NO POINTS for WINNING in the ARENA!

[PlainSimpleSisko]

https://boardgamearena.com/9/spacebase?table=283825613

I (315 ELO / platinum level) joined an arena game with auto-selected table & opponents. I won the game but got no Arena points. Turned out that my opponents were 1 silver level (321 ELO, by the way) and 2 bronze level (130 & 100). Now I know that as your ELO/Arena levels go up you win a little or lose a lot, that's the price of success across all games.

So what are my options here?:
-notice (in real time games) that my opponents are too low and decline to start (who doesn't hate that?)
-check the opponents' levels after the game starts, quit, and take my various penalties
-play through the game knowing I'll get 0 or negative points, no matter how long the game takes (sapping my enjoyment)

So now my ELO goes up for defeating the 321 when I was 315, which increases the effect of winning a little less or losing a little more.

Is this a bug or a feature?

Not a tldr; but a conclusion: YOU SHOULD ALWAYS GET A POINT FOR AN ARENA VICTORY! Even #1 Elite gets something for a win.

[Jellby]

-notice (in real time games) that my opponents are too low and decline to start (who doesn't hate that?)

No, because there's no table start screen in Arena.

-check the opponents' levels after the game starts, quit, and take my various penalties

If you wish... but I think that's worse. It will count as a defeat, while if you play you could win and prevent it.

-play through the game knowing I'll get 0 or negative points, no matter how long the game takes (sapping my enjoyment)

Don't you enjoy just playing a game, even if there's nothing to gain? As you say later, you still gain ELO anyway.

You can change your auto-match settings in Arena (the cogwheel icon) to say that you never want to play with opponents 3 levels away from yours ("levels" in Arena means leagues, in simple mode means ELO ranges). It is unclear to me whether that actually works or not, as there were some changes and discussions recently (some months ago).

[Een]

You can change your auto-match settings in Arena (the cogwheel icon) to say that you never want to play with opponents 3 levels away from yours ("levels" in Arena means leagues, in simple mode means ELO ranges). It is unclear to me whether that actually works or not, as there were some changes and discussions recently (some months ago).

I can confirm that following the mentioned recent changes this now works in all cases for arena mode. I'm aware of one possible interaction in simple mode between manual lobby and automatic lobby where it might not, pending investigation and a fix, but it's a rare edge case.

NB: be aware that with more constraints on matchmaking, your waiting time will become longer; so using this really depends if you prioritize points over the pleasure of playing.

[Jellby]

By the way, you always gain AES ("Arena ELO Score"?) for a win. The trick is this score (which starts at 1500 for everyone) is hidden until you reach the Elite league.

[PlainSimpleSisko]

By the way, you always gain AES ("Arena ELO Score"?) for a win. The trick is this score (which starts at 1500 for everyone) is hidden until you reach the Elite league.

Thank you, this is the answer that clarifies the issue.