jiminski wrote:Well i lost 1000 points playing random Esc. 8 and 6 man games just recently, so of course i agree; games choice is vital.

(It is cathartic to share!)
Having played many times with 8 of the top 10, i will say that they are exceptional players and their level of skill and knowledge can not be compared with anyone but the top 1% on the scoreboard. (that may be stretching it)
Some of the 10 have a genius for a certain game types which is incomparable to almost anyone outside the top 10-20. Some use methods to protect and lessen the impact of point handicapping.
But they are all exceptional.. have no doubt about that.
True stuff here. This topic has been discussed before but there's certainly a discernible strata of skill levels. With the notable exceptions of people who get bad stretches of luck or (more likely) are addicted to trolling for singles games, I've found that most people are about as good as they're rank would suggest.
Those around low 1000s and below that have played enough games to establish equilibrium can often be counted on to do something unwise at some point of the game and hand somebody (hopefully you) a very favorable chance of winning.
Those in the low to mid teens have enough sense not to make stupid mistakes but lack creativity and/or timing enough to seize the right chance to actually win a game that's up for grabs.
The next tier high teens to mid 2000s, are the types that very rarely give you an obvious opening and have a firm enough grasp on odds and imagination to seize the sort of chances the tier below can't.
Those above 3000, are either so good in general that they can see things the rest can't or are unbeatable at a certain format. I stumbled into a 1v1 Freestyle on Bamboo Jack vs Warsteiner, got an outstanding drop, and still managed to get obliterated within like 5 turns. It was nothing short of hideous on every front and I can't even say I got crappy dice. I just didn't even know what hit me.