Event Format

The tournament consists of a set of preliminary rounds that will advance up to 16 players to the single elimination portion of the event. Two losses in the first three preliminary rounds (or possibly four or more rounds depending on the number of participants) will eliminate a player from advancing to the single elimination portion of the event, although such players may continue to play in all of those preliminary rounds. Not playing in a round counts as a loss for purposes of advancement. Byes would be provided to the highest ranked players in the first single elimination round if fewer than 16 people qualified.

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The specific scenarios to be played and timetable are described on the schedule page.

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Choice of Divisions

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The tournament will have two divisions, depending on whether a player wants to play using traditional PBEM style (exchanging moves and files via ACTS and email) or if the player wants to play live using VASSAL, the GCACW discord server, or with another method both players agree on. Before the tournament begins, the player will identify whether they want to be in the PBEM division, the live division, or if they have no preference and are willing to play exclusively in either division. The number and experience of participants in the two divisions will be evened out to the extent possible by allocating those with no preference for a division to either the PBEM or live division.

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Pairings

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Players will be paired to play players in their division for as long as possible in the tournament. All preliminary round games should be played within the same division, and within-division play should continue for some time into the single-elimination portion of the event. No one who does not want to play a live game will be required to do so during the tournament. Eventually as the tournament progresses through the later, single elimination rounds, at some point there will be too few players left in one division to pair up against each other and within-division games shall commence. At that point, a player in the live division will be required to play using PBEM style if the other player so chooses. 

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In round 1, within each division, players without AREA ratings will play each other to the extent possible. Players with AREA ratings will be randomly paired with another player with an AREA rating. If there are an odd number of players without an AREA rating, one player will be chosen at random to play against someone with an AREA rating, specifically someone in the lower half of that pool ranked by AREA rating.

 

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In subsequent preliminary rounds, pairings will be made randomly between players with identical won/loss records so far in the tournament to the extent possible. Players may not play the same player twice in the preliminary rounds of the tournament.

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If there are an odd number of players who want to participate in any preliminary round in a division, the GM will ask the tournament entrants if they are willing to play a second game that round as an eliminator. The player chosen to face the eliminator will be determined randomly among those players with the lowest record to that point, except in the first round it will be a player randomly selected from among those players with AREA ratings of 5000 (unrated player) and below. The eliminator will be the volunteer whose AREA rating at the beginning of the tournament is closest to the player chosen to face the eliminator. An eliminator will also be utilized to the extent possible if a player drops out before a game begins but after pairings have been made. This game will not count toward the eliminator's tournament standings or tie-breakers. In the unlikely event that no eliminator is found, then the player gets a bye for that round.

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The method for determining the seedings and pairings in the single-elimination rounds is described on the tournament schedule page.

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