Duelmasters: To DA or not to DA

From: ccm043@underdog.ucdavis.edu (Donald Trump)

Date: Fri, 24 Apr 1992 15:38:44 +0000

In article <12467@ucdavis.ucdavis.edu> ccm043@underdog.ucdavis.edu (Donald
Trump) writes:
>In article <1992Apr22.084615.24381@cco.caltech.edu>
johnjohn@cco.caltech.edu (John White) writes:
>>>I have the following PR:
>>>
>>>7(1)-10-14-17-17-3-17

>>>This warrior has done really well in the arena: 11-3-0.  However, she
>>>doesn't learn well, and what she does learn isn't hugely useful.  I mean,
>>>she has 12 riposte skills and about 2 of everything else.  Her only rating
>>>is AdEx riposte +3.

>>So, we're looking at about 22 skills in 14 fights?  With a 17 WT I'd say
>>that was a little low, but it's still above the 1.5 skills/learn ratio that
>>you more or less need to keep up in order to maintain your winning ways.

>Right, but about 70-80% of those skills are riposte.  Whoopee.

Well, maybe.  I had a 9-14-4-17-11-14-15 PR who had the same problem.  He
had Expert Riposte +3 on the roll-up, learned 2 Riposte techniques on his
first fight, and got AdEx.  At 8-7-0, with about 7 tourney fights under
his belt, he had Master Riposte+ but no other ratings.  His favorite learn
was riposte almost to the exclusion of other skills.

However, I don't see that as a problem.  Just because in the short run
the high number of Riposte techniques seems to hurt, in the long run it
helps.  Riposte has a positive effect on Parry, Defense, and Attack.  In
fact, my little SZ 4 PR looked like he was Ex/Adex in all these areas, just
because when he would riposte he would get the bonuses to these areas which
may well have pushed him over the top.

You can imagine how he might have looked if he'd _had_ those skills.  (He
was on a team  co-managed, and the guy who owned the team moved away.
*Sigh*)

>>His approximate NEX Riposte = 5 is fairly high for a PR, but it's not death
>>in and of itself.  You don't really know what his other ratings are.  He
>>may be a god in hiding, and I'd bet that most of his other rating will come
>>in the 6-8 range, which is pretty good for a PR.

>But, even if she has "pretty good" NEX's, she's still pretty bad, due to the
>fact that she isn't learning those skills, but the Riposte skills.  In other
>words.  She needs AdEx Parry/Defense/Init, but she doesn't have it.  We're
>talking 20 skills away from being effective in the Champions.

I don't know that you need those skills.  Besides, how do you know that you're
not 1 skill away from these experts?  In my experience, there is nothing
magical about having or not having the Ex/AdEx/Master, etc.  One skill away
is exactly one skill away.  There are no breakpoints like in Endurance or
Damage-taking, where that one point away means something.

Give her a chance to get those experts!  Then see how she does...

>She's in Talcama (That's Mega Spritz! for all of you who are there).  She
>really need's those skills to survive, as its an _extremely_ competitive
>arena, (one of the ones which new managers should _not_ start out in).

I've played, and in fact play, in some very competitive arenas, and I've
kept characters like this.  What do you think your chances are of getting
a better warrior?  Pretty slim, I'd say.

>Oh, I understand the spectacular nature of those numbers, but if the warrior
>sucks, she sucks.  She might just suck and have great numbers at the same
>time...

But the likelihood of her improving is *tremendous*!  I'd rather have a
character at 0-5 with potential than a short-termer at 5-0-5.  I ran a PL
to 0-4 before he started winning without ever a though of the DA just be-
cause he had the 3 magical 17's.

Don't DA her, you'll never forgive yourself.

Trump

References

Duelmasters: Offensive TPS?
ccm043@underdog.ucdavis.edu (Donald Trump)
Fri, 24 Apr 1992 15:37:31 +0000