How do you define player skill?

[(GigaDrillBreaker)]

The topic is as simple of a question as the title. What are the traits that make a good player good? Where is the upper limit of skill?

Note: this is not a topic on the skill level of different decks/formats. We did that a few months ago (albeit with wonderful results. We all managed to agree that Exciton was the healthiest card ever. That was cool)

[Goose]

Someone who consistently beats someone else or beats that other person more than they lose to them is a better player.  

[(GigaDrillBreaker)]

Someone who consistently beats someone else or beats that other person more than they lose to them is a better player.

The issue with this definition is that it is the result of player skill. What makes player "a" capable of consistently beating player "b"?

[вєgσттєη ιηѕαηιту]

the ability to either A - construct a better deck or B - recognize patterns faster than the opponent and build future chains of cards that the opponent will have a hard time combating. The player that activates everything instantly and leaves nothing for future combination is weaker than the plotting player with plans and goals.

[Dementuo]

Player Skill is determined by a number of things, as there are a number of things that a player can be skilled at. I feel that Yugioh has three basic skills: Deckbuilding, Game Adaptability, and Format Adaptability. Deckbuilding and Format Adaptability have a bit of overlap, but they end up being pretty different. Let's go over each one in order.

 

Deckbuilding:

This is your skill to put your deck together and make it the strongest deck it can be. When you start building a deck, you have the whole card pool at your disposal, so you need to develop your skills that let you decide what the best cards to include in your deck are. For example, you might be playing a Shaddoll deck, and you have to use your Deckbuilding skills to decide how many of each fusion monster you should run, or if you should play 2 Falco over 3.

Deckbuilding is probably the easiest skill to develop, but also the hardest skill to master. You can netdeck, and that can generally give you a good springboard from which to build your own personalized deck off of, but it can also be detrimental to your skill, as netdecking a poorer or not as good deck can lead you to make wrong choices in the future. Sometimes it can be pretty easy to tell that you should run 3 of a card like Qliphort Scout in a Qliphort deck, but it might not be easy to tell if you should play a second copy of Castel the Skyblaster over Diamond Dire Wolf, or something similar.

 

Game Adaptabillity:

This is your skill to make the correct and best plays in each game. This encompasses a lot, as it can range anywhere from knowing what backrow to set and when to set it, to knowing when to make that risky push for game. Generally, you'll develop this skill over months or even years of playing the game, and even then this skill can take a very, very long time to develop, and will never be "fully" developed. Remember that there's always something new to learn.

Game Adaptability is what most people refer to when they talk about "player skill". What you have to remember is that you might play against someone who built some fantastic and super strong deck from scratch, but they have poor player skill and are beaten very easily as a result. That player may have a good Deckbuilding and Format Adaptability skill, but have awful Game Adaptability skill.

Let me talk a little bit more about what Game Adaptability really is. In every moment of every turn of every game, there's always going to be a "Correct play" or "Best play". Sometimes there might even be multiple "Best plays", due to luck being a factor and causing two plays to be of insignificantly different or flat out same value. In a lot of instances, it's generally pretty easy to see what looks like the best play, and commonly it is the best play.

For example, activating Shaddoll Fusion while my opponent has an Xyz monster out. However, sometimes the best play might not be so obvious. One of the most common mistakes made is during the very first turn of a Shaddoll deck. A Shaddoll player might summon Mathematician and send Shaddoll Squamata to the grave. At this point, they have a choice: Send Shaddoll Beast to draw a card, or send Shaddoll Falcon to get it back, and potentially the Squamata or another monster later as well. Among many players, the general consensus is that Falcon is the correct choice here, as it gives you more board presence earlier on, when you really don't need the draws and can use Falcon to bring up monster removal in the form of Squamata. However, some players will still send Shaddoll Beast in order to get that extra card draw, because they think it's the best play. This is what Game Adaptability is at its core- making proper plays every turn to ensure you're getting maximum value out of your cards.

Of course, if you have a poorly built deck, then this skill won't help you too much for winning anyways, and it makes it difficult to judge a player's skill level.

 

Format Adaptability:

This is your skill to alter your playstyle, deck choices, card choices, and general Game Adaptability to fit with the current format. It's a very simple skill when you get down to it and isn't difficult for the average competitive player to learn. For example, in a format where almost every deck has floaters, you probably won't attack a set monster. But in a format where every monster triggers an effect on summon rather than being destroyed or flipped up, attacking a set monster doesn't seem like too bad an idea. It's really about altering a few key cards in your deck and changing up how you play in order to best combat what the current metagame consists of. During a Qliphort format, you'll run lots of backrow hate to deal with the Pendulums and the Skill Drains/Vanity's Emptinesses. During a Yang Zing format, you'll run floater hate or things like Macro Cosmos and Dimensional Fissure to stop their effects. Format Adaptability is all about using what works best against the format in order to increase your chances of winning. This often shines the most in the side deck, as many of your format specific hate options will be placed in the side deck due to those hate cards only working on one or two specific decks, and generally won't be worth enough value against many other decks to justify maining them.

 

So in all, judging a player's true skill level comes from how they deal with all aspects of the game, not just their playstyle. Both Deck build and Format-reliant choices are important when determining skill level as well.

[Toffee.]

To be fair, Dem, deck building doesn't always apply to the top meta builds. I know if was just an example, but still....

[Slinky]

The ability to construct well-made decks with minimal input from others (mainly referring to netdecking. Taking tips from others is generally allowed), as well as the ability to effectively wield the deck in the majority of situations (this applies to both casual and competitive duelists)

 

The ability to read your cards, and comprehend their uses.

 

Know the difference between overextending, and taking a risk (seriously, so many players don't know the difference)

 

Know your rulings. and don't try to dupe your opponent by using your rulings skills to mislead them

 

uh.. more will come to me. probably.

[werewolfjedi]

in the MTG scene we actually have names for people who specialize in one of these areas over others.

often times, when people win their major tournaments, they mention both the player, referred to as the "pilot" and the deck maker, generally in the statement " and the deck was crafted/brewed by." VERY rarely, is it the person who made the deck that pilots it for tournaments. often times, they don't even compete. that's why there are MTG player teams, where one player's job is to craft the best deck out of the available card pool for the deck's style, which generally falls into one of 4 styles. the control, the agro, the combo, and the midrange. and the other job is to analyze the decks they will be facing so they know what the best plays are for intended outcomes, whether that's forcing a board wipe, or finding a way to punch through for game on their preferred board setup.

I"ve found that often times, a crafter often gets attached to a specific deck pilot.

I don't know if this happens for yugioh? is it more a netdecking, or craft and pilot place, or do we get duos like that as well?

[Sunshine Jesse]

I'd say you're a good player when you know what's good, -why- it's good, and how to use it. So... I pretty much agree with a lot of what Dem said, but I don't think there are multiple best plays.

 

Innovation and originality are buzzwords and playstyle is just an excuse to be bad, except at the truly highest levels of play. If you're good, you win consistently no matter what you use or who you use it against.

 

Although there's certainly a big difference between being the good and being the best, so you can still netdeck and be a good player. Just usually not the best, unless the deck you copied is objectively optimal.

[(GigaDrillBreaker)]

some actually false stuff

Sorry, man, but strength does not equal lack of skill. As an example, shaddolls are a much more skillful deck than gustos, as is apparent by their multiple avenues of play compared to "sphreezlol". The whole "meta decks are skilless" argument is false, and, put simply, is used by players who cannot play on the same level to justify their own deck's inadequacies.

[Slinky]

Sorry, man, but strength does not equal lack of skill. As an example, shaddolls are a much more skillful deck than gustos, as is apparent by their multiple avenues of play compared to "sphreezlol". The whole "meta decks are skilless" argument is false, and, put simply, is used by players who cannot play on the same level to justify their own deck's inadequacies.

 

Qliphorts take skill?

[Maeriberii Haan]

The argument is false because it does not apply to all meta decks (or anything tbh), and even then, it -does- take skill to Qliphort, as even there will still be instances of where game adaptability skill to come into play there.

Qliphorts are linear, not skill-less(even if they arguably take less skill compared to other deck to play).

Tele-DAD would be a perfect example of why power=/= lack of skill, but I guess someone else would argue better than me about this.

[JadenxAtemYAOI]

Predicting your opponent's moves and facedowns is a key trait as well.