Trench War Leagues Mission Statement
Trench Wars Leagues (TWL) is the premier competitive league in Trench Wars. It is designed for serious squads which are interested in competing against the best in the zone.
Participation is by invitation and is a privilege, not a right. This privilege can be revoked for any player or squad by the League Operators given sufficient reasoning.
TWL Contacts
The League Operators can be reached at twlstaff@yahoo.com
TWL Updates
Trench Wars Leagues rules can be revised at any time by the League Operators, but notice will be given on the official TWL site and on the official TWL forums prior to said rules coming into effect.
TWL Rules Organization
The rules are divided into two sections; League Rules and Player Conduct Rules. If you participate in Trench Wars leagues you are agreeing to all of the rules contained within this document.. As such, you should read and understand the rules before playing. If you have any questions, need clarification, or have suggestions for improvement, please contact the TWL operators.
TWL Offense Definitions
Warnings
Team Warnings and Player Warnings are independent from each other. Warnings are given at the discretion of the league operators and cannot be appealed. All Warning decisions are final.
Team Warning - A team can receive one warning per season without further action being necessitated. If a second Team Warning is issued to a squad, the warning elevates to a Class 2 Offense and the squad is suspended from taking part in the remaining league games.
Player Warning - A player can receive one warning per season without further action. If a second player warning is issued to a player, the warning elevates to a Class 2 Offense and the player is suspended from taking part in the remaining league games.
Offenses
Team Offenses and Player Offenses are independent from each other. They are mandatory after a second Warning but can be appealed. If the appeal is successful, the associated Warning is also removed. Note that Offenses are not mutually exclusive, and, in some situations, both a Team Offense and Player Offense can be issued for the same infraction.
Class 1 Offenses
Class 1 Team Offense – Results in the forfeiture of the TWL match in which the offense occurred.
Class 1 Player Offense – Results in a one round suspension
Class 2 Offenses
Class 2 Team Offense – Results in squad termination from TWL for the remaining season
Class 2 Player Offense – Results in player termination from TWL for the remaining season
Class 3 Offenses
Class 3 Team Offense – Results in permanent squad suspension from TWL participation. Furthermore, in severe circumstances, as determined by the TWL Operators, the players captaining the squad in question will be forbidden from captaining TWL squads in the future.
Class 3 Player Offense – Results in permanent player suspension from TWL participation
In the event of a Class 2 or Class 3 Team Offense any player which did not receive a Player Offense can rejoin another squad if hard lock or soft locks are not in effect.
Contents
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1. TWL Qualification Requirements
1.02 Gameplay Qualification Requirements
5. Replaying of Interrupted Matches and Postponements
5.01 Resolved within 15 minutes
5.02 Resolved after 15 minutes
5.03 Postponed Games & Available Time Slot
5.04 Postponed Games - Replay Week
6. Scheduling Rules and Procedures
6.02 Failing to Propose a Time (Both Captains)
6.03 Failing to Propose a Time (1 Captain)
6.04 Submitting a time 48 hours after the first Proposal
7.01 Line-ups and the Extra 2 Minutes
8. Gameplay Rules for Dueling and Javelins
8.05 Check Eligibility before Start of Game
8.08 Fighting outside of the Base
9.07 Check Eligibility before the Start of the Game
10.01 Multiple Squad Membership
11. Appeals Process and Guidelines
11.01 24-hour Statute of Limitations
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All Trench Wars League squads must be registered at twd.trenchwars.org and must have
A minimum of:
5 eligible members for TWLD or TWLJ
8 eligible members for TWLB
A maximum of:
15 eligible TWL members for a squad participating in only TWLD or TWLJ.
20 eligible TWL members for a squad participating in only TWLB or in any 2 leagues.
25 eligible TWL members for a squad participating in 3 leagues.
Each squad is allowed to have a total of 3 Captains and 8 Assistant Captains. All Captains must be registered as such with Trench Wars Leagues. The squadowner is the only member capable of voluntary removal from the league, which includes dissolving the squad.
Squad owners and Captains are responsible for their squad. This includes making sure all of their players are eligible for the games on the TWL website.
In order to be eligible for Trench Wars League game play, each player must:
Be registered at twl.trenchwars.org with the appropriate squad, as well as be a registered member of Trench Wars Divisions.
Be listed for game play on the TWL roster found on the TWL website.
Be eligible to play after the Standard Waiting Period.
Not be serving a suspension from Trench Wars League gameplay.
TWL rosters will be frozen every Thursday 11:59 PM EST/EDT and will be unfrozen every Sunday 11:59 PM EST/EDT of the TWL season until the hard lock.
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Each squad must play a minimum of 15 TWD games in their respective division in order to qualify for TWL consideration. This includes replacement squads and auto-qualified Finalists.
In order to qualify for TWL, a squad must fit into one of TWO categories:
Be one of 2 finalists from last TWL in their league division.
Be the highest ranked on the TWD ladder with the minimum number of games played in their league division.
NOTE: Last seasons TWL finalists will be asked first, then remaining league places will be filled by squads which have qualified.
Invitations will be sent to the two Finalists from the previous season so long as they have played enough games in that division in the qualifying period for this season. Invitations will then be sent to squads with enough games played beginning with the highest ranked until enough squads have accepted.
TWLD will allow 10 squads.
TWLJ will allow 8 squads.
TWLB will allow 8 squads.
Upon determining the qualifying squads, TWL Operators will make a thread on the forum detailing the qualifying squads that are invited to participate in a given season. Squad Captains must accept the invitation by posting on this thread within one week of the invitation being sent. Alternatively Squad Captains can ?message a TWL Operator to accept their invitation.       Â
Trench Wars Leagues is composed of three separate league divisions:
Trench Wars League - Dueling (TWLD) which features 5 vs. 5 Warbirds
Trench Wars League - Javelin (TWLJ) which features 5 vs. 5 Javelins
Trench Wars League - Basing (TWLB) which features 8 vs. 8 Basing
All Trench Wars Leagues divisions will have a full regular season with schedules randomly assigned. The length of the regular season and number of games will be decided before the season starts at the discretion of league operators.       Â
If a squad does not field the maximum number of players in the appropriate league division at the start of the game a Team Warning is issued. A squad is allowed to play 5 vs. 4 (TWLD and TWLJ) or 8 vs. 7 (TWLB) under the Team Warning.
If a squad is unable to field 4 players in TWLD and TWLJ or 7 players in TWLB at the start of a round a Class 1 Team Offense will be issued immediately.
Adding an ineligible player into the game results in a Class 1 Team offense will be issued immediately.       Â
If a squad is removed from the league during the season, it will be replaced by the highest-ranking team on the TWD ladder which is currently not in that division of Trench Wars Leagues. Replacement squads that join during a season in progress will start out with a 0-0 record and replace the disqualified squad. Because it is important that the league is not held up, replacement squads must respond to the invitation as soon as possible or else the next best squad will be asked and so on. To be considered as a replacement squad, the squad meet or exceed all requirements for outlined in Section 1.
The Standard Waiting Period for roster eligibility goes as follows: Any player joining a squad for participation in Trench Wars League (this includes changing names) after the last match of Round 1 will be subject to a 1 week Waiting Period after being added to the TWL roster by the Captain. After 1 week has elapsed they can play for their squad so long as they are not breaching the hard lock rules.
The waiting period will be waived for a player that meets one of the following conditions:
Have been a member of the squad since before their squad qualified and have never been on the TWL roster for the current season.
Name change is due to their staff position.
All Trench Wars League rosters will experience a hard lock after the last Round 2 match. This means that no more roster additions will be allowed.       Â
TWL playoffs will follow the regular season and only the top 8 teams of the regular season will advance. The top 8 will be based on their regular season win-loss records, with any ties settled using 4.08 Playoff ties.
By the end of TWL regular season, if two teams have the same record in a league, the playoff spot will be awarded to the team that defeated the other in the regular season. If the teams both won a match against each other, in the league in question, then in TWLD/TWLJ the team with the fewest deaths across those 2 matches will advance or in TWLB the most flag time. If they happened to be tied in the matches against each other it will go to the team with the fewest deaths across the entire season for TWLD/TWLJ or most flag time across the season for TWLB.
 If Team A beat B, B beat C, and C beat A, the team with the most total kills (TWLD/TWLJ) or most total  flag time (TWLB) over the whole regular season will be awarded the playoff spot.If more than two teams are tied, the winner of regular season games between them will get the spot (e.g. Team A beats Team B and C in regular season, then Team A advances).
If a replacement squad is tied with another squad for playoffs, the squad that played in TWL longer will win the playoff spot.
Any other subsequent amount of ties will be further discussed by League Staff.
Note: Ties will be resolved in the order they are written above.
If an unpredictable server crash, router failure, server lag, TWLBot failure, flag jupe, or any other event has an impact on a game in progress as determined by the referee, the match will be cancelled and all current scores discarded. The game will then be replayed at a later time.       Â
In the event that all technical difficulties are resolved within 15 minutes of the scheduled time period, the match will be played immediately.       Â
If all technical difficulties are resolved after the 15 minutes of the scheduled time period, and if the game slots allow it, the match can be replayed immediately with consent from the captains.       Â
For a postponed game, players eligible for the game depend on the current roster. The squad will be limited to players eligible during the week the game was postponed.
If a game is not resolved as defined above, a postponed game can be replayed in an available time slot of the same weekend provided that all technical difficulties have been resolved and both captains agree on the game time.
In the event that a match cannot be replayed in the same weekend, it will be postponed until the replay week. The game time of the match will be decided using the standard scheduling rules.
All three leagues will have a total of twenty-two time slots to choose from each week. There are eleven (11) slots on Saturday which begin from 1:00 PM to 6:00 PM EDT/EST (1800 - 2300 GMT), and eleven (11) slots on Sunday which begin from 1:00 PM to 6:00 PM EDT/EST (1800 - 2300 GMT).
There will be a total of five (5) available games per time slot (exceptions will be made in certain circumstances).
If a time slot is filled, another must be negotiated and chosen. Only 3 games of one league division are allowed in one slot (exceptions can occur). Only designated squad Captains and Co-Captains can negotiate for available time slots. No other squad member is allowed to negotiate for available time slots.
All squads will be given a chance to negotiate and mutually agree upon an acceptable time for their games. Scheduling for games will begin on Mondays at 12:01 AM EDT/EST (500 GMT) and conclude on Thursday at 6:00 PM EDT/EST (2300 GMT).       Â
If neither squad enters a time into negotiation on the website or if a time cannot be agreed upon by both squads, the League Operator will assign it. The League Operator will choose a time slot between 2:00 PM and 4:00 PM EDT/EST (1900 - 2100 GMT) on either Saturday or Sunday. Any time slot between 1:00 PM and 6:00 PM EDT/EST (1800, 2300 GMT) can be chosen if no other slots are available.       Â
If one squad captain fails to enter a proposed time in negotiation, the other captain's proposed time will be automatically accepted, unless this conflicts with another already mutually agreed game.
If a squad captain submits a proposed time more than 48 hours after the other captain's proposal, or does not offer a proposal before Thursday at 6:00 PM EDT/EST (2300 GMT), the first captain to propose a time is automatically rewarded their time so long as it does not conflict with an already agreed match. If both squads agree to a time after the deadline, they can petition the League Operator to alter the assigned time.
There is no guarantee that this time slot will be granted.       Â
All Trench Wars League games will be held in designated TWLB, TWLD, and TWLJ arenas. All league games and their assigned arenas will be announced by a zone wide advertisement a few minutes before the match is due to start. An appointed ER or moderator will referee a league game.
All persons in the arena must obey the appointed referee and Trench Wars League rules. Some games can have multiple referees, but they will be announced before the round begins.
The host will send a command to the TWLBot that will allow both squads to add players to a squad assigned frequency. Only squad members are allowed on the chosen frequency. Referees can join that frequency if the need arises. Squad members who are not playing and wish to join their team's private frequency can do so by private messaging the attending TWLBot with !myfreq.       Â
At the scheduled time or shortly following the game's announcement, squad captains or an appointed representative will have 5 minutes to submit a valid line-up. TWLB matches have 7 minutes setup time. An additional 2 minutes can be requested for TWLD or TWLJ matches only.       Â
Not submitting a valid line-up within the allotted time results in a Team Warning and is a Class 1 Team Offense.       Â
TWLD/TWLJ - Players are allowed a maximum of 3 lag-outs per game. Lag-out handling is done automatically, and a player who has lagged out can re-enter the game by private messaging the attending TWLBot with !lagout. Once a player has reached the maximum lag-out amount, the player can be replaced by a substitute if one is available. If none is available, the player will be placed on their squad's frequency and they will keep their personal score as is, but their slot will be automatically assigned 10 deaths as if they died out.
TWLB - Players are allowed an infinite amount of lag-outs per game. Lag-out handling is done automatically, and a player who has lagged out can reenter the game by private messaging the attending TWLBot with !lagout. Players who lag-out of a game will be forced to wait for a period of 15-seconds before the attending TWLBot will allow re-entry.
Players have 3 minutes to return from a lag-out. If they do not return, the slot will be assigned 10 deaths in TWLD/TWLJ unless a substitution is made. There is no time limit to return after a lag-out in TWLB. If a player lags out, returns, and immediately lags out before they can change to their frequency, it will not be deemed a lag-out.       Â
In TWLD and TWLJ squads will be allowed to submit a maximum starting line-up of 5 eligible players. Captains must add in 5 eligible players within the allotted line up time. A squad can play with only 4 eligible players by the end of the line-up time but they will be warned, the second time will be treated as a Class 2 Team Offense. Squads unable to field at least 4 eligible players by the end of of the allotted line up time will be issued with a Class 1 Team Offense.       Â
In TWLD there will be a resolution limit for all matches. The maximum limits are 1280 x 1024 or 1440 x 900. 1440 x 1024 will be an illegal resolution, players using illegal resolutions will be deemed ineligible and will be treated as a Class 1 player and Class 1 Team Offense.
TWLJ has no resolution limit.
If a player has been found over the lag limits and has been removed from the game by a referee or TWL Operator they will be classed as ineligible.The player can not play in the match again unless specific approval has been given by a TWL Operator. This includes substitutions.
Any players that have been classed as ineligible can not play, adding an ineligible player is a Class 1 team Offense.       Â
Each squad will be allowed to have two (2) substitutes for each game. Substitutes must be registered and eligible members of that squad. Squad captains and assistant captains can use their available substitutes at any time during the match. The substitute will be placed in the game with the amount of lives left for the slot that they substituted. Registered squad captains and assistant captains can substitute players by private messaging the attending TWBot with !sub.       Â
Once a game commences, captains can enable a public chat-only blueout by private messaging the TWLbot with !blueout.       Â
If you are unsure of the eligibility of any of your players, it is imperative that you contact a TWL operator well before the match begins. This way, you can avoid being disqualified due to playing ineligible players. It is the captains responsibility to add a correct lineup.       Â
Each game will consist of one 30 minute round, and each player will be given a maximum of 10 deaths. In Javelin games, team kills count as deaths. A squad wins if it can successfully eliminate all enemy members within the 30 minutes. If a round reaches the end of 30 minutes, the squad with the least number of deaths collectively will be declared the winner. If scores are tied at 30 minutes, see 8.09 overtime.
There will be no greens available in Trench Wars League Dueling or Javelin arenas except from player deaths. Full charge greens have been eliminated completely from these arenas.
Once the game begins, teams will be warped into a separate safety zone. The game itself will commence after a 30-second waiting period, and all players will be warped to a starting just outside the safety zone.
Warping is allowed in all Trench Wars League Dueling and Javelin matches. All ships are automatically equipped with anti-warp, which can be used by pressing the SHIFT + END keys.       Â
Refusing to fight is allowed.       Â
Fighting outside of base in Trench Wars League Javelin matches is allowed, but note that a player cannot spend more than 15 seconds outside of base, as it will penalize that player with +1 deaths every 15 seconds outside of base, up to 10 losses.
In TWLJ matches a player is liable to receive a death if they warp to the spawn zone from base.       Â
If after 30 minutes game the results is tied in score, a 5-minute overtime period will be played, and will continue directly from the end of regular time with no intermission. If any squad has 50 deaths before the overtime is complete, the other squad will be declared the winner. Otherwise, after the 5-minute overtime, the squad with the least deaths will be declared the winner. If the scores are still tied after the first 5-minute overtime, a second overtime will be played. The same rules as the first overtime apply to the second overtime. If no squad has 50 deaths or fewer deaths at the end of the second overtime then the match will be replayed at a later date.       Â
The Most Valuable Player (MVP) of a game is the player with the most kills at the end of the regulation game period. If two players have the same number of kills, the player with the least number of deaths is declared MVP. MVP is decided by the TWLBot.       Â
All scores and player statistics will be reported automatically to twl.trenchwars.org upon completion of the match. Game statistics from past seasons will also be saved in the website.       Â
Squads will be allowed to submit a maximum starting line-up of 8 eligible players. Captains will have 7 minutes from the start of the match to submit a starting line-up. Captains must add in 8 eligible players within the allotted start up time.A game can start with a minimum of 7 eligible players added, however the team will receive a team warning for the first time and a Class 2 Team Offense for the second time. Teams unable to field at least 7 players in TWLB by the end of the lineup time will receive a Class 1 team offense. Squads cannot request an additional 2 minutes for TWLB matches. There is no resolution limit in TWLB matches.       Â
If a player has been found over the lag limits and has been removed from the game by a referee or TWL Operator they will be classed as ineligible. The player can not play in the match again unless specific approval has been given by a TWL Operator. This includes substitutions. Any players that have been classed as ineligible can not play. Adding an ineligible player is a Class 1 Team Offense.       Â
Each squad can only have a maximum of one Terrier (Ship 5) and two Sharks (Ship 8) per team. The remaining line-up can be compiled with any combination of ships. Use of Leviathans and Weasels is prohibited.
Each squad will be allowed to have 6 ship changes for each game. Registered squad captains and assistant captains can change players by private messaging the attending TWLBot with !change player:# Â - Â # is the ship number you wish to change that player to.
NOTE: Attempting to use !change:8 on a shark already in game will not reset mines but it will use up one of teams changes.
Each squad will be allowed to have 3 substitutes for each game. Substitutes must be eligible members of that squad. The substitute will be placed in the game with a score of 0 points. The removed player will be placed on his/her squad's frequency with their score intact and valid for final calculation. Registered squad captains and assistant captains can substitute players by private messaging the attending TWLBot with !sub Player A:Player B
Player A is the person being subbed out and Player B is the player being subbed in.
Players in the game can switch ships if the squad Captain deems it necessary. Registered squad Captains and assistant captains can switch players by private messaging the attending TWLBot with !switch Player A:Player B, and will be allowed a maximum of 3 per game.
NOTE: Switching 2 sharks will not remove their mines from the game or give them more repels, but will use up one of the teams changes.
Once a game commences, Â captains can enforce a public chat-only blueout by private messaging the TWLBot with !blueout.
If you are unsure of the eligibility of any of your players, it is imperative that you contact a TWL operator well before the match begins. This way you can avoid being disqualified due to playing ineligible players. It is the captains responsibility to make sure all added players are eligible.
Each game will consist of a single round, with the winner being determined as the first squad to hold the flag for 15 minutes
.
Once the game begins, teams will be warped into a separate safety zone. The game itself will commence after a 30-second waiting period, and all players will be warped to a starting point inside the main base flagroom. One squad will be warped to the center of the upper-left flagroom chamber and the other squad will be warped to the center of the upper-right flagroom chamber.
If a game ends by result of a forfeit, the losing squad will be given a score of 0 minutes for and 15 minutes against (0:00 - 15:00), and the winning squad will receive a score of 15 minutes for and 0 minutes against (15:00 - 0:00).
The Most Valuable Player will be given to the player who collected the highest rating.       Â
All scores and player statistics will be reported automatically to twl.trenchwars.org upon completion of the match. Game statistics from past seasons will also be saved in the website.       Â
During any TWL event, all Trench Wars and TWL Rules must be followed. Players and attendees must respect any and all Referees and League Operators. Failure to comply can result in a Player Warning or up to a Player Class 3 Offense.
Deliberate attempts to disrupt game play, including harassment or excessive messaging, can result in a Player Warning or up to a Player Class 3 Offense. Proof of the harassment must be provided to the Referee or League Operators within 5 minutes of the completion of the match, by method of a screenshot. For further validity, the spammer must be reported to staff via ?cheater. Falsely reporting abuse can also result in a Player Warning or up to a Player Class 3 Offense.
Assistant captains are considered players on the squad, and not as co-captains for purposes of cheating. Multiple squad membership, or double-squadding, is defined as one of the following cases:
A player that is rostered on two different participating squads of Trench Wars League.
A player that is rostered in a participating Trench Wars League squad and a different Trench Wars Division squad even if the squads play in different league divisions.
A player that is rostered more than one time on the same Trench Wars League squad.
A player that is rostered in a Trench Wars League squad using another player's name to play in a League Match.
Instances of double-squadding will not be tolerated. If a player has someone else who uses their computer for TWL (i.e. a sibling), those players are expected to notify the Trench Wars League staff at least 5 days before participating in any League matches. Double-squadding is a Class 2 Player Offense and a Class 1 Team Offense.
A captain can not share his name with a banned captain in order to bypass the banned captain rule so that he can accept, promote, demote, or axe the squad's members. This can be up to a Class 3 player offense and a Class 2 team offense.
Any Player found to be guilty of cheating to alter game play during a TWL match will result in up to a Class 3 Player Offense and Class 1B Team Offense.
If a participating player is, in the view of the referee or TWL Op, excessively jittery, blinking in and out, or otherwise showing signs of lagging that might be the result of an attempt to cheat, the player will be immediately reported to the upper staff. If discovery by upper staff reveals that player deliberately induced lag, he/she can face up to a Class 3 Player Offense and Class 1 Team Offense.
If a participating player's lag is, in the view of the referee or TWL Operator, creating an unfair advantage for his squad, and he is not suspected of cheating or manipulation of lag, then the player will be asked to reconnect or be substituted. If the player fails to comply within a reasonable amount of time, the referee or TWL Operator can lock the player in spec until they reconnect or are substituted. If a reconnect does not fix the player's lag, a referee or TWL Operator can tell him and/or his captain to substitute him. TWL lag limits will not be given out, to discourage people of lag cheating. Captains will be notified when a player is over the lag limits       Â
A player cannot be banfree'd in order to play TWL unless they have won an appeal from the BanG Op and the ban has been completely removed. No exceptions.
If a squad feels that such factors as game referee decisions, staff involvement, server or router error, cheating, or other instances have affected the outcome and fairness of a game, that squad has the right to appeal to the League Operator. It is up to the squad to ensure that as much information as possible is included in the appeal for the League Operators to make a fair decision.
Appeals will be handled by the TWL Operators collectively. The TWL Operators will vote on acceptance/denial of each appeal. Their votes, along with an explanation of their choice, will be public information. Any TWL Operator who has a conflict of interest in the appeal (i.e. is a member of a squad involved) will not be eligible to vote. At least 3 TWL Operators will need to vote, and the final decision on the appeal will be based on whichever vote has majority. In the event of a tie, the league head will provide the deciding vote unless they have an interest in which case a neutral third party will need to decide.
All decisions made by the Trench Wars League Staff are final. There is no appealing a final judgment.
If an appeal is denied, the player making the appeal will not be eligible to play in the next game.
All appeals must be made within 24 hours of the completion of the game in question. No appeals will be accepted that are outside of the 24-hour period. If an issue arises that is not a direct result of a TWL game, the rule still applies and appropriate action will be taken.