In the last newsletter, only three of the fifteen fights were "challenges." And two of those were by Teacher's Pets. Challenges, and their partner "avoids" are underused strategic weapons. Don't be left home without them!
An avoid is an attempt to prevent a warrior from challenging you. Why allow a warrior the advantage of selecting you for a match? Why allow a warrior to decide on a special strategy just for you? One great thing about avoids is that you may avoid THE WHOLE TEAM of any warrior you want to avoid. You are allowed to avoid two whole teams. There is no use double-avoiding as it does not improve your chances to avoid that individual team.
A challenge is an attempt to fight a specific warrior. Why not attempt to fight a specific warrior of choice? Why leave the opponent selection to the MUGS (match-up gods) or, worse yet, an opponent who chooses you? You are allowed to challenge two warriors. You may, indeed, challenge the same warrior twice. (Double challenge) It DOES improve your chances of a match to double challenge a same warrior.
Of utmost importance is to understand that you must challenge and avoid NUMBERS, not names. Challenge WARRIOR NUMBERS. Avoid TEAM NUMBERS. Challenge individual warriors; avoid whole teams.
No challenge or avoid is 100 percent effective. Challenges can be further enhanced by winning a TV or TC (Tournament Victor; Tournament Champion) in a Mailer or Face-to-Face Tournament. The TV/TC effectiveness lasts six months. So the warrior who won the TV gets 12 or 13 turns of enhanced challenging. The most effective challenge, The Blood Feud is nearly 100 percent effective. A four turn BLOOD FEUD is awarded to your team (Any member can use it each turn.) when an opposing warrior kills one of yours. Blood feuds transcend classes. (E.g. a Challenger can BLOOD FEUD an Adept or an Initiate can BLOOD FEUD a Challenger Champion, etc.) To use a TV or Blood Feud, simply write BF or TV on the challenge line with the to-be-challenged warrior number and circle it all for emphasis.
How does one choose whom to challenge and what to avoid? That's a good question and like many decisions, they are more of an art than a technology. This is the methodology used by The Consortium managers. It works well for them.
1. Always avoid two teams 2. Actively seek to challenge twice. (If only one good choice is available, double challenge.) 3. Challenge for these situations a. A probable win b. A warrior you have beaten before c. To tie up a warrior you do not want to fight one of your fellow warriors-- especially the Duelmaster d. To take advantage of a Blood Feud (4 rounds) e. For a good style match up. 4. Avoid for these situations-- always a. Emphasis on a team who is bloodfeuding you b. Emphasis on a team who just beat you c. Emphasis on a team with warriors in range who are far more experienced or skilled than you d. Emphasis on a team you just cannot seem to beat. e. Emphasis on teams with warriors whose styles are difficult for your styleOften there will be more warriors to challenge or more teams to avoid than the strategy sheets allow. Choose wisely.
Most of the circumstances are straightforward, and it is easy to select the challenges and avoids. However, in many cases, especially those with little knowledge of nearby opponents, it will come down to what style or type of warrior is best to challenge/avoid.
There are available charts "out there" which prioritize which styles have advantages over other styles. Beware of them. The data is based on warriors over the years and those managers who submitted data for those charts. The warning-- today's lunger is not yesterday's lunger, and my aimed blow is not your aimed blow, and today's basher is not yesteryear's basher, and a tourney warrior is not necessarily an arena warrior, etc, etc, etc. The Consortium offers their generic style considerations for challenges and avoids:
1. Fast offensives challenge AB, slower BA, SL, ST 2. Aimers challenge scummy/tanky warriors 3. Scums challenge LU and softer hitting/smaller offensives 4. Scum hunters (strategy change) are good damage/endu LU, hard hitting BA, critting or hard hitting ST, hard hitting SL with good endu, good PS 5. Consortium-style wastes challenge LU and softer hitting/smaller offensives 6. Lungers challenge AB, PR, PS 7. Rippers, if skilled, challenge ST, faster BAsThe Consortium always avoids and almost always challenges.
One final note. The challenging will bring into play and discussion: What is an appropriate challenge?" The "rules"/"D2 system" allow you to challenge anyone in your class and the class just above you. Your class is defined, interestingly, as Inits, Adepts, Champs, and Duelmaster. A "Challenger" Init is an Init-- challenge- wise. A "Challenger" Champ is a Champ-- challenge-wise. Hence the higher level challenger category can challenge the lower level "non-challenger" class. (Simply put, a Challenger Init can challenge an Init, a challenger Init, and an Adept. An Adept can challenge Adepts or Challenger Adepts.) This system can allow/cause challenges from very high experience and recognition point warriors to very low recognition point and experience warriors. Some regular arenas foster the belief that challenges may/should ONLY be parallel or up in recognition points. These are usually Andorian arenas. The rules/system may allow otherwise, but the environment and the beliefs of sportsmanship of Andorian types differ. This can cause some "discussion altercations."
Challenges and avoids are there to be used to your advantage. Do so.
-- Rose of Shanon of Shrubs (Consortium Affiliated)