12-11-2003, 07:51 AM
(This post was last modified: 12-11-2003, 06:05 PM by IlleglWpns.)
Part II: Using charge
To use charge effectively, you must first know WHAT charge does and how it works [insert obligatory Sun Tzu quote about knowing thyself]. Charge is very simple in execution. When you click on the enemy your paladin will rush forward and smite them with great furiousnessness, knocking them back and causing a variety of debilitiing symptoms, such as nausea, dry mouth, diarhhea, and (hopefully) death. However you cannot charge if:
a ) You are within weapon range of the enemy
b ) If you're out of mana (duh)
Given that charge does knock monsters back, you can in theory keep charging at your hapless target until they become a nasty looking stain on the ground. Should this happen they will have NO chance to retaliate whatsoever as knockback causes the stun animation to occur.
In practice things are a fair bit more complicated. You won't always have the room to continually charge one target, you might misclick and end up walking into the midst of the enemy, you might be blocked in a doorway, the enemies might be in a tight formation, etc etc. However if you keep one thing in mind you will be able to use charge efficiently.
PICK YOUR TARGETS!
If you charge the wrong target you will end up in the midst of a mob, unable to charge, and you will have to waste time breaking off contact and running away to set up another attempt. If you charge the right target you will experience the rush of taking down 10 enemies in the blink of an eye, without suffering a scratch in return.
As they say in (badly translated) fighting games. 10 HIT COMBO! FRAWRESS VICTOLY!
The general rule is never to charge enemies that are right next to other enemies. You want to charge opponents that are physically separated, so that you can immediately start a charge after a first. For example:
Enemies are in a tight cluster:
BAD
Enemies are spread out:
GOOD!
You also want to keep in mind where you'll end up if your first charge doesn't end up killing the opponent:
Enemies approaching in a line (x stands for you):
If you charge and kill the enemy it will look like this:
If you charge and don't kill the enemy it will look like this:
In this case charging again will result in you standing right in front of a monster, which is bad.
However you can prevent this by charging from a different angle. Instead of charging head on, come in obliquely as follows:
After you charge at the closest enemy you will be in a much more favorable position:
What do you do if all the enemies are in tight groups? If you're facing more than one such group at once you can use a technique known as "the ping pong".
Charge a target in group 1, then charge one in group 2. Repeat until all are dead, or until you can't charge anymore.
Another use for the ping pong is to charge in confined environments. Often you'll have one enemy pinned against a wall or some other terrain feature, which prevents you from charging him to death. In this case ping bong between that enemy and another one as follows:
There are also modified variants of the ping pong where you bounce between three, or even four enemies at once. This works well to break apart a group of tough, but slow moving enemies (like frozen creepers).
But what if the ping pong isn't possible? Well there is still another option. I call this "culling the herd", because you want to pick off monsters who are straggling at the edge of the pack.
Let's say your monster group looks like this:
Seens impenetrable at first glance, doesn't it? Unfortunately for them, they aren't as safe as they think they are.
If you charge from the directions indicated:
]
You can actually knockthe monsters away from the mob where they are summarily dispatched. Furthermore by doing this you can actually cause such turmoil in the enemy ranks that they break formation to chase after which leads to more exp for you and messy deaths for them.
Charge Bugs:
Unfortunately in patch 1.10 there are a number of charge bugs. Individually none are particularly serious, but collectively they can cause problems, so it's worth your while to be aware of them.
1) If you charge when out of mana you will freeze in place. This can be cured by switching weapons.
2) If you charge while in blocking animation (and possible while in hit recovery) you will freeze in place. This can be cured by switching weapons.
3) If you charge while being knocked back, you will charge BACKWARDS until you change position (by walking or running).
1) can be avoided by watching your mana carefully, using mana steal and/or mana potions.
2) can be avoided by not charging massed ranged attackers head on.
3) can only be avoided by not getting hit. Otherwise you will have to live with it.
Using the above tactics will allow you to charge with precision and style. However knowing how to use charge is only part of the battle. Knowing how and when to you use your auras, supporting skills, and equipment as well as knowing how to pick your battles are essential to victory. Coming up next in Part III: General Strategy (Know Thy Enemy)
Brista:
The above is my first shot at explainng how to use charge well. I'll probably end up adding a section on charge bugs (there are still some in 1.10 final, though not nearly as bad as 1.10s) and some of the nicer "hidden" features of charge, but this is really the meat of the guide so I wanted to get it out of the way.
To use charge effectively, you must first know WHAT charge does and how it works [insert obligatory Sun Tzu quote about knowing thyself]. Charge is very simple in execution. When you click on the enemy your paladin will rush forward and smite them with great furiousnessness, knocking them back and causing a variety of debilitiing symptoms, such as nausea, dry mouth, diarhhea, and (hopefully) death. However you cannot charge if:
a ) You are within weapon range of the enemy
b ) If you're out of mana (duh)
Given that charge does knock monsters back, you can in theory keep charging at your hapless target until they become a nasty looking stain on the ground. Should this happen they will have NO chance to retaliate whatsoever as knockback causes the stun animation to occur.
In practice things are a fair bit more complicated. You won't always have the room to continually charge one target, you might misclick and end up walking into the midst of the enemy, you might be blocked in a doorway, the enemies might be in a tight formation, etc etc. However if you keep one thing in mind you will be able to use charge efficiently.
PICK YOUR TARGETS!
If you charge the wrong target you will end up in the midst of a mob, unable to charge, and you will have to waste time breaking off contact and running away to set up another attempt. If you charge the right target you will experience the rush of taking down 10 enemies in the blink of an eye, without suffering a scratch in return.
As they say in (badly translated) fighting games. 10 HIT COMBO! FRAWRESS VICTOLY!
The general rule is never to charge enemies that are right next to other enemies. You want to charge opponents that are physically separated, so that you can immediately start a charge after a first. For example:
Enemies are in a tight cluster:
Code:
oo
ooo
ooEnemies are spread out:
Code:
o o
o oYou also want to keep in mind where you'll end up if your first charge doesn't end up killing the opponent:
Enemies approaching in a line (x stands for you):
Code:
x o o o Code:
x o oCode:
x oo oHowever you can prevent this by charging from a different angle. Instead of charging head on, come in obliquely as follows:
Code:
o o o
xAfter you charge at the closest enemy you will be in a much more favorable position:
Code:
<----- monster's rotting corpse lies here
x
o oCode:
Group 1: Group 2:
oo ooo
oooo <---- x ----> oooo
oo oooAnother use for the ping pong is to charge in confined environments. Often you'll have one enemy pinned against a wall or some other terrain feature, which prevents you from charging him to death. In this case ping bong between that enemy and another one as follows:
Code:
o <--- x ---> o | <---- obstacleThere are also modified variants of the ping pong where you bounce between three, or even four enemies at once. This works well to break apart a group of tough, but slow moving enemies (like frozen creepers).
But what if the ping pong isn't possible? Well there is still another option. I call this "culling the herd", because you want to pick off monsters who are straggling at the edge of the pack.
Let's say your monster group looks like this:
Code:
ooo
oooo
oo
oIf you charge from the directions indicated:
Code:
| |
VoooV
oooo
oo
-->o <--You can actually knockthe monsters away from the mob where they are summarily dispatched. Furthermore by doing this you can actually cause such turmoil in the enemy ranks that they break formation to chase after which leads to more exp for you and messy deaths for them.
Charge Bugs:
Unfortunately in patch 1.10 there are a number of charge bugs. Individually none are particularly serious, but collectively they can cause problems, so it's worth your while to be aware of them.
1) If you charge when out of mana you will freeze in place. This can be cured by switching weapons.
2) If you charge while in blocking animation (and possible while in hit recovery) you will freeze in place. This can be cured by switching weapons.
3) If you charge while being knocked back, you will charge BACKWARDS until you change position (by walking or running).
1) can be avoided by watching your mana carefully, using mana steal and/or mana potions.
2) can be avoided by not charging massed ranged attackers head on.
3) can only be avoided by not getting hit. Otherwise you will have to live with it.
Using the above tactics will allow you to charge with precision and style. However knowing how to use charge is only part of the battle. Knowing how and when to you use your auras, supporting skills, and equipment as well as knowing how to pick your battles are essential to victory. Coming up next in Part III: General Strategy (Know Thy Enemy)
Brista:
The above is my first shot at explainng how to use charge well. I'll probably end up adding a section on charge bugs (there are still some in 1.10 final, though not nearly as bad as 1.10s) and some of the nicer "hidden" features of charge, but this is really the meat of the guide so I wanted to get it out of the way.