What if a strong player from the past registers for the championship?

This is a hypothetical question. Suppose Maciej (2725) or Cosimo (2474) were to register for the size 24 championship starting in August. Would they be guaranteed a first league spot? Thanks for any clue.

I believe they have to start over from the lowest group and work their way back up.

How do the players feel about that? I have no indication that anyone is returning. I sent out a couple emails but no one has responded. I'm just curious what the players think, especially the ones from second league scheduled to return, or ones still in first league who are supposed to stay there but might lose their spot if Richard allows these "old newcomers" in. What if first league were to grow to 11 players? Would that be a problem for anyone?

I would also be grateful to hear from our esteemed leader Richard who is already hard at work with all sorts of issues. This might not happen this August, but maybe some future February or August. What does everyone think would be a fair outcume? Thanks for your time.

I will offer my two cents. I believe that Richard set the rules for the site as William described above and that Richard should stick to those rules. So players like Maceij and Cosimo - and let's include Florian in the mix, who still plays here regularly, will have to work their way up from the bottom like everyone else. If you look at the player profiles, there is a column titled 'Championship Level'. This is now blank for those players. Active players have a level indicated there.
Yes - that pits 2500 level players against 1400 level players but you know what? Good experience for those 1400 level players, and might allow them to learn and improve their games! And as stated, players from section 2 who did well are entitled to play for the championship. I don't expect they would appreciate getting bumped out? And expand section 1? That reminds me of packing The Supreme Court. Actually, I'm in favor of that - but this is a different situation. So I say Richard should make the final call and stick to the existing system. (meow)

Okay, I'll offer my two cents, too. I believe that beginners learn best from intermediates. Experts have a hard time remembering what it was like to be a beginner, and to the extent that the expert is able to bridge the gap, intermediates can do just as well. I remember one beginner during a game who commented "I sit here helplessly while you draw a line across the board." Did I help him? Unfortunately, probably not. And it's not much fun for either player. Also, championships take a long time. It may take a year or more to work your way from the bottom level to the top. That can discourage top players from coming back. I believe that people who have sat out a championship should be seeded by ELO rating. This will probably require some rebalancing, and some people might get promoted or relegated due to having a high or low ELO rating at their overpopulated level, but I think the only people who should be guaranteed a promotion regardless of ELO rating are the ones who won their previous championship round. That constraint should leave more than enough wiggle room to rebalance the groups. But you're right that Richard should make the final call. I have opinions, but I'm just grateful that he made this site and maintains it.

I decided to run this debate by Gemini to get a fresh, AI perspective on Alan’s ideas.

Gemini's Perspective:

Alan makes some fair points about player retention, but changing the rules or expanding the leagues might cause a few unintended headaches for the community:

Active grit vs. past glory: If a League 2 player grinds for months to earn a promotion spot, it would feel pretty bad to have that spot given away to a returning player who sat out the whole season, just because of an old ELO score. Active, current effort should take priority over past achievements.

The rustiness factor: ELO is just a snapshot from the past. An elite player who has been gone for years might be rusty. Seeding them right into League 1 assumes they are still at peak strength, and it kind of rewards "camping" on a high rating. Making them play their way up ensures they prove they've still got it.

The "League-Packing" problem: Expanding League 1 to accommodate returning players—similar to packing a court—destroys the prestige of the top tier. A championship league loses its elite status if the numbers just inflate whenever a veteran decides to return. Keeping the size strict preserves the high stakes.

A brief learning experience: While lopsided games can be tough, Little Golem's turn-based, public archive format means lower-league players get a rare chance to test themselves against a legend and study the game later. Plus, since these returning players are so strong, they’ll blitz through the lower leagues very quickly, so any disruption is temporary. Sticking to the current system keeps a clear, predictable ladder where everyone earns their spot based on the very last season they actually played. (-mc)

Okay, some good points there, but here I have to point out that AI is known for giving confident answers even while lacking sufficient context. Gemini tips its hand here by saying "since these returning players are so strong, they’ll blitz through the lower leagues very quickly, so any disruption is temporary". Does Gemini not understand Little Golem tournaments? Sounds like it does not. These championships start every 6 months whether a player "blitzes" or not. Starting at level 3 in August 2026, they'll get to level 1 in August 2027, regardless of "blitzing".

I'll also argue that players, even one gone for a decade, are never that rusty! One level down rusty maybe, but two? I don't believe it. I'll back off to: go ahead and put them 1 level below where the ELO says they should be.

Oops. I told Gemini three per year. I see it's only two per year. I've been out of the championship myself for a number of years. I will probably reenter - and expect to reenter at the lowest section! (mc)

Gemini replies:
Alan is completely right on the first point. My "blitzing" argument missed the mark because it failed to account for Little Golem’s rigid, calendar-based championship cycles. Since tournaments only run twice a year, an elite player is structurally locked into a mandatory one-year grind to get from League 3 back to League 1, regardless of how fast they win their individual games.

However, Alan's new compromise—seeding returning players exactly one tier below their historical ELO—still runs into the core issue of fairness:Displacing Active Grinders: Dropping an inactive veteran directly into League 2 still artificially occupies a slot. It directly penalizes the active League 3 players who spent the last six months fighting to earn that exact promotion under the established rules.

The 10-Year Rust Factor: While raw tactical skill doesn't entirely vanish over a decade, strategic meta-shifts and opening theories certainly evolve. More importantly, forcing returning players to start at the bottom isn't a punishment; it ensures that the top leagues remain a reflection of current, sharp, and active competitive merit rather than historical status.

Deep Strategic Meta: Twixt is a highly complex abstract connection game. While tactical vision (seeing immediate knight moves or blocks) might stay relatively intact over a long absence, high-level Twixt strategy, opening variations, and deep endgame virtualization do rust. A top player gone for a decade will absolutely be a step behind the active elite who have been constantly sharpening their game against current players and engines.

The Power of Public Game Archives: Because Twixt is entirely about spatial pattern recognition, blocking lines, and finding creative linking paths, having lower-league players look at a master's games on an asynchronous site is incredibly valuable. Even if a 1400-level player gets beat, they can click through the move history afterward to see exactly where their wall was breached or how the veteran snaked a connection across the board. It acts as a perfect textbook.

Hey, don't think that I can't think for myself or reply. Actually, I love using AI this way - as I've been doing for over a year now! I already made my two cents reply above, but figured an AI might have some interesting analytical points, so I'm sharing them. Actually, I'm a ChatGPT guy, but Gemini is rather good, in my opinion, so I brought it into this discussion. That's all this is - simple discussion. I am not looking to 'win' any arguments here or anything. Maybe all this will give Richard more to think about, and also perhaps more players will chime in to this discussion. That's the fun of having a Forum! (meow)

Cosimo has responded to my email. He will have more time to play in 2028. He says he will try to find time to play this August. I warned him he might get relegated. But I told him there were other tournaments such as the ladder and 30x30 which he seemed interested in, and there are other servers. Cosimo was a good friend of Alex Rabdolph and remains a top player. I would be sad to see him placed anywhere but first league. And of course Maciej is the GOAT. I just want to beat him up so bad. Maciej are you reading this? Neener neener neener. Sadly his brother has been caught up in all this daughter business. What a tragedy. I didn't even bother to email him.

Ugh, Randolph sorry

Experimental result: Level 1

Issue has been resolved by trial (and error?). mc.

I used to be a strong-ish player, and I feel a bit handicapped by my rating now. Don't think I could play at that level anymore. Maybe we'll find out when I retire.