Idiots who do not know how to play Arathi Basin

[Ravenshaw]

As most you may know, Alliance sucks at Arathi Basin and WSG in the lower brackets(Not sure about the higher brackets since my highest on this realm is 50). However, Call to Arms weekends bring the twinks in to play especially since the massive exp bonus it gives(Went from 47-50 today playing CtA Basin along with a few dungeons). We won about 4/8 games today. However, I hate how people fail to listen to instructions and end up ruining it for the whole team. While I am glad I got the We Had It All Along achievement by using Swipe, Survival Instincts, and Frenzied Regen(Tank Spec Druid) to solo 6-8 Horde in effort to slow them down so the assaulted flag at Lumber Mill became ours, it disappoints me that people fail to follow instructions that the majority of the team agrees upon. For instance, we decided to go for Stables, Gold Mine, and Lumber Mill. In the past battlegrounds, Alliance began to fall once they left these bases. So, we decided to play it safe and hold these throughout the game. While we lost a base or two once in a while, we gained them back. However, 2 players did not understand instructions and norms that everyone agreed upon prior to the battleground starting: Do not go for Blacksmith(Alliance fails to control, Horde infested) and Only go for Farm if GM/LM are assaulted. Mikekey and Syleas did not seem to understand that after I continuously told them through whispers and BG chat to stop going after BS. We did win that match...but not the way we planned. We ended up losing LM since they did not defend it as well planned. We ended up zerging Blacksmith at the end but making it a close game(1600-1560/70).
It just pisses me off at how ignorant some WoW players can be...

Thanks for reading!

[Kothnok]

Unless it's a pre-arranged BG group, barking orders, planning, and having anything followed out by everyone is next to nil.  The fact that many people followed any kind of plan at all is something to celebrate.

[Shadowwolf]

The problem with PUG BGs is that 90% of the players that queue for them either dont have much of a concept of what is required in good PvP effort and or dont care and are simply looking to either top the chart in damage, healing, or HKs. Its usually a mix of those 2 which is disaster, and unfortunately, thats Alliance, because its more densely populated than Horde, so we have more of our share of those kinds of people.

Believe me, it happens on Horde side too, just not as often because again, less people = smaller percentile of idiots.

[Gutboy]

Best article on AB tactics, I hope I can learn it well enough to not be a bad:

http://cynwise.wordpress.com/2010/03/22/fight-at-the-flag/

GB

[Trismus]

I have Over 150,000 kills spread between 8 characters, and I know of only one way to reliably win BGs: bring your own army.

For Arathi Basin the best strategy for a small group is to stay constantly on the offense.

Arathi Basin is rarely ever won by holding three and digging in. There are times to do that, but usually only when the clock is running low. It is much better to constantly run around attacking everything. Not mindlessly, of course, but play EXTREMELY aggressively. Doc, Saphyre, and myself won an Arathi Basin last night doing this. The three of us were able to attack and take virtually any point, so we'd do that. We'd bumrush mine, clear it out, cap it, then more on to farm, then LM, the Blacksmith, then LM again, then Farm, then Stables, or whatever order it was.

So why does this work? Well, here's the theory:

PvP "Balance" means that forces of the same size numerically should have a relatively even shot at winning an engagement, player skill and gear notwithstanding. You have 15 v 15 in AB. When you cap three points that leaves 5 people per node to defend. The gives the other guy 5 people per node, but they have an extra 5. That means, if they are cautious, there is a 5v5 matchup against one of your points. You have the advantage, however, as you can respawn.

But why would they attack with only 5? If you are defending three bases and not attacking, then they can just the other bases undefended and march all 15 players at a single node. Or, they can leave a few behind if they are cautious.

To prevent that, you have to constantly put pressure on their points. From this, a huge meta-game evolves, but the concept is simple: the fewer people you can effectively defend or attack with, the better off you will be.

In addition, there is the cap time to consider. If I am defending a point with two others, and a group of 5-6 horde rolls up, I leave. My teammates can slow them down, and if I get a partner I can usually ninja the node they just came from. That keeps me one step ahead. Does it work all the time? Of course not, but it does work most of the time.

As will all things PvP, the way to win is to make the other guy react to you, instead of the other way around. When Doc and I do arena we are HYPER aggressive. We get in, open fast, hit hard, and make them blow defensive cooldowns. When we do it correctly we destroy the opponents in short order. When we play more calmly, in a relaxed fashion we end up getting our asses kicked into the next battlegroup. The same principle applies to real life combat as well as battlegrounds: as Patton said "Hold on to 'em by the nose and kick 'em in the ass".

On one last note, I rarely bother telling pugs what to do. The fact of the matter is that there is ALWAYS some BG Napoleon who thinks they know exactly what needs to be done. Sometimes they are correct. Usually they are dead wrong. I would rather spend my time analyzing the situation and putting my character into the place where he will be most effective. If we are going to turtle up and hold three point, Farm, Blacksmith, Lumbermill are the three that are easiest to hold, because they are geographically the "Iron Triangle" and can reinforce each other the fastest. Having said that, ANY "Just hold three" strategy is almost certain to fail.


-Tris