Watch live video from TeamFortressTV on www.twitch.tv

TL;DR

• This is a 6v6 cup for those with zero competitive TF2 experience outside of TF2center.
• There is a $2,000 total prize pool generously provided by Scrap.TF.
• You need to create an account on ETF2L and join a team there to participate (leaders only).
• You will be coached by an experienced competitive TF2 player who you can also have play on your team.
• You will be playing on a server provided by serveme.TF and could have your game casted live on TeamFortress.TV.
• The top 3 teams will receive an exclusive TF2Center medal on their profile pages, whilst all other participants will receive a medal for participation.

What is this?

Have you ever wanted an enhancement from your regular TF2 experience and the chance to spread your wings in a more organised environment? Here at TF2 Center, we like to play lobbies in three different competitive formats and give everyone a chance to play and try it out. However, you may be missing the excitement of playing in a real competitive environment, with the opportunity to earn prizes, as well as being watched and having your TF2 ability admired by hundreds of people!

Well, look no further as we are proud to present the 1st ever Archimedes Cup hosted right here on TF2 Center, in association with the European Team Fortress 2 League (ETF2L), with sponsorship from the great guys over at Scrap.TF who are putting up a chance to win € 1,000 in prizes! Like the sound of this but can't play? No problem as casting organisation TeamFortress.TV who will be providing stream coverage of the whole event will host over € 400 worth of viewer raffles; all you need to do is tune in!

You may know about a league called ETF2L which hosts competitive TF2 in both the 6v6 and Highlander format and is the largest community run league in Europe. They have run 19 seasons of 6v6 and 7 seasons of Highlander along with numerous tournaments with prizes that include money, hardware, medals and TF2 items, among others. They have been running for 7 years and will soon be starting their 20th season of their prestigious 6v6 compeition. They have kindly offered to help us out by hosting this tournament for us on their website, which has full functionality with a proper built in tournament model that is user friendly and easy to use. All you need to do is link your steam account to the website and you will be able to create an ETF2L account, join a team and get started!

How will it work?

The beauty of this tournament is that you do not need to worry about organising anything, you merely turn up and play. Every team has the option of being assigned a «buddy», who is a player with competitive TF2 experience with the role of guiding your team through the tournament and giving you friendly advice on how to play as a team. Of course, you can choose to play with a buddy of your choice or alternatively, opt to not use one and just play with your friends. If you don't know too many people, don't panic either as we will be giving teamless players a chance to be randomly put into a team (true Lobby style!).

Schedule

The tournament will involve a group stage and a knockout stage to ensure you get plenty of playtime. It will be played over a duration of 2 weeks, with the initial group stage taking place on Sunday 11th January and the proceeding knockout rounds to take place the following week. The final of the tournament will be played by Sunday 25th January at the latest.

Teams will be given a time and server to play on and the maps will be preselected for this tournament. Please refer to the schedule below:

Sunday 11th January

• Group stage round 1 — 19 CET to 20 CET - cp_badlands
• Group stage round 2 — 20 CET to 21 CET — cp_process_final
• Group stage round 3 — 21 CET to 22 CET — cp_granary

Sunday 18th January

• Knockout round 1 — 19 CET to 20 CET — cp_snakewater_final1
• Knockout Round 2 — 20 CET to 21 CET — cp_gullywash_final1
• Knockout Round 3 — 21 CET to 22 CET — koth_viaduct_pro_rc4

Tuesday 20th January

• Quarter Finals — 19 CET to 20 CET — cp_logjam
• Semi Finals — 20 CET — 22 CET, best of 3 maps, teams get to pick (see explanation of map elimination)

Sunday 25th January

• Grand Final — Best of 3 maps (Map elimination)

Rules

The rules are based on the 6v6 competitive format, with whitelists and map choices based upon the ETF2L Season 20 setup. Servers will be generously provided by serveme.tf (big thanks to Arie for doing this) and will be connectable using TF2Center, with the lobby system everyone is used to, except these will be private matches made especially for you! Check ETF2L Season 20 whitelist.

General Rules

• Please read the «General Rules» tab on ETF2L before proceeding.
• Anyone with more than one season experience in either ETF2L div6 or UGC Iron may only play Medic. Regardless if 6s or HL. Experiences as in matches played. Both ETF2L and TF2Center will be monitoring this closely and anyone caught breaching this rule will receive lengthy bans on both websites.
• Both ETF2L and TF2Center will not tolerate cheats, please read «Cheats & Scripts» for full information.

Buddy Explanation & Rules

• A «Buddy» is a player who will offer guidance to the team.
• Buddies will be allowed to participate in the tournament, however they will be limited to the Medic class only.
• Buddies must have competitive experience in ETF2L to participate playing at least one season of Division 5 skill or higher.
• Buddies will be responsible for creating teams on ETF2L and ensuring their roster is ready to participate in the tournament.
• Buddies will by default be responsible for organising their team and communicating with other team leaders and admins before and during matches.
• Buddies will be eligible to win prizes.
• Maximum one Buddy per team.
• Buddies must treat their teammates with respect and not be abusive in any shape or manner, anyone who is abusive towards their teammates will be kicked out of the tournament and may also receive further punishment from ETF2L and TF2Center.
• Buddies must be able to communicate with all of their teammates, therefore an understanding of the English language may be relevant if the team is multi-lingual.

Match Rules

• All participating players must connect to the server at the pre-announced times. A team representative (by default, the 'buddy') will be given server information 15 minutes before the scheduled game begins.
• Teams will be given up to 15 minutes after the scheduled match time to «ready-up» and begin their matches. Any team not ready after 15 minutes will be forced to play or they will forfeit the match.
• Substitutes will be allowed, max 2 per team and must be registered on ETF2L before they can participate and adhering to the same criteria of experience outlined above.
• A delay of 15 minutes for showing up for a match is allowed. If a team fails to have a complete team ready on the server 15 minutes after the match was supposed to start, the other team may claim a Default Win.
• Teams are allowed to switch players during the game, with or without a pause, to a maximum of 1 player per map, so long as they are entered correctly on the team roster. However, using this to bypass spawn times is strictly forbidden. Furthermore, a team may under no circumstances have more than 6 players on the server for 6v6.
• Only spectators authorized by the league, or for the use of Source TV, are allowed.
• Teams may request a pause at any time during a match. Reasons for pausing can include:
  • Player drop
  • Server problems
  • The match is unplayable due to network issues
• If you need to pause, you must clearly request a pause and give a reason for it (for example: «Pause please, player drop»). The other team is then required to pause at the first appropriate time (e.g. not in the middle of a push). Teams must pause within 15 seconds of being asked. Not responding to a pause request will lead to penalties. You may not resume the game under any circumstances without giving proper warning to the other team.
• Each team has the right to one pause per map.
• A pause may not last longer than 5 minutes.
• If your opponent allows a pause longer than 5 minutes or more than one pause you are expected to extend the same courtesy to them.
• For map specific rules, please refer to this page.

Coverage

Competitive streaming organisation TeamFortress.TV will be casting throughout the tournament including the grand finals. This gives you guys the opportunity to play infront of hundreds of viewers.

Prizes

Our good friends over at ScrapTF have generously contributed over € 1,600 to support the event in form of physical money and items with real world value to them. It will be split like this:

• € 1,000 prize pool for the top 3 competitors of the event.
• € 400 will go towards viewer raffles for those who choose to tune in and watch the event unfold live on TeamFortress.TV.
• € 200 will go towards teams who play in both the Archimedes Cup and enter Season 20 of ETF2L and complete the season.

How do I signup?

All you need to do is make sure you create an ETF2L account, just login on Steam and add an email - it takes 1 minute to setup. Then go here to either create a team or join a team. If your team is ready to go, click here (leaders only) to signup and enter the competition. For help and instructions on how to do this, please read this FAQ. You can also contact an admin for support here

Anyone from Prem skills to below that does not fit the criteria of normal entry will be allowed to participate, but will be limited to the Medic class only. You will of course have to follow strict guidelines, but if you wish to find out more and interested in being matched to a team, you can express your interest in this forum thread.

Signups are open from now until Midnight CET, Sunday January 11th, hurry though as there are only limited slots available so if you leave it too long you may miss out!