the State of the League Address

As we gear up for the Beta season, I’d like to give some perspective of where we will be taking the league in future seasons and how the Beta season fits into that plan.


From the Alpha Season to the Beta Season, the league has more than doubled in size. We are working toward a regular weekly schedule of casted matches on Twitch, and we continue to build a community based on a passion for a game.


Our goal with THL is to create something lasting that enriches the Hearthstone community, and we thank you for your participation in its creation.


In the next few seasons, we will introduce a “Pro” league with cash prize pools. At first, these prize pools will be funded by the participants. 100% of the prize pool collected from the players will be distributed back to the players, with winning teams winning money, middle-finishing teams breaking even, and losing teams losing their buy-in.


When the “Pro” league becomes active, we will continue to offer a completely free league for more casual player and those still working to Establish their PR. Eventually we would like to offer seasons and tournaments with prize pools that are free for all participants.


A “Pro” league will function in the same way as current season, with the same PR system and team PR cap to ensure good competitive matches for players of all levels. The only additional requirements to join a “Pro” league is to have an “Established” PR.


A player’s PR becomes Established when the player has 20 recorded matches with the league. At that point, we have enough data about your results to apply a more complex formula that will result in a more accurate PR number.


It’s very important to us to keep our unsigned players engaged while they wait for their opportunity as a sub or replacement player. Each week during the Beta season we will be hosting a mini-tournament for our unsigned free agents to participate in. This gives our unsigned players a way to work towards establishing their PR while meeting other members, practicing in the format, and getting noticed by captains.


Lastly, we had very positive feedback from our streaming of the final week the Alpha season. Streaming is fun aspect for our members to participate in and to watch, and we are working to expand the amount of streaming that happens in the Beta season. We will have a sign-up sheet coming where players can volunteer to have their league match casted, to do the casting themselves, or help with the production side of streaming.


If you think you’re the next Frodan or m1lkcast now might be your chance!


TL;DR

• Every match you play takes you one step closer to qualifying for events with cash prizes.
  
  
• 20 matches (wins or losses) are needed to earn an Established PR.
  
  
• Weekly mini-tournaments will be hosted for unsigned free-agent players.
  
  
• We’re looking for people who are interested in having their match casted, doing the casting (commentating), designing our unique stream overlay or streaming production.