Main Website: http://marikcivilwarseason2.enjin.com
For those that don't know the Marik Campaign is a fight between worlds using a interactive map. Much like a risk game, you can only advance to worlds that have a jump lane too, however unlike risk each planet has a condition.
Planets can have the following restrictions:
• Ferrous planetary crust - No Streaks or LRMs (A highly ferrous planetary crust is creating radar ghosting and false lock-ons. Due to this, all missiles requiring a guided lock to fire are deemed unsafe by drop commanders and may not be used).
• Electromagnetic Interference - No ECM (Fluctuating electromagnetic interference wreaks havoc on the delicate electronic equipment needed to provide ECM)
• High Gravity - No jumpjets. (Due to exceptionally high gravity, standard jump jets are unable to generate enough thrust to lift a mech)
• Ionic Storms - No PPCs. High concentrations of ion particles interfere with the containment chambers of PPCs, rendering them useless.
• Kill them All! - matches played on a planet with this restriction are played on the Assault game mode, rather than Conquest, plus whatever additional restrictions may be present
The drops are done with Weight Restrictions as well as Chassis Restrictions. The Drop decks are 375, 475, and 575 tons. Teams build a drop deck equal to the drop limit, or up to 15 tons under the limit. Only three (3) for any mech chassis can be selected per drop(in the 575 ton match however this number is 2), regardless of variant. In addition, drop decks must contain at least 4 different mech chassis
The Teams involved in the campaign are allied in their Districts. Districts act as a 'nation' and they fight together to the goal of claiming the most Planets from the other 2 Districts. Districts will be composed of multiple teams of varying tiers. All battles shall be distributed among the units, so that one unit within a district cannot have a second (third, fourth etc) battle until all units have had at least that many battles.
The Teams involved are:
The Remnant
Ghost Warrior Brigade - Who have since dropped out.
228th IBR
Clan Ghost Bear
Clan Jade Falcon
A.C.E.S.
Blazing Aces
QQ Ragequit
Luna Wolves
Steel Jaguar
Swords of Kentares
Blackstone Knights
We are always looking for more teams however to make the campaign work we are adding new units in 3s to the campaign.
Here's a copy of the current full rule set, subject to change.
Spoiler
Pre-12 mans version. Obviously things will be changing with the implementation of 12 mans.
Match Format and Order
Match Format
All matches shall be fought in Conquest Mode in a best of 5 format. Any of the following conditions will be considered a win:
• Destroying all enemy mechs
• Gathering Max Resources by Cap
• Enemy team forfeits the match (for any reason, including choice)
In the event that time expires with none of the above win conditions being achieved, the drop will be considered a no-drop (regardless of who the game declares a winner) and will be re-fought using the exact same drop decks for each team. Screenshots of a no-drop must be provided.
If additional map modes are released during the war, the tournament director will make a determination based on input from all units.
Match Order
Matches shall be fought in the following order:
• Game 1 - 375
• Game 2 - 475
• Game 3 - 575
If a game 4 is necessary, the team who has lost more matches to this point get the choice of which of the 3 tonnages to drop.
If a game 5 is necessary, the team who has not chosen a tonnage gets to choose a tonnage to drop at.
Game 4 and 5 choices have no other restrictions on choice of tonnage. They are completely that team’s choice, regardless of which tonnages have been fought thus far.
Synchronized Dropping and Teamspeak
The Marik Teamspeak Server shall be the official server to avoid any confusion in finding teams at the match start times. All drops will be coordinated on this server within the appropriate district’s room, by the designated unit leaders.
Tonnage, Mech, and Planetary Restrictions
Match Tonnage Restrictions
Teams must build a drop deck equal to the drop limit, or up to 15 tons under the limit. Any tonnage outside of the acceptable variance shall be considered a forfeit. Mulligans may be used to counter this forfeit loss. If the team has no Mulligan remaining, that team will forfeit the drop, unless approved by the enemy team.
Example: 475 tonnage limit, drop deck must be within 460-475 tons total.
Mech Chassis Restrictions
375 and 475 drop weight: Only three (3) for any mech chassis can be selected per drop, regardless of variant. No exceptions. In addition, drop decks must contain at least 4 different mech chassis
575 drop weight: Only two (2) of any mech chassis can be selected per drop, regardless of variant. No exceptions.
Dropping with more than the allowed chassis within any tonnage shall be a forfeit. Mulligans may be used to counter this forfeit loss. If the team has no Mulligan remaining, that team will forfeit the drop, unless approved by the enemy team.
Planetary Restrictions
Planets can have the following restrictions:
• Ferrous planetary crust - No Streaks or LRMs (A highly ferrous planetary crust is creating radar ghosting and false lock-ons. Due to this, all missiles requiring a guided lock to fire are deemed unsafe by drop commanders and may not be used).
• Electromagnetic Interference - No ECM (Fluctuating electromagnetic interference wreaks havoc on the delicate electronic equipment needed to provide ECM)
• High Gravity - No jumpjets. (Due to exceptionally high gravity, standard jump jets are unable to generate enough thrust to lift a mech)
• Ionic Storms - No PPCs. High concentrations of ion particles interfere with the containment chambers of PPCs, rendering them useless.
• Kill them All! - matches played on a planet with this restriction are played on the Assault game mode, rather than Conquest, plus whatever additional restrictions may be present
Any team using a piece of restricted equipment on a planet with restrictions shall forfeit that match immediately. Mulligans may be used to counter this forfeit loss. If the team has no Mullgan remaining, that team will forfeit the drop, unless approved by the enemy team.
Unit Rosters, Substitutions, and Affiliated Pilots
To control the abuse of ringers being moved around to different units or being brought in for individual matches, rosters must be submitted by each unit.
Unit Representatives
All units must have a minimum of 2 designated unit representatives that will be the primary contact points for all dealings with that unit. These unit reps will need to have at least 2 forms of contact (forums and email). A unit can have more than 2 representatives listed.
Unit Rosters
All units must submit a roster upon entry into the tournament. There is no limit to the amount of pilots on the roster. Once a pilot has been submitted on a roster, they may not fight for another unit in the tournament unless they change allegiance permanently (see below). A pilot may never fight for more than one unit in the same turn regardless of affiliation or roster changes.
Roster changes, additions, and affiliation changes must be submitted at the beginning of a turn. No changes may be made mid-turn. All changes must be submitted to a tournament official by the unit leader. Any affiliation changes must be confirmed by the new unit leader before the roster change shall become official.
Roster Additions
Pilots recruiting to a unit during the tournament must still abide by these rules. A pilot may only be added to a roster at the beginning of a turn, even if that pilot has not fought during the tournament. Again, this is to prevent ‘ringing’.
Changing Affiliations
A pilot may change affiliations from one unit to another (for example if they leave one unit and join another during the war). The following restrictions apply:
• A pilot may only change unit affiliations one time. This is a permanent change for the duration of the tournament and the pilot will now be listed on the new team’s roster ONLY. Any further drops for any other team will be handled as an illegal pilot fighting for that unit.
• Roster changes must be confirmed by both unit leaders
• Roster changes may only be submitted at the beginning of a turn, before any battles have been fought in that turn
Substitute/Emergency Pilots
For the times when a unit simply has valid attendance problem and may be forced to forfeit a match as they do not have enough players, the tournament officials will have a pool of available pilots that have agreed to act as non-affiliated substitutes. Only a tournament official can approve of the use of one or more of these pilots. Substitute pilots are not mandatory. It is the team’s choice as to whether they want to use them. This is simply an option to help teams.
In the event that there are no sanctioned substitute players available, or if a tournament official cannot be reached within 15 minute threshold of the match start time, the match will be forfeited as normal.
Match Reporting
All units are expected to report the results of all matches fought. Screenshots must be provided along with the results report. All units are also expected to take screenshots when a mulligan is involved and report these alongside the fought matches.
Any team that does not report a match with a screenshot will receive one warning. After a warning about match reporting has been issued, the team will receive a point penalty as a consequence for each violation of this rule. Repeated violations of this rule may warrant additional consequences such as a loss of attack, or a loss of a turn.
Any discrepancies found will be resolved by a tournament official.
Turn Order
The war will consist of 5 full turns. Each turn will consist of 3 phases: Initiative, Battle Phase, Results Phase.
Turn Phases
Initiative Phase
At the start of each turn, every unit will have a representative present for the rolling of initiative. Initiative will be rolled using an online dice roller that can be seen by all people involved. Initiative order and declarations of attacks/defenses shall occur in the order rolled from lowest to highest. Ties will be re-rolled only to break the tie between those tied units.
Attack and Defense Declarations
All units within the faction give one attack that must be used by that unit.
Example: District 2 has three units, Unit X, Y and Z. Each of these units must participate in one attack each.
During the initiative meeting, all units will declare their attacks and defenses. All districts will declare one attack (with the unit to be used), in order of initiative, until all attacks have been declared.
Once all attacks have been declared, all defenses will be declared (with the unit to defend), in order of initiative.
Once a planet has had an attack declared upon it, that planet is not available to be attacked by any other planet.
There is one exception to this: central planet
The central planet may have 2 attacks declared on it. If this happens, the planet will be fought by round-robin style, with all 3 units involved.
• Unit 1 fights Unit 2.
• Unit 1 fights Unit 3.
• Unit 2 fights Unit 3.
At the end of all matches, overall score shall determine who owns the planet. In the case of a 3 way tie (ie, all units are 1-1 at the end of the round-robin), the planet will not change hands and will remain with the defender.
Number of Battles
Districts will be composed of multiple teams of varying tiers. All battles shall be distributed among the units, so that one unit within a district cannot have a second (third, fourth etc) battle until all units have had at least that many battles.
Example: District 1 is comprised of Unit A, Unit B, and Unit C. During the attack and defense declaration, District 1 cannot declare Unit A to have a second battle until Units B and C have been used in one battle each. Unit A then cannot get a third battle in until B and C are declared for 2 battles.
If, for any reason, a unit is used in more battles than the rules allow, the match fought by that unit will be considered a forfeit.
Example: District 4 has Units X, Y, and Z. Units X and Z each fought one battle, but Unit Y does not drop in a battle. Later in the battle phase, Unit X fights another match. Since Unit Y has not fought at least one match, Unit X cannot legally fight in a second match and will forfeit the second match.
BattlePhase
Once the Initiative Phase has closed, the turn will move into the battle phase, where all battles will be scheduled and fought. All battles must be fought and reported before the close of the battle phase.
Results Phase
Once the battle phase has been completed, all results will be verified, tallied and reflected on the system map.
Victory Points
At the end of the war, victory points will be tallied according to how many and what type of planets are owned:
• Normal planets are worth 1 VP
• District Capitol Worlds are worth 2 VP
• Central planet is worth 3 victory points
The overall war winner shall be determined by the number of Victory Points achieved.
There will also be a parity-based score for individual units based on battles fought and strength of opponents. (expand)
Definitions
Mulligan
A Mulligan is an event warranting a re-drop of the current game. A mulligan must be called within the first 30 seconds of the match and before any of the following occur:
• first additional cap point is fully taken by either team (bar completely full for that team’s color)
• first mech component has been destroyed
• first mech death
Only one mulligan is allowed per team for the first 3 matches. This is not one mulligan per game, but one mulligan spanning the first 3 games, so choose wisely.
Once a series goes to a 4th game, mulligans are reset to one (1) per side through the completion of the match. This 1 mulligan is for use in games 4 or 5 only. Any unused mulligans from games 1-3 are lost and not carried over.
Once a team uses their mulligan, they must accept the results of the next viable drop regardless of the technical problems or limitations encountered. Additional mulligans may be offered by the opposing team, but are not required. These agreements are best set up AHEAD of the match, by both team representatives, and should be recorded in some format in case of disputes. If an agreement cannot be reached, the game will run with normal mulligan rules.
The team that calls the mulligan are responsible for exiting the match via the fastest route possible, with Out of Bounds the preferred method (team kills or disconnects are acceptable alternatives). They are responsible for ending the match as quickly as possible. Should both teams agree to fight out the match for fun, the results will not count.
Drop decks may NOT be changed after a mulligan is called by either team for any reason. If a drop deck is altered without first gaining permission from the other team or a referee, the match shall be considered forfeit.
The following occurrences constitute a mulligan:
• One or more disconnects or player/s not successfully loading or Crash to Desktop (CTD)
• Major UI bugs including missing HUD, black screen, yellow screen, kaleidoscope, missing IFF tags, inability to target, missing mini-map, non-directional mini-map.
• Ping tolerances have not been achieved within the first 30 seconds of a match.
The following are NOT valid reasons for a mulligan:
• Wrong mech selections
• Invalid tonnage totals for that drop
• An undesirable map or map variant is selected
• A desire to swap out personnel
Ping Limits
A high ping can cause problems to both the pilot and his opponents. A drastically bouncing ping, however, falls under the category of ‘ping throttling’ as it can confound the server state rewind code, providing a clear advantage to that pilot. For this reason, the following ping thresholds must be enforced:
• A pilot showing a consistent ping of 350+ (20 seconds or longer with proof) shall not be allowed to drop and a mulligan will be charged to that team
• A pilot with an erratically changing ping (bouncing by a variance of over 200 consistently) shall not be allowed to drop and a mulligan will be charged to that team
Forfeits
A forfeit is defined as a loss of a single match. A battles series forfeit shall be recorded as a 0-3 loss for the forfeiting team.
A single game forfeit will happen under the following criteria:
• A referee is called in for a dispute and rules a forfeit
• A team has dropped into a battle outside of tonnage restrictions (over or under weight by more than the allowed tolerance),
• More than 2 of the same mech chassis are selected
• Restricted equipment is part of the drop deck (ECM, jump jets etc)
• A team delays the start of a game by more than 15 minutes from the scheduled time (if first game of the match), or by 15 minutes from the end of the previous match
• A team refuses to drop for any reason
A full match forfeit will happen under the following criteria:
• A team forfeits 3 games in one match for any reason
• A team drops with a pilot who has been disqualified from the War
• A team is found at fault by a referee for a rules violation or a conduct violation
• Failure to respond to scheduling attempts for a match or refusal to schedule with a team
• A team declares a forfeit for themselves in writing (screenshots of in game chat are acceptable)
If a team forfeits a full match, the result shall be listed as a 0-3 loss for that team. Previous game results for that match are disregarded in the case of a forfeit.
Example: Unit A and Z are scheduled to fight a match. Unit Z wins the first 2 matches, but then forfeits the last 3 games as they dropped with restricted equipment, chose 4 Ravens in one drop, and delayed the last match by more than 15 minutes. The result of the match will be listed as a 0-3 loss for Unit Z.
Scheduled Match Times
Once a match time has been accepted by a valid representative from both teams, the match time shall be considered official. This match time will not change unless agreed upon by both teams prior to the start time of the match.
Match Delays - 15 minute rule
Each match will start no more than 15 minutes from the scheduled time, or 15 minutes from the end of the previous match. Both teams must be out of a previous match (in the case of missed sync drops) before the timer starts. Any team not ready for any reason at the end of that 15 minute time period shall forfeit that drop. In this case, the timer will reset and the games will advance in tonnage order.
Disputes will be handled by a referee. In that case that a referee cannot be found, a tournament director will handle any disputes. In the case that no acceptable official can be found, the match will be fought under protest as normal, and a ruling will be made as soon as a legal official can be contacted.
Code of Conduct
All units and pilots that sign up to play in this tournament agree to the tournament Code of Conduct. Any behavior that violates the CoC may and will be punished. Punishments can be given to individual pilots, full units, or Districts, up to and including being banned from the tournament. Please report these violations to a tournament official.
Referees
Referees are official representatives with the power to make rulings on disputes. In lieu of a referee, the Tournament Director may handle disputes. Referees and the Tournament Director will have contact information listed on the site.
Referees should be consulted whenever there is a rules or behavior dispute. If a referee cannot be found quickly, the match will be fought ‘under protest’ and a referee will be consulted as soon as possible.
Cheating
Any pilot or unit caught cheating will immediately be banned from this and all future releases of the tournament.
Following are some examples of cheating (other examples may be added at any time):
• modification of map files
• custom .cfg files that remove objects or landscape elements
• ping throttling, induced lag, or lag spiking
• playing on another or multiple accounts
• use of aim bots or any automatic or programmatic aiming or targeting ****
• use of map hacks
• use of sensor or targeting hacks
State of the Game
Certain patches, hotfixes, or introductions of new material (new mechs or 12-mans for example) may put the game in an unplayable state. The Tournament Director will determine when and if this happens, and what the appropriate course of action will be. In the case of any of these decisions, all teams will be notified. Any concerns about the state of the game should be brought to the attention of an official and/or the Tournament Director.
Beta Rules
As this campaign is a beta, either at the beginning of turn 3 or at the end of turn 3, we will re-evaluate the current rules set and make appropriate changes as needed. This is taking into account the fact that many large and possibly fundamental changes will be occurring in the coming 1-3 months, specifically 12 man drops.
Pre-12 mans version. Obviously things will be changing with the implementation of 12 mans.
Match Format and Order
Match Format
All matches shall be fought in Conquest Mode in a best of 5 format. Any of the following conditions will be considered a win:
• Destroying all enemy mechs
• Gathering Max Resources by Cap
• Enemy team forfeits the match (for any reason, including choice)
In the event that time expires with none of the above win conditions being achieved, the drop will be considered a no-drop (regardless of who the game declares a winner) and will be re-fought using the exact same drop decks for each team. Screenshots of a no-drop must be provided.
If additional map modes are released during the war, the tournament director will make a determination based on input from all units.
Match Order
Matches shall be fought in the following order:
• Game 1 - 375
• Game 2 - 475
• Game 3 - 575
If a game 4 is necessary, the team who has lost more matches to this point get the choice of which of the 3 tonnages to drop.
If a game 5 is necessary, the team who has not chosen a tonnage gets to choose a tonnage to drop at.
Game 4 and 5 choices have no other restrictions on choice of tonnage. They are completely that team’s choice, regardless of which tonnages have been fought thus far.
Synchronized Dropping and Teamspeak
The Marik Teamspeak Server shall be the official server to avoid any confusion in finding teams at the match start times. All drops will be coordinated on this server within the appropriate district’s room, by the designated unit leaders.
Tonnage, Mech, and Planetary Restrictions
Match Tonnage Restrictions
Teams must build a drop deck equal to the drop limit, or up to 15 tons under the limit. Any tonnage outside of the acceptable variance shall be considered a forfeit. Mulligans may be used to counter this forfeit loss. If the team has no Mulligan remaining, that team will forfeit the drop, unless approved by the enemy team.
Example: 475 tonnage limit, drop deck must be within 460-475 tons total.
Mech Chassis Restrictions
375 and 475 drop weight: Only three (3) for any mech chassis can be selected per drop, regardless of variant. No exceptions. In addition, drop decks must contain at least 4 different mech chassis
575 drop weight: Only two (2) of any mech chassis can be selected per drop, regardless of variant. No exceptions.
Dropping with more than the allowed chassis within any tonnage shall be a forfeit. Mulligans may be used to counter this forfeit loss. If the team has no Mulligan remaining, that team will forfeit the drop, unless approved by the enemy team.
Planetary Restrictions
Planets can have the following restrictions:
• Ferrous planetary crust - No Streaks or LRMs (A highly ferrous planetary crust is creating radar ghosting and false lock-ons. Due to this, all missiles requiring a guided lock to fire are deemed unsafe by drop commanders and may not be used).
• Electromagnetic Interference - No ECM (Fluctuating electromagnetic interference wreaks havoc on the delicate electronic equipment needed to provide ECM)
• High Gravity - No jumpjets. (Due to exceptionally high gravity, standard jump jets are unable to generate enough thrust to lift a mech)
• Ionic Storms - No PPCs. High concentrations of ion particles interfere with the containment chambers of PPCs, rendering them useless.
• Kill them All! - matches played on a planet with this restriction are played on the Assault game mode, rather than Conquest, plus whatever additional restrictions may be present
Any team using a piece of restricted equipment on a planet with restrictions shall forfeit that match immediately. Mulligans may be used to counter this forfeit loss. If the team has no Mullgan remaining, that team will forfeit the drop, unless approved by the enemy team.
Unit Rosters, Substitutions, and Affiliated Pilots
To control the abuse of ringers being moved around to different units or being brought in for individual matches, rosters must be submitted by each unit.
Unit Representatives
All units must have a minimum of 2 designated unit representatives that will be the primary contact points for all dealings with that unit. These unit reps will need to have at least 2 forms of contact (forums and email). A unit can have more than 2 representatives listed.
Unit Rosters
All units must submit a roster upon entry into the tournament. There is no limit to the amount of pilots on the roster. Once a pilot has been submitted on a roster, they may not fight for another unit in the tournament unless they change allegiance permanently (see below). A pilot may never fight for more than one unit in the same turn regardless of affiliation or roster changes.
Roster changes, additions, and affiliation changes must be submitted at the beginning of a turn. No changes may be made mid-turn. All changes must be submitted to a tournament official by the unit leader. Any affiliation changes must be confirmed by the new unit leader before the roster change shall become official.
Roster Additions
Pilots recruiting to a unit during the tournament must still abide by these rules. A pilot may only be added to a roster at the beginning of a turn, even if that pilot has not fought during the tournament. Again, this is to prevent ‘ringing’.
Changing Affiliations
A pilot may change affiliations from one unit to another (for example if they leave one unit and join another during the war). The following restrictions apply:
• A pilot may only change unit affiliations one time. This is a permanent change for the duration of the tournament and the pilot will now be listed on the new team’s roster ONLY. Any further drops for any other team will be handled as an illegal pilot fighting for that unit.
• Roster changes must be confirmed by both unit leaders
• Roster changes may only be submitted at the beginning of a turn, before any battles have been fought in that turn
Substitute/Emergency Pilots
For the times when a unit simply has valid attendance problem and may be forced to forfeit a match as they do not have enough players, the tournament officials will have a pool of available pilots that have agreed to act as non-affiliated substitutes. Only a tournament official can approve of the use of one or more of these pilots. Substitute pilots are not mandatory. It is the team’s choice as to whether they want to use them. This is simply an option to help teams.
In the event that there are no sanctioned substitute players available, or if a tournament official cannot be reached within 15 minute threshold of the match start time, the match will be forfeited as normal.
Match Reporting
All units are expected to report the results of all matches fought. Screenshots must be provided along with the results report. All units are also expected to take screenshots when a mulligan is involved and report these alongside the fought matches.
Any team that does not report a match with a screenshot will receive one warning. After a warning about match reporting has been issued, the team will receive a point penalty as a consequence for each violation of this rule. Repeated violations of this rule may warrant additional consequences such as a loss of attack, or a loss of a turn.
Any discrepancies found will be resolved by a tournament official.
Turn Order
The war will consist of 5 full turns. Each turn will consist of 3 phases: Initiative, Battle Phase, Results Phase.
Turn Phases
Initiative Phase
At the start of each turn, every unit will have a representative present for the rolling of initiative. Initiative will be rolled using an online dice roller that can be seen by all people involved. Initiative order and declarations of attacks/defenses shall occur in the order rolled from lowest to highest. Ties will be re-rolled only to break the tie between those tied units.
Attack and Defense Declarations
All units within the faction give one attack that must be used by that unit.
Example: District 2 has three units, Unit X, Y and Z. Each of these units must participate in one attack each.
During the initiative meeting, all units will declare their attacks and defenses. All districts will declare one attack (with the unit to be used), in order of initiative, until all attacks have been declared.
Once all attacks have been declared, all defenses will be declared (with the unit to defend), in order of initiative.
Once a planet has had an attack declared upon it, that planet is not available to be attacked by any other planet.
There is one exception to this: central planet
The central planet may have 2 attacks declared on it. If this happens, the planet will be fought by round-robin style, with all 3 units involved.
• Unit 1 fights Unit 2.
• Unit 1 fights Unit 3.
• Unit 2 fights Unit 3.
At the end of all matches, overall score shall determine who owns the planet. In the case of a 3 way tie (ie, all units are 1-1 at the end of the round-robin), the planet will not change hands and will remain with the defender.
Number of Battles
Districts will be composed of multiple teams of varying tiers. All battles shall be distributed among the units, so that one unit within a district cannot have a second (third, fourth etc) battle until all units have had at least that many battles.
Example: District 1 is comprised of Unit A, Unit B, and Unit C. During the attack and defense declaration, District 1 cannot declare Unit A to have a second battle until Units B and C have been used in one battle each. Unit A then cannot get a third battle in until B and C are declared for 2 battles.
If, for any reason, a unit is used in more battles than the rules allow, the match fought by that unit will be considered a forfeit.
Example: District 4 has Units X, Y, and Z. Units X and Z each fought one battle, but Unit Y does not drop in a battle. Later in the battle phase, Unit X fights another match. Since Unit Y has not fought at least one match, Unit X cannot legally fight in a second match and will forfeit the second match.
BattlePhase
Once the Initiative Phase has closed, the turn will move into the battle phase, where all battles will be scheduled and fought. All battles must be fought and reported before the close of the battle phase.
Results Phase
Once the battle phase has been completed, all results will be verified, tallied and reflected on the system map.
Victory Points
At the end of the war, victory points will be tallied according to how many and what type of planets are owned:
• Normal planets are worth 1 VP
• District Capitol Worlds are worth 2 VP
• Central planet is worth 3 victory points
The overall war winner shall be determined by the number of Victory Points achieved.
There will also be a parity-based score for individual units based on battles fought and strength of opponents. (expand)
Definitions
Mulligan
A Mulligan is an event warranting a re-drop of the current game. A mulligan must be called within the first 30 seconds of the match and before any of the following occur:
• first additional cap point is fully taken by either team (bar completely full for that team’s color)
• first mech component has been destroyed
• first mech death
Only one mulligan is allowed per team for the first 3 matches. This is not one mulligan per game, but one mulligan spanning the first 3 games, so choose wisely.
Once a series goes to a 4th game, mulligans are reset to one (1) per side through the completion of the match. This 1 mulligan is for use in games 4 or 5 only. Any unused mulligans from games 1-3 are lost and not carried over.
Once a team uses their mulligan, they must accept the results of the next viable drop regardless of the technical problems or limitations encountered. Additional mulligans may be offered by the opposing team, but are not required. These agreements are best set up AHEAD of the match, by both team representatives, and should be recorded in some format in case of disputes. If an agreement cannot be reached, the game will run with normal mulligan rules.
The team that calls the mulligan are responsible for exiting the match via the fastest route possible, with Out of Bounds the preferred method (team kills or disconnects are acceptable alternatives). They are responsible for ending the match as quickly as possible. Should both teams agree to fight out the match for fun, the results will not count.
Drop decks may NOT be changed after a mulligan is called by either team for any reason. If a drop deck is altered without first gaining permission from the other team or a referee, the match shall be considered forfeit.
The following occurrences constitute a mulligan:
• One or more disconnects or player/s not successfully loading or Crash to Desktop (CTD)
• Major UI bugs including missing HUD, black screen, yellow screen, kaleidoscope, missing IFF tags, inability to target, missing mini-map, non-directional mini-map.
• Ping tolerances have not been achieved within the first 30 seconds of a match.
The following are NOT valid reasons for a mulligan:
• Wrong mech selections
• Invalid tonnage totals for that drop
• An undesirable map or map variant is selected
• A desire to swap out personnel
Ping Limits
A high ping can cause problems to both the pilot and his opponents. A drastically bouncing ping, however, falls under the category of ‘ping throttling’ as it can confound the server state rewind code, providing a clear advantage to that pilot. For this reason, the following ping thresholds must be enforced:
• A pilot showing a consistent ping of 350+ (20 seconds or longer with proof) shall not be allowed to drop and a mulligan will be charged to that team
• A pilot with an erratically changing ping (bouncing by a variance of over 200 consistently) shall not be allowed to drop and a mulligan will be charged to that team
Forfeits
A forfeit is defined as a loss of a single match. A battles series forfeit shall be recorded as a 0-3 loss for the forfeiting team.
A single game forfeit will happen under the following criteria:
• A referee is called in for a dispute and rules a forfeit
• A team has dropped into a battle outside of tonnage restrictions (over or under weight by more than the allowed tolerance),
• More than 2 of the same mech chassis are selected
• Restricted equipment is part of the drop deck (ECM, jump jets etc)
• A team delays the start of a game by more than 15 minutes from the scheduled time (if first game of the match), or by 15 minutes from the end of the previous match
• A team refuses to drop for any reason
A full match forfeit will happen under the following criteria:
• A team forfeits 3 games in one match for any reason
• A team drops with a pilot who has been disqualified from the War
• A team is found at fault by a referee for a rules violation or a conduct violation
• Failure to respond to scheduling attempts for a match or refusal to schedule with a team
• A team declares a forfeit for themselves in writing (screenshots of in game chat are acceptable)
If a team forfeits a full match, the result shall be listed as a 0-3 loss for that team. Previous game results for that match are disregarded in the case of a forfeit.
Example: Unit A and Z are scheduled to fight a match. Unit Z wins the first 2 matches, but then forfeits the last 3 games as they dropped with restricted equipment, chose 4 Ravens in one drop, and delayed the last match by more than 15 minutes. The result of the match will be listed as a 0-3 loss for Unit Z.
Scheduled Match Times
Once a match time has been accepted by a valid representative from both teams, the match time shall be considered official. This match time will not change unless agreed upon by both teams prior to the start time of the match.
Match Delays - 15 minute rule
Each match will start no more than 15 minutes from the scheduled time, or 15 minutes from the end of the previous match. Both teams must be out of a previous match (in the case of missed sync drops) before the timer starts. Any team not ready for any reason at the end of that 15 minute time period shall forfeit that drop. In this case, the timer will reset and the games will advance in tonnage order.
Disputes will be handled by a referee. In that case that a referee cannot be found, a tournament director will handle any disputes. In the case that no acceptable official can be found, the match will be fought under protest as normal, and a ruling will be made as soon as a legal official can be contacted.
Code of Conduct
All units and pilots that sign up to play in this tournament agree to the tournament Code of Conduct. Any behavior that violates the CoC may and will be punished. Punishments can be given to individual pilots, full units, or Districts, up to and including being banned from the tournament. Please report these violations to a tournament official.
Referees
Referees are official representatives with the power to make rulings on disputes. In lieu of a referee, the Tournament Director may handle disputes. Referees and the Tournament Director will have contact information listed on the site.
Referees should be consulted whenever there is a rules or behavior dispute. If a referee cannot be found quickly, the match will be fought ‘under protest’ and a referee will be consulted as soon as possible.
Cheating
Any pilot or unit caught cheating will immediately be banned from this and all future releases of the tournament.
Following are some examples of cheating (other examples may be added at any time):
• modification of map files
• custom .cfg files that remove objects or landscape elements
• ping throttling, induced lag, or lag spiking
• playing on another or multiple accounts
• use of aim bots or any automatic or programmatic aiming or targeting ****
• use of map hacks
• use of sensor or targeting hacks
State of the Game
Certain patches, hotfixes, or introductions of new material (new mechs or 12-mans for example) may put the game in an unplayable state. The Tournament Director will determine when and if this happens, and what the appropriate course of action will be. In the case of any of these decisions, all teams will be notified. Any concerns about the state of the game should be brought to the attention of an official and/or the Tournament Director.
Beta Rules
As this campaign is a beta, either at the beginning of turn 3 or at the end of turn 3, we will re-evaluate the current rules set and make appropriate changes as needed. This is taking into account the fact that many large and possibly fundamental changes will be occurring in the coming 1-3 months, specifically 12 man drops.
More to follow