Abnormal
From Worms Knowledge Base
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W:A replay: Abnormal game with Van, Orange & Darkmaul. |
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W:A replay: Abnormal game won by Darkmaul within 2 turns. |
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W:A replay: Abnormal game played on a cavern map. |
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| Game setup |
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| Scheme |
| Abnormal: |
| Map |
| Any open island map without bridges |
| Worms |
| 8 per team in 1vs1, 6 per team in 2vs2 |
Abnormal is a particular scheme where players have to kill their own team off in order to win. It is based on Intermediate, the main differences being that the team weapon is replaced by two Mad Cows with a delay of two turns, and that three rounds are required to win a game.
Even though the idea may sound simple at first, the scheme can lead to interesting battles, as players will try and go for combos, especially thanks to the few Select Worms available. A round generally lasts from 4 to 6 minutes and random placement can often help a player winning, so the scheme is best played with several rounds as set in the scheme settings.
Tactics
Keeping track of the turn order
Keeping track of the turn order in the team is capital for multi-turn strategies. It helps saving Select Worms for better occasions later in the game, or, if they already have been used, knowing the turn order helps finishing the game within as few turns as possible.
Having a team with numbered worms is useful for this.
Going for combo kills
This is what the scheme is about, really. Players have to try and use fewer turns than their opponents, so managing to kill from 3 to 5 worms within a single turn can make the difference. Useful combinations could be:
- Setting several worms for a kill with a Kamikaze, combined with Low Gravity if necessary. Kamikaze shouldn't be underestimated, as it is very powerful in this scheme in that it can take out aligned worms and not just piled worms (it won't, however, hit a worm placed on top of another one affected by the Kamikaze); furthermore, it guarantees the current worm's death.
- Piling several worms on the top of the map and throwing a Dynamite or releasing a Sheep on the left or on the right of the piled worms' heads.
- Placing several worms at the bottom of the map, then using another worm which would fire a Homing Missile underwater, from Bungee or Parachute if necessary.
Select Worms and time are limits to these combo kills; thus, players shouldn't risk an extra worm if they don't have time for it and/or if it costs them an extra Select Worm which could be saved, especially if that worm gets the next turn and could complete the combo kill during that turn.
If possible however, those combo kills should ideally leave players with a single worm rather than two, as a single worm can just suicide itself, giving only one turn for their opponent(s) to catch them up.
Suiciding after kills/hits
After killing or hitting other worms, the current worm should be able to suicide during the retreat time (3 seconds on the land, 5 on a utility or after dropping a Mine or a Dynamite) if it isn't possible to suicide it during the kill.
If possible, a weapon allowing two shots per turn (either Shotgun or Longbow) should be used: if a single shot allows completing the planned combo kill, the current worm has the remaining turn time to suicide, rather than just a few seconds of retreat time. Of course, this doesn't allow using utilities afterwards - if Low Gravity is required, then it should be enabled before the first shot, and it should be taken into account while performing the first shot.
Using existing Mines
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W:A replay: Two existing Mines used during the same turn at 1:42. |
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This tactic allows continuing a turn while killing a worm; it requires a Select Worm and, if necessary, Low Gravity.
If there is a mine near an edge or at the bottom of the map, the player can prepare a Select Worm, trigger the mine and place the worm appropriately for the kill, then trigger the Select Worm and select another worm before the mine explodes and kills the worm. The player can then set and/or execute a combo kill with the new worm, or even reuse this tactic if there is another mine in the same situation.
Last resort tactics
If no combo kills can be performed or prepared during a turn (for example if a worm is blocked), there are still minimal things to do:
- Profiting of opponents' piles: Sometimes the opponent has a nice pile the player could use as well, if it helps him finishing the game within fewer turns. This tactic doesn't work if too many worms are sent that way in the same pile.
- Blocking the opponents: If the current worm can be suicided easily afterwards, the player can block his opponent(s) with a Girder in order to prevent (or at least delay) his/their combo kills. The player then has to suicide during the retreat time (a Ninja Rope could be used to allow more retreat time, as well as to knock nearby worms to the water).
- Suiciding the current worm: If the current worm is completely useless, or if its turn is about to end and no kills can be performed, the player shouldn't forget about killing it. Using Suicide Bomber or teleporting into water can do the trick no matter the placement (running out of both of them being improbable).
History
The scheme has been created and promoted by van in early 2013, although the idea popped in NNN forums earlier, with a proposal by Bytor. The "Abnormal" name has been found by van.
Competitive events
The scheme has featured consistently in competitions, featuring in the Worm Olympics every year from 2013 to when it ended in 2016, and in cups and tournaments hosted on The Ultimate Site between 2013 and 2018.
Similar ideas
Before this scheme
Loser Shopper is a variant of Shopper with the same concept of Abnormal (suiciding your worms) and existed years before it, since the Shopper page of this wiki mentioned for the first time the existence of Loser Shopper on 4th November 2007.
