How to avoid smurfs?

[Basso-2139]

He’s right though. I’ve experienced the same thing–falling in rank if I ever flex to what the team “needs”. I might win THAT game but I’ll lose future games. You can just tell when the matchmaker is trying to screw you.

If I only play my mains I hover in a tight SR range as well and the games feel pretty balanced, but if I flex I start getting more of those games where I just can’t do anything. Very much forced losses.

I havent seen anything like that, I guess im just lucky or something, or that the fact that the match maker doesent work like that and when you try to find patterns you find patterns when there is none. You know, like religion and behavior stuff that we have pretty good understanding how it works?

[ŴŦĤ-1391]

I report every smurf as cheating because it is, he is carrying his friends in competitive while I’m grouped with low skill players.
Blizzard’s cares about money not gameplay first.

Keep it up. There is no way of telling if it really a smurf. It ciyld just be someone better that you. Your mentality is ruining the game along with a lot of other things.

You could get banned for false reporting. Watch out.

[Wednessday-1923]

Once you identify a smurf, add them as friend and either learn from them, or queue with them.

That is if they add you back, though.

[Dasaries-11327]

Not alot of smurffs are kind-hearted folk. The ones I come across are toxic players on their alt accounts for their own entertainment at the expense of others.

[pyah-11375]

Performance based SR goes away above 3k but MMR is still very real and matches are very much decided on MMR and how close people’s SR is to their MMR.

Don’t you remember that interview with Jeff about smurfs and how IDDQD’s smurf account’s MMR was the same as his main account

[Comixfan-6222]

@ŴŦĤ-1391

@Comixfan-6222

No, that’s not what he said at all.

Go re-read the post you’re referring to see what he actually said.

Oh really…
Someone made a thread saying basiclly the same thing you are

@Devil-26652

Isn’t being a high ranked player and playing on a new account not an unfair advantage? I mean, that players posses the game sense and mechanical skill that new players doesn’t have yet. That player would have an unfair advantage, right?

Jeff replied

@JeffreyKaplan

Starting a new account is not against the rules. Boosting or throwing is against the rules.

If you start a new account and play normally, the matchmaker determines your skill level very quickly and matches you with similar players.

There you go. Starting a new account is not against the rules. I dont know anyone that has been banned for smurfing. Throwing yes i have known people. That have been temp banned. Its easyer to get banned for bad language and harrassment than throwing.

Smurf all you want boys just dont throw.

Its actually incredibly hard to get down the bronze. I know someone who afked all comp with macros and still placed in gold. This shows how messed up the system is.

Despite the fact that the matchmaker “determines your skill very quickly”, you will still end up in matches against lower tier opponents.

Per the game’s own reporting system, anything that affords an unfair advantage is considered cheating.

A high tier player on a lower tier account has an unfair advantage, thus is cheating per the game itself.

Given Jeff’s comments, he seems unaware of what his own game is telling players. Thus, Blizzard need to act accordingly and either start enforcing that rule or change it.

[Comixfan-6222]

That may be well and good, but for every match they’re in that’s not at their actual/main rank, they have an unfair advantage over the players at those lower tiers, and according to the game’s own reporting system that’s cheating.

Individual player skill is never an unfair advantage.

It is if they’re using their higher tier skill against lower tier players.

[Joe88-11763]

He is just saying that as an excuse that there is no smurf problem when there clearly is.

[Kornmeal-1850]

Most smurfs are only one rank higher. Usually within what is allowed to be qued to your rank

[RobotWizard-116887]

Individual player skill is never an unfair advantage.

if they are playing in ranks they shouldn’t be, then yes, it is.

If a high ranking martial artist, showed up and pretended to be a newby so he could beat people in low ranks, they would be banned for tourny play SO QUICKLY they wouldn’t know what hit them.

[Kornmeal-1850]

This isn’t martial arts. As long as they aren’t throwing they aren’t actually doing anything wrong

[Comixfan-6222]

Most smurfs are only one rank higher. Usually within what is allowed to be qued to your rank

You ASSume a lot.

/20chars

[Comixfan-6222]

This isn’t martial arts. As long as they aren’t throwing they aren’t actually doing anything wrong

They are according to the in game reporting system’s definition of cheating.

[Kornmeal-1850]

I don’t assume a lot. It’s pretty well known

They are according to the in game reporting system’s definition of cheating.

They aren’t according to the lead game designer, Jeff Kaplan

[Comixfan-6222]

I don’t assume a lot. It’s pretty well known

They are according to the in game reporting system’s definition of cheating.

They aren’t according to the lead game designer, Jeff Kaplan

Again, that’s not what he said.

He said smurfs would soon get to their usual SR.

He failed to address the fact that, in every game they play until they reach that SR, they are cheating per his game’s reporting system definition of same.

[Kornmeal-1850]

they are cheating per his game’s reporting system definition of same.

It is not exicitly stated as cheating, and if it were, unranked to GM would be banned

[Comixfan-6222]

they are cheating per his game’s reporting system definition of same.

It is not exicitly stated as cheating, and if it were, unranked to GM would be banned

It clearly states that anything which affords an unfair advantage is considered cheating.

As has been explained multiple times now, a high SR player playing on a lower SR smurf account has a clear unfair advantage over players actually at those lower SRs, thus they are cheating.

[Kornmeal-1850]

It clearly states that anything which affords an unfair advantage is considered cheating.

The game sees these players as belonging in said SR, to the game, it is fair. Someone being skill full is not an unfair advantage in this game in any situation. If it needed to be addressed, it would have been addressedd.

If it were legitamtely cheating, blizzard would be banning this accounts. You cannot call it cheating without twisting what is stated.

[Comixfan-6222]

It clearly states that anything which affords an unfair advantage is considered cheating.

The game sees these players as belonging in said SR, to the game, it is fair. Someone being skill full is not an unfair advantage in this game in any situation. If it needed to be addressed, it would have been addressedd.

If it were legitamtely cheating, blizzard would be banning this accounts. You cannot call it cheating without twisting what is stated.

It’s not fair because they’re playing on an account that’s a lower SR than what they are on their main account.

The game is unaware that they’re a higher SR player on a lower SR account because the accounts belonging to one person are not all linked (when they really should be).

No twisting necessary. Unfair advantage is unfair advantage. It’s pretty black & white.

Blizzard aren’t banning these accounts because it generates them money (at least on PC they do).

Clearly money means more to them than fair matches for their non-cheating players.

[Kornmeal-1850]

“Things that are not cheating:
Playing extremely well”
It’s funny you mention what is labeled under cheating, but specifically ignore the first thing that is stated as not cheating