MatchMaking FAQ

MatchMaking in these ladders is probably one of the harder things to do, especially with timezone problems. I'm going to try and give guidance here for how to minimize those difficulties.

How can I communicate my available times to an opponent?

In your PROFILE, there is a place to indicate your times you MAY be available to play. Simply mark the days of the week, and select the times that you can play (by default, it chooses 6pm - 10pm). You may use MULTIPLE lines. For example, if you can play weeknights, from 6-10pm, you would check Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, and Fri, and select 6 - 10pm. The hit "Add a Line". NOW, you can also play weekends, from noon to 6pm. Check Sat & Sun, choose Noon - 6pm... and hit "add a line"... and now you have TWO lines of schedule. You may add as many lines to your schedule as you wish. Remove a line by hitting the "Delete" link to the right of a line.

But, I don't want to have to be online during ALL the times I enter!

You don't need to be. This is a list of the times you CAN BE available. It is NOT a committment on your part to be online; rather, a tool to communicate when you CAN play. You should NEVER assume that a person will be online, just because there schedule says that can play.

When should I offer times to play?

In a league match, I'd strongly recommend you do so early in the week. A new week's schedule is always put up on Saturday Morning.
In a ladder match, you should look up a player's schedule in advance of asking for the challenger, OR at the very least, when you request the challenge (through the website), list the times you can play. It's always better to look in advance, and see if you can find times that are compatible for you both.

I've challenged a player, and I never see them online!

This is classic. MANY people do not get online very often. NEVER expect to "run into" them. ALWAYS set a time to play that is good for both of you; and CONFIRM this time via emails.

We've set a time, I've been here, and they haven't shown up. Now what?

Generally, I won't wait more than about 15 minutes for a scheduled match. Remember, there are LOTS of VALID reasons for missing a play appointment. Whenever this occurs, I wait the 15 minutes, and then send a friendly email. Offer additional times. MOST of the time, it's because they had something come up; occasionally, they just forget! Don't get angry over it, just try and reschedule.

Yeah, but the match is due VERY SOON!

This is a bad situation. In a league match, under "Match Information" use the "Forfeit Request" button. The match MAY BE made up, any time up until the ultimate end date of the league, by sending an email with the League #, Game #, player's names, and score. For ladders, I have another FAQ for what to do about these situations.

My opponent has no times listed on their schedule. Now what?

Just send them the times YOU can play. Hopefully, they will find one that fits. When they logon, it will TELL them that they have no times listed, and hopefully, will realize to go into profiles to add the lines.