Hello! Thanks a bunch for showing interest in the Space City Wizards Community Showdown. The staff are super excited to see you thrive in front of our community members! Our goal is to make sure that each and every player feels like a rockstar amongst their friends and walks away from this experience feeling proud of what they are able to accomplish over the coming weeks! Before you start signing up for such glory, it is important to know what you're getting yourself into. 

We want this Community Showdown to be a productive mix of competition and chill, and only fun times! Throughout this experience, staff will be inspiring people to care enough that they want to try their best as well as be chill enough not to feel pressured to perform perfectly each and every week. Heads Up!!!! There are a lot of theatrics, analytics, and commentary that may happen in the background to help us put on a good show! But don't worry about that… all players in this community are rock stars and the staff will only have great things to say about you as the event goes on! 

At the end of the day, we are looking for an experience that is more like a color commentated recreational Wednesday night, booze infused softball game. Some players are there for the exercise, some are there to win, some are looking for drinking buddies, some might be there to socialize, but all are there to have fun and enhance their lives in some way! Staff has put together a list of things to expect throughout the weeks: 

Mandatory Expectations 

- Players WILL HAVE FUN… THIS IS NON-NEGOTIABLE 

- Players will be boasted about and treated with respect 

- Players will follow the Rules and Code of Conduct of the discord and the Showdown 

- Players are more than welcome to reach out to staff regarding conflict  

- Suggestions are always welcome, we are learning too! 

Other Things That Might Happen 

- Organized team practices (These are optional and are for the super committed) 

- Stat tracking (you don't have to look at them but they help our Casters and Analysts sound smart for their moms watching at home) 

- Making friends 

- Highlight reels 

- Playful banter 

- Too many discord notifications 

- Corny jokes 

- Your face on a cheesy promo poster (this is 100% consensual… If you want to use an icon of a hotdog or something to represent you… by all means… have at it) 

General Rules/Player Rules 

1) ALL PLAYERS MUST FOLLOW THE RULES AND CODES OF CONDUCT OF THE DISCORD 

- Players in violation of discord server rules will be asked to leave the community. 

- Players in violation of Showdown specific rules will be met with Showdown consequences. 

- Showdown staff reserves the right to remove players from the Showdown and potentially petition to Admin:The Grand Wizard for removal from the community. 

- Be respectful of everyone. This not only includes being courteous to your teammates and opponents, but also being respectful of the time and energy put into this by everyone involved. 

- This Showdown will be limited to console players with controllers only. 

- Comms will be in Xbox party chat unless discussed and agreed upon with teammates and Captain(s). 

- Players of any SR are welcome. 

- The games will be held on Saturdays starting at 8pm Central Standard Time. 

- Each team will consist of 2 Captains and 6 players for a total of 7 eligible players total. 

- Failure to field a full team of 6 at the start of a match will result in a forfeit. 

- Unwilling and unforeseen technical difficulties that would deny a team the ability to field a full team will be handled by Showdown staff on a case by case basis. 

- See ‘Match Configuration’ for additional items. 

- In the event both teams are unable to field a full team, the match will be rescheduled for the next available time. 

- The Showdown reserves the right to schedule matches outside of the regular match day and time. 

- Willing or fraudulent acts of using technical difficulties for match avoidance will result in an automatic team loss. That team will not be allowed their map picks in their next scheduled match. 

- Repeat offenses will result in full team disqualification or the removal of the offending player. 

- Any attempts of targeted DDosing, Console Freezing, DNS Flushing, or other griefing will result in the immediate removal of the guilty party or parties from the Showdown and discord server. This is a ZERO tolerance policy. 

General Team Rules 

- Team Captains are originally picked from a pool of volunteers indicated during Showdown registration. Captains may be appointed by Showdown staff if needed. Captains are allowed to be players. 

- All teams will have at least 1 Captain. 

- Captains are held to the same standard of rules as the Showdown players. Players and Captains are encouraged to report any misconduct or intentional cheating to Showdown staff. 

- Reports are to be taken seriously with all involved but are also not to be accused of without a valid reason. 

- Undrafted players will get first dibs as crowdsourced substitutions as well as player replacements should another player choose to leave the Showdown. 

-These players are still subject to team budgets and will be treated as a ‘Draft Swap’ and follow the same protocol. 

- Captains are not allowed to drop a player for performance or competitive advantage reasons. 

- Player removal/swap requests must be submitted to the Showdown staff for approval. 

- Drafted Players reserve the right to refuse a draft to a particular team as it is  your choice to play. 

- A Player is able to refuse a draft to a particular team by contacting Showdown staff and providing adequate reasoning as to why they do not wish to be on a particular team. 

- Previous personal conflicts, language barriers, and anticipated scheduling conflicts are examples of suitable reasons to request to be re-drafted. 

- By refusing being drafted, Captains will be given the option to try and trade a player (while adhering to budgetary requirements) and or swap per budgetary protocols listed in the Captains rule. 

- As of right now, trades are NOT generally permitted. However in the event of personal conflict, team abandonment, or unforseen player ineligibility, Showdown staff will try their best to accommodate the affected parties in a way to avoid having to remove players from the Showdown and/or add players to the Showdown. 

- Please understand this will be on a case by case basis and may just result in someone being asked to leave a team. 

- Players may be added to the Showdown roster in the event a player is unable to be traded and determined to be replaced. 

Pre-Match Rules, Substitutions, and Role Swaps 

- Starting line-ups must be confirmed and communicated to Showdown staff no later than 48 hours before the start of the match. 

- This expectation is for match promotional content; Staff would like to hype the discord up about the upcoming match and who is participating as much as possible. 

- Offenders will be hunted down and politely harassed for their rosters. 

- All eligible players for the night must be communicated when Captains declare the starting 5 or will result in the undeclared player being unable to join for the full match. 

- Tardy players will be eligible for substitution IF included with the initial submission of the starting line up. 

- Tardy players will be eligible for substitution upon the start of the next map but not during the current map. 

Substitutions 

- Only players drafted on a team are available for substitution for that team. 

- Substitutions must be communicated to Showdown staff before the start of the next map. 

- Failure to report a substitution will result in an immediate pause and staff will force player swap to the previously documented configuration. 

- In the event the detection is found late in the round, the enemy team reserves the right to call for a replay round against the previous configuration with the correct configuration.  

- Showdown staff are required to provide a quick and timely method for dealing with substitutions. Failure of Showdown staff to acknowledge and comply with substitutions will result in light hearted teasing from the players in the community 

Role Swaps 

- Role swaps are allowed in between full maps ONLY. 

- Players are not allowed to change roles mid-map. 

- Captains are required to communicate role swaps to Showdown staff prior to the round starting. 

Participation 

- All players submitted in the pregame roster submission form must play at least 1 complete map in the series. 

- Failure to comply results in an automatic loss for each map the player is not included excluding the first two maps in the series. 

- Should a player submitted on the roster be unable to attend, Captains should report the roster change asap (prior to the start of the match preferred) to avoid penalty. 

- In the event a Team abuses this system by voluntarily omitting an eligible player for strategic advantage; the convicted team will receive an automatic loss for the match and the Captains will be Suspended for the following week. 

- Captain Suspension renders the captain ineligible from play, team party chats, and requesting substitutions. 

- Eligible players on the affected team may still call for substitutions and role changes. 

- Captains found violating suspension will be removed from the showdown and will not be eligible to be a captain in the following season. 

Match Configuration 

- All standard season and post-season matches will be run using standard Overwatch Competitive game settings. 

- All Heroes are eligible for use. 

- Teams will abide by the standard role locked configuration of: 

1 Tank 

2 Damage 

2 Supports 

- Regular season games will be held as best 3 out of 5 maps. 

- Showdown staff will choose and communicate all maps for the series. 

- Post season matches leading up to the season final will follow the same format listed above. 

- The Grand Final will consist of the best 3 out of 5 maps. 

- In the event of a forfeit due to lack of players, the forfeiting team has the option to request any of the following items should they still want to play and have fun: 

- 4 Vs 5 competitive style. 

- 5 Vs 5 competitive style (should a crowd substitute become available). 

- Custom/Arcade mode that can accommodate and include all willing participants. 

- Teams may also ask the staff to make quick and silly fun modes as well for play. 

These options are highly encouraged! At the end of the day, we want teams to play and have fun. 

Miscellaneous Rules and Expectations 

- At the end of the season, player and team statistics will be reviewed as well as feedback from the players. Adjustments will be made between seasons to address any issues that arise. 

- At this time, there will be no prizes other than bragging rights over your friends. Being competitive is encouraged but remember that this is for fun after all. 

- Having fun is an absolute must! 

- Being kind to your fellow wizards is required. 

- Having empathy for your friends is also required. 

It is possible to both be sad about a loss but happy about your friends triumphs. 

It is also possible to be happy about your win while still consoling and appreciating your fallen opponents. 

Rule Exceptions and Changes 

- Our stance as Showdown staff is that the public ruling is what we will act on. Our word is our bond and if we cannot honor what we said we would do in a particular environment then we are doing YOU a disservice. 

- In the event the Showdown staff makes an incorrect decision, we will unfortunately have to honor that decision unless ALL AFFECTED PARTIES AGREE ON A CHANGE. 

- In such a scenario, the details will be discussed amongst staff and rule additions, subtractions, or modifications will be made to prevent future occurrences of said issue. 

- All changes to current rule sections and future rule sections will take place immediately. 

- All changes to rule sections concerning gameplay will be factored in to minimize hardcore impacts the Showdown cadence or schedule. 

In Game Behavior: 

- Players shall not be permitted to use game chat while in a match. Party voice chat is acceptable, but using the text feature will not be allowed. 

- When you are in a party with other players, be respectful. There is a big difference between trash talking and bullying. Abusive or harmful speech (racist, homophobic, sexist, ableist, etc) will be dealt with in a swift and concise fashion. The speed in which staff will remove you from the match and the league will shock and amaze you, do not give us reason to act.  

- Players who need to be swapped out shall address that change with their captain and the league staff. Under no circumstances are you to leave the match or rage quit. Players who do this will be suspended for a week with repeat offenders being removed and banned from future showdowns 

- Players shall honor the decisions of the captains and staff. If you feel a decision was made in error, contact staff in private. Using another platform to air out your differences is strictly prohibited. We are not a drama farm. 

- If you have an issue during the match or need to communicate with staff, the chat on stream should always be a last resort. Do your best to communicate with commissioners privately. A means of communication during a match will be provided and used.  

Expectations 

- Showdown will primarily be using Discord to communicate relevant showdown information. We will also be utilizing an application/website combo called Teamlinkt. Any other desired forms of communication will have to be done through Captain. 

- Please remember that this Showdown and the stream to broadcast it is being organized by people who have graciously volunteered their time and worked exceptionally hard to make this an experience for everyone involved. Everyone involved has volunteered themselves and everyone should be treated with dignity and respect. 

- There are no divas here. This showdown involves a large number of people and everyone has considerations/needs that must be met to ensure this ship runs smoothly.  

- There will be times players will be sitting out of a match, regardless of SR. It is at the captain’s discretion who plays on any given match. Accept their decision with dignity and grace. Temper tantrums are not tolerated. 

- If you agreed to an interview before or after a match, you are obligated to show up. If for some reason you can’t make it, notify your captain immediately so we can get another player to fill that slot.  

- If you are done with your matches for the evening, feel free to come hang out on stream and chat, but do not, for any reason, attempt to air out any frustrations you have in the chat. Do not put JoyfulBelle in the horrible position to give you a timeout from the stream, or worse, ban you. It’s not a good time banning members of our own community, but it will be done without hesitation or remorse. 

Re-Cap 

As always, the Space City Wizards appreciate all willing volunteers that want to donate their time to use for the sake of good vibes and having fun! Some of the rules above may seem intense, specific, or maybe even harsh. I hope they do as we really don't want to have to Enforce any of them aside from the fun ones that are positive or include light and happy public shaming. However they are necessary to mention that way we all know what the expectations are for conducting ourselves in this Showdown. Remember, this is our first time doing this and we want to make sure we can provide the most organized, fun, fair, and safe environment for all participants. If you have any suggestions, please submit your feedback directly to Showdown staff or the idea box text channel. 

Outro Thing 

PHEW!!!! YOU MADE IT! That was a crap ton of info and we do appreciate you taking the time to read all the rules. It may be long winded but we want to make sure we are being through and doing our part to provide our community with as much information and expectations as possible. Now that that’s all said and done…. IT’S TIME! IT’S HAPPENING! Are you ready?!?!?! Cuz we are!! I personally wanna track all those stats! Scream in your ears! PRAISE YOUR GOOD NAMES AND MAKE SOME MEMORIES. You might be thinking…. ‘Well what do I do now? Just sit around and wait?’ Well yeah, kinda. But! While you're waiting, you can also take the time to fill out a lil google form (here) to let Captains know what roles and heroes you like to play as well as what you might be looking for in a team! Suggestions are also highly encouraged, maybe even post some highlights in the channel to advertise your capabilities. 

Our dream as Showdown staff is for all participants to feel as if they are in ‘The Show’ from the draft experience, to the matches and casting, down to the last moments of the finals. We want each and everyone of you to KNOW that you got the magic, that you ARE a superstar, and that the entire community is rooting for each and everyone of you to succeed! I can assure you we are giving more than 110% effort to make that happen cuz you’re awesome and you deserve it! 

As always, thank you very much for being apart of this community and for working with us as we figure out this new and exciting time in the Space City Wizards and please always remember, 

-You got the magic, 

Showdown Staff