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Here is all of the information you need in order to participate in the 2020 online Titan: The Arena tournament.
TOURNAMENT FORMAT
GM: Greg Crowe
Assistant GM(s): TBD
BPA Membership: In order to play, you must be a member of the Boardgame Players Association at the PBEM level or above before the tournament starts. For more information, please go to the BPA website - www.boardgamers.org.
PROPOSED TIMELINE
- Signups accepted by email (WBCTTAref@gmail.com) until 12 midnight Eastern Daylight Time, Monday September 14.
- Membership of signups will be checked, virtual tables will be assigned, and gameplay should start by Monday September 21.
- First round will be 3 games per player, with as many different opponents as possible, and as few 4-player games as possible. These games will be played live online at a time agreeable to all players.
- There will be an 6-week timeframe in which all Round 1 games need to have been completed.
- The semi-finals will start within a few days of the last first-round game being completed, by Wednesday November 4 at the lastest. They will have 1 week to complete these games, barring exceptional circumstances.
- The final will take place at a time convenient to all five finalists, as well as the GM, hopefully within a week of the semi-finals being over.
I know this is different from what people are used to in an online tournament, but to keep the spirit of the game intact live games are a necessity. Besides, there isn't a site anywhere in which we could play asynchronous, turn-based games online.
TOOLS
DISCORD: We will be using the chat service Discord as a rally point for players to meet and talk in order to get their games set up. I will create a "server" there that we can use, and will send out the invitation link in the email that will announce the start of the tournament. Discord is free to use, and can be found at discord.com.
TABLETOP SIMULATOR: The games will be played on Tabletop Simulator through Steam). For each game, one player has to find and download the workshop mod for Titan: The Arena (will show up first when searching for "titan arena") and create a new game. That player will tell the others the game ID and they only need to open TTS and find it in the list. TTS does support voice chat, so the players can either stick to using Discord or switch to TTS for voice.
I do have one copy of TTS on a separate Steam account for players to use if they can't otherwise gain access to it. These players will need to log into this Steam account early to install TTS on their computer before they can play. Please allow sufficient time for this to happen.
GOOGLE DOCS: I will be keeping record of table assignments and game statuses on a Google doc (actually a Sheet, but whatever) - link forthcoming. Players will consult the document to see opponents and contact info. Later, the winners will return to this document to enter scores and places.
METHODS
To sign up, send an email to WBCTTAref@gmail.com. Include in the body of the email the following: 1) Name, 2) Steam username, 3) Will you have access to a copy of Tabletop Simulator bu the time tourney play starts?
After the first round all players will be awarded points in each game equal to 1 point per oppenent that placed lower minus 1 point per opponent that placed higher. So, for a 5-player game, this means 4 points for 1st place, 2 for 2nd place, 0 for 3rd place, -2 for 4th place, and -4 for 5th place. In a 4-player game it is 3 points for 1st place, 1 for 2nd place, -1 for 3rd place, and -3 for 4th place.
If I have 60 or more players, the 25 players with the highest point totals will each play one of five semifinal games, where seating is randomly determined. The five winners of the semifinal games will then play in the final. 6th place for laurels will go to the 2nd place semifinalist with the closest score to their table's winning score.
If I have 45-59 players, the semifinal will then consist of 4 5-player games, and joining the winners at the final will be the 2nd place semifinalist with the closest score to their table's winning score. 6th place for laurels will go to the semifinalist with the next closest score to their table's winning score, regardless of place.
If I have 32-44 players, the semifinal will then consist of 4 4-player games, and joining the winners at the final will be the 2nd place semifinalist with the closest score to their table's winning score. 6th place for laurels will go to the semifinalist with the next closest score to their table's winning score, regardless of place.
If I have 24-31 players, the semifinal will then consist of 3 4-player games, and joining the winners at the final will be the two semifinalists with the closest scores to their respective table's winning score, regardless of place. 6th place for laurels will go to the semifinalist with the third-closest score to their table's winning score, regardless of place.
TOURNAMENT RULES
For this tournament the WBC tournament in-game tie-breaker rules are in effect. In case of a tie, the player with the most points on the last creature to die wins the tie. If there is still a tie, look at the points bet on the second-to-last creature to die, and so on. If there is still a tie after looking at all 5 dead creatures, then the player who took a turn more recently wins the tie. Since there are no betting logs for this tournament, it is advisable to leave all bets on dead creatures until the end of the game.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
In order for this to be considered an official BPA tournament, we need at least 24 members sign up. If we don't make 24 by September 14, I may run this as an unofficial tournament.
I will try to accomodate as many players who have no copy of Tabletop Simulator to use, but I personally only have the one extra copy, so realistically can only take in a few. If I am forced to turn away not-having-TTS players, I will do so on a "last come first cut" basis.
While there may be some of you who are Tabletop Simulator whizzes out there, many of your opponents may be using it for the first time. Please be patient as they work through the interface, and if they make a mistake not because of poor play but because of interface woes, please consider letting them undo it with the consent of the whole table.
That being said, I would suggest anyone who hasn't used TTS to get in there and muck about in it atleast until you get the basic commands down.
For those interested players who are new to Titan: The Arena, I may be talked into running a few demos during the signup period. This would involve me posting a poll on Facebook to gauge interest, then announcing a date and time (or dates and times as needed). We would meet on Discord like it was a regular game, then I open the game and invite you in. After I show you how it works, then we can play a practice game if enough folks want.
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