DUEL 2 NEWSLETTER
Date : 12/08/2017 Duedate: 12/21/2017
NOBLISH ISLAND ARENA
DM-93 TURN-493
This Weeks Top Honors
THE DUELMASTER IS
SISTER SURIEL
CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
(93-10118) [6-1-0,66]
Chartered Recognition Leader Unchartered Recognition Leader
POSITION IS EMPTY SISTER SURIEL
CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
(93-10118) [6-1-0,66]
Popularity Leader This Weeks Favorite
PRIESTESS IRIN SHOFTIEL
CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729) CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
(93-10099) [6-2-0,48] (93-10100) [5-3-0,28]
THE CURRENT TOP TEAM
CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
TEAMS ON THE MOVE TOP CAREER HONORS
Team Name Point Gain Chartered Team
1. CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729) 49
2. FOLKLORE (1738) 36 COLD IRON BLOWS (794)
3. BLACKTHORN INC. (1735) 35 Unchartered Team
4. BB HALLOWEEN (1739) 15
5. RED AVENGERS (1736) 6 FOLKLORE (1738)
The Top Teams
Career Win-Loss Record W L K % Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns W L K
1/ 3*FOLKLORE (1738) 7 3 1 70.0 1/ 1*CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729) 12 3 0
2/ 1*BB HALLOWEEN (1739) 7 3 0 70.0 2/ 5*FOLKLORE (1738) 7 3 1
3/ 2*CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729) 26 14 0 65.0 3/ 2*BB HALLOWEEN (1739) 7 3 0
4/ 4*BLACKTHORN INC. (1735) 12 12 0 50.0 4/ 4*BLACKTHORN INC. (1735) 7 8 0
5- 5*CLOAK WARRIORS (1737) 2 3 0 40.0 5/ 3*RED AVENGERS (1736) 5 7 0
6/ 6*RED AVENGERS (1736) 7 15 0 31.8 6- 6*CLOAK WARRIORS (1737) 2 3 0
7/ 0*THIEF TAKERS (1730) 0 5 0 0.0 7/ 0*THIEF TAKERS (1730) 0 5 0
'*' Unchartered team '-' Team did not fight this turn
(###) Avoid teams by their Team Id ##/## This turn's/Last turn's rank
TEAM SPOTLIGHT
The CIC Package
RSI Will Provide It to Noblish Islanders (and all newbies) Upon Request
Once upon a time there were some long-time managers who decided to collect a lot
of valuable information, in hard copy form. Those managers, use said data information
when:
1. The internet is down and the Terrablood/RSI sites are unavailable
2. Traveling around the world and "working D2 strategies" in unusual places
3. Quick information is needed
4. They feel like it
The information is "old fashioned" and maybe not the the prettiest, but it can be
quite invaluable to D2ers especially D2ers with no internet accessibility. Copies of
that information are now available for Noblish Island managers. Contact the RSI office
to request it by mail. (If it wasn't sent in an intro packet to you.)
Most of the information on the data sheets is self-explanatory. Some will
require explanation. Most has been gathered from various sources over time in the old
DM community. Much of it has been gathered empirically. (Meaning that the information
is not programming code, or from the designers, but rather gathered by users and
players of the game.) The information may not always be "perfect", but it is widely
used in this or similar fashion.
I will explain the information by placing it into two categories:
straightforward, and intricate. First let's cover what is in the first category. The
following charts/info fit the straightforward category. Some include simple
calculations.
1. WEAPON SUITABILITY -- shows which weapons are suited, marginal, or unsuited to a
style.
2. WEAPON REQUIREMENTS -- indicates the ST, SZ, WT, DF limitations for a weapon. It
also covers the weapon weight, the armor it is best used against, and whether it
is a slash, bash, lunge weapon.
3. INTELLIGENCE -- defines the WT needed for each rating.
4. DAMAGE -- reveals the approximate damage rating one should expect for all ST/SZ
combinations. Note: a luck roll factor can both hose and bless damage rating.
5. ENCUMBRANCE -- a table which shows what level of "carry" (encumbrance rating) one
should expect at all SZ/CN combinations.
6. HEIGHT -- a simple conversion between the SZ number and height.
7. COORDINATION -- which is defined as SP + DF; the chart provides a summary of each
coordination rating and the "points" range for each
8. ENDURANCE -- most still use this calculation, although a "luck roll factor" can
alter the results slightly. The endurance rating which is WL x (ST+CN) is defined
for each rating.
9. HIT POINTS -- sometimes called "damage taking" is broken down in this chart. The
HP is defined as 3.75CN + 1.1SZ + 0.4 WL. The rating levels are defined by
"points".
And now for the more difficult to explain charts which interact with each other. The
three intricate charts are:
1. BAGMAN2 SKILL CHART -- this chart explains how many and what skills are added to
the warrior base for each stat point. (All stats, including SZ, add or subtract
skills at certain levels except CN.)
2. STYLE SKILL MODIFIER -- indicates the modification, by style, of skills per type.
This occurs "at birth" of the warrior.
3. HIGH WIT STATEMENTS -- a chart of phrases which indicate, at birth, the skill
level, by skill type, of your warrior. Note: there is a Low Wit Statement chart
for warriors with less than 8 WT, but it is very inaccurate (minimal empirical
data) and seldom used. It is not included in this collection of charts. (A good
low WT statement chart was later developed by Assur.) These three charts work
together to help a warrior determine his anticipated starting skills. They also
define at which skill levels, per stat, that skills are added during the warrior's
development. Note: Depending on the warrior's style, it is possible to be blessed
or hosed by up to 4 skills by the "luck of the roll". The other thing to remember
is that an ambidextrous warrior gets one attack skill added to his base at birth.
These three intricate charts, and the interaction between them, can seem quite
complicated. After a certain amount of trial-and-error, and/or by absorbing enough
advice, a manager finally "gets it". Use them well.
DETAILS OF USING THE CIC
What can you do with the Consortium Information Collection (CIC)? How does one
use all that info? (Noblish Island managers and all new managers can contact RSI for a copy.)
You can use the information to:
1. Predict what your designed warrior is going to look like. (Indeed, you can use the
info to "try out" several design ideas, before you choose your final design.
2. Review the overview of the warrior you received to see if he/she is bonused/hosed.
3. Help keep track of the warrior's skills, including those earned from certain stat
raises.
4. Determine advantageous and usable weapons and armor for certain situations. One
note: Use of this information can be meticulous, detailed and exasperating at
first. It will take practice.
So let's examine the CIC in detail.
1. DAMAGE CHART: This chart shows you the range of expected damage doing your
character will yield. For example, a SZ16, 10ST warrior yields "-R+", meaning
great damage is typical, but lower and higher are not uncommon. Damage doing is
dependent on SZ, ST, and luck of the roll. If a warrior is much below, or much
above, the chart predictions, he is "hosed" or "blessed". This chart is more of
generic reference than most of the other information.
2. HIT POINTS: HP is calculated as (3.75xCN)+(1.1xSZ)+(0.4xWL) . This chart
shows the HP needed for each rating. For example, an 11-10-8-15-17-12-11 warrior
would have (3.75x10)+(1.1X8)+(0.4x17)=53.10 HP and his "hit point rating" would be
"cannot lot", meaning cannot take a lot of damage. One raise of CN elevates him to
56.85 and "normal HP".
3. ENDURANCE: By this chart's definition, endurance equals (WL)x(ST+CN) Using
the warrior mentioned above, endurance is (17)x(11+10) = 357. Based on the chart,
this warrior should have "normal endurance. It is possible to be hosed/blessed in
endurance, which would be the case if this warrior did not have normal. Note: On a
warrior profile sheet, the lack of any comment about endurance, means the warrior
has normal.
4. COORDINATION: Coordination is merely SP + CN. There is no hosing or
blessing. The warrior listed above has 12+11 = 23 or normal coordination.
5. ENCUMBRANCE: is often called "carry". Carry is a non-hosed/blessed attribute
dependent on ST and CN and it indicates how much weight a warrior can carry
without penalizing the endurance. Checking the chart for the above listed warrior
shows 11ST/10CN yields "B" carry, or "cannot carry a lot of weight". Each level of
carry adds 9 points of weight that can be carried. A = 9; B = 18; C = 27, etc.
Items to be carried are armor, helm, and weapon/shields. Check the WEAPON
REQUIREMENT chart to see the weights of weapons and armor. As an example, a
warrior wearing ASM/H, and carrying BS/ME and a backup SH, has the following
weights of 8 + 3 + 4 + 4 + 2 = 19. That amount of carry is more than the 18
indicated for "B carry", hence, the warrior wears out much quicker than normal.
(Drop the back up to DA and carry is 18 points!)
6. HEIGHT: this is a simple conversion chart showing what heights equate to what
SZ. While the warrior fight summary may list the warrior in ft.-in, the D2 program
really runs using the SZ number. Size may limit weapons or shields that may be
used without penalty, and as seen above, it impacts certain other characteristics.
7. INTELLIGENCE: This chart indicates the intelligence statement you will
receive at each numeric WT. In general, only the numeric value is of importance.
8. STYLE SUITABILITY: This is a chart which summarizes which weapons/shields are
suitable, marginal, or unsuitable for which styles.
9. WEAPON REQUIREMENTS: This chart only refers to primary-hand weapons, and it
is a terrific summary of weapon requirement and impact. This chart reveals all of
the following and more:
a. weapon weights
b. ST requirements for a weapon
c. SZ limitations for a weapon
d. WT requirements for all weapons
e. DF requirements for a weapon
f. Weapon impact vs. armor type
g. Kill "ratings" for weapons (Take this rating with a "grain of salt" as it is
not really supported by empirical results, and it appears to say heavy weapons
kill better.)
h. Whether the weapon is a slash, bash, or lunge type weapon.
10. BAGMAN 2 SKILL CHART AND STYLE MODIFIERS: This chart is a doozy! It took years of
data and development, and has become a highly important tool in D2. The SKILL
CHART explains what skills are earned at each stat level. For example: at 5 WL the
warrior gets 1 each Attack, Parry, Defense, and Decisiveness skill; at 6 WL, no
more skills are earned; but bumping the 7WL again adds one each of those same
four. Note also that SZ does impact skills. A SZ3 warrior gets two each defense
and parry skills and loses two initiative, while a SZ21 earns 4 initiative but
loses four each defense and parry. This chart is prepared in an accumulative
fashion, showing the total skills at each stat.
Coupled with that chart the STYLE MODIFIER chart shows the "at birth" style
of modifications. (All negative or zero. Each style starts with a different base
of skills. Lets take our previously mentioned 11-10-8-15-17- 12-11 warrior for
example, and let's say he is a slasher. The skill chart shows 2 each attack and
parry skills at 11 ST; no skills for CN and no skills for SZ; at 15WT 9
initiative, 3 riposte, 7 attack, 7 defense, and 2 decisiveness; 4 each attack,
parry and defense plus 5 decise at 17WL; 3 init, 4 riposte, 2 defense, and 5
decise at 12SP; and at 11DF there are 3 Init, 4 Riposte, and 5 each attack, parry
and defense skills. Add those all together to get a 15Init-11Rip-18Att-11Par -
18Def-12Dec total of skills for that design. Now you must apply the style modifier
chart, and a slasher has as follows: -2 Init, -4Rip, -8Att, -10Par, -12Def, -2Dec.
Putting them both together yields a slasher who should expect starting skills of
13 Init, 7 Rip, 10 Att, 1 Par, 6 Def, and 11 Dec.
11. HIGH WIT STATEMENTS These statements apply to those warriors with 8+ WT. (There
are also Low Wit Statements, but that information summary is inaccurate due to
lack of input data.) This list indicates what "statements" should appear on your
"warrior profile" for each of Initiative, Riposte, Attack, Parry, and Defense per
each level of wit. Using our warrior above, as stated, he is expected to start
with 13 Initiative skills. He has 15 WT. Examining the chart, under Initiative and
across from 15 WT (which also applies for 16WT, since the next listed level is
17), the left side (high order) is for 13+base init skills, and the right side
(low order 10-12 base init). We determined that he should start with 13, so we
should expect the statement "Nothing short of genius ...". If we do get this
statement as expected, we DO have 13+ Initiative skills. (13 min) Hence, we could
be bonused with skills above 13. We would know if we were bonused 3 Init skills,
as we would start with an expert in Initiative. However, if, indeed, we received
the other statement "With a very aggressive .....", we would know we started with
10-12 Initiative skills, and were hence hosed 1 to 3 initiative skills.
Let's try one more example -- for Riposte. Our skill evaluations showed him
to have 7 skills. Looking at the HIGH WIT chart at 15WT, he has fewer skills than
the low order amount of 10-12, so he should expect no riposte statement. If he did
get the low order statement, then he truly has at least 10 riposte skills, so he
is bonused +3 or +4 (4 is max skill hose or bonus.) Evaluating the high wit
statements of all five skill areas (There is none for decisiveness.) will lead to
a true and actual understanding of the starting skill set of any warrior.
NOTE: With internet accessibility, use The Terrablood site for ALL this info.
** Brought to you by Johnny Appleseed of Folklore and
CONSORTIUM affiliates everywhere. **
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Bash Bros Halloween
Halloween has come and gone, but I still remember it (and my taste buds remember
it even more fondly). But that is the subject matter for my current team and here is
how I designed them from scratch when they came to me as raw recruits. With sizes of
14, 15, 16, 16, and 17, it didn't look promising (In general, smaller sizes are
somewhat better since it isn't as important a stat and you have more points to put
other places. And at 15+ size, you get penalties to your defense and parry skills).
So I'll start with the cream of the crop. 6-9-16-15-6-6-12. When you see
potential wit 21, you should be happy. Almost always take the wit 21 (there are only
a very few times when it isn't the 'best' and even then it isn't a horrible choice).
With higher con and lower spd, I'd often recommend a hybrid (because there are fewer
good hybrid setups), but with the high size, I'll stay with an offensive and the low
endurance (str/con/wil) suggests striker. From there it becomes fairly easy. Wit 21,
Will to 9 (for the endurance), Str to 9 for weapons (SC & SS) and Dft to 13 (odd).
That leaves only one point left and I add it to will for endurance. Nobody wants to
face the results of TOO MUCH CANDY!!! Final stats: 9-9-16-21-10-6-13 ST.
Next up is the most 'unique' warrior. Two 3's!!! Those are rare. Because I
love unique, I'm going to leave them at 3. And since it is STR & WIL, this warrior is
going to be bad with zero endurance. So why not make him more fun by adding to 21
speed. The rest of the points to wit (because you want one of wit or will to be
good). 3 points left and I raise deftness to 13 and con to 14. If I was making a
serious warrior, I'd probably choose a speed AB at 7-13-15-11-7-16-15. It isn't
fantastic, but it 'could' work. What I end up with is similar to what a PUMPKIN MESS
looks like: 3-14-15-15-3-21-13 ST. Terrible, but I'll enjoy him more than all the
rest!
And then... What do you do when your house is EGGED? Clean it up and take it is
the 'best' course of action. 5-12-16-9-10-5-13. I'm going to go against the
Consortium model here and add a bunch of points to strength. I believe will and
strength are the most important stats. I do not enjoy or have much success with sub-9
strength warriors. Then I'm going to go old-school and add everything to wit and will
(Managers used to add all their points to wit and will. Still works today, but not
'optimal'). Breakpoints suggest to me: 10-12-16-13-15-5-13 LU. I chose Lunger
because when you have an average set of stats, take an above average style
(LU/TP/WS/ST).
The next recruit looks quite similar at 11-10-17-9-10-4-9. Note that while I
mentioned strength as the most important stat, that doesn't mean you need to add lots
of points there. 11 is a great breakpoint for most styles. I'm going to take the 11
deftness (JUST MEMORIZE 11 DEFTNESS. One of the biggest breakpoints in the game for
skills and weapons). I end with a very similar warrior to the prior one. 11-12-17-
13-15-5-11 LU. Nobody likes BULLY's and on Halloween, they are ugly.
13-12-14-13-3-10-5 is my final warrior. Low wil/dft is one of the 'bad'
combinations on a new recruit. I don't want to pass up 17 wit and if I have to choose
one of will or deftness, I choose will. That means I'm going with a slasher or basher
(which for me generally means basher). So 9 will. I have 4 points left. Adding them
to str and dft gives me two of my favorite weapons and I have a 15-12-14-17-9-10-7 BA
who wears a RAUNCHY COSTUME.
And how did they turn out?
TOO MUCH CANDY rolled P/R (poor end/great dmg) with bonuses in defense and
riposte.
PUMPKIN MESS rolled VL/N and is cursed in initiative.
EGGED: N/G and cursed in attack. Even a first turn strength train didn't give him
great damage, sadly. These are not favorable rolls for this type of warrior. The
damage roll is about average, but being cursed in attack is bad.
BULLY rolled N/R and is ambidextrous (which gives a +1 in attack)
RAUNCHY COSTUME rolled N/G and is also cursed in attack. Cursed in two of the
most important areas for a basher (damage and attack).
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PARRY RIPOSTES, ASSUR'S WAY
The Consortium and I recently reviewed all the articles found at the bottom of
the newsletter. We were both unhappy with them and so I've decided to start a new set
of articles which I believe are more up to date with today's game.
Note that EVERY ARTICLE on how to make a certain style is loaded with biases and
opinions. There is no absolute right and wrong. But I'll tell you how I've found
success with various styles. My first undertaking is the Parry Riposte style.
My focus is how to make a hybrid Parry Riposte. (Scum Rippers are also very
viable and I just TC'd the Freshman tourney with a classic scum ripper). Ever since I
started playing I've liked the Parry Riposte style. But I wasn't very good with them
until I learned what they 'really' need. I don't run an excess of them, but I believe
I have a good understanding of them.
Interestingly, my minimums for a good parry riposte are fairly easy to describe.
GOOD or better damage and enough Parry/Carry/Hit Points. Sure there are successful
parry rips with less than good damage. But I don't run them (anymore). Parry
Ripostes don't try to hold the initiative in general, so you need to make your attacks
count. You also have a lower skill base than almost every other style. Even more
reason to make your opportunities count with more damage. Sure I'd love to only run
great damage and better, but that is too many points to invest in strength and size.
'Enough' Parry, Carry and Hit Points is harder to quantify. Note that strength
gives parry and carry (and damage), so strength is a good place to invest points on
your ripper. The breakpoints for strength that are relevant:
9: SS/SC
11: LO/LS
15: An additional parry skill
17: An additional parry skill
21: Two additional parry skills
It is strongly believed that the wording of your encumbrance statement is only a
marker. So more strength gives more encumbrance, irrespective of your statement. The
encumbrance formula that many people use for how much weight you can carry is (STR +
(LESSER OF STR/CON) -- 6) Note that STR is VERY important in this formula.
Regardless, the idea of the parry/carry/HP theme is that you need to withstand your
opponent's attack. I like to have at least two of the three on the higher side.
Parry comes from STR/WIL/DFT and inverse of SIZ (3 size gives many parry skills, 21
takes away). Hit points come from CON, SIZ, and WIL (mostly CON).
There are many ways to make PR's, but this can get you started:
STR: 9+
CON: more is better, but hit points are a primary need
SIZ: 14- (14 or less, you start losing parry at 15)
WIT: any really, but more is better (see weapons, though)
WIL: 7+ (lots of variation here. skill breakpoints: 7, 15, 17, 21)
SPD: less is better (gives more points where you want them)
DFT: 11+ (Some people say much higher, I am in the 11 deftness camp)
As you see, I have very few stat requirements on my PR's. I'm all about the 4
things I mentioned above.
Weapons: SC & LO are the staple weapons. In case you don't remember or know, the
stat requirements are: SC (9 str/11 wit/11 dft) and LO (11 str/13 wit/11 dft). SS & LS
work for low wit Rippers. EP and SH are the only other weapons they are well suited
too (and they have NO marginally suited weapons).
Armor: I've never had or tried to run a dodge based Ripper. They start with the
lowest defense skill in the game, so parry is where it is generally at. So, armor is
not a bad thing at all. Remember I mentioned you want carry ability?!? It is to wear
armor! Most of my Rippers wear ASM or APM/APA. I will change it up and use ACM at
times. And if my carry is low, I suffer with APL or ARM.
Strategy: Do NOT, usually, carry/wear too much armor and weapons. The penalties
for over-encumbering your warrior are harsh, get worse and worse, and are not directly
shown anywhere in the fight.
As far as rhythm, I highly, highly recommend running on your warrior's favorite
rhythm. Unfortunately, you don't find those values until after your warrior
graduates. So you have to guess. I usually start a warrior at 4-6 at the beginning
of his career and then experiment until I find where he fights best. Rippers require
more TLC that most styles. Send a striker out with 10-10 and he runs great. Some
rippers do fantastic at 4-6 and some do not. You have to find what works for yours.
If you aren't willing to tinker and optimize, they are not a great style to run and
expect success with.
Examples: (these are the last 4 PR's I've graduated):
* She is a parry-riposte with ST=17 CN=15 SZ=10 WT=6 WL=21 SP=4 DF=11.
(This is my Freshman TC. Really just a scum, but also meets my 'minimums')
* He is a parry-riposte with ST=10 CN=11 SZ=7 WT=7 WL=21 SP=7 DF=21.
(This is the warrior that made me say good damage is a requirement. With two
strength trains, he still had normal damage. His basic career was mediocre
because of it. He is training for a future bust in Freshmen and those 21's
look very, very pretty now)
* He is a parry-riposte with ST=21 CN=8 SZ=11 WT=21 WL=7 SP=3 DF=13.
(I love this design and would use it again without hesitation)
* He is a parry-riposte with ST=12 CN=12 SZ=4 WT=15 WL=21 SP=7 DF=13.
(An earlier design. I wouldn't make this a ripper today. He did start with
normal damage which made him great. But the chance (~40%) for little damage is
too much for me to risk this setup on a PR in the future)
* AND not my warrior, but... 17-14-4-17-7-8-17 PR
(This is Daydream Believer, the best Parry Riposte ever to grace the sands.
The numbers alone are not what made DDB great, but it is a fine example of how
to make a PR. DDB TC'd Rookies, Adepts, Champions, and Challengers. Many
people have copied DDB, even to some success, but it is unlikely we'll see a
repeat, ever.)
Advantages of the Parry Riposte Style: Very common to get LO & SC faves, rhythms
are usually very runnable. Their natural learning is perfect. Good Rippers can be
made from otherwise low value setups (think of low will setups)
Disadvantages of the Parry Riposte Style: Low skill base. You usually can't just
give them a single strategy at the beginning and let them run forever on it. Often
misunderstood.
Best Matchups: Rippers were intended to be the anti-striker style. That said,
strikers are so good that while it is a good matchup, it isn't an auto-win by any
means. Some Parry Ripostes are also good scum hunters.
Worst Matchups: Aimed Blows are the bane to almost every hybrid and defensive
style in the game. Parry Ripostes are not exception to this. Slashers are also pretty
tough, but nothing like Aimed Blows.
DUELMASTER'S COLUMN
Notes from the arena champ.
Hello everyone from the Duelmaster's pulpit. It is not the Way Uyphy to take
pleaser in such things. Yet, I am just a humble servant on this earth and so I find
myself with a hint of glee in my heart. You may feel as though I merely stumbled into
the role of Duelmaster, since our previous top teams left our arena, but I urge you to
squelch those opinions, lest I smite you from my mighty perch! I have a feeling I will
be in this position for quite some time.
Praise Uyphy,
-- Sis Suriel
Church of Uyphy
SPY REPORT
Oh, hi. Its just little 'ol Debby Tonte. Thought I'd check out NOBLISH ISLAND
to see what's new. FOLKLORE like really fought hard to move up to 2nd from 5th. Way
to go! What was the name of that team who got 4-1-0 this turn for a total 12-12-0
you ask? (Sure) BLACKTHORN INC.'s their name, and fighting's their game! MVP award
for MONK SABAOTH? CHURCH OF UYPHY's proud of him after beating CAPTURED ORC and
getting 14 points. Talk about yer big time losers! JOE JIGGA got smashed by
GERONIMO, and lost 7 points! This Duelmaster is like something else! SISTER SURIEL
stopped VENEMOUS CONCUBINE dead in his tracks! I hear the top team insists all their
warriors get nine hours sleep. They want photogenic fighters for PR photos.
AAARRGH!!! I HATE SPYREPORTING!!! Sorry. I just had to say it. CHURCH OF
UYPHY was NOBLISH ISLAND's most avoided team. Is there some award for that? I don't
know what FOLKLORE's been doing. They certainly haven't been accepting many fights
from CHURCH OF UYPHY, that's fer sher. Like, is BRAVO popular, or what? He was
challenged the most in all of NOBLISH ISLAND! He's got a 1-1-0, is that good?
Man, all these warriors dying and killing each other! Don't you guys ever give
it a break? What if they had a fight and nobody showed up? I'd be out of a job,
that's what!!!
Remember, blood on a purple robe may stain. Soak it in cold water, and hand
wash. I know how much you like reading this stuff, but I really should stop.
Remember you guys, ease up sometimes! Chill out! Later, Debby Tonte
DUELMASTER W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
SISTER SURIEL 10118 6 1 0 66 CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
MONK SABAOTH 10101 6 2 0 49 CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
PRIESTESS IRIN 10099 6 2 0 48 CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
CHALLENGER INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
SHOFTIEL 10100 5 3 0 28 CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
GERONIMO 10146 2 0 0 28 FOLKLORE (1738)
BULLY 10150 2 0 0 24 BB HALLOWEEN (1739)
INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
SWAMP FOX 10149 2 0 0 23 FOLKLORE (1738)
EGGED 10151 2 0 0 17 BB HALLOWEEN (1739)
PECOS BILL 10148 2 0 0 17 FOLKLORE (1738)
ZENTRADI 10159 2 0 0 17 BLACKTHORN INC. (1735)
JOE JIGGA 10139 3 2 0 16 RED AVENGERS (1736)
PEACEMAKER 10162 2 0 0 16 BLACKTHORN INC. (1735)
AZAZEL 10097 3 5 0 14 CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
RAUNCHY COSTUME 10153 2 0 0 14 BB HALLOWEEN (1739)
-AUTUMNBE 9643 3 2 0 12 CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657)
D. SCEPTIKON 10163 1 0 0 12 BLACKTHORN INC. (1735)
DEE THE BLADE 10137 2 3 0 9 RED AVENGERS (1736)
MOLLY PITCHER 10145 1 1 1 7 FOLKLORE (1738)
INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME
ZEPHYR 10160 1 1 0 7 BLACKTHORN INC. (1735)
-DRAXXUS 9644 1 4 0 7 CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657)
SWEET P 10155 1 1 0 7 RED AVENGERS (1736)
OTTOBOTT 10161 1 1 0 6 BLACKTHORN INC. (1735)
BRAVO 10156 1 1 0 6 RED AVENGERS (1736)
-SOCCER-PANTS 10140 1 0 0 5 CLOAK WARRIORS (1737)
-AQUA-KNOT 10144 1 0 0 5 CLOAK WARRIORS (1737)
TOO MUCH CANDY 10154 1 1 0 4 BB HALLOWEEN (1739)
-SEARRUS 9645 0 4 0 4 CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657)
SNEAKY PETE 10136 0 4 0 4 RED AVENGERS (1736)
-PERSEPHONE 9642 0 4 0 4 CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657)
-AGRISEL 9646 0 4 0 4 CAVEAT EMPTOR (1657)
LONE RANGER 10147 0 2 0 2 FOLKLORE (1738)
PUMPKIN MESS 10152 0 2 0 2 BB HALLOWEEN (1739)
ONE EYE 10103 0 1 0 1 THIEF TAKERS (1730)
-RIVERSIDE SHAKEPERE 10142 0 1 0 1 CLOAK WARRIORS (1737)
LUCKY 10107 0 1 0 1 THIEF TAKERS (1730)
-IGGIE THE SCUM 10141 0 1 0 1 CLOAK WARRIORS (1737)
-HASSAN 10143 0 1 0 1 CLOAK WARRIORS (1737)
BROC 10104 0 1 0 1 THIEF TAKERS (1730)
TURTLE 10105 0 1 0 1 THIEF TAKERS (1730)
'-' denotes a warrior who did not fight this turn.
THE DEAD W L K TEAM NAME SLAIN BY TURN Revenge?
RABID MONK 10106 0 1 0 THIEF TAKERS 1730 MOLLY PITCHER 10145 493
PERSONAL ADS
Congratulations to the Church Of Uyphy! A Runner-Up in the Fall Mailer Tournament!
Well done.! I guess we will all have to "watch out" for Sister Suriel who is clearly
an extraordinary warrior. All Noblish Island is proud. -- The Consortium
I wonder what happened to all my personal ads last round? Oh! I
didn't send any? My bad. Well. I'm baaaaaaack. -- Johnny Appleseed
Soccer-Pants, where was Tonto when I needed him? -- The Lone Ranger
Peacemaker? Who needs peace? I want pain! Oh, you gave it to me!
You cretin! -- Molly Pitcher
Bravo, for me, that is. Har har. -- Pecos Bill
Persistent Beggar and Embezzling Scribe, we love you guys! -- Swamp Fox and Geronimo
Bravo, aimed-blows are difficult. (And I agree that does not look like a top-notch
design.) But, my opinion, though, is to keep running and learning from him. If you
want to D.A. him, do it just prior to your transfer out. (say your round eight) And
then have a new design to work with in your new arena. -- Johnny A
Bagman 2 skill charts -- accuracy -- ignore them. Of little value. -- Johnny A
Some speak % for skills: 1 skill = 5%, 16 skills (expert) = 80%, 26 skills (master)
= 130%. This is total skills, not just skills learned. -- Johnny A
Yes, there are other charts. The CIC has the main ones. If you can access
Terrablood.com, you can get more. If you can really learn the "stuff" in the CIC, you
probably will not need more. I, personally, do not use anything much else. -- Johnny A
"Never wastes his endurance needlessly." Not a wit statement, but an endurance
statement. (see Terrablood for more charts.) However, understanding very little, poor,
normal, good, great, etc. endurance, is almost all you need on that subject. Assur
will post a spot soon on endurance and that will help, too. -- Johnny A
I suspect Assur will have more to say about some of these topics/questions. --
Johnny A
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year all! -- Johnny Appleseed and all The Consortium
Uyphy -- Congratulations again on your Runner-Up. Amazing! And from this arena. Can
I point him at Folklore? Consortium loves to face the best! -- Assur
Bravo -- I'd try running him like an offensive before making that decision. 10-10 OE/AL, SS against light armor, SC against heavy. Size 4's are pretty rare. No armor or minimum (ALE/L). I recommend 17 or 21 deftness for AB's, but I also run 15's at tim
Answers to your questions:
#1: Not sure about the accuracy chart. Use numbers and if you want to convert from
skill percentages, it is 5% per skill (16 skills = 80% = expert)
#2/#3: Everything on your overview tells you something about your warrior. Feel free
to ignore them when making your strategies. The activity message is exactly
related to your initiative & riposte skills (there are charts to convert). The
quickness of foot message (quick on his feet, very quick on his feet, slow on his
feet, etc.) are directly related to your defense skills (and the statement
underneath it is directly related to your parry skills).
#4: Endurance and Damage are variable based on your stats. Encumbrance and Hit Points
are fixed and there are charts.
#5: You can only get a rating when you gain skills. However you can gain skills from
a stat train (example: str to 15 gives an attack and a parry skill and could cause
your warrior to gain a rating. Note that these skills are 'burned'.)
#6: If you have online access, terrablood.com and duel2.info have charts. If not,
I'll work with RSI & Consortium to get you charts. duel2.info is 'more accurate,'
but only has charts that don't exist elsewhere. Without the translation to
'words,' the physical charts are below (there is no simple damage chart/formula).
-- Assur
Endurance Formula: (ST+CN) * WL + bonus/penalty(random between -100 and +100)
Encumbrance Formula: ST + Lesser of (ST/CN)
(Not as sure this one is the correct one, but it's the one I found in my archives
If not perfect it is 'close')
Hit Point Formula: CN*2 + SZMod + WLMod
SZmod: 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21
0 0 +1 +1 +2 +2 +3 +3 +5 +5 +6 +6 +7 +7 +8 +8 +9 +9 +10
WLmod: 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
0 0 +1 +1 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +3 +3 +4 +4 +5 +5 +6 +7 +8 +9 +10
LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS
SWEET P bested PUMPKIN MESS in a 3 minute amateur's Challenge fight.
DEE THE BLADE was vanquished by BULLY in a 1 minute uneven Challenge battle.
SISTER SURIEL demolished VENEMOUS CONCUBINE in a 1 minute uneven Title fight.
MONK SABAOTH devastated CAPTURED ORC in a popular 1 minute brutal one-sided contest.
PRIESTESS IRIN devastated FRATSFA SLAVE in a popular 1 minute bloody uneven brawl.
AZAZEL was beaten by PECOS BILL in a 4 minute brawl.
SHOFTIEL overcame OTTOBOTT in a action packed 2 minute fight.
PEACEMAKER vanquished MORDANT DESERTER in a 3 minute uneven duel.
ZEPHYR won victory over ONE EYE in a 3 minute beginner's fight.
ZENTRADI vanquished BROC in a 1 minute one-sided fight.
BRAVO beat LUCKY in a 3 minute novice's melee.
SNEAKY PETE was overpowered by D. SCEPTIKON in a 1 minute one-sided match.
JOE JIGGA was bested by GERONIMO in a 2 minute amateur's conflict.
MOLLY PITCHER killed RABID MONK in a 1 minute amateur's match.
LONE RANGER was beaten by RAUNCHY COSTUME in a popular 1 minute amateur's conflict.
SWAMP FOX vanquished TOO MUCH CANDY in a 1 minute mismatched bout.
EGGED vanquished TURTLE in a 1 minute one-sided fray.
BATTLE REPORT
MOST POPULAR RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS
|FIGHTING STYLE FIGHTS FIGHTING STYLE W - L - K PERCENT|
|STRIKING ATTACK 7 LUNGING ATTACK 12 - 6 - 1 67 |
|BASHING ATTACK 5 BASHING ATTACK 41 - 25 - 1 62 |
|LUNGING ATTACK 4 SLASHING ATTACK 17 - 11 - 0 61 |
|PARRY-STRIKE 4 STRIKING ATTACK 22 - 21 - 1 51 |
|AIMED BLOW 3 TOTAL PARRY 4 - 4 - 0 50 |
|PARRY-LUNGE 2 PARRY-RIPOSTE 7 - 8 - 0 47 |
|PARRY-RIPOSTE 2 PARRY-STRIKE 6 - 7 - 0 46 |
|SLASHING ATTACK 1 WALL OF STEEL 7 - 11 - 0 39 |
|TOTAL PARRY 1 PARRY-LUNGE 3 - 5 - 0 38 |
|WALL OF STEEL 1 AIMED BLOW 8 - 16 - 0 33 |
Turn 493 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:
LUNGING ATTACK 4 - 0 STRIKING ATTACK 3 - 4 3 STRIKING ATTACK
SLASHING ATTACK 1 - 0 AIMED BLOW 1 - 2 3 BASHING ATTACK
BASHING ATTACK 5 - 0 PARRY-STRIKE 1 - 3 2 LUNGING ATTACK
PARRY-LUNGE 1 - 1 TOTAL PARRY 0 - 1 1 SLASHING ATTACK
PARRY-RIPOSTE 1 - 1 WALL OF STEEL 0 - 1 1 AIMED BLOW
1 PARRY-STRIKE
TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE
FIGHTING STYLE WARRIOR W L K PNTS TEAM NAME
STRIKING ATTACK SISTER SURIEL 10118 6 1 0 66 CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
BASHING ATTACK MONK SABAOTH 10101 6 2 0 49 CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
SLASHING ATTACK PRIESTESS IRIN 10099 6 2 0 48 CHURCH OF UYPHY (1729)
Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above.
The overall popularity leader is PRIESTESS IRIN 10099. The most popular warrior this
turn was SHOFTIEL 10100. The ten other most popular fighters were ZEPHYR 10160,
RAUNCHY COSTUME 10153, SWEET P 10155, PUMPKIN MESS 10152, MONK SABAOTH 10101,
PRIESTESS IRIN 10099, PECOS BILL 10148, EGGED 10151, SISTER SURIEL 10118, and ONE EYE
10103.
The least popular fighter this week was JOE JIGGA 10139. The other ten least popular
fighters were AZAZEL 10097, TURTLE 10105, TOO MUCH CANDY 10154, RABID MONK 10106,
SNEAKY PETE 10136, BROC 10104, DEE THE BLADE 10137, GERONIMO 10146, LUCKY 10107, and
PEACEMAKER 10162.
A DM TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS
12 political points a'pumpin'
11 TVs a'workin'
10 free duels of credit
9 ABs to challenge
8 criticals a'connectin'
7 scums a'dyin'
6 skills a'maxin'
5 A.D. invites
4 lucky warriors
3 size on replacement
2 proxied TCs
And a quarterstaff from a pear tree.
May your days be merry,
And your wins be often.
The Consortium
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)
FIRST INAUGURAL ARVAT CONTEST SUPREME
Who can join? Anyone with a team in Arvat as of 2/1/2018.
When does it start? First turn due after 2/1/2018.
How long does it run? 13 turns.
How do I join? Announce your manager name and team name in the Arvat newsletter prior
to 2/1/2017 and state that you are entering the contest. Prior to the contest
actually starting you need to have 2 rollup certs sent to the Dark One care of RSI.
How do I win the contest? The team which has accrued the most points as of the end of
the 13th turn is the winner. The team which has the 2nd most points is declared the
runner up. And the team which has the 3rd most points is declared honorable
contender. Everyone else is a loser and should be ridiculed.
How do I score points?
1) Every challenge you win vs. another team in the contest = 10 points, as long as
that challenge is to a warrior equal to or above yours in the rankings. Except
for the Duelmaster who can challenge anyone he wants.
2) You also earn bonus points for every challenge won. For every point of
recognition your target is ranked above you, you earn one bonus point. This is
for challenges only.
3) If you are challenged by a warrior below you and defeat him, you will gain 5
points.
4) Also every random matchup against a contest team that you win will earn you 5
points -- up or down.
5) You CAN downchallenge, however you get no points for doing so, and if you are
beaten, your opponent will earn 10 points and the right to ridicule you in the
newsletter.
6) Bloodfeud challenges count just like regular challenges during the contest.
7) In addition there are the following bonus points that are awarded each turn:
A) Duelmaster earns 10 points
B) Graduating a warrior earns 10 points
C) Recognition Leader (Chartered or Unchartered) earns 5 points (if the
Duelmaster is the recognition leader as well, then only the DM points apply)
D) Popularity Leader earns 5 points
E) Turn's most popular earns 5 points
F) Top team on the move earns 5 points
G) Current Top team earns 10 points
H) Any warrior that earns a Tournament Champion in either the April Mail In or
July FTF tournament earns 20 points
I) Any warrior that earns a Tournament Victor in either of those tournaments
earns 10 points
J) Note that Top Chartered and Unchartered team awards do NOT earn points
What are the rules regarding other teams in the arena? If you challenge any warriors
not participating in the contest you LOSE 20 points, unless the challenged warrior is
the Duelmaster. If any manager has a 2nd (or 3rd) team in the arena they may NOT
challenge any warrior of any team participating in the contest or they are
DISQUALIFIED.
What do I win if I win this contest?
1) The winner wins all of the rollup certificates given as entry fee for the contest.
In addition, the winner gets to pick 3 of the prizes below.
2) The runner up gets to pick 2 of the prizes below.
3) The honorable contender gets to pick one of the prizes below.
In addition, all competitors in the contest who run all 13 turns and at least 62 total
fights will earn 1 potion of +1 bonus, which must be used on a warrior who
participated at least 1 fight in the contest.
Also, the team that scores the most points on any one turn of the contest (other than
the winner, runner up or honorable contender) can pick one prize that was NOT selected
by those three.
Prizes:
1) Limited stat switch (You can swap any 2 stats you want on an Arvat replacement
rollup that you received within the next 6 month)
2) Extra replacements (Next time you get a replacement (or whenever you want within 6
months) in Arvat you can ask RSI for 5 additional replacements and select the best
one for your team)
3) Limited damage bump (You can pick one warrior on your Arvat team to move up one
damage class -- as long as he remains in-bounds for his ST/SZ stats)
4) Favorite weapon knowledge (You learn the favorite weapon of one of your Arvat
warriors -- must be on the team during the contest)
5) Favorite rhythm knowledge (You learn the favorite offensive effort and activity
level of one of your Arvat warriors, who most have been on your team during the
contest)
6) Shrinking potion (You get to take 3 points of size away from an Arvat replacement
during the next 6 months and add the 3 points to another stat -- both SZ and the
other stat must remain in bounds)
7) Extra skills (Any one of your warriors in Arvat learns 3 extra skills of your
choice (no more than 2 can be in the same area and must be in bounds)
8) Extra train (Any one of your Arvat warriors gets an extra stat train in the area
of your choice -- and must be in bounds)
9) The Dark One's Massive Rollup prize (You get 50 team sheets, at random, from the
Dark One's massive pile of teams. Most will be mediocre at best, but there are
plenty of decent to good warrior prospects in there!)
All prizes must be applied within 6 months from the end of the tournament, must be on
Arvat warriors on the team that participated in the contest and must be in bounds.