With Ladder Season 3 commencing on July 18th, we're going to see the highest ranked Master League players fighting for a spot in the Grand Master league before the ladders are locked.
As per season 1, once the ladders have been locked, you'll be unable to be promoted/demoted from your current league. You can still gain ranks within your division, so after 4:00PM (SGT) on July 6th, expect the top 8 ranks in each division to start getting more competitive as they battle it out to hold on to their extra-shiny medals!
Now this doesn't mean you should take a two week break from laddering, as your MMR will continue to rise and fall as normal. So you may only be a diamond league player right now, but if you win a whole bunch of games during the lock, you might find yourself promoted to the Master League after your Season 3 placement match!
For those who weren't around for the last ladder reset, this means that your hidden rating (the MMR that determines your average skill level) will not be reset. Keep this in mind when playing your (single) placement match on July 18th - don't expect an easy match!
Also keep in mind that we're going to see some new maps introduced to the pool when Season 3 goes live!
These maps don't have names yet, but these are the descriptions provided by Blizzard:
"This map features close rush distances in most start locations, and the natural expansion is fairly easy to access, due to the rock guarding a part of the choke point. This means that the map won’t be strictly about the rush."
"1v1Test2 is a symmetric map with no spawn point that is favored over the others. Without breaking the two rocks, this map is very straightforward to play, but when the paths blocked by rocks are opened up, you'd better take notice!"
"Unlike 1v1Test2, 1v1Test3 will have varying gameplay depending on where you and your opponent spawn. You’ll want to bring multiple strategies to this map, and adjust your game depending on your and your opponent’s start locations. This map also features an extremely large number of different attack paths, some of which can be opened up by breaking rocks."
"This is the macro map for Season 3. Early on, it will be possible to easily take two expansions. This, along with the long rush distances in all start locations, will most likely encourage players to go for a mid- or late-game strategy, rather than a quick, rush-based strategy."
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