Ladders

File: config/frontier/ladders.conf

Ladders define the competitive queues players can join. Each ladder references a format, configures its own rating system, and defines rank tiers.

Quick Example

ladders {
    singles {
        displayName = Singles
        description = "Standard singles ladder"
        format = standard
        battleType = singles
        teamSize = 6
        rating {
            algorithm = GLICKO2
            startRating = 1500.0
            startRD = 350.0
        }
        rankTiers = [
            { name = "Poke Ball", minRating = 0.0, icon = "cobblemon:poke_ball" }
            { name = "Great Ball", minRating = 1200.0, icon = "cobblemon:great_ball" }
            { name = "Ultra Ball", minRating = 1400.0, icon = "cobblemon:ultra_ball" }
            { name = "Master Ball", minRating = 1600.0, icon = "cobblemon:master_ball" }
            { name = "Beast Ball", minRating = 1800.0, icon = "cobblemon:beast_ball" }
        ]
    }
}

Ladder Fields

Field	Type	Default	Description
displayName	String	"Singles"	Human-readable name shown in GUIs and commands.
description	String	""	Description shown in ladder selection.
format	String	"standard"	Format ID referencing a key in formats.conf.
battleType	String	"singles"	Battle type: "singles" or "doubles".
teamSize	Int	6	Maximum Pokemon on a team.
rating	RatingConfig	See below	Rating system configuration.
rankTiers	List<RankTier>	5-tier system	Ordered rank tiers from lowest to highest.

Rating Config

Each ladder has its own rating configuration. Frontier supports two algorithms.

Shared Settings

Field	Type	Default	Description
algorithm	String	"GLICKO2"	Rating algorithm: "GLICKO2" or "SHOWDOWN_K_SCALING".
startRating	Double	1500.0	Starting rating for new players.
startRD	Double	350.0	Starting rating deviation (uncertainty). Higher = more uncertain.
minRating	Double	0.0	Minimum possible rating.
maxRating	Double	9999.0	Maximum possible rating.
rdFloor	Double	50.0	Minimum RD. Prevents ratings from becoming too certain.

Glicko-2 Settings

Only used when algorithm = "GLICKO2".

Field	Type	Default	Description
startVolatility	Double	0.06	Starting volatility. Represents expected fluctuation in rating.
tau	Double	0.5	System constant controlling how quickly volatility changes. Higher = more reactive.

Glicko-2 is the default and recommended algorithm. It accounts for rating uncertainty and adjusts faster for new players while stabilizing for experienced ones.

Showdown K-Scaling Settings

Only used when algorithm = "SHOWDOWN_K_SCALING".

Field	Type	Default	Description
kMax	Double	50.0	K-factor for provisional players (few games). Controls rating swing magnitude.
kMin	Double	20.0	K-factor for established players (many games).
kScalingGames	Int	20	Number of games until K-factor reaches kMin.

K-Scaling is simpler — new players swing by larger amounts (up to kMax per game), and the swings gradually decrease toward kMin as they play more games.

Tip

Use Glicko-2 for most ladders. Switch to Showdown K-Scaling if you want a system where rating changes are more predictable and don’t depend on time between games.

Rank Tiers

Rank tiers define the competitive brackets players progress through. They must be ordered from lowest to highest minRating.

Field	Type	Description
name	String	Display name of the tier.
minRating	Double	Minimum rating required to achieve this tier.
icon	String	Minecraft item ID used as the tier’s icon in GUIs.

Default Rank Tiers

All default ladders use the same five tiers:

Tier	Min Rating	Icon
Poke Ball	0	cobblemon:poke_ball
Great Ball	1200	cobblemon:great_ball
Ultra Ball	1400	cobblemon:ultra_ball
Master Ball	1600	cobblemon:master_ball
Beast Ball	1800	cobblemon:beast_ball

Note

If you define custom rank tiers, add matching entries in the tierColors section of messages.conf so they display with the right colors.

Default Ladders

ID	Display Name	Format	Battle Type	Description
singles	Singles	standard	singles	Standard singles ladder
doubles	Doubles	doubles	doubles	Standard doubles ladder
vgc	VGC	vgc	doubles	Bring 6, pick 4, level 50 doubles
little_cup	Little Cup	little_cup	singles	Unevolved Pokemon only, level 5
monotype	Monotype	monotype	singles	All Pokemon must share a type
random	Random Battle	random	singles	Random teams from competitive sets
random_doubles	Random Doubles	random_doubles	doubles	Random teams in doubles format

All default ladders use Glicko-2 with a 1500 start rating and the default rank tiers.

Custom Ladder Example

Here’s a ladder with Showdown K-Scaling and custom rank tiers:

ladders {
    competitive_ou {
        displayName = "Competitive OU"
        description = "OverUsed tier with Showdown-style rating"
        format = "base_ou"
        battleType = "singles"
        teamSize = 6
        rating {
            algorithm = SHOWDOWN_K_SCALING
            startRating = 1000.0
            startRD = 350.0
            kMax = 40.0
            kMin = 16.0
            kScalingGames = 30
        }
        rankTiers = [
            { name = "Bronze", minRating = 0.0, icon = "minecraft:copper_ingot" }
            { name = "Silver", minRating = 1100.0, icon = "minecraft:iron_ingot" }
            { name = "Gold", minRating = 1300.0, icon = "minecraft:gold_ingot" }
            { name = "Diamond", minRating = 1500.0, icon = "minecraft:diamond" }
            { name = "Champion", minRating = 1700.0, icon = "minecraft:nether_star" }
        ]
    }
}

Remember to add tier colors for your custom tiers in messages.conf:

tierColors {
    Bronze = "<#cd7f32>"
    Silver = "<gray>"
    Gold = "<gold>"
    Diamond = "<aqua>"
    Champion = "<light_purple>"
}