Alliance Tournament XX: Revamped Rules!

Alliance Tournament XX: Revamped Rules!

by EVE ONLINE TEAM10:30pm on Friday 28th June 2024

Tournament enjoying capsuleers,

A short while ago, we received news that the previous Alliance Tournament XX rules and registration announcement transmission has become corrupted and should be considered untrusted and invalid. The IGC has resupplied the data alongside an updated press release:

From the office of IGC Commissioner:

“Earlier this week, we announced our partnership with the CONCORD Assembly to be the premiere sponsor of the Alliance Tournament XX, which will be hosted later this year. While we are grateful for the generous donation of special assets provided to us by CONCORD for the tournament, a decision has been made to move away from CONCORD as our managing partner at this time. We are thankful to the team at CONCORD for their continued support of capsuleer tournaments and look forward to working with them again in the future as our business relationship develops.” 

“It is with great pride, then that we announce our new sponsorship deal for the upcoming Alliance Tournament and our new managing partner, the Guristas organization! This partnership, and the significant financial investment made by the Guristas, will aid the IGC in successfully delivering our flagship tournament at the highest level as we move into our third decade. This commercial agreement will continue to enable us to provide a premiere level of support for the many capsuleer alliances partaking in our 20th anniversary games.”

IGC Commissioner Khumat Mebroh had the following to say about this new sponsorship agreement:

“The Guristas have a great track record of supporting these kinds of events through their robust vessels, ship equipment and supply of rare and collectable goods, as well as their comprehensive sports betting systems, allowing players to get even closer to the action inside the arena. We look forward to utilizing their extensive network of resources to improve our own product and lay the groundwork for greater and more lucrative tournaments for all participants in the coming years.”

The Guristas have likewise released their own statement on this historic partnership to their local press groups:

“Yeah, we’re happy for the business. This tournament has just been a little too corporate the last few years – not that we expect any better from the Minmatar and Gallente. This one is going to have some actual class, like a real tournament should. We’ve got a lot to celebrate, it being 20th event and all, and we think people are going to have a real good time. One way or another.”

“We saw their little announcement yesterday. Why do you think we agreed to this? Come on, be serious. We've been watching the tournament for years and it makes us sick to imagine Panaja Paukonsuo handing a championship trophy over to alliances with some logo of weird mythical creatures again, or whatever runner-up alliance it was that had a proud parent submit their child’s artwork as a logo rebrand for this year. How about we get Estamel Tharchon herself up there on the stage to shake hands and kiss babies instead – maybe we’ll get her to wear the Guristas rabbit ears, too. That’d be a laugh.”

“So no, we’re not letting the CONCORD dorks slap their name on the 20th-anniversary tournament. Tell em’ thanks for the ships, though; we’ve got some really wild ideas for them. Give the people what they want, you know.”

The IGC has submitted the revised news announcement below:

Signups for Alliance Tournament XX are now open! Below is the full list of rules and signup instructions. All hopeful competitors, please take your time and review everything carefully.

The format and rules for this year’s Alliance Tournament has had a points overhaul but should still feel close to what you’ve come to expect from the Alliance Tournament! There have been some alterations to the overall ruleset, so pay close attention. For any questions or clarifications, you may post in the tournaments section of the EVE Discord server.

Note that the format and match rules are subject to change at CCP Games’ discretion. Participants are strongly advised to regularly check the Tournament forums and Discord for the most up-to-date information.

Talent Recruitment

From the office of IGC Commissioner:

"While we are grateful for the significant financial contributions of our host partner and likewise appreciate their offer of no doubt otherwise talented individuals for this purpose, we are now cognizant of the dearth of media-ready persons within the Guristas and are therefore looking for members of the greater tournament gaming community of New Eden to fill these positions."

If you're interested in filling out the ranks, join the Alliance Tournament XX as a commentator or analyst! We are looking for experienced and passionate individuals to help produce and broadcast this event. Whether you have been part of the talent team in the past or just started playing EVE and have never watched an Alliance Tournament, the application process is open to everyone (requirements permitting). 

We've created a form with all the details; check it out!

Highlights of changes from ATXIX (2023)

• This tournament is now sponsored by the Guristas. As such, the previous CONCORD directives have been rescinded, reducing multiple pirate faction ship costs instead. Gallente-sponsored ships from ATXIX have had their costs restored.

• The top 4 winning teams from ATXIX have been invited back by the IGC and will have no cost of entry.

• The PLEX Silent Auction Buy-ins have been removed this year, and the entry cost has been increased from 3,000 PLEX to 4,000 PLEX.

• Flagship rules have been adjusted to allow prize ships from the previous three alliance tournament to be fielded. Additionally, several previously restricted ships are now allowed.

• The point system has been overhauled. The new point cap per team is 200 points, and multiple ships now have new unique point values.

• Boosters that don’t directly impact the tournament, such as Cerebral Accelerators, are now allowed.

• Instead of 4 total bans submitted to the referee, 2 bans will be submitted by both teams and then shared, followed by 2 additional bans from each team that will also be shared.

• Several new ship hulls from the Equinox and Havoc expansions have been added to the tournament.

Format

The Alliance Tournament XX is a 32-team, double-elimination tournament hosted on the Tranquility server. The Tournament will culminate in a best-of-five finale, with the semi-final matches being a best-of-three series. The 32 entry slots will be decided in the following fashion:

• 4 slots are reserved for the winning alliances from Alliance Tournament XIX.

• 28 slots from the feeder tournament (see “Feeder Tournament” below).

For ATXX, the following alliances have received direct invitations:

1. Fraternity.

2. The Tuskers Co

3. IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

4. Truth. Honour. Light.

Teams who have been awarded an entry slot must still register for Alliance Tournament XX. Unused slots will be ceded and allocated to the feeder tournament allocation.

The seeding for ATXX to determine which teams will play against each other will be based on a combination of last years tournament position, with the first 4 seeded positions listed above, and the remaining positions will be based on the outcome of the feeder tournament.

Alliance Lock And Registration

Alliances wishing to participate in the tournament must be created by 23:59 UTC on 5 July and remain active for the duration of the tournament - don't forget to pay those alliance bills!

The registration cost for Alliance Tournament XX is 4,000 PLEX, contracted to “C C P” corporation with the ticker -CCP-. Entries contracted to any other variations, Engineering Corp or otherwise, will NOT be accepted.

PLEX must be contracted from the alliance executor.

To register a team, the alliance executor must fill out the following form, nominate a team captain (and co-captain if they wish), and set a passphrase. The team captain may also be the alliance executor. When a captain/co-captain submits the team roster they will be prompted for the passphrase, to ensure they are a valid alliance representative.

This year, teams will also be asked to nominate an alliance spokesperson who must be a member of the alliance but not the team. Over the course of the tournament representatives will be asked to appear on live streams, to help put a face to the team, tell viewers about the alliance and the team, and why people should be cheering you on. We want to speak to someone that isn't on the team as we expect the rest of the team to be busy participating in matches. This system isn't flawless, but we'd really love to and more humanity and relatability to teams, there are a lot of potential new alliance members watching! Representatives will be given the schedule in advance, and may on occasion, be asked to appear live between matches. The spokesperson must also confirm they are happy to do so by filling out the following form.

Team Participation & Registration

Players may only compete for a single alliance and team, regardless of how many accounts they have. Likewise, there shall be no sharing of in-game assets, information, or services with the intent to participate in or assist multiple teams. As a reminder, the regular rules and restrictions still apply, so things like account sharing are not permitted. More on this in the “Collusion Rules” section.

Teams:

• Each team can field a maximum of 10 pilots at any time, from a maximum roster of 40.

• All team members are eligible to compete in any match in which their team is taking part; team lineups do not have to remain the same between games.

• A maximum of 10 of the 40 allowable team members can be mercenaries. More on mercenary rules below.

• If a team wants to forego mercenaries entirely and draft all 40 team members from their alliance, they can do so.

Players are free to change alliances until the roster lock date at which point they will be considered ‘locked in’ to their team. This lock occurs at 23:59 UTC on 1 August 2024, after which, you may not switch alliances.

Teams captains will submit a roster for their team here (Link goes live 9 July). Submissions will open 9 July and remain open until the first roster lock deadline of 1 August at 23:59 UTC

The form will re-open after the feeder tournament on 4 September and close again on 17 September at 23:59 UTC.

When the form re-opens, new team members may be added to the team roster, as long as they were already in the alliance on 1 August at 23:59 UTC.

No more than three additional mercenaries, or 10 regular alliance members, can be added during the second roster lock, and the total team size must still not exceed 40.

For the duration of the Tournament the captain or co-captain will be considered the point of contact pertaining to their alliance's participation in the tournament.

Players requiring a tournament account and access to Thunderdome can request it here.

Mercenary Rules

Sponsors of Alliance Tournament XVII and one of New Eden’s most notorious mercenary outfits, Mordu’s Legion, persuaded the Interstellar Gaming Commission to allow each alliance the option of employing the services of mercenaries, unaffiliated pilots who exhibit a keen propensity for competitive play. The IGC has offered the following guidelines as it pertains to the use of Mercenaries.

Mercenaries must not be Team Captains

Mercenaries may only compete with the team that registered the use of their services.

Teams may not leverage the mercenary rules to create B-teams. The Collusion Rules (see below) still apply.

Teams may not register more than 10 mercenaries on their roster.

The mercenary must submit their name to the IGC via this form (Link goes live 9 July) to formally register their services.

Team captains employing mercenaries must also inform the IGC of the arrangement via this form (which will be active on 9 July). The mercenary may not compete unless both steps are completed.

Mercenary submissions will remain open until the first roster lock deadline of 1 August at 23:59 UTC. The form will re-open after the conclusion of the feeder tournament on 4 September and close again on 17 September at 23:59 UTC.

Mercenaries found intentionally sabotaging their teams will be permanently banned from all future tournaments. CCP has final adjudication in such matters.

Members of alliances competing in Alliance Tournament XX may not offer their services as mercenaries.

Mercenaries are free to change corporations or alliances at any time during the tournament, provided they do not join another alliance registered in the ATXX. They are, however, allowed to join the alliance they’ve enlisted with at any time.

Once the roster lock is lifted following the feeder tournament, mercenaries may not enlist with a new team if they have played for or been enrolled in an alliance that participated (or is still participating) in ATXX. Teams may, however, enlist the services of mercenaries who have not been signed up with any other team, or been a part of any participating alliance, since 1 August.

Anyone interested in enlisting as a mercenary should check the full list of teams participating in this year's tournament on Discord after the registrations close, to ensure that their alliance hasn't submitted a team.

Alliance tournament captains may petition the IGC (Via an EVEMail to the character "IGC Alliance Tournament") to alter their team’s name to more aptly reflect the new identity their mercenaries may have imparted. The IGC are strict arbiters and request that all names be identifiable and representative of the group; not all names may be accepted. Consider the following example scenarios:

NPSI community wishes to have their team’s name reflect their community name: Deathless Net. The IGC is amenable to this.

A nullsec PvP alliance expands its ranks with a mercenary from a lowsec alliance, requesting a name change to Strange Pilots Exude Reactive Gas. The IGC would not consider this a valid name.

Feeder Tournament

The feeder tournament will occur on 24 & 25 August, and 31 August & 1 September.

The match draw will take place in a live stream on 19 July.

The full details of feeder tournament will be announced on 19 July. The exact format will be based on the number of entrants, and is likely to mirror ATXX with the following exceptions:

The feeder tournament will take place on the Thunderdome tournament server instead of the Tranquility live server. Pilot names on Thunderdome should correspond to their character on Tranquility and the name the captain registers in the roster.

Flagships are not allowed in the Feeder Tournament.

Each team in the Feeder Tournament will have two bans per match instead of four. These will be exchanged as one ban from each team, then a second round of single bans.

There are no restrictions on ship type bans in the feeder tournament.

Match Rules

Teams may field up to 10 pilots in the arena. Each ship is given a point value (listed below), and teams must not exceed 200 points in total.

Fights are limited to ten minutes. If the time runs out, the team that has earned the highest total points will be declared the winner. See “Victory Conditions” below.

Intentional pod killing is NOT allowed. All pod kills will be reimbursed.

The match simulation is taken as-is. Teams are advised to spend their preparation time verifying that ships and modules are completely operational. There will be no replays.

Teams may not forfeit or ask a referee to end the match early. If a team wishes to end the match early, we recommend boundary violating!

Referees will make every effort to prevent rule violations before matches, but the final responsibility for any violations lies with the participating team.

Penalties

Any player found to be in violation of the Alliance Tournament rules may be penalized to various degrees, depending on the severity of the offense. All penalties are imposed at the referee's discretion during the tournament, and all decisions are final. Penalties may include, but are not limited to:

• Points deduction

• Reducing ship HP and capacitor

• Moving the ship to a different warp-in

• Complete removal from the fight

• Match forfeit

• Ban from competing in one or more matches

Referees and tournament administrators may nullify a match or void a team's win if they believe the team is not competing sincerely or is attempting to manipulate the match outcome.

Repeat offenses may incur escalating penalties (Likely multiple comments of varying severity from the casters and analyst desk too!)

Ship Rules

Each team may have up to 10 ships on the battlefield, for a maximum total of 200 points. This calculator should come in handy when planning your team composition.

Teams are limited to a maximum of four ships of a given hull size in the arena. For example, no more than four battlecruisers are allowed (two Nighthawks and two Claymores are permitted, but two Sleipnirs and three Hurricanes are not). All logistics ships, including both T1 and T2 variants of cruiser and frigate sizes, are exempt from this rule. Therefore, four Orthrus and one Scimitar are allowed, as are three Vengeances and two Inquisitors.

Teams may field a maximum of one logistics cruiser, one T1 support cruiser, or two T1/T2 logistics/support frigates per match.

With the exception of the Praxis, Gnosis, Sunesis and Metamorphosis, special edition ships are banned. The current list is as follows:

• Apocalypse Imperial Issue

• Armageddon Imperial Issue

• Megathron Federate Issue

• Raven State Issue

• Tempest Tribal Issue

• Guardian-Vexor

• Mimir

• Adrestia

• Vangel

• Etana

• Moracha

• Chameleon

• Fiend

• Rabisu

• Stratios Emergency Responder

• Gold Magnate

• Silver Magnate

• Freki

• Utu

• Malice

• Cambion

• Chremoas

• Whiptail

• Imp

• Caedes

• Victor

• Virtuoso

• Hydra

• Tiamat

  Nestor, Marshal, Enforcer, Pacifier, and Monitor is NOT allowed

The use of the frigate escape bay on battleships is NOT permitted.

Ship Point Values

The point values for ships are listed below. If a ship has both a class point value and an individual point value, the more specific value applies. Ships without a point value are not allowed. This year's full list is available in the Quick Comp Creator.

A +1 inflation rule is in effect. When duplicates of the same hull are fielded, the point cost for each duplicate increases by 1. For example, fielding one Echo costs 2 points. If a second Echo is fielded, each Echo costs 3 points (6 points total). If a third Echo is fielded, each Echo costs 4 points (12 points total), and so on.

Place & Tactics

Captains (and/or co-captains) must be online and available 45 minutes prior to the match to make their ban choices. Further details on bans can be found in the subsection Ships Bans.

Participants should be prepared, in their chosen ships, and in a fleet, 20 minutes before their scheduled fight time. Prior to being moved to the match system by the referee, all pilots must be docked in a station, not in an Upwell structure or undocked in space. Teams will be brought into a solar system in uncharted space by a Referee and designated as Team 1 and Team 2. If you are not ready within this time allocation, you will be disqualified from the match and the opposing team will be given an automatic win.

Eight entry locations in the system serve as starting locations. Four of these are marked for Team 1, and four are marked for Team 2. Teams will be moved to the entry location of their captain's choosing, A, B, C, D (The referee will ask while the match is being set up). Once the teams are in the system, all instructions will be given by the referee in local chat. Once in the system, teams are required to monitor that channel at all times.

Here's a short clip from the previous Alliance Tournament about this process:

Once the word is given, teams warp to the specified arena beacon, at a range of their choosing, up to a maximum of 50 km. Team members are allowed to warp in at different ranges. Point formation is the only allowed fleet formation type.

Once instructed to warp by the Referee, all team members must warp promptly to the arena. Shortly after allowing teams to warp, the referee will lock the warp functions again. Any team members who have not initiated warp by that time will be subject to penalties at the referee’s discretion.

The arena will have a radius of 125 km centered on the central celestial beacon.

The arena contains nine Mobile Micro Jump Unit structures: one at the center and eight positioned 87 km from the center, aligned with each of the eight team beacons. These outer structures form a cube around the arena's center, with each side approximately 100 km long. The Mobile Micro Jump Units are indestructible and usable by all.

The referee will begin a countdown. When the countdown ends, the host will break the target locks of all ships in the arena.

If a player warps out or leaves the arena, their ship will be destroyed. This includes disconnection emergency warps. This rule is in effect before and during the match.

Deploying cargo containers, anchorable items, Upwell structures or mobile structures into space is NOT allowed. Ships cannot contain deployable cargo containers. Dropping regular jettison containers is allowed.

The use of combat probes in tournament systems is NOT allowed.

Arenas

Players are likely to experience unique arena designs during the Tournament. These will be positioned to minimize the impact on tournament play and will be adjusted if required.

The following restrictions are in place after teams have warped to the arena beacon until the match begins:

• Warping within the arena is NOT allowed.

• Locking on to players before the match starts is NOT allowed.

• Boarding a ship during the match is NOT allowed.

• Activating aggressive or targeted modules before the match starts is NOT allowed.

• Launching drones before the match starts is NOT allowed.

• Moving before the match starts is NOT allowed.

• Beginning the activation cycle of a Micro Jump Drive or Mobile Micro Jump Unit before the match starts is NOT allowed.

• Activating command bursts before the match starts is allowed

• Activating any targeting computers or hardeners is allowed

Fitting Restrictions

All T1 and T2 modules are allowed, with the following exceptions:

All Remote Armor Repair modules and Remote Shield Transfer modules are prohibited, except on ONE of the following: a Logistics Ship, a Tech I Support Cruiser, or up to TWO Tech II Logistics Frigates or Tech I Support Frigates.

A combination of T1 and T2 repair frigates is allowed. For example, one T2 logistics frigate and one T1 support frigate may be fielded together.

Strategic cruisers are NOT allowed to fit remote repair modules.

Only ONE Remote Capacitor Transmitter module is allowed per ship.

The Ancillary Shield Boost module is restricted to a maximum of one per ship. (Using both an Ancillary Shield Booster and a regular Shield Booster is permitted).

ECM modules, including ECM Bursts and Meta 1-4, may only be fitted to ships with an ECM bonus. These ships include the Ibis, Griffin, Kitsune, Blackbird, Rook, Falcon, Tengu (with Obfuscation Manifold), Scorpion, and Widow. The Griffin Navy Issue is not permitted to fit ECM.

Sensor Dampeners, Tracking Disruptors, and Guidance Disruptors may only be fitted to ships with a hull bonus for these modules, up to a maximum Meta level of 4. For Sensor Dampeners, this includes the Raiju, Maulus, Keres, Velator, Celestis, Lachesis, and Arazu. For Weapon Disruption, this includes the Pilgrim, Arbitrator, Impairor, Sentinel, Curse, Crucifier, and Crucifier Navy Issue.

No ships without these hull bonuses may equip these modules.

Warp Disruption Field Generators are restricted to a maximum of one per ship and Warp Disruption Field Generator scripts are allowed.

Micro-jump field generators are NOT allowed.

The Bastion Module is NOT allowed.

Cloaking devices are NOT allowed.

Faction, COSMOS, dead space, and officer modules are NOT allowed (except within specified groups on a flagship).

Abyssal (Mutated) modules are NOT allowed (including Mutated Drones).

ML-EKP "Polybolos” Ballistic Control System is not allowed

"Atonement" Remote Shield Boosters are not allowed

T1 rigs are allowed. T2 rigs are NOT allowed

Stasis Webification Probes (Wubbles) are allowed

Navy Cap Boosters are allowed.

Micro-jump drives are allowed.

Polarized weapons are allowed.

Stasis Grapplers are allowed.

Command bursts are allowed.

Signature radius suppressors are allowed.

Target painters may be up to (and including) Meta 5 and can be fitted to any ship.

All T1 and T2 ammunition, missiles, and charges are allowed, with the following exceptions:

• Remote Sensor Dampener and Weapon Disruptor Scripts are (still) allowed.

• Navy faction ammunition, missiles, and capacitor boosters are allowed.

• Pirate faction ammunition is NOT allowed.

T1 and Navy Faction combat and sentry drones are allowed.

T2, augmented and integrated combat, mutated, and sentry drones are NOT allowed.

The Gecko is NOT allowed.

Only T1 logistics drones are allowed. T2 logistics drones are NOT allowed.

All electronic warfare drones are allowed (Including Combat Utility Drones).

Attribute enhancers that give bonuses to anything other than perception, intelligence, willpower, memory, and charisma are NOT allowed.

Genolution "CA-" implants are NOT allowed.

ONLY Hardwiring with names ending in "1", "2", or "3" are allowed (e.g., EG-603 is legal, but EG-605 is not).

All Leadership mindlinks (including navy and Guri Malakim mindlinks) are allowed.

Boosters (drugs) are NOT allowed, with the exception of:

• Cerebral Accelerators impacting only attributes. ("Standard Cerebral Accelerator" is NOT allowed)

• AIR Mining Range Booster

• AIR Mining Yield Booster

• Basic Glamourex Booster

• AIR Astro-Rangefinding Booster

• AIR Astro-Pinpointing Booster

• AIR Astro-Acquisition Booster

Any prohibited boosters pending claim in your redeeming queue will prevent you from entering the arena, and you will be asked to remove them. Use them before the tournament!

Expert Systems are Legal

Note on changes to ship and module balance

Changes to ship and module balance for EVE follow their own schedule independent of the tournament schedule and will not be delayed to accommodate the tournament. This means that major changes and new releases can occur in the period between the release of tournament rules and the tournament itself, or even during the tournament period. All teams are impacted equally by such changes and the ability to quickly adjust to them is part of what separates the best tournament teams from the rest. Where appropriate, ship point values may be updated/changed and new modules banned.

Teams should keep this in mind when making their plans and keep a close eye on CCP communications for the earliest look at potential changes that may impact their teams during the tournament.

Flagships

The following ships may not be designated as Flagships:

• Widow

Any remaining T1 battleship, T2 battleship, or faction battleship may be designated as a flagship.

Additionally, the previous alliance tournament prize ships, the Shapash, Cybele, Bestla, Geri, Raiju and Laelaps are available as Flagships and have been assigned appropriate point values.

Team captains must inform the host managing their match if they intend to use their flagship in any given match, and who will be piloting it.

Flagships may ignore meta-level restrictions for certain module types, allowing them to fit faction, officer, cosmos, and deadspace versions (Abyssal modules are prohibited). These module types include:

• Turrets and missile launchers

• Stasis webifiers

• Smartbombs

• Afterburners and microwarpdrives

• Warp scramblers, warp disruptors, and stasis grapplers

• Target painters

• Sensor boosters and signal amplifiers

• Overdrives, nanofiber internal structures, and inertial stabilizers

• Weapon and drone upgrade modules

• Armor plates and shield extenders

• Damage controls

ONE shield booster (Ancil or otherwise) or up to TWO armor repairers (e.g. if your flagship has XLASB + LSB + LSB, one of the three can ignore meta restrictions).

Flagship ship types must be decided in advance and Team Captains must submit their selection via the Flagship submission form (Link active from 17 September) no later than 23:59 UTC on 24 September. The fittings for a flagship do not have to be disclosed. The names of flagships do not have to be disclosed or remain consistent. Fittings may also be changed from match to match.

All flagship hull types will be published in the flagships section of the EVE Online Alliance Tournament site following the flagship submission deadline.

A flagship may be fielded in any match, even if its ship type has been banned, and counts as a normal ship in every way other than the ones defined above.

A flagship tournament cruiser may be fielded for a maximum of 2 matches. A flagship tournament frigate may be fielded for a maximum of 3 matches. Additional use of these ships is granted under specific conditions in the best-of-three and best-of-five series. You can find details under the "Additional rules for the final day"

Flagships must still adhere to all non-meta level-based fitting restrictions, including any bans on module types or limits on the number of certain modules that can be fitted.

A flagship costs the same point value as a regular ship of its type and is still subject to the duplicate hull rule if you are fielding duplicates of it.

You are not required to field your flagship in any given match.

If your flagship is destroyed, it may not be fielded again during the tournament.

Flagships can only be fielded during the main tournament, and are prohibited from the feeder tournament.

When a flagship is fielded, it must be announced prior to the match start and declared by the team during match preparation. The procedure is as follows:

During the pre-match conversation with the referee, declare your intention to field the flagship and provide the intended fit for final checks.

The flagship check is part of the regular ship check cycle and must be completed no later than 20 minutes before the match (or as soon as possible in the 15-minute later games). If your team is ready before the 20 minute cut-off and you intend to field a flagship, ensure it is also ready for inspection.

The flagship status (ship type and pilot ONLY) will be shared with the players on the field (in local chat and with the commentary/analyst team) once warping has been locked, prior to the final 30 second match countdown.

Victory Conditions

During a match, a team scores points for each enemy ship it kills, equal to the tournament points value of that ship. The team that destroys the entire opposing team, or has the most points at the conclusion of the match, is declared the winner.

If a team chooses to field less than 200 points, non-fielded points count toward the opponent's score.

If a fight is tied after 10 minutes, time dilation will be used to progressively speed up the tournament solar system and encourage a prompt end to the match.

In the unlikely event of a tie after 15 minutes, victory will be awarded to the team with the higher collective potential team DPS at the beginning of the match, as measured by the tournament's automated “attack bar.”

Ships Bans

Each captain will have four total bans, which will be exchanged in two sets of two.

A tournament referee will contact the competing team captains in-game 15 to 60 minutes before their scheduled match time.

Team Captains have two minutes to submit their decisions after being contacted by the Tournament referee. Bans not submitted within this time period will be considered forfeit.

The referee will exchange bans with the opposing captain once both sets have been received.

Teams are then allowed an additional two minutes to declare an additional number of bans equal to the number of duplicate bans originally submitted. E.g., If both teams ban Leshak and Guardian they both get an additional two bans.

Once the first four bans are declared, each team will be asked to provide two additional bans. Teams have up to five minutes to decide on the second set of bans. If both teams ban the same ships in the second round, those duplicate bans are discarded, and no extra bans will be applied.

The referee will exchange bans with the opposing captain once both sets have been received.

Each ban targets a specific ship type and not a ship class or other hull. For example, banning the Harpy would not exclude the Hawk or frigates in general.

All bans apply to both teams equally.

Teams should endeavor to have multiple ship setups available as bans may impact your primary team composition. No additional time will be given if eligible ships are not available.

During the final day of the competition, some matches will require teams to be ready within 15 minutes of banning, so teams are warned to come prepared!

A cascading blind ban rule is in operation:

Only 3 of the same hull type can be banned. For example, a ban list of a Vedmak, Vexor Navy Issue, Vexor, and Drekavac would be acceptable. A list of Hecate, Magus, Kikimora, and Thrasher Fleet Issue would not be acceptable. After the first set of bans, if the submitted bans contain 3 or more of the same hull type, no more of that hull type can be submitted as bans.

After the second round of bans, any duplicates will be discarded, and a full list of bans will be given to the competing teams.

Hull type restrictions continue into the trickle ban phase. For example, if both teams ban three battleships and one battlecruiser, no more battleships can be banned during the trickle bans, but two more battlecruisers (or any other ship hulls) can be banned.

As a point of clarity, ships flagged as "Logistics" are in a category of their own. Therefore, only 3 of the following may be banned:

• Deacon

• Kirin

• Thalia

• Scalpel

• Augoror

• Osprey

• Exequror

• Scythe

• Guardian

• Basilisk

• Oneiros

• Scimitar

• Rodiva

• Zarmazd

Additional Rule Variation For The Final Day

There will be an additional adjustment to the rules for the first three matches of each of the two series on the final day of the tournament: the best-of-three elimination bracket final series and the best-of-five grand final bans.

Best-of-five series:

Anytime a team wins a match, they cannot use any of the ship types they fielded in the previous match.

For example, if Team 1 wins the first game, they cannot use their winning comp in the second game. If Team 2 wins the second game, they cannot use their winning comp in the third game, and Team 1 cannot use their match 1 winning comp in the third game.

If the series reaches the fifth match, both teams' lists of banned ships will reset, and all ships will be available.

If an Alliance Tournament Flagship Cruiser or Frigate has been fielded its maximum number of times and is still alive, during the best of five, it can be fielded an additional time.

Best-of-three series:

If the series goes to a third match, bans will not carry over, and neither team will have additional bans.

Flagships are immune to this additional restriction and may continue to be flown in each match until destroyed. The limitation to Flagship Cruisers and Frigates still applies.

If an Alliance Tournament Flagship Cruiser or Frigate has been fielded its maximum number of times and is still alive, during the best of three, it can be fielded an additional time.

Collusion Rules

Each team must be working towards its own victory in each match and in the tournament overall, not the victory of any other team.

Two teams may not act as one team, and B-teams are NOT allowed.

The CCP tournament staff is the final authority on all issues of potential collusion. We strongly advise teams not to try to push to the boundaries of what may be considered appropriate. Tournament impropriety will result in swift and severe disciplinary action.

Teams may scrimmage against each other in order to practice for the tournament if they wish.

Setting up “house rules” for matches in the Alliance Tournament will be considered collusion and is NOT allowed.

Shared leadership, shared theory crafting, shared planning, shared logistics, and free sharing of resources between teams are all prohibited.

Once a team is disqualified from the tournament, its members are considered neutral parties. They may assist other teams during practice but may not enlist to compete with them.

Making deals with other teams to split prizes if either team wins is NOT allowed.

Using a mercenary to sabotage a team or throw a match is NOT allowed.

Providing ISK/PLEX to multiple teams for signups is not considered collusion. However, any further financial support or transactions after the signup will be regarded as collusion and is prohibited.

ATXX Video Advertisement Submission Guidelines

Submissions will soon be opened for Alliance Tournament ads, which may be aired during broadcast matches. The guidelines for submission are detailed below:

Deadline for the feeder tournament: 1 August, 2024 Deadline for main tournament: September 24, 2024

General Rules

Advertisement must be EVE-related.

Advertisements may be for a corporation, alliance, in-game service, third-party tool, or other EVE-related subject.

The subject of the advertisement may not be locked behind a pay wall.

Adverts must reflect positively on EVE Online.

Adverts cannot include copyrighted audio or visuals (except those where the copyright is owned by CCP Games).

Adverts must be suitable for all ages, respectable, and suitable for broadcast. No attack ads.

Adverts must not contain content that may be construed as racist, sexist, or otherwise exclusionary or demeaning to any group of people.

Bad words must be muted/censored.

References to “boosters” or “firewater” must be subtle and anchored in-game.

Video must adhere to the Twitch community guidelines, particularly the section regarding appropriate content.

No Discord or hull/shield/armor alerts or other noises which are designed with the intent to make viewers believe they are coming from another source may be present.

Advert content should not be “offensive to the senses” (nothing meant to disgust or irritate).

Final approval for all videos is at the discretion of CCP Games.

Technical rules

Adverts must have a resolution of 1920x1080 with a 1:1 pixel aspect ratio. Other resolutions will not be accepted.

Adverts should not contain vertical black bars (What is this, 1999?)

Adverts must be 60 frames per second.

Advert length must be exactly 15 seconds long.

If you are using royalty free / Creative Commons audio, the author must be credited somewhere in the end plate of your video if required by the license under which it is made available.

In your submission, include the source of your audio in the details, even if you are not required to credit the author.

Video codec must be MP4 or MOV with H.264/H.265 as a compressor at 15 to 20Mbps.

Please label your video file appropriately with the following pattern: AllianceName_AdTitle_AT20.mp4

You can submit multiple adverts however each may be shown less frequently, as frequency will be by author / subject and not by individual video.

Submission

To submit your video, please use the Ad submission form.

And that concludes today’s update! We look forward to seeing what SPICY creations you all come up with this year!

o7