ozfortress seasonal league Ruleset
The following ruleset outlines the organisation and guidelines that players will need to follow for the ozfortress seasonal league. Please have a good working understanding of these rules before entering yourself in the competition.
Contents
The competition will be split into four brackets - Premier, Intermediate, Main and Open (signup numbers pending). Premier and Intermediate will have eight teams while Main and Open will have an unrestricted number of teams.
The regular season will be played over 7 weeks, with finals rounds lasting approximately 3 weeks. It is a team’s responsibility to commit to the full length of the season when they submit an application.
Two maps will be played for each regular season match. Matches are expected to last just over an hour.
The regular season will be run on a Round Robin system, where each team plays each other once.
Main and Open
The regular season will be run on a Swiss system, where each round is seeded based on the previous records of teams.
See Rule 1.4 for further details on the Swiss system.
At the conclusion of the regular season, the top four placing teams of each bracket advance to playoffs.
Playoffs matches will each be a best of three (BO3) with the exception of the Premier Grand Final, which will be a best of five (BO5).
Page Playoffs
Playoffs for all brackets will be played using the page playoff system.
In the Upper Page Playoff, the first and second placed teams will play against each other. The winner advances directly to the Grand Final.
In the Lower Page Playoff, the third and fourth placed teams will play against each other. The loser is eliminated.
The loser of the Upper Page Playoff will compete with the winner of the Lower Page Playoff in the Semi-Final. The loser of the Semi-Final will receive Third Place and the winner will advance to the Grand Final. There is no Bronze Match.
Open and Intermediate Grand Finals will be played as a best of 3, the Premier Grand Final will be played as a best of 5.
1.3 Fixtures
Regular season match fixtures will be posted week to week after each round has been finalised. Fixtures are set at weekly intervals to be played between Sunday and Thursday.
Match pages will be posted on the Friday prior to that round’s fixtures.
1.4 Swiss System
The Swiss system allows many competitors to compete against each other in a relatively small number of rounds. The first round will be scheduled randomly, and each subsequent round will be generated based on the previous results of teams. Teams with the same or similar records will be paired against each other, with the likelihood of duplicate matches is minimised.
1.5 Match Scoring
Each match consists of two maps; the winner of each individual map will be awarded two league points, while the loser is awarded zero. In the event of a map draw, see Rule 1.7.
Rankings will first be determined by these match points. If point draws exist, the following methods will be used to break them:
Premier
- Match wins vs. Tied participants.
- Total match wins.
- Win difference (Total points scored vs. total points lost).
Intermediate and Open
- Match wins vs. Tied participants.
- Median-Buchholz score (total).
- Win difference (Total points earned minus total points lost).
1.6 Forfeits
A maximum of one forfeit per team is permitted in ozfortress competitions, on the second forfeit a team is considered inactive and removed from the league. Exclusion penalties will then apply for future ozfortress participation. See Rule 2.5 for more information on disbanded and removed teams.
Forfeiting a single map will result in the entire fixture being forfeited.
It is the team captain’s responsibility to contact your bracket’s Administrator as soon as possible if there is a change in circumstances that will affect your team’s ability to field a team each round, even if it is a temporary problem.
ANY forfeit in finals rounds will result in a removal from the league and additional sanctions on the offending team.
Forfeit Types
Forfeit Win
A forfeit win will be awarded where the offending team has not made an effort to organise the match. Forfeit wins will also be considered as a punitive measure where serious rule breaches have been committed during a match. A forfeit win will be recorded as match win worth 4 league points. See Rule 4.6 on how to submit a forfeit win.
Mutual Forfeit
Mutual forfeits will be applied where neither team have made an effort to organise the match within a reasonable timeframe. A mutual forfeit will be recorded as a match loss for both teams, worth 0 league points.
Mutual forfeits contribute to the 2-forfeit league removal count.
Technical Forfeit
A technical forfeit will be awarded in cases where situations outside the teams’ control occur, preventing both teams from playing the match, including but not limited to, Steam outages or major weather events. A technical forfeit will be recorded as a match draw, worth 2 league points for each team.
1.7 Draws
Draws on individual maps are not possible in the ozfortress ruleset, as the map will be determined by a Golden Cap, however matches can result in a draw when each team wins one map.
1.8 Administrators
Administrators are responsible for the efficient running of ozfortress competitions. Each bracket will be assigned administrators who will be the first point of contact for support and any disputes. However, all league administrators can assist or deliver rulings on disputes if your bracket administrator is not available.
The League Coordinator is ultimately responsible for the general running of the league.
1.9 Foreign Teams and Players
ozfortress primarily caters players from Australia and New Zealand, however players from other areas such as Asia are welcome to compete. Foreign teams must still play on ozfortress servers, unless it is determined that using an alternative server is beneficial for both the native and foreign teams. For example, in a match between teams from Singapore and Western Australia may choose to use an approved server located in Perth.
1.10 Sportsmanship
Teams participating are required to conduct themselves in a sportsmanlike manner in all communications.
Global chat is not fully restricted and may be used for light, friendly and tasteful banter. However, at the request of either team captain or an ozfortress administrator, chat may be restricted to only essential match communication. This request must be clearly stated in global chat or the match thread.
Discrimination on the basis of, but not limited to, race, nationality, religious beliefs, gender, sexual orientation, or age will be regarded as an extreme breach of sportsmanship.
Breach of the sportsmanship clause may result in exclusion penalties to be determined by the ozfortress administration.
2 Teams
2.1 Application
Teams apply preseason to enter the league and nominate their desired bracket. A minimum of six eligible players are required for the application to be processed, however we recommend that teams have a minimum of two backups on their roster. It is expected that your team is available to play at least three days out of the five eligible days.
Roster sizes are capped at ten.
Players who have played in the Premier bracket shall be reviewed by administrators prior to transfer or placement in an Open or Intermediate team. These players may be class restricted if they wish to play in the Open or Intermediate brackets.
2.2 Player Eligibility
To be eligible to be accepted onto a team’s roster, a player must:
- Have an ozfortress Citadel account.
- Not be under any current competition exclusion penalties.
2.3 Captains
A team must nominate a player(s) to act as a captain to represent the team in organizing matches and liaising with ozfortress administrators. This player(s) has the ultimate responsibility for their team. Match communication is expected to be clear and concise. Individuals or teams who complicate the organisation of matches, or post irrelevant content will receive captaincy bans. Captains may be excluded from acting as team captain for future competitions if ozfortress administrators consider them to be unfit to lead.
2.4 Mutiny Rule
A simple majority of registered team members may elect to nominate a new captain, or remove the captain entirely, at any point of the season with the approval of the league coordinator. This may be used when a captain is the sole reason for an imminent disband of a team. In this situation, the team at large will remain without penalty.
2.5 Disbanded or Removed Teams
The captain of a disbanded or removed team will receive a tier two infraction. Administrators will subject future applications from a disbanded or removed team to a closer review. In some instances, players may be banned from captaining teams in the future.
To avoid penalty, captains and/or team members should approach League Administrators at the first sign of trouble to determine a solution.
2.6 Transfers
Teams may transfer in players on a weekly basis. The transfer application must be submitted by the match deadline of a round to be eligible for play in the following round. View how to apply for a transfer here.
Teams will only be able to increase the size of their roster throughout the season to the roster limit of ten players. Teams with ten players or more may not increase their roster size through transfers unless enough players have been transferred out of their team to put their roster size under the limit.
Weeks 6 is the final week for transfers. Administrators reserve the right to deny transfer applications. Transfers will be approved by administrators no later than Saturday at 11:59 PM.
2.7 Infractions, Warnings, and Exclusions
In each competition, administrators will keep track of rule breaches. Warnings and Infractions will be posted on the match and roster pages.
There is no specific number of infractions or warnings to determine if a team is to be excluded from a competition; the judgement by the discretion of the administrators.
Exclusions will be applied for repeated major rule breaches by a player or team. An exclusion will result in the immediate ejection of the player or team from the league, with potential prohibitions from playing in future competitions. In serious cases, exclusions may apply for first offenses.
3 Match Organisation
3.1 Negotiating Match Times
Each team must select a minimum of three days in which they are able to play. Captains may change your team’s availability from a week to week basis from Thursday 4:00PM to Saturday 8:00PM. Once the match for the round has been posted, teams can begin negotiating to arrange a time and date for their match. If a match time has not been negotiated between the teams, the earliest matching day from both team’s selections will be appointed as the default date. However, this default date can be changed under agreement of both teams.
In addition to official match days, there are also official match times. These times are 8 & 9 PM Melbourne/Sydney time (AEST/AEDT). Teams that can make these time will be looked upon more favourably than teams who can not.
It is expected that team captains or a nominated team member make a reasonable effort to organise their match before the organisation deadline. Team members who facetiously propose match times will be punished.
Communications in match threads are considered the authoritative log for all correspondence about match organisation. Teams may decide to (and are encouraged to) negotiate the match over Steam chat or other means, however we recommend posting chat logs in the thread to prove that such correspondence has taken place in case of a dispute.
The negotiated time must always be posted in the thread.
If it is proving difficult to get in contact with the other team, or they are not making a reasonable effort to organise the match, please bring it to the attention of your bracket’s League Administrator immediately.
Teams may request an extension for a playoff match through their bracket’s League Administrator. If an extension is granted, both teams must agree on a date within the allocated time. Opposing teams are not obligated to play within the extended period although compromise and sportsmanship between teams is encouraged.
3.2 Match Deadlines
Match time set: 7:00PM Sunday
Results submission: 11:59PM Thursday
3.3 Organisational Responsibilities
The responsibility for these tasks falls upon the team captain of each team. If he is unable to complete these tasks or ensure these tasks are completed, he must nominate another team member to ensure their completion.
Both teams must:
- Make appropriate effort to organise the match.
- Ensure attendance to the match.
- Inform the other team of any mercenaries and post their usage in the match thread.
- Inform administrators of any potential issues with the match, or of any disputes.
- Submit or verify the final score within an hour of the match ending.
The home team must:
- Organise the server.
- Appropriately administrate the server during the match.
Score Submission
Teams must clearly state both the winner and match score of each map
Logs and booking name must also be linked. If a non-ozfortress server was used, a download link to the demos must be provided.
Example:
cp_granary_pro: 4-1 Jasmine Tea logs.tf/xxxxxx
cp_badlands: 4-2 no safeword logs.tf/xxxxxx
Booked under name: Paulsen
3.4 Mercenaries
A mercenary is an unrostered player that is used in lieu of an unavailable team member. To be valid, mercenaries must have an ozfortress Citadel account and not be under any exclusion penalties.
Only two mercenaries per team are allowed in each match at any moment in time. Teams are allowed to swap mercenaries during the match provided the other team approves the new mercenary. Each team is allowed to use mercenaries a maximum of four matches per season.
Mercenaries may only be used at the discretion of the opposing team captain. There is no restriction on mercenary use if allowed by the opposing team captain. Do be aware that it is unlikely that opposing team captains will allow players of significantly larger skill to participate in the match and therefore reasonable requests are preferred.
Team captains do have the right to deny any mercenary, even if they are from a lower bracket. However, please do try to accommodate reasonable mercenary use, as you may find yourself in the same position. We recommend contacting an administrator if you are unsure of the skill level of the potential mercenary.
When mercenaries are being requested, teams have the option to request them on a specific class. This would then lock them to that class during that match (with the exception of reasonable offclasses). Teams can also request a mercenary without specifying a class, allowing the mercenary to change classes at will. It is important to note that unless mercenaries have been explicitly allowed on one class, they are allowed to play a class of their choosing.
Manipulating other teams into allowing mercenaries in an infractable offence (e.g. If you allow us to use high Premier player we will allow you to use low Open player).
ozfortress administrators will act as arbitrators in such a case of unreasonable mercenary denial, and may decide to overrule a team captain’s decision and allow a mercenary of a reasonable skill level.
If you require a mercenary for a playoff match you must contact your bracket’s League Administrator. Administrator discretion will be used on a case-by-case to judge whether use of a mercenary is necessary. Mercenary usage in playoffs is heavily discouraged and this option will only be allowed if it is deemed that there is no better option available.
Mercenary use must be clearly stated in the match thread where they are used. The information provided must include their SteamID and link to their ozfortress Citadel profile.
Use the ozfortress Roster Verification Tool to quickly verify all players prior to a match. To use the verifier, simply insert the status output from console of the current match as well as the match link or ID. The tool will process your inputs and validate all players, displaying any inconsistencies with rosters.
3.5 Map Selection
Regular season matches will use two pre-defined maps from the map pool.
Maps for playoff matches are selected by the captains of each team. This process can be performed before the match or in-game via chat, but must be documented on the match page.
The selection process for a nine map pool (BO3):
- The higher seeded or home team will either choose to ban first or defer.
- The first team (determined by the result of step one) will ban a map.
- The second team will ban a map.
- The first team will ban a map.
- The second team will ban a map.
- The first team will select the first map from the remaining pool.
- The second team will select the second map from the remaining pool.
- The first team will select the tiebreaker map from the remaining maps.
For the Premier Grand Final (BO5), the selection process varies as follows:
- The first team will select the third map from the remaining pool.
- The second team will select the fourth map from the remaining pool.
- The first team will select the tiebreaker map from the remaining maps.
In the event of a disagreement, the home team will have preference of team colour. Please note that formats can change for BO3 and BO5 matches. In case of discrepancies between official rules and other sources, the most updated pick-ban order can always be found in match threads.
3.6 Match Disputes
To lodge a dispute or report misconduct, please contact an ozfortress administrator as soon as possible. Please do not bring the debate into public as it is being resolved.
3.7 Fakenicking
Fakenicking is not allowed in any ozfortress matches. Players must use a name similar to their submitted roster name, and hence their forum name, as to be generally recognizable to someone comparing team rosters with those on the server. Clan and sponsorship tags are allowed but must be reasonable. Players are encouraged to carefully choose their submitted roster name.
Fakenicking rules will be more closely enforced in casted matches.
4.1 Team Eligibility Requirements
Teams must have a minimum of five rostered (does not include any mercenaries) players ready to start or continue a match.
4.2 Demo Recording
POV demos must be recorded for all ozfortress matches and must be provided on the request of an ozfortress administrator. We recommend using the demo recording system included in TF2, which can be activated under the advanced options menu in the game settings.
Demos are required to be stored for the current and past season.
All players must be able to provide a POV demo before the date of their next official match if requested by an administrator. If you are unable to provide POV demos for a match you will face a 4-round exclusion. It is the player’s responsibility to ensure that demos are being recorded.
4.3 Spectators
ozfortress Administrators are the only approved spectators. Spectators are not allowed in any ozfortress match.
4.4 Pausing
Pauses during a match are allowed where players clearly exhibit technological performance issues or when teams wish to for personal reasons. Tactical pauses are allowed. In addition, the match may only be unpaused by the team who initiated the pause. Both teams must give the all-clear to unpause, which is followed by an in-built five second countdown.
Each team is permitted two pauses per match with a combined total time limit of ten minutes. However, if captains are in agreement, the pause limit can be extended.
4.5 Casted Games
Official matches may be casted by organisations with the approval of the ozfortress administrators.
Casting organisation representatives may contact the ozfortress Media Coordinator or the ozfortress League Director to receive promotion and become an approved casting organisation. Approval will only be granted once it is determined by ozfortress that the coverage meets approved standards.
The ozfortress approved casting organisations are as follows:
Casting organisations may not directly influence the playing of an official ozfortress match in any way.
4.5.1 Approved ozfortress Casting Organisations
If your game is to be casted by an approved organisation, your team must provide to the caster(s), streamer, or organisation representative:
- The server connect string.
- An updated list of players and/or any mercenaries participating in the match. This must be provided at least an hour before the set match time.
The above rules apply to ozfortress approved casting organisations only.
Fakenicking rules will be more closely enforced in casted matches by ozfortress approved casting organisations.
4.5.2 Unapproved ozfortress Casting Organisations
Casting organisations and individuals that are not approved by ozfortress may still cast official ozfortress matches, however, approved casting organisations will have precedence.
Unapproved casting organisations must notify an ozfortress server administrator at least 3 hours prior to the scheduled match time of their intention to cast the match. They must also provide the server administrator with the server number at the time of the match such that they may be provided with an STV relay.
If a team captain wishes to deny such a cast, they should discuss it with an ozfortress league administrator.
4.6 Submitting Forfeit Wins
Teams are expected to be readied up in the server by 15 minutes past the set match time. If your team is readied up in the server at such time, and the other team is not fully present or is refusing to ready up, please contact an ozfortress administrator to claim a forfeit win.
If the home team is not communicating, the away team is expected to book an ozfortress server and attempt to provide server details. If at 15 minutes past the home team has not joined the server or provided details to their own booked server, a forfeit win will be distributed.
If a team is unavailable to compete in a match and has communicated the forfeit, this must be posted with chat logs and confirmed on the match page.
4.7 ozfortress Administrators as Referees
ozfortress may sometimes require certain matches to be refereed by an ozfortress administrator. In such case, a post will be made in the match thread denoting this, and teams will be provided with a connect string before the match. If this happens, it is no longer the home team’s responsibility to administer the server or report the scores at the end of the round.
All Grand Final matches will be refereed. Other important matches will be refereed as required.
5. Servers
5.1 Server Configuration
Instructions on how to download & install ozfortress seasonal league configs can be found here.
5.2 Preferred and Acceptable Servers
ozfortress bookable servers are considered the standard for matches. However, if both teams agree, an alternative server may be used. See Rule 5.3 for further details on Third party servers.
If teams cannot agree on a server, an official ozfortress server must be used.
Administrators reserve the right to choose which server a match may be played on.
5.3 Third Party Servers
For those who wish to run their own, servers must be running the official ozfortress configuration to be considered match-ready. They must also comply with the following requirements:
- Be hosted on a dedicated, non-residential connection with enough bandwidth for at least 16 players.
- Be running the current ozfortress seasonal league configs and whitelist and be running on sv_pure 2.
- Be physically located in Australia, unless the match is between two New Zealand or two Asia based teams.
- Running a logging system which uploads to logs.tf.
- Not running any gameplay altering modifications.
- Sourcemod plugins are not required but may be loaded as long as they are not considered gameplay altering modifications.
- Must have configured SourceTV to allow recording of STV demos and relay attachment.
If desired, an ozfortress administrator will review your server configs to determine if you have configured it to match-ready standard.
rcon for third party servers must be provided to ozfortress administrators on request.
ozfortress administrators reserve the right to force a match to be played on an ozfortress server.
5.4 Class Restrictions
The ozfortress seasonal league runs on the following class restrictions:
- 2 Scouts
- 2 Soldiers
- 1 Pyro
- 1 Demoman
- 1 Heavy
- 1 Engineer
- 1 Medic
- 2 Snipers
- 1 Spy
These limits must be enforced using the ‘tf_tournament_classlimit_X’ commands. The full listing of these can be found in Rule 5.1.
5.5 Whitelist
The standard ozfortress whitelist can be found on whitelist.tf. This will always redirect to the most recent whitelist in use for ozfortress competitions.
The in-game mechanic of weapon exchange and pickup is allowed.
The following formats are used in the ozfortress seasonal league and have an associated configuration file in the ozfortress configs.
5 Control Points
Standard 5 Control Points (5CP) maps are played to 30 minutes with a 5 point difference mercy rule. The following configuration represents this format:
mp_windifference 5
mp_timelimit 30
mp_winlimit 0
Load this configuration using rcon exec ozfortress_6v6_5cp or simply rcon ozf on ozfortress servers.
King of the Hill
King of the Hill (KOTH) maps are played first to 3 with no time limit. The following configuration represents this format:
mp_windifference 0
mp_timelimit 0
mp_winlimit 3
Load this configuration using rcon exec ozfortress_6v6_koth or simply rcon ozfkoth on ozfortress servers.
Golden Cap
In formats where ties are not allowed, a golden cap may be used to determine the winner of a 5CP match tied at 30 minutes. Golden Cap rounds are played till the first capture of the last point with no time limit. The following configuration represents this format:
mp_windifference 0
mp_timelimit 0
mp_winlimit 1
Load this configuration using rcon exec ozfortress_golden_cap or simply rcon golden on ozfortress servers.
5.7 Server Interruptions
In the event of an ongoing match being interrupted, the match must be resumed from the time at which the last round was completed. Any ongoing rounds will be restarted and any rounds that were completed will remain completed.
6 Cheating, Exploits and Bans
6.1 Exploits
Exploiting game or map bugs or flaws for an unfair advantage, whether they are explicitly listed in the rules or not, is prohibited.
The following is an incomplete list of exploits:
- Exploiting flaws in map design to enter areas that put you underneath or above the map.
- Building Sentry Guns, Dispensers or Teleporters in indestructible areas.
- Using scripts, macros or key combinations that allow you to bypass movement restrictions (e.g. the “Mega Jump” exploit. However, “c-taps” are explicitly legal).
- Any other script which is deemed disruptive to hitboxes or gameplay (e.g. ratehacking).
- Demomen, Engineers and Medics changing hat/items/weapons in spawn to back spawn and preserve stickybomb traps, buildings and Über percentage respectively.
- Any other inventory glitch that allows abuse of spawn room mechanics.
- Removing the black sniper scope.
Use of the wait command in scripts is considered an exploit and will be enforced by sv_allow_wait_command 0.
If you are unsure if something is considered an exploit, please contact a League Administrator and request a ruling be made.
6.2 Third-Party Software
The use of any third-party addons, hooks, programs or wrappers that interact with or alter the Team Fortress 2 client, its appearance or behaviour for the purposes of gaining an unfair advantage is a bannable offence. This includes usage of such programs on alternative accounts not registered with ozfortress.
6.3 Malicious Server Administration
The use of any server commands, variables, or plugins for the purposes of gaining an unfair advantage or to interfere with an ozfortress match is prohibited. Once the match is underway, the server administrator must let the match run its course and not make any changes without the consent of both teams.
6.4 Account Sharing
Players may only register and play in ozfortress leagues with one Steam / Warzone account. Use of alternate accounts in official matches is strictly prohibited. If a player wishes to change their registered account they must contact an ozfortress administrator, however it is unlikely that the account will be changed.
Sharing your login details with a third party for use in an ozfortress match is also strictly prohibited and will result in lengthy bans for all involved parties.
6.5 ozfortress Forum Bans
Members who are banned on the ozfortress website are also banned from leading teams in ozfortress competitions. Players banned from the ozfortress website may also be subject to competition bans and are considered under probation. Please contact an ozfortress administrator for further clarification.
6.6 Match Fixing
Any attempt to influence the result of a match through any means other than gameplay is strictly forbidden. If this is found to be happening, all involved parties will receive league punishments.
7.1 Rules are subject to change
The rules set on this page may be updated at any time. It is the responsibility of the player(s) to keep up to date with these rules. Major rule changes during a season will be clearly announced with a front page post, with minor changes being relayed to all players via Discord.
7.2 Administrative Ruling
Administrators reserve the right to change, modify, or adapt all rules as deemed appropriate by ozfortress to uphold and maintain a spirit of overall fairness and good sportsmanship. We understand that a ruleset may not cover every situation and therefore we may occasionally deliver judgement-based rulings.
This work by ozfortress is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Join our Discord
Support us on Patreon
Join our Steam Group
Follow us on Twitter
Like us on Facebook
ozfortress seasonal league Ruleset
The following ruleset outlines the organisation and guidelines that players will need to follow for the ozfortress seasonal league. Please have a good working understanding of these rules before entering yourself in the competition.
Contents
1 League Format
1.1 Regular Season Format
The competition will be split into four brackets - Premier, Intermediate, Main and Open (signup numbers pending). Premier and Intermediate will have eight teams while Main and Open will have an unrestricted number of teams.
The regular season will be played over 7 weeks, with finals rounds lasting approximately 3 weeks. It is a team’s responsibility to commit to the full length of the season when they submit an application.
Two maps will be played for each regular season match. Matches are expected to last just over an hour.
Premier and Intermediate
The regular season will be run on a Round Robin system, where each team plays each other once.
Main and Open
The regular season will be run on a Swiss system, where each round is seeded based on the previous records of teams.
See Rule 1.4 for further details on the Swiss system.
1.2 Playoffs Format
At the conclusion of the regular season, the top four placing teams of each bracket advance to playoffs.
Playoffs matches will each be a best of three (BO3) with the exception of the Premier Grand Final, which will be a best of five (BO5).
Page Playoffs
Playoffs for all brackets will be played using the page playoff system.
In the Upper Page Playoff, the first and second placed teams will play against each other. The winner advances directly to the Grand Final.
In the Lower Page Playoff, the third and fourth placed teams will play against each other. The loser is eliminated.
The loser of the Upper Page Playoff will compete with the winner of the Lower Page Playoff in the Semi-Final. The loser of the Semi-Final will receive Third Place and the winner will advance to the Grand Final. There is no Bronze Match.
Open and Intermediate Grand Finals will be played as a best of 3, the Premier Grand Final will be played as a best of 5.
1.3 Fixtures
Regular season match fixtures will be posted week to week after each round has been finalised. Fixtures are set at weekly intervals to be played between Sunday and Thursday.
Match pages will be posted on the Friday prior to that round’s fixtures.
1.4 Swiss System
The Swiss system allows many competitors to compete against each other in a relatively small number of rounds. The first round will be scheduled randomly, and each subsequent round will be generated based on the previous results of teams. Teams with the same or similar records will be paired against each other, with the likelihood of duplicate matches is minimised.
1.5 Match Scoring
Each match consists of two maps; the winner of each individual map will be awarded two league points, while the loser is awarded zero. In the event of a map draw, see Rule 1.7.
Rankings will first be determined by these match points. If point draws exist, the following methods will be used to break them:
Premier
Intermediate and Open
1.6 Forfeits
A maximum of one forfeit per team is permitted in ozfortress competitions, on the second forfeit a team is considered inactive and removed from the league. Exclusion penalties will then apply for future ozfortress participation. See Rule 2.5 for more information on disbanded and removed teams.
Forfeiting a single map will result in the entire fixture being forfeited.
It is the team captain’s responsibility to contact your bracket’s Administrator as soon as possible if there is a change in circumstances that will affect your team’s ability to field a team each round, even if it is a temporary problem.
ANY forfeit in finals rounds will result in a removal from the league and additional sanctions on the offending team.
Forfeit Types
Forfeit Win
A forfeit win will be awarded where the offending team has not made an effort to organise the match. Forfeit wins will also be considered as a punitive measure where serious rule breaches have been committed during a match. A forfeit win will be recorded as match win worth 4 league points. See Rule 4.6 on how to submit a forfeit win.
Mutual Forfeit
Mutual forfeits will be applied where neither team have made an effort to organise the match within a reasonable timeframe. A mutual forfeit will be recorded as a match loss for both teams, worth 0 league points.
Mutual forfeits contribute to the 2-forfeit league removal count.
Technical Forfeit
A technical forfeit will be awarded in cases where situations outside the teams’ control occur, preventing both teams from playing the match, including but not limited to, Steam outages or major weather events. A technical forfeit will be recorded as a match draw, worth 2 league points for each team.
1.7 Draws
Draws on individual maps are not possible in the ozfortress ruleset, as the map will be determined by a Golden Cap, however matches can result in a draw when each team wins one map.
1.8 Administrators
Administrators are responsible for the efficient running of ozfortress competitions. Each bracket will be assigned administrators who will be the first point of contact for support and any disputes. However, all league administrators can assist or deliver rulings on disputes if your bracket administrator is not available.
The League Coordinator is ultimately responsible for the general running of the league.
1.9 Foreign Teams and Players
ozfortress primarily caters players from Australia and New Zealand, however players from other areas such as Asia are welcome to compete. Foreign teams must still play on ozfortress servers, unless it is determined that using an alternative server is beneficial for both the native and foreign teams. For example, in a match between teams from Singapore and Western Australia may choose to use an approved server located in Perth.
1.10 Sportsmanship
Teams participating are required to conduct themselves in a sportsmanlike manner in all communications.
Global chat is not fully restricted and may be used for light, friendly and tasteful banter. However, at the request of either team captain or an ozfortress administrator, chat may be restricted to only essential match communication. This request must be clearly stated in global chat or the match thread.
Discrimination on the basis of, but not limited to, race, nationality, religious beliefs, gender, sexual orientation, or age will be regarded as an extreme breach of sportsmanship.
Breach of the sportsmanship clause may result in exclusion penalties to be determined by the ozfortress administration.
2 Teams
2.1 Application
Teams apply preseason to enter the league and nominate their desired bracket. A minimum of six eligible players are required for the application to be processed, however we recommend that teams have a minimum of two backups on their roster. It is expected that your team is available to play at least three days out of the five eligible days.
Roster sizes are capped at ten.
Players who have played in the Premier bracket shall be reviewed by administrators prior to transfer or placement in an Open or Intermediate team. These players may be class restricted if they wish to play in the Open or Intermediate brackets.
2.2 Player Eligibility
To be eligible to be accepted onto a team’s roster, a player must:
2.3 Captains
A team must nominate a player(s) to act as a captain to represent the team in organizing matches and liaising with ozfortress administrators. This player(s) has the ultimate responsibility for their team. Match communication is expected to be clear and concise. Individuals or teams who complicate the organisation of matches, or post irrelevant content will receive captaincy bans. Captains may be excluded from acting as team captain for future competitions if ozfortress administrators consider them to be unfit to lead.
2.4 Mutiny Rule
A simple majority of registered team members may elect to nominate a new captain, or remove the captain entirely, at any point of the season with the approval of the league coordinator. This may be used when a captain is the sole reason for an imminent disband of a team. In this situation, the team at large will remain without penalty.
2.5 Disbanded or Removed Teams
The captain of a disbanded or removed team will receive a tier two infraction. Administrators will subject future applications from a disbanded or removed team to a closer review. In some instances, players may be banned from captaining teams in the future.
To avoid penalty, captains and/or team members should approach League Administrators at the first sign of trouble to determine a solution.
2.6 Transfers
Teams may transfer in players on a weekly basis. The transfer application must be submitted by the match deadline of a round to be eligible for play in the following round. View how to apply for a transfer here.
Teams will only be able to increase the size of their roster throughout the season to the roster limit of ten players. Teams with ten players or more may not increase their roster size through transfers unless enough players have been transferred out of their team to put their roster size under the limit.
Weeks 6 is the final week for transfers. Administrators reserve the right to deny transfer applications. Transfers will be approved by administrators no later than Saturday at 11:59 PM.
2.7 Infractions, Warnings, and Exclusions
In each competition, administrators will keep track of rule breaches. Warnings and Infractions will be posted on the match and roster pages.
There is no specific number of infractions or warnings to determine if a team is to be excluded from a competition; the judgement by the discretion of the administrators.
Exclusions will be applied for repeated major rule breaches by a player or team. An exclusion will result in the immediate ejection of the player or team from the league, with potential prohibitions from playing in future competitions. In serious cases, exclusions may apply for first offenses.
3 Match Organisation
3.1 Negotiating Match Times
Each team must select a minimum of three days in which they are able to play. Captains may change your team’s availability from a week to week basis from Thursday 4:00PM to Saturday 8:00PM. Once the match for the round has been posted, teams can begin negotiating to arrange a time and date for their match. If a match time has not been negotiated between the teams, the earliest matching day from both team’s selections will be appointed as the default date. However, this default date can be changed under agreement of both teams.
In addition to official match days, there are also official match times. These times are 8 & 9 PM Melbourne/Sydney time (AEST/AEDT). Teams that can make these time will be looked upon more favourably than teams who can not.
It is expected that team captains or a nominated team member make a reasonable effort to organise their match before the organisation deadline. Team members who facetiously propose match times will be punished.
Communications in match threads are considered the authoritative log for all correspondence about match organisation. Teams may decide to (and are encouraged to) negotiate the match over Steam chat or other means, however we recommend posting chat logs in the thread to prove that such correspondence has taken place in case of a dispute.
The negotiated time must always be posted in the thread.
If it is proving difficult to get in contact with the other team, or they are not making a reasonable effort to organise the match, please bring it to the attention of your bracket’s League Administrator immediately.
Teams may request an extension for a playoff match through their bracket’s League Administrator. If an extension is granted, both teams must agree on a date within the allocated time. Opposing teams are not obligated to play within the extended period although compromise and sportsmanship between teams is encouraged.
3.2 Match Deadlines
Match time set: 7:00PM Sunday
Results submission: 11:59PM Thursday
3.3 Organisational Responsibilities
The responsibility for these tasks falls upon the team captain of each team. If he is unable to complete these tasks or ensure these tasks are completed, he must nominate another team member to ensure their completion.
Both teams must:
The home team must:
Score Submission
Teams must clearly state both the winner and match score of each map
Logs and booking name must also be linked. If a non-ozfortress server was used, a download link to the demos must be provided.
Example:
cp_granary_pro: 4-1 Jasmine Tea logs.tf/xxxxxx
cp_badlands: 4-2 no safeword logs.tf/xxxxxx
Booked under name: Paulsen
3.4 Mercenaries
A mercenary is an unrostered player that is used in lieu of an unavailable team member. To be valid, mercenaries must have an ozfortress Citadel account and not be under any exclusion penalties.
Only two mercenaries per team are allowed in each match at any moment in time. Teams are allowed to swap mercenaries during the match provided the other team approves the new mercenary. Each team is allowed to use mercenaries a maximum of four matches per season.
Mercenaries may only be used at the discretion of the opposing team captain. There is no restriction on mercenary use if allowed by the opposing team captain. Do be aware that it is unlikely that opposing team captains will allow players of significantly larger skill to participate in the match and therefore reasonable requests are preferred.
Team captains do have the right to deny any mercenary, even if they are from a lower bracket. However, please do try to accommodate reasonable mercenary use, as you may find yourself in the same position. We recommend contacting an administrator if you are unsure of the skill level of the potential mercenary.
When mercenaries are being requested, teams have the option to request them on a specific class. This would then lock them to that class during that match (with the exception of reasonable offclasses). Teams can also request a mercenary without specifying a class, allowing the mercenary to change classes at will. It is important to note that unless mercenaries have been explicitly allowed on one class, they are allowed to play a class of their choosing.
Manipulating other teams into allowing mercenaries in an infractable offence (e.g. If you allow us to use high Premier player we will allow you to use low Open player).
ozfortress administrators will act as arbitrators in such a case of unreasonable mercenary denial, and may decide to overrule a team captain’s decision and allow a mercenary of a reasonable skill level.
If you require a mercenary for a playoff match you must contact your bracket’s League Administrator. Administrator discretion will be used on a case-by-case to judge whether use of a mercenary is necessary. Mercenary usage in playoffs is heavily discouraged and this option will only be allowed if it is deemed that there is no better option available.
Mercenary use must be clearly stated in the match thread where they are used. The information provided must include their SteamID and link to their ozfortress Citadel profile.
Use the ozfortress Roster Verification Tool to quickly verify all players prior to a match. To use the verifier, simply insert the status output from console of the current match as well as the match link or ID. The tool will process your inputs and validate all players, displaying any inconsistencies with rosters.
3.5 Map Selection
Regular season matches will use two pre-defined maps from the map pool.
Maps for playoff matches are selected by the captains of each team. This process can be performed before the match or in-game via chat, but must be documented on the match page.
The selection process for a nine map pool (BO3):
For the Premier Grand Final (BO5), the selection process varies as follows:
In the event of a disagreement, the home team will have preference of team colour. Please note that formats can change for BO3 and BO5 matches. In case of discrepancies between official rules and other sources, the most updated pick-ban order can always be found in match threads.
3.6 Match Disputes
To lodge a dispute or report misconduct, please contact an ozfortress administrator as soon as possible. Please do not bring the debate into public as it is being resolved.
3.7 Fakenicking
Fakenicking is not allowed in any ozfortress matches. Players must use a name similar to their submitted roster name, and hence their forum name, as to be generally recognizable to someone comparing team rosters with those on the server. Clan and sponsorship tags are allowed but must be reasonable. Players are encouraged to carefully choose their submitted roster name.
Fakenicking rules will be more closely enforced in casted matches.
4. Match Format
4.1 Team Eligibility Requirements
Teams must have a minimum of five rostered (does not include any mercenaries) players ready to start or continue a match.
4.2 Demo Recording
POV demos must be recorded for all ozfortress matches and must be provided on the request of an ozfortress administrator. We recommend using the demo recording system included in TF2, which can be activated under the advanced options menu in the game settings.
Demos are required to be stored for the current and past season.
All players must be able to provide a POV demo before the date of their next official match if requested by an administrator. If you are unable to provide POV demos for a match you will face a 4-round exclusion. It is the player’s responsibility to ensure that demos are being recorded.
4.3 Spectators
ozfortress Administrators are the only approved spectators. Spectators are not allowed in any ozfortress match.
4.4 Pausing
Pauses during a match are allowed where players clearly exhibit technological performance issues or when teams wish to for personal reasons. Tactical pauses are allowed. In addition, the match may only be unpaused by the team who initiated the pause. Both teams must give the all-clear to unpause, which is followed by an in-built five second countdown.
Each team is permitted two pauses per match with a combined total time limit of ten minutes. However, if captains are in agreement, the pause limit can be extended.
4.5 Casted Games
Official matches may be casted by organisations with the approval of the ozfortress administrators.
Casting organisation representatives may contact the ozfortress Media Coordinator or the ozfortress League Director to receive promotion and become an approved casting organisation. Approval will only be granted once it is determined by ozfortress that the coverage meets approved standards.
The ozfortress approved casting organisations are as follows:
Casting organisations may not directly influence the playing of an official ozfortress match in any way.
4.5.1 Approved ozfortress Casting Organisations
If your game is to be casted by an approved organisation, your team must provide to the caster(s), streamer, or organisation representative:
The above rules apply to ozfortress approved casting organisations only.
Fakenicking rules will be more closely enforced in casted matches by ozfortress approved casting organisations.
4.5.2 Unapproved ozfortress Casting Organisations
Casting organisations and individuals that are not approved by ozfortress may still cast official ozfortress matches, however, approved casting organisations will have precedence.
Unapproved casting organisations must notify an ozfortress server administrator at least 3 hours prior to the scheduled match time of their intention to cast the match. They must also provide the server administrator with the server number at the time of the match such that they may be provided with an STV relay.
If a team captain wishes to deny such a cast, they should discuss it with an ozfortress league administrator.
4.6 Submitting Forfeit Wins
Teams are expected to be readied up in the server by 15 minutes past the set match time. If your team is readied up in the server at such time, and the other team is not fully present or is refusing to ready up, please contact an ozfortress administrator to claim a forfeit win.
If the home team is not communicating, the away team is expected to book an ozfortress server and attempt to provide server details. If at 15 minutes past the home team has not joined the server or provided details to their own booked server, a forfeit win will be distributed.
If a team is unavailable to compete in a match and has communicated the forfeit, this must be posted with chat logs and confirmed on the match page.
4.7 ozfortress Administrators as Referees
ozfortress may sometimes require certain matches to be refereed by an ozfortress administrator. In such case, a post will be made in the match thread denoting this, and teams will be provided with a connect string before the match. If this happens, it is no longer the home team’s responsibility to administer the server or report the scores at the end of the round.
All Grand Final matches will be refereed. Other important matches will be refereed as required.
5. Servers
5.1 Server Configuration
Instructions on how to download & install ozfortress seasonal league configs can be found here.
5.2 Preferred and Acceptable Servers
ozfortress bookable servers are considered the standard for matches. However, if both teams agree, an alternative server may be used. See Rule 5.3 for further details on Third party servers.
If teams cannot agree on a server, an official ozfortress server must be used.
Administrators reserve the right to choose which server a match may be played on.
5.3 Third Party Servers
For those who wish to run their own, servers must be running the official ozfortress configuration to be considered match-ready. They must also comply with the following requirements:
If desired, an ozfortress administrator will review your server configs to determine if you have configured it to match-ready standard.
rcon for third party servers must be provided to ozfortress administrators on request.
ozfortress administrators reserve the right to force a match to be played on an ozfortress server.
5.4 Class Restrictions
The ozfortress seasonal league runs on the following class restrictions:
These limits must be enforced using the ‘tf_tournament_classlimit_X’ commands. The full listing of these can be found in Rule 5.1.
5.5 Whitelist
The standard ozfortress whitelist can be found on whitelist.tf. This will always redirect to the most recent whitelist in use for ozfortress competitions.
The in-game mechanic of weapon exchange and pickup is allowed.
5.6 Game Formats
The following formats are used in the ozfortress seasonal league and have an associated configuration file in the ozfortress configs.
5 Control Points
Standard 5 Control Points (5CP) maps are played to 30 minutes with a 5 point difference mercy rule. The following configuration represents this format:
Load this configuration using
rcon exec ozfortress_6v6_5cpor simplyrcon ozfon ozfortress servers.King of the Hill
King of the Hill (KOTH) maps are played first to 3 with no time limit. The following configuration represents this format:
Load this configuration using
rcon exec ozfortress_6v6_kothor simplyrcon ozfkothon ozfortress servers.Golden Cap
In formats where ties are not allowed, a golden cap may be used to determine the winner of a 5CP match tied at 30 minutes. Golden Cap rounds are played till the first capture of the last point with no time limit. The following configuration represents this format:
Load this configuration using
rcon exec ozfortress_golden_capor simplyrcon goldenon ozfortress servers.5.7 Server Interruptions
In the event of an ongoing match being interrupted, the match must be resumed from the time at which the last round was completed. Any ongoing rounds will be restarted and any rounds that were completed will remain completed.
6 Cheating, Exploits and Bans
6.1 Exploits
Exploiting game or map bugs or flaws for an unfair advantage, whether they are explicitly listed in the rules or not, is prohibited.
The following is an incomplete list of exploits:
Use of the wait command in scripts is considered an exploit and will be enforced by
sv_allow_wait_command 0.If you are unsure if something is considered an exploit, please contact a League Administrator and request a ruling be made.
6.2 Third-Party Software
The use of any third-party addons, hooks, programs or wrappers that interact with or alter the Team Fortress 2 client, its appearance or behaviour for the purposes of gaining an unfair advantage is a bannable offence. This includes usage of such programs on alternative accounts not registered with ozfortress.
6.3 Malicious Server Administration
The use of any server commands, variables, or plugins for the purposes of gaining an unfair advantage or to interfere with an ozfortress match is prohibited. Once the match is underway, the server administrator must let the match run its course and not make any changes without the consent of both teams.
6.4 Account Sharing
Players may only register and play in ozfortress leagues with one Steam / Warzone account. Use of alternate accounts in official matches is strictly prohibited. If a player wishes to change their registered account they must contact an ozfortress administrator, however it is unlikely that the account will be changed.
Sharing your login details with a third party for use in an ozfortress match is also strictly prohibited and will result in lengthy bans for all involved parties.
6.5 ozfortress Forum Bans
Members who are banned on the ozfortress website are also banned from leading teams in ozfortress competitions. Players banned from the ozfortress website may also be subject to competition bans and are considered under probation. Please contact an ozfortress administrator for further clarification.
6.6 Match Fixing
Any attempt to influence the result of a match through any means other than gameplay is strictly forbidden. If this is found to be happening, all involved parties will receive league punishments.
7 Ruleset Information
7.1 Rules are subject to change
The rules set on this page may be updated at any time. It is the responsibility of the player(s) to keep up to date with these rules. Major rule changes during a season will be clearly announced with a front page post, with minor changes being relayed to all players via Discord.
7.2 Administrative Ruling
Administrators reserve the right to change, modify, or adapt all rules as deemed appropriate by ozfortress to uphold and maintain a spirit of overall fairness and good sportsmanship. We understand that a ruleset may not cover every situation and therefore we may occasionally deliver judgement-based rulings.
This work by ozfortress is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.