Player Central

What Makes a Swoopster?

All players have distinct DNAs. These differences are what make teams compelling to create and play against.

Every player possesses two distinct sets of attributes: visual and skill. Visual attributes (e.g. backgrounds, faces, species, etc.) are instantaneously unveiled at mint while skill attributes (e.g. perimeter scoring, passing, athleticism, etc.) are discovered and realized over time the more you use a player.

Name, Age, and Position

Every Swoopster is forged in the Swoops Factory and is given an identifier at ‘birth’ in the following naming convention: Swoopster-0001. As its owner, you’ll be able to assign your player a new name of your choosing within the Locker Room. This is irreversible and will stick with the Swoopster even through transferred ownership, so choose wisely.

Each Swoopster also has an assigned ‘Position’, which not only may give an indication of the player’s style but also determines where they can play in a lineup. Every 5-player lineup consists of two guards, two forwards, and one center. Currently, players cannot play out of position so positional diversification will be important. Swoopsters will either be a guard, forward, center, or a combination of two or three positions (e.g. G/F or F/C). A Swoopster with such multi-positional eligibility can be played at either position, enhancing its value.

Like their human predecessors, Swoopsters age and gain experience, affecting their underlying skills and performance (more below on “Player Development”). For our Genesis mint that occurred on September 29, 2022, the drop consisted of veterans with 2 to 7 years of experience. All future drops will be of Rookie Swoopsters, coming in with 1 year of experience. At the end of every Swoops season (3 months of human earth time), they age one more year.

Prospect Ratings

Similar to scouts evaluating real-life athletes, Swoops applies a schema to grade its players’ potential coming into the league, portrayed with a 1- through 5-star system, with 5 being the highest rating.

Star ratings signify what players are projected to ultimately achieve in the league and serve as proxies for their potential to improve. The tier classification is as follows:

• 5 Star: Potential generational superstar or high-floor, high-ceiling player.

• 4 Star: High-level starter with hints of franchise-altering potential.

• 3 Star: Solid medium-level starter.

• 2 Star: Low-floor, medium-ceiling rotation player.

• 1 Star: Trying-to-crack-the-rotation role player.

Because ratings are set when players initially enter the league, they are an imperfect indicator of future performance. Many variables must align for players to realize their true potential: coaching, training, system fit, luck, etc. Note: Prospect Ratings will never change once set.

Some are fast fliers. Some are straightforward and steady. Some show glimmers of greatness but fizzle out. And others appear unremarkable but are late bloomers. The ratings frame the projected ceiling and floor of players. They also impact how much skill progression occurs following each season.

But just like with humans, Swoopsters are imperfect machines, and raw potential does not necessarily equate to performance. There will be 5-star busts, 1-star overachievers, and everything in between.

Rarities of Prospect Ratings:

• 5 Star: 5%

• 4 Star: 10%

• 3 Star: 25%

• 2 Star: 30%

• 1 Star: 30%

Trophies and Badges

Over the course of each season, Swoops will host in- and mid-season activities, such as All-Star Weekend and end-of-season awards. Accolades awarded through these events will be available for users to highlight on player profiles.

Skill Progression and Reveal

The DNA of a Swoopster includes 15 skill attributes that help determine performance on the court. These include: 3PT shooting, 2PT midrange shooting, 2PT interior shooting, FT shooting, offensive rebounding, defensive rebounding, passing, interior defense, perimeter defense, physicality, hustle, basketball IQ, longevity, leadership, and coachability.

Some of these are self-explanatory while some are more nuanced. It’s up to the owners to figure out how they all interact and how they impact a player’s value. Each rating operates on a 30 to 100 scale with 100 always being “the best.”

To make matters a bit more complicated (and fun), owners will realize that most Swoopsters do not have all 15 skill ratings revealed. In fact, rookie Swoopsters come in with only one skill revealed and 14 unrevealed. Unrevealed skills are displayed as ??. You’ll have to play the player in some games to get a feel for the type of player and how good they are. More below on “Player Development,” but the short version is that for every year of experience, one additional skill will reveal. So a 3-year veteran, for example, will have 3 skills revealed, and a 7-year veteran will have 7 skills revealed.

You will also notice that every Swoopster has three skills that are colored Gold with a small trophy next to the respective skill. This indicates that these attributes, which can be revealed or unrevealed, are currently one of the top three skill ratings for that player. This is valuable information to start to put together the puzzle that is a Swoopster.

Player Card

Player cards represent the highest level of information relevant to the players. A card displays the player's name, cumulative win percentage, and the top three highest rated skill attributes.