News of the Star Sea Cup World Invitational spread like wildfire across all major league of legends communities worldwide.
The top teams from eight regions would gather to compete for the glory of the first world-class tournament championship, which excited all players and maximized their anticipation.
However, at Riot Games headquarters, Qin Feng and his core team had no time to revel in the external cheers.
They knew that to make this unprecedented event a success and a benchmark, in addition to grand ideas and sufficient funds, a rigorous, fair, and globally scrutinized set of competition rules was needed.
The problems exposed in the domestic Star Sea Cup must not be repeated on a higher-level world stage.
Inside a closed meeting room, the atmosphere was serious.
A huge whiteboard hung on the wall, densely covered with various clauses and concepts.
Qin Feng stood in front of the whiteboard, his gaze sharp.
"Gentlemen, the World Invitational is not just a test of strength, but also a showcase of our league of legends competition brand and professional image," Qin Feng began directly, his voice steady and powerful.
"We must establish a set of standards that surpasses all previous tournaments, a set of iron rules that can become a model for future global esports events."
Qin Feng first pointed to the "Player Conduct Guidelines" section on the whiteboard.
"First, are the players' codes of conduct during the competition," his tone was unequivocal.
"We must completely eliminate unprofessional phenomena such as 'toilet pauses' and 'on-site shouting' that occurred in domestic matches."
He meticulously listed the iron rules:
1. Strict Pause Mechanism: Except for force majeure equipment failures (which must be strictly verified by the referee team and technical personnel), any form of "non-technical pause" is prohibited in principle.
Players' personal physiological needs must be addressed before the match begins or during inter-game breaks.
During the match, unless a sudden health condition seriously affecting the game occurs (which needs to be certified by the team doctor and approved by the head referee), no pause can be requested for any reason.
Violators will be subject to warnings, deduction of Ban slots in that game, or even forfeiture.
2. Completely Soundproof Environment: The competition will use fully enclosed soundproof gaming booths or high-performance soundproof headphones to ensure players are completely undisturbed by audience noise, and to prevent player communication from leaking through equipment.
Referees will monitor the venue to ensure an absolutely quiet competitive environment.
3. Venue Discipline: During the competition, players are strictly prohibited from eating at their seats (only sealed bottled water is allowed), shouting loudly, or engaging in any inappropriate behavior that might disturb opponents or affect the tournament's image.
Uniform team attire and professional sitting posture will be included as basic requirements.
4. Absolute Authority of Referees: Grant the on-site head referee higher arbitration power.
For any suspected violations or controversial behaviors, the referee has the power to make immediate judgments and impose penalties to ensure the smooth progress of the match.
"We want to send a message to the world," Qin Feng concluded, "that league of legends' highest-level event is a serious, professional, and fair arena of competition, where any behavior that violates the spirit of sportsmanship has no place."
After establishing a strict disciplinary foundation, Qin Feng turned his attention to the more strategically significant tournament format itself.
"For this World Championship, we not only need to regulate behavior but also innovate at the competitive level, increasing the strategic depth, watchability, and fairness of the matches."
He switched the whiteboard page, which displayed two striking terms: Global Ban/Pick and Swiss System.
"First is Global Ban/Pick (Global Ban/Pick)," Qin Feng explained.
"In an entire BO3 or BO5 series, once a hero is picked by any team (regardless of win or loss), neither team may select that hero again in subsequent games of that series."
As soon as he said this, a low gasp rippled through the conference room.
This was undoubtedly the ultimate test of a team's hero pool and tactical reserves!
"This means," Qin Feng continued to elaborate, "that a team can no longer rely on one or two fixed'scoring' lineups.
They must prepare enough tactical systems, and players must possess a broader hero pool.
This will force teams and players to engage in deeper development, and also allow audiences to see more diverse heroes and tactical battles in the same series, greatly enhancing the watchability and unpredictability of the matches."
He paused, looking at Zhao Dong, the somewhat worried event director: "I know this places extremely high demands on team preparation.
But only in this way can we filter out truly comprehensive and powerful world champions, rather than just a 'one-trick pony' or a team with a single strategy.
This is the direction esports should be developing."
Next, he pointed to "Swiss System."
"For the group stage, we will abandon the traditional single or double round-robin and introduce the Swiss System format," Qin Feng drew the basic pairing logic of the Swiss System on the whiteboard.
"Eight teams will compete through five rounds to determine the qualifying teams."
"The core principle is: teams with the same record play against each other."
In the first round, eight teams will play four BO1 matches decided by random draw.
In the second round, teams with 1 win will play against each other, and teams with 0 wins will play against each other.
In the third round, there will be three groups: 2 wins (basically guaranteed to advance), 1 win and 1 loss, and 0 wins and 2 losses (basically guaranteed to be eliminated), and internal group pairings will be conducted again.
This process will continue for five rounds, with teams achieving 3 wins advancing to the semifinals, and teams with a record of 2 wins and 3 losses being eliminated.
Because there are only eight teams, the schedule is compact, and five rounds are sufficient to clearly distinguish strengths and weaknesses.
"The advantage of the Swiss System is," Qin Feng analyzed, "it minimizes the element of luck.
Strong teams won't meet each other prematurely due to unfavorable groupings, and weaker teams will have more opportunities to compete against opponents of similar strength, leading to exciting matches.
Each round is a new challenge, and the suspense will last until the very last moment, which can greatly enhance the watchability and fairness of the group stage."
"Global Ban/Pick increases tactical depth, and the Swiss System ensures fairness and suspense in the group stage.
Combined with strict codes of conduct," Qin Feng looked around at everyone, his gaze firm, "this will be an esports feast we present to global audiences, and it will also set the highest benchmark for our future professional league system."
After the meeting, a meticulously detailed first draft of the "Star Sea Cup World Invitational Competition Rules" was quickly compiled.
When this set of rules, incorporating both "iron rules" and "innovation," was officially announced to the world, it once again caused a sensation!
Professional teams felt unprecedented pressure and challenge, while players held high expectations for such a novel and strict format.
The Star Sea Cup World Invitational, even before its start, had already become the focus of global esports attention due to its high standards and new rules.