I will try my best to explain to the best of knowledge how the racing is calculated. Since part of the algorithm they use is based on a random number, similar to rolling a die on a board game, I do not know the values or the range that they use. I will start of with the basics, and get into the mechanics off the game. There is some simply algebra at the end to show how the outcome is determined.
Getting Started[]
When you start brand new, you get to choose an eagle out of your team. It should be however many eagles you own. For right now, I would stick to 1 eagle and constantly race with one since I have found no benefit to switching to a new eagle. You may only choose 1 eagle to race each day and you can name him whatever you like.
Once you name your eagle, you are ready to race. There will be a list of people with eagles that you are able to race against. I would suggest racing someone with the least amount of wins. The more wins they have, the more stones they have, and the higher base speed they may have. All of that I will get into. You get to race 10 times and can race AGAINST someone's eagle 5 times in 1 day, Once those 5 are up, you gotta move onto someone else's eagle. After you have raced once, a timer will start to replenish your races. If you use all ten, then you must wait for the timer to give you more races. If you feel the need, you may spend 2 wildlife points to instantly add 10 races back and you can keep racing immediately. However, if you feel the need to spend wildlife points on racing, I suggest you wait until a later time and I will get into that as well.
Stats[]
OK. Now, that I have explained how you can race, I will go into your animal stats. When you click on this you will see: 3 eagles on the first page and including the one you just named. Remember, keep using 1 eagle to build their stats up since I haven't found it beneficial to have 2 eagles going.
So, under your eagle that you race, you will see: Rank: Record: Speed: (+xxx Team Bonus) Races: Rating:
Rank: is simply your rank and what class your eagle is in. Record: Wins-Losses The first number is how many wins you have. Second number is how many losses you have. Combine them and that is your total number of races you've done. Speed: This is your base speed. Everyone starts at 100. This number will increase as you gain experience points (EXP). Team bonus: This number comes from your speed rocks you have earned from racing. You can only use 1 rock per zoo mate. You recruit zoo mates through the invite/recruit tabs. (I will call this speed bonus) Races: This displays how many races are available. Rating: This is your experience points. Should be something like 100/250. As you win races, you will gain EXP and the number on the left will increase. Your goal is the number on the right. Once you reach that number, your eagle goes into a higher class and your base speed will increase. Once you get to the Pro Class, you will lose EXP if you lose a race. Once you level up, this is where I suggest spending your wildlife points if you feel them burning a hole in your pocket. When you level up, your base speed will increase by +125 as I said. It will also give you the option to spend 10 wildlife points to gain an ADDITIONAL +125 bonus to your base speed. I'd suggest doing this over spending 2 wildlife points to recharge your races...but that is just me.
Upgrading your stones[]
Do not upgrade your stones whenever you get the chance. Make sure that you have enough stones per zoo mates. Once you have a few extra, do the math in your head real quick and make sure you will still be able to use a stone for every zoo mate.
Quick easy example: You have 5 zoo mates. You've got 1 Amazonite (+4) and 4 Azurites (+3). So you have a speed bonus of 16. If you upgrade now, you will have 2 Amazonites (+4) and 1 Azurite (+3). So your speed bonus will DROP to 11.
The best way to do it is to wait until you have 1 Amazonite (+4) and 6 Azurites (+3). With 5 zoo mates (1 Amazonite and 4 Azurites), your speed bonus will still be at 16. Once you upgrade you will have 2 Amazonites (+4) and 3 Azurites (+3). Still allowing you to use 5 stones, making your speed bonus 17.
That's the easiest way I could explain it without using too many zoo mates or stones. As you can see, there is not much benefit for upgrading stones if you only have a few zoo mates. The best way is to have alot of zoo mates since the speed bonus may determine whether you win or lose.
Finally, how the winner is calculated:[]
Like I said, system uses a random number like rolling a die. I do not know if it's between 0-10 or 0-100. So, I will give this as an X and Y variables since your random number will be different than theirs. So when you race someone, it is not random. Well, not completely. It accounts for your base speed and your speed bonus.
When you race, it will be your base speed+speed bonus+X(rolling a die) vs. opponents base speed+speed bonus+X Let's say you just started: Base speed is 100 Speed bonus is 1 Your calculation when you race will be 100+1+X=101+X
It will be completely unfair to you if you try to race someone who has leveled up and their base speed is 250. Which mean they will have upgraded their rocks.
You will most likely lose. 100+1+X<250+10+Y
So that is why I suggest racing someone with the least amount of wins. They won't have leveled up as much and you could be on the same level.
Now if you are in the same class, and have the same base speed, this is when those stones come in handy for your speed bonus. Take my advice on when to upgrade your stones for maximum bonus.
Example: your bonus is 25. Your opponents is 8. With the same base speed: 100+25+X vs. 100+8+Y You may still lose the race since their 'random roll' may be higher than yours, but you definitely have an advantage with your +25 over their +8. Same principal works against you. You have a +25 speed bonus. Your opponent has a +50. 100+25+X vs. 100+50+Y You are in the disadvantage. There is no way to know your opponents speed bonus. Only yours. However, you can gauge what they may have by how many team mates they have on their side. Also note, that they may have purchased additional speed boosts when they leveled up. So, if you see that they have more wins than you, it is safe to assume they have better stones. This is where the number of zoo mates help you out. If you have 20 zoo mates, you can use 20 stones which will significantly increase your bonus.
Who to race against:[]
There are a few people to avoid in your bracket to help your odds in winning. 1. If they have a bigger team than you, try to find someone with a smaller team. 2. They have a swift and you have an eagle. 3. They have 4-5 times as many wins as they do losses.
Who to target: 1. Look at their win/loss percentage. If they have nearly the same amount on both sides...this is who you want to race no questions asked. They probably have a small team, no additional base speeds, and average rocks. 2. If you don't see any of those in your bracket, then look at who may have the worst records. Take their wins and half it; if that number is equal to or less than their losses, then this is another good target to race.
- It isn't always a 100% win, you will lose some. If you did not buy any of the additional speed boosts, then I'm sorry to say that you will soon reach a bracket that you cannot get out of.
Rewards:[]
Amateur class: Win: + Exp, +2 Stone Loss: +1 Stone
Curtesy of Spartan Ric Pro Class: Win: + Exp, +3 Stone Loss: - Exp, +2 stone
Pro Class & Swift racing:
Once you get a rating of 1500, you will moved into the Pro Class and unlock swift racing. Just as you started with your eagle, you get to name your swift. It has a higher base speed. Eagles start with 100. Swifts start with 350. It seems that since my swift is in amateur class F, I am able to race anything in that class which is mostly eagles. I have a clear cut advantage just starting off with my extra base speed.
If you continue with your eagle in Pro class, it will be harder to level up since you LOSE EXP when you lose a race. However, when you win, you get a +3 stone instead of a +2. If you don't like the Pro class, choose to start a new eagle or a swift. I'd suggest a swift since you unlocked them.
Once you get into the pro class, a lot of people are getting stuck and unable to level up since they are losing more than they gain. Even if you race someone that has a smaller team than you, they could have purchased the additional speed boosts for 10 WLP and have a higher base speed that you.
My Personal Strategy:[]
I took my eagle all the way to the Pro class. Once I unlocked the Swift, I started using the swift and buying all the additional speed boosts for my swift for 10 WLP each when it leveled up. Once I ran out of WLP, I went back to my eagle in pro class to get better stones. Once I get 10 WLP from breeding and my trees, I will go back to my swift and send it into the next level when I can buy the additional speed boost. I'll keep doing this to ensure my swift has the highest base speed possible. So my eagle will do the grunt work and take a hit on it's record while it gets better stones. Then my swift will benefit from the stones and highest possible base speed.