The Crucible Rules

• All competing teams must be registered by a staff member at the request of a Team Contact before any matches are played.
• Each team must designate at least one Team Contact — the primary point of contact for scheduling, reporting, and communication with staff.
• Teams may field any player who has represented the clan tag for at minimum seven days or is present on an external event roster.
• Players may only represent one team per seven days, unless on an external roster. Competing under multiple teams without holding the tag for at least seven days or being present on an external roster is grounds for disqualification.
• Accounts must be legitimate and belong to the individual competing. Alternate, shared, sold, or boosted accounts are prohibited.
• Staff reserve the right to deny registration to any team or player for conduct reasons from prior seasons.

• Respectful play: All participants are expected to conduct themselves with sportsmanship before, during, and after matches — in-game, in Discord, and on any associated platform.
• No harassment: Targeted harassment of any player, team, or staff member — including in DMs — will not be tolerated.
• No hate speech: Use of slurs, discriminatory language, or content targeting race, gender, sexuality, religion, nationality, or disability is grounds for permanent removal.
• Trash talk: Light competitive banter is acceptable. Sustained personal attacks, doxxing threats, or content intended to demean are not.
• Stream behaviour: If a match is streamed, players must not engage in behaviour intended to embarrass the league, VALIS, or other participants on stream.
• Social media: Public posts intentionally designed to defame VALIS, the league, its staff, or other participants may be treated as a conduct violation.

• External Events: Matches played using external formats are not subject to the following rules and must abide by the rules set in those formats. A list of approved formats can be found in the VALIS discord under the approved formats channel.
• Scheduling: Teams are responsible for agreeing on a match time. Disputes over scheduling must be raised with a Team Contact at least 24 hours before the agreed time.
• No-shows: A team that fails to appear within 15 minutes of the agreed start time, without prior notice, forfeits the match. Repeated no-shows may result in additional penalties.
• Server / lobby: Unless otherwise specified by staff, the home team (or the team listed first in the match) hosts the lobby. Server region should be agreed upon in advance.
• Format: Default match format is Best of 7 (BO7) unless both teams agree in writing to a BO3 or BO5, or a specific event format dictates otherwise.
• Disconnects: If a player disconnects before the game start timer elapses, the match may be restarted. If the game timer has elapsed, the match must play on.
• External tools: Use of any third-party overlay, automation, script, or macro that provides an in-game advantage is prohibited.

• Results must be reported within 24 hours of match completion. Reports submitted after this window may be voided at staff discretion.
• Both teams are encouraged to screenshot the post battle results screens. Screenshots serve as the primary evidence in disputes.
• False or fraudulent result submissions — including misrepresenting the winner or final score — will result in the match being voided and the reporting party facing a penalty.
• Match results that have been confirmed via the Discord bot are final. Requests to amend results must go through staff and require evidence.

• All disputes must be submitted to staff via competitive@valis.gg or the designated support channel within 12 hours of the match ending.
• Disputes must include: the match in question, the nature of the complaint, and any supporting evidence (screenshots, video clips, logs).
• Staff will review disputes and respond within 48 hours. Complex cases may take longer; affected parties will be notified.
• Staff decisions on disputes are final. Appeals may be submitted once in writing; second appeals will not be accepted.
• Filing a dispute in bad faith — for example, to delay results or harass opponents — is itself a punishable offence.
• Do not publicly post about open disputes. Allow the process to run before commenting publicly.

• Starting CR: All newly registered teams begin at 1200 CR regardless of prior season performance.
• Provisional period: The first 10 matches use an accelerated K-factor, meaning CR changes more dramatically while a team establishes their rating.
• Dominance modifier: Ranges from 1.0 to 1.2. A value of 1.2 amplifies both the CR gain for the winner and the loss for the loser. Both teams must agree on the submitted value.
• Inactivity decay: Teams that do not play for more than 14 days will begin to lose CR at a rate of 10 CR per week of inactivity, up to a maximum of 100 CR total decay. Playing a match resets the decay clock.
• CR floor: CR cannot drop below 0.
• CR is recalculated automatically by the bot after each confirmed match. Manual CR adjustments are only made by staff in cases of match voids or administrative corrections.

• Prohibited software: Aimbots, wallhacks, speed hacks, lag switches, packet manipulation tools, and any software that provides an unfair in-game advantage.
• Account sharing: Having another player compete on your behalf is considered impersonation and is treated the same as cheating.
• Match fixing: Deliberately losing, coordinating outcomes with opponents, or manipulating match results for any reason — including CR farming — is strictly prohibited.
• Collusion: Teams may not cooperate to inflate the CR of either party or to harm a third team's standing through coordinated play.
• Bug abuse: Intentional exploitation of in-game bugs or exploits that provide a significant competitive advantage is prohibited. Finding and reporting bugs is encouraged.
• Staff may request post battle results screens or other evidence at any time when investigating a fair play complaint. Refusal to cooperate is treated as an admission.

• All official league communication happens through the VALIS Discord server. Joining and remaining in the server is required for active participants.
• Team Contacts are responsible for relaying information to their team. Staff are not obligated to contact every individual team member separately.
• Staff announcements in designated channels must be acknowledged. Claiming ignorance of a rule or announcement that was posted in the official channels is not a valid defence.
• All official disputes and reports must go through competitive@valis.gg or the designated support channel.
• Do not spam staff members or repeatedly message about the same issue. One clear, well-evidenced message will be responded to. Spamming may result in your case being deprioritised.

Penalties are applied at staff discretion based on severity, intent, and history. Repeat offences escalate automatically.

• VALIS staff have final authority over all league decisions. These rules are guidelines — staff may act outside them when circumstances require it in order to protect the integrity of the league.
• Staff will not abuse their authority. Any concerns about staff conduct should be raised directly with a senior administrator, not publicly.
• Rules may be updated at any time. Significant changes will be announced in the VALIS Discord. Continued participation constitutes acceptance of the current ruleset.
• Ignorance of the rules is not a defence. All participants are expected to have read and understood this document before competing.
• For any questions, contact us at competitive@valis.gg.