Suggestion: Create a Battle Mentoring Program

I think it would be a good idea for there to be a way to match players who want to get better with people who are willing to spread their knowledge. I for one am interested in improving myself as a battler and I'm sure many others would like to do that as well. This would likely do a lot of good for the community in that it would create more good players and make things more fun for everyone.

This has been done a couple of times in the past and none of the iterations were very successful. Not to mention that there's a decline in active battlers in the forum. The closest thing we have to a battle mentoring system is the PC League, a big battling event comprised of teams whose initial aim is the betterment of their team's skill. More information in the link I've provided. Also, I think it's worth mentioning that the 2nd season of PCL is now accepting sign-ups.

It would be nice to have something like this as someone who is trying to learn the ropes of competitive battling. Also, could it not be integrated and used as needed for those who do want to use it? I don't think it hurts to have it, unless of course it's more of a lack of mentors that is the issue.

Hermione Granger said:

This has been done a couple of times in the past and none of the iterations were very successful. Not to mention that there's a decline in active battlers in the forum. The closest thing we have to a battle mentoring system is the PC League, a big battling event comprised of teams whose initial aim is the betterment of their team's skill. More information in the link I've provided. Also, I think it's worth mentioning that the 2nd season of PCL is now accepting sign-ups.

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My understanding for the PCL is that I'd need at least 100 posts on this forum to qualify. Did I misunderstand?

Also I agree that it would be a good thing to have even if it's not that active. If it's there and a few people here and there use it then I don't see the problem with that. It's not like it takes any time away from anyone or anything if it's not used much.

Lelouch84 said:

My understanding for the PCL is that I'd need at least 100 posts on this forum to qualify. Did I misunderstand?

Also I agree that it would be a good thing to have even if it's not that active. If it's there and a few people here and there use it then I don't see the problem with that. It's not like it takes any time away from anyone or anything if it's not used much.

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PCL is going to be toning down the marketing of its tutoring aspect, so that ambition won't be as present though the environment of a team tour is supposed to be conducive to becoming better at the game. But yes, you understood the restriction correctly. We had to safeguard the League against the mass of inactives who diluted it last round, I'm afraid. :(

Anyway, speaking to your suggestion, the problem here is just a lack of manpower. The idea itself is very good, but we have very few active battlers who are both available, able, and willing to participate as mentors. Without mentors, there cannot be a mentorship program. And when Zeffy speaks of past failures, that was really a lot of the problem with those past iterations (which I oversaw, being a former moderator of the battling forum)--there just weren't enough tutors. I don't think a mentorship program is feasible given the current userbase.

(That being said, I do wish that BTB had more of a "plan" for bringing new users into the community and building them up. I think what you're getting at is very valid lol. Might there be something else that you would find helpful besides a mentorship program? Perhaps beginners-focused tournaments, more resources, etc.?)

What about a beginner league that consists of short seasons? It could be like the minor leagues for the PCL. Each team could have a member of their team oversee it and they could develop their own members.

I'm hoping that our budding event scene and the soon-to-be improvements to PCL will result in a more skilled battling community. Then we'll have more people that can volunteer as mentors. We have plenty of intermediate battlers, but not many are skilled enough to teach beyond the basics. Battle mentoring is always on my mind though, and I'll consider making a new program when I have time. Ultimately it depends on if I can get some of our skilled battlers to help me tutor.

Lelouch84 said:

What about a beginner league that consists of short seasons? It could be like the minor leagues for the PCL. Each team could have a member of their team oversee it and they could develop their own members.

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This is a really cool idea. We're currently preparing other events, but I'll put this on the to-do list.

We'd have to deal with a lot of inactive members, but I doubt it'd be a big deal since it's not part of the main PCL.

Yea I feel like inactive members would be a non issue because it doesn't detract from the actual league. If each team can develop a few members I'd call that a win. This way we can both improve the quality of players here, and make the PCL better. You could even make it a requirement for people to go through this mini league before joining the PCL so you can weed out the people who will prove to be inactive.

I played in the most recent season of Pokemon Turf Wars, and I was on the winning team. Throughout the season, I got better sheerly by playing a lot. But I also plateaued. Thankfully my team has some of the best players in that game and they are really good at teaching. When you get to the point where practice no longer helps you improve, it's immensely helpful to have someone there who knows about the more advanced parts of the game and teambuilding. Without someone to teach you the nuances of battling at a high level, it can be difficult for players to figure these things out on their own.

My idea would bolster the community as a whole, the PCL, and weed out those who don't intend to be active participants all in one action. I know I'm a new member, but I'd be glad to help with any administrative tasks in the league and help set it up since as you said other things are a greater priority for staff.

If there's no tutors to do the job, why not let the tutees do it, instead? Give everyone of them their own topics they need to do research on and after they are done, they explain it to the others.

Considering that getting better takes time and dedication, no matter which way you take, the main difference lies between doing the research all by yourself and doing only part of it. Battles between tutees would also be done on a somewhat regular basis, that are meant as some sort of friendly rivalry, where the goal is to get better alongside all the others.

The issue with what you're suggesting is the exact problem that my idea solves. Anyone could give a new player a rundown of the basics, but where is anyone supposed to research this information? I'm lucky that I found some people who know about all these things and could tell me how to get to that next level. But for the most part I haven't seen anything around that could really replace having a skilled battler helping me out. And it's not as if someone who's looking to get to a higher level will know exactly what questions to ask to get a helpful response. The person they're asking would have to see them play in order to best advise them. My idea not only provides players with a chance to be seen playing and get the necessary personalized advice, but it incentives the tutors with the prospect of developing good players for their teams.