KEY THINGS YALL LOOK FOR IN A BATTLE
 

What are the main things y’all look for in a battle and in what order and why? I know punches should be #1 but it seems like y’all go for personals/disses before punches. Here’s what I think:

1) punches/metaphors/wordplay/concepts
2) personals/disses
3) multis/vocabulary

I know vocabulary is major but you can get away with elementary vocabulary if u make up for it by setting up your punches well and executing. And I feel like personals are not as important as punches but if delivered right, they can be. That’s just my thoughts

1) Complexity



5) Using The Space You Are Given





120) Punches, Concepts, Etc

Honestly, i look for it all. Not in an order or as if i'm going through some sort check list... ...How? If the wording is sub par then the bar/punchline isn't executed properly. Kind of a contradiction here, fam.

I actually dock points (if you will) for poor wording, not being able to write properly. Using wordplay that doesn't work grammatically. I also dock points if the expo is longer than the battle itself lol. It is the battlers job to make everything understandable in their set of bars.

I give points though to those who are starting out and or are low tier battlers that show signs of creativity, someone who is attempting to push beyond the boundaries of their own limits.

Personals can be very effective but:
1) Has to be a fresh personal, not a rehashed one.
2) Everyone has to know of it, not some obscure reference that needs an expo.

Wording isn't 100% GREAT vocabulary.
@Champion EtH won a title without a complex vocabulary.

Wording is more "does is sound good when I read it in my head along with the flow, as in the words don't look/read weird together.

I'm not complex at all tbh. Simple yet unique concepts with basic vocabulary. Im just a smooth mf

Punk dropping complinsults.

LMAOOO

My Standard

1. creativity
we seen every angle by now. so anything new is something i'm looking for. also don't like to see 8 gun bars dropped as your entry in the tournament, i wanna see clever twists on old concepts, and new concepts all together.

this doesn't just refer to "punches" i want to see new styles emerge, new standards, and so on.

2. punch strength
whether or not you were creative is important, but if you can't get out a punch, then it was for not. there's so many other criteria to determine punch strength, so we can just leave it as "punches are what battlings about"

3. relatable
now this is where i differ from the crowd in a severe way. i don't relate to gun bars and sword bars, or clothes brand and what have you. so seeing a bar about some gucci belt, idk, does nothing for me. i have a lot of interest in fields i don't see touched upon in battle rap, like history and science, or even entertainment. i see a lot of bars relating to entertainment, like pop stars or movie stars, which is all fair, but i'm into some pretty weird shit so if i see an "angels egg" bar or maybe even a "captain beefheart" bar, it's just gonna click for me.

4. execution
nothing i hate reading more than a bunch of symbols thrown randomly around, everything misspelled, and wordplay only working one way (if that). if ya bars ain't clean, i'm not into it.

I think you have the right idea,..also personals matter less,depending on person,but Irl.. it does.. anybody can just say anything.. i like punches and metaphors, but i'm a fan of Multi's..and rhyming whole sentences while doing that,. listen to King los, Royce and Crooked i,..Those are my main three, then trap and Drill,..in battling, i like J.c.

If I go to the effort of writing a Trout Mask Replica bar and you don't give me a 10 I'll permaban u

What I look for in a verse depends on the level. If its a lower-tier/less-experienced battler then I'm mainly worried about everything making basic sense, as well as the rhymes working on a basic level. If its someone who has mastered the basics of writing something that makes sense, rhymes and disses their opponent, then I'm looking for punches with double-meanings, preferably flipped at the end of the line. The more original (but still sensible) the better. When it gets to really high-level stuff is where I start comparing personal vs generic punches, flow/swagger vs complex setups, unique angles and topic areas etc.

Ultimately I don't think you can read a verse specifically judging on a set list of factors, but more on how you feel after reading it, and which verse leaves you feeling more convinced at the end of reading the battle.

I just described this in a thread a few days ago.

For me it's:

1. Fresh Concepts
**No fresh concepts is a swing and a miss

2. Delivery/Flow (Multies, Schemes, Structure, Phrasing, Set-Ups, etc.)
**Can't hit if you don't know how to swing in the first place
**How you swing is essential to the impact it brings

3. Punches (Including Personals, etc.)
**The more creative, the more personal, the harder the hit

4. Creativity (Worldplay, Metaphors, Vocab, Flipping, Nameplay, Double-Timing, etc.)
**Need more than a jab for a KO—you need hooks, uppercuts, body shots, etc.