Guide:Introduction to Alliance Battles

Alliance battle (abbreviated to AB most often) is a style of Player versus Player combat that guilds use to fight over territory in the later parts of the factions chapter, with the prospect of gaining control of capital of the Luxons (Cavalon) and the Kurzicks (House zu Heltzer), granting free access to the factions elite missions, The Deep for the Luxons and Urgoz's Warren for the Kurzicks.

What is AB?

The Kurzick banner.

Alliance battle is what bigger guilds and alliances use as their mean means of gaining either Luxon or Kurzick faction, depending on their guilds allegiance. They do this to try and gain control of towns and outposts with 5 towns or outpost on either side, when territory is balanced. By gaining control of a town or outpost you will gain access to areas that no other people can go where you can receive discounts from merchants and buy fire works, and if you gain control of the capital even gain free access to the elite missions.

By playing AB, the control of the factions map, will shift in favor of the faction that's winning the most, it has even been said that if enough there are enough wins a faction can take control of the others capital.

AB is played on 5 different maps, depending on how much one side is winning, there is a neutral map, a shallow Kurzick and Luxon map, and then a deep Kurzick/Luxon map. Each map will have 7 shrines which will spawn NPCs for whichever side controls the shrine, and more or less NPCs depending who's territory it is (more will spawn for the faction who's' territory it is). The game is played until one of the following conditions is met:

• One side reaches 500 points.
• One side captures and holds all 7 shrines for 60 seconds without a shrine being neutralized or captured.
• All members of one side leave (this rarely happens)

Potins are gained by either killing enemies, or by capturing and holding shrines, you will gain 1 point every 7 seconds for each shrine your side holds.

If you die in Alliance Battle you are automatically resurrected at either your base or the resurrection shrine if your side holds it, as such it is advised not to bring any form of resurrection skill into battle as it is a waste of a skill slot.

The Luxon banner.

Setting up a Team

While there are no perfect teams for AB it is suggested that you set up your team depending on wether you intend to be an offensive, defensive, or capping team.

Offensive

If you're intending to have an offensive team build it is suggested that you run a build that can either spike (air or certain water eles, ancestor's rage rits etc.), or that can cause mass AoE damage (generaly fire eles, SSs' or MMs'). Burst assassins are also exceedingly popular for their ability to quickly dispatch unprotected targets, which is useful to eliminate threats to your team quickly.

Defensive

This team build is used mainly to guard your currently captured shrines, and stop them being taken by the enemy, this build should have at least one monk to keep your team alive, the other 3 tend to be anything you want but at least one spiker is advised and one AoE damager.

Builds

If entering with an organised pick-up group, it is advisable to take a build capable of both assisting a team and capping solo. This can be similar to a split build for GvG. The following builds are just examples ideal for these situations:

• R/Mo Burning Arrow Ranger
• E/D Invocation Elementalist
• A/Mo Moebius Breeze

Alternatively, if you join with a group you know will stay together, a wider variety of less self-sufficient builds can be effective:

• R/Mo Cripshot
• N/D Heir to the Master
• Mo/A Shadow Arts Zealous Healer
• A/E AoD Shock Sin
• E/any Shatterstone Support
• W/any Earthshaker
• W/E Shock Axe
• W/E Conjure Cripslash