Breaking Down the Meta
Hello and good evening(Or whenever you may read this) to everyone.
This post is to discuss the current meta tactics for 1v1, 2v2, Elimination, and Dominion. Most focus will be on Dominion, as it will have a meta that evolves and is flexible.
First off, this post will not be involving "honor", or any type of honor codes. These, while considered beneficial to enjoyment, are detrimental to competitive and lower your chance of winning. In the almighty words of Forrest Gump, "**** happens".
Before we can discuss the meta, the strengths and weaknesses of each and every character must be laid out and understood. Bear in mind, I am by no means qualified to speak as a true expert on any character, and all of this comes from observation and personal experience. I do not have a high mastery of certain characters, so if I am incorrect in my understanding please point it out constructively.
Warden
The warden is the most basic character, with fast attacks and good follow ups, along with an unblockable shoulder tackle that can be cancelled into a break. His top light is extremely fast, and can be used to catch enemies off guard. He is balanced around the idea of balanced combat, and is able to equally be aggressive and defensive. With a low skill floor and medium skill ceiling, a Warden is a safe pick for most Situations. What the Warden lacks is complexity, and in order to be decent at everything, he lacks a specific niche to fall into. Outside of his shoulder bash, he lacks any unblockables and may have difficulty breaking tough defenses.
Offense: Mid-upper mid
Suitability: Mid
Speed: Mid
Flexibility: High
Conqueror
The Conqueror boasts high tankiness and an omnidirectional block, along with immensely powerful heavy attacks. He utilizes basic skills learned from the Warden, and allows those skills to be put into punishing other players mistakes. However, he lacks the ability to feignt and so relies on his defenses and Superior Block on his heavies. He has a powerful mixup combo that can pin slower enemies into corners and be chained until he runs out of stamina so long as the enemy doesn't react fast enough. His main weakness is fast characters and unblockables, though if used properly can overcome these. His main weakness is that while he has incredible defense and punishing, once he has his guard lowered he struggled to get it back up. Assassins who can get past his shield will have easy pickings, as will Kensei with his unblockables and speed. Conqueror excels at holding his own, however, and has a wide hitting zone and godlike defenses.
Offense: Situationally High
Survivability: High
Speed: Low
Flexibility: Low
Peacekeeper
Where the Conqueror is a tanky fighter with high damage, the PK focuses on fast attacks and hit and run techniques. In large battles, a skilled PK can get in with a grab and stab before the enemy can react. However, she has very low health and requires precise timing. With a very high skill cap, she can take a while to truly master. With good skill, a PK can feignt and have an amazing offensive game and punishes even the slightest misstep. Unfortunately, she can be somehwat predictable in her approaches, only having an arial lunge and a grab to get in close for the first hits unless she can zerg rush them or catch them off guard. Proper timing is crucial, as a single mistake will be her last.
Offense: High
Survivability: Low-Situationally Middle
Speed: High
Flexibility: Mid
Lawbringer
The Lawbringer has some of the most team based attacks in the game, along with some of the widest hitting heavies as well. Alongside this, he has a stun and multiple uninterruptible attacks at his disposal. With forethought, he can dispose of any single foe he faces in a variety of ways, and has two of the strongest parry follow-ups. He suffers from terrible stamina issues and mediocre damage, along with abysmally slow animations, but is extremely good at punishes and rewards skilled parries like no other. His range is slightly lower than the nobushi, but he lacks her speed. His top light attack is incredibly fast, sometimes able to cancel even a wardens top attacks if you predict well enough. His greatest strength lies in his team play, as he can drag an enemy into his own lines during his combos and leave them very exposed for several seconds. Outside of parrying, however, his guard is slow and he lacks disengage outside of his combos. For maximum potential, he requires a team or to gain a tactical advantage by proper use of parrying and disables.
Offense: Mid
Survivability: Lower mid
Speed: Low
Flexibility: High
Raider
The Raider hits hard and has both a versatile and powerful kit, with great punishes and amazing combos. Those who know him well can annihilate. their foes with both raw power and adaptable strategy. He only has one unblockable that deals damage, but it can be chained easily and reliably. After stunning, he can use this to deal large damage without letting them parry the slow animation. He also has the longest throw in the game, and can take the most advantage of stage hazards. While he has incredible offensive options, he is slow and cumbersome, and has little in the way of defenses. He may have an attack for every enemy, but he lacks the defenses needed to face enemies he can't combo into oblivion. He also can easily run out of stamina, and requires careful watch on the meter.
Offense: Very high
Survivabiilty: Medium
Speed: low
Flexibility High
Warlord
Much like the Conqueror, the Warlord is a master of defense. However, he also has very fast light and heavy attacks with good damage, and has several unblockable abilities to throw enemies off guard. He is much more suited to small groups than the Conqueror due to limited range, but can hold his defenses just as well. He lacks wide hitting strikes, though he is very fast and has good lights and heavies. His headbutt annoys enemies and can gain him an advantage when used properly. Unlike the Conqueror though, he is not entirely reliant on enemy mistakes and has far more options.
Offense: Mid-High
Survivability: High
Speed: Mid
Flexibility: Mid
Berserker
Obligatory Fate references aside, Berserkers are the epitome of getting in and hammering on someone. They are fast and can dish out a lot of damage, and push anyone into high defense mode. However, they can easily run low on stamina if they are not careful, and have low health like any assassin. Unlike other assassins, they do not punish mistakes, instead relying on pure power and overwhelming your defenses. They have powerful sidestep attacks that are hard to block as well, and a single overhead strike can debilitate most enemies.
Offense: Incredibly high
Survivability: low
Speed: High
Flexibility: Mid
Valkyrie
The Valkyrie fits into the most niche role in the game as a high speed disabling assassin. She has good defense and decent speed. Her attacks are low damage however,and she requires a full combo to deal as much as some characters do in a heavy. What she lacks in offense she triples in adaptability strategies, and can counter nearly any playstyle if used in a skilled manner. She has an immense skill floor and ceiling, which can make her seem unpleasantly weak. She also lacks good follow up to her trip, so she relies on her team to capitalize much like the Lawbringer. She, much like the Raider, has a very long "throw" via her headbutt. During the windup, she also forces her enemy to be still and can use it tactically to enable a second ally to hammer the enemy with a heavy. She also boasts a shield tackle with a block stance, enabling her to close gaps safely, albeit predictably. She has a terribly low health pool though, and a few hits can wipe her out.
Offense: Low
Survivability: Low-mid
Speed: Mid
Flexibility: Very high
Kensei
The Kensei is a highly aggressive Samurai with high damage, high speed attacks and several unblockable hits. His damage is deceptive of his class, and his speed makes it all the easier to apply. His defensive ability is somewhat lacking, but his offense can make up for it in most cases.
Offense: High
Survivability: Low-mid
Speed: Mid
Flexibility: Upper mid
Shugoki
Our friendly neighborhood butterball has the highest health in the game, but lacks speed and agility, and has little in the way of flexible moves. He hits like a truck, but relies on his passive invulnerability to trade well. He has the chance to instantly kill an enemy, but it has a long windup and harms him should it miss. He is also extremely noticable, and can be seen on the battlefield no matter how chaotic it may get.
Offense: Situationally High
Survivability: Extremely High
Speed: Low
Flexibility: Low
Orochi
The Orochi lacks bleed and pure offense, but gains far superior countering ability than the two other assassins while not trading much damage. He excels at punishing players and hammering weak defenses, and has more than enough speed to defeat slower enemies. He also has a powerful parry attack follow-up, and can punish tanks and slow hitters with ease. He is a staple of all kill based game modes due to high flexibility and dueling potential.
Offense: High
Survivability: Mid
Speed: High
Flexibility: High
Nobushi
Last, and definitely not least in my book, is the Nobushi. The only true zoning character in the game, the Nobushi is hard to compare to anything else. She has swift and deadly combos, follow ups to nearly anything, and a perfect evade that can cancel and lead most of her abilities. However, for all her flexibility, she likes to keep her foes far away and whittle them down with deceptively fast and strong hits. Her main selling point is her triple light attack, which guarantees the third hit if the second connects and also applies bleed on the third strike. She also has very fast dashing attacks. On top of this, all her attacks outrange most enemies and are very fast. However, she struggles when placed on the defensive, and getting up close can be her end.
Offense: High
Defense: Low- High(depending on if she can space)
Speed: High
Flexibility: Very High
The Meta
1v1
In 1v1, the meta is based entirely upon matchups and personal skill. Due to this, there is no form of counterpicking unless you play multiple rounds, which is not going to be taken into account. Currently, 1v1 play revolves around Guard Breaks and Parrying, with many high level players not wanting to strike first. There is also a large number of assassins in 1v1. Peacekeeper and Orochi are two very popular choices for this mode. The best tactic is to wait for your enemy to make a mistake or to bait them. At lower levels, going for grabs is usually the most effective tactic, though widely frowned upon. For the sake of effectiveness, an opponent who is skilled will eventually read your grabs and counter you, which will make them futile and burn your stamina.
Recommended
I personally recommend PK and Orochi for most playlevels, as they are both fast and punishing. My personal pick is Nobushi due to her spacing most enemies out, but she will struggle against assassins. Maps with Hazards will greatly benefit most Vikings and the Lawbringer as well, so a pick based on map may be decent. Lastly, I recommend the Shugoki, as his super armor is most effective at 1v1 fights and he can power through most attacks. However, he is toasted against any assassin.
2v2
2v2 is the first point where "honor" comes into play. Many players believe you should allow a "duel" to play out in order to be fair. However, competitively you must do anything required to win. This is not saying playing honorably is bad, but it is not the most effective tactic.A good Brawl team will have a mix of light and heavy, along with at least one of the two being adaptable. The main tactic here will rely on if you commit to 1v1's or try to gank, though the 1v1 is usually the safest bet.
Committing to a 1v1 leaves you reliant on, at the very least, your ally holding their own until you kill your enemy. Ideally, one of you will be a highly defensive character in order to stall while the other one kills their enemy, and then they will come in while you disable your foe. However, this option also allows for the honorable fighting, in which you respect a 1v1. In this scenario, it simply comes down to skill, the matchup, and nothing else.
True 2v2's can lead to the most effective start, and generate chaos. To do this best, you both begin a 1v1 and then wait. One of you must be fast, and as soon as there is enough space or time, you will run and attack your ally's opponent to throw them off guard and damage them before facing your own. They may or may not change aggro, so be prepared for this. Assassins and disabling characters are amazing for this tactic.
Recommended
My recommended list includes all the assassins due to their ganking power. Alongside them, I suggest Conqueror or Warlord, or even Lawbringer. The three latter have very good disables, and if timed right can allow an assassin to wail on the enemy. They can also stall for a 1v1 to finish. Nobushi is great if you intend to 1v1 first, and decent at ganking. Valkyrie takes too long to set up her disables, sadly, and is better at a 1v1. The Raider is an honorable mention, as he can set up decent disables and finish enemies with some good cheese. Lastly, my second honorable mention is Shugoki. Shugoki is too iffy for my liking, though he can make surprise comebacks at times. Anyone can fit into this mode though, and adapting is key to survival.
Elimination
Elimination is often described as a "gank fest", and for good reason. Unfortunately, while the most respected playstyle is often 4 1v1's, that is not effective in most cases. If possible, there should be at least one fast character who will leave their enemy and gank the person closest to them. Afterwards, they will then form a "gank squad" and eliminate their enemies. The fastest person is also the one who should run around and take powerups across the map, as they are better all on one person than in enemy hands. I find the best teams have one or two tanks, an assassin, and then a vanguard of hybrid. The goal of this is to have the tanks buy time while the assassin assists the hybrid/vanguard to get the first kill, and then the two roam to the tanks to clean up.
Recommended
I recommend PK and Orochi as usual, as they can deal a lot of damage. I personally favor a Lawbringer, Raider, or Nobushi for my non-tank character on the team, as they bring quite a bit of flexibility and can usually hold their own. Kensei is also very valid. Shugoki is unfortunately not viable, as he can barely 2v1 and is too slow to gank well and lacks defense to hold his own and wait in some cases. A highly skilled Valkyrie may be able to replace a tank if you want more offense, but it's risky due to her low damage and high skill requirements.
Dominion
Dominion is the most meta intensive gamemode in this game, requiring communication and well selected Feats to perform well. The basic goal is to gain points by capturing and holding zones, and also by killing players and minions. Players are not usually worth the points to kill, but are able to capture zones and must be held off. Easy kills and ganging up is frequent and this is the only mode where people are rare to blame you for it. Dominion is under the impression of "anything goes", as it should be. Dominion captures the essence of war, and the chaos and futility behind it. The best tactic to secure wins is not to control every point, but to constantly control two and have at least one being boosted. The most important tip is to play the objective, not the kill.
Roles
The most important thing in Dominion is what role a person plays. I break this into fiour groups.
Point Holder
This person holds the nearest point and attempts to defend it, while staying withing sight of the fight in case they are needed. The boost to the point gives them an advantage, and also incentivizes the enemy to go after them. This is best left to a Hybrid or Vanguard, as they have the mobility and flexibility to fight most enemies who could show up. This person should usually run Feats that are defensive or supportive so they can hold their ground until an ally shows up to help push the enemy off the point. They should not be afraid to leave the point, however, and should willingly go help a teammate in need if they can get there. Lawbringer is particularly good at this position, as is Nobushi. Shugoki fits this better than the other roles, and can usually stall or cheese kill while he waits for help.
Defender
The defender is the most important role, as their main duty is to push back minion waves and hold Point B at all costs. Unfortunately, only two are really suited for this; Warlord and Conqueror. Conqueror takes the cake due to his fantastic zone attack and wide hit, both of which can hit many minions and enemies at once. Recommended Feats include the heal on shield, passive health gain on minion kills, and any other defensive choices. This role should be a little greedy on feats, as you never know when it will be you against the world. A recommended build for equipment may be Feat CD or Revenge on defense, both of which allow you to keep fighting longer and hold the zone while reinforcements arrive.
Support
This is the second most important role, and should be filled by an adaptable Vanguard or Hybrid. This person will usually hand in Point B with the Defender, helping them fight off enemies and kill minions. Instead of offensive or defensive feats, they should instead skill for supportive ones. What counts as supportive may vary, but in general they want to provide the most tactical advantage to the team instead of themselves. Area regen, catapult strikes, and soldier boosts are all great picks, and as you should always live and die by your allies, you are the best to have AOE feats on. Technically any character can fit this archetype with the right feats, though it may require playstyle changes and may not be optimal.
Roamer
The Roamer is a fast, agile character able to escape predicaments and capitalize on enemy confusion. The best fit for this class is an assassin or hybrid, as both are great at picking off lone targets and getting around fast. PK, Orochi, and Nobushi are the best for this. The goal of this class is to roam and gank, and to press objectives when the enemy is distracted. For example, if the enemy begins to push through to Point A, the Roamer may either go try and help or push on Point C and redraw their attention. They also will go in and out of combat much more frequently, and may even use dropping attacks to land a surprise kill. Ranged or stealth feats are great, as are supportive feats like Scout and dueling feats. The main goal of a Roamer is to clean up weak enemies and apply pressure. They do not necessarily need to stay in combat to apply pressure, but sowing up at a far away point can draw enemies to face them. They require the most map and situation awareness, and rely heavily on the team.
Closing Notes
Unfortunately, I feel like the Valkyrie is too niche to pick into most fights. She offers very little except in perfectly coordinated teams, and has poor damage. Shugoki also fits into an awkward spot, as he can be both amazing and terrible at the same time. He is simply too much "if", and can be unreliable. He is also the most shut down by assassins.
While I rarely mention Kensei and Raider, both are definitely viable in ALL modes. They can be played very well to many roles, and offer a lot to a team.
While this is currently what is most effective in my opinion, the meta is liable to change at any time.
Feel free to comment constructive information and critiques. I can and probably will change this as more experienced players offer their views.
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