DUEL 2 NEWSLETTER Date : 03/24/2012 Duedate: 04/06/2012 NOBLISH ISLAND ARENA DM-93 TURN-347 This Weeks Top Honors THE DUELMASTER IS BUSY BASH BROS TELEPHONE (1588) (93-9223) [5-1-0,78] Chartered Recognition Leader Unchartered Recognition Leader POSITION IS EMPTY BUSY BASH BROS TELEPHONE (1588) (93-9223) [5-1-0,78] Popularity Leader This Weeks Favorite CONTRACT BRIDGE CHELSEA NOREN FAVORITE GAMES (1587) LOW ROAD 3 (1589) (93-9218) [4-2-0,25] (93-9228) [3-2-0,18] THE CURRENT TOP TEAM FAVORITE GAMES (1587) TEAMS ON THE MOVE TOP CAREER HONORS Team Name Point Gain Chartered Team 1. CRIT-GIVERS (1593) 69 2. THE FARSEERS (1591) 26 DRAGON'S FIRE (711) 3. BASH BROS TELEPHONE (1588) 23 Unchartered Team 4. FAVORITE GAMES (1587) 14 5. LOW ROAD 3 (1589) 8 CRIT-GIVERS (1593) The Top Teams Career Win-Loss Record W L K % Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns W L K 1/ 0*CRIT-GIVERS (1593) 5 0 0 100 1/ 1*FAVORITE GAMES (1587) 13 2 0 2/ 1*FAVORITE GAMES (1587) 21 9 0 70.0 2/ 2*BASH BROS TELEPHO (1588) 11 4 0 3/ 2*BASH BROS TELEPHO (1588) 18 12 0 60.0 3/ 4*THE FARSEERS (1591) 8 7 1 4/ 3*LOW ROAD 3 (1589) 14 11 1 56.0 4/ 3*LOW ROAD 3 (1589) 7 8 1 5/ 5*THE FARSEERS (1591) 8 7 1 53.3 5/ 0*CRIT-GIVERS (1593) 5 0 0 6/ 4*OLIVA GALVARIUS (1586) 11 11 1 50.0 6/ 5*OLIVA GALVARIUS (1586) 3 4 1 7/ 6*BRIDGE BURNERS (1592) 1 9 0 10.0 7/ 6*BRIDGE BURNERS (1592) 1 9 0 8- 7*HEAVEN'S DEVILS (1590) 0 5 0 0.0 8- 7*HEAVEN'S DEVILS (1590) 0 5 0 9- 8*SERPENT'S (285) 0 1 0 0.0 9- 8*SERPENT'S (285) 0 1 0 '*' Unchartered team '-' Team did not fight this turn (###) Avoid teams by their Team Id ##/## This turn's/Last turn's rank TEAM SPOTLIGHT INTERESTING TIDBITS or USEFUL KNOWLEDGE ABOUT D-2 or MISCELLANEOUS USEFUL & USELESS RAMBLINGS or GAMEMASTER OPENS HIS MOUTH AGAIN I get to talk or lecture or advise some more. I am so lucky. Just who am I, you ask? Sometimes I'm not sure, but today I remember. I am Gamemaster, manager of Favorite Games here in Noblish Island. Maybe more importantly, I am but one of the 40+ Consortium managers who have collectively fought nearly 100,000 fights and graduated almost 1000 warriors to ADM. I am an experienced, 25+ year, D2er. Yes, I am here to compete with you, but that is secondary to my primary purpose-- to help you learn and enjoy this wonderful game of ours. May your stay in our world be long, fun, and successful. Today, I thought I would list for you a random 25 "Did you know thats?" . Feel free to ask questions in subsequent personal ads. I can be really good about answering them. Twenty-five random "what you always wanted to know about D-2" statements: * Here are the top (not in order) early goals for a new manager-- win more than 50% of the first 20 fights; achieve a Duelmaster; earn a Lord Protector, have a lot of fun. * The purely offensive styles are the easiest to learn to run well, (BA, SL, ST) while the defensive/finesse styles are most difficult. (AB,PL, PR, PS, WS) * Stats and physicals are very important, but this is a game of learning skills. * Gender, race, and role-playing do not in any way affect the strategy and fight mechanics. But they certainly add to the enjoyment of the experience. * Attending a Face-To-Face tournament is probably the highlight of a D2 career. * Yes, indeed, a DM arena warrior can occasionally defeat a DA Monster. * Recognition points (recog), political points (PP), and fight equivalent (FE) are all terms to learn and understand. * If a warrior plays long enough, and trains every possible stat, it can look like this: 25-25-x-25-25-25-25. (Only 21-21-x-21-21-21-21 pre-ADM.) * In ADM, a warrior is immortal. In DM, it is possible, but very, very improbable that a warrior can be immortal. * There was a time when a paying manager was known to run 40 teams at once. * The next Face-To-Face tournament is in Philadelphia, PA this summer. The last one was in Tempe, AZ. * The war flail is known as a "whiffle" for its weak damage-doing. It is reported that a whiffle once bounced off a naked (unarmored) opponent. * Manager (role-playing name of a very good manager) won the first TOGS. (Tournament Of The Golden Scrod) * There are only two arenas where a manager is mandated to run all five warriors in his stable each turn. (DM81, DM83) * In general, the aimed blow is considered to be the best top-end style today. Once upon a time, it was the lunger. In prehistoric days, the parry-lunger was thought to be the perfect style. * Nicknames to know: parry-lunge = plunger, advanced expert = adex, war flail = whiffle, parry-strike = piker, sponge total parry = scum, parry-riposte = ripper. * Yes, you can double challenge a warrior, and it approximately doubles the chance of getting the fight. Simply list the to-be-challenged warrior's ID twice in both challenge slots. * Two sites have significant value and information about the game; Terrablood.com and reality.com/dm * There are three mentors in Noblish Island, Jorja, Assur, and The Consortium. Use their expertise. * Some managers seldom use tactics. (e.g. Assur) Some use tactics often. (e.g. The Consortium) * A most common offensive strategy opening is 10-10-X. (OE/AL/KD) * An expert has 16 total skills of the same type. Skills are acquired: at design, by learning skills in a fight, and by learning certain stats which also provide some skills. An advanced expert has 20 total skills. * Many consider the scimitar (SC) the best overall weapon in the game. The top five most commonly used weapons by The Consortium are SS, BS, QS, ME, DA. Their favorite of the weapons is the BA. * The most popular Consortium armor, in order, is: naked, APA, ASM. * One of the best events (An event is a special competition in an arena) are the Turf Wars, a year long team competition, in DM47. That event, TW VIII, begins in late July 2012. It is open to all levels of managers. Have fun. Enjoy the competition. Learn, learn, learn. Ask questions. Experiment. The day will come when you, too, are an experienced D2 manager. Good luck. Gamemaster >)]H[(< + -----:----- + >)] *IHI* [(< + -----:----- + >)]H[(< Assur's Guide to Pure Defensives 1) Design In creating a pure defensive, the things that you should be concerned about are: Hit Points, Carry Ability, Endurance, and your skills in parry and/or defense. Again, other attributes and skills can't hurt, but those are the vital attributes for how you'll be fighting. Hit Points come from Constitution (mostly), Size, and Will Carry Ability comes from Strength and Constitution, though if your Strength is lower than your Constitution, the carry ability only comes from your Strength. Endurance comes from Strength, Constitution, and Will (especially Will) You get Parry Skills at Str: 5, 7, 15, 17, 21, 21 Siz: (5), (7), (15), (17), (21), (21) Wil: 5, 7, 15, 17, 21, 21 Dft: 5, 7, 9, 11, 11, 13, 15, 17, 21, 21 You get Defense Skills at Siz: (5), (7), (15), (17), (21), (21) Wit: 5, 7, 9, 11, 11, 13, 15, 17, 21, 21 Wil: 5, 7, 15, 17, 21, 21 Spd: 5, 7, 15, 17, 21, 21 Dft: 5, 7, 9, 11, 11, 13, 15, 17, 21, 21 Note that for parry and defense skills in size, you get penalized for having higher sizes. For parry based styles, it is highly recommended to have 11+ strength and as much will as you can get. Eleven deftness is also very nice. You can't have too much constitution. It is recommended to not be too big, because you don't typically have enough points for the stats you really want. Wit is nice, but not necessary. Almost always, 1 point of con is better than 1 parry skill. For dodge based styles, it is much tougher. ABs are usually made with 21 deftness because they get attack skill bonuses, but for a pure defensive dodging AB, the deftness isn't as vital. If you're going open handed, strength can be sacrificed. I do not know as much about pure defensive AB's, especially in basic. I have two that I plan to try out soon (3-21-11-11-10-7-21 and 9-17-12-11-7-7-21) Mine will fight as Rookies and then in the arena. For Lungers, you want lots and lots of endurance. Twenty-one will and as much strength and constitution as you can get. Low size is highly recommended for dodge based defensives. High speed is not desired on either, simply because you want those points elsewhere. 2) Style Choice There are two routes to go in choosing a style. A parry based style or a defense based style. The traditional choices are the parry based styles (any style that learns parry naturally). Style is almost irrelevant, because in most of these fights, a couple of parry skills or endurance burn doesn't come in to play. There are times when it does, which is what makes Total Parries the king, but all of these styles can be very, very successful as pure defensives. Total Parries are the most common pure defensive on the sands. There are plenty of nicknames for Total Parries who are pure defensives, because of how frustrating it can be to face them. They learn parry and defense skills naturally, are well suited to all of the shields, and often ignore opportunities to attack. They also have the highest parry base in the game. Parry Strikers would be my next choice. They conserve endurance better than any of the other parry based pure defensives. They learn parry naturally. They are well suited to the Small Shield. Parry Ripostes conserve somewhere around the same level as Total Parries. They learn parry skills naturally. Because they also learn so many riposte skills, even running defensive strategies they will tend to try to gain the initiative. They are one of the best natural hybrids, but they make fine pure defensives as well. Parry Lungers burn endurance much faster than the styles listed above. They have much higher skill bases overall, but their parry is the same as Parry Ripostes and Parry Strikers. They learn parry naturally. Wall of Steels have the potential for the highest parry in the game. Total Parries will never be bonused in parry skills, so while they start with the most, a Wall of Steel can be bonused and start with two more parry skills than any other style can. On the other side of things, they burn endurance faster than any of the other styles listed and typically use heavier weapons. Like Parry Lungers, they have a higher overall skill base, but for the discussion of the pure defensive, those other skills don't matter as much. The other option is a dodge based Pure Defensive. Most of the time, these styles are run as hybrids in later minutes, but they both have the ability to run as pure defensives for an entire fight. Lungers are the king in basic. They learn defense naturally and have the highest starting defense in the game. In fact, they are the only style other than Total Parries that learn defense naturally. On the down side, they burn endurance fast. Aimed Blows are the other style that typically runs as a pure dodge defensive. I do not know much about these warriors, but watching them is a thing of beauty. In ADM, when they can start going open handed without concern, they rule the game, but even in basic, they can be very successful. The down side for them is that they do not learn defense skills naturally, so you're really hoping it is their favorite learn. As always, any style can be run as a pure defensive, for part of a fight or an entire fight. The styles listed above are merely the traditional choices. And realize that the dodge based styles I list are often run as hybrids in later minutes. The line between a pure defensive and a hybrid is often blurred, because even some Total Parry pure scum will attack and win fights after their opponent is exhausted (which is one of the hybrid strategies I will mention later). 3) Weapon Selection (with requirements) If you aren't planning to attack, it hardly matters what weapon you use, right? Typically, parry based pure defensives use an off hand shield (and often a main hand shield) Large Shield (13 Str, 3 Wit, 7 Dft) (10+ Dft to use in off hand, depending on Main hand weapon) Medium Shield (9 Str, 3 Wit, 5 Dft) (7+ Dft to use in off hand) Small Shield (5 Str, 3 Wit, 5 Dft) (7+ Dft to use in off hand) ABs often use their Fists, because they get a bonus to their ability to dodge. As with style choice, weapons selection often does not matter for these fights. The fight outcome is more a function of your opponent's ability to take you down or wait you out, not on your abilities or skills. 4) Strategy and Tactics For your parry based pure defensive, 1-1 Parry or 1-1 Open works great. The response tactic has some interesting uses, especially in minute 1 or minute 6. Note that this strategy will usually make your fights quite boring to read, especially the 1-1 parry strategy. This strategy and type of warrior is not meant to be fun, but good ones can amass amazing records, especially before Advanced Duel2. Your best challenges are styles that burn their endurance fastest (Lungers, Wall of Steels, and Parry Lungers). For the dodge based pure defensive, High Activity Level is important. How high depends largely on your warrior. Experiment to find what works best. Offensive Effort is typically low. Dodge or Open for tactics. Once again, the line between pure defensive and hybrid can become very blurred. Not attacking at all may not be your best way to win fights. What if in a later minute you raise your offensive effort and do not use a defensive tactic? You're suddenly not fighting as a pure defensive. For many warriors, this is a much better strategy than simply trying to wait until your opponent drops from exhaustion. The mechanics of the game can allow for some very strange results. I had a basher with very little endurance and 3 will refuse to drop from exhaustion and finally won after 6 minutes against a total parry. This is probably more important for dodge based defensives, but can also be true for parry based defensives. 5) Armor APA/F is the norm. ASM/x is a nice choice, especially against that nasty SC. For dodging defensives, it is not a good idea to wear more than you can carry. Hopefully you have lots of strength and can carry APA and a F. >)]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 692): TIGHT BLOUSE of HOT STUFF (Papa Bear, mgr.) DM 12 RIZTAB (turn 694): KUNG PO FROG of KAOS FROGS (Grimm, mgr.) DM 13 DULLENS (turn 619): WOLFDOG of CARDOW HUNTERS (Jorja, mgr.) DM 15 MALCORN (turn 688): SHANK of SERPENTS' HOLD (Khisanth, mgr.) DM 16 WILLAF (turn 690): GOLD CHARM of GOLDEN GLADIATORS (Midas, mgr.) DM 17 ALJAFIR (turn 682): DAWN of ZOMBIE SQUAD (Khisanth, mgr.) DM 19 ZUWAYZA (turn 683): WATER WORKS of MONOPOLY (Sherlock, mgr.) DM 28 MORYA (turn 343): TAXES of EXPENSE ACCOUNT (Finance Manager, mgr.) DM 29 LAPUR (turn 680): CASIMIR PULASKI of BOHICA (Scruffy Puff, mgr.) DM 31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 341): XANDAR of AVENGERS (Huckle Cat?, mgr.) DM 32 ARVAT (turn 676): S.W.A.T. of SECRET SQUIRRELS (Gentleben, mgr.) DM 33 NIATOLI ISLAND (turn 673): HEADLESS NORSEMAN of HALLOWIENERS (The Dark One) DM 35 MURSKA (turn 665): MONKEY MAN of REALLY? (Dr. Grimley, mgr.) DM 43 VEASTIAN (turn 624): KIRVENJ of THE FAMILY (Jorja, mgr.) DM 45 STORMCROWE (turn 319): ROSELYN of DARQUE FORCES (Master Darque, mgr.) DM 47 NORTH FORK (turn 313): SALAD SLAYER of VEGAN CANNIBALS (The Anarchist, mgr.) DM 50 SNOWBOUND (turn 300): 4-H of LIFE IMPACTS (Coach, mgr.) DM 56 ROCANIS (turn 555): POW! of THEM (Papa Bear, mgr.) DM 60 ARADI (turn 540): ELIN GISSORS of MIDDLE WAY 25 (Jorja, mgr.) DM 61 JURINE (turn 522): HORSE D'OEUVRE of SHEWISH BUFFET (One Armed Bandit, mgr.) DM 65 DAL SHANG (turn 517): IN YOUR FACE of BASH BROS EVANGELIST (Assurnasirbanipal, mgr.) DM 73 ERINIKA (turn 248): PANAMA OATES of MIDDLE WAY 18 (Jorja, mgr.) DM 74 DAYLA KIV (turn 478): NEGATIVE ONE of NUMB-ERS (Sherlock, mgr.) DM 75 JADE MOUNTAIN (turn 472): LEAPS INTO THE AIR of CRITICALS (Howlin' Wolf, mgr) DM 78 LIN TIRIAN (turn 464): CALEAM CHOWDER of SHEWISH BUFFET (One Armed Bandit) ADM 103 FREE BLADES (turn 581): NIGHTCAP of DARKLINGS (She-Puppy, mgr.) Top Teams --------- DM 9 ZUKAL (turn 692): BLUE MOON (Jorja, mgr.) DM 12 RIZTAB (turn 694): BLUE NOTE (Howlin' Wolf, mgr.) DM 13 DULLENS (turn 619): CARDOW HUNTERS (Jorja, mgr.) DM 15 MALCORN (turn 688): SERPENT'S HOLD (Khisanth, mgr.) DM 16 WILLAF (turn 690): REALLY? (Dr. Grimley, mgr.) DM 17 ALJAFIR (turn 682): DUEL REALITY (Smitty, mgr.) DM 19 ZUWAYZA (turn 683): GAIDINS (Noble Discord, mgr.) DM 28 MORYA (turn 343): DREW'S BOYS (The Mun, mgr.) DM 29 LAPUR (turn 680): CARDOW HUNTERS (Jorja, mgr.) DM 31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 341): MIDDLE WAY 7 (Jorja, mgr.) DM 32 ARVAT (turn 676): COLLEGE RADIO (Floyd, mgr.) DM 33 NIATOLI ISLAND (turn 673): THE SEWING CIRCLE (Jorja, mgr.) DM 35 MURSKA (turn 665): REALLY? (Dr. Grimley, mgr.) DM 43 VEASTIAN (turn 624): THE FAMILY (Jorja, mgr.) DM 45 STORMCROWE (turn 318): DARQUE FORCES (Master Darque, mgr.) DM 47 NORTH FORK (turn 313): VEGAN CANNIBALS (The Anarchist, mgr.) DM 50 SNOWBOUND (turn 300): LIFE IMPACTS (Smitty, mgr.) DM 56 ROCANIS (turn 555): THEM (Papa Bear, mgr.) DM 60 ARADI (turn 540): RED DOG GANG (Spot, mgr.) DM 61 JURINE (turn 522): SHEWISH BUFFET (One Armed Bandit, mgr.) DM 65 DAL SHANG (turn 517): SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.) DM 73 ERINIKA (turn 248): MIDDLE WAY 18 (Jorja, mgr.) DM 74 DAYLA KIV (turn 478): SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.) DM 75 JADE MOUNTAIN (turn 472): SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.) DM 78 LIN TIRIAN (turn 464): SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.) ADM 103 FREE BLADES (turn 581): TOURNEY TEAM (LHI, mgr.) Recent Graduates ----------------- DM 9 ZUKAL (turn 690): STRONG BAD of HOMESTAR & CO (Otto X, mgr.) DM 15 MALCORN (turn 686): STEVE of RAINBOW CONNECTION (Sherlock, mgr.) DM 31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 340): OMBERT QURL of MIDDLE WAY 7 (Jorja, mgr.) DM 33 NIATOLI ISLAND (turn 671): SALORIMA TIRANSITH of THE SEWING CIRCLE (Jorja) DM 35 MURSKA (turn 663): KELLY GALL of CHILDREN OF LLYR (Jorja, mgr.) DM 47 NORTH FORK (turn 312): PATRY TRAP of PALINDROMES (Assurnasirbanipal, mgr.) DM 50 SNOWBOUND (turn 299): PURPLE ACE of LIFE IMPACTS (Coach, mgr.) DM 56 ROCANIS (turn 555): DOBIE FROME of MIDDLE WAY 20 (Jorja, mgr.) DM 61 JURINE (turn 522): ANDRES of BOMB SQUAD (Howlin' Wolf, mgr.) DM 75 JADE MOUNTAIN (turn 471): GREEN ROCK of SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.) DUELMASTER'S COLUMN Notes from the arena champ. Narrowly defeated indeed! This one was very close, but somehow I've now beaten two of the champion level NPCs. The Kung-Fu Master was stingy, though, and didn't teach me a single thing. Assur says my luck is bound to change, so to enjoy it while it lasts! So, I will try to keep the throne busy and protect it from slackers who would just play games all day. -- Busy SPY REPORT It is I, Novgorodny Vir, Spymaster of Spymasters. Look on my work, ye mighty, and despair! The boys at CRIT-GIVERS are walking tall, as they are ranked 5th on their first try! Going for the Duelmaster soon? Practice pays for BAUS, who pummelled ERBIN PARNAN, to pocket 20 points. A certain someone should cut down on the drinking and practice more, after losing 11 points to CANNOT HEAR. (Discrete enough, POKER?) CONVICTED ASSASSIN found out that NOBLISH ISLAND isn't a democracy. You've gotta be the best to be Duelmaster here! Word has it one team in NOBLISH ISLAND is using psychics to predict wins. They lead a charmed life! And how sociable are NOBLISH ISLAND's warriors? Come, let us see. Like the noble eagle soaring amongst the mountaintops, so stand the warriors of BASH BROS TELEPHONE, alone and unchallenged. Like a pup with its tail between its legs, FAVORITE GAMES scurried away from BASH BROS TELEPHONE. Oh, the shame! If challenges were horses, CHELSEA NOREN could open up a fast food joint! Is there life after death? Pragmatics (and warriors) know there is death after life! Ask not a spymaster for counsel, for he will pontificate long after you have fallen into an unconscious stupor. Leave me now, you base fools! Keep those sands bloody and the buzzards fat! Can anything compare to the pleasure of writing Spyreports for NOBLISH ISLAND? On that giddy note I take my leave-- Novgorodny Vir DUELMASTER W L K POINTS TEAM NAME BUSY 9223 5 1 0 78 BASH BROS TELEPHONE (1588) CHALLENGER ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME MONOPOLY 9217 5 1 0 58 FAVORITE GAMES (1587) ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME CAREERS 9216 5 1 0 56 FAVORITE GAMES (1587) ELIN TOECHU 9208 6 0 1 40 OLIVA GALVARIUS (1586) CHALLENGER INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME DUTIFUL 9237 3 0 1 27 THE FARSEERS (1591) CANNOT HEAR 9221 4 2 0 26 BASH BROS TELEPHONE (1588) CONTRACT BRIDGE 9218 4 2 0 25 FAVORITE GAMES (1587) INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME ALLANA LORIMER 9230 4 1 0 22 LOW ROAD 3 (1589) NOT IN SERVICE 9225 3 3 0 22 BASH BROS TELEPHONE (1588) CHESS 9220 4 2 0 21 FAVORITE GAMES (1587) BAUS 9246 1 0 0 20 CRIT-GIVERS (1593) CHELSEA NOREN 9228 3 2 0 18 LOW ROAD 3 (1589) AFRODYKIE 9247 1 0 0 18 CRIT-GIVERS (1593) DROPPED CALL 9224 3 3 0 17 BASH BROS TELEPHONE (1588) BELTRAN MOSS 9229 2 3 1 16 LOW ROAD 3 (1589) CHADE 9238 1 2 0 16 THE FARSEERS (1591) POKER 9219 3 3 0 15 FAVORITE GAMES (1587) FITZCHIVALRY 9239 2 1 0 15 THE FARSEERS (1591) STATIC 9222 3 3 0 14 BASH BROS TELEPHONE (1588) SEQUOIA 9249 1 0 0 13 CRIT-GIVERS (1593) THE FOOL 9236 2 1 0 12 THE FARSEERS (1591) ERBIN PARNAN 9226 3 2 0 11 LOW ROAD 3 (1589) HARDY 9250 1 0 0 10 CRIT-GIVERS (1593) DELISE ORM 9227 2 3 0 9 LOW ROAD 3 (1589) VISTAFIN 9248 1 0 0 8 CRIT-GIVERS (1593) PICKER 9244 1 1 0 4 BRIDGE BURNERS (1592) SORRY 9243 0 2 0 2 BRIDGE BURNERS (1592) BURICH 9251 0 2 0 2 THE FARSEERS (1591) STORMY 9242 0 2 0 2 BRIDGE BURNERS (1592) TRUTTS 9245 0 2 0 2 BRIDGE BURNERS (1592) -TRAVOK 9233 0 1 0 1 HEAVEN'S DEVILS (1590) -STASI 9231 0 1 0 1 HEAVEN'S DEVILS (1590) -BERRIAN 9234 0 1 0 1 HEAVEN'S DEVILS (1590) -KAYLA (SCALES) 1586 0 1 0 1 SERPENT'S (285) -AMIE 9232 0 1 0 1 HEAVEN'S DEVILS (1590) -DONAAR 9235 0 1 0 1 HEAVEN'S DEVILS (1590) '-' denotes a warrior who did not fight this turn. THE DEAD W L K TEAM NAME SLAIN BY TURN Revenge? KALAM 9241 0 2 0 BRIDGE BURNERS 1592 BELTRAN MOSS 9229 347 KITTRICKEN 9240 0 1 0 THE FARSEERS 1591 ELIN TOECHU 9208 345 PERSONAL ADS Assur -- Could you send me the weapons chart in plain txt for next time? Thanks. -- the Editor Assur -- Hurry up and get Busy off the phone so we can congratulate him for The Title. -- Gamemaster the Editor -- Thanks for that table information and for all the fixes. -- Gamemaster You're welcome. Sir Rowynstar -- Good luck with whatever warrior you send to The Mailer. It is best to send a "timed" warrior, such as one with zero, four or ten fights. Zero = Rookies. Four = Apprentices. Ten = Initiates. The warrior does not HAVE to be maxed in the class, but you will be fighting many warriors who are. -- Gamemaster How to enter Turf War 8? It just so happens I am very qualified to answer any question on the TW. Oz, my counterpart manager in DM47 is one of the coordinators of the event. Ask away. But Jorja did answer the question for you. You will have to do these things: Create a team in DM47 before the start in late July. Find teammates who also want to play together. Publish the required personal ad announcing your team, alliance, manager name in the DM47 newsletter. Send in two rollup certs (entry fee) to Oz or Master Darque. All these items are spelled out in detail in the rules published in every arena. -- Gamemaster Welcome all you new teams to Noblish Island. Glad to see you here. Ask questions. Read the newsletters. Keep the newsletters for later reference. There are three teachers/trainers/coaches here. Assur, Jorja, and I are here to help. -- Gamemaster Dangerous Criminal -- You just don't get this game stuff do you? You were soooooo easy. -- Monopoly and Careers Delise Orm -- I came; I saw; I took all the chips. -- Poker Trutts and Kalam -- It is quite difficult matching up with someone quite a bit more experienced that yourselves. (4-1 in our cases.) Our manager likes to say that the MUGs (match-up gods) are mistreating you. Your time will come. -- Chess and Contract Bridge Fool -- Does your name indicate your job or your mental disposition? Either way, avoid me at ALL costs! -- Elin Tuechu Bush -- You keep getting away from me! Watch your back. -- Elin Tuechu All -- You love me! You really love me! -- Elin Toechu P.S. I have recruited some new sisters. So be ready! Gamemaster, Assur and Jorja -- Thanks for your answers. Sorry if I'm being too "asky." -- Sin Rowynstar All -- Which DM do I join to join the Turf War and how do I start a new team? -- Rowynstar Chade, Dutiful, Fitzchivalny -- Enough talk! Meet me on the sands! -- Elin Tuechu Jorja -- Got the tables with explanations. Thanks! -- Sin Rowynstar To my opponents -- It appears that lady luck was on my side last turn, with 5 close fights, all resulting in victories for my stable. Just goes to show you that when you take on big business, especially the ones controlling your communication lines, don't expect to win! -- Assur Sir Rowynstar -- As noted, no penalty for tourney participation. Start a second team in North Fork. OR, if this team has chartered befor the Turf Wart starts, which is possible, you can move *IT* to North Fork when it has to leave Noblish. -- Jorja Poker -- Tcha. Maybe I will learn when to hold 'em, but this was the time to fold 'em. -- Delise Orm Stasi -- Sorry my aim is so rotten, but you have a greater problem. Change weapons! Without knowing your stats more clearly, still I would guess that dropping your main weapon and simply going with the one you had off-hand would work for you. Worth a try, anyway. -- Erbin Parnan Travok -- Same problem for you. Get a different weapon. I know the one you and your teammate chose is classy to look at, but it's hard to use. Go with something simpler. -- Chelsea Noren Dutiful -- That was well done, curse it. -- Beltran Moss Amie -- Whew! That was a case of the win going to the one who could stay upright the longest. Good effort on your part; I was lucky. -- Allana Lorimer P.S. Always remember to bring a lunch when there's a long fight in prospect. Or a book to read. LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS KALAM was butchered by BELTRAN MOSS in a 1 minute gruesome mismatched Challenge fight. PICKER was savagely defeated by FITZCHIVALRY in a 5 minute novice's Challenge melee. TRUTTS was outwaited by THE FOOL in a slow 8 minute amateur's Challenge brawl. STORMY was savagely defeated by CHELSEA NOREN in a 3 minute amateur's Challenge match. BUSY overpowered CONVICTED ASSASSIN in a 1 minute one-sided Title struggle. MONOPOLY devastated CAPTURED ORC in a 1 minute gruesome one-sided competition. CAREERS vanquished ALLANA LORIMER in a 1 minute uneven duel. ELIN TOECHU vanquished DROPPED CALL in a 1 minute gruesome uneven fight. POKER was defeated by CANNOT HEAR in a exciting 1 minute gruesome fight. CONTRACT BRIDGE beat STATIC in a exciting 1 minute brutal fight. CHESS bested CONVICTED THIEF in a unpopular 6 minute conflict. NOT IN SERVICE demolished BURICH in a 2 minute mismatched match. DELISE ORM was overpowered by CHADE in a popular 1 minute mismatched conflict. ERBIN PARNAN was vanquished by BAUS in a 1 minute mismatched bout. DUTIFUL vanquished SORRY in a 1 minute one-sided fray. AFRODYKIE bested EMBEZZLING SCRIBE in a popular 3 minute amateur's brawl. VISTAFIN beat CONVICTED THIEF in a 1 minute novice's match. SEQUOIA overpowered CONVICTED THIEF in a 1 minute one-sided match. HARDY overcame PERSISTANT BEGGAR in a 3 minute amateur's competition. BATTLE REPORT MOST POPULAR RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS |FIGHTING STYLE FIGHTS FIGHTING STYLE W - L - K PERCENT| |BASHING ATTACK 9 PARRY-LUNGE 2 - 0 - 0 100 | |STRIKING ATTACK 5 PARRY-STRIKE 4 - 2 - 1 67 | |AIMED BLOW 4 STRIKING ATTACK 27 - 18 - 2 60 | |SLASHING ATTACK 4 BASHING ATTACK 34 - 24 - 2 59 | |WALL OF STEEL 3 WALL OF STEEL 12 - 10 - 0 55 | |TOTAL PARRY 3 AIMED BLOW 19 - 18 - 0 51 | |LUNGING ATTACK 2 PARRY-RIPOSTE 2 - 2 - 0 50 | |PARRY-STRIKE 1 SLASHING ATTACK 10 - 12 - 0 45 | |PARRY-LUNGE 0 LUNGING ATTACK 6 - 8 - 1 43 | |PARRY-RIPOSTE 0 TOTAL PARRY 9 - 14 - 0 39 | Turn 347 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: WALL OF STEEL 3 - 0 BASHING ATTACK 4 - 5 4 STRIKING ATTACK AIMED BLOW 3 - 1 PARRY-LUNGE 0 - 0 2 SLASHING ATTACK SLASHING ATTACK 3 - 1 PARRY-STRIKE 0 - 1 2 BASHING ATTACK TOTAL PARRY 2 - 1 PARRY-RIPOSTE 0 - 0 1 AIMED BLOW STRIKING ATTACK 3 - 2 1 WALL OF STEEL LUNGING ATTACK 1 - 1 1 TOTAL PARRY TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE FIGHTING STYLE WARRIOR W L K PNTS TEAM NAME AIMED BLOW BUSY 9223 5 1 0 78 BASH BROS TELEPHONE (1588) SLASHING ATTACK MONOPOLY 9217 5 1 0 58 FAVORITE GAMES (1587) STRIKING ATTACK CAREERS 9216 5 1 0 56 FAVORITE GAMES (1587) BASHING ATTACK ELIN TOECHU 9208 6 0 1 40 OLIVA GALVARIUS (1586) Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above. The overall popularity leader is CONTRACT BRIDGE 9218. The most popular warrior this turn was CHELSEA NOREN 9228. The ten other most popular fighters were AFRODYKIE 9247, CANNOT HEAR 9221, CONTRACT BRIDGE 9218, NOT IN SERVICE 9225, MONOPOLY 9217, CHADE 9238, BELTRAN MOSS 9229, BUSY 9223, CAREERS 9216, and ELIN TOECHU 9208. The least popular fighter this week was THE FOOL 9236. The other ten least popular fighters were CHESS 9220, TRUTTS 9245, PICKER 9244, SORRY 9243, STATIC 9222, DROPPED CALL 9224, ALLANA LORIMER 9230, KALAM 9241, SEQUOIA 9249, and ERBIN PARNAN 9226. REALITY SIMULATIONS E-MAIL ADDRESSES For those of you who have e-mail access, you may find it more convenient to e-mail us! At this time, we cannot accept e-mailed strategy sheets, but we can accept your personal ads. If you would like to e-mail your personal ads, team spotlights, and DM columns, e-mail them to this address: ADS@REALITY.COM Our Customer Service Department has a separate e-mail address. If you have questions or any other requests, feel free to send us e-mail to this address: CSR@REALITY.COM Thank you. We wish you the best of luck in your games! -- RSI A NOTE ON MAILMEN In response to the articles on new fighting styles, those were good, but how can you forget our most favorite warrior who has a style all his own? The Mailman! To Duelmasters he is our most sacred person. I mean, how many of you managers out their have sat down and calculated what day your Duelmasters will arrive and have sat waiting for it to arrive, while unknown to you, your mailman is fighting away to get your Duelmasters delivered. Let's review him... ST - should be around 19. He needs to heft two medium bags, cloth mail armor and a ton of rubber bands. CN - 13, give or take a few. He does get bitten by dogs often. SZ - Any. WT - At least 10. He often likes to read the mail. WL - Try about 20. He must endure all kinds of weather. SP - 16 is good. He needs to run across streets in traffic. DF - 10 is good. Sometimes he has to carry packages. This setup should get you a good mailman but they are hard to come by. If you can come up with any better, diplo me. I am: Staple Gun mgr. of Technet (3) The New Deal (23) I am currently working on the U.P.S. and Federal Express warriors. "Strikers R Us" Greetings, everyone. It is I, Talon, again. I am very glad to see everyone participating in the arena and sharing their thoughts on styles and strategies. This turn I will take on the striking attack style, which is certainly one of my favorites. I believe the striker is one of the easiest styles to run, and one in which no team should be without. A high-powered striker can diversify and empower your team. A well run striker can beat any other style, period, at any level in regular Duelmasters. In arenas where scum TPs are rampant, strikers are just the answer as they can attack for up to 12 minutes or more. Strikers are versatile. They can do exceptionally well with a dagger as a weapon or with a halberd. They can do well with no armor or with plate armor. Stats: Biff Primal Solid Perfect ST 5-21 9-17 13 15 CN 3+ 3+ 6 3 SZ 9-21 3-17 9 5 WT 3-17 17 + 17 21 WL 9-17 13 + 17 15 SP 5+ 5-13 9 8 DF 9+ 9-17 13 17 With the way I design strikers, there are essentially two strikers that evolve. The BIFF and the PRIMAL. The Biff striker is typically one that is not looking long- term, but one which I want to run and have fun with. With this striker, I try to have one stat (wit, will, or deftness) which is extraordinary, one which is average, and the other ends up being at some non-normal level. Some examples of the Biff are: 10- 10-11-4-17-17-15, 7-11-17-17-11-6-15, 9-5-14-17-11-13-15, 4-8-17-15-13-10-17, and 21- 3-15-21-5-8-11. With these warriors, the emphasis is on having fun and learning more about the style. The Primal is essentially a Primus-quality warrior. In this category, the striker will be designed with stats that most other managers will gasp, "OH MY, WHY DID YOU MAKE HIM A STRIKER?" It is also the warrior that will be Duelmaster for 8 straight turns and will go to ADM with a 16-4-2 record, with 4 Masters and an Ad Ex. The key here is to create a warrior with AT LEAST a 17 wit and 15 deftness, along with a 13+ will and who will do normal damage or better. The goal with the Primal is a 21 wit and 17 deftness, because this will ensure a great warrior. Weapons and Armor: As for weapons, the best striking weapons that I have found and used are the dagger, epee, scimitar, broadsword, quarterstaff, greatsword, longsword, war hammer, and sometimes the short spear. I don't run my strikers with shields or off-hand weapons, as it takes away from their attack. The heaviest armor I will use is padded leather. Always wear a steel cap or a helm. Strategy (general): Min. 1 2 3 4 5 6+ Desp OE 10 8 6 6 6 5 5 AL 10 5 4 2 2 1 8 KD 6 8 6 6 6 5 5 attack arms/legs/head -- take your pick protect arms/legs/head -- take your pick off tactic decise, slash, bash, depending on weapon def tactic response is best; try dodge though. With this strategy, a striker with a normal endurance should fight for eight minutes as a scum TP and come out on top, outrageously victorious. Just match your weapon with your tactic and only use the tactics in minute one or desperation. If you have any further questions on this or any other style, feel free to diplo me. Talon, mgr. Eagle's Claw HOW I MADE DUELMASTER IN THREE EASY STEPS OR a new look for Aimed Blows Greetings and salutations, all. Here's a new twist on aimed blows I haven't seen before....one that works, at least for me! Here's what I did with Rex Walters, my first Duelmaster in the Free Blades transfer arena, DM 70. ST: 17 (for good damage, attack and parry skills) CN: 13 (gonna need every hit point he can get) SZ: 4 (smaller the better!) WT: 4 (overrated for aimed blows!) WL: 21 (if ya try this method, 17 is a MINIMUM) SP: 4 (ya want NO speed, none, nothing, zero!) DF: 21 (better max this one out too, at least a 19) You laugh at me? I started expert in both attack and parry! (OK, so I got lucky, I didn't expect either one of em.) But both are in reach with a little luck. Hey, if ya can get that strength to 21 you're almost guaranteed those experts... though a bit more CON would be nice. But how do I RUN this monstrosity, you may ask? Why, I'm glad you inquired! LOTS of armor. The hit points combined with, say, platemail should win this character a lot of fights. But, while I've picked up a few easy wins scumming, that's not really what this character does best. I use the only weapon Rex is well suited to: the bare hand. With an offhand small shield or shortsword, so I can take advantage of that expert parry rating. So: FI-SH, APM-H. And I run him at a 4 offensive effort, with a matching 4 activity level. He can last through the initial onslaught of nearly any offensive, then smash them.... like a good waste. And with that monster endurance and good damage, no one scums this warrior! I attack and protect the head, usually, and keep the kill desire high... 5-7 generally. Now, how to become Duelmaster? Well, step one is fight your first fight... and train your CON. Step two, now that you're in the arena, is get a fight with an up-and-coming young warrior from the Duelmaster's team... and kill them. (I randomly matched up with, and killed, a member of the incoming Duelmaster's team...luck helps, ya know.) Offensives that wear themselves out but haven't quite dropped are the easiest to kill. Then, when the Duelmaster comes at you (bragging about how he "only" needs to beat you twice to assure his ascension to the Isle) you stomp him. Badly. Once you're on that lofty throne he won't even be able to bloodfeud you, since you can bet he's not gonna be anywhere near the challenger champions after losing to a 2-fight warrior (just ask Ciron of ENDS WITH IRON, now in AD). There are drawbacks, of course. Once you get to that level, odds are you're gonna get stomped like a stuck pig (I was most challenged 2 turns in a row after this trick... Oo! I love mixed metaphors...) But... even a 4 wit warrior can learn skills against gladiators with 50 fights! Rex is now 7-3-1. All three losses have come against warriors now in AD. In those ten matches, he's trained his strength and constitution once each, and learned twenty skills, including his adex in both parry and attack. And boy, is it fun humiliating some of those "gods" bound for AD! What else can one do with this warrior? Well, Rex is, get this, well suited to an off-hand epee! He wouldn't dare use one as a primary weapon, but its a great off- hand toy... Does he have what it takes to be a long-term winner? Who knows? He's probably the DUMBEST aimed blow to ever make Duelmaster... He's in the Challenger Champions and climbing....and he'll meet ya in AD! Amazingly enough, this is not an isolated fluke. We entered a similar warrior into Bloodgames (with the 4's as 3's, and a bit more CON). That warrior, Jalon, is now in AD after going 9-1-5 and finishing on TOP of his Bloodgames arena. Ah, just thought I'd mention I have had a second bare-handed Duelmaster, now... Seeker Still Water in DM 74 is an open-hand lunger, Duelmaster at 8-1... but that's another story... --Khyron mgr., Pitt Gladiators (2,29,56,103) Jayhawks (70) Silent Storm (65,74,75) and numerous others.... THE WALL OF STEEL AS A BERSERKER This article is for newer players; more experienced managers will, I'm sure, have much more sophisticated ideas about warrior design and strategy. This will enable a newbie to design a competent warrior who should be able to achieve a better than 50/50 record. The wall of steel, or "waste," is often considered the second scummiest style in Duelmasters. I love the style, but I don't run mine that way; I prefer to think of the waste as a fierce dervish ripping into his opponent like an airplane propeller. In accordance with this view, most walls of steel that I design couldn't scum if they wanted to (well all right, sometimes it happens by accident if the opposing warrior is going all-out and can't last very long). It's fun to run them fast; they get the jump on people who don't expect it of them, and their fights are exciting. Mind you, they don't win as much as if they ran more defensively, but the ones with good stats still do okay (I'll make practically anything a waste and run it, but this article isn't about the ones that a sane manager would DA). So, here is a design for a competent wall of steel: ST 13+ Needed for endurance, damage doing, and weapon selection. CN 9+ You need a passably good con for endurance. SZ 7+ Teeny weenie wastes don't hit hard enough or take enough damage. Real big (15+) is bad because it hurts endurance. WT 13+ Preferably 17. Like any other style, the smarter they are, the better. WL 17+ Needed for endurance, damage-taking, and sheer grit. 21 is recommended. SP 3+ Whatever. DF 7+ Higher deftness is better, but you can get by without it. As you can see, these are fairly easy requirements. Of course, the more wit, will, and deftness, the better your waste will be (same as any other style). If you don't end up with at least good endurance on the overview, the warrior probably isn't going to do very well. With that high will, though, you can bump con a couple of times and you might get good endurance, so there's still a chance. Choose your weapons based on deftness, and your opponent's armor weight. I normally use something like 0-8 SC, 9-12 BS, 13+ GA, backup SC or BS. No shield. Some other good weapons for the waste are QS (only takes 11 ST, and can hit heavy armor), MS, and BA. The war flail isn't a very good weapon, but you can play with it against leather armor. For armor, I usually choose something middling like ARM & H, but will go with APL & H if he has a lot of con. For strategy--I heard a rumor (NOT confirmed) that a wall of steel gets a bonus if his OE equals his KD. Since I don't like to use a kill desire above 6, I don't go by that in the first couple of minutes. Keep the activity level moderate to low; the waste doesn't need to jump around a lot and the way he keeps his weapon moving, he's burning a lot of endurance without that added drain. Attack and defend the arms, like a slasher; a waste is a sort of parry-slasher. A typical strategy for my wastes might look like this: Minute 1 2 3 4 5 6 Desp Offensive 9 8 7 6 5 5 2 Activity 6 5 4 3 2 1 6 Kill des. 6 6 6 6 5 5 2 Att. loc. RA LA RA LA RA LA RA Pro. loc. AM AM AM AM AM AM HE Off tac. none -- -- -- -- -- -- Def tac. -- -- -- -- -- -- P I play with the numbers a lot, depending on what the warrior seems to like. For example, if he doesn't parry too well, I'll give him a more offensive desperation strategy, like 8-4-8-slash. (If I really like a warrior I sometimes use a 7+ KD to try and save his life.) If he never manages to get the jump on anybody, I'll try running him more defensively, like with a first minute of 3-6-3. It's not as much fun as going all out, but it's more fun than losing all the time. You can challenge pretty much any style (lungers aren't recommended). When fighting a warrior you know to be very defensive (a TP, or a scummy variety of PS, PR, PL, or WS), slow down or you will be scummed. For the most part, though, an offensive waste is very versatile and can beat any style. The better his important qualities are (WT, WL, DF, endurance), the better the quality of warriors he can defeat. In other words, if you have a so-so rollup that barely made the minimum requirements, challenge so-so opponents. If you have a good rollup, go for the gold. Challenge warriors with a few more fights than you, so you'll learn plenty of skills--but don't challenge way way up in experience, because it's no fun to lose a good warrior. For the most part, train skills--especially on your challenge strategy, when you're going after someone with more fights! And for sure on the first fight, because you'll likely be matched against someone who can teach you a lot. It's okay to train con once in a while if you need more endurance and damage-taking; and if you have bad luck on the rollup and get "does little damage" or something, you might have to train strength once or twice (no more!). But it's best not to train any other stats until way, way down the road. Ask your DM sponsor or any experienced manager in your arena for more advice (if they tell you I'm full of hot air, they're probably right). A little bit of good advice from a more advanced player can make a big difference in your enjoyment of the game! If you have any questions or suggestions, you can diplo: the She-Puppy, mgr. Mordant Prison DM-1, and others.