Guild Wars 2

I’ve been playing sPvP for a few days now, exclusively Hot-Join, so I can learn how this all works.

At what point would I move to Solo Arena? Is there a difference to Hot-Join except for the leaderboard?

The main difference is that in solo arenas, your teammates will usually expect you to play to win and will call you out if you do anything just to get more glory points, such as standing in a point that someone else is already capturing.

The player skill level might be a little higher, but within three or four matches the matchmaker will have you playing with people near your skill level whenever possible (exception: very low concurrency time periods in the NA region).

I’d advise you to give it a try—it has a lot of advantages over hotjoins such as no autobalance, fewer afk players, less zerging, less joining/leaving mid-match, more playing to win, more strategy, and more meaningful plays. If you try one and feel you weren’t ready, just practice a bit more and then come back.

That’s very good advice. Thanks!

The lower end of the soloq leaderboard isn’t much different than a 5v5 hotjoin. As you move up the ladder the difference becomes more apparent.