War for Throne Mega-Match: Cash Prizes

Sort:
Avatar of grable

(For a short video guide to this post, click here.)

 

Compatriots of Four-Player Chess,

 

The time has come to elevate Variant play to a higher standard of competition. We know there are strong players among us; each uniquely talented and eager to prove his worth. We have sat and watched the players of "standard," Teams, Solo, and Antichess be crowned World Champions in their own rights, as well they have earned. There exists an obstacle, however, in our path. With so many variants to explore, surely there could never be a fair competition to determine a singular Variant World Champion. We can and should accept that, yet still strive to be the best in our own regards. Bearing these assertions in mind, I am announcing a venture. A venture not to bestow a monarchical title similar to those secured by the masters of our aforementioned counterparts, but rather to celebrate one particular mainstay in the realm of Variant play: The War for Throne Series.

 

Today, I am inviting any player who believes himself a master of Variants into a pursuit. As a showcase of our craft, and for the joy of competition, I hereby announce a:

 


This is the War for Throne Mega-Match (a.k.a. the @grable classic). I am seeking the four best players of the War for Throne variants to take part in an epic multi-game competition with assorted modalities and time controls all in the name of celebrating the variant and its players. Here are the details; please read carefully, as only those who have met the procedural qualifications will be chosen to compete.

 


 

Starting with the most important detail, the prize pool (sponsored by @grable ):

 


 

Now that I have your attention, here are the Entry Requirements:

  • Variant rating (FFA Rapid & Blitz) must be at or above 1800
  • Must have played a combined 60 or more games in any of the three War for Throne variants by Thursday, 1 October, 00:00 UTC
  • The four finalists will be the four winners from our special WFTMM Qualifier tournaments.
    • Tournaments are open to all players, and we encourage participation, even if you aren't qualified for the Mega-Match, or do not wish to participate.
    • If the first-place finisher from a qualifier tournament is ineligible, or has already been selected, the finalist will be the second-place finisher. Likewise to the third-place finisher, etc.
  • Contestants must state their official entry via a reply to this forum post.
    • Not interested in playing? Tag (@) a strong player you know who may be interested, using #MegaMatchNominee.

 


 

Games and Time Controls (linked to example games for your analysis and study!):

Expected duration: 2:45 - 3:15 hours.

Hyperbullet time controls were intentionally excluded from this list, so as to not favour those with varying connection strengths.

 


 

Schedule:

 


 

Rules and Format:

  • Scoring: The Mega-Match will be an eleven-game, total point affair. Points in all games will be earnt according to the following schedule:
    • First-Place: +5 points
    • Second-Place: +2 points
    • Third-Place: -2 points
    • Fourth-Place: -5 points
  • Save for the granted ten-minute breaks, games will begin two-to-four minutes following the conclusion of the prior game.
  • All games are played anonymously.
  • All Mega-Match games are rated.
    • Under disconnect/abort conditions (see below), if game is aborted, rating points will be refunded.
  • In all games, seating is randomised.
  • Placemaking
    • It is prohibited to gift game points to other players. If a player is obviously won or lost, and intentionally gives up points to another player (based on a suspicion of who that player may be, and in an effort to position that player differently on the game's final placing), he will receive a one-point penalty.
  • Disconnects / Aborts:
    • Within or before move #20, game is aborted with -2 points to the disconnected player.
    • Within or before move #50, game is aborted with -3 points to the disconnected player.
    • After move #50, play continues.
    • If disconnect occurs because of obviously losing position, play continues, even before move #51.
  • Tiebreaks: In the event that the Mega-Match scoring is tied between any two, three, or four positions, the highest-ranking place will be awarded based on the following criteria:
    • Firstly, by the number of checkmates given in the Mega-Match,
    • Secondly, by the total number of points earned in all Mega-Match games (excluding qualifiers), and
    • Thirdly, by rating (FFA Variants - Rapid & Blitz).
  • If a player is not online within five minutes of a game's scheduled start time, he forfeits the match, and is disqualified. In this case, an alternate will be selected at random from the runner-up finishers in the qualifying tournaments to take the place of the disqualified player. Alternates will assume all points previously accumulated by their predecessor, minus three. If an alternate finishes the Mega-Match in fourth-place, he will also earn a one-month Diamond Membership to chess.com.

 


 

That is all. Prepare diligently. Godspeed.

Event coordination by @grable and @7R0N1C

Avatar of grable

@chadkatter #MegaMatchNominee
@Gabitosilvo #MegaMatchNominee
@gg7654 #MegaMatchNominee
@bpv24 #MegaMatchNominee
@alexguzman2020 #MegaMatchNominee
@e4bc4qh5qf7 #MegaMatchNominee
@ElenaWE #MegaMatchNominee
@gerardbo-on #MegaMatchNominee
@M4R14N-0 #MegaMatchNominee
@stevelka #MegaMatchNominee
@Shankar_Naik #MegaMatchNominee
@carlosgabriel1234 #MegaMatchNominee
@Chesskq75 #MegaMatchNominee
@X-Bob-X #MegaMatchNominee
@aobers #MegaMatchNominee
@XXX18MilesOutXXX #MegaMatchNominee


 

EDIT: Since I have the first comment, this seems like a good spot to answer some

Frequently-Asked Questions:

Q: Who can participate?

A: The 4 qualifier tournaments are open to anyone, no rating minimum. However, the winners of the tournaments must officially enter the Mega-Match by replying to this thread. Something as simple as "I will be competing." will do. This will only be valid if you meet the rating and games-played requirements by October 1st.

Q: What's up with the nominations? Why wasn't I nominated?
A: Anyone can tag someone else to suggest that they enter. It's a fun way of drawing his/her attention to the Mega-Match. You don't need to be nominated by someone else to participate.

Q: Do I need to play in all 4 qualifiers?
A: No, winning just one qualifier enters you into the Mega-Match (assuming you have entered officially). Of course, the more you play, the better your chances at winning one.

Q: Who's all playing?

A: These are the officially-recognised contestants so far: @7R0N1C, @BlackTea_41, @Calagane, @carlosgabriel1234, @chadkatter, @coolkidwins2, @EyeoftheTiger1204, @gg7654, @JustAWeakerPlayer, @LoRdBEeRuS1, @MayimChayim, @mingyangzhang5910, @qilp, @TheChessDude991, @udayp,@w-a-a-s-i,

 

Q: Qualifier tournament ties?

A: Performance rating.

 

Q: Point/Piece gifting counts as -1 points. Is that game points or Mega-Match points?

A: Mega-Match points

 

Q: Stalling KOTH to allow other players to earn points. Does this count as gifting points?

A: No.

 

Q: Does timing out count as aborting the game?

A: No. Abort conditions only apply in the case of a resignation or disconnect before move #50 (i.e. before Red's move #51).

 

Q: Does KOTH count as one checkmate?

A: KOTH will count as checkmates for as many alive kings (or Dead Kings Walking)  as are on the board.

 

Q: If a game is aborted, will it abort as they usually do, or will the players have to resign?

A: It will not automatically abort. We'll send an admin message saying either "Play Continues," or "Game Aborted - Please Resign." If the later, players will need to resign, and we'll ask the players to press the "Rematch" button. Of course, rating points will be refunded in this case, and no Mega-Match points will be awarded.

Avatar of Vahan

Cool! hope Luke doesn't hop in on this and make it a world championship in his usual director style though

Avatar of rupkayak

Sounds hype, let's see if Luciano shows up

Avatar of grable
rupkayak wrote:

Sounds hype, let's see if Luciano shows up

 

All are welcome! Meet the qualifications, play in the qualifiers, see if you can cut it!
My nominees were from my list of most frequent opponents in WFT

Avatar of BoxJellyfishChess

I feel like a lot more people (including the top 4 in FFA variant) might play this if this were casual but now are certainly not participating; Just something to think about for a future tournament

Avatar of grable
BoxJellyfishChess wrote:

I feel like a lot more people (including the top 4 in FFA variant) might play this if this were casual but now are certainly not participating; Just something to think about for a future tournament

 

I went back and forth on this. I think the qualifiers are the only time where this would be an issue. In the match itself, the ratings will be (presumably) higher than most sought-out games, so there's less of a chance of taking a big rating hit.

Plus, how much do you value your elo? I'd chance losing 200 elo for $200 any day =]

Avatar of grable
Stephenwilly wrote:

how do you register?

 

Just leave a reply here saying you're playing. I see you've got some room to make up in both the rating minimum and games played minimum. Make sure you meet the qualifications before Oct. 1st though, otherwise, even if you win a qualifier tournament, you'll be ineligible.

Avatar of carlosgabriel1234

Nice grable xD

Avatar of carlosgabriel1234

I can participate?

Avatar of grable
carlosgabriel1234 wrote:

I can participate?

 

That makes you our first entrant! Good luck!

Avatar of TheChessDude991

I would but the timings are not the best where I am, the qualifiers are at 7 am and 7 pm for me, both of which I am occupied at unfortunately

Avatar of gg7654

Would it be okay to enter the tournament if I am not able to come for two out of the four qualifers. 

Avatar of grable
TheChessDude991 wrote:

I would but the timings are not the best where I am, the qualifiers are at 7 am and 7 pm for me, both of which I am occupied at unfortunately

 

You live in two different time-zones!? Cool!.

 

gg7654 wrote:

Would it be okay to enter the tournament if I am not able to come for two out of the four qualifers. 

 

You only need to win one!

Avatar of gg7654

ok, then I'll participate in the tournament.

Avatar of TheChessDude991
grable wrote:
TheChessDude991 wrote:

I would but the timings are not the best where I am, the qualifiers are at 7 am and 7 pm for me, both of which I am occupied at unfortunately

I mean, that two of them are at 7 am, two are at 7 pm, where I live

Avatar of gg7654

That's not possible because they are 13 hours apart. 

Avatar of TheChessDude991

Well then 8 pm lol

Avatar of TheChessDude991

Forgive my math tongue.png

Avatar of grable
Cha_ChaRealSmooth wrote:

Cool! hope Luke doesn't hop in on this and make it a world championship in his usual director style though

 

Same here, same here. The whole point of this is that there's no way to crown a "Variant World Champion," ergo, I'm suggesting we do fun matches like this from time-to-time, and taking the initiative to kick off the first one. I'm okay with things like this being outside of the umbrella of the various "World Championships," although I have nothing against those matchups. Of course all of this was cleared with Luke beforehand.