how to advance near the top in arena mode

[miguelmarques]

BGA is hard to understand for me, as i came from DOW. Where can i find competitive games? Arena Mode?

I cannot select my opp? and start 1 game with them?

[ExaltedAngel]

BGA is hard to understand for me, as i came from DOW. Where can i find competitive games? Arena Mode?

I cannot select my opp? and start 1 game with them?

What do you mean with competitive games? If u mean competing for the seasonal trophy then arena is what you should play, even tho we are near the end of the season, so I wouldn't put much effort in it. If you instead are looking for hard challenges avoid arena, since it matches you with a lot of low rating players, due to lack of partecipants. You can either add good players as friends and challenge them or look for "normal" tables with high elo players

[MadManMark]

I intended to make no comment on this - in general I think BGA is great, I love this implementation of the game, once you get into playing it (the best one yet?), and I like to cut software developers at least enough slack that I won't "pile on" - but something just happened that made it hard to continue to bite my tongue. I've configured my TTR games (the little "gear' box" nearly as extreme as possible, to try to avoid lower skilled players:

Code: Select all

I'm okay playing with		 		My level 
I'm reluctant to play with 			Near my level (+/- 1) 
I never want to play with 			Around my level (+/- 2) 
I never want to play with 			Far from my level 

(I'm not sure this matters for arena, but I thought I'd at least try) The last two games I just got matched to in arena mode were clearly not advanced players, and in both cases I was matched almost immediately, during "bright green" search phase (indicating "at my level." The first opponent was in fact probably more annoyed about playing me than I with her, she left in the chat after the game "I really don't like your playing style." The second one was fine personally (for all I know; we did not chat), but when the game concluded with victory for me, neither or our ELO scores or our Arena scores changed at all!. I'm used to getting only 1 arena point when I win (happens a lot), but none at all?

If this opponent is so far below me that beating them means nothing to my ELO, that makes sense. No impact to arena status either makes a little less, but OK. What I can't understand: how is an opponent deemed by BGA matchmaker to be "at my level" for Arena play, but simultaneously so not that it won't change my standings to win?

I'm mostly just repeating what's been already said, but hopefully maybe putting it in a little starker relief.

[ExaltedAngel]

@MadManMark those settings work in arena but it just take in account "leagues", so every Elite player is considered in the first category "My level", no matter how low their Elo is. I agree this makes no sense at all, but wcyd, I don't think BGA developers care at all or they would have fixed this long ago

[Shivaware]

I intended to make no comment on this - in general I think BGA is great, I love this implementation of the game, once you get into playing it (the best one yet?), and I like to cut software developers at least enough slack that I won't "pile on" - but something just happened that made it hard to continue to bite my tongue. I've configured my TTR games (the little "gear' box" nearly as extreme as possible, to try to avoid lower skilled players:

Code: Select all

I'm okay playing with		 		My level 
I'm reluctant to play with 			Near my level (+/- 1) 
I never want to play with 			Around my level (+/- 2) 
I never want to play with 			Far from my level 

(I'm not sure this matters for arena, but I thought I'd at least try) The last two games I just got matched to in arena mode were clearly not advanced players, and in both cases I was matched almost immediately, during "bright green" search phase (indicating "at my level." The first opponent was in fact probably more annoyed about playing me than I with her, she left in the chat after the game "I really don't like your playing style." The second one was fine personally (for all I know; we did not chat), but when the game concluded with victory for me, neither or our ELO scores or our Arena scores changed at all!. I'm used to getting only 1 arena point when I win (happens a lot), but none at all?

The second game matchup is technically consistent with your settings. Your opponent has worked their way up through the lower leagues and is now in the same Elite league as you are. It appears there is no way to get demoted once you reach a given league. The leagues are what is being referred to when the configuration talks about levels. You can find more information about this in the FAQ. Unfortunately, you and your opponent are at opposite ends of the league which has over 3100 members, so this is why there was almost no change in ratings when you beat them.

[miguelmarques]

BGA is hard to understand for me, as i came from DOW. Where can i find competitive games? Arena Mode?

I cannot select my opp? and start 1 game with them?

What do you mean with competitive games? If u mean competing for the seasonal trophy then arena is what you should play, even tho we are near the end of the season, so I wouldn't put much effort in it. If you instead are looking for hard challenges avoid arena, since it matches you with a lot of low rating players, due to lack of partecipants. You can either add good players as friends and challenge them or look for "normal" tables with high elo players

i mean good players, with ELO score? is it possible to limit the ELO of opp? in this case to just allow higher ELO players

[ExaltedAngel]

i mean good players, with ELO score? is it possible to limit the ELO of opp? in this case to just allow higher ELO players

It is in normal games (no arena), just go in the settings, you cannot limit it to a level higher than your current one though