DUEL 2 NEWSLETTER
Date : 08/14/2010 Duedate: 08/27/2010
NOBLISH ISLAND ARENA
DM-93 TURN-305
This Weeks Top Honors
THE DUELMASTER IS
KAMBER LEA
MIDDLE WAY 24 (1561)
(93-9070) [4-1-0,65]
Chartered Recognition Leader Unchartered Recognition Leader
POSITION IS EMPTY KAMBER LEA
MIDDLE WAY 24 (1561)
(93-9070) [4-1-0,65]
Popularity Leader This Weeks Favorite
HELEN KELLER HELEN KELLER
HEROES (1562) HEROES (1562)
(93-9076) [5-0-0,29] (93-9076) [5-0-0,29]
THE CURRENT TOP TEAM
HEROES (1562)
TEAMS ON THE MOVE TOP CAREER HONORS
Team Name Point Gain Chartered Team
1. LONG SWORD CLUB (1563) 47
2. HEROES (1562) 25 DARK TOADS (527)
3. MIDDLE WAY 24 (1561) 2 Unchartered Team
4. SUDDENLY, THE VAN (1560) 0
MIDDLE WAY 24 (1561)
The Top Teams
Career Win-Loss Record W L K % Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns W L K
1/ 1*MIDDLE WAY 24 (1561) 18 6 1 75.0 1/ 2*HEROES (1562) 11 3 0
2/ 3*HEROES (1562) 17 7 0 70.8 2/ 1*MIDDLE WAY 24 (1561) 8 6 0
3/ 2*SUDDENLY, THE VAN (1560) 15 8 1 65.2 3/ 3*SUDDENLY, THE VAN (1560) 5 4 1
4/ 4*LONG SWORD CLUB (1563) 6 14 1 30.0 4/ 4*LONG SWORD CLUB (1563) 5 10 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[(< + -----:----- + >)] *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
* }%|[-----+O+-----]|%{ * }%|[-----+O+-----]|%{ * }%|[-----+O+-----]|%{ *
---===FREE BLADES REGIONAL NEWS===---
Duelmasters
-----------
DM 9 ZUKAL (turn 650): HOMESTAR of HOMESTAR & CO (Otto X Frothingslosh, mgr.)
DM 12 RIZTAB (turn 652): GUILLOTINE of BLADES OF TERROR (The Dark One, mgr.)
DM 13 DULLENS (turn 534): KALLI ELISABETH of HOUSE OF CARDS (Zalgor Prigg, mgr.)
DM 15 MALCORN (turn 646): BRISTLECONE of GREENWARDENS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 16 WILLAF (turn 648): FANGS ARDENTE of PUNNY AMINALS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 17 ALJAFIR (turn 639): BRADLEY of THE GENERALS (?, mgr.)
DM 19 ZUWAYZA (turn 640): ERIC CARTMAN of CUNNING RUNTS (Deep Thought, mgr.)
DM 28 MORYA (turn 322): BLACK ROSE HAMMER of FLOWERED HAMMERZ (Hammer, mgr.)
DM 29 LAPUR (turn 637): SNOWDROP of TRAIL OF TEARS (Jugger, mgr.)
DM 31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 320): LODEN NORVIS of MIDDLE WAY 17 (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 32 ARVAT (turn 634): FILLIS BOUY of FISHERMAN'S WHARF (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 33 NIATOLI ISLAND (turn 631): CAGED RAT of RAVAGING LORDS (General Ikillu, mgr.)
DM 35 MURSKA (turn 623): PELICAN EEL of SEA DOGS (One Armed Bandit, mgr.)
DM 43 VEASTIAN (turn 584): VAISTINE of THE FAMILY (Jorja, mgr)
DM 45 STORMCROWE (turn 297): CALLOUS COURTNEY of STREET WALKERS (Roadkill, mgr.)
DM 47 TEMPLE OF ABARSIS (turn 292): SPAWNING OF SPEWN of MANAGERIAL MAYHEM (Fizban)
DM 50 SNOWBOUND (turn 278): CASS DOLLAN of MIDDLE WAY 6 (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 56 ROCANIS (turn 513): CRASH of THEM (Papa Bear, mgr.)
DM 60 ARADI (turn 499): BB BULLY BOY of RED DOG GANG (Spot, mgr.)
DM 61 JURINE (turn 480): WALLIS YENT of MIDDLE WAY 16 (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 65 DAL SHANG (turn 474): ICECLAW of CASTAWAYS (She-Puppy, mgr.)
DM 73 ERINIKA (turn 227): POSITION IS EMPTY
DM 74 DAYLA KIV (turn 435): ALEXANDROS of GATES OF FIRE (Chief Illiniwek, mgr.)
DM 75 JADE MOUNTAIN (turn 430): KORTO LU of SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 78 LIN TIRIAN (turn 422): JOEY of J (?, mgr.)
ADM 103 FREE BLADES (turn 538): DREAD of ANGELS OF PAIN (The Dark One, mgr.)
Top Teams
---------
DM 9 ZUKAL (turn 650): BREWERS (JE, mgr.)
DM 12 RIZTAB (turn 652): DREAMERS (Sleepy, mgr.)
DM 13 DULLENS (turn 534): CARDOW HUNTERS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 15 MALCORN (turn 645): GREENWARDENS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 16 WILLAF (turn 648): PUNNY AMINALS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 17 ALJAFIR (turn 639): MINOR THREAT (Mr. Pirate, mgr.)
DM 19 ZUWAYZA (turn 640): BASH BRO HOUSEMATE (Assurnasirbanipal, mgr.)
DM 28 MORYA (turn 322): FORCE OF FIVE (?, mgr.)
DM 29 LAPUR (turn 637): MID EARTH (Visionist, mgr.)
DM 31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 320): AVENGERS (Huckle Cat?, mgr.)
DM 32 ARVAT (turn 634): DEVIL ADVOCATES (The Dark One, mgr.)
DM 33 NIATOLI ISLAND (turn 631): SEA DOGS (One Armed Bandit, mgr.)
DM 35 MURSKA (turn 623): ON THE ROCKS (Bartender, mgr.)
DM 43 VEASTIAN (turn 584): THE FAMILY (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 45 STORMCROWE (turn 297): STREET WALKERS (Roadkill, mgr.)
DM 47 TEMPLE OF ABARSIS (turn 292): MANAGERIAL MAYHEM (Fizban, mgr.)
DM 50 SNOWBOUND (turn 278): LIFE IMPACTS (Smitty, mgr.)
DM 56 ROCANIS (turn 513): ON THE ROCKS (Bartender, mgr.)
DM 60 ARADI (turn 499): RED DOG GANG (Spot, mgr.)
DM 61 JURINE (turn 480): MIDDLE WAY 16 (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 65 DAL SHANG (turn 474): SERPENTS HOLD (Khisanth, mgr.)
DM 73 ERINIKA (turn 227): MONGOL HORDE (?, mgr.)
DM 74 DAYLA KIV (turn 436): GATES OF FIRE (Chief Illiniwek, mgr.)
DM 75 JADE MOUNTAIN (turn 480): GREATS OF TROY (Zalgor Prigg, mgr.)
DM 78 LIN TIRIAN (turn 430): J (?, mgr.)
ADM 103 FREE BLADES (turn 538): MIDDLE ITALY et al (The Dark One, mgr.)
Recent Graduates
-----------------
DM 9 ZUKAL (turn 649): EIGHTH MATE of SEA DOGS (One Armed Bandit, mgr.)
RAT CATCHER of SEA DOGS (One Armed Bandit, mgr.)
DM 12 RIZTAB (turn 652): SCURVY LADY of SEA DOGS (One Armed Bandit, mgr.)
DM 13 DULLENS (turn 534): KALLI ELISABETH of HOUSE OF CARDS (Zalgor Prigg, mgr.)
DM 15 MALCORN (turn 646): BRISTLECONE of GREENWARDENS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 16 WILLAF (turn 647): CRIS CROFT of PUNNY AMINALS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 28 MORYA (turn 322): CRICTOR UNGERER of THE PENTARCHY (Le Pentarque, mgr.)
VENUS TRAP HAMMER of FLOWERED HAMMERZ (Hammer, mgr.)
DM 29 LAPUR (turn 637): SNOWDROP of TRAIL OF TEARS (Jugger, mgr.)
WHIP ME HOUSTON of STREET WALKERS (Roadkill, mgr.)
(TURN 636): ENCOLPIUS of EQUESTORS (Spartacus, mgr.)
SILVER SAW of METAL MINCERS (Oremaster, mgr.)
DM 31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 319): BUSTER BUNNY of LOONY TOONS (Rascally Rabbit, mgr.)
DM 32 ARVAT (turn 633): CARNAGE of ANGELS OF PAIN (The Dark One, mgr.)
DM 33 NIATOLI ISLAND (turn 631): CAGED RAT of RAVAGING LORDS (General Ikillu, mgr.)
DM 35 MURSKA (turn 621): LUCY JORDAN of URBAN JUNGLE (Jugger, mgr.)
DM 45 STORMCROWE (turn 297): DAN MACK GRU of NORTHERN LIGHTS (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 47 TEMPLE OF ABARSIS (turn 292): SPAWNING OF SPEWN of MANAGERIAL MAYHEM (Fizban)
TEN LORDS ALEAPING of ROYAL FLUSH (Crip, mgr.)
RONDOL QUIGLO of THE MIDDLE WAY 3 (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 50 SNOWBOUND (turn 277): MRS. VAUGHN of LIFE IMPACTS (Smitty, mgr.)
DM 56 ROCANIS (turn 512): ABELINDA CHASE Of MIDDLE WAY 20 (Jorja, mgr.)
DM 74 DAYLA KIV (turn 435): LOVE of LORDS OF VIRTUE (?, mgr.)
DM 75 JADE MOUNTAIN (turn 430): KORTO LU of SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.)
DUELMASTER'S COLUMN
Notes from the arena champ.
Wow! I defeated the Khalhums Dwarf! As standbys go, he's tough. I'm
incredibly impressed with myself.
Kamber Lea
SPY REPORT
Oh, hi. Its just little 'ol Debby Tonte. Thought I'd check out NOBLISH ISLAND
to see what's new. Too bad, MIDDLE WAY 24, but HEROES was just too good to be
stopped. One team deserves special mention 'cause they moved up 0 after going 4-1-0.
Keep it up, LONG SWORD CLUB! MVP award for QUINTUS? LONG SWORD CLUB's proud of him
after beating SANGER and getting 17 points. Talk about yer major upsets! SALMKED
TIGH's match with MANUTE BOL cost him a loss of 14 points! Our Duelmaster has lost,
folks, lost to VENEMOUS CONCUBINE, BUT KAMBER LEA is still the Duelmaster because he
has the most recognition points! Who was the wiseguy that said NOBLISH ISLAND's
Duelmaster was paying for drinks at The Swinging Aardvark? Don't look at me!
Look, you guys stick to fighting, all right?
Challenges, revenges, Bloodfeuds. All NOBLISH ISLAND ever talks about is
fighting! Me, I'm more laid back. QUEENIE RELL really fought hard against BERTHOLD.
That'll teach SUDDENLY, THE VAN not to go and kill any of MIDDLE WAY 24's guys again,
huh! Fight, fight, fight. Is that all you guys can do?
Remember, blood on a purple robe may stain. Soak it in cold water, and hand
wash. I'm getting tired of writing this stuff, so I'm calling it quits. I had a fun
time, see you later-- Debby Tonte
DUELMASTER W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
KAMBER LEA 9070 4 1 0 65 MIDDLE WAY 24 (1561)
ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
QUEENIE RELL 9073 5 0 0 46 MIDDLE WAY 24 (1561)
MANUTE BOL 9075 3 2 0 42 HEROES (1562)
MOTHER TERESA 9077 4 1 0 38 HEROES (1562)
CHALLENGER INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
HELEN KELLER 9076 5 0 0 29 HEROES (1562)
SVEN 9065 4 2 0 27 SUDDENLY, THE VAN (1560)
INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
QUARTUS 9083 2 2 1 23 LONG SWORD CLUB (1563)
BERTHOLD 9067 4 2 1 21 SUDDENLY, THE VAN (1560)
SALMKED TIGH 9074 3 2 1 21 MIDDLE WAY 24 (1561)
QUINTUS 9084 1 3 0 20 LONG SWORD CLUB (1563)
VIN DIESEL 9079 3 2 0 17 HEROES (1562)
MARDON NEY 9071 3 2 0 15 MIDDLE WAY 24 (1561)
TERTIUS 9082 2 2 0 15 LONG SWORD CLUB (1563)
INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
SANGER 9066 4 2 0 14 SUDDENLY, THE VAN (1560)
PRIMUS 9080 1 3 0 14 LONG SWORD CLUB (1563)
QUARN REESE 9085 1 0 0 12 MIDDLE WAY 24 (1561)
SECUNDUS 9081 0 4 0 4 LONG SWORD CLUB (1563)
'-' denotes a warrior who did not fight this turn.
THE DEAD W L K TEAM NAME SLAIN BY TURN Revenge?
ABRAHAM LINCOLN 9078 2 2 0 HEROES 1562 QUARTUS 9083 304
OLGRAN POUR 9072 2 1 0 MIDDLE WAY 24 1561 BERTHOLD 9067 303 JUST REVENGED
ULFRIC 9068 2 1 0 SUDDENLY, THE V 1560 SALMKED TIGH 9074 302
PERSONAL ADS
Manute Bol -- Are you trying to demonstrate the mostly-unspoken principle that what
your style does a lot at lower levels is... die? You could wear armor, you know. --
Queenie Rell
He isn't from Osksi, and he isn't Noble, but what the heck. It's a win. -- Salmked
Tigh
Secundus -- I feel called upon to smirk. Pardon me while I do so. -- Mardon Ney
26 July 2010
Some managers have attempted to send personals and columns to hal, and hal has
been refusing to acknowledge their content. I don't know what hal's problem is,
specifically, but for best success, send PLAIN TEXT (dot txt) in the body of the
email. Not attachments. Thank you. -- the Editor
LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS
KAMBER LEA was bested by VENEMOUS CONCUBINE in a 1 minute Title fight.
SALMKED TIGH was demolished by MANUTE BOL in a 1 minute one-sided melee.
QUEENIE RELL overpowered BERTHOLD in a 1 minute mismatched duel.
VIN DIESEL was outwaited by SVEN in a 7 minute fight.
MOTHER TERESA savagely defeated CAPTURED ORC in a 2 minute bloody amateur's match.
SANGER lost to QUINTUS in a 1 minute fight.
MARDON NEY was viciously subdued by HELEN KELLER in a 3 minute amateur's match.
PRIMUS handily defeated MORDANT DESERTER in a 1 minute uneven melee.
SECUNDUS was vanquished by QUARN REESE in a 1 minute one-sided duel.
TERTIUS vanquished CONVICTED THIEF in a 1 minute one-sided duel.
QUARTUS luckily beat EMBEZZLING SCRIBE in a 2 minute gory beginner's match.
BATTLE REPORT
MOST POPULAR RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS
|FIGHTING STYLE FIGHTS FIGHTING STYLE W - L - K PERCENT|
|STRIKING ATTACK 7 WALL OF STEEL 13 - 4 - 1 76 |
|WALL OF STEEL 4 LUNGING ATTACK 9 - 3 - 0 75 |
|AIMED BLOW 2 PARRY-LUNGE 4 - 2 - 0 67 |
|LUNGING ATTACK 1 AIMED BLOW 13 - 9 - 0 59 |
|TOTAL PARRY 1 STRIKING ATTACK 23 - 17 - 1 58 |
|PARRY-LUNGE 1 BASHING ATTACK 4 - 3 - 0 57 |
|SLASHING ATTACK 1 SLASHING ATTACK 6 - 5 - 1 55 |
|PARRY-STRIKE 0 PARRY-STRIKE 1 - 1 - 0 50 |
|PARRY-RIPOSTE 0 TOTAL PARRY 7 - 8 - 0 47 |
|BASHING ATTACK 0 PARRY-RIPOSTE 0 - 0 - 0 0 |
Turn 305 was great if you Not so great if you used The fighting styles of the
used the fighting styles: the fighting styles: top eleven warriors are:
LUNGING ATTACK 1 - 0 PARRY-LUNGE 0 - 1 4 STRIKING ATTACK
TOTAL PARRY 1 - 0 PARRY-STRIKE 0 - 0 3 WALL OF STEEL
STRIKING ATTACK 5 - 2 PARRY-RIPOSTE 0 - 0 1 AIMED BLOW
AIMED BLOW 1 - 1 SLASHING ATTACK 0 - 1 1 LUNGING ATTACK
WALL OF STEEL 2 - 2 BASHING ATTACK 0 - 0 1 TOTAL PARRY
1 SLASHING ATTACK
TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE
FIGHTING STYLE WARRIOR W L K PNTS TEAM NAME
WALL OF STEEL KAMBER LEA 9070 4 1 0 65 MIDDLE WAY 24 (1561)
STRIKING ATTACK QUEENIE RELL 9073 5 0 0 46 MIDDLE WAY 24 (1561)
AIMED BLOW MANUTE BOL 9075 3 2 0 42 HEROES (1562)
Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above.
The overall popularity leader is HELEN KELLER 9076. The most popular warrior this
turn was HELEN KELLER 9076. The ten other most popular fighters were VIN DIESEL
9079, QUEENIE RELL 9073, MOTHER TERESA 9077, QUINTUS 9084, MARDON NEY 9071, PRIMUS
9080, TERTIUS 9082, QUARTUS 9083, MANUTE BOL 9075, and SVEN 9065.
The least popular fighter this week was SECUNDUS 9081. The other ten least popular
fighters were SANGER 9066, BERTHOLD 9067, SALMKED TIGH 9074, KAMBER LEA 9070, QUARN
REESE 9085, SVEN 9065, MANUTE BOL 9075, QUARTUS 9083, TERTIUS 9082, and PRIMUS 9080.
GETTING THE JUMP
by Pagan
There are a number of factors which will determine which warrior swings first.
In speaking of this I can only tell you what I have a 'feel' for. In no way does
anyone know all the factors on how this works exactly unless someone gets to look at
the source code for the program. I will ignore Kill Desire simply because I have
never noticed a difference in my warriors getting the jump whether they ran a 1 KD or
a 10KD.
The Factors:
1. At warrior creation, the program initiates a random string class to be used
for your warrior. Each string has a series of numbers that are generated then and
always remain the same. It appears random, and some strings are good for some
warriors and bad for others. You'll notice this only over time. This string class
is permanent and not all of them are created equal. This is above and beyond any
total number of skills. You may call this 'knack'.
2. At fight time, the program calls a random string to be used for BOTH
warriors. This string affects the string of the warrior. This is why you will never
see two fights that are line-by-line exactly the same. But if the fights were
constantly run with exactly the same string, and no strategy changes are made, then
you will have the same fight line-by-line.
3. FightString-modified-WarriorString# are taken for each warrior, and
#Speed + 0.5#Wit + #DeciseSkills + OE + string# + tactic + style-adjustment -
weapon-weight equates to a number.
4. These bonuses could be negative in adjustments also, i.e., running with the
responsiveness tactic would be the negation of Decise skills and Speed skills--
rendering them out of the compilation (gaining them in parry and dodge instead).
Running with the decise tactic would increase Decise.
5. The biggest controllable factors are OE, tactic, & weapon-weight (in that
order).
6. If the number for Jump does not have a disparity of a specific number then a
continued clash will occur until that disparity is shown. Then the fight actually
begins. You can have a series of 10+ clash statements until the program finds who
starts and initiates the fight sequences.
Example: FighterA ends up with a Jump# of 60 and FighterB ends up with a Jump#
of 65. If the disparity between them had to be 10 points then what would happen is
that a clash statement would be printed and the steps repeated. The next number from
the Fight-String is called along with the next number in each of the Warrior-Strings;
the computation is done again until the disparity (for the computer anyway) becomes
true. Then the fight sequence is activated.
Pagan
CONSTITUTION
One the major assets to a warrior's survival is his constitution. Sometimes CON
is overlooked in order to maximize other attributes that give extra starting skills.
This is okay depending what style is selected for the warrior in question. I usually
make a warrior with 9 or less CON an offensive style and higher than that a defensive
style as a rule of thumb. But it really depends on the rest of the stats as for the
final verdict on which style he will actually become.
CON affects three things: Hit points, endurance, and how much weight you can
carry. Endurance and weight allowance are also affected by strength as well as CON.
The endurance formula is E = (ST+CN)WL and also has a chart of breakpoints that is
covered in another one of my articles. Weight allowance is also a large chart that is
beyond the scope of this article, but can be found in many places.
CON's main effect is HIT POINTS or the amount of damage a warrior can take before
he gives up or is killed. Defensive styles need more than offensive styles do to
survive Basic. Low con for offensive styles is OK for basic but really hinders a
warrior's performance in Advanced Duelmasters.
Hit points are determined by this formula: CON x 2 modified by the following
charts.
(Even numbers get modifier of the number before it)
SIZE modifier
3 5 7 9 11 12 13 15 17 19 21
-5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4 +5
WILL modifier
3 5 7 9 11 12 13 15 17 19 21 22 23 24 25
0 0 0 0 0 0 +1 +2 +3 +4 +5 +6 +7 +8 +9
RATINGS
Very Frail -- (1-14)
Cannot take a lot -- (15-20)
Average (no statement) -- (21-29)
Can take a lot -- (30-34)
Tremendous -- (35-47)
Seemingly unaffected -- (48+)
This formula as well as the charts are about 98% accurate. For more information
about this or other DM information you can contact me via DIPO in ADM 105, team name
is The Joker's Wild. I can also be reached at my e-mail address at
103260.3347@compuserve.com or at my DM web site at
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/jessiejest/homepage.htm
Cheers, and good luck!
Sir Jessie Jest
The Real Offensive Total Parry
How many of you run total parry warriors? Raise your hands. Whoa, that's a lot!
Now how many of you have run long term potential offensive total parries? Uh huh,
that's what I thought, a lot less of you actually have. My name is Blackstorm and
I'll show you an example or two for the O.T.P. The main difference between "scum"
TP's and "offensive" TP's are these: Scum have massive amounts of CN, WL and ST.
They tend to stand around getting pounded until their opponents drop. In theory, the
scum wins a lot at first, but sucks later in his career (but not always!). The
offensive version is quick, strong, and can parry very well. Combine that with a
medium based attack rating and you've got it all. The main thing to remember when
making "offensives" is to stay away from extremely high attributes (21). The reason
being is that the distribution of points in several domains is more important than
having that beautiful 21 in WL and WT. Here's a list of some other manager's
offensive total parries and my best.
Lunatic's Off. P-Dodge Slowburn's My Offensive
(TP) (Off. TP) Total Parry
---------------------- ---------- ------------
ST-11 13 13
CN-11 11 12
SZ-8 8 9
WT-13 17 15
WL-13 15 13
SP-11 5 7
DF-15 15 15
There are several major differences between the three: 1) My guy does good
damage. 2) He's coordinated without training. 3) More hit points. 4) He can use
every single weapon suited to him. I'll explain a bit below.
ST 13: Coupled with a 9 size almost guarantees good damage and it helps endurance.
CN 12: This allows him to handle a couple of hits and it balances well with the 13
strength and will for endurance.
SZ 9: He's hard to hit, can use weapons which need 9 and his damage rating is also
better.
WT 15: Great learns and it'll keep him competitive both in attack and defense.
WL 13: Keeps him aggressive without lopsiding it for 17 or 21. We want to be
exciting and unscummy. He rarely needs to go 10 minutes and if he does he'll still go
the distance.
SP 7: This isn't an important stat for TPs but it helps coordination and it'll give
him a few decise and init skills to boot.
DF 15: For his parry. It also gives him a bit of precision while attacking. You
could reverse SP and DF by 2 points (SP-5, DF-17) without messing him up. Remember
SP+DF=21.
Strategy: They are a special breed and require a little experimenting like ABs. I
could recommend 2-3-2 or 2-4-2, responsiveness vs. steroid types like ST, SL, BA, and
PS. Then open up in minutes 3 or 4 at 10-8-10-L, 6-4-6-L, or even 10-10-10
decisiveness in desperation. However he will respond to the lunge, parry, response
and dodge the best. And as I said, experiment and try new strategies. Weapons and
armor; use ARM or ASM with it or FH. The LO, SC, and EP are good vs. light and
medium. The QS is also a good weapon for the heavier armor (TP's don't really use
heavier weapons well.) Tell me what you think.
Blackstorm -- Champions of Steel (8) and several others
HOW TO PHONE IN YOUR TURNS
We've told you how to fill out your strategy sheets, we've told you how to do
your personals and team spotlights, now it's time for a course in phoning in your
turns.
1. The very first thing to do is to tell us your name, account number, and the
arena number you are phoning in. Example: "Hello, this is John Doe, my account
number is 12345, I'm phoning in turns for arena 35, Murska."
Step #1 only has to be done once, steps two and on have to be done for each warrior
individually.
2. Tell us the name and ID number of you warrior. Example: "Warrior name, Happy
Slasher, ID number is 375."
3. Tell us what weapons your warrior is using. Example: "For armor weights 0
to 3, scimitar with an off-hand dagger, for armor weights 4 to 10, broadsword with an
off-hand medium shield, for armor weights 11 and above, great axe with no off-hand
weapon. Backup primary dagger, backup off-hand small shield." Note, if you are using
the same weapons for all armor types, just say, for example, "Hatchet with an off-hand
small shield for all armor types." Please, please, please don't use the abbreviations
for the weapons; say "war flail," not "WF." This goes for armor, training, attack and
protect locations, and tactics too.
4. Tell us what kind of armor and helm your warrior is wearing and what training
you are trying for. Example: "Armor: leather armor, steel cap; training:
strength." Again, please don't use abbreviations.
5. Next read your challenges and avoids and tell us if you have a challenge
strategy or an if-challenged strategy. Example: "Challenge Broke Stroker, ID number
11. I have a challenge strategy. Avoid Dark Foundation, number 29, and the
Mongoloids, number 15." Be sure to read off the team ID; without that your avoids
will not be processed.
6. Next, read off your normal strategy. Example: "Offensive effort: 7 5 4 5 7
7 2 desperation. Activity level: 3 5 6 5 3 7 10 desperation. Kill desire: first
through third minutes 3 then 5 5 7 1 desperation. Attack location: abdomen all the
way across. Protect location: body, body, head, arms, arms, body, legs desperation.
Offensive tactics: slash first and fifth minutes. Defensive tactics: dodge third
and desperation minutes." If you have the same number, location, or tactic for
several minutes in a row, just say the beginning minute and the ending minute (often
if you say "Activity level, 3 3 3 3 3 3 3," the machine cuts you off).
7. If you have a challenge or if challenged strategy, tell us what the
differences are. Example: "If challenged strategy: same except training skills and
kill desire is 10 all minutes." If you feel more comfortable reading the whole
strategy, you can, but you don't have to.
Then repeat the same steps for the rest of your warriors. Of course if you want
to, you can just have us run your warriors with the same strategies as they had last
turn. If you want to do that, then step three is, "Just run this warrior with the
same strategy as last turn." We, the transcribers, really like people who do that.
And remember, there is a living human being that will have to transcribe your phone-
in, so speak loudly, clearly, and not too fast (unless you're really trying to save on
the phone bill). Also, the answering machine occasionally cuts people off for no
reason, so, if at first you don't succeed....
-- The Transcriber
P.S. On behalf of the mailroom slaves, please, please, put your arena number on
your personals and diplos. Sometimes stuff gets misfiled or not printed or not
delivered because we don't know where it belongs. Thank you.
AVOIDS, BLOODFEUDS, & CHALLENGES
by Pagan
Ever wonder how the whole challenge/avoid thing works?
Who you fight depends on exactly how it works. We will never know exactly how it
works unless we can get a look at the coding for the program, but this is how I think
it works:
The Situation:
The system allows a warrior to make two separate challenges and two distinct
avoids.
Avoids are distinct in that they MUST indicate a specific team to be avoided, so
a "double avoid" indicates a single team twice, which by default means you are
avoiding one team. In this case, the second avoid is a duplicate and therefore a
waste of an avoid.
Challenges are to specific warriors. You have a first challenge, and then you
have a second challenge.
The Process:
First the computer removes all Dark Arena challengers from the list of available
warriors.
Second, the computer checks for WHO fights WHO by going though all TVs and
bloodfeuds, which are 100% sure to go through except in four instances:
1. the warrior challenged does not fight,
2. the warrior challenged is also making a bloodfeud or TV challenge and that
challenge has already been assigned,
3. the warrior has already been assigned to a Dark Arena fight,
4. that warrior has declared your team to be one of his warrior's avoids,
reducing your challenge to 50%.
Third, the computer assesses all the regular first-challenge warriors and assigns
fights. All other challenges are at 100% chance of success except in a few instances:
warrior challenged is going to the DA, warrior challenged is involved in a previously
assigned challenge, warrior challenged is not running this turn, or warrior challenged
has avoided your team at 50% chance to avoid.
Fourth, the computer assesses and assigns all secondary challenges of warriors
not so far assigned for bloodfeuds and TVs.
Fifth, the computer assesses and assigns all the regular second challenges.
Sixth, the computer assigns random matchups in each available class starting with
the highest class first.
Seventh, the computer finds the remaining warriors that have successfully avoided
all first and second challenges and/or who also did not get randomly assigned, AND for
whom no more available warriors remain in their class for random pairing. All of
these warriors get RSI-generated warriors to fight based on their class.
So, if I'm right and avoids reduce the chance for a challenge to 50%, then:
In the absence of an avoid
single challenge = 100% success
double challenge = 100% success, then an additional 100% success
Where an avoid is involved
single challenge vs avoid = 50% success
double challenge vs avoid = 75% (chance to avoid is 0.5 * 0.5 = 0.25; 1 -
0.25 = 75% chance to succeed
Bloodfeuds and TVs may increase the percentage chance of success above 100%, or
they may not. I feel that their increased ability to get through is based solely on
the way the computer assigns challenges. They are first, so they are most likely to
go through. The 100% chance for a challenge to succeed is 100% if it's a TV bloodfeud
and you are the first one to get assigned a fight that day because you are also the
Duelmaster. But after that the chances start to diminish rapidly.
The run-through for second challenges theoretically means your challenge should
be 100% but it's not the case if you are the LAST guy the computer goes to for finding
challenges.
If you don't double challenge, you significantly lower your chance to get your
challenge through. The second challenge is not equal to the first challenge.
Pagan
ANOTHER BEGINNER'S GUIDE TO DUELMASTERS, BUT WRITTEN BY A DIFFERENT MANAGER
or
HOW TO FLOAT WHEN YOU ARE UP SNOT CREEK WITHOUT A BOAT!! :)
I'll try to keep this short and sweet. I have been playing Duelmasters for about
3 years now and I've been helped by MANY managers. I base my knowledge on this help
and my experience as a manager.
All my designs will give you warriors who will hopefully be able to win early on,
late in life, or sometimes even both.
First, the five offensives:
Basher: Bashers are generally one of two types: big and stupid or smaller,
quicker, and skilled. First, big and stupid: 17-16-17-8-17-4-5. This guy wears plate
armor and a full helm and wields a maul with a backup warhammer. Run him like 8-1-8
bash and he will win early on but suck later in his life. The second guy is like 15-
6-9-21-15-7-11 and can use every bashing weapon but the halberd. This rollup will not
come up often and will be made into something else very often.
Aimed-Blows: I don't know much about aimed-blows so I won't tell you much about
them. They need high wit and deftness (17 and 17 if possible) and at the very least a
13 will to be competitive later in life. The rest of the stats will define how you
run your aimed-blow, slow if he has the con to take a few hits, fast if he has high
speed and low con. I advise any new players to be VERY careful running ABs, they are
notorious for dying.
Strikers: Strikers, much like bashers, generally do not make the best long-term
warriors. I run a striker who did well in regular DM but sort of sucks in Advanced
DM. He was set up 11-11-5-15-10-17-15. He is a classic example of a "Biff" striker,
good for a few wins, but not a god in later life. You generally can't go wrong with
strikers. Give them at least a 15 wit to learn skills, and some speed to help their
decise. Low speed = big size, low-size = high-speed.
Lungers: Quite possibly the best style in the game. I am sick of them but they
can be damn good if made correctly. Will is the single most important stat. Lungers
get tired real quick. I recommend a setup like this: 11-8-11-17-17-7-13. This is not
a god roll-up but it is very good. At 11 strength you can use ALL lunging weapons. I
think the longsword is the best lunging weapon, plain and simple.
Slashers: I have made one I think and I don't even run him. They are a good
style and like lungers get great ratings, but eat up endurance. Ask around in your
arena for help on slashers, I'm sure you can find help. :)
Okay, now for the five defensives:
Total Parry: Well, there is only one way to make a total parry. This is a very
good design: 11-15-6-15-21-5-13. He will have a good parry, a good defense, and a
good attack. He needs the wit to learn skills and the will to last long and not give
up. Many people might disagree with this design but as far as I'm concerned, it's
solid. You can also make a scum, but that is not a total parry. 15-18-11-5-21-3-11.
He will win early and maybe even later, but suck in the long-haul.
Parry-Riposte: I like to consider this my bread-and-butter style. I am going to
give very high standards for a parry-rip. Setup: 7-12-6-21-17-6-15 or if you are
brave: 7-3-10-17-21-10-17. Both warriors are very similar to warriors that I run, the
second is an exact copy of one of my guys. These roll-ups rarely come up but in my
opinion a good parry-rip needs to have VERY good stats. I am a bit biased to parry-
rips but that is just me.
Parry-Strikes: I am not the greatest on parry-strikes, but they are similar to a
P-R. Higher strength (11-13), con can be around the same (3-12), generally lose
points in other stats. Size needs to be low (<9), wit, will, speed and deftness need
to be reasonably high if you have the points (17-17-9-13) for the last 4 stats would
be beautiful. Diplo "Horrible" of Team Titan (157) in Talcama (18) for advice. He is
a good PS manager.
Parry-Lunge: Much like a P-R in both fighting and the way to be set up. Try 11-
5-6-17-21-9-15 for a good P-L. I love the 9 speed on a parry-lunge and the 11
strength gives good weapon selection and endurance. All weapons can be used except a
longspear and even that can be used without too much trouble. It needs a 9 size.
Like the lunger, he needs will. Good style, very strong.
Wall of Steel: The waste is another good style for a good winning percentage.
This setup is strong: 13-8-9-15-21-5-13. A good style that can be strong against most
opponents. Scimitar, medium shield work great.
Well, I am about done for now. A few last minute tips, train skills at all
times! Never train stats unless it's con, or it is a scum T-P, or a scum basher. The
longsword needs 11 ST, 3 SZ, 13 WT?, 11 DF. Scimitar needs 9-3-11?-11. WH needs 13-
3-9?-7. Longsword is best for lungers, scimitar is great for P-L, P-S, P-R, W-S, T-P,
SL, AB, ST, and the warhammer is a reliable basher or striker weapon. Well, I hope
this will help new managers, and good luck!!! (Oh yeah, always make wit/will/def on
9, 11, 13, 15, 17 or 21) but do not train up to those stats!
Please send all flames to "Jolly", Arena 18, Burn n' Pillage (218)
or
Adam Teshinsky - Jolly the green giant
843 Cary Quad - 18, 69, 104, (2 coming soon!)
West Lafayette, IN 47906
(317) 495-2360
P.S. I am notorious for getting very good guys, and it shows in my opinions. I
usually center around wit and will on all warriors though, for in my opinion they are
the most important!
ARE YOU AT YOUR WIT'S END??
Have you been unsuccessful in your attempts to make warriors that win
consistently? Are you unable to find fighting rhythms for your warriors that make
them look like "studs" rather than "duds"? If you answered "yes" to either of these
questions, then read on! This is another article in the endless stream of articles
which focuses on how to be more competitive at Duelmasters. One of my first warriors
when I started playing in 1985 looked like this: 13-15-10-9-11-16-10. He was a wall
of steel that went 0-5 before I DA'd him. Obviously, if this warrior went 0-5 back
then, he wouldn't stand a chance of winning today. Why? Simply because the amount of
information available about Duelmasters has skyrocketed. This article will discuss:
1. Understanding some of the basics.
2. Ways to get more DM info.
This article will attempt to help "close the gap" between you and the managers
you compete against. Typically, the only difference between teams at the top and
bottom of an arena is the amount of knowledge their manager has about the game. As
you learn more about DM, you'll be on a more level playing field with your
competition.
Understanding some of the basics
The desire to succeed at Duelmasters has prompted many managers to do an
incredible amount of research about the game. In doing so, the scientific method has
taken over. Hypotheses have been formed and tested, leading to theories, which were
tested some more. Years later, many of these theories have become "laws" in most
manager's minds. Knowing some of these "laws" is absolutely essential to success in
Duelmasters.
Wit & Will: These stats are generally thought to be the two most important in
warrior design. You can do without one or the other in certain instances, but if both
are below 15 (i.e. Wit-13 Will-13) your warrior will usually be at a disadvantage.
Warrior overview statements: The warrior overview tells you much more about a
warrior's potential than meets the eye. "Wit Statements" (those little sayings under
the intelligence statement-i.e. "is VERY INTELLIGENT") can tell you your warrior's
starting skill levels in every area except decisiveness. If the overview starts out,
"is BRIGHT" and has no indented lower case statements below it, it's time to visit the
DA.
Skills "lost" by stat training: Some trained stats make your warrior "lose"
skills. For instance: training your strength from 14 to 15 makes you "lose" an attack
and a parry skill unless you already have 20 skills in those skill areas. It adds a
skill onto your total in that area, but now that warrior can only train 19 skills
instead of 20 so in essence, skills are lost (until they can be learned back in
Gateway, but that's a loooonnnggg time away for new warriors).
This is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg of knowledge that is waiting out
there for you. The next obvious question is, "How do I attain this knowledge?"
Ways to get more DM info:
Now that I've given you some examples of things you need to know, I'll give you
information on how to access this pool of knowledge. The key here is to expose
yourself to information. You can:
1. Attend a Face to Face Tourney
2. Join an Alliance
3. Join the "aRt" (On-line Roundtable)
1. Attend a Face to Face Tourney: Far and away the most fun of the three options,
attending a FTF can be quite exciting. You have lots of time between turns to discuss
the game, and many managers who are willing to discuss it with you. In fact, some
managers are too willing (e.g. Man in Yellow). It's a fun experience, but can also be
quite expensive.
2. Join an Alliance: There are many alliances out there for you to join. I'm
personally not in one (though I'm still considering it) but many great managers are so
you can learn a lot from being in one. Unfortunately for newer players, some
alliances are probably closed off from them since they are relatively new to the game.
3. Join the "aRt" (Roundtable): The roundtable is basically a mailing list (e-mail)
where managers talk about DM. More often than not when you ask a question, it gets
answered by many different people, giving you a wide variety of different views on the
subject. I believe you can join the list by e-mailing a "Subscribe Duel-L Your Name"
message to "listserv@ambience.com.au". If you start receiving a bunch of messages
that say "[DUEL]" in the title, you're in! There are also some homepages on the web
that deal with DM as well. Use any search engine (i.e. Yahoo, Webcrawler) and search
for "Duelmasters."
Obviously, there is much more information out there than I touched on in this
article. Without actively seeking out some of this information, your future in DM
could be rather grim. Another way for newer players to learn more is the Duelmasters
Sponsor program which you can contact RSI about. If none of this sounds interesting
to you, but you still want to learn more, ask one of the other managers in your home
arena. I've found that people generally like to talk about Duelmasters so it should
be easy to get a response to any question you might have.
Thanks for your time in reading this article. I hope it helps some of you
achieve more success at Duelmasters. If any of you have responses, questions, or just
wanna BS, I can be diploed at Notorious (Arena #32) or e-mailed at MBender842@AOL.COM.
Marty Bender
(a.k.a. Destitute Noble)
The Darque Slasher
I've read through all of the articles offered for the Slashing style, and with
the exception of a few, I am completely unhappy with them. I know the styles of
today are Lungers and Aimed Blows because they dominate the upper levels. I like to
make other styles and enjoy the Basic arena, so sometimes I just don't feel like
designing the norm. I want to offer a few design tips on one of my favorite styles
and one I have relatively good success with in Basic DM (ADM too...for now). Keep in
mind, this is not an exhaustive look at the Slasher, but merely a few design ideas
and strategy suggestions.
STR: 9-17. If anyone tells you otherwise, brand them as a heretic. Epee is a
nice weapon if you HAVE to use it. However, if the option is given to you, opt for
the SC. I personally like the BA, but with other faves as SC and BS, I cannot
complain if I do not reach the 15 Strength. I normally shoot for Good Damage, but
Normal is also workable. I have noticed a reoccuring trend of Damage Bonuses on my
Slashers. Other managers have made the same observations, and this may be an area
worth addressing in a later article.
Con: Who cares? I may be a bit optimistic, but I do not design my warriors on
the theory they will be hit by an opponent. CON is nice for endurance (slightly) and
damage taking, but unless you are planning a mutant Slasher, do not add any points
here. Take what you can get!
Size: You can't control it, so why fret over it? I like small Slashers with
lots of Strength. After thinking about it awhile though, I like all my warriors with
small Size and lots of Strength.
Wit: 11-21. I like fast learners (don't we all), but I've had to work with the
slow ones before also. It is really dependent on your playing style as to what I
suggest for Wit. As a general rule, HIGH is GOOD, but that holds true in every
instance doesn't it? I know some managers who will not run anything less than 15,
I'm not that jaded (you freaks know who you are)! If you want to win and win a lot,
I suggest the high Wit (17 is ideal). The more patient manager will work better with
the lower Wit, so do what is best for your playing style.
Will: 15-21. The higher your Strength and Constitution, the lower the Will can
be on the Slasher. You want a minimum high-end Normal Endurance. I like Good
Endurance for those pesky scum, but Normal is very workable.
Speed: Once again, it doesn't matter. I like above a 9, but I have them as low
as 3. You can never have too much Speed; however, I never add points to this stat.
It is a waste!
Deftness: 7-21. Most people will tell you 15+. I have a different theory and
become quite satisfied at 11. It is a major skill break point, and my Slashers
perform quite well with it. Higher is possible, but do not sacrifice other vital
stats for an extremely high Deftness. I know the critics will say you need it to hit
your target, and I agree. But, what good will it do your warrior to strike his
intended target if he cannot knock the opponent out due to low strength, or is unable
to function past minute one due to low Will? DO NOT sacrifice other vitals for a
high Deftness. Look at the overall picture!
JUST A FEW EXAMPLE WARRIORS in the DARQUE STABLES (successful):
1> 9-11-11-15-17-10-11 2> 15- 6- 6-15-21-10-11
3> 10-10- 8-15-17-13-11 4> 13-10- 7-17-17- 9-11
5> 9- 3-13-21-15-16- 7 6> 10-10-10-15-15- 3-21
7> 17- 9-11-15-15- 6-11 8> 15- 4- 8-17-17-12-11
I DO NOT HAVE ENOUGH ROOM TO LIST THE ALL THE MISTAKES I HAVE MADE.
You will notice a pattern in most of them. From the examples above, four were
blessed in their damage rating. I mentioned in the design theory above that I prefer
an 11 Deftness, and my warriors prove this point. Two Tournament Victors are in the
above list, and one will hopefully be one in an upcoming mailer. These are/were my
most successful due in large (I believe) to the guidelines I have given above. Good
Damage (or better in some cases), Good Endurance, and good weapon selection are vital
to a Slasher's success. If you design a terrible warrior, do not expect great
results.
Strategy: Although the general populace of DM believes that 10-10-6-Decise is
the answer to every offensive situation, I disagree (okay, not an emphatic
disagree...but sort of...just read on). It is a viable strat in many situations, but
most managers do not explore outside of those set ranges for something that works. I
have tried many strategies with the Slasher, and I continue to experiment, but the
following are just a few that have given me success in the past year.
My typical strategy is 10-10-6 with no tactic. I believe slashers riposte
better when unmodified, or in my experience they do. I normally drop down to 9-5-6
in minute two, followed by 8-2-6 for the rest of the fight. In desparation, I have
yet to find a spectacular set of numbers, so I normally experiment. If I run 10-10-
6-Decise, my Slasher has shown exceptional tendencies towards that tactic (possible
favorite learn or bonused in that area). Minutes two and on are the same for most of
my strats. If you fight those pesky scum, carry a big weapon and go 7-3-7 for the
entire fight. If you are having problems with Strikers, Bashers, and Parry Strikes,
I have found that Response works well with a Slasher. My theory is once response
negates decise, an Initiative roll is began. In most instances, a Slasher will win
an Initiative roll. It has worked wonders for me and vastly improved my Win/Loss.
10-10-x or an inverted 8-10-x is what I use in most situations.
Well, that is it for the Darque Slasher. This is really a work in progress, but
I figured I would share my views with the rest of the DM populace. Feel free to
disagree with me, I'm sure some will have reservations about what I have written.
However, the above guidelines work for me on a consistent basis. Yes, I'm aware the
numbers I gave you would make a decent anything, but I'm not designing anything else,
I'm designing a Slasher!!! Have fun with it and enjoy the game once in awhile!
Master Darque
Darque Forces DM 31, 103
Beginner's Guide to Duelmasters Rebuttal
Now, I've never talked to, or even heard of, Fritz of Battle Pets (which is okay,
because I'm sure a bunch of you have never heard of me, either), but I read Fritz's
article, and felt that I had to write a response. I am known as Drake, and I've been
playing this game for a little better than four years. Now, this does not make me the
ultimate authority on Duelmasters (there are a lot of managers out there that are a
hell of a lot better than me), but I do think that I know what I'm doing.
Now, for the most part, Fritz's article doesn't have anything wrong with it, but
there are a few points that I noticed that I do believe could hurt new players in the
long run (no offense intended towards Fritz or his intelligence as a manager). So, in
all good conscience, I could not let his article go by without a rebuttal.
First, he placed too many stats on even numbers in his example rollups. When
designing a warrior, it seems that the more odd numbers in the stats, the better the
luck factor will be. The values that you really want to shoot for are 7, 9, 11, 13,
15, 17, and 21. These values seem to offer more skills and are better for getting a
high luck factor. Now, I know it is impossible to have a rollup with all odd stats,
so the one even stat should either be con or size if you can manage it. These are the
two least important stats (in my opinion; a lot of managers feel that con and speed
are the bottom of the stat pile; however, we all agree that con is about useless
because it does not give your warrior ANY skills), and also the least hampered by even
numbers. As far as stat importance goes, most managers will tell you that wit,
deftness, and will (in that order) are the most important stats for any warriors of
any style.
Now, about the styles themselves.
BASHERS: An okay style that does well in basic, but tends to lose steam in ADM
unless designed with extremely good stats. The ranges I suggest are: ST 13-17 (21 is
nice but wastes points), CN 3-7 (no offensive style needs con), SZ 6+ (9 is perfect),
WT 13+, WL 13+, SP 5-9 (not really that important), DF 13+. I feel that Fritz's first
example had too much speed and not enough deftness, and his second rollup had far too
much con and not enough deftness. Deftness is what gives you more skills and helps
you place your shots where you want them; a deftness of less than 11 will severely
hamper your warrior's performance. As for weapons, the best for bashing seems to be
the MA, WH, MS, and HL. For the most part, you will want to run your bashers all-out
offensive, with no more armor than ARM or ASM and F.
LUNGER: This is a style that one of my biggest disagreements with Fritz comes
from. His sample setup had WAY too much speed and way too little deftness. Lungers
DO NOT need speed. For a lunger, a speed above 9 is a waste. Basically, I suggest
you try the following stat ranges: ST 9-13, CN 3-7, SZ 6-11, WT 15+, WL 17+, SP 5-9,
DF 13+. As for weapons and strategy, use the SH, LO, SS, and LS with all-out offense,
and 10-10-6 dodge in desperation.
SLASHER: Recently this style has started to gain a lot of respect among
experienced managers. Fritz gave his slasher too much con and speed and not nearly
enough will and also shorted it on deftness. I suggest: ST 9-13, CN 3-6, SZ 6-11, WT
15+, WL 15+, SP 7-11, DF 13+. Slashers tend to burn a lot of endurance (almost as
much as a lunger or wall of steel), and need a good will and strength combo for at
least good endurance. For weapons, try the HA, SH, SC, and BS. Try running them like
bashers (high offense, and low to mid activity), and never use the slash tactic; it
hurts your decise, parry, and defense too much.
STRIKER: Fritz's had too much size and speed and not enough deftness. Also, I
would suggest avoiding the high size, low speed and deftness type of striker because
they never seem to do well. I suggest: ST 9-13, CN 3-7, SZ 6+, WT 15+, WL 13+, SP 7-
13, DF 13+. Run them with a high offensive effort, and a medium to high activity
level, and try using a DA, HA, SC, BS, MS, or WH.
AIMED BLOW: The best advice I can give you on these is to forget it. This is a
very picky and hard to run style. I still haven't managed a successful one. A lot of
managers will tell you that a good aimed blow would make a better something else, and
they may be right.
TOTAL PARRY: Fritz's advice on TPs is pretty much right on. I generally try
for: ST 9-13, CN 8-10 (enough for normal hit points in 2 stat raises), SZ 3-11, WT
13+, WL 15+, SP 3-7, DF 13+.
PARRY-STRIKE: This is another style I haven't had a lot of success with.
Whether this is just bad luck or a fault of the style, I don't know. However, if you
want to try one, I suggest the following stats: ST 9-13, CN 5-10 (PS can get away
with a low con better than other defensives), SZ 3-11, WT 15+, WL 13+, SP 7-11, DF
13+. Try running them like strikers until they get some Expert ratings, then use
their skills as a guide. Good weapons are: SH, SC, LO, BS, and WH with an offhand
shield.
PARRY-LUNGE: A lot of experienced managers feel that this is the best style in
the game. Fritz's design was okay, but there was too much size, and too many even
stats. You might want to try: ST 7-11, CN 8-10, SZ 3-11, WT 15+, WL 17+, SP 3-7, DF
13+. Run them like lungers until they get some Experts. As for your weapons, try to
EP, SH, SC, LO, or SS with an offhand shield.
PARRY-RIPOSTE: Fritz's design was okay, but they really don't need that much
con. A low con can be compensated with a high initial parry and/or defense for any
warrior. The stats I try for are: ST 7-11, CN 8-10, SZ 3-11, WT 15+, WL 13+, SP 7-
11, DF 15+. Basically, a beginning PR should be run like a TP. Try using the EP, SH,
SC, LO, or SS with an offhand shield.
WALL OF STEEL: Also known as the waste. This is one of my personal favorite
styles. The way I usually design them is: ST 9-13, CN 8-10, SZ 3-11, WT 13+, WL 17+,
SP 3-7, DF 13+. A good rule is to try and make sure that WT and WL is equal to at
least 30 for good initial skill levels. Wastes should be run defensively for the
first couple of minutes, offensively towards the middle minutes, and slowing down
towards the end. The best waste weapons are the SC, BS, MS, and BA.
Now, Fritz's designs may be working for him, and there is nothing wrong with
using what works, but I think that if he gets most of those sample warriors to ADM he
will end up in trouble. This is way I wrote this article. A lot of younger managers
find out that warriors who were doing great for them in basic end up getting trashed
in ADM. It happened to me, and as far as I know, everyone else I know. I hope this
article will help make the transition from basic to ADM a little easier for a lot of
new managers out there.
One last thing. As I said before, I am not the greatest manager in the game (or
anywhere near it), but I do know what I'm doing. However, don't feel that this
article is in any way absolute. If one of your warriors doesn't fall within the
ranges given, it is not necessarily useless. So long as your warrior has at least 13s
in WT, WL, and DF, and they total at least 43, your warrior should be fine.
If you have any comments, questions, or just think I'm completely insane, feel
free to contact Drake at any of the following teams and arenas: Power Tools Inc (47,
101, and 103), Drake's Bar-B-Q (15, 103), Drake's Lodge (50), or Ballroom Blitz (3).
Good luck all, and may you never run into a slasher wielding a chainsaw.
Yet Another Striker Article
This is an article on strikers, so if you really hate the style (as I know many
of you do), I suggest ignoring it completely because this is being written by someone
who LIKES strikers and knows how to design them, fight them, and win with them. <grin>
A good striker can have any design. They can use any weapon, any strategy, and
they should be able to beat any other style. They are the simplistic basic fighter.
They know how to slash, dodge, lunge, bash, riposte, parry, and respond (we already
know they are decisive).
So why do they get all this bad press, us striker lovers ask? (I realize that
anyone who has gotten this far must like strikers; the rest of them have quit in
disgust.) It's pretty simple, actually--strikers invariably get lower skill bases
than most offensive styles and they also seem to mimic aimed blows in that even if
they HAVE the initiative, often they won't attack (even with an Advanced Master
attack). It's frustrating at times, and that I'll admit; but the fun fights I've
gotten from strikers all too often make it up for me (don't let those cynics fool
you--strikers can dish out FAR more interesting fights than lungers!).
Okay, enough exposition (author-type word). On with the meat of a design
article:
ST: I like them powerful. 11 and up. More weapon selection and greater damage.
CN: The usual. Doesn't matter. A really good striker shouldn't ever get hit (except
by one of my slashers).
SZ: Any, of course. I like nice, big strikers for damage (it IS fun to get
TREMENDOUS on the rollup), but I have some just as good from SZ 6-9. 9 is a pretty
good average to go on (but never discount a SZ 17, especially if he has a 21 WT).
WT: High. The higher the better. Of course a striker can have any WT (especially a
dixie), but if you're looking for one to keep, then no lower than 17 is a must in this
stat.
WL: This is where the trick comes in. A striker can succeed with as low as a 5 WL in
the regular arena. I don't recommend this unless you're as crazy as me. Don't go
lower than 7. At the moment, I'm advocating the low WL striker, so don't go higher
than 13 on the outside. He needs the WT and DF more. 9-11 is perfect.
SP: Who cares?
DF: The second most important stat for a striker of this sort. High, high, high! 17
or 21, nothing else will do. (Oh, all right, if you MUST, then 15 is all right. I
don't recommend it, and don't blame me if you do go with THAT number.)
Okay, you have your 13-9-10-21-9-5-17, what do you do with it? Well, give him a
scimitar, of course, and put a little (very little) armor on him. I recommend no more
than ALE/L (perhaps APL/L). Don't worry about seeing a bad endurance statement on his
overview! It doesn't matter. Run him like this:
10 6 6 5 5 5 10
10 2 2 1 1 1 5
6 --------------------------- >
RA --------------------------- >
HE --------------------------- > (or body, or whatever other part you worry about)
Why ones, you ask? One thing I really love about strikers is their endurance
bonus. They can last and last and last, even with a 5 will. My motto is, "strikers
are keen, strikers are great, strikers take down total parries in plate." You say
you're pestered by those nasty scum? Say they've been destroying your record? Well,
this is your answer.
Then decide what kind of tactics you'd like to try. A striker can use them all
with some amount of success--most folks go with decise and that's cool early on.
Naturally, you can counter other strikers using decise with responsiveness (and
confuse other strikers coming at you with responsiveness by using dodge or no tactic
at all!). Most of the time I use either decise, response, dodge, or nothing. The
other tactics can be amusing, depending on the weapon you've given your striker--slash
with scimitar or bash with war hammer or lunge with longsword. Parry and riposte can
be used to modest success in desperation, but I don't too often do it, since I usually
have my strikers use a scimitar until they get to ADM and thereafter use their
favorites (unless, as in the case of Ethan Edwards, you've gotten a small shield). If
their favorite is a two-handed weapon, then use the scimitar as a backup.
Speaking of weapons: the scimitar is probably your best bet. Scimitar is light,
fast, strong, and deadly. I've heard that it does devastating things when you're
aiming for the head, but I don't advocate killing strategies. Strikers already seem
to have a kill advantage, no need to increase it; aim for the arms with the 6 KD (or
5). It's a nice thing to do.
And that's basically it. But just to further my position, here are some samples
that will show you what I'm talking about:
13-5-17-17-10-9-13 This warrior maxed out in 69 fights. Yes! Total! He's currently
32-28-2, maxed with Ad Master init, Master rip, attack, and decise, Ad Ex
defense, and Ex parry. As for worrying about stat raises, he's been maxed out
for five turns and already has four WL increases.
9-9-11-17-11-10-17 He ripped up his regular arena and went to ADM with a 15-5-4
record (no tournaments). Currently: 39-26-4 with Masters in init, rip, attack,
def, and decise; Ad Ex parry.
17-6-11-17-9-11-13 Currently 33-24-3 with Masters init, rip, attack, decise, Ex
defense.
11-13-11-21-9-6-13 Currently 28-19-0 with Masters init, attack, decise and Ad Ex rip.
17-8-7-17-5-13-17 Went to ADM with a 19-9-4 record; currently 24-24-4 (ADM has not
been kind). Still, he got two WL increases in four tries (it's 7 now) and he's
doing better overall; Masters attack & decise, Ad Master rip, As Ex init, Ex
defense.
For a change of pace (and to please those who want more endurance in their strikers),
I have:
10-10-10-21-14-11-8 He got off to a slow start. He's in Primus now with five
Advanced Masters and dozens of stat raises. He's 55-55-4 (keeping a real even
record), and he's one of the ones that has that trouble with attacking with the
initiative. One of his Ad Masters is, of course, attack.
12-15-4-18-21-4-10 Why did I make this a striker? Because I didn't know any better
at the time! <grin> He's 54-43-2 with Ad Master attack (not as much trouble as
the other, yet it's still there; I think the low WL strikers handle this better),
Masters init, parry, def, and decise, Ad Ex rip.
12-12-7-20-14-9-10 Went to ADM with a losing record, 17-20-3. Currently 53-47-3 in
Primus with an Ad Master rip, Masters in init, attack, defense, and decise, Ad Ex
parry.
Well, I have lots of other strikers, too, but these are the ones I term the "good
ones." (If anyone's interested, I could also show you how to make the WORST striker
in existence--currently the reigning "pud" of Home Guard.) Strikers have been, for
me, the "fall back on" style; the style I'll make a rollup that can't be anything
else. I don't recommend that. But they can be fun and provide hours of amusement,
especially the ones that shouldn't win on a dare--and do. (And oh, the fun when,
after eleven minutes of beating on some plate-clad scum, they WIN instead of falling
down--and they've been panting since minute 2!)
Comments, criticisms, the usual hyperbole, to: Tex, mgr. Tex's Rangers (51, 104,
101, 105); Excellent Venture (13, 103, 101), etc.
The Godling Heresy
Or
An Argument for Giving Every Warrior a Chance
It came to me in a flash, but I'd like you to bear with me while I lay a little
groundwork in this article, because it's going to take just a little longer than a
flash to explain it.
As I understand the term, a godling is a warrior who is expected to be superior
at all levels of play, but especially once he graduates and reaches the Isle (and
thus is safe from death).
When you do a roll-up, you arrange the stats and choose the style, and from
these two factors, the computer calculates starting (base) skills. The number
crunchers have done a LOT of research on this, and they can fairly well tell you what
the normal (mode) base skills for any warrior are, given his starting stats and his
style. But sometimes, a random factor will kick in, and a warrior may be bonused
over the skills that would be expected and have more than expected, or, of course,
the reverse. This you can't know until you get the overview and compare the
statements on it to one of the charts produced by a number cruncher.
Note that this means that if you send the warrior directly to the Dark Arena at
the same time you send in the roll-up, you won't know about any possible bonuses
until it's too late.
A warrior increases skills over his base during fighting by a) training skills
and/or b) training stats. By training nothing but skills, you can learn twenty in
each of the six skill areas; then you're "maxed." But you can also gain skills at
some points in the stat-training sequence, and if you train stats and gain skills
that way before you max skill trains, they will be counted against your twenty for
the skill in question. So you still get twenty skills, what's the difference? Ah,
but if you max the skills and THEN train stats, you get MORE than twenty! This is
the argument behind all those admonitions not to train stats early in a warrior's
career. The skills earned by training a stat to, say, 17 are calculated on exactly
the same chart as the skills earned by having a starting stat of 17.
If two warriors, both of the same style, both entirely mode, start out as Abel:
7-8-8-17-17-12-17 and Baker: 17-17-8-10-11-12-9, by the time they have maxed skills
and trained all their stats up to 21, they will be exactly identical in skills!
Where's your godling then? Abel may have been more exciting to run, he may have
taken off faster and had some rather spectacular wins, but he is equally likely to be
dead. So what's the big deal with the trip-17? Instant gratification, maybe, or
maybe just muddy thinking.
But wait, there's more!
Each warrior has a favorite weapon, a favorite rhythm, and sometimes a favorite
tactic, and THAT makes a lot of difference...but you don't find out (for sure) until
the warrior graduates. Suppose you had two warriors with Abel's stats as given
above, both slashers, let's say, and one had scimitar, high/low favorites and the
other had hatchet moderate/low favorites. The one with the scimitar is most likely
to do better than his twin.
So that makes two things you can't possibly know when you send in your roll-up
sheet: bonuses and favorites. Both of these are critical to the state of being a
godling, and my heretical opinion is that any reasonably good warrior should be given
a chance to demonstrate the presence or absence of bonuses and allow at least an
intelligent deduction as to favorites before being declared "worthless." It seems to
me that the managers who engage in the wholesale use of the Dark Arena on unproven
roll-ups are missing a good bet. If they're only interested in high-end play and
don't care about their win/loss record in Basic, why don't they give the half-way
decent roll-ups a chance?
For a few examples of the things that might be hiding behind an untried set of
numbers, I'm going to give you the facts on some real warriors. These are decent but
not extreme, ones I've graduated and have the numbers on. All are slashers, so there
will be no style-based differences.
A: 16-10- 9-15-17- 7-10 G: 13-17- 9-17-10- 9- 9
B: 9- 8-13-17-17- 9-11 H: 9- 8-13-17-15-11-11
C: 9- 5-14-15-17-11-13 I: 10-12-12-15-13-13- 9
D: 9-12-13-17-17- 3-13 J: 9- 9-13-15-15-11-12
E: 17- 9- 7-11-17-13-10 K: 9-13-10-15- 9-15-13
F: 12-13-15-13- 9- 9-13
None are "godlings" in the sense of having outstanding numbers. Many of them would
never have seen the light of day under other management. If you could only run two
of these warriors, which would you pick?
Here's the rest of the facts--
A: 16-10-9-15-17-7-10, favorites are scimitar, very high/very low. +1 init, +1
def, +4 dec. Good potential. A lot of skills waiting for an increase in DF.
B: 9-8-13-17-17-9-11, favorites are broadsword, high/low. +2 rip. Good
potential.
C: 9-5-14-15-17-11-13, favorites are hatchet, high/low. +4 init, -4 rip, +1
dec. Junk, because of the favorite weapon.
D: 9-12-13-17-17-3-13, favorites are longsword, moderate/low. +1 init. Same
as C, junked by his favorites.
E: 17-9-7-11-17-13-10, favorites are scimitar, moderate/moderate. +2 def, +4
dec. Rhythm and weapon are excellent, but he'd have been better with a bonus in
attack. Still, there are a lot of skills just waiting for the stat raises in DF and
WT.
F: 12-13-15-13-9-9-13, favorites are great axe, moderate/moderate. +1 rip, +3
att, -2 def. Mediocre, the penalty in defense offsetting the bonus in attack.
Raising stats will be hard, too.
G: 13-17-9-17-10-9-9, favorites are great axe, very high/low. +1 ini, +4 rip,
+2 att, +2 par, +2 def, +1 dec. An interesting oddity (bonuses in ALL skills), but
basically mediocre, and the low WL will give trouble when it comes to raising stats.
H: 9-8-13-17-15-11-11, favorites are broadsword, high/very low. -1 rip, +1
par, +4 def. Not bad at all.
I: 10-12-12-15-13-13-9, favorites are battle axe, high/very low. +2 dec. Not
bad, but not great, either.
J: 9-9-13-15-15-11-12, favorites are scimitar, moderate/very low. -1 rip, +3
par, +3 dec. Possible.
K: 9-13-10-15-9-15-13, favorites are shortsword, very high/low, slash tactic.
+1 init, -4 rip, +2 att, +3 def, +3 dec. Unfortunate weapon, but otherwise quite
possible. Favorite or no, I'd give this one a scimitar to fight with.
I forget off-hand which ones I'm actually running of these, if any, but just
looking at the list, I'd pick E and probably H. But you see what I mean about not
being able to tell the warrior's potential from the initial roll-up sheet? These
warriors weren't sorted by anything except style; they're simply the first eleven
slashers on my list of graduates. None of them have "great" numbers. None of the
DIED. Not ONE of them is mode. There's variation in favorite weapons and rhythms.
My recollection is that all of them did reasonably well in Basic.
I'm not advocating running every rotten replacement that comes down the pike (I
do it, but that's a different story), but give those so-so roll-ups a chance to show
their stuff. They might surprise you.
Jorja
The Middle Way 3
THE HIGH STRENGTH AIMED BLOW
BY
DONALD TRUMP
While it's not entirely true that the aimed blow style is misunderstood, it IS
often maligned by experienced managers. Many tell beginning managers to avoid it, and
I believe that this is doing the style an injustice. Aimed blows can be the most
fulfilling style to run, and are easily addictive. What better way for a beginning
manager to get into the game than by running a successful aimed blow? It's a better
notch on their belt than running a successful lunger to AD, I think.
The following information is gleaned from my own experience, a long-standing feud
over the style (which I subsequently lost) with Vlad Taltos, long conversations with
Slowburn, Shadowmaster, Lady Hawk, Tex and Roadkill, and the longwinded diatribes of
many on the DM roundtable on Internet.
The setup for aimed blows is easily the most important part of their makeup.
While other styles, bashers, lungers and even parry-strikers, for example, can make up
for a poor setup by proper strategy, challenge and avoid decisions, the aimer cannot.
A properly designed and run aimed blow can defeat any style; a poorly designed aimed
blow can't beat anyone.
Below is the setup I use for aimers. It is somewhat different than what I've
seen from other managers, but no more or less successful than usual. I'm sure it will
cause some stir among the aimer-running general public.
ST: I like it high, 13+. High ST does four things for your Aimed Blow: it helps
out endurance, it gives better encumbrance, it tends to give you better damage
ratings, and it helps your Attack rating.
Encumbrance is an important, and often neglected, part of the AB's makeup. I
currently have 2 AB's with 17 ST, and the high ST allows me to run them in ADM/H.
Since encumbrance is high (normal to good), it allows me to run them in heavy armor
without penalty, and also helps their damage-taking. This is important early in their
career, as many young aimers tend to lose after short flurries by offensives. Later
in their careers the extra damage taking isn't done at the expense of skills. A 17 ST
can be raised to 25 in AD without undue strain, and actually *gains* skills.
The other areas can be helped out by other stats: CN, WT, and DF. WT and DF
certainly give more skills than ST does, but I believe that in the long run Aimers are
better served by a few extra points in ST than in WT or DF.
CN: Any, naturally. I like some CN, 7-9, just to help out encumbrance,
endurance, and damage-taking. Obligatory remark: Never add points.
SZ: The sticking point for many rollups. All aimers (mine, yours, probably even
Shadowmaster's) require WT 17 DF 17 minimum to succeed. With high ST as well, this
doesn't allow much leeway for SZ. Since you can't change it, I'd say any SZ will do,
but for this rollup, anything over 10 probably isn't going to work.
WT: No controversy here. 17 or 21. I've seen 15 WT rollups do well, and if
you've got 21 DF, maybe that's enough, but for a standard I'd say 17.
WL: I like to see a decent WL, if only because low WL rollups face a brick wall
on stat trains once they max out on skills. Many managers specify 9, 13, 17 or *gasp*
21, but I say add points to get ST 13, WT 17, DF 17 first, then add whatever's left to
WL, even if it makes it 10, 12, 14, or whatever. It's not as important as ST/WL/DF.
SP: Blech. 5 if you can get it (I'm superstitious about 3 SP) otherwise leave
it at whatever you get. High SP aimers won't kill you, but it does take up valuable
points better used elsewhere.
DF: Still no controversy. 17 or 21. Yes, I've seen the aberrant 15 DF aimers,
but that's really only for 21 WT characters, and managers who just *have* to have an
aimed blow (do any of those really exist?). 21 DF aimed blows get real *nice* bonuses
to attack, better than you might expect. So, if you can, go for it, but don't make a
13 WT aimed blow because of it.
Some examples of good aimed blows I would actually run:
#1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6
ST 17 17 21 13 17 17
CN 3 12 3 8 6 3
SZ 8 5 10 7 7 8
WT 17 17 15 17 17 17
WL 13 7 5 15 11 17
SP 9 5 9 7 9 5
DF 17 21 21 17 17 17
#1 is an actual character. Currently 6-2-1 (both losses to characters with 15+
more fights). Bases aren't great (so far, attack 60%) but looks great and should have
good long-term potential.
#2 is another actual character. Started out Expert attack (something about that
21 DF) and great damage (how did that happen?). Currently 1-1-0.
#3 is yet another actual character. Started out Advanced Expert attack and great
damage. Died at something like 4-3-1 to a lunger who DA'd the next turn. (I hate you,
Lords of Malbolge!)
#4 and #5 are both examples of good but not great characters who would make
excellent aimers.
#6 is what I would make if I got an immortal design-your-own. The "perfect"
character. Probably would die on first fight if I ever actually made that character.
[grin]
Strategy:
Armor: The main advantage my aimed blows have over others is their ability to
wear armor, so use it! ASM/H is pretty much standard operating procedure, but I dip
into ARM/S for TP's and go as high as APM/F vs. lungers (if I know they're going to
challenge me).
Weapon Selection: Nothing special here. My aimers can use any weapon, from fist
to longsword to epee. The main point most people bring up about my aimers is that all
that ST is wasted, since it doesn't add weapons to their repertoire. This is a valid
point, but I believe the extra armor, damage, etc. makes the points well spent.
Offensive Effort: Moderate (5-6) to Very High (9-10). You really have to
experiment to see what your aimer likes. I've included a beginning strategy for
aimers; adjust it to see what your aimer likes.
Activity Level: Low (3-4) to High (7-8) usually, Very High for minute 1 if
you're in an arena with a plethora of offensive-types. Once again, see what your
aimer likes.
Kill Desire: Depends on you. I don't believe in that "7 maximizes Decise"
voodoo that someone came up with (how do you measure that?) but I like mine in a
middlin' range: 4-7. Generally, I run at 6.
Challenges: Good challenges are any parry style, but particularly parry-strikes
and total parries; other aimed blows, obviously, and Wall of Steels.
Avoids: Avoid lungers like the plague. If you know they're coming (on a
bloodfeud, for instance) then wear APM/F and carry an off-hand shield. Your only real
chance is to withstand their offensive barrage and hit 'em when they're tired. Once
you're skilled, it's a slightly different story, but generally their attack rating is
going to be better than your parry and defense rating. Strikers and slashers are also
good styles to avoid. Aimers tend to do well against bashers, but I still wouldn't
challenge one.
Beginning Standard Strategy:
1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th Desp Weapon Selection
Off Eff 10 8 8 6 5 4 2
Act Lev 10 8 6 4 3 2 10 (0,7) SC
Kil Des 6 6 6 6 5 4 4 (8,14) SS
Att Loc RA ---------------------------> (15,+) LO
Pro Loc BD ----------------------> LE
Off Tac L
Def Tac D
I hope this inspires some debate about the style, and maybe even some of you to
try it. Don't be discouraged by early failures or even deaths. This will come
around.
Donald Trump, CEO Trump Gladiatorial Enterprises with wholly owned subsidiaries in:
Lapur (29) -- Perfect Timing
Murska (35) -- Too Much Posse
Vithicar (49) -- Colorful
Andor (57) -- Stragety, Dammit!
The Zen of Putting Your Opponents Six Feet Under
This article is the result of a fellow Duelmasters manager asking me how to
efficiently go about the business of killing. He stated that I was "the resident
expert" on the Duelmasters Round Table (an e-mail chat group) and was therefore the
person to come to for tips. Well, this got me thinking, and the reply that I sent to
him is a subset of this full-fledged article.
As for being an "expert," all I can say is that I hold the record for most kills
in Alastari with any one stable. As of the end of January, Merlin's Lot in Sibikhas
took the title with a record of 598-506-67. The previous holder of the title was the
infamous Death Squad of Zukal, but their overall record is 629-524-66, so my kill
percentage is somewhat better, having the same number of kills in 49 less fights.
So, for all of you who want to strike constant fear in the hearts of your weak
opponents, here's my tips:
1) This is my most important rule, and it is a corollary of Doc LeGrand's famous
"First Rule of Duelmasters", which was "You can't die if you don't lose." My rule is
"You can't kill if you don't win." This is just as obvious as Doc LeGrand's rule, but
many managers go forth and design what they believe to be "killers" with all sorts of
scary damage ratings and the ability to swing two mauls. But the likelihood of these
warriors winning is rather slim, because they're brain-dead, or ponderously slow, or
are just as likely to chop their own leg off at the knee as to hit their opponent.
Sure, they might get lucky in one or two of their first few fights, but is one kill
worth a 2-6-1 record and four skills learned followed by a DA? Only the most twisted
bloodthirsty manager would think so, and that's not me. So, first you have to start
with a warrior that will win at least half of his first 10 fights (or however long you
think this warrior will last, although this number of fights is important, and will be
discussed later in Point #9). That is critical. When all else is equal, the more you
win, the more you'll kill... guaranteed.
2) You have to be offensive. There's no getting around it. You have to run with
at least a 7 kill desire, and, while I can safely say that I got most of my kills
running with a 9 or 10 KD, I also feel that I could have avoided more than a few
losses by toning that down a little. There is a big trade-off here; raising KD means
more kills, but it can also mean less wins. With a 10 KD, when your warrior is on the
ropes, he'll be way too berserk to even care. I now normally run at 6 or 7 KD, and go
no higher than 9, but the rate that I've been getting kills has noticeably decreased.
3) Point #2 does NOT mean that your warrior must be one of the offensive styles!
Defensive warriors can be excellent killers as well, most notably, parry-lungers,
parry-strikers and wastes. Total parries and parry-ripostes just don't seem to have
the knack. Still, though, you can't just change the KD on your normal defensive
strategy and hope to kill. It's just not that easy. You'll have to completely modify
your warrior's strategy to get that killing edge. This means high offensive effort,
but not necessarily high activity. I've had two parry-strikers that were great
killers, but I ran them 7-7-7, which is out of the bounds of their potential favorite
numbers. Parry-lungers are better suited to killing because they can be run
(relatively successfully) just like lungers. There was a recent discussion on the
Duelmasters Roundtable concerning parry-strikers that said that many managers run
rookie PSs 10-10-6. Well, how much different is 10-10-9, apart from the SLIGHT
potential for more losses, as stated in Point #2? Not that much, if you're looking to
get that eagerly sought after "Belly-Up Silhouette" on the mantle of your stable's
guildhouse....
4) Your killer will have to do some damage. This does not NECESSARILY mean that
he will have to do at least good damage (although, for my killers, I prefer at least
great damage). What it DOES mean is that, if your warrior does only normal damage,
he's going to have to hit A LOT to get that kill intent statement! There's nothing
more pleasing than having your tremendous damage basher send one shot to an opponent's
head, get the death intent statement, and one more swing and the undertaker's already
reserving a slab. This just cannot be accomplished with a normal damage warrior, and
is particularly difficult for any warrior that doesn't do at least great damage.
5) Obviously, to maximize your killing potential, you have to aim at vitals. I
prefer the head, although many of my lungers have gotten their kills aiming for the
abdomen. Also, a high deftness will greatly help in this regard, because it does no
good to aim at the head and hit your opponent five times in five different locations.
Sure, you'll get the win, but you'll have a much more difficult time getting the kill,
unless you get lucky and that last swing before the death intent connects with one of
your opponent's vital body parts.
6) Killing means weeding out the worthless and weak. One of my favorite sayings
is "If a warrior dies, he wasn't meant to live." Of course, I use this to justify
going after warriors that I BELIEVE just don't deserve to live, like that 2-6 ripper,
or that 6-7 aimed blow who has gotten some lucky challenges through to defensives, but
is finally going to have his luck catch up with him. Or any warrior belonging to a
member of the Ivory League... You have to be merciless to enjoy killing, and to go
after the warriors that deserve to die. That's the Dark Circle way. Also, when you
have a chance to REALLY get a slam dunk on an opponent (and there is no better example
than having a champion bloodfeud an initiate), then, by all means, crank up that KD
all the way to 10. You KNOW you're going to win, and your chance of killing is
maximized. Go for it.
7) When in doubt, at least challenge warriors you know that you can HIT, not
necessarily BEAT, just HIT HARD! This tip is really only good for warriors that do at
least great damage. The more damage you do, the more likely that one hit will be all
you'll need (especially if you hit where you're aiming, as I stated in Point #5, as
hitting the head HARD could cause the stun that could win you the fight, or hitting
the legs HARD could cause that all-important knockdown). If there's a great lunger
out there, but he's slow and you've sent him desperate with one shot from your faster
striker before the lunger's dodge strategy kicked in and he pounded you, challenge him
again and you'll be more than likely to send him desperate again! Maybe you got a bad
roll last time. Maybe you'll get a really good roll this time....
8) Being on the receiving end of a bloodfeud can be a good way to get those slam-
dunks as well. If you kill a warrior who comes from a relatively new team, or from a
team that has no warriors above yours (or, at least, no warriors that can beat yours),
then you're home free. Crank up the KD and stack up the opposition like cordwood as
they try to revenge their pathetic loser.
9) As we all know, the younger a warrior is, the more likely he is to kill when
he wins or die when he loses. Therefore, the tips on challenging that I have just
stated should practically be ignored for any warrior in the Challenger Adepts or
higher. This does not mean that Champions don't die; far from it! Sibikhas recently
lost its Duelmaster, and arenas like Sunset and Talcama (where bloodlust reigns
supreme) have at least one 10+ fight warrior dying practically every turn. Even
warriors with 20 or more fights can be fairly regularly found on any arena's dead
list. But, it's in the rankings of the Initiates where you will find most of the
dead, and adjusting your strategy on the hopes of killing a Champion is almost always
futile. So, if you want to kill, you should "make hay while the sun shines", as it
were, and try to get in those notches on your hilt within your warrior's first ten
fights.
10) If you're just looking to pad your kill total, then you should challenge the
DA with any of your warriors that graduates to ADM. I would estimate that at least
half of the warriors that do this win the fight, and even if you lose it, all you lose
are the skills that you may have gotten if you had fought a regular opponent. You
also don't have to worry about a bloodfeud if you DO get the kill. I must admit,
though, that I am pretty proud of the fact that my kill total in Sibikhas has NOT been
inflated via this manner. Just think how many kills I would have had if I had sent
all two dozen of my Lord Protectors to the DA on their last fight! Maybe over eighty!
11) As you may well know, there are many managers out there (many of whom call
themselves Andorians) who believe that killing is bad and wrong and all sorts of other
judgmental stuff that has nothing to do with combat. As for me, I couldn't care less
whether you want to kill my warriors (or anybody else's) or not. Just don't tell me
what to do. This is also the Dark Circle way. Unfortunately, many of these Andorians
have banded together in certain arenas, where the idea of "killing without remorse" is
heavily frowned upon. It is in these arenas where, if you kill and enjoy it (and even
<shudder> SAY so...), your entire stable will be hunted down for the true warriors
that they are, rather than for the "we all share a common goal, so let's play nice"
slumber party pillow-fighters that all the other warriors in those arenas are.
Therefore, if you wish to be proficient and successful at killing, I suggest you avoid
these arenas like the plague that they are. Trust me. You will receive more
enjoyment from your kills when the manager of your victim vows revenge in kind, but
does not question your morals.
12) Finally, and above all, when that manager of your victim DOES threaten to
wipe out your entire stable, you have to be prepared to die yourself. Some studies
have shown (to varying degrees) that raising your KD also increases your own
likelihood of death. I'm not convinced of this, but I'm not denying it, either. And,
of course, when you kill, you invite a bloodfeud upon your killer, and the opposing
manager will have all of the bloodfeuding advantages that I have mentioned above.
Accept that death is part of the game, and relish the fresh rookies you receive and
the chances to be bloodfeuded, just as much as you relish the kill.
Well, that's about all I can think of. I hope to see all of the undertakers
throughout Alastari very busy! Best of Luck in your headhunting!
Merlin, Warden of the Dark Circle
WARRIOR DESIGN
In everything except size, odd numbers in your stats are better than even numbers
because of the way the program rounds them up; you get a little more for your
investment with an odd number. Every fourth number is a break-point that puts your
warrior into a different category. The break-points are 5, 9, 13, 17, 21, and 25
(possible only in Advanced Duelmasters). If possible, you want your important stats
to be at these numbers because they are significantly better than the numbers right
below them. For deftness, 11 is also an important break-point.
In general, emphasizing a few strengths in your rollup is better than trying to
eliminate all weaknesses. The most successful warriors have definite, sometimes
drastic, highs and lows. It's not that the lows aren't bad, but the highs more than
make up for them.
The most important places to put your 14 discretionary points are on wit and
will. Without a good wit and will, your character is not likely to be a good one in
the long run. Wit is vital for learning skills, and will is vital for raising your
attributes. They are also good for other things, of course.
Strength affects how much damage you can do, what weapons you can use to good
effect, and is of primary importance in how much weight you can carry. It will
strongly affect your endurance.
Constitution is a primary factor in determining your hit points, and also affects
your endurance a little bit. The program will never actually tell you your hit
points. It's nice to have at least normal endurance; otherwise, your character will
probably die young. Flashy, maybe, if all the points that aren't on con are on wit
and deftness; but right about the time you fall in love with them, somebody hits them
and that's all she wrote. However, if you waste too many points on con, your warrior
will suffer in other areas, and will be very dull and mediocre. If your character is
fast and smart, he should quickly learn how to defend himself and not get killed.
Usually.
Size gives you more hit points, enables you to do more damage when you hit, and
possibly gives you an advantage in reach. However, it also slows you way down, and
soaks up points that would do more good elsewhere. The strategy gods around here seem
to think a large size is not worthwhile, and most large rollups go straight to the
Dark Arena. 9-10 are nice sizes. Smaller warriors than that tend to be frail, but
they often more than make up for it in other areas.
Wit is important. Did I mention how important wit is? Wit is very important.
17 is a nice wit. 21 is even nicer. Sometimes, if you can choose between a 17 or a
21, you might settle for a 17 because you really, really need the points someplace
else or the warrior won't survive. However, wit is very important. In addition to
helping you learn skills, it makes you fast, even if you don't have a good speed or
deftness. It can enable you to do more damage (because you know exactly where to
hit). Different weapons have different wit requirements. For the epee, you need a
15. Overall, it's just really, really important.
Will is pretty important, too. Not quite as important as wit, but close. It is
the primary factor in your endurance, which is important for most styles. It
contributes to your hit points and to the damage that you do. I believe it affects
how many skills your warrior is born with, which is important. And, of course, it is
extremely important for raising stats. The more will you have, the higher your chance
of raising a stat. By the way, even with a high will, don't count on more than two
stat raises in basic Duelmasters. After two raises, the probabilities get very low.
Again, I don't know the formula. But I have been told, and tend to believe, that your
character will benefit much more by going for all skills from the word go, than by
trying to raise all his stats by two (much less, any higher than that). Sometimes you
need to raise some stats right at the start (like, if your character does below-
average damage when he hits, you'd better raise your strength fast). But for the most
part, it's better to design a character who can function as is, and learn all the
skills he can possibly learn, before you worry about stat raises at all. That's what
the strategy gods say, and it's probably true. I sometimes tinker with my warriors'
stats, anyway. Maybe that's why I don't have a better record.
Speed. You'll want at least 5. Some say slashers need more, like 9 or 13, but
that's not for sure. For the most part, anything speed can do, deftness can do
better. If the total of your speed and deftness add up to less than 17, you'll be
clumsy. 17-20 is slightly uncoordinated. 21 to 30 or 31 is normal; above that is
wonderful stuff, and you almost always get the jump on the other guy. It's rare,
though, because the points are better spent on wit and will.
Deftness is probably the third most important attribute. Did I mention that the
first and second are wit and will? When I design a character, I think about it a long
time, and as often as not, end up adding six points to wit, six to will, and two to
deftness. Or something close to that, depending on break points. All weapons have
deftness minimums (15 for the epee). None of them have speed minimums. A good
deftness can also affect how many skills you are born with. A character who starts
out with a wit, will, and deftness of 17 will probably be born with an expert rating
or two. This is highly desirable.
Choosing a style that fits your rollup is very important. One of my first five
warriors ever, Ghed in DM-1, would have been pretty good if only I'd made him a basher
or wall of steel instead of a slasher.
Aimed blows: Very few people can make them succeed. In general, they lose a
lot. If you want an easy win, challenge an aimed blow. For starters, don't inflict
this style on any of your own warriors. Supposedly they're effective against parry-
types, especially total parries.
Bashers: I haven't had very good luck with them myself. I've been told they
need a high wit in order to be decisive. The decisiveness tactic makes up for their
general lack of quickness, and lets them get an attack in once in a while. Since they
are slow and don't usually parry well, they need to be fairly durable as well. And
they need strength, both to increase the damage they do, and to let them carry the
heavy weapons and armor they need. Supposedly they're good against parry types.
Parry-types: They need to be able to take some damage (because, especially at
first, they won't parry everything). They need endurance. They need wit and
deftness. They don't need much speed or strength. They do best against lungers,
slashers, and strikers. You can run parry-lungers, parry-strikers, and wall-of-steels
(which can be thought of as parry-slashers or parry-bashers) either all-out like the
fast warriors, or at a medium to low rate, in which case they will try to parry and
wear out a fast opponent.
Strikers: They need wit to be decisive (supposedly there's nothing faster than a
decisive striker). They need some strength (say, 11-13). They need an adequate
dexterity (9-11). They don't get defensive skills very fast, so they need some
durability (con & will; will is better). Good against bashers & aimed blows, not too
bad against parry-types (they don't jump around a lot so they don't wear out as fast
as slashers & lungers), okay against other types. A nice all-around style, except for
not developing good defenses.
Slashers: Not my forte (ask Tex, who loves slashers). I hear they need
reasonable amounts of speed and strength (say, 13s), but I don't know if Tex would
agree. High wit for still more speed; high will for more damage; adequate deftness (I
believe 11 will get you a scimitar, which is a wonderful all-round weapon, especially
for a slasher). Like lungers, they tend to win in about a minute in a half or else
they lose, at least until they get very experienced. Great against slow types
(bashers & aimed blows).
Lungers: The sprinters of the arena. A strength of 9 will get you the short
spear, which is a great lunging weapon. High wit, will, and deftness. Con isn't too
important; with a high will you can raise it a couple of points, and anyway, lungers
do learn to parry and dodge. At least mine do. The experts say that in the very long
run (2-3 years, when they're in AD), they aren't quite as good as the parry-types. In
regular DM, though, they do better because the parriers are such late bloomers. If
they're frail, put them in leather armor so they can soak up a hit or two, but
anything heavier than that will slow them down too much. I run my lungers 10-10-6 in
the first minute, maybe 9-8-6 in the second. I write down numbers for the other
minutes, too, but it doesn't usually matter. If they don't win by the second minute,
they generally won't win. With luck, they'll collapse from exhaustion before the
other guy gets a chance to hurt them. They're great against bashers and aimed blows,
okay against parry-types who don't scum too much.
Wall of steels: I don't understand this style very well, but I love it.
Supposedly they're a cross between the fast guys and the parry-types. I usually run
them all-out, slasher-style, and it seems to work. Recently I found out you can slow
them down and they'll parry, too. Wastes (as they're often called) do well with a 21
will, decent strength (11 or 13), decent wit (13), and decent con (9). They don't
seem to need much speed or deftness. I don't know which styles in particular they're
good against; they seem to handle everything okay. Great against aimed blows, of
course.
Each fighting style has some weapons that are well-suited to it, some that are
marginal, and some that are totally unsuited. Be sure to design warriors who have the
stats to handle at least one weapon appropriate to their style. Note, however, that
their favorite weapon, while suited to their style, may be something they don't have
the stats for. For example, a parry-riposte with a 14 wit might favor the epee. I'm
not sure how the bonus for using your favorite stacks up against the penalty for using
a weapon beyond your abilities. It's best to design warriors who have a good
selection of weapons that they're both suited to, and able to handle well.
Best Wishes,
The Rogue She-Puppy of the Galaxy
FILLING OUT YOUR TURNSHEET
Here are a few pointers on filling out a Duelmasters turnsheet.
1. Choosing your weapons:
The reason there are three lines for this (vs. light, vs. medium, and vs. heavy),
is that some weapons are better against an opponent who is not wearing much armor, and
some are better against an opponent who walks into the arena armored like a tank.
Look on the inside back cover of your Red Book. There is a chart that gives the
weight of armor and helmets. Add together the weight of the armor and the helmet, and
that is the weight of armor that your opponent is wearing. For example, plate armor
and a full helm add up to 18, which is the highest possible armor weight. Leather
armor and a steel cap add up to four. Ringmail and a helm add up to nine. And so on.
If you want your warrior to use two daggers against opponents wearing armor of weight
eight or less, then on the first line you would write an 8 inside the parentheses,
like this:
vs. Light ( 0, 8 ) ____dagger____ and ___dagger_____
Then, if you want him to use, oh, a short sword and small shield against medium
armors, you might write:
vs. Medium ( 9, 14 ) __shortsword__ and _small shield_
And for anything heavier, you might choose a still heavier weapon:
vs. Heavy (15, + ) _broadsword___ and ______________
You might not want to use an off-hand weapon or shield with your heavy weapon, because
your warrior needs both hands on his broadsword for maximum force to chop through that
platemail!
You don't have to make three different armor divisions. You can use the same
weapon against everything, or you can make two divisions instead of three.
In case your warrior drops his weapon, or it gets broken, you might also want him
to carry a backup on his belt. A shortsword is a fine backup weapon, because it only
weighs 2 (won't slow your warrior down), and it almost never breaks. Weapons from the
two-handed weapons list can't be carried as backups, because they are too big and
awkward.
You should bear in mind that your warriors will be well-suited to some weapons
and poorly-suited to others, depending on their style and their attributes. Most
warriors are too small or too weak to use a maul, for example. A basher wouldn't want
to use an epee because it isn't suited to his style, even if he happens to have the
attributes for it. By reading your turn results, you will be able to tell which
weapons your warriors use best.
Be sure to use weapons from the lists on the inside back cover of the red rule
book. These are the only weapons our computer knows. These weapons are described in
the rules supplement.
2. Bear in mind that the heavier the armor you put on a warrior, the more it will
slow him down. If he is lumbering around in plate armor and a full helm, other
warriors will get the jump on him most of the time. This is okay for certain styles,
like bashers and total parries, but you wouldn't want to put most other styles in
armor that heavy. Warriors like lungers, slashers, and strikers, who depend on speed,
very often go out on the sands wearing no armor at all.
3. On the line for training, you need to write either one of your warrior's
attributes, or "skills." If you write an attribute, say, "CN" (constitution), that
means the warrior spent the last two weeks trying to raise his constitution. Maybe it
will go up by one point, or maybe it won't. The first two raises on any given
attribute are usually fairly easy. After that, you might have to try for many turns
before the warrior raises that attribute another point.
If you write "SK" (skills), then he spends that time practicing and trying to be
a better fighter. His arena fights are highly educational. If he has a good wit, he
will learn plenty of skills. If he fights someone with more experience than he has,
he will learn more. If the fight lasts three or four minutes, that is ideal for
learning. He can't usually learn much during a fight that only lasts 30 seconds!
Sometimes he'll have bad luck and not learn any skills, but normally a bright warrior
will learn at least one or two. The skills keep adding up, and eventually he gets
very, very good at what he does. In the long run, it is usually more efficient to
train skills instead of attributes. By the way--there are six types of skills, but
you really can't choose which ones you want your warrior to study. He just learns
whatever he happens to learn.
4. The "wish to fight" lines are for challenges. Your warrior can't challenge
anyone on his first turn. After that, he can challenge other warriors who are in his
class or the next higher class. For example, an Initiate can challenge another
Initiate, or a Challenger Initiate. You print the name of the warrior you want to
challenge on the first part of the line, and then put his ID number after the "#"
symbol. You can challenge two different warriors if you want. If someone has killed
one of your warriors, then the other members of your team can bloodfeud the killer.
To bloodfeud, you just circle your challenge--and, to make it extra clear, you can
write "BF" beside it.
5. The boxes for "challenge strategy" or "if challenged strategy" can give your
warrior a little more flexibility. You put his normal everyday strategy on the front.
You challenge somebody, let's say a warrior you happen to know is a total parry.
Check the "challenge strategy" box and then fill out the back side of the sheet, using
a slower strategy that is more suitable for fighting a total parry, and maybe heavier
weapons to get through his heavy armor. Then, if your challenge goes through, and
your warrior gets to fight the total parry, he'll use his special strategy.
Otherwise, he'll use his normal one.
Or, let's say one of your warriors has killed someone, and you think the dead
guy's team is going to bloodfeud your warrior. If you want to use a special strategy
against those guys, maybe one with a higher kill desire, then you check the "if
challenged strategy" box and write your special strategy on the back.
6. The "wish to avoid" section lets you avoid two teams. You can only avoid
teams, not individual warriors. Write the name of the team you want to avoid. On the
same line, also write that team's ID number. Look on the front page of your
current newsletter. Find that team in the rankings. The number in parentheses after
the team name is that team's ID number. That's what you need.
I normally have a warrior avoid the last two teams he has fought. This is mainly
so my warriors will mix around the arena and not accidentally keep fighting the same
teams over and over again. If one of my warriors has killed someone, he won't avoid
that team, because I don't run away from bloodfeuds. Incidentally, avoiding a team
does not give you 100% protection against them. It helps, but once in a while their
challenges will get through your avoids.
7. You need to write numbers in the minute-by-minute strategy section. For
example, on the "offensive effort" line, I might fill in the boxes like this: 10, 9,
6, 6, 6, 5, 10. This means that in the first minute, my warrior will try to make a
lot of attacks against the other warrior. If the fight lasts longer than one minute,
he'll start to slow down and try to conserve his endurance. If he gets desperate (in
serious trouble due to wounds or exhaustion), he'll start attacking all-out in an
effort to end the fight quickly. This is a strategy for an offensive warrior, by the
way; you wouldn't want to run most parry-types this way.
"Activity level" means how much your warrior moves around while he is fighting.
Combined with a high offensive effort, a high activity level is good for an all-out
fighter, like a lunger. Combined with a low offensive effort, a high activity effort
will make your warrior dodge and riposte a lot. A high activity effort will tire out
your warrior quickly.
"Kill desire" is how much your warrior wants to kill his opponent. A 10 kill
desire means he's trying to murder the guy. A 1 kill desire means he's trying very
hard not to kill him. My offensive types usually fight with a 6 kill desire, and my
parry-types fight with a 2 or 3.
"Attack location" is what part of his opponent's body your warrior is trying to
hit during that minute. "Protect location" is what part of his own body your warrior
is trying hardest to protect. Look at the bottom of the inside back cover of the red
book to find the abbreviations you need to use, like "LL" for "left leg" and "HE" for
head. It's a good idea to keep attacking the same spot. My warriors often attack the
legs, because that's a good way to win a fight without killing the other guy. For a
kill, you could attack the head. My warriors normally defend their heads, because I
don't want them to get killed.
8. Offensive and defensive tactics: You can get by without using these at all.
Do not use both an offensive and defensive tactic in the same minute; it will totally
confuse your warrior and almost certainly cause him to lose. For a description of the
tactics and what they do, look in the rules supplement (let us know if you don't have
one and we'll send you one).
A couple of tips: "decisiveness" will help your warrior get the jump on his
opponent. For offensive styles, it is a good tactic to use in the first minute and in
desperation. A total parry usually does best using the "parry" defensive tactic in
all minutes, and a parry-riposte usually does best with the "riposte" tactic in all
minutes. The "responsiveness" tactic ("S" on the "defensive tactic" line) doesn't
seem to be good for much. The offensive tactics of "slash," "lunge," and "bash" will
add force to the blows of slashers, lungers, and bashers. I often give my bashers the
"bash" tactic when they are fighting parry-types, and are trying to smash through
parries and through heavy armor.
-- the She-Puppy
Are You Ready To Take Tournament Play Seriously?
By: Pagan
The following advice is a great general way to excel in tournament play. It is
intended more for a Face-to-Face Tournament, however much of the same advice also goes
for a Mail-In Tournament....
FE = Fight equivalency. This is the term used by managers to denote how many
fights RSI has registered for a warrior. One arena fight equals One FE. Simple.
Tournament fights are the reason FE has become the thing to follow. Tournaments give
to one FE for every odd round. So one FE on round one, two FE on round three, three
FE on round five... and so on. If a warrior fights for eight rounds he will have
accumulated four FE. If that same warrior also has six arena fights, then he would
now have a total of ten FE. Learn this, and understand it.
1. Stop fighting warriors from your active teams at breakpoints and wait for the
Freeze date, then start running them, and enter them in the tourney. A good roll-up
will give you a chance for a TV, and average roll-up will give you skill learns. If
they die, then so be it. Try and get the maximum number of fights per area, and wait
for the cut-off date to be announced so you can go into a tournament with 2+ fights
over the breakpoints. (Example: Your warrior has four fights so he's an Apprentice,
and you then start to run him in the arena after the Freeze date is past. Your
warrior will still fight in the Apprentices but with extra fights, and hopefully extra
skills.)
Breakpoints:
Rookies = zero FE
Novices = zero FE as of Freeze date
Apprentices = 1 to 4 FE as of the Freeze date
Initiates = 5 to 10 FE as of the Freeze date
Adepts = 11 to 20 FE as of the Freeze date
Champions = 21+ FE as of the Freeze date
2. Check out all of your other warriors in inactive arenas that you think are
good roll-ups. If there are at least two on the same team then run that team for a
breakpoint in FE, wait for the Freeze date, then run them until the tourney. Don't
bother with roll-ups that do not have at least a 17 wit, or are not awesome for some
odd reason. (Example: A good endurance striker with tremendous damage and decent
attack skills in Initiates or lower...stuff like that....)
3. Team Roll-ups: Look for only good and excellent roll-ups. Look also for
Scum. You want to end up with a certain number of good warriors. Run only the good
warriors, and let the other ferment in RSI database hell because you need not waste
your time with them ever again. Don't DA them, ignore them, just buy more roll-ups.
Five bucks for five warriors is a much better deal than spending money DAing warriors
that are only for tournaments.
3a. Normal: Buy them in groups of 5. That's $25.
3b. Determined: Buy about 20 team roll-ups. That's $100.
4. This is a SYSTEM here so everyone pay attention:
4a. Send in Roll-ups early and load up a tournament arena or whatever, so you
can get the overviews back REALLY REALLY early.
4b. Scum go for Rookie tourney. Run only really good Scum set-ups. You all
know how to check those physicals for Luck. If not, then you need to learn.
4c. Aimed Blows for Rookie Tourney. Again, check those Luck areas. If they
aren't lucky, or a really nice set-up, run something else.
4d. Prepare to run all of the nice roll-ups you have that are lucky in the
Rookie tourney. Don't design them for a Rookie tourney, design them for the later
tourneys. After the tourney you can then calculate FE for warriors and they become
the warriors from #2 above. By doing this, you always keep a fresh group of good
warriors in the fights. Watch these guys in detail. Change weapons looking for a
favorite. They are not going to win the Rookie tourney (most likely). Just find that
weapon and you increase your opportunities in the next tourneys. Really nice to do at
the FTF since you can change strategies in every fight....
4e. RUN ALL OF YOUR WARRIORS OTHER THAN THE ROOKIES FIRST. Then pick out your
absolutely BEST rookies and get their strategies in. Early on you have to take the
time to WORK, so that later you can have the fun of getting late into the rounds on
Sunday.
4f. After the FTF you should have a good idea about where some of your warriors
are at in FE (some of the best ones end up 1-3-0 and then you fight twice in basic
arena and they run hard in the novices or whatever--just find that damn favorite
weapon!). Be prepared to not look deeply into a fight. Scan for criticals from
weapon attacks (you may have just found your favorite weapon!) and personal strategy
of your guy. Only care about your opponent if you end up matching up against him a
second time.
4g. KEEP PERSONAL RECORDS.
4g1. You should be able to list a warriors STATS, END, ENC, HP, & DMG on one
line and immediately following that line you should have ten boxes. You need to keep
track of every fight IMMEDIATELY, not later. Prepare that same warrior's fight
IMMEDIATELY, not later. Mark in the box if he wins or loses. Make it simple. You
should be able to scan one sheet of paper and know exactly how all of your warriors
are performing in wins and losses. THIS ALLOWS YOU TO FOCUS more attention on those
guys with one or less losses. Remove any confusion of what to do with fight sheets
(remember that you will have a lot of them). Just put all fight sheets in one big
pile, first on bottom, last one on top. (In case you need to get to them; like you
are meeting a warrior you fought before you know exactly where it is--it's in the
pile... not anywhere else.)
4g2. After all fights are done on Saturday, sit in the same room and prepare
your warriors for the Sunday morning. All turn sheets need to be in really early
Sunday, so prepare them while everything is in your head NOT AFTER DINNER.
4g3. At night in your room after you've visited with the managers, scan the
warriors you are most interested in and ESPECIALLY the ones with only one or less
losses. Bleed over those fights looking for that favorite weapon, better strategy vs.
certain styles... et cetera. Change the strategy sheet only if you REALLY think it's
better than the one you just made for that Sunday morning. If you aren't absolutely
sure, then don't change anything. Go with your first instinct and wait until after
the first fight on Sunday.
4g4. NEVER NEVER NEVER talk about how good your warriors are that are winning.
NEVER NEVER NEVER divulge strategy. NEVER NEVER NEVER offer to allow someone to look
at the warriors you have that are doing well. NEVER NEVER NEVER... this means even
your BEST FRIENDS. Some managers parlay in-between their groups but what do you do
when you match up against the guy who now knows A LOT about your best warrior? NO ONE
should have any idea of what you do to run a warrior. It is best if no one even knows
who the hell runs a certain warrior until there are only five left and that fifth one
is yours. Blindside everyone with your warrior. Never talk about him until you have
won the TC. AND ALWAYS MAKE A MENTAL NOTE of the bastard that just won that
tournament and the runner-up since you will probably be facing those same two warriors
down the line in another tourney.
4h. Remember to work on your warriors. The closer it gets to Sunday the more
free time you have, since you'll have a continually shrinking stream of guys to do
anything with. Elimination sucks but it is inevitable.
4i. FTF--Don't ever try to manage more than 30 warriors (and even that's
tough!). If you run more than that then I'd say 25-30 guys are managed by you in
every round, the others fend for themselves until they end up without a loss (gaining
your attention on your warrior win/loss sheet) or Sunday comes around. Best thing to
do about more than 30 warriors is to have them in the Rookie Tourney. Whatever makes
it to Sunday you start to change strategies for. Saturday is their time to shine by
themselves. This is possible since there are SO MANY WARRIORS in the Rookies tourney
that it's almost impossible to know what style you are fighting until round 5+. This
makes it easy for warriors to hide. Another thing you'd like to do is to spread your
warriors into various classifications. You're only hurting yourself if all 30
warriors are in the same class. A contingent of 15 Rookies, 10 Novices, 5
Apprentices, 5 Initiates, a few Adepts... you get the picture. If you run bad
warriors, you will be sitting around Sunday watching everyone else play. 30 good
warriors should keep you in the action.
4j. Style lists. At your table everyone put a style list out (hotel stapler can
be used). NAME NUMBER STYLE, that's it. If your group wants more, then make sure
that everyone is willing to do it. For example: 'Name', 'Number', 'Style',
'Handedness', 'Manager Who put the Name In', 'Round' (this way you can ask about a
warrior directly from the guy at your table who fought him). Don't waste your time
with anything else. Some managers share their styles. I am of the mind of not doing
it, but that also means that you won't get help from other managers' tables when you
start going around other to tables to ask if you can see their lists... so pick your
poison. Maybe just don't do it for your favorite warriors, and anything in the
rookies... whatever.... However, DO NOT LIE. If you decide to swap styles with
another manager you need to be truthful. Lying will get you outcast VERY QUICKLY.
Don't become the persona non grata.
4k. Sunday's late fights will eat you up sometimes. You know the guy's style...
he may be reading a fight you had with some other guy and he's trying to judge your
strategy... should I run decise... he may run decise... should I run response and
blast him out.... how about no tactic... he doesn't do any damage, I should armor
up... faster weapon... damn damn damn.... decisions, decisions. These are why the
managers whom win TCs like to play tournaments. Outguessing your opponent is quite a
bit of satisfaction, especially the old-time managers. It's a little bit infectious.
You won't even see Guardian come alive until it the last rounds, and there are many
like him. Go with your gut feeling and make the choice yourself. DO NOT TAKE THE
CHOICES FROM OTHERS. (There have been managers getting one guy to alter his
strategies, only after to tell the guy's opponent (who won, by the way) that he got
the guy to go decisive since he knew that HE (the opponent and winner) was running
responsive....) TRUST NO ONE... refer to #G4 if anything is unclear.
4l. After Sunday is over, (and you most probably won't have a TC) you can talk
DM with everyone else in the bar or at a restraunt, but this time stay around
Soultaker, Consortium and the DOOMcorps (if the Doom Group is still coherent from all
the booze) since they are the most fun (at least when I've gone). Talk about your
warriors then but not longer than five minutes on your WHOLE GROUP; everyone (just
like you) will be having DM hangovers... now is time for fun and Grudge-Matches. RSI
will sometimes allow managers to run one warrior as an extra fight versus any other
warrior (in the same tournament class) of a manager there at the FTF. Makes for some
fun.
4l1. Grudge-Matches. VERY IMPORTANT: Do not fight a in a grudge match that
will count as one FE if that FE is going to put him over the threshold of the next
tourney. Don't hurt yourself, just fight a different guy.
4m. Spend the time until the wee hours of the morning with any drunks that are
left. Have fun, and if you are staying Monday night too, then see who else is also
staying and join the group. As long as you are not a weirdo during the tourney, don't
smell bad (shower EVERY DAY--maybe even twice a day to avoid this, if necessary), and
aren't annoyingly talking about your warriors/teams then most DMers will be happy to
let you come along with them. If you want to get to know people early then come in on
Thursday. Suck up your pride and say hello to people. The front desk can help you
with who's in the RSI group. Some people are friendly, and others are busy with their
families and don't have time to chat, but for the most part you'll meet some cool guys
in the lounge/bar. Don't be offensive, not everyone will agree with your ideas. They
may be really wrong but just agree to disagree and buy the guy a beer or something.
Again, you may be the one who's wrong.... The whole idea is to hear LOTS of VIEWS on
the game, make friends, and try to win the fights.
Most important: Never take a loss personally. If you lose, then so what. So
did every other guy who didn't get a TC (and that's a lot of guys). Just remember
that by following good tournament preparedness, you will one day be the Tournament
Champion, and the guy you just beat will sincerely congratulate you on your hard
fought victory.
Brought to you by Pagan
NEW TEAMS IN THE TEMPORARY TOURNAMENT ARENA (DM 85)
Please note that all new teams created at the Face-to-Face were temporarily placed in
a temporary Tournament Arena, DM 85. If you requested that your team be placed in a
specific arena, it has already transferred to that arena. Any teams not transferred
out of DM 85 by October 1 will be deleted. If you have questions about any of your
teams, please contact Customer Service. -- RSI
WINTER FACE-TO-FACE IN SUNNY ARIZONA!
Our next winter FTF will be held in Tempe, Arizona, January 14-16, 2011. It will be
held at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Tempe, Arizona (480-894-7444), the same hotel as
last year by popular request. Room rates are $129.00 per night, 1-2 occupancy, which
includes full cooked breakfast, complimentary manager's reception (yes, really!), free
airport shuttle, free parking and free high speed internet. There's a fitness center,
jacuzzi, and pool. The rooms are blocked--please make your reservation by December 22
before the block is released! (This is prime season for Phoenix, and people have been
unable to book rooms because they waited too long.) Look for the tournament info
sheet and minioverviews some time in December. We hope you're all looking forward to
it and that we will see you there!