Mastering The Art Of Cheesing The Old One's Army

how to cheese the old one

Cheesing the Old One's Army, a challenging endgame event in *Guild Wars 2*, requires a strategic approach to maximize efficiency and minimize effort. Players often exploit specific mechanics, such as positioning, crowd control, and targeted damage, to streamline the encounter. Key tactics include using ranged classes to avoid melee danger, stacking in specific areas to trigger enemy AI patterns, and prioritizing high-damage abilities to quickly eliminate waves of enemies. Additionally, coordinating with a group to focus on key targets, like the Champion mobs, can significantly reduce the event's difficulty. By leveraging these methods, players can cheese the event, completing it faster and with less risk, though it demands practice and precise execution.

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Exploit Terrain Advantages: Use chokepoints, cliffs, and forests to funnel and trap enemy units

Chokepoints are the Achilles' heel of any army, especially one as vast and unwieldy as the Old One's. These narrow passages—natural bottlenecks like mountain passes, bridges, or ravines—force enemy units into a confined space, negating their numerical advantage. By positioning your forces at the exit or entrance of a chokepoint, you can systematically pick off units as they emerge, turning their strength into a liability. For example, a single row of spearmen or archers can hold off waves of enemies if placed correctly. The key is to avoid overextending; keep your units compact and focus on maintaining control of the chokepoint rather than pushing forward recklessly.

Cliffs and elevated terrain offer a dual advantage: they provide a defensive high ground and create opportunities for ambushes. Position ranged units on cliffs to rain down arrows or spells on approaching enemies, while melee units wait below to finish off weakened survivors. The Old One's army often lacks cohesion, with units advancing in disorganized clusters. Use this to your advantage by targeting high-value units like commanders or siege weapons from above, disrupting their formation. Be cautious, though—cliff edges can be a double-edged sword. Ensure your units are far enough back to avoid being pulled or knocked off by enemy abilities.

Forests are the ultimate terrain for hit-and-run tactics. Their dense foliage grants stealth, allowing you to hide units and launch surprise attacks. Lure enemy units into the forest by feigning retreat, then strike from multiple angles. This works particularly well against slow-moving or heavily armored units, which struggle to navigate forested terrain. Combine this with guerrilla warfare principles: strike quickly, inflict damage, and withdraw before the enemy can retaliate. Remember, forests reduce visibility for both sides, so avoid clustering your units to prevent friendly fire or getting overwhelmed by counterattacks.

To maximize terrain advantages, scout the battlefield thoroughly before engaging. Identify potential chokepoints, cliffs, and forests early, and plan your unit placement accordingly. For instance, if the map has a central forest flanked by cliffs, position archers on the cliffs and melee units at the forest's edge. When the enemy advances, draw them into the forest, then unleash ranged attacks from above while your melee units engage from the sides. This multi-layered approach ensures the Old One's army is funneled into a killing zone, where their numbers become a disadvantage. Always adapt to the enemy's movements—if they avoid a chokepoint, reposition to exploit their new path.

The ultimate takeaway is that terrain is your greatest ally when cheesing the Old One's army. By funneling enemies into chokepoints, exploiting cliffs for high-ground attacks, and using forests for ambushes, you can neutralize their numerical superiority. Each terrain feature serves a specific purpose, so combine them strategically to create inescapable traps. Practice makes perfect; experiment with different maps and unit compositions to refine your tactics. With patience and precision, even the mightiest army can be defeated by a well-executed terrain-based strategy.

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Focus Fire Heroes: Prioritize killing enemy heroes early to cripple their army’s effectiveness

In the chaotic dance of battle against the Old One's Army, the enemy heroes are the linchpins holding their forces together. Neutralizing them early isn’t just a tactic—it’s a strategic imperative. Heroes like the Crypt Lord or the Witch Doctor provide buffs, healing, and crowd control that amplify their minions’ effectiveness. By eliminating these key figures within the first 30 seconds of the wave, you dismantle the army’s synergy, reducing it to a disorganized mob. Focus fire with high-damage abilities (e.g., Pyroblast, Shadow Strike) and ensure your team coordinates to burst them down before they cast their first ultimate.

Consider the enemy hero composition as your roadmap. A Witch Doctor’s Healing Ward can sustain minions indefinitely, while a Crypt Lord’s Impale locks down your DPS. Prioritize heroes with global impact first. For instance, if the enemy has a Death Knight, his Army of the Dead summons additional minions every 15 seconds. Kill him before the 20-second mark to prevent a second wave. Use crowd control (stuns, silences) to disable their abilities during the focus fire. A well-timed Polymorph on the enemy hero can buy your team the 3–5 seconds needed to secure the kill.

The execution requires precision and timing. Assign roles pre-fight: one player to initiate (e.g., charge with a Warrior), two to DPS, and one to peel for incoming minions. Use cooldowns like Blizzard or Chain Lightning to clear surrounding minions while focusing the hero. Beware of overcommitting—if the hero dies but your team is at 50% health, the next wave will overwhelm you. Balance aggression with survival, and always keep a defensive ability (e.g., Ice Block, Shield Wall) ready for emergencies.

Comparing this strategy to traditional wave clearing highlights its efficiency. While AOE spam might work on lower levels, the Old One's Army scales exponentially. By minute 10, minions have 500% increased health, making them nearly invulnerable to conventional tactics. Hero-focused fire, however, bypasses this scaling by removing the source of their strength. It’s the difference between chipping away at a mountain and detonating its foundation. Master this approach, and you’ll turn an insurmountable challenge into a controlled demolition.

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Spam Cheap Units: Overwhelm with low-cost, fast-training units to outnumber and distract foes

In the realm of strategy games, particularly those involving army management, the concept of spamming cheap units can be a game-changer when facing formidable opponents like the Old One's Army. This tactic leverages the power of numbers, utilizing low-cost, quickly trained units to overwhelm and outmaneuver the enemy. Imagine a swarm of nimble skirmishers, each individually weak but collectively forming an unstoppable tide, distracting and wearing down even the most fearsome foes.

The Art of Unit Spamming: A Tactical Breakdown

To execute this strategy effectively, one must first identify the most efficient units in terms of cost and training time. For instance, in a fantasy-themed game, goblins or skeletons might fit this role, being inexpensive and rapid to recruit. The key is to flood the battlefield with these units, creating a numerical advantage that can tie up enemy forces, preventing them from focusing on more powerful but slower-to-deploy troops. A ratio of 5:1 or even 10:1 in favor of your cheap units against the enemy's elite forces can be a decisive factor in battle.

Distraction and Diversion: A Strategic Dance

The beauty of this approach lies in its ability to distract and divert. By engaging the enemy with numerous weak units, you force them to spread their attacks, potentially wasting powerful abilities on less significant targets. This tactic is particularly effective against armies with high-damage, single-target abilities, as they struggle to prioritize threats. For example, a dragon's breath attack might decimate a group of cheap units, but if it's constantly surrounded by new waves of them, it becomes a less efficient killer, allowing your more valuable units to strike without bearing the brunt of its power.

Training and Deployment: A Delicate Balance

Implementing this strategy requires careful management of resources and timing. Players must ensure a steady supply of these units, which may involve setting up multiple training queues or bases. The goal is to maintain a constant pressure on the enemy, never giving them a moment's respite. However, one must also be cautious not to overextend; a sudden counter-attack could decimate an army composed solely of weak units. Thus, a balanced approach, where cheap units are supported by more robust forces, is ideal.

Case Study: The Goblin Rush

Consider a scenario where a player employs a 'Goblin Rush' strategy. Goblins, known for their low cost and rapid reproduction, are trained en masse. The player sends wave after wave of these green-skinned warriors, each armed with basic weapons, towards the enemy's base. While individual goblins are easily dispatched, the sheer volume overwhelms the opponent's defenses. This tactic not only causes significant damage but also forces the enemy to allocate resources to dealing with the constant harassment, potentially weakening their main assault force.

In the context of 'how to cheese the Old One's Army', spamming cheap units is a viable and entertaining strategy. It requires a deep understanding of unit economics and battlefield control, offering a unique challenge and a satisfying victory when executed correctly. This approach showcases the importance of thinking outside the box, utilizing the game's mechanics in creative ways to overcome seemingly insurmountable odds.

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Abuse Spell Timers: Time spells to counter enemy abilities or disrupt their formation

In the chaotic dance of battle against the Old One's Army, timing is everything. Spell timers, when manipulated effectively, can turn the tide by neutralizing enemy abilities or fracturing their formation at critical moments. For instance, casting a Frost Nova or Dragon's Breath just as the enemy channels a high-impact spell like Meteor Shower or Summon Abomination can interrupt their cast, rendering their most powerful tools useless. The key lies in observing enemy spell animations and cooldowns, then synchronizing your counters to exploit their vulnerabilities.

To master this strategy, start by identifying the enemy’s most threatening abilities. The Old One's Army often relies on Mass Entangle to immobilize your forces or Shadow Bolt Volley to decimate your backline. Use spells like Blizzard or Chain Lightning with area-of-effect (AoE) capabilities to disrupt these abilities mid-cast. For single-target threats, Polymorph or Hex can lock down key enemy casters, preventing them from completing their spells. Practice precision by timing your casts to overlap with the enemy’s global cooldown (GCD), ensuring maximum disruption.

A comparative analysis reveals that this tactic is particularly effective against armies with slow, high-damage abilities. For example, Frostmourne’s Strike, a devastating 3-second cast, can be completely negated by a well-timed Counterspell or Wind Shear. Conversely, faster abilities like Shadowstrike require quicker reactions, making Spell Reflection or Ice Block more suitable. The takeaway? Tailor your spell choices to the enemy’s casting speed and prioritize abilities with longer cast times for maximum impact.

Practical implementation demands vigilance and adaptability. Keep a mental or physical timer for enemy abilities, noting their cooldowns and cast durations. Use addons or mods that track spell timers if available, but rely on visual and auditory cues in their absence. For instance, the glow of a Healing Wave cast or the chant of a Resurrection spell can signal the perfect moment to unleash your counter. Remember, the goal isn’t just to interrupt—it’s to create chaos, forcing the enemy to rethink their strategy while you gain the upper hand.

Finally, caution must be exercised to avoid over-reliance on this tactic. The Old One's Army may adapt by spreading out their casters or using silences to disable your counters. To mitigate this, rotate your disruptors and maintain a balanced approach. Combine spell timers with crowd control (CC) and positioning strategies to ensure sustained pressure. By mastering this nuanced art, you’ll transform the battlefield into a chessboard, outmaneuvering the enemy with every well-timed spell.

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Lure and Ambush: Bait the enemy into traps or ambushes using sacrificial units

Sacrificial units are the cornerstone of the "Lure and Ambush" strategy against the Old One's Army. This tactic leverages the enemy's predictable aggression, drawing them into carefully laid traps. By deploying expendable forces to provoke an attack, you create opportunities to strike from hidden positions or trigger environmental hazards. The key lies in understanding the Old One's units' behavior patterns and exploiting their relentless pursuit of targets.

For instance, positioning a lone, low-health unit near a cliff edge can entice the enemy's brute force to charge, only to be met with a rain of arrows from concealed archers or a well-timed spell that sends them tumbling over the precipice.

Executing this strategy requires meticulous planning and timing. First, identify the enemy's most aggressive units, typically those with high mobility and damage output. Next, designate sacrificial units with low value but sufficient durability to withstand initial attacks. Position these units in areas where the terrain or your ambush forces can maximize damage. A crucial aspect is timing the ambush. Trigger it too early, and the enemy might retreat; too late, and your sacrificial units might be overwhelmed. Practice and observation are key to mastering this delicate balance.

Remember, the goal isn't to win with your sacrificial units but to use them as a catalyst for a devastating counter-attack.

While effective, the "Lure and Ambush" tactic has its limitations. Over-reliance on this strategy can make your play predictable. The Old One's Army, though AI-controlled, can adapt to repeated patterns. To counter this, vary your sacrificial unit types and ambush locations. Additionally, ensure your ambush forces are diverse, combining ranged attacks, area-of-effect spells, and melee units for maximum impact. Finally, don't underestimate the power of deception. Feign retreats, use decoys, and exploit line-of-sight limitations to keep the enemy guessing and increase the success rate of your ambushes.

Frequently asked questions

Cheesing refers to using unconventional or exploit-based strategies to easily defeat enemies or complete levels in The Old One's Army, often bypassing intended gameplay mechanics.

Common cheese strategies include exploiting terrain glitches to avoid enemy attacks, using overpowered character builds or abilities, or abusing AI behavior to trap or immobilize enemies without risk.

Cheesing is generally considered a personal choice, but it may reduce the challenge and satisfaction of the game. Some players view it as unethical if used in competitive or multiplayer settings, as it can create an unfair advantage.

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