Registration
Simple. Post a reply in the Registration sticky topic and in the leagues Announcement. Submit the name you'd like to appear.

We'll issue you a URL to the image of your rating card that is adjustable from SCD's FTP server. Your initial rating will be 1500. When your rating is changed, one of us will download the file from FTP, adjust your rating, and reupload it under the same filename.

If a player tries to cheat by creating their own ratings card, their image URL won't have "soniccagedome.com" in it. So, if you see a suspicious card, check the URL. If it's not from the SCD FTP, that user's real rating card will be edited with a large "EGGHAMMERBANNED" mark on it, and that user will be banned from competition or even all of SCD.

Playing a Rated Match

The matches will be scheduled after all users have been registered in the site. After this, if the player does not appear when the match is to be played, that player will have a loss in his/her count.

Editing Ratings
Editing ratings is super easy and secure, and nothing has to be done by the player once they have their ratings card linked in their sig. When the ratings file is edited at the FTP, it automatically changes the file without changing its url, so your issued url links to the new card! So, players don't have to do anything but sit back and relax once they post their results.

For staff: To edit a ratings card, go onto the SCD FTP and download the card(s) that need changing. Open that file, and simply edit the number in the lower right! Save the .png file and reupload it. Keep it in .png format for easy editing.

When a rating is edited and the new rating puts the player at a new color rank, the color of the numbers changes appropriately. See my explanation of color ranks for more detail on when to change color.

Color Ranks

Initial rating 1500.

The amount of points gained/lost at endgame is purely based on how the opponent is ranked and has no bearing on your current rating.

The philosophy towards this approach: points become less valuable as you gain rank because it takes more points to get to each next rank. As you gain in rank, losing matches costs you more points. Only skilled players will be able to reach the top and stay there.

Another beauty which I will explain in detail later: this method makes computing rank gain in a four-player match amazingly simple!

Classification of Ranks:

Beating a beginner-level (0-1500) player is worth 10.

Beating an intermediate-level (1501-1600) player is worth 20.

Beating an advanced-level (1601-1750) player is worth 30.

Beating an expert-level (1751-2000) player is worth 40.

Beating an elite-level (2001+) player is worth 50.

Computing a Two-Player Matchup:
Simple: Observe the losing player's color rank. Subtract the corresponding points on the chart from that player and add them to the winner's rating. For example, if the losing players rank is Beginner, subtract 10 points from him and add ten to the winner.

Computing a Four-Player Matchup
The winner gains points equal to the total correspondence of everyone elses' ranks. For example, if a player beats a beginner, an intermediate, and an advanced player, the winner would gain 10 for the beginner, 20 for the intermediate, and 30 for the advanced, totaling a gain of 60.

Each loser loses points equal to the amount they contributed to the winner gaining. For example, in that same game, the beginner loses 10 points, the intermediate player loses 20, and the advanced player loses 30.

Some Neat Properties with the Formulas
No points are "generated" into the community like the SRA system does. Here, the only points generated are the 1500 given to each registering player. The more players there are, the more the points exchanging hands. The only way to gain points is to snatch them from another player by defeat.