Arena season 11: go!

[Draasill]

Congratulations to all participants and winners from the previous season!

But wait, what exactly is "the Arena?"

The Arena is the competitive mode on BGA. If you master a game and want to play it competitively, this is THE mode to use, so you can challenge the best players and get the most experience points.

The Arena is organized in seasons of 3 months each. Achievements are awarded to the best players at the end of each season.

To play in the Arena: select "Play" and then choose "Arena" instead of "Simple game."

Read more about Arena mode

Arena format and Gurus

In the latest 4 seasons, it was you (more exactly the gurus) who chose the game formats for the Arena: player number, options used, ...

We are very happy to see that this way of doing things contributed to making the Arena more popular: thank you to all gurus for their smart suggestions and their votes!

Rules updates

No Arena rules are changing this season. It does not mean we are 100% satisfied about how the Arena is running, but you seem to appreciate the current rules so we want to keep them as they are for now.

Season 11 is NOW Launched.

The new Arena is now open for its new season.

Some Explanation About: Relegations

At the end of each season, after winners have been awarded, you are relegated.

Some custom relegation rules may have been applied to a game for some reason (ex: we decided to reduce the number of leagues), but in general here is what happens:

• For games with 6 or 5 different leagues, all players are decreased by 3 leagues.
• For games with 4 different leagues, all players are decreased by 2 leagues.
• For games with 2 or 3 different leagues, all players are decreased by 1 league.
• For all games and all leagues, your number of Arena points is reset to 1, and your AES ("Arena Elo") is reset to 1500.

It's up to you to find the way to the elite!

May the odds be ever in your favor!

[Draasill]

Complete list of all Arena format changes:

Race for the Galaxy:

• Expansion: "Xeno Invasion (with Invasion)" (prev: "Alien Artifacts (no Orb)")

Puerto Rico:

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "3")
• First expansion - New buildings: "Off" (prev: "On")
• Second expansion - The nobles: "Off" (prev: "On")
• Available buildings selection method: "Random" (prev: "Draft")

Hawaii:

• Number of players: "4" (prev: "2")

Color Pop:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "2")
• Variant: "Standard" (prev: "Two secret colors (2-player game)")

Seasons:

• Difficulty level: "Archmage Level + Enchanted Kingdom & Path of Destiny expansions" (prev: "Official Tournament authorized cards")

K2:

• Number of players: "5" (prev: "4")

Koi-Koi:

• Game length: "Full year (12 hands)" (prev: "Half a year (6 hands)")
• Viewing yaku: "Viewing yaku enabled" (prev: "Rain ruins the party")

Tzolk'in:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "2")

Tokaido:

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "4")

Twin Tin Bots:

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "4")

Colt Express:

• Number of players: "4" (prev: "3")

Crazy Farmers:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "2")

Oh Hell!:

• Bidding: "Simultaneous" (prev: "Sequential")

Legendary Inventors:

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "3")

Eruption:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "2")

Lewis & Clark:

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "3")

Ice Cold Ice Hockey:

• Match type: "Playoff game, all eras (20-minute overtimes)" (prev: "2005-06 to present (5-minute overtime and shootout)")

Terra Mystica:

• Game board: "Random" (prev: "Base Game")
• Fire and Ice - Final Scoring tiles: "On" (prev: "Off")

Signorie:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "4")

Krosmaster Arena:

• Format: " BGA Season 11" (prev: " BGA Season 10")

French Tarot:

• Number of players: "4" (prev: "5")
• Bonuses: "Poignées only" (prev: "Poignées + Misères")
• Minimal bid: "Small" (prev: "Guard")

7 Wonders:

• Number of players: "5" (prev: "4")

The Werewolves of Miller's Hollow:

• Cupido: "Off" (prev: "On")

GORami:

• Board size: "22 fields" (prev: "16 fields")

Sushi Go!:

• Pass both ways: "On" (prev: "Off")

Veletas:

• Board Size: "7 x 7" (prev: "10 x 10")

Papayoo:

• Shifting discard (variant): "Enabled" (prev: "Disabled")

Rallyman: GT:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "4")

Big Time Soccer:

• Match type: "League" (prev: "Cup")

Connect Four:

• Board size: "9x9" (prev: "10x10")

Dingo's Dreams:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "2")

99 (addition card game):

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "3")

Small Islands:

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "3")

Unconditional Surrender! World War 2 in Europe:

• Scenarios: "USSR 1941" (prev: "Germany 1945")
• Weather: "Historical weather" (prev: "Follow rules")

Tichu:

• Game length: "Classic (1000 points)" (prev: "Half Game (500 points)")

Thurn and Taxis:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "2")

Fleet:

• Number of players: "4" (prev: "2")

Oh-Seven:

• Card-passing variant: "Disabled" (prev: "Enabled")

Piraten kapern:

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "3")

Hand and Foot:

• Number of jokers per deck: "3" (prev: "2")
• Black 3 treatment: "Can only be discarded, score -100 in hand/foot" (prev: "Can only be discarded, score -5 in hand/foot")
• Completed melds required to go out: "2 clean/2 dirty/1 wild" (prev: "2 clean/2 dirty (wild melds count as dirty)")

Just Desserts:

• Better with bacon expansion: "Yes" (prev: "No")
• Just coffee expansion: "Yes" (prev: "No")

Mijnlieff:

• Board layout: "Standard" (prev: "Arranged by players")

Dungeon Petz:

• Number of players: "4" (prev: "2")

Rage:

• Bidding: "Bids are hidden and revealed after the bidding phase" (prev: "Bids are hidden and revealed at the end of each round")

Res Arcana:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "2")

Draftosaurus:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "4")

Bids:

• Color Bids: "No" (prev: "Yes")
• Highlight Winning Card: "No" (prev: "Yes")

Rolled West:

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "3")

Dice Hospital:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "2")
• Hard mode: "Opening crisis" (prev: "Opening crisis + Nationwide Epidemic + Resistant Superbug")

Senshi:

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "3")

Queens & Kings... A Checkers Game:

• Number of players: "4" (prev: "2")

Nidavellir:

• Expansion: "Thingvellir" (prev: "None")

Uptown:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "4")

Beyond the Sun:

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "3")

Pingimus:

• Number of players: "5" (prev: "4")

Happy City:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "2")

LLAMA:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "4")

New Frontiers:

• Goals: "Off" (prev: "On")

Agricola:

• New set of cards: "Included" (prev: "Excluded")

King of Tokyo:

• “Even more wicked!” event: "Enabled (green side)" (prev: "Disabled")

Railways of the World:

• Game Map: "Railways of Western U.S." (prev: "Railways of Portugal (Max 4 players)")

Tapestry:

• Civilization Adjustments: "with Experimental Adjustments Aug 2022" (prev: "with Adjustments")

Can't Stop Express:

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "3")

Ultimate Railroads:

• Railroads: "German" (prev: "Asian")
• Industry: "Russian (One Private Track)" (prev: "Asian (One Shared Track)")

Scopa:

• Napola variant: "Disabled" (prev: "Enabled")

The Isle of Cats:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "2")

Gaia Project:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "4")
• Game Setup: "Random map" (prev: "Fixed map")
• Faction Selection: "Draft selected factions" (prev: "Choose factions")
• Faction Bans: "Enabled" (prev: "Disabled")

Glow:

• Side of the board: "The Province of Shadows" (prev: "The Archipelago of Darkness")

Chromino:

• Ruleset: "Expert Play" (prev: "Default")

Big Monster:

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "4")
• Play mode: "Individual mode" (prev: "Team mode")

Homeworlds:

• Star names: "Real-world star names" (prev: "World names from popular fiction")

Bahama Taxi:

• Faster movement: "Fast" (prev: "No")

Blood Rage:

• Number of players: "4" (prev: "3")

Tigris & Euphrates:

• Scoring: "Open Scoring" (prev: "Hidden Scoring")

Crusaders: Thy Will Be Done:

• Knight Orders: "All Compatible Knight Orders" (prev: "Basic Knight Orders")
• Expansion: "Divine Influence" (prev: "Thy Will Be Done only")

Arctic Scavengers:

• Hidden information: "Keep public and skip attack prompts for players with no attack cards" (prev: "Keep private and skip attack prompts for players with empty hands")
• HQ expansion: "Modules 1 and 2: Engineers and Buildings" (prev: "Do not use")

Heckin Hounds:

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "3")

Next Station: London:

• Pencil Powers: "Enabled" (prev: "Disabled")

Bärenpark:

• Number of players: "2" (prev: "3")

Barrage:

• Number of players: "3" (prev: "4")

[Greg BG Maddux]

Good luck and have fun, players!

[miklomike]

Can we please change gurus so that if you become a guru during a season you CANNOT lose your guru status during that same season. You earned the right to vote on new arena settings but lose your vote by the time the votes are actually counted.

Just have guru status relegate at the conclusion of a season the same way your ranking does.

[krayez]

Where can I find my ranking from last Arena?

[RagnarTML]

Every competitive tournament for Catan is played with 4 players, why is your Arena 3?

[Respublik]

I don't know why this has been disregarded for a few seasons, but please re-enable turn-based play for arena available games, such as those where last season there were no games played at all (or even for multiple seasons).

Like Coup for example.

[Yanochka]

6 nimmts again prof ???????????
Nôooooooooôooooooooo
I loose 3 month, wating waiting waiting
And again only prof, seriously ????????

[Vynce]

(ex: we decided to reduce the number of leagues)

How do you decide how many leagues each game will have?

Also, what's the cutoff for guru?

Also, I suggest that any guru who voted against a season's winning format does not lose their guru status. As is, if a guru community decides to try a new format, and most of them hate it and lose their guru status, you might end up with a smaller group of gurus not representative of the larger community.

[Darkgreenblue]

Very disappointing that Love Letter will be 4p again; the game is completely different (and much more advanced) with 5+ players, which triggers the larger deck with much greater variety of cards.