If you play Axie Infinity then you must definitely know of the new changes to the SLP system where there is now a lot more emphasis on Player Versus Player (PVP) as compared to Adventure, or Player Versus Environment (PVE).
Lots of thoughts have been shared by many different people (you can check out one of the OGs, AK's thoughts on it here) but what cannot be denied is that it will definitely be good for the economy of the game in the long run, and it will also prepare existing players for Axie Infinity esports and tournaments. I mean:
https://twitter.com/AxieInfinity/status/1415677364030173185
- AxieInfinity
https://twitter.com/teamsecret/status/1410147734108229635
- teamsecret
For those who don't know, Team Secret is one of the BIGGEST names in the esports industry. This is HUGE.
https://twitter.com/AxieInfinity/status/1416590702109102081
- AxieInfinity
Do I really need to go on? Zyori (who recently joined the Sky Mavis team) also has an INCREDIBLE background and network in the esports community. I could go on...but this isn't really what I want to cover in this post.
Many people don't realize that the current PVP system has been really incredibly designed, and that the strategy involved is really so intricate. Even if you have floor Axies, with a little bit of luck from the card draw you still can have a fighting chance, even at the very top tiers (take it from Elijah, a top 10 Axie Infinity player who runs the Axie on the Moon youtube channel; everyone should subscribe, he has great PVP content).
I like to tell new people that PVP in Axie Infinity is like playing poker; there's an element of luck for sure, but there actually a whole lot of skill involved. Knowing your team, counting energy and cards while anticipating your opponent's moves (which comes with experience) can really elevate your PVP game, in the same way that a race car driver in a normal sedan will most probably perform better than an ordinary person driving an F1 racecar. Experience and knowledge matters. A lot.
What a lot of people also don't realize is this: the battle system wasn't always like this. Right now you have the chance to turn the tide in battle in every round you play; but did you know that Axie Infinity's PVP used to be an autobattler (at least for the beta version😆 )?
Gif taken from the Axie Infinity medium article which can be found here.
Check out Psycheout walking players through how to play at the time as well :D
Unfortunately I wasn't around the community at the time and so I didn't have the chance to try it out, but from what I've seen (and read of it), it was an autobattler that WAS heavily influenced by the Axie you had, and since you couldn't control it beyond the setting of your Axie's positions/skills, if you picked the wrong strategy or your Axie didn't have good enough stats, you would probably be in trouble (this is just a surface analysis as I have not had the chance to try it out, I could also be dead wrong).
Now, just take the time to stop and imagine how it would be like if we were still using this old battle system for PVP in comparison with the existing one when the current SLP changes were done.
If you're struggling in PVP, don't despair. Check out some advice from the Pros such as below (there are lots more on Youtube by the way, so be sure to check them out):
Even if you're facing the dreaded Terminator (I definitely groan when I see those guys on the opponents team) you can still win as long as you keep in mind:
- Your energy
- Your opponents energy
- Your opponents cards (SUPER overlooked tip; doesn't matter if they have tons of energy, they can't play the cards that they don't have)
- Card placement (Chill first, chomp last people! Unless they've got lots of shield and little health; then chomp first to bypass the shield😄 ).
- Never underestimate the in game crits. Prayer may help 🤣
You can also up your game by familiarizing yourself with your team, what your cards can do and also the card in the game in general using resources such as Axie World's card explorer.
If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”
― Sun Tzu, The Art of War
Its never too late to improve your performance in the arena, and even if you have floor Axies or Axies with not so great cards, just persevere and replace those Axies with better ones through your SLP earnings eventually. I know how immensely frustrating it feels to have your MMR drop and not be able to win the SLP that you may want in arena (we've all been there, trust me), but just remember that this is still in Alpha, and that Battles V2 is also coming up soon:
Ubisoft believes the new battles are a massive improvement over the current experience!
Quote taken from the February 2021 Development Update here. Yes, this is that Ubisoft, the 4.5 billion dollar gaming GIANT that is an official partner of Axie Infinity.
Stay safe, and see you all in Lunacia!