General Rules

• Register on the website. The team creator is the primary captain.
• Rosters contain six to nine players, including one primary captain and up to two secondary captains. Out-of-region players are unrestricted.
• Rosters lock when registration closes. Invite teams may add up to two players between qualifiers and their next stage, through website transfers with administrator approval.

• Use the league's map pool and whitelist. The server provider must load the appropriate AsiaFortress Sixes configuration.
• 5CP: first to five. If neither team reaches five in regulation, the overtime target is the current highest score plus one.
• KOTH: first to four.
• Pause to remove prohibited items promptly. This does not use the normal pause allowance.

Qualifiers

All teams play eight best-of-one rounds across two weekends, two games per day. Pairings use ratings; times are fixed. No rescheduling. The highest-rated six teams enter Invite; the rest enter Open.

Open

Four BO3 rounds with rating-based pairings within Open. The highest-rated four teams advance to double-elimination playoffs.

Invite

Six teams enter double-elimination playoffs directly. Seeds 1–2 receive byes; opening matches are 3 vs 6 and 4 vs 5.

Playoffs and ratings

• Playoffs are BO3, with a BO5 grand final and no bracket reset.
• Main-season standings reset; ratings carry over. Earlier results remain in the stage tabs.
• Ratings use confirmed results with verified logs. Byes, forfeits, and tied series do not count.

• Use the match thread on the website for scheduling, server details, map choices, mercenary approvals, and disputes. Reply within 24 hours.
• Regular-season and playoff time changes require mutual agreement within the published match window. Otherwise, the default time applies. State the timezone.
• The weekly deadline is the following Monday, 23:59 SGT, unless the league specifies otherwise. Unplayed matches may be decided by coin flip, with both teams receiving a forfeit penalty.
• Coordinate late Invite playoff rounds with Vytal, the opponent, and casters in the match thread.
• Use the assigned opening map; otherwise, the home team chooses. The previous map's loser chooses the next map from the pool.

Attendance

• At least five players are required to ready up.
• The initial grace period is ten minutes. Once one team is ready, the opponent has five minutes to ready, subject to that grace period. A team not ready 15 minutes after the scheduled start forfeits.
• Breaks between maps are ten minutes unless both teams agree otherwise. Attendance rules apply when the break ends.

Pauses

• Any player may pause. Each team has two pauses per map, up to five minutes each. Repauses for reconnecting players do not count.
• Explain pauses immediately in all-chat or the website's match thread. Do not spam chat.
• The pausing team announces readiness; the opponent should unpause within one minute. For disputes, contact an administrator. Do not force an unpause or restart.

Singapore is the default. Either team may request a ping check across Singapore, Hong Kong, and Korea, comparing:

abs(average team 1 ping - average team 2 ping)

Use the server's dedicated ping-test command when available.

Other locations require administrator approval. Servers must support the current AsiaFortress Sixes configuration.

A mercenary is a player outside the registered roster. Identify both the mercenary and replaced player in the website's match thread. Mercenaries must be eligible and not league-banned; the requesting team is responsible for violations, including cheating and alternate accounts. Abuse may lead to withdrawn privileges or overturned results.

• Free mercenaries are not allowed.
• Qualifiers: one administrator-approved mercenary per round, restricted to the approved replacement class, including last-point defence. Record approval in the match thread.
• Other stages: opponent approval is required. After up to three proposals, either team may ask an administrator to intervene. Administrators may review unreasonable requests or refusals.

• The winning captain submits scores and logs through the match page's results form.
• Include logs.tf links for every played map and every half. Combined logs may cover multiple halves.
• The opponent uses Confirm Score or Challenge Score on the match page. Request administrator review in the match thread if needed.
• Record POV demos and provide them for administrator checks when requested.
• For disputes during play, pause and request administrator review in the website's match thread. Dispute pauses do not use the normal allowance. Do not force an unpause or restart.

• Teams may forfeit once in qualifiers and up to twice in the regular season. A playoff forfeit or more than two forfeits overall means disqualification without medals.
• Medal recipients must remain rostered at season end, complete the competition, and follow the rules.
• Invite and Open award first-, second-, and third-place medals, plus participant medals for eligible finishers.