The idea behind this arena scenario is one in where each month a series of games is player like the old Magic: The Gathering arena leagues. Each player will need to play two other players before playing the same opponent again. At the end of the month the player with the highest rank from a location (venue) is the winner for the sake of the monthly tournament.
The twist is that the actions of each game during the arena will determine globally what happens next month for the arena by actually changing the balance of power of the "factions". So if one faction wins more overall victories of games during the month, then the region of the DDM "world" they are playing in will belong to that "faction" at the end of the month.
So the world map of DDM will change based on factions, and at the end of a year of play a prize will be awarded to members of that faction for having the most territories under their control.
See further descriptions and examples for extended explanations of this overview.
Factions will simply be a side in the "war" that players will choose. For this concept we will just letter four of them: A, B, C, and D.
Faction choices of the players will be internal for the most part, and have no real meaning inside the game or affecting its regular rules. This way players do not feel they have to play against anyone in particular, but all play counts towards the arena on a monthly and yearly basis.
Each month will be like a normal MTG arena as explained before. Players can play against anyone at any time for participating venues. The requirements will be that they must play against two people before they play against the same person again. This is why a 4 person minimum comes into play for the arena participants. "Factions" will not matter much for each individual arena, but a players wins at the end of the month against ANYONE will go towards that factions win.
So should two players of faction A skirmish against each other, then it will just show in-fighting of the faction. faction A will get 1 win and 1 loss for the game for this venue.
Now should the other two players in this minimum requirement meeting venue, be B and D factions and play and player of B faction wins, that will make the records so far for this venue like this:
| Wins | Losses | |
|---|---|---|
| A | 1 | 1 |
| B | 1 | 0 |
| C | 0 | 0 |
| D | 0 | 1 |
Faction B for this venue is so far in the lead as the winning faction for this month, as A cancelled each other out. Should this be the only games played at this venue, the venue would record a win for Faction B for its venue for the region played for that month.
So the venue determines the faction winning for the venue each month for the story based on the faction with the most wins and least losses. Since A and B tied for most wins, but B had the least losses...you get the idea.
A region is not a real world location where the venue and arena is being held, but the DDM world. Like Axis and Allies, Risk, and other games are built around sections of a world that you can fight over and win, this is the ongoing idea behind this arena concept in that each month a region is won or lost by factions because of player participation.
You could only sign up and play at a single venue per month as it locks in your faction and that venue, otherwise there would need to be some way to prove you are a member of say Faction B for the month of March at all venues you may visit so that you are not bound to a venue.
We will call out regions Country Al, Country Bob, Country Cat, and Country Dee for the short bit.
Country Al is what every player starts out in and where the war has broken out in the DDM world. In our above example, if all venues had similar results, then Faction B would have taken over Country Al the first month of the arena.
Next month would be determined which direction the previous country fell. While the factions are not directly related to the countries until after they have won them, this example has Faction B winning Country Al, so the next month would have play set in Country Bob. this was something predetermined by the Guild which country comes next depending on which of the factions wins, and gives the Guild time to have the maps made in advance for playing on by knowing which can be ready first for the country the arena is taking place in that month.
If the region of Country Al is a rocky area, then rocky terrain maps would be used for players during that month that Country Al is being played in, and when Country Bon becomes the region being fought for control over comes it may be a highly forest area, so will use maps with high forest terrain. Maybe Country Cat is inside a mountain and is full of twisting winding caverns, so the maps for that month what Country Cat region is being fought over is reached, those types of maps will be used.