To PVP in AB, or, how I learned to stop worrying and fight on the flag
Basin weekend is coming up and I thought I’d resurrect a very old guide I wrote about how to fight on the flag. Arathi Basin is perhaps the most frustrating battleground because if you go in there by yourself, nobody fights on the flag, let alone guards it.
A lonely flag
Well, I’m here to help you learn to fight on the flag, the <Fight on the Flag> way!
- Out of the gates
- Guarding the flag
- Assaulting the flag
- Defending the map
- Ending the game
Hopefully this guide will help you whether you’re in an organized group or a PUG. First and foremost, you must understand that you have to live by “fight on the flag” to win in AB.
1. Out of the gates
Make sure everyone is buffed and in the proper group setup. First and foremost, determine if you’re running against a premade or a PUG. If it’s a pug, send group 1 to LM, group 2 to BS and group 3 to mine. Group 2 should have heavy dps and healers, preferably a warrior, shaman and rogues. BS is the most important node on the map as it is easiest to defend the other nodes once you have BS.
I try to send priests to LM because they can sometimes mind control the enemy off (it’s fun for them that way).
If nobody is at your node, the last person there should cap while everyone else runs to stables. After that, it’s time to guard the flag!
2. Guarding the flag
I don’t think these guys are watching the flag. They’re watching a battle down below. Rogues and druids can be sneaky! They’ll go past you to cap a flag. Make sure to always keep one eye on the flag at all times. If you’re not sure you can do that while fighting, try to stand on top of the flag.
Healers: remember not to leave the flag! If others are fighting off the flag, and they complain about no heals, tell them they have to fight on the flag! Trust me, the allies will come to you. If the allies pull away from a flag, chances are they’re trying to see if you’ll follow (a good tactic to ninja a flag from Alliance, by the way!).
And always, always call incoming with numbers!
Does not break flag cap:
- Blizzard
- Rain of Fire (?)
- Consecrate
- Any DoT (except those with initial damage, like immolate or moonfire)
- Mana tap
Does break flag cap:
- Any direct damage
- Arcane explosion/holy nova
- Hurricane
- Volley
- Bear swipe
Feel free to add spells and abilities to the list.
Advanced tactic:
Guarding the flag can hard when you’re severely outnumbered. But if you have a good AE, like arcane explosion, holy nova, hurricane, etc, you can hold off a great number of alliance. Be sure, too, if you are defending against many, try to stagger your arrival to just after a fellow Horde died. That way, you will be alive long enough to hit flag cappers, reinforcements have time to come, and the guy that just died has time to res.
3. Assaulting a flag
First and foremost, your flag assault must be quick and coordinated. You have at most 20 seconds to cap the flag. But remember: you do not have to kill everyone. You just have to cap the flag. This can be accomplished in a number of ways:
- CC the defense
- Lure the defense away while someone stealths the flag from behind
- Always loot the corpses so they cannot corpse res
Healers should also take advantage of terrain to conceal their position:
(Hint: check the bushes)
4. Defending the map
If a group is organized, defenders can protect a flag from greater numbers:
This is heavy defense against a Deathwing premade team. Notice each node has at least one person (you can’t tell at farm but trust me they’re there). We have one person checking out LM for defenders.
If you are not in combat, remain mounted the entire time so you can respond to requests for defense. This includes people who are supposed to guard specific nodes (except pet classes and stealthers). When responding to inc calls, do not over respond! This is crucial, as often they lure the bulk of the defense to one side of the map and then strike another.
As said above, stagger your arrival with those who just died. That way you can have a better chance of keeping the flag. If the alliance is zerging, do not fight it. Find another node, for they are sure to be short on defense.
Advanced tactic:
“INCOMING MINE 6 alliance!”
But you ressed at the Lumber Mill! What do you do?
Tell the person at farm to respond (remember they’re supposed to remain mounted), and you will take their spot at the farm. That way the farm has near continuous coverage, and the Mine can have defenders.
A good offense can also prevent Allies from trying to attack further. Try to send more than one strike force out at a time to keep them on their toes.
PUG games, though, look far different:
Notice the concentration of players on farm? Also, check out mine. Everyone is dead. That node will be taken soon. There are also several people fighting on the road between stables and mine! For shame!
Yep, the mine got taken.
5. Ending the game
When you have five nodes capped, head quickly for the Alliance base because they start to spawn there. Continue to keep at least one person on guard at each node.
Be a good winner, don’t mock the Alliance. They put up a good fight and you want them to come back.
October 13th, 2008 at 8:03 am
[...] downtime I created a new page for the tutorials we’ve posted. Also I updated the tutorial for Arathi Basin to make it more organized. I’ll be adding more pictures to the Basin guide as well. Every [...]