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| Online Tournament Rules |
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TOURNAMENT RULES - ONLINE GAMES 1. The normal rules of Tantrix apply. 2. Time limit : The time limit is 15 minutes per player per game. In Double tournaments, it's 12 minutes each = 24 minutes per pair. You start losing points as soon as you reach the time limit. If your opponent goes over time, you should claim time penalties on the submission form. You can retract a claim for up to 24 hours later. 3. Disconnections : It is your responsibility to organize access to a reliable computer in order to minimize disconnections. It is recommended that you start with a fresh system (just booted). Preferably close other applications. When players are disconnected, you should try to be helpful. Please give them time to reconnect (5 minutes minimum). After this period, you can resume the game against Robot by selecting "Actions/Let the Robot play". If a player disconnects more than once (ignore very short disconnections of less than two minutes) then you can let the robot play after three disconnections of between 2 and 5 minutes each. You can allow more time, no one really wants to win a game just because their opponent is disconnected, but not less. Either player can send such games for adjudication afterwards if the Robot plays in a way unlike any human (eg. the Robot allows an easily avoidable large loop) and this has a significant effect on the result. Unless the adjudicator is online at the time of the game, the player will need to provide screen prints sufficient to allow for adjudication. If both players disconnect or one player can’t get into the room after a disconnection, it’s best to restart the game in a new room. If the same type of room (Game room /Tournament Game) and same colours are used, the game will start again where it stopped. If the game cannot be continued, either player can send the game for adjudication if they have one or more relevant screen prints. Both players should send in their claim for what the final score should be and can add an explanation if they wish. If neither player is going to do this or the adjudicator decides that it was too early in the game to determine the likely outcome, the game will have to be restarted. Where it is possible to judge with reasonable certainty who the winner would have been but the winning margin can only be ascertained to within a range, the adjudicator can offer that player the option of being awarded a win at the lowest end of the possible margin range. In this case, the game would only have to be restarted if the player offered the win was not happy to accept that outcome. In one-day events, the game can be declared a 23-23 draw at the adjudicator's discretion if the situation is too complex and there is no time for a restart. 4. Adjusting times : We have to rely on players to be fair here. On reconnection, the clocks should show the times at disconnection. If either player's clock has been reset to zero or has been ticking over while they were unable to move, please agree on an adjustment, ideally when the disconnected player rejoins, rather than at the end of the game. 5. Colours : Where a player has registered a first preference colour on entry, they must use it in all games unless their opponent has registered the same first preference colour or agrees to let them use an alternative colour. If both players have registered the same first preference colour, we encourage people to come to a friendly agreement on colour choices. However, if they cannot agree and neither player is willing to let the other use their first preference throughout, then they should each use their second colours throughout. If second preferences are the same too, each player should use their first preference colour for half of the games of the match, with the first-named player on the fixture list getting first choice for the first half of the match and the second-named player getting first choice for the second half of the match including any extra games if the match consists of an odd number of games. If a player has not registered a colour preference, they cannot stop the other player from playing with their preferred colour but can choose any of the other three colours. Players without colour preference must announce their choice of colour to their opponents before the start of each match, and may not change colours during a match unless the opponent agrees. If neither player has registered a first preference colour, the first-named player on the fixture list gets first choice of colour for the first half of the match and the second-named player gets first choice for the second half of the match including any extra game if the match consists of an odd number of games. If your opponent has not used the correct colour, you can ask for the game to be restarted but only if you do so before making your first move. 6. Defaults : In a weekend event, if a player does not arrive for a game within 5 minutes of the time it is meant to start, any extra minutes they are late are added to their game time when they do eventually arrive. After 10 more minutes, they can be defaulted. If they are having trouble connecting to the lobby and find a way to let the Controller or their opponent know, try to be understanding. In a knockout competition, 20 TPs are awarded for a default win. A default win in one game in a group phase is worth 15 TPs or (if applicable) the average scored by other players in the group against the defaultee rounded to the nearest 0.1 TPs if that average is more than 15. The defaultee gets 20 TPs minus what the other player gets, but defaulting deliberately because you need to make sure of at least 5 TPs in your last game or to help a friend to qualify is definitely cheating and will result in a tournament ban. Defaulting more games in a group than there are in one mini-match results in a "total default" and means that all of the offending player's results are ignored in the final table. If your opponent fails to turn up for a game within 15 minutes of the agreed time TWICE, you can ask for them to be defaulted. Some people are sympathetic and give their opponent another chance (you do not have to) but if you do, you should claim 2 TPs from the other player immediately. That means 2 TPs per game you had definitely arranged to play, though if in the end you claim a default anyway, you just get normal default points instead. Clarification: This means that under these circumstances, in order to avoid the inconvenienced player feeling awkward about claiming, 2 penalty points per scheduled game in the second session that turned out to be a no-show is automatic. Controllers can also, at their discretion, award similar penalties in any other case where one player was entitled to claim a default but agrees to carry on trying to play a match. This possibility also extends to non-default situations or any other case where there has been exceptionally inconsiderate behaviour by a player, especially if this has been so irritating that it might conceivably impair the average opponent's ability to think clearly when the games are actually played. Only the scores and time penalties in games actually played are included in ELO calculations. This is because ELO ratings are supposed to reflect actual play. Defaults are often caused by failed connections, not directly the fault of the defaulted player. Any behaviour which could result in a default may lead to the offending player being banned from future tournaments. Conceding a match in a knockout tournament before your opponent has scored enough TPs to be 100% certain of winning is not acceptable and will be treated as a default. If your opponent has scored enough TPs to be 100% certain of winning the match, then you can either concede or, in an attempt to salvage some of the damage to your ELO rating from the match, you can require the remaining games to be played. The player who is losing has the choice. A player whose opponent defaults or concedes or who concedes without playing all of the games will still be treated as having played "all scheduled games" for the purposes of being eligible for a master norm from the tournament concerned. In an all-play-all event or in a group phase, all games must be played unless the Controller agrees otherwise. The only circumstances in which it might be acceptable not to play a game or games in a group phase are if both players agree and if the result of the games could not affect any of the final positions in the table except those of the two players or teams concerned. 7. Arranging games : Players should email their opponents within 4 days of the start of a round, with the relevant Assistant Controller ("AC") copied in, otherwise you may risk a warning. If you do not make contact within 2 days of a warning, you risk being defaulted unless you have already notified the Controller that you will be unavailable over that period. When you write, you should offer dates and times consistent with the guidelines for the tournament concerned. If a player does not reply to an email within 3 days, the AC should be told. The Controller will then contact the uncommunicative player and if they do not reply within 7 days of the original email or within 2 days of the AC's email, whichever is later, they may be defaulted. These gaps may be decreased at the Controller's discretion when deadlines are approaching. For this reason, anyone likely to be unable to access their email for a few days during the tournament should let the Controller know. If a player does not appear in the lobby at the arranged time, their opponent should wait for 15 minutes. If a player does not appear within 15 minutes (maybe they had trouble connecting or there was a mix-up over time zones) and they email the opponent within 24 hours, the match should be rearranged. Please tell the Controller so that a player is only allowed one chance per match, up to three in a tournament as a whole at the Controller's discretion. In other circumstances at the Controller's discretion, a player may be defaulted for failing to make an effort to arrange a match or, if a deadline for a game to be played is close, the first time they fail to appear. When deciding which player to default if a match is not played by the deadline, ACs only need to consider emails that they were copied into at the time they were written. 8. Scoring : Positions will be based on Tournament Points (TPs), which are awarded as shown in the table below. They are based on sharing 20 TPs out for each game. Each player starts with 10 TPs. For a win, the winner gets 2 win bonus points plus ( (4/3) * SQRT (winning margin)) rounded to one decimal place, up to a maximum of 20.0 TPs. In addition, 1 TP is deducted from a player's total and added to the other player's TP total if they hit the time limit, with an extra TP for each whole minute by which they exceed the time limit. For example. 2 TPs are deducted for taking 16:00 - 16:59. This is subject to the maximum possible TP score for a game being 20-0. The system will automatically calculate the TPs after submission. In KO rounds, players can stop playing as soon as one player (or team) has won the match, even if the total number of games for the round has not been reached yet. Eg in a 6 game match play can be stopped as soon as one player reaches 62.5 TPs. For group phases, all games must be completed. 9. Tiebreaks : In a match of a knockout competition, if the TP scores are separated by less than 5 TP's then up to 3 additional games will be played until one player is at least 5 TP's ahead. For example, to win a 6-game match, at least 62.5 TPs are needed. However after 3 tiebreak games, the winner is the player who is ahead by any amount. If the TP scores are identical even after 3 tiebreak games have been played, the player who has won (scored more than 10 TPs in) the most games in the match will be declared the winner. If both players have won the same number of games, the person who scored the highest total number of tiles wins. If these are equal too, the players should carry on playing games with a 5 minute time limit per player until one of them wins a game or loses because their time reaches 5:00. If two or more players are tied in an all-play-all event, they will be separated on the basis of the TPs scored in the game or games which was/were played between them. If this doesn't resolve the tie, and the tie is between two players for either a qualifying place, first place in a final or for a prize, they will play each other again with a 5 minute time limit per player and the first one to win a game will win. Taking 5:00 or over loses immediately. Less important ties in an all-play-all will be decided by number of wins (counting half a point for a draw) then by the sum of the actual margins, and finally by who has scored the most tiles overall, ignoring opponents' tiles. 10. Disputes : Please try to resolve disputes amicably without involving the Controller. If all else fails, contact the Controller after the game. It may help to copy and paste the chat in the game room into an email and send it with a picture of the game when the dispute arose (screen shot). Use this method if you want to send a game for adjudication too. 11. Rankings : All tournament games which are completed on the Tantrix.com site will be included in the Lobby or Master rankings. The Tantrix ELO ratings are described in a separate section of this tournaments site. 12. Seedings : Where required, these will be based on the ELO ratings at the closing date for entries. They will be reduced as described in the rating rules if the number of games on which the rating is based is below the threshold level or if the player concerned has not played a tournament game for a very long time. 13. Cheating : While we take steps to deter and to detect cheating, it is hard to detect online. As well as spoiling an event for other players, cheating severely devalues your own performance in a tournament. In case it is not clear, cheating includes: * Getting help from someone else, through a message service or in real life (yet communication is allowed between players of a Doubles Team) * Disconnecting or defaulting deliberately to gain an advantage * Using real tiles (or software) to help count the tiles left in the bag * Failure to wait long enough for someone to reconnect before letting the robot play on * Using a pre-drawn grid to help with tile-counting * Lying about your age or nationality to gain entry to a tournament for which you are not eligible * Making multiple entries for a tournament using different names or otherwise falsifying information on an entry form * Deliberately losing a game (or deliberately playing badly) to advantage or disadvantage other players * Anything else, however clever it may seem, which is aimed at securing an unfair advantage for you over another player Anyone caught cheating risks being banned from future tournaments. 14. Final say : In all matters, the Tournament Controller's decision is final. However, this rule should be used as a last resort only. If a dispute is too complex for the Controller to decide or the Controller is effected as a player, then the decision should be passed on to the Tantrix Senior Committee.
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© Copyright 2018, Colour of Strategy Ltd, Pohara, New Zealand. All rights reserved. Last update: May, 2018 |