- Game Servers
- Creating a Team
- Adding members to your team/Leaving a team
- Player Numbers per Team
- Entering the Ladder
- Activate your team
- Team Captains
- Making a Challenge
- Defending a Challenge
- Result Entry/Dispute
- Incomplete Matches
- Team Status
- Free Play
- Removal from Ladder
- Ladder time schedules
- Terms & Conditions

Game Servers

Unless specified in the Rules of play for any specific ladder, all ladders on the GameArena ladder service use a fully automated booking service. Once a challenge has been accepted by the defender, all players will receive an email with the IP address, and time of the match, additionally both captains will be emailed with the RCON or Admin password for the server by the GameArena Ladder software.

This server will not be available until the time of the match as declared in the Booking email generated by the Ladder software, and further will be removed by the GameArena Ladder Software after the time limit has expired for the game based on the rules of play on a per-game basis.

Creating a Team

Before you start in the GameArena Ladder system, you must create a team within the game you wish to play. Do this by clicking the Myteams link on the top of the GameArena Ladder page. When creating your team, ensure that you place you current clan URL, your clan tag, and a working e-mail that you would like people to see when visiting your clan details. Note: this is not the e-mail address that ladder related e-mails will be sent to that address is the one associated with the username you are currently logged into GameArena as.

Adding Members to your Team/Leaving a Team

To add a member to your team, enter in either the username (Not nickname) or current email address of the team member, as it is set up in their GameArena login profile. If you don't know this, then you must ask them. You must enter in the minimum number of players that the relevant ladder will allow. Until ou have entered this number of members to your team you cannot participate in the league.

NOTE: A person can only exist in one team per ladder. (eg a person can only play in one team in the DOD Ladder)

NOTE: If you a member creates a new profile, the member must log in before the account will become 'active'. If the member does not login you will be unable to add that member to your team.

A player can leave a team at any time they choose.

Player Numbers Per Team

A team must have the minimum amount of players set out by the ladder you are playing in. However, a team can have as many people over and above the minimum on that team as they like. However, remember that a player cannot exist in more than one team within the ladder. Clans can if they wish field more than one team per ladder. However, players are not allowed to swap between teams. If a complaint is lodged and you are found fielding players not in your team, a forfeit will be issued against you.

Entering the Ladder

Once you have created a team, your team will initially be listed as a 'NEW ENTRANT'. New Entrants are not permitted to make or receive challenges. To enter the ladder, the team must invite or otherwise recruit the minimum number of players required by the ladder for matches. If a team does not recruit the required number of players within 21 days it will be automatically removed from the system; this is to ensure entries which may never be completed are flushed from the ladder system. If your team is removed for this reason, you may re-create your team immediately if you wish.

Activating your team
At the beginning of each new season, a team's captain will be required to 'activate' their team. An email will be sent when activation is required; to activate your team simply visit the 'Team Management' page and click Activate.

Newly enrolled teams are automatically 'activated'; this only applies to teams continuing from one season to the next.

Teams who do not activate themselves will be removed from the ladder once the new season commences.

Team Captains

The person that creates a team is automatically granted captaincy of that team, is identified as the team captain on the GameArena Ladder website and can, at any time grant or revoke captaincy on one or more other members of their team. If you grant another person captaincy of your team, they can then revoke that position on you, or grant that position to other people within the team. When a challenge is accepted, the team captain/s will receive one additional email to that which the rest of the team receive. This email will be the logon details of the server, and the servers RCON password, which the captain can then use to control the game. The captain at all times maintains control of membership on their team. If either teams opt for an admin present then the captain will not receive this email.

Making a Challenge

Once you have the necessary amount of players in your team for the league you may commence issuing challenges. You may challenge any team above you on the ladder who's status is 'Free' and which is within the maximum 'Challenge Height'. The challenge height is ladder specific; please consult each ladder's rules page for information on the challenge height.

To make a challenge, simply visit the 'Rankings' page for the ladder you are enrolled in; any team you are eligible to challenge will show 'Challenge' next to that team's entry.

When issuing a challenge you must select a number of different maps, and three different times on three different maps. It is up to the defending team to pick which time and map(s) out of the ones your team selected suits them the most. The number of maps to be chosen is ladder specific.

Available challenge times are each hour between 6pm and 10pm inclusive. Available challenge dates range from 3 to 10 days from the date the challenge is made. Some times may not be displayed if GameCreate can not support a booking at that time.

Once you have issued a challenge your team may not be challenged by any other team until the completion of your game. If you successfully win your challenge you will take the position of the team that you challenged. If you lose, your team will be marked 'Vulnerable' for 48 hours (see the Team Status section).

You may not challenge a team who is already involved in a match (ie, whose status is not 'Free' or 'Vulnerable'); nor may you make a challenge while your team is involved in a match.

You may not challenge a team you played against in the last seven days.

Defending a Challenge

If you receive an email to say you have been challenged, you have up to 48 hours to go to the GameArena Ladder website and accept or decline that challenge. Should you chose to decline a challenge, the challenger will automatically take your place and you will then move down one rung on the ladder (as will all other teams below you).

You must accept the required number of maps at one of the times selected in order to defend your position. If you successfully defend your position you will be protected from challenge for 48 hours. Failure to accept or decline a challenge within the allotted time results in a forfeit.

If you decline a challenge, your team will be marked 'vulnerable' for 48 hours (see the Team Status section for details).

Once a challenge is accepted, a server will be allocated from GameCreate for the match to be played on; all players involved will be sent an email detailing the server settings (including the required password).

Result Entry/Disputes

After the successful completion of a game, both the challenging and defending teams have up to 2 hours to enter the results of a game. Failure to do so will result in a forfeit by the team who does not enter a result. If neither team enters a result, the challenger will receive a forfeit.

Alternatively, either team my choose to dispute the result of the match. Please see each specific Ladders' rules page to determine valid reasons for disputing a match. If either team enters a dispute GameArena will investigate the dispute and will determine a winner. The decision of GameArena is final.

NOTE: Frivilous disputes will be penalised heavily.

Incomplete Matches

If you are unable to complete a match, due to a server crash, server problems, or some other problem caused by GameArena, both teams must dispute the match, asking for the match to be abandoned.

Team Status

The rankings and 'Team Info' pages each show the status of the team; the following is a description of the possible status codes and what they mean.

• FREE - Free is the default. It means the team may make a challenge, or be challenged.
  
• CHALLENGING - Team is currently challenging another team.
  
• DEFENDING - Team is currently defending against another team.
  
• NEW ENTRANT - New entrants have not yet entered their player roster. They do not have a ranking and can not partake in matches.
  
• PROTECTED - This team can not be challenged; however the team may challenges above him. Protected status is given to the defending team if that team wins. Protection lasts for 48 hours, and is designed to give the team a chance to challenge up the ladder after successfully defending their position.
  
• VULNERABLE - This team can not make a challenge, but may be challenged by teams below them. Vulnerable status is given to the challenging team if that team loses. Vulnerable status lasts for 48 hours and is designed to force the team to defend their position. Teams who decline a challenge are also marked as vulnerable for 48 hours.
  

Free Play

Free play is a new feature of the ladder; during Free Play mode, all teams not involved in the Finals will be able to challenge without regard to challenge height restrictions.

Results (including forfeits) during Free Play mode are not recorded; nor will a team change ranking during this period.

Removal from Ladder

Forfeiting within the first 30 days of joining the ladder results in being removed from the ladder. After that, any forfeit results in a drop of 5% of the ladder's rungs except that:

(a) Two forfeits in any 30-day period results in being moved to last position on the ladder; and

(b) Three forfeits in any successive 30-day periods results in being dropped from the ladder.

Any team which is inactive for 30 days will also be automatically removed from the ladder.

Ladder Time Schedules

The ladder is specifically set out so that at most in any five day period you will only play one match. If you or any member of your team feels that he cannot commit to one game every five days then it may be wiser for the rest of the team to rethink your entry.

Terms & Conditions

By playing in the GameArena Ladder system, you agree to comply with all GameArena terms and conditions set out HERE