continues
offensive), if yes then offensive is broken RE_ROUTE to advantage computations
12. FIGHTER2 spins and pulls out his Epee
{so FIGHTER2 should have his Epee is which hand?...his left}
13. advantage computations judge who takes offensive
14. FIGHTER1 swings WEAPONA with devastating force!
{now this will look familiar because it always the same system, the program doesn't
change, just the numbers do}
15. various computations for attack, parry, defense...
16. FIGHTER1 hits/misses (let's say he hits)
17. computations for attack area/protect area (hit or parry or save)
18. selection of attack area or impossible parry save or random area
19. FIGHTER2 is struck on LEFT ARM
20. selection on warrior file for handedness then correlate with weapon carried;
RE_ROUTE --> If ambidextrous select handedness
21. check for fail at hit-points level vs. damage done
22. FIGHTER2 drops his DAGGER
{wasn't that Dagger in his right hand?...guess not.}
...and so on, and so forth.... You'll notice that the program never chooses a
weapon side until necessary. This has a few ramifications: hit points in specific
areas, selective attacking based on warrior body positioning, and a few other things.
This is true because I have PROOF. Eventually you will get fights that this
will happen to. BUT IT AIN'T EASY. It was just luck that I got the hardcopy to show
it to me. You may notice that your ambi warriors, if they drop their weapons (and
every warrior eventually does), that eventually you will have two different fights
where your guy got hit in the same arm and dropped two different weapons. It wasn't
until I got lucky and it happened to me twice in one fight (yes I lost the fight!)
getting hit in one arm and dropping two different weapons.
You should begin to see some format here. The program breakdown is basic, but
is a close enough approximation for you to get a better feel about what's happening.
-- Pagan
A BEGINNER'S GUIDE TO DUELMASTERS
or
HOW TO KEEP YOUR HEAD ABOVE WATER
Way back when I first started Duelmasters, I was helped immeasurably by an
article written by an experienced manager whose name escapes me now. I regret that
now, because that article is largely responsible for my current success in
Duelmasters. At least, it kept me interested and competitive until I knew enough to
develop my own strategies and styles. What I would like to accomplish with this
article is to give enough advice on the various styles that a beginner can put
together a decent fighter. I feel for those managers struggling with a 20 or 30
percent winning record. I was once one of you (in Cliffhome). With that in mind, I
will briefly discuss each fighting style and my recommendations. So here goes:
AIMED BLOW: I've never designed one, so if you're set on having one, I'm not going
to be much help to you. A setup for a good AB will produce a GREAT PR. But if you
still want one, try something like this: 11-9-9-17-15-6-17. You need wit and deftness
and the 11 strength will give you a longsword or quarterstaff. Great against TP.
BASHER: A pretty good style for the beginner, and easy to produce. Bashers come in a
variety of shapes and sizes, from the small, fast type to the dreaded "scum basher."
You need ST of 13 for a WH. It's the best basher weapon. The more speed he has, the
less constitution he needs. ST & SZ should equal about 25. Example: 15-7-10-17-13-
11-11 or 15-17-10-13-17-5-7.
LUNGER: Good choice for the beginner. Many people make lungers too small. At least
SZ 9 so he can use a LS vs. heavy armor. Try high WL and SP and if you have the
deftness, try a LO. Don't worry too much about CN. Run 10-10-10 to start. Use only
one weapon. Ex: 13-5-12-15-15-17-7.
PARRY-LUNGE: My favorite style. Try 11-10-12-16-16-6-13, increase WT & WL to 17.
Run 3-3-3 first minute, then more offense and activity after that. Be patient with
the parry types. It takes time to develop their skills, but once you do, they are the
best and most entertaining designs. Use LO/DA and light armor.
PARRY-STRIKE: Set up similar to PL, but may have more ST for heavier weapons. Could
also use more CN. He can use a variety of weapons well. Ex: 13-13-9-16-15-5-13.
PARRY-RIPOSTE: Arguably the best style once fully developed. WT and DF should be 17
with one or two stat raises. ST of 9 okay, but 11 better (it give you LO against
heavier armor). Size should be small, although I was once successful with a size 14
PR. PR needs a fair amount of CN. Ex: 9-15-5-17-15-6-17.
SLASHER: I haven't been too successful with these, but some people have been. They
need to be able to take a few hits, so keep CN around 10. ST of 13 gives you a GA
against heavy armor. Keep size down. Ex: 13-10-6-16-11-11-14.
STRIKER: There are two basic styles of striker: High speed and deftness and enough
strength to handle weapons of choice, and large strikers with low SP and DF.
Regardless, keep the WT high and CN low. They are naturally decisive, so take
advantage of that. Use only one weapon at a time. Ex: 13-5-13-17-15-15-9 or 13-7-
17-15-17-7-7.
TOTAL PARRY: Some TPs are carelessly made, figuring that it isn't really a skillful
type, but those fighters don't last long and they're boring! A good design for a TP
is 13-13-8-17-15-5-13. This would also make a very good PS or PL! Run 3-3-3 P for a
couple of minutes, then 4-3-4 or 5-3-5 for a minute or two. A good choice of weapons
is SH/ME; ACM/H. You can get by with less WT or ST and he can be larger, but keep CN,
WL, and DF fairly high. You will be insulted, because some styles just can't last for
more than a minute or two. But this is your real strength.
WALL OF STEEL: A good style. ST & CN & WL should equal 45 or so. I like at least
size 9 so he can use a QS. SP isn't really important. Run defensively for a minute
or two, then offensively after that. Ex: 15-12-9-13-17-5-13.
GENERAL NOTE: Often, the specific stat levels will depend more upon your weapon
choice than it will your fighter's style. If you want to use a great axe, you will
need a ST of 13 and DF of 11. Lungers using SS or LS need ST of 11. LO needs WT and
DF. A WH needs ST of 13 but only a DF of 7. Some weapons require a size 9 fighter.
So, when designing your fighter, think about the weapon you want him to use before you
finalize your selections. Also, remember that you can raise each stat (except size)
two points without too much trouble (unless your WL is very low) while you're fighting
in the arena. Be patient with your fighter and develop him gradually. Few great
fighters start out that way! Good luck in the arena!
Fritz of Battle Pets (225)
Solven -- 22
ENDURANCE
by Tankesh/Adie (DM11, Aruak City)
DETERMINATION
This attribute of a warrior found on the overview determines how long a warrior
can keep up their offense, defense, or just keep standing. All styles use the same
physical stats and the computer determines their endurance the same way, using those
stats as a base. But the actual endurance of a warrior can vary up or down from that
base depending on luck (good or bad). Like skills, each warrior can be gifted, mode,
or hosed in their starting endurance, and that giftedness or penalty seems to stick
with them permanently. Possible endurance levels, from lowest to highest are: very
little, poor, normal (no comment), good, great, tremendous, awesome.
Endurance can also be raised, in order of importance, with WL, ST and CN trains.
After training endurance to a warrior's first new level, I find it usually takes about
6 total trains, on average, to get to the next level of endurance. If a warrior is
gifted, as training continues, that higher level of endurance appears to stick with
them. It would be difficult to list numerous data points here to give you a better
feel for what endurance to expect in your new warrior, but if you want more data, try
this web site and look at the chart:
http://www.bit-net.com/~johnh/calc.cgi?end
ENDURANCE BURN
How fast endurance is used depends on the style of a warrior, their activity
level, their offensive effort, and armor/weapons carried.
1) Burn rate by style -- This is tricky to tell as nobody runs all styles with
the same strategy and armor regularly. But here is an approximate rate of burn by
style from highest to lowest, in my humble opinion:
LU - WS - SL - BA - PL - ST - PS - AB - PS - TP
Personally, I find the last five extremely difficult to separate, but usually the
more active styles burn faster due to faster strategies and more offensive skills, so
I tried to put them in order of the most active, typically. There are numerous
exceptions of course.
2) Activity Level -- Warriors running at higher levels of activity burn endurance
faster no matter their style, period. It may be that running on a warrior's favorite
rhythms allows said warrior to continue at that level longer than otherwise. When a
warrior gets tired, a strategy with a higher activity level will inhibit them from
recovering their endurance as they will try to keep moving.
3) Offensive Effort -- The more a warrior swings, the more tired they get. Of
course, if your OE is high, but the other guy is doing all the swinging because they
have the initiative, you aren't burning as much endurance. Endurance recovery is also
inhibited if offensive effort is kept up when a warrior is tired.
4) Weapons/Armor Carried -- The more one carries, the faster a warrior gets tired
carrying it. Easy.
EXHAUSTION
Warriors who are exhausted or tired will see lines in the fight reading, 'no
longer has the endurance to put up much of a defense', or 'staggers with exhaustion'.
You will see the former line if your warrior is exhausted and is attacked. Such
warriors are easier to hit and have a difficult time using their defense and parry,
which are penalized or even non-existent while they rest and try to recover their
endurance.
ENDURANCE RECOVERY
Over the course of a fight, warriors who become tired will often 'fade back,
snatching a much needed moment of rest' or some other similar action. This is
basically a breather for the warrior to try and recover some endurance so they can
keep fighting. Kind of like a climber pausing briefly to catch his breath and recoup.
If the warrior is not defeated while recovering, they will continue eventually, or try
to. For high burn styles, the very thought of continuing often makes them fade back
again and they may stand around for a while if not hacked down. They may also leap
about continuously, holding onto the initiative, but lack the endurance to actually
swing! Very low activity and offensive effort allows easier recovery than even
moderate strategies by telling your warrior to effectively give up the initiative and
chill. Of course, you run the risk of getting attacked while standing there. Low
burn styles can actually, if running slow enough (i.e., never attacking!), stand
around and recover their endurance almost as fast as they lose it, making REALLY long
fights possible between two such warriors.
WILL CHECKS
Lastly, related to endurance, are "Will Checks". When a warrior is exhausted,
this check is performed by the program to decide if the warrior wants to go on for
just a bit longer, to hang in there. It occurs often in longer fights, especially
with the Total Parry style, which often wins by exhausting their opponents. A failed
will check results in the warrior collapsing from exhaustion. A successful check
allows an exhausted warrior to continue and try to recover more endurance.
Additionally, will checks determine whether a warrior surrenders, usually due to being
wounded. A will check is determined by just that, WILL. If your warrior has a low
will, they will surrender or collapse more often than those with a high will.
Lastly, kill desire affects will checks. A low kill desire will make it more
likely that a warrior will fail his will check and surrender, therefore live. A
higher kill desire makes the warrior more willing to gut it out and fight to the end,
helping his will checks succeed. This may cause warriors to get killed more easily,
unless they win. This kind of death is due to a warrior who refuses to surrender,
giving their opponent more chances to try and kill them, or due to increased trauma
from more hits to a specific body location that can result in an infirmary death.
An Unbiased Look at the Slashing Attack
Really.
Slashers are coming out big this season, and as it's a style that I think
requires a lot of study, I'd like to share my learnings and observations with those of
you interested in this excellent offensive style.
Too often I've heard experienced managers shrug off the slasher out of hand--why?
Because they've never succeeded with the style themselves, and as such, hardly
consider it worth noting. However, it's a style that's sneaking a lot into the
limelight these days.
General design:
ST: 11-17--I would go as low as 7 or 9 depending on the warrior's size; I do
like at least a 9 for use of the scimitar. It's nice to get them to at least normal
damage, good, or better, because if they can't inflict any damage, they're going to be
in trouble.
CN: any--I like to give them some CN just so they can take a hit or two, but
it's not necessary. I have a couple of slashers who started with a 4 CN and made it
to AD; bear in mind, however, that a slasher with a good design is as mortal as an
aimed blow, and you can expect to lose them just as you've become attached to them.
SZ: 5-11--NO BIGGER. I don't know why, but big slashers just don't seem to make
it. However, I am flexible here, and I'm currently attempting an experiment with
gigantic slashers. If it works, I'll update this. As of right now, I'll stick with
the smaller ones. Another good reason to have a good strength.
WT: 17-21--As with any style, the higher the better. I've had some success with
WTs in the 13-17 range, and even 11, but I don't expect him to ever be Primus level.
If you can get 17 or 21, then do so.
WL: 11-21--Again, as with WT. A slasher with a good endurance will shock the
hell out of a scum TP who goes out sure that a slasher is easily scummed--not so. 17
is a good number; if possible, go with it.
SP: 5-9--If someone tells you that a slasher needs speed, DO NOT LISTEN to them.
It's hooey. A slasher already gets a speed and init bonus, they don't need any more
help, and in the long run it will greatly hinder them. A high-speed slasher will end
up Init-heavy with absolutely no other skills (and it's really frustrating to have a
fast little slasher who already has a Master Init and still isn't learning any other
skills)--there's nothing to 'em. You want him well-rounded, then you keep that SP
low; that's the major drawback to the slasher (or any pure offense style), and I
believe it's the main thing that's kept them from being more greatly respected.
DF: 13-21--Here's where you make or break 'em. A good deftness makes up for the
decise that might be lost in a low speed, and decise is more important than init. Any
good aimed blow will also be an excellent slasher (and, to avoid the inevitable snorts
of derision, yes, they'd be a better anything else. But I'm talking about slashers).
A good, generally perfect slasher looks so: 7-9-5-21-18-11-13 (it's not
ABSOLUTELY perfect, mind you; if I was designing him today I'd probably have gone with
a 17 WL and 8 ST). These are the stats of what is perhaps my best all around slasher,
skill-wise. This rollup started with these bases:
INIT: 90%
RIP: 60%
ATT: 70%
PAR: 15%
DEF: 65%
DEC: 55%
As you can see, this slasher got lucky--more, perhaps, than some would,
especially in the defense area. Some slashers will be frustratingly low in defense.
Despite this skill base, he also started doing LITTLE damage--with this kind of
problem, I definitely advocate raising ST to get rid of it. It WILL hurt his record,
and, with my newest Stat/Skill chart, I see that raising from 7 to 10 hasn't hurt this
slasher's learning at all, and now he does GOOD damage.
Of course, not all of my slashers have been this good skill wise. Often they do
start with desperately frustratingly low parry/defense skills, therefore needing
nothing more than to get that first hit. Many slashers, especially the high ST/WT/DF
combo ones, need to get the first hit--'cause if they get hit first, it's all over.
One of my favorite designs looks like this: 13-13-6-17-15-7-13. This slasher has
been desperately unlucky in skills, favorites, and definitely so record-wise. I can
also attribute my lackadaisical managerial style to his lack of success, because I
believe the numbers to be good.
Be that as it may, the slasher I've had the best success with looked like this:
10-14-9-18-16-8-9. He started with a negative 10% parry, and only a 20% defense. For
those wishing to snigger at me, this is Billy the Kid. He doesn't look like this now,
of course; he has a 47-29-2 record with several stat raises and three Advanced
Masters. So it's up in the air, for me, as to whether a really awesome design or just
dumb luck is what attributes to one's managerial success.
But that's neither here nor there. Once you HAVE your design, you want to know
how to run them. I've heard some say that weapons selection is limited with slashers.
Sure. Limited to the BEST WEAPONS IN THE GAME. A slasher can use hatchets (don't
laugh! My slashers can do devastating things with hatchets), scimitar, broadsword,
battle axe, longsword, epee, or shortsword. The scimitar is the weapon I advocate as
the best all around, but always try others. Every slasher has their own ideas and
some are pretty picky about it. I don't recommend using the epee in regular DM even
if you have the stats for it, unless you use it only against armor classes 0-4 or so.
Armor: I dress them heavy, but mostly because I like them to LIVE. A slasher is
generally so quick that even as heavy as scalemail won't slow them down once they have
that expert Decise (and often before). But in order to please those who think
excessive armor is scummy, you can drop them down to ALE/L. Go without armor only if
you're sure you can get the first swing and drop your opponent with that first hit or
it's a super scum who WON'T hit you. Otherwise, if you want to live, I recommend some
armor. But each manager can use this advice as they will.
Strategies: Early on, I run them fairly hard, 10-10-6 in minute one, dropping to
8-4-6 in minute two, and then to 6-1-5(6) thereafter. Some slashers are a little
strange in that they don't mind an "inverted strategy," that is, a higher defensive
effort (activity level) than offensive, i.e.: 8-10 or 6-8. The 6-1-6 usually means
that they can last a good long time against parry styles, and usually come out on top.
The styles to watch out for are high-kill, high-decise strikers and killer lungers.
Most slashers can and will get the jump on lungers, but the strikers are tougher; both
CAN be beaten. With a little clever fiddling, the good slasher can beat ALL styles.
But watch out for him while he's still young.
Tactics: Not necessary. The slash is nice, if they like it, but it CAN slow
them down. Decise is better if you want to be first off the mark or they appear
hesitant in the first minute, but only in minute one OR desperation (but not both).
Use response against strikers using decise.
Important Note: It is absolutely NOT TRUE that your OE and KD have to be the
same number in order for a defensive to be effective. I don't buy it. A 10 OE and a
7 KD will get you the results you want, and with the correct strategy, you can be as
much a killer, or not, as you desire without going berserk at a 10 KD. Trust me on
this one! :)
And that's about it. If you have any comments, criticisms, complaints, new
ideas, different ideas, etc., you can contact me via:
Tex's Rangers (20, 51, 105, 104)
Texas Independence Co (57, 105)
-- Tex
PRIORITY SKILL LEARNING -- by Pagan
There are specific facts you should know about skills. To begin with, there are
six skill areas. Three are offensive (attack, initiative, decisiveness) and three are
defensive (parry, riposte, defense); they define, together with your stats, the
abilities of your warrior in these areas. You should already know the implications
that skills have upon your warrior's roll-up, but now I want to talk about how
learning additional skills relates to your warrior's potential.
Each warrior has a favorite skill learn, that is to say, a warrior will learn a
particular skill more often than any others. Generally speaking, the skills a warrior
learns most often are heavily influenced by his fighting style, which is called
Priority. I will talk about priority a little later, but in general, it is the
likelihood that a style is to learn a skill category. For example, Total Parries
learn parry and defense more often than they learn decise or initiative.
Your warrior's favorite learn affects the priority of his skill learning. A
favorite learn is only limited by the six possible learns allowable, so you may have a
Total Parry with a favorite learn of initiative or a Slasher with a favorite learn of
defense. In any event, by your twentieth learn you should have an idea as to what his
favorite learn is, because of the disproportionate amount of skills learned within one
category. Also, when your fighter is invited to join the ADM arenas, you will be told
what skill learn your warrior favors.
A new area that I have been examining in the context of skill learning is the
impact an opponent's style has on the type of skills learned. Your warrior's fighting
style, along with the fighting style of his opponent, has a direct effect on the type
of skills learned, but does not control the number of skills learned. When he fights
a Total Parry, for instance, he is more likely to learn a defensive skill than when he
fights a Slasher.
PRIORITY
Chart developed by Ben Hitz -- "PUG"
Revised by -- DMobster and Pagan
The probability of learning a skill is modified by the style. Each style has a
learning scope that differs from each other style. There are Priority skill areas for
each style that differ amongst each style. Each skill is given a corresponding number
from 1 to 6 depending upon its priority.
PRIORITY SKILLS BY STYLE
AB -- ATT, RIP, DEF, PAR, DEC, INI
BA -- ATT, INI, DEC, PAR, RIP, DEF
LU -- INI, DEF, RIP, ATT, DEC, PAR
PL -- INI, PAR, ATT, DEF, DEC, RIP
PS -- PAR, DEC, INI, ATT, DEF, RIP
PR -- RIP, PAR, ATT, DEF, INI, DEC
ST -- DEC, ATT, INI, RIP, PAR, DEF
SL -- INI, ATT, RIP, DEC, PAR, DEF
WS -- ATT, INI, PAR, DEF, DEC, RIP
TP -- PAR, DEF, RIP, ATT, DEC, INI
Aimed Blows learn attack the most and initiative the least out of any of the
skills. By adding your warrior's Priority skills along with that of your opponent's
Priority skills, you can come to see the probability your warrior has to learn a
particular skill.
The above list for Priority may not be free from error; however, I believe it to
be an accurate reflection of what the actual priority skills are across the styles.
Some of the skill areas were so close in number that estimations had to be made about
which skill was higher in priority to another.
TRAINING SKILLS AND STATS
What happens in a fight with priority skills? Take a look at a Parry Lunge who fights
a Slasher.
Skills Slasher Parry Lunge Total Number of trials
INI 6 6 12
RIP 4 1 5
ATT 5 4 9
PAR 2 5 7
DEF 1 3 4
DEC 3 2 5
Total 21 21 42
Now, here we have the total pool of skills in fights between a Slasher and a
Parry Lunge. In this fight (Parry Lunge vs Slasher), it is more likely for a warrior
to learn, in this order: INI, ATT, PAR, RIP & DEC, DEF. By calculating the variables
we can see the likelihood for either warrior to learn each corresponding skill. To
learn initiative, there are 12 possible skills in a pool of 42. So 12 divided by 42 =
28.57% chance to learn an initiative skill. There are only 4 defensive skills in the
pool, so 4/42 = 9.52% chance to learn a defensive skill. By looking at the numbers
you can see that, in this fight, both warriors are more likely to learn initiative
skills than defensive skills. Also, by calculating all of the skills your opponents
learn, you will learn the most common skill your warrior teaches. This is the same
process as finding your favorite learn.
The likelihood your warrior has to learn a skill is a factor of Wit. Where
Priority shows you the pool of skills, your Wit determines whether your warrior learns
the skills or not. For an example of how this may work--and understand this is only
theory--the computer seems to keep pulling out skills out of a pool of the two
combatants' Priority skills. It then checks your warrior's Wit against a variable to
see if this skill can be learned or not. If it cannot be learned, the computer throws
away the skill and pulls out another. (Remember that the total pool size then
decreases, from 42 to 41, so you must then divide accordingly). The computer rolls a
random number, affected by a warrior's Wit, to determine the number of skills that
will be learned up to a maximum of six, and a minimum of zero. (There will be no
taking away of a warrior's skills!) The computer then continues to pull out skills
out of the priority pool until:
1. You fail to learn a skill
2. You reach your maximum allowable number of skills (0 to 6)
3. The pool of skills is exhausted.
How then is Priority affected by a warrior's favorite learn? You need to add 6
points of Priority to your warrior's favorite skill learn. This favorite affects only
your warrior's pooled Priority skills, and does not affect your opponent's pooled
Priority skills. Vice versa, your warrior's pooled Priority skills are not affected
by your opponent's favorite learn. You can use Priority to find your warrior's
favorite skill learn, once your warrior has learned 20-30 total skills. Without
calculating a favorite, your warrior should learn his base percentage chances with
Priority:
Priority Number Percent Chance for Priority
6 28.57%
5 23.81%
4 19.10%
3 14.29%
2 9.52%
1 4.76%
You are adding 6 points of Priority to your favorite skill learn, so after you
warrior has approximately 20 to 30 total skills, divide the number 6 (the favorite
Priority) by 27 (the Priority pool +21 & the favorite +6) and this equals = 22.22%.
So any skill area that is approximately 22.22% higher in skill learning than it should
be (as listed in the chart above) is your warrior's favorite learn.
-- Pagan
PARRY-RIPOSTE
--the how to and why--
Greetings, fellow managers. This article will deal with the design and
successful running of the parry riposte, henceforth referred to as ripper. A well
designed ripper will have both enough offense to satisfy those lunger maniacs, and
defense to make the most parry-XYZ fanatic happy. The most gratifying quality of the
ripper is, of course, his legendary riposte ability. The trick? Finding out how to
make him do just that. It requires a well-balanced mix of good design, diligent
studying of his fights, and a sound strategy. Let's do this step by step:
DESIGN
ST: 7-11
CN: 9 or less
SZ: 7-9
WT: 15-21
WL: 13-17
SP: 5-13
DF: 17-21
EXPLANATION:
ST: I like to have an 11 ST for using the longsword, a ripper's best weapon vs.
the heavy armor. When designing one, unless the strength was 6 or less, I probably
wouldn't add. Why? He needs points elsewhere more importantly.
CN: Never add points. It's a waste and gets you no skills, which are a highly
valuable commodity you need.
SZ: Smaller IS better. Why? Again, you need those almighty points elsewhere
and who cares if you don't have the initiative? You'll steal it with your riposte!
WT: Honestly, I'd like to never start below 17, but the Rollup Gods make that
quite hard at times. Therefore I settle for a rock bottom 15, allowing you to use the
epee and still learn at a respectable pace.
WL: I've run with a 13 will and experienced no ill effects. As a rule, though,
if you have extra points and just can't figure out what to do with them... slap them
on will. Will is important when considering your warrior's long term potential and
the ability to raise attributes once skills are maxed out through learning.
SP: This and deftness are the two main ingredients for riposte. Nevertheless, I
place the importance of speed right above con. It really isn't necessary and quite
frankly, I'd never add points to it because you won't have any left once maxing out
wit, deftness, and will.
DF: I place this as the second most important attribute for a ripper. You need
to be able to hit where you aim and make your shots count. When you come up against
that dreaded TP wearing APA/F & ME/ME, 100 hit points-plus, scumming for all he's
worth, you have to be able to hit those low hit point areas to win that fight. The
arms are my favorite attack location. I've run up against one of these things and by
minute 7 he dropped his ME, went desperate and gave up. If you get a design that
makes you say, "Wow, this could be a good aimed blow," chances are he'd make one
helluva ripper.
ARMOR:
Since the mortality rate of young rippers is alarmingly high, I recommend that
you never go below ARM/H until that rating in defense and parry come your way. Once
that happens, and you'll already be on your way to Advanced Expert riposte by this
time, if not higher, go ahead and put him in ALE, if you want. Always keep that helm,
though! Never forget that your beginning ripper is going to take some hits, and since
we hate to waste points on con, we depend on the armor to protect us until our
defenses come on line.
WEAPONS:
I've had good luck with the LO/DA combo. The EP/HA works well, also. As always,
though, find his FAVORITE! Others like going with the small shield as the off-hand
parrying weapon, but since I've never tried that I can't comment on it. Experiment,
that's the only way to find out.
EXAMPLES:
1) 13-9-7-15-13-8-19
2) 9-13-8-19-15-5-15
3) 9-7-7-21-13-6-21
1) This is actually a warrior. He is running at 75% and doing quite well. In
half his fights he has drawn first blood. Not only having the initiative, but by
parrying the blow and counter-striking.
2) This was a ripper also, until ripper #1 killed him. Lots of potential.
3) This would be my "perfect" ripper.
The Reader's Digest version of design is this: Wit, deftness, and will, in that
order. Remember, when designing a warrior, take into consideration the breakpoints
and place your points accordingly.
STRATEGY:
This is a general strategy that has worked wonderfully for me. No two rippers
are likely to be the same so this is just a good framework to start with. A highly
important detail is to thoroughly read your fights and find out what activity level he
likes to riposte at. I have also found that the old standby kill desire of 2 more
often than not made him pass up attack, via riposte, opportunities left and right. By
having it at 5, he increased his counterstrikes considerably.
3 3 6 6 6 5 3
4 4 4 4 4 3 5
5 5 5 5 5 5 2
LA -------------------------- >
BD -------------------------- >
N --------------------------- >
P P N N N N P
You will notice that when he goes "offensive" in minute three, I don't force
anything with a tactic modification. I've found them to hinder a ripper more than
help. Some may laugh at this minute three offensive strategy, but he HAS killed in
minute three. Against defensive styled warriors, he looked like an offensive lunatic.
Against offensive warriors, he ripostes 2-3 times per attack thrown at him.
FINAL NOTES:
Always remember that a ripper will make a corresponding amount of attacks using
lower numbers as an offensive warrior going ballistic with high numbers. Don't push
your ripper, but slowly move his numbers up and down and find out where HE likes to
run. Your warrior overview can give you a clue to this. Don't worry about him making
a lot of wild attacks at first, as this is normal for rippers. They get robbed on
their attack percentage due to their style, but it will come around in time.
In closing, if this article can help just one person struggling with the ripping
style, I'll be happy. I also encourage feedback, whether it be in agreement or
constructive criticizing. I base my conclusions from talking to other managers and my
own experience, which has been best with rippers. Good luck to all in the battle
and....
May the Almighty One guide your blade.
Blackhawk, mgr. Knight Rangers (arena 22)
and Knight Rangers (arena 20)
A service of the
BROTHERHOOD OF JUSTICE
------+------
B O J
^ I ^
/___\ I /___\
I
/ \
There is a Tavern in the Town...
Finally, after a great deal of research, study, gathering of information, wasting
time, not to mention hundreds of delicious meals later, I have finally complied enough
for the first article on Alastari's fine taverns, inns, and other such establishments.
For the sake of convenience, I started in the northlands, and the Island of the
Whistling Dragon, where sits the fine city of Aradi. Aradi simply has too many night
spots to do them all justice, but certainly the two greatest are Drake's Lodge and the
Blind Cyclops Inn. Both have an excellent setting, offer entertainment, lodging, and
a fine menu. Drake's menu has a wide selection not only from the northern Andorian
traditions, but also many more exotic dishes culled from the eastern seaboard,
Malcorn, and the Karnhorn Empire. The Blind Cyclops leans more heavily towards the
west coast cuisine, and some of the spicy dishes from the Aruaki Clanhold can be found
here. The seafood at both locations, and generally across town, is excellent.
Running down the coast into the Aruaki Clanhold itself, the first stop would
normally be Amen-Tei; however, I jumped over it into the heart of Andoria, first.
Along the populous Catseye River you'll find the cities of Seam, Aruak and Solven. In
Seam, one of the finest places to eat is the Stoned Golem. The prices are reasonable
and the cooking excellent. I recommend the dragon steak highly; fiery seasoning and
the richest Kati-Tei wine to wash it down with. Also in Seam you'll find the Frozen
Arms Inn--a perfect location to go if you particularly enjoy indoor ice skating (on
the floor). The temperature is kept at a constant 25 degrees Fahrenheit, but if you
have a heavy parka, I recommend at least stopping by for a drink of tira--I don't know
what's in it, and I hate to ask, but it's worth it.
Seam is also home to the Firedragon Inn and the Final Rest. Both cater more to
the hard drinkers rather than the picky eaters. The Firedragon is more likely to host
a bar brawl--if you like quiet conversation, I recommend the Final Rest.
On into Aruak, you'll find the Bulldog Inn, a place for food, drink, gambling, or
sleeping--whatever you're looking for, you're likely to find it. The food is tasty
and the companionship unequaled.
In Point, you'll discover the Ogre's Crypt. Run by the same people as the Blind
Cyclops Inn of Aradi, it offers a similar style of cuisine. It's been rumored that
offworld "soft drinks" are also available here, although that is strictly hearsay.
Enjoyable, always.
Across the channel in Iaye there rests one of the finest inns in Alastari, the
Dragon's Blood Inn. Notable not only for its fine food and excellent selection of
imported wines and liquors, the Dragon's Blood has one of the most welcoming interiors
of any inn I've seen. The large downstairs rooms are divided into a gigantic "common"
room with a fireplace large enough for five men to stand in--frequently to be found
there entire sides of beef, slow cooking for the evening's meals. A "party" room can
either be closed off from the main room for private gatherings or added to the
spacious quality. Smaller rooms are also available. Also, the Dragon's Blood offers
the best whiskey I've ever tasted. Also in Iaye is the Rat's Nest. Found on the
northern waterfront, it is mostly a tavern and well known mostly for its taxidermy.
The walls are a veritable museum of native Alastarian wildlife. Gambling, drinking,
and women are the main staples here.
Back on the mainland, I stopped in Khalhums long enough to listen to the music in
the Blues Hall--not much on food, but the drinks are generous and well priced, and the
music unbeatable. Also in Khalhums is the Black Sheep Inn; it's a large barn-shaped
building not far from the arena that serves good food (mostly mutton, but it's lean
and well-cooked) and excellent spirits.
Going down into the Federation, I found an exciting place in Sunset called
Wildlife Unlimited--anything you want, you're likely to find it here. All forms of
entertainment, any drink imaginable, food from lands all over Alastari and beyond.
Part of the profits of Wildlife Unlimited goes to the training, research, and
development of warriors. Also in Sunset I found the Baba Yaga's Bar and Grill, with
great beer served in gigantic mugs with large tin plates heaped with filling, tasty
food. It's a comfortable, friendly place that I recommend highly to anyone traveling
down that way. Across the street is a large casino called Cagliostro's Castle--very
classy place that caters to the "better class" of gambler. A very enjoyable evening
can be had there if you win--the drinks are a bit on the expensive side, but the
liquor is the best.
Crossing over to nearby Transel, stop by the Sultan's Tent. The menu is
extensive, serving dishes from most of this corner of the world; I highly recommend
the Nianian Firefish. The drinks are good, with a big selection to choose from, and
the entertainment excellent. The ambiance can't be beat, with a massive firepit sunk
into the center of the common room; when the fire is out, a stage can be pulled over
it for more of the entertainment. I suggest stopping by on the weekends, when the
fire is lit and the overhead skylight drawn back--quite a sight! It's made mostly of
mahogany and marble, and is kept up well.
In Tricorus, there were several places that caught my eye, but most notable is
the Blue Dolphin Inn. The Blue Dolphin is a large establishment reminiscent of the
Dragon's Blood; comfortable and roomy, with gigantic bay windows looking out at the
massive Tricoran monument, Three-Horn Mountain. The food is good, if plain fare, with
healthy portions at a reasonable price. Excellent drinks. Highly recommended. They
naturally specialize in Tricorus' delicious gold brandy.
In Delarq Tor, if you can find it and get in, there is Ho's Pleasure Club.
"Pleasure" is the operative term. Fortunately, I had a face the doorman liked AND the
hundred bashari cover charge and was allowed in without being beaten to a pulp (as I
saw happen to some other hapless fellow). The music is loud and tasteless, as are the
women--apparently there is a house rule that the only women allowed are sluts or
royalty. There is gambling, regulated by the house and the house takes profits from
all winners. The drinks are watery. The house rules are strict. I got out before I
was thrown out.
In Talcama, if you're in the mood to be silly, stop by at the House of Jello and
watch the wrestling matches. Apparently, better food and drink is served upstairs,
but the entire purpose of the House of Jello is to go down to the pit and watch the
action. It's just for fun, and that it is. If you're there, go.
I found the Choking Ogre in Cliffhome, and I enjoyed it tremendously. It is an
extensive building with a high ceiling, a combination tavern and gamehouse. The food
is excellent--daring, spicy, and dramatic, presented well and cooked to perfection.
The portions are healthy, as are the drinks--sometimes necessary when having the Hot
Spiced Miniature Potatoes! Everything is reasonably priced.
In Rocanis, there were too many taverns to choose from. The Wanton Troll,
Mylar's, the Grub & Rub Bar & Bistro, and on--I finally settled on the Wanton Troll,
for its popularity. The outside isn't promising, and being greeted by the six foot
tall (and wide) proprietress, the wanton troll herself, Beulah, is a trifle
frightening. However, once you get past her (if you don't know the password, flirt a
little with her and she'll let you in), you'll find it's all worth it. It's a
boisterous, crowded place, generally full of loud talk and laughter. Hot and spicy
food is plentiful, and the drinks are served in large, often iced, mugs. On a good
night both are excellent, although it sometimes depends on the cook. It's always
enjoyable, though, and it's a place I've been back to.
Further north on the eastern side of Alastari, I found Salty's Chowder House in
Morya--a seaport tavern inland; and worth it for the food, the house special Chowder.
It's thick and filling and VERY tasty. I was disappointed to find none of the more
impressive drinks; southern wine for the most part, although Arkers pale ale in that
neck of the woods is worth the price.
In Lapur there were a number of taverns, with the Burned Tree (formerly the
Gnarled Tree, before a fire gutted the old building; it has been re-built) being the
first on my list--a pleasant place with excellent drinks but the food was only so-so
without much of a selection. The Blue Rose Tavern served up better food but only
three varieties of beer and again, only southern wines. The Drowned Rat offered an
good whiskey but only had pretzels and nuts.
I found a small tavern in Monuntial called Pontiff's Potent Potables; the food
was plain fare of the meat & potatoes variety--unremarkable but plentiful and tasty,
reasonably priced--HOWEVER, the excellent and exotic array of drinkables makes this a
definite find. Each of the drinks seems to have a quality all its own; you definitely
leave feeling good. Fighting is discouraged and weapons are checked at the door.
Reservations are recommended.
I cut back up to the Isle here, and found several excellent places. Just outside
Willow Beach, near the Darkholm arena, is the fabulous Eve's Palace Casino--upper
crust, upper class, and definitely worth the price. An excellent place to spend an
evening.
In Talahya, I stopped by E-Snee's Bar & Grill; ordinary food for ordinary prices.
Generally good. Nearby is the "food market," which is a block of restaurants of all
kinds. You can find everything from southern desert cuisine to the exotic stuff of
the Northwights. If you're on the Isle, you could try a new restaurant every day.
Talahya's Market District is home to restaurants of every shape and size, serving food
from all over Alastari and Lirith Kai. Not far from the Primus Arena and the Grey
Tower, this street of little restaurants, taverns, and theatres is a must if you are
just passing through. Check it out and you'll find what you're looking for,
guaranteed.
Over in Andorak, the Crimson Eagle caters to all whims; food, drink, lodging,
gambling--a very classy-looking place, serves to all types and has a good selection.
Also in Andorak you'll find the Sightless Dragon, a smaller but no less welcoming
environment with excellent live music nightly.
Close by, near the Home Guard arena, is the ever-popular Bash & Glug--food and
drink, plenty of both, for a good price. Fun, fights, & frolic is the rule here, no
weapons allowed. Their early morning breakfast bar is a MUST. Also here is an Ice
Cream Parlor under the name Arthur's Last Stand (I'll explain that shortly). Exotic
flavors, good on a hot day or any day.
Arthur's Last Stand is a "chain" of taverns operated in the cities of Talcama,
Caer, Morya, Dullens, and Willow Beach (Darkholm). They are the same wherever you
find them; friendly, with decent drinks and decent food. Recommended if you are
someplace that they are--familiar, comfortable surroundings.
If you know of a tavern or eating establishment in your city that you would like
to recommend, let us know about it!
-- Swift
JESSIE'S GUIDE TO A GOOD BASHER (3rd Edition)
Greetings. This is a 3rd edition of "Jessie's guide to a good BASHER." I have a
little more time to upgrade my second article to give you some more info regarding my
favorite style. The major changes are in the weapons and strategies section. But
read the whole thing, I've made other changes as well. Also, this article doesn't
discuss the SCUM basher or other mutant variations of this style. It deals mainly
with ones meant to last past 10-15 fights.
Most new mangers or managers that don't run bashers that much don't understand
how to make a good basher. Needless to say, they don't run them right, either. Even
with my hoard of bashers, each one varies somewhat.
The 4 MOST important things to a basher are DECISE skills, ATTACK skills, DAMAGE
bonus, and maintaining the INITIATIVE. This is also the order of importance as well.
Bashers also learn ATTACK, DECISE and INITIATIVE skills faster than other skills.
They are very similar to slashers in many ways.
1. DECISE SKILLS: A basher needs to strike first, and this is why his number of
decise skills must be high. His bigger size will give him bonus DECISE skills, as
well as bonus INITIATIVE skills. Bashers have poor defense and parrying abilities,
this is why they need to gain the initiative. A BASHER'S best defense is a good
OFFENSE. Speed also gives decise skills. But I don't add to speed, 'cause speed isn't
vital to a basher or his performance.
2. ATTACK: After gaining the initiative, the number of attack skills will
determine when he hits or not. Bashers need to hit what they swing at, cause they may
not get another chance to swing. I recommend a 10+ base in attack for a basher. This
means he should have a HIGH ORDER WIT statement for attack. The higher the attack
rating, the easier it will be to get through the parries and dodges of the opponent.
If you check the WIT statement chart and he doesn't have HIGH ORDER attack, he may not
do well.
3. DAMAGE: This is a MUST for any basher. Would recommend no less than a GOOD
DAMAGE rating. I prefer GREAT DAMAGE for my bashers, or more. A basher must be able
to do ALOT of damage when he hits, 'cause he is trying to bring his opponent down
fast. Because he can't afford to let his opponent attack back with the low defensive
abilities the basher has. That is why he needs to make every hit count.
4. INITIATIVE: He needs to start with at least a LOW ORDER initiative WIT
statement. He needs to maintain his attacks to get enough hits to bring his opponent
down, so there is no counter-attack. It does no good to strike first if he can't
maintain his initiative. Big size, high WIT, and high DEFTNESS will give your basher
extra starting INITIATIVE skills.
Designing a good basher doesn't take a rocket scientist. If you've been
wondering what to do with big guys, BASHER is the answer. Bashers make excellent
BASIC warriors. And if you get one that has some defensive abilities as well as
offense, he might be good at the higher levels of the game. Smaller bashers that have
higher skill bases fare better at higher levels of the game than bigger ones with less
skill. The only problem with small ones is surviving BASIC. 'Cause, they don't have
the DAMAGE or HIT POINTS the big ones have.
Strength: 10-17 Don't skimp, you need the damage. But WIT is the first
concern. Strength is number 3 in the priority race. You might need a little higher
if you have a small one. Remember you want to at least get a GOOD DAMAGE rating. You
can also train strength later, so don't worry about starting with it too high. I
always try to get odd numbers on strength, 'cause that's where most of the strength
requirements are for basher weapons. 15, 17, 21 STR also give extra skills.
Constitution: 6+ Try to get it to a least 6. If you already have it above 6,
don't add points here. This is low priority for adding points.
Size: 9+ is recommended, but I wouldn't go below 6 unless you got at least a 15
strength. If you have a size 15+, then you can go as low as 10 on the strength. A
QS, only needs an 11 strength to wield. You can use it till you get a 12 or more
strength to wield the bashers best weapon the WARHAMMER. Don't forget big size! 12+
get bonus HIT POINTS, DECISE SKILLS, and INITIATIVE SKILLS. But they also get a
penalty in their starting DEFENSE skills. Smaller ones, 8 or less, get bonus defense,
but less hit points. They also get hosed on DAMAGE bonus. But, the smaller ones
usually start out with more skills than the bigger ones.
WIT: 15, 17 or 21. Since a basher starts out with lower skill bases than most
styles, he needs to learn fast. Even if he is only an average basher, he can make up
for it by learning fast. Having a high WIT will help him learn fast. If you have a
slow learning basher, he won't be competitive after about 10 to 15 fights. The reason
is because the other styles that start with more skills than a basher will pass him up
in the skills department. This will cause many losses and even death. This is a
number ONE priority when adding points.
WILL: If you can't get 15, 17, or 21, don't add points here. WILL is not a
basher priority. If you want your basher to go to ADM, you need at least a 15 WILL.
Bashers are low endurance burn, and don't need high endurance. But it is nice to
have. Some of the best short term Bashers have low wills.
Speed: 5+. Speed is not a basher priority. Don't add points here. I don't
like 3 speeds, I believe there is a voodoo curse that penalizes you too much.
DEFTNESS: Many managers skimp here. DON'T SKIP on deftness. I see many
managers see that a roll up has low deftness and automatically say, "Make it a
basher." That greatly damages your basher. For a lunger or slasher who already have
ALOT of skill to start out with, it's okay to have a low deftness. But not a basher
who doesn't have those skills. Deftness is where most of the bonus skills come from.
Don't ROB your basher of the skills, he needs all he can get. I recommend 13+. 11 is
okay if you have a 17 or 21 WIT. I never go below 9 deftness, period.
BASHER WEAPONS: After experimenting with all of the basher weapons extensively,
I have more info in this area to give.
Basher Weapon Requirements :
Warhammer: STR 13, Size 3, WIT 9, DEF 7
Mace: Str 13, Size 3, WIT 7, DEF 5
Morning Star: Str 13, Size 3, WIT 9, DEF 13
War Flail: Str 11, Size 3, WIT 7, DEF 7
Quarterstaff: Str 11, Size 9, WIT 11, DEF 11
Great Axe: Str 13, Size 3, WIT 9, DEF 11
Great Sword: Str 15, Size 9, WIT 11, DEF 11
Maul: Str 15, Size 9, WIT 5, DEF 7
Halberd: Str 17, Size 9, WIT 11, DEF 11
Those weapons above are well suited to the basher. Also, weapons that are marginally
suitable are battle axe, broadsword, and fist. You do get a little penalty for using
marginally suitable weapons, but not enough to notice. Your basher's favorite weapon
can only be a well suited one.
Besides strength, other important factors that determine what weapon you equip
your basher with are ENDURANCE and current ATTACK skill level.
If your basher has an ENDURANCE problem, use the QS or WH. Or if he is fighting
against a heavy armored defensive style, these weapons are the best choice. Warhammer
is good against plate. Don't use a ML or HL with an endurance problem, 'cause he
won't last past round one.
If your basher hasn't gained enough skill yet, and is being parried most of the
time, use BIGGER weapons. If you have the strength and endurance use the ML or HL.
Using these weapons will increase the damage you do, making each hit count. In basic,
when weapon speed its a major factor, big weapons aren't really that slow. It is very
easy to a jump your opponent using a HL or ML, I do it all the time.
Another tactic I use often with great success is using big weapons for light
armor and lighter ones for heavy armor. Most offensives in basic wear lighter armor
and have fewer hit points. Offensive styles are more deadly to bashers than defensive
styles. Therefore you need to bring them down as quickly as possible. Using a HL or
ML against scale armor or less, usually only takes one or 2 hits to bring an offensive
style down. Defensive styles parry and dodge a lot of your attacks, so you need a
lighter weapon so you won't tire out quickly. Using a warhammer for chainmail and
above will let you last long enough to bring a defensive style down. Warhammer also
does very well against heavy armor.
WARHAMMER: 13 STR required. This is the BEST weapon for a basher without a
doubt. Its light weight and speed are unchallenged against all the other Basher
weapons. It also does a surprising amount of damage. Can be used against all armors
with great success. This weapon rarely breaks.
MACE: 13 STR required. This is an okay weapon, but doesn't compare to the
WARHAMMER. It has problems inflicting damage.
Morningstar: 13 STR and 13 DEFT required. Does good damage, but is slow and
heavy. Isn't worth the endurance burn.
War Flail: 11 STR required. The is the WORST weapon in the game. DON'T USE
IT!!!!! Damage for this weapon is very lame and I have see it bounce off of ALE and
NO ARMOR opponents. I believe daggers and fist do more damage!
Quarterstaff: 11 STR and DEFT required. This two handed weapon is light weight,
quick and good against all armors. This is a basher's fourth best weapon. This
weapon's main problem is that it breaks too much. I use the FIST as a backup when I
use the QS, so when it breaks he doesn't have to draw a backup weapon. Offensive
styles may not give you a chance to draw your backup weapon. With a fist back-up you
will continue attacking after your weapon has broken, maintaining your initiative.
Great Axe: 13 STR and 11 DEFT required. This is also much like the QS, but
weighs a little more. Does more damage than a QS. It will tire your basher faster.
This weapon also breaks a lot.
Maul: 15 STR required. Does massive damage, but is very heavy and tiresome.
This weapon is a better all-around weapon than the halberd. This is the 2nd best
bashing weapon.
Halberd: 17 Str required. Does the most damage in the game. This weapon also
is only for those warriors who have the strength and the endurance for it. This is a
basher's third best weapon.
Greatsword: 15 STR required. See WAR FLAIL. This weapon also breaks a lot.
Shields: Are well suited to bashers, but don't ever use one. They do hardly any
damage. Don't ever use a shield and any other weapon in a bashers OFF-HAND. They
rarely use their OFF-hand to parry and when they do use it to attack with, they do
less damage. When the computer gets to the part in the program where it selects which
hand to use, you want him to use his PRIMARY weapon to do the most DAMAGE. Not to
pick an off-hand weapon that does lessor damage. Also you get an attack bonus for
using two hands with many weapons.
Bashers favorite weapon: Well, out of 90 Basher ADM graduates, the following is
a list of their favorite weapons.
MS(9), MA(17), GA(5), GS(9), ML(9), WF(8), HL(8), WH(7), QS(9), ME(2), LG(8)
You have to try each of them if you want to guess which one it is. If you're
lucky and get the WH, then praise the gods!!
16 of the 90 bashers got the BASH tactic as their favorite tactic. But I
wouldn't use the BASH tactic; the DECISE tactic is awesome for a BASHER. I use it
with all my bashers. Two bashers got DECISE as a favorite tactic. Bash is only good
to use against strong defensive styles after round one. I have used the DEFENSE or
PARRY Tactics in desperation with great success. I will chose the one that the basher
has a WIT statement in. IE: If he has a DEFENSE statement, I use DEFENSE tactic in
DESP. If a parry statement, then PARRY in DESP. If neither, then PARRY 'cause it's
almost always higher than DEFENSE for a basher.
Basher Armor: ALE/S or H to start. If he doesn't seem to get the jump on most
of his opponents, then go to heavy armor. You can `sponge' your opponents by taking
hits and hope to hit them when they're tired. But if they do to much damage to you
first, you will lose.
Favorite Rhythms: Offensive effort should be between 8-10 the first minute and
5-8 there after. In DESP. 5-10. Activity Level should be 5-10 in the first minute
and 1-3 thereafter. IN DESP between 1-10. KD between 5-7 all rounds.
Typical Strategy:
MIN: 1 2 3 4 5 6 DESP
========================================
OFF. 10 8 5 5 5 5 10
----------------------------------------
AVT. 10 1 1 1 1 1 6
----------------------------------------
KD. 7 6 6 6 6 6 6
----------------------------------------
Att. RA RA RA RA RA RA RA
----------------------------------------
Pro. HE HE HE HE HE HE HE
----------------------------------------
TAC. DECISE in minute one. Bash in later minutes against scum or heavy defensive
styles. Defense or Parry in DESP.
If you aim for the limbs, you can take your opponent down quickly. Bashers tend to
hit the upper half of the body more anyhow.
Well, that's a wrap. If you would like to chat, get charts, or learn all the
stuff RSI doesn't tell you, drop me a line. You can diplo me in Primus DM102, "The
Joker's WILD" or any one of my others teams that are too numerous to list. Also, you
can EMAIL me at 103260.3347@compuserve.com
Ta-Ta,
Sir Jessie Jest
The Basher Guy