How do I enter a tournament?

You find information and enter events on the Event page for the tournament. Upcoming tournaments can be found on the Calendar (All Events tab). You may also see links in Alerts when tournaments are about to start or in the VP4 lobby. On the tournament event page you will find information regarding the date, time, game, format, entry fee, eligibility, handicapping, and more. Press the red Sign Up button to enter. You can see a list of players already entered on the Players Tab at the bottom.

What happens when a tournament starts?

When the date/time of the tournament is reached, it starts and the tournament event page will show Event is Active. There will be an Event Bracket button on the bottom right which will display the tournament brackets. The bracket scoring is updated in real time so you can examine this at any time to see the scores of all matches in progress.

In the VP4 game tournament rooms show up with the tournament name and the names of the players assigned to the match in that room. Entering the room as a player puts you into the match. If it is not your match room you can enter and watch the match as a spectator.

What do I win for placing in a tournament?

You win V$ and you get ranking points. All players in the tournament get points but finishing higher gets you more points. Only players who place get V$. If you are 1^st place, there may also be a ranking points bonus.

I tried to sign up for a tournament and it is a team event. How do I get a partner?

You can sign up any friend to play with you, as a team, in a tournament. If you don't have any friends in your friends list, you need to add some before you can play in a team event. Any friend you sign up must confirm. If they have not confirmed you can always change the team member by going back to the event page and pressing Edit Team.

Something came up, can I withdraw from a tournament?

Yes, you can as long as it is more than 30 minutes before the tournament starts, and you get a full refund when withdrawing. For team events your a message is sent to your partner telling him you withdrew, then they can invite a new partner.

Do I forfeit if I don't show up or get disconnected?

If you don't show up for your match you will forfeit. There is a Match Timeout shown on the tournament event page that specifies how much time you have to show up, basically a grace period after a match starts.

If you get disconnected during a match, the server automatically saves the game. You have 10 minutes to show back up and continue the match, otherwise the match terminates and the player left in the room wins. If nobody is in the room then the player ahead wins, or in the case of a tie, the disconnecting player loses.

I am giving up a large handicap in a tournament. Why does the player list for the tournament show the incorrect rating for the game being played?

You have a rating for each game and it takes 24 games to establish a rating for each game. If you play in a handicapped tournament before establishing a rating for the game being played, and your overall rating is higher than your un-established rating for the game, the overall rating is used.

What it the Established Rating in the Eligibility panel on the tournament page?

This varies depending on the tournament setup, the possibilities with explanation are:

• Minimum Rating - requires the player to have a rating equal to or above displayed number

• Maximum Rating - requires the player to have a rating equal to or below displayed number

• Minimum Games - requires the player to have played at least the number of games shown, in any game play that counts for rating including match or challenge rooms, of the same game type as the tournament

• Minimum Tournament Games - requires the player to have played at least the number of games shown in tournament play, of the same game type as the tournament

What is the difference between a real time and non real time tournament?

Real time tournaments are the norm where the tournament runs from start to finish in one play session. Typically smaller tournaments are real time because the total play time is reasonable. Matches are played back to back with a room for each match appearing as soon as the players are known. When your match room appears you get a notice in the lobby and the tournament room tab turns red.

Non real time tournaments (NRT) do not play matches back to back and are used for larger tournaments. Matches are played at a date/time agreed upon by the players. Player schedule matches by going to the tournament event page on the VP4 website and clicking the match schedule icon. They then propose 2-3 date/times that they can play. This is sent to the match opponent via the website messaging. The match opponent either accepts a date or chooses other date/times to play and send it back. There is a cutoff time for playing each round of a NRT tournament. A typical cutoff time might be 2 or 3 days per round.