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Boosting -- An issue that didn't get a fix

AuthorMessage
Ensign
May 21, 2012
37
Is there really ANY kind of intentions from Kingsisle to Fix Boosting and counter boosters for Pirate101 really? The amount of newly boosted players has increased more than ever this year and it's pretty sad and frustrating to see my matches getting dodged 10 times in a row just because someone couldn't pull their friend or other account. Anything else from KI to do to stop them (besides the 5 minutes timer punishment)? Anything like ranking them down to 0 or something or even banning them from queuing up in the Rank Matchmaking system? A huge amount of players i can name here have gotten their hands on the champion weapons that they cannot even use correctly have all of a sudden appeared out of nowhere and this needs a fix. They aren't even ashamed at all -- They do it in the Main popular realm of the game in Brawlin' Hall, Realm Avery.

Thanks.

First Mate
Dec 29, 2012
479
The issue has been and will continue to be the lack of PvP players. The more legit players in the queue counters the amount of times you get a declined match. However, due to the lack of overall content, including changes/upgrades to PvP content (same weapons, no gear, etc), the overall amount of participating PvP players remains small.

Pirate Overlord
Mar 16, 2012
10631
Smart Logan West on May 26, 2018 wrote:
Is there really ANY kind of intentions from Kingsisle to Fix Boosting and counter boosters for Pirate101 really? The amount of newly boosted players has increased more than ever this year and it's pretty sad and frustrating to see my matches getting dodged 10 times in a row just because someone couldn't pull their friend or other account. Anything else from KI to do to stop them (besides the 5 minutes timer punishment)? Anything like ranking them down to 0 or something or even banning them from queuing up in the Rank Matchmaking system? A huge amount of players i can name here have gotten their hands on the champion weapons that they cannot even use correctly have all of a sudden appeared out of nowhere and this needs a fix. They aren't even ashamed at all -- They do it in the Main popular realm of the game in Brawlin' Hall, Realm Avery.

Thanks.
Let's try to get others into this conversation, Logan. As you know, I occasionally compete in Ranked matches, and I'm very interested in what's going on in the PvP community.
So, what can KI do to discourage boosters?
The 5 minute penalty isn't enough, make it 10 minutes for the first refusal, then add 5 minutes for every refusal after - this would send a clear message that boosting isn't going to be allowed.
But on the other hand, if there were more players competing in ranked PvP, then boosters will have a harder time in finding their friend or alt. account.
How can KI encourage more interest in Rank?
One way is by spectating - letting players view matches.

Dread Pirate
May 27, 2009
2131
How exactly would you "fix" this? The population of PvP players is very small, so there isn't a huge pool to match from at all. If you inflict some sort of harsh penalty, then even fewer people would play.

New pirates find it difficult to join PvP because there is such a huge learning curve between fighting Troggies and fighting an established player.

I don't know what would be fair, which is why I almost never PvP.

Ensign
May 21, 2012
37
Willowydream on May 27, 2018 wrote:
How exactly would you "fix" this? The population of PvP players is very small, so there isn't a huge pool to match from at all. If you inflict some sort of harsh penalty, then even fewer people would play.

New pirates find it difficult to join PvP because there is such a huge learning curve between fighting Troggies and fighting an established player.

I don't know what would be fair, which is why I almost never PvP.
I agree that that the PvP Community Population is less interested in ranked, However, There's still people who still want to go all the way to Champion legit and clean. Only time where boosting is impossible and queue is stressed is Summer Season from what I noticed. So why not add a punishment where it takes 5 to 10 points from the person who dodges/declines their match? If that method was implemented already like many requested before it'd have stopped the Boosting scenario. It'd have removed 100 rank points from the player who declined my matches 10 times in a row already and got him to think twice before declining. It'd force them to accept the match because of course all what the booster wants is to keep their rank raising. If this method gets added they'll have to accept. At least accept some matches. of course they won't accept all the matches but they'd only dodge 1 or 2 matches and confirm their opponent for the rest instead of dodging ALL of their opponents just because they failed to pull their friend/Secondary Account. Increasing the timer +10 Minutes also per dodged match to make it a 20 minutes wait and 30 minutes wait and so would also be a nice way to make the boosters quit and play fairly. There's many ways to fix this.

Ensign
May 21, 2012
37
Willowydream on May 27, 2018 wrote:
How exactly would you "fix" this? The population of PvP players is very small, so there isn't a huge pool to match from at all. If you inflict some sort of harsh penalty, then even fewer people would play.

New pirates find it difficult to join PvP because there is such a huge learning curve between fighting Troggies and fighting an established player.

I don't know what would be fair, which is why I almost never PvP.
Continued.

Enabling spectating in Ranked would also tone down boosting. Since the boosters will HAVE to make this legit or they'll be exposed in front of everyone easily. We've been asking for spectating system now for 3 years. Removing Royale also helps boosting to stop. Instead implement 2v2, 3v3 and 4v4 systems (After they fix the 4v4 fort glitch first). It isn't that hard but only if Kingsisle is really willing to add these simple solutions out.

Pirate Overlord
Mar 16, 2012
10631
Willowydream on May 27, 2018 wrote:
How exactly would you "fix" this? The population of PvP players is very small, so there isn't a huge pool to match from at all. If you inflict some sort of harsh penalty, then even fewer people would play.

New pirates find it difficult to join PvP because there is such a huge learning curve between fighting Troggies and fighting an established player.

I don't know what would be fair, which is why I almost never PvP.
If you could watch a match from a good vantage point, do you think it would encourage you to try?

Dread Pirate
May 27, 2009
2131
anecorbie on May 28, 2018 wrote:
If you could watch a match from a good vantage point, do you think it would encourage you to try?
I don't know - it might, but how long is a typical match? My own are pretty quick because I tend to die quite easily.

I wouldn't spend an hour watching other players fight when I could be questing or farming for my own characters.


Pirate Overlord
Mar 16, 2012
10631
Smart Logan West on May 27, 2018 wrote:
Continued.

Enabling spectating in Ranked would also tone down boosting. Since the boosters will HAVE to make this legit or they'll be exposed in front of everyone easily. We've been asking for spectating system now for 3 years. Removing Royale also helps boosting to stop. Instead implement 2v2, 3v3 and 4v4 systems (After they fix the 4v4 fort glitch first). It isn't that hard but only if Kingsisle is really willing to add these simple solutions out.
I'm not sure that docking points is a good idea. What if an opponent has a good reason for declining a match? For example he/she has already fought the opponent 3-4 times in a row - wouldn't that be a good reason to decline ( whether he/she had lost or won those matches is beside the point. ) fighting someone over and over is boring and if the opponent is unpleasant to compete against, it could be annoying.
A stricter timer punishment may be in order.
Royale is fun, perhaps it should be taken from the way of gaining ranks though.

Captain
Jun 10, 2013
729
Smart Logan West on May 27, 2018 wrote:
I agree that that the PvP Community Population is less interested in ranked, However, There's still people who still want to go all the way to Champion legit and clean. Only time where boosting is impossible and queue is stressed is Summer Season from what I noticed. So why not add a punishment where it takes 5 to 10 points from the person who dodges/declines their match? If that method was implemented already like many requested before it'd have stopped the Boosting scenario. It'd have removed 100 rank points from the player who declined my matches 10 times in a row already and got him to think twice before declining. It'd force them to accept the match because of course all what the booster wants is to keep their rank raising. If this method gets added they'll have to accept. At least accept some matches. of course they won't accept all the matches but they'd only dodge 1 or 2 matches and confirm their opponent for the rest instead of dodging ALL of their opponents just because they failed to pull their friend/Secondary Account. Increasing the timer +10 Minutes also per dodged match to make it a 20 minutes wait and 30 minutes wait and so would also be a nice way to make the boosters quit and play fairly. There's many ways to fix this.
What if the person helping boost was the only person currently in the PVP queue, how could it take away points if that was the only match available?

First Mate
Dec 29, 2012
479
Smart Logan West on May 27, 2018 wrote:
I agree that that the PvP Community Population is less interested in ranked, However, There's still people who still want to go all the way to Champion legit and clean. Only time where boosting is impossible and queue is stressed is Summer Season from what I noticed. So why not add a punishment where it takes 5 to 10 points from the person who dodges/declines their match? If that method was implemented already like many requested before it'd have stopped the Boosting scenario. It'd have removed 100 rank points from the player who declined my matches 10 times in a row already and got him to think twice before declining. It'd force them to accept the match because of course all what the booster wants is to keep their rank raising. If this method gets added they'll have to accept. At least accept some matches. of course they won't accept all the matches but they'd only dodge 1 or 2 matches and confirm their opponent for the rest instead of dodging ALL of their opponents just because they failed to pull their friend/Secondary Account. Increasing the timer +10 Minutes also per dodged match to make it a 20 minutes wait and 30 minutes wait and so would also be a nice way to make the boosters quit and play fairly. There's many ways to fix this.
Here's the deal with punishing boosters with your idea....it may not fix the issue.

Clearly, those players do not want to compete the correct way, but you assume if a punishment was put into place boosters would all of suddenly start playing fairly. If they were punished, or were discouraged, they would probably stop entering ranked PvP matches entirely. Yes, that would lessen your headaches of "false matches", but you still aren't getting any more matches in a "legit and clean" way. You are still going to match up with the same people as before, because the boosters are not likely going to suddenly want to compete the correct way. Pirate101 needs participation by additional legit players in ranked PvP (which needs hype/advertisement/etc), not by trying to convert boosters into legit players.

The other issue with your idea is that the option to decline a match is there for a reason. I use it all the time. If it takes an unusually long time to find a match for me, I automatically decline it when it comes up. Why? I know I'm getting a mismatch. One of us is either higher level or higher rank than the other person. I do the same thing in Wizard101, since it is notorious for matching Privates with Warlords after unusually long queues. The faster you get a match, the more evenly the level/rank is.

The five min "cooldown" currently in place is ample time to get rematched with a legit player....however, there aren't any legit players entering within those five mins. Hence, the fix isn't to waste time/resources on coding to punish, but rather coding to attract additional legit players.

Ensign
May 21, 2012
37
Oran from Urz on May 29, 2018 wrote:
Here's the deal with punishing boosters with your idea....it may not fix the issue.

Clearly, those players do not want to compete the correct way, but you assume if a punishment was put into place boosters would all of suddenly start playing fairly. If they were punished, or were discouraged, they would probably stop entering ranked PvP matches entirely. Yes, that would lessen your headaches of "false matches", but you still aren't getting any more matches in a "legit and clean" way. You are still going to match up with the same people as before, because the boosters are not likely going to suddenly want to compete the correct way. Pirate101 needs participation by additional legit players in ranked PvP (which needs hype/advertisement/etc), not by trying to convert boosters into legit players.

The other issue with your idea is that the option to decline a match is there for a reason. I use it all the time. If it takes an unusually long time to find a match for me, I automatically decline it when it comes up. Why? I know I'm getting a mismatch. One of us is either higher level or higher rank than the other person. I do the same thing in Wizard101, since it is notorious for matching Privates with Warlords after unusually long queues. The faster you get a match, the more evenly the level/rank is.

The five min "cooldown" currently in place is ample time to get rematched with a legit player....however, there aren't any legit players entering within those five mins. Hence, the fix isn't to waste time/resources on coding to punish, but rather coding to attract additional legit players.
You misunderstood my point, Here's how it works:

  • You enter queue for your match
  • You wait until an opponent joins
  • Once an opponent is found you'll have either to accept to teleport or decline
  • If you decline your match the 5 - 10 penalty rank points will occur. It'll not occur when you cancel your match after taking long time in finding an opponent with no luck. that'd shatter rank everytime I have to go to get ready to do something irl or even to play another game.

I never said my Fixes will get Boosting to be stopped 100% or that'll get them to play legit. But it'll tone things down a bit. Also, I'm sure we do need more legit players; But we do already have some legit players that are still playing. I've been in the PvP Community now for 4 years and I tell you, We need more players but definitely there's dozens playing legit . You won't be also matching the same player more than 3 times from how the queue works. And if the Ranking penalty isn't fine from what I've seen from the other people's feedback in this thread, I think the longer Timer Penalty should fit great then.

"but you assume if a punishment was put into place boosters would all of suddenly start playing fairly. If they were punished, or were discouraged, they would probably stop entering ranked PvP matches entirely. Yes, that would lessen your headaches of "false matches", but you still aren't getting any more matches in a "legit and clean" way."

If that'll make it frustrating to boosters to the point they'll legit quit and leave, I don't mind it. Purpose is still fulfilled. Keeping them away from obtaining an overpowered weapon in PvP lol. It'll give opportunity to players that are willing to rank legit to try the Ranked System out.

@Anercorbie -- fighting someone over and over is boring and if the opponent is unpleasant to compete against, it could be annoying.

That's one of the purposes of ranked. If you cannot beat someone in a match, You try again, Improve strategies and work on beating them.

Pirate Overlord
Mar 16, 2012
10631
Oran from Urz on May 29, 2018 wrote:
Here's the deal with punishing boosters with your idea....it may not fix the issue.

Clearly, those players do not want to compete the correct way, but you assume if a punishment was put into place boosters would all of suddenly start playing fairly. If they were punished, or were discouraged, they would probably stop entering ranked PvP matches entirely. Yes, that would lessen your headaches of "false matches", but you still aren't getting any more matches in a "legit and clean" way. You are still going to match up with the same people as before, because the boosters are not likely going to suddenly want to compete the correct way. Pirate101 needs participation by additional legit players in ranked PvP (which needs hype/advertisement/etc), not by trying to convert boosters into legit players.

The other issue with your idea is that the option to decline a match is there for a reason. I use it all the time. If it takes an unusually long time to find a match for me, I automatically decline it when it comes up. Why? I know I'm getting a mismatch. One of us is either higher level or higher rank than the other person. I do the same thing in Wizard101, since it is notorious for matching Privates with Warlords after unusually long queues. The faster you get a match, the more evenly the level/rank is.

The five min "cooldown" currently in place is ample time to get rematched with a legit player....however, there aren't any legit players entering within those five mins. Hence, the fix isn't to waste time/resources on coding to punish, but rather coding to attract additional legit players.
A better idea.

Pirate Overlord
Mar 16, 2012
10631
Smart Logan West on May 29, 2018 wrote:
You misunderstood my point, Here's how it works:

  • You enter queue for your match
  • You wait until an opponent joins
  • Once an opponent is found you'll have either to accept to teleport or decline
  • If you decline your match the 5 - 10 penalty rank points will occur. It'll not occur when you cancel your match after taking long time in finding an opponent with no luck. that'd shatter rank everytime I have to go to get ready to do something irl or even to play another game.

I never said my Fixes will get Boosting to be stopped 100% or that'll get them to play legit. But it'll tone things down a bit. Also, I'm sure we do need more legit players; But we do already have some legit players that are still playing. I've been in the PvP Community now for 4 years and I tell you, We need more players but definitely there's dozens playing legit . You won't be also matching the same player more than 3 times from how the queue works. And if the Ranking penalty isn't fine from what I've seen from the other people's feedback in this thread, I think the longer Timer Penalty should fit great then.

"but you assume if a punishment was put into place boosters would all of suddenly start playing fairly. If they were punished, or were discouraged, they would probably stop entering ranked PvP matches entirely. Yes, that would lessen your headaches of "false matches", but you still aren't getting any more matches in a "legit and clean" way."

If that'll make it frustrating to boosters to the point they'll legit quit and leave, I don't mind it. Purpose is still fulfilled. Keeping them away from obtaining an overpowered weapon in PvP lol. It'll give opportunity to players that are willing to rank legit to try the Ranked System out.

@Anercorbie -- fighting someone over and over is boring and if the opponent is unpleasant to compete against, it could be annoying.

That's one of the purposes of ranked. If you cannot beat someone in a match, You try again, Improve strategies and work on beating them.
Didn't I also say that winning or losing is beside the point? Fighting one person over and over is boring. And why should I subject myself to taunts or temper tantrums from poor sports?
If you continually win against one player, you run the risk of falling into a pattern, a fresh match is better.

Ensign
Dec 21, 2008
8
I may not ever agree in this thing people call "boosting" but let's get things straight

"boosting" is and will always be a legit way to rank up just like on wizard101 as it also ranks down people helping

The reason people do boosts as we all know is to get pvp gear, not to run around being forced to fight people who actually pvp for a hobby

And any nerf or attempt to stop boosting will only decrease the population of the game (or at least pvp)

so trying to force players to fight people that they would rather not fight is probably something Kingsisle does not want to do
(and may even lead to many matches being fled which then makes you the boosted {irony})

Instead why not just allow another way to receive pvp items and gear (weapons, Mounts, and other PvE useable items)
and just add a leaderboard so that there is still a reason for people to still do rank pvp and prove their skills.

Community Leader
Kevin BoomCaster on Jun 3, 2018 wrote:
I may not ever agree in this thing people call "boosting" but let's get things straight

"boosting" is and will always be a legit way to rank up just like on wizard101 as it also ranks down people helping

The reason people do boosts as we all know is to get pvp gear, not to run around being forced to fight people who actually pvp for a hobby

And any nerf or attempt to stop boosting will only decrease the population of the game (or at least pvp)

so trying to force players to fight people that they would rather not fight is probably something Kingsisle does not want to do
(and may even lead to many matches being fled which then makes you the boosted {irony})

Instead why not just allow another way to receive pvp items and gear (weapons, Mounts, and other PvE useable items)
and just add a leaderboard so that there is still a reason for people to still do rank pvp and prove their skills.
*facepalming intensifies*

No, boosting is not, and never will be a "legitimate" method of gaining rank. The intent of pvp is to create a competitive environment where wins are rewarded and losses are punished. Boosting removes any chance of said booster losing a match. They get all the rewards of pvp (pets, weapons, etc) without any of the associated risks (losing rank). PvP rewards are meant to be rewards for the most skillful of players and a way of "compensating" them for their successes in the arena. That person who spends an hour or two queueing in royale to get to 400 rank does not deserve such rewards.

You are correct, people boost to get the champion weapon, but I ask you this: Why should illegitimate players receive these weapons for doing nothing (as opposed to legit players who spent weeks or months ranking to earn them)? It's not like champion weapons are unparalleled in their power, removing any argument that they are "essential". Dreadnaught, Ashes of the Armada, and Moo Tower weapons are equally viable.

I disagree with your claim about boosting decreasing the population of pvp community. It may be true, but I don't think that's a bad thing. Some of these illegitimate players have no intention of ever queueing; some do. I don't care if those that would never queue up for ranked leave the community, good riddance. Those that do will just have to go through the learning curve like everyone else. Sorry, I'm not sympathetic to it being "too hard" for them to win without them.

As for "forcing" people to fight opponents they don't want to? No one is making them pvp. They don't like the competition, they can leave. They shouldn't be able to gain the rewards without working for them. And if they do queue and flee, it doesn't make otherwise legit people boosted. Being boosted implies intent. I did not intentionally join queue in order to get someone that would just flee, the booster did intend to receive illegitimate help.

(Continued in next post)

Writer, Editor, Administrator, and Pirate PvP guy at FinalBastion

Check us out for all things Pirate101 and Wizard101 PvE/PvP

Community Leader
Kevin BoomCaster on Jun 3, 2018 wrote:
I may not ever agree in this thing people call "boosting" but let's get things straight

"boosting" is and will always be a legit way to rank up just like on wizard101 as it also ranks down people helping

The reason people do boosts as we all know is to get pvp gear, not to run around being forced to fight people who actually pvp for a hobby

And any nerf or attempt to stop boosting will only decrease the population of the game (or at least pvp)

so trying to force players to fight people that they would rather not fight is probably something Kingsisle does not want to do
(and may even lead to many matches being fled which then makes you the boosted {irony})

Instead why not just allow another way to receive pvp items and gear (weapons, Mounts, and other PvE useable items)
and just add a leaderboard so that there is still a reason for people to still do rank pvp and prove their skills.
I think that is a way to receive items similar to the pvp items currently. PvE bosses drop mounts that have the same 40% speed boost as the gorilla mounts. Ashes of the Armada pack and Dreadnaught weapons are more than satisfactory choices of weapons. In some cases, they are better than their champion weapon counterparts. There are pets every season that have similar talents to the pvp pets, but have no rank requirement (they do cost 500 scrip). Sure, these aforementioned items are not the exact same as the pvp items, but they shouldn't be. There should be an in game benefit to being successful in pvp that is not just your name on a leaderboard (which I 100% agree should be in the game, along with spectating).

Writer, Editor, Administrator, and Pirate PvP guy at FinalBastion

Check us out for all things Pirate101 and Wizard101 PvE/PvP

Pirate Overlord
Mar 16, 2012
10631
Kevin BoomCaster on Jun 3, 2018 wrote:
I may not ever agree in this thing people call "boosting" but let's get things straight

"boosting" is and will always be a legit way to rank up just like on wizard101 as it also ranks down people helping

The reason people do boosts as we all know is to get pvp gear, not to run around being forced to fight people who actually pvp for a hobby

And any nerf or attempt to stop boosting will only decrease the population of the game (or at least pvp)

so trying to force players to fight people that they would rather not fight is probably something Kingsisle does not want to do
(and may even lead to many matches being fled which then makes you the boosted {irony})

Instead why not just allow another way to receive pvp items and gear (weapons, Mounts, and other PvE useable items)
and just add a leaderboard so that there is still a reason for people to still do rank pvp and prove their skills.
Players who boost in pvp to get the gear, mounts or pets are cheating; there is nothing "legit" about it. PvP stands for Player vs, Player, not Player vs Themselves. If those who boost are too lazy or inept to fight another player, then they don't deserve the gear by boosting.
If deterring boosting by adding to the timer will reduce the PvP population, so be it, who wants a bunch of cheaters who refuse to really fight anyway?
That gear is a reward for reaching Champion Rank and should only be for those who gain that rank by fighting.

Ensign
May 21, 2012
37
Kevin BoomCaster on Jun 3, 2018 wrote:
I may not ever agree in this thing people call "boosting" but let's get things straight

"boosting" is and will always be a legit way to rank up just like on wizard101 as it also ranks down people helping

The reason people do boosts as we all know is to get pvp gear, not to run around being forced to fight people who actually pvp for a hobby

And any nerf or attempt to stop boosting will only decrease the population of the game (or at least pvp)

so trying to force players to fight people that they would rather not fight is probably something Kingsisle does not want to do
(and may even lead to many matches being fled which then makes you the boosted {irony})

Instead why not just allow another way to receive pvp items and gear (weapons, Mounts, and other PvE useable items)
and just add a leaderboard so that there is still a reason for people to still do rank pvp and prove their skills.
Excuse me, What??

Boosting was and will never be considered legit. Boosting is a cheap way to get to champion without ANY kind of efforts to fight real opponents or hard work. How is it legit when someone that doesn't PvP at all or has any kind of experience in PvP to boost and obtain the Champion Weapons which they don't deserve at all and someone else is competitve and climbing the champion ladder all legit with wins and losses to get to champion and obtain the weapons? How's that fair? I don't think so. Boosting WILL NEVER be legit or fair.

If you don't want to be forced to fight people in ranked then don't do ranked. Like Matthew said. and Like i said. Ranked is a side activity. But boosting to champ? No.

Kingsisle has started to pay attention to boosting in Wizard. Which they are also against. And hopefully they will in Pirate.

Captain
Jun 10, 2013
729
RRRRZZZZ419 on May 28, 2018 wrote:
What if the person helping boost was the only person currently in the PVP queue, how could it take away points if that was the only match available?
Perhaps the solution to boosting is a selectable opponent list. This would at least fix the issue of people wanting a real match. Lets say when you go to do a ranked PVP match it gives you 3 possible opponents and you select the one you want. This list WOULD NOT have the pirates name or rank on it so you don't fully know who you would be fighting, the list WOULD have the pirates class and level. This should fix the issue of a max level unfairly fighting a low level.

OK, so what about the issue of an opponent selecting someone else when you select them? Yes, that would be the problem with this idea, but I think the solution would be to either "ask" for a random ranked PVP match, or to "join" 1 of 3 matches on the list.

I am curious about what Anecorbie, Matthew5250, and Smart Logan West think about this possible solution.

Pirate Overlord
Mar 16, 2012
10631
RRRRZZZZ419 on Jun 3, 2018 wrote:
Perhaps the solution to boosting is a selectable opponent list. This would at least fix the issue of people wanting a real match. Lets say when you go to do a ranked PVP match it gives you 3 possible opponents and you select the one you want. This list WOULD NOT have the pirates name or rank on it so you don't fully know who you would be fighting, the list WOULD have the pirates class and level. This should fix the issue of a max level unfairly fighting a low level.

OK, so what about the issue of an opponent selecting someone else when you select them? Yes, that would be the problem with this idea, but I think the solution would be to either "ask" for a random ranked PVP match, or to "join" 1 of 3 matches on the list.

I am curious about what Anecorbie, Matthew5250, and Smart Logan West think about this possible solution.
First you're assuming that a max level would never fight a lower leveled player - yet if boosting is stopped what's to stop boosters from selecting a match with a lower level?
Not having the name is an excellent idea, this would prevent a player from avoiding the known champions so they can look for an "easier" match. But I am also concerned that class may be a factor of choice and that certain classes wouldn't be chosen. I would be tempted to avoid matches with Privateers, for example. It would also cause players to adjust their gear and companions if you are going into a match knowing what you'll be facing. Part of the excitement of a match is the surprise of what you are matched with.

As to coding this choice, it might be do-able, if KI were able to make sure that level of pirate ( or rank ) is one of the criteria of choice.

Community Leader
RRRRZZZZ419 on Jun 3, 2018 wrote:
Perhaps the solution to boosting is a selectable opponent list. This would at least fix the issue of people wanting a real match. Lets say when you go to do a ranked PVP match it gives you 3 possible opponents and you select the one you want. This list WOULD NOT have the pirates name or rank on it so you don't fully know who you would be fighting, the list WOULD have the pirates class and level. This should fix the issue of a max level unfairly fighting a low level.

OK, so what about the issue of an opponent selecting someone else when you select them? Yes, that would be the problem with this idea, but I think the solution would be to either "ask" for a random ranked PVP match, or to "join" 1 of 3 matches on the list.

I am curious about what Anecorbie, Matthew5250, and Smart Logan West think about this possible solution.
Bad idea. The "problem" of a max fighting a low level doesn't generally exist, and when it rarely happens, it's due to a bug (interestingly enough, the bug is caused by someone else dodging you). Also, there are certain matchups that are infinitely more favorable for certain classes (ex, a witch is at a major disadvantage vs. buck for reasons that are self evident). Being able to intentionally pick favorable matchups and avoid bad ones is not something that sits well with me. In addition, wiz did something similar where a player's level and rank would be shown in the queue. People at high ranks would memorize common opponent's ranks and know when to set for certain opponents. Something similar would occur in pirate if your solution was to be implemented. If I saw, say, a max witchdoctor in Queue at 10:00 Eastern, I'd know that it was Quentin and could plan accordingly

Writer, Editor, Administrator, and Pirate PvP guy at FinalBastion

Check us out for all things Pirate101 and Wizard101 PvE/PvP

Ensign
Dec 21, 2008
8
So I went to the wizard101 forums to see what they say about boosting and saw a post that reads:

"Brynn SilverHeartFeb 08, 2016

Boosting in PVP
I recently wrote Kings Isle asking them if boosting is a form of cheating in PVP. It is frowned upon amongst PVP players, that actually fight legit battles to win their rank. I feel it makes the Leader Boards obsolete. All the top spots are taken up by boosters. I am disheartened by their response. What are your thoughts on boosting in PVP? Kings Isle gave me this response:

Hello!

The method you refer to is a legal PvP tactic and is not cheating. Thus, it is not a reason for sanction. Please don't report these players, as they've done nothing wrong.

Regards,
KingsIsle Support

PS: Check out the big book of everything Wizard101!
www.wizard101.com/guide"

and I would assume the same rule applies for pirate101 in terms of PvP tactics

Captain
Jun 10, 2013
729
anecorbie on Jun 4, 2018 wrote:
First you're assuming that a max level would never fight a lower leveled player - yet if boosting is stopped what's to stop boosters from selecting a match with a lower level?
Not having the name is an excellent idea, this would prevent a player from avoiding the known champions so they can look for an "easier" match. But I am also concerned that class may be a factor of choice and that certain classes wouldn't be chosen. I would be tempted to avoid matches with Privateers, for example. It would also cause players to adjust their gear and companions if you are going into a match knowing what you'll be facing. Part of the excitement of a match is the surprise of what you are matched with.

As to coding this choice, it might be do-able, if KI were able to make sure that level of pirate ( or rank ) is one of the criteria of choice.
Does each class of pros and cons? If you find that answer to be yes, than most likely all classes would have an equal chance of being chosen? A swashbuckler might not want to fight a Privateer, but a Musketeer might for example. Therefore the privateer would still get chosen. One other thing to remember is my idea calls for specifically 3 opponents to choose from. Because there are 5 classes of pirates that means there would always be at least 2 classes not able to be chosen, so your favorite class to fight would always have an at least 40% chance of not being on the list of choices. There would also be the possibility that all 3 of your choices would be the same class, and if that was the case you could be forced to fight your least class (in your case Privateer), or wait 10 minutes and try again.

Now to answer your next concern. Under my idea, I don't think it would be possible to adjust your companions on the fly. You and your opponent, even knowing each other's class, would still have only a 60 second window occurring at the same time to select companions, and most companions have a Crown Shop version or counterpart. Because that is the case, neither you or your opponent could adjust companions on the fly. As for gear, because you wouldn't know the name of your opponent until the match began, you wouldn't be able to plan for what gear they might have.

I hope that addresses some of your concerns with my idea.

Captain
Jun 10, 2013
729
Matthew525011 on Jun 4, 2018 wrote:
Bad idea. The "problem" of a max fighting a low level doesn't generally exist, and when it rarely happens, it's due to a bug (interestingly enough, the bug is caused by someone else dodging you). Also, there are certain matchups that are infinitely more favorable for certain classes (ex, a witch is at a major disadvantage vs. buck for reasons that are self evident). Being able to intentionally pick favorable matchups and avoid bad ones is not something that sits well with me. In addition, wiz did something similar where a player's level and rank would be shown in the queue. People at high ranks would memorize common opponent's ranks and know when to set for certain opponents. Something similar would occur in pirate if your solution was to be implemented. If I saw, say, a max witchdoctor in Queue at 10:00 Eastern, I'd know that it was Quentin and could plan accordingly
I already replied to Anecorbie but I also want to reply to you because you have some specific concerns as well.

As I stated in my reply to Anecorbie, you would not fully be able to "intentionally" pick certain opponents and "intentionally" avoid certain others. As I previously stated, under my idea you would only have 3 choices for opponents and there are 5 different classes of pirates. That means you would never have a full choice as to what class you fought. You would either have to select 1 of the 3 choices that appeared or wait 10 minutes and try again. There would also be the chance at all 3 of your choices at any given time could be the same class of pirate, as you wouldn't know the name until your match started you would have no way of knowing who your opponent was. Under your example what if at 10:00 eastern you went to do a ranked PVP match and all 3 choices that came up were Level 70 Witchdoctors, how would you know which 1 of the 3 was Quentin?