Guide:General RA Tactics

The tactics used by players in Random Arenas are often counter-intuitive and defy all tactical logic. While RA is otherwise identical to Team Arenas, the random teams mean that players are often unable to communicate with other players on the same team, and there is no guarantee that players will actually respond to communication. It is this uncertainty that makes RA more painful than it should be, and winning teams are those that maintain their cohesion.

The purpose of this guide is to outline the basic tactics used in RA that are more likely to succeed, as well as considering how RA matches will often involve combating bad tendencies of the average player. Note that this guide aims at discussing the tactics of the RA battlefield - movement, action, and coordination; not a diatribe about builds and maps, though they are certainly relevant.

Overview

RA is obviously not known for its skillful and tactical play, but there are still some things that are important to understand in order to play well. In the ideal world, every player will have a basic understanding of how matches play out and adapt accordingly. The problem is that the average RA player is not interested in anything other than pressing the Enter Battle button, running in, hitting their skills, and most likely dying. This differs from organised PvP, in which teams can select the players they know and often have voice communication. Because so many players have misunderstandings about the mechanics of the game, this guide will identify how to cope with bad players in order to gain the best chance at winning.

There is, of course, argument over if there is such a thing as a good RA player. It wouldn't be much of an exaggeration to say that 80% of RA players are incapable of doing more than slog it out, and these are the players that insist that they have no room for a resurrection skill and complain about everyone on their team and on the opposing team. The remaining 20% of players will most likely have extensive experience in other aspects of the game and can apply that experience to great effect against lesser-skilled players. It's easy to identify the competent minority by the way they move around the battlefield. If you find yourself ganking a monk with black elite armor and a Tormented shield, and you simply can't kill the damn guy, you're up against one of the rare "good" players.

Unlike other PvP modes, the quality of builds and players in RA covers the whole spectrum. Therefore, a team does not need a perfect balance of great builds to win -- the expectation of players to run a build that actually functions is sadly unreasonable. A team that has players whose builds are "good enough" has a fair chance of winning. For example, a monk that can catch the odd spike; a warrior that can apply some pressure; a ranger that can interrupt half the time. It's a dismal thought to be stuck in a team with players who can't fight their way out of a paper bag, but these are good odds compared to what you're likely to be up against.

Facts and fallacies

In RA you'll often run into people who complain about everything -- calling other players lame, insisting that tanking is a good option in RA, and claiming their build is indestructible. A few minutes standing in the RA staging area and you can easily see the average intelligence on a Random Arenas player. The worst situation is when these players swear by the "facts" they have fabricated and expect others to adhere to the same principles. To iron out these misconceptions, this section will outline some of the common beliefs about RA and whether or not they are actually true.

Bring a res: With the exception of healers, all players should carry a resurrection skill. This is typically Resurrection Signet, although fast-cast Mesmers may be able to get away with a hard res. Flesh of my Flesh and Death Pact Signet are typically poor choices. While some players will insist that hard resses win the game, and indeed it is possible for a team to win simply because they out-ressed the opposing team, if your team is dying so much that you have to use a hard res, you're probably not going to last against a competent opponent.
- On the contrary, healers must never carry a res. Some monks will argue against that, but in battle, the healer is the priority target and is usually the first to die. The rest of the team should be ressing the healer, not the other way around. If the healer has to res a fallen teammate, the healer has already failed at its purpose, and resurrecting means that the healer is not doing any healing for several seconds.
Winning isn't everything. Many players go through RA to get Gladiator points for their title, or simply because they want to go through as many matches as they can in a short period of time. Experienced players, especially those who play GvG, HA and TA, will know when a match reaches the point of being "unwinnable". For example, your team has two healers and you've already lost a player. You might be able to res that player, and your team might avoid being wiped, but without the damage to take out an opposing player the game is essentially a stalemate, which you end in defeat because of your morale disadvantage. Rather than waste time trying to make a difference, the expedient thing to do is to resign and let everyone move onto the next game. Constantly ressing teammates and fighting to the last man is a waste of time when the team clearly cannot make a dent. Some experienced players will declare a match to be unwinnable before it even begins, such as identifying a team with an unusually balanced team build.
Healers aren't necessary. Most teams crumble without a healer. That is fact. However, all a team needs to do is to survive long enough to kill the opposing team, or do enough damage quickly enough. A team without a healer technically has an offensive advantage, and teams with competent players can capitalise on this extra support or damage to overwhelm balanced teams with healers. Such a team would certainly not be robust, but it is more than possible to scrape 10 wins without a dedicated healer. Indeed, a team with four decent attackers will usually defeat a team with three attacks and a sub-par monk.
Don't stay stuck on one target. Many RA players will ping the enemy monk or another caster and expect their team to gank it. The immediate problem is that not every player has an appropriate build to gank a target with -- some players are hex pressure, others are specifically off-target. More commonly, the target is likely to be capable of sufficient defense to nullify a gank no matter how many players are involved. It is very important to eliminate monks first, but three warriors tackling a monk won't achieve much if that monk is able to get prot spells up. Target-switching wins games; experienced players know that and will occasionally be criticised for not maintaining pressure on the monk. The principle is to keep the monk off balance by pressuring the rest of the team before ganking, and it doesn't have to be the monk that needs to fall first. It's best to switch targets whenever the target gets its defenses up; not only will you keep your DPS up, but you'll also draw the energy required to set up the defenses for little or no cost to you.

Making your (own) RA build

Now you could go for a Meta build, but chances are other people will know these builds and build their own build to counter the meta. And let's face it, the best builds for RA are not in the meta, mainly because if 'you' find a build that gives you an advantage in 80% of the fights, you are not going to give it away that easy...

There are a few things to take into account when constructing your own RA build:

One spot on your tray is taken up by a rez-signet; As no skill/spell/etc is better then one that 'opens up' a player with 7 more skill/spell/etc. Also read on for more on the importance of rez-ing your fallen teammates.

2 more spots on your tray are taken up by selfhealing skill/spell/etc;As this is a random arena you can not rely on a monk being in your team, so if anyone is going to heal you, it's going to have to be you. So be wise and construct a build that is aimed to survive a 1v4 situation, now you wont survive that situation, but you might be able to survive a 1v1 or 1v2 situation. Do not overspend on selfheals, as you wont be able to do any damage. Every profession has selfhealing spells so you don't have to take a Monk secondery just to heal yourself, it could be usefull though...

Balance your build...

This leaves 3 or 4 spots on your tray to construct the damage doing part of your build. Pick a elite spell and choose 2 or 3 other's that complement that elite, this gives you your own little stack/spike to really hurt your target.

Depending on your build and profession you might also need a spell/skill/etc for your energy management. RA fights can be over in a min, but if you run outof energy to cast your spell/skill/etc. you are worthless. Same goes for aggro activated spells, if you have to many or too expensive ones, you wont be able to gather enough aggro to cast them.

This leaves 1 or 2 spots on your tray for specific needs, be it a surprise attack or some extra defenses, or perhaps some skills that will benefit your team as a whole, or one that further enhances your build (i.e a run stance for a melee character). These picks are largely where experience comes in; So if you die, watch your damage monitor what exactly killed you and check if there is anything in your 'deck' that could counter that attack. Also think if you actually used all your spell/skill/etc. and if it did what it was meant to do, if not, you might want to ditch the spell in favour for another..

RA is more about being fast and cheap..

Do NOT pick spells that cost alot of energy; unless you find out you cant do without them (i.e. Insidious Parasite for a necro, 15e but great for anti-melee). Chances are you wont kill your target with that one spell and unless you have excellent energy management you wont be able to cast it a second time before the match is over.

Do NOT pick spells that have a very long casting time;You are bound to get interupted or you might even die in the time it takes to cast them.

Change is the order of nature

DO pick spells you understand and feel good about (this will come with experience). Every profession has a few roles they are meant to play, if you find none of those roles fit you as a person, perhaps its time to make a new character with a different profession. Do not give up too soon though, you have picked this profession because something about it appealed to you, after that it takes some (to alot of) time to find the build that fits your style and the needs for RA.

Don't be afraid to change 1 !! Be it your whole build, as you find out that what you had in mind does not work. Or one or two skill/spell/etc. that you find you hardly use. Perhaps you find out that you are better off with a different 2e profession, as it has a spell/skill/etc. that you think would benefit your build. There is a Profession changer in the Great temple of Baltazar, for some gold you can unlock all secondary professions and try them out (you will need to unlock most of the skill/spell/etc. for that secondary prof. though, through either buying them at a skill trader for a PvE char or bought with Baltazar reward for a PvP char)

Don't be afraid to change 2 !! Through experience if have found out that some builds only work for a few rounds, as players change their own builds, to counter that what has killed them. So your build might only last so long. And as the saying goes 'if you can't beat them, join them', so change your build accordingly. If you keep winning and are hard to kill you might not want to change a thing though ;)

Specialise in being a Generalist

It goes without saying (but i will anyway) that you assign your Attribute points in such a way that you can use your weapons and in such a way that your spell/skill/etc. do what they are meant to do.

It goes without saying that you try to stick to a limited number of Attribute groups, so your Attribute points and skill/spell/etc. are not spread all over, resulting in a weak overall build. (This might not apply to more experienced players and/or to all the builds you might want to give a try)

It goes without saying that you don't use 2 or 3 superior runes as this will lower your health to much. Alot of experienced players (and also alot of the meta builds) will discourage the use of Major / Superior runes. But sometimes there is no way around it, and -35hp wont be the difference between a dieing or surviving in RA, a balanced build and balanced attribute points will !! (this might not apply to other forms of PvP fighting !!)

Working with (and against) your team

The hardest thing to overcome in RA is not the opposing team, but getting your own team to do what they need to do. The tricky bit is that what you want to do may not be the best thing for the team. As mentioned above, one player might be spamming the team chat to get everyone onto the enemy monk, but in many cases that monk is fully protted and the team can't achieve anything. On the other hand, a player might call for a target switch to finish off an opponent, but no one on the team is willing to assist. What to do? It's important to know when to listen to your team, ask your team for assistance, or just go your own way.

Things players tend to do

It's a given that players have a natural tendency to do certain things, for better or worse. It's human nature. You put up a sign saying "Wet Paint" and people feel that they have to touch the surface to be sure. Not all people will succumb to this impulsiveness, but these are among the most common habits RA players will encounter.

Individual players will often charge in without any regard to the rest of the team.
Teams will naturally hang back and walk backwards to avoid combat rather than actively seek it.
Players are likely to fire off their skill chain on the first target that comes into range.
Players will run the moment they come under pressure, regardless of whether they can actually handle it.
By extension, players will also run away from the team, and also away from their own healers.
Players will typically stick themselves onto a target until it is dead, if ever.
Teams will normally travel via the shortest route, often going through choke-points recklessly.

Basically, players tend not to think about anything other than the moment. There is no regard for anything beyond or after the match, nor is there any critical reflection on the match itself -- unless you count blaming the monk or the team for not going after the monk. Most RA players are therefore selfish, cautious and are not team players; which is counter-intuitive, because winning teams are the ones that manage to work together. This isn't to say that cautious play is a bad thing, but when a team has a solid backline and strong offense, there's little reason to hesitate.

Tactics to consider

With the knowledge that players tend to be blind and self-centered, we still need to tackle the problem of how to get the teams to actually fight. If you're lucky, you'll be on a team with player(s) who know what they doing and are not arrogant about it. Otherwise, you'll need to adapt your tactics to reduce the chances of your team falling apart.

Before the fight

It helps to know what you're up against before you run into it. Some maps are small enough to allow you to tab through enemy targets before the match starts. Take note of their professions; you can discern what the enemy team is generally capable of. If the enemy team has Assassins, expect shadow-stepping spikes. If they have Rangers, expect interrupts and be mindful of Distracting Shot. Also check to see if they have monks.

Certain profession combinations may give away what their character is capable of. For example, R/Mo will likely be a BHA, Magebane, or BA ranger with Mending Touch; R/W is almost always a Thumper (Pet is a giveaway); a Mo/R is probably a Melandru's Resilience Monk; and any caster with /W will probably have Shield Bash or Disciplined Stance. Knowing the composition of the opposing team means you can prepare against possible attacks, especially if you're playing as a monk. Just be careful, for RA players can have what at first looks to be a meta build (A/W with daggers is likely to be Palm Strike) but turns out to be a completely random build (Way of the Assassin with Bull's Strike).

Opening the fight

Typical scenario: both teams are idle on their side of the map. Neither are willing to cross the middle ground -- it's no-man's land as far as anyone is concerned. Players want to let the other team make the first move and react accordingly. Let's get one thing straight: there's no inherent advantage to wait for an opponent to move in first. If anything, being aggressive and rushing the enemy as a whole team puts them on the back foot; if your team is proven to be confident and competent, you can pretty much roll over most teams this way. If not, there are several ways to deal with this opening stalemate:

Provoke the enemy. Disciplined and experienced players will know when to rush in. The 80% of RA players who don't know better will take the bait. Make feint rushes; wander close to or into their casting range; shoot arrows, hurl spears and wand foes. Most teams will have at least one player who can't resist taking the bait, and when one person goes in, the rest of the team is obliged to join the fray. It isn't uncommon for experienced monks, knowing that their own team is hesitant, to aggro the other team.
Drag your own team. Just as opponents are obliged to support their own, your own team members are likely to hold back until the fighting begins, believing that "someone else" should go in first. Most RA players are more inclined to follow than to lead. With this in mind, you will probably want to be first in your ragged formation, not more than one aggro bubble away from the rest of your team. The aggro bubble roughly represents your own team's casting range, especially your healers'. Also be wary of when you make contact with the enemy casting ranges. Too far ahead, too soon, and you will overextend and get ganked.
Just do it. Good old Nike slogan. Seriously, if you've already got their attention and your own team is still hesitant, just fight. If the rattle of battle is not enough to get your team to join in, you probably won't go far with that team anyway.

During the fight

Prioritise your targets. Every player can be dangerous, but some can be killed easier than others. A warrior may be a huge threat to your monk, but it'll take a while to kill it unless you have a specialised build. Rather, it is easier to shut down warriors and instead focus on the "squishy" targets -- the casters with 60AL. Monks and Rits keep the team alive and should be placed under constant pressure. Necromancers and Mesmers can cripple a team and should be taken out first. Elementalists hit hard and are usually capable of shutting down your own team. Likewise, if you see someone with a farming build, such as a 55 monk or an Ele spamming Kinetic Armor, Armor of Earth and Stoneflesh Aura, ignore them. They're usually harmless and very difficult to kill, so leave them until last. Also ignore anyone using a survival build (typically assassins) that just use shadow arts to stay alive- they can only achieve anything if anyone is stupid enough to waste their damage on them.
Switch targets frequently. If you can't kill someone outright, especially if they're covered by a monk, swap targets and work on someone else. Take note of which targets your teammates are pressuring, and assist them in spikes. Pressure is what dominates the Arenas, so adding your own firepower to another target under pressure may be enough to out-damage the healer. If ganking doesn't work, switch targets to throw the monk off, and switch back. Poor teams will stay stuck one target even if they cannot kill it. Killing the monk first is desirable, but if that cannot be easily achieved, kill off anyone you can kill. Teams fall apart when any of them start dying, not when the monk drops.
Res fast. If someone on your team drops, you've lost 25% of your team's force. It is essential that you get your teammates back up as soon as possible, because the opposing team will have a huge advantage over you for every second you are a man down. Call out your res so that your teammates don't drop what they're doing and res the same teammate. Res when you're not under pressure -- there's no point ressing someone when doing so will get you killed needlessly. Try to use terrain to cover yourself from interrupts. A team can easily come back if they get their players back up as soon as possible. The only exception to this should be if you know the team would be better off without that person, because they are that bad. Luck may play its hand and the player may ragequit when he finds no-one will res him, but will instead res a guy who had only just died. Remember that a player is 100% effective unless they are dead, at which point, they are 0% effective.

DO NOT Keep running if you are the last one 'standing', there are more fights to be fought..
DO NOT Leave your team at the start or befor the fight is over; Leavers are loosers! If, for any reason, you want to leave your team, do it at the end of the battle, if you win you can leave, your group will get a replacement for the next fight.
DO NOT Disrespect your fellow teammembers or members of the other team, this will reflect badly on YOU!
Especially do not disrespect noobs, RA is a place where noobs can learn to PvP, if he/she is put off by your whining you might not get a chance to invite him/her into your guild when he/she gets experienced.. don't forget: noobs are tomorrow's leets ;)