DUEL 2 NEWSLETTER
Date : 09/29/2017 Duedate: 10/12/2017
NOBLISH ISLAND ARENA
DM-93 TURN-488
This Weeks Top Honors
THE DUELMASTER IS
KOKOMO, IN
HOME SWEET HOME (1728)
(93-10093) [6-1-0,66]
Chartered Recognition Leader Unchartered Recognition Leader
POSITION IS EMPTY KOKOMO, IN
HOME SWEET HOME (1728)
(93-10093) [6-1-0,66]
Popularity Leader This Weeks Favorite
MILFORD, MA MILFORD, MA
HOME SWEET HOME (1728) HOME SWEET HOME (1728)
(93-10090) [5-2-0,33] (93-10090) [5-2-0,33]
THE CURRENT TOP TEAM
HOME SWEET HOME (1728)
TEAMS ON THE MOVE TOP CAREER HONORS
Team Name Point Gain Chartered Team
1. BASH BROS APPLES (1727) 36
2. CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729) 25 THE RUSH (537)
3. HOME SWEET HOME (1728) 14 Unchartered Team
4. NILOCS LEGION (1734) 9
5. ODD SQUAD (1712) 0 HOME SWEET HOME (1728)
The Top Teams
Career Win-Loss Record W L K % Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns W L K
1/ 1*HOME SWEET HOME (1728) 24 11 0 68.6 1/ 1*HOME SWEET HOME (1728) 11 4 0
2/ 3*CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729) 8 7 0 53.3 2/ 2*BASH BROS APPLES (1727) 8 7 0
3- 2*ODD SQUAD (1712) 20 18 0 52.6 3/ 3*CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729) 8 7 0
4/ 4*BASH BROS APPLES (1727) 18 17 0 51.4 4/ 0*NILOCS LEGION (1734) 1 1 0
5/ 0*NILOCS LEGION (1734) 1 1 0 50.0 5- 4*ODD SQUAD (1712) 1 3 0
6- 5*LEGION (1726) 2 8 0 20.0 6- 5*LEGION (1726) 0 5 0
7- 6*9 KOWLOON CLAN (1714) 0 1 0 0.0 7- 6*9 KOWLOON CLAN (1714) 0 1 0
'*' Unchartered team '-' Team did not fight this turn
(###) Avoid teams by their Team Id ##/## This turn's/Last turn's rank
TEAM SPOTLIGHT
Training: Skills or Stats?
D2ers often hear a statement similar to this: "Train skills; do not train stats."
The implication or sometimes direct statement is that you will be sorry if you train
stats, especially certain stats. 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 presentation is to explore stat and skill training and
to give the D2 Manager some ideas as to if, or when, stat training is either aok or
best. The article will also explore when it is considered best not to train stats.
First, to set the stage, there are several principles, givens, and ideas that the
reader must understand.
1. Skill training is mostly dependent on WT. (e.g. The higher the wit, the more
skills per fight the warrior is likely to learn. It also seems one can learn more
skills fighting a very experience/skilled warrior. (Whom apparently teaches well?)
There is always a luck roll involved.
2. Stat training is rather highly 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% (3 to 1 odds) 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) Realize, however, that it is really 50% for
the 1st, 27.5% for the 2nd (since he earned the 1st and is now at 11 WL) and
15% for the 3rd. (Since he had previously bumped the WL to 12). Note: There is
always a luck/unlucky roll involved.
3. Training most stats also earns the warrior certain skills. (Check your C.I.C.
packet for this.)
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" in that attribute when he learns
the 20th.
c. A warrior can, however, learn more than 20 skills of a type if he first learns
his 20 allowed skills, and then trains stats which give the warrior one of
those specific 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. (Mostly determined by
WL.)
3. Be aware that virtually everything 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.) Note:
Physicals might improve in either case.
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
of a certain stat. (e.g. How many skills am I likely to learn if I train skills
verses 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 (UNS), standard warrior -- run to graduation.(NRM)
2. Do not train stats on GOD, unless they are non-burning stats.
3. Limit training stats on UNS, 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 probable 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" b 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 b 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.
Perhaps this quote from another player's article will enhance your understanding?
"Raising stats: Care must be taken in doing this. All fighters start out with the
ability to learn 20 skills each in the categories of Defense, Parry, Riposte, Attack,
Decisiveness, and Initiative. When you learn all 120 skills, you've maxed out. You
can get skills through normal learns, or by raising stats; however, if you raise stats
BEFORE you max out (except for Con which has no skills), anything gained will count as
one of the 20. This is called "burning" skills. If, on the other hand, you wait
until you've maxed out, then raising stats will add those imbedded skills to the ones
you've learned, enabling you to exceed your limits. But raising stats will give an
immediate boost to your abilities. It's a question of short term vs. long term gain."
Surely, now, after all that, you could spare a buck or even a meal for a...
-- Hobo (Consortium affiliated)
***---------*---------*---------*---------**---------*---------*---------*---------***
What is Knack?
If you stick around Duel2, you will eventually hear about a concept called 'Knack.'
It is also sometimes called a warrior's Luck Factor or Hidden Stats. Nobody
completely understands what it is, but most managers agree that it exists.
First, understand that while Knack exists, there are many other items that contribute
to a warrior's record. Sometimes you may think you have a knacky warrior, but you
eventually figure out that it is something else that makes your warrior win. This can
include favorites (every warrior has a set of favorites which they get bonuses when
using), raw skills, as well as just plain old good design and management.
But sometimes, you'll run across a warrior that fights above and beyond (or below and
before) their abilities. I will talk mostly about the positive side of knack, but the
negative side also exists. Warriors with knack will just plain find ways to win.
There is really nothing fancy about it. It doesn't mean they can't lose, but it does
mean they win fights they shouldn't.
Pesticides is an example of a warrior that may be 'knacky.' He is a 15-12-16-11-9-14-
7 Basher with great damage. His wit is pretty low and his will doesn't compensate.
Nothing about him suggests that he should be winning most of his fights. His one loss
is to a total parry (which isn't surprising for a basher, especially one with 4
starting attack). You can't be entirely sure when your warrior has 'it,' but time
will tell the story. You also need to face competition that proves one way or another
that you are better than you should be. But time tells the story as your warrior
finds ways to win or lose fights, especially fights that look close.
Perhaps the best example of a Knacky warrior is a famous warrior named Daydream
Believer. This PR started 17-14-4-17-7-8-17. Now understand that this is a solid
design for a Parry Riposte. In addition, the warrior rolled +4 in both attack and
parry. Finally, Mannequin, the manager, found DDB's favorites from fight #1. All of
that together and you'd expect some major success from DDB. On the other side of
things, 7 will... I (and many other managers) would fully expect to lose many a fight
because of that 7 will. Well, DDB surpassed all expectations and TC'd Rookies,
Adepts, Champions, and Challengers. DDB is the only naturally born warrior to TC 4
different classes. People have copied DDB's stats many times since then and to the
best of my knowledge have never seen more than a single TC from those stats. Even
with all the positives DDB had, you shouldn't see 4 TC's from this warrior. But DDB
has that magical knack (in addition to everything else) and been cloned many times.
While many of the clones have died one or more times, they have also generated
something like 7 or 8 additional TC's.
This article is mostly to be aware that there is a 'knack' factor to warriors. Just
because a warrior looks horrible on paper doesn't mean it can't win. And sometimes,
you may have a warrior that looks fantastic on paper, but can't win. It is possible
that warrior has 'inverse knack' and really is worse than it should be. Or it could
just be that you've had bad luck or really bad matchups.
DUELMASTER'S COLUMN
Notes from the arena champ.
It is customary that the Duelmaster of an arena write a DM Column. Did you know
that? It is not mandatory, but customary. See? Many managers do not write one because
-- they think they have nothing to say that anyone wants to read; they think they have
to write something intelligent; they don't have the time, they think; they don't know
how.......
But all one has to do is write (or print legibly) a paragraph or two, titled as a
DM Column in whatever arena, and send it in to RSI with one's strategy sheets. Brag,
explain, talk about the warrior's name, or his teammates, or the manager, or whatever
you want. (Note: RSI will edit anything inappropriate. As well they should!) Of
course, if one has internet access, one can send it to ads@reality.com with subject DM
Column DM XX.)
And since Kokomo, IN, is the Duelmaster he wants to say:
1. Hoosiers rule!
2. I am the BEST warrior in DM93 (9-10-11-17-17-9-11)
3. Welcome all you newbies to D2.
4. I eat apples for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
5. Assur and Hobo will really answer any questions, if you ask.
6. The Clemson Tigers will be National Champions again this year.
7. Challenge me. Let me show you how good I am.
-- Kokomo, IN, DM
With help from the Home Sweet Home Boss
SPY REPORT
I can't believe the violence in NOBLISH ISLAND! I still haven't told Mom I'm
writing Spyreports. She'd have a cow! Well, here we go... Cut this out and put it
in your scrapbooks, BASH BROS APPLES! 'Cause they got 4-1-0 and moved up to 2nd!
MVP award for SISTER SURIEL? CHURCH OF UYPHY's proud of her after beating RACINE, WI
and getting 18 points. Talk about yer big time losers! MONK SABAOTH got smashed by
ROTTEN, and lost 11 points! Don't you think the Duelmaster is being unfair? I think
KOKOMO, IN should let KUNG-FU MASTER be Duelmaster for a while, without fighting
about it. Who was the wiseguy that said NOBLISH ISLAND's Duelmaster was paying for
drinks at The Welcome Wench? Don't look at me!
I gotta admit I haven't been in "deep con caves" with any spies. Really, I just
wing this stuff. ODD SQUAD was the most avoided team. Is a 20-18-0 record really
that scary? Hhmph! What kind of warriors are HOME SWEET HOME? ODD SQUAD, an easy
team to beat if I ever saw one, can't get them to accept an invitation! Can BASH
BROS APPLES' PESTICIDES be more popular than me? He was challenged the most, but is
that really the same?
Challenges, revenges, Bloodfeuds. All NOBLISH ISLAND ever talks about is
fighting! Me, I'm more laid back. Fight, fight, fight. Is that all you guys can
do?
I really didn't, you know, study when I was a kid. Who would've guessed I'd be
a famous Spyreporter? I gotta leave. NOBLISH ISLAND is like such a dump, and you
guys smell too much! I had a fun time, see you later-- Debby Tonte
DUELMASTER W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
KOKOMO, IN 10093 6 1 0 66 HOME SWEET HOME (1728)
ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
PESTICIDES 10087 6 1 0 53 BASH BROS APPLES (1727)
CHALLENGER INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
LENEXA, KS 10092 4 3 0 40 HOME SWEET HOME (1728)
CHALLENGER INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
MILFORD, MA 10090 5 2 0 33 HOME SWEET HOME (1728)
PRIESTESS IRIN 10099 3 0 0 29 CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
SISTER SURIEL 10118 2 0 0 28 CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
-OLIVE 10061 4 2 0 27 ODD SQUAD (1712)
SOUR 10088 4 3 0 26 BASH BROS APPLES (1727)
INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
-MS. O 10073 3 2 0 22 ODD SQUAD (1712)
ROTTEN 10084 2 5 0 22 BASH BROS APPLES (1727)
-JINXEE 9988 6 3 0 21 ODD SQUAD (1712)
-ODDO 10060 3 3 0 20 ODD SQUAD (1712)
EASLEY, SC 10091 5 2 0 17 HOME SWEET HOME (1728)
RACINE, WI 10089 4 3 0 15 HOME SWEET HOME (1728)
-OAK 10062 4 1 0 14 ODD SQUAD (1712)
AZAZEL 10097 1 2 0 13 CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
-AUTUMNBE 9643 3 2 0 12 CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657)
UNRIPE 10086 2 5 0 11 BASH BROS APPLES (1727)
BRIOSES 10129 1 1 0 11 BASH BROS APPLES (1727)
CPT BETHRIG 10128 1 0 0 8 NILOCS LEGION (1734)
-DRAXXUS 9644 1 4 0 7 CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657)
SHOFTIEL 10100 1 2 0 5 CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
MONK SABAOTH 10101 1 2 0 5 CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
-AZZUMI 10081 1 1 0 4 LEGION (1726)
-CHARLIE 10080 1 1 0 4 LEGION (1726)
-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)
SSG LOTHAR 10124 0 1 0 1 NILOCS LEGION (1734)
-VICTOR KOWLOON 10002 0 1 0 1 9 KOWLOON CLAN (1714)
'-' denotes a warrior who did not fight this turn.
THE DEAD W L K TEAM NAME SLAIN BY TURN Revenge?
PERSONAL ADS
Whoa, baby! Lookee at that there point gain fer them Apples Whooooeeeey! -- Hobo, Home
Sweet Home
I feel sad. The Pesticides got to me. It is not right, I say! They should be outlawed!
There is no way Pesticide can be better than me. Is there? -- Milford, MA
Rotten, I could see how rotten you were when I sliced you open. Bwahahaha. -- Easley,
SC
Fighting the NPCs is fum!
Lenexa refused Persistent Beggar
Kokomo handcuffed Dangerous Criminal
Racine captured Mordant Deserter
Fun, fun, fun.
-- The Home Sweet Home Administrative Assistant (who interprets Hobo's illiterate
statements)
Assur and Hobo are in this arena to HELP you learn and understand this simple and fun,
but sometimes complicated game of D2. Ask them any question you want about D2. They
WANT to help. -- Anonymous lovers of D2 everywhere.
All -- Thanks for the warm welcome! We here at the Church will be praying for all
warriors. -- Uyphy
Unripe -- I'm not sure eitehr of us should be proud of that "fight." -- Azazel
Bash Bros -- You may have clobbered us 2-1 this week, but next time we'll be hungry
for a bite. -- Church of Uyphy
LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS
MILFORD, MA slimly lost to PESTICIDES in a crowd pleasing 2 minute Challenge fight.
KOKOMO, IN demolished KUNG-FU MASTER in a popular 1 minute one-sided Title melee.
LENEXA, KS vanquished FRATSFA SLAVE in a 1 minute mismatched brawl.
EASLEY, SC was savagely defeated by PRIESTESS IRIN in a exciting 1 minute fight.
ROTTEN devastated MONK SABAOTH in a 1 minute one-sided duel.
UNRIPE slimly lost to AZAZEL in a 2 minute match.
SOUR devastated SHOFTIEL in a 1 minute one-sided competition.
RACINE, WI was handily defeated by SISTER SURIEL in a 1 minute uneven melee.
BRIOSES vanquished SSG LOTHAR in a 1 minute gruesome one-sided duel.
CPT BETHRIG won victory over MORDANT DESERTER in a 1 minute novice's fight.
BATTLE REPORT
MOST POPULAR RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS
|FIGHTING STYLE FIGHTS FIGHTING STYLE W - L - K PERCENT|
|BASHING ATTACK 7 TOTAL PARRY 15 - 6 - 1 71 |
|SLASHING ATTACK 4 BASHING ATTACK 35 - 25 - 1 58 |
|STRIKING ATTACK 3 LUNGING ATTACK 13 - 10 - 1 57 |
|PARRY-RIPOSTE 1 STRIKING ATTACK 20 - 18 - 1 53 |
|WALL OF STEEL 1 SLASHING ATTACK 17 - 16 - 1 52 |
|AIMED BLOW 1 WALL OF STEEL 13 - 13 - 0 50 |
|PARRY-LUNGE 0 PARRY-RIPOSTE 5 - 7 - 0 42 |
|PARRY-STRIKE 0 AIMED BLOW 12 - 20 - 0 38 |
|LUNGING ATTACK 0 PARRY-STRIKE 1 - 3 - 0 25 |
|TOTAL PARRY 0 PARRY-LUNGE 1 - 6 - 0 14 |
Turn 488 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-RIPOSTE 1 - 0 BASHING ATTACK 2 - 5 3 SLASHING ATTACK
SLASHING ATTACK 4 - 0 AIMED BLOW 0 - 1 3 STRIKING ATTACK
WALL OF STEEL 1 - 0 PARRY-LUNGE 0 - 0 2 BASHING ATTACK
STRIKING ATTACK 2 - 1 PARRY-STRIKE 0 - 0 1 WALL OF STEEL
LUNGING ATTACK 0 - 0 1 LUNGING ATTACK
TOTAL PARRY 0 - 0 1 AIMED BLOW
TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE
FIGHTING STYLE WARRIOR W L K PNTS TEAM NAME
SLASHING ATTACK KOKOMO, IN 10093 6 1 0 66 HOME SWEET HOME (1728)
BASHING ATTACK PESTICIDES 10087 6 1 0 53 BASH BROS APPLES (1727)
STRIKING ATTACK LENEXA, KS 10092 4 3 0 40 HOME SWEET HOME (1728)
Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above.
The overall popularity leader is MILFORD, MA 10090. The most popular warrior this
turn was MILFORD, MA 10090. The ten other most popular fighters were PESTICIDES
10087, UNRIPE 10086, KOKOMO, IN 10093, PRIESTESS IRIN 10099, LENEXA, KS 10092,
EASLEY, SC 10091, ROTTEN 10084, SOUR 10088, BRIOSES 10129, and CPT BETHRIG 10128.
The least popular fighter this week was RACINE, WI 10089. The other ten least
popular fighters were SHOFTIEL 10100, MONK SABAOTH 10101, SSG LOTHAR 10124, SISTER
SURIEL 10118, AZAZEL 10097, CPT BETHRIG 10128, BRIOSES 10129, SOUR 10088, ROTTEN
10084, and EASLEY, SC 10091.
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