Is there one of these already?
Since I don't recall there being any links in game or on the forum already that link to any guides outlining more of the advanced aspects of gameplay how bout we start one now? Since most of the players seem to check the forums, that means it's easily accessible to them and they can learn advanced play faster, also anyone who already knows some tricks to help step up their game can learn new ones and share what they know with others. There probably isn't a whole lot to share here, especially if the player isn't a sub but it's still a convenience.
First off I feel like this guide should be read by anyone who has not already.
http://www.byond.com/members/ D4RK354B3R?command=view_post&post=106764
That guide covers a lot of the fundamentals that players will want to learn to increase their efficiency.
Now as for my own little tips and tricks.
One thing I'm going to cover that many mostly newer players don't seem to consider is aura and how to properly manage it.
To start I'm going to point out one interesting little fact about aura, The regen timer is constant. This means that your aura is essentially always regenerating even if it's full. The timer never resets when the aura goes down or anything and I'm sure some of those reading may have noticed that they used a skill and their aura bar remained unchanged, or maybe they were able to get an extra fireball out of their wizard when spamming. This happens when you use the skill just as or just before the aura is about to regen. Keeping this in mind as you play any class that uses aura aside from the Nomad is actually a very useful little trick when managing aura and though it's not feasible to completely keep track of it at all times, if you at least consider it, you'll notice those extra casts showing up more and more as you play.
I often see players using mage or preist classes who squander their aura needlessly, only to end up soon after in a situation where having some aura available to them would have prevented them or a teammate from dying. So my next tip here is that when playing any one of these classes, always consider the future. The wave you're on now may look bad or be progressing slowly, but the next one could make or break you.
You could have red turtles or skulls near your party from the start, or someone could be rushed by an overzealous spider and in times like this, it's very unlikely that you'll be doing much good with that wooden sword of yours especially when instead you could have healed them, or cast firewall. Sure, you may have cleared that last wave lightning fast thanks to firewall or seeking blast spam, and one or more of your party may be at full health now thanks to you rapid-firing the z button, but remember that simply having and using aura is not as important as how and when you use it.
If you are a mage and you're in the forest map. You know that birds will show up eventually if not already, whether you have a bard or not, it can't hurt to save up some aura for the next wave to kill the birds in one cast aside from green ones which may survive the blast. However that still makes them much easier for your team to dispatch which is what the purpose of a mage is. Firewall will do either 2 or 4 damage to whatever it hits.
During mid to late game even the maximum damage of the spell will not finish most of your opponents, this is where your team comes in and finishes the job. Those other players are there for a reason, so allow them to carry out their respective roles. Besides, as a priest or mage class it's actually counter-productive to finish waves quickly, especially if it's because you used a skill to do it, the more time it takes to complete a wave, the more time you can spend regenerating aura.
So next time you decide to firewall that group of enemies that could be dispatched easily by any class, think again. Your magic is often better spent on the more annoying creatures, such as skull snakes, fire trails, and any other enemy that could be a nuisance in melee with a sword. Always consider that, because it may come down to you being the one who must complete the wave and a sword is all you have; this is especially important if no one in the party has an axe or lance. There are exceptions to this but perhaps I can put that in another guide.
Now, another thing to consider for a mage class however, is that they can be much more liberal with aura than a priest class. So at the very start of a wave, go nuts if it seems to be necessary but always consider the time it'll take from then on to complete the wave and how much aura you can recover in that amount of time. Can't always count on someone rolling a monk or sage, so self-sufficiency is key even if the sage or monk is there, it'll only make them that more effective especially since it enables them to take a moment or two to use their other skills which may be needed at the time without leaving you high and dry which effectively leaves the entire party in a vulnerable position since it's basically like everyone is casting that fire orb. They may not seem as important with the monk as long as you can protect them while they are vulnerable.
Now on to priests, who need to be a bit more conservative with aura. This is because like I mentioned before, having aura is not as important as how and when it's used. When healing, heal everyone when they gather around. Also, don't heal them up to full if it's going to take you to less than half your aura. The job of the priest is not to keep the entire party at full health, it's to keep them alive and I mean that in the long-term sense. Having them at full hitpoints now does not mean they won't take several hits later.
If you happen to have around half or less aura when someone dies, it's almost a sure guarantee that the tombstone is going to vanish before you can even get enough aura to cast revive. Between that, and the monsters giving you the right opening to cast it without your teammate immediately dying right after is also something worth considering. On top of that, there's also when to revive, this is simple. If they are not an adventurer, or if it's a card wave, then revive them.
If they are an adventurer and it's not a card wave, then don't revive them. Also, there's the consideration of if healing another party member is more important than reviving a dead one. If you must heal then heal them up to half or close to it and then revive the dead party member, Having that extra man even at such low HP much prove to be useful in a later wave, or even immediately. Of course there are exceptions to this, such as the dead player being someone who was not an asset to the party.
So this basically came down to being a guide on playing a mage or priest class. To summarize I'll go ahead and say this. Just remember the role of the class, if you're a mage, use your aura to clear out the wave's most annoying enemies that your magic can handle, and if you play a priest, then you want to keep your party at reasonable health levels and full heal them after your aura is full or about full. Keeping everyone at full health is not your priority, just keep them alive. In either case, knowing how to efficiently control the use of your aura without the need of a sage or monk will make you an invaluable asset to the party.
Next, I'll post some tactics involving the use of melee weapons.
ID:287890
 Mar 23 2011, 10:50 pm
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However, before that I feel like I should cover some basic combat etiquette to consider when playing.
First and foremost, when there is a single enemy left or any number of enemies for that matter and you want to double-team an enemy with another player to increase damage, DO NOT attack from opposite sides! This is a sure way to cause unnecessary to teammates as the monster is bumped into them. It could even kill them, so whether you're using a sword, Saber, axe, lance, or bow. Just consider this as a general rule of thumb. Because of this you should only ever double team a monster in most cases, if there are already two players on it, do something else unless you can attack from behind one of them using a ranged attack which in most cases is not needed anyway.
Basically the position to double team from should be one "tile" down/up and over from your team mate, Your weapons should be intersecting, not parallel. Also, do not swarm in from the same direction, especially on a very simple enemy, it's a good way to push players into the monster that had no chance of damaging them in the first place.
Secondly, if you are going the same way as a player that has better melee than you do, let them go first. Sure you may feel eager to help out by moving in and scoring cool points by killing that group of mummies with your adventurer, but as you rush you push past that knight or barbarian you'll only accomplish getting in the way or pushing them into trouble while simultaneously blocking their exit. If you want to help then play your role properly, in later waves for adventurers that means staying back and out of the way, only helping if it's absolutely needed. Priests should just sit back somewhere nearby and heal, mages and any unit with a ranged attack should simply cover the warrior by hitting enemies away from him that may have been close to hitting him. Ranged attackers can just attack over the player so there's no need to try pushing your way in.
Third, it's good to share. If you're at half HP and someone else is at a quarter let them get the purple berries. Let everyone get some of the boss reward berries if they need it. Consider who would be the most useful with full aura before stealing that bottle, if you're a bard with no aura and there's a cleric or mage who is also low on aura, let the mage or cleric pick it up. The cleric may need to heal someone and that bottle could let the mage cast firewall to finish off enemies instead of just reducing their damage to zero. of course if they mage or cleric won't reach it in time feel free to pick it up, just make the best use of it that you can. Rate of aura recovery is also something to consider.
The most basic weapon is the sword, it's the first weapon that most players get to use and the most common. It has the shortest range but the lowest attack delay, giving them the best DPS on single targets and very narrow groups. The most damaging weapon in the game is also a sword with it's 4 damage per stroke, which probably has the highest DPS in the game on single targets especially and even making a wonderful knight-slaying weapon since each hit you can land will deal more damage.
The swords are a very straight forward weapon but the range on them requires you get really close to the target. Swords work best against mostly single-tiled enemies and a few multi-tiled ones.
This list includes: The humanoid spear-throwing forest boars, Scarabs, Genies, Vampires, Bouncing skulls, Spiders, and basically any other enemy that can easily be set up for DPS with a sword.
Setting this up is easy, just push said enemy against a wall and stab away. Although in the case of skulls or spiders you can also intercept them when they are pursuing someone who stepped into a web. since these enemies have a tendency to charge towards players at a fairly manageable speed, the sword can simply push them away while they constantly run into it which will allow you to deal a decent level of DPS on the target.
Swords of course also have enemies that they don't work particularly well on when compared to other weapons.
This includes: Birds (Red and higher), Bats (Pretty much any color), Any snaking enemies (Especially skull-snakes), Knights, and mummies.
Birds and bats are not optimal targets for someone with a sword because they are fast-moving and small. This makes it very easy to miss, especially in the case of bats when attacking from the sides. Bats also move in rather unpredictable patterns and it easy to accidentally get hit by one, especially if there is a swarm of them. A good way to deal with this is to avoid rushing in, don't worry about chasing down every enemy, just focus on one bat at a time and kinda let them come to you. If you see one racing towards you, face it and stab it, if you give chase it may suddenly do an about-face and hit you. Also, avoid entering a swarm of them since they could all decide to box you in, this is especially important if there are dragons or any enemy with projectiles on the map.
Another thing to consider is that unless you're soloing, there are probably other players who can better handle the situation, if there's a barbarian on the team for instance, let them take care of it. Archers work pretty well too since even if they miss, they are likely at a safe distance where they can attack with impunity. If the only other person on your team is a mage or a bunch of other guys with swords then divide the work, especially if the wave has come down to nothing but bats. It wouldn't be wise to waste the mage's aura on just a couple of remaining bats and if you all only have a sword then each one of you find your target and go after it. Finally, just like with any other enemy, do not swarm one single target. That tactic only works when the monsters do it and in the end whether you kill it or if the adventurer who just joined kills it, it still counts towards the entire party's efforts.
Enemies that are snaking aren't all that great to face with a sword particularly in during mid to late game because snaking enemies by then are either moving fast, Spamming projectiles, or both. On top of that, snaking enemies can suddenly change directions which can prove disastrous since they can end up trapping a player rather quickly in a near inescapable damage-hell where their trailing ends move over the player and deal a constant stream of damage. This is worsened by the fact that if you move it may choose to follow you and repeat the process. It's much easier to get trapped in this if you attack improperly with a sword. In the case of slow moving snaking enemies. They usually fire projectiles and often spam them.
As for knights, the sword isn't a great choice there either, they turn directions often which makes them difficult to hit successfully with a sword thanks to their ability to block hits from the front. Of course this means you can just wait for them to turn then hit them once they do. Patience is key.
Mummies will suddenly flash and thrash suddenly about. They can dart out quite a bit when they do this, sometimes in your direction which will be an almost sure hit if you're using a sword. Just approach mummies carefully in this case and keep an eye out for that thrash of theirs.
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Axes and sabers are pretty popular and the second most common weapon types in the game. Sabers are always wooden and do 1 damage a hit, axes can either be bronze or steel dealing 1 and 2 damage respectively. The most notable feature of this weapon is that it swings in an arc in front of the player this is incredibly useful.
Here's the attack area of an axe.
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X is the player, and the other symbols are the arc the axe swings in. Notice that I put lines on either side of the player, this is because the axe's rage is more than just a 'Three-tiled arc' It also hits about half a tile's worth on either side of the player. So it's possible to hit things beside you as well as long as they are near the axe's icon when you swing. Too far back, and it'll miss. Use this knowledge to your advantage especially when fighting knights.
Now axes are slightly slower than swords and have about the same length on the swing, but thanks to that cleaving arc it's DPS can be much higher than any other melee weapon when put to good use. Also, it allows for tactical positioning that you just can't get with a sword. Here's an example. Lets say you have a projectile firing enemy. Barbarians have no shield so they can't block it, but they can do this.
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Notice the enemy is moving forward int the barbarian's range of attack and even if it suddenly hurls any type of non-locking projectile the barbarian can hack away while avoiding damage. this tactic also works well on faster moving enemies since even if they change direction they likely won't turn directly into you and will probably get knocked back. This tactic also allows any class with cleaving weapons to pin enemies to walls that one could not safely pin pin with a sword. Such as eyes, mummies, snaking enemies and possibly knights, although I have not tried this with knights yet so that's kinda up in the air.
This tactic enables the axe to DPS well on even single targets. You can also pin multiple enemies to the wall this way. I've pinned two snaking skulls into corners a few times and positioned myself like this, they were both unable to escape. It's not possible to always set up enemies like this though but most of the time you won't need to actually corner them anyway.
Always consider your cleaving range, That arc means you don't need to move as much to set up your attacks, use this to your advantage. This means you can stand almost completely still while also dealing out impressive damage and sometimes standing your ground like this is exactly what you'll need to do.
The range makes it much easier to kill birds and bats since there much less room for error. It's also great om mummies since to can position yourself a bit further away and still hit more than one at a time.
Corner camping is also a viable strategy.
The lines in this diagram represent a tile that is impassable. Notice how the arc reaches across. If enemies are standing just around the corner they get hit. This works excellent when standing on bridges and trying to clear up an area that's full of enemies.
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Now it's important what side you are on when you swing as well as where your party members are, just because you are behind something does not mean it won't be bumped sideways from the attack. So always consider this before making your swing to avoid sending enemies into players.
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Lances are weapons that hit two tiles in front of the player. This reach is great for hitting enemies while keeping a very safe distance and can even be used to attack over a single tile's worth of barriers or other players.
The lance may not particularly outdamage other other weapons, but damage is overrated anyway. So lets look at it as a defensive weapon in it's ability to knock enemies back a great distance. This is incredibly useful, like if you see a mage or preist holding a snaking enemy at bay, simply knock it aside, the chances of it reaching them from two tiles away isn't all that great and it can't shoot them if it's not facing them. This also works rather well on birds by knocking them off course before they hit a fellow player or killing them outright. This is also a nice weapon to hit snaking enemies with since even if they spam projectiles, you have much more time to react before knocking it away from you with that wonderful knockback of up to two tiles that is not available to any other regular melee attack in the game.
The lance can also attack groups of enemies more so than the sword but not quite as well as an axe. Furthermore, lets say an enemy has a team mate cornered somewhere
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For some reason the only way the player can really go is blocked by that monster but you have a lance. So you hit over the barrier, damaging the enemy and pining them to the wall, this causes the enemy's A.I to tell it to turn around
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This clears a path for your teammate or simply save them from projectile spam. The same can also be done with projectiles. Try it out sometime.
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Bows and instruments are basic projectile weapons that are exclusive to rouge classes. (Which does include bards.)
When you attack with this weapon a single arrow or note will fly up to it's maximum distance, until it hits something, or until you attack with the weapon again. a big advantage here is that one can move and shoot at the same time and this is often used by any class with this weapon to run up close to enemies and spam them to death. A Viable strategy, but the bow is also effective as a ranged weapon! Sure it's only one damage but it doesn't cost anything either.
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Shields probably don't need their own section here but I'll add it anyway.
Shields block projectiles that come in directly in front of you and also at a bit of an angle as long as it's mostly from the front that is. What a lot of players may not know is that goop that is placed down by the little tentacle-eye creatures counts as a projectile and can be "blocked" by the shield by simply walking through it without attacking.
If anyone would like to add anything on to this, feel free to do so via reply.