The Alterac Valley weekend just passed was very interesting. I usually run them numerous times to get as much Honour as possible. Win or lose doesn't really matter to me just so long as it's interesting. And, this was interesting.
There was a move afoot to try something that I haven't seen so publicly discussed before. I shall call it the "Drek Rush". The chat was filled with cries to rush Drek, everyone rush Drek and kill him, quick as possible. Kill Drek and the game is over and won. Anyway, "interesting notion" I reflected to myself. I put in a comment encouraging the idea and maybe a warning that leaving everything undefended would give the Horde an equal chance to do the same thing to us. Prophetic as it turned out, several times over.
The first time, I died at Tower Point and ended up "rezzing" at Dun Baldar First Aid Station. Thats how far the Horde had advanced while we were still only at Tower Point. They had already taken Stonehearth GY and Stormpike GY. We had taken Iceblood GY but it wasn't ours yet, perhaps they were in a similar situation. Through attrition at the frontline our numbers increased in defending Dun Baldar. We were able to push the Horde back and eventually retake Stormpike GY however it was far too late. Our reinforcements were depleted to the point where it was only time before we ran out.
The second and third times our people actually got as far as Drek and the two Frostwolf Towers, and there it seemed to stall. Once again I ended up in the defence however this time we were outgunned and outclassed. The forward elements seemed to have the numbers and the time but kept arguing about what to actually do. Both times they just ran out of time. The Horde, far more together and co-ordinated, and no appearance at all of hesitation over what they needed to do, just pushed through against all opposition and killed Stormpike himself.
So why didn't it work. The Drek Rush. Well I figure for several reasons. One, it was AV weekend. All the best Horde are going to be there when there is bonus honour to be made. Two, it was evening. The Horde are at their worst early in the morning; as they start waking up late morning they get on and go for it. Three, there must be no hesitation about a Drek Rush. All your own resources are abandoned in the hope of taking theirs quicker than they take yours. Four, everyone thought it was a good idea but there was no precise plan of action, and no clear idea of what actually works.
So. What actually works? Phase One. Take Iceblood Graveyard. Leave a small group to defend it and move up to Tower Point. Wait for Tower Point to fall to you, burst into flames, before moving forward. While waiting send a group to take out Iceblood Tower. This is a short period of defence. The team must hold Tower Point, Iceblood Graveyard and Iceblood Tower. These three make an immensely strong triangle in the middle of their territory. When all three are definitely yours then move on the Frostwolf Graveyard in bulk. This begins Phase Two and roughly 10 minutes have elapsed.
Frostwolf Graveyard must be overwhelmed and a small force must defend it to ensure that it comes to the Alliance. FWGY is the resurection point for troops who die when taking out Drek, the run from IBGY is too long. The bulk of the forward elements must then take both East and West Frostwolf Towers, and they must burst into flames before taking out Drek.
Phase Three. Final Phase. Take out Drek. Everyone goes in and focuses on Drek. The Drek supporters are not material and will die however it is important that Drek dies first. Drek dies and the game is won. In the old days there was time to take out the Drek supporters one at a time. Not anymore. Go in, spread out and focus on Drek. DO NOT leave the room. If Drek leaves the room chasing an idiot runner then he resets to full health. (Same applies to Galv).
When I was part of a team that took out Drek in 20 minutes we also took out Galv and the Frostwolf Relief Hut. It was dream like. I have not mentioned Galv or the Frostwolf Relief Hut here however so long as the team can do them without being distracted by the main goal then by all means do them. Galv must be brought down while waiting for Tower Point to fall and when Tower Point falls everyone must be ready to move on FWGY. The Frostwolf Relief Hut can be taken while waiting for the East and West towers to burn. Good luck.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Static
I rarely get sick of Arathi Basin (AB). The only time I do is if I have been grinding through battleground after battleground there for some while; usually getting reputation or Honour (or Honor if you are from the combative states). It's fairly quick because the points keep ticking over regardless of the bases occupied; only at the beginning does neither team have a base and that doesn't last long.
The Stables are the first base taken for the Alliance, of course, however what gets taken next is always a point of conjecture, discussion or argument in battleground chat. Some people seem to have a formula for what to do. There are fifteen players, so send 5 to each of three bases, take them and hold them. The natural grouping, for a host of reasons, is the three raid groups so they say group 1 - Stables (ST), group 2 - Goldmine (GM) and group 3 - Lumber Mill (LM). My belief is that this simple formula has the least chance of success. If it succeeds it is because of dumb luck or the group is a "premade" and has already balanced the teams and discussed tactics before ever going in.
Why does it fail so often? The groups are each made up of people who have probably never met before, each with their own agenda, class, level, individual PVP ability and knowledge of the battleground. Each has also varying levels of courage, timidity and feelings of group responsibility. This formula is a guideline and rarely is it followed. Few players want to stay and guard the Stables at the begining of the game. There is a race to claim the banner and then people head for the GM, LM and even BS (Blacksmith). You will usually find that most head for LM and 3, give or take, for GM. There is reason in the random madness which I will discuss later. The Horde seem to have a monopoly on the BS in the majority of the games I have played in. The geography of the battleground gives them a more direct run to it.
The reason most people go into a battleground is to fight. If you are not in the fight then you are not getting kills or participating in kills. Staying around to guard a banner can be lost moments of boredom interspersed with intense battle - death loss effort elation - depending on the outcome. I have played both frontline and rearguard many times across different battles and also in the same battle. Both are exciting and rewarding for me.
However, given these observations, it is remarkable that the Alliance get it together enough to win an AB. Yet despite these observations I have participated in many, many AB wins. There is one observation that I can make that will start to make sense of AB. It is not a static game as the simple formula implies. It is fluid and if it isn't played with this in mind your side will be washed away. The Horde know this and have every appearance of being masters at it. Very frustrating at times :) They particularly like to be the washers rather than the washed.
The Stables are the first base taken for the Alliance, of course, however what gets taken next is always a point of conjecture, discussion or argument in battleground chat. Some people seem to have a formula for what to do. There are fifteen players, so send 5 to each of three bases, take them and hold them. The natural grouping, for a host of reasons, is the three raid groups so they say group 1 - Stables (ST), group 2 - Goldmine (GM) and group 3 - Lumber Mill (LM). My belief is that this simple formula has the least chance of success. If it succeeds it is because of dumb luck or the group is a "premade" and has already balanced the teams and discussed tactics before ever going in.
Why does it fail so often? The groups are each made up of people who have probably never met before, each with their own agenda, class, level, individual PVP ability and knowledge of the battleground. Each has also varying levels of courage, timidity and feelings of group responsibility. This formula is a guideline and rarely is it followed. Few players want to stay and guard the Stables at the begining of the game. There is a race to claim the banner and then people head for the GM, LM and even BS (Blacksmith). You will usually find that most head for LM and 3, give or take, for GM. There is reason in the random madness which I will discuss later. The Horde seem to have a monopoly on the BS in the majority of the games I have played in. The geography of the battleground gives them a more direct run to it.
The reason most people go into a battleground is to fight. If you are not in the fight then you are not getting kills or participating in kills. Staying around to guard a banner can be lost moments of boredom interspersed with intense battle - death loss effort elation - depending on the outcome. I have played both frontline and rearguard many times across different battles and also in the same battle. Both are exciting and rewarding for me.
However, given these observations, it is remarkable that the Alliance get it together enough to win an AB. Yet despite these observations I have participated in many, many AB wins. There is one observation that I can make that will start to make sense of AB. It is not a static game as the simple formula implies. It is fluid and if it isn't played with this in mind your side will be washed away. The Horde know this and have every appearance of being masters at it. Very frustrating at times :) They particularly like to be the washers rather than the washed.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Defending Stonehearth Graveyard
If you like straight out PVP and massive melee then SHGY is a good place for it. The Horde really want this place because it is generally the beginning of the end for the Alliance if it is lost. Not always, but mostly it is. The Horde need it to successfully take down Balinda Stonehearth and Icewing Bunker. Without it they have to run from either Snowfall (Winterax Hold) Graveyard or Iceblood Graveyard (aka IBGY) after they die. This takes time and time is crucial.
So defending SHGY can be pretty frantic and it is not that easy to defend. Really, you are aslo defending Balinda Stonehearth in her outpost and Icewing Bunker. The Stonehearth area is quite large and spread out with split levels. The Outpost itself is a large building and the attacks when they come from across the Field of Strife can flow around the Outpost on either side. If the bulk of the attack is coming from one side I have seen small groups of Horde sneak up the other side and cause havoc. Sometimes enough to take the graveyard because the Alliance are focussed on looking and defending the other direction. Always watch both approaches to the graveyard banner. The majority of times the Horde come from the shortest direction, up the road leading from Stonehearth Bunker.
Another successful strategy is the mass charge lead by a shadow priest. The priest will run into the waiting Alliance and fear everyone within their attack radius. They are quickly followed by the rest of the group who focus on the graveyard banner and the npc guards (if they are not already dead), while the defence is running in fear like headless chooks. This strategy is how they make the yards forward in a number of scenarios, not just at SHGY. See a shadow priest, silence it, suck away its mana and kill it. In that order. Same with warlocks.
Hunters should constantly lay traps around the banner. Renew them all the time. The Frost Trap is effective at slowing the opponents down and should be used in all front line battles. The explosive trap is excellent because of its area effect and because it explodes twice; once when set off and again when the cooldown expires. Anything to interrupt a player trying to claim the banner.
Warlocks and Shadow Priests for the same reasons used against the Alliance. Mages should freeze opponents in their tracks with Frost Nova. Rush in set it off, turn and Blink then range attack.
There may well be a whole host of other individual class strategies to disrupt attacks which I am not familiar with. If you have worked something out, use it. Slow them down, disrupt spell casting; whatever damage you can, do it. Especially when the Horde are close to the banner.
So defending SHGY can be pretty frantic and it is not that easy to defend. Really, you are aslo defending Balinda Stonehearth in her outpost and Icewing Bunker. The Stonehearth area is quite large and spread out with split levels. The Outpost itself is a large building and the attacks when they come from across the Field of Strife can flow around the Outpost on either side. If the bulk of the attack is coming from one side I have seen small groups of Horde sneak up the other side and cause havoc. Sometimes enough to take the graveyard because the Alliance are focussed on looking and defending the other direction. Always watch both approaches to the graveyard banner. The majority of times the Horde come from the shortest direction, up the road leading from Stonehearth Bunker.
Another successful strategy is the mass charge lead by a shadow priest. The priest will run into the waiting Alliance and fear everyone within their attack radius. They are quickly followed by the rest of the group who focus on the graveyard banner and the npc guards (if they are not already dead), while the defence is running in fear like headless chooks. This strategy is how they make the yards forward in a number of scenarios, not just at SHGY. See a shadow priest, silence it, suck away its mana and kill it. In that order. Same with warlocks.
Hunters should constantly lay traps around the banner. Renew them all the time. The Frost Trap is effective at slowing the opponents down and should be used in all front line battles. The explosive trap is excellent because of its area effect and because it explodes twice; once when set off and again when the cooldown expires. Anything to interrupt a player trying to claim the banner.
Warlocks and Shadow Priests for the same reasons used against the Alliance. Mages should freeze opponents in their tracks with Frost Nova. Rush in set it off, turn and Blink then range attack.
There may well be a whole host of other individual class strategies to disrupt attacks which I am not familiar with. If you have worked something out, use it. Slow them down, disrupt spell casting; whatever damage you can, do it. Especially when the Horde are close to the banner.
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