David Rosen wrote:2) Equalizer
Yes this is the only way to level the playing field a bit. And yes as Tablar (almost) writes based on ELO rating (not BR) we could give the one with lower ELO a buff on troops and/or a boost in TP income. I'll give this some thought as well

I strongly oppose this ... people who have ALOT of traits and era's like myself but don't have pvp builds will be DRASTICALLY outmatched by someone who is even 1 or two era's behind them but a pvp build ... let alone if i get matched with an era 1 or 2 ALT that is built for low lvl pvp with 10k HP t2 basic assault ... this would hurt more than help if it's based on the ELO. ... maybe if the pvp lvls were based ONLY on research and traits and the equalizer was based on your pvp lvl i think this would help ...

but for ELO based equalizer ... i would never pvp based on what i just described. ... it's already bad enough that i'm considering starting an alt that is almost used for pvp only since i'm pretty much assured a loss from my initial elo rating placing me high enough to not be able to win unless i'm geared with ultimate charmed gear. and from what robert told me ... it's not how many wins i have anymore to let me pass 27BR since unless i have winning streaks of 15+ wins it will go up .. but who i win against that will increase that and that won't be happening any time soon.

im not so sure i like the idea of buffing people with a lower elo as towards mid era and such most of the games come down to gear and charms not so much dream lords, and if somone has spent more time in game then anouther then why shouldnt they get a avantage for it or it just makes traits entirly pointles otherwise

Developers just need to make an open version of dueling grounds, where you can see and choose your opponent. Players can fight unranked everytime, why not enable ranked challenge after all?
In chat, there is an icon for AFK. Just make a status "Ready for a fight" and then everybody who wants may challenge you on ranked combat.

The reason to have a duelling ground where you can't choose your opponent is to counteract cheating and griefing, if you can choose your opponent you would only choose opponents you think you can beat...
The idea behind the DG is sound, the problem is that there are too few PvPers for it to work as it should.

I don't see any problems with the actual way in which people are matched, what I do hate is the lack of reward for the losing person, it's not any incentive to keep on pvping.

My biggest complaint about the system is that if you want br all you have to do is be smart and dodge everyone who can beat you, currently there are more than a few players on the ladder who will avoid fighting alot of people just to protect their br. I can't complain if people don't want to fight, that is fair enough. But those people who add everyone who they can't beat to their friends list and watch who they get paired off with in DG, and just ALT F4 if they know they even have a slim chance of losing.

The chat system which shows who's only and what everyone is doing is causing this issue, but why is there a 5 second period where you can see who you have in pvp and quit without losing anything?!

If it cannot be fixed it should at least be classed as abusing the system.

It is my belief that the answer to this problem is to allow players to customize what levels they are willing to face. This way a lower new player doesn't not end up in a match with someone that is literally impossible for them to win.

This is the reason why I never use the DG system and simply have my PvP fun on the islands because whenever I tried to use the DG system I would get people 20+ levels higher than me. I will never use the DG again until this problem is addressed. The worst part is I won't get the rewards of winning at the DG which makes this even more frustrating and I can imagine many players leaving because of this.

Another solution which would force complete fairness but certainly won't be a popular one for long time players is in DG everyone is the exact same except for race. Nothing is brought into the mix no equipment, traits, or anything that gives one a advantage over another. This way the more skilled player will win the PvP not simply the player who has been playing longer. This is honestly how it should be but those who have been playing for long periods of time or have even spent real money on this game for a advantage will undoubtedly oppose it.

No I don't oppose it, I have been playing DL's since day 1.
I would RATHER it be about skill than who has more traits or tribute or whatever.
Also, this thread died awhile back but thx for putting your token in the hat.

Yeah same here, this has been brought up many times before. I definitely think PvP would be more fun for everyone and especially new players if it was fair. But that's not the case nor going to happen any time soon.

well, a system to make all players have the exact same units and research and everything in pvp was being looked into, but i dont think it was anywhere near finished, nor do i think it was meant for DG, i think it was a "just for fun" kind of idea