Get ready to play!
Round 1 Pairings go up Sunday evening EDT. Please be sure that you have read and understood the Rules by then. We lose a lot of players in every Qualifier because they don't understand the rules and wind up getting forfeited.
See Below
SLOW CHESS RULES
QUICK REFERENCE LIST
This is a quick summary of the key points in The Rules. The full document provides greater detail and you should read it. This summary is intended as a quick reference only. READING THIS SUMMARY IS NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR READING THE SLOW CHESS RULES COMPLETELY. The text in blue indicates the section of The Rules where you will find the more detailed information for that item.
There are also several excellent videos posted that will help explain the system.
http://www.chess.com/groups/forumview/instructional-videos-for-league-play
Negotiating your game's Start Date and Time
You may begin negotiating as soon as your Game Forum has been created by the TD. We recommend you click the “track comments” box in your forum. (Pairings/Game forums/Tracking)
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All times used are to be in US ET – a link to a time zone converter is provided (Negotiating)
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Offer at least 3 start times for the game (Minimum Offers)
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Offers must be at least 3 hours apart and at least two separate days must be offered. (Minimum Offers)
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The deadline for making your first 3 offers is midnight Tuesday. Once this deadline is passed, then you may still accept an existing offer until midnight Wednesday . (Minimum Offers)
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If you have not made 3 offers by Tuesday midnight and have not accepted an offer by Wednesday midnight, you will be forfeited for that game. (Minimum Offers)
Playing the Game
When it is time to play the game, one of the players should challenge the other using the correct time control and colors (Time to Play)
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There is a 15 minute grace period if a player is late. After 15 minutes a player not present will be forfeited. (Time to Play)
After the Game
Post the result of your game in your Game Forum. (Getting the Score)
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After the game is over and you have exited Live Chess, please copy the link from your Games Archive and paste in the Game Forum. This link is the easiest way for our Game Collector to add the game to our DHLC / Slow Chess League Database. DO NOT TRY TO COPY THE LINK WHILE YOU ARE STILL IN LIVE CHESS.
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The correct link should look like this:
SLOW CHESS RULES
Slow is the Way to Go
Our tournaments are designed for those who enjoy playing slow games (live games with time controls greater than G/30+0) and believe in Dan Heisman's advice that slow chess is an important part of improving your game. The time control for each game is G/45+45 or G/90+30 (except in tournaments with a special time control announced), that is a main control of 45 or 90 minutes per player with an increment of 45 or 30 seconds for each move. Games may typically last from 2 to 3 hours for G/45+45 or 3-4 hours for G/90+30.
Pairings / Game Forums / Tracking
All of our tournaments are based on the idea of one game played in a playing week (for 1 to 7 rounds/weeks, depending on the tournament) that begins on Monday and ends on the following Sunday evening. Pairings are usually posted for each tournament sometime Sunday night ET. No game should be scheduled to start after 18:00 ET Sunday. Games must be completed each week before the start of the next except where special tournament rules allow otherwise. Players will negotiate in an assigned game forum for dates and times to start the game. Any other communications (such as notes, messages, or emails) do not count in fulfillment of these rules. It is recommended that you check the 'track comments' box in your game forum right away so that you will be notified of any communications by your opponent or TD. Each player is responsible to read all postings in their assigned game forum and to respond when appropriate, preferably within 24 hours.
Negotiating
Negotiations will be conducted using the date and time of the Eastern Time Zone in the U.S., including daylight savings time when applicable (except for where specified otherwise). Any other time zones mentioned during negotiations or agreement are not binding on either player and do not count in fulfillment of these rules. Use this time zone converter to convert times between your local time zone and the Eastern timezone (use New York City, New York). You may also wish to convert to/from your opponent's timezone if you know it to be sure you offer times that will be reasonable for him.
Telling What Time It Is
It is prefered that you use the 24-hour clock in expressing times, but be sure to clearly specify AM or PM if you write times using the 12-hour clock. If you do not specify AM or PM, then your opponent or TD may assume that you have written the times assuming a 24-hour clock. For all tournaments, offers must have specific dates (not just day of week) and times (not 'or later') and must be addressed to one specific opponent.
Getting the Score
When your game is finished, the result (and a link to the game score or a Chess.com game viewer embedded in the comment) should be reported in the game forum in which you originally negotiated the game time. One player must report it, but both players are responsible that the reporting is completed. For each game, a win will score 1 point, a draw will score 1/2 point, and a loss will score 0 points. Generally, the player with the most points at the end of tournament play is the winner, but individual tournaments may have different criteria for winners (such as optional team play in Slow Swiss tournaments). If more than one player has the high score, then they have tied as winners. Tiebreaks are only used in tournaments in which prizes are offered.
Minimum Offers
For negotiations, each player is responsible to offer no less than three separate date/times for starting the game (no closer that 3 hours to each other or a range of no less than 3 hours and no more than 2 in a single date ET) to begin with, posted no later than Tuesday 23:59 ET of each playing week or to accept an offer made by his opponent before the same deadline. A player who fails to do so has just another 24 hours to accept one of the times already offered by the other player but may no longer make offers. Failing that, the player will forfeit. If both players fail to make initial minimum offers of start times by the deadline, the TD will score a double forfeit for that pairing. When a player makes an offer, his opponent should reply by accepting one of the offers or making offers of his own, preferably within 24 hours of the original offers. Offers made for starting times less than 24 hours away are strongly discouraged, but binding on both players when accepted by your opponent whether the offering player sees the acceptance or not.
Offers to start play made with less than 24 hour notice will not count for the minimum offers required. Please do not accept offers for starting times less than 24 hours from the date/time offered unless the offer was also made less than 24 hours from the proposed time (as that will be considered an invalid acceptance and not be binding on the player who made the offer unless he confirms the acceptance in the game forum). A player who makes such an acceptance is obligated then to show up for play regardless of whether or not the opponent acknowledges the acceptance, though such an acceptance is not binding on the offering player unless he acknowledges it.
An offer properly made and then properly accepted under the rules may not be rescinded by either player and does not require confirmation unless required by the special rules for short notice above. If the players agree to try to reschedule they may do that, but a failure to agree to a new time will result in forfeit for the player who requested the reschedulling.
Any starting time before Tuesday at 12:00 ET that is offered will NOT count towards the minimum of 3 offers required, but will be binding on both players if accepted. Games may not be scheduled to start later than 21:00 ET on Sunday of the playing week unless the rules of a specific tournament allow it.
If Minimum Offers Aren't Enough
If both players have made minimum offers according to the rules but a starting time has not been agreed on, then players should continue negotiating by offering times and accepting or declining offers, preferably responding each time within 24 hours, to try to reach an agreement. If an agreement is not made, a TD will evaluate efforts to schedule made by the players to determine if a forfeit should be issued or if the players may choose to agree to an unplayed draw or if a TD will determine a result of unplayed draw.
If You Can't Agree
Please make sure your alerts are set and/or you have tracked comments so that you will be kept up to date about the status of your negotiations. Please refer to the rules of the chess9030 group and Team4545 league for guidelines which will be depended on if players are unable to negotiate a time to play. In general, a TD will rule in favor of the player who has made the best effort to schedule a starting time, or will rule an unplayed draw in the case that both players have fairly tried to schedule a game. Tournament wins, losses, and draws as described here do not count for rating purposes at Chess.com. If after fair efforts to schedule a game time cannot be agreed on, the players may both agree to an unplayed draw with the approval of the tournament director. However, players are discouraged from such agreed draws except where all scheduling efforts fail as the purpose of the Slow Chess League is to play, enjoy, and learn from playing games of slow chess.
Time to Play
Please show up at the negotiated time to play your game. When both players arrive you may start the game. When both players are present and ready, one of them may begin by sending a specific game challenge that complies with the colors assigned and the time controls that we use. The challenge should be for a rated game. Both players are equally responsible to assure that the challenge is issued and accepted. It is easiest if you send Friend Requests to each opponent when your game or section is assigned in order to make finding your opponent easier in Live Chess. If only one player is present at the agreed date/time, then up to 15 minutes grace should be allowed for the opponent to arrive (the 15 minutes must begin at the scheduled game time or when you arrive, whichever is later). A player who does not show up to play within the 15 minutes loses by forfeit. After 15 minutes, a tournament win by forfeit must be claimed in the associated game forum except that a player that does not arrive before 15 minutes after the scheduled time cannot claim a win by forfeit no matter how long he waits. (In that case a double forfeit will be recorded.) This does not count for Chess.com rating purposes.
No Cheating
You may not cheat during game play. Specifically, you may not use chess engines to analyze or select moves, you may not use databases, you may not use books or any other written help, you may not get help from or discuss your game with any other person while playing. Though you may use a real board and pieces to play (and then enter the moves electronically) and this is even recommended by many experienced players, you may not move the pieces to analyze moves and positions in any way. You may not take notes during the game (though manually recording the score including times is acceptable).
Also, accusing others publicly of cheating is considered poor sportsmanship and may result in suspension or other consequences at the discretion of the league TD.
Losses Unplugged
Losses by disconnect is an issue that we will have to face on a case by case basis as there is currently no feature to adjourn games on the Live Chess Server. Generally your tournament score will reflect the recorded result of the Live Chess Server which will usually be a loss for any disconnect over 1 or 2 minutes. However, good sportsmanship is encouraged in the DHLC Slow Chess league and restarting or rescheduling the game is encouraged where possible.
Forfeits
A player who is forfeited, especially for no-show or failure to negotiate, may be and usually is withdrawn from any tournament at the discretion of the tournament director. A player who forfeits for any reason receives a Forfeit Ticket. A player who receives a Forfeit Ticket without yet successfully completing a tournament (since qualification or reinstatement) is suspended from new tournaments and must requalify for play by successfully completing a Slow Chess League Qualifier tournament including playing a game. Any player who receives two Forfeit Tickets within 30 days is suspended from new tournaments for 30 days from the end of the tournament in which he last forfeited. Under this rule, a player may or may not be allowed to complete other tournaments before the suspension begins at the discretion of the League TD. At the end of the 30 days he must requalify to be eligible to enter other tournaments. Any player who receives three Forfeit Tickets within 3 months may be suspended indefinitely by the League TD from all tournaments including any and all tournaments in progress.
Revisions
These rules may be revised at any time without advance notice. For situations not specifically covered in the above rules, the TD may also refer to the rules in use by the chess9030and Team4545league groups. For other situations not covered in these rules and especially for tournament organization and operation, USCF rules are referred to.
Rules for Specific Tournament Types
Special rules will be added here (or published in a playing group) for quads, swiss tournaments, and ladder and 'king of the hill' or other tournaments.
Registering and Signing Up
** These Eligibility Rules are in the Process of Implementation **
To be eligible to sign up for a regular Slow Chess tournament event, players must be members of the Dan Heisman Learning Center group, must be registered with the Slow Chess League, and must have successfully completed play in a Slow Chess League Qualifier tournament (including playing a game). A player who is forfeited in a Slow Chess League Qualifier is not eligible for regular Slow Chess tournaments and may be ruled ineligible for the next Slow Chess League Qualifier. A player who forfeits in two or more Slow Chess League Qualifier tournaments may be indefinitely suspended from that tournament series by the TD. A player who is forfeited and withdrawn in a regular Slow Quad, Slow Swiss, or Slow Mini-Swiss tournament before completing a regular tournament is no longer qualified for regular Slow Chess tournaments and must requalify by successfully completing a Slow Chess League Qualifier tournament including playing a game. Any player who registers with the Slow Chess League and successfully completes a regular Slow Swiss tournament without forfeit at the time these rules are adopted is qualified to sign up for regular Slow Swiss tournaments.
