Chaotic Dreams

I'm bored, so I decided I'd write this little thing up now that I'm seeing a flux of newbies coming into duel not knowing what the **** to do, save for weapon spam. That works fine in ChaosDM, but it can get you killed (and/or berated) in Duel. This is meant to be a basic run down of the mechanics of Duel, what to expect, and some tips to not get your ass kicked on the servers too much.

I - Choose Your Weapon

So you just installed Chaos, and are all 'oo, look at the nifty title screen.' You check the servers and realize no one's playing anything but DM and Duel (for good reason, by the way. duel rocks.) Well, Duel sounds cool. Melee warfare rocks, right? You join a duel server and find yourself stuck with a list of weapons to choose from...

[Bastard Sword]

The weapon in which all other weapons are averaged around. The bastard sword is a stalwart weapon with good reach and respectable damage in all modes as well as a sweeping Heavy mode. This is a GREAT newbie weapon as it lets you get familiar with the mechanics and get by with just spamming until you learn the game. That, and you won't be insulted for being a spammer, simply because you're using a sword rather than say...

[Double-Axe]

...an axe. This is a spammer's weapon, for sure, though I've seen people that are actually skilled use it rather effectively. It has a short horizontal range, but the complete range around your character model makes it a weapon that is extremely effective at warding off pesky dagger users. Fighting anything longer than the D-Axe (such as the single/pole axe) requires a bit more shrewd footwork.

[Daggers]

My favored weapon, as most people know. It's a devestating weapon when used correctly, although most newbies tend to steer away from the daggers, and rightfully so. The short range is hard to get used to, and the hit prediction is a bit off sync with the animations, but when used skillfully, daggers are an exceptionally deadly tool.

[Katana]

The biggest mistake I see a lot of newbies make is go 'OH COOL KATANA' and pick it... then get their asses kicked. The katana, much like the daggers, requires a bit more subtlety in use. You can't wildly swing the katana, as it doesn't have ANY horizontal range to speak of, so you will mostly be dealing damage at your sides. When properly learned, however, the katana is capable of one-hit kills that make people scream 'CHEAP!'

[Pole Axe]

I hate this weapon. This and the hammer are what I consider 'Trilkinbane' With a long reach, and a spammer-friendly sweep and flow, the pole axe is a newbie's best friend. You will be made fun of (probably by me), you will make many enemies, but you will win matches with the pole axe. Don't be entirely fooled, though; the axe is not easy to handle. It is slow to 'recharge', so you need to make your hits count, but god do they hurt when you hit them...

[Hammer]

This is another weapon I hate that needs to seriously be considered for rebalancing. With a WIDE (read: impossible) range, and an almost guarenteed headshot every time you hit somebody solidly, this ranks up with the pole axe in spammer friendliness. Instead of sweeping, though, the hammer is a weapon that works much like the double axe in that most of the attack animations cover a great deal of the front and sides of your body. Someone coming up to your left? Let 'er rip...

[Mace]

Think of this as a stronger, but shorter bastard sword. The game play is pretty much the same, but it can be a little awkward to switch to thanks to the odd look and slightly slower swing speed. At the basics, though, use the mace as you would the sword, but be a bit more choosy with your shots.

[Templar]

I'm not sure what's up with this sword. I've seen it used few times, and seen people win with it even fewer. If any of you templar users want to contribute, I would be glad, but for now, I assume it works muh the same way as the bastard sword.

II - The Controls

This one's easy:

To swing your weapon, simply 'fire'. You can also move side to side, forwards and back to change the way you swing your weapon.

To block, use 'altfire'. Blocking is sort of spotty, and it requires GREAT timing to use effectively. In my opinion you're better off parrying (having your weapons deflect their blow by attacking at the same time they do.)

To change your stance (gone into in another section), use 'change ammo', which is a special bind for ChaosUT.

Other than that, everything's the same. You move at the same speed as you do in UT, and the HUD is pretty much the same as well.

There is one thing you should know about, though, and that is the lunge. In order to perform a lunge, you must be ducking, and then simply jump. If you time it right with an attack, you will perform a special lunging attacking with whatever weapon you're using that is generally deadly if hit solidly, but also exceptionally risky to use, as you make yourself vulnerable from the lag time. You can immediately duck and jump from a full standing position for a lunge, but it requires some pretty good timing. Learn to mix in lunging with regular attacks.

III - Stances

You have three stances available:

[Light]

All attacks in light are, well, light. They have little lag time, but also little range and attack time. Remember that multiple hits are definitely possible during one strike, and due to the fast nature of light, those are not often. For the most part, Light mode is good if you just need to a fast, unpredictable hit to finish off a weak enemy, or if you want to annoy someone by picking away at him until he makes a stupid mistake that you can take advantage of in a heavier mode.

[Medium]

This is where most players play in, as it gives a good balance of speed, range and damage. All stances have their own damage ranges, and medium tends to have the best damage-for-speed ratio as far as weapon speed cooldown goes. Some of the weapons' medium lunge attacks are also extremely useful and good to use, but if you expect to be doing a multi-man melee, you'll want the speed and cover of a medium stance anyway.

[Heavy]

Pain in bulk. The perfect one-vs-one stance, as well, as you have more oppertunities to punish with this. Heavy mode generally is characterized by sweeping, long attacks, or just attacks with very long animations that have the possibility of dealing multiple blows. The down side is that the cooldown speed is also MUCH slower, but one good shot is all you need. All of the weapons' heavy lunges are exceptionally effective if you can time them correctly, ESPECIALLY the bastard sword and daggers.

IIII - The Game

So now you spawned, playing in a four-man-up game. There's some cock sucker running after you holding an axe and calling you a Mexican Jew Lizard. You're not going to take that ****, right? Of course not. You're going to--- ****, he FLEW forward and took your head off before you could react.

This game revolves around timing. There are only so many periods in the animation where damage is checked for, and the idea is to find the sweet spots in the animation and exploit them. Learn how the weapons work, even if it means taking your licks. You can't learn unless you get schooled, I say, and watching people better than you tends to teach you a lot about the game.

Dodging is an exceptionally important part of the game that I can't stress hard enough. Dodging backwards and dashing forwards should become second nature to you, just as side to side should be by now. Learn to time your attacks with a good dash forward into the nearest opponent.

Patience is also key. Don't run in and spam. You might be able to win if your enemy is retarded, or just impatient as well, but for the most part the good players know how to defeat spammers. Instead, dodge around and move, and wait for your opponent to show an opening that you can exploit. Use the walls to your advantage by dodging off of them. Lunge around in unpredictable patterns until your opponent is finally lined up, then move in for the kill. Be strategic.

Another thing players don't like are item whores. No one likes to spectate and watch some assgoblin run around the map collecting all of the shields and health they can find so they can make up for their lack of skill with high health and a few lucky shots. Don't do that. If you're going to use powerups, use them after you kill someone during a multi-man melee, or just maneuver yourself towards them in a match. Don't just turn around and run for the nearest vial. Also, try to avoid using kegs and super shields. No one likes that at all, and it boggles the mind why they're there to begin with. Amp damage is generally frowned upon as well, and is also an item that should never have been in a duel map, but...

In short, don't run if you're getting your ass kicked. Just fight and die. You'll respawn again later. Besides, you never know if you'll out skill your opponents or get lucky. I know I've killed three opponents with only 3hp for most of the fight. You figure that out.


And that's the story. Practice is the key, as it is in other games of this type. Practice, practice, practice, remember to dodge, remember to be unpredictable, remember not to be a griefer and just have fun with it. Duel is probably the best gametype in Chaos, and I want to see more people excel at it!

not bad, but i figured id add a few comments:

A couple weapons have some rather unique stance-types. For instance the katana has the twirling medium and heavy stances.. which look nice.. but as a long time katana user (have been playing with all the weapons since the new anims were put in) i can definately say the light stance is superiour when you are going for a kill. It has more horizontal range, the moves are quick and theres not a lot of extra movement, and it seems to flow very well.

The Templar is, at least in my opinion, all about stabbing. It shares many moves with the bastard sword and is balanced the same, but i seem to find it easier to land and underhand stab with it or a rushing jab (using crouch->jump->fire)

Thanks =P

Everyone's welcome to add their own little comments. I only really know the daggers, so all of my comments of the other weapons are based on observation. In fact, it might be a good idea if this was stickied so people can add their feedback and newbies can learn from others than just me =P

Thanks for the info as its very nice!

To follow my basics guide, I give you the dagger guide. Hopefully people will shut up about 'how do you twirl, Tril!?'

First, the daggers are not to be spammed. Yeah, I know, it's hard to believe, but running around like a chicken with its head cut off and spamming Heavy mode will probably get you killed fast. Daggers have crap *** range, and strange prediction, so you're better off hanging back and being an oppertunist with your strikes.

Dodging is an important part of a dagger fighter's game, as without dodging, you open yourself up to many more attacks from the larger weapons. The last thing you want to do is get your head lopped off by an axe. Dodging also sometimes leaves you in nice positions to get off a quick Medium side-swipe. Duck in, and duck out, and remember that you're using two toothpicks and not a big sword.

[Light]

The basic attack in light mode (also the one when moving forward and backward) is a jab with both blades, one in front and one in back. There aren't too many uses for this that I can find, unless you're exceptionally fast at switching stances to poke a guy in back of you, but other than that, it's a relatively worthless maneuver.

The side-to-side attack is the same, but horizontally (on either side of you), and has a bit more use since your field of vision in third-person mode allows you to see your sides. Still, though, it's not that useful, so just use Medium or Heavy as far as I'm concerned.

The lunge attack is the same thing as the basic forward and back attack.

[Medium]

Okay, let's start with the lunge attack, since this is the question I get asked atleast fifty times per game:

WHAT STANCE ARE YOU USING TO DO THE TWIRL ATTACK, TRIL!?!?!

It's medium, and it's the medium lunge attack. The medium lunge attack is a three-sixty spin with your blades. It looks cool, but in practice, its uses are limited thanks to the wacky prediction of the daggers. Sure, you'll get quite a few hits in a crowd, but you're just as likely to take a hit from a flailing, misguided weapon. Its true power shines when you're in 1v1 and your opponent is low HP and not expecting it. Generally, in their desperation to get out of your way, they'll run right into it.

The forward/basic attack is two jabs in front of you. This is more useful than it seems, since the animation is long (multiple hits), and you're attacking twice. It's not very good for parrying, but it is an exceptional damage dealer when you're behind your opponent and the oppertunity is there. It's, ultimately, easy to avoid, though, and is only good if you are oppertunistic with it.

The backward attack is a pincer strike from either of your sides, and facing inwards towards the opponent. This is a very nice parrying move, and the damage is there as well. A great tactic is to move backwards to start the animation and then suddenly dodge forward into an enemy at the end of his swing animation. You'll get quite a few headshots doing that.

The side-to-side attack is just a swiping arc in front of you, much like a sword, and with only one dagger. It's great for a cheap hit on a passing opponent, but it passes too fast and the animation is a bit jumpy, thus its use is sort of limited.

[Heavy]

This is the stance I use most often as a dagger fighter, especially in 1v1.

The forward/basic attack is the opposite of the backwards attack for medium. Instead of a pincer attack from the outsides, inwards, you thrust your blades in front and then to the sides. This is a move that is not so much good for damage (though it certainly can be) as it is for parrying. You will deflect QUITE a few blows, thanks to the long animation, but remember that there is a basic priority system in place. Using this is effective with backing up or dodging to a side. A stray bit of the animation might even hit them.

The backward attack is a dual-bladed uppercut. Use this as you would Backward Medium by starting the animation and then rushing forward. Another time to use it is when you've successfully confused your opponent to back up directly into you. When they do, let 'em have it.

The side-to-side attack is odd, being that it seems more like a waving of the arms than an actual attack. The animation, though, is long, and is exactly as I describe. Your character waves their arms, sending the blade in a wide arc from the side to side. Again, a great parrying move, but is also useful to catch an opponent on the backswing as they move away from you. Maneuvering yourself into a postion where you can hit your opponent with this attack is difficult, so just let the person do it themselves as they attack you. Step to a side, start the attack and try to spin around them. Works wonders.

The lunge attack is pretty deadly, but leaves you excessively open, and doesn't seem to have much priority. It's a quick leap and a long, downward strike, and then a quick jab up. A solid hit with this is an instant kill. Use it when the opponent is ducking and being a nuisance, and mix it up with your dancing to keep your opponent jumpy. It's also great to use if you feel like being a ninja and leaping off of a high place onto someone's head. I've done that before, and gotten quite a few 'woah's from it ;)

The daggers aren't easy to use, and you are outclassed in most respects by the longer weapons, but what they lack in range, they make up for in animation length and thus, damage. Many consider the daggers cheap, but the only way the daggers can be cheap is if its wielder knows how to use them property. Stick the daggers in a newbie's hands, and I assure you, there is no cheapness and only frustration.

Actually, consolidating the two posts was a good idea. If anyone wants to add their own weapon guide, go for it.

Ok heres a breif katana tut:

Like all the melee weapons and most weapons that are accurate like a sniper rifle, it is best not to spam the katana. Instead it is better to pick a stance, stay in it, and work with it, learning how to dodge and counter. The katana has a decent amount of range and it moves quickly, so it is good for chipping away at your opponent on hit and fade (not run) attacks.

I will start with light stance as it is my personal favorite:
The light attacks, unlike the other ones, do not involve twirling the weapons, but are for the most part quick slashes, and are good for people with quick footwork. I find the side attacks to be the most useful, i run up towards a side of my opponent, then quickly stafe across their front and hit fire to launch a quick left or right slash across their midsection. It gets blocked occasionally but you can get in and out quick enough to take minimal damage usually. Also, the normal verticle strike is useful if your opponent is using a weapon with a thin top (ie.. a sword, not the hammer or mace) since it is good for headshot damage and can easily 1-hit kill if you can connect for the entire swing.

Medium stance:
This stance is for those who have a good sense of timing but are not as good at dodging attacks as others. The spining motion most of the attacks take on is very good at deflecting attacks, and can do a decent amount of damage, especially if you can get in close. Also.. there is a midair spin that can give your opponent a surprise, and the crouch-rush (hold crouch and press jump) can do a quick forward jap for major damage on a stationary opponent even at some considerable range.

Heavy stance:
This one i am not that experienced with, but from my experience it takes the spinning motions of medium stance and puts it at the wrist, which gives it greater range but is harder to control and the attacks last longer, which can be problematic if you miss (especially if you are against a good dagger or axe user). I find it best to switch into heavy stance briefly to mix it up a tad, but i prefer not to stay in it for a long time.


Also a few general tips: headshots are generall double damage if you can get them, but usually you have to go through an opponents weapon to get to the head. If the opponent is using an axe, hammer, or mace, dont waste your time, instead go for the body where their defense are weaker and you get out of the way fast.

Very nice!

Oh, sure, there's a few viewpoints in there I might see differently, but overall it's impressive.

And the fact that you took the time to do so, which means you had to take the time to play thoroughly first, well, that's just awesome.

Thank you Trilkin, and welcome to Chaos!

I will also say this: a skilled dagger user can dominate a server if he keeps his wits about him. It is in my opinion the hardest to use because of its short range, but if you know how to get inside your opponents defenses you can kill them very quickly.

WOW Im verry impressed. I forgot that there was that mutch to the melee system LOL

Their uses also vary depending if your in a 1on1 duel or a 4 way duel.
The Double Axe is my absolute favorite for 1on1, but it kinda sucks against multiple opponents, Its to slow for when your trying to kill and guard against multiple people.
Normal Axe and Swords are probably best for multi-target use.

I only really use the double axe, so I can only give advice on that. Firstly, I've found the heavy attack to be far the most affective when using the axe. Not only are the sideswipes great for protecting you against an incoming attack but they are perfect for scoring headshots. As long as you practice your timing you should be able to dispatch sword users with no trouble at all using the heavy stance. Just circle strafe in on them in time with your axe swing.

The overhead attack is less useful and leaves you open, but is the most fun to use, especially against people that run predictably toward you.

My favorite move is the jump spin of the mace just cuz it looks cool. I have sent many a foe into the traps of ArenaII with one well placed shot. Of course it takes some timing and conditions have to be just right....which means I have only done it a few times correctly and died most of the rest

Maybe we should combine these thoughts and post it over at the Atari forums?

Just a minor point guys, I prefer the term "newer players", or some such, as opposed to couple other popular terms used in this thread. Please consider that thought. We want newer players to feel welcome.

Which of course was also the point of your 'guide', so thank you for that Trilkin. Oh, and welcome to the beta testing team.