Sportsmanship is a combination of things. Its overriding goal is to give feedback to players at the end of the tournament of how their behaviors were perceived throughout the tournament. This encourages people to bring their best behavior and positive attitude, reinforcing the goal that this is supposed to be a fun weekend of playing with toy soldiers and meeting other gamers.

If you feel you cannot bring a positive attitude and contribute to this type of atmosphere we ask you to please reconsider your participation at our Grand Tournament, as it may not be the venue and activity for you. Happily there are plenty of alternatives for everyone out there.

This year we are making some considerable changes to how Sportsmanship will be scored. The backbone of our Community Development Team, Chris “Go-Go” Gohlinghorst, has pulled together this great checklist. Thanks go to a few of the great independent events we attended in 2007. We think it encapsulates the spirit of things and helps clarify the type of experience we want people to have at our Grand Tournaments. The points break down as follows:

Sportsmanship Checklist

Compulsory Trappings These are the items an opponent can reasonably expect you to be prepared with, including being on time and playing promptly . Did your opponent show up on time (or early)? 1 Point Did your opponent have all the materials they needed to play (dice, templates, army list, rules for their army, rules for the game)? 1 Point Did your opponent play their turns in a reasonable amount of time (taking in account time to plan strategy, and includes playing throughout all the phases)? 1 Point

Game Play These items include courses of action your opponent took during the game or in deciding what to field in their army. Did your opponent measure accurately for both model moves and shooting distances? 1 Point Did your opponent solve rules disputes by showing you the relevant passages in their rulebook (or, if that could not be found or remained confusing, was amicable about bringing over a Rules Judge)? 1 Point Was your opponent’s army easy to understand with clear conversions or completely WYSWIG? 1 Point Do you think your opponent built an army based on the theme of the relevant gaming universe and supplied background for that army (as opposed to a force built purely for winning with little or no regard to that army’s established background)? 1 Point

Behaviors These items include basic social skills. Was your opponent of good humor and amicable when not concentrating on strategy or planning out moves (this does not mean they put on a one man circus for you, but rather was not angry/grumbling/complaining/obtuse during your game)? 1 Point Was your opponent helpful in explaining correct rules, explaining how their army works? 1 Point Win or lose, was this person the type of opponent you look forward to playing again? 1 Point

This will mean that players can earn up to 10 sportsmanship points per game for a maximum total of 50 points. You will notice that the behaviors expected by competitors are covered in these questions. While you won’t love every game you play (or every opponent) there is a standard level you can reasonably expect to provide you with a positive overall experience.