Team Fortress 2 6v6 GameBattles.com Tournament Ruleset
General
Rules are subject to change at any time, so please check them often.
It is the responsibility of all the users of this ladder to know and understand the rules.
Our goal here at GameBattles is to provide gamers with a place to find fair and competitive matches. In order to accomplish this goal, we will not tolerate players or teams that cause problems or attempt to undermine the positive atmosphere on GameBattles. This includes teams that cheat, dispute on purpose, or repeatedly abuse players. Violators will be dealt with accordingly including possible removal from GameBattles. As with all accusations, valid proof must be provided. Please see the proof section below.
GameBattles prohibits members from creating or managing more than one team on a ladder from the same household as well as competing against each other. Multiple people from the same household may compete on GameBattles; however, only one username can be in a management position on a team. For example, only one username can be a Co-Leader or Leader on a team. All other usernames from the same household cannot be anything higher than member on any team.
Abuse of our volunteer Staff will not be tolerated in any form. This includes written messages or verbal comments. Violators will be removed from GameBattles.
Team members are not able to change the name of their team. Only the leader of the team can submit a ticket to request a team name change. Names must be appropriate and cannot be taken by another team on the same ladder.
Team names, blast messages, logos, avatars, and website links are subject to the Forum Rules.
All MLG/GameBattles accounts are property of Major League Gaming Inc. Any advertising of, or attempts to buy, sell, trade, or exchange an account by any means is strictly prohibited. Violators will be banned from all MLG/GameBattles websites and all related accounts terminated.
Rosters
It is both teams responsibility to verify the eligibility of all players playing in the match prior to starting or continuing any match play. A team playing with an ineligible player will forfeit the match.
If the opponent team has an ineligible player present, ask the team to replace that player. You must have given the team the required 15 minutes from match start time to substitute their ineligible players. If the ineligible player shows up between maps/rounds, you must give the team the required 5 to replace their ineligible player. If the team does not substitute their ineligible player and allows that player to compete in the match, follow these steps:
Immediately submit a ticket stating an ineligible player was present. This ticket must be submitted before starting or continuing to play the match.
When the match is completed, you must go back to your ticket and submit the URL link containing valid proof showing the ineligible player playing in the match. Without valid proof, no win can be awarded.
Tickets submitted after the match is completed are not valid. You must submit a ticket immediately when the issue arises as stated above.
All gamertags on a team’s roster must be valid. The gamertag must be legitimately owned by the user on the roster. If the team cannot access the gamertag or has an invalid gamertag on the roster, the team is subject to being locked.
The rules below outline our policies on rostered players. Please see rule number 2 if the following rules are broken:
Users are permitted to be listed on only one team on each tournament at any given time. Users are only permitted one gamertag per tournament.
All roster spots must be comprised of only one valid gamertag. Spelling and spaces must be exact, but does not need to be case sensitive.
Gamertags may not contain foul language, disparaging remarks, hateful or racist names.
Players must have a green eligibility icon next to their name to participate in matches.
No-Shows
A team has 15 minutes to show-up with the number of eligible players indicated in the match details, and be ready to start the match. Failure to do so will result in a forfeit. Teams are responsible for all scheduled matches.
To receive a no-show win, you must submit a ticket within 30 minutes of the scheduled match time. You must also report the match as a win for your team.
Reporting
Both teams are responsible for reporting the match within 30 minutes of its completion. If teams do not report matching results, the match will result in a ‘dispute’. Both teams are then required to submit a ticket regarding the dispute and include any valid proof they have. Teams can also resolve their own disputes by changing the scores they reported for the match. To do this, teams must go into the match report screen for the disputed match and change the scores within 24 hours of the scheduled start time.
Matches that go unreported by one team will be reported automatically for the team that did report. Matches that go unreported by both teams will be deleted automatically.
Any team found to report as the winning team before the match is played or completed will be subject to penalties.
All matches need to be reported correctly by both teams. If there is an issue with a match, the match must first be reported accurately and then a ticket containing your valid proof can be submitted afterwards. Do not dispute the match on purpose. Please see the proof section below for more information. If your claims are found to be valid with proof, an Admin has the ability to revert the match.
Tickets
Do not contact staff inquiring about the status of a ticket or your team is subject to penalties. We receive many tickets from our users, and they are handled in the order they are received.
When submitting a ticket, fill out all applicable fields. Submitting an incomplete or incorrect ticket will be closed without being processed. You are required to select your team name from the drop-down. If you are submitting a ticket about a match, you must also fill out the match ID or your ticket will not be processed.
All admin decisions are final. If you would like your case looked into again due to new evidence, feel free to submit a new ticket. Submitting a ticket without additional evidence is argumentative and you risk your team being locked. Do not post in the forums regarding a ticket issue.
Cheating
We have a zero tolerance policy for cheating. Teams caught cheating, “glitching”, or abusing in-game mechanics in any way will be removed from GameBattles.
Referees
If you have any problems during a match, you may contact a Staff member over Live Support to answer any questions you may have. Please contact the Referees first as this is their job. To find the list of Staff members, click on the “Staff” tab located within each arena.
If a Staff member is called into a match for any reason, all players must comply with the Staff member’s instructions. Failure to do so will result in penalties for your team.
Verbally abusing Staff members called into a match will not be tolerated. The individual user and/or team violating this rule will be subject to being locked. All team leaders are responsible for the conduct of the players on the team while interacting with staff and are subject to penalties for abusive team players.
Proof
All players and team captains are required to record first person demos of all event matches. All players are required to hold first person demos for at least seven (7) days. After the seventh (7th) day, the demos may be discarded.
If a player has been requested to submit demos to an official for whatever reason, the player has forty-eight (48) hours to comply. If the player does not have the requested information, THE FOLLOWING PENALTIES WILL BE ENFORCED:
1st Offense: Warning + match overturn
2nd Offense: 1 Week suspension + match overturn
3rd Offense: 3 Week suspension + match overturn
You need to show proof of winning each map/game in a match to be given the win for it. All proof must be clearly visible and show the in-game full scoreboard Screenshot during the completion of that map/game. The proof must all clearly show both team's players to be considered valid.
We recommend all video proof should be uploaded to the GB Game Room. Picture proof can be uploaded to your GB profile. The URL link to the individual pictures/proof must be placed in a ticket.
For all glitching and cheating claims, the burden of proof is on the accuser. To submit a glitching or cheating claim, you must submit a ticket and include the URL link containing valid proof.
All conversations between users are not considered proof. This includes IRC, emails, PMs, etc.
No more than two (2) of the following classes – Soldier, Sniper, Scout, Pyro, Heavy, Engi, Spy
No more than one (1) of the following classes – Medic, Demoman
If at any time during the match a team uses more than the maximum number of any class, the round will be overturned.
Map Rules and Scoring
Stopwatch Matches
All stopwatch maps will be scored using the best of three (bo3) format. One (1) complete round is when both teams have attacked and defend once. A point is given to the winning team who successfully attacks faster (ie. in less time) than their opponents. The first team to win two (2) points (rounds) will win the match. There is no time limit for this map.
All stopwatch maps will follow an ABBA format: Team A attacks and team B defends. Next round, team B attacks and team A defends. If the third round is played team A will be the attacking team. By default Team A is the HOME team, but teams may agree to let the visiting team be considered Team A.
Push Maps
Play to four (4) points or thirty (30) minutes and switch sides. Teams may agree to forgo switch sides after 4 points/30 minutes. First team to five (5) points wins the match or the highest score after sixty (60) minutes.
Overtime: Restart config and play one (1) round. The team that wins the round will be considered the winner of the overtime.
General Match Rules
Once a half is deemed LIVE, teams are NOT allowed to restart the match, unless a player drops from the server within the first minute of play. If the server is reset after the first minute all rounds played before the crash will count toward the final score.
Match pausing is required and should be used in the spirit of sportsmanship. Teams are required to pause their servers if requested for any of the following reasons: (rcon sv_pausable 1 - then press the pause key on your keyboard or type ‘pause’ in console)
A player on one of the respective teams experiences network issues
If the server experiences extreme network issues
A player lags out
The hosting team must pause the match at the next round freezetime. Failure to pause the match will result in any the reversal of any unpaused rounds. Referees reserve the right to decide whether or not the round should or should not have been paused.
Abuse of match pausing is defined as "any pausing by a team when one of the three instances above does not occur."
Player substitutions are allowed at anytime during the match. A player is only allowed to join the dedicated server after the player whom he/she is substituting for has left the server. Failure to do so and allowing a reasonable advantage may result in a loss of rounds.
Matches
Map Rotation:
Winners Round 1 - cp_well
Winners Round 2 - cp_granary
Winners Round 3 - cp_badlands
Losers Round 1 - cp_granary
Losers Round 2 - cp_badlands
Losers Round 3 - cp_gravelpit
Losers Round 4 - cp_badlands
Championship - Best of 3 (Each team picks one map, the third map is cp_gravelpit)
The higher-seeded team at match time has first choice of servers.
Ping Issues: If there is a difference in average ping greater than 100 between the teams, the victimized team may demand an alternate server is found. Ping issues should be sorted out at least 12 hours before match time, to avoid last-minute issues. If the dispute over servers cannot be rectified, contact a Referee immediately.
Time Limit (Between Rounds) - The in between round time limit is game specific. The maximum hold up time will be 5 minutes. A team can request to have the server countdown timer be turned on if there is abuse of this grace period by having a referee come in and authorize the counter. If starting the round means the team plays shorthanded, so be it. Repeated abuse of this grace period can lead to warnings up to and including forfeits.
