Warband Strategies: Optimal Grouping

Hey Guys, Wanted to open this concept up for all of you to discuss. Lately the Gaiscioch have been running multiple warbands and as I ask more members to break off and form a second warband I wanted to go over some optimal group setups. Here are some of the ones I tend to use.

Keep in mind by default Group 1 and 3 are side by side in the warband window view, Groups 2 and 4 are below groups 1 and 3.

This being said I typically will make Groups 1 & 3 my Tank groups. When using healers make sure never to put two Archmages or two rune priests in the same group if you don't have too. Most of their buffs don't stack and they are better used if shared with the other groups.

Healer = Runepriest, Archmage
Light Healer = Warrior Priest
Heavy Tank = Ironbreaker / Swordmaster / Knight of Blazing Sun
Light Tank = White Lion / Witch Hunter
Ranged = Shadow Warrior / Engineer
Mage = Bright Wizard

My Common setup includes:
GROUP 1:
Healer
Healer
Heavy Tank
Heavy Tank
Heavy Tank
Mage / Light Healer

In group 1 I almost always move the highest level tanks possible. This group is typically my wall buster group / lord melee group.

GROUP 2:
Ranged
Ranged
Ranged
Ranged
Healer
Mage / Light Healer

GROUP 3:
Healer
Healer
Heavy / Light Tank
Heavy / Light Tank
Heavy / Light Tank
Mage / Light Healer

GROUP 4:
Mage / Light Healer
Healer
Ranged / Light Tank
Ranged / Light Tank
Ranged / Light Tank
Ranged / Light Tank

This setup is to allow healers to stay close to their troops. By placing the ranged units together the healer doesn't have to move a lot to heal their targets. The ranged groups tend to stay close together. The Primary tank group will lead the charge into battle and needs to be the biggest baddest group of players. The rest of the army will follow them but if they die first then accompanying forces tend to fall apart. The Tank groups are built to cause the most damage and keep the healers alive while doing so. If you play a tank you should always protect the healers in the party.

For the secondary warbands I have come up with a Balanced formation which I would like to test out and see how well they hold up. This would be making all 4 groups like so.

GROUPS 1 - 4 IN SECOND/THIRD WARBAND
Healer
Healer / Light Healer
Heavy Tank
Heavy Tank
Light Tank / Ranged
Mage / Ranged

In these groups you should have a max of 1 type of each character. So don't double stack Ironbreakers, or archers. Make sure that each group has 1 of each type. So a Swordmaster and an Ironbreaker, This is to make sure that each group can work independently and self sufficient. I refer to this setup as the Balanced Formation.

If you know of any other formations or have suggestions for more deadly groups feel free to share them. One i discovered with the help of Torgal was to put a bright wizard in a group with a bunch of witch hunters, thus giving them a fiery proc on top of their already ridiculous damage. Another combonation is to add a runepreist into a all archer group giving them bonuses to ballistic / weapon skill. All in all think of Runepriests, Knights of the Blazing Sun, and Bright Wizards as your damage modifiers. You want to place them in groups where they can help several of the same types of characters. Feel free to share your Thoughts.

Foghladha

From my experience a WP which you term as a light healer should never be with grouped with the range or mage - it always turns out to be very ineffective as many of their heals come from their melee and are AE heals limited to 10m. As a BW or Eng I lose the effect of these auto heals. The jouy of being a WP is knowing that while you do damage you are also healing those close to you and this can be very powerful if grouped with tanks and melee dps. I have actually used the stategy when playing my BW and in a group with 2 WP to stand right next to them - at melee range - even on Keep Lords - I live a lot more as I pick up on their auto AE heals - I do more damage overall sicne my BW is AE specced. Also and the taunts of the tanks keep all of the other npc's off of me. When playing my WL I would rather be grouped with a WP as we are both melee and again I get the benefit of the auto heals from their DPS and they don't have to think about me as much as the AM/RP do. So while I understand your concept I would consider building groups based on the healer make-up of the WB as the primary consideration and I wouldn't consider a WP as a light healer if the group they are in is a melee group. The WH if not grouped with a WP and a Tank has some difficulty and I can't say that I would consider them a Light Tank - they drop pretty quick. I might group the WL and WH - and soon the Slayer - into just melee DPS - and if any SW spec Assault line I would put them in melee DPS also. It might be wise for us to know the specs of our troups since it makes a big difference on how they play their toons. This won't help for pick up WB's but when we are a full WB of members - which has come close a few times - it could help immensely. Are the engineers AE specced or single target specced....right now Whurja is single target specced since I wanted to play around with it. I draw far less agro during sieges as I am focussed on the Keep Lord using the gun turret and signal flare shot vs. AE bombing which always draws a champ or two my way. Some professions change a lot depending on how they are specced... anyway...starting to ramble - it's late and ....that's enough for now....just my thoughts for discussion and I hope at least a small part helps...

I'm glad I found this topic... it's right up my alley. Here's what I see as the group breakdown: Groups 1 and 2 (The Line) - the role of Groups 1 and 2 are to establish and maintain a clear line of battle. They try to engage the enemy tanks at a specific point, which then forces the enemy's ranged characters to back off and isolate themselves (which happens instinctively most of the time). Groups 1 and 2 are made up of Knights of the Blazing Sun, Ironbreakers, Sword Masters, and White Lions, as well as Warrior Priests and Runepriests to keep them healed. By having Warrior Priests and Runepriests on the line, it allows them to use their AoE damage-for-heal Morale abilities to maximum effect, and makes better use of their toughness as compared to the Archmage. If there isn't a second warband, Witch Hunters will be in this group too... the extreme range of the Runepriests' heals will help keep them safe while they engage key elements in the enemy force (such as healers). Group 3 (The Artillery) - These are the AoE-specced ranged DPS components. They sit back from the line established by groups 1 and 2, and lob spells into the fray, preferably AoE spells to maximize overall damage. The goal of the Artillery group is, in part, to kill stuff, but primarily to drain the action points of the opposing healers by forcing them to spread out their healing more. Archmages are the ideal healers for this group, as their ranged damage spells can help the Artillery group perform their duties, while their heals will be primarily used to counteract Bright Wizard explosions, or keep them safe from the few melee classes that break through. Group 4 (The Flank Guard) - These are Engineers and other crowd control specialists, as well as single target ranged DPS. Their goal is to aid group 3 in their damage dealing while staying on the lookout for enemy flankers and line elements that have broken through. Their crowd control abilities (like the barbed wire) allow them to halt flanking groups before they can make too much of an impact, and their ability to quickly split off and take down specific targets helps them to dismantle said flanking group quickly. Warband 2... Groups 1 and 2 (Flankers) The Flanking group is made up of primarily Witch Hunters, Shadow Warriors, White Lions, and Runepriests. They're intended to wait off-screen until the battle lines have been established, then quickly hit the enemy in the rear, where most of the casters and healers have migrated. Their ability to be highly adaptable and mobile, and take out specific targets quickly, allows them to overwhelm the enemy's support, ensuring victory on the line. Other single-target ranged DPS work well here, though they may be a tad squishy for such behind-the-lines operations. Group 3 (Line, as above) Group 4 (Artillery, as above)

Only thing i would change is Group 2 & 3 should switch. In the Default UI Group 1 & 3 are side by side for healers its a lot easier to heal tanks with minimal mouse movement when they are side by side rather than up and down plus the eye doesn't have to leave the little 2 x 4 box. Typically 1 & 3 are my tank groups.

Good point. I know I generally pay more attention to the top two groups when I'm on my runepriest.

Yeah, the default layout of the groups is wierd. I rearranged mine to display in order. Also, we will want to make sure that the groups stay as close together as possible. As we get higher in levels, the group heal/buffs become the most useful tools we have.