Forums

Hello everyone!
A lot has been going on with Duels behind the scenes,
and now everything is ready to be revealed!
To start: Season 0 testing will be open every day this week.
Check #events to see when the server is online. Climb the rankings today on play.stratus.network with /server Duels.
On top of that, Season 1 will be launching next Saturday (January 25th).
There are new incentives to play, many of which are active now for Season 0.
Be sure to read up about them all down below!

New Ladders ¶

NoDebuff

Defeat your opponent using only healing/support potions!

Archer

Equipped with only a bow, you must shoot your opponent to death.
Arrows do more damage the further away you are.
Be sure to make every shot count!

Custom Layouts

Custom layouts are here!
To change your layout, you must be in the lobby.
From there click on the iron helmet to select a kit to edit.
You can swap around items in any way you like.
Once you are done, simply close the inventory.
More custom slots will be available in the future.

Cosmetics ¶

Cosmetics have gotten a MASSIVE overhaul.
Plenty more have been added with fun ways to obtain them.

Tiers

There are many different tiers of cosmetics you can unlock. Here are them all:

• Common
  
• Uncommon
  
• Rare
  
• Ultra Rare
  
• Legendary
  
• Unheard
  
  • This is the rarest tier you can get from a loot box.
    You won’t know what they are unless you or someone you see uses it!
    
• Unique
  
  • These items can only be obtained through special means
    such as rank ups in ladder or Twitter competitions.
    You can’t unlock these from loot boxes.
    

Coins

A new currency has been added to Duels: Coins!
You can earn Coins by playing ranked matches and doing quests.
With those Coins, you can purchase loot boxes to obtain fancy cosmetics that apply in game!
There will be many tiers of loot boxes, so spend your Coins wisely if you want to earn the rarest cosmetics.
Ladder themed loot boxes will also be available at a higher price if you want to unlock a specific item.
During Season 0 you can earn Coins by playing matches,
but loot boxes will not be purchasable until Season 1 officially launches.
So be sure to save them up!

Types

A lot of new cosmetics will become available:
over 100 will be unlockable at launch! Here is a little taste of what there will be available.
Do note that while some cosmetics may be made of entirely different materials,
nothing gameplay related will be affected using our custom developed system.

The Crown

This is the rarest cosmetic in the entire server.
There will never be more than one in existence.
Whoever has the highest #1 Global Ladder Rating at the end of every season will inherit it from the previous owner.
It is an enchanted golden crown that is visible on every single ladder and in the lobby.
Whoever has the highest Global Ladder Rating at the end of Season 0 will be the first to obtain it!

Custom Leather Armor Colors

Both Stratus and Archer kits have a lot of leather,
so why not be stylish with some different colors?
If you’re lucky, you may even obtain awesome animated armor
that transitions smoothly between a colorful gradient!

Custom Blocks

Both Stratus and BuildUHC have many blocks including wood, cobblestone, and glass.
Change up their appearance using other similar looking blocks you can obtain in loot boxes.

Custom Potion Skins

Unlock fancy skins for your potions in NoDebuff!

Skybridge Sumo Slappers

Slap your opponents off in style with funny items!

Custom Food

Change the type of food you eat in each ladder. Hope you’re not a picky eater!

Lobby

Many fun types of armor and more will be available for you to show off while you wait for your matches. Remember that Twitter competition?

ELO Changes ¶

After much consideration,
I have changed the Rating formula for the remaining days of Season 0.
In the few tests we’ve had, a lot of matches were played.
However, nobody ever managed to get past Gold rank in any single ladder.
This is because when you lost to people who were 1000 Rating below you, you lose a lot.
To compensate, the Fair Start threshold has been changed to Obsidian Rank.
What that means is that you won’t lose as much Rating per match until you reach Obsidian.
You also don’t lose as much to people who are lower than you as before.
This should allow for many more people to get higher than previous tests.

Another big thing to note is that ELO will be reset for the remainder of Season 0.
This is because we have migrated Duels to the new API entirely,
and converting over the old data would be a tedious task.
However, the previously stated ELO changes means that it will be much easier to push than before,
so getting back your old ranks should be much easier.

Minor Changes ¶

• You can now check the leaderboard using the sign in your hotbar
  
• The in match scoreboard now tells you about your opponent
  
• /duel is reenabled
  
• Casual ladders have been disabled for now
  
• Support for a secret future addition has been added
  
• Minor improvements
  

Hope you enjoy all these changes!
Thanks for playing Stratus Duels.