Good ronins?

[Alastair II]

I was recently wondering whether there were any top players who've never been part of a clan, because I'm too sporadic in my playing periods to join one, but I want to get good anyway. I don't mean those ronins who have just left a clan; basically, do you have to join a clan to get good?

[ErikJansen]

There are plenty of skilled ronins out there, you don't have to join a Clan to get really good. Clans are often sources of information flow though, tactic exchanges, army setups etc etc... which may help you become even better http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

I forgot to mention that the Org also does its part in helping players get better, I've learned plenty just reading the posts http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

Regards,

[Sir Black Raven]

yep Erik is right when it cames to learn a few more steps in the process. The org have plenty good information about online gaming and strategy and if u r a lone wolf u dont need to be part of a clan but dont forget that wolves hunt in a pack ( ask the Wolves http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif )

[Swoosh So]

There are no lonely wolves anymore http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif only our clan.

[Skomatth]

There certainly are but telling about them would make recruiting harder for everyone http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[Shahed]

Hiya

There are a lot of good players out there who are ronin.
Some are newcomers and some are veterans.

Joining a clan is useful when you have the time necesasry to play the game regularly. It is very useful to be able to discuss duel (1vs1) and team strategies. In a clan you can also get loads of information through mailing lists, testing and "training".

Clans do hunt in packs as that is where they are strongest. They have had the time to perfect their team strategies, communication and readiness.

Clans can also have the advantage of regular playing hours which provides time for practice and learning.

Some clans have hierarchies so you have to follow commands in game, makes it easier than having to think for yourself, sometimes.

Having said that it is not uncommon to see a clan demolished by ronin. Just the other night in a 3vs3, the enemy was a known clan, altough the match was pretty close in terms of timing the attack (we were almost too late), the end result was a kill ratio of around 3:1 for 2 players and 2:1 for the last ronin.

You do not have to join a clan to get good. You can do it own your own. Depending on your own caracter, you may want to join a clan after a while to make sure you have some online allies.

If you do choose to join a clan, choose carefully. Join people who share your vision and values.

If you do need an ally online, gimme a shout out, online name is Sinan

http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wave.gif

[Shahed]

Before I joined the Medieval community I played some Shogun Total War. Although I did not play online I did pay attention to the ladders and was regularly at the org.

If I remember correctly Lord Ted got right to the top of the player ladder. Ranked as best player. I think he achieved this before joining the Wolves.

Corect me if I am wrong Swooooooosh http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/flirt.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[Aelwyn]

Recently, and I mean in terms of the TW series (so maybe within the last 4 months) some good Ronins have joined clans. Not exactly sure why, maybe it was to have a group of people to play/ally with on a regular basis, but nevertheless, they chose their clans and joined. Theres still some good ronins, some more well known players, and some not known to others. Each clan pretty much keeps their eye on their own choices.

[Mithrandir]

I'll give you a list :

CBR
Skomatth
donbatti
LadyAn and plenty more...

....D'oh


Being clanned definately doesn't mean you're good btw.
I know of at least one clan... hmm, never mind http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/tongue.gif.
Play a bit online and discover for yourself http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif.

The main advantage of being in a clan would be to play clan battles, which seems like fun.

I'm still a ronin, can't be bugged to change my name on GameSpy to MK_Glorfindel,RTK_Gorfindel,Mizuglor,FF_glor (actually noone wants me cause I'm a noob). http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/mecry.gif .

If you want to get good, just ask some more experienced players for a few training games. If that fails, ask me for a training ,I know the basics (archers&swords vs cav,cav vs spears, spears vs swords, all Valour 0 and peasants to hold the main points -my winner strategy).

[LRossaLordJimi]

Mithrandir,i think the players you sign are not ronins:
Donbatti is MizuTears
Skomatth is KenchiSko
LadyAn is FFLadyAn
Don't remember about CBR but i see him also in a clan http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

You also have an offer of 1million dollar for enter in a new clan http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif

Ave

[Shahed]

MizuCBR is the name, tactical warfare is the game.

Anyone got news on whether Lord Ted actually achieved top player status in STW before joining the wooooooooohoooooowlves.

[ErikJansen]

Oh Sinan, stop nagging Whats STW anyway? http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif

[Shahed]

Erik LOL join lobby all20 gamers abound.

[ErikJansen]

I can't, mom has restricted my online time http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/frown.gif

Just kidding, on my way

[Skomatth]

LOL @ MITH http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif

Your joking right? http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif

[ErikJansen]

No he's serious http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/mad.gif

http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif

[Skomatth]

Am I a ronin? Is there something I dont know about? http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/eek.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/confused.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/mecry.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif

[Mithrandir]

No one noticed my li'lle joke http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/frown.gif
(nor the D'oh )...


-Glorfindel,Last of the first Ronin-

[Skomatth]

I saw the Doh but if I pretended I knew it was a joke, it wouldn't have warranted a response http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[LRossaLordJimi]

Oooops,sorry Mith,i didn't understand d'oh http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif
I have to kill my english teacher,give me the axe,plz http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif
Ave

[LittleGrizzly]

the 2 best ronins i now are dillnja and tinky (see his recruiting topic for his online name) these may not be the best ronins but these are the best i can name

[Stormer]

i belive there is only one master of the blade MR Blair http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/rolleyes.gif

[Paolai]

Virus (ex LRossaVirus and my usual teamm8 on MI)
SpaceCadet (dunno if I can consider him as Ronin, Space Cowboys seem disbanded)
Cranda

are my favorite ronins

[Cheetah]

Gah Mithrandir Gah

[Lechev]

Quote[/b] (Mithrandir @ Mar. 29 2003,18:17)]I'll give you a list :

CBR
Skomatth
donbatti
LadyAn and plenty more...

....D'oh


Being clanned definately doesn't mean you're good btw.
I know of at least one clan... hmm, never mind http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/tongue.gif.
Play a bit online and discover for yourself http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif.

The main advantage of being in a clan would be to play clan battles, which seems like fun.

I'm still a ronin, can't be bugged to change my name on GameSpy to MK_Glorfindel,RTK_Gorfindel,Mizuglor,FF_glor (actually noone wants me cause I'm a noob). http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/mecry.gif .

If you want to get good, just ask some more experienced players for a few training games. If that fails, ask me for a training ,I know the basics (archers&swords vs cav,cav vs spears, spears vs swords, all Valour 0 and peasants to hold the main points -my winner strategy).
Hey Glor I need some practice and training. See u this weekend same time and same place. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/tongue.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif Lets party

sign: The Orc

[Alastair II]

Paolai, just to clarify, I meant ronins who've NEVER been in a clan. Ignore this if you were just commenting & didn't mean to address the post directly. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[Crandaeolon]

I'm a self-taught general. Folks might classify me as 'competent'. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/eek.gif I did belong to a clan, but those guys are fairly laid-back fellows who don't take the game too seriously. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

Some clans have elaborate training systems (replay archives and commentary by clanmates etc), others just play a lot together. It's not bad to be a ronin either: merely playing the game improves your skill, and ronins get to meet many interesting personages.

It is good to have a mentor, although ultimately one can, with a little work and some thinking, figure out the necessary stuff for oneself. This means basically reinventing the wheel, so the benefits of a mentor should be obvious...

Edit: I'm not saying I wouldn't benefit from some training. Perhaps it's time for me to join a clan again... http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

[Crandaeolon]

Ehh... that last posting of mine was so blatantly useless (I just repeated what others had been saying) that I gotta justify my presence here somehow. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif So, here are some thoughts on what a self-learning general (any general, really) could do to improve.

The ability to control (i.e. "fast clicking") improves over time. There aren't many tricks to apply to something "physical" like this, but a good rule of thumb is that the more you can do by using your keyboard, the faster you can be. Every good player should instantly know what G, R, L, C, W, F, E, H, A, Ctrl+A, Ctrl+C, Ctrl+H, Space, Backspace and other keys do. And use 'em, too. Ctrl+W (Withdrawing) is the fastest way to disengage a unit of cavalry, but can be a problem in some situations when the attack direction has changed as an effect of maneuvering.

Other useful stuff includes alt+leftclicking, alt+rightclicking (those can be combined; select facing first and issue the move command right after that) and using the right mouse button to reset units to default depth when dragging out formations. The formations aren't that useful IMO, I'd much rather have a "normal" RTS group selection system by using just the number keys to select groups instead of selecting a quick formation. The only formation I use regularly is number 5 (missile first) to quickly regroup units after some fighting.

Then there's the basic understanding of game mechanics. It's not necessary to remember all units stat-by-stat or every morale or combat modifier, but knowing that a unit gets a substantial morale penalty (-8) when it's reduced below 50% original strength can be useful, for instance. It's important to know what's going on. So, if that CMAA unit routs for apparently "no reason", an aspiring vet-wannabe shouldn't shrug it off as a bug. Replays are good tools for finding out what _really_ happened.

Here's a bunch of modifiers for reference. (Copy-paste from .com)
------------------------------------------
COMBAT MODIFIERS

MORALE

States

Impetuous: 10+
Steady: 2 to 14
Uncertain: -5 to 5
Wavering: -14 to -5
Routing: Less then -6 (Cran's note: the rout point is -16. Units will keep routing until their morale rises above -6.)

Negative

Loose Formation: -2
Outnumbered 2 to 1: -4 (see below)
Outnumbered 3 to 1: -12 (depends on quality of troop, elite only afraid of elite, etc.)
One flank threatened: -2
Two flanks threatened: -6
Charged in flank: -4
Charged in flank by cavalry: -6
Charged by unit hidden in forest: -8
General's death (during the first few seconds): -8
After the General's death: -2 (for the rest of the battle)
Routing Friends: Up to -12
10% of unit is dead: -2
50% of unit is dead: -8
80% of unit is dead: -12
Taking missle fire: -2 (-4 if weapons cause fear)
Unit is Very Tired: -2
Unit is Exhausted: -6
Unit is completely exhausted: -8
Losing: Up to -8 (up to -14 if losing to cavalry)

Positive

Protected Flanks: +4
No retreat possible (usually castle sieges): +8
No enemies around: +4
Enemies Routing: Up to +8
Uphill Position: +2
Winning: Up to +6
Impetuous Charge: +4 (when Knights charge automatically)
Outnumber Enemy 3 to 1: +4
General in unit: +2
Close proximity to general: +1 morale per star
Far away from general: +1 morale per 2 stars

COMBAT

Formations

+3 atk, -3 def for wedge formation
+2 def, -2 atk for hold formation

Spear/pikes

+1 per rank to def (up to 2 for spear, 4 for pike)
+1 per 2 ranks to atk
+1 per rank to atk when charging
No rank bonuses in forests (may be bugged)

Terrain

+1 atk, +1 def for camels in desert
-2 atk, -2 def for cavalry in forests
Bonus to atk for being uphill (depends on height)
Penalty to def for being downhill (depends on height)

Fear of camels

+4 def for camels against horses
+2 atk for camels against horses

Positional

+5 atk for flank attack
+7 for rear
+2 for charging into flank/rear
+6 to atk when 'pushing back' the enemy
-5 def when squeezed too tight

Exhaustion

-2 atk when quite tired
-3 atk, -1 def very tired
-4 atk, -2 def exhausted
-6 atk, -3 def totally exhausted

Routing

+4 atk against routing enemies
-8 def if routing
----------------------------------------
A lot of conclusions can be made from these.

From the various unit stats (far too many to list here) and prices an army selection can be figured out. There's a lot of hearsay going on about "best units" and such, but those should always be taken with a grain of salt. In 1.1 it's generally better to pick units with higher base stats and higher prices than to pump weaker units with upgrades. In retail it was the other way around. Vets can help with army selections, but there's always the possibility that the vet has stuck to a certain selection of units without exploring new possibilities, thus falling behind in this category. (Seen a couple of those. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif)

Finally, there are the various combat strategies and tactics. These interact with all said above, and I'm not gonna expand this into a full strategy guide... let's just say that a ronin general (and any general, for that matter) can benefit from playing against a wide variety of opponents and analyzing their tactics in-game or via replays. Asking around for info is a smart thing to do (bearing in mind the grain of salt.)
Edit: clans can be useful in this regard as clan members omay discuss strategy, tactics and unit selections between themselves, but not necessarily with strangers. However, lots and lots of information can be gleaned from other sources too... and using that brain thing of course http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

There, now I almost feel useful http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wacko.gif

[ErikJansen]

http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wave.gif

Edit: Talk about useless http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[Vanya]

GAH

Vanya does not belong to any "clan". Vanya has never been sought out to join any "clan" in MTW. Vanya's play to too sporadic of late.

That does not stop Vanya from collecting additional heads for His glorious shrunken-head necklace though.

Does than make Vanya a "ronin"? No A "ronin" is but a warrior with no master. Since Vanya is His own master, Vanya thus has a master (Himself) and is thus not leaderless and therefore not a "ronin".

However, Vanya does see plenty of people "runnin'" from the field of battle (sometimes His own peasants flee before the might of their master and god). These "runnin'" people... unless they are caught... become "ronin"... http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

GAH

PS: If anybody wants Vanya to join their "clan", feel free to offer up a pitch. Maybe Vanya will join if His ego is tickled...

GAH

[NightRider]

Gah Vanya Gah

No Home

Maybe theres a place In the Crew

[Aelwyn]

Quote[/b] (Crandaeolon @ April 03 2003,11:06)]Every good player should instantly know what G, R, L, C, W, F, E, H, A, Ctrl+A, Ctrl+C, Ctrl+H, Space, Backspace and other keys do.
Maybe this is why I don't win as much as I want to. I use ctrl-A, backspace, and G. Thats about it from that list. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif Now I've gotta go test this right now....what does Space do. Hmm....Soon to find out.

[Aelwyn]

OOOOH yeah.....I do use the space bar. Forgot until I just tried and found myself using it unconsciously. I'm always checking where my units will end up, where in the formation I have to click to move them where I want them, etc. Also something I want to add to that list, which belongs to another thread (but so what)...I use the right-click while drawing units thing to smooth out their ranks. For those who don't know, if you have say 2 100 man units, one with 75 or so men, and another with maybe 50, or even if one unit is less deep than another, if you draw them on the field together, one will usually be longer than the other one, which has more ranks. This is kind of annoying. If you right click while drawing the units (you don't have to hold it down, just click) then the ranks in both will even out. I definitely like this feature.