bugs

The part of the experience formula that gives an extra bonus for shield-users looks like this:

BlockMod = 1 + [Total Blocks] / ( [Total Attempts] - [Total Blocks] )

...where [Total Blocks] is the number of blocks your bot made in the fight, and [Total Attempts] is the number of attempts to hit you that your target made. This results in a variable used in the experience formula that multiplies your gains by a certain amount, depending on the percentage of attacks you blocked. Higher is better, and results in more experience.

However, if you block every single attack, using ten attacks as an example, would this not result in:

1 + 10 / (10 - 10) = 1 + 10 / 0

Which gives you a division by zero and voids the entire formula, resulting in no increase experience for that fight.

My experiences seem to support this as well - the few times I've had a fight where I have blocked every single attack, the experience gained has always been at the very bottom of the expected range against that particular target, similar to if you were not using a shield in the first place.

I don't know what exactly the variable will return to the experience formula when there is a division by zero, but it doesn't seem to break anything. Rather, there's simply no bonus for blocks.

 

Total blocks actually refers to your number of blocks plus your opponents number of blocks. Same deal with total attempts. This should avoid any potential divide-by-zero strangeness.

 

Ah, that makes sense. It might also explain something I was wondering about in the experience formula.

I wasn't entirely sure myself as to whose attempts and blocks were included, but what I posted was the only thing that made any sense to me, regarding the 100%-block-but-very-low-exp-gain fights.

Still don't see why a fight with 12 total attempts and 8 total blocks (100% for me, none from the opponent) would give only ~33% of the witnessed top experience gain from a target.

 

Hm, you should be able to plug in the numbers yourself when it happens to see if it's going wrong somewhere.

 

I have been trying to do that, and in doing so, I found a small error in the experience vs. training bot formula listed on Bots Unauthorized. Using the BlockMod calculations you just posted, that formula is spot on every time, -if- you ignore the part where you divide by two. I don't know where that comes from, but if I use it, I always end up with exactly half the experience I gained in reality. Without it, it's fine. This was all tested without any buffs, so those are not a factor.

As for the original issue, I can't reproduce it by using the known formulas. The fight, as stated, included 12 total attempts and 8 total blocks, which would give a BlockMod of 3 - rather high. The exp gain range under the circumstances at the time were 2.5-3.0M on the low end, and at most, a little over 7M on the high end. Fight resulted in ~2.8M exp, and I'm pretty sure about it, since I was looking at it for a while and wondering what was going on.

I'll see if anything odd happens the next time I block every hit, but that's a fairly rare occurrence, so it might take a while.

 

Still don't see why a fight with 12 total attempts and 8 total blocks (100% for me, none from the opponent) would give only ~33% of the witnessed top experience gain from a target.

This can happen is the total blocks in the max fight would be perhaps 3 times as much as in the fight you stated (and is thus a very quick fight). Against one of my targets i usually gain 3/4 million XP, but this can be up to almsst 11 mill if there are a lot of blocks (dont know how many, i dont look at the fights, but they might take roughly 40 seconds or so). Otherwise i am also clueless..
 

Aye, it sucks.

 

Yup, just something you have to get over.

 

hush ya'll, blocks is still a bonus over str bots.