Metagame Camp

The word “metagame” describes the current best-known tactics for winning. Some parts of a metagame evolve slowly, like argument structure. Others change rapidly, like which cases are considered the strongest. That changes whenever a new resolution comes out.

Metagame camp is an extension of the Topic camps we do in the summer. At Topic camp, we're trying to predict what the strongest arguments/cases/tactics will be and build general knowledge about the resolution. Metagame camp takes advantage of the fact that we've seen the resolution in action for months now. That means we don't need to speculate about what's working and what isn't. The camp follows this basic pattern.

Season Tier List

We start by identifying the strongest cases & competitors in the current metagame. That's a roundtable conversation; we want to know what you are having trouble beating or are afraid to hit. We’ll do a survey of the cases you’ve been seeing and arrange them in a tier list, with the ones at the top being very dangerous with no easy counters in the current metagame, and the ones at the bottom being very weak and easy to counter.

Finding the Patterns

From there, we analyze the strongest parts to figure out what makes them work. This will not only allow us to figure out how to beat them, it also helps us identify patterns. That means you might hear a brand new application, but you recognize it as part of a pattern that we studied at metagame camp and you immediately know how to take it down.

Building New Tactics

The next step is to build tactics you can use to dismantle the pattern. What those tactics are tends to be unique: for some, it's a particular argument; for other's it's a strategic maneuver; for some it may even be a persuasive device or a persona.

Predicting Next Steps

Finally, we'll step back and map out the next few months of metagame. We'll try to predict what kinds of cases will become more powerful, which will fall out of favor, and which will be the mainstays by the time we approach nationals.

We'll build tactics for the strongest competitors in the current metagame, whether or not they are at camp. If you attend, you should be excited to have your case or speaking style analyzed because it gives you valuable intel on potential weaknesses so you can fortify against them in advance. You're effectively being given a fast-track to the cutting edge of the metagame.

We'll be doing deep dives into the LD and TP resolutions for NCFCA and Stoa.

Persona Camp

This is a one-day camp, so we’ll have a dense schedule covering the most useful pieces of the Persona Diamond for your season. We're building the schedule around those who attend; broadly speaking here's what we expect to do.

For those who did not attend Persona Camp last summer, we'll cover the fundamental diamond: the 4 elements, balanced speaking, the basics of finding your own element and counterpicking. That'll be a very dense day.

For those who did attend Persona Camp last summer, we'll debrief on the season up to now and focus-group each attendee's speaking to fine tune their delivery. We want them executing their chosen persona brilliantly going into the second half of the season.

Winter Camps are still on sale. Sign up now!

What to Expect at Metagame and Persona Camps