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Matchmaking to be disabled for one week from noon today. Tuesday enlistments, improved matchmaking, hybrid ranks, and Thurs-Sun warring period among the features of the new Ranked Warring system.
Torn’s Ranked Warring matchmaking system has been suspended from noon today until noon on Tuesday the 19th of April in order to facilitate a number of important changes. Any wars that have already been organised will go ahead as scheduled, and factions will be able to enlist as usual, but no further matches will be made for one week.
Here is a detailed look at the changes we’re making to Ranked Warring, and the reasons why they are necessary.
Hybrid Ranks
From the 19th, ranked warring participants will be matched using a hybrid system that looks at both ranks and stats when searching for a suitable opponent. This system modelled well under testing, giving us a low number of unfair matches while creating a more dynamic ranked warring experience for everyone involved. The two main concepts behind this new system are Hidden Rank and Actual Rank.
Actual Rank - The rank a faction has achieved through participation in the Ranked Warring system. This can be improved or reduced depending on your results in Ranked Warring. Any ranks earned in Ranked Warring under the old system will not be lost and will be carried over to the new system. Your Actual Rank will always be publicly viewable by others.
Hidden Rank - This is decided for you based on how your faction’s battle stats compare with everyone else's. Hidden Ranks are calculated using the stat-score of the faction's members. This means that your Hidden Rank can change when players leave, join, or when other factions get stronger or weaker. Your faction's Hidden Rank will always remain secret.
Stat-score - A faction’s stat-score is calculated by looking at the top 80% of each faction’s members - the statistical influence of extremely high-end players is limited so they don't sway the faction's average unreasonably. Individual player stats are scored using a logarithmic calculation which takes into account that balanced stats have more value than lopsided ones. The same system is used for matchmaking players with mission targets (albeit using a square root calculation) and in this respect, it has worked quite well.
Matching Criteria
The new system matches factions using whichever of these two ranks, Hidden or Actual, is higher at the time. For example, if FLUX’s Hidden Rank is Bronze II, but their Actual Rank is Gold II, they will be treated as if they are a Gold II faction. If SA One Punch’s Hidden Rank is Gold II, but their Actual rank is Silver I, they will be treated as if they are a Gold II faction. These two sides would therefore be compatible for a match.
We have allowed for a range of one rank either side when it comes to matching two factions. So, if FLUX's Actual Rank fell to Gold I in the cited example, they would still be a candidate for matching against SA One Punch in Gold II. If FLUX's Actual Rank fell one step further to Gold, they would be two divisions away from SA One Punch's best rank, Gold II Hidden Rank, and the two sides would not, therefore, be matched.
If a faction loses a ranked war while their Actual Rank is below their Hidden Rank they won't lose a division. Bonus divisions will also be earned by victorious factions whose Actual Rank is below their Hidden Rank, as this will help reduce the number of unfair wars. We’ve implemented this safety net to help factions to match their Actual Rank and Hidden Ranks as quickly as possible, at which point divisional losses may be incurred once more.
Furthermore, we’ve removed the entry requirements for Platinum rank entirely and changed Diamond’s entry requirements to just 75 members or more. And finally, the recently fought criteria has been lowered considerably from fifteen to six, meaning that factions with few available opponents will no longer be unduly penalised.
The Reasons Why
There were two reasons why we had to change the matchmaking system from the one released initially. First, and most importantly, when we modelled the existing system into the future we found that most factions would eventually end up stuck in one division with little to no prospect of being able to move up or down the ranks after a certain point in time. This was the case even when we expanded the matchmaking ranges, or when we took a different approach and added in more complex matchmaking criteria based on faction stats.
Essentially, a faction’s progress within Ranked Warring was decided by the matchmaking criteria itself, and not by the activity and strength of its members. Those who have moved freely through the divisions under the current system may have enjoyed doing so, but eventually, this progress would have come to an abrupt halt.
The second reason we had to make changes was that factions at the very top end were struggling to find matches under a purely stat-based matchmaking system. Our investigations concluded that the behavior of top factions themselves was partially the reason for this situation. When we compared the top 20 factions’ stat-score in August 2020 to today, we found that they increased on average by 13.53%, with swings of +78.7% in some factions, and -36.9% in others.
Faction mergers and the creation of subfactions have driven these changes, however, our models showed that simply asking factions to restructure or weaken - a request that feels somewhat unnatural - would do little to change their situation. Again, numerous modifications to the stat-based criteria were made to try and find a solution, and while some models did give us a small increase in top-level matches, we also saw a large increase in unfair wars, and the issue of static ranks remained a major issue later down the line.
The Middle Ground
The introduction of a matchmaking system based on Hidden Ranks and Actual Ranks solves both problems without unfairly penalising any one group. When we modelled this system over the course of 10,000 wars, we saw mostly fair fights take place along the way, with only 21.5% of ranked war losses deemed unfair - our definition of an unfair loss is where the winner was 1.5x stronger by stat-score than the loser.
This new system is also highly customisable, meaning that we can increase the number of matches at the expense of a higher percentage of unfair wars if there is a consensus among the community behind this change. Torn’s strongest factions will also enjoy additional matches if any of the following things happen:
a) More factions increase in stat-score to gain the Hidden Rank of Platinum
b) Top factions drop in stats to fall into the Hidden Rank of Gold III or lower
c) More factions gain the Actual Rank of Platinum by winning wars.
We feel that this hybrid system takes into equal consideration the concerns of those at the top of the HoF and those outside of it. Whereas the top HoF wanted purely unrestricted matches, our modelling showed that this would be highly uncompetitive, and polls like this show that the community doesn’t want such a system either.
However, it would be absurd to punish factions for being strong, so this hybrid approach to matchmaking allows us to create a warring environment that is rewarding and meritocratic for everyone, both now and well into the future.
Standardised Matchmaking
Another aspect of Ranked Warring that we’ve changed is the timing of matchmaking itself, with all enlisted factions now matched at noon 12:00 TCT every Tuesday. Ranked Wars themselves will now start between Thursday and Sunday only, with the day chosen at random and start-time based on the member activity of the two factions involved. The advantages of this change are:
One final announcement we’d like to make is that the oft-requested change to the way faction upgrades can be toggled on or off is imminent. We will be making an announcement regarding this update soon, with the hope being that ‘War Mode’ is ready before the first matchmaking session on the 19th.
Tl;dr summary:
Matchmaking is on hold and will resume on a weekly basis only from 12:00 TCT on Tuesday the 19th of April - enlistment is still possible.
All Ranked Wars will now start between Thursday and Sunday only, with the first set running from 21st-24th April.
Matchmaking is now more open and will pit you against factions within a +1/-1 range of your Hidden Rank (stat based) or your Actual Rank, whichever is higher.
Factions whose Actual Rank is lower than their Hidden Rank will gain more divisions for a win.
Platinum Rank entry requirements removed. Diamond Rank requirements are 75 members or more.
‘War Mode’ faction upgrade system coming soon.
Here is a detailed look at the changes we’re making to Ranked Warring, and the reasons why they are necessary.
Hybrid Ranks
From the 19th, ranked warring participants will be matched using a hybrid system that looks at both ranks and stats when searching for a suitable opponent. This system modelled well under testing, giving us a low number of unfair matches while creating a more dynamic ranked warring experience for everyone involved. The two main concepts behind this new system are Hidden Rank and Actual Rank.
Actual Rank - The rank a faction has achieved through participation in the Ranked Warring system. This can be improved or reduced depending on your results in Ranked Warring. Any ranks earned in Ranked Warring under the old system will not be lost and will be carried over to the new system. Your Actual Rank will always be publicly viewable by others.
Hidden Rank - This is decided for you based on how your faction’s battle stats compare with everyone else's. Hidden Ranks are calculated using the stat-score of the faction's members. This means that your Hidden Rank can change when players leave, join, or when other factions get stronger or weaker. Your faction's Hidden Rank will always remain secret.
Stat-score - A faction’s stat-score is calculated by looking at the top 80% of each faction’s members - the statistical influence of extremely high-end players is limited so they don't sway the faction's average unreasonably. Individual player stats are scored using a logarithmic calculation which takes into account that balanced stats have more value than lopsided ones. The same system is used for matchmaking players with mission targets (albeit using a square root calculation) and in this respect, it has worked quite well.
Matching Criteria
The new system matches factions using whichever of these two ranks, Hidden or Actual, is higher at the time. For example, if FLUX’s Hidden Rank is Bronze II, but their Actual Rank is Gold II, they will be treated as if they are a Gold II faction. If SA One Punch’s Hidden Rank is Gold II, but their Actual rank is Silver I, they will be treated as if they are a Gold II faction. These two sides would therefore be compatible for a match.
We have allowed for a range of one rank either side when it comes to matching two factions. So, if FLUX's Actual Rank fell to Gold I in the cited example, they would still be a candidate for matching against SA One Punch in Gold II. If FLUX's Actual Rank fell one step further to Gold, they would be two divisions away from SA One Punch's best rank, Gold II Hidden Rank, and the two sides would not, therefore, be matched.
If a faction loses a ranked war while their Actual Rank is below their Hidden Rank they won't lose a division. Bonus divisions will also be earned by victorious factions whose Actual Rank is below their Hidden Rank, as this will help reduce the number of unfair wars. We’ve implemented this safety net to help factions to match their Actual Rank and Hidden Ranks as quickly as possible, at which point divisional losses may be incurred once more.
Furthermore, we’ve removed the entry requirements for Platinum rank entirely and changed Diamond’s entry requirements to just 75 members or more. And finally, the recently fought criteria has been lowered considerably from fifteen to six, meaning that factions with few available opponents will no longer be unduly penalised.
The Reasons Why
There were two reasons why we had to change the matchmaking system from the one released initially. First, and most importantly, when we modelled the existing system into the future we found that most factions would eventually end up stuck in one division with little to no prospect of being able to move up or down the ranks after a certain point in time. This was the case even when we expanded the matchmaking ranges, or when we took a different approach and added in more complex matchmaking criteria based on faction stats.
Essentially, a faction’s progress within Ranked Warring was decided by the matchmaking criteria itself, and not by the activity and strength of its members. Those who have moved freely through the divisions under the current system may have enjoyed doing so, but eventually, this progress would have come to an abrupt halt.
The second reason we had to make changes was that factions at the very top end were struggling to find matches under a purely stat-based matchmaking system. Our investigations concluded that the behavior of top factions themselves was partially the reason for this situation. When we compared the top 20 factions’ stat-score in August 2020 to today, we found that they increased on average by 13.53%, with swings of +78.7% in some factions, and -36.9% in others.
Faction mergers and the creation of subfactions have driven these changes, however, our models showed that simply asking factions to restructure or weaken - a request that feels somewhat unnatural - would do little to change their situation. Again, numerous modifications to the stat-based criteria were made to try and find a solution, and while some models did give us a small increase in top-level matches, we also saw a large increase in unfair wars, and the issue of static ranks remained a major issue later down the line.
The Middle Ground
The introduction of a matchmaking system based on Hidden Ranks and Actual Ranks solves both problems without unfairly penalising any one group. When we modelled this system over the course of 10,000 wars, we saw mostly fair fights take place along the way, with only 21.5% of ranked war losses deemed unfair - our definition of an unfair loss is where the winner was 1.5x stronger by stat-score than the loser.
This new system is also highly customisable, meaning that we can increase the number of matches at the expense of a higher percentage of unfair wars if there is a consensus among the community behind this change. Torn’s strongest factions will also enjoy additional matches if any of the following things happen:
a) More factions increase in stat-score to gain the Hidden Rank of Platinum
b) Top factions drop in stats to fall into the Hidden Rank of Gold III or lower
c) More factions gain the Actual Rank of Platinum by winning wars.
We feel that this hybrid system takes into equal consideration the concerns of those at the top of the HoF and those outside of it. Whereas the top HoF wanted purely unrestricted matches, our modelling showed that this would be highly uncompetitive, and polls like this show that the community doesn’t want such a system either.
However, it would be absurd to punish factions for being strong, so this hybrid approach to matchmaking allows us to create a warring environment that is rewarding and meritocratic for everyone, both now and well into the future.
Standardised Matchmaking
Another aspect of Ranked Warring that we’ve changed is the timing of matchmaking itself, with all enlisted factions now matched at noon 12:00 TCT every Tuesday. Ranked Wars themselves will now start between Thursday and Sunday only, with the day chosen at random and start-time based on the member activity of the two factions involved. The advantages of this change are:
- It ensures the biggest group of candidates are enlisted at the same time for the best matching potential.
- We can guarantee a war for almost everyone, to be held within a clear window of time.
- Matchmaking day becomes an event - if you want a war, you have to enlist by midday on Tuesday.
- We can run full matchmaking simulations before real runs to confirm everything's working correctly.
- We can retire the 'Cooldown' feature as the maximum wars would be limited to one per week anyway.
One final announcement we’d like to make is that the oft-requested change to the way faction upgrades can be toggled on or off is imminent. We will be making an announcement regarding this update soon, with the hope being that ‘War Mode’ is ready before the first matchmaking session on the 19th.
Tl;dr summary:
Matchmaking is on hold and will resume on a weekly basis only from 12:00 TCT on Tuesday the 19th of April - enlistment is still possible.
All Ranked Wars will now start between Thursday and Sunday only, with the first set running from 21st-24th April.
Matchmaking is now more open and will pit you against factions within a +1/-1 range of your Hidden Rank (stat based) or your Actual Rank, whichever is higher.
Factions whose Actual Rank is lower than their Hidden Rank will gain more divisions for a win.
Platinum Rank entry requirements removed. Diamond Rank requirements are 75 members or more.
‘War Mode’ faction upgrade system coming soon.
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