In my recent PVP grind, I’ve spent a good deal of time in AV. It’s the only place that the Alliance in our battlegroup can win consistently, and when I’m Prot spec, it’s by far the place where I’m most productive.

Throughout these dozens of games, the same exclamations emerge from certain people. There are certain “strategies” – some might call them myths or assumptions – about how an AV should be played out. I want to take a minute to think about three of these AV maxims.

If you’re not familiar with the layout of AV, take a look at the map to the right (courtesy of wowwiki). Clicking on it will open the full size image in a new window.

Maxim #1: Never, Ever, EVER Take IBGY

This is by far the most quoted maxim of Alterac Valley. Rarely does a Valley go by where people are not warned not to cap IBGY and where anyone who does so is not labeled an absolute newb.

Why is this? The assumption is that capping Iceblood Graveyard will instantly cause a Horde turtle. It seems that everyone in Alterac Valley wants to be in and out in 15 minutes, so no one really likes turtles… although summoning Ivus can be fun every once in a while.

The reason is that IBGY is the northernmost graveyard that the Horde begins the game with. The Alliance has a similar position at Stonehearth Graveyard. If IBGY is capped, the Horde offense will be rezzed either at Frostwolf Graveyard or Frostwolf Relief Hut. Since people tend to stop and fight anything they see, rezzing in the defensive area causes most people to stay and play defense.

The result? Horde turtle. Or, if you’re on the Horde team, capping SHGY will cause an Alliance turtle. Most of the time.

Despite what the wise elders of Alterac Valley say, there are indeed times where capping IBGY is a wise tactical move. They will deny it to the very end and claim you are a newb for even considering the thought, but that’s because they don’t like logic.

Scenario #1: Horde is bottle-necking at Iceblood Tower and preventing the Alliance from capping the towers or moving through to Relief Hut. To some extent, this can be remedied by people getting on their horses and riding straight through. A few will be shot down and killed, but a good amount can make it through – especially if 10+ people ride through at the same time.

An alternative is to cap IBGY. When this sort of bottle-necking occurs, it’s typically a well organized Horde team (Pre-made, anyone?). They won’t be accidentally forced in to a turtle. By capping IBGY, you give the people inside Iceblood Tower and Tower Point some breathing room. And let’s face it: if you can’t take them, then it doesn’t really matter what the Horde does in Frostwolf.

The game may slow down some as the Horde adjusts to the new situation, but it will weaken their defense and also push back their offense. If you continue to plow head first into the Horde blockade, you’ll probably a) cap no towers and b) watch in agony as all of the Alliance towers are capped and Vann is slaughtered.

Scenario #2: The Horde has taken Stonehearth Graveyard. Although the Horde will admonish their “newbish” players for taking it, sometimes it happens. This often causes an Alliance turtle, and it gives your offense a long ride down to Frostwolf.

If Stonehearth actually belongs to the Horde, nothing bad comes from capping IBGY. The Horde still have a forward graveyard. However, the Alliance needs a forward graveyard. IBGY will probably be less defended and more easy to cap than FWGY. If your defense holds up, this will give your team time to recover and recreate an offensive push.

Maxim #2: Never Cap Frostwolf Graveyard Before Relief Hut

This is quoted somewhat less often than the first maxim, but there are still many firm believers. BRK observed an interesting macro that someone used to profess their belief in the RH-before-FW-maxim. A week or two after BRK posted about this, I saw a similar macro in my own battlegroup. Must be the new craze.

The belief here is similar to IBGY. If you cap FWGY, you force the Horde defense to rez at Relief Hut. This puts them near the RH flag, preventing you from capping it, and it gives them easy access to the towers to try and recap them.

Instead, it is often suggested that people ride straight through to Relief Hut and cap it, preventing any Horde from rezzing inside the base.

This can be a great strategy if and only if there is no Horde defense to begin with. If Frostwolf is empty, it’s easy for one or two people to ride in and ninja the flag. From there, a small team of Alliance can guard the towers and the graveyard… just as the Horde would turtle in their own base.

On the other hand, let’s consider what happens if the Horde is defending. Let’s say there are five Hordies – a couple hunters, a shaman, and maybe a mage or two – defending at the choke point.

A small team of Alliance will be stopped dead in its tracks from freezing traps, blizzard, frost shock, etc. It’ll take a decent sized force to be able to break through the line and have enough people alive to cap the graveyard.

Frostwolf Graveyard, on the other hand, is often undefended. It is easy to take, whereas a defended Relief Hut will take 10, 15, or more to snag. By taking Frostwolf Graveyard you create a forward base for the offense. It’s a much shorter ride from FWGY than it is from Snowfall or IBGY.

If the Horde decides to come re-cap FWGY, you’ve also accomplished something. You’ve broken their front line, divided their forces, and created an opening for a team of Alliance to rush in to the towers and/or graveyard.

Capping Frostwolf Graveyard really has no ability to cause a turtle. If there are people playing defense that will be rezzed inside Relief Hut, the Horde has already chosen to play defense and they have chosen to create some sort of turtle.

If no one is playing defense, then capping Frostwolf Graveyard is harmless because there is no one on defense to be rezzed inside Frostwolf. The Horde offensive is happily chugging away, and any rezzers come back to life at IBGY.

My personal strategy is to rush into Frostwolf to cap the towers and/or the RH flag. However, if there is a defensive force big enough to repel me and anyone that followed, I’ll happily take Frostwolf Graveyard.

Maxim #3: Snowfall Graveyard Is For Noobs

This one I never quite understood. People claim that Snowfall Graveyard has no strategic value. Capping it is a noobish move, and you would be better served attacking something else… like Galv or a Tower.

This may be true if you spend the entire game defending it with five people. However, it takes very little time for one person to run by and cap it on the way to a tower. Therefore it can’t be a colossal waste of time. If anything, it’s a minor waste of time…

But is there a strategic purpose? Absolutely!

Refer to Maxim #1. Capping IBGY causes a Horde turtle. Conversely, capping Stonehearth GY causes an Alliance turtle. If the Horde cap Stonehearth, the entire offense shuts down as everyone rezzes back at Dun Baldur.

But… what if we own Snowfall? As soon as Snowfall belongs to the Alliance, those killed on offense will be rezzed halfway down the map and outside of Dun Baldur. This allows them to return to offense fairly quickly. It’s a long way from Frostwolf, yes, but it’s a convenient place to attack IBGY (if the Horde has a northern graveyard) or IBT and TP.

In most games, Snowfall won’t play a role either way. Hordies rarely cap Stonehearth GY early in the game. However, if they do attempt to force an Alliance turtle (which can play out well for them if they cap two of the towers), Snowfall graveyard is a backup plan to jump start your offense.

Final Thoughts

It is my firm belief that the only true noobs in battlegrounds are the ones that assume there is one, and only one, successful strategy. They are the ones that enter EotS and say, “3 Towers > Flag!!!” over and over again. They go into Basin and say, “Cap 3 bases and hold!!!”

For them there are no tactical alternatives. There is one way, and one way alone. If the other team fails to react to it, then it will succeed. If the other team does react to it, they will win.

Similarly, those that blindly hold to these AV maxims are the true noobs. Sure, capping IBGY can be a poor choice at times. But it can also be tactically important. Likewise, capping FWGY may be the boost your offense needs, and Snowfall Graveyard just might save you from a long defeat at the hands of a Horde killing machine.

Winning battlegrounds consistently requires tactics and organization. That is why pre-mades often win. They can react to how their opponent plays. And that is why the blind adherents to Maxims #1, #2, and #3 fail. They actively disbelieve in the value of all reaction and place their entire stock in a single, premeditated plan.