Last updated: June 09, 2024
League Rules
Official Rules of the Dominion League
The changelog for the Rules and Regulations can be found here.
Contents
- Registration
- League Structure
- Conduct
- Match Structure
- Standings
- Scheduling
- Drops and Suspensions
- Moderation
- Amendments
1. Registration
1.1. Membership requirements
To join the Dominion League, you must meet all these requirements:
1.1.1. You have a Dominion Online account with 10 or more rated 2-player games. You do not need to purchase a subscription to Dominion Online.
1.1.2. You are a member of the Dominion (by Donald X Vaccarino) Discord server.
1.1.3. You are not already playing in the Dominion League with any other Dominion Online or Discord accounts.
1.1.4. You have basic English language proficiency, so you can communicate with the moderators and your opponents.
1.1.5. Your username and profile picture comply with the conduct rules in 3.3.
1.1.6. You are able to commit both the necessary time to play your matches, and the necessary time to coordinate with your opponents via Discord to schedule your matches. Note that while playing your matches will require approximately two hours per week during the season, you will usually need more available time than this, in order to accommodate your opponents’ schedules. In particular, you are likely to need some availability on weekends.
1.1.7. You are not currently suspended (see 7.2).
1.2. Signing up
If you meet all the requirements per 1.1 and are not playing in the current season, you may fill out the sign-up form for the upcoming season. A moderator will review your submission and contact you via Discord. Until they do, your participation is not confirmed.
1.2.1. After the sign-up deadline passes, you may still sign up for the waiting list. If spots open up during the early weeks of a season, moderators may fill them with players from the waiting list, depending on skill and time zone. Players who have dropped from the current season may not re-enter via the wait list.
1.2.2. If you have previously played in the Dominion League under a different account than the one you’re signing up with, let a moderator know.
1.3. Returning
If you are playing in the current season and would like to join the next season, fill out the Returning Form linked in your division’s Discord channel. Otherwise, you will by default leave the League after the current season.
1.4. Hiatus
Depending on the number of seasons since you last participated in the League, you may retain your previous tier placement, or you may be placed as a new player. See Tier Placement (2.4) and Flex Divisions (2.5) for details.
1.4.1. A short break is a break of up to 2 consecutive seasons.
1.4.2. A medium break is a break of between 3 and 5 consecutive seasons.
1.4.3. A long break is a break of 6 or more consecutive seasons.
1.5. Accounts
You may switch your Dominion Online or Discord account at any time by letting your moderator know, but you may not join the League additional times using other accounts.
2. League Structure
2.1. Pacing
Each season lasts 6 weeks. Breaks between seasons alternate between 2 and 3 weeks. The September break is 4 weeks instead of 3 due to the Shuffle iT Championship tournament.
2.2. Divisions
A division is a group of typically 6 players who will play each other during a season. Each division is assigned a moderator from the League moderator team. The number of divisions depends on the number of players.
2.3. Tiers
Divisions (2.2) are grouped into tiers. The Dominion League has 11 tiers, identified by letters A through K.
2.3.1. Tiers A through C always have exactly 1, 2, and 4 divisions respectively.
2.3.2. Tiers D and E have a minimum of 4 divisions each.
2.3.3. Tiers F through K have a minimum of 6 divisions each. If there are not enough players to meet this requirement, tiers will be eliminated as necessary.
2.3.4. A tier can have no more than twice as many divisions as the tier above it. If there are too many players to meet this requirement, tiers will be added as necessary.
2.3.5. Excluding the bottom tier, a tier must have at least as many divisions as the tier above it, minus one.
2.4. Tier Placement
Players are placed into tiers using the following criteria, in order:
2.4.1. Players who played in the previous season are placed into their tier from that season, unless they earned a promotion or demotion (5.3), in which case they are placed according to the promotion and demotion rules.
2.4.2. Players returning to the League after a short break (1.4.1) are placed into the tier they would have most recently returned to, starting with the players who played most recently, and with ties broken by seeding (2.6). If there is insufficient space in a tier to accommodate players returning from a short break, one or more flex divisions (2.5) will be created.
2.4.3. Players returning to the League after a medium break (1.4.2) are placed into the tier they would have most recently returned to, or the tier they would be placed into as a new player (2.4.4), whichever is higher. Slots are filled starting with A tier and working downward. If there is insufficient space in a given tier to accommodate players returning from a medium break, they will be placed in the highest possible tier below that tier that can accommodate them without needing a flex division to do so, starting with the players who played most recently, and with ties broken by seeding (2.6).
2.4.4. Players returning to the League after a long break (1.4.3), and players joining the League for the first time, are placed into tiers based on their Dominion Online level. Levels will be collected at a time specified on the sign-up page. If there is insufficient space in a tier to accommodate players exceeding the strict level cutoff, one or more flex divisions (2.5) will be created.
2.4.5. If there are still open spots in a tier, players in the tier below may receive free promotions to fill them. See 5.5 for details.
2.5. Flex Divisions
Divisions usually have a maximum of 6 players. However, divisions may “flex” up to a size of 7 players in order to accommodate players returning from a short break (1.4, 2.4.2) or particularly highly-rated players (2.4.4). Free promotions (5.5) are only used to fill divisions up to the normal maximum of 6 players.
2.6. Seeding
Each tier of players is split into divisions by a seeding algorithm. For all divisions in the same tier (and in the same time zone region, for tiers E and below), players are split into 4 groups: new players, players who demoted from the tier above, players who promoted from the tier below, and players returning to the same tier. These groups are distributed as evenly as possible.
2.6.1. In a random order, new players are placed into divisions, starting with the last division of the tier.
2.6.2. In a random order, players who demoted are placed into divisions, starting with the first division of the tier.
2.6.3. In a random order, players who promoted are placed into divisions, starting with the first division of the tier.
2.6.4. The players returning to the same tier randomly fill in the remaining spots.
3. Conduct
3.1 Behavior
You are expected to treat all players with respect at all times. Examples of inappropriate actions include rage quitting, intentionally slow playing, and unexpectedly or suddenly changing the match arrangements per 4.7.
3.2. Communication
Be kind and polite when communicating with players and moderators. Examples of inappropriate communications include swearing, harassment, and excessive complaints of luck.
3.2.1. All League communication should be through Discord or dominion.games. Do not use external apps like WhatsApp or Facebook for League communications.
3.3. Username and profile picture
Your username and profile picture may not contain any inappropriate content. If your username or profile picture are inappropriate, a moderator will reach out to you to request you change them. You are required to comply with any such request in order to play in the Dominion League.
3.4. Play to the best of your ability
Always play your matches as competitively as possible. Even if your promotion or demotion status is guaranteed, the games likely have an effect on the statuses of the other players in your division or on their tiebreakers. Noncompetitive behavior is unfair to your opponents and may result in a suspension per 7.2.
3.4.1. If you have played a game to the best of your ability and you believe you have no chance of winning the game, you may resign it.
3.4.2. You may never forfeit a game when it is too early or too unclear to assess a winner. In addition to a warning or suspension as appropriate, a moderator will ask you to play out any games that were forfeited.
3.4.3. You may not collude with other players or otherwise compromise the competitive integrity of your matches.
3.5. Dominion Online Terms of Service
In addition to following Dominion League conduct guidelines, you are expected to adhere to the Dominion Online Terms of Service.
3.6. Misconduct
If you witness or experience any misconduct, including but not limited to the examples listed in 3.1, please alert a moderator immediately and share any screenshot evidence you have. Depending on the severity of the misconduct, the offending player may be warned or suspended per 7.2.
4. Match Structure
4.1. Matches
A match is 6 games between the same two players. Each player plays one match against each other player in their division.
4.1.1. Matches must be played on Dominion Online.
4.2. Playing sessions
A playing session is a series of one or more games between the same two players, where consecutive games take place no more than 24 hours apart.
4.2.1. Matches may comprise one or more playing sessions.
4.2.2. The League recommends you complete all 6 games of a match on the same day in a single playing session.
4.2.3. You may not change your banned, disliked, and liked cardlists during a playing session.
4.3. Outside help
During games, you may not attempt to gain a competitive advantage by using tools or resources external to the Dominion Online client other than those maintained by the League on the Dominion League Resources page.
4.3.1. The Dominion League Resources page may be consulted privately or publicly at any time.
4.3.2. Examples of using disallowed external tools and resources include: consulting with friends, family, or spectators; reading wiki or strategy articles; seeking advice on Discord; taking physical or digital notes; and using a deck tracker.
4.4. Starting player
Each player should go first 3 times in a 6 game match. It is each player’s responsibility to ensure that they get 3 starts in a match.
4.4.1. The first game of a match should have a random starting player. This is the default setting when creating a new table on Dominion Online.
4.4.2. Starting player should alternate for the remaining games.
4.4.3. If the table host makes a mistake in setting starting player, future games should be used to correct the discrepancy as quickly as possible. For example, if player A starts games 1 and 2, player B should start games 3 and 4. This should be done even if it is not possible for one of the players to receive 3 starts. For example, if player A starts games 1 through 4, player B should start games 5 and 6.
4.4.4. If the table host makes a mistake in setting starting player which is caught during an ongoing game that has not reached turn 2, and if one player cannot reach 3 starts using future games per 4.4.3, either player may request that the game be abandoned. Otherwise, the game must be played out normally.
4.4.5. Games cannot be voided after the fact due to a mismatch in starting player counts.
4.5. Table settings
Games should use the default table settings provided by the Dominion Online client, with the following exceptions:
4.5.1. “Players can see spectator chat” should be off.
4.5.2. The player order should be set per 4.4.
4.5.3. “Card Pool Level” should be set to 10, and there should be two landscape slots. (You will only need to change these settings if your automatch card pool settings are different.)
4.5.4. If neither player has a subscription, the “Disliked” and “Banned” options for “Respected Cards” should be off.
4.6 Table settings reference
The following settings are set by default when you create a new table on Dominion Online. Per 4.5, you should use these settings, but you do not need to set them directly. They are listed here for your information and reference.
4.6.1. “Allow spectators” should be set to Yes.
4.6.2. For games using expansions and a Card Pool Level of 2 or higher, the “Disliked” and “Banned” options for “Respected Cards” should be on. The “Liked” option should be off.
4.6.3. Options for increasing the frequency of recent card releases (e.g. “Extra 2nd Edition” or “Extra Plunder”) should be off.
4.6.4. “Rated game” should be off.
4.6.5. “Show VP counter” should be on.
4.6.6. Under “Kingdom Options”, no particular cards, landscapes, landscape types, or expansions should be selected or excluded. Colonies and Shelters should be set to random. This will result in a randomly-generated kingdom using all cards that either player has access to, with zero to two landscapes and a maximum of one Way. Note that Allies are not considered landscapes, so this can result in kingdoms with up to two landscapes plus an Ally if a Liaison is present. Note that the two landscape slots may not be included by default if your automatch card pool level is set below 10 (see 4.5.3).
4.7. Modifying table settings
By mutual agreement, you and your opponent may change the table settings specified in 4.5 and 4.6 as follows:
4.7.1. You may enable the option to increase the frequency of recent card releases (e.g. “Extra 2nd Edition” or “Extra Plunder”).
4.7.2. You may use the expansion toggles to exclude certain expansions. If you only play with a single expansion, you must turn off all options for “Respected Cards” (“Banned”, “Disliked”, and “Liked”).
4.7.3. You may use the card buttons at the top to require cards from certain expansions.
4.7.4. You may specify a maximum of either one card or one landscape. You cannot agree to use deprecated cards or landscapes.
4.7.5. You may change the Card Pool Level. If you set the Card Pool Level to 1, you must turn off all options for “Respected Cards” (“Banned”, “Disliked”, and “Liked”).
4.7.6. For games using expansions and a Card Pool Level of 2 or higher, you may agree to turn on the “Liked” option for “Respected Cards”.
4.7.7. You may agree to generate a full kingdom using a public 3rd-party kingdom generator, such as the !mix command in Discord. You may not agree to use private 3rd-party kingdom generators, such as phone apps.
4.8. New cards
Per 4.6.6, the default card pool for Kingdom generation each season includes all cards. However, either player may opt to remove new expansions from Kingdom generation.
4.8.1. An expansion is considered new if its initial version was released after the end of the previous Dominion League season. For example, Allies, which was released in the final week of season 50, would be considered new for season 50, but not for season 51.
4.8.2. Previews of expansions are always considered new.
4.8.3. An expansion is not considered new when a new edition is released, even if that edition adds or removes cards.
4.8.4. Promotional cards are not considered new expansions.
4.8.5. Rules changes, wording changes, new card errata, etc., do not cause cards or expansions to be treated as new.
4.9. Undos
Players may have different opinions on which undos should be allowed, if any.
4.9.1. The default policy is that you at least grant all undos that are for small numbers of steps and that did not reveal new game information.
4.9.2. You may choose a different policy regarding which undos you will allow, so long as you announce it to your opponent before the game.
4.10. Timers
Games in the Dominion League do not use a timer.
4.10.1. The “Make (opponent) Resign?” prompt in Dominion Online should only be used to address connection issues and other technical difficulties (see 4.11). It should not be used to enforce speed of play on your opponent.
4.10.2. If you feel that an opponent is playing especially slowly, consider politely requesting that they play more quickly, or reaching out to a moderator.
4.11. Suspending games
If you or your opponent have connection issues, or otherwise cannot continue a game (e.g. due to time constraints), you should suspend the game. Note the game ID, then resign the game. Resigning in this situation will not be considered a loss, and is necessary to ensure the server considers the game completed, as an in-progress game cannot be loaded at a new table. Whenever possible, resign the game before refreshing the website, as you may lose the ability to resign it after refreshing. If you get stuck on the login page, use the “Kick & Resign” button. Use the Load Old Game button to reload the same game another time.
4.11.1. Prior to resuming a suspended game, you may not load the game by ID, practice the kingdom, discuss it with other players, or otherwise study the game.
4.12. Abandoning games
In the rare event of a game which must be abandoned, you should play a new game in its place. Abandoned games do not count toward match completion or match score.
4.12.1. If you or your opponent have connection issues or otherwise cannot continue a game, you should suspend the game (see 4.11) and reload it another time. If the game can’t be reloaded (e.g. due to an internal error or impassable bug), you should abandon the game.
4.12.2. If you and your opponent agree that your current game is a stalemate, you should abandon the game. If you and your opponent don’t agree about a stalemate, then you must play on.
4.12.3. You and your opponent may agree to abandon a game with a Base-only kingdom that was generated by mistake, i.e. because you and/or your opponent did not realize your Dominion Online subscription had expired. This must be done before the start of turn 2. In this case, you or your opponent should extend your subscription before starting a new game. You may not otherwise agree to abandon a game based on the contents of the kingdom.
4.13 Wins and ties
Each game you win is reported as 1 win. Each game you tie is reported as 0.5 wins.
4.13.1. Per Dominion rules, a game with tied VP scores is won by the player who took fewer turns (not counting extra turns).
4.14. Submitting results
After each playing session, you or your opponent should submit the results of that playing session as soon as possible using the Results form linked in your division’s Discord channel.
4.14.1. The results are the total wins and ties per 4.13.
4.14.2. If the match is played across multiple sessions, only submit the games you just played, and the system will add the multiple submissions together.
4.14.3. Only submit results for games that actually happened. Reporting fraudulent results or forfeited games per 3.4.2 may result in a suspension per 7.2.
4.15. Playing under protest
In the case of a disputed rules infraction during a Dominion League game, you should initiate the following procedure:
4.15.1. Inform your opponent that you believe an infraction occurred, and that you’re playing under protest.
4.15.2. Finish playing the game, as well as the rest of your games for that playing session (4.2).
4.15.3. Contact your moderator about the protest and your reasons for it, either directly via Discord, or through the Hotline Form.
4.15.4. The moderators will review the dispute and issue a ruling based on a majority vote. This may result in the disputed game being voided and replayed.
4.16. Extra/non-standard matches
There are several types of matches (adjustment, play-in, and tiebreaker) that take place outside of the normal league season, and differ from standard league matches in various ways. In all respects but those listed below, they follow the standard league match format.
4.16.1. Adjustment and tiebreaker matches are 2-game matches with each player starting one of the games. You and your opponent may play a 4- or 6-game match instead by mutual agreement.
4.16.2. Play-in matches are 6-game matches.
4.16.3. If one player reaches 2.5 or more wins in a 4-game match, or 3.5 or more wins in a 6-game match, they win the match, and there is no need to complete any remaining games.
4.16.4. If the players are tied after completing all games per 4.16.1 or 4.16.2, they play one final game with a random player starting.
4.16.5. If there is still a tie, the player that went second in the last game wins.
4.16.6. A player who does not wish to play one of these matches may concede.
4.16.7. If one player fails to respond promptly or is unable to play, that player concedes by default.
4.16.8. If neither player responds promptly or both respond but cannot arrange the match in the required time, the moderators will randomly choose a winner.
5. Standings
5.1. Standings
The players in each division are ranked by their win rates. This is updated when players submit results per 4.14.
5.2. Tiebreakers
If there is a tie within a division, a head-to-head tiebreaker is applied. If there is still a tie, a tiebreaker match may be required.
5.2.1. Head-to-head tiebreaker
5.2.1.1. Order the players by the total head-to-head wins each player earned from the matches involving only the group of tied players.
5.2.1.2. Break any ties in total head-to-head wins by the total head-to-head wins each player earned from the matches involving only this new group of tied players.
5.2.2. Promotion or demotion implications
5.2.2.1. If an unbroken two-way tie affects promotions, demotions, or entry into the Championship Match, the players play a tiebreaker match. The format for this match is specified in 4.16.
5.2.2.2. If an unbroken three (or more) way tie affects promotions, demotions, or entry into the Championship Match, the moderators will randomly break the tie.
5.2.2.3. Otherwise, all players share the rank of the best tied place.
5.3. Promotions and demotions
At the end of the season, you may earn a spot in a different tier by promoting to a higher tier or demoting a lower tier, based on your place in your division.
5.3.1. You cannot promote from the highest tier or demote from the lowest tier.
5.3.2. Promotion slots
You promote by finishing in first or second place, except under the following circumstances, in which you only promote by finishing in first place:
5.3.2.1. Your tier has at least 1.5 times as many divisions as the tier directly above yours
5.3.2.2. Promoting two players from each division in your tier would cause the tier above it to exceed its maximum size (see 2.3.1 and 2.3.4). Note that divisions are considered to be filled at 6 players, i.e. not flexed (2.5), for the purpose of determining when a tier would exceed its maximum size.
5.3.3. If your division has seven players, and no players dropped before playing any games, you demote by finishing in sixth or seventh place. Otherwise, you demote by finishing in fifth place or sixth place.
5.3.4. If you promote, you rise one tier.
5.3.5. If you demote, you drop one tier.
5.4. Superpromotions
Superpromotions allow you to promote multiple tiers at once, based on how you would be placed as new player.
5.4.1. If you played in tier G or below and finished in first place (including ties), you are eligible for a superpromotion.
5.4.2. If you are eligible, and would be placed higher by the new player placement rules (2.4.4) than by the standard promotion rules (5.3), you superpromote into the higher tier. Note that, in practice, superpromoting players use a different, stricter set of Dominion Online level cutoffs than new players.
5.4.3. You cannot superpromote past E tier. If the new player placement rules (2.4.4) would place you in D tier or higher, you superpromote into E tier instead.
5.5. Free promotions
In order to fill open spots in a tier created by players leaving the League between seasons, players who would play in the tier below may be offered a free promotion. Players are selected as follows:
5.5.1. Players are divided into prioritized groups based on their results from the previous season. In descending order of priority, these are: second place finishers (from the tier below), fifth place finishers (from the target tier), and third place finishers (from the tier below, only eligible if the tier below promoted second place finishers).
5.5.2. Players who tied are considered to have finished in the best tied place for free promotion eligibility.
5.5.3. If there are at least as many open slots in the target tier as eligible players in the highest priority group remaining, all players in this group receive a free promotion. The remaining slots are filled by the next highest priority group.
5.5.4. If the target tier is in tiers A through E, and there are fewer open slots in the target tier than eligible players in the highest priority group remaining, the moderators arrange play-in matches between eligible players. The format for these matches is specified in 4.16.
5.5.5. Depending on the number of slots and eligible players in 5.5.4, eligible players may receive a free promotion, play a play-in match, or neither. Players are ordered by their win percentage from the previous season for determining priority, with ties broken randomly.
5.5.6. If the target tier is tier F or below, and there are fewer open slots in the target tier than eligible players in the highest priority group remaining, the moderators choose players for free promotions at their discretion, taking into account the players’ time zones and win percentages in the previous season.
5.6. Dropped players
The following rules are used to account for dropped players in the standings. See 7.1 for more information about drops.
5.6.1. Dropped players finish last place in their division and will demote, which may affect their placement in subsequent seasons they return to.
5.6.2. If the dropped player played no games, they are removed and the remaining players play one fewer match. If possible, the moderators will replace them with a player from the waiting list.
5.6.3. Adjustment match determination
If a dropped player played any games, adjustment matches may be needed to determine promotions or demotions. The format of adjustment matches is specified in 4.16. The following procedure determines whether an adjustment match is required:
5.6.3.1. Order all remaining players by win percentage in games that were played and note who promotes and who demotes.
5.6.3.2. Order all remaining players by win percentage in games not involving the dropped players and note who promotes and who demotes.
5.6.3.3. If the promoters (or demoters) are not the same in both scenarios, then the players who promote (or demote) in one scenario, but not the other, play an adjustment match.
5.6.3.4. If the players with promotion (or non-demotion) claims played the same number of games against each dropped player, only the all games played scenario (5.6.3.1) is considered.
5.6.3.5. If there is an unbroken tie (see 5.2) for promotion or non-demotion in at least one of the scenarios, the tied players play an adjustment match. They do not play a tiebreaker match.
5.6.3.6. If a player promotes in one scenario and demotes in the other, then that player doesn’t play in any adjustment matches and doesn’t promote or demote.
5.6.3.7. If more than two players have promotion (or non-demotion) claims, the moderators will determine what adjustment matches are needed, if any, at their discretion.
5.7. Championship match
After the normal matches of A1 are complete, the players in first place and second place play a second 6-game Championship Match to determine the Dominion League Champion of the season.
5.7.1. The Championship Match uses the same rules as a standard League match (4), except that starting player in the first game is whichever player is in first place. In the case of an unbroken tie, starting player in the first game is chosen randomly.
5.7.2. The Dominion League Champion is the player with the higher total wins from their normal matches and the Championship Match.
5.7.3. If the players are tied in total wins per 5.7.2, the tiebreaker rules per 5.2 are applied, including the wins from the Championship Match. If there is still a tie, they play one final game and the winner is the Champion. If that final game is tied, the player who went second is the Champion.
5.7.4. All 6 games of the Championship Match should be played, even if the Dominion League Champion is decided sooner.
5.7.5. The date and time of the Championship Match should be decided with sufficient time for the League to find commentators and advertise the match.
5.8. Other tournaments
Games played for other tournaments may not be counted as Dominion League games.
6. Scheduling
6.1. Conflicts of interest
If one of your close friends or family members is in your division, please schedule that match to happen early in the season, to eliminate any temptation for collusion.
6.1.1. If you prefer to avoid this, let a moderator know before the season starts, and the League will try to place you in different divisions. Note that in higher tiers, we are less likely to be able to accommodate your request.
6.2. Deadlines
In order to ensure that matches are completed in a timely fashion, players must meet a number of deadlines throughout the season. All deadlines are on Sundays at 23:59 UTC. We encourage players to stay well ahead of these deadlines - they are not a suggested pace, but the absolute minimum expected. For the purpose of meeting these benchmarks, all scheduled matches must be added to the League calendar via either the League calendar form or the general calendar form (note that you need to specify that the match is a League match on this form), as this makes it easier for both the moderators and our automated systems to track scheduling progress.
6.2.1. At the end of the first week of the season, players who have not checked in to their division may be replaced by players from the waiting list.
6.2.2. At the end of the second week of the season, players should have checked in to their division, scheduled at least one match, or completed at least one match .
6.2.3. At the end of the third week of the season, players should have no more than 4 matches remaining to be played or scheduled. This typically requires having completed and/or scheduled 1 match.
6.2.4. At the end of the fourth week of the season, players should have no more than 3 matches remaining to be played or scheduled. This typically requires having completed and/or scheduled 2 matches.
6.2.5. At the end of the fifth week of the season, players should have no more than 2 matches remaining to be played or scheduled. This typically requires having completed and/or scheduled 3 matches.
6.2.6. At the end of the sixth and final week of the season, players should have completed all of their matches. This typically requires having completed 5 matches.
6.2.7. By default, the moderators will drop and suspend (see 7) players who fail to meet these deadlines and do not request an extension (see 6.3), though they may waive the drop and/or the suspension at their discretion in response to extenuating circumstances.
6.3. Extensions
If you are unable to meet one of the deadlines specified in 6.2, you must request an extension from your moderator by that deadline.
6.3.1. If you are in tier A and you are requesting an extension to the end-of-season deadline (6.2.6), you may request an extension of up to 3 days. In all other cases, you may request an extension of up to 7 days. If you do not request an extension, or if you still have not met the deadline by the end of the extension period, you will be dropped and suspended by default per 6.2.7.
6.3.2. You can only request an extension if you are not currently behind on any prior deadlines for the season. This means that any scheduling you need to do for an extension from a prior week must be completed before you can request another extension; similarly, you cannot request an extension for a deadline that you have already missed.
6.3.3. To receive an extension for the end-of-season deadline (6.2.6), you must schedule an uncompleted match with your opponent. Provide the date and time to your moderator when you request it. For any other extension request, you must include a plan for how you will catch up to the expected pace of scheduling.
6.3.4. Extensions only apply to the week they are requested for. If you need another extension for a later week in the season, you will need to make another request.
6.3.5. Although moderators will grant extension requests in most cases, they are not required to do so. In particular, players who abuse the extension system/consistently fail to meet deadlines may be denied extensions.
6.3.6. Moderators will announce all granted extension requests in the division channel.
6.4. Difficulty scheduling
If you have any scheduling issues, inform your moderator.
6.4.1. If you are going to be unavailable for a significant chunk of time during the season, make a post in your division channel explaining the situation and tagging your division and your moderator.
6.4.2. If you are going to be late to a scheduled match, or need to reschedule, inform your opponent as soon as possible.
6.4.3. If your opponent is 15 minutes late to a scheduled match, fails to show up at all, or cancels at the last minute, inform your moderator.
6.4.4. Players who are repeatedly in violation of 6.4.2 may be warned or suspended per 7.2.
7. Drops and Suspensions
7.1. Drops
Players may be dropped from the League during the season. All drops are subject to a suspension by default (see 7.2).
7.1.1. If you are unable to complete your League season for any reason, contact your division moderator for a voluntary drop. Your reason(s) for needing to drop will be considered by the moderator team when deciding whether to apply a suspension.
7.1.2. Players may be involuntarily dropped due to unresponsiveness, failure to play matches in a timely manner, or misconduct (see 3.6).
7.2. Suspensions
All suspensions occur, and may be waived, at the discretion of the moderator team. Players who are suspended may not participate in the Dominion League for the duration of their suspension.
7.2.1. Suspension durations refer to seasons after the current/active season. A 1 season suspension assigned during season 40 would mean that the suspended player could play again during season 42.
7.2.2. The default suspension duration for dropping out of a League season (see 7.1) is 2 seasons. In addition, players who are dropped for being unresponsive must explain their inactivity to a moderator before they may sign up for the League again.
7.2.3. Other types of misconduct (see 3.6 and 6.4.4) will be subject to a warning or suspension per discretion of the moderator team.
8. Moderation
8.1. Contacting the moderators
You should notify your division moderator via Discord direct message of any issues you have. Direct messages with a moderator about League matters may be shared with the other moderators for the team to resolve together. For other questions, feedback, etc., see our contact page.
8.2. Moderators may play
Moderators are allowed, but not required, to play in the League.
8.3. Moderator responsibilities
8.3.1. Moderators are assigned divisions to be the primary point of contact for those divisions. They are never assigned divisions in the tier they play in. They are responsible for checking up on players who have fallen behind and dropping those who are non-responsive for a considerable period of time (see 7.1).
8.3.2. Moderators are responsible for adjudicating any disputed rules infractions, including ruling on protested games (see 4.15).
8.4. Meeting minutes
Whenever the moderators gather for an official meeting at which rules may change, the agenda of the meeting and the outcome of any votes, including the number dissenting, will be made public within a week of the meeting. This will happen at least once per season.
8.5. Recruiting new moderators
The moderator team follows this process to recruit new moderators:
8.5.1. The moderator application is always open.
8.5.2. The existing moderator team reviews applications during week 2 of the season.
8.5.3. The moderators may accept none, some, or all of the applicants.
8.5.4. Onboarding/shadowing of new moderators begins during week 3 of the season.
9. Amendments
9.1. Passing amendments
These rules may be amended by a majority vote of the moderators.
9.1.1. Moderators may vote “no opinion”, in which case their vote doesn’t count towards establishing or preventing a majority. This also applies to other moderator votes, including rulings on protested games (4.15).
9.1.2. Major changes, such as those affecting promotion and demotion, will never be made mid-season.
9.1.3. Whenever possible, the moderators will announce major changes at least 1 season before the changes go into effect.
9.2. Changelog
The moderators maintain a changelog for these rules. It includes the effective dates of all such changes.
9.3. Waiving rules
The moderators may waive rules or make exceptions for the current season if and only if all the directly affected players and a majority of the moderators agree to do so.