It would certainly make finding one's true ELO a lot less of a grind, as losses with an A or S rank would be much less painful, LP-wise.
Do you think the fusion of Mastery and ELO is intended, possible, or practical?
Sightless662 votesThe problem is that you'd inevitably end up with an unfair system. If your algorithm supports certain playstyles or champions over other ones (and it always will, or at least always has), then you end up giving a boost to those players even if what they're doing doesn't actually help them win more often than a lower-rated playstyle or champion.
The advantage of a win/loss system is that it's perfectly fair. If you do things that help you win more often, you will be rewarded exactly the same as someone else. If you don't, you're punished just as much as everyone else. It takes a bit longer, but it's fair.
If you can find a ranking algorithm that perfectly rates players based on their in-game actions, then using champion mastery to influence LP would be fine. Until then, it's a bad idea.
IO Tewks1 votesI'm as skeptical as you about the usefulness of a necessarily flawed ranking system, but isn't the current win/loss system flawed as well?
ELO was designed for single-player games like chess, and favors champions who can hypercarry and essentially ignore one's own team performance, which is kind of odd in a team game.
Again, agreeing with you; wondering if we can't do any better than win/loss and the immense amount of time it wastes?
Sightless661 votesELO was designed for single-player games like chess, and favors champions who can hypercarry and essentially ignore one's own team performance
That's quite a claim, and I don't think it's accurate.
I strongly disagree with the idea that the win/loss system favors hypercarry champions. This assumes that those champions win more than other champions or win more in the hands of skilled players. Neither assumption is true. Players who use team-based strategies can and do win just as much as other champions. A player who is skilled with Janna can have just as high of a winrate as a player skilled at Zed or Vayne.
The beauty of the the win/loss system is that it only cares about what is effective. If the game supports team-based strategies as a way to win, then players who use those strategies effectively will be just as rewarded as other players.
The flaw of the current system is that it measures skill slowly, but it ultimately measures it accurately and fairly. I will take that over an inaccurate system.
wondering if we can't do any better than win/loss
Theoretically yes, but not with the tools we currently have. Developing them would likely take much, much more work than it is worth.
DarkRitual2 votesAs a support main, I will steal every kill if I am not queued up with my ADC.
Do you see where this system is flawed? It promotes greed over teamwork.
IO Tewks1 votesIf the system purely measured kills, then that would be true. But you don't see supports killstealing for Mastery scores now, do you?
Sightless661 votesWell, I have personally run away from teammates who I might have been able to save because saving them would have cost my own life. Gotta get that S.
EndlessSorcerer1 votesBefore they changed how support grades were calculated, I saw quite a few doing so.
It would generally be a non-support player who wanted a chest.
DarkRitual1 votesI tend to be supportive. I will literally walk next to a 1 health enemy to give vision to my adc. I will flash in front of Cait/Jhin ults to tank the damage so they can stand there and punish them for sitting still.
Kills DO matter, but I'm not playing support because I want kills. The mlment you tie mastery score into LP gains/losses, you WILL see people killsteal for mastery scores. Me included.
ChargeItDownMid1 votes[deleted]
IO Tewks1 votesYou make very good points!
Do you think there's potential for an enhanced ELO system (a la Overwatch), or is it a total loss in League?
Aptest1 votesIt is not a good idea because your rank does not accurately measure your influence on the game's outcome.