DUEL 2 NEWSLETTER

Date   : 11/30/2013    Duedate: 12/13/2013

NOBLISH ISLAND ARENA

DM-93    TURN-391

This Weeks Top Honors

THE DUELMASTER IS

HORRIBLE LEARNING
BASH BROS PIKER (1634)
(93-9489) [9-1-0,81]

Chartered Recognition Leader   Unchartered Recognition Leader

HORRIBLE LEARNING              MEOSHA PALMER
BASH BROS PIKER (1634)         HIGH WAY 2 (1637)
(93-9489) [9-1-0,81]           (93-9508) [6-1-1,37]

Popularity Leader              This Weeks Favorite

FIRST DOWN                     THUMPER
COUNT ON ME (1633)             GHOSTWALKERS (1630)
(93-9486) [7-3-1,66]           (93-9471) [3-2-0,15]

THE CURRENT TOP TEAM

COUNT ON ME (1633)

          TEAMS ON THE MOVE            TOP CAREER HONORS
Team Name                  Point Gain  Chartered Team
1. COUNT ON ME (1633)          37
2. GHOSTWALKERS (1630)         27      COUNT ON ME (1633)
3. BASH BROS PIKER (1634)      -4      Unchartered Team
4. HIGH WAY 2 (1637)          -13
                                       HIGH WAY 2 (1637)

The Top Teams

Career Win-Loss Record           W   L  K    %  Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns    W  L K
 1/ 1 COUNT ON ME (1633)        35  15  1 70.0   1/ 1 COUNT ON ME (1633)       12  3 1
 2/ 2 BASH BROS PIKER (1634)    26  24  0 52.0   2/ 4*GHOSTWALKERS (1630)       7  5 3
 3/ 3*HIGH WAY 2 (1637)         17  18  1 48.6   3/ 3 BASH BROS PIKER (1634)    7  8 0
 4/ 4*GHOSTWALKERS (1630)       10  11  3 47.6   4/ 2*HIGH WAY 2 (1637)         6  9 0

    '*'   Unchartered team                       '-'  Team did not fight this turn
   (###)  Avoid teams by their Team Id          ##/## This turn's/Last turn's rank

                                    TEAM SPOTLIGHT

                                  SKILLS or STATS?
                                   THE REAL SCOOP

     Have you ever heard a statement similar to this: "Train skills; never train
stats."  The implication or sometimes direct statement is that you will be sorry if
you train stats.  Can that be true?
     The Consortium opinion is that, in the majority of circumstances, it is
perfectly all right and normal to train stats, and in some cases it is better to
train stats.  (This process of training stats is often called "burning.")  The
purpose of this article is to explore stat and skill training and to give the reader
some ideas as to if, when, or whether stat training is either aok or best.  The
article will also explore when it is considered best not to train stats, but rather
train skills.  (No matter what, train something!)

     First, to set the stage, there are several principles, givens, and ideas that
the reader must understand.
1.  Skill raining is mostly dependent on WT.  (e.g.  The higher the wit, the more
    skills per fight the warrior is likely to learn.
2.  Stat training is mostly dependent upon two things:
    a.  WL: a warrior's stat learn probability is 5% times the will.  (E.g. a warrior
    with 10 WL has a (5%x10=50%) 50/50 chance to learn the stat, while a warrior with
    15 WL has a 75% chance of learning the stat.
    b.  The number of stats of that type already trained.  A warrior's learning rate
    for a specific stat is halved each time he earns one of those stats.  For
    example, a warrior with 10 will has a 50% (5%x10) of earning a first stat of a
    type, but only a 25% (5%x10 halved) of earning the second stat of that type.
    (and on to 12.5% for the third)
3.  Training most stats also earns the warrior certain skills.
4.  There are limits to the number of stats and skills a warrior can have.
    a.  In basic, a warrior can have no higher that 21 of any stat type.
    b.  A warrior is limited to earning 20 skills (beyond the initial skills the
    warrior is "born" with) of each type in his career.  Those 20 skills may come
    from learning skills or from training a stat which gives the warrior one or more
    of those skills.  He is deemed "maxed" when he learns the 20th.
    c.  A warrior can, however, learn more that 20 skills of a type if he first
    learns his 20 allowed skills, and then trains stats which give the warrior one of
    those skills.  (This factor is why one often hears "Do not train stats or you
    will be sorry.")
5.  Certain stats improve the "physicals" of your warrior.  (e.g. there is a
    reasonable possibility that training ST can improve how much damage your warrior
    does when he hits)

     With those principles in mind, one can postulate certain scenarios which might
provide a basis for decision-making as to "what to train."  These represent, first,
the knowledge necessary, then, The Consortium scenarios for training decision--STATs
or SKILLs?

     KNOWLEDGE
1.  Be aware of the probable skill learn rate.  (This is a highly variable number, 
based on many, many factors of the game, including luck rolls.) (However WT is the 
primary factor.)
2.  Be aware of the stat training probability for that stat
3.  Be aware that every thing in D2 has a probable roll or luck factor
4.  Be aware of the potential "physical" improvement to your warrior for stat
    training.
5.  Know which stat trains do not provide any skills.  (E.g. Raising to 12ST improves
    the stat, but cannot provide any skills or "burning", while raising to 15ST
    improves that stat and provides two "burned" skills--attack and parry.)
6.  Determine if that specific warrior will be enhanced by a possibility of earning
    more than 20 skills of a type.  (Example, a warrior that is meant for the long-
    term, or is deemed to be a near-godling is extremely likely to benefit from the
    extra skills at high-ADM classes where every warrior is maxed or near maxed in
    stats and skills and every single skill can make a difference in a fight.  A
    warrior who is expected to be around for a shorter period, or is to be "retired"
    upon graduation to Lord Protectorship, will not be around long enough to earn and
    benefit from the few extra skills available.
7.  Know which is likely to benefit your warrior most when you decide to train skills
    or a certain stat.  (e.g. How many skills am I likely to learn if I train skills
    versus the probability of learning that specific stat train and the subsequent
    physical and skill gain earned.)

CONSORTIUM DECISION MODEL
1.  Upon rollup, evaluate each warrior and classify--long-term/godling (GOD),
    possible long term (POS), standard warrior--run to graduation.(NRM)
2.  Do not train stats on GOD, unless they are non-burning stats.
3.  Limit training stats initially on POS, unless they are non-burning stats, until
    it is decided that this warrior is not a GOD.
4.  If a NRM, train whatever the manager believes will most enhance the warrior
    winning fights.
5.  When deciding between stat or skill training, compare the probability quantity of
    skill earning vs. the probablity of learning the chosen stat and its potential
    physical and skill contribution.

     Perhaps a couple of Consortium examples are in order.  Let's consider these two
warriors" 14-7-12-15-20-14-11 striker and 4-10-11-17-17-4-21 aimed-blow.
     Although a solid warrior, the striker would be considered NRM, especially since
strikers are not considered likely Primus-level styles.  The warrior probably rolled
good damage and good endurance.  The odds of getting a first stat raise are near 100%
(5%x20, but everything has a "luck" roll).  The warrior at 15WT should expect to earn
nearly two skills per turn (Consortium rates 15WT skill learn rate at 1.75ish)
Consortium Managers would plan two immediate "bumps" - WL to 21 and ST to 15.  Moving
to 21 WL gains seven fine skills (2 each Att, Par, Def and 1 Decise) and enhances
physicals a tiny bit.  (Adds 0.4 it points and improves endurance a small amount)
Training skills would have yielded a probability of two skills, and three if lucky.
The choice to train WL is a no-brainer.  The 2nd plan train to 15ST is also a good
one.  At 15 ST, two skills are earned, attack and parry.  The 15ST also enhances
weapon selection, making the striker now strong enough to carry certain "larger
weapons" with no penalty.  (The battle axe is an often favored weapon of
Consortiumites--and probably should be a favorite of yours.)  The 15ST also has the
possibility of raising the warrior's damage rating from good to great.  Consortium
places this damage bump odds at 4-1, appx 20% likely.) Compared to the probability of
learning 2 skills (or an unlucky 1 or a lucky 3) the 15ST raise seems like a good
one.  There are no more planned raises for this warrior, but that does not preclude
that a Consortium manager might not later attempt an additional ST raise to 16 (if
great damage was not attained) and a raise to 8 CN, especially if the warrior has a
"frail" rating.
     Warrior #2, the aimer is rated a GOD.  There would be no planned stat raises to
the warrior, training skill all the way until maxed.  However, there would be no
reason not to consider CN raises, as no CN raise burns skills and every aimer can use
additional hit points.  This choice would need to be balanced against the probability
of earning 2.25 skills per turn (Consortium rating).  One additional consideration
should be given.  If this warrior rolled "little damage", (normal damage is more
likely) the bump to 5ST could be what is needed to get normal damage.  The raising of
that stat "burns" a parry and an attack skill, however.  For a long-term warrior,
especially an aimer which can use little-damage somewhat effectively, this bump would
not be recommended.

     In conclusion, there is no absolute when it comes to training skills or stats.
Training stats is certainly not a no-no.  Burning skills can be inconsequential.
Physical and skill gains from stats can greatly enhance the warrior and the W/L
record.  But, like most other decisions in D2, there is a trade-off.  Burning stats
on a long-term, ADM+ warrior could prove damaging to the warrior's long-term health.
Choose wisely rather than automatically.

                    Abba Cuss, Consortium affiliated

      * }%|[-----+O+-----]|%{ * }%|[-----+O+-----]|%{ * }%|[-----+O+-----]|%{ *

                              How to make a loser win

     One of the most common problems new (and even old) managers face is what to do
when their young promising warrior keeps losing.  Understanding how to turn a warrior
around is a skill that once acquired, will be invaluable.
     One of the first things to understand is that warriors improve their abilities
by learning skills and training stats.  This means your opponents are improving, too.
A warrior with lower wit is at an inherent disadvantage.  Once you leave Noblish
Island, 21 wit is a lot more common than you'd care to think about.  That said, not
every warrior has 21 wit, but the way things have progressed, most managers are
highly focused on tourney success and in basic, that usually means 21 wit.  So if you
are a lower wit warrior (say 13 or less), your opponent likely has been learning
faster than you have.  But wit and skills are not the only thing that you need to
win.  Plenty of warriors with low wit are very successful.  Even offensives can do
very well with 11 wit.
     Use your challenges and use your avoids.  That alone will do much to improve
your record.  Looking at how you have won and lost will give you clear clues.
Especially how you've won.  These are the fights you want to replicate and avoid.
Your warrior's strengths and weaknesses determine who you want to challenge and
avoid.
     Next, what you've been doing isn't working.  Start to change things up.  Even
some offensives fight better when you start to lower the numbers.  And hybrids and
defensives can dramatically change their careers by altering the numbers just
slightly, especially offensive effort.  As to whether you want to increase or
decrease numbers, there is no hard and fast rule.  I will say that very low activity
level is usually the first thing you want to remove on most warriors.  Those super
low activity levels aren't the best unless you are a scum or are facing a scum (scum
being a total parry that tries only to wear you out).  I've had numerous warrior
magically start to fight better when I run on certain numbers, though.
     Weapon selection is another key item.  Weapons have different attributes.
Changing weapons can help your warrior.  Almost every weapon has circumstances where
I'll use it.  The only weapon I'll never use is the MS (but the bashing weapons in
general are worse than the slashing and lunging weapons).  Learn what weapons are
good for what circumstances.
     The last thing I'll mention in this article is optimizing a warrior.  This is
key for your losers.  I started this article by hinting that all warriors are not
equal.  This is the only way you can make a truly inferior warrior win.  Optimize him
for a single way to win.  Ignore all other fights and hope he faces someone that he
can beat in his way to win.  There will always be someone who can beat you, but if
you try to make a loser win all his fights, you won't succeed.  We publish many
articles on what makes a good 'this type of warrior' articles in these newsletters.
Choose the type that best matches your warriors strengths and optimize your strategy
for that--then look for warriors that can lose to your strategy.  And if all else
fails, look for other losers to beat up!

              + ]H[ + ---:--- + ]H[ The Lighthouse ]H[ + ---:--- + ]H[ +
                    Where do you go when you leave Noblish Island?
              (note that this article is old, but still mostly relevant)

     After ten turns, just when you're getting used to the everlasting rain here on
Noblish Island, you're going to have to leave forever.  Everyone (except me) leaves
after ten turns.
     You have to go, but you get to choose your destination.  Out of sixty or so
possible arenas, how do you choose?
     Some of you will be following friends who have already gone, and for you this
question is moot.  Otherwise....

     Fast or slow?  Noblish Island is a "fast" arena in that the fights are run every
two weeks.  For some of you, this may not allow enough turn-around time.  "Slow"
arenas run every four weeks.  The slow arenas are 8, 28, 31, 39, 45, 47, 50, 52, 54,
59, and the three slow transfer arenas, 71, 72, and 73.  You may have an unlimited
number of teams in a transfer arena, and many managers do; I would not recommend
choosing a transfer arena for your first non-Noblish home.

     Regions--the world of Duelmasters is divided into four regions, which have
slightly different preferred style of management.
     The Andorian region as a general rule tends toward a role-playing, non-killing
style of play.  By "non-killing," I mean that Andorian managers perfer not to seek
kills and disapprove of down-challenging.  In most (but not, alas, all) cases,
Andorian arenas will have lively personals.  The Andorian arenas currently open are:
8 (slow), 11, 14, 22, 24, 25, 26, 30, 40, 41, 46, 52 (slow), 63, and 71 (slow
transfer).
     The Delarquan region, except in the case of some of the slow arenas, is not much
prone to role-playing and convesation.  For Delarquans, the win is all.  Down-
challenging is an accepted tactic used when desired by any manager.  Deaths may be
more frequent than elsewhere.  The Delarquan arenas currently open are: 1, 2, 3, 5,
6, 7, 10, 18, 21, 36, 38, 39 (slow), 42, 51, 54 (slow), 59 (slow), 62, and 72 (slow
transfer).
     The Free Blades region tends to be very active in the slow arenas and less
dogmatic in either direction about style of play.  Free Blades arenas currently open
are: 9, 12, 15, 16, 17, 19, 28, 29, 31 (slow), 32, 33, 35, 43, 45 (slow), 47 (slow),
50 (slow), 56, 61, and 73 (slow transfer).
     The Lirith Kai region is the youngest and is currently very small, having only
arenas 65, 74, 75, and 78 open at the present time.  There is a tendency to prefer
the Andorian-style, "no down-challenges and no deliberate killing," but the managers
seem to be less dogmatic about it.
     Note that currently contests of various kinds are being held in some arenas,
which I can't list for sure, they keep changing.  If you're interested in a contest
arena, let me know (a personal ad will do), and I'll look around.  Contest arenas
will tend to be bigger than others while the contest is going on, and full of
often-confusing personals.

     Large arenas or small ones?
     There are advantages for a new manager in either choice.  In a large arena,
there are lots of managers who will be willing to help a novice.  There will be a lot
of variety in the kind of competition your warriors come up against--varieties in
style, management, levels of skill.  You can learn a lot in large arenas.  But there
are drawbacks, too.  You can get lost in the crowd, maybe find no one or only a few
of the available managers responding to your personals.  You can get caught between
feuding factions.
     In small arenas, you soon get to know every manager's playing style and what to
expect from their warriors.  If you write personals, they will be noticed and
probably responded to.  But just as you get to know all the managers and warriors
sharing the arena with you, so will they get to know you.  You may see a lot of
standbys fighting, and while they are relatively easier to beat, they don't teach as
well.  After a while, you won't meet with many surprises.

     If you have access to the internet, I strongly recommend that you check out
RSI's website and sample the newsletters of various arenas to get the flavor of them.
If not, ask for advice.  Diplo managers mentioned in the Regional Arena News from
arenas you're interested in, as they are likely to be leaders in those arenas.  Ask
questions here, in the personals or by diplo.  I'd like to see you all have the best
possible Duelmasters experience that's consistent with other people doing the same,
and I ALWAYS have opinions!

Jorja
The Middle Way

           +>]H[<+-----+>]H[<+ Question of the Week #1 +>]H[<+-----+>]H[<+

     Hanibal, manager of Cannibalz in Aruak City (DM 11) and formerly of Noblish
Island, has asked a series of questions of the experienced managers of that arena.  I
believe you might find these questions and answers instructive, or at least
interesting.  Feel free to comment or question in response.  That goes for other
experienced managers, too; I'm sure your input would be valuable. -- Jorja, The
Middle Way

Question, turn 396:
     All -- If 2 identical warriors (theoretically) ran 10-10-2 and 10-10-8, who
would swing first?  Would they both have an equal chance? -- Hanibal's question of
the week

Replies, turn 397:
     Hanibal -- Of the three numbers, I think KD is least influential in determining
who swings first.  I'm not discounting its involvement entirely, but there are many
factors that weigh more heavily.  I ran aimers 10-10-1 for a long time, when it was
the 'in' thing to do, and they fought quite aggressively.  KD might be more important
in determining who swings LAST. -- Generalissimo Puerco

     Hannibal -- I firmly believe that 10-10-2 will sometimes outjump 10-10-8.  And
vice versa. -- Kennelworth The Seasoned

     See also Captain K's article on "Getting the Jump."  It was printed in this
newsletter a few turns ago, but if you want a copy and don't have it, email me at
jputney@zianet.com and I'll send it to you.  Okay, okay, if you don't have email,
request it in the personals or even send me a diplo. -- Jorja
P.S.  I believe this may now be included in the regularly cycling articles.

Question, turn 397:
     All -- If two warriors have a good damage rating, one has 11 str. and one has 13
str., would it make a difference in the amount of damage they do? -- Hanibal's Q.O.W.
     P.S.  Warriors are same size.

Replies, turn 398:
     Hanibal -- Regarding your QoW, it is a very good question.  I think that there
is a difference in damage done between warriors with different strengths but similar
damage comments.  Of course the attack rating a warrior has can make a world of
difference too.  I've got a piker (the Consortium may know Lustra from DM 52) that
has a 5 str. and does normal damage with a blow.  Yet, she performs like a warrior
that does little damage.  (And I have a lot of experience with those.)  Not only
that, she has normal endurance, too, but she seems to get tired awfully quick for a
piker with normal endurance.  So that's one example.  Another is my overall look at
warriors that do 'little' damage.
     If you take one with 9 str. and another with 13 str. I think a clear Difference
can be discerned.  On the high end, my experience doesn't go much past 'good' damage.
But what I can say is that my warriors that do 'good' damage seem to do more damage
than my few warriors that have done 'tremendous' damage.  That is probably because
those big strong warriors have relatively lousy attack ratings.  So in a nutshell I
would say yes, there is a minor but still noticeable effect.  What you might be
finding is that there seems to be differences within those broad categories given on
the warrior overview.  It's just like if you raise con you improve your warrior's
ability to sustain damage a little bit, even if the comment on the overview stays the
same.  Your questions are getting at some of the interesting subtleties of the game.
Keep asking them! -- Generalissimo Puerco

     Q.O.W. (Hanibal) -- I don't think so. -- Adie

Pagan's replies:

Question, turn 396:
     All -- If 2 identical warriors (theoretically) ran 10-10-2 and 10-10-8, who
would swing first?  Would they both have an equal chance?

This is a loaded question.  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 or how this works exactly unless
someone gets to look at the source code for the program.  I will ignore the KD
dispute simply because I don't know.
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 pre-generated and always
the same.  It however appears random except for the facts that 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.
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
consistently have the same fight line-by-line.
3.  Fight-String modified Warrior-String# are taken for each warrior and #Decise-
skills + OE + string# + tactic + weapon-weight + style-adjustment equates to a
number.
4.  These bonuses could be negative in adjustments also: IE. Running responsiveness
would be the addition of a negative number equal to warrior's Decise.  Running decise
would increase a lot, running lunge, slash, or bash use initiative instead of Decise
if higher than current #decise skills.
4.  Biggest controllable factors are OE, tactic, & weapon-weight
5.  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 8+ 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 had to be 10 points then
what would happen is 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

Question, turn 397:
     All -- If two warriors have a good damage rating, one has 11 str. And one has 13
str., would it make a difference in the amount of damage they do? -- Hanibal's Q.O.W.
P.S.  Warriors are same size.

Most definitely.  Weapon damage is equated to Strength + damage class.  So damage is
done like this:
1.  Armor weight + 12 + any bonus it has vs weapon type is a negative to the damage
done.  (How the hell did he get 12!?)
2.  Damage done is strength + damage class variable + weapon variable.
3.  Slashing & Bashing increase the damage done.
4.  When the damage done equals 1 or less then there is a weapon bounce statement.
The minimum damage a blow can do is 1 point of damage.  The program knows there's a
hit before it knows damage so you can't reverse a hit, you merely take a minimum of 1
point of damage to your hit-points.
5.  The lower your strength then more bounces you will see.  The lower your damage
class the more bounces you will see.  The lighter weight a weapon is vs the armor its
hitting the more bounces you will see.
6.  In reverse to #5, all of those secondary-damage statements (often referred to as
extra-damage statements) such as "it was a devastating blow"... "what a massive blow"
-- these merely show that you hit your opponent with enough damage to exceed the
computer secondary-damage statement threshold.  Your warrior caused enough damage to
exceed a programmed set number (whatever that number may be) and the fight is only
showing that you exceeded that number. The programmed number for the secondary-damage
threshold is a Hard number: it is constant within the program and is used for all
fights and all warriors.  It is not random.  It has nothing to do with how much
damage you did in relation to your opponent's hit-points either.  If you exceed that
number in damage, you get a printed statement showing that to be the case.  There is
no such thing as Extra-Damage. -- Pagan

Question, turn 398:

All -- If you lower your kill desire in desperation, do you have less of a chance of
being killed? -- Hanibal's Q.O.W.

Replies, turn 399:

Q.O.W. -- I think that if your KD is lower in desperation, you're more likely to
surrender than draw out the fight.  Drawing out the fight by having a higher KD gives
the attacker more chance to kill you.  But you could defend and make a come-back.
But that higher KD also lowers your defensive ability somewhat. -- Adie

Hanibal's Q.o.W -- Yes, lowering your own KD helps keep you alive and allows you to
surrender...hopefully in time. -- Armalias

Hanibal -- The choice of kill desire in desperation seems to be a very tactically
important one.  I do believe that lowering kill desire will tend to preserve a
warrior's life by making him give up (and end the fight) sooner.  This also means
the warrior may end up losing fights he could have won if he had hung around.  I
think scum strategy is a good example of this.  While it may be counterintuitive, a
good scum strategy involves using a moderate to high kill desire.  This is done to
prevent them from giving up prematurely.  Also, most managers don't care too much if
their scum gets killed, so there's no point to running with a low KD.  There's a very
good article on the total parry written by Scrag, in which this scheme is discussed.
Maybe you saw it in Noblish.   Personally, I either lower or raise KD in desperation,
based on my expectations for a particular warrior.  I think it was Miles that first
wrote on this way of looking at kill desire, and I believe it to be the most correct.
Other published theories, such as Jessie Jest's, are variably more questionable.
(But then, everything Jessie Jest wrote should be taken with a grain of salt.) --
Generalissimo Puerco

Question, turn 399:

All -- If you have 18 HP and cannot take a lot of punishment and raise con once to
normal--20 HP, does the rating affect the rate at which you take damage or do you
just have 2 more Hit Points? -- Hanibal's Q.O.W.

Replies, turn 400:

Hanibal's QOW -- I think you just get a bump in hit points.  But that little bump
makes a big difference.  I think armor and warrior experience are the only factors
that affect the rate of damage per blow. -- Adie
P.S.  There's a new chart for hit points that is more accurate and does not involve a
luck factor.

Hanibal -- I think the amount of damage a warrior can take is not variable but
constant.  The variables in the equation are:  the weapon being struck with and the
armor it is striking, and the attack and damage-dealing ability of the warrior doing
the swinging.  Not to mention kill desire, as discussed last turn. -- Generalissimo
Puerco

      * }%|[-----+O+-----]|%{ * }%|[-----+O+-----]|%{ * }%|[-----+O+-----]|%{ *

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

                                     Duelmasters
                                     -----------
 DM   9 ZUKAL (turn 736): WATSON of SERPENTS HOLD 3 (Khisanth, mgr.)
 DM  12 RIZTAB (turn 738): GHOST of THE UNDEAD (Death Jester, mgr.)
 DM  13 DULLENS (turn 706): FRANKIE of SERPENTS HOLD 929 (Khisanth, mgr.)
 DM  15 MALCORN (turn 732): STOLEYOURSPOT of BASH BROS PARKING (Assurnasirbanipal)
 DM  16 WILLAF (turn 734): SLIDE TO HELL of DEVIL'S PLAYGROUND (The Dark One, mgr.)
 DM  17 ALJAFIR (turn 725): PING of G.O.L.G. (?, mgr.)
 DM  19 ZUWAYZA (turn 726): NEWT ROCKNE of MAN OR BEAST? (The Dark One, mgr.)
 DM  28 MORYA (turn 365): KOROSHIYA ICHI of LORD OF DISCIPLINE (Longshot, mgr.)
 DM  29 LAPUR (turn 723): SPIN MCDUECAN of CLAN CROW (Owsly, mgr.)
 DM  31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 363): GROM HELLSCREAM of THE STORM REAVERS (?, mgr.)
 DM  32 ARVAT (turn 720): PIMP IN A BOX of DEATH BY DESIGN (Bubba Ganoosh, mgr.)
 DM  33 NIATOLI ISLAND (turn 717): PRINCE VALIANT of KNIGHTS OF LEGEND (?, mgr)
 DM  35 MURSKA (turn 709): URCHIN of SEA DOGS (One Armed Bandit, mgr.)
 DM  43 VEASTIAN (turn 667): HALFTIME of EPIC RAP (Howlin' Wolf, mgr.)
 DM  45 STORMCROWE (turn 340): THE JANITOR of AVID FANS (Crip, mgr.)
 DM  47 NORTH FORK (turn 335): DING DONG of LAND OF OZ (Oz, mgr.)
 DM  50 SNOWBOUND (turn 322): THE BEATLES of OPEN SESAME (Crip, mgr.)
 DM  56 ROCANIS (turn 599): BACKLASH of SERPENTS' HOLD (Khisanth, mgr.)
 DM  60 ARADI (turn 584): DAISY DAWG of RED DOG GANG (Spot, mgr.)
 DM  61 JURINE (turn 566): FIFINE GILLY of MIDDLE WAY 16 (Jorja, mgr.)
 DM  65 DAL SHANG (turn 560): KALDAN TEN KARAN of SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.)
 DM  73 ERINIKA (turn 570): EDMONDS of GASHOUSE GANG (Crip, mgr.)
 DM  74 DAYLA KIV (turn 521): HOPE of TOLBINS LADIES (Tolbin, mgr.)
 DM  75 JADE MOUNTAIN (turn 516): DEADLY FORCE of CRITICALS (Howlin' Wolf, mgr.)
 DM  78 LIN TIRIAN (turn 507): SERGEANT 2 of MEDAL OF HONOR Z2 (The Anarchist, mgr.)
ADM 103 FREE BLADES (turn 624): DONKEY HOTAY of MAN OR BEAST? (The Dark One, mgr.)

                                      Top Teams
                                      ---------
 DM   9 ZUKAL (turn 736): QUEEN (Howlin' Wolf, mgr.)
 DM  12 RIZTAB (turn 738): THE UNDEAD (Death Jester, mgr.)
 DM  13 DULLENS (turn 706): CARDOW HUNTERS (Jorja, mgr.)
 DM  15 MALCORN (turn 732): TERMINUS (Carick, mgr.)
 DM  16 WILLAF (turn 734): GOLDEN GLADIATORS (Midas, mgr.)
 DM  17 ALJAFIR (turn 725): A UNIT (Padre, mgr.)
 DM  19 ZUWAYZA (turn 726): THE MAGNIFICENT MAGS (Jorja, mgr.)
 DM  28 MORYA (turn 365): LORD OF DISCIPLINE (Longshot, mgr.)
 DM  29 LAPUR (turn 723): THE GUILD (Guido, mgr.)
 DM  31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 363): THE STORM REAVERS (?, mgr.)
 DM  32 ARVAT (turn 7720: COLLEGE RADIO (Floyd, mgr.)
 DM  33 NIATOLI ISLAND (turn 717): BIG LAKE BANDITS (Den, mgr.)
 DM  35 MURSKA (turn 709): CHILDREN OF LLYR (Jorja, mgr.)
 DM  43 VEASTIAN (turn 667): TOLBIN'S X-MEN (Tolbin, mgr.)
 DM  45 STORMCROWE (turn 340): AVID FANS (Crip, mgr.)
 DM  47 NORTH FORK (turn 335): BAAL'S MINIONS (Var, mgr.)
 DM  50 SNOWBOUND (turn 322): LIFE IMPACTS (Smitty, mgr.)
 DM  56 ROCANIS (turn 599): MEDAL OF HONOR A11 (The Anarchist, mgr.)
 DM  60 ARADI (turn 554): MEDAL OF HONOR B11 (The Anarchist, mgr.)
 DM  61 JURINE (turn 566): MIDDLE WAY 16 (Jorja, mgr.)
 DM  65 DAL SHANG (turn 560): MEDAL OF HONOR C11 (The Anarchist, mgr.)
 DM  73 ERINIKA (turn 270): GASHOUSE GANG (Crip, mgr.)
 DM  74 DAYLA KIV (turn 521): TOLBINS LADIES (Tolbin, mgr.)
 DM  75 JADE MOUNTAIN (turn 516): SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.)
 DM  78 LIN TIRIAN (turn 507): SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.)
ADM 103 FREE BLADES (turn 624): DIRT DEVILS et al (The Dark One, mgr.)

                                   Recent Graduates
                                  -----------------
 DM   9 ZUKAL (turn 736): WATSON of SERPENTS HOLD 3 (Khisanth, mgr.)
 DM  12 RIZTAB (turn 738): GHOST of THE UNDEAD (Death Jester, mgr.)
                           KANE TOAD of KAOS FROGS (Grimm, mgr.)
                           SKELETON of THE UNDEAD (Death Jester, mgr.)
                           GUILLOTINE of BLADES OF TERROR (The Dark One, mgr.)
 DM  13 DULLENS (turn 704): LITTLE GRAY BIRD of CARDOW HUNTERS (Jorja, mgr.)
 DM  15 MALCORN (turn 731): DUSKBLOOD PUDDING of SHEWISH BURRET (One Armed Bandit)
 DM  16 WILLAF (turn 733): GOLDEN GLOBE of GOLDEN GLADIATORS (Midas, mgr.)
 DM  17 ALJAFIR (turn 724): GABOGOOL of STORMY'S TROOPERS I (Storm Lord, mgr.)
 DM  29 LAPUR (turn 723): SPIN MCDUECAN of CLAN CROW (Owsly, mgr.)
 DM  31 CHIMLEVTAL (turn 363): GROM HELLSCREAM of THE STORM REAVERS (?, mgr.)
                   (turn 362): GENERAL PURPOSE of MILITARY MAYHEM (Crip, mgr.)
 DM  32 ARVAT (turn 720): PIMP IN A BOX of DEATH BY DESIGN (Bubba Ganoosh, mgr.)
              (turn 719): BRITISH SEA POWER of COLLEGE RADIO (Floyd, mgr.)
 DM  33 NIATOLI ISLAND (turn 716): TORG THUNDERCLAP of BIG LAKE BANDITS (Den, mgr)
                                   LORTAN FALCONEYE of BIG LAKE BANDITS (Den, mgr.)
 DM  45 STORMCROWE (turn 340): THE JANITOR of AVID FANS (Crip, mgr.)
                               A TALENT SCOUT of AVID FANS (Crip, mgr.)
                   (turn 339): AURORA MARIE of NORTHERN LIGHTS (Jorja, mgr.)
 DM  47 NORTH FORK (turn 334): PAUL of CHEERS (Otis, mgr.)
 DM  56 ROCANIS (turn 599): MEECHAM of MEN OF STEEL (Howlin' Wolf, mgr.)
 DM  61 JURINE (turn 564): ZENSU LASAGNA of SHEWISH BUFFET (One Armed Bandit, mgr.)
 DM  65 DAL SHANG (turn 558): LORAND TEN SORN of SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.)
 DM  73 ERINIKA (turn 270): CARPENTER of GASHOUSE GANG (Crip, mgr.)
 DM  74 DAYLA KIV (turn 520): GORAN DJIAN of SAND DANCERS (Jorja, mgr.)

                                 DUELMASTER'S COLUMN
                             Notes from the arena champ.

     We missed the deadline for our ads and DM Column last turn, so we apologize.  I
am one fight away from going 10-0.  Assur says I've beaten all the hard matchups
except Kung-Fu Master, but that he'd prefer me face anyone but the Kung-Fu Master,
who uses the AB style and can be a real pest for champions.  Apparently ABs have
developed super defenses when they fight without weapons.  And Kung-Fu Master does
just that.
     After the fight, regardless of the outcome, we Pikers will be packing our bags
and leaving Noblish Island.  Assur will be bringing the Bash Bros Wastes to Noblish
Island for his next circuit.  I'm sure he'll talk more of them in the newsletter next
turn.

So Long! -- Horrible Learning

                                      SPY REPORT

     Welcome NOBLISH ISLAND.  I, Olaf Modeen remember this place well.  Many the 
fights have I fought here.  The celebrations, the disappointments...  What's with 
FAVE RHYTHM?  He actually beat HIGH WAY 2's MEOSHA PALMER, and walked away with 17 
more points from the fight.  Major screwup at HIGH WAY 2.  MEOSHA PALMER lost 13 
points to FAVE RHYTHM.  Some new strategies, perhaps?  Maybe MEOSHA PALMER will 
provide more easy wins...  Our Duelmaster has lost, folks, lost to CONVICTED 
ASSASSIN, BUT HORRIBLE LEARNING is still the Duelmaster because he has the most 
recognition points!  Wouldn't it be nice to have live subjects to practice on?  I 
hear some team is looking into the uses of convicted prisoners.   
     If at first you don't succeed, avoid.  That'll get you in the Spyreports.  How 
well I know the feeling of being in the most avoided team!  Don't fall out of 
practive, BASH BROS PIKER!  Management must be dealin', as the boys at COUNT ON ME 
ain't reelin'!  BASH BROS PIKER's mad!  What do people see in 3 POINT SHOT?  His 
6-4-0?  COUNT ON ME ain't talkin', but he's got 23 points.   
     There have been some calls to lengthen the time limit.  Do you want the fighters 
to walk away, or not?  We all knew it had to happen sooner or later.  A warrior can't 
stick around with a 5-5-0, and FIRST DOWN easily took care of FAVE WEAPON.  Here's 
some advice:  study your opponent, master many skills, fight dirty.   
     Many other cities have retirement homes for aged warriors.  Any plans here?  
NOBLISH ISLAND is a nice place to live, but I don't like to live in nice places.  I 
don't want to overstay my welcome...-- Olaf Modeen  

DUELMASTER                     W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 HORRIBLE LEARNING 9489        9   1  0    81       BASH BROS PIKER (1634)

CHALLENGER ADEPTS              W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 FIRST DOWN 9486               7   3  1    66       COUNT ON ME (1633)

ADEPTS                         W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 FAVE RHYTHM 9491              5   5  0    52       BASH BROS PIKER (1634)
 THIRTY-LOVE 9488              8   2  0    48       COUNT ON ME (1633)
 MEOSHA PALMER 9508            6   1  1    37       HIGH WAY 2 (1637)
 INDY 500 9485                 7   3  0    34       COUNT ON ME (1633)

CHALLENGER INITIATES           W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 KEOSAQUA LANE 9506            4   3  0    28       HIGH WAY 2 (1637)
 100 YARD DASH 9484            7   3  0    24       COUNT ON ME (1633)

INITIATES                      W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 3 POINT SHOT 9487             6   4  0    23       COUNT ON ME (1633)
 STRIKER 9469                  4   1  1    23       GHOSTWALKERS (1630)
 JACK OF ALL TRADES 9492       4   6  0    23       BASH BROS PIKER (1634)
 STARFIRE 9472                 2   1  1    23       GHOSTWALKERS (1630)
 LOW SKILL BASE 9490           3   7  0    19       BASH BROS PIKER (1634)
 THUMPER 9471                  3   2  0    15       GHOSTWALKERS (1630)
 QUINCY ROSS 9509              3   4  0    15       HIGH WAY 2 (1637)
 SMYTHE TODD 9510              3   4  0    13       HIGH WAY 2 (1637)
 SWIFTY 9470                   1   3  1    10       GHOSTWALKERS (1630)
 MILTON ONLY 9507              1   6  0    10       HIGH WAY 2 (1637)

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

THE DEAD                W  L K TEAM NAME            SLAIN BY              TURN Revenge?
CONVICTED THIEF         0  0 0                      STRIKER 9469          391  NONE
MORDANT DESERTER        0  0 0                      SWIFTY 9470           391  NONE
FAVE WEAPON 9493        5  5 0 BASH BROS PIKER 1634 FIRST DOWN 9486       391   
BRUTE 9473              0  4 0 GHOSTWALKERS 1630    WURM KIN              391  NONE

                                     PERSONAL ADS

A salute to Horrible Learning a 9-0 Duelmaster piker.  He and his Manager are
supercalifragilisticexpialidocious! -- Count Number (Abba Cuss)

Shall I try to break that 10-0, or should I support it?  Hmmmmm.  First Down and
Thirty-Love are wondering.  Or, will Horrible make an easy challenge for the 10?  I
must think on this.... -- Abba Cuss

This will be the last round for the Count On Me team.  It is likely that I will lead
them into oblivion for an infinite rest.  Next up for The Consortium is El Paso,
managed by Consortium's newest--Ponce De Leon. -- Abba Cuss (Count Number to you)

Jack Of All Trades -- May you grow large in the shadows of too many calories and too
little exercise.  (Your manager also.) -- 100 Yard Dash

Fave Rhythm -- My favorite rhythm was better than your favorite rhythm....  Ha! --
First Down

Low Skill Base -- I went vroom, vroom; you went silent. -- Indy 500

Assur -- Was that 2-1 in my favor? -- Abba Cuss

Milton Only -- My shooting was on today.  Swish, swish, swish. -- 3 Point Shot

Smythe Todd -- Your lateral movement sucked!  Perhaps if you were lighter and dropped
the Todd from the name?  Smythe is solid. -- Thirty-Love

Good bye to all.  It has been fun.  I hope I taught you something.  If you have any
questions, ask Ponce De Leon.  He is quite old and wise. -- Abba Cuss

Quincy Ross -- As an AB, am considering fighting unarmed?  If I do, how much armor
should I wear? -- Starfire

All -- Can I ask my questions here, or should I use team spotlights? -- Spectre, mgr
Ghost Walkers

     Here is fine.

Count -- 2-1 in your favor last turn. -- Assur

Need to go 2-3 to keep my piker stable above .500!  Best of luck to me. -- Assur

Spectre -- Welcome and good luck to you!  We are here to try and help. -- Assur

Striker -- Different weapon!  "Marginally effective" means you have the wrong weapon
for your style.  Check the chart at the end of the turn 389 newsletter.  Quincy Ross
P.S.  Doesn't matter that you won with it.  Okay, it MATTERS, but with a suitable
weapon, you'd have won better and WILL WIN more often.

And the rest of our fights are against Assur and Abba Cuss, so no point giving THEM
advice, right? -- those of us out on High Way 2

                                  LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS

BRUTE was butchered by WURM KIN in a 1 minute bloody Dark Arena fight.
THIRTY-LOVE vanquished KEOSAQUA LANE in a 1 minute uneven Challenge battle.
INDY 500 subdued JACK OF ALL TRADES in a action packed 1 minute Challenge fight.
THUMPER was bested by 3 POINT SHOT in a popular 6 minute Challenge contest.
HORRIBLE LEARNING was defeated by CONVICTED ASSASSIN in a 5 minute Title match.
FAVE RHYTHM viciously subdued MEOSHA PALMER in a 4 minute bloody fight.
FIRST DOWN executed FAVE WEAPON in a 1 minute mismatched brawl.
100 YARD DASH luckily beat MILTON ONLY in a action packed 4 minute gruesome melee.
QUINCY ROSS won victory over OSKSI NOBLE in a 3 minute duel.
LOW SKILL BASE narrowly defeated SMYTHE TODD in a 2 minute duel.
STARFIRE slaughtered CONVICTED THIEF in a 1 minute one-sided fight.
SWIFTY killed MORDANT DESERTER in a 3 minute novice's melee.
STRIKER assassinated CONVICTED THIEF in a 1 minute one-sided match.

                                    BATTLE REPORT

             MOST POPULAR                        RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS     
|FIGHTING STYLE               FIGHTS        FIGHTING STYLE     W -   L -  K   PERCENT|
|PARRY-STRIKE                     6         TOTAL PARRY       19 -   8 -  1      70  |
|STRIKING ATTACK                  4         LUNGING ATTACK     2 -   1 -  0      67  |
|TOTAL PARRY                      3         BASHING ATTACK    12 -   9 -  0      57  |
|BASHING ATTACK                   2         WALL OF STEEL     10 -   8 -  0      56  |
|WALL OF STEEL                    2         PARRY-STRIKE      30 -  26 -  1      54  |
|AIMED BLOW                       1         STRIKING ATTACK   19 -  17 -  1      53  |
|PARRY-RIPOSTE                    1         PARRY-RIPOSTE      3 -   3 -  1      50  |
|SLASHING ATTACK                  1         AIMED BLOW         4 -   4 -  1      50  |
|PARRY-LUNGE                      0         SLASHING ATTACK    1 -   6 -  0      14  |
|LUNGING ATTACK                   0         PARRY-LUNGE        0 -   0 -  0       0  |

Turn 391 was great if you     Not so great if you used      The fighting styles of the
used the fighting styles:     the fighting styles:          top eleven warriors are:

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

                               TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE

FIGHTING STYLE   WARRIOR                     W   L  K PNTS TEAM NAME                  
PARRY-STRIKE     HORRIBLE LEARNING 9489      9   1  0   81 BASH BROS PIKER (1634)
STRIKING ATTACK  FIRST DOWN 9486             7   3  1   66 COUNT ON ME (1633)
BASHING ATTACK   THIRTY-LOVE 9488            8   2  0   48 COUNT ON ME (1633)
TOTAL PARRY      MEOSHA PALMER 9508          6   1  1   37 HIGH WAY 2 (1637)
Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above.

The overall popularity leader is FIRST DOWN 9486.  The most popular warrior this turn 
was THUMPER 9471.  The ten other most popular fighters were HORRIBLE LEARNING 9489, 
MILTON ONLY 9507, INDY 500 9485, FAVE RHYTHM 9491, LOW SKILL BASE 9490, SMYTHE TODD 
9510, THIRTY-LOVE 9488, JACK OF ALL TRADES 9492, FIRST DOWN 9486, and 100 YARD DASH 
9484.

The least popular fighter this week was 3 POINT SHOT 9487.  The other ten least 
popular fighters were FAVE WEAPON 9493, MEOSHA PALMER 9508, KEOSAQUA LANE 9506, BRUTE 
9473, STRIKER 9469, SWIFTY 9470, STARFIRE 9472, QUINCY ROSS 9509, 100 YARD DASH 9484, 
and FIRST DOWN 9486.

                  MAIL-IN TOURNEY LVI

INITIATES TOURNEY                      W  L  K         TEAM NAME            
MAT TUKHOLT 9438 (4-4-0)               1  3  0         MISFITS OF DOOM      

                             The Effects of Coordination

     Coordination has long been ruled as having no effect on a warrior.  I have 
noticed a few things that may be the cause of certain coordination levels.  So I 
decided to write this article to give the general DM populace something to ponder.  
Below is the coordination table:

Coordination =  SP + DF

06 - 16  = Clumsy
17 - 20  = Slightly Uncoordinated
21 - 27  = Normal
28 - 31  = Highly Coordinated
32 - 39  = Very Highly Coordinated
40 - 42  = Marvel of Fighting Coordination

     Since I run a lot of bashers that have a clumsy rating most of the time, I 
noticed a few things that happen to them and not the high coordination warriors I 
have.  Most people don't have clumsy warriors, save some bashers and TPs, so it may 
not be paid that much attention to.
     The first thing I have noticed is that a clumsy warrior seems to drop his weapon 
more often than a higher coordination warrior.  So I think that maybe he has a higher 
chance to do this than normally coordinated warriors.
     Second, I noticed that clumsy warriors have harder time trying to quick draw 
their back-up weapon, causing them to fumble around trying to get it.
     Third is that the clumsy warrior also is slower to get up after he has been 
knocked down.  It may also influence the roll on whether you get knocked down or not, 
along with other factors.
     These things aren't as noticeable the higher the coordination becomes.  That's 
probably why a lot of people don't place any  value on coordination.  At the higher 
levels of the game there aren't any clumsy warriors, so coordination isn't noticed.  
You can still get knocked down, lose your weapon, and draw your back-up quickly, but 
the odds are more in your favor with a higher coordination in my opinion.
     Well, may joy and happiness be with you.  If you would like to chat , I can be 
reached at 103260.3347@compuserve.com  
     You may diplo me at LORDS OF THE ABYSS, in DM 11, or any of the JOKER'S WILDS 
scattered about.

                                                         Ta-Ta,
                                                         Sir Jessie Jest
                                            (He who always gets the last laugh......)

                                   The Basic Ripper

     Why isn't one of basic's most entertaining styles, a style capable of beating all 
others, a common sight upon the sands?  The myth that rippers are difficult to run and 
inherently prone to dying is widely accepted.  True, the graveyard is full of rippers 
that began their careers running little numbers and the parry tactic.  This is no 
mystery given that very few rippers start with great defenses and the parry tactic 
destroys a young ripper's offense.  In their efforts to make better punching bags, 
many managers have turned to big constitutions and heavy armor.  A dose of sanity is 
long overdue.  If you would like to run some rippers who will survive and win, read 
on.
     DESIGN:  My approach is somewhat unorthodox.  I maintain an evolving list of 
physical requirements for each style, i.e., endurance, punishment, damage, and carry 
capacity.  If you don't have the means to accurately forecast these ratings, ask 
around.  If at all possible, I first max out a new rollup's WL at a value of 15, 17, 
or 21 and then compare the rollup's physical potential with each style's physical 
requirements.  Generally, the style that matches up best and requires me to add the 
least number of points to ST and CN is the one I want.  It isn't absolutely necessary 
for a fighter to be physically fit at the beginning of his career.  Plan ahead.  Will 
a few preselected attribute trains make him so?  Must points be added to the rollup's 
ST or CN so that he can make the grade with no more than two trains per attribute?  
Which weapons will he use?  With these questions answered, it's simply a matter of 
taking WT to the highest odd value possible (avoid 19) and then doing the same with 
DF.  Godlings are not born as a results of how many points you can pump into WT, WL, 
and DF; that's luck's job.
     Young rippers need to be able to go fast for two minutes without tiring.  If your 
ripper isn't physically fit, he will slow down.  If he slows down, you are gambling 
with his life.  The more frail the warrior, the greater the gamble.  That said, if 
your ripper can quickly meet the following criteria and learn reasonably well, you 
will get your money's worth.
     Endurance: Something in the neighborhood of 350 (that's {ST+CN}WL)
     Punishment: Anywhere from the high end of very frail to midrange normal
     Damage:  Normal
     Capacity: Cannot carry a lot (minimum ST/CN combos: 9/8, 10/7, 11/6, 12/5)

     ST: 9 +   Midgets need an 11 or better.
     CN: See Endurance, punishment, and capacity requirements
     SZ: Small (3-8) to medium (9-14)
     WT: 15+   If your ripper doesn't learn, he's toast.
     WL: 15+   See endurance and punishment requirements.
     SP: Though frequently unimportant, it helps to have points here if you're stuck 
with a few 15's in WT, WL, and DF.
     DF: 15+   13 will do if you're fortunate to have a big WT and/or WL.

Strats:        X    8    9    5    5    5    8
               X    8    5    3    3    3    10
               X    6    7    7    7    7    5
               ARM ------------------------- >
               HE -------------------------- >
               N --------------------------- >
               N ------------------------ >  R

     Why the missing numbers in the first minute?  You'll want to find what works for 
your new ripper and possibly change his numbers as he develops.  8-8-6 is probably the 
best opening minute for a young ripper.  If your youngster has a high speed, try 10-
10-6.  6-8-6 is a bit slow for my taste.  Nevertheless, this might be the way to go 
even if your ripper doesn't need to build up his endurance.  Something I call "the 
change" occurs when your ripper approaches his master in riposte, his AD Ex in parry, 
and Experts in attack, defense and initiative.  This is a moment of decision.  If your 
ripper takes normal punishment, this is when you can opt to slow him down.  I don't do 
this, but I have seen 5-7-5 and 5-5-5 parry work rather well.  It's probably wise for 
a slow-running ripper to run fast in desperation.  If your ripper continues to run 
fast after "the change," a first minute strat of 8-10-4 often works well.
     WEAPONS:  A scimitar or longsword belongs in your ripper's hand.  After he starts 
critting, check to see if the epee is his favorite.  I don't believe in heavy backups 
for youngsters; a dagger will do.  Most youngsters will benefit from an offhand dagger 
(preferred), hatchet, or shortsword.  After "the change," rippers who don't slow down 
can improve the quality of their attacks by getting rid of their off hand weapons.  
These guys will need a backup scimitar, longsword, or epee.  Rippers who do slow down 
should keep their offhand weapons.
     ARMOR:  Very frail rippers should debut in ASM/H.  After ten fights or so, it's 
probably best to go with APL/H.  Guys who cannot take a lot of punishment belong in 
ARM/H for their entire basic careers.  Put them in ALE/H if you're feeling gutsy.  
Rippers who take normal punishment can debut in APL/H, ARM/H, or ASM/H.  After ten 
fights or so, it's definitely time for APL/H.  If you decide to slow one of these guys 
down, you'd better put him back in ARM/H or ASM/H.
     CHALLENGES:  Scummers deserve numbers like 4-1-6; keep that big desperation, 
though.  If you know that an opponent is out to kick you when you're down, go with 5-
8-5 or 5-5-5 while he's playing dead and 8-8-5 and 9-5-7 when he's active.  Good aimed 
blows are a pain.  Still, like every other style, they can be beaten with standard 
strats.
     Many people have contributed indirectly to the content of this article.  Foremost 
in my mind are The Lunatic, Scrag, Voo-Doo, U-Star, Shark, Moriarty, and Wormtongue.  
Thanks.  If you have a bone to pick or a story to tell, you know where to find me.

                                                       Cadmus
                                                       Wild Oats (479)
                                                       Solven, DM 22

                          Stimpy's Thoughts on Total Parries

                                       part II

     Well, when we last spoke I gave you a rundown on I feel TPs should be designed.  
Now I will give you my ideas on how to run them.
     First, you need to consider what type of warrior you now have.  A total parry is 
what its name suggests.  Total defense.  The idea around a TP is to concentrate on 
defense first and utmost.  Only when the situation arises will the TP decide to 
attack.  With this in mind NEVER run a TP with an offensive effort (OE) above 5.  In 
doing so you have just told your TP to do what they weren't designed to do.  Go 
offensive.  If you want to run your TP above 5, you should have made an offensive 
styled warrior, NOT a TP.  By using a high OE, you cause your TP to ignore defense and 
go offense.  This results in numerous "flailing" and "wild" attacks.  So don't do it.
     While running your TP, you may find that he tends to really turn on the offense 
often.  That is typical, typical of a warrior who favors initiative skills.  This does 
not mean that you should boost your OE.  What is happening is that one of your 
warrior's favorite learns is initiative.  So he/she will be naturally adept in 
initiative.  And remember that initiative is the skill that allows you to continuously 
make attacks on your opponent.  Since your TP decided to attack, your opponent should 
be relatively worn down.  So it will be hard for your opponent to steal that 
initiative back from you.  Hence the reason that your TP looks like an offensive 
killer.  But that's good.  It means that you have a very dangerous warrior on your 
hands.  High endurance burning styles, look out!
     I know, I know!!!  There are managers out there still that believe in the 
offensive TP and suggest using higher OE.  That's all fine and dandy.  Let those 
managers do just that.  I personally guarantee that if you run your TP with a low OE 
like the style was designed to do, you'll win fights.  Experiment with unorthodox 
strategies when you get a better hang of the game.
     Activity level (AL) is the variable in TP strategies.  I would definitely begin 
running a TP with a moderate/low AL.  Try a 3 at first.  After a few fights you'll see 
if your TP likes to dodge more or parry more.  It should be quite obvious; your TP 
will learn more skills in his "favorite" area.  Chances are, though, if your TP has 
received the statement: "avoiding rather than trading blows," or "relying on his speed 
to stay out of danger," your TP would rather dodge than parry.  And that's just fine.  
Boost your AL to about a 4 or 5.  If you choose to use the dodge tactic in defense, 
use AL up to 7.  Beyond that tends to hurt your warrior more than it helps.
     So why not go with an AL of 7 all the time if your TP likes to dodge more than 
parry, you might ask?  That's simple; your TP may like to dodge more, BUT HE STILL 
PARRIES.  So you'll need to be less active to allow your TP that choice.  With an AL 
of 4-5, your warrior will dodge when it is more advantageous, parry when it isn't.
     Kill desire varies greatly from warrior to warrior.  To be on the safe side, I 
always go low KD with my TPs, until they gain expert in attack.  After that point, I 
may begin to experiment, seeing how my warrior reacts to various KDs.  Generally, if 
your warrior learns attack skills relatively well, then a higher KD won't inhibit them 
at all.  If this is the case, I believe that your warrior is not looking for landing 
several blows to win the match (favoring initiative skills), but is instead looking to 
land a few good blows (favoring attack skills).  In the latter case, a moderate to 
high KD may help.  Keep in mind though that your TP is still defensively oriented.  An 
extremely high KD will cause any warrior to behave like a berserker, and may cause 
your TP to make lots of bad attacks.  With this in mind, stay below 7.
     Now to place it all together...

Minute         1    2    3    4    5    6on  Desp
OE             2 ------------------------ >  varies
AL             2 ------------------------ >    "
KD             2 ------------------------ >    "

or

Minute         1    2    3    4    5    6on  Desp
OE             2 ------------------------ >  varies
AL             4 ------------------------ >    "
KD             2 ------------------------ >    "

     These show my general strategies for parry and dodging oriented warriors, 
respectively.  Seldom do I use any tactics, unless I am making a challenge and wish my 
warrior to behave differently to that challenge (i.e., using the dodge tactic against 
a lunger).  At that point I would refer to the paragraphs in the beginning to 
customize that particular minute to fit the tactic.
     Attack and protect locations are totally up to you.  I like to protect the head 
and body, while attacking the head, arms, and legs.  This protects my vitals, yet can 
allow my warrior to land blows on parts of the body that can cause a warrior to lose a 
fight with the minimum number of hits.
     Desperation is my opposite area.  If I was relying on a low AL in the regular 
minutes, I will boost it in desperation.  While going vice versa if I had a high AL in 
regular minutes.
     Now the one tactic I haven't touched on is the riposte tactic.  Occasionally your 
TP will favor this tactic.  When he does, I like to raise my OE to 3, sometimes 4, and 
the AL to 4.  If I use the riposte tactic, I will use 4-5 OE and a 3-5 AL.  When these 
numbers are any lower, your TP may refrain from attacking in a riposte situation in 
favor of more defense.
     I have found that these strategies work well whether your warrior fights as a 
SCUM or skilled TP.  If you remember from my last article, the difference between the 
schools of thought are the amount of damage the warrior is willing/able to take.
     Well, I hope that this has been informative for the newer players, and the older 
ones, too.  Good luck and see you on the sands.

                                                                 Stimpy

                              MORE ADVICE FOR BEGINNERS

     Many essays dwell on style specifics.  This piece describes a playing philosophy.  
When you just want to WIN, create scum TPs and size 17 monsters with impunity.  Don't 
worry about getting these warriors into ADM!  YOU'RE concerned with winning those "Top 
Team" and "Team on the Move" awards.
     By comparison, managers with an excellent setup shouldn't be too concerned with 
the team win/loss record.  Their character must develop, gain every skill possible, in 
order to blossom into a deadly duelist.  THEIR goal is to advance this fighter into 
ADM, and eternal life.
     Here are some broad parameters for assessing a warrior's value, and a few 
representative samples:
Primus Bound:
     - WT, WL and DF total 49+.
     - 4 or more wit statements.
     - Start with Expert rating or gain it in one or two skills.
     - [13-5-5-21-13-10-17, 6-6-9-17-21-9-17, 11-7-9-17-17-6-17, etc.]
Basic/ADM Only:
     - WT, WL and DF total to 35+.
     - At least 3 wit statements.
     - Gain Expert rating in no more than five skills.
     - [17-9-10-17-9-9-13, 13-11-11-17-13-8-11, 9-13-10-15-21-5-11, etc.]
Dark Arena: [Any two of these qualify the character as "expendable"]
     - WT less than 13.
     - Less than 3 wit statements.
     - Is clumsy.
     - Has very little endurance.
     - [15-15-16-11-13-5-9, 7-18-13-17-5-13-11, 13-15-13-13-17-6-7, etc.]
     The Primus Bound setups are rare; they are coddled, protected and sometimes 
sandbagged for a year or so in order to build up a few Ad Experts to help them survive 
in the arena.
     The Basic/ADM Only fighters have mediocre to decent stats, and are going to be 
very dependent on their overview for that elusive "luck factor."  This class of 
warrior should be highly competitive.  Most of the fighters seen in the arena are in 
this category.
     Finally, the Dark Arena fighters: conceived from pitiful setups with little 
chance of being competitive.  However, these rollups might prove useful.  Don't fight 
the system; learn to use it to your advantage!  Many managers send fighters to the 
D.A. who might have provided them with a successful (if brief) career in Basic.
     Give BIG numskulls lots of ST and SP; these are your killer LUs and STs.  More WL 
= LU; Higher DF = ST. (I don't advise making Bashers unless you have a 17+ wit and 15+ 
points in WL.)  Give LITTLE morons a boost to WL, ST and CN; these are your TP scum.  
If they have absolutely no WT or WL, escort them to the Dark Arena.
     Of course, some fighters have good stats and decent overviews yet still lose most 
of their fights in the beginning of their career.  The "old" method of dealing with 
this phenomenon was to bump all stats by two or more.  Now, it's generally agreed that 
this increases performance at the cost of future skill learns.  This takes away from a 
duelist's competitive abilities in the higher levels of play.  Competitive fighters 
should be making as few stat raises as possible until they have "maxed out" in at 
least three of four skill areas. (Some managers advocate waiting until a character is 
completely "maxed out" before raising stats; this will take a long time for most 
warriors.)
     Some warriors (particularly the finesse styles: AB, PR, PL, PS) take a little 
longer to develop.  If they DON'T have the stats or the overview to raise visions of a 
Primus inductee, take a HARD look at their potential.  Will stat raises help?  Well 
they come easily?  Is the rest of the team strong?  How much money are you willing to 
invest in this character?
     ANYONE can create an awe-inspiring fighter by adding a couple of points to key 
stats.  It means the fighter may lose some of its long-term potential, but so what?  
Duelmaster, Most Popular Fighter, Best Win/Loss Record, etc. all equate into free 
fights and recognition.  If you don't have that Godling in your stable, what other 
goal might you have but to excel in your arena?!!
     I urge new managers to run EVERY setup at least once in the arena.  Look on 
rollups as a challenge; try to make the best killer or scum possible out of Dark Arena 
material.  There's a tremendous amount of experience to be gained by this.
     See what effect a high ST or DF has on specific styles; compare overviews to find 
what works and what doesn't; gain new insights on character design.  You will enjoy 
playing far more than you do now!  You might even come up with a better way of 
designing a character for a specific style, and write an article to share your views.
     The point is, DON'T wait around for the "right" rollup, or waste time and money 
(or sentiment) on characters who aren't doing anything for you.  Play the percentages.  
If a promising warrior is losing repeatedly, be patient.  Once a few AdExperts are 
gained he will probably turn things around.  If you Dark Arena Mutant loses a lot and 
his scumminess or killer-design aren't working, either bump a couple of stats or DA 
him.  If your scum/killer goes out there and wins a few, start paying attention to 
challenges/avoids (which you SHOULD be doing anyway).  Send that scum against a LU or 
ST; send that monster ST against a midget Parry-whatever.  Style vs. style matchups 
are crucial in the early careers of EVERY fighter.
     Generally, even lousy STs, LUs, BAs and TPs do well starting out.  Later the 
finesse styles--PL, PS, PR, AB--usually take over.  Summary: Recognize the difference 
between playing "to win" and playing "longterm."  Start noticing which teams have high 
win/loss percentages: what kind of warriors are they running?  Start sending diplos; 
don't be bashful.  You can bring that win/loss to a respectable level with careful 
play, short-term Mutant killers and scum, and the occasional stat-bump for those 
mediocre fighters whom you plan on retiring later.  Try it and see.  It gives the game 
more spice, you win more often, and you have more FUN!  And just remember... I told 
you so!

                         Diplo me with comments, questions, rebuke:
                              -- The Arcane Kid, of Astral Kin in Osksi (DM-3)

                                  "Favorite Weapons"

     One of the best ways to improve a warrior's record in basic is to find his 
favorite weapon.  The effect of using a favorite weapon is that a warrior's attack 
ability will improve.  A warrior will throw more critical attacks, improve the odds to 
inflict critical damage, and make attacks that are more difficult to dodge and parry.
     There are two methods used to find a favorite weapon.  The first is, "Don't worry 
about it.  They tell you when you get to ADM anyway."  While some managers have the 
patience to wait that long, I would rather have my favorite in hand in fight one!
     The second method is called, "Charting."  The way I chart weapons is I break 
down, statistically, my warrior's attacks with a particular weapon. (No, it's not 
difficult to do!)  I chart 4 categories, (1) Total number of attacks, (2) Total number 
of crit attacks, (3) Total number of crit damages, (4) Total number of knockdowns.
     (1) Total number of attacks (#ATT) -- Record the total number of attacks with the 
weapon in question, including hits, crits, misses, parried attacks, dodged attacks, 
and wild swings.
     (2) Total number of crit attacks (C ATT) -- Record the total number of critical 
attacks with the weapon in question.  Do not get good attacks confused with critical 
attacks.  A good attack is a statement that is more descriptive than, "strikes with 
dagger," but is not as spectacular as a critical.  An example of a good attack is, 
"Bats outward with her quarterstaff," or, "Makes a lunging attack wielding a short 
spear."  These are more descriptive but are not outstanding.  A critical attack is 
exemplified by spectacular statements such as; "Catapults forward, longsword stabbing 
cruelly at his foe," "Punches with piston-like horsefelling power," or "Hatchet 
flashes with snake-like speed and accuracy."  As you can see, crit attacks are very 
obvious.
     (3) Total number of crit damages (C DAM) -- A crit damage statement will signify 
a significant amount of additional damage and is typified by a statement such as; 
"Spectators cringe as the horrific power of the blow strikes home" or "It was a 
devastating attack."
     (4) Total number of knockdowns (# KD) -- Record every time an opponent is knocked 
off his feet with the weapon in question.
     The next step is to convert this data into a usable format.  To do this I divide 
the last three categories by the first.  This gives a "batting average" of sorts.  
EXAMPLE: Dark One fights his first three fights with a scimitar.  In those three 
fights Dark One made 16 attacks, 2 crit attacks, 4 crit damage, and 1 knockdown.  This 
breaks down as such:
C ATT = .125
C DAM = .25
# KD = .06
     Remember, the more fights with the weapon, the more accurate your chart will be.
     Looking at Dark One's performance with the scimitar we can conclude that it is 
not his favorite weapon.  I determine this by looking at the three categories in order 
of precedence.
     First I look at C ATT:
     .00-.25  Doubtful
     .25-.35  Slight possibility
     .35-.50  Very possible
     .50 +    BINGO!
     If your warrior is critting 50% of the time, stick with that weapon.  Favorite or 
not, it is VERY effective.
     Next is crit damage.  This is trickier to look at, as the primary chance to do 
critical damage is primarily based on strength.
Does little     0%
Normal         1-5% (style dependent)
Good           10%
Great          25%
Tremendous     50%
Awesome        75%
     Look for increases in the expected average crit rate.  These numbers may be a 
little off as I don't have a large enough sample of warriors with high damage ratings.  
In the example, Dark One rated at 25%, and with his great damage rating it appears he 
is not doing any additional crits.
     Finally, knockdowns.  I don't have a fast and easy rule for this, but anything 
over 15% or 20% if attacking the legs, could bear investigating.  It's best to look at 
all three and infer a weapon's performance.
     Dark One switches to a short spear and after 4 fights has 15 attacks, 7 crit 
attacks, 6 crit damages and 2 knockdowns.
C ATT = .466
C DAM = .40
# KD = .13
     This weapon suits him much better.  His crit percentage is up for all categories.  
This weapon has a very good chance to be his favorite weapon.  In this example it 
wasn't, but his W/L record improved with 6 straight wins. (By the way, the names and 
weapons have been changed but the numbers are from one of my ADM warriors.)
     Okay, I've figured out that the weapon I'm using is not my favorite.  What now?  
There are some indicators to help you.  Look at how your warrior uses his current 
weapon.  If he likes to slash a lot, stay with a slashing weapon.  Also, look at good 
attacks.  If a warrior makes quite a few good attacks with the weapon, try a weapon 
that is used in a similar fashion.  I.E. epee is used in similar fashion to a long 
sword.  Dark One loved to lunge with his scimitar at a 3:1 ratio.  Try weapons that 
fit your stats at first but don't be afraid to try a weapon that is out of your stat 
parameters.  Should you find your favorite and you don't have the strength, size and 
deftness to use it, who cares.  The fact that it's your favorite will nullify or 
minimize all those penalties.
     I know that this is a question on the mind of new managers, as it was for me when 
I was new to the game.  I hope someone can get some good use out of this article and 
expand upon the charting method in their own way.  If you have any questions, 
comments, additions, or criticism please feel free to Diplo.
                                   -- Abe
                                      Ango (DM 64, 103)
                                      Imploding Ducks (DM 19, 103)

                                NAME CHANGE-O-RAMA

    There was a line outside the Gladiatorial Commission's registry office.  There 
often was, but surely not now?  Alarond the Scribe, who had drawn office duty today, 
frowned at them.
    A stocky, fit, moderately handsome gladiator stepped up to the counter.  "I want a 
name-change," he said.  "How can I do my best known as," he shuddered, "'Dangling 
Eyeball'?  My name is Joe, and I want to use it."
    A small and very shapely woman stepped up beside him.  "And I am really tired of 
being known as 'DA Bait'."  She smiled, causing Alarond to sway where he stood.  "I'd 
like to be known as... Aphrodite, I think."
    The others crowded forward, each advancing a claim, the babble of voice rising to 
a roar, the crowd beginning to look like a mob--and every member of it armed and 
dangerous.
    Alarond raised his hands to quiet them, without much success.  He raised his 
voice, too.  "We'll do it!  A Name-Change-O-Rama, as soon as we can get the paperwork 
lined up!  Two or three months, maybe--"
    The gladiators howled in protest at the delay.
    "No, listen!  The files here are HUGE, it will take time to get everything 
straight.  You've got to be patient.  It WILL happen!"

                                  *   *   *   *   *  

     Warrior and team name changes will be accepted during the month of January.  If 
you have names you want to change, please contact Customer Service. -- RSI