DUEL 2 NEWSLETTER
Date : 02/17/2007 Duedate: 03/02/2007
NOBLISH ISLAND ARENA
DM-93 TURN-228
This Weeks Top Honors
THE DUELMASTER IS
VERELLE WIST
MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
(93-8412) [6-3-0,40]
Chartered Recognition Leader Unchartered Recognition Leader
POSITION IS EMPTY VERELLE WIST
MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
(93-8412) [6-3-0,40]
Popularity Leader This Weeks Favorite
PARLEN QUIR VERELLE WIST
MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454) MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
(93-8409) [5-4-1,38] (93-8412) [6-3-0,40]
THE CURRENT TOP TEAM
MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
TEAMS ON THE MOVE TOP CAREER HONORS
Team Name Point Gain Chartered Team
1. LORDS OF LIGHT (1458) 32
2. MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454) 27 SUBJUGATORS (617)
3. LADY ROSE FAERYS (1457) 9 Unchartered Team
4. INDIGO CIPHER (1445) 0
LADY ROSE FAERYS (1457)
The Top Teams
Career Win-Loss Record W L K % Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns W L K
1- 2*INDIGO CIPHER (1445) 24 16 2 60.0 1/ 0*MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454) 8 7 0
2/ 3*LADY ROSE FAERYS (1457) 9 6 1 60.0 2/ 3*LADY ROSE FAERYS (1457) 3 2 0
3/ 0*LORDS OF LIGHT (1458) 3 2 0 60.0 3/ 0*LORDS OF LIGHT (1458) 3 2 0
4/ 0*MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454) 26 19 1 57.8 4- 4*INDIGO CIPHER (1445) 2 3 1
'*' Unchartered team '-' Team did not fight this turn
(###) Avoid teams by their Team Id ##/## This turn's/Last turn's rank
TEAM SPOTLIGHT
+ ]H[ + ---:--- + ]H[ The Lighthouse ]H[ + ---:--- + ]H[ +
I thought I'd say few words today about styles and challenges. You have all
seen--or will see before you leave Noblish Island (it runs on turns numbered ending
in 3), this chart (and I thank Magic Man for making it available):
KEY FOR ODDS OF WINNING:
1 - ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE 6 - BETTER THAN EVEN
2 - HARDLY LIKELY 7 - GOOD CHANCE
3 - NOT MUCH 8 - HIGHLY PROBABLE
4 - SLIGHT CHANCE 9 - MOST DEFINATELY
5 - 50/50 10 - ALMOST GUARANTEED
Reminder: Left Row vs Top Column
BA ST LU SL AB TP PS PL PR WS
BA 5 2 6 6 8 9 7 6 5 6
ST 8 5 8 9 9 6 7 5 6 4
LU 4 4 5 6 10 5 7 7 9 6
SL 4 1 5 5 8 6 8 7 8 9
AB 2 2 2 4 5 10 6 6 6 7
TP 3 4 6 4 1 5 7 8 6 5
PS 3 3 3 4 5 4 5 4 5 4
PL 5 4 3 3 6 2 7 5 7 6
PR 7 5 2 2 4 5 6 3 5 4
WS 5 8 6 2 4 6 7 5 6 5
I consider this chart to be a fertile topic for debate, possibly even
acrimonious debate. There is some truth in it, I don't dispute that. And it is to
this chart, usually, that managers refer when they speak of some warrior having "the
style advantage" over another. But I believe that other factors than style are at
least as important, and perhaps MORE important, such as the relative skill of the two
managers and two warriors involved.
But, as I say, there is some truth in it, especially where the managers and
warriors are on a level of experience. Therefore, information on the styles of other
warriors in a given arena is important, so you can gauge your challenges and avoids
to give you the best chances for winning. This is one of the things alliances do for
their members--provide a forum for exchanging style information. It is also the
reason why experienced managers generally regard it is bad form to reveal a warrior's
style in the personals. [Exceptions to this--when the warrior in question has been a
stylemaster, and when the warrior in question is graduating.] Style information is
valuable; you, or somebody, fought to get it, so it shouldn't be given away.
But there's more to "style knowledge" than simply being able to say, "X has the
style advantage over Y." You have to use your information. Note that "offensive
warriors" are bashers, lungers, strikers, and slashers. Defensive styles are those
with "parry" in their names. Aimed Blows and Walls of Steel are ambiguous and may be
considered--and run--either way.
If you KNOW or even just suspect that you have an offensive warrior who will be
facing a defensive warrior, you can adjust your strategy accordingly. You change
your armor and the speed with which you're running the warrior to pace him for a long
haul, perhaps. (And this is the adjustment that most often needs to be made.)
Or if you've got an offensive warrior facing another offensive, you can do the
same--slow your warrior's pace--and hope to take out your opponent in the second
minute when he's gasping for breath. Of course, you have to survive the first minute
somehow. More armor, perhaps, or defenisve tactics. But it's a fact that,
especially in the lower levels of the game, many offensive warriors DO burn out by
the end of the first minute or shortly thereafter. So if you're paced for that, you
may be surprised at some of the wins you can get.
Jorja
The Middle Way
+<]H[>+-----+<]H[+ Question of the Week #10 +]H[>+-----+<]H[>+
The Question, Aruak City (dm 11), turn 426:
If a warrior is wearing plate and he is hit on the hand or ankle does he get the same
amount of protection? It seems to me the most you could wear on your hand is
Chainmail. -- Hanibal, Q.O.W.
The Answers, turn 427:
Q.O.W. -- I think if you wear armor of chainmail or lighter, the protection to your
limbs is limited, certainly not to a degree equal to the armor you are wearing over
the body. But I think with platemail or full plate, the armor protects your limbs
well. Gauntlets, which I imagine being used with platemail and up, are steel plates,
so they protect better than chain. I think this is played out well in our fighters'
fights. I've seen chain wearing warriors who are tough go down with one shot to the
leg, while the same warrior in platemail takes one or two more hits. You'd be
surprised at how well medieval gauntlets' metal plates flexed for hand movement. --
Adie
QoW -- When using heavy armor, the limbs seem to be less well protected than the
chest and abdomen. I base this observation mainly on the number of ineffective
("bounced") hits seen against the torso compared to the limbs. The lighter armors
don't seem to have this difference. -- Generalissimo Puerco
Hannibal -- Questions! Great, I've missed them. Unfortunately, I can't offer much
help on this. I do know that to rely on "it would logically seem that" is the way to
get into trouble, unfortunately. After all, it would logically seem that a basher
should be well-suited to using the fist, and this is not so. So I can't guess about
the "armor for hands and feet" question. -- Leeta
Hannibal -- Take a good look at a suit of full plate some time. Everything EXCEPT
the head is protected, unless you're wearing a helmet of some sort as well. If
you're going to have warriors wearing APA, you better put them in a Helm or a Full
Helm as well, otherwise you may as well send them out in leather. A hit to an
unarmored head and your APA is worthless. -- Talon, War-Priest of Mantor the Bright
The Question, Aruak City (dm 11), turn 427:
All -- I was looking at a fight a few turns ago with Predator (Broadsword fav). In
min 1 he attacked 12 times w/ BS and only 1 crit. Min 2 six normal attacks, weapons
breaks, pulls his epee and throws three crits in a row. He always threw more crits
using an epee even though he is -6 in Deftness to use it. He used a BS in two other
fights with no crits. This makes me wonder; are favorites generated after your
warrior graduates? -- Hanibal Q.O.W.
The Answers, turn 428:
Q.O.W. -- From my understanding, favorite weapons are generated when your warrior is
created, and the bonuses are applied in basic. However, I have experienced similiar
situations to what you have seen with Predator. I have a lunger who never seemed to
throw a crit with the short spear, but constantly threw crits with the longspear even
though he wasn't quite suited to it in strength or deftness. I felt certain the
longspear was his favorite weapon because of this, and was highly shocked when upon
graduation the shortspear was listed as his weapon of choice. -- the Outsider
Hanibal, Q.O.W. -- From what I have experienced and discussed with other managers,
fighting rhythm, weapon, learns and tactics are determined upon creation. Did you
change rhythms during any of these fights? Was your attack rating high or low at the
time? If all is the same, and you throw more crits with an epee, maybe you should
send your "favorite weapon" to hell and go with what works. After all, the whole
point of finding your fave weapon is to increase your crit percentage. Although, it
would be nice to have BS crits over the EP crits (except for the knockdowns!) -- Dr.
Strange
QoW -- Well, now you're understanding why I don't make too much of an effort to try
to find a warrior's "favorite" weapon. Finding a weapon they win with is much more
important, and Predator certainly had no problem winning. I think people have had
enough cases where a suspected favorite weapon was confirmed to suggest that a
warrior's favorites are determined before AD, but the exceptions such as Predator's
are numerous. I'll bet Adie will have more to say on this matter, since it seems
like it happens to her warriors a lot. -- Generalissimo Puerco
Q.o.W. (Fav Weapons) -- I was the closest thing the KoV had to somebody who found
their favorite weapon in basic. But since I got my advanced master in attack so soon
it's hard to tell. We really haven't noticed our warriors having a favorite weapon
in basic. I personally think there may be something to what you're saying. But I
think most people believe that it's there all along. -- Maxwell Honorblade
Hanibal's Question of the Week -- No, favorites are generated when the warrior is
first created. Unless you get a favorites-prize and use it on a warrior, his
favorites always and forever remain what they were at the time of generation. --
Leeta
Q.O.W -- BS favorite and no crits sounds typical for a lot of warriors. Or GA...or
BA...or even SC. Sometimes, favorite weapons just don't serve. I have a WS in
Primus with GA favorite and Grandmaster Attack who throws more normals than crits
with her favorite. To make matters worse, I have a LU in Primus with Archmaster
Attack who still throws normals...with her favorite and with LO. Some warriors, in
my experience, just don't throw crits like they should. Others will go crazy with
their favorite weapon in basic, right from the start. I've discovered many favorite
weapons that way over the years...then again, I've also THOUGHT I'd discovered
favorite, only to have them be something else. I've always thought that somewhere, a
bit is kept with each warrior for how experienced they are with any given weapon...
and if you use a weapon enough, you get better with it (skills not withstanding). I
can't prove it, but watching some of my LS and SS, SH and MS favorite warriors using
SC and LO, you see improvement over time, even when they aren't getting more attack.
-- Talon Warsmith, Epee favorite <grin>
Hanibal, Q.O.W., favorites are born with the warrior. It's just that sometimes they
seem hard to believe. -- Kennelworth
Q.O.W. -- I've always understood that a warrior's favorite weapon is generated right
at the beginning. I have however, had the similar experience of throwing more crits
with a non-fav weapon. -- Anti
SPY REPORT
Welcome NOBLISH ISLAND. I, Olaf Modeen remember this place well. Many the
fights have I fought here. The celebrations, the disappointments... Woof! GODS OF
WAR were a bunch of dogs after MIDDLE WAY 16 got through with 'em! 1281st ain't so
sweet as 1st! What's with URIEL? He actually beat NOBLISH ISLAND's CONVICTED THIEF,
and walked away with 13 more points from the fight. Major screwup at LADY ROSE
FAERYS. LADY OF THE LAKE lost 9 points to PARLEN QUIR. Some new strategies,
perhaps? Maybe LADY OF THE LAKE will provide more easy wins... I'm sure NOBLISH
ISLAND is excited about VERELLE WIST, the new Duelmaster from MIDDLE WAY 16.
(remember?) But when you've seen as many as I have... Wouldn't it be nice to have
live subjects to practice on? I hear some team is looking into the uses of convicted
prisoners.
Speaking of cowardly avoiders and unfair challenges...
Warriors of NOBLISH ISLAND unite. You have only your games to lose! Is it my
imagination, or are fighters getting younger every day? To die so young, so
gloriously!
Many other cities have retirement homes for aged warriors. Any plans here? The
end of another Spyreport! That's cause for celebration in my book! Time for my
medication, so I'll leave now. Practice, practice, practice!-- Olaf Modeen
DUELMASTER W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
VERELLE WIST 8412 6 3 0 40 MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
-XIAN THE BLACK 8353 8 1 1 40 INDIGO CIPHER (1445)
PARLEN QUIR 8409 5 4 1 38 MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
CHALLENGER INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
-NAVANNA 8407 3 1 0 27 INDIGO CIPHER (1445)
ROEKFORT SIMS 8410 6 3 0 26 MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
FOAWR 8428 2 1 0 26 LADY ROSE FAERYS (1457)
INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
YAREON ZED 8413 5 4 0 21 MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
-TARA FIREFIST 8447 1 0 1 21 INDIGO CIPHER (1445)
TILLISE ULAM 8411 4 5 0 17 MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
LADY OF THE LAKE 8427 2 1 1 17 LADY ROSE FAERYS (1457)
-SHEVA CALLISTER 8408 2 2 0 16 INDIGO CIPHER (1445)
-MURDERMAW 8448 1 0 0 16 INDIGO CIPHER (1445)
ANKOU 8429 3 0 0 14 LADY ROSE FAERYS (1457)
XANUS 8426 2 1 0 14 LADY ROSE FAERYS (1457)
URIEL 8435 1 0 0 13 LORDS OF LIGHT (1458)
RATZIEL 8432 1 0 0 9 LORDS OF LIGHT (1458)
RAPHAEL 8434 1 0 0 8 LORDS OF LIGHT (1458)
BEAN SI 8430 0 3 0 3 LADY ROSE FAERYS (1457)
HANIEL 8433 0 1 0 1 LORDS OF LIGHT (1458)
KHAMAEL 8436 0 1 0 1 LORDS OF LIGHT (1458)
'-' denotes a warrior who did not fight this turn.
THE DEAD W L K TEAM NAME SLAIN BY TURN Revenge?
URTHON AEDAR 8386 2 2 0 INDIGO CIPHER 1445 PARLEN QUIR 8409 224 NOT REVE
PERSONAL ADS
All -- I apologize for not running as regularly as I would like to. I promise to
begin to pay more attention to this team in the future. -- Lady Rose
Jorja -- My husband IRL speaks very highly of you (Baphomet). I am open to any and
all suggestions you might offer. -- Lady Rose
Drake -- Baphomet also speaks with loud acclamations about you. Your suggestions and
advice would also be apprectiated. -- Lady Rose
Morrigan -- That was well done. -- Parlen Quir
P.S. (whine) But I would rather have won.
Camulus -- So this win is by way of a going-away present for you? Well, okay, but
could you at least TRY not to kill your opponent? -- Tillise Ulam
Mentu -- Try the smaller verious of that weapon. Sure, you took me down with it, but
if you run up against a manager who tinkers with strategies, you're in trouble,
because the size limitation will impair your performance. -- Verelle Wist
Oh, well! Mordant Deserter. Naturally I can defeat a standby. -- Yareon Zed
And I might say the same about the Convicted Thief. -- Roekfort Sims
Mentu -- "They" say that with an increase in attack skills, targeting improves.
We'll have to see, won't we? -- Roekfort Sims
Drake's Comments on Turn 226'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:
"A SACRED LORD'S SLASHER" by Bookie -- Overall an okay article. The stat ranges
listed are pretty strict and can be hard to come by. For my own part, on STR I look
for a STR + SIZ of 21 for a decent shot at GOOD DAMAGE. WIL can go as low as 15 so
long as both STR & CON are fairly high (STR + CON >= 20) otherwise stick to the 17+.
SPD only needs to be high enough to get your warrior a decent starting Decisiveness
skill. Points are better focused in WIT & WIL for this purpose however. DFT is my
largest disagreements because it really doesn't need to be that high. An 11 is
perfectly adequate and if your warrior relies on parry he's already done something
wrong for an *offensive* style. The strat is okay, but Slashers actually tend to
prefer an Activity Level in the 1-4 range.
"The Dark Arena: A Fighter's Perspective" by Scotlan -- Not much to say on this one.
"Kill Desire: Patience." by Sir Jessie Jest -- This article is very out of date.
While some of what is in it is true, quite a bit is not. For one thing, wild swings
have far more to do with your warrior's Attack skill than with the kill desire you
assign. Also, KD does actually have an impact on how likely your warrior is to try
to get the kill, but Sir JJ is correct in that Attack Location and your warrior's
DAMAGE rating are more important. One of the funny things about KD is that different
styles react to it in different ways. In general, it's true that defensive styles
should stick to a KD of 5 or less and offensive styles tend to prefer KDs in the 5-8
range. However, there are exceptions. Lungers and Bashers seem to do perfectly fine
(and in some ways seem to prefer) KDs of 9 or 10. On the other hand, the Aimed Blow
seems to treat KD like a defensive style does and so you're best off sticking to a 5
or less with them. One of the biggest impacts KD seems to have (that isn't mentioned
by Sir JJ) is its role in getting your own fighter killed. The higher your warrior's
KD is, the more determined he is to kill his foe; even at the expense of his own
life. Your warrior will be less likely to give up, hoping to get that killing shot
in on his enemy. Unfortunately, if your warrior is making surrender checks, he's
probably losing. Trying to gut it out while losing is a great way to get killed.
"SOME INFO ON THE RIPPER" by Necrom -- This is an okay article. A PR really only
needs enough STR to hit normal damage (STR + SIZ >= 14 should do it). WIT can go as
low as a 13 on a defensive style though I agree that 15, 17 & 21 are preferred. Many
managers will tell you that PRs don't need WIL because of how well they conserve
endurance. However, a higher WIL gives more Hit Points, a higher chance to pass
surrender checks and better odds at surviving a trip to the infirmary. As far as his
notes on SPD, starting Expert Riposte on your overview is over-rated as it's really
hard to riposte after being hit in the face. Defense and Parry are more important
and will come mainly from WIT, WIL & DFT. Deftness can realistically go as low as
11, but higher does tend to be better (after WIT & WIL are taken care of). His notes
on strategy are okay. PRs tend to favor an Offensive Effort in the 3-4 range and an
Activity Level around 5-6. Also, he never mentioned the Scimitar which is tied with
The Longsword for best weapon in the game.
"Crimson Strikers" by Crimson Strategist -- This article was cutting edge Striker
design 10-15 years ago. Unfortunately, it really isn't now. STR only needs to be
high enough for GOOD DAMAGE (STR + SIZE >= 21 usually does it). SIZ you can't do
anything about so don't worry about it. WIT is an important stat on a Striker. I
strongly recommend against anything below a 15 and I will only use a 15 if all the
other stats are perfect. I never go below a 9 WIL on any warrior because Very Little
ENDURANCE sucks no matter what your style is. Also, you'll need at least a 15 to
stay competitive in ADM. Strikers get enough of a Decisiveness bonus that a high SPD
really isn't that necessary. Anything in then 6-13 range should be plenty. DFT only
needs to be an 11 for good skill base and weapon selection. As to his strategy, it's
okay though I prefer a higher Activity Level (starting 8-10). Favorite rhythms for
Strikers are all over the map. However, his strategy notes have several misleading
statements. Contrary to what was thought up until the mid 90s, the Activity and
Quickness statements on your warrior's overview have nothing to do with your
warrior's favorite Activity Level; rather they are a reflection of his starting
skills. Likewise the WIT substatements are all about starting skill levels and are
not hints as to how your warrior should be run. His weapon selections are okay,
though I prefer lighter weapons (DA, HA, SH, EP) vs armor levels less than 6.
Finally, don't put armor on your Striker. If your opponent is getting the chance to
swing, your Striker has already screwed up royally.
Drake's Comments on Last Turn's Articles:
"REALITY SIMULATIONS E-MAIL ADDRESSES" by RSI -- Hmm. I wonder what they're trying
to say.
"A NOTE ON MAILMEN" by Staple Gun -- Now there's a manager name I haven't heard in a
long time. Remember, be nice to you local postal representative. Especially if you
run a lot of scum.
"Strikers R Us" by Talon -- Not a bad article on Striker design. Way more Deftness
than is really needed, but that was the rule back when this article would have been
written. Really, you don't need more than 11 and I place a much higher premium on
Wit & Strength with Strikers. The strategy is pretty standard, but you can see the
influences of that old myth about getting a bonus from matching your OE and KD.
Trust me, doing that has no appreciable effect on your warrior's performance.
"HOW I MADE DUELMASTER IN THREE EASY STEPS" by Khyron -- Hey, look, it's a Dixie Cup
(disposable) Aimed Blow. Don't try this set up if you're wanting to be competitive
in ADM. Wit is how your warrior learns skills and thus I won't put less than a 13 on
any long-term warrior. Will is nice and needed for the way this guy runs Aimers but
in general you don't need more than 9 for Basic and 15 for ADM. A 19 Deftness gets
you nothing that a 17 doesn't give you. I would say Khyron got lucky with this guy
as any decent offensive that doesn't drop from exhaustion in the first 2 minutes
should be able to eat this design alive. Finally, the trick with the DM bloodfeuding
and losing is *highly* unlikely to work in most arenas.
"THE WALL OF STEEL AS A BERSERKER" by She-Puppy -- I strongly recommend *against* a
Deftness below 11 (okay, you can do 9 but you'd best have a high Wit [17+] on that
guy). This is because most waste weapons require at least an 11 DFT (though the BS
does only need a 7) and 11 is a *major* skill breakpoint. Also, I like more SPD on
my wastes in order to bring up their base Riposte as they won't be learning any Rip
skills for quite a while. The given strat is a bit odd for a waste. Most wastes
seem to prefer more moderate numbers in OE and lower numbers in AL. Also, you can
see another mention of that old OE = KD gives a bonus myth. I also don't recommend
switching around attack locations like that. You'll finish off a foe quicker if
you're consistently damaging one area.
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)
24 January 2007
The Council of Lords would like to propose a rule change in ADM and Primus. We
propose that Lord Protectors ranked "Grand Champions" and below (ADM) and "The Tower
Guard" and below (Primus) be allowed to fight in the Dark Arena. This would not
impact the top rankings or title match. Any managers who never got his fill or shot
at fighting Gateway monsters would have it as an option. We believe it might spark
some interest in the ADM/Primus realm for some managers. If interested, speak up in
the newsletters or on forums under the "rules changes" thread and let RSI know. This
could even be something to try for 12 months and then be re-evaluated. What say you,
managers of Ghea? -- The Icelord sends....
29 January 2007
HDFA Mission Statement
"Show me the money!"
This is the battle cry of a newly formed collection of like-minded individuals:
The High Dolla' Free Agent$. We are not a tough guy alliance: No...we offer no
battle without reward. We search for victory and the prizes and accolades that
follow. We are motivated by winning and will freely use whatever means necessary to
obtain our currency. No stuffy rules, no mandates, no constitutions, no leaders,
only a few objectives:
1) Win as often as possible
2) Celebrate freely and revel in your victories; the more meaningless the
victory the more we celebrate. Highsiding and chest thumping are encouraged.
Ostentatious endzone celebrations with prop usage are encouraged, regardless of
fines, penalties, suspensions or arrest by local authorities. It is important to let
your opponent know how great you are; more importantly, you must let your own
alliance mates know how great you are.
This is a 1-up alliance, let the performance of your fellow Free Agent$ motivate
you. If a Free Agent wins a TV, win 2; if a Free agent wins a contest, win a more
prestigious one.
Current members of the HDFA include: CFH and Abraxis. Inquires can be directed
to: CFH/Rat Salad DM 47
14 February 2007
RSI is now taking rollups for a slow version of the No-Tournament arena. Send your
rollup to RSI listing the arena as "Slow No Tournament". Sign and send in the
following pledge:
* I pledge that I will not send warriors from this team to a Tournament, nor will I
use a Tournament prize on a warrior from this team.
* I pledge to run a full team when I run turns in this arena. If circumstances
preclude my running less than a full team I will notify the Player Committee.
* I agree to abide by the decisions of the Player Committee.
* I understand that any warrior that participates in a Tournament shall be sent to
the Dark Arena until they are dead.
* I understand that any warrior that receives a Tournament prize shall be send to the
Dark Arena until they are dead.
The following are the rules for joining this No-Tournament arena
1. No tournament play (Dead tournament or otherwise)
2. One team per manager
3. Team starts with new rollup (or a zero fight equivalent team is transferred into
this arena.)
4. No tourney prizes allowed to modify warriors in the arena
5. 20 teams required, per RSI
6. Waivers are required to allow self-regulation on tourney ban, granting RSI
authority to Dark Arena any warrior that participates in a Tournament (until the
warrior is dead.)
7. Rotating council to enforce tourney ban and maintain arena integrity.
Hammer will be the focal point for this arena's Player Committee.
LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS
VERELLE WIST viciously subdued AMBITIOUS GUARD in a 2 minute bloody Title fight.
PARLEN QUIR vanquished LADY OF THE LAKE in a 1 minute uneven battle.
YAREON ZED was demolished by DANGEROUS CRIMINAL in a 1 minute uneven fight.
TILLISE ULAM was devastated by FOAWR in a 1 minute one-sided contest.
ROEKFORT SIMS overpowered BEAN SI in a 2 minute mismatched match.
XANUS bested HANIEL in a 2 minute novice's duel.
ANKOU viciously subdued KHAMAEL in a 2 minute bloody amateur's match.
RATZIEL defeated PERSISTANT BEGGAR in a crowd boring 4 minute beginner's melee.
RAPHAEL won victory over MORDANT DESERTER in a 2 minute novice's duel.
URIEL vanquished CONVICTED THIEF in a 1 minute one-sided duel.
BATTLE REPORT
MOST POPULAR RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS
|FIGHTING STYLE FIGHTS FIGHTING STYLE W - L - K PERCENT|
|STRIKING ATTACK 3 AIMED BLOW 13 - 8 - 1 62 |
|WALL OF STEEL 3 STRIKING ATTACK 19 - 13 - 0 59 |
|BASHING ATTACK 3 WALL OF STEEL 18 - 13 - 0 58 |
|LUNGING ATTACK 2 TOTAL PARRY 15 - 11 - 0 58 |
|SLASHING ATTACK 2 BASHING ATTACK 19 - 16 - 2 54 |
|PARRY-LUNGE 1 SLASHING ATTACK 17 - 17 - 0 50 |
|PARRY-RIPOSTE 1 LUNGING ATTACK 29 - 29 - 2 50 |
|AIMED BLOW 0 PARRY-STRIKE 6 - 9 - 1 40 |
|PARRY-STRIKE 0 PARRY-LUNGE 3 - 5 - 0 38 |
|TOTAL PARRY 0 PARRY-RIPOSTE 5 - 9 - 0 36 |
Turn 228 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-LUNGE 1 - 0 AIMED BLOW 0 - 0 3 STRIKING ATTACK
PARRY-RIPOSTE 1 - 0 PARRY-STRIKE 0 - 0 3 BASHING ATTACK
LUNGING ATTACK 2 - 0 BASHING ATTACK 0 - 3 2 WALL OF STEEL
STRIKING ATTACK 2 - 1 TOTAL PARRY 0 - 0 1 PARRY-STRIKE
WALL OF STEEL 2 - 1 1 LUNGING ATTACK
SLASHING ATTACK 1 - 1 1 SLASHING ATTACK
TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE
FIGHTING STYLE WARRIOR W L K PNTS TEAM NAME
WALL OF STEEL VERELLE WIST 8412 6 3 0 40 MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
LUNGING ATTACK PARLEN QUIR 8409 5 4 1 38 MIDDLE WAY 16 (1454)
Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above.
The overall popularity leader is PARLEN QUIR 8409. The most popular warrior this
turn was VERELLE WIST 8412. The ten other most popular fighters were XANUS 8426,
ROEKFORT SIMS 8410, ANKOU 8429, PARLEN QUIR 8409, FOAWR 8428, HANIEL 8433, RAPHAEL
8434, URIEL 8435, LADY OF THE LAKE 8427, and YAREON ZED 8413.
The least popular fighter this week was RATZIEL 8432. The other ten least popular
fighters were KHAMAEL 8436, BEAN SI 8430, TILLISE ULAM 8411, YAREON ZED 8413, LADY OF
THE LAKE 8427, URIEL 8435, RAPHAEL 8434, HANIEL 8433, FOAWR 8428, and PARLEN QUIR
8409.
The Defensive Lunger
Perfect Minimums Actual Characters
ST 13 11 11 13
CN 7 3 3 11
SZ 4 4 10 6
WT 21 17 17 17
WL 17 13 17 19
SP 5 5 9 5
DF 17 13 17 13
The lunger, in my opinion, makes a much better defensive fighter than offensive
fighter. Fighting defensively will compensate for the speed at which lungers burn
endurance. They will still attack whenever possible but their defensive ability will
allow them to dodge most attacks. The most important part is their initiative. When
they do dodge, they'll usually steal the initiative and attack. I haven't been
fighting lungers defensively for long but my record is 14-5-0. Don't fight
defensively against other lungers as they will usually win.
The strategy I use is:
Min 1 2 3 4 5 6 Desp
Off 4 -------------------------> 9 Weapon: Any lunging
Act 6 4 --------------------> 9 No armor if low con
KD 4 -------------------------> 9 APL/H if average con
O.T. ---------------------------> L
D.T. -------------------------------->
You can attack any location you wish but I suggest protecting the body. The
third character listed started with experts in attack, defense and initiative. The
last character had an expert in attack.
The Wild Boar, manager of Things (5) and many inactive teams.
WARRIOR ENDURANCE
Greetings, joy and happiness to everyone! I hope you have had pleasant dueling.
This article is about endurance and some things to think about when you're designing
your warriors. Below is a chart showing the different endurance levels a warrior may
have. This chart may be a little off of due to the fact it isn't possible to have all
the variables as a manager, but it does give you idea of the amount of endurance a
warrior should have.
The formula for endurance is: E = (ST+CN)WL
With the result of that number use the chart below.
000-180 = Very Poor
181-240 = Poor
235-390 = Normal
391-509 = Good
510-639 = Great
640-699 = Tremendous
770+ = Awesome
Here are some examples of warriors with their Endurance ratings:
1) Slasher ST 5 CN 7 WL 15 (5+7)15 = 180 Poor
2) Striker ST 7 CN 13 WL 9 (7+13)9 = 180 Poor
3) Parry-Rip ST 7 CN 10 WL 11 (7+10)11 = 187 Poor
4) Basher ST 13 CN 9 WL 9 (13+9)9 = 198 Very Poor
5) Striker ST 13 CN 9 WL 9 (13+9)9 = 198 Poor
6) Aimed-Blow ST 9 CN 15 WL 9 (9+15)9 = 216 Normal
7) Striker ST 10 CN 5 WL 15 (10+5)15 = 225 Normal
8) Slasher ST 13 CN 10 WL 10 (13+10)10 = 230 Normal
9) Wall/Steel ST 13 CN 12 WL 17 (13+12)17 = 425 Great
There are several factors such as warrior style, RSI random factor, and there is
some evidence that SIZE has some effect on a warrior's endurance. In any case the RSI
LUCK factor can be around 7 to 8% in your favor or 2-3% worse than average. These are
just estimates, but are still factors nevertheless.
Some styles that are HIGH BURN endurance, like lungers, slashers and walls of
steel, are more likely to be UNLUCKY with the endurance rating.
Every action your warrior does consumes endurance. Attacking seems to use more
endurance than any other action. Once a warrior's endurance is used up, he will make
an endurance check against his WILL. If he fails the roll, he will either stop to rest
or collapse to the sand, depending on how badly he failed the roll. When a warrior
stops to rest, he gets back some endurance. When he gets enough endurance back, he
will start attacking again. This is just a theory that I have developed from
observations. It maybe completely off, but it gives one something to ponder.
That's it for now lords and ladies, I must go entertain elsewhere. If you would
like to chat about DM or other things, you can EMAIL me at 103260.3347@compuserve.com
or visit my DM website at
http://ourworld.compuserve.com./homepages/jessisjest/homepage.htm
You can also diplo me at DM 11 "The Lords Of the Abyss (319)" or any of the
Joker's Wilds scattered about.
Cheerio,
Sir Jessie Jest
Member of the Ivory League
Presenting, by Popular Demand (from 1989)...
THE NUMEROLOGY OF DUELMASTERS
by The Ghost of Eldrid
Character Generation
Hello, I am the Ghost of Eldrid, and I have an important message that directly
effects how well your team may do in the future. Some managers will not take this
important article seriously (some people don't believe in ghosts, either), and their
records will suffer for it. I have played Duelmasters for four years and searched
through all of my old turns and painstakingly researched every important fact in this
article, and I have discussed my conclusions with about ten different managers (named
managers such as Phido, Doctor LeGrand, Silk, Russ, and Biff Frothingslosh) who all
agree on the validity of my arguments. The results of my research are both startling
and magnificent. THERE IS NUMEROLOGY IN DUELMASTERS!!! Whether it was programmed in
or it exists on a higher plane, it matters not. IT EXISTS!!! And I plan to share
some of its amazing secrets with you, starting with character creation.
Remember in the realm of character generation the powers favor odd number stats.
NEVER, EVER have an even number on stats, except, of course, for size, which,
obviously should be even since everyone can tell what size your character is by his
description in the fight. Do you want people thinking your warrior is odd? I should
hope not!! But in case you decide to keep your odd warrior, DO NOT MAKE ANY OTHER
STATS EVEN!! Write a letter to the commission stating that you forgo the rights to
the last point and you want it to be sacrificed to the benefit of Alastari.
Always start adding points to wit and will first. Either make them 13, 17, or
21. Why? Under 12 wit is worthless, as any good manager will tell you. A 13
understandably gives your opponent bad luck, a 17 has the ever-lucky "7" in it, and 21
is BLACKJACK, and you get twice the number of winnings you would normally get. Why
not 15 or 19? Is it not obvious to everyone that 15 is unlucky? The only President
of the United States not married was the 15th, James Buchanan (who?). Lincoln was
shot on April 15th, and the clincher... my brother was born on the 15th of May. If
these "coincidences" don't prove to you that 15 is unlucky, I don't know what will.
19 is an evil number. It tries to deceive you into thinking it is better than 17, but
actually, it is an "11" with a small zero placed on the second pole, and we all know
that a zero is nothing. So what do we get for our extra eight points? In effect,
something smaller than nothing.
Next, make every other stat odd. Add the other points to make the style you
want. Deftness is the key to character generation.
Deftness (min)
5 to make a basher (ST 13+)
7 for a lunger
9 for a striker
11 for a wall of steel (ST 11+, WL 17+)
13 for a parry lunge (ST 11+), slasher (SP 11+), parry-strike, and total
parries (these styles depend on the opponent's bad luck.
17 for a parry-riposte (WT 17+)
21 for an aimed blow (this style needs the double winnings)
The last thing to remember is that luck is a big factor in this game and I don't
know if you noticed, but when warriors have even ID numbers they are luckier than odd
ID characters. Look at the best warriors in Primus: Wallbanger, Donatello, Epitaph,
Chaos Knight, Villiage Idiot, Silverflash, Khorga Khan, Jake the Snake, Sly, Max,
Stormbringer, Teetotaler, Raphael, Selleque, Kiri, Constance, Hangover, Eve, and Sam
Spade. All have even-numbered IDs. Now you say, "But Yoda and Necron-99 both have
odd IDs, and they are the best aimed blows of the game!" Yes, but they are AIMED
BLOWS and they are members of an odd style, so of course they do better with odd
numbers. So remember if you want your warriors to be best in all Alastari someday,
Dark Arena all your odd-numbered characters, unless of course they are aimed blows.
Good luck, and may the numbers fall your way.
-- The Ghost of Eldrid,
retired
PARRY-STRIKE, ANOTHER FUN STYLE
There have been several articles about fighting styles, some say theirs is the
best, or ultimate, one said theirs is the most fun style. Well, I feel that parry-
strikers are just as much fun to play as any other style.
First, let's start with the run down of what they say in the "RED BOOK". The
book says that parry-strikers are defensive, using small quick movements in their
actions (sounds like you could say that about some other styles as well.) The book
says that some managers swear that a high wit is critical to the style (only those who
have no brains would disagree with that.)
Let's get to business. First and foremost this style is deceptively aggressive,
making them a very good offensive type of fighter, or deadly type of defensive
fighter. Offensively they tend to get the jump on their opponent. I had a parry-
striker that was only jumped 3 out of 11 fights, before he died. To prepare and run a
parry-striker can be quite confusing, so I will try to help make it as simple as
possible. Here are my feelings on roll-ups for the parry-strike style:
ST: 11-15, I'll explain later.
CN: who cares.
SZ: 10-14, don't go over 14.
WT: 13-17, 17 is the best.
WL: 13-17, to get good endurance.
SP: not important.
DF: 11-15, I'll explain later.
Here are some good roll-ups for a parry-striker: 11,7,10,17,17,7,15;
15,7,11,17,16,7,11; 11,7,14,17,13,7,15; 15,7,14,17,13,7,11. Now, if you have a decent
wit, the way you run this fighting style will depend on strength and deftness. For
example: if your fighter has a high DF and a low ST it would be to his/her advantage
to be defensive, since the speed would benefit the ability to move in reaction to
their opponent. If the ST is high, and DF low, it would be better to fight
offensively like a striker, trying to get the first, and only blow in. If they don't
have a decent wit, you're on your own. I can't help you on that. Remember this style
of fighting is the same as a striker except for added knowledge of parrying, as well
as bein a little more aggressive. I would not suggest a low ST and DF, it will take
away from your WT & WL, and you don't want to do that, but if you do, good luck. You
don't need much CN if you have a good WL, which gives you your endurance. SZ; you
don't want it to be above 14, it would hurt your fighting style more than your
attributes. WT; it is the same as it is with strikers, the higher the WT the faster
and deadlier they become. Raise WT to 17 if you don't have it at the start, then
don't worry about it again until ADM. WL; this is where you get your endurance. 13
is fine to start out, but I would suggest 15, then bump it up to 17 in basic. SP; it
is what you need to riposte, but PSers have this "one strike one kill" attitude.
Meaning that there isn't much time to riposte with a killing attitude, so do whatever.
DF; what is there to say, it helps, but is not crucial to be a great PSer. Now to
running a PSer. If he is an offensive fighter 10-10-10 Dec. all the way through the
fight, even in desperation. If Defensive, 1st 10-10-10 Resp., 2nd 10-7-10 Dec., 3rd
10-10-10, 4th 10-10-10 Dec., 5th 10-10-10 Dec., 6th 10-10-10, Desp. 10-10-10 Resp.
Remember, first you want to assure your defense, and to do that, you should go
defensive the first minute. By the second minute you will be secure enough to go on
the offensive, but experiment. 6th minute on, leave blank, for by that time he/she
will know what to do (if their WT is high that is.) The best thing you could do for
your fighter is watch the fights, if you are getting more defensive skills than
offensive, run the def., or change weapons. That is the best advice I can give you
about PSers. About armor, I like to use ringmail or nothing, but experiment. I know
that there is someone that will disagree with me, but I feel that I have given you
some ideas about this fighting style that can be used, even though I am a new manager,
playing for just over a year. No matter who writes a style article, it is just
advice, not the bible. Just use the articles as a point of reference, not as sworn
law.
This is a very fun fighting style, try it out. I have written this in answer to
Foreign Legion Arena 31, and The Spartans Arena 8. I challenge any Primus Manager to
correct my writing of PSers. It is not my favorite style, but it is as fun as any
other that I have used, including my favorite one (Which is a STRIKER!!) If there are
any comments, please Diplo The Priest, the manager of The Heroes of XIAN DM-10, or The
Crucifiers DM-46.
THE ARMOR PIERCING PARRY-LUNGE
When you think "attack" what style comes to mind? Bashing? Definitely lunging?
Of course. Parry-Lunging? Excuse me? Yes, the parry-lunger! Few people realize the
fact that parry-lungers are attack gods waiting to be born. All it takes is the right
warrior and lots of guts. This warrior is not for the weak of heart. We'll begin
with stats.
Range Perfect
ST 9-11 11
CN 5-9 5
SZ 6-11 8
WT 17or21 21
WL 17or21 17
SP 5-8 5
DF 15-17 17
Why?
ST(11): This is your optimum PL strength. It puts your warrior in the normal to
good damage range. Also, you have the best PL weapon at your disposal--the LO!
CN(5): Yes, his life expectancy is low. What'd I tell you? Guts, right? He
gets his endurance from WL. If you want to make trains, make them here.
SZ(8): Our most flexible stat. A high SZ (i.e.11) allows you to skimp a bit on
Str (9).
WT(21): If it's not a 21 you're not going to get the attack this fellow counts
on. His learns will be awesome and a 21 WT will make him a better warrior out of the
chocks.
WL(17): End/Att are dependent on this one being high. Keeps you on your feet
when you should drop from exhaustion.
SP(5): Not a big requirement. Init and Parry will come from elsewhere (WT/DF).
This is not a lunger mimic.
DF(17): Combine this DF with a 21 WT and you will have a massive attack.
Pinpoint accuracy is the byword. Parry, init, def and riposte will all benefit
immeasurably. At 15 you have access to the EP, a fine lunging weapon this style can
put to devastating use.
Strategy (General, but effective in most cases)
2 9 9 7 6 5 10
6 9 9 7 6 5 10
2 7 7 7 5 5 10
HE ---------------------------->
HE BD ----------------------->
- - - - - - -
P - - - - - -
Minute 1: This fellow won't get the jump on offensives, so we'll just go
defensive and render their "mad minute" fruitless. This PL's counterattack will be
amazing at even 2-6-2 P due to the high AL. Keep the parry tactic until Adv Expert
parry is gained.
Minutes 2 and 3: These two will end most of his fights. When he starts landing
precision blows in his opponent's face it will usually be over quickly. Keep the kill
desire relatively low as to avoid sloppy attacking.
Minutes 4 through 6: If you haven't won by now you've got to depend on your WL
to carry you until you finish the job. He'll probably top out at the five min. mark.
But we want to keep the attacks coming so we do so at his endurance's expense.
Desp: If your opponent is an offensive he's probably blasted through your min. 1
defense. Your best bet is to go spastic and hope to take him out in one shot or so.
If he's some super-defensive (scum) this PL is probably exhausted and you're hoping
the super-offense will put him over the edge. After all, it's better to burn out than
fade away.
Always aim for the head to maximize the impact of your blows. If it tickles your
fancy, aim for your opponent's weapon arm and beat him senseless when he's unarmed.
Protecting the head in min. 1 is strictly odds playing on my part. My offensives aim
head so I assume everyone else's do too. After min. 1, we forget defense.
Weapons and armor are simple. APL/H or ARM/H (if you're challenging a real
heavy-hitter). I prefer swords for armament. My combos are usually LO/SM, LO/SH,
SC/DA etc. Against heavy armor go with LO/SH. Always aim for the head.
Philosophy: This guy clings to life by luck, early on, and will never be free of
the spectre of death. In his first few fights stay away from lungers and bashers.
Both have high attacks and usually do substantial damage. Prey on strikers, PS, PR
and slashers. As he progresses, his attack, parry and defense will equip him with the
tools to handle most everybody but always remain cautious of those bashers and
lungers.
A PL of this calibre should begin with around a 90 att, 70 par/init and 60-70
def. Decise and riposte will be slightly lower. Riposte 50 and decise anywhere from
35-50 depending on how lucky you get. Train skills exclusively from fight one and on.
Use tourneys if you must raise anything at all (including con).
Don't be discouraged if he's around .500 early on. By ten fights he'll be
sporting three Adv Experts at least (att, par and init) and will begin to dismantle
those scum/finesse styles that managed to beat him. Feel free to write or diplo me
with comments/criticisms/or questions.
Fight the Good Fight,
or: Agath
CPL Michael Dockus Lunatic Fringe (23)
H Co BLT 2/8 Circle of Five (51)
24 MEU (Det F) Slaves of Power (52)
FPO NY NY 09502-8531