Warriorteamsareprettymuchallhard.Whenweleveledourgladiatorteamafewweeksago,weplayedaShaman/Warriorinourfirstgame,inthe1500s.HejustbasicallygotaWF/WF/Macestun/Macestun/Macestun/StormheraldstunandsomemoreWFsinbetween.LuckilytheWarriorwasinS1/S2gear,butitreallydroppedhimtolike1%andwehadtobasicallychangeourentiregameplan.
AlsoRogue/Druidbecomesreallyhardtoanyteamthatcatchesontoourstrategy.AlsoasRogue/Healer(Priest),gamesdotendtodragon.Ifwe'relosing,wetrytoresetthefight.Soafterawhilewedecidedweneedtoplayoffensive99%ofthetimetowin.
Basically,ifyousawaFrapsofmeandDrwhyplaying,youwillbewonderingwhyhe'snotinShadowform.We'realwaysoffensive,asmuchaspossible.I'malwayshittingsomething,evenifmycurrenttargetisgettingaway.Iturnaroundandhitahealer,gokicksomething,orjustuseaThrowonthehealertomakesurehedoesn'tdrink.Drwhyisalwaysmanaburning,DPSingapet,alwaysdoingsomething.
Rightnowfor2v2,I'mrunningalotofcompositions,goingbackandforthbetweenteams,helpingfriends,etc.Withtheseasoncomingtoanend,it'sreallybecominghectic.
Thebestpartispeopleareactuallyqueuing,whethertheyarefightingfor#1orjusttogetGladiator.ThemaincompI'vealwaysrunisPriest/Rogue.(Obviously,WithDrwhy).IknowhegaveaninterviewabouthowPriestsgenerallyruninthatcomp,soIguessthiswillbemoreofaRoguepointofview.
3v3ismyfavoritebracket,althoughit'smuchharderfinding2goodplayersthan1goodplayer.AndplayingDrwhyrestrictsmetoprettymuchRogue/Mage/Priest,andRogue/Priest/Druid.SoI'vebeenfocusingmoreon2s.
ThecomboofPriest/Rogueactuallyrequiressomereallygoodplaysfromtherogueandpriest.Generally,youlosebeforethegatesopen,soyoujustfightuphill.EveryWarlockteamiseasy,upuntiltopnotchWarlock/Druids,whenitreallybecomesachallenge.
WoWInsider:What'syouropeningstrategy?Whatdoyouliketodoassoonasthegateopens?
Nostalgia:Gatesopen,I90%ofthetimeremainstealthed.Sometimesagainstmirrors,Ineedtowinthebattleforthemiddleofthemap.So,I'dmountupaquarteroftheway,unmountandStealth.Ifwe'vebeenplayinganotherRogueteamwiththeJCtrinketorhe'shuman,I'dpre-VanishtoensureIdon'tgetsapped.
Againstwarriors,wehavetomakesureDrwhydoesn'tgetcharged.SoonBlade'sEdge,he'susingtherampasLoS.Iusuallydistract,orSapwhileheputsaDispeloraDoTtoputhimincombat.
AgainstdoubleDPS(Rogue/X),wetrytoseperatethem.SoiftheyhaveaRoguegoingforDrwhy,IstartontheircasterandI'llkilltheirDPSfasterthantheirroguewillkillDrwhy.
Iftheygoforme,Ijusttrytoplayextremelydefensive.Hugpillarstoavoidanycastsbeingmadeonme,SaveCloakforwoundsratherthanburst.
YoualwayswanttosaveCloak.MypriesthasPainSupressionearlyon,IhaveEvasionstonegatemostoftheRogue'sdamage.GenerallyifyouuseCloakearly,therewillbeanotheropportunityforthemtoburstyou,andyoudefinatelywillneedCloaktosurvive.
WoWInsider:Whichmodsdoyouuse-howhaveyoucustomizedyourscreen?
Nostalgia:Thereare3mainmodsIuse.
Afflicted.Thisisprettymuchmandatoryforonlineplay.Afterawhileyouprettymuchdon'tlookatitanymorejustbecauseyouaresousedtoallthetimersandwhat'shappeningandwhenetc.Butforplayersstartingoutorjustinexperienced,itisrealllyREALLYhandy.
Makesureyouonlysetupstuffthatyoureallyneedtolookat.ThereisnopointintrackingrandomstufflikeIcyVeins.Asarogue,Ican'tdoanythingaboutit.ButKStimerandIntercepttimer,those2thingsareprobablythemostimportantthings.CoSCooldown.
Next,someformofabilitytracker.Tracksyourlengthofstuns,howmuchtimeleftonblind,leftonSap.Forme,IuseClasstimer.Thebeautyaboutthis,isthatittrackswhatyouwantonWHOyouwant.IhaveittrackBlind,Sap,Gouge,etc.
Anexampleofthisiswhenweplayamirrorteam(anotherPriest/Rogue).IkeepMindNumbingonthePriestwhileI'montheRogue.ThismeansthatiftheygointoaManaBurningfight,thepriestwillgoOOMmuchbeforemine.ThismodshowsmeatimerofmyMindnumbingonthepriestandIcanjustgoandre-Shivitwhenit'sabouttofinish(alsotossingaKickhereandthere,sincethat'swhyI'musuallygoingtogotothePriestinthefirstplace).
Next,Pitbull.Yes,yes,aunitframemod.ThethingIloveaboutthisisthatthecastbarscomeincluded(eventhoughIuseQuartz,Quartziskindofniceforcasters).
Themainfeatureisfocusframes(notonlyfocuscastingbars).Ihaveawholeframeofmyfocustarget,andhistarget.Alsobuffs,debuffs,andtheworks.Thishelpsbecauseifwe'replayingadruidteam,Icanseehismanatheentiretime,whathe'scasting(tododgeCyclones).IfhegetsInnervate,I'dhelpmypriestwithagougeormaybeaKSsohecandispelit.Reallygood.
MywholeUIisAstika's(nowknownasCeramic)UI.IbelieveitiscalledSpartan.ItisREALLYcleanandreallynicewhetheryouarenaorjustraid.
http://antipersonnel.org/ceramic/forum/iswheretogetit.Mineisataddifferent,justsomePvPAddons+Omen/DTMandsomeepeen..errImeandamagemeters.
WoWInsider:Howdoyouworkouttargetdesignation?(Doessomeonecallitout,oriseveryoneontheirowntofigureitout?)
Nostalgia:Well,we'vebeenplayingforsolong,wejustknowwhattodoatthebeggining.
However,afterthefirstminute,thefightalwayschangestosomethingnew.AndthendependingonmyPoVandmypriestsPoV,oneofusmightcallaswitch,orjuststayoncurrenttarget.IfthepriestgetsaFearonhim,orhethinkshemightgetaFearonhimwithsomeburns,itusuallymeansI'mgoingtohavetoswitchtotheirpriestforafewsecondstostopburns.
Butthenagain,thisisalsosomethingwediscussedduringourtimeofplay.LikebackwhenwewerenewbsinS1,I'msureifhegotFeared,Iwouldn'thavedoneanything.Thegamefinishesandwe'dbelikeokaywhathappened.Oh,yougotburnedwhenfeared..youcan'tstopgettingfeared?That'sfine,I'lljustgetonthepriestwhenyoudo.Andthenthat'skindofarulewehavenow.
Afterplayinghundredsofgames,it'skindofsystematic.Ifthishappens,wedothis.Ifthathappens,wedothat.Butwe'rebothresponsibleforgameplans.Ifhewantsaswitchduetohimlosingthemanawar,wetrytogetaswitch.Butitwouldneverbelike"Oh,I'mswitchingnowwithoutnotice."
Weusuallyplanitduringthegame."HeyI'mgoingtoswitchsoontohelpyougetmana.""Okay,that'sfine.LetmegrabaFearsoyoucancatchuptohim."
WoWInsider:Howdoyouscheduleyourplaytime?Doyoutryandworkduring"goodtimestoqueue?"
Nostalgia:Themainadvantageofplaying2sismoretimetoplay.Coordinating5v5matchesissuchapainbecause...well,youneed4otherplayerstobeonatthesametime.Withworkandschool,it'sreallyhard.
Wedon'tusuallydoitinadvanceasidefromsayingsomethinglike,"Hey,yougoingtobeontommorrow?"Thingaboutbeingabove2100or2200,isthatyoureallycan'tqueuewhenyouwant.Wesitin5-10minqueuestoplaya1800Warrior/Shamanwhocanpossiblygibthepriest.SamewithdoubleDPS.Wemake1mistakeandthat's30pointswejustlost.
Weusuallytrytoqueueatabout6serveroraskonAJifanyoneelseisqueuingtoseeifit'sworththerespecandtime.
WoWInsider:What'sbeenthebiggestchangeinyourstrategybetweeneachbracketofratings?(1500s,1600s)
Nostalgia:Umm,asaRogue,earlybracketsI'mjusttunnelvisioningplayersandtryingtokillthemasmuchaspossible.Theytendtolacktheabilitytochangebetweenoffensiveanddefensiveplay.
SowhenmeandDrwhystormthemandstartputtingdamage,theystartmakingmistakes.DruidswoulddosomebadthingslikegettingFeared,intoblindintoSapintoMCintoanotherintogod-knows-what.At2200,wedotransitionbetweenoffensiveanddefensive.
Westartreallystrong.WhenDrwhycandrink,Itrytostoptheirhealerfromdrinking.Andwerinseandrepeat.Atthatlevel,skillisprettyeven.Soit'sallaboutgameplan.Howcanyougetyourhealertodrinkandpreventtheirsfromnot?
Butifwedostartputtingpressure,weusuallytrytokeepitgoing.It'smucheasiertokeeppressureandmakethemgetintotroublebymakingstupidplays,thanresettingthefightandstartingagain.
Also,Iputoutalotlessdamageagainstbetterteams.HalfthegamesversusRogue/Druidteams,IjustgetintostealthduringeveryFeartoSaptherogueandletmypriestdrink.
It'smoreaboutcontrolthandamage.Youwillhaveanopportunitytoputoutsomeburstdamage,butformostofthegameit'scontrol.Drwhyisthesame.Wetakeafighttowhereit'sfavorableforus,andthenwestopresetting,andthenwebothgooffensive.
WoWInsider:Whatsignalstoyouthatyouneedtoradicallychangestrategymidmatch?(Andhowdoyouaccomplishthatchange?)
Nostalgia:Yellingisusuallyagoodsignal.Heh,weusuallyexpecteverythingsincewe'veplayedagainstlikeeverycompabilliontimes.
Butlikeanexamplewouldbe,"Hey,I'mmgoingtoputpressureonthiswarrior,gobugthedruidwithburnsanddispels."That'sfineandall,butwhenthewarriorresistsyour2CheapShotsand3KidneyShots(ithappensmoreoftenthannot,I'vehadatleast1KSresistedversuseverywarriorteam),you'renotputtinganypressure.
AndwhiletherightthingtodoisputpressureontheWarrior,sometimesyouarejustlike,"Okay,thisisnotgoingtowork,he'sgotfullHoTs,druidwasdrinkingwhileIwasgettingmacestunned,nowoundsleft."Obviouslyinthisspecificcase,stayingonthewarriorisabadidea,andweeitherswitch,orresetthefighttothebestofourability.
WoWInsider:What'sthekeyforyourcomposition'sstrategy?Aretheremultipletacticsyoucanuse?
Nostalgia:WellI'lltakeDruid/X,forexample,sincetheymakeup99%ofthe2v2ladder.
WeneverbeatDruid/Warrior,Druid/Hunter,Druid/Lock,Druid/RogueorprettymuchanythingDruid,withoutaCConthedruid.Ouroptionsarelimited,wehaveaFear,andwehaveaBlind/Sap.Thethingis,agooddruidwon'tgetFearedduetohimrunningfromaPriestwhenaPriestgetsclose.
Also,agoodWarrior,Rogue,Hunter,orLockwon'tletadruidfeared.Theyallhaveslowsthatcanstopthepriestfromgettingtothedruid.Allthoseclassesalsocaneitherkiteme,orstophalfmydamage,orCCme.
ThismeansthatnotonlycanwenotkilltheirDPSwithadruidhealing,theycanalsosurvivewhiletheirDruidisdrinking.Halfoftheseclasseshavepetsdisallowingmypriesttodrink,theotherhalfputsomuchpressurethatmypriestcan'tgettimetodrink.AlsoAbolishPoisonownsme.Sowhatareouroptions?
Well,forhalfthosematchups,wewillnotwinwithoutkillingthepet.IfwedonotkillthepetDrwhywillbeOOMandwehavetorunaroundapillarfor5minutesforhimtoregenmana.Thisisactuallyaviablestrategy.
Wekillpet,weOOMthehuntersohecan'tsummon,orIstayonthewarlockandputmassivepressureonthelockwhilehehasnopet.
AnotherproblemisthatwithaDruidstickingonaRoguewithCyclones,itbecomesafightofthemtryingtosummonapet,andustryingtostopthem.Unlessit'searlyonthefight,I'musuallycooldownstarved,andiftheyarecoordinated,theycansummonanotherone.Sowetakefulladvantageduringthattime.
AgainstRogue/Druid,wejustcontroltheRoguetillhedecidestoleavethegame.ButfulldurationFears,thengettingKidneysonhimusuallyhelp(inapositionwherethedruidhastocomeclosetothepriestandgetsFeared).Druidwilltrinket,andyouwaitforanotheropportunitytodoitagainwithhistrinketdown.FollowitwithaBlind,andaSap,andhopeyougetakill.
Ifnot,resetandtryagain.It'smoreorlessthesameforWarrior/Druid,minusFearsonWarrior.ItbecomesreallyhardagainstWarriorsthatIntervenewhentheyareintrouble,andknowwhentogoswordandboard.
WoWInsider:Whatareyoutryingtoimprove?
Nostalgia:90%ofArenasiscommunication.So,ifyouwanttoimprove,that'swhereyoustart.
Whenwefirststarteddoing2s,wemusthaveoverlappeda10,000FearsandBlinds.Thenitwouldbelike"Hey,shouldIBlindnoworareyougoingtoFear"tobefollowedby"Fearisdown,Blind."But,bythenadruidhashadfullHoTsonhisplayerandtheCCiswasted.
Whatwe'vebeendoingnow(andisstillaWrok-In-Progress)isbasicallycallingeverything5-10secondsbefore.Weliterallysay,"Ihaveafearin10seconds,trytoforcethedruidnearme."AndI'dbelike,"Kidneyin7,dragginghimaway."
WoWInsider:Youhearalotaboutclickingversusbinding.Whichskillsdoyoustillclick,whichdoyoutendtobind?
Nostalgia:AsyoucanseeonmyUI,Ibindeverything.(Bindingsarealsodisplayedthere).Ialsohaveafocuscastonprettymucheverything.Focusblind,focusshiv,focuskick,focusgouge.IalsohavesomemacroslikeShadowStepfocustarget,thenKickfocustarget.
Also,somethingswhenyouplay3sisgoodlikehavingacountdownmacro.Basically,we'dcallaswitchonthepet,andIdputamacrothatwouldcountfrom10to1.At1,wezergthepetrealquickwithoutthehealerbeingabletoanticipateit.
Butgenerallyyouneverwanttoclickanythingatall.Somethinglikebandagesmightbe%26#8216;okay'butanyabilitiesshouldbebound.Especiallyarogue,whenyouhavea1secondGCDandyoureallytoplaywithfinesseandclickingwon'tletyou.