DM 093 Newsletter

DUEL 2 NEWSLETTER

Date : 03/15/2008 Duedate: 03/28/2008

NOBLISH ISLAND ARENA

DM-93 TURN-256

This Weeks Top Honors

THE DUELMASTER IS

DARK ARENA MEAT
MIDDLE EARTH (1488)
(93-8624) [9-1-0,56]

Chartered Recognition Leader Unchartered Recognition Leader

DARK ARENA MEAT EARL BRUCE
MIDDLE EARTH (1488) SCARLET BROTHERHOOD (1505)
(93-8624) [9-1-0,56] (93-8723) [3-0-0,32]

Popularity Leader This Weeks Favorite

DARK ARENA MEAT BROTHER TAO
MIDDLE EARTH (1488) FAUX TIDES (1482)
(93-8624) [9-1-0,56] (93-8580) [4-4-1,27]

THE CURRENT TOP TEAM

SCARLET BROTHERHOOD (1505)

TEAMS ON THE MOVE TOP CAREER HONORS
Team Name Point Gain Chartered Team
1. HOUSE OF JADE (1503) 56
2. MIDDLE EARTH (1488) 32 MIDDLE EARTH (1488)
3. ORDER (1501) 19 Unchartered Team
4. MIDDLE WAY 19 (1502) 13
5. FAUX TIDES (1482) 13SCARLET BROTHERHOOD (1505)

The Top Teams

Career Win-Loss Record W L K % Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns W L K
1/ 1*SCARLET BROTHERHO (1505) 12 2 0 85.7 1/ 1*SCARLET BROTHERHO (1505) 12 2 0
2/ 0*HOUSE OF JADE (1503) 4 1 0 80.0 2/ 5 MIDDLE EARTH (1488) 8 7 0
3/ 2 MIDDLE EARTH (1488) 32 17 1 65.3 3/ 6*FAUX TIDES (1482) 7 8 2
4- 3*SHENANIGANS (1494) 17 13 4 56.7 4/ 2*ELLISHOOD (1493) 5 4 0
5/ 6*ELLISHOOD (1493) 19 19 0 50.0 5/ 0*HOUSE OF JADE (1503) 4 1 0
6/ 5*ORDER (1501) 3 3 0 50.0 6/ 3*MIDDLE WAY 19 (1502) 4 9 0
7/ 4*MIDDLE WAY 19 (1502) 15 16 0 48.4 7/ 7*ORDER (1501) 3 3 0
8/ 7*FAUX TIDES (1482) 15 28 3 34.9 8- 4*SHENANIGANS (1494) 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

* }%|[-----+O+-----]|%{ * }%|[-----+O+-----]|%{ * }%|[-----+O+-----]|%{ *
-- Bastor, Faux Tides and the Question: Why Me? --

The morning was crisp but not quite nippy enough for a sweater. Dew sparkled as
the sun beamed brightly from the heavens, basking the lush, hilly meadow. I sat,
surrounded by life, growth and nature, (everything I would soon be working against,)
pondering my place in life in general. Everything was perfect except for an
unnatural pesky sound that had caught my attention.
"Help!" At first I thought it an odd bird call. I was studying the most lovely
flutter bottom that had alighted on my finger when the Sound, much closer and easily
notable, disrupted the euphoria of the natural setting once again.
"Help! Somebody!" The desperation in the voice stirred something in me that
warned of trouble and hence, run! I stood with a healthy sign and shook the lillydac
petals from my cape and swept my blue leggings clean. Then, finding my bearings, I
went in search of the disturbance. I should just hide, but I was terribly curious.
I had been collecting fruit and watching the wildlife for most of the morning
while trying to forget about my cruel family. I so enjoyed beauty and the world was
just full of it. Well, I bit into an apple as I crested the top of the hill. I
stopped in mid chew as a rather ugly thing officially destroyed my perfect morning.
The hairy behemoth was trying its best to stick its ugly horns into what seemed to be
a young boy.
"Hey you!" I shouted. "Pick on someone your own size!"
To my surprise, the boy turned and ran straight for me. I suppose he thought my
indignation had been an attempt to help. To my panic, I was just about to run when
the kid spoke.
"Thanks, mister. I think you scared it."
Me?
I grabbed my bright red cape as the wind whipped it into a froth, before it
could poke me in the eyes as it often did. The beast glared our way and began
stomping its hooves. Then, it lowered its horns and charged.
"Oh dear!" I gasped. "Run!" Fear coursed through me as the boy and I took
flight. I was about to overtake the boy when my cape snagged, spinning me around and
getting all tangled in a shrub thorn. My skin crawled as I could almost feel those
horns pierce my bum in a most painful way. I could imagine the taunts and jeers as I
limped down the street. So, with a deep sigh I turned, slowly opening one eye and
then the other. I screamed. Yes. High-pitched. Girlish. Terrified. Scream. The
black beady eyes seemed to burn through me. Adrenaline and desperation spurred me
into action and I braced myself, grabbing for the horns. My feet dug furrows as I
grunted in an attempt to avoid the thing's foul breath. To my surprise, and its, I
brought it to a standstill. Realizing my advantage, I smashed the beast with a
vicious headbutt that made stars appear. Slowly, with a groan, it dropped, dazed.
I stood, unbelieving, and caught my breath while gathering my cape once more. I
turned, deciding to be somewhere safe when the thing woke up. There again was the
boy. He looked at me with admiration in his eyes and he had a backpack and the
oddest clothes.
"Thanks. I was a goner for sure!" the boy struck a hand out tentatively. "I'm
Gavin Rule."
"Hallo Gavin. I'm Bastor." After shaking his hand, the wardrobe finally
clicked. "You're a manager, aren't you?"
The boy nodded enthusiastically. "I was trying to recruit that minotaur but I
don't think he liked my offer."
"The manager was the smallest I had ever seen but, not without a certain charm.
Slowly, I glanced around and then back to the child. "If you're a manager, shouldn't
you have duelers somewhere around here?" My attention was drawn to the backpack. If
this was an exceptionally small manager, it made sense he might have an exceptionally
small dueling team.
"Mack, probably his usual grumpy self, and Tao is no doubt trying to ignore him.
Hey, you handled that mino pretty well. Want to join? It's a steady pay and we can
be the best team ever!" He finished with a fist in the air. At least he didn't lack
enthusiasm.
This situation called for careful thought. Fighting is dangerous work.
Something I try to avoid. I'd just decided to pass when my mouth took control all by
itself. "Sure."
"Yeah! Awesome! We're gonna be the best!"
"Oh bother, There I go again." I sighed and gave a shrug. No going back now.
We headed down the hill as I led my new friend and manager toward town.
"Owning a stable is an expensive business. How do you plan to pay?"
Gavin smiled and patted his backpack lovingly. "Baseball cards," he said with
confidence. They've gotta be super rare here!"

-- Bastor
.Shameless Coward. ~ Memories

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Skills in Layman's Terms

Initiative -- The benefits of having and utilizing a superior Initiative are being
able to press the attack and continue swinging, forcing your opponent to react to you
and thus putting them on the defensive. This prevents your opponent from being
offensive, thus not being able to swing back. You know the saying, "The best defense
is a good offense." The downside to Initiative is you must be decisive enough to
swing first or steal the initiative through riposte or another way. Also, all that
swinging is a lot of endurance burn. You can have all the Initiative in the world
but it amounts to nothing but tired arms if you can't hit what you're aiming for.

Decisiveness -- A superior Decise skill (allowing modifiers of weight and strategy)
will allow you to get in the first shot, hopefully, before your opponent can put up a
proper defense. It's particularly useful in getting in to strike when an opportunity
arises. This coincides closely with Init in many ways. Without the proper
Initiative skill, though, Decise allows you to take the shot even though your
opponent may continue with Initiative. The great failings of Decise are: Your
fighter may instinctively take an opening without hesitation, possibly lowering
defense to do so, taking a hit to do so, or falling for a tricky ploy the enemy may
have set up. With any luck, though, you can catch them off guard.

Attack -- This is your fighter's ability to hit what he is aiming for, arm, head, or
at least their opponent. A high attack can skillfully penetrate an attempted parry
or catch an elusive opponent, mid-dodge. As for weaknesses and drawbacks, everyone
wants attack skills, but without being able to get an opening or gaining a combat
advantage, attack skills are useless. It does you no good if you can't get a swing
in. This is where the strategy and intricacies of the game come into play. A
balance must be made or in the very least, a proper matchup to pit your fighter's
strengths against another's weakness or in a position where he can use his strengths.
This is how you as a manager aid your stable with the Challenge and Avoid features.

Parry -- This is the art of impeding your opponent's attack by placing something in
the way (other than your tender hide). Parry is a clever and deft maneuver using
your weapons in more than a stopping force. The object is to deflect their weapon so
it not only does no damage but swings off course enough to disrupt your opponent's
balance, attack, and with luck, create an opening. The drawback is being in a
defensive posture and so foregoing attack in order to protect yourself and predict
your opponent. This is also risky because if your fighter lacks the skill, he may be
in big trouble, considering the only thing stopping your opponent's weapon is your
parry and then only cushioning armor.

Defense -- Dodging is preferable to parry for the ability to completely avoid a blow
and so keeping your weapon free for an attack. Keep in mind, dodge may also burn
much more endurance than parry (especially with heavy armor).

Riposte -- is an instantaneous strike in response to your opponent lowering their
guard to attack. It is not a precision strike, but with a high skill, you can get
under your opponent's guard, sometimes several times before they recover. The down
side is, yep you guessed it, you have to be attacked first! Some good Rippers know
they may have to take a hit to give a few. Thus, it's good to have a moderate con.
Rippers have a turnover rate reputed second only to Aimed Blows, so I understand.

You should begin to see how each of these skills relate to each other. It's
impossible to win on just one skill alone. Each style has favored skills, both shown
by priority learns and mode skills.
There are many "perfect" this and that. I argue (though still experimenting)
that a style can be developed in several ways beyond what is commonly known. I
believe these are labeled "sub-styles." There are many combinations possible.
Obviously, some will be ineffective but some may surprise you!
Remember, good management will win more fights than "perfect" stats (granted you
have stats that aren't utterly ludicrous). Try to peg your fighter's rhythm. Find
out how fast he likes to fight, "Offensive Effort," and his pace "Activity Level."
Try different weapons to see what works best for you. Try not to use weapons that
your warrior is not well-suited to. Heavy armor burns endurance quicker, especially
if you lack in the strength department). If your Con is low, put some armor on until
your fighter had learned enough skills to keep them alive and always remember to use
the Challenge/Avoid feature! This way you can control who you will be going up
against and adjust properly. Everything comes with experience and observation.
For further discussions, guessing, or if you're just in the mood to chat, drop
me a diplo. Until then, see you on the sands!

Gavin Rule, mgr. Faux Tides (1482)

>)]H[(< + -----:----- + >)] *IHI* [(< + -----:----- + >)]H[(<
Profile of a Style
Parry-Riposte

When you read about the parry-riposte style in the rulebook, it looks like it
might be a lot of fun to run, and it is. But it's also really tricky. The plain
offensives: basher, lunger, slasher, striker, and the total parry, are easier. I
don't think I've ever heard a manager say that he really understands the parry-
riposte style, I certainly don't myself. But I've run a lot of them, and some have
survived, and they ARE fun.
So just for a basic introduction to warriors of the parry-riposte style, known
to one and all as rippers, here's what I know.

Design: This is tough. The ripper needs it all! Especially important, though,
are endurance from constitution (CN) and will (WL), plus skill from wit (WT) and
deftness (DF), and it doesn't hurt to have enough strength (ST) to do a decent amount
of damage... and what does that leave that you can go short on? Size (SZ), okay, a
ripper can be--usually is--small. Speed (SP), well, I just don't know. It wouldn't
hurt them to have speed, but where are all the points going to come from?
I have made a lot of rippers over the years, some of them from roll-ups that
were spectacularly unsuited to the style. These are ones who lived to graduation:
Santee 13- 7-14-17-15- 8-10 LO mod/mod slash
Toryn 9-12- 7-13-15-11-17 EP vlo/mod
Scovellie 9-13- 8-17-17- 5-15 SH low/mod
Chia 10-13- 5-17-17- 5-17 SS low/high
Saba 5-17- 9-15-17- 4-17 EP mod/low
Bali 9- 6-14-15-17- 8-15 LO vlo/mod
Jane 9-10- 9-17-17- 5-17 SS mod/mod lunge/riposte
Cedar 15- 6- 7-15-17- 9-15 LS mod/mod
Azureen 9-12- 8-17-10-11-17 SC high/mod riposte
Similde 6- 6- 5-17-17-16-17 LO low/mod
Tailida 9-13- 5-15-17- 8-17 SH low/mod
Korlo 9- 8-12-17-15- 8-15 LS vlo/mod
Tilona 9- 9- 7-15-17-10-17 SH low/mod lunge
You'll see my biases at work here.
Strength is usually at least nine; in the cases where it started lower, the
warriors were cursed with little damage, and I trained it up as soon as I could.
(The numbers shown here are all original, before stat trains.)
Constitution generally moderate. Most of these warriors could take a hit or two
and survive.
Size mostly small, but not always. I did try a couple six-footers, and they didn't
do as badly as one might expect.
Wit is 15 or 17, except in one case. I always look for brains in a gladiator, and
this style needs it.
Will is, except in one case, 15 or 17. High will improves endurance, an important
factor for a parry-style, and makes it easier to train stats when the time comes.
Speed may be anything. I generally did not add any points to speed during the
design phase.
Deftness is 15 or 17 again, except in one case. Deftness, and the skills that go
with it, are important to a finesse style like the ripper. Plus, where strength may
be a problem, accuracy helps.

Weapon selection: There are six weapons well suited to the parry-riposte style,
listed below with the minimum stats required for their best use.
Epee ST 7 SZ - WT 15 DF 15
Longspear ST 11 SZ 9 WT 5 DF 9
Longsword ST 11 SZ - WT 13 DF 11
Scimitar ST 9 SZ - WT 11 DF 11
Shortspear ST 9 SZ - WT 7 DF 7
Shortsword ST 5 SZ - WT 11 DF 3
Only weapons well suited to the style will show up as favorite weapons when a warrior
graduates. Yes, you CAN put other weapons in their hands, but you aren't likely to
get the best results that way. (You may note that some of my graduated rippers
listed above were initially unable to use their favorite weapon to best advantage.
This is one of the sneaky things the Gladiatorial Commission does to keep you on your
toes.) I STRONGLY advise that when you design a ripper, consult the weapon chart and
make sure that your warrior will have the stats to use at least one of the weapons
listed to its best advantage.

Armor selection: This depends on how you plan to run the warrior. If he's
going to be fast, and/or he can take a few hits (takes normal damage, for instance,
signified by no comment on the overview) but maybe has low endurance, put him in
light armor. If you plan to run him slow, or he can take little damage but maybe has
high endurance, put him in medium to heavy armor.

Strategy: This is always a tricky thing to advise people on, which is why I've
listed the favorite rhythms on the warriors above. Very low (vlo) is 1 or 2, low is
3 or 4, moderate (mod) is 5 or 6, high is 7 or 8, and very high (vhi) is 9 or 10.
Offensive effort is listed first, then activity level. You can see that most rippers
in this sample prefer to run at middling speeds, usually with the activity level
higher than the offensive effort. Not all of them, but a majority. You can ignore
that--I sometimes do--and run them fast and hard, as though they were simple
offensive warriors. Some take to this treatment, others burn out. The medium speeds
are safe, and a place to start from.
You'll note I haven't mentioned kill desire here. There is no such thing as a
warrior or style having a favorite kill desire. Your kill desire can have a profound
effect on how the warrior fights, but it is strictly a personal decision. However, I
can say that my own experience has been that if a warrior has a high KD in
desperation, he will tend to go berserk, and if he has a low KD in desperation, he
will surrender. Warriors who surrender lose fights, but generally they survive to
fight again. I can't say the same of warriors who go berserk in desperation.

Tactics: I don't use tactics much, myself, but that's just me. You'll note
that out of the thirteen warriors listed above, two have favorite offensive tactics
(slash and lunge) and one has a favorite defensive tactic (riposte) and one has both
an offensive and a defensive tactic (lunge/riposte). All this tells us for sure is
that slash, lunge, and riposte are tactics that rippers can use well (or they
wouldn't appear as favorites). Experiment with them, but don't try to use an
offensive AND a defensive tactic in the same minute; it confuses the warrior.

And to go from the general to the specific--

Profile of a Warrior
Tailida Dawnrain

Tailida is one of the rippers listed above.
She's left-handed
She's intelligent
Makes the most of her enemy's mistakes
Has an unusual fighting style that confuses many opponents
Rarely makes mistakes
Is always thinking ahead
She plans out every move that she makes, seldom wasting any effort
She is very quick (the DF more than the SP, I think)
She cannot carry a lot of weight in armor and weapons
(more a question of her SZ than her ST)
She is incredibly quick and elusive on her feet
Making even dangerous opponents look harmless
She does little damage with each blow
(curses! I had hoped that the ST of 9 would offset her small SZ. It didn't.)

ST 9 CN 13 SZ 5 WT 15 WL 17 SP 8 DF 17
If I decide to run her on the Isle, I will train up her ST until I get normal
damage. (Note, no skills will be burned between ST 9 and ST 14, skill-wise, this is
a barren stretch. But it WILL increase the amount of damage a warrior can do.)

She graduates with a master in riposte, an expert in attack, a master in parry, and
an advanced expert in defense.

She is naturally adept with the shortsword, which I don't think she tried
She favors a fighting rhythm of low offensive effort and moderate activity level
And she tends to learn parry skills most easily.

She received her graduation notice when her record was 21-9-2,96 in Tricorus (dm 51).

On the same turn as her graduation notice arrived, she was challenged by a total
parry in plate armor and a full helm, carrying a broadsword and a medium shield.
Tailida herself was in leather armor and a helm, carrying a scimitar (and a
backup).
Tailida was running 7-7-x, faster than she would have liked, but that's how
she's being running straight along, and it kept her alive and with a winning record,
so I don't want to hear her complain.
Tailida got the jump and hit her opponent twice in the first minute, several
other blows being parried, hit once each in the second and third minutes, with other
blows being parried, was parried completely in the fourth minute, was showing signs
of weariness in the fifth minute but still managed to land a few blows in the fifth,
sixth, and seventh minutes. Then she collapsed with exhaustion at the end of the
seventh minute and lost the fight without being hit once. This is why you find
managers speaking harshly of "scum": we all hate to see our warrior work hard, do all
the right things, and lose because the opponent wasn't doing anything but standing
there in heavy armor.

Jorja
The Middle Way

+<]H[>+-----+<]H[+ Question of the Week #7 +]H[>+-----+<]H[>+

From turn 414:

All -- In case last cycle's personals don't make it: What are the advantages and
disadvantages of using one or two weapons. I'm particularly interested in Riposte
effects. -- Q.O.W. Hanibal

Q.O.W. -- Two Weapons. That's a good subject.
Disadvantages: Few if any, but it has been suggested that some weapons give
bonuses to attack if you use them in two hands instead of one, such as SC. An
obvious one is you can't use two handed weapons. If you don't have the attribute
requirements (which are more stringent for off-hand weapons), then you may suffer
penalties when using certain combinations. Last, you may swing with an off-hand more
than you want, say if you are using a shield. It's usually prefered to have a real
weapon in your off-hand.
Advantages: You have a second weapon already in hand if one breaks. If you are
ambidextrous, this is the biggest advantage, because they will swing with that off-
hand weapon almost as if it were their on-hand. My ambi-warriors will win fights
with off-hand weapons. An off-hand weapon is not bound to a warrior's style
suitability, so a LU could use a SC in their off-hand without penalty if they have
the attribute requirements. Another advantage is suggested in that it assists in
parrying. I tend to think highly coordinated warriors are better at parrying with
their second weapon than those who aren't. I rarely use shields, so I can't comment
extensively on their benefits over a real weapon, especially in AD, but in basic,
shields seem to make it easier to parry attacks.
Riposte and 2-Weapons: I have not noticed any specific variance in the ability
of a warrior to riposte if they are using two weapons. Once in AD, riposting is more
often than not following a dodge. I don't think there is much correlation here, but
it is definitely something to look into. -- Adie

The Question of the Week is posed in Aruak City (DM 11) by Hanibal, a manager
who is himself an alumnus of Noblish Island. The answers are provided by other
managers in that arena. Any manager here in Noblish who wishes to pose a question to
the more experienced managers of Aruak City, feel free to do so, either by sending in
a personal directed to DM 11 and identifying yourself as a manager from Noblish
seeking enlightenment, or by posting the question here, in which case I will be glad
to see that it reaches Aruak.
Also, Hanibal sends you greetings and asks that we remind you that all arenas do
not have the same attitude and local conventions. Aruak City is an Andorian arena
and subscribes to the doctrine of Honorable Play, meaning, no down-challenging except
from the throne or in bloodfeuds, no deliberate attempts to kill the warriors of
other managers, and a general attitude of friendly respect toward the other members
of the arena. It is, in fact, a fine arena, and one where you would all be welcome
(though there are plenty of others--just ask, and I'll be glad to tell you about my
favorites).
If you have questions that you would like answered by the experienced managers
of the game, don't hesitate to ask--we can't answer if you don't ask. Questions can
be posed in the personals here, or by email to me (jputney@zianet.com) or Pagan
(pagan@gte.net), or by diplo to Jorja/The Middle Way 4 here in DM 93.

Question from turn 415 of Aruak City:

All -- Do you think you get negative modifiers when you go desperate? What about "is
dangerously stunned" or "is bleeding badly" or "is on the verge of shock"? -- Hanibal
Q.O.W.

Answers from turn 416:

Hanibal -- That's a good question! I honestly don't have much of an opinion on that.
In the old days, warriors could get permanent wounds that would affect their fighting
in later matches (but not anymore), and it's been suggested that getting hit in
certain locations affects what your character can do during a match (obvious cases
are losing the use of an arm or being knocked down), but the sorely wounded comments?
It probably just has to do with giving a hint as to how close that warrior is to
going down if it gets hit in that badly wounded spot again. -- Adie

QOW -- After 'bleeding badly', 'dangerously stunned', 'sorely wounded', 'verge of
shock', etc., a warrior's ability to defend themselves is penalized. Desperation by
itself may not represent an ability penalty as much as a time to check for surrender
and a switch to the desperation strategy. Often, with a drastic strategy switch in
desperation, a warrior's performance can improve. -- Carmen

QOW -- I've noticed that by the time I get somebody to that point they're finished.
But I've also noticed that some of my more defensive comrades will give their
opponent a moment to recover and they're still able to. Despite this I would say
that by the time the comments you listed come into play the warrior who's getting
beat is in really bad shape. Whereas statements like "fights with the cunning of
desperation" or "eyes flare with renewed determination" still leave plenty of room
for the warrior to make a comeback. Therefore I would say that the earlier
desperation statements don't carry any significant penalties. -- Maxwell Honorblade

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---===FREE BLADES REGIONAL NEWS===---

Duelmasters
-----------
DM 9 ZUKAL (turn 589): VENTRIIE of DARK WARDS (Dr. Doom, mgr.)
DM 12 RIZTAB (turn 589): MADAM Y of CULTS-R-US (?, mgr.)
DM 13 DULLENS (turn 497): WINDWALKER of CARDOW HUNTERS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 15 MALCORN (turn 583): BET TWICE of TRIPLE CROWN (Sultan, mgr.)
DM 16 WILLAF (turn 585): TANOSHII of YAMABUSHI (Doc Miracle, mgr.)
DM 17 ALJAFIR (turn 583): VIOLET ORC of HEROESANDFOUNDONES (The Judge, mgr.)
DM 19 ZUWAYZA (turn 581): NIFTY NICKEL of THE MAGNIFICENT MAGS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 28 MORYA (turn 291): VAIDISAVA of THE PENTARCHY (Le Pentarque, mgr.)
DM 29 LAPUR (turn 574): BRICKHOUSE of STREETWALKERS (Roadkill, mgr.)
DM 31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 288): COMMANDER SPUD of MILITARY MAYHEM (Crip, mgr.)
DM 32 ARVAT (turn 571): SHEA TANN of DEVIL ADVOCATES (Dark One, mgr.)
DM 33 NIATOLI ISLAND (turn 569): THE CLAW of RAVAGING LORDS (General Ikillu, mgr.)
DM 35 MURSKA (turn 560): TOURNEY SCUMM of BUSY, BUSYTONW (Huckle Cat, mgr.)
DM 43 VEASTIAN (turn 522): J'KOROU of THE FAMILY (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 45 STORMCROWE (turn 266): AUNTY ENTITY of DARQUE FORCES (Master Darque, mgr.)
DM 47 DOUBLE X (turn 260): HANTA of DOK SIK KILLERS (Doc Sik, mgr.)
DM 50 SNOWBOUND (turn 247): ON MY WAY of OPEN SESAME (Crip, mgr.)
DM 56 ROCANIS (turn 450): CENTURION of KNIGHTS OF ROCANIS (Jakari, mgr.)
DM 60 COLLUSION COVE (turn 437): THE RIDDLER of CRAZY CREEPS (Crazy Creepster, mgr)
DM 61 JURINE (turn 428): LOCKENLOAD of CLAN GHOST BEARS (Bjorn, mgr.)
DM 65 DAL SHANG (turn 413): DUCK KA-BOB of MIGHTY DUCKS (Woody, mgr.)
DM 73 ERINIKA (turn 196): BLACK EYE of BLACK & BLUE (The Mun, mgr.)
DM 74 DAYLA KIV (turn 385): GENERAL MILLS of CORPS (Papa Bear, mgr.)
DM 75 JADE MOUNTAIN (turn 382): GARTH of MANAGER MUSINGS (FTF Manager, mgr.)
DM 78 LIN TIRIAN (turn 368): NECROMANCER of MAGIC ARTISTS (Houdini, mgr.)
ADM 103 FREE BLADES (turn 475): NIGHTCAP of DARKLINGS (She-Puppy, mgr.)

Top Teams
---------
DM 9 ZUKAL (turn 589): DARK WARDS (Dr. Doom, mgr.)
DM 12 RIZTAB (turn 589): CULTS-R-US (?, mgr.)
DM 13 DULLENS (turn 467): CARDOW HUNTERS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 15 MALCORN (turn 583): DARK CREATION (Herbert Philip Lovecraft West, mgr.)
DM 16 WILLAF (turn 585): PUNNY ANIMALS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 17 ALJAFIR (turn 583): FIELDS OF ELYSIUM (Caesar, mgr.)
DM 19 ZUWAYZA (turn 581): FUNKY FOLK (Papa Bear, mgr.)
DM 28 MORYA (turn 291): THE PENTARCHY (Le Pentarque, mgr.)
DM 29 LAPUR (turn 574): WILL DUEL 4 MEAD (Sporkis, mgr.)
DM 31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 288): LORDS OF VALHALLA (High Lord Bosk, mgr.)
DM 32 ARVAT (turn 571): DEVIL ADVOCATETS (The Dark One, mgr.)
DM 33 NIATOLI ISLAND (turn 569): STORM BRINGERS (The Rake, mgr.)
DM 35 MURSKA (turn 560): PHILANTHROPISTS (Aragorn, mgr.)
DM 43 VEASTIAN (turn 522): THE FAMILY (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 45 STORMCROWE (turn 266): OLD MAN RIVER (Stik, mgr.)
DM 47 DOUBLE X (turn 260): ROYAL FLUSH (Crip, mgr.)
DM 50 SNOWBOUND (turn 247): POSITION IS EMPTY
DM 56 ROCANIS (turn 450): BAD APPLES (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 60 COLLUSION COVE (turn 417): ELOQUENT KNIGHTS (Soultaker, mgr.)
DM 61 JURINE (turn 428): CLAN GHOST BEARS (Bjorn, mgr.)
DM 65 DAL SHANG (turn 413): SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 73 ERINIKA (turn 196): BLACKMAIL (The Mun, mgr.)
DM 74 DAYLA KIV (turn 385): SAND DANCERRS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 75 JADE MOUNTAIN (turn 382): SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 78 LIN TIRIAN (turn 368): MAGIC ARTISTS (Houdini, mgr.)
ADM 103 FREE BLADES (turn 475): PUPPY POWER (Mannequin, mgr.)

Recent Graduates
-----------------
DM 9 ZUKAL (turn 589): BRUJAH of DARK WARDS (Dr. Doom, mgr.)
DM 12 RIZTAB (turn 588): SISTER Q of CULTS-R-US (?, mgr.)
DM 13 DULLENS (turn 496): SILENT HAWK of CARDOW HUNTERS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 16 WILLAF (turn 585): TANOSHII of YAMABUSHI (Doc Miracle, mgr.)
DM 17 ALJAFIR (turn 582): ARTEMIDORUS of FIELDS OF ELYSIUM (Caesar, mgr.)
DM 28 MORYA (turn 291): SHARAPOVA of THE PENTARCHY (Le Pentarque, mgr.)
DM 29 LAPUR (turn 572): ZERO VISIBILITY of FORCE OF NATURE (Storm Front, mgr.)
DM 31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 288): COMMANDER SPUD of MILITARY MAYHEM (Crip, mgr.)
DM 35 MURSKA (turn 559): BILDIS of CHILDREN OF LLYR (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 43 VEASTIAN (turn 522): SOLIDER 2 of MEDAL OF HONOR 27 (The Anarchist, mgr.)
DM 45 STORMCROWE (turn 266): ANGEL HAMMER of MUTANT HAMMERZ (Hammer, mgr.)
(turn 265): RAGGEDY ANN of DARQUE FORCES (Master Darque, mgr.)
THE BRIDE of DARQUE FORCES (Master Darque, mgr.)
DM 47 DOUBLE X (turn 259): TEMPUS of WARHAMMERS (Coyote, mgr.)
DM 60 COLLUSION COVE (turn 417): JACK THE RIPPER of CRAZY CRREPS (Crazy Creepster)
DM 65 DAL SHANG (turn 412): LORIN TEN KORO of SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 73 ERINIKA (turn 196): BLACK EYE of BLACK & BLUE (The Mun, mgr.)
DM 78 LIN TIRIAN (turn 368): NECROMANCER of MAGIC ARTISTS (Houdini, mgr.)

SPY REPORT

I can't believe the violence in NOBLISH ISLAND! I still haven't told Mom I'm
writing Spyreports. She'd have a cow! Well, here we go... Uncool, SHENANIGANS. I
mean 0-0-0 is bad. Will they will be allowed to fight? I say use 'em for training
practice! The guys at MIDDLE EARTH like really pulled together to get a 3-2-0 this
turn, moving up by 3. Talk about hot teams! HOUSE OF JADE goes out, the very first
time, and goes 4-1-0! Like, what do you guys eat for breakfast? MVP award for
GEMINI? ORDER's proud of him after beating JIM TRESSEL and getting 18 points. Talk
about yer major upsets! JIM TRESSEL's match with GEMINI cost him a loss of 13
points! What a putz! LEINAD fights so hard to be Duelmaster, then quits fighting
and loses the title. No one said he was a genius... And I was just getting used to
the ex-Duelmaster's habit of...(!) Oh well, welcome DARK ARENA MEAT. Aren't MIDDLE
EARTH proud. (Oh, my.) Is the Duelmaster really being a real snob to his teammates?
Don't ask me!
Look, you guys stick to fighting, all right? MIDDLE WAY 19 was NOBLISH ISLAND's
most avoided team. Is there some award for that? Hhmph! What kind of warriors are
FAUX TIDES? MIDDLE WAY 19, an easy team to beat if I ever saw one, can't get them to
accept an invitation! Like, is EARL BRUCE popular, or what? He was challenged the
most in all of NOBLISH ISLAND! He's got a 3-0-0, is that good?
What does a fighter fight for? I mean, the crowds don't give a hoot if someone
gets killed. Not after four more fights. ASSYLA bloodfeuded (is that a word?)
BASTOR for revenge over some guy's bad fortune. Was it really worth it? What if
they had a fight and nobody showed up? I'd be out of a job, that's what!!!
I really didn't, you know, study when I was a kid. Who would've guessed I'd be
a famous Spyreporter? I know how much you like reading this stuff, but I really
should stop. I had a fun time, see you later-- Debby Tonte

DUELMASTER W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
DARK ARENA MEAT 8624 9 1 0 56 MIDDLE EARTH (1488)

CHALLENGER ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
-HOLLAND 8660 5 1 1 66 SHENANIGANS (1494)
-LEINAD 8700 6 0 0 61 ELLISHOOD (1493)

ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
ARAGORN 8626 8 2 1 54 MIDDLE EARTH (1488)
-AKIRE 8654 5 3 0 43 ELLISHOOD (1493)
GIMLI 8623 7 3 0 35 MIDDLE EARTH (1488)

CHALLENGER INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
EARL BRUCE 8723 3 0 0 32 SCARLET BROTHERHOOD (1505)
WOODY HAYES 8726 3 0 0 30 SCARLET BROTHERHOOD (1505)
VILLITA ULAN 8708 4 3 0 29 MIDDLE WAY 19 (1502)
BROTHER TAO 8580 4 4 1 27 FAUX TIDES (1482)
-KOS-MOS 8659 4 2 0 26 SHENANIGANS (1494)
-ANEMONE 8656 3 3 1 26 SHENANIGANS (1494)
ONE EYED MACK 8579 6 2 0 24 FAUX TIDES (1482)
GEMINI 8703 2 0 0 24 ORDER (1501)

INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
-TALHO 8657 3 3 1 23 SHENANIGANS (1494)
BOROMIR 8627 5 5 0 20 MIDDLE EARTH (1488)
ASSYLA 8652 3 5 0 18 ELLISHOOD (1493)
-ARCHIE GRIFFIN 8725 2 0 0 17 SCARLET BROTHERHOOD (1505)
MARA ACOMA 8712 1 0 0 16 HOUSE OF JADE (1503)
-MAHO 8658 2 4 1 15 SHENANIGANS (1494)
LUJAN 8715 1 0 0 15 HOUSE OF JADE (1503)
PAPWYEO 8713 1 0 0 14 HOUSE OF JADE (1503)
XANTIPAR WYE 8709 3 4 0 13 MIDDLE WAY 19 (1502)
SALIRA TEES 8728 3 2 0 11 MIDDLE WAY 19 (1502)
TEEBI SHOSTALLO 8707 2 5 0 11 MIDDLE WAY 19 (1502)
JIM TRESSEL 8727 2 1 0 10 SCARLET BROTHERHOOD (1505)
KEYOKE 8711 1 0 0 10 HOUSE OF JADE (1503)
BALROG 8717 2 3 0 9 MIDDLE EARTH (1488)
BASTOR 8699 1 5 1 9 FAUX TIDES (1482)
GLAIVE 8731 1 1 1 8 FAUX TIDES (1482)
BO DILLY 8697 1 5 0 8 FAUX TIDES (1482)
EDDIE GEORGE 8724 2 1 0 7 SCARLET BROTHERHOOD (1505)
SELLATRA ROSE 8737 1 0 0 6 MIDDLE WAY 19 (1502)
-ARIES 8701 1 0 0 5 ORDER (1501)
-ELYK II 8730 0 1 0 1 ELLISHOOD (1493)
-REGGISAKI 8702 0 1 0 1 ORDER (1501)
LOGI THE GIMP 8714 0 1 0 1 HOUSE OF JADE (1503)

'-' denotes a warrior who did not fight this turn.

THE DEAD W L K TEAM NAME SLAIN BY TURN Revenge?
NOTYAD 8729 0 2 0 ELLISHOOD 1493 BASTOR 8699 255 JUST REVENGED
REBMA 8651 4 1 0 ELLISHOOD 1493 HOLLAND 8660 252 NOT REVENGED
GLADIUS ROSE 8698 0 4 0 FAUX TIDES 1482 TALHO 8657 254
ZARGON YORETH 8710 2 1 0 MIDDLE WAY 19 1502 MAHO 8658 252 NOT REVENGED
BOURNE 8705 0 2 0 ORDER 1501 GLAIVE 8731 256

PERSONAL ADS

Woody Hayes -- That was well done. I didn't LIKE it, mind you, but it was well done.
-- Teebi Shostallo

Boromir -- The shield--don't use it. Okay, sure, you used it to parry...once. And
four other times you didn't. True, it was damage taken that lost you the fight. And
I have been told that the weapon you are using, a good one, is even better if your
off-hand is empty. Apparently even though comments to that effect aren't made,
sometimes one uses the offhand on the hilt and wields it two-handed, which is, so
they say, Very Good. So you might want to think about losing the shield. -- Villita
Ulan

Eddie George -- Darned young hotshot! It's guys like you that really bug me. Short,
nasty, and prepared to come in as an underdog and turn the fight over. Gods, what a
mess! Other than my disgruntlment, however, that was well done. -- Xantipar Wye

Bounre -- Good gods, man! Drop the shield! It's the LAST thing a gladiator of your
style should be carrying. -- Salira Tees
P.S. I just love that bit where somebody who is or has become unarmed parries, and
is "struck on the arm by the parry."

Deep Thought -- (pause to check) Yep, you're there in Caleam (dm 26). Look for me
as Golden Canyon there. -- Jorja

Re the question of desperation, and when one comes out of it, I have been told by a
couple of number-crunchers that the strategy resets to non-desperate at the end of
the minute in question. -- Jorja

Gemini -- Very nice fight, I thought I had you when you fell to your knees, darn
shields. I hope to see you on the sands again some time. -- Glaive

Balrog -- I bet you'll never see that again! (AB stands motionless on the sands,
'bashing' with an epee!) You fought with honor, might I recommend maybe, less armor.
-- Brother Tao

Ellishood -- Our stable sends our condolences. We had told Bastor he would avenge
our late, Gladius Rose. He was a bit keyed up. However, I am sure the lack of any
armor was a major factor. -- Gavin Rule, mgr. Faux Tides

We could have sworn Mack wasn't fighting with fists. Must check on that. Congrats
Akire, Talho, it seems you have craftily evaded us. Yes, we are coming for you, come
out...come out. -- Faux Tides

LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS

BROTHER TAO slimly won victory over BOROMIR in a 3 minute Challenge fight.
BO DILLY was demolished by EARL BRUCE in a 1 minute one-sided Challenge melee.
BOURNE was narrowly killed by GLAIVE in a 2 minute amateur's Challenge duel.
GEMINI savagely defeated JIM TRESSEL in a 2 minute amateur's Challenge match.
DARK ARENA MEAT overpowered FRATSFA SLAVE in a 1 minute one-sided Title struggle.
ARAGORN devastated DANGEROUS CRIMINAL in a 1 minute one-sided competition.
GIMLI handily defeated TEEBI SHOSTALLO in a 1 minute uneven melee.
VILLITA ULAN vanquished PERSISTANT BEGGAR in a 1 minute one-sided duel.
ASSYLA won victory over BASTOR in a 1 minute duel.
XANTIPAR WYE was narrowly defeated by ONE EYED MACK in a 2 minute brutal fight.
SALIRA TEES was handily defeated by WOODY HAYES in a 1 minute brutal one-sided bout.
EDDIE GEORGE was subdued by MARA ACOMA in a 1 minute amateur's competition.
BALROG was devastated by PAPWYEO in a 1 minute one-sided battle.
LUJAN devastated PERSISTANT BEGGAR in a 3 minute mismatched bout.
LOGI THE GIMP was viciously subdued by SELLATRA ROSE in a 1 minute beginner's fight.
KEYOKE vanquished CONVICTED THIEF in a unpopular 7 minute one-sided fray.

BATTLE REPORT

MOST POPULAR RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS
|FIGHTING STYLE FIGHTS FIGHTING STYLE W - L - K PERCENT|
|LUNGING ATTACK 7 LUNGING ATTACK 34 - 15 - 4 69 |
|STRIKING ATTACK 5 SLASHING ATTACK 27 - 14 - 0 66 |
|SLASHING ATTACK 3 WALL OF STEEL 12 - 10 - 0 55 |
|BASHING ATTACK 3 STRIKING ATTACK 30 - 27 - 2 53 |
|AIMED BLOW 2 AIMED BLOW 15 - 16 - 3 48 |
|PARRY-RIPOSTE 2 PARRY-STRIKE 10 - 14 - 0 42 |
|WALL OF STEEL 2 TOTAL PARRY 8 - 12 - 0 40 |
|TOTAL PARRY 1 PARRY-LUNGE 5 - 8 - 0 38 |
|PARRY-LUNGE 1 PARRY-RIPOSTE 10 - 19 - 0 34 |
|PARRY-STRIKE 1 BASHING ATTACK 8 - 16 - 1 33 |

Turn 256 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:

TOTAL PARRY 1 - 0 PARRY-LUNGE 0 - 1 4 LUNGING ATTACK
LUNGING ATTACK 6 - 1 PARRY-STRIKE 0 - 1 3 STRIKING ATTACK
STRIKING ATTACK 4 - 1 BASHING ATTACK 0 - 3 2 PARRY-STRIKE
SLASHING ATTACK 2 - 1 1 SLASHING ATTACK
AIMED BLOW 1 - 1 1 AIMED BLOW
PARRY-RIPOSTE 1 - 1
WALL OF STEEL 1 - 1

TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE

FIGHTING STYLE WARRIOR W L K PNTS TEAM NAME
LUNGING ATTACK DARK ARENA MEAT 8624 9 1 0 56 MIDDLE EARTH (1488)
STRIKING ATTACK GIMLI 8623 7 3 0 35 MIDDLE EARTH (1488)
Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above.

The overall popularity leader is DARK ARENA MEAT 8624. The most popular warrior this
turn was BOURNE 8705. The ten other most popular fighters were BROTHER TAO 8580,
GEMINI 8703, GLAIVE 8731, SELLATRA ROSE 8737, EARL BRUCE 8723, ARAGORN 8626, ONE EYED
MACK 8579, BOROMIR 8627, GIMLI 8623, and VILLITA ULAN 8708.

The least popular fighter this week was KEYOKE 8711. The other ten least popular
fighters were LOGI THE GIMP 8714, LUJAN 8715, BALROG 8717, EDDIE GEORGE 8724, SALIRA
TEES 8728, TEEBI SHOSTALLO 8707, BO DILLY 8697, XANTIPAR WYE 8709, BASTOR 8699, and
DARK ARENA MEAT 8624.

A SACRED LORD'S SLASHER

Well, this article/spotlight is for Seal at 7th Order, so here goes.

ST: If he's huge (15+), 3 is okay, and use HA. I prefer 7 for epee. 9 gets scimitar
and 11 gets broadsword. Anything above 11 is a WASTE!!!
CN: Whatever they send you.
SZ: Any.
WT: 15, 17, or 21. 13 is workable, but I hate slow learners! 21 will probably take
a lot from other areas, so 17 is best.
WL: 17, 17, 17!!!! You need endurance, lots of endurance. Some of my friends use
15, but I prefer not to.
SP: 9+ They use SP as well as most, but don't add here until after WT/WL/DF.
DF: 15+, 15+, 15+. Once again, I have high standards. The reason? Have you ever
had a slasher come out w/ "relying on his speed to stay out of trouble"? That's
'cause his parry is in the negative. With a 15 DF your slasher will have a much
better parry and will probably be about 1-3 trains from a Master parry in advanced.
Later on, you'll see!

Now, how to run them:

10 9 7 -------------------------> 10
10 4 2 -------------------------> 10
7 9 7 -------------------------> 1
CH/HE -------------------------------------------- >
HE ----------------------------------------------- >
Off: D at first, open later, min 2 +, open
Def: D/S (preferably Dodge)

Min two+ is in case of a TP or WoS coming after you. This setup works, so good
luck!

Mike Bookout
Bookie, Sacred Lord of the Black Regime
Memphis Mafia (36,100)

P.S. Anybody want to join the Regime?

The Dark Arena: A Fighter's Perspective

(sung to the hymn: Battle Hymn of the Republic)

Mine eyes have seen the glory
Of the coming of the dawn
I am walking down the tunnel
After everyone is gone
I step into the torchlight
And I see the blade he's drawn
My mind, it sings this song:

CHORUS
Worry, worry, I've come for ya
Worry, worry, I've come for ya
Worry, worry, I've come for ya
My mind continues on

The crowd is chanting praises
But all I hear are growls
Mine enemy's upon me
So I strike him and he howls
Parry, parry, slash, and parry
I smell his breath so foul
And death, he sings this song:

(CHORUS)

Now we both are tired
And my strength is fading fast
Oh, let me give that fatal blow
Oh, let me be the last
I swing my sword with all my might
The crowd it stands, aghast
As he dies, I sing my song:

(CHORUS x2)

Scotlan (28, 31, 39, 50, ?)

Kill Desire: "Patience."

Many times I have lost warriors, and the manager claimed the KD was only five.
As if KD had anything to do with the death of my fighter. It was really the battle
axe to the head that killed him.
I was quite disturbed at the widespread belief that kill desire has something to
do with killing an opponent. But they have good reason to believe this: the
Duelmasters Handbook definition of kill desire has a tendency to cast a "confusion
spell" on the reader to make them think that way. The wording is very misleading.
The name "kill desire" is also misleading. A more correct word would be "patience."
Yes, kill desire is actually how much patience your fighter had before taking a
shot. KD doesn't add damage or tell your fighter where to aim at.
Damage is calculated by weapon and strength. (Of course, favorite weapon also
affects damage.)
You let your warrior know where you want him to aim at by filling out the attack
location boxes on the fight sheets.
Hit location and damage are the main two things that will kill warriors. Hit
locations to vital areas such as head, chest, and the abdomen repeated times increases
your chance to kill. The amount of damage inflicted to these vital areas also
increases your chance to kill an opponent.
As you see, none of this has anything to do with kill desire.
Now, I will tell you what kill desire, or patience, as I call it, actually is.
If you run your warrior with an 8-10 KD, you're telling him to swing like a
drunken wildman. You'll see statements in his fights that say "swings wildly" or
other things to that effect. He is not waiting for a good opening. He is swinging at
everything! This is bad for several reasons.
With his KD that high, he is very easily dodged and parried. Also, he can be
feinted into bad dueling decisions as well.
I think that KD between 5-7 for offensive styles and 3-6 for defensive styles is
perfect.
You get a lot more hits with a 5-7 KD, and feint a lot less. But you also get
more kills in this range. Reason being, you're waiting for a good shot that is hard
to dodge or parry. The example I used earlier about the manager with the 5 KD and
battleaxe is the point I am trying to make. If his warrior's KD was 10, my warrior
could have dodged or parried the attack and still be alive today. But since it was a
5 KD, he waited for a good shot that my warrior had trouble defending against, and
cleaved his head off! (Well, not literally.)
Defensive styles run about 3-6 KD. Defensive styles swing wildly a lot in the
beginning, but that is natural. They will get better. 3-4 KD, they still have a
tendency to let attacks go by. Of course, if you're scumming, go with a 1 KD.
In short, having an 8-10 KD means your warrior is doing all that swinging and
hitting less. Not to mention all the endurance he is burning up to no avail.
Any comments, you can diplo me.

ta-ta,
Sir Jessie Jest

DM 11: Lords of the Abyss
DM 61: Pit Fiends
DM 67: Storm Wizards
DM 5: Bad Girls

SOME INFO ON THE RIPPER

Being that the parry-riposte is my favorite style, I thought I'd share a few
things I've learned.
General design:

ST: 7-11 Strength isn't all important to the P.R. An 11 will gives you all well
suited weapons. I'll even go as high as 17, but with no dramatic
effect.

CN: Any A higher con will give a better endurance and make survival easier.

SZ: Any Although a smaller size gives you a defensive bonus.

WT: 15-21 As with all other styles the higher the better. 15 will give the epee.
A P.R. needs to learn skills to survive.

WL: 13-21 Will is as important as wit. It helps endurance and life expectancy.
A higher will allows you to pick apart most scum.

SP: 5-13 13 is a major breakpoint but it's not necessary to go that high. A
combo of 15 wit, 15 deftness and 11 speed will give you an expert in
riposte with any luck.

DF: 13-21 The higher the coordination the easier it is to hit your attack
location. A 15 will give you the epee.

The perfect P.R. would look something like this: 9-4-5-17-21-11-17 with starting
skill bases like:
Ini: 60%
Rip: 90%
Att: 75%
Par: 70%
Def: 75%
Dec: 40%
One of my first PRs looked like this: 15-10-9-15-15-6-14, Thror the Dark. He was
extremely unlucky as far as starting skills. He now looks a little different: 17-11-
9-17-16-7-15 with 90% Init, 145% Rip, 130% Att, 130% Par, 115% Def and 80% Dec. I
destroyed him with early stat raises.
I had a similar design that was luckier, at least until he got X-ed by a slasher
in a tourney. He died with a 12-3-1 record. But enough of that. You're probably
wanting to get on with the strategies.
So getting on with it, I've tried both offensive and defensive strategies.
Generally defensive has worked better for me. Something like: 3-6-6 going offensive
in minute 3 or 4 with a 10-8-6 or a 9-7-6 and then backing off to a 6-4-6 or a 4-5-6.
As far as tactics go I don't use 'em very often. If you use any offensive tactic
use the lunge or nothing. Defensively use dodge and parry sparingly, if at all, and
don't use the riposte tactic after you've achieved a master.
Okay, now on to weapons and armor. A parry-riposte is somewhat limited when it
comes to weapons. The longsword is their best choice against heavier armors. I once
tried the halberd (I'll wait until you finish laughing.) Anyway, Thror the Dark
savagely slew Spymaster with it. I only give the PR an off hand weapon with epee,
shortsword or the longsword.
I've done varying things with armor, but I've found that lighter armor works
better, personal favorites being APL, ARM, and ASM. I read an article about the
parry-riposte of coom that made me laugh. It said something about wearing more armor
than expected of a PR, listing nothing higher than ACM+F. Imagine what he would have
thought fighting Thror the Dark in APA+F.
This is just an opinion brought to you by Necrom, manager of Knightmares (33),
Pentad Paladins (55), Northlanders (70) and a couple of others.

Crimson Strikers

Greetings, fellow managers, I, Crimson Strategist, shall share my thoughts with
you on the striking attack style.
This style developed in cultures where weapon quality surpassed that of the
armors, this made landing the first blow vital. This blow is usually delivered in a
downward fashion quickly, surely, and with power in a minimal of wasted motion.
Here's how I rate the stats:
ST 11-15: Never go below 11, strikers are well suited to ALL the weapons in the
game and 11 allows the use of the majority of them. They also need to hurt their foe
when they hit, thus making this an important consideration for damage rating.
CN 3-9: This whole style revolves around finishing your foe quickly, if your foe
has time to develop a complex formal attack on your striker, then you're not fighting
him properly. A properly run striker should never be hit more than four or five
times, any more than this and the whole concept behind this style gets thrown right
out the window, therefore I rate con as the least important attribute for this style.
SZ 9-16: A size of 9 allows use of all the weapons and it is important in
determining your damage rating, plus, it also adds to your init and this style thrives
on init.
WT 13+: As with any style, the higher the better. 13 is rock bottom, it allows
the use of all weapons except the epee and you'll still learn at a decent pace.
WL 7-13: This style conserves endurance which allows this attribute to go
considerably less than most styles and still fight effectively for a respectable
length of time. I've had strikers with a 13 ST, 3 CN, and 5 WL get poor endurance
ratings and ones with 11 ST, 6 CN, and 9 WL get normal. However, if you want some
long term potential, you'd want to be around 13 or so.
SP 10+: This is very important for decise and init skills which are the heart of
this style. Landing the first blow and finishing the fight quickly is hinged on your
striker's speed.
DF 15+: This is crucial attribute for this style, they NEED to be precise with
their blows, plus, it also adds to their init. Get to 17 or 21 if possible.
Now let's take a look at the style itself. The striking attack is one of the
easiest styles to run, yet they have adversity that many styles lack. As I've said
before, a striker can use ALL the weapons in the game. They can fight effectively
wearing plate armor and no armor, they can use EVERY tactic in the game be it
offensive or defensive, a striker can fight like a lunger or basher, ripper or
slasher, etc... provided that you match up their strategy with the appropriate tactic
and weapon. They can beat ALL the styles in DM and beyond if you choose their
strategy correctly for that particular style vs. style matchup.
Here are some examples of style vs. style matchups for strikers and various
tactic selections vs. the different styles.
High decise strikers over slashers and lungers, strikers over total parry and
wall of steel, rippers over strikers, etc...
Using the decise tactic vs. lungers, slashers, and aimed blows. Using the lunge
tactic vs. rippers and aimed blows, using no tactic and having a moderate offensive
effort and moderate activity level vs. total parries and wall of steel, etc...
The possible variations for this style are virtually endless.
Now let's take a brief look at your striker overview and glean some helpful hints
on how to fight them. If you see statements like "relying on speed to stay out of
danger" or "avoiding rather than trading blows," this is telling you that your AL
should be moderate to high. If he does great damage, then don't use weapons like the
epee or shortsword, this would be an underutilization of his strengths. If he learns
attack skills easily, then this is telling you that he likes to take his time and pick
his shots so don't send him out with a 10 OE! If you see statements like "has learned
how to be a decisive and quick fighter," then by all means USE the decise tactic with
a high OE. Don't send him out with offhand weapons unless he's ambidextrous, if you
do, it will take away from his attack. As you can see, the various statements on your
overview are very helpful in telling you how your striker likes to fight.
Here's a very general strategy that has worked well for my strikers.

OE 10 8 7 7 7 6 6 Armor: ARM to ACM
AL 4 3 2 1 1 1 8 Weapons: BS,LO,SC,GS,BA
KD 6 6 6 6 6 6 5
ATT LOC Head, body, arms
PRO LOC Head or body
OFF TCT Decise or bash
DEF TCT Response or dodge

Before I close there is one last point I wish to emphasize, USE the
challenge/avoid system, it will help control who you fight and when. In closing, I
would like to thank the following managers for their diplos and articles which helped
me learn the game: Sir Jessie Jest, Talon, Tex, the managers on the roundtable, and
numerous others who took their time to put quill and ink on parchment and pass their
knowledge on to others, thanks!
Many of you know the Crimson Death stables or soon will know them since I plan to
have quite a few of them up and running, however, some of them will be on and off due
to monetary fluctuations so if you wish to diplo me with any comments, criticisms,
whatever, send them to my home arena, which, from here on out, will always be active.

Later,
Crimson Strategist
Crimson Death DM 61