How To Fight : A Short Dissertation On Conduct In The Arena

======== How To Fight : A Short Dissertation On Conduct In The Arena ========
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MEMORANDUM FROM: Warriors' Guild World HQ, Colorado Springs, CO, USA

MEMORANDUM TO: All New Warriors.

SUBJECT: Fighting In The Arena.

1. GENERAL.
    This short text is intended to give the new Warrior enough information to
prevent bumbling about, perhaps fatally, in the Arena. It is not intended to
instill instant expertise. For advanced hints and on-going discussions of
tactics and strategy, the Warrior is referred to the international MELEE
discussion forum carried by an increasing number of public and private bulletin
boards.

2. SPECIFIC.
    a) The Combat Screen Information.
           Below is a representation of the MELEE combat screen.

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ºStatus: (1)                                ǶEnemy Status: (2)               º
ÇÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄǶÄ(6)ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄĶ
ºEquipment:    Armor      Helm       Shield ǶApparent Fatigue:               º
ÇÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄǶDegree of Wounds:               º
º Shape -----        --         --          ǶHelm Shape  :   ÅCover:         º
º Bonuses ---        --         --          ǶArmor Shape :   ÅCover:  º  º   º
º Covering --  * *   --         --          ǶShield Shape:   ÅCover:         º
º   Torso  --        ÉÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÑÍÊÊÍÍÍÍÍÍÑÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÏÍÍÍÍÑÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ͹
º   Arms   --        ºBlock Parry Counter ³ BerserK ³ Combo Attack ³ Surrenderº
º   Legs   --        ºÛßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßÛ º
ÇÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÂÄÄÄÄÄÄĶÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û º
ºStatus: Orig³CurrentºÛÛ(4)ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û º
ºWounds: (3) Å       ºÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û º
ºFatig.:     Å       ºÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û º
ÌÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÏÍÍÍÍÍÍ͹ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û º
ºDirty/Special TricksºÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û º
ÇÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÂÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄĶÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û º
ºChoke Dust³MindBlastºÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û º
ºCrit Hit  ³Taser GunºÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û º
ÌÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÏÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÛ º
ºMessages: (5)                                                                º

         1) In the upper left, the Warrior can find a computer monitored
display of his status. Key items to track are the Equipment coverings. When
the covering of a piece of equipment shows "0" then no covering is being
offered by that piece of equipment for the specific body part that it should be
covering. For enhanced equipment, bonuses will still provide coverage. The
new Warrior should note that the higher the quality of the equipment, the less
likely it is to get hacked to pieces by an opponent.

         2) In the upper right of the screen, one can find information on his
opponent. Enemy status is a reflection of how much "fight" the other Warrior
has in him. While it is weighted by how fatigued he is, this is primarily a
reflection of how much pain he can still endure before being bested.
            Apparent fatigue and apparent wounds show exactly what you would
expect. then to show.
            Your opponent's equipment shape is last in the window, and show's
how much coverage your opponent has remaining over the various parts of his
body. For the armor, the three divisions are Torso, Arms and Legs.

         3) In the lower right side of the screen, the Warrior can see exactly
what his status is. Only the Current Fatigue and Current Wounds are likely
to change during combat. Below this area are the available Dirty Special Tricks
options. A Warrior must first decide ahead of time to throw chivalry to the
winds and conduct special training in any or all of these Dirty Tricks, and
then he must procure the necessary materials needed for implementing one of
these Tricks. Success or failure in the use of a Dirty/Special Trick depends on
a number of factors, based on the selected Trick. Aside from the amount of
skill developed in the implementation of the chosen trick, the defender's abil-
ities count, too (ie., Luck is factored into the defender's actions-to-evade
in nearly all the Tricks; high constitution map void the effects of choke dust,
good agility may assist in evading an enemy that has invoked a critical hit
trance, superior intelligence and mind strength can ward the effects of a mind
blast, and high agility and awareness may assist a defender in avoiding a taser
gun dart).

         4) Dominating the right side of the screen is a graphic representation
of the Arena. Warriors are limited to this space for maneuvering. Warriors move
via the use of the numeric keypad (with NUMLOCK on). The Warrior will move in
the direction of the arrow on the keypad. Pressing "5" will cause your Warrior
to take a break in place (rest). If his constitution is good, he may regain
some of his fatigue, thus gaining a second wind.
            Along the top of Arena window are several special tactics available
to the Warrior. These are summarized below:
               A) Block: Pressing this will ensure that no matter what your
Warrior has set in his tactics script, he will attempt to block the next sure
hit against him. This puts you in defensive mode, so you have a slightly im-
proved chance of actually blocking a hit. Solid blocks have been known to
shatter weapons; this is a function of the weapon quality.
               B) Parry: This does just about what A) above does, except that
instead of blocking, your Warrior will attempt to parry the next sure hit. The
major difference between a block and a parry is that a parry is much easier on
your and your opponent's weapons!
               NOTE: Attempting to block or parry an enemy's sure hit will
throw your Warrior's timing off, forcing him to sacrifice his next move.
               C) Counter: Just like A) and B) above, except that instead of
blocking or parrying, your Warrior will attempt to counter a sure hit. A
successful counter both avoids the blow and actually hits your opponent, taking
advantage of the inevitable lapse of defense one incurs when throwing an
attack.
               D) Berserk: This will cause your Warrior to go berserk. This is
a very dangerous strategy, since berserking Warriors will then fight on their
own (no keyboard input) until they either win, are slain, drop from exhaustion,
or recover their wits (checks are made in accordance with the tactics set for
the Warrior and are subject to the Warriors willpower to see if his will is
strong enough for him to rein in his emotions). Berserking Warriors tend to
hit a little harder, although their accuracy is degraded. They usually are too
insane to bother with any kind of defense.....
               E) Combo Attack: This will cause your Warrior to try to slip
in two attacks in the current round. This action drains fatigue very rapidly.
               F) Surrender: Self-explanatory. The new Warrior should be
aware, however, that surrender is not necessarily an easy out. Other Warriors
can refuse your surrender and finish you off anyway. On occasion the wounds
from such coup de graces are so severe as to cause semi-permanent damage....
         5) Messages: Combat actions/results are displayed here.
6) Opponent's Name: Let's you know who you're fighting, in case you
forget....

ADDENDUM: Information on Dirty/Special Tricks.
         7) Dirty (or "Special," as they are called by those who consider
themselves above the use of nasty tricks (but who will use them anyway))
are a relatively new introduction to MELEE. Completely unsanctioned by the
Guild, these are special abilities or devices a Warrior can call upon in a
last-ditch effort to stave off overwhelming defeat. Dirty Tricks require
special training of a most unsavory nature. While there is some training that
will improve a Warrior's ability to execute dirty tricks in general, in order
to have any real chance of success, a Warrior must specifically train for the
skill he wants to develop. Even then one may not be able to execute the nasti-
ness planned for a hated opponent. Most of the tricks require special equip-
ment of one type or another. So, how do you get the training and equipment?
Naturally, you have to find them in the seamy side of town....
         8) If you wish to swap your primary and secondary weapons while in the
arena, you can invoke hidden command "F" for (F)lip your weapons. If you do
not have a secondary weapon on you, then the program will automatically swap
your primary weapon back into play. The most likely use for this feature is
to protect your primary weapon if it's quality is low to start with, and you
take or give a couple of good blocks, and are anxious about your weapon
shattering by just one or two more blocks or parries....