That's an easy question to answer.
Skill and Experience is different. But before I can explain how, I need to explain a few other things.
Every matchmaking playlist in Halo 3 has it's own rank. This is different from your overall (global) rank. Okay?
There are two different types of playlists. Ranked and Unranked playlists.
To go up a rank in a ranked playlist, you need experience at first, but by the type you're in the later stages of sergent you will need skill to keep going up in rank.
In Social playlists you only need experience to go up in rank.
Global rank is your overall rank in Halo 3. You can see it in your service record. You need skill to raise your global rank, just like you need in any ranked playlist.
At ten skill you'll be able to rank up to Lutenunt. At 20 you'll be able to rank up to captain. At 30 you'll be able to rank to commander. At 40, colonel, at 45 Brigidier, and at 50 General.
If you do not go up in skill, then you'll be stuck at a rank and only go up grades. Like Captain Grade 2, Captain, Grade 3, and Captain Grade 4 (staff captain).
The only way to raise your skill is win frequently in a ranked match. It should get more difficult to do as time goes on. If you get stuck at a skill level, that's fine. It's supposed to happen sooner or later. If you wonder why you can't get past 30 then it's probably because that's what you really are, a 30.
Experience is earned everytime you win a match, social or ranked. If you quit durning a match, you loose experience. If you just loose, you won't gain or loose any experience. However, loosing ranked matches will slow down how fast your skill goes up.
I am a 45. I am a Brigidier.
