CHALLENGE The_ CHAMPIONS LEAGUE, The_'s CHALLENGE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Introduction (description of the idea/essence of the tournament): Almost from the very first days I started playing Heroes 3 online, I couldn't shake the idea of watching, and later organizing, a tournament similar in concept to the football Champions League, where the brightest and strongest Heroes 3 players would be gathered. And now finally the desire, time, and opportunities have aligned.
Why should this particular tournament bring together the "veterans" and simply excellent players?
In addition to an interesting and non-standard format, there will also be material prizes, organized so far from my personal funds — the total prize pool of the tournament currently amounts to 15,000 rubles (or equivalent in currency), and I also allow for an increase of the prize pool up to 30,000 rubles.
In the end, we have:
a) Competitive interest — there will not be a single easy match, from qualification to the final, and every victory in any match will be worth more than ten ordinary ones;
b) For those who find competitive interest insufficient, there is also material motivation — very real money, which will undoubtedly be paid to the winner and prize-winners according to their final placements.
During the tournament, mini-contests will be held, also with small but pleasant prizes, more on this later — stay tuned for updates.

General Information:

1. Tournament Organizer: The_ (241-568-808, skype thew0w), Tournament Judges: Pit for LM (471-401-475), Dirty Player (408-722-873).
2. The tournament is held according to the current rules of the portal, currently they are here /topic/10593/
3. Game version SoD 3.2 (4.0) +HD-mod (latest relevant version as of now), to avoid violating the basic rules of the games and when playing on the skirmish template, it is recommended to use version 1.02 of the HW_rules_mod patch.
4. Template selection is done by striking from a list of 12 templates: 2SM4d(3), Balance (L-U, 130%), skirmish (at 200% difficulty), 2cm2c (at 200% difficulty), Jebus Cross, Mini-Nostalgia, Diamond, 8mm6a, 6LM10a, Spider, 8xm12a, and anarchy 200%. The player marked in blue in the table strikes out 5 templates, the red player from the remaining seven chooses the template on which the game will be played, and then the timer. The player playing the home match (red), after striking the template, has the right to choose any of the two timers, either SoD or chess, at their discretion. The blue player starts the castle striking.
Chess timer: for m200 8+4+1, for L+U 16+8+1 (and Balance L-U), for XL+U 20+8+1, for Jebus 30+8+1.
Total restarts: 113 (111+111+111, 112+111, 113) Useful info: templates, maps.
5. All tournament games will go into the seasonal rating; a report must be provided for each played match. In case of a tie in points in the group, the following criteria will be considered first:
a) Berger coefficient (calculated only based on results achieved in the group).
b) Head-to-head result.
c) Points earned in the game "weigh" more than technical wins.
d) At present, it is impossible to foresee all possible combinations of results. Therefore, the final scheme will be determined based on the situation that develops in the groups by the end of the stage.
6. Saves of all matches must be kept until the end of the tournament, and saves and passwords must be presented upon the first request of the organizers and tournament judges. Failure to present a password may result in a technical defeat. I ask all tournament participants to pay close attention to this point.
7. All disputed issues are resolved informally, personally with the organizers and tournament judges; please do not clutter the topic. In disputed situations, the organizers and judges are guided by the current portal rules and common sense.
8. The tournament organizers and judges have the right to deny a player participation in the tournament without explanation.
9. The tournament organizers and judges have one "wildcard" for the main stage, which can be awarded to any participant without explanation.
10. The tournament is held with regulated deadlines for games and a mandatory game date (in case participants cannot personally agree). The mandatory time for the game is the nearest Saturday from 12:00 to 24:00 MSK.
11. Upon a successful start (number of participants 40+), the tournament will be assigned the status of Official, and negotiations will be held with the forum administration regarding the awarding of a Champions Cup under the avatar (project under development).
12. By submitting an application, you agree to its regulations and provisions.

Tournament Regulations:

1. 16 players automatically advance to the group stage. This right is granted to absolutely all champions of the current year in any official individual HeroesWorld tournament, regardless of the tournament format. The remaining spots are filled based on achievements (rating), with the most recent achievements and awards carrying the greatest weight. These players are determined by the judging panel and tournament organizers.
2. The remaining 16 spots are contested in a relatively open qualification; the maximum number of participants in the qualification is 64 people, i.e., with the maximum number of participants, the qualification proceeds to the 1/16 stage, WITHOUT A LOWER BRACKET. The 1/64 stage is played to 1 win, the 1/32 stage to 2 wins.
3. After the qualification, all players are placed into 4 pots. The first 16 people go only into pots 1-2, according to player strength. The 16 people who passed the qualification go into pots 3-4, according to player strength. Then a blind draw takes place.
4. There are eight groups total, with four players in each. There are six games total in the group: three home games playing as red and three away games playing as blue. Template striking is started by the player playing as blue.
5. The tournament follows a round-robin format, each player plays two games against every other player. The deadline for each round is 11 days. I will personally monitor the deadlines; exceptions WILL be made for force majeure, etc., but only if I am informed in advance by any means (forum, ICQ, Skype, etc.). In all other cases, technical results will be set ruthlessly.
6. Two players from each group advance to the playoffs. Third and fourth places leave the tournament. The playoffs are held according to the Full Double Elimination system.
7. In the upper bracket, games are played to 2 wins, except for the grand final (Bo5, starting from a score of 1-0 in favor of the player from the upper bracket). In the lower bracket, games are played to 1 win, except for the losers' final (Bo3). Thus, we get the first three places, which will be awarded.
8. Currently, the distribution of the prize pool is as follows:
1st place - 8,500 rubles, 2nd place - 4,000 rubles, 3rd place 2,500 rubles (in case the prize pool is increased, the amounts will be increased in the corresponding proportion).

PLAYOFF REGULATIONS
In the upper bracket, the fight is to 2 wins. In the first two games, the system of color and template/castle striking is identical to the group stage. If a third map is required, a coin is tossed for the initial strike and initial color accordingly (blue starts the template striking first), castles are set to random, the starting bonus can be chosen, color change after each subjective restart, with a total of 113 restarts for each player. Striking is done from the template pool proposed in the first post.

In the lower bracket, games are played to 1 win. Template and castle striking is started by the blue player. Striking proceeds in the usual manner until one template remains.

The player listed at the top of the pairing plays as red (for the upper bracket, the first game, then color change). For the lower bracket, the top player simply plays as red.

Tournament Registration:

1. Registration lasts THREE weeks, from November 30 to December 20.
2. The main stage of the tournament will start approximately on January 30. The qualification will begin immediately after registration ends.
3. To register, you must provide your forum nickname and a means of contact (ICQ is mandatory, other means of communication are desirable).
Also, if you meet the first criterion (current year champion in any official individual HeroesWorld tournament), you must specify the tournament, the start date of the tournament, and the end date.
Example:
Vasya
000-000-000
skype: Vasiapapa
victory in tournament N, tournament start 01.01.2013, tournament end 30.06.2013.

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A few words "from me"

1. If you like the idea of the tournament, have the desire and opportunity to support it, any material support will go towards increasing the prize pool and conducting mini-contests (all my contact information is provided, call, write, send gifts, etc.).
2. The prizes will be paid out in any case, regardless of the quorum of participants, in the most convenient way for the winners.
3. I will see the tournament through to the end and monitor it throughout the entire distance.
4. An earnest wish to all future participants, both in qualification and the main stage: please be aware of what you are doing when registering and see the tournament through to the end, even if you have no chance of advancing from the groups. I sincerely hope that the tournament will pass without unplanned/unjustified disappearances and withdrawals.
5. The tournament is planned as an annual event; in this case, the winner of the previous tournament receives an auto-quota for the next edition.
6. I wish everyone good luck, and may the strongest win!

People who have financially supported the tournament:

1. Noom - 1,000 rubles.
2. twaryna - 2,400 rubles.
3. numOne - 500 rubles.

Payment details by which you can support the tournament and increase its prize pool:

Visa - 4276 3800 9748 0946

MasterCard - 5122 7605 8972 7180

WebMoney
R190477445402 (rubles)
Z992465271963 (dollars)