DUEL 2 NEWSLETTER Date : 11/28/2015 Duedate: 12/11/2015 NOBLISH ISLAND ARENA DM-93 TURN-443 This Weeks Top Honors THE DUELMASTER IS POSITION IS EMPTY Chartered Recognition LeaderUnchartered Recognition Leader POSITION IS EMPTY POSITION IS EMPTY Popularity Leader This Weeks Favorite VAMPIRIAL GENGELBACH THE BLOODLUST (1688) FAMILY NAMES (1695) (93-9849) [3-3-0,27] (93-9883) [1-1-0,7] THE CURRENT TOP TEAM FAMILY NAMES (1695) TEAMS ON THE MOVE TOP CAREER HONORS Team Name Point Gain Chartered Team 1. FAMILY NAMES (1695) 35 2. D-X (457) 27 THE MUPPETS (132) 3. BASH BROS RIPPER (1696) 23 Unchartered Team 4. ROSS' RAIDERS (1689) 3 5. JAZIN'S WOLVES (1694) 0 D-X (457) The Top Teams Career Win-Loss Record W L K % Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns W L K 1/ 0*D-X (457) 1 0 1 100 1/ 4*FAMILY NAMES (1695) 8 2 0 2/ 1*FAMILY NAMES (1695) 8 2 0 80.0 2/ 1*CHAOS LORDS (1691) 7 7 0 3- 2*JAZIN'S WOLVES (1694) 4 1 0 80.0 3/ 2*THE BLOODLUST (1688) 5 4 0 4/ 5*ROSS' RAIDERS (1689) 5 3 1 62.5 4- 3*JAZIN'S WOLVES (1694) 4 1 0 5/ 4*THE BLOODLUST (1688) 9 9 2 50.0 5/ 6*BASH BROS RIPPER (1696) 4 6 1 6/ 3*CHAOS LORDS (1691) 7 7 0 50.0 6/ 5*ROSS' RAIDERS (1689) 2 1 0 7/ 7*BASH BROS RIPPER (1696) 4 6 1 40.0 7/ 0*D-X (457) 1 0 1 8- 6*FIGHTING IRISH (1693) 1 4 0 20.0 8- 7*FIGHTING IRISH (1693) 1 4 0 9- 8*THE FIGHTING CHAI (1692) 0 4 0 0.0 9- 8*THE FIGHTING CHAI (1692) 0 4 0 '*' Unchartered team '-' Team did not fight this turn (###) Avoid teams by their Team Id ##/## This turn's/Last turn's rank TEAM SPOTLIGHT TIPS FOR WINNING MORE Your warriors are putting up a good fight, but just can't seem to win? Perhaps this list of recommended Consortium actions can help. 1. Always challenge and avoid. Use the challenge and if-challenged strategies on your strategy sheet to manipulate fights in your favor. 2. Challenge warriors you have beaten before and styles your warrior has the advantage with (e.g., A--challenge TP, TP challenge LU, ST challenge SL, SL challenge LU, etc.). Take advantage of blood feuds to enhance challenges. 3. Avoid teams who seem to regularly beat you and teams with nearby warriors with styles which have an advantage over your warrior. Avoid the team that just beat you last fight. 4. Make your warrior do what his style does best (e.g., STs get the jump, LUs dodge, TPs parry, etc.) 5. Use high CN to your advantage by soaking hits and then hitting a worn down opponent. 6. Pay attention to where an opponent is aiming his attacks and protect that location on subsequent fights. 7. Be bad. "Pick on" warriors with less skill, less experience, or lots of losses. 8. Pay attention to fight history in your arena. Know which are tournament warriors, sandbaggers, etc. with hidden FE. (Fight experience.) These warriors are likely highly skilled compared to your normal arena warrior. Stay clear of them. 9. Use tactics appropriately -- Decise to help you get the jump, Dodge to help you avoid being hit, Slash or Bash to hit harder, Parry to focus on parry, Response to counter known decise users. 10. Dress appropriately -- naked is faster/quicker, plated is most protected and sponges best but slower. Do not overdress and excessively encumber your warrior's ability to carry and endure. 11. Watch fights carefully to find a favored weapon -- one which you crit often with or which you get lots of extra value hits. Use that weapon and maybe those similar to it. 12. Know your opposing manager's styles and methods. Try to fight weaker managers and avoid those who just seem to win lots. 13. If your warrior is in a difficult spot in the rankings/arena listing, sit him out. Don't fight if you do not have a good chance to win (e.g., your 5 FE warrior has jumped way up in the rankings and is surrounded by much more experienced warriors, or your scum TP is surrounded by aimed-blows, etc.) 14. Phone a friend. Write with questions. Ask for help or advice. The right helpful person is likely to want to help you succeed. 15. Try to manipulate your fight so you match with an NPC. 16. Send your warrior to tournaments. It gets hidden FE on his record and ups his skill/stat level unbeknownst to those paying little attention. 17. Pay attention to fighting in your arena. Know whom is using strategies set on maintenance and take advantage of it by challenging and adjusting your strategies to beat them. 18. Design warriors to win rather than to look godling-like. Sure, skills are important, but maybe not as important as physicals -- especially early on. 19. Take advantage of arena DM93. Read the spotlights, particularly those at the top as the latter ones can be outdated. Know your C.I.C. package info well. ***---------*---------*---------*---------**---------*---------*---------*---------*** High Hopes, Consortium affiliated Assur's Guide to Pure Defensives After the offensives, parry-based defensives are the easiest style to master, though there are also dodge-based defensive warriors out there (the dodge-based defensives are harder to win with in basic). 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 A-- 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 A--s, especially in basic. 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. Somehow you also need to have enough defense skills from your other stats to be able to dodge. High speed is not desired on either, simply because you want those points elsewhere. Simply because of all the parry & defense skills, 11 deftness is suggested as a minimum. 2) Style Choice For parry based defensives, any style that learns parry naturally works fine. 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 (good endurance conservation and best natural parry in the game), 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 learns 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. Main hand weapon is whatever you are well suited to. BA (requies 15 str, 7 wit, and 11 deft; plus 9 size if using an off hand) is a nice high damage/low wit choice. SS is a nice low wit choice for some other styles (9 str, 5 wit, and 7 deft). For a dodging warrior, LS might also be a good choice (11 str, 9 siz, 5 wit, and 9 deft). 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) or any warrior that does average damage and runs hot (Many bashers, slashers and strikers). Stay away from Aimed Blows!!! Really not recommended for a parry based defensive to run higher than 6-6 in minute 1. 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, I've experimented a lot and don't have a conclusion as to what armor is best. I try not to overencumber for a dodge warrior, but even though warriors don't dodge as well with APA/F, it is not clear to me that you shouldn't wear APA/F. SPY REPORT Greetings warriors! It is I, Zontani Sharp Eyes, here to bring report of the clash and bustle of the weekly NOBLISH ISLAND games. Former top team CHAOS LORDS was unseated this week as FAMILY NAMES moved up from 4th ranking to take the top spot with a 4-1-0 record for the round. Warriors--remember that glory waits always around the corner! Witness how this week FAMILY NAMES went 4-1-0 to move up 3 in the rankings. BLOOD ROSE caught the eye of many in the gladiatorial commission as he skillfully bested DEATH BASHER and was awarded 27 points in recognition. In one of the week's more notable duels, SPENCER put down TIMID TIM, causing her to lose 10 points of recognition in the process. Our last turn's Duelmaster has lost, folks, lost to KUNG-FU MASTER, and VAMPIRIAL has made the way for a new Duelmaster! No confirmation, but my sources claim that the top team has gained their position using magical aids. Charmed weapons perhaps? Many and various are the arts of battle. In NOBLISH ISLAND "art" is a word that has long since passed from the language! I saw one fighter that warriors avoided when this week's challenge seeking began. THE BLOODLUST is feared. This much I can say. Methinks more than a few here could name the guild it was that spent the better part of last week avoiding THE BLOODLUST. Indeed it was CHAOS LORDS. Mighty fighters cannot but expect competition from those below. M. ALLEN take warning! You have more than a few enemies in NOBLISH ISLAND. What warrior does not hone his years, impatiently waiting for the moment of his foe's mortality? My condolences to THE BLOODLUST for their loss of a very promising warrior, DEATH BASHER. DEATH BASHER went to doom before the arms of BLOOD ROSE, a warrior of D-X. Dark alleys may hide both secrets and assassins. In the arena there is only the brightness of steel. Keep vigil always! The girls are as pretty in NOBLISH ISLAND as ever I remembered them....and the fighters as ugly! Don't let your reputation slip! More than a sharp eye must I keep, indeed a stout pair of legs must I keep as well! The endless paths of Alastari await me! Till we meet again, remember: a turtle walks slow, hides head in a shell, and harms no one; a lion runs to slay its prey.-- Zontani Sharp Eyes CHALLENGER INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME VAMPIRIAL 9849 3 3 0 27 THE BLOODLUST (1688) BLOOD ROSE 2629 1 0 1 27 D-X (457) INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME HODES 9884 2 0 0 23 FAMILY NAMES (1695) -STABLER 9854 2 0 0 21 ROSS' RAIDERS (1689) SPENCER 9886 2 0 0 19 FAMILY NAMES (1695) HARD TO RUN 9890 1 1 1 17 BASH BROS RIPPER (1696) M. ALLEN 9855 2 1 0 14 ROSS' RAIDERS (1689) FANTHOM DEFT 9850 3 1 1 13 THE BLOODLUST (1688) -AUTUMNBE 9643 3 2 0 12 CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657) MILLER 9887 2 0 0 11 FAMILY NAMES (1695) -VAZZ 9881 1 0 0 11 JAZIN'S WOLVES (1694) -NO BULL 9882 1 0 0 11 JAZIN'S WOLVES (1694) -DRAKONYA 9867 1 0 0 10 THE BLOODLUST (1688) TIMID TIM 9862 2 1 0 8 CHAOS LORDS (1691) -LOTT R 9852 1 0 1 8 ROSS' RAIDERS (1689) BAD ATTACK 9892 1 1 0 8 BASH BROS RIPPER (1696) BLOODIED MIKE 9863 2 1 0 7 CHAOS LORDS (1691) GENGELBACH 9883 1 1 0 7 FAMILY NAMES (1695) -DRAXXUS 9644 1 4 0 7 CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657) WOEFUL BASES 9888 1 1 0 6 BASH BROS RIPPER (1696) -MINSTREL 9877 1 0 0 6 FIGHTING IRISH (1693) -RAIN DANCER 9878 1 0 0 6 JAZIN'S WOLVES (1694) CUNNING TERRI 9866 1 2 0 5 CHAOS LORDS (1691) -TYLENOL 9880 1 0 0 5 JAZIN'S WOLVES (1694) -ASHLEY'S GHOST 9865 1 1 0 4 CHAOS LORDS (1691) WON'T ATTACK 9889 1 1 0 4 BASH BROS RIPPER (1696) HAGEDORN 9885 1 1 0 4 FAMILY NAMES (1695) -SEARRUS 9645 0 4 0 4 CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657) -PERSEPHONE 9642 0 4 0 4 CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657) INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME -AGRISEL 9646 0 4 0 4 CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657) WORST DEF IN GAME 9891 0 2 0 2 BASH BROS RIPPER (1696) -FELDSPAR 9873 0 1 0 1 FIGHTING IRISH (1693) ALEX BLOODBLADE 9895 0 1 0 1 CHAOS LORDS (1691) -VALKYRIE 9875 0 1 0 1 FIGHTING IRISH (1693) -CHAIRMANDER 9868 0 1 0 1 THE FIGHTING CHAIRS (1692) -ROCKINGCHAIR 9871 0 1 0 1 THE FIGHTING CHAIRS (1692) -ALEMBIC 9874 0 1 0 1 FIGHTING IRISH (1693) -LONGSTER 9856 0 1 0 1 ROSS' RAIDERS (1689) -DANTALION 9876 0 1 0 1 FIGHTING IRISH (1693) -HALLE CHAIRY 9870 0 1 0 1 THE FIGHTING CHAIRS (1692) DIPONA 9893 0 1 0 1 THE BLOODLUST (1688) -VALORAN 9879 0 1 0 1 JAZIN'S WOLVES (1694) -SADCHAIR BILLY 9869 0 1 0 1 THE FIGHTING CHAIRS (1692) '-' denotes a warrior who did not fight this turn. THE DEAD W L K TEAM NAME SLAIN BY TURN Revenge? EMBEZZLING SCRIB 0 0 0 HARD TO RUN 9890 443 NONE ROCKET 9853 0 1 0 ROSS' RAIDERS 1689 DEATH BASHER 9847 440 DEATH BASHER 9847 2 1 1 THE BLOODLUST 1688 BLOOD ROSE 2629 443 PERSONAL ADS Welcome to all the fine new teams -- Jazin's Wolves, Fighting Irish, The Fighting Chai. May your stay be fruitful and may you learn oodles. -- High Hopes (HH to you.) of Family Names, Consortium affiliated Jazin! Top Team On The Move?! Great start! Don't I know you from somewhere? (wink) -- HH Bash Bros Rippers, I think you are right, Assur. You should focus on the funs rather than the wins. (smiley face which looks kinda smirky) All, ask questions. What can Assur and I tell you about our activity that can help you? For example, did you know these style nicknames? AB = Aimed Blow/Aimer; BA = Basher; LU = Lunger; PL = Parry Lunge/Plunger; PR = Parry Riposte/Ripper; PS = Parry Striker/Piker; SL = Slasher; ST = Striker; TP = Total Parry/Scum; WS = Wall Of Steel/Waste/WOS. -- HH Bloody Mike, I was the bloody one and you were the real fighter. Salute. -- Genglebach Alembic, it must have been my lucky, lucky day! -- Spencer Bad Attack, it sure seems like you do. And not much else, either. -- Hodes Woeful Bases, does that mean your cup is not even half full? Wow! That's woeful. But, I can truthfully say I am very glad to have met you. -- Hagedorn Convicted Thief, thanks for being there and helping me break out a sweat. Felt good. -- Miller All, write some personal ads; it is the rite of passage on Noblish Isle. -- HH EVERYONE take note. The following manager is asking for teams to join with him/her in the Turf Wars in DM47. TWX (10th running) is a major event in Alastari and managers new and old are welcomed. The event starts with the Feb 2016 running of slow arena DM47. A manager would need to start/transfer a team to DM47, send a personal ads to DM 47 declaring allegiance to alliance "Mercenaries," listing their team name and manager moniker. One must also request two rollup gift certificates ($5 each) be sent from RSI to The Consortium. You had better rush if you are interested. Moderators -- I would like to announce myself for the Turf War: Deitys of Chaos, mgr Wednesday. I have no affiliations or alliances, thus am simply a mercenary. Please list me as temporary captain of Mercenaries (until someone more qualified can take the job) for the Turf War. Anyone willing to join me or have me join them please speak up; I simply want to fight in and win this Turf War, nothing more! It may be easier for anyone wishing to contact me to do so directly: Lee Warner, 57307-308, PO Box 1000, Lewisburg, PA 17837. -- Wednesday, mgr Deitys of Chaos Got the rolls I wanted. Now I have to figure out how to make them win... Not a good start for my rippers! -- Assur LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS MILLER slimly won victory over WON'T ATTACK in a 18 minute amateur's Challenge fight. HODES handily defeated BLOODIED MIKE in a 1 minute one-sided Challenge match. CUNNING TERRI lost to M. ALLEN in a 5 minute amateur's Challenge brawl. VAMPIRIAL was overpowered by KUNG-FU MASTER in a 1 minute one-sided fight. BAD ATTACK unbelievably bested HAGEDORN in a unpopular 18 minute novice's duel. DEATH BASHER was executed by BLOOD ROSE in a 1 minute mismatched brawl. FANTHOM DEFT savagely defeated WORST DEF IN GAME in a 2 minute beginner's melee. TIMID TIM lost to SPENCER in a action packed 1 minute novice's duel. GENGELBACH won victory over DIPONA in a exciting 1 minute novice's fight. WOEFUL BASES overcame ALEX BLOODBLADE in a 1 minute novice's bout. HARD TO RUN killed EMBEZZLING SCRIBE in a 2 minute amateur's match. BATTLE REPORT MOST POPULAR RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS |FIGHTING STYLE FIGHTS FIGHTING STYLE W - L - K PERCENT| |PARRY-RIPOSTE 4 PARRY-LUNGE 9 - 4 - 0 69 | |BASHING ATTACK 4 PARRY-STRIKE 2 - 1 - 0 67 | |AIMED BLOW 3 WALL OF STEEL 14 - 7 - 2 67 | |TOTAL PARRY 3 TOTAL PARRY 11 - 6 - 0 65 | |LUNGING ATTACK 2 AIMED BLOW 20 - 12 - 3 63 | |WALL OF STEEL 1 BASHING ATTACK 24 - 16 - 2 60 | |PARRY-LUNGE 1 SLASHING ATTACK 12 - 12 - 2 50 | |SLASHING ATTACK 1 STRIKING ATTACK 7 - 9 - 0 44 | |STRIKING ATTACK 1 LUNGING ATTACK 7 - 9 - 0 44 | |PARRY-STRIKE 0 PARRY-RIPOSTE 4 - 15 - 1 21 | Turn 443 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 1 - 0 PARRY-LUNGE 0 - 1 3 AIMED BLOW AIMED BLOW 2 - 1 PARRY-STRIKE 0 - 0 2 TOTAL PARRY TOTAL PARRY 2 - 1 SLASHING ATTACK 0 - 1 2 WALL OF STEEL PARRY-RIPOSTE 2 - 2 STRIKING ATTACK 0 - 1 1 PARRY-LUNGE LUNGING ATTACK 1 - 1 1 LUNGING ATTACK BASHING ATTACK 2 - 2 1 PARRY-RIPOSTE 1 STRIKING ATTACK TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE FIGHTING STYLE WARRIOR W L K PNTS TEAM NAME Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above. The overall popularity leader is VAMPIRIAL 9849. The most popular warrior this turn was GENGELBACH 9883. The ten other most popular fighters were FANTHOM DEFT 9850, SPENCER 9886, HODES 9884, CUNNING TERRI 9866, WOEFUL BASES 9888, HARD TO RUN 9890, VAMPIRIAL 9849, BLOOD ROSE 2629, WORST DEF IN GAME 9891, and TIMID TIM 9862. The least popular fighter this week was HAGEDORN 9885. The other ten least popular fighters were BAD ATTACK 9892, MILLER 9887, WON'T ATTACK 9889, DIPONA 9893, DEATH BASHER 9847, M. ALLEN 9855, BLOODIED MIKE 9863, ALEX BLOODBLADE 9895, TIMID TIM 9862, and WORST DEF IN GAME 9891. Article for Newbies This here is an article aimed mostly at you new managers to the game out there. This chart is a consensus of managers on the internet about how they felt each style fairs against all other styles at the beginning levels of the game. Of course, once you get ten or so fights under your belt the whole scenario changes and you can throw this right out the window. But in the meantime, use this chart to help you get a feel for the game, how the different styles interact with each other and to hopefully dispel those 5-25 starts that can make you drop the game. Hope this helps you some. KEY FOR ODDS OF WINNING: 1 - ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE 6 - BETTER THAN EVEN 2 - HARDLY LIKELY 7 - GOOD CHANCE 3 - NOT MUCH 8 - HIGHLY PROBABLE 4 - SLIGHT CHANCE 9 - MOST DEFINATELY 5 - 50/50 10 - ALMOST GUARANTEED Reminder: Left Row vs Top Column BA ST LU SL AB TP PS PL PR WS BA 5 2 6 6 8 9 7 6 5 6 ST 8 5 8 9 9 6 7 5 6 4 LU 4 4 5 6 10 5 7 7 9 6 SL 4 1 5 5 8 6 8 7 8 9 AB 2 2 2 4 5 10 6 6 6 7 TP 3 4 6 4 1 5 7 8 6 5 PS 3 3 3 4 5 4 5 4 5 4 PL 5 4 3 3 6 2 7 5 7 6 PR 7 5 2 2 4 5 6 3 5 4 WS 5 8 6 2 4 6 7 5 6 5 There you have it folks. I would personally like to thank all the managers on the internet who made a contribution to this effort. You know who you are. Also a big nod of appreciation goes out to the mighty PUG (Ben Hitz) who organizes and runs the roundtable and without whose effort little projects like this would prove quite difficult. David Gottwald - Magic Man The Crew - Monuntial (34) Rocky's Heroes - North Fork (47) Tragedy Strikes - Andor (57) (inactive) Natural Born - Illis (59) Slow & Easy - Aradi (60) Omega Squadron - Dragonhead (72) MAKING YOUR CHALLENGES GO THROUGH First, you need to be sure you are making your challenges correctly. 1. Are you writing down the warrior I.D. number of the warrior you want to challenge? 2. Is your handwriting clear? 3. Is the warrior you are challenging within range of your warrior? Warriors can challenge within their own class and the next higher class, plus the "Challenger" classes can also challenge the next lower class. So, an Adept can challenge Adepts and Challenger Adepts. A Challenger Adept can challenge Adepts, Challenger Adepts, and Champions. (Try not to challenge down, though. Besides being unsportsmanlike and making everyone mad, it isn't advantageous to your warriors. They need to fight more experienced warriors so they will learn.) 4. Are your warriors eligible to make challenges? If they didn't fight within the last two turns, then they can't challenge. 5. Are the warriors they want to fight eligible to receive challenges? If they didn't fight within the last two turns, then they can't be challenged. Next, adjust your choices for the maximum likelihood of getting your challenges. There are several things that will help: 1. Have each of your warriors challenge two different opponents from two different teams. That way, if the first opponent's team doesn't fight that turn, you still might get your second challenge. 2. Use your avoids. Have each warrior avoid the teams of whoever you think might be likely to challenge him. If you can get out of being challenged, that increases your chance of getting your own challenge through. 3. Don't challenge warriors who didn't fight last turn. The odds are higher that they won't be fighting this turn. 4. Don't challenge warriors who might be involved in a bloodfeud (either as the killers, or the avengers). A bloodfeud challenge has priority over all other challenges. 5. Don't challenge Tournament Victors. A TV challenge has priority over all other challenges except bloodfeuds. You'll need to do a little research in back issues of the newsletter to find out who the TVs are. 6. Don't challenge warriors who you know are going to challenge someone else, or are going to get challenged by someone else. Your challenge has a better chance of getting through if it is the only challenge to that particular warrior. 7. Don't challenge the "easy pickings." That is, warriors above you who have way too few fights or very bad records for where they are ranked. They will tend to get challenged a lot. 8. Don't challenge warriors who are likely to be avoiding your team. This includes any warrior your team fought within the last two turns. Well, it sounds like I've eliminated just about everybody, doesn't it? Of course you can challenge opponents who fit into one or more of those categories; just try to find ones who don't. Your idea candidate for a challenge is: A warrior ranked somewhat above your warrior in the same class, or in the next higher class, with a few more fights than your warrior, and a winning record, who isn't a TV and isn't currently at war with anyone. I hope this will be of some help to you. The Rogue She-Puppy MAXIMIZING THE DUELMASTERS EXPERIENCE: WHAT THE RULES DIDN'T SAY When you get your turn results in the mail it is very important that you squeeze as much enjoyment as possible out of that envelope! I recommend (and also use!) the following procedures. First, open the envelope lengthwise with a letter opener. Remove the blue-sheet BUT DON'T LOOK AT IT! It may tell you that you are broke and owe RSI a lot of money. Flip it over instead! The blue-sheet will be used as a "hider" when you read the fight results line by line, so you don't see the end of the fight by mistake and ruin the excitement. Remove the rest of the sheets in one smooth maneuver and place the flipped-over blue-sheet on top of the pile, without looking at anything. You don't want to accidentally uncover an unexpected replacement rollup. This is a traumatic experience that should be avoided at all costs, as it indicates that one of your battles didn't go exactly as planned. Now you must prepare your room, or whever you are, for the battles. If you are suicidal, or a lousy manager, or a suicidally lousy manager, remove all sharp objects from the area. If you happen to manage an entire team of scummy warriors it is okay to leave a loaded musket nearby. The next step is to put on music. It definitely adds to the experience to have your favorite tunes playing in the background, preferably AS LOUD AS YOU CAN GET AWAY WITH! I christen each new warrior with a song that is his and his alone, and play that song whenever it is his turn upon the sands. It is a personal choice but I recommend Judas Priest, Manowar or Metallica. Avoid Abba and Barry Manilow (like I had to say it). It is also important to match the song length with the expected length of the fight. Don't choose "The Immigrant Song" for your 21-con Ultra-Scum. Likewise, don't choose "Stairway to Heaven" for your quick lunger. Finally, sometimes it is nice to choose an exceptionally violent alternate selection for those Bloodfeuds. Now you are almost ready! The final preparatory step (optional) is to prepare a pot of coffee. Beer also works well, especially on Fridays, but I understand that some managers are not Well-Suited to that particular beverage. I've heard the Duke Malibu in Solven drinks goat blood, but mind you this is only a rumor. For the final touch, try putting on any handy armor you have. Or a loin-cloth. I put on most of my hockey gear. The fights are on! The music is loud! The coffee is good! Read the fights slowly, line by line using your blue-sheet as a guide. Don't go too fast, now. Yell, "Yeah!" if your warrior scores an especially gruesome hit. Cringe if your warrior feels the joys of a great axe connecting with his face (that means you, Marilith). Raise your fist in the air when that total parry realizes that his last shield has broken! And cry when your favorite gladiator is gravely injured and then takes ten consecutive war hammer shots to the head... When the end of the fight comes you will be emotionally drained, so yell out, "Huzzah!!!" or "Damnnn!!!" or whatever, to take the edge off. When the fighting is ended take a breather before preparing for the next cycle's fights. Reflect on what has transpired and make a few notes. You'll be a better person (and manager) for it! Isn't Duelmasters great? Brought to you by ICE (the deranged): DM-49 (Vithicar) Rotting Livers (205) DM-10 (Kolact) Beermacht DM-22 (Solven) Steel Warriors DM-24 (Zorpunt) No Escape Winning With the Average Warrior Hi! The Master of Anime here... Yeah, yeah, I know, you're all doing a collective, "Who the Hell is this character?" Well, my claim to fame, if you can call it that, is that I run Eve, one of the more popular, if not completely unspectacular, warriors to fight in Alastari. I am a micro-manager (you've heard of mega-managers? Well, think in reverse) who has been mainly running only one team during my 8+ years of Duelmasters. This little write-up is aimed towards the less experienced managers, the ones that can be brainwashed from some of the "How to build the perfect warrior..." spotlights that tend to appear from time to time. Many of the "How to build..." spotlights tend to deal with roll-ups that are quite ideal, but in reality, rarely come out of RSI's number crunching machine, commonly referred to as "the Roll-Up Gods". There have been a few good articles on how to design skillful warriors from 'average' roll-ups. Those articles, in my opinion, are the most helpful to new managers for the simple fact that you will almost always get an 'average' roll-up. Occasionally, that 'average' roll-up might turn out to be something special, and that is what I would like to key in on. I know a lot of managers who will continually DA their warriors until they get something that is as close to perfect as possible. You know, the warrior with three or four 17s or the warrior with a couple of 21s or that size 3 or 4 warrior, etc... If you are a relatively new manager and you are also doing this, I think you are missing out on one of the more intriguing aspects of this game and that is warrior development. Being a micro-manager, I do not have an army of warriors like the mega-managers do, but I'd like to think that I can hold my own against them (hey, if you're gonna dream, dream big). Anyway, back to the point. One of my 'average' warriors seems to have achieved a form of notoriety in Advanced Duelmasters to the extent that even the ever quiet Mirage (manager of Donatello) has had something to say (it was at the last Tempe FTF and my warrior, at the end of the 6th or 7th round, was listed as the top Primus warrior on the tourney list.) Mirage pointed at my warrior on the list and said, "That, is embarrassing..." I took it as a compliment. In case you're wondering, my warrior is Akira (the reason I'm writing this article is that I've been approached many times of late by managers who wanted to see Akira's numbers, thinking he had some sort of godlike roll-up. I set them straight). I'm not going to print Akira's numbers in this article for the main reason that I don't have them with me at this time (it'll probably tick-off a lot of managers whose warriors Akira has beaten anyway), but I do know this... he has about 30 attribute increases and only one attribute is in the 20's, that one being WL (he even got gypped by not getting some skills that you normally think he'd get by raising WL up the 20's). He won't be getting another attribute above 20 for a long, long time. (I think his next highest attribute is 17... note that this is after the 30 or so increases...) You should have a pretty good idea how generic this roll-up is... a roll-up that would probably be DA'd by most managers looking for a good roll-up... a roll-up that I even said, "I'll run him for kicks, but will probably retire him once he gets to AD."... a roll-up that entered AD with a less-than-stellar 14-10 record... a roll-up currently on a 20 fight win streak... a roll-up with three consecutive Primus TVs. So, before you give up on that average warrior, think again about giving him a chance to flourish... he might suprise you as Akira has surprised me. Good luck in the arena! M.A., a proud member of GAPPDA P.S. If you want to know Akira's original roll-up, diplo Anime Legends (Arena 102, 104). P.P.S. Swift -- We GAPPDA members are NOT slugs!!! At least, I don't think we are... TWELVE TIPS A rookie manager asked me a question recently which prompted my "teaching juices" to flow. I quote: "Just give me a dozen hints, and I'll leave you alone!" Obviously, his challenge prompted me to organize my thought creating my Twelve Tips. "Now wait a minute!" I hear you asking. "Why should I read on?" Simply put: -- If you're an experience manager, you'll want to "clue me in" on other valuable tips I missed. -- If you're a "newbie," these tips will enhance your W-L record and compound your fun. "But, are they GOOD tips?" you ask. Believe me, fellow opponents, after 5000+ fights, dozens of "tutored pupils," many A.D. warriors, and a rather lofty W-L record, they're GOOD tips. So here we go, in no particular order. (I) ASK FOR HELP--Ask RSI about the Sponsor Program. Diplo "good" managers in your arena. Proclaim your willingness to learn in a personal ad. You'll get some conversation. (II) OFFENSIVES FIRST--This is not an easy game, and the basher, lunger, striker can be readily designed and more easily "mastered." (Whatever that means.) Avoid the most difficult finessives, such as aimers (AB), rippers (PR), and probably wastes (WS). Get some confidence first! Most of us old-timers yet struggle with a good aimed-blow. (III) SKILLS, SKILLS, SKILLS--One of the most prevalent rookie errors is training too many stats. Skills win fights, and in the long run, you will regret certain stat raises. (IV) COLLECT DATA--The more you know about your own warrior (And even with the same stats, warriors differ) and the more you know about your opponents, the more likely you can cause something "good" to happen. In the military/political world, we call this "intelligence." (Clue: ask about a D.M. handbook filled with info.) (V) PERSONAL ADS--Don't be a jerk! But write some every time. Let me assure you that an unliked rookie cannot succeed in an arena against the local "Powers-in-control." You want to create friendly opponents. (When you know what you're doing--then you can try the jerk routine!) (VI) TURN SHEET--Accuracy counts. Fill it out perfectly (and legibly) pal! Know what each section is for. (Reread the instructions.) Many have been the surprised and frustrated manager who caused his or her own problem! (Even us "megas" blow it now and then!) (VII) NO CON--Don't ever (well maybe 1% of the time) add points to constitution on an offensive rollup. Other attributes may add skills; con won't. (Just wait until you hear someone shout never add to con--ever. I didn't say that.) (VIII) ONE WEAPON--For offensives. When you get to finesse styles, you'll understand why you may want one in your off-hand also. But, almost always carry a backup. (Hands can be hurt both striking and defending.) (IX) CHALLENGE/AVOID--Always! A manager's prime purpose is to optimize his warrior's chances. Challenge those you'll have a good shot at beating and avoid teams who can cause you the most difficulties. (Challenge warriors--avoid teams.) (X) ENTER TOURNAMENTS--What a way to acquire skills and experience without impacting your arena W-L record. Actually, you will create a positive impact in that those "tournament earnings" are "hidden" from other arena warriors. Plus, tournaments are a real "rush!" (XI) FIND A FRIEND--In every arena find at least one "friendly" foe. Share opponent info. With two, or more, of you sharing, look how much more "intelligence" you'll have. (XII) STAY COOL--Don't let any problem (loss, death, personal ad, error, etc.) anger you. (This is fun, right?) The cool head wins more matches than the emotional one. So good luck, rookie! We were all in your shoes once. (And for some of us that was a long, long time ago.) THE CONSORTIUM DM 8 Smithsonian (Curator) DM 11 Bulldogs (Kennelworth) DM 20 Animal Farm (Mino) DM 46 Fandils (Fandil the Wise) (and many, many more)