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Hey, look who's back!? That's right. Why was I gone? Well, I fell out of Diamond. Matchup mechanics changed, and much of my velocity was based on my team strength. I could not stay aloft, and so I fell to Gold 2. Can't really write a column about getting to Diamond if I can't get there myself...

This is why I continue to play SGM; you guys are awesome!

There are no modifiers. There is nothing to support or extend the defenders innate capabilities, so there is no real challenge. Rifts can still surprise with catalysts, but I also agree that Rift AI feels sharper than duel AI.

If I had a goal in this conversation, Liam, it is this: I need you to see that, by restricting matchups using “team strength” you have effectively created a shadow tier system from which it is impossible to break free. This creates the perverse incentive to avoid improving your team strength at...

One can even keep "Team Strength" as a factor, but only assert team strength for matches below your rank. I would be OK if I could only fight the biggest Gold 2 teams, but there is simply no reason I should not be able to match up against a D3 with a weak team strength. If they are above me in...

The very moment I can bear playing Rifts again, I will prepare another article. I have faith that the devs do not want to alienate their most dedicated players, and just knowing that there is an issue will be sufficient impetus to enact change.

I have to agree 100% with this post. So I have been writing a series of articles titled "Getting to Diamond", in which I describe the process of improving your team and Rift map for the final push into the very highest levels of the game. I haven't posted in a while. Really, since the upgrade...

Not. Even. Close. Today, Medici FC. just now.

They just keep trying...

Its time for a special edition of GtD. The Grind: or, how I go through my Rift week. This is just a look at how I prepare for and work through a Rift battle from beginning to end. If I have time, I will give you a play-by-play review of the entire battle. I fought twice on Monday, and I present...

Ok, this is just an issue with the server reporting my rewards and not updating the client . When I restart the game, the client synths with the servers, and my rewards appear as expected. Bug is not “missing” coin, but a data synchronization problem. Thanks!

So I do not have a screenshot that can demonstrate this bug. You only have my word as a player that something happened here, and maybe you ca duplicate this bug. I completed Accursed Experiments this morning, and the full prize basket was given to me. Last night I was selling extra Filia moves...

Surgeon is the one fighter I would make exception for the "No repeat variants" rule. Once. She is great on any of the trio nodes, and she can play as a Health or as a Time variant. Truly the winner of "Best all-round variant" award.

As for specific Fighters/Nodes/Catalysts: I am waiting to see what catalysts are, what they do, and then I can start getting specific. I didn't want to go too deep on advice that will presently become obsolete.

Now this is a strategy with clear direction! Wait 15 seconds, or go without a BB finish. Sounds like you are charging your opponent on Time and Blockbuster points. If only you could guarantee the debuffs you get...

Excellent question! I try not to overburden my articles with all the detail I could add, but you are correct: I did gloss over a few resistances and elemental modifiers. Crit Resist is the most interesting of all the remaining options, mostly because it is so situational. Critical hits can...

Let's continue with our focus on Defense. We have two main defensive strategies to delve into, and before we break them down there is one important caveat that must be made clear: Health or Time. Pick *one* per node. Let me illustrate this point with my own Rift map. The first duo node to the...

Defense is a tricky thing in Rifts. Part of the problem stems for the fact that you do not (and cannot) receive feedback on the relative merits of one configuration versus another. There is no algorithm that returns a single numeric representation of your defensive velocity that updates as you...

This is a long post: maybe grab a refreshing beverage because we might be here for a while, OK? Got one? Good. I want to get back to the idea of *energy* as the theoretical measure of your Rift team capability at any moment. It's not a real number, but it is related to your real Rift score as...

Hahaha, not a chance. 11:30 AM EST