Polo Tournament Rules

Blackwater Polo Tournament Rules 

1. This tournament is a full double elimination tournament.  This means there may be two Championship Matches.  

2. The referee is the sole authority for the game. All decisions made by the referee are final.  Referees have sole authority during play and events. 

3. In case of problems, complaints or issues (outside of gameplay – where the referees control all), Blackwater Management  will adjudicate any and all issues.

4. Blackwater Management, Winnie Sweetwater, Alli Eberdene, and MULE (Lovejoyful), are the ruling authorities for this tournament. 

5. Blackwater Farm requires all observers and participants to respect and obey the referee at all times.

6. Anyone can register a team, and a team may be registered at any point prior to registration deadline. Teams may be stable-affiliated, or independent.

There may be multiple teams affiliated with the same stable, but they are considered separate teams.

7. No pony may play for two different teams. Different teams from the same stable are still different teams.

8. Games are played 2v2; if the situation warrants it, 1v2 may be played.

Ponies interact with the ball by colliding with the ball, no other method of influencing the ball is allowed.

9. Running is allowed.

10. Jumping is allowed. Turning off prejump animations (also known as ‘quickjumping’) is not allowed.

11. Flying is not allowed. The Blackwater strongly recommends restricting flying to prevent accidental takeoffs.

12. The space bar technique is allowed.

13. Using rendering settings built into the viewer is allowed.
    1. Some examples:
       1. De-rendering objects in the scenery or spectator avatars.
       2. Lowering graphical detail to improve frame rate.
       3. Showing viewer meta-data, such as rendered bounding boxes.

14. Before the start of the game, and after each goal, ponies should be in their own goal boxes.

15. The rez of the ball (and the lowering of the barriers) signals the start of the play.

16. The clock stops after a goal has been scored, or when the game is paused. The clock only runs during live play.

17. The referee may stop play at any time.

18. The decision to stop play is the referee’s. Teams with ponies that disconnect during play cannot expect, or require, the game to be stopped. Ponies should continue play as best they are able unless, and until, play is definitively suspended by the referee.

19. Cheating of any kind will result in individual bans, and possibly team sanctions as well. Cheating is defined as any viewer setting, scripted object, or technique that conveys a competitive advantage, which is not specifically allowed in the above section. Players who are unsure of the legality of a technique are encouraged to ask Blackwater officials about it before using it in a live game. Here are some examples of what the Blackwater may consider cheating:
    1. Using a script to increase your speed, or apply impulses to your avatar, or change your mass.
    2. Using an invisible avatar, or an avatar with disruptive rendering cost, or deceptive positioning.
    3. Using any technique that applies force to the ball from a distance.
    4. Using movelock function, which alters the physics of your avatar

20. Any team failing to field at least one pony for a scheduled game will forfeit that game. Blackwater Management, or the referee, may also issue forfeits in unusual situations or as a sanction for failure to comply with Blackwater directives .

21. A team that forfeits is awarded an automatic loss. The opposing team gets an automatic win.

22. If a pony has repeated problems remaining connected, referees may require a team to substitute someone else for that game.

23. Teams that are unable or unwilling to substitute, or teams that are attempting (in the opinion of the referee) to use disconnection as a competitive advantage, may be forced to forfeit the game, at the discretion of the referee.

24. Teams found to be arranging forfeits for competitive advantage will be barred from participation in the tournament. 

25. All games will be on sloped field

26. If technical issues (such as a sim crash or grid outage) prevent an event from being held, it shall be rescheduled for a later date, under direction from Blackwater Management. If an event is interrupted due to technical issues, games in progress may be restarted or continued later depending on the specifics of the issue. Games already played will be recorded as final in most cases. Games that have not yet been played will be made up at a later date.

27. Games that require rescheduling may be waived if they have no competitive impact on the standings, and if both participating teams agree to the waiver.