Table of Contents
Tournament Check-In
For any event, you have to show up before the announced start time to double check your participation. In free-to-enter tournaments, this involves checking in on the tournament’s Battlefy page in the hour prior to the start, with check-in closing exactly at the announced start time, so that the event’s schedule is as smooth as possible.
Therefore, it is the player’s responsibility to check all instructions and perform all sign-up steps required for each particular event. Generally, you will be required to register on the tournament’s platform (like Battlefy), join Victory Road’s Discord server or third’s parties ones, and submit your team for the event.
If needed, Victory Road can fix or change the registration details on a case-by-case basis. If this may affect or may have affected the tournament in some way, the head TOs may issue an appropriate penalty to the player.
Late Shows
Once pairings for each round are posted, players are expected to join their match’s chat room and post to signal activity.
Any player not showing signs of activity or showing up late to their match will be penalized as follows:
- Five (5) min after pairings are posted: game 1 loss.
- Ten (10) min after pairings are posted: game 2 loss (that is, round loss).
- Multiple late showings might result in a disqualification at the head TOs discretion.
- Any players not showing up after round 4 with a record that makes them not eligible for top cut (that is, 3 or more losses) will be automatically dropped.
- We strongly recommend you to avoid delaying your games upon contacting your opponent for the sake of everyone’s playing experience.
If you’re waiting on your room and your opponent does not show up, please go to Report Match Issue and a TO will come over.
Game losses for being late will only be issued before the start of the match and not after. Tardiness must be acknowledged by both players, or reported and verified by a judge, before the beginning of game 1.
Drops
If you wish to drop from the tournament, you can do it yourself by clicking that option in your last match’s Battlefy page.
If you’re dropped but decide to keep on playing, you MUST ask any TO to rejoin by using the “Report Match Issue” option. You will be able to do so until the round you were dropped in finishes. No players will be allowed to rejoin afterwards due to software limitations on Battlefy.
Round Timer
We will enforce a 70 minute round timer for each round, though a grace period of 5 minutes is allocated for any matches having communication errors.
If by chance the timer is hit, games in play will ideally be allowed to finish. If for any reason the event cannot be delayed and the TO needs a result, the TOs may decide the outcome in a case-by-case basis, either by:
- Punishing the player causing the match to finish excessively late (if this was the reason behind the delay)
- Issuing a double loss, if both players are responsible for the delay
- Entering as a spectator and deciding on the game status (if there is a clear winner under the usual tiebreaker conditions)
- Randomly, with a coinflip
Please keep in mind that these measures are meant to keep the tournament as dynamic as possible and for the sake of everyone’s playing experience.
Tiebreakers
A tie could be produced in the following scenarios:
- Both players get a game loss (double loss) once the round time is up or the organization considers the time is close enough to the limit.
- The round time is up or the organization considers the time is close enough to the limit and the round result is still 0-0 or 1-1.
- Any other reason considered by the organization not disclosed in this page.
If the staff cannot determine a winner, the tie will be resolved randomly with a coinflip.
Result Manipulation
When both players show up for a round, match wins/losses MUST be determined only by game play.
Any player found to be asking their opponent to give them a win, either directly, indirectly or via bribery or coercion, will be immediately disqualified from the event, losing any right to the prizes earned, such as prize money or other products.
Players are able to grant the victory to their opponent via an in-game forfeit or by conceding to their opponent in the match’s chat, but once this decision is taken, it will not be revoked.
Identities & Ghosting
All players are expected to sign up using their real identities, such as their real/preferred names and actual Discord usernames. Those can differ from one another, but must remain true and unipersonal.
Any player proven to be ghosted (helped by other players, regardless if they were already eliminated or didn’t take part in the event) or signing up with a fake/alt identity, will be disqualified from the event, losing any right to the prizes earned, such as prize money or other products.
Connection issues
Pokémon Champions has a reconnection system in all platforms it can be played, so any connection issues will be resolved as dictated by the game. Any attempt at causing issues by any kind of manipulation can result in a penalty.
Should a rare situation arise that is not covered by the game itself, the TOs will handle it on a case-by-case basis.
Public Teamlists
For tournaments with public teamlists or team sheets in play, those teams will be accessible for both players paired each round.
Players will be able to check their opponent’s team before and during the match by using the URL in the same chat room they connect each other. The public list must be the exact same as the Pokémon team used in the match.
If any player is reported for having different information between their team list and their game, and the match is already in play, the game this comes up is instantly voided and the player will receive a game loss. However, they will be able to make the adaptation for the next game and following rounds, by either fixing their team in game to match the list or submitting a fixed team list. If the match had not started and the player notices an error, they will not be punished, but they must make sure the opponent is aware of the new information before going into team preview.
After a team list error is found, players must amend it. Since the public list URL field cannot be edited after the tournament starts, players will be responsible for sending a new team list every round on their chat and make sure their opponent checked it properly by asking them directly before the match starts.
Failure to do so may result in new game losses, as the opponent would be playing with an information handicap.
Standard of Conduct
All players competing on our tournaments or taking part in any of our activities are expected to have a respectful behaviour towards other players and the Victory Road staff. Similarly, all players are subject to the Play! Pokémon’s standards of conduct.
Any player whose behaviour is deemed against these standards of conduct will be disqualified from the tournament, losing any right to the prizes earned, such as prize money or other products.
Unacceptable behaviour includes, but is not limited to, insults, slurs and discrimination based on ethnic background, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs. Victory Road’s TOs will evaluate each situation in a case-by-case basis and will decide on the most appropriate measures.
Stream and YouTube content
All tournament matches may be streamed, recorded or uploaded to media platforms (Twitch, Youtube…) both owned by Victory Road or third parties, using the in-game spectator mode, either live or at any point afterwards. By participating, all players acknowledge and consent to this.
Public Image
By participating in any tournament or event hosted by Victory Road, all players are subject to having any information they submit as part of their sign-up published on Victory Road’s website and social media platforms, included but not limited to, real/preferred name, country/region and details pertaining to their participation, such as their team of Pokémon or any details thereof.
Players may and are encouraged to reach out to Victory Road in case they want to be excluded from this treatment ahead of the event, and each situation will be treated in a case-by-base basis. While ghosting and fake identities are not permitted at our events, safety and well-being of the participants is the utmost priority, and therefore players with certain circumstances may be allowed to play under an alias at Victory Road’s discretion.
Victory Road reserves the right to deny entry to certain players to the tournaments hosted by Victory Road, based on previous penalties, damage to Victory Road’s image or any other reason at the TOs discretion.
Rules Agreement
All players competing in the event accept the rules disclosed in this page and are expected to follow staff instructions during the course of the event.
The player accepts knowing all rules disclosed in this document before they sign up to any Victory Road event. The player also accepts to provide proof of their identity if requested in order to dispute a fake identity claim; these, to be handled on a case-by-case basis, will never be shared to any third parties, will only be used by Victory Road to resolve the aforementioned claim, and will be deleted after the claim is resolved.
Victory Road reserves the right to change the content of these rules at any time without prior notice.
