Guild Wars 2

The following narration is based on personal observation. Actual incidents may defer from this written account. Afterall, I am just a KoME CD War reporter who only sees one side of the picture! All the timing is based on Asian +8GMT timing.

26th Jan 2012. 9am (5pm Server Time): KoME has gathered in masses, ready to jump into the new tier fight with YakBend and Kaineng. We know that this will not be an easy fight, and probably, a stomping from Kaineng but 40 of us gathered.

10am: The fight kicks off, we have queues on 3 borderland with the exception of Yak Bend. The combine force of the Asian/Oceanics/NA players from CD managed to fight on even ground. Kaineng doesn’t sound look intimidating in the face of our numbers. The fight comes to a standstill

12pm: Asian players start logging off as we go about our Saturday business. Meeting girlfriends, spending time with families and catching up with friends (Yes, We have real life outside GW2!) and the areas held by Asian/Oceanic guilds start to lose ground.
4pm: We have lost our entire holdings in CD,YB and KN borderlands. EB is still standing as the NA players held their ground there. But their numbers are dwindling as many logged off for the night.

7pm: KN held the entire 4 maps. Asians/Oceanic players started to login. We made ineffective push in a highly predictable manner. Doing the breakout event, Capping Northmost Supply Titan Paw. By than KN players are so bored that they jump to any green icon almost immediately.

10pm: CD commanders decided to lull the KN into complacency by having a party at CD Spawn. We were feasting, getting drunk and cursing all those guilds who used to pledge, “Ever dying Loyalty” to the server.

11pm: We seige up Titan Paw, flip the camp and promptly went into hiding. The KN Raiding Party came. We wipe them. This process continued for an hour until the Raid party numbers diminished, as they get bored of being farmed on while taking such a minor objective.

12am: The NA servers logged in. The combine Asian/Oceanic/NA force now has enough people to take on KN. KN is pretty complacent and probably bored to death now. We split our forces into 2 one taking on Hill’s Keep and another force into the much better guarded Garrison.

1am: We took KN by surprised by taking over the Hills and most of the southern towers. We got back both our breakout towers and got into the inner Garrison. Reinforcements from KN arrived from all the borderlands (They are probably as bored and hoping for some action). There is a queue in CDBL. YB seems to have given up. KN turn their entire 4 map might on us.

3am: Asian/Oceanic players started to log off for a well deserved rest. We started to lose our holdings as the NA players valiantly try to defend them with much lesser numbers. We were finally overwhelmed and fell back to flipping camps and towers for the amusements of KN players. YB seems still to be PvEing. Unless they are partying at their borderland spawn like us, waiting for an opportunity, they probably has given up.

What We Learnt:

1) Efficient Use of resources

WvW is really much more forgiving when you have numbers. You can dump tons of siege at non optimal position and still win the battle. However, when you have diminished numbers, every siege placement, every supply and every player counts. With a smaller force, you have to maximize the leverage of every advantage you have and any slight mistake will mean a failure to take an impt objective. With the lesser numbers, the differences between WvW veterans and casuals become apparent. Veterans always make sure they have supplies all the time and make use of siege, while casuals tend to run around without supplies, spend their time shooting at doors and dueling the enemies in general. A full siege arsenal for defending and attacking now takes 3 times the time needed as veterans run for supplies, leaving the less experienced casuals to guard the holdings. When facing against a superior Zerg, every seconds count and that means efficient use of resources is paramount in fighting a larger enemy with lesser force. We need to train up our less experience casuals to replace the experienced veterans who left for other servers

2) Taking initiatives

Commanders are having problems putting teams together with the lesser numbers. As we need to spread our more experienced people around for various task, the efficiency of various teams diminished as the casuals tend not to take initiatives to do the boring stuff. There are calls for focus elementalists, supply flipping thieves task force, Dolyak escorts and supply camp defence. Commanders made multiple calls and few casuals turn up to help. Take for example of defending a Treb. Enemies will set up a counter treb pretty fast and whoever can get the shielding team up the fastest will win the treb war. Every second counts. However, despite multiple calls by the trebbing commander for help, no casuals came forward to help and the rest of the veteran elementalists cannot afford to leave their positions. We need to help our people understanding the need to take initiatives to do the boring things, which matters a lot in the war effort.

3) Coordinated flanking and portal bomb

This is one thing that we learn from KN. They are very strategic with their portal bombs and getting a squad to flank the main force to trick them thinking that the enemies have more numbers than us. Even with a fight with even numbers, our main zerg tends to retreat once they are flanked, even though the numbers are even. Commanders have taken a page off this strategy and starting to implement them against KN

Evaluation of Kaineng

1) Fast Response time
This could be attributed that they have no other distraction after they have taken the entire 4 maps. However, on a smaller context, they are quick to set up counter siege and able to build it up within a few minutes we set up ours. Their coordinated fast build up of siege weapons never cease to amaze me. It seems that every KN always have supplies at all times

2) Superior Elite Strike Force

We learn a lot of new tricks from WM and MEOW. Like stacking in a Mesmer and Guardian shield during a zerg battle. Took the effort to hide after flipping camps rather than charging on to flip the next camp, systematically wiping out defenders who attempts to take back the camps who trickle in. When reported that the strike force has left and a few players proceed to try to flip the camps back again, the strike force rush out from their hiding spot and wipe these flippers. This allows them to hold a supply camp for a long time, unless a huge team comes to take them out. This will however sap the resources and serve as a distraction from the main battle. The strike force can also sneak away once they see a much bigger zerg coming to take them out since they are in the hiding.

3) Conversions of new transfer

However, we do not see this kind of coordination among the newly transferred guilds and their strategies still relies on pure brute force rather than efficiency. They tend to run in groups charging head on into fights rather than the strategic strike coordinated by the well known elite guilds in KN. This could be a weakness of KN. Hitting the objectives of these relatively less trained guilds and avoiding the elite guilds may be an easier way to score points, rather than always trying to ram our heads against the wall. Classifying the potency of various guilds in KN may help in finding where their weak kitten in defence is in. Take note, higher tiers servers

Conclusion:

Overall, fighting in much lesser numbers is an eye opener for many commanders in CD and we are learning how to improve the output/player as each resource counts. Now, I have began to understand why WM left for a lesser server to train and be less reliant on brute force. However, quantity have a quality of its own and in the face of huge battles, personal skills and small group coordination doesn’t matter too much, as CD is still able to take on the elite guilds in big battles. As the saying goes, it is the small details that will change the tide of war and it is time for the CD to learn about these, which we could never have learnt in a huge zerg context. Personally, I learnt much more about the many intricacy of WvW during the last 24 hours than the Zerg fast we used to employ when we have the numbers.

Thank you KN for such a valuable lesson.

We CD players will strive to fight on and hope to learn all the tricks and lessons that you can teach us. We may not have the coverage now to take back our homeland, but rest assured, when we want to fight, you will have a real fight in your hands. We will not lay down our arms and just surrender, unlike some of other servers that you have fought. Lastly, I will like to thank you for your compliments of us on that particular battle. To quote:

“I say this with complete and total intention of complimenting and not insulting anyone, that said:

CD…You guys have officially defended your BL better than anyone I’ve fought since T8. While others have managed to put up a fight…you guys HELD and you did so with awesome precision and finesse. Well done to each and ever person who was in CDBL today!"

Fairly accurate assessment on Kain IMO. A lot of us on Kain were hoping this week would be the test for us. Many of us feel we are not as sharp as we need to be and yet it’s difficult to train to get sharper in a one-sided match. Was glad the first few hours after reset had some great battles and very pleasantly surprised to see CD strike out tonight and show some of their stuff.

Even with some of their guilds leaving, I bet Crystal and the Yaksters don’t drop in rankings very far before they find themselves winning again.

I concur with Dia on this. We are training daily, but without the outnumbered status that many of our veterans faced on a daily basis it can be difficult to make people see that such tactics are even necessary.

Overall very thoughtful post and I commend your players, veteran and casual alike, for fighting the good fight. GL to CD (and YB) in the weeks ahead. I have full confidence that you guys will hold steady and push your way back up, once all of the panic transferring settles down.