DUEL 2 NEWSLETTER
Date : 12/05/2009 Duedate: 12/18/2009
NOBLISH ISLAND ARENA
DM-93 TURN-288
This Weeks Top Honors
THE DUELMASTER IS
KARA LEK
MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550)
(93-9003) [7-2-0,44]
Chartered Recognition Leader Unchartered Recognition Leader
POSITION IS EMPTY KARA LEK
MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550)
(93-9003) [7-2-0,44]
Popularity Leader This Weeks Favorite
KARA LEK RIPLEY
MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550) SPACEMARINES (1555)
(93-9003) [7-2-0,44] (93-9036) [0-1-0,1]
THE CURRENT TOP TEAM
MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550)
TEAMS ON THE MOVE TOP CAREER HONORS
Team Name Point Gain Chartered Team
1. SPACEMARINES (1555) 46
2. MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550) 44 DARK TOADS II (725)
3. IWC (1554) 0 Unchartered Team
4. FAMOUS SQUAD (1553) 0
MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550)
The Top Teams
Career Win-Loss Record W L K % Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns W L K
1- 1*IWC (1554) 4 1 0 80.0 1/ 1*MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550) 11 4 2
2/ 2*MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550) 30 14 2 68.2 2- 2*IWC (1554) 4 1 0
3/ 0*SPACEMARINES (1555) 3 2 1 60.0 3/ 0*SPACEMARINES (1555) 3 2 1
4- 3*FAMOUS SQUAD (1553) 1 4 0 20.0 4- 3*FAMOUS SQUAD (1553) 1 4 0
'*' Unchartered team '-' Team did not fight this turn
(###) Avoid teams by their Team Id ##/## This turn's/Last turn's rank
TEAM SPOTLIGHT
+ ]H[ + ---:--- + ]H[ The Lighthouse ]H[ + ---:--- + ]H[ +
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
---===FREE BLADES REGIONAL NEWS===---
Duelmasters
-----------
DM 9 ZUKAL (turn 632): EIGHTH MATE of SEA DOGS (One Armed Bandit, mgr.)
DM 12 RIZTAB (turn 634): ACE of CARDS (?, mgr.)
DM 15 MALCORN (turn 628): REXROTH of DARK CREATION (H.P.L. West, mgr.)
DM 16 WILLAF (turn 630): GOLDBRICK of GOLDEN GLADIATORS (Midas, mgr.)
DM 17 ALJAFIR (turn 621): ZALMAN ARVO of MIDDLE WAY (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 19 ZUWAYZA (turn 626): ERIC CARTMAN of CUNNING RUNTS (Deep Thought, mgr.)
DM 28 MORYA (turn 313): CRICTOR UNGERER of THE PENTARCHY (Le Pentarque, mgr.)
DM 29 LAPUR (turn 619): JULIANUS of EQUESTORS (Spartacus, mgr.)
DM 31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 311): MARLENUS of CAESAR'S POOL HALL (Caesar, mgr.)
DM 32 ARVAT (turn 616): PETER PIQUIN of FISHERMAN'S WHARF (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 33 NIATOLI ISLAND (turn 614): MONOLYTH of RAVAGING LORDS (General Ikillyu, mgr.)
DM 35 MURSKA (turn 605): FEEL THE BUZZ of ON THE ROCKS (Bartender, mgr.)
DM 43 VEASTIAN (turn 567): BITT BETRO of THE FAMILY (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 45 STORMCROWE (turn 288): HALF of SRETSAMLEUD II (Phat Phat, mgr.)
DM 47 SCOMBS SWAMP (turn 283): TEN LORDS ALEAPIN (Crip, mgr.)
DM 50 SNOWBOUND (turn 269): MRS. VAUGHN of LIFE IMPACTS (Smitty, mgr.)
DM 56 ROCANIS (turn 495): SPLAT of THEM (Papa Bear, mgr.)
DM 60 COLLUSION COVE (turn 482): PEACH FUZZ of FRUIT OF THE LOOM (Mannequin, mgr.)
DM 61 JURINE (turn 461): FALL PRINCESS of AUTUMN SAGA (?, mgr.)
DM 65 DAL SHANG (turn 458): FSSTIS KACHIEU of CASTAWAYS (She-Puppy, mgr.)
DM 73 ERINIKA (turn 218): DEATH SUCKS of BLACKMAIL (The Mun, mgr.)
DM 74 DAYLA KIV (turn 419): JAXON of INSIGNIFICANCE (Jekyll, mgr.)
DM 75 JADE MOUNTAIN (turn 412): JADE RING of SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 78 LIN TIRIAN (turn 404): DANNI ROGERS of GIRLS X3 (Non, mgr.)
ADM 103 FREE BLADES (turn 520): JEANNE D'ARC of GORGEOUS GOBLINS (Bartender, mgr.)
Top Teams
---------
DM 9 ZUKAL (turn 632): SEA DOGS (One Armed Bandit, mgr.)
DM 12 RIZTAB (turn 634): DREAMERS (Sleepy, mgr.)
DM 15 MALCORN (turn 628): GREENWARDENS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 16 WILLAF (turn 630): GOLDEN GLADIATORS (Midas, mgr.)
DM 17 ALJAFIR (turn 621): THE GENERALS (?, mgr.)
DM 19 ZUWAYZA (turn 626): THE MAGNIFICENT MAGS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 28 MORYA (turn 313): EXPENSE ACCOUNT (Finance Manager, mgr.)
DM 29 LAPUR (turn 619): POSITION IS EMPTY
DM 31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 311): CAESAR'S POOL HALL (Caesar, mgr.)
DM 32 ARVAT (turn 616): DEVIL ADVOCATES (Dark One, mgr.)
DM 33 NIATOLI ISLAND (turn 614): RAVAGOMG LORDS (General Ikillu, mgr.)
DM 35 MURSKA (turn 605): SEA DOGS (One Armed Bandit, mgr.)
DM 43 VEASTIAN (turn 567): THE FAMILY (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 45 STORMCROWE (turn 288): SRETSAMLEUD II (Phat Phat, mgr.)
DM 47 SCOMBS SWAMP (turn 283): THE BEAR'S PAW (Kat, mgr.)
DM 50 SNOWBOUND (turn 269): LIFE IMPACTS (Smitty, mgr.)
DM 56 ROCANIS (turn 494): INCONSISTENT FURY (Banthius, mgr.)
DM 60 COLLUSION COVE (turn 482): TWILIGHT BRIGADE (?, mgr.)
DM 61 JURINE (turn 462): AUTUMN SAGA (?, mgr.)
DM 65 DAL SHANG (turn 458): TIL DEATH DO US PART (Killjoy, mgr.)
DM 73 ERINIKA (turn 218): BLACKMAIL (The Mun, mgr.)
DM 74 DAYLA KIV (turn 419): SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 75 JADE MOUNTAIN (turn 412): SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 78 LIN TIRIAN (turn 404): GIRLS X3 (Non, mgr.)
ADM 103 FREE BLADES (turn 520): DO IT AGAIN et al (The Dark One, mgr.)
Recent Graduates
-----------------
DM 12 RIZTAB (turn 633): SOPHOCLES of DREAMERS (Sleepy, mgr.)
DM 19 ZUWAYZA (turn 625): MODERN SCENE of THE MAGNIFICENT MAGS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 28 MORYA (turn 312): EXPERIETIA of STEEL AND SILK (Michael Eldritch, mgr.)
DM 29 LAPUR (turn 619): VON GROV of TRAIL OF TEARS (?, mgr.)
DM 31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 311): MARLENUS of CAESAR'S POOL HALL (Caesar, mgr.)
ULL HARDHAMMER of THE STORMBRINGERS (High Lord Bosk)
DM 32 ARVAT (turn 616): PETER PIQUIN of FISHERMAN'S WHARF (Jorja, mgr.)
LOU C. FIRR of DEVIL ADVOCATES (The Dark One, mgr.)
(turn 615): AGONY of ANGELS OF PAIN (The Dark One, mgr.)
DM 45 STORMCROWE (turn 288): HALF of SRETSAMLEUD II (Phat Phat, mgr.)
DM 50 SNOWBOUND (turn 269): INGLEMORT JULS of MIDDLE WAY 6 (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 56 ROCANIS (turn 495): FONZETH HILGRA of INCONSISTENT FURY (Banthius, mgr.)
DM 61 JURINE (turn 460): DECAY of AUTUMN SAGA (?, mgr.)
DM 65 DAL SHANG (turn 458): FSSTIS KACHIEU of CASTAWAYS (She-Puppy, mgr.)
DM 78 LIN TIRIAN (turn 404): DANNI ROGERS of GIRLS X3 (Non, mgr.)
SPY REPORT
If you were disturbed from your beauty rest only to have to watch a bunch of
NOBLISH ISLAND brutes like you, you'd be grouchy, too. Middle of the road,
SPACEMARINES, middle of the road; you'll get no good words from me, until you get
better, or worse. Break a leg. Of course, we're all terribly impressed to see KARA
LEK win a fight and gain 18 points, terribly. And it's out with the old, in with the
new, as KARA LEK takes the Title and last week's bar tab from the old Duelmaster.
Heh, heh. I'm not in a very good mood today, but why am I telling you this? You
want to know what's new, don't you, NOBLISH ISLAND?
Well, let's take a look at some more misdeeds of you miserable sword-boys.
Some people like volunteer work in the hospitals. I volunteer for NOBLISH
ISLAND's morgue. More variety. We're all going to die in the end, so why worry if
the fate catches up with you sooner that later?
There's got to be a better place in NOBLISH ISLAND to get a drink than The
Dripping Blade! Any suggestions? Phlllt! Just had to do that before I leave the
fine city of NOBLISH ISLAND. I feel much better now. I see the crowds are getting
restless, I must leave now-- Snide Clemens
DUELMASTER W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
KARA LEK 9003 7 2 0 44 MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550)
ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
SAL TOPPO 9007 7 2 1 36 MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550)
CHALLENGER INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
NOLLY ORMIN 9024 4 0 0 31 MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550)
OSGAR POOLE 9005 5 4 1 29 MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550)
QUIN ROSSAL 9006 4 5 0 28 MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550)
INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
VASQUEZ 9038 1 0 0 16 SPACEMARINES (1555)
DRAKE 9039 1 0 1 14 SPACEMARINES (1555)
HUDSON 9040 1 0 0 14 SPACEMARINES (1555)
-DEATH 9035 1 0 0 10 IWC (1554)
-KILLA-BLUE 9029 1 0 0 10 FAMOUS SQUAD (1553)
-BONES 9032 1 0 0 6 IWC (1554)
-STONES 9031 1 0 0 5 IWC (1554)
-STYX 9034 1 0 0 5 IWC (1554)
-LOW-MAC 9025 0 1 0 1 FAMOUS SQUAD (1553)
RIPLEY 9036 0 1 0 1 SPACEMARINES (1555)
-THROW-DOWN 9027 0 1 0 1 FAMOUS SQUAD (1553)
-THOR 9033 0 1 0 1 IWC (1554)
HICKS 9037 0 1 0 1 SPACEMARINES (1555)
-N'SANE 9026 0 1 0 1 FAMOUS SQUAD (1553)
-LEPRECHAUN 9028 0 1 0 1 FAMOUS SQUAD (1553)
'-' denotes a warrior who did not fight this turn.
THE DEAD W L K TEAM NAME SLAIN BY TURN Revenge?
CONVICTED THIEF 0 0 0 DRAKE 9039 288 NONE
CULT MEMBER 0 0 0 SAL TOPPO 9007 288 NONE
PERSONAL ADS
Dangerous Criminals! THREE fights against the Dangerous Criminals. It's too much!
We protest! We aren't HERE to fight Dangerous Criminals, dammit. -- the Middle Way
Thor -- Always good to meet a managed opponent. Ah... you do know about us, don't
you? The perpetual Middle Way, trainers, advisers, and answerers of questions. Ask,
and if we know, we'll tell. About the game, anyway.
Speaking of which, considering your style and the last line in your introduction
to the fight, if you have enough WL to make it worth the attempt (better than a ten,
say, and the more over that ten the better), we would strongly advise you to train
the indicated stat. There are weapons you can use with less of that, but they
aren't, well, manly. The chart of weapons by style suitability and required stats
will be in the newsletter after this one, and it's worth hanging onto until you get
more of a feel for things.
By the way, if no one mentioned it, the newsletter contents: articles at the
end and spotlights at the front, repeat on a ten-turn cycle. If you save all your
newsletters--you'll be here ten turns--you will have a decent little handbook to
begin with. -- Nolly Ormin
LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS
NOLLY ORMIN viciously subdued CULT MEMBER in a 1 minute bloody fight.
KARA LEK viciously subdued DANGEROUS CRIMINAL in a 1 minute Title battle.
SAL TOPPO assassinated CULT MEMBER in a 1 minute mismatched duel.
QUIN ROSSAL devastated PERSISTANT BEGGAR in a 1 minute one-sided fight.
OSGAR POOLE murdered CONVICTED THIEF in a 1 minute mismatched competition.
RIPLEY lost to PERSISTANT BEGGAR in a exciting 3 minute amateur's fight.
HICKS was bested by PERSISTANT BEGGAR in a 2 minute novice's competition.
VASQUEZ overcame EMBEZZLING SCRIBE in a 2 minute beginner's melee.
DRAKE slaughtered CONVICTED THIEF in a 1 minute one-sided duel.
HUDSON vanquished PERSISTANT BEGGAR in a slow 5 minute one-sided duel.
BATTLE REPORT
MOST POPULAR RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS
|FIGHTING STYLE FIGHTS FIGHTING STYLE W - L - K PERCENT|
|AIMED BLOW 3 TOTAL PARRY 4 - 0 - 0 100 |
|LUNGING ATTACK 3 PARRY-LUNGE 2 - 0 - 0 100 |
|STRIKING ATTACK 2 SLASHING ATTACK 16 - 8 - 1 67 |
|SLASHING ATTACK 1 AIMED BLOW 11 - 6 - 2 65 |
|TOTAL PARRY 1 LUNGING ATTACK 10 - 7 - 0 59 |
|PARRY-LUNGE 0 STRIKING ATTACK 20 - 17 - 2 54 |
|PARRY-STRIKE 0 WALL OF STEEL 1 - 1 - 1 50 |
|PARRY-RIPOSTE 0 BASHING ATTACK 2 - 4 - 0 33 |
|BASHING ATTACK 0 PARRY-STRIKE 0 - 10 - 0 0 |
|WALL OF STEEL 0 PARRY-RIPOSTE 0 - 3 - 0 0 |
Turn 288 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:
AIMED BLOW 3 - 0 PARRY-LUNGE 0 - 0 3 SLASHING ATTACK
SLASHING ATTACK 1 - 0 PARRY-STRIKE 0 - 0 3 AIMED BLOW
TOTAL PARRY 1 - 0 PARRY-RIPOSTE 0 - 0 2 LUNGING ATTACK
LUNGING ATTACK 2 - 1 BASHING ATTACK 0 - 0 1 STRIKING ATTACK
STRIKING ATTACK 1 - 1 WALL OF STEEL 0 - 0 1 TOTAL PARRY
1 PARRY-LUNGE
TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE
FIGHTING STYLE WARRIOR W L K PNTS TEAM NAME
SLASHING ATTACK KARA LEK 9003 7 2 0 44 MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550)
AIMED BLOW SAL TOPPO 9007 7 2 1 36 MIDDLE WAY 22 (1550)
Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above.
The overall popularity leader is KARA LEK 9003. The most popular warrior this turn
was RIPLEY 9036. The ten other most popular fighters were KARA LEK 9003, NOLLY ORMIN
9024, VASQUEZ 9038, SAL TOPPO 9007, QUIN ROSSAL 9006, OSGAR POOLE 9005, DRAKE 9039,
HICKS 9037, HUDSON 9040, and 0.
The least popular fighter this week was HUDSON 9040. The other ten least popular
fighters were HICKS 9037, DRAKE 9039, OSGAR POOLE 9005, QUIN ROSSAL 9006, SAL TOPPO
9007, VASQUEZ 9038, NOLLY ORMIN 9024, KARA LEK 9003, RIPLEY 9036, and 0.
A DM TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS
12 political points a'pumpin'
11 TVs a'workin'
10 free duels of credit
9 ABs to challenge
8 criticals a'connectin'
7 scums a'dyin'
6 skills a'maxin'
5 A.D. invites
4 lucky warriors
3 size on replacement
2 proxied TCs
And a quarterstaff from a pear tree.
May your days be merry,
And your wins be often.
The Consortium
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