Hi everyone, it's time for another installment of "AWBW Global League Review". Since my last post about the league 3 weeks ago, a lot has changed. On September 15th, the Global League was launched on the main site with an advertisement encouraging everyone to join. Since then the league has ballooned from 47 players to an incredible 151 (as of tonight). As you would expect with such a large influx of players, the rankings have seen some major changes since last time. So let's take a look at our new Top 10:
Global League Top 10
1. Kamuscha - 1088.72, 15-2-1 (Last Review: 1)
Kamuscha has been out in front since day 1 of the Global League, but his lead over the competition is slowly narrowing. Both of his losses have come to Hellraider, although his most recent one was not a very good game. Kamuscha's hold on the league's #1 spot is still strong for now, but I imagine that it's only a matter of time before he is overcome by Hellraider, who is steadily climbing up behind him. However, his 15 wins show his invincibility against all other opponents he has faced. Game to watch: vs. the Weakest Xiaoniao.
2. benbever - 1056.81, 0-0-0 (Last Review: Not Ranked)
Benbever is a newcomer to the league, and is in fact newly returned to the site after an extended absence. A couple of years ago, benbever was among the elite players on the site, well-renowned for his incredibly tough defensive style of play. His current spot in 2nd in the league is due entirely to his former results in official games, and as of yet he hasn't completed a single league game. There's no way to know how much of his former skill the veteran has retained after such a long break, but I think we're sure to find out soon enough. Benbever is leading off his Global League campaign with matches vs. 77salamence and vs. black_wave.
3. fdkanns - 1032.06, 15-1-0 (Last Review: Not Ranked)
Fdkanns is another German-speaking player (along with Hellraider) taking up residence in the league's Top 5. Despite his vehement claims otherwise, fdkanns is regarded around the site as one of the top players. His league record is now beginning to reflect his dominance, with his only loss in 16 games coming a few weeks ago to the Weakest Xiaoniao. Although he has mostly been preying on new players recently, he did post impressive wins against 77salamence and vs. Janusmarine. It will be interesting to see if fdkanns can maintain his winning streak as he starts to face other top league players. It will be tough, as ANT13 is giving him all he can handle in this game. He is also notably playing vs. the Weakest Xiaoniao.
4. Hellraider - 1030.16, 6-0-0 (Last Review: 3)
The former #1 player on the site has continued to steadily march through all opposition, seemingly unaffected by his almost year-long leave from AWBW. All six of his victories have come against players who were at one time ranked in the top 10 of the league, and most have even come before day 10. His two most recent wins came courtesy of an all-out HQ rush strategy on the map "Pipe Dream", one vs. Kamuscha and the other at the expense of poor 77salamence. Until someone can post a result other than "L" against the Austrian, it's hard to see how he won't eventually claim the top spot. He is currently playing a game vs. the Weakest Xiaoniao, his second league match against the Chinese player.
5. The Weakest Xiaoniao - 1027.37, 32-8-7 (Last Review: 2)
Since the last Global League Review, the Weakest Xiaoniao has dropped from 2nd place to 5th place despite an impressive record of 12-2-1 during that span and increasing his rating by 30 points. His drop in ranking is certainly more due to the rise of several other players rather than any decrease in his own playing ability. Xioaniao has been mostly beating players ranked lower than him, such as his win vs. greed is good. However, he has struggled more against high-ranked players, showing a bit of inconsistency. He recently had a great game that ended as a draw vs. ANT13. Besides his already-mentioned games against the top players in the league, he also has matches worth keeping an eye on vs. ramdalucksta7 and vs. tale.
6. walkerboh01 - 991.01, 9-0-0 (Last Review: Not Ranked)
Well this is awkward, how did I make the top 10? For the time being I stand undefeated in the league with 9 victories to my name. Unfortunately, I doubt that I'll be able to keep up this pace, especially once I start drawing games against the likes of Kamuscha, fdkanns, and Hellraider. Nonetheless, I managed a win vs. tale and another win vs. 77salamence in the last couple weeks. At the moment, my undefeated record is on the line against vs. greed is good and vs. the Weakest Xiaoniao.
7. dorian5 - 987.97, 9-0-0 (Last Review: Not Ranked)
Dorian5 is the first Japanese player to enter into the top 10 stratosphere of the league, but with his 9-0-0 record it's hard to say he doesn't deserve it. Dorian is one of the more underrated players on the site, as he hasn't played many matches against other top players. However, he is quickly making a name for himself in this league, showing his strength recently with wins against tale and against black_wave. I'm very much looking forward to the first matches we get between dorian and the other members of the top 10, because he has the potential to fight for a top 5 spot in the long term. Tied with me (Walker), he currently has the most wins without a single loss at 9. He is looking to extend that undefeated streak with games vs. ANT13 and vs. tale (again).
8. 77salamence - 963.91, 41-24-4 (Last Review: Not Ranked)
77salamence is our 2nd Chinese player to crack the top 10, and he has finished more league games than any other player (69). Largely due to this fast playing rate, 77salamence was the first player to hit 40 wins in the league, although he is losing games at a fairly regular clip as well. Despite several aforementioned losses to better competition, his recent results include a win in a very interesting game against black-kaito, as well as another good win vs. headphone. The journey up the rankings won't be easy though, and he will have to contend with the top players better if he wants to keep his elevated ranking. Games vs. Black Mont-Blanc and vs. Ultra Storm are worth keeping an eye on.
9. ANT13 - 956.95, 13-2-3 (Last Review: Not Ranked)
ANT13 is not only a Chinese newcomer to the top 10 of the league, but in addition he's very new to the site as well. ANT13 exploded out of nowhere onto the league scene and racked up 10 wins in a row before being brought back to earth with two successive losses, one of which was against japanj. Although many of his wins have been against weaker competition, he has shown himself to be a dangerous opponent, as his aforementioned game against fdkanns and a win vs. black_wave are showing. Now he begins to face tougher opponents, and it will be a difficult feat to increase his victory count. Among other matches, he currently has games vs. 77salamence and vs. Roswell the Black Rose.
10. Roswell the Black Rose - 955.82, 16-8-7 (Last Review: Not Ranked)
Roswell the Black Rose (perhaps better known as Divva) is another Chinese player staking a claim to a top 10 spot (that makes 4 Chinese players in the top 10 for those of you keeping track at home), and he has earned it recently. Roswell has consistently good results against weaker competition and consistently poorer results against the top players on the site, as his recent loss to Black Mont-Blanc maintains. However, he also recently had a resounding win vs. ANT13, giving credence to his surge up the rankings. I doubt that Roswell will be able to maintain a grip on the top 10 in the long run, as I see him losing out to strong pushes from players directly below him, such as japanj, Black Mont-Blanc, and Ultra Storm. Currently he is playing games vs. fdkanns and vs. 77salamence.
Dropping Out
tale - Dropped from 4th place to 23rd. Record since last review: 8-10-1.
Ultra Storm - Dropped from 5th place to 12th. Record since last review: 0-0-0.
Im_Pro_You_Blow - Dropped from 6th place to out of the league.
frostylight - Dropped from 7th place to 24th. Record since last review: 0-1-0.
Sheryl Nome - Dropped from 8th place to 19th. Record since last review: 1-1-0.
greed is good - Dropped from 9th place to 29th. Record since last review: 9-8-0.
vunguyenquang90 - Dropped from 10th place to out of the league.
Almost There!
11. ramdalucksta7 - 947.82, 8-1-0
12. Ultra Storm - 941.12, 3-0-0
13. Black Mont-Blanc - 923.13, 4-0-0
14. black_wave - 914.53, 24-13-5
15. japanj - 908.11, 4-0-0
By the Numbers
104 - New players who have joined the league since 9/15
76 - Players who are above an 800 rating
41 - Players who are below an 800 rating
58 - Total boots between OA_stupid, OA__stupid, and prancing gazel
21-0-1 - Combined record of the top 4 Japanese players (dorian5, Black Mont-Blanc, japanj, and akiyoshi)
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In other news, I wanted to remind everyone that the October Cup signups are still open for another 2 days. There are 8 spots left available, so if you want to play you should join now!
Also, please help us out with the new AWBW Wiki. We need help from as many people as possible to fill it all in!
Until next time,
Walker
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Top 5 Features that would be pretty awesome
Although some might be under the impression that AWBW moves slowly or even stands still, truth is that new content does get added over time. Tag games, CO bar percentages, being able to see unstarted games on a map, old leagues, the global league etc. haven't been around forever, but have proven to be substantial additions. And I'm sure that everyone has already thought of a feature that he would like to see on AWBW. So without further ado, a list of ideas that sound pretty sweet to my ears. Feel free to agree or disagree to your heart's content.
5. Display Additional Information
To be more exact, displaying unit count and unit value on the game page, in addition to the information you currently can find on it. Both these parameters, especially in conjunction, are useful tools to judge the state of a game. Furthermore, unit value would make it far easier to look at maps for possible FTA/STA advantages. At the moment the only option is counting, which is both tiresome and prone to errors. Without significant strain on the server, this minor feature would help gameplay development overall since it allows players to analyze games more easily, understanding when unit value or unit count are more important and to what extent you can afford to trade one for the other. The minor sideeffect of disenchanting complex looking games is unfortunate, but a sacrifice that is bound to come with more exact analysis, no matter whether the information is displayed or you have to count every turn.
- Original idea by ichbinsehselber (although it might have been suggested in the past already)
4. Days of Ruin Fog of War
Apart from the fact that FoW apparently still suffers from a few glitches, what lures people away from this gamemode in general is that the new element compared to vanilla AWBW, namely vision, is a mechanic that encourages defensive play and guessing. Especially forests are for the most part impossible to attack into, making gameplay unattractive on a lot of standard maps.
The FoW in DoR at least partly offers a solution to this by making players keep vision of what they have seen in this turn even if it is not in vision range of their units right now, enabling them to do recon sweeps or checking forests with infantry. Not only does that lead to a less defensively orientated game, it also adds a new layer of complexity and skill.
- Suggested several times already
3. Chess Clock
It has not been an issue for quite a while, but will surely be once major tournaments start again. The Boot/AET system, while fulfilling its purpose, is limited in functionality. Long AET intervals make overly long (in terms of real time) games possible, disrupting the flow of tournaments. On the other side, low Boot/AET punishes people who generally play fast, but regularly have extended periods of time where they can't access AWBW. A chess clock, used in a very popular game called chess, gives both player an absolute amount of time they have to play their turns, adding additional time everytime a turn is completed or when a certain part of the game (f.e. day 20) is reached. It would be a fair system that encourages people to play decently fast while still leaving enough room for possible absence. By setting the chess clock to very low values (like in chess) it would also enable players to play regulated real-time games.
- Original suggestion by Ploumeur (although it could have been me too, not too sure)
2. Replay Saver
Obvious what it does, and obvious why it would be great. A lot of great games have been lost forever because games get deleted some time after they finish. According to rumours and certain very credible persons, a script that saves replays externally would be rather easy to program, so there is some hope that it will happen eventually without people dying for it.
- Original suggestion by someone, I should have started to include these seeing that I actually don't remember them anyways
1. Deterministic mode
Last but not least, my personal pet peeve which is supposed to remove all sorts of luck from the game, instead replacing every instance of luck with it's average. Countless people have felt the frustration of doing only x damage with a x9% attack, and I would not be surprised if games have already been lost solely by luck (even without accounting for Nell, Jugger and Flak). Several key matchups in the game are only OHKOs/2HKOs/3HKOs with sufficient luck. Seeing that players generally do avoid walls that can be broken with enough luck, and don't attack into walls if luck can screw them over, it means that players who wall perfectly somehow play with a disadvantage against players who do not, which kind of defeats the purpose of playing well.
Even simple tank-inf fights can be decided by luck, seeing that the most basic 55% matchup on roads varies between a 7-5 and 8-4 result, doubling the HP advantage you gain if you are lucky. As every HP and every shot counts in these tense scenarios, it can very well decide games.
Apart from disabling certain COs (Nell, Jugger, Flak) and having to adjust others (Rachel, Sonja), there is little reason to not use deterministic mode for leagues and tournaments if it ever comes into existence, as it allows for fairer competition.
- Original suggestion by Ultra Storm
_________________________________
So much for that topic.
As a short status update, the Global League has gone to the main site and as of now has nearly 150 people playing in it, more or less exceeding everybody's expectations.
The AWBW Cup is starting it's signups for October, so keep an eye open for that if you want to play.
- Hellraider
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
AWBW Global League Top 10 Review
Last Friday marked the 1 month anniversary of the AWBW Global League on the forum. Doesn't feel like it's been that long, huh? As of then there were 51 players competing in the league with 101 current games running and 222 finished, which is quite a lot for just one month. Although the league standings have yet to stabilize entirely, we are beginning to see the best players rise to the top of the standings, as the newer and less experienced players slip towards the bottom. Overall, players who play games faster are rising or falling faster than slower players, meaning that many players have not yet reached their true rating due to a lack of game results.
Obviously we can't yet draw any meaningful conclusions from the rankings, but nevertheless I'm going to take a shot at it. Here are the current (as of while I'm typing this) top 10 players.
1) Kamuscha - 1095.82, 35-4-4
Representing the USA, Kamuscha is the current league leader by a large margin, although he also had the benefit of a 1004, 22-3-3 record coming into the league from prior official events. However, his 13-1-1 record since then shows that he certainly deserves his place at the top, and I expect Kam to remain at or near the top for the foreseeable future. Games to watch: vs. the Weakest Xiaoniao.
2) The Weakest Xiaoniao - 997.73, 20-6-2
Hailing from China, Xiaoniao is certainly not living up to the "Weakest" part of his name, as evidenced by his #2 position in the league. Although his rating is inflated a bit due to his fast game-playing (with 28 games finished), he is undoubtably a dangerous opponent. Easily his biggest recent win took place against fdkanns, one of the elite players on the site. However, he has otherwise struggled against top players, and looks to be in trouble against walkerboh01 and also against Hellraider.
3) Hellraider - 946.15, 5-1-0
Like Ultra Storm and Kamuscha, Hellraider's rating is slightly inflated from a pre-league official record of 2-1. However, the Austrian powerhouse was the best player on the site before a prolonged absence, and is 3-0-0 in the league so far. One of those two wins was enough to hand Kamuscha his only league loss though, showing that he hasn't lost his touch. I expect Hellraider to continue to rise up the standings and challenge for the top league ranking. As noted earlier, he currently is playing the Weakest Xiaoniao.
4) tale - 945.78, 16-7-2
Another Chinese player, tale is seen as somewhat of a surprise at the #4 position. While he has been a solid player for some amount of time, his play in the league suggests that he is ready to start making a name for himself as one of the top players on the site. However, with few results against some of the current top players, I would not be surprised to see tale start to slip down the rankings as time goes on. A recent loss vs. Hellraider supports this. Games to keep an eye on: vs Black Mont-Blanc.
5) Ultra Storm - 941.12, 8-2-0
Breaking the Chinese trend at the top of the standings, US is currently representing Finland in 5th place. Although his rating says 8-2-0, he was 5-2-0 from former official results, making him 3-0-0 in the AWBW Global League. In fact, it has been a long time since the current #1 player on AWBW has lost a game. I expect him to be challenging for the #1 rank in the league as he finishes more games. However, he might be in trouble here, and against the 1-26 OA_Stupid at that.
6) Im_Pro_You_Blow - 941.04, 11-3-1
Mere percentage points behind Ultra Storm, IPYB is the first entry on here whose nationality I don't know. Similar to tale, IPYB has benefited a bit from his faster playing rate and will likely be hard-pressed to maintain a top 5 ranking in the future. Although he doesn't have many results against top players, he did score a draw with Kamuscha in a very crazy game. Other games to watch: vs. ramdalucksta7 and vs. tale twice.
7) frostylight - 896.21, 5-2-0
Frostylight is a one-time veteran of AWBW who has recently returned to the site after a prolonged absence. With a previous rating of 1-1-0, frostylight is 4-1-0 so far in the AWBW Global League, and has clearly not lost the touch at the game. With one loss to tale and one win against the Weakest Xiaoniao, frostylight looks to be deserving of his current standing, and will likely continue to hang around in the top 10 for a while. Games to watch: vs. centerc and vs. 77salamence.
8) Sheryl Nome - 887.06, 4-0-0
A very new player, Sheryl Nome has only played 66 games overall, but is undefeated so far in the league. None of the wins have been against particularly impressive competition, so it is hard to define exactly how much of Sheryl Nome's rating is due to his/her own skill or just favorable opponents or both. We will find out soon enough, as he/she has a couple of tougher games against IPYB and against black_wave.
9) greed is good - 879.66, 12-11-0
Although his record doesn't really indicate that he is deserving of a top 10 spot, "greed is good" has apparently done well enough in his wins to earn the #9 ranking. He has lost to most of the better players he has faced, including the Weakest Xiaoniao, tale, IPYB, and others, but has taken care of business against weaker opponents and has been the beneficiary of multiple boot-wins. I don't expect "greed is good" to remain in the top 10 for long, as his inability to get past tougher foes will consistently keep him from climbing too high.
10) vunguyenquang90 - 875.97, 6-2-1
The relatively new vunguyenquang has made an immediate impact on the new league, jumping all the way up to the #10 spot in a short time. However, he has yet to meet any of the current top players, with his best winning coming in a 31-day epic against tale, and a loss to Roswell the Black Rose. Games to watch: vs. walkerboh01 and vs. dorian5.
Outside of our top 10 players, there are a few players who have the skill but not yet the game results to crack the top 10. Here are some well-established players I expect to rise into the top 10 in the future.
On the Rise
Black Mont-Blanc - 867.92, 6-2-0, current rank: #12
walkerboh01 - 848.20, 2-0-0, current rank: #16
dorian5 - 872.64, 3-0-0, current rank: #11
blanci1 - 825.00, 1-1-0, current rank: #23
excrimophalus - 821.11, 1-0-0, current rank: #25
Over the next month, I'm sure we'll see the league ratings settle down even more, and we'll begin to get a better idea of where players fit in skill-wise.
Until next time,
Walker
Obviously we can't yet draw any meaningful conclusions from the rankings, but nevertheless I'm going to take a shot at it. Here are the current (as of while I'm typing this) top 10 players.
1) Kamuscha - 1095.82, 35-4-4
Representing the USA, Kamuscha is the current league leader by a large margin, although he also had the benefit of a 1004, 22-3-3 record coming into the league from prior official events. However, his 13-1-1 record since then shows that he certainly deserves his place at the top, and I expect Kam to remain at or near the top for the foreseeable future. Games to watch: vs. the Weakest Xiaoniao.
2) The Weakest Xiaoniao - 997.73, 20-6-2
Hailing from China, Xiaoniao is certainly not living up to the "Weakest" part of his name, as evidenced by his #2 position in the league. Although his rating is inflated a bit due to his fast game-playing (with 28 games finished), he is undoubtably a dangerous opponent. Easily his biggest recent win took place against fdkanns, one of the elite players on the site. However, he has otherwise struggled against top players, and looks to be in trouble against walkerboh01 and also against Hellraider.
3) Hellraider - 946.15, 5-1-0
Like Ultra Storm and Kamuscha, Hellraider's rating is slightly inflated from a pre-league official record of 2-1. However, the Austrian powerhouse was the best player on the site before a prolonged absence, and is 3-0-0 in the league so far. One of those two wins was enough to hand Kamuscha his only league loss though, showing that he hasn't lost his touch. I expect Hellraider to continue to rise up the standings and challenge for the top league ranking. As noted earlier, he currently is playing the Weakest Xiaoniao.
4) tale - 945.78, 16-7-2
Another Chinese player, tale is seen as somewhat of a surprise at the #4 position. While he has been a solid player for some amount of time, his play in the league suggests that he is ready to start making a name for himself as one of the top players on the site. However, with few results against some of the current top players, I would not be surprised to see tale start to slip down the rankings as time goes on. A recent loss vs. Hellraider supports this. Games to keep an eye on: vs Black Mont-Blanc.
5) Ultra Storm - 941.12, 8-2-0
Breaking the Chinese trend at the top of the standings, US is currently representing Finland in 5th place. Although his rating says 8-2-0, he was 5-2-0 from former official results, making him 3-0-0 in the AWBW Global League. In fact, it has been a long time since the current #1 player on AWBW has lost a game. I expect him to be challenging for the #1 rank in the league as he finishes more games. However, he might be in trouble here, and against the 1-26 OA_Stupid at that.
6) Im_Pro_You_Blow - 941.04, 11-3-1
Mere percentage points behind Ultra Storm, IPYB is the first entry on here whose nationality I don't know. Similar to tale, IPYB has benefited a bit from his faster playing rate and will likely be hard-pressed to maintain a top 5 ranking in the future. Although he doesn't have many results against top players, he did score a draw with Kamuscha in a very crazy game. Other games to watch: vs. ramdalucksta7 and vs. tale twice.
7) frostylight - 896.21, 5-2-0
Frostylight is a one-time veteran of AWBW who has recently returned to the site after a prolonged absence. With a previous rating of 1-1-0, frostylight is 4-1-0 so far in the AWBW Global League, and has clearly not lost the touch at the game. With one loss to tale and one win against the Weakest Xiaoniao, frostylight looks to be deserving of his current standing, and will likely continue to hang around in the top 10 for a while. Games to watch: vs. centerc and vs. 77salamence.
8) Sheryl Nome - 887.06, 4-0-0
A very new player, Sheryl Nome has only played 66 games overall, but is undefeated so far in the league. None of the wins have been against particularly impressive competition, so it is hard to define exactly how much of Sheryl Nome's rating is due to his/her own skill or just favorable opponents or both. We will find out soon enough, as he/she has a couple of tougher games against IPYB and against black_wave.
9) greed is good - 879.66, 12-11-0
Although his record doesn't really indicate that he is deserving of a top 10 spot, "greed is good" has apparently done well enough in his wins to earn the #9 ranking. He has lost to most of the better players he has faced, including the Weakest Xiaoniao, tale, IPYB, and others, but has taken care of business against weaker opponents and has been the beneficiary of multiple boot-wins. I don't expect "greed is good" to remain in the top 10 for long, as his inability to get past tougher foes will consistently keep him from climbing too high.
10) vunguyenquang90 - 875.97, 6-2-1
The relatively new vunguyenquang has made an immediate impact on the new league, jumping all the way up to the #10 spot in a short time. However, he has yet to meet any of the current top players, with his best winning coming in a 31-day epic against tale, and a loss to Roswell the Black Rose. Games to watch: vs. walkerboh01 and vs. dorian5.
Outside of our top 10 players, there are a few players who have the skill but not yet the game results to crack the top 10. Here are some well-established players I expect to rise into the top 10 in the future.
On the Rise
Black Mont-Blanc - 867.92, 6-2-0, current rank: #12
walkerboh01 - 848.20, 2-0-0, current rank: #16
dorian5 - 872.64, 3-0-0, current rank: #11
blanci1 - 825.00, 1-1-0, current rank: #23
excrimophalus - 821.11, 1-0-0, current rank: #25
Over the next month, I'm sure we'll see the league ratings settle down even more, and we'll begin to get a better idea of where players fit in skill-wise.
Until next time,
Walker
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