How judging works
Every debate is scored out of 100 across four dimensions, then conduct penalties are subtracted. You are judged on how well you argued — never on whether the judge agrees with your position.
Clash and refutation — 35 points
The heaviest dimension, because arguing past each other is the failure this exists to fix. Do you attack the load-bearing parts of their case, or only easy ones? When challenged, do you answer the actual challenge or change the subject? Points your opponent raised that you never engaged with at all cost you significantly here.
Argument quality — 30 points
Is each claim backed by reasoning, or just asserted? Are you consistent with yourself across the debate? Reasoning fallacies — false dichotomy, slippery slope, circular reasoning — are penalised.
Evidence handling — 20 points
This only activates when someone explicitly disputes a specific factual claim. The disputed claim is then checked. If it was false and the challenger caught it, the challenger gains and the claimant loses. If it held up, the reverse. If nobody disputes a fact all debate, both sides get the neutral half and it changes nothing.
Presentation — 15 points
Clarity, structure, professionalism. Deliberately the smallest dimension — at most 5 of these points reflect how you sound. Being articulate does not beat being right.
Conduct — deductions only
Subtracted after the 100, never added. Personal attacks 5–10. Strawmanning 5–10. Inventing evidence 15–20, harsher because it is dishonest rather than mistaken. Sustained talking-over 5–15— ordinary open-mic overlap is expected and is not penalised. Capped at 30 total, so one bad moment cannot erase a good debate.
Rating
Winning always gains
How much depends on the gap between you. Beat someone rated far above you and you gain a lot; beat someone far below and you gain very little. Losing works the same in reverse. Scores within 3 points count as a draw.
Your first debates count more
For your first 15 rated debates your rating moves roughly twice as fast, so it finds your real level quickly. Everyone starts at 1200.
When a debate doesn't count
A debate must run at least 60% of its scheduled length and both sides must actually speak. Debates that are one-sided to the point of being staged, or that never engage the claim, are voided. A void changes nobody’s rating — it is not a penalty.
Leaving early is a forfeit and counts as a loss. If you both want to stop, use Offer to end here — an agreed ending is judged normally and costs neither of you anything extra.
Lengths
3, 5, 10, 15, 30 minutes. The poster chooses.
Tiers
Privacy
What happens to your debate
Your audio is transcribed so it can be judged. Transcripts are kept for 30 days and then deleted, and recordings are deleted within 48 hours. Neither is ever shown to anyone, including your opponent. What is public is the result: the claim, who you debated, both scores, and the date.