Season 2 of Apex Legends is here and with it comes a brand new ranked mode called Ranked Leagues. In Ranked Leagues, you gain points for your success, earn new and better titles as you progress, and once and for all show your squad mates who is the real alpha.
Grinding your way to the top of the leaderboard will be no small feat in Season 2, and Ranked League has a somewhat unusual system for gaining ranked points, or RP, compared to other shooters. Here is everything you need to know about Ranked Leagues in Season 2 of Apex Legends.
How Do Ranks Work In Season 2?
There are six ranks in Ranked Leagues: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, and Apex Predator. Each of these ranks, except for Apex Predator, has four divisions in each. Starting with Bronze IV, then Bronze III, Bronze II, Bronze I, and then Silver IV. You will need to climb through every single division to reach the top rank: Apex Predator.
As you play ranked, you will earn RP and slowly climb from Bronze IV to Apex Predator (if you have what it takes, that is). Each tier and each rank has a required amount of RP you need to accumulate in order to rank up. While in Bronze, you will need 30 RP to rank up between divisions. So, 30 for Bronze III, 60 for Bronze II, and 90 for Bronze 1. In silver, you will need to earn 40 RP between each tier, 50 RP in Gold, 60 RP in Platinum, and 70 RP in Diamond for a total of 1,000 RP to reach Apex Predator. Here is how it breaks down:
- Bronze IV to Silver IV = 120 RP (30 RP per division)
- Silver IV to Gold IV = 160 RP (40 RP per division
- Gold IV to Platinum IV = 200 RP (50 RP per division)
- Platinum IV to Diamond IV = 240 RP (60 RP per division)
- Diamond IV to Apex Predator = 280 RP (70 RP per division)
- Total = 1000 RP to Apex Predator
For Season 2, everyone will start as Bronze IV, but Respawn has suggested that in future seasons, there may be a starting placement based on how far you managed to climb in the previous series ("series" being the term they are using to distinguish competitive season from general content seasons).
There is one more element that further complicates climbing through the ranks, and that is ranked match cost. Once you've climbed out of Bronze, each ranked match you play will cost RP to enter. While in Silver, every game you play will cost 1 RP. Gold matches cost 2 RP, Platinum matches cost 3 RP, Diamond Matches cost 4 RP, and Apex Predator matches cost 5 RP.
It is possible then, to lose more RP than you are gaining over the course of several matches. If this happens, and your total RP dips below the required amount for your current division, you will be demoted to the previous division. For example, if you are currently in Gold II and fall below the 380 RP required to reach Gold II, you will dip back down into Gold III.
Thankfully, it is not possible to be demoted to a lower tier. Respawn has assured us that dipping below 480 RP, for example, will not drop you out of Diamond; once you have reached a new tier you are effectively at a new rank floor and are guaranteed to receive the season rewards for that tier. This may change in the future, but is a nice assurance for now.
How Do You Gain RP?
Ranked points are gained by accomplishing certain tasks in each match. Currently, there are three ways to earn ranked points: getting kills, outliving your opponents, and winning the match.
You will be rewarded 1 RP for each kill you get up to a maximum of 5 RP per match. Remember: these need to be confirmed kills, so make sure you are finishing off your opponents once they are knocked down. This is somewhat controversial as the system incentives you to thirst your opponents when it otherwise may benefit your team to focus fire and eliminate the entire enemy squad together. Wins will get you the most bang for your buck, so don't risk a potential win just to get one more RP for a kill.
Outliving your opponents means your squad needs to survive at the very at least until top ten, or half the other squads have been eliminated. If you make it to ten squads remaining, you will receive 2 RP, make it to final five for 4 RP, and survive until top three for 7 RP. Farming top ten and top five finishes may seem like an attractive and easy method to rise through the ranks, but isn't engaging the enemy so much for fun that stealthing your way to the finish? Get out there and fight!
Finally, a win is worth a whopping 12 points. Remember that the top 10/5/3 finishes do not stack, so the maximum you can possibly earn in a single match is 17 RP (12 RP for winning the match and 5 RP for your first 5 kills). If you get three kills and finish in the top three you will earn 10 RP. If you can do this consistently, then you've got a decent shot at making it to Apex Predator.
Penalties And Loss Forgiveness
Respawn expects a higher level of commitment during ranked play compared to regular matches. To that end, they have instituted a leavers penalty to anyone who does not completely finish their match. Respawn considers leaving early to include leaving during character select, while you are alive, or while you are dead but can still be respawned.
The penalty for a first-time offense is five minutes and applies both the ranked and regular queue. However, repeated offenses will increase the penalty, up to one week of suspension time.
Along those lines, Respawn has also detailed their policy of loss forgiveness for this series. This applies to any match where you would normally finish at a net negative, but the loss was potentially due to something outside of your control. Respawn defines these situations as when match made teammates leave the game early, client errors, and "other cases where we determine you are not to blame for leaving the game."
Those are the basic details Ranked Leagues. If you are getting kills and finishing in at least the top te, you'll be earning RP and climbing through the ranks. The entry cost gets more expensive as you climb, and the amount of RP required to reach the next division increases as well. Reaching Apex Predator will be no small feat, but with enough time and dedication, it can be done.