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Friday, July 06, 2012

SECOND ANNUAL STAR FLEET BATTLES PLATINUM HAT ONLINE TOURNAMENT

There is still time to register for our second Internet SFB International Championship Tournament. Registration will close midnight at the end of July 9th. This is a single-elimination tournament using a standard tree. This tournament will be conducted through SFBOL and you will need to be a member of that service to participate. Peter Bakija, who won last year’s event, will be the chief judge.

We will have at least 32 seats, and up to 64 if there is demand. There is an optional entry fee (see the paragraph below to see if you qualify for the waiver) of $10 per person which will be added to the prize fund which ADB, Inc., has always provided, and distributed down to the top eight players (16 if we have 64 seats).

We want to encourage the greatest number of people to play, so anyone who qualifies as a "deuce" can enter without paying an entry fee. (If we have more people than seats, the last "deuces" to sign up will be matched against each other to gain the final seats, effectively adding a round and giving everyone else a bye.) To qualify as a "deuce" you must have not won an ace card in the last three years (that includes people who have never won one). Even if you qualify as a deuce, you can pay the entry fee and be treated as an ace (even if you’re an ace with no ace cards).

After we know the number of entries, we will lock in the format (i.e., decide if there are 32 or 64 seats, decide how many seats will be reserved for re-entries, seed the aces, and assign byes). Aces will be "seeded" according to the total number of ace pins and SFB Gold/Platinum hats (total) each player has in their lifetime record. Deuces (and perhaps lower-rated aces) will be distributed randomly in a way to avoid same-ship duels as much as possible. Depending on the size of the tree and the number of active players, we may give some first-round byes to the highest rated players, and we may reserve some seats for re-entries. (We will not reserve more than eight seats for re-entries as filling 26 seats in FFAC took weeks.) Re-entry seats will go at no cost to eliminated players (or at the normal fee for late sign-ups) in the order people ask for them.

The winner must send in his Platinum Victory article (which must meet the standards of previous articles) within 90 days of the end of the event or be disqualified (in which case he will get no prize and there will be no winner named). Do you find writing daunting? Don't worry! We have expert writers and editors who will help you write your article -- and you also get paid for the article in addition to the prize money.

As we did in Platinum Hat 2011, Tournament Marshal Steven P. Petrick will "ride herd" on the tournament to ensure that games are played on schedule and the event does not drag. There will, inevitably, be some delays near the end when re-entries have to "catch up" to the initial entries. A firm hand on the helm will ensure that these are as minor as possible. Two or three senior players will be appointed as "honorary sheepdogs" and empowered to encourage people to get their games done. People who do not get their next game completed in a set number of days will be disqualified and the player they beat (or a wildcard selected by the judges) replaces them.

To register, use this link: http://www.sfbonline.com/tourn_signup.jsp

To pay an entry fee, use this link: http://store.starfleetstore.com/merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=S&Product_Code=9650&Category_Code=03

Cone on out and participate! Let's make this the largest Platinum Hat competition yet -- and only you can make that wish come true.