Library : Organized Play Quickstart Guide back
Posted by Radix on 2007-07-11 04:44:13
You need several ingredients for organized play:
- Communication Tools
- Skilled Team Players
- A Correctly Configured Server
- Screenshots & Demos
(1/8) Communication Tools
Over the course of the years a few tools have become the standard in organized play. These are :Ventrilo:, :Gamesurge's Internet Relay Chat:, and message boards (like these). You can download and configure a personal copy of the Internet Relay Chat (IRC) client at our tutorial :here: (like many of us do), but for just getting used to it, Gamesurge's system is much, much simpler.
(2/8) Skilled Team Players
Your team and roster must be registered on http://ansl.us in our case, or another league website if you plan on playing in a different one such as ENSL.
I'll touch briefly here on the fact that the players are, at the end of the day, all you have in a game. Locking down two hives and rushing jetpacks is great until you have no one to play against, or until you stop enjoying the game due to too much infighting between your teammates. The point is to enjoy the game, and in order for that to happen, both teams have to be ready, able, and most of all willing to play because they genuinely like the game, and overall experience.
(3/8) A Correctly Configured Server
The servers available (through the .book 1 or .book 2 commands) on the #findnsscrim channel of the "gamesurge" server on IRC are correctly-configured hosts for anyone looking for a place to play. To join the #findnsscrim channel, simply type "/join #findnsscrim" in your IRC console. The differences between those servers and public servers are (1) that both teams must type "ready" before the game will start, (2) certain rates are enforced, and (3) screenshots are on.
(4/8) Screenshots & Demos
By far the biggest difference between public and private play, aside from the level of skill and organization, is the need for screenshots & game recordings. In traditional play, you must take one screenshot (which includes net_graph 3, the scoreboard, and a viewfield containing at least one marine and one skulk) per half.
How The Dojo Is Different
Well for one thing we don't expect you to take multiple screenshots per game (one at the start, in the above format is still expected). In addition, several major items differentiate our program from traditional organized NS.
- Skill Regulations
- Ringers
- Scheduling Requirements
- Ready Times
(5/8) Skill Regulations
If there is a way to concretely quantify the important skills of the game, we haven't found it yet. For that reason, an arbitrary system of "flags" has been implemented to regulate the median skill level of competing teams. If a flagged player plays in a match, they are said to "bring a flag". No team may assemble more than two (2) flags in any given half unless both teams agree, and can match flagged players so that the total offset between teams' flags does not exceed 2. For detailed rulings on flags see our full ruleset :here:, but the following should be a good guide by itself:
You are flagged if:
- You are not registered on ANSL :here:, or are otherwise difficult to identify
- Or if you appear in the :flagged players list:.
Because of the level of complexity the roster regulations bring to our tournament system, please confine smurfing to scrims and public play. Smurfing is a comical practice many people (including myself) enjoy. Matches, however, are not the place for it.
(6/8) Ringers
Forfeit wins are boring and do not lend themselves to our organization's :mission:. For this reason, extra steps are taken to facilitate cohesive matches each and every time they're scheduled. Despite that, having a ringer will always be considered a penalty against your team.
- A team must have no more than two (2) legal ringers. Ringer counts, unlike flag counts, may not exceed 2. A ringer may, in many cases, count against the team's total flag count.
- A ringer may be refused by the opposing team for any reason so long as a feasible substitute is suggested.
- Ringers may never lerk or fade, nor may they ever be in the command chair for more than 30 seconds at any time.
- Ringers must be clearly marked with either "|R| ", "(R) ", or "RINGER: " at the beginning of their handle within 1 minute of joining.
- Team members may not identify themselves as being ringers. Save the comedy for scrims.
- If a ringer's identity within ANSL is difficult to determine, count them as flagged. This is an intentional penalty for failing to field a complete team, and to keep the match going smoothly.
(7/8) Scheduling Requirements
In Veteran, schedules are handled by the teams on their own time because the teams have tremendous backing in the realms of experience and professionalism. Because The Dojo caters its program to regular everyday players who don't necessarily have those abilities in great depth, some scheduling requirements have been added.
- If you complete your match before the 7th day after a pairing, you do not need to schedule your match in the forums. These rules exist as a safety net for any team struggling to co-ordinate their "play dates".
- A forum section entitled "Match Scheduling" has been added to handle scheduling.
- Every match that will not be played in the first 7 days after a pairing must be scheduled beforehand in that section so that it is clear when a forfeit has occurred.
- If a match is announced, your team has 7 days to schedule, and 14 days to report the outcome of the match.
- Example: A match is announced on Monday (first day of the month). Your team must either report the results of their match by Sunday (7th day of the month), or have an entry in the scheduling forum by Sunday (7th day of the month) and must play the match and report the results through ANSL's reporting system no later than two Sundays from the announcement of the pairing, meaning Sunday night, the 14th of the month.
(8/8) Ready Times
In our matches (unlike traditional organized play), you must ready within 10 minutes of the scheduled match start time. Please have your basic strategy prepared when you arrive at a match, as extraneous ready times will result in a Game Loss for your first half.
Overview
- SECTION 1 -
This article is designed for brevity, and is broken into two sections. The first describes traditional organized play for Natural-Selection, while the second describes the differences between what to expect in traditional organized play, vs what you will find in The Dojo. If you already understand organized play, you may wish to skip the first section.
Traditional Organized Play
You need several ingredients for organized play:
- Communication Tools
- Skilled Team Players
- A Correctly Configured Server
- Screenshots & Demos
(1/8) Communication Tools
Over the course of the years a few tools have become the standard in organized play. These are :Ventrilo:, :Gamesurge's Internet Relay Chat:, and message boards (like these). You can download and configure a personal copy of the Internet Relay Chat (IRC) client at our tutorial :here: (like many of us do), but for just getting used to it, Gamesurge's system is much, much simpler.
(2/8) Skilled Team Players
Your team and roster must be registered on http://ansl.us in our case, or another league website if you plan on playing in a different one such as ENSL.
I'll touch briefly here on the fact that the players are, at the end of the day, all you have in a game. Locking down two hives and rushing jetpacks is great until you have no one to play against, or until you stop enjoying the game due to too much infighting between your teammates. The point is to enjoy the game, and in order for that to happen, both teams have to be ready, able, and most of all willing to play because they genuinely like the game, and overall experience.
(3/8) A Correctly Configured Server
The servers available (through the .book 1 or .book 2 commands) on the #findnsscrim channel of the "gamesurge" server on IRC are correctly-configured hosts for anyone looking for a place to play. To join the #findnsscrim channel, simply type "/join #findnsscrim" in your IRC console. The differences between those servers and public servers are (1) that both teams must type "ready" before the game will start, (2) certain rates are enforced, and (3) screenshots are on.
(4/8) Screenshots & Demos
By far the biggest difference between public and private play, aside from the level of skill and organization, is the need for screenshots & game recordings. In traditional play, you must take one screenshot (which includes net_graph 3, the scoreboard, and a viewfield containing at least one marine and one skulk) per half.
- SECTION 2 -
How The Dojo Is Different
Well for one thing we don't expect you to take multiple screenshots per game (one at the start, in the above format is still expected). In addition, several major items differentiate our program from traditional organized NS.
- Skill Regulations
- Ringers
- Scheduling Requirements
- Ready Times
(5/8) Skill Regulations
If there is a way to concretely quantify the important skills of the game, we haven't found it yet. For that reason, an arbitrary system of "flags" has been implemented to regulate the median skill level of competing teams. If a flagged player plays in a match, they are said to "bring a flag". No team may assemble more than two (2) flags in any given half unless both teams agree, and can match flagged players so that the total offset between teams' flags does not exceed 2. For detailed rulings on flags see our full ruleset :here:, but the following should be a good guide by itself:
You are flagged if:
- You are not registered on ANSL :here:, or are otherwise difficult to identify
- Or if you appear in the :flagged players list:.
Because of the level of complexity the roster regulations bring to our tournament system, please confine smurfing to scrims and public play. Smurfing is a comical practice many people (including myself) enjoy. Matches, however, are not the place for it.
(6/8) Ringers
Forfeit wins are boring and do not lend themselves to our organization's :mission:. For this reason, extra steps are taken to facilitate cohesive matches each and every time they're scheduled. Despite that, having a ringer will always be considered a penalty against your team.
- A team must have no more than two (2) legal ringers. Ringer counts, unlike flag counts, may not exceed 2. A ringer may, in many cases, count against the team's total flag count.
- A ringer may be refused by the opposing team for any reason so long as a feasible substitute is suggested.
- Ringers may never lerk or fade, nor may they ever be in the command chair for more than 30 seconds at any time.
- Ringers must be clearly marked with either "|R| ", "(R) ", or "RINGER: " at the beginning of their handle within 1 minute of joining.
- Team members may not identify themselves as being ringers. Save the comedy for scrims.
- If a ringer's identity within ANSL is difficult to determine, count them as flagged. This is an intentional penalty for failing to field a complete team, and to keep the match going smoothly.
(7/8) Scheduling Requirements
In Veteran, schedules are handled by the teams on their own time because the teams have tremendous backing in the realms of experience and professionalism. Because The Dojo caters its program to regular everyday players who don't necessarily have those abilities in great depth, some scheduling requirements have been added.
- If you complete your match before the 7th day after a pairing, you do not need to schedule your match in the forums. These rules exist as a safety net for any team struggling to co-ordinate their "play dates".
- A forum section entitled "Match Scheduling" has been added to handle scheduling.
- Every match that will not be played in the first 7 days after a pairing must be scheduled beforehand in that section so that it is clear when a forfeit has occurred.
- If a match is announced, your team has 7 days to schedule, and 14 days to report the outcome of the match.
- Example: A match is announced on Monday (first day of the month). Your team must either report the results of their match by Sunday (7th day of the month), or have an entry in the scheduling forum by Sunday (7th day of the month) and must play the match and report the results through ANSL's reporting system no later than two Sundays from the announcement of the pairing, meaning Sunday night, the 14th of the month.
(8/8) Ready Times
In our matches (unlike traditional organized play), you must ready within 10 minutes of the scheduled match start time. Please have your basic strategy prepared when you arrive at a match, as extraneous ready times will result in a Game Loss for your first half.