Rock Battle Live Game Basics and FAQ   What is Rock Battle Live? Rock Battle Live is a MMO developed by Storm 8 that is available from the iTunes store for the iPhone and Touch. How much does it cost? Rock Battle Live is currently FREE. What makes Rock Battle Live different? Rock Battle Live is unique in that it offers an option to gain experience at a faster rate for those that are less battle orientated. The availability of Travel items to increase energy regeneration rates and Practice options for higher experience / energy point makes the game less dependent on fighting as the primary source of experience points. However, it still features Storm 8's questionable 2 minute stamina timer for continuous fighting. What is the objective of the game? There are no predefined objectives for the game. It is up to each player to set their own goals and objectives. This can take many forms including: Character Level Battle Record Income etc. What are the different character types available? There are three character types in Rockstars Live: Pop Rocker: Gain Cash Faster Hard Rocker: Gain Confidence Faster Punk Rocker: Gain Energy Faster Recommendation: Pop Rocker or Punk Rocker. Character Status Indicators On your main screen, you will see indicators of your character's current condition. (1) Cash: The amount of Cash you currently have (not including amount in the Bank). (2) Experience: Your current experience points and the number required to reach the next level. (3) Level: Your character's current Level. (4) Energy: Energy is used for Shows and Practice. It is automatically regenerated on a timer. (5) Confidence: Confidence is an indicator of your character's current health. It is automatically regenerated on a timer. (6) Stamina: Stamina is used when you initiate a battle against another player. Each attack requires one stamina point. It is automatically regenerated on a timer. Game Timers Rock Battle Live is a real time MMO that continues to run even when you are not actively playing. Each time a particular game timer counts down to 0, it starts over again. I refer to this as one cycle. Game timers continually regenerate your Confidence, Energy and Stamina points up to their maximum. You will also receive your current Cash Flow Income every cycle. (1) Cash Flow Timer: Receive your income every 60 minutes for Hard Rocker and Punk Rocker. Every 50 minutes for Pop Rocker. (4) Confidence Timer: Regenerate 1 point every 2 minutes for Hard Rocker, 3 minutes for Pop Rocker and Punk Rocker. (5) Energy Timer: Regenerate 10 points every 4 minutes for Punk Rocker, 5 minutes for Pop Rocker and Hard Rocker. (6) Stamina Timer: Regenerate 1 point every 2 minutes for all character types. Character Level and Experience What are the benefits of increasing my Level? Every time you increase your character level, you will gain: 3 Additional Skill Points Ability to use 5 additional band members when fighting Full recharge of your Confidence, Energy and Stamina Points. An increase in level may also: Unlock additional Shows and Practices Unlock additional Gear Unlock additional Promotions Unlock additional Travel How do I increase my Character's Level? Your level is increased by earning experience points. Each level has an increasing experience point requirement. How do I earn Experience? You can earn experience by completing Shows and Practices or winning a battle against another player. Skills There are five types of skills: Tone: Increases your ability to attack other players. Initially begins at 1. Clarity: Increases your ability to defend attacks by other players. Initially begins at 1. Max Energy: Increases your maximum Energy points. Initially begins at 100. Each additional point increases your Energy by 10. Max Confidence: Increases your maximum Health points. Initially begins at 100. Each additional skill point increases your Health by 10. Max Stamina: Increases your maximum Stamina points. Initially begins at 4. Requires 2 skill points for each additional stamina point. How do I increase my Skills? Every time your character increases one level, 3 additional skill points are available for you to allocate as you wish. Once a skill point is allocated, it cannot be changed. Cash, Income and Promotions Cash is used to buy Gear, Promotions, Travel, Practices and Therapy. How do I earn Cash? Cash can be earned by playing shows, buying promotions and successfully battling other players. Promotions Promotions are the primary source of income in the game. Each promotion that you buy adds to your Cash Flow. Each additional promotion of the same type costs 10% more than the previous promotion of the same type. Additional promotion types become available as you increase in level. They can be sold for 50% of their original purchase price. Cash Flow Cash flow is an indication of how much money you earn every cycle depending on your character class. Each promotion provides a specific income that is added to your Cash Flow Income. Upkeep costs are automatically subtracted from your Income. Gear Gear falls under 3 categories (Guitars, Amps, Percussion & Other) and is used by your character and band members when battling other players. They are bought with cash and can be sold for 50% of their original purchase price. Some gear has an associated upkeep amount that is automatically deducted from your cash flow every cycle. Additional gear becomes available as you increase in level. Each member of your band uses (if available) 1 Guitar, 1 Amp and 1 Percussion item whenever you fight. The best available gear (for either attacking or defending) will automatically be used. Extra gear in excess of this number are not taken into account. Travel Travel items are vehicles that help your energy points recharge quicker. You are limited to one of each type and they all have upkeep requirements and minimum band size requirements. Their bonus is added to your energy every cycle. Upkeep Some gear and all travel items have an Upkeep requirement. This upkeep amount is automatically deducted from your Income every cycle (either 50 minutes or 60 minutes depending on character type). If you do not have enough income to cover your upkeep costs (negative income) then your gear will be automatically sold every cycle until your income turns positive again. Shows Shows are one way to earn experience and cash. They each have individual requirements in terms of Members, Energy, and Gear. Additional shows are unlocked as you increase in level. Practices Practices are an alternative to Shows that offers more experience but does not provide any cash. They have similar requirements to shows with the addition that some practice options require you to pay Cash in order to complete them. Battle (Fighting) By fighting other players, you can earn experience points and cash. You must have a minimum of 27 confidence points and 1 stamina point to initiate an attack. You can also be attacked as long as you have a minimum of 27 confidence points whether or not you are online. It is important to understand the way fighting works in order to successfully attack another player or defend against an attack. For detailed information, see the Rock Battle Live Fighting Strategy Guide. My Band and Recruiting Your Band plays an important role in Rockstars Live. Band members are used whenever you fight. The maximum number of band members used in each fight is equal to 5 times your current level. For example, if you are level 17 then up to 85 band members are used whenever you attack or defend. Extra band members are not taken into account. Band Code This is a code unique to each player. It is used to recruit other members into your band. Recruit You can invite other players into your band if you know their Band Code. Alternatively, other players can invite you if they enter your personal Band Code. These invitations must be manually accepted or rejected. My Band Here you can view the members in your band and (optionally) remove them. Prizes Prizes are special items that cannot be purchased within the game. They can be randomly earned by completing specific shows. Occasionally, Storm 8 provides special Prizes items that can be unlocked by installing products from the iTunes store. Bank You can deposit your current cash into the bank for safe keeping. There is a 10% fee for this service that is automatically deducted from the amount deposited. Cash that is in the bank cannot be lost when you are attacked and can be used for Therapy. However, it must be taken out of the bank in order to buy items. Therapy You can recharge your Confidence (Health) to the maximum at the therapist. Cost depends on your level and must be paid from the bank. Reward Points and The Agent Reward Points Reward points are spent at the Agent and can be purchased through the iTunes store or at http://rockbattlelive.storm8.com/buy/ The Agent At the Agent, you have the option to use reward points for: Cash (10 points). Amount you receive depends on your current income. Refilling Energy, Stamina or Confidence (10 points). Automatically recharges selection to maximum. Add 1 band member (20 points) Change your name (30 points) Change your class (50 points) News Feed Shows a summary of your recent fighting activity and personal comments left on your account. Broadcasts You can broadcast messages to all members of your band or view messages from your band members. Comments You can send or receive personal messages from other players through the Comments section. They do not have to be members of your band. Rock Battle Live Battle Strategy Guide Battle Overview The 2 minute Stamina timer in Rockstars Live makes fighting an especially quick way to gain experience. For active players, experience from fighting can be a quick way to increase your character level. Of course, the only way to gain experience through fighting is by winning so it is important to understand the way fighting works in the game. There are several factors taken into account in a fight: Band Size: Number of band members brought into the fight by each player. Gear: The attack or defense point value of the gear used by the band members in the fight. Skills: The attack or defense skill points of the respective players. Luck: A random chance factor just to keep things interesting. Excess band members or gear, cash, current health (as long as it is 27 or higher) and character level (other than band size restriction) are not taken into account. Attacking In order to initiate an attack against another player, you must have at least 1 Stamina Point and a minimum of 27 Health. A successful attack generally earns you anywhere from 2 to 5 experience points. Additionally, if your opponent has any cash not in the bank, you can take some of their cash. A failed attack results in 0 experience but you do not lose any cash. Defending As long as you have 27 health or higher, you can be attacked by another player. A successful defense generally earns you 1 to 2 experience points. You can not earn cash by defending. If you lose against an attacker, you can lose some of your cash that is not in the bank. Calculating Fight Results Although the exact fight formula is unknown, it can be approximated by understanding each of the factors involved in a fight. Definitions: Tone (Attack)/Clarity (Defense) Points: The total attack/defense point value of the gear that you bring into a fight. Skill Points: Your character's current Tone (attack) or Clarity (defense) skill points. Total Attack/Defense Score: The calculated total point value based upon your attack/defense points and skill points. Total Attack Score = Attack Points * (a % of your Attack Skill Points) Total Defense Score = Defense Points * (a % of your Defense Skill Points) Band Size It is important to remember that you can only bring up to 5x your current level in band members into any fight. This restriction is enforced both when you are attacking and defending regardless of the level or band size of your opponent. Example: A Level 16 player with 1000 band members will still only use 80 band members in a fight. Gear and Attack/Defense Points The number of gear items that you can utilize in a fight is directly tied to the number of band members that you can bring into the fight. In Rockstars Live, each band member can only use a maximum of 3 gear items (1 of each type). Each of these gear items has an attack and defense point value that is used to calculate your total attack or defense points in a fight. Tone (Attack): Used to calculate your Attack points when Attacking Clarity (Defense): Used to calculate your Defense points when Defending The game automatically uses the best gear that you own depending on whether you are attacking or defending. When attacking, gear with the highest attack points are automatically used - the defense points of the gear used is not taken into account. Conversely, when defending, gear with the highest defense points are automatically used regardless of their attack points. Example: I am level 10 and can bring 50 band members into a fight. I own 50 Segull Spruce Dreadnought (Atk 1, Def 2) and 50 Epiphone Electric Guitar (Atk 3, Def 1). When I attack, I will be using the 50 Epiphone Electric Guitar for a total of 150 attack points (50 *3). When I defend, I will be using the 50 Segull Spruce Dreadnought for a total of 100 (50 * 2) defense points. The same selection criteria and calculation would apply for any Amps or Percussion gear brought into the fight. This calculated attack or defense point value largely determines the outcome of a fight. The player with the higher value will usually win. Skills Your character's current attack (tone) and defense (clarity) skill points also play a role in fights. Similar to gear, only your attack skill is used when attacking and only your defense skill is used when defending. Keep in mind that the skills of your band members do not matter. While the exact formula is unknown, my testing has shown that your skill points serve as a multiplier to your total attack or defense points in a fight.  Example: You have a total of 150 attack points and 18 tone skill points. Your opponent has a total of 140 defense points and 24 clarity skill points. Despite your higher attack points, you have a high chance of losing this fight. Luck While the results of most fights are fairly predictable once you understand how attack points and skills are calculated, there is still some randomness involved. It is not uncommon to win 3 fights in a row against an opponent and then lose the next one (all other factors unchanged). This "luck" tends to play a greater role when the two players are closely matched. Opponent Selection To keep things fair, you can generally only fight against players that are similar to you in level and band size. This restriction does not apply to gear and skill points. Also, both players must have a minimum of 27 health in order for a fight to take place. Attacking When attacking, you have a significant advantage because you can choose your opponent. By looking at their band size and gear, you can predetermine the outcome of most fights. Generally, the attack process begins through the Battle button on the home screen. Pressing this brings up a list of randomly selected opponents that are similar to you in level and band size (for exceptions, see Open Season). Each of the opponents has their band size listed and their name can be clicked on to view their profile. This profile screen contains a list of all their gear. By analyzing this information and comparing it to your own, you should already have a good idea if you can defeat them in a fight. Defending When defending, you can only rely upon having a high total defensive score. Keeping your health below 27 also prevents you from being attacked. Open Season At the higher levels, you may suddenly see your fight list populated with players that fall out of the normal restricted range. This occurs because there are fewer players at the higher levels and the game automatically extends the range of available opponents in order to populate the list. While this may seem unfair, it is a part of the game and occurs because you have leveled faster than the majority of other players. When this occurs, it is recommended that you maximize your band size and, depending upon your income stream, buy more powerful gear. This will increase your chances against higher level opponents. Strategy Tips These are some general tips based upon my own experiences: Band Size It may make sense - especially at the lower levels - to limit the size of your band rather than maxing it out. This makes sense because it is much cheaper to fully equip a smaller band with gear than a larger band. This also results in reduced upkeep costs and an increased income stream. The effectiveness of this strategy at your current level can be seen by looking at your fight list. If the players on the fight list all have the same band size (or less) than yourself, then it should be safe to proceed. However, if you see that most opponents have a larger band size, then you should increase your band size to at least match theirs. I personally like to start with 9 band members and only increase the number if absolutely necessary. Remember that building a large income stream - especially at the higher levels - is critical to your long term success. Skill Points In my experience, skill points can play a significant role in a fight. If your strategy is to focus on building income or camping at the earlier levels, I would recommend allocating a greater percentage of your skill points to defense. This will allow you to fend off most attackers even if they have a superior attack score. Gear (also see the Rockstars Live Gear Guide) It is not always necessary to equip the best available gear. If you are winning most of your fights with your current gear, then it may make more strategic sense to not increase your upkeep and allow your income to build at a faster rate. If you are losing a high % of fights to attackers, then focus on buying gear with the best defense point value. If you are losing when attacking, then focus on buying gear with the best attack point value. Maximize Your Fighting Potential Because the game allows each band member (up to 5 per level) to use 1 of each gear item type when fighting, you should always make sure that everyone has at least 1 gear item from each category that can be utilized in a fight. It does not have to be the best available gear item, but they should at least have something to fight with.
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