Modern Ranked Brackets start this upcoming season!!!
The community voted for this one a while back, and now it's finally here.
Modern Ranked Brackets are coming to Splinterlands.
You can revisit the original SPS governance proposal: Bring Brackets to Modern.
Choose the level where you want to compete, then battle your way from Division 9 to Division 1 within that Bracket.
This is a pretty big change to how Modern Ranked works, so we're going to walk through everything you need to know before you choose your first Bracket.
🏆 First, Choose Your Bracket
Modern Ranked will now have six Brackets:
| Bracket | Name |
|---|---|
| I | Wood |
| II | Bronze |
| III | Silver |
| IV | Gold |
| V | Diamond |
| VI | Champion |
Think of your Bracket as the competitive environment you want to play in for the season.
Wood. Bronze. Silver. Gold. Diamond. Champion.
But unlike the old Ranked system, you're not starting at the bottom and trying to move from one league into the next.
You choose your Bracket first.
Then the climb happens inside that Bracket.
And your choice matters.
⚔️ Minimum AND Maximum Card Levels
This is one of the biggest things to understand before choosing your Bracket.
Each Bracket has both a minimum and maximum card level.
The four numbers below represent:
Common / Rare / Epic / Legendary
| Bracket | Minimum Archon Level | Maximum Archon Level |
|---|---|---|
| I — Wood | 1 / 1 / 1 / 1 | 1 / 1 / 1 / 1 |
| II — Bronze | 1 / 1 / 1 / 1 | 3 / 2 / 2 / 1 |
| III — Silver | 2 / 1 / 1 / 1 | 5 / 4 / 3 / 2 |
| IV — Gold | 4 / 3 / 2 / 2 | 8 / 6 / 5 / 3 |
| V — Diamond | 6 / 5 / 4 / 2 | 10 / 8 / 6 / 4 |
| VI — Champion | 8 / 6 / 5 / 3 | 10 / 8 / 6 / 4 |
Most longtime players will recognize the maximum levels.
Pay attention to the minimums too.
Your Archon level also sets the floor for your units.
Units under the level supported by your Archon will not be playable.
That's important.
Higher Brackets aren't simply allowing you to use higher-level cards. They're creating competitive environments with a minimum supported level as well.
For example, Gold has minimum Archon levels of:
Common 4 / Rare 3 / Epic 2 / Legendary 2
So before jumping into a higher Bracket, take a good look at the collection you actually plan to battle with.
Don't just chase the biggest number on the screen.
📈 Every Bracket Has Nine Divisions
Once you've chosen your Bracket, your real climb begins.
Every Bracket has nine Divisions, starting at Division 9 and working all the way up to Division 1.
| Division | Rating |
|---|---|
| Division 9 | 0–499 |
| Division 8 | 500–999 |
| Division 7 | 1,000–1,499 |
| Division 6 | 1,500–1,999 |
| Division 5 | 2,000–2,499 |
| Division 4 | 2,500–2,999 |
| Division 3 | 3,000–3,499 |
| Division 2 | 3,500–3,999 |
| Division 1 | 4,000+ |
Every 500 rating moves you into another Division until you reach Division 1 at 4,000+.
So if you choose Gold, you're no longer trying to battle your way out of Gold and into Diamond.
You're trying to go:
Gold Division 9 → Division 8 → Division 7 → ... → Division 1
Choose your Bracket.
Then see how far you can climb.
😬 Picked the Wrong Bracket?
We know this is a brand-new system.
Maybe you jump into a Bracket and immediately realize:
"Yeah... I picked the wrong one."
There is a safety valve.
You will have one opportunity to reset and choose another Bracket, but there are some important catches.
You can only reset if you have NOT advanced to another Division.
If you're still in your starting Division, you can use your one reset and choose another Bracket.
But...
Your reward points and rating will be lost and your season will reset.
And you can only do this once.
The moment you advance into another Division, that option is gone.
At that point:
You're locked into your Bracket for the rest of the season.
So you have a little room if you immediately realize you made the wrong choice, but this isn't something you can use to bounce between Brackets throughout the season.
Once you start climbing, you're committed.
🎁 Your Division AND Bracket Determine Your Rewards
Here's where the new system gets interesting.
Your rewards are based on two things:
1. The Division you reach
2. The Bracket you're competing in
So reaching the same Division in Wood does not provide the same rewards as reaching it in Gold, Diamond, or Champion.
And as you climb through the Divisions, the rewards available within your Bracket change too.
Your Division determines the milestone. Your Bracket determines the reward level for that milestone.
Here's a look at the rewards available in Division 8:
And here's what that same reward structure looks like in Division 1:
Same six Brackets.
Very different rewards as you climb.
We aren't going to list every Bracket and Division combination here. When choosing your Bracket, make sure you review the full reward structure in-game so you understand the rewards available at each Division before committing to your season.
Remember, your Bracket choice affects much more than card levels. It determines the reward track you'll be climbing all season.
When are rewards distributed?
Bracket rewards are distributed at the end of the season.
Keep battling. Keep climbing. See how high you can push within your Bracket, and your rewards will be distributed when the season concludes.
🏅 Leaderboard Prizing
The climb isn't only about Division rewards.
Modern Ranked also has leaderboard prizes paid out at the end of each season.
To qualify for leaderboard prizing, you must complete at least 100 battles during the season (and own a spellbook).
The leaderboard tracks your Rating and Rank alongside stats including Battles, Wins, Max Streak, Win %, Reward Points, and your potential Reward.
One thing to remember:
You need a minimum of 100 battles to qualify for leaderboard prizes.
So if you're chasing the top of your Bracket, make sure you get those battles in.
Leaderboard prizes are distributed at the end of the season.
💰 How the Bracket SPS Pool Works
This is another important part of choosing your Bracket.
The total Modern Bracket SPS Pool is divided across the six Brackets:
| Bracket | Bracket SPS Pool | Full Reward Players |
|---|---|---|
| I — Wood | 1% | 1,200 |
| II — Bronze | 3% | 1,200 |
| III — Silver | 6% | 800 |
| IV — Gold | 12% | 300 |
| V — Diamond | 25% | 200 |
| VI — Champion | 53% | 100 |
Together, those six allocations make up 100% of the Modern Bracket SPS Pool.
So, for example, Champion players are competing for 53% of the total Modern Bracket SPS Pool, while Gold players are competing for 12%.
You'll also notice a Full Reward Players number for each Bracket.
This is the number of players required for that Bracket to receive its full SPS pool allocation. If fewer players participate, the SPS allocated to that Bracket will be reduced based on the participation formula approved in the original governance proposal.
Simply put: fewer players in a Bracket doesn't mean fewer players split the entire listed SPS pool. The pool itself can also be reduced.
For the exact calculation, you can review the original SPS governance proposal.
There is also a 2% individual player cap.
A single player cannot earn more than 2% of their Bracket's SPS Pool.
No matter how dominant one player is within a Bracket, there is a ceiling on how much of that Bracket's total SPS allocation they can earn.
This is another reason choosing your Bracket isn't simply:
"Which one has the biggest SPS pool?"
Look at your collection.
Look at the minimum and maximum levels.
Look at the size of the competitive field.
Look at the Bracket's share of the SPS Pool.
Then choose where you want to battle.
🔄 Your Highest Division Matters
Here's where the system gets much easier after Season 1.
At the end of each season, your highest Division achieved will determine where you begin the following season.
Players will reset two Division tiers lower than the highest Division they achieved, with Division 9 as the floor.
| Highest Division Achieved | Following Season |
|---|---|
| Division 1 | Division 3 |
| Division 2 | Division 4 |
| Division 3 | Division 5 |
| Division 4 | Division 6 |
| Division 5 | Division 7 |
| Division 6 | Division 8 |
| Division 7 | Division 9 |
| Division 8 | Division 9 |
| Division 9 | Division 9 |
The key word here is:
Highest.
Your reset is based on the highest Division you achieved during the season, not simply where you happen to be sitting when the season ends.
Reach Division 1, and you'll begin the following season in Division 3.
Reach Division 5, and you'll begin in Division 7.
If your highest Division is Division 7, 8, or 9, you'll begin the following season in Division 9.
This is also why the first season is going to feel different. Everyone has to establish their position on the new ladder for the first time.
After that, your previous season's climb determines where the next one begins.
Climb as high as you can. Your highest Division is what matters.
🚨 About That First Season...
We want to hit this one again because it's probably going to generate some questions.
The first season may feel a little weird.
Maybe even a little confusing.
That's expected.
This is a completely new ladder and everyone needs to establish their Divisions within their chosen Brackets for the first time.
There aren't established Division 1 Champion players yet.
There aren't established Division 3 Gold players yet.
We all have to build that ladder.
So during the first season, you're going to see players moving through Divisions, testing different collection strategies, learning the minimum-level requirements, and figuring out where they belong.
Some players may pick the wrong Bracket and use their one reset.
Others may fly through the early Divisions.
And competition inside each Bracket will begin sorting itself out as the season progresses.
Don't judge the entire system by the first few days.
Everyone has to establish themselves on the new ladder for the first time. Once that happens, the seasonal reset system starts doing its job.
If you fight your way to Division 1, you'll begin the following season in Division 3.
Reach Division 3, and you'll begin in Division 5.
If your highest Division is Division 7, 8, or 9, you'll begin the following season in Division 9.
That's why the first season is going to feel different.
Season 1 builds the ladder.
Season 2 starts building on it.
After that first season, players won't all be starting from the same place. Your previous climb determines where you begin the next one.
🤖 What About Match Liquidity?
With everyone spreading across six Brackets and nine Divisions, there's an obvious question:
Will I be able to find battles?
We have liquidity bots in place to help keep matchmaking moving, and they're pretty dialed in from testing.
But this is also the first time this system will be live with everyone choosing Brackets and establishing Divisions at the same time.
We'll be watching it closely.
We'll monitor how players spread across the different Brackets and Divisions, how matchmaking is performing, and how much liquidity is needed at different points on the ladder.
We'll make adjustments where needed.
That's part of what the first season is for. We'll have real-world data showing us where players are competing and where the system may need a little tuning.
The goal is simple:
Keep the battles moving while real players establish the new ladder.
🧑 Modern Is Still Human vs. Human
One important distinction:
Modern Ranked remains Human Only for player accounts.
The liquidity bots mentioned above are system-operated bots designed specifically to support matchmaking.
That's different from player automation.
Bots, battle helpers, and other assisted-play tools used by players are not allowed and will violate the Terms of Service.
Third-party automation services are also not allowed.
Bring your collection.
Build your lineup.
Make your decisions.
Battle another human doing the same thing.
That's Modern.
⚔️ You Voted for It. Now Let's Battle.
This system has been a long time coming.
The community voted for Modern Ranked Brackets, we've been working through the system and testing, and now we're finally getting ready to put it into your hands.
Instead of one ladder where everyone is trying to move through the same leagues, Modern now gives collections at different levels their own competitive climb.
6 Brackets.
9 Divisions in each.
Minimum and maximum level requirements.
Division rewards.
SPS reward pools.
Season resets based on how high you climb.
And a whole new strategy around where you choose to compete.
The first season might be a little wild.
That's part of launching something new.
Pick your Bracket.
Build your lineup.
Start climbing.
The new Modern Ranked begins September 30th. ⚔️
A quick note: This post reflects the system planned for launch. As we monitor the first season, adjustments may be needed. Screenshots are provided for illustration; always review the current in-game requirements and rewards before choosing your Bracket. We’ll communicate any significant changes.