DUEL 2 NEWSLETTER

Date   : 05/12/2017    Duedate: 05/25/2017

NOBLISH ISLAND ARENA

DM-93    TURN-478

This Weeks Top Honors

THE DUELMASTER IS

THUNDER WONDER
DARK CLOUDS (1719)
(93-10029) [7-1-0,92]

Chartered Recognition Leader   Unchartered Recognition Leader

POSITION IS EMPTY              THUNDER WONDER
                               DARK CLOUDS (1719)
                               (93-10029) [7-1-0,92]

Popularity Leader              This Weeks Favorite

HASAMI                         DAKUROZU
DRIFTY DREAMS (1717)           DARK CLOUDS (1719)
(93-10016) [3-5-0,17]          (93-10026) [3-4-0,38]

THE CURRENT TOP TEAM

DARK CLOUDS (1719)

          TEAMS ON THE MOVE            TOP CAREER HONORS
Team Name                  Point Gain  Chartered Team
1. DRIFTY DREAMS (1717)        35
2. BASH BROS PEPPER (1721)     30      BRUTE STRENGTH (491)
3. LEGIONS OF FATE (1724)      27      Unchartered Team
4. DARK CLOUDS (1719)          23
5. MISFIT KINGS (1722)         19      DARK CLOUDS (1719)

The Top Teams

Career Win-Loss Record           W   L  K    %  Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns    W  L K
 1/ 1*DARK CLOUDS (1719)        26  13  0 66.7   1/ 1*DARK CLOUDS (1719)       11  4 0
 2/ 2*FAMOUS PIRATES (1720)     21  14  2 60.0   2/ 5*DRIFTY DREAMS (1717)      9  6 0
 3/ 3*LINKS OF TERROR (1718)    19  20  1 48.7   3/ 2*FAMOUS PIRATES (1720)     9  6 0
 4/ 5*DRIFTY DREAMS (1717)      19  20  0 48.7   4/ 6*BASH BROS PEPPER (1721)   8  7 2
 5- 4*ODD SQUAD (1712)           9  10  0 47.4   5- 3*ODD SQUAD (1712)          7  3 0
 6/ 8*LEGIONS OF FATE (1724)     7   8  0 46.7   6/ 7*LEGIONS OF FATE (1724)    7  8 0
 7/ 7*BASH BROS PEPPER (1721)   15  20  2 42.9   7/ 4*LINKS OF TERROR (1718)    6  9 0
 8- 6*LIZARD DEN (1723)          3   4  0 42.9   8/ 9*MISFIT KINGS (1722)       4 11 0
 9/ 9*MISFIT KINGS (1722)       10  15  0 40.0   9/10*KILL UNIT (1725)          1  7 0
10/10*KILL UNIT (1725)           1   7  0 12.5  10- 8*LIZARD DEN (1723)         0  2 0

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

                                    TEAM SPOTLIGHT

This spotlight lesson revolves around a question asked by Sin Loo of Misfit Kings.

His question:  
"Commodore Pegleg and Lord Assur -- I have read a number of training articles 
regarding the benefits of training either skills or attributes for my warriors.  With 
regard to the topic of "skill burn," if I train a warrior's attribute (say Speed to a 
12) and the charts in the CIC tell me that I "burned" on of each INI and DEC, but the 
fight report only says that Speed was increased...  How do I know for sure that I've 
"burned" INI and DEC and have received a increase in both skills?  There was an 
increase that I did to an attribute that should have given one of my warriors an 
"Expert" rating in the skill through a "burn" increase, but the fight report didn't 
say anything regarding the skill increase or the rating. -- Sin Zoo (Misfit Kings)"

A Consortium answer:
Sin Zoo, what a great question!  Perhaps we can answer.  It goes something like 
this.....  You train a skill, and supposedly you acquire (burn) some skills.  
(Example: training to 12 SP and gaining also an Init and a Decise skill.)  Your fight 
sheet shows the SP gain, but says nothing about any skills earned.  How do you know 
you really got those two skills?  Trust me; you DID.  The CIC and other info were 
gathered empirically over time with a lot of different manager's work.  Those skills 
are part of the inner-workings of the D2 program, and considered part of the intrigue 
of the game.  Thousands of fights and record recording brought you that CIC today.  
Just mark those skills down; you got 'em.  The next part of your question is quite 
related.  You earned a skill, either through training skills or through the skills 
imbedded in a stat train, and it should have made a rating -- like expert at 16 skills 
or adv expert at 20 -- and you didn't get the rating.  What gives?  (Example, you had 
15 decise skills and earned a decise in a fight for 16, but the fight sheet does not 
say you got the expert decise rating.)  Sadly, you DO NOT have that decise rating.  
That, my friend, is the most common way that a manager finds out if his warrior is 
blessed or hosed or neutral in a certain skill type.  In this case, the warrior is at 
least -1 in Decise.  (Hosed.)  Warriors can be hosed or blessed up to 4 skills per 
type and it could have been that you had 12 skills, then earned that decise and 
surprisingly got an expert rating in decise, meaning that the warrior is +3 in decise 
(blessed).  All veteran managers keep track of starting skills and earned skills and 
ratings diligently.

                                          -- Brought to you by The Consortium Elders

                                      SPY REPORT

     Well, what are you looking at, NOBLISH ISLAND?  Ain't you never seen Snide 
Clemens before?  Ah, shaddup and listen to my news.  DRIFTY DREAMS turned their 4-1-0 
turn into a 2nd place rank in the listings this turn.  Any better than this, and you 
get put on hit lists.  Of course, we're all terribly impressed to see RAN OUT win a 
fight and gain 19 points, terribly.  Tsk, tsk, DAKUROZU beat LONG JOHN SILVER and 
LONG JOHN SILVER lost 10 points.  You're breakin' my heart.  And if variety is the 
spice of life, NOBLISH ISLAND may be getting bland, as THUNDER WONDER stays top dog 
in the city.  Kickbacks and bribes, kickbacks and bribes, how else do you think some 
of these guys win their fights?  Skill?  Ha!   
     My mother always told me, 'If you don't have anything nice to say, start 
talking.' I loved that woman.  NOBLISH ISLAND, I am losing what little hope I had in 
you.  LINKS OF TERROR the most avoided team?  What insult will suffice, I cannot say. 
And it looks like FAMOUS PIRATES avoided them the most this turn.  What a pack of 
would be losers, if you ask me.  Hmph.  KIRENN was challenged more times this turn 
than the Duelmaster.  Now was the DM insulted or feared?  Heh, heh.   
     Some people like volunteer work in the hospitals.  I volunteer for NOBLISH 
ISLAND's morgue.  More variety.  Not that I'll be buying the drinks, but I'll be glad 
to see ANNE BONNY and FAMOUS PIRATES at The Warty Toad tonight celebrating their 
bloodfeud victory over KIRENN.  We're all going to die in the end, so why worry if 
the fate catches up with you sooner that later?   
     There's got to be a better place in NOBLISH ISLAND to get a drink than The Warty 
Toad!  Any suggestions?  Well, I've had enough of this drivel, and I'm sure you have 
too.  Off like a dirty shirt of padded leather.  Glad to see the back of this place-- 
Snide Clemens  

DUELMASTER                     W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 THUNDER WONDER 10029          7   1  0    92       DARK CLOUDS (1719)

ADEPTS                         W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 JINGLE BELL 10015             7   1  0    52       DRIFTY DREAMS (1717)
 ANNE BONNY 10030              5   2  1    47       FAMOUS PIRATES (1720)
 CAPTAIN KIDD 10034            5   2  1    38       FAMOUS PIRATES (1720)
 DAKUROZU 10026                3   4  0    38       DARK CLOUDS (1719)

CHALLENGER INITIATES           W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 CANDY CANE 10019              3   5  0    31       DRIFTY DREAMS (1717)
 LADYHAWKEYE 10044             3   2  0    30       MISFIT KINGS (1722)
 RAN OUT 10035                 3   4  0    29       BASH BROS PEPPER (1721)
 BLACKBEARD 10031              5   2  0    27       FAMOUS PIRATES (1720)
 RAIN STORM 10028              7   1  0    26       DARK CLOUDS (1719)
 BONGO 10027                   4   4  0    26       DARK CLOUDS (1719)
 NOT ENOUGH 10038              3   4  1    26       BASH BROS PEPPER (1721)
 KIRENN 10020                  5   2  1    25       LINKS OF TERROR (1718)

INITIATES                      W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
-OLIVE 10061                   1   1  0    23       ODD SQUAD (1712)
 LONG JOHN SILVER 10063        3   1  0    22       FAMOUS PIRATES (1720)
 DUNCAN 10058                  2   1  0    22       LEGIONS OF FATE (1724)
-JINXEE 9988                   4   1  0    21       ODD SQUAD (1712)
 AZNA 10067                    2   1  0    20       LINKS OF TERROR (1718)
 CHEESE 10074                  2   0  0    20       DRIFTY DREAMS (1717)
 FILL THE SHAKER 10036         3   4  1    19       BASH BROS PEPPER (1721)
 ELYTRA 10025                  5   3  0    18       DARK CLOUDS (1719)
 GOING WITHOUT 10037           5   2  0    17       BASH BROS PEPPER (1721)
 HASAMI 10016                  3   5  0    17       DRIFTY DREAMS (1717)
 JOPAR 10023                   4   4  0    16       LINKS OF TERROR (1718)
 FRENAR 10022                  4   4  0    16       LINKS OF TERROR (1718)
 HENRY MORGAN 10032            2   5  0    16       FAMOUS PIRATES (1720)
 ONIHANA 10017                 2   5  0    15       DRIFTY DREAMS (1717)
 LUTHIEN 10059                 2   1  0    15       LEGIONS OF FATE (1724)
 SYMGARA 10056                 2   1  0    15       LEGIONS OF FATE (1724)
 TONARION 10024                3   5  0    14       LINKS OF TERROR (1718)
-ODDO 10060                    2   0  0    14       ODD SQUAD (1712)
-MOLOCH 10052                  1   0  0    14       LIZARD DEN (1723)
-AUTUMNBE 9643                 3   2  0    12       CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657)
 SCOTCH MARY 10066             1   2  0    12       MISFIT KINGS (1722)
-OAK 10062                     2   0  0    11       ODD SQUAD (1712)
 CZAR URLIK 10075              1   0  0    11       MISFIT KINGS (1722)
-KOMODOENSIS 10048             1   1  0    10       LIZARD DEN (1723)
 BEOWULFISH 10043              2   3  0     9       MISFIT KINGS (1722)
 SIR TALON 10046               2   3  0     9       MISFIT KINGS (1722)
-CHAMAELEONTIDAE 10050         1   0  0     9       LIZARD DEN (1723)
 NOTHING 10039                 1   6  0     9       BASH BROS PEPPER (1721)
-DRAXXUS 9644                  1   4  0     7       CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657)
 BORON 10072                   1   1  0     5       KILL UNIT (1725)
-SEARRUS 9645                  0   4  0     4       CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657)
-PERSEPHONE 9642               0   4  0     4       CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657)
-AGRISEL 9646                  0   4  0     4       CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657)
 LORD OF WAR 10068             0   2  0     2       KILL UNIT (1725)
 KIM 10069                     0   2  0     2       KILL UNIT (1725)
-BASILISCUS 10049              0   2  0     2       LIZARD DEN (1723)
-ZENITH 10070                  0   1  0     1       KILL UNIT (1725)
-MS. O 10073                   0   1  0     1       ODD SQUAD (1712)
-DRACO AGAMIDAE 10051          0   1  0     1       LIZARD DEN (1723)

INITIATES                      W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
-CARVER 10071                  0   1  0     1       KILL UNIT (1725)

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

THE DEAD                W  L K TEAM NAME            SLAIN BY              TURN Revenge?
FRANCIS DRAKE 10033     1  2 0 FAMOUS PIRATES 1720  KIRENN 10020          474  JUST REVENGED
BALTHAZAR 10057         1  2 0 LEGIONS OF FATE 1724 NOT ENOUGH 10038      478   
BLIEW IZE 10055         0  3 0 LEGIONS OF FATE 1724 FILL THE SHAKER 10036 478   

                                     PERSONAL ADS

Blimey! Bilge-suckin' Thunder Wonder be Champeen! Scurvy Dog! -- Old Pegleg

Thunder Wonder, I think that is sort of a congrats from the boss; so, kudos. -- The 
Famous Pirates Administrative Assistant
P.S. BTW, Pegleg is back -- obviously!  Rumor has it he wasn't really kidnapped, but 
went on a rather unhealthy binge!  The old rascal!

Blow me down, buckos! 4-1!  Take that'n, Assur ye Hornswaggler! Aye. -- Old Pegleg

Old Pegleg's words of wisdom .....
What's a pirates favorite state?    Arrrrrrrkansas.
Why does a pirate fear getting old?     He could get Arrrrrrrthritus.
What's a vacation for pirates?      Arrr N Arrr.
Where does a pirate store his workout clothes?    Davey Jones Locker

Nothing, no problem. You were an easy win, 'cause you were nothing. -- Henry Morgan

Elytra, har, har. It were a pleasure being yer first! Loved yer booty! -- Long John 
Silver

Frenar, Shivver me timbers, Frenar, ye be like yon timber, but I cut ye down. -- 
Blackbeard

Orcs. Me hates orcs! -- Captain Kidd

Ran Out, aye, sure. 'Ats what all men does ta me. But I showed ye, bucko! -- Anne 
Bonny

Shivver me timbers!  Methinks me wooden leg has termites! -- Old Pegleg

Old Pegleg -- Thank you for the C.I.C.!  It really helps!  I appreciate it! -- Kikyo

                                  LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS

ANNE BONNY devastated KIRENN in a action packed 1 minute mismatched Bloodfeud fight.
BEOWULFISH was subdued by AZNA in a 2 minute novice's Challenge melee.
SIR TALON was overpowered by CHEESE in a 1 minute mismatched Challenge duel.
THUNDER WONDER bested VETERAN MERCENARY in a 2 minute Title fight.
JINGLE BELL overpowered BLACKBEARD in a 1 minute mismatched match.
CAPTAIN KIDD devastated GOING WITHOUT in a 1 minute one-sided duel.
LADYHAWKEYE slimly won victory over ONIHANA in a 3 minute bloody match.
DAKUROZU viciously subdued LONG JOHN SILVER in a action packed 9 minute fight.
RAIN STORM viciously subdued TONARION in a crowd boring 24 minute gory duel.
ELYTRA was vanquished by RAN OUT in a popular 1 minute brutal one-sided duel.
JOPAR was handily defeated by DUNCAN in a 1 minute one-sided bout.
BONGO luckily beat HENRY MORGAN in a crowd pleasing 1 minute match.
FRENAR was handily defeated by CANDY CANE in a 2 minute brutal one-sided contest.
HASAMI viciously subdued BORON in a 2 minute bloody bout.
FILL THE SHAKER easily killed BLIEW IZE in a 3 minute uneven fight.
NOT ENOUGH assassinated BALTHAZAR in a 1 minute uneven struggle.
NOTHING was viciously subdued by SYMGARA in a 2 minute bloody bout.
LUTHIEN devastated MORDANT DESERTER in a 1 minute one-sided brawl.
SCOTCH MARY overpowered KIM in a 1 minute one-sided match.
LORD OF WAR was overpowered by CZAR URLIK in a 1 minute bloody one-sided match.

                                    BATTLE REPORT

             MOST POPULAR                        RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS     
|FIGHTING STYLE               FIGHTS        FIGHTING STYLE     W -   L -  K   PERCENT|
|BASHING ATTACK                   8         WALL OF STEEL      4 -   0 -  0     100  |
|STRIKING ATTACK                  6         LUNGING ATTACK    24 -  10 -  0      71  |
|AIMED BLOW                       6         AIMED BLOW        29 -  22 -  1      57  |
|TOTAL PARRY                      5         STRIKING ATTACK   29 -  23 -  1      56  |
|PARRY-RIPOSTE                    5         TOTAL PARRY       24 -  20 -  1      55  |
|SLASHING ATTACK                  3         BASHING ATTACK    32 -  37 -  1      46  |
|LUNGING ATTACK                   3         PARRY-STRIKE       6 -   9 -  1      40  |
|PARRY-STRIKE                     1         SLASHING ATTACK   12 -  19 -  0      39  |
|WALL OF STEEL                    1         PARRY-RIPOSTE     10 -  27 -  0      27  |
|PARRY-LUNGE                      0         PARRY-LUNGE        1 -   4 -  0      20  |

Turn 478 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:

PARRY-STRIKE       1 -  0     TOTAL PARRY        2 -  3         4  STRIKING ATTACK
SLASHING ATTACK    3 -  0     BASHING ATTACK     3 -  5         3  BASHING ATTACK 
WALL OF STEEL      1 -  0     PARRY-LUNGE        0 -  0         3  AIMED BLOW     
STRIKING ATTACK    5 -  1     PARRY-RIPOSTE      0 -  5         1  TOTAL PARRY    
LUNGING ATTACK     2 -  1     
AIMED BLOW         3 -  3     

                               TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE

FIGHTING STYLE   WARRIOR                     W   L  K PNTS TEAM NAME                  
STRIKING ATTACK  THUNDER WONDER 10029        7   1  0   92 DARK CLOUDS (1719)
BASHING ATTACK   CAPTAIN KIDD 10034          5   2  1   38 FAMOUS PIRATES (1720)
Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above.

The overall popularity leader is HASAMI 10016.  The most popular warrior this turn 
was DAKUROZU 10026.  The ten other most popular fighters were CANDY CANE 10019, ANNE 
BONNY 10030, THUNDER WONDER 10029, HASAMI 10016, LADYHAWKEYE 10044, ONIHANA 10017, 
RAN OUT 10035, SYMGARA 10056, BEOWULFISH 10043, and AZNA 10067.

The least popular fighter this week was TONARION 10024.  The other ten least popular 
fighters were RAIN STORM 10028, LONG JOHN SILVER 10063, KIM 10069, NOTHING 10039, 
BALTHAZAR 10057, BLIEW IZE 10055, BORON 10072, JOPAR 10023, GOING WITHOUT 10037, and 
BLACKBEARD 10031.

                     PAYMENTS BY CHECK AND MONEY ORDER -- CHANGE

Please note that because of new bank regulations, we can no longer accept any check or 
money order drawn off a non-US bank, even if it is in US Funds.  We were just informed 
by our bank that the fee to process these checks is $40, which is crazy high!

Many apologies to our foreign players, but you will need to either get a check from a 
US bank (Chase, Citigroup, etc.) or pay via credit card.  

                                The Defensive Lunger

  Perfect   Minimums     Actual Characters
ST   13        11             11   13
CN    7         3              3   11
SZ    4         4             10    6
WT   21        17             17   17
WL   17        13             17   19
SP    5         5              9    5
DF   17        13             17   13

     The lunger, in my opinion, makes a much better defensive fighter than offensive 
fighter.  Fighting defensively will compensate for the speed at which lungers burn 
endurance.  They will still attack whenever possible but their defensive ability will 
allow them to dodge most attacks.  The most important part is their initiative.  When 
they do dodge, they'll usually steal the initiative and attack.  I haven't been 
fighting lungers defensively for long but my record is 14-5-0.  Don't fight 
defensively against other lungers as they will usually win.

     The strategy I use is:
Min  1    2    3    4    5    6   Desp
Off  4 ------------------------->  9         Weapon:  Any lunging
Act  6    4 -------------------->  9         No armor if low con
KD   4 ------------------------->  9         APL/H if average con
O.T. --------------------------->  L
D.T. -------------------------------->

     You can attack any location you wish but I suggest protecting the body.  The 
third character listed started with experts in attack, defense and initiative.  The 
last character had an expert in attack.

The Wild Boar, manager of Things (5) and many inactive teams.

                                  WARRIOR ENDURANCE

     Greetings, joy and happiness to everyone!  I hope you have had pleasant dueling.  
This article is about endurance and some things to think about when you're designing 
your warriors.  Below is a chart showing the different endurance levels a warrior may 
have.  This chart may be a little off of due to the fact it isn't possible to have all 
the variables as a manager, but it does give you idea of the amount of endurance a 
warrior should have.

The formula for endurance is: E = (ST+CN)WL

With the result of that number use the chart below.

000-180 = Very Poor
181-240 = Poor
235-390 = Normal
391-509 = Good
510-639 = Great
640-699 = Tremendous
770+    = Awesome

Here are some examples of warriors with their Endurance ratings:

1) Slasher      ST  5  CN  7  WL 15     (5+7)15   = 180	 Poor
2) Striker	ST  7  CN 13  WL  9	(7+13)9   = 180	 Poor
3) Parry-Rip	ST  7  CN 10  WL 11	(7+10)11  = 187	 Poor
4) Basher	ST 13  CN  9  WL  9	(13+9)9   = 198	 Very Poor
5) Striker	ST 13  CN  9  WL  9	(13+9)9   = 198	 Poor
6) Aimed-Blow	ST  9  CN 15  WL  9	(9+15)9   = 216	 Normal
7) Striker	ST 10  CN  5  WL 15	(10+5)15  = 225	 Normal
8) Slasher	ST 13  CN 10  WL 10     (13+10)10 = 230	 Normal
9) Wall/Steel	ST 13  CN 12  WL 17     (13+12)17 = 425	 Great

     There are several factors such as warrior style, RSI random factor, and there is 
some evidence that SIZE has some effect on a warrior's endurance.  In any case the RSI 
LUCK factor can be around 7 to 8% in your favor or 2-3% worse than average.  These are 
just estimates, but are still factors nevertheless.
     Some styles that are HIGH BURN endurance, like lungers, slashers and walls of 
steel, are more likely to be UNLUCKY with the endurance rating.
     Every action your warrior does consumes endurance.  Attacking seems to use more 
endurance than any other action.  Once a warrior's endurance is used up, he will make 
an endurance check against his WILL. If he fails the roll, he will either stop to rest 
or collapse to the sand, depending on how badly he failed the roll.  When a warrior 
stops to rest, he gets back some endurance.  When he gets enough endurance back, he 
will start attacking again.  This is just a theory that I have developed from 
observations.  It maybe completely off, but it gives one something to ponder.
     That's it for now lords and ladies, I must go entertain elsewhere.  If you would 
like to chat about DM or other things, you can EMAIL me at 103260.3347@compuserve.com 
or visit my DM website at 
http://ourworld.compuserve.com./homepages/jessisjest/homepage.htm 
     You can also diplo me at DM 11 "The Lords Of the Abyss (319)" or any of the 
Joker's Wilds scattered about.

                                                       Cheerio,
                                                       Sir Jessie Jest
                                                       Member of the Ivory League

                     Presenting, by Popular Demand (from 1989)...

                            THE NUMEROLOGY OF DUELMASTERS
                                by The Ghost of Eldrid

                                 Character Generation

     Hello, I am the Ghost of Eldrid, and I have an important message that directly 
effects how well your team may do in the future.  Some managers will not take this 
important article seriously (some people don't believe in ghosts, either), and their 
records will suffer for it.  I have played Duelmasters for four years and searched 
through all of my old turns and painstakingly researched every important fact in this 
article, and I have discussed my conclusions with about ten different managers (named 
managers such as Phido, Doctor LeGrand, Silk, Russ, and Biff Frothingslosh) who all 
agree on the validity of my arguments.  The results of my research are both startling 
and magnificent.  THERE IS NUMEROLOGY IN DUELMASTERS!!!  Whether it was programmed in 
or it exists on a higher plane, it matters not.  IT EXISTS!!!  And I plan to share 
some of its amazing secrets with you, starting with character creation.
     Remember in the realm of character generation the powers favor odd number stats.  
NEVER, EVER have an even number on stats, except, of course, for size, which, 
obviously should be even since everyone can tell what size your character is by his 
description in the fight.  Do you want people thinking your warrior is odd?  I should 
hope not!!  But in case you decide to keep your odd warrior, DO NOT MAKE ANY OTHER 
STATS EVEN!!  Write a letter to the commission stating that you forgo the rights to 
the last point and you want it to be sacrificed to the benefit of Alastari.
     Always start adding points to wit and will first.  Either make them 13, 17, or 
21.  Why?  Under 12 wit is worthless, as any good manager will tell you.  A 13 
understandably gives your opponent bad luck, a 17 has the ever-lucky "7" in it, and 21 
is BLACKJACK, and you get twice the number of winnings you would normally get.  Why 
not 15 or 19?   Is it not obvious to everyone that 15 is unlucky?  The only President 
of the United States not married was the 15th, James Buchanan (who?).  Lincoln was 
shot on April 15th, and the clincher... my brother was born on the 15th of May.  If 
these "coincidences" don't prove to you that 15 is unlucky, I don't know what will.  
19 is an evil number.  It tries to deceive you into thinking it is better than 17, but 
actually, it is an "11" with a small zero placed on the second pole, and we all know 
that a zero is nothing.  So what do we get for our extra eight points?  In effect, 
something smaller than nothing.
     Next, make every other stat odd.  Add the other points to make the style you 
want.  Deftness is the key to character generation.
     Deftness (min)
          5 to make a basher (ST 13+)
          7 for a lunger
          9 for a striker
          11 for a wall of steel (ST 11+, WL 17+)
          13 for a parry lunge (ST 11+), slasher (SP 11+), parry-strike, and total 
                    parries (these styles depend on the opponent's bad luck.
          17 for a parry-riposte (WT 17+)
          21 for an aimed blow (this style needs the double winnings)

     The last thing to remember is that luck is a big factor in this game and I don't 
know if you noticed, but when warriors have even ID numbers they are luckier than odd 
ID characters.  Look at the best warriors in Primus: Wallbanger, Donatello, Epitaph, 
Chaos Knight, Villiage Idiot, Silverflash, Khorga Khan, Jake the Snake, Sly, Max, 
Stormbringer, Teetotaler, Raphael, Selleque, Kiri, Constance, Hangover, Eve, and Sam 
Spade.  All have even-numbered IDs.  Now you say, "But Yoda and Necron-99 both have 
odd IDs, and they are the best aimed blows of the game!"  Yes, but they are AIMED 
BLOWS and they are members of an odd style, so of course they do better with odd 
numbers.  So remember if you want your warriors to be best in all Alastari someday, 
Dark Arena all your odd-numbered characters, unless of course they are aimed blows.  
Good luck, and may the numbers fall your way.

                                        -- The Ghost of Eldrid,
                                             retired

                           PARRY-STRIKE, ANOTHER FUN STYLE

     There have been several articles about fighting styles, some say theirs is the 
best, or ultimate, one said theirs is the most fun style.  Well, I feel that parry-
strikers are just as much fun to play as any other style.
     First, let's start with the run down of what they say in the "RED BOOK".  The 
book says that parry-strikers are defensive, using small quick movements in their 
actions (sounds like you could say that about some other styles as well.)  The book 
says that some managers swear that a high wit is critical to the style (only those who 
have no brains would disagree with that.)
     Let's get to business.  First and foremost this style is deceptively aggressive, 
making them a very good offensive type of fighter, or deadly type of defensive 
fighter.  Offensively they tend to get the jump on their opponent.  I had a parry-
striker that was only jumped 3 out of 11 fights, before he died.  To prepare and run a 
parry-striker can be quite confusing, so I will try to help make it as simple as 
possible.  Here are my feelings on roll-ups for the parry-strike style:

     ST:  11-15, I'll explain later.
     CN:  who cares.
     SZ:  10-14, don't go over 14.
     WT:  13-17, 17 is the best.
     WL:  13-17, to get good endurance.
     SP:  not important.
     DF:  11-15, I'll explain later.

     Here are some good roll-ups for a parry-striker:  11,7,10,17,17,7,15; 
15,7,11,17,16,7,11; 11,7,14,17,13,7,15; 15,7,14,17,13,7,11.  Now, if you have a decent 
wit, the way you run this fighting style will depend on strength and deftness.  For 
example: if your fighter has a high DF and a low ST it would be to his/her advantage 
to be defensive, since the speed would benefit the ability to move in reaction to 
their opponent.  If the ST is high, and DF low, it would be better to fight 
offensively like a striker, trying to get the first, and only blow in.  If they don't 
have a decent wit, you're on your own.  I can't help you on that.  Remember this style 
of fighting is the same as a striker except for added knowledge of parrying, as well 
as bein a little more aggressive.  I would not suggest a low ST and DF, it will take 
away from your WT & WL, and you don't want to do that, but if you do, good luck.  You 
don't need much CN if you have a good WL, which gives you your endurance.  SZ; you 
don't want it to be above 14, it would hurt your fighting style more than your 
attributes.  WT; it is the same as it is with strikers, the higher the WT the faster 
and deadlier they become.  Raise WT to 17 if you don't have it at the start, then 
don't worry about it again until ADM.  WL; this is where you get your endurance.  13 
is fine to start out, but I would suggest 15, then bump it up to 17 in basic.  SP; it 
is what you need to riposte, but PSers have this "one strike one kill" attitude.  
Meaning that there isn't much time to riposte with a killing attitude, so do whatever.  
DF; what is there to say, it helps, but is not crucial to be a great PSer.  Now to 
running a PSer.  If he is an offensive fighter 10-10-10 Dec. all the way through the 
fight, even in desperation.  If Defensive, 1st 10-10-10 Resp., 2nd 10-7-10 Dec., 3rd 
10-10-10, 4th 10-10-10 Dec., 5th 10-10-10 Dec., 6th 10-10-10, Desp. 10-10-10 Resp.  
Remember, first you want to assure your defense, and to do that, you should go 
defensive the first minute.  By the second minute you will be secure enough to go on 
the offensive, but experiment.  6th minute on, leave blank, for by that time he/she 
will know what to do (if their WT is high that is.)  The best thing you could do for 
your fighter is watch the fights, if you are getting more defensive skills than 
offensive, run the def., or change weapons.  That is the best advice I can give you 
about PSers.  About armor, I like to use ringmail or nothing, but experiment.  I know 
that there is someone that will disagree with me, but I feel that I have given you 
some ideas about this fighting style that can be used, even though I am a new manager, 
playing for just over a year.  No matter who writes a style article, it is just 
advice, not the bible.  Just use the articles as a point of reference, not as sworn 
law.
     This is a very fun fighting style, try it out.  I have written this in answer to 
Foreign Legion Arena 31, and The Spartans Arena 8.  I challenge any Primus Manager to 
correct my writing of PSers.  It is not my favorite style, but it is as fun as any 
other that I have used, including my favorite one (Which is a STRIKER!!)  If there are 
any comments, please Diplo The Priest, the manager of The Heroes of XIAN DM-10, or The 
Crucifiers DM-46.

                            THE ARMOR PIERCING PARRY-LUNGE

     When you think "attack" what style comes to mind?  Bashing?  Definitely lunging?  
Of course.  Parry-Lunging?  Excuse me?  Yes, the parry-lunger!  Few people realize the 
fact that parry-lungers are attack gods waiting to be born.  All it takes is the right 
warrior and lots of guts.  This warrior is not for the weak of heart.  We'll begin 
with stats.

     Range               Perfect
     ST  9-11                  11
     CN  5-9                    5
     SZ  6-11                   8
     WT 17or21                 21
     WL 17or21                 17
     SP  5-8                    5
     DF 15-17                  17

     Why?
     ST(11):  This is your optimum PL strength.  It puts your warrior in the normal to 
good damage range.  Also, you have the best PL weapon at your disposal--the LO!
     CN(5):  Yes, his life expectancy is low.  What'd I tell you?  Guts, right?  He 
gets his endurance from WL.  If you want to make trains, make them here.
     SZ(8):  Our most flexible stat.  A high SZ (i.e.11) allows you to skimp a bit on 
Str (9).
     WT(21):  If it's not a 21 you're not going to get the attack this fellow counts 
on.  His learns will be awesome and a 21 WT will make him a better warrior out of the 
chocks.
     WL(17):  End/Att are dependent on this one being high.  Keeps you on your feet 
when you should drop from exhaustion.
     SP(5):  Not a big requirement.  Init and Parry will come from elsewhere (WT/DF).  
This is not a lunger mimic.
     DF(17):  Combine this DF with a 21 WT and you will have a massive attack.  
Pinpoint accuracy is the byword.  Parry, init, def and riposte will all benefit 
immeasurably.  At 15 you have access to the EP, a fine lunging weapon this style can 
put to devastating use.

     Strategy (General, but effective in most cases)
          2    9    9    7    6    5    10
          6    9    9    7    6    5    10
          2    7    7    7    5    5    10
          HE ---------------------------->
          HE   BD ----------------------->
          -    -    -    -    -    -    -
          P    -    -    -    -    -    -

     Minute 1:  This fellow won't get the jump on offensives, so we'll just go 
defensive and render their "mad minute" fruitless.  This PL's counterattack will be 
amazing at even 2-6-2 P due to the high AL.  Keep the parry tactic until Adv Expert 
parry is gained.
     Minutes 2 and 3:  These two will end most of his fights.  When he starts landing 
precision blows in his opponent's face it will usually be over quickly.  Keep the kill 
desire relatively low as to avoid sloppy attacking.
     Minutes 4 through 6:  If you haven't won by now you've got to depend on your WL 
to carry you until you finish the job.  He'll probably top out at the five min. mark.  
But we want to keep the attacks coming so we do so at his endurance's expense.
     Desp:  If your opponent is an offensive he's probably blasted through your min. 1 
defense.  Your best bet is to go spastic and hope to take him out in one shot or so.  
If he's some super-defensive (scum) this PL is probably exhausted and you're hoping 
the super-offense will put him over the edge.  After all, it's better to burn out than 
fade away.
     Always aim for the head to maximize the impact of your blows.  If it tickles your 
fancy, aim for your opponent's weapon arm and beat him senseless when he's unarmed.  
Protecting the head in min. 1 is strictly odds playing on my part.  My offensives aim 
head so I assume everyone else's do too.  After min. 1, we forget defense.
     Weapons and armor are simple.  APL/H or ARM/H (if you're challenging a real 
heavy-hitter).  I prefer swords for armament.  My combos are usually LO/SM, LO/SH, 
SC/DA etc.  Against heavy armor go with LO/SH.  Always aim for the head.
     Philosophy:  This guy clings to life by luck, early on, and will never be free of 
the spectre of death.  In his first few fights stay away from lungers and bashers.  
Both have high attacks and usually do substantial damage.  Prey on strikers, PS, PR 
and slashers.  As he progresses, his attack, parry and defense will equip him with the 
tools to handle most everybody but always remain cautious of those bashers and 
lungers.
     A PL of this calibre should begin with around a 90 att, 70 par/init and 60-70 
def.  Decise and riposte will be slightly lower.  Riposte 50 and decise anywhere from 
35-50 depending on how lucky you get.  Train skills exclusively from fight one and on.  
Use tourneys if you must raise anything at all (including con).
     Don't be discouraged if he's around .500 early on.  By ten fights he'll be 
sporting three Adv Experts at least (att, par and init) and will begin to dismantle 
those scum/finesse styles that managed to beat him.  Feel free to write or diplo me 
with comments/criticisms/or questions.

                                             Fight the Good Fight,
     or:                                          Agath
          CPL Michael Dockus                      Lunatic Fringe (23)
          H Co BLT 2/8                            Circle of Five (51)
          24 MEU (Det F)                          Slaves of Power (52)
          FPO NY NY 09502-8531

  Armsilbar liked being Master of the Stronghold Academy, all except for one part.

He had to talk to Sheila Greywand at least once a week, usually oftener.  She was 
getting more erratic.  More chaotic.  That would be the effect of the Grey Wand.  It 
was a powerful chaotic artifact, and she kept it with her always.  She had turned his 
predecessor into a frog--or 164 frogs--and then summoned all the members of the 
Academy to a frog-leg dinner.  That had been, ah, bad.  Yes, very bad.
     But here he was entering her chambers.  With, well, it couldn't be called GOOD 
news.  And the look she turned on him--she was in an orcish mood today, all scowling 
black brows and bared fangs--that made him nervous.  But some things had to be done.  
He cleared his throat, which seemed to have a frog in it, and said, "It's about the 
next tourney prize, Lady.  I know it's more than two months away, but this isn't too 
soon to start thinking of some new, exciting prize--"
     "I have no intention of thinking about 'new, exciting prizes'," she snapped.  Or 
was that a snarl?  "These managers are getting above themselves.  They act like I 
created the arena system for their amusement!  There will be one standard prize for 
all the tourneys.  Just one."
     He had a horrible vision of all the managers walking out in a mass.  Perhaps it 
wouldn't be that bad, but it wouldn't be good.  And if he said the wrong thing, well, 
the next frog-leg dinner might be him. "Er, ah, perhaps a specific prize for each 
tourney--a spring prize, a summer prize, and so on?  The managers expect--"
     She exploded.  A literal explosion, the force of the blast blew his hair off.  
She said several things in an obsolete dialect of orcish.  He stepped backward, then 
again.  The blast had blown the door open behind him.  If he could make it out before 
something else happened--
     "Ribbit!  Ribbit!"