Welcome to the third iteration of BW PL!
This is a post for the schedule, auction and other general information regarding BW PL. The hosts for BW PL are Perish Song and Theia . Any administrative decisions made during the tour will also be posted here.
Will be announced
Managers and Assistant Managers can choose to buy themselves as a player for 15k prior to the auction (subjected to the retain rules).
Tier Lineup
BW Ubers
BW OU
BW OU
BW OU
BW UU
BW RU
BW NU
BW PU
BW ZU
BW LC
Tiers and number of slots are subject to change
Matches can be played on either the main server or Smogtours (recommended), however replays must be saved, or the match will not count. All slots are Bo1.
Each team has 120,000 credits.
In the weeks preceding the Live Auction, a time will be chosen where at least 1 Manager or Assistant Manager from each team can meet and perform a live auction in order to choose players. The Manager and/or Assistant Manager present will be expected to remain at the auction for the entire duration, which should take approximately 2 hours.
Once a time is set, all attending Managers + Hosts will enter the place where the auction will be held - most likely a group chat for the auction. Spectators are allowed to join in to watch the auction, but will not be able to speak. Discussion on the bidding should be relegated to the ROA room, ROA discord, or any other appropriate chat outlet.
The hosts will first ask a team to nominate a player. The order by which teams will nominate players will go in a randomized snaking pattern from the first chosen team to the last chosen team, then the last chosen team to the first chosen team. Details of said player will be displayed and bidding will commence, starting at 3000 credits, with the nominating team automatically placing the first bid. The auction will then be in real time. Managers will simply put in their bids in the chat, raising a minimum of 500 credits. If after 15 seconds there are no new bids, the player is sold to the highest bid in the channel. Updated credit totals will be displayed and then the next manager in the rotation will be prompted to nominate a player.
Each team must field a roster of 10 starters and a minimum of 2 substitutes. Playing Managers and Assistant Managers are included in the roster number. Therefore, you need to buy at least 10 players if both Managers are playing, 11 if only one is, and 10 if neither are playing. This creates a soft cap of 45,000 credits on any particular bid - that is, the maximum amount of money you can spend on any one player and still have enough money left over to pay at least 3000 credits a piece on 11 more players.
In the weeks preceding the Live Auction, a time will be chosen where at least 1 Manager or Assistant Manager from each team can meet and perform a live auction in order to choose players. The Manager and/or Assistant Manager present will be expected to remain at the auction for the entire duration, which should take approximately 2 hours.
Once a time is set, all attending Managers + Hosts will enter the place where the auction will be held - most likely a group chat for the auction. Spectators are allowed to join in to watch the auction, but will not be able to speak. Discussion on the bidding should be relegated to the ROA room, ROA discord, or any other appropriate chat outlet.
The hosts will first ask a team to nominate a player. The order by which teams will nominate players will go in a randomized snaking pattern from the first chosen team to the last chosen team, then the last chosen team to the first chosen team. Details of said player will be displayed and bidding will commence, starting at 3000 credits, with the nominating team automatically placing the first bid. The auction will then be in real time. Managers will simply put in their bids in the chat, raising a minimum of 500 credits. If after 15 seconds there are no new bids, the player is sold to the highest bid in the channel. Updated credit totals will be displayed and then the next manager in the rotation will be prompted to nominate a player.
Each team must field a roster of 10 starters and a minimum of 2 substitutes. Playing Managers and Assistant Managers are included in the roster number. Therefore, you need to buy at least 10 players if both Managers are playing, 11 if only one is, and 10 if neither are playing. This creates a soft cap of 45,000 credits on any particular bid - that is, the maximum amount of money you can spend on any one player and still have enough money left over to pay at least 3000 credits a piece on 11 more players.
After the Live Auction, the tournament will commence. Each team will play each other once through 5 weeks of play in a round robin format, then the top 3 teams will advance to the playoffs.
Every week, the Managers will be required to submit a lineup, no later than the deadline of the previous week. If a lineup is not submitted on time, the previous week's lineup will be used. Once all lineups are received, the hosts announce all the matchups, with one team's BW OU Slot facing the opposing team's BW OU Slot and so on, and all teams have one week to play all of the games against the team they are facing. Whichever team has the most battles won against their opponents will be declared the victor for that week, and awarded two points. If teams tie and have the same number of wins at the end of the week, then both teams are awarded one point. At the end of the round robin format, the top 3 teams advance to the playoffs, where the 1st seed will get a bye week, and the 2nd and 3rd seeds will play to decide who will move to finals to face the 1st seed. Entry into the playoffs is decided by the top 3 according to points, then battle difference. If both of those are still identical, then a BO3 tiebreaker will be played with BW OU / Team 1 Pick / Team 2 Pick.
Further clarification on events that may occur during the tournament are outlined below:
Substitutions - At any point in the week, a team can substitute out a player from a game if they are inactive or cannot play the game due to IRL issues or a schedule that does not match up at all with their opponent. In order to make a substitution, the manager must post the substitution in the week thread, tagging the hosts, the opposing managers, and the opposing player, stating which player is being subbed out and who the substituting player is. However, a player who has been substituted out for a week cannot be substituted back into a slot in the same week. In addition, the hosts can veto any substitution if they believe the reason for substitution is to gain a 'favourable' player matchup in the OU slots, where player order matters.
Trades - Trades between teams for players are allowed from the end of the auction until the end of week 1. In order to formally complete a trade, both managers must submit a PM to both hosts, outlining the details of the trade. If both managers agree to the trade, it will go through and the hosts will announce the trade. If a trade is performed mid-week, then the traded player cannot play or substitute in for that week. Any team playing each other cannot trade with each other for that week.
Inactivity - If a bought player is inactive/cancers, they can be reported and replaced with a player from the undrafted pool of players. Hosts have final discretion on what constitutes inactivity/cancering, and all situations will be treated on a case-by-case basis. After week 3, managers can still report inactive/cancering players, but they will not be allowed to pick a replacement player.
Activity Decisions - If any game is not completed by the deadline, the hosts are required to make a thorough investigation on why the game did not occur, who is to blame, and to make a decision on the outcome of the match (activity win for either team, or dead game). To avoid being on the wrong end of an activity decision, schedule early (Monday) on Smogon VM, with clear timings and days you can do. A late 'Play Now?' or 'I'll tag you on Discord if I see you online' won't cut it. If you, as a manager, think your player cannot make a scheduled time, ask them to reschedule or sub them out. It is recommended to follow the tournament scheduling guidelines.
Every week, the Managers will be required to submit a lineup, no later than the deadline of the previous week. If a lineup is not submitted on time, the previous week's lineup will be used. Once all lineups are received, the hosts announce all the matchups, with one team's BW OU Slot facing the opposing team's BW OU Slot and so on, and all teams have one week to play all of the games against the team they are facing. Whichever team has the most battles won against their opponents will be declared the victor for that week, and awarded two points. If teams tie and have the same number of wins at the end of the week, then both teams are awarded one point. At the end of the round robin format, the top 3 teams advance to the playoffs, where the 1st seed will get a bye week, and the 2nd and 3rd seeds will play to decide who will move to finals to face the 1st seed. Entry into the playoffs is decided by the top 3 according to points, then battle difference. If both of those are still identical, then a BO3 tiebreaker will be played with BW OU / Team 1 Pick / Team 2 Pick.
Further clarification on events that may occur during the tournament are outlined below:
Substitutions - At any point in the week, a team can substitute out a player from a game if they are inactive or cannot play the game due to IRL issues or a schedule that does not match up at all with their opponent. In order to make a substitution, the manager must post the substitution in the week thread, tagging the hosts, the opposing managers, and the opposing player, stating which player is being subbed out and who the substituting player is. However, a player who has been substituted out for a week cannot be substituted back into a slot in the same week. In addition, the hosts can veto any substitution if they believe the reason for substitution is to gain a 'favourable' player matchup in the OU slots, where player order matters.
Trades - Trades between teams for players are allowed from the end of the auction until the end of week 1. In order to formally complete a trade, both managers must submit a PM to both hosts, outlining the details of the trade. If both managers agree to the trade, it will go through and the hosts will announce the trade. If a trade is performed mid-week, then the traded player cannot play or substitute in for that week. Any team playing each other cannot trade with each other for that week.
Inactivity - If a bought player is inactive/cancers, they can be reported and replaced with a player from the undrafted pool of players. Hosts have final discretion on what constitutes inactivity/cancering, and all situations will be treated on a case-by-case basis. After week 3, managers can still report inactive/cancering players, but they will not be allowed to pick a replacement player.
Activity Decisions - If any game is not completed by the deadline, the hosts are required to make a thorough investigation on why the game did not occur, who is to blame, and to make a decision on the outcome of the match (activity win for either team, or dead game). To avoid being on the wrong end of an activity decision, schedule early (Monday) on Smogon VM, with clear timings and days you can do. A late 'Play Now?' or 'I'll tag you on Discord if I see you online' won't cut it. If you, as a manager, think your player cannot make a scheduled time, ask them to reschedule or sub them out. It is recommended to follow the tournament scheduling guidelines.
