WASD blocking

[Scully]

Is it very unreliable, or is it just me? After the intricate battle dance (pressing random movement buttons to confuse the enemy), blocking becomes gambling. Say the enemy attacks with an overhead swing, and I hold down W and right click, it might decide to block another direction completely. Usually left block. And the other way around. When I want to block an attack from the left, it might decide to block an overhead swing.

Here are two examples, and I think only one of them is true. If I hold W, and tap A, the latter will take priority, and if you continue to hold W after tapping A, the next block will be a left block (A). Even though you are at the time pressing W.
Or:
If I hold W, and tap A to block a left attack, it will block W. Even though you react in time and correctly, by tapping the A button, it chooses to block the direction of which you're running. Rather than to block the direction you are tapping...

So, does anyone use WASD block? If so, how? Do you learn the quirks and get used to them? Maybe I'm just bad at it?
I find mouse blocking to interfere too much with my aim and make me lose concentration. It's also quite unreliable for me because of the way my desk is, and the small mouse pad I have. What I'd love is an intelligent blocking system, where if you hold a movement key, and tap another for block. It chooses to block the one you are tapping.

 

[Laszlo]

'Fraid I'm no help, I've always used mouse movement.

If you use mouse movement then your block direction is independent of your movement, I can't help but think that WASD blockers are hamstringing themselves.

 

[? M]

If you use mouse movement then your block direction is independent of your movement, I can't help but think that WASD blockers are hamstringing themselves.

One of the best duel nerds in europe is a key blocker so I don't think it's necessarily inferior, it definitely has its own set of advantages and disadvantages though.

I can't help you really either OP. I think the block being your tapped key rather than your held key is the intended behaviour but I'm not sure having always used mouse movement. I think some keyboards behave differently with pressing one key while holding another, do you have another keyboard you could try?

 

[MadocComadrin]

It might be a good idea to ask in the bug tracker how exactly M&B handles the keyboard buffer. Other than that I suggest only pressing the key you need to block with when you press the block button.

 

[mike-]

id imagine its about as buggy as attacking with movement keys. if you hold W and hit a or d you won't attack upwards, you'll do left or right. you need to tap w again to get the proper attack. probably works the same with blocking

 

[possum]

some keyboards have problems if you hit two buttons at once, one button wont be recognized and it differs from keyboard to keyboard which buttons cause the problem.

i cant press left and right (arrows) at once, if i press left, the right button wont work.

you have to check your keyboard.

 

[Reapy]

I imagine it might buffer like the mouse. The mouse picks the last direction you input, and if the keyboard is as you guys suggested it sounds like you have to tap the key you want for attack/block right before you hit the mouse button, regardless of what keys you are currently holding down. That is probably the safest way to execute.

But i'm with other people, I really like the mouse movement, but I have a nice sized mouse pad and a nice mouse that registers most of my movements, so I can block/attack with quick little  1 or 2 pixel mouse moves and not upset the direction I'm traveling.

I haven't spent time with the keyboard but as IG_M said I imagine that there are trade offs, for example with the keyboard it might be easier to block someone who is trying to wrap around you than with the mouse. I feel like footwork is a really important component of fighting though, and I would hate to have that upset by being forced to move a certain way based on an incoming attack.

*EDIT* Also yeah in terms of the keyboard reading multipresses... I have had problems with that, a lot of 'gaming' keyboards will have some sort of wiring around the asdw that helps out with multiple key presses, but I remember at one point running into a problem when I was using sdfe for movement, and I could press 2 keys at a time, but if I pressed a 3rd one it did not pick it up. This really got me in to trouble if you are say holding forward and right and then want to do anything else.

 

[CalCD]

I have heard of keyboard blocking, and I know at least one good who player uses it, but most players seem to do fine with mouse blocking.
Having a good mouse helps a bit, and if you are really keen on trying keyboard blocking you need a keyboard that can register multiple inputs without a problem (high end membrane keyboard or a mechanical keyboard would be ideal)

 

[Scully]

Never thought it would be my keyboard. Perhaps you're right. Mine is an old dell office keyboard.

 

[MadocComadrin]

I imagine it might buffer like the mouse. The mouse picks the last direction you input, and if the keyboard is as you guys suggested it sounds like you have to tap the key you want for attack/block right before you hit the mouse button, regardless of what keys you are currently holding down. That is probably the safest way to execute.

I don't think it does. Usually the keyboard buffer (not just for M&B, but for anything) can only hold a certain number of key presses/clicks. This could be anywhere form 2-6 depending on keyboard age and quality. The game then has the responsibility of handling how it picks the key from the buffer to use as a block. It would make the most sense to use the most recent press or click, but only the devs would know what's really going on.

I still suggest releasing all other keys and holding the key you with which you wish to block and clicking your block button until you figure out if it's a keyboard issue (which it most likely could be, seeing as your keyboard is an old Dell). Try to get an average gaming keyboard and see what happens.

 

[ares007]

I use keyboard blocking, and I'm better at it than I am with mouse blocking. That is partly due to the fact that I am left-hand dominant. Of course, I haven't played in ages, so I am ridiculously rusty, but back in my day, I could hold my own against many great duelists. So believe me, it is definitely possible

As for how to do it reliably? I always make sure I tap the right direction before clicking block. The key is to always tap the block direction before blocking. Even if you are holding down the key, still tap it again before blocking.

After a little getting use to it, you will become very quick at it. The only real problem with keyboard blocking is the fact that it can slow your movement up a bit, but really not significantly once you are proficient at it. On the other hand, your looking direction is freed up and it is easier to track your opponent and strike accurately. There are pros and cons of both systems.

 

[Seawied86]

I'm actually the one who really pushed for this in beta, but I don't use it anymore. Its slower. You have to have extremely good coordination between your right and left hand to get it right. Last direction tapped decides the block direction. In this sense, its more accurate than mouse blocking.

The issue with this is that it doesn't account for the fact that people tend to hold down W or S when fighting. That split second release and tap for this direction could mean the difference between life and death, and often will.

A better setup would be to have A and D take priority over W or S. This means if you were holding down WA, you would block left. If you were holding WD, you would block right. This way you would only have to release a button rather than double tap a key. The end result would be a faster reaction time for blocks.

I recommend just spending some time with the mouse block and get that right. I have fine motor control issues, and even with that, I am better at mouse block than I am with keyblock.

 

[Scully]

A better setup would be to have A and D take priority over W or S. This means if you were holding down WA, you would block left. If you were holding WD, you would block right. This way you would only have to release a button rather than double tap a key. The end result would be a faster reaction time for blocks.

This is what I'm talking about. As it is now, you do have to stop moving completely for a bit, and tap the block direction, for it to work.

I for one feel like I'm always pressing the right button to block. But I forget to release either W or S, because while blocking I'll also try to dodge the attack. Same with overhead or stab attacks. I'll tap the right button, but I'll also hold A or D because I'm trying to dodge at the same time.

An intelligent system like that would be awesome, and I think we'd see a lot more WASD blockers.

 

[ares007]

Yeah, that system would work very well, and I believe it would be very simple for the developers to code, just have a list of simple control statements for each possible key combination. I doubt they've seen the suggestion, because I think they would have fixed it.

That aside, I still don't really have much trouble with it. When my reflexes are sharp and I've got my rythm and a good connection, I can block pretty much anything with the current keyboard system. Maybe that is because I am left-handed? But I am so rusty right now, so my reflexes are crap right now It still works better for me than mouse blocking.

 

[Scully]

Until the point where they "fix" it (probably never), I'll just have to learn to mouse block. I'll successfully block a first attack, but then lose all focus and die very quickly.

 

[Seawied86]

Until the point where they "fix" it (probably never), I'll just have to learn to mouse block. I'll successfully block a first attack, but then lose all focus and die very quickly.

pretty much my conclusion as well. If I'm selected for their next beta test, I'm going to try to emphasize this system. Until then, my partially crippled ass is making due with the mouse block as well!

 

[ares007]

has anyone posted it in the "bug tracker"? Maybe they will think about it...

 

[Seawied86]

Pretty sure the gang is tired of me *****ing about it, so its all yours, Ares!

 

[ares007]

I might take a shot at it. Got a lot of other stuff to do first though

 

[Venset]

I use keyboard blocking, and I'm better at it than I am with mouse blocking. That is partly due to the fact that I am left-hand dominant.

I don't see how being left handed has got to do with It. I'm left handed, I have my mouse on the left side of the keyboard (I put my keyboard on an angle) , and the mouse buttons are setup for right handed. (default)

But If your more comfortable with key directional blocking, then stick with that I suppose. In my opinion mouse movement blocking is superior.