May/June 1997
The summer convention season is upon us, and we'll be running tournaments in three of our games:
We'll be running the AADA World Championships at two different conventions this year: The Racing Championships at Origins, and the Duelling Championships at GenCon. Complete information on both these tournaments are in the AADA News.
There will be two official "Illuminati: New World Order Global Domination" tournaments at GenCon '97, plus two other INWO events.
1) The Head-To-Head Tournament. Single elimination, limited to the first 32 players who sign up. The tournament will be played over two sessions (sessions at GenCon are 3-1/2 hours long), as many games per session as we can squeeze in. Prizes will be awarded for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Place.
2) The Multi-Player Tournament. Two rounds, six players per table, limited to the first 36 players who sign up. Winners, shared victories and ties all advance, so the final could get crowded. Prizes will be awarded for 1st, 2nd and 3rd Place.
3) The "One With Everything" Event. This is a one-shot event, limited to the first 36 players who sign up, played four to six to a table (depending on how many people show up), with prizes for winners at each table. INWO Factory Sets to play with will be provided by Steve Jackson Games.
4) The "Sealed Deck" Event. This is a one-shot event, limited to the first 36 players who sign up, played four to six to a table, with prizes for winners at each table. Each player must bring his own factory sealed INWO Starter Set (either Limited or Unlimited edition). The sets will be opened at the beginning of the session, and players have 30 minutes to sort their cards and prepare a deck. No trading between players is allowed. The ultimate test of deck-building and playing skills!
We will also be running an "Origins Championship" at Origins '97 in a multi-player format -- check the preregistration and program books.
Rules for the GenCon and Origins tournaments (and by extension, all convention INWO tournaments everywhere) are as follows. Note that this is not an exact duplicate of the rules published last year, so pay attention. Specifically, note rules 1.1 and 2.1, new this year.
1) The game will be played according to the most recent edition of the
1.1) To close the loophole exposed in last year's German Championships (see Pyramid #24), add the following to "Eliminating a Player," p. 12 of the WDH v1.1, second paragraph (new copy in all caps): Exception: If the Servants of Cthulhu have destroyed 7 groups, and then destroy their own last puppet as their 8th victim ANY TIME AFTER THE FIRST THREE FULL TURNS, they are not destroyed themselves . . . they win.
2) A Tournament Deck must contain exactly 45 cards.
2.1) The Tournament Referee reserves the right to disqualify any "degenerate" decks that are brought to the tournament, but the author of the degenerate deck will receive a special prize (and the admiration of all true degenerates everywhere). Note that the player is not disqualified, only the deck -- if at all possible, the player should be allowed to continue with another deck. (Degenerate decks tend to reveal themselves early, and it's usually not too great a hardship to just start over. The Tournament Referee's decision on this matter is final.)
3) Cards may be from any edition -- Limited, Unlimited, or the Factory Set. Our tournaments are designed for people to display skill in deck-building, gameplay and general sneakiness -- not for the Mr. Suitcases of the world.
4) Cards may not be marked in any permanent way, unless the markings are on the face only and identical on each card, such as a small colored dot on a protective sleeve to indicate ownership. Small sticky tags (often called Post-It (TM) Brand Notes) may also be used to note changes in the Power or Resistance of a Group as circumstances change, to note the ownership of a card that changes hands, or to give a name to a Media Sensation.
5) The actual INWO cards must be used -- no proxies. Players may protect their cards in plastic sleeves, provided: 1) All cards in the deck use identical sleeves; 2) The sleeves are clean and unmarked; 3) No other players at the table object. The Tournament Referee may require a player to un-sleeve his cards (or place them in new sleeves) if the old sleeves are dirty, sticky or otherwise marked, or if other players object. Other players at the table may shuffle sleeved sets of cards before the game starts. Other, bulkier protection (Lucite holders come to mind) are not permitted.
6) As INWO becomes available in more and more languages, players may want to incorporate foreign-language cards in their tournament decks. One language will be designated as the "official" language for the tournament (in most places, that will be English) -- all other editions are considered "foreign" languages. In a tournament in Germany, the original English language cards could very well be the "foreign" ones! Foreign language cards may be used in a tournament for the fun of it, provided there is an official language equivalent and the player has a copy of it, so that players can read the official language version and know exactly what the card does. If there are any differences in translation, the official language version applies. Cards from a foreign language edition that have no official language equivalent may be used in a tournament only with the approval of the tournament organizers, and only in accordance with guidelines published by Steve Jackson Games or the foreign publishers of non-English editions. For example, guidelines for using German language cards in English language tournaments have been published in "INWO Spricht Deutsch" in Pyramid #16. Other combinations will be dealt with as the need arises. For all Origins and GenCon '96 events run by Steve Jackson Games, English will be the official language, and German language cards with no English equivalent may not be used.
7) Players can bring as many cards as they like to the tournament, and change cards (or entire decks) freely between rounds, but once a Tournament Deck has been placed on the table at the beginning of a round and declared ready, that's it -- no changes, substitutions or trades from that point up to the moment the game begins.
8) Cards may be given to other players during the course of a game as per the INWO rules, except that exchanges during a Tournament are never permanent -- all cards are returned to their original owners at the end of the round.
9) The Tournament Referee reserves the right to void a card trade (if other players at the table challenge it -- the Ref will not butt in when not asked) if, in his opinion, the trade is part of an effort by several players working together to advance one of their number to a subsequent round. This is very Illuminated, and we would normally be very amused, but this simply isn't fair to the poor sap who happens to get placed at a table full of friends who are colluding to make sure one of their own moves on. It's every conspirator for himself . . . Shared victories are OK; players sacrificing themselves so a friend can advance isn't.
10) If negotiations drag on too long, any player at a table can call the Tournament Referee over to get things moving. If convinced the request is legitimate, the Ref will impose a 1-minute time limit to conclude negotiations; after that the player whose turn it is must take an Action or pass the remainder of his turn.
11) The Order of Play is subject to the "Oops Rule." If a player forgets to do something in the turn sequence (like draw his Plot Cards, or make his automatic takeover, or whatever), he may not go back and correct his error, unless the other players at the table unanimously allow him to. Players are encouraged to cut each other slack during the game, but they don't have to . . . at the risk of making a permanent enemy, of course.
12) Profanity, abuse, violence and other disruptive behavior will result in a player's expulsion from the tournament. The Tournament Referee's word is final on this matter. Period.
13) GenCon games will be played to the standard victory condition of 11 groups, though tournaments elsewhere may be played to a different number -- higher for longer, more challenging games, or lower for quicker contests.
If time runs out without a winner, a Percentage of Goal system (see below) will be used to determine the winner. This system will also be used to determine 2nd and 3rd places in the semi-finals and finals, the game ending the moment the winner meets his victory conditions.
14) Whatever else comes up, the Tournament Referee's word is final.
Two-player games -- especially in tournament play -- can lend themselves to quick-kill strategies or "degenerate" decks that would be easy to counter in a multi-player game. The following rules are official for two-player tournament games, and suggested for all two-player play.
1) Basic goal may not be less than 12 groups.
2) Neither player may attack the other until each has taken a full turn; Player 2 can't jump instantly on Player 1.
3) Eliminate the "automatic takeover" phase. Except for the puppet that you start the game with, no group may be taken over without a die roll. To take over a Resource, spend you Illuminati token -- no more than one per turn.
Simply put, if nobody has achieved a victory condition when time expires (and the referee will give ample warning that the time limit is approaching), then play freezes when time is called and a winner is determined. (If time is called after an attack is announced but before the dice are rolled, then the dice must be rolled immediately; no further negotiation, playing of Plot Cards or spending of Action Tokens may occur. You roll the dice as the attack stands, and live with the consequences.) Each player receives a percentage score (taken to as many decimals as needed to determine a winner) based on the best of the following factors:
1) Number of groups controlled (taking into account any special bonuses, including those from goal cards in play), as a percentage of the goal. Example: The Gnomes control six groups (one of which counts double because it is a Corporate of Power 4 or greater) plus the Illuminati group, for a total of 8. The announced victory condition was 11 groups. The Gnomes player's percentage is 72.7%.
2) Percentage of other special goals achieved, including those from Goal Cards already exposed (Goal Cards still in the deck, or hidden in the hand, do not qualify). Example: There are 27 Power worth of Peaceful groups in play on the table when time is called. Shangri-La needs 30 to win, so the Shangri-La player's percentage is 90%.
3) When a special goal has two parts (as with the Bermuda Triangle and several Goal cards), the percentage is determined by averaging the different percentages, with 100% the maximum for either part. Example: Bermuda Triangle needs all 10 alignments and 35 Power in its structure; at the end of the game, it has 8 alignments and 33 Power. The percentage would be 80% averaged with 94.3%, or 87.1%. If Bermuda had 8 alignments and 38 Power, it would not get a bonus for the "extra" Power; the percentage would be 80% averaged with 100%, or 90%.
4) If two (or more) players' Percentage of Goal are identical -- or, as in the case of Shangri-La, two or more players reach the same victory condition simultaneously -- the tiebreaker will be total number of Groups in the player's structure (including those that may count double).
5) If there is still a tie, then both players advance (in preliminary rounds). If prizes are at stake, then the players can agree to a coin flip or other random determination to see who gets the higher-place prize, or they can take joint possession of the prizes for the two places and divide them up any way they care to. If two people tie for first, they jointly get the prizes for first and second; if they tie for second, they jointly get the prizes for second and third; and so on.
We will be running two Knightmare Chess events this summer. The World Championships will be at GenCon '97, and the Origins Championships will be at (obviously) Origins '97. Both events will be single elimination tournaments limited to the first 16 people who sign up. Each round has a one-hour time limit, and will be played in a single four-hour slot at the convention. Players are requested to bring their own chess sets. We'll have an extra set or two, but we can't guarantee you'll be able to play if you don't bring a set.
The following rules will apply to both events and, by extension, all convention Knightmare Chess events everywhere:
1) The event will be played according to the most current rules and card text of Knightmare Chess available. (Origins and GenCon '97, that should be the new 2nd Edition.) First edition cards may be used, but the 2nd edition card text will be in force. In addition, the "Knightmare Chess Official Rulings" published in Pyramid #24 will also be in effect.
2) Players will draw from their own customized deck. Decks will be built on 150 points. Decks worth fewer points are legal. The Tournament Referee reserves the right to disqualify any "degenerate" decks that are brought to the tournament, but the author of the degenerate deck will receive a special prize (and the admiration of all true degenerates everywhere). Note that the player is not disqualified, only the deck -- if at all possible, the player should be allowed to continue with another deck. (Degenerate decks tend to reveal themselves early, and it's usually not too great a hardship to just start over. The Tournament Referee's decision on this matter is final.)
3) The cards may not be marked in any way.
4) The actual Knightmare Chess cards must be used -- no proxies. Players may protect their cards in plastic sleeves, provided: 1) All cards in the deck use identical sleeves; 2) The sleeves are clean and unmarked; 3) The opponent does not object. The Tournament Referee may require a player to un-sleeve his cards (or place them in new sleeves) if the old sleeves are dirty, sticky or otherwise marked, or if the opponent objects. The opponent may shuffle sleeved sets of cards before the game starts.
5) Players can bring as many cards as they like to the tournament, and change cards (or entire decks) freely between rounds, but once a Tournament Deck has been placed on the table at the beginning of a game and declared ready, that's it -- no changes from that point up to the moment the game begins.
6) Profanity, abuse, violence and other disruptive behavior will result in a player's expulsion from the tournament. The Tournament Referee's word is final on this matter. Period.
7) A game is over when one player achieves an uncontested checkmate or a concession of defeat. In case of a stalemate, the players may play again if they both agree and time permits, and players may change the content of their decks between games. If the players do not wish to play again or there is no time for a replay, then the winner will be determined by the stalemate tiebreaker, below.
8) Stalemate tiebreaker: If the game ends in a stalemate, the player with the most total points' worth of unplayed cards will be declared the winner. If that is also a tie, Black wins!
9) Time limit tiebreaker: If the time limit expires and a game has not reached a conclusion, the player with the most points' worth of pieces still on the board will be declared the winner. Points will be awarded as follows:
| Pawn -- 1 | Rook -- 5 | Knight -- 3 | Bishop -- 3 |
| Queen -- 9 | King -- 3 | Prince -- 3 | Crab -- 1.5 |
Confabulated pieces are worth the sum of the value of the two pieces that they are made from. Neutral pieces do not count for either side. In case of a tie, the player with the most total points' worth of unplayed cards will be declared the winner. If that is also a tie, Black wins!
10) Whatever else comes up, the Tournament Referee's word is final.
