OZHADOU Tournament Rules

1  » Introduction
2  » Official Terms
3  » General Rules
    a  » Registration
    b  » Double Elimination System
        i.  » Double Jeopardy
        ii.  » Using Pools in Double Elimination
    c  » Player Seeding
    d  » Playing in the Tournaments
        i.  » Selecting Sides and Characters
        ii.  » Controls - Arcade Tournaments
        iii.  » Controllers - Console Tournaments
        iv.  » Disqualification
        v.  » Prizes
4  » Game Specific Rules

INTRODUCTION

The OHN5 tournament is a structured competition, and as such it is necessary to have a set of well-defined rules to insure that all players are treated equally in a fair context. Here we provide a detailed explanation regarding the tournament rules used by the tournament staff at OHN5. Tournament organisers operate under the assumption that all tournament participants have already read and understood these rules prior to entering tournaments at OHN5. As such, it is the responsibility of the players to be aware of the rules as they apply to them. Ignorance of these rules will be no grounds for any OHN5 organiser to change a tournament ruling.

The rules are divided into two main sections. The » General Rules section deals with the general rules that will apply to all double elimination tournaments run at OHN5. The only tournament game that is not fully covered by the General Rules is » Super Smash Bros. Melee (SSBM). The » Game Specific Rules section provides rules that are unique to each particular tournament game. Note that where details in the Game Specific Rules contradict the General Rules, the Game Specific Rules take precedence. Should anyone require further information regarding this document, they should contact Ziggy, the OHN5 Tournament Director at » admin@ozhadou.net.

Official Terms

A number of special terms are used consistently throughout to provide clarity and certainty within the tournament rules. Here we list the most common terms with their definitions for ease of reference.

Player	Any person that is competing in the tournament.
Bracket	A flow chart that determines the sequence of matches for all Players in a tournament based on their wins and losses.
The Director	The highest ranking official at the tournament official. The Director has the final say in all tournament related matters. Judges can always defer any ruling to the Director, and the Director’s decision is final. The Director may also override any decision made by a Judge, and can adjust the rules to deal with any unusual circumstances that arise. Tournament Director for OHN5 is Andrew Ziogas (Ziggy).
Judges	The tournament officials who run the tournament according to the rules provided here. Any tournament will have at least one Judge. The Judges are authorised to handle all rules disputes, but can defer to, or be overridden by, the Director. Judges may also be players.
Match	A pairing between two players in a bracket. The players compete until a winner is determined. Matches are usually resolved with a single game but may involve more, in which case the players compete until one reaches a pre-specified number of wins (e.g. “first to 2”, also referred to as “best of 3” or “best 2 out of 3”).
Game	A game is a single game played between two players. Games are played to resolve the outcome of Matches. Make sure you understand the difference between a Game and a Match.

General Rules

The following rules apply to all official tournaments at OHN5. These rules focus on the Double Elimination tournament system, and include details on player registration, grounds for disqualification, and the different rules that apply for tournaments run using arcade cabinets and gaming consoles.

registration

All potential players must register for the tournament during the scheduled registration period. This will guarantee that you will be able to play in the tournament. Late registrations may be permitted at the discretion of the Judges, but there is no guarantee that you will be able to enter at this point. Late registrations forfeit the chance to be seeded. In the unlikely event that organisers are forced to cap the size of any tournament, players will be admitted to the tournament on a “first come, first serve” basis.

Pre-registration for tournaments at OHN5 is available through the OHN5 forums. Players should check this website for further details regarding pre-registration.

The registration process involves going to the OHN5 registration desk when you first arrive at the venue, and paying for all the tournaments you wish to enter during OHN5. This entry money is used exclusively to provide prizes for the top 3 players in that tournament game. The Judges are not obliged to refund entry fees to any player after they have registered. Arcade cabinets provided by the OHN5 staff will be set to free-play, so there are no additional costs for players entering tournaments run on arcade cabinets.

double elimination system

Unless stated otherwise, all tournaments at OHN5 are run using the double elimination system. Under double elimination rules all players begin the tournament with 2 lives. When a player first loses a Match they will lose a life. When a player loses their last life they are eliminated from the tournament. For full details concerning the double elimination tournament system, please refer to the » OzHadou Tournament Rules. Here we highlight the most important rules that will be used in the double elimination system at OHN5.

double jeopardy

When players have to face each other for a second match in the same tournament, and there are other players still alive in the losers bracket, this is known as double jeopardy. If there is a way to do so, the Judges will ask the affected players if they would like to have their next opponent switched to avoid a double jeopardy. Only one player need request a change for the Judge to enforce a switch. Only players entering the losers bracket may be swapped by the Judge. If this procedure cannot avoid the double jeopardy, then the Match will be played as scheduled with no further effect on the tournament.

In addition, should interstate/international players be required to play each other early in the bracket (despite the use of regional seeding) the Judges may intervene to move one of the players as per the rules for double jeopardy.

Using Pools in Double Elimination

Whenever a tournament game at OHN5 involves more than 32 players, the organisers will implement a pool-based variant of the Double Elimination system. For SF3:3S and T5:DR, pools will be used by default. SSBM will also use pools, but these are not double elimination (see the SSBM rules for further details). For all other games, pools will only be used if numbers on the day exceed 32 players.

Under this system, the tournament is divided into 4 double elimination brackets of equal size, called Pools. The Judges will seed each Pool as if they were seeding a single, large double elimination bracket. This means that the players will be distributed evenly across all the Pools, along with any byes that are required, according to any seeding rules being used.

Each Pool is run as if it were a standard double elimination bracket. The Pools will be run sequentially i.e. the Judges will complete Pool A before beginning Pool B. This helps to concentrate the players into 4 distinct groups, reducing clutter around the tournament area and helping to clarify when players are required to attend for their Matches.

The only exception to the basic Double Elimination rules occurs when the final Match is reached for the winners and losers brackets within each Pool. Once only one player is left in the winners and losers bracket, the Pool is ended. There is no Grand Final for a Pool bracket. The remaining players at the end of the Pool are called Qualifiers, as they have qualified for the final bracket of the tournament. The Judges will inform the qualifiers that they will need to return to the tournament area for the Final Bracket of the tournament.

The Final Bracket will contain be 8 Qualifiers – 2 from each Pool. These 8 players are placed into an 8-player double elimination bracket. This can be done in one of two ways, at the discretion of the Judges.

i) Continuation Method: The 4 Qualifiers from the winners brackets of the Pools are seeded in the places marked 1, 2, 3, and 4 in the Final Bracket. The 4 Qualifiers from the losers bracket are placed into the winners bracket such that they are in the opposite half relevant to their corresponding winners bracket Qualifier. E.g. If the winners bracket Qualifier from Pool A is seeded in slot 1 in the Finals Bracket, the losers bracket Qualifier from Pool A should be placed in slot 5 or 6 (i.e. into a place that is in the lower half of the bracket). The bracket is then run like a standard 8-player double elimination bracket.
Any game that uses the Pool system by default (SF3:3S and T5:DR) will use the Reset Method.

ii) Reset Method: The 4 Qualifiers from the winners brackets of the Pools are seeded in the places marked 1, 2, 3, and 4 in the Final Bracket. The 4 Qualifiers from the losers bracket are placed into the losers bracket alongside their corresponding winners bracket Qualifier. E.g. If the winners bracket Qualifier from Pool A is seeded in slot 1 in the Finals Bracket, the losers bracket Qualifier from Pool A is placed next to them at the top of the losers bracket (slot 8). Now move the top 4 Qualifiers to the right (i.e. into the second round of the winners bracket) and move the remaining players to the left i.e. into the Losers bracket. Then proceed to run the double elimination bracket in the normal fashion.

Any game that uses the Pool system due to having more than 32 players in the tournament will use the Continuation Method.

The difference between the two methods is implied by their names. Under the continuation method the players retain their life-count from the Pools. Losses in the Pools are carried over into the Final Bracket. Thus the outcome under this method is exactly the same as if the tournament were run using a single, large double elimination bracket.

Under the reset method, losses from the Pools are only noted for seeding purposes. After seeding the life-count is reset for all players. This gives an extra life to all the losers bracket Qualifiers, making it a less fair option overall. The advantage of the reset method is that it increases the number of games played between the best 8 players in the tournament, which is beneficial for the OHN5 spectators.

Player Seeding

Seeding is the task of placing players into the bracket at the start of the tournament. There are several ways in which a Judge can seed a tournament, and in many cases a combination of methods will work best. Judges will usually choose and announce their seeding method prior to the commencement of the tournament. Players are entitled (and encouraged) to ask for details about the seeding prior to registration.

There are 3 types of seeding that will be used at OHN5.

i) Seeding by Rank: Up to 8 of the best players, as determined by the Judges, will be seeded first for all double elimination tournaments. The Judges will determine the ordering of the top 8 when seeding. This can be done randomly, in accordance with regional seeding, or some combination of the two.

ii) Seeding at Random: All remaining players will then be seeded randomly. The only adjustments that will be made to random seeding will be to comply with regional seeding.

iii) Seeding by Region: Regional seeding is used to spread-out interstate and international players, so that they are not forced to play against each other during the early rounds of the tournament. To seed by region, the Judges identify all the non-local players that are entering the tournament. Each group is assigned a specific region code prior to seeding e.g. all players visiting from Melbourne are assigned code VIC, while the ones from Brisbane are assigned the code QLD. During any stage of seeding, the Judges will make any necessary adjustments to provide decent spreads between non-local players from the same region. This includes spreading players from VIC evenly amongst the pools, and spreading them out evenly within a given bracket. Judges reserve the right to apply regional seeding as they see fit for the good of the tournament.

Playing in the Tournaments

We conclude this section by providing general rules covering how matches are resolved during the tournament.

Selecting Sides and Characters

At the start of a Match, players are free to choose whichever side of the machine they like. In the event that both players request the same side, the Judges will determine sides by tossing a coin (winner may choose their side first). Once sides are selected, players are free to choose their character(s) and other selection details in any order they like, or may choose simultaneously. If desired, either player may also ask the Judge for double blind selection to be used. Note that this is only available by request.

Under double blind selection, both players secretly inform the Judge of their character(s), including any additional details (e.g. super arts, grooves, etc). The Judge then enforces these selections at the start of the match. Only one player need ask for double blind selection to have it enforced. If either player does not adhere to their choices made under double blind selection, they will forfeit the Game.

When a Match involves more than one Game, some additional rules apply. After each Game, the loser is allowed to change sides of the machine. The loser may also change their character(s) in any way that they wish. The winner must keep the same character(s) for the next Game. Games are played until the Match has been decided. Note that at the start of a Match players are always free to choose whatever character(s) and additional options they like. This includes the second Match of the Grand Final (should one be required).

Controls - Arcade Tournaments

The arcade cabinets used at OHN5 will all be fitted with Sanwa style joysticks. These are Japanese sticks with a square gate. This is the only type of controls that will be provided on the cabinets. There will be no opportunity to switch to other types of joystick, nor will any cabinets have “controller ports” to allow console controllers to be used.

Controllers – Console Tournaments

Organisers will usually provide a small number of arcade joystick controllers (PS2 and DC) and controller converters (PS2-to-DC) for use during the tournament. Players are also welcome (and encouraged) to bring their own controller if they wish. In general, all controller types are permitted, but there are some features that are not allowed. Banned controller features include the following:

The use of rapid-fire buttons is not permitted. Rapid-fire must be disabled on all buttons.
The use of slow motion features is not allowed.
Programmable buttons are not permitted.
All buttons must be mapped to a single button input. For example, a button may not be mapped to register “heavy punch + heavy kick”. If a controller has more buttons than required for a game, then the extra buttons must be mapped to single inputs, or disabled entirely. E.g. having two or more buttons mapped to heavy punch is allowed.

Note that both joysticks and gamepads are permitted. Buttons must be configured before the start of the Match. Pausing once a Match starts to configure buttons is not permitted, and will result in the player being disqualified from the Match. Intentional pausing during any game will also result in disqualification from the current Game (at the discretion of the Judges). The final decision on how to handle accidental pausing will reside with the Judges.

Disqualification

Breaking any of the rules outlined in this document will result in disqualification of the offending player. This disqualification will typically be for the Game in progress, but may be extended to the Match and/or tournament at the discretion of the Judges. In addition to the rules presented elsewhere in this document, or any game-specific rules that may be in place, the following can result in player disqualification:

Interfering with another player during a match, either through physical or verbal means e.g. jostling another player’s controller, jostling another player or abusive comments.
Failure to arrive on time for a Match.
Inappropriate behaviour by players in the crowd. If such people are not tournament participants, or they continue to be disruptive after they are disqualified, the judges will seek to have them removed from the tournament area, or in extreme cases, ejected from the OHN5 venue.

All players who enter the tournament are doing so under the assumption that they are prepared to abide by the rulings of the Judges on all matters related to the tournament. The Judges reserve the right to interpret and apply the rules in this document in whatever manner they deem appropriate. People that do not find this acceptable are advised not to enter the tournaments. In all cases the decision of the Judge is final and will not be open to negotiation.

Prizes

1st place in each game will receive the OHN5 Trophy for that game. Prize money will also be awarded to 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in all tournaments, paid out of the tournament entry fees collected for that particular tournament game, after removing 50% of the value of the trophy. The remaining prize money will be distributed as follows: 60% will be awarded to 1st, 30% awarded to 2nd, and the remaining 10% awarded to 3rd.

Some games also feature special bonus prizes. See the » Game Specific Rules for information concerning bonus prizes.

game specific rules

Follow the links below or click the logos to the left for game specific rules and entry fee information.

» Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike
» Super Street Fighter II: Turbo
» Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection
» Super Smash Bros. Melee
» Marvel Vs. Capcom 2
» Capcom Vs. SNK 2
» Tekken 5
» Tekken Tag Tournament
» Soul Calibur III
» Guilty Gear XX Slash