Announcing the 2013 Hunters Red October Tournament!

Dear Reader,

It is my privilege to announce the second annual Hunters Red October Tournament!  The tournament will be held on Saturday, 10/19, from 10:00 am - about 5:00 pm in Purcellville, VA.  Like the tournaments we have hosted in the past here at TMAT, the tournament will consist of three randomly paired matches, subject to the following rules:



I.  Army Building
Army Size: Armies may field units up to 600 points with a .5% grace limit (603 points maximum), with at least 200 points invested in heroes, one of which must be designated as the Army General.  No army may exceed 60 units.
Structure: Armies may be built to either conform to the LOME or Warbands formats, with the appropriate rules for allied contingents applied.
WYSIWYG: All models will be assumed to have the equipment shown on the model (though additional embellishments/cosmetic add-ons will be allowed, without changing the stat line on the model).  Proxy models will be allowed, so long as 1) the proxy model represents only one unit for the purpose of the tournament (e.g., no switching what the model represents, including what equipment it is armed with), and 2) is clearly marked as a proxied model in the army list submission.

II.  Gameplay
Time Limit: Games will run for 90 minutes, with 15 minutes in between rounds to move to new tables, deploy your armies (if the scenario does not have special deployment rules), and for the tournament director to re-adjust the stockpile terrain templates mentioned in Section IV below.  There will also be a 60-minute break for lunch at 1:15 pm.  If a game is still going when time is called and victory conditions have not been met, the players will finish the current round and score accordingly.  The schedule for the day will be as follows:

        -10:00 - 11:30 am: Round I
        -11:45 am - 1:15 pm: Round II
        -1:15 - 2:15 pm: Lunch
        -2:30 - 4:00 pm: Round III
        -4:15 pm: Final Awards/Standings

The tournament will likely end before the posted ending time of 5:00 pm; the posted ending time accommodates for unforeseen delays and rules disputes (if any) during the tournament.
Rules/Regulations: The official ORB shall be used to govern the rules of gameplay for the tournament, caveated with the rules we use here at TMAT in the "House Rules" on this site.  In addition, all scenarios will end when one force reaches 25% (Ill Met by Moonlight being the big change).  If players have a disagreement about the rules, a red flag will be thrown, time will be stopped, and the other players will weigh in on the dispute, with the tournament director having the final word.
Affiliation: Like the TMAT GT, there will be no Good v. Evil restrictions for games.  Players will be randomly assigned a number, which will then be added to a matrix to determine which opponents the player faces in a given round.
Board Assignment: Unlike some tournaments, there is no "winner's table" at this tournament.  Players will be randomly assigned one of up to four boards for their three games.  This also means that players may not play all possible scenarios, which will be described in further detail in Section III below.
Scenario Scoring: Individual scenarios will be scored according to the rules present in the ORB and the sourcebooks, with the caveats granted in the "House Rules" section on this site.
Campaign Scoring: Scoring for the tournament will follow this scheme: Major Victory: 10 Campaign points, Minor Victory: 8 Campaign points, Draw: 6 Campaign points, Minor Loss: 4 Campaign points, Major Loss: 2 Campaign points.  Additional Campaign points may be earned through the Kudos points and Oaths of Battle mentioned in Section IV below.

III.  Scenarios
Matches: The number of matches per round will be determined by the number of players competing, with a minimum of three boards.
Scenario Selections: Scenarios will be selected in the following order:
A.  Domination: Scenario setup and rules follow those in the Warbands Sourcebooks and the ORB Rulebook, with the following exception: armies are deployed 18" from opposite corners, rather than along a board edge.  Both players agree to the corners in which they deploy (no pre-set deployment corners).
       A.1. Scoring: 3 Victory points for each objective an army completely controls, 1 Victory point for the army that has majority control over a contested objective, 2 Victory points for killing the enemy Army Leader, 1 Victory point is awarded if an army breaks the enemy army, and three points are awarded if an army breaks the enemy army without itself being broken at the end of the game.
B.  Arkenstone: Back by popular demand from the TMAT GT II, this scenario is played like a To the Death scenario, with a few tweaks.  1) Once terrain is placed, a marker is placed at the center of the board to represent the Arkenstone.  The Arkenstone grants a 6" banner radius to the army that has the most models within 3" of it, and a 3" banner radius to the army with the fewest models within the 3" radius.  2) Warbands and divisions are deployed 6" from the table edge on a 1-3, and 12" from the board edge on a 4-6, instead of 12-24" according to the new Sourcebooks.
        B.1. Scoring: 2 Victory points for killing the enemy Army Leader, 2 Victory points are awarded if a team has a banner remaining at the end of the game (the Arkenstone adds 0 Victory points to either team, regardless to whether or not one force dominates the Arkenstone), 1 Victory point is awarded if an army breaks the enemy army, and three points are awarded if an army breaks the enemy army without itself being broken at the end of the game.
C.  Ill Met by Moonlight: Scenario is played as it is found in the LOME Sourcebooks, but with the following changes: 1) Game ends when one force reaches 25% of its starting force, and 2) it is scored like a To the Death Scenario.
        C.1. Scoring: 2 Victory points for killing the enemy Army Leader, 2 Victory points are awarded if a team has a banner remaining at the end of the game, 1 Victory point is awarded if an army breaks the enemy army, and three points are awarded if an army breaks the enemy army without itself being broken at the end of the game.
D.  Lords of Battle: Scenario setup and scoring follows the rules laid out in the Warbands Sourcebooks and the ORB Rulebook, including the special rule that if a hero is killed in a fight, one of the heroes involved in that fight regains a Might point spent earlier in the battle.
        D.1. Scoring: 1 Victory point for each Wound dealt and Fate point spent by your opponent, 1 Victory point is awarded if an army breaks the enemy army, and three points are awarded if an army breaks the enemy army without itself being broken at the end of the game.

IV.  Special Conditions/Add-Ons
1.  Oaths of Battle: Carrying over from the TMAT GT II, players will be able to select one oath from the following list for reach battle.  No oath may be taken more than once during the course of the tournament.  Before each game, declare your oath to your opponent.  If both players fulfill their oath, they each gain 1 Campaign point.  If only one player fulfills his oath, he gains 2 Campaign points.  If a player successfully completes all three oaths over the course of the tournament, he gains an additional 3 Campaign points.  Players may choose from the following list:
Blood-Sworn Enemy: Choose an enemy hero - he is your arch enemy and must die before the end of the match.
Future King: Your army leader must survive the battle - he must not be slain or in other way depart the field before the end of the match.
Chivalry in Battle: Your army leader must fight the enemy army leader in combat for at least one round and survive.  Your army leader may not use the shielding rule to accomplish this.
Line in the Sand: Nominate a piece of terrain within 12" of your opponent's board edge (or corner, in the case of a Domination game).  Your leader must end its move within 3" of it at least once during the game.
Battle Prowess: Your army leader must kill more models than your opponent's army leader.

2.  Kudos: Carrying over from the TMAT GT II, at any point during the game, a player may be awarded up to three of the following kudos categories, worth 0.5 Campaign points each.  Your opponent is not obligated to award kudos points during the game, though players should know that it is more likely that players will award points if you recognize their efforts as well.  Kudos are designed to represent points for rare occurrences, and thus, if the awarding of such points is rare, that is understandable in the tournament.
Hope rises: A non-named model acts in a way that both players agree was awesome
Lead by Example: A named hero acts in a way that both players agree was awesome
Master Plan: Perform a maneuver that causes your opponent to be impressed (for good or ill) by the strategy
Fortune's Favor: Experience a very lucky streak of dice rolling that is acknowledge by both players
The Dice are Trying to Kill me: Experience a very unlucky streak of dice rolling that is acknowledged by both players.

3.  Battlefield Stockpiles: On each map, there will be four tiles (distributed evenly across the board) that start face-down.  When a model comes into base contact with the tile, flip it face-up, and place the appropriate weapons stockpile on the tile.  The following are possible stockpile caches for the tournament, along with the maximum number of tiles that will be present in the tournament:
5 Hand Weapons (swords): A model who is unarmed may roll a dice: on a 2+, the model picks up one of the swords, and is no longer considered unarmed.  Any other model on a 2+ may pick up one of the swords to increase his Attacks characteristic by 1 (to a maximum of 2), though he must drop any shield, banner, or 2H that he is carrying (the weapon is discarded).  On the roll of a 1, the model mishandles the sword, and the sword breaks (is discarded).  Once all five swords are used/discarded, the stockpile is empty.  Number of stockpiles available in the tournament: 3.
5 Bows: A model may roll a dice: on a 2+, the model picks up a bow and quiver (S2 at 24"), though he must drop any shield, other bow, or 2H that he is carrying (the weapon is discarded).  On the roll of a 1, the model mishandles the bow, and the bow breaks (is discarded).  Once all five bows are used/discarded, the stockpile is empty.  Number of stockpiles available in the tournament: 1.
5 Throwing Weapons: A model may roll a dice: on a 2+, the model picks up a set of throwing axes (base Strength at 6").  On the roll of a 1, the model mishandles the axes, and the axes break (is discarded).  Once all five throwing weapons are used/discarded, the stockpile is empty.  Number of stockpiles available in the tournament: 1.
4 Spears: A model may roll a dice: on a 2+, the model picks up a spear, though he must drop any banner or 2H that he is carrying (the weapon is discarded).  On the roll of a 1, the model mishandles the spear, and the spear breaks (is discarded).  Once all four spears are used/discarded, the stockpile is empty.  Number of stockpiles available in the tournament: 2.
2 2H weapons: A model may roll a dice: on a 2+, the model picks up a two-handed axe (2H weapon), though he must drop any shield or banner that he is carrying (the weapon is discarded).  On the roll of a 1, the model mishandles the axe, and the axe breaks (is discarded).  Once both axes are used/discarded, the stockpile is empty.  Number of stockpiles available in the tournament: 2.
2 crossbows: A model may roll a dice: on a 2+, the model picks up a crossbow, though he must drop any shield, other bow, 2H, or banner that he is carrying (the weapon is discarded).  On the roll of a 1, the model mishandles the crossbow, and the crossbow breaks (is discarded).  Once both crossbows are used/discarded, the stockpile is empty.  Number of stockpiles available in the tournament: 1.
5 Shields: A model may roll a dice: on a 2+, the model picks up a shield, though he must drop any bow, banner, or 2H that he is carrying (the weapon is discarded).  On the roll of a 1, the model mishandles the shield, and the shield breaks (is discarded).  Once all five shields are used/discarded, the stockpile is empty.  Number of stockpiles available in the tournament: 2.
1 Barrel of Tar: Any model within 2" of a Barrel of Tar may opt to light its arrows.  The archer's shot is treated like a 2H weapon, with a -1 modifier to their to-hit roll, and a +1 modifier to their to-wound roll (For example, an elf archer would pass a to-hit roll on a 4+, an would wound a D5 unit on 4s; a Moria Goblin troop would volley on a 6/4+, and would hit D6 targets on 5s).  In order to volley with fire arrows, at least 10 archers in base contact must have their arrows lit.  In the highly unlikely event that a Barrel of Tar is targeted by a fire arrow, the barrel is treated as having a D5 characteristic.  If the barrel is successfully wounded, it will cause a S4 hit to all models within 2" of the barrel.  Any deaths caused by the barrel are attributed for scoring purposes to the archer that shot the barrel.  Number of stockpiles available in the tournament: 4.

At the end of every match, the players will collect the tiles on their board, shuffle them face-down, and replace them on the board.  Any tiles not revealed during the match are included in the shuffle.  Locations for the placement of the tiles will be marked with tape before the beginning of the tournament for ease of placement.

V.  Registration
List Registration: To register for the tournament, post your list in the comments below, noting your army leader, whether you are running a Warbands/LOME scheme, any army alliances, and the total number of units in your army.  Warband armies should be arranged and divided into their separate warbands, and LOME forces should be divided into at least three detachments, each with at least one hero (if possible).
Deadline: All submissions must be uploaded at least 48 hours before the tournament (9:59:59 a.m. +1 second on Thursday, 10/17).  Any army lists entered after the stated deadline will be considered as having been ambushed by a large wandering hoard of cave trolls, and will not be allowed to participate in the tournament due to dismemberment, bereavement, and our general disdain for the grotesque in front of small children (there's humor for you, ;)  All that to say: please get your lists in before the deadline, :) ).
Written in Steel: "Do not trust anything not written in steel," as Sanderson puts it, and we follow the same rule at this tournament.  Once the submission is in, it may not be edited, rescinded, or in any other way modified, except by the tournament director in the event that a list does not conform to the rules set forth in Section I above.
Day-Of Procedures: All competitors should arrive 20-30 minutes in advance of the first round, prepared to give the following items to the tournament director: 1) A complete army list organized by detachment or warband (based on scheme), 2) The complete profile stats for all models in your force, and 3) The total unit count, break point, and 25% number for your army (all fractions should be rounded down: an army with 37 models has a break point of 19 models and reaches 25% at 9 models).  Players who fail to meet these three requirements will not be considered eligible to compete in the tournament until the list is provided.  If the submission causes a delay in the completion of a game, the match will be credited as a Major Loss to the competitor delaying the tournament, and his opponent will be awarded a Major Victory.

We look forward to a great day of fun and fellowship with you all, and wish the best to all competitors!

Centaur

"I set myself against what is lurking in this forest, Bane - yes, with humans alongside me if I must." ~ Firenze, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone