The Final Frontier 9/Final Frontier 9 (Disk 2 of 3).adf/LCARS/TextFile/TNG_Game/TNG_Game_Tournament_Rules.pp/TNG_Game_Tournament_Rules

Text File | 1995-11-09 | 15KB | 344 lines

TF01
3,STAR TREK: CCG TOURNAMENT RULES v.1
4,by Decipher Inc.

                       ST:CCG Tournament Rules
                      -------------------------
                 compiled by [e-mail]
                -------------------------------------


                       README -- INTRODUCTION

Decipher is in the  process  of  developing  a  system of sanctioning
tournaments, which will include a simple step-by-step tournament kit,
an  effective  rating  system  for  players,  prizes,  and  a  finals
championship event, etc. In the meantime, this document contains some
basic guidelines for tournament directors and tournament play.

"Tournament Rules" for ST:CCG will  evolve, especially since the game
is new, future cards will  change  game  dynamics and tournaments are
presently  limited.  Many  players   have   offered  suggestions  for
tournament rules, and  such  suggestions  are  welcome.  For the time
being, you may send suggestions to:

                       [e-mail]

with "Tournament Rule Suggestions" in  the subject heading. We expect
regular updates of this document and  refinements as time goes on. As
soon as the tournament  system  is  established,  a different contact
point will be established and posted.


             OUR CURRENT PHILOSOPHY ON TOURNAMENT RULES

In the  wide  variety  of  suggestions  we  have  received,  many are
contradictory! There is  a  temptation  to  suggest numerous "banned"
cards and "limitations." With the  exception  of  a few cards, in our
view, most such limitations are  not  justified  at this stage in the
evolution of the game,  especially  when  the  player consensus about
them is not strong. The tournament  rules presented here contain only
limitations upon which there  seem  to  be  player  consensus at this
point. Our general philosophy on handling  cards that prove to be too
powerful, unbalancing, or otherwise simply  "disliked" by players, is
to create new cards which  remedy  and re-balance the situation. This
is a natural solution because it  turns  a problem into an advantage.
In tournaments, however, players can't wait  for new cards. To insure
fun and balanced  games,  any  problem  cards  must  be  listed  in a
tournament rules document.

This is the first such  document.  REMEMBER, however, that there will
be many future  expansions  of  ST:CCG,  bringing  new  cards and new
gameplay elements into  the  universe.  This  will  immediately cause
players to re-evaluate the strengths  of  cards.  A card that is "too
powerful" now  may  suddenly  become  normal.  A  normal  card  might
suddenly become  more  powerful,  etc.  Therefore,  each  time  a new
expansion set arrives,  THIS  TOURNAMENT  RULES  DOCUMENT WILL BECOME
OBSOLETE! A new tournament  rules  document  will  then  be posted to
accommodate the new universe of cards.

Thus, this document will be  updated  regularly, and you should check
to get the latest version  regularly.  We welcome suggestions and the
rules committee will seriously consider all.


                              CONTENTS:

1. Tournament Rules for Play
     General
     Deck Size
     Banned Cards
     Limited Cards
     Special Rules
2. Notes for Players
     House Rules
     Tracking Cards
3. Tournament Systems for Director/Organizers
     Announce Rules Well in Advance
     Answering Questions / Disputes
     Players' Committees
     Swiss System Format Preferred
     Quick Swiss System Explanation
     TOURNAMENT RULES  (As of 1/31/95)


1) General:

All answers to Rule FAQs published by  the time of the tournament are
in effect (except for  those  superseded  by  the specific tournament
rules below). The tournament  director  should have up-to-date copies
of the Rule FAQs, as should  players  when planning their decks. (See
sources, below).

Some of the  tournament  rules  are  listed  as  Options  or Advanced
Options. This means the director will  decide,  in advance, if any of
these options will be used for  the entire tournament. Everyone plays
with the same set of tournament rules every round of a tournament.

2) Deck Size:

Standard:  60, as in the basic game.

Advanced Option:  No upper limit (see rules pp.33)

3) Banned Cards:

Raise the Stakes. (Optional if players agree).

4) Limited Cards:

 Red Alert -- 1 per deck
 Static Warp Bubble -- 1
 Kivas Fajo -- 4
 Optional:  Res-Q -- 4
 Optional:  Supernova -- 1
 Optional:  All Artifacts -- 1 each

5) Special Rules:

Improperly seeded cards are removed from play when discovered, rather
than "discarded" as the rules currently say.

Each player may  seed  no  more  than  one  Artifact  at each mission
location.

The combination of Alien  Probe  plus  Telepathic Alien Kidnappers is
not allowed. A player cannot  have  both  in  play  at the same time.
Players are allowed to discard one in order to play the other.

Optional -- Artifacts which  are  "discarded"  after  use are instead
removed from play.

Optional  --  Shuttlecraft  (including   Runabouts  and  the  Yridian
Shuttle), can  be  carried  aboard  other  ships  (except  aboard the
Romulan Scout and Science classes, and the Zibalian Transport). (This
is a somewhat experimental  rule  that  lots  of people are currently
using as a house rule. Don't use  it  unless you are familiar with it
in play -- it's tricky! It is also likely future expansion cards will
allow this, making this option moot, but not yet.)

Optional for Advanced Players Only -- Sidebar decks.

Optional Method of  Scoring  Game  Results  --  Winning  the  game by
scoring 100 points  or  more  is  a  full  "2-point victory", whereas
winning by having the most points  when  someone's deck runs out is a
partial "1-point victory". Of course, losing is zero points. (This is
an experimental  suggestion  that  sounds  interesting  as  a  way to
encourage aggressive decks.)


NOTES FOR PLAYERS

1)  House Rules:

Many players play in groups and  naturally develop "house rules" they
come to like. This is good for  casual  games, since it allows you to
"tune" the game the  way  your  particular  tastes  prefer. But house
rules differ widely, so there is  a  danger in becoming used to them.
When you play outside your group, they may not apply.

Playing with house rules  in  a  tournament  is  frowned  upon due to
Decipher's priority of maintaining  a  consistent  basic game for all
players everywhere. The goal is  for  the  tournament rules to evolve
through refinement, which means  keeping  a  tight  grip on the rules
rather than a chaos of clever but unorganized house rules.

If you have house rules that  you  feel  are  a  "must" to use in the
tournament, or that  you  want  to  experiment  with  in a tournament
format; you may do so,  but   a)  only  if everyone in the tournament
agrees (without  unfair  peer  pressure  or  badgering),  and   b) if
players are notified  sufficiently  in  advance  of customizing their
deck.

When "sanctioning" of tournaments begins  by  Decipher, there will be
tight restrictions on what kind of house rules will be acceptable for
a tournament to be official.

2) Tracking Your Cards

If you have any fears  of  keeping  track  of  your  own cards in the
hectic environment of a tournament, here are some suggestions that we
have received from players.

Several players report that Post-It  Pad  sheets (by 3M, available in
any office supply store, small size)  make good markers on cards, and
do not damage the cards.  Plastic  "sleeve" covers (available at many
trading card stores) are also commonly used.


TOURNAMENT SYSTEMS FOR DIRECTORS

1) Announce the rules well in advance

Let players know when you  publicize  the  tournament that it will be
played  using  the  current   tournament   rules,  (or  any  optional
tournament  rules,  if  applicable).  Have   a  copy  of  the  latest
tournament rules to hand out in advance to those who ask.

Before play begins, review the tournament  rules with players to make
sure everyone is "on the same page."

2) Answering Questions and Disputes

Players will have questions whether a  certain  play is legal or not.
Directors should be familiar with the latest copy of the ST:CCG Rules
FAQs, and should  have  it  available  at  the  tournament  to answer
questions. The Rule FAQs  are  available  at: decipher.com (well, not
quite yet, as of 2/4/95  we  need  aother  week  or so before this is
fully operational), or call Decipher, Inc.

Players' Committee -- There is always the chance that a question will
arise that is not answered in  the  FAQs.  To handle this, we suggest
that  before  starting  the  tournament   players  elect  a  "players
committee" of 3 players. It is their job to resolve any such disputes
by a vote between them, based  upon common sense and their experience
with the game. Of course, they  are  on  their honor to be impartial.
(Let Decipher,  Inc.  know  about  any  rule  dispute  so  it  can be
addressed in future FAQs or  Tournament  Rules  documents). If one of
the committee members is an  involved  player  in the dispute and the
other members are split on the  decision, the tournament director has
the deciding vote.

3) Swiss System Preferred

When the ST:CCG Tournament  Kit  is  released,  it will recommend the
Swiss System (used  in  chess  tournaments)  as  the  best tournament
format. This system is capable of handling large numbers of people in
just a few rounds of play, while not eliminating anyone (every player
gets to play all rounds). The kit will fully explain the Swiss System
in a simple step-by-step  form  and  give  a  director  all the tools
needed for implementation.

Until that time, you  can  use  any  recognized  format.  For a small
number of players, use a round-robin. For more players, use either 1)
an elimination or double-elimination tournament  (rules for which can
be found in any library), or, 2) preferably, use the Swiss System....

4) Quick Swiss System Explanation:

Swiss Systems allow everyone to play every round, and handles a large
number of players:

# of Players        Suggested # of Rounds
8 - 16              3 - 4
16 - 32             4 - 5
32 - 64             5 - 7
64 - 128            6 - 8

Games per round -- the  Swiss  System  is  geared around one game per
round, because no one gets eliminated. (Whereas playing best 2 out of
3 is preferred for Elimination tournaments). The number of rounds you
play is decided relative to the  number  of players in the tournament
and the amount of time  you  have  available  --  figuring 1 hour per
round on average.

The "Tournament Kit" will make it easy and foolproof, but if you want
to try it on your  own  before  the  kit  is available, it works like
this:

Get a box of blank index cards.

Write each player's name on the  top  of  a separate card, and number
the cards  in  the  upper  left-hand  corner.  These  numbers  become
player's numbers.

In the first round, pair-off  players  randomly  On the first line of
each card, write the number of the player's opponent.

Let the players know who they play  by writing down the pairings on a
pairings sheet that you post on  the  wall.  Tell the players to play
and report to you who won.

Write the result  on  the  first  line  of  the  cards  (next  to the
opponent's number). Winners score  1,  losers  score  0.  Just to the
right of the score  for  this  round,  keep  a  running  total of the
player's score.

In subsequent rounds,  pair  together  players  with  the  same total
score. Again, in the simplest  form  of  a  Swiss System you can pair
them randomly. (In advanced  tournaments  there  are a few additional
pairing rules).

Each group of players gets paired-off  with other players in the same
group. (i.e., players with 2 points  would  play other players with 2
points, etc.)  If there is  an  odd  number  of  players in a scoring
group, the lowest-number  player  from  the  scoring  group  below is
brought up. If there is an  odd  number  of players overall, you will
have to eliminate the players with the lowest total score each round.

Important -- Do not pair 2  players  together who have already played
each other. Instead, switch cards around  in  the group to avoid such
pairings.

Repeat this process each round until the final round. After the final
round, the person with the highest score is the winner.

Tiebreaker -- In case of a tie,  play  a tiebreaker game, or, if time
is not available for such  a  game,  the  "official" winner among the
tied players can be determined by  adding  up the total scores of the
opponents. The winner is  the  player  whose  opponent's did the best
(the  theory  being   those   opponents   represented   the  toughest
competition).

Scoring Option -- An optional scoring system awards either one or two
points for a win. For  example,  winning  by  scoring 100 points is a
full win (2 points) and winning by high score when deck runs out is a
partial win (1 point). If  you  use  this  scoring, use these numbers
when pairing in the Swiss System  rounds. For example, if after three
rounds, one player has 6  points  (three 2-point wins), three players
have 5 points and six players have  4 points, etc., bring one 5-point
player up to play the 6-point player, then pair the remaining 5-point
players together, then the 4-point players together, etc.

Again, the Tournament Kit will  make  all  of  this easy and step-by-
step, including all the forms  you  need.  It  will also have an easy
report form so that you can send in the results for the tournament to
be officially sanctioned and rated,  giving  each player and official
rating. There will be prizes and other stuff!

Also, when the tournament system  is  in place, tournament organizers
will be able to  advertise  their  upcoming  tournaments and post the
results  of  their  past   tournaments  on  decipher.com,  Decipher's
internet information  site,  which  also  has  the  latest tournament
rules, FAQs, and other documents of interest to tournament players.

In the future, we will release  more  information on holding your own
sanctioned tournaments.



Copyright Notice

The information in  this  document  is  copyrighted  by Decipher Inc.
1995,   however,  it  can  be   freely   disseminated  online  or  by
traditional publishing  means as long as  it  is not altered and this
copyright notice is attached.

TM, Copyright & Registered  1995  Paramount  Pictures. All Rights
Reserved.

STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION is  a  registered trademark of and all
characters and related marks  are  trademarks  of Paramount Pictures.
Decipher Inc. Authorized User.