#0 - Jan. 23, 2010, 5:45 p.m.
I have read a good post at -- http://www.worldofstrats.com/WarsongGulch/tabid/69/Default.aspx -- that I find myself in good agreement with.
The basic idea is that conquering and maintaining the midfield is key to victory. Now anyone who has played soccer will know that this is very true. If you control the midfield, you can intercept all single players and small groups that are trying to reach your base, or those that are trying to return with the flag.
Even if the enemy is going to defend your flag near their base, while waiting to recapture theirs, they still have to cross the midfield to bring that flag near their base, for easy scoring (ie. on the roof or near the graveyard).
If your team doesn't group, but the other team does, then they can just take 7 ppl through the midfield and into your base, get your flag, and return through the midfield to their base. While it is possible that you avoid them and get about 3-5 ppl to capture their flag, you WILL have to return through the midfield to your own base. Your defense in the meantime had better bail out as they will not be able to hold back this offensive, so they had better hide on the roof or at the graveyard, where they can regroup with dying teammates. Your own flag carriers will have to sneak past the sides of the battleground and hope they can enter your base and defend the flag. The enemy will leave 3-4 ppl defending your flag, and with the other 6, go about capturing theirs. If they still control the midfield, they will be able to take the shortest route into your base. You had better keep a defensive force of 6-7 yourself. Clearly this is no way of winning. Being on the defensive is a bad thing in any game. Your movement is limited. Your presence is limited. The enemy controls 70% of the field, and you only control 30%.
Now the same is true of soccer, of chess, of checkers, of lasca, of alquerque - of all games that involve territory control.
And my experience is that when you control the midfield, you can win most or all battles there. It is easy for new troops to reinforce the center, because it is the center. Single nemies try to run around your perimeter but you can chase them down, stun them, and nearby allies can help you bring them down. If you don't have the center, your troops are likely to remain dispersed all over the battlefield and cannot group anywhere except at your graveyard.
And yet... there are some (a lot?) of players that disagree with holding the center. They think you should fight at the two bases.
I said in the bg chat once, "We need to group and storm them".
"That's what they did to us," someone replied.
"Yeah, and they succeeded", I would have said.
So while you leave the base as a group of 7, soon you find yourself in a group of 2. Two other groups
of 2 are trying to get the flag, while 3 remain behind to defend. In soccer, the most common formation is 4-3-3 or 4-4-2. (defense-midfield-offense), or even 4-5-1. NEVER is there a 3-0-7 formation ;). So you now have a 3-2-5 lineup. That is a very vulnerable lineup. If the enemy controls the midfield, those 3-4 flag carriers that return with the flag will be slaughtered. No one can come to their aid. So the best thing you can do in that situation is to keep a 3-0-7 lineup and avoid all fighting in the middle until you can regroup with the flag carriers that can then try to regain the middle. But it is often hard to stay away from groups when you are alone. You are easily slowed from a distance.
The centre is key!
How do you guys feel about it?
