RTS-League: Clan Leagues for Strategy Gamers

We've been signalling it for some time already, but here it finally is - we're stepping into a new territory, a territory of even more fun for the community than our Clan Leagues already provide. One-time, faster-format (than our standard Leagues - we aim for just several weeks) tournaments have been our long-term goal to let you have some competitive enjoyment even in-between seasons, and to also test some new ways how tournaments could be hosted for the community to break the same-old ways to play.

With all that in mind, and also our long-standing history, we chose to have the first event be a Clan Cup, a challenge to all clans beyond our standard Clan League, but this time on non-standard grounds and in non-standard settings so as not to repeat too much of the same. AoMT Hybrid as quite an interesting way to play Age of Mythology combining Vanilla and Titans has been waiting for its proper dedicated tournament for a long time, and after the success of the Age of Mythology / The Titans 1v1 Summer 2018 Championship hosted by AoL_Destroyer, we saw the potential actualised and here we are with a full-fledged edition - aimed at clans as the cornerstone of the community, as is our tradition.

RTS League's Age of Mythology: The Titans Hybrid Clan Cup sponsored by AoL_Destroyer
A Happy Cappuccino Blend of AoM and AoT

Or as you can call it in short "Hybrid Clan Cup," is ready to accept sign-ups from the ranks of real clans that want to taste the thrill of competition looking to determine which clan deserves the honours of being called the best in the current mode of play. We're also looking to get everyone into the groove again, as the standard RTS League's Clan League will follow right after, and there has been a period of pause since the last Season, so we understand it may take a bit to get familiarised with the classic ways to do things again (not only here, but also within the clans).

The general idea is to hold true to RTS League's Clan League standards and base Rules, but with a few twists to accommodate for the specifics we chose for the tournament - we have prepared a specific set of Hybrid Clan Cup Rules to highlight all the important parts, of which the most outstanding and characteristic for the tournament are:

- Format: GSL - Divisions of 4, Double Elimination within, top 2 into Single Elimination Playoffs.
- Version of the game: AoMT Hybrid mod created (and updated for the tournament) by ChronoJJ.
- Open to: All clans as per our Clan League Rules and conventions.

Besides that standard RTS League matters apply, like match a week, play on Main Nicks, Guest Players per Rules, etc. Map pool is also fairly similar (check Rules for the specifics, we made a few adjustments for the mod) and B-teams have a bit of a caveat due to the format.

Oh and one last thing - we have a prize pool. We know you would play for the fun of it anyway, but AoL_Destroyer as the staunch supporter of the Vanilla community decided to be our benefactor and so after a looong, looooong time we can present you with a bit of a topping to sweeten the classic Banner cake, and so the top clans will receive an interesting tip amounting to 100€ total - we're open to any option to overload the cake with hot chocolate, so if you'd like to pitch in, it's certainly possible and we would be glad to support you in supporting the community

Thank you very much AoL_Destroyer for your contribution.

And as always, you can expect coverage on our community channels like FB or Twitter, with the main focus of course being on live streams, which we are sure going to provide on twitch.tv/RTSLeague and later our YT - if you'd like to lend a hand in streaming, let us know, we're up for that

AoMT Hybrid - What Does It Do to the Game?

In case you're not familiar with the mod itself, "A Happy Cappuccino Blend of AoM and AoT," as Chrono aptly put it, combines the features of both worlds into one experience - it's basically meant to allow you to play Vanilla within the Titans framework, making it easier for many to enjoy the gameplay without the troubles some have in running the original game.

The core ruleset is therefore close to Vanilla gameplay, such as TCs only in Heroic, Greek special units from a Fortress, Docks don't shoot, costs and strengths are generally back to Vanilla levels - yet you can play Atlanteans and you get to enjoy AoT maps, like the ever-popular Marsh. Or Highland.

More info can be found either on the mod page or also below the Hybrid Clan Cup Rules.

So How to Sign Up?

Pretty similarly as to our Clan Leagues - be a real clan with at least 6 active members, have a responsible person as Clan Operator to schedule for you and upload games in a timely manner and interact with staff, familiriase yourself with the Clan Cup Rules, read them again, because you might have missed something , and when you're a go (if you're new and need an account first, follow the instructions up top under the menu to mail us and we'll get it done), post the following sign-up form here in the topic:

Clan Tag:
Clan Name:
Clan Website:
Number of Active Members:
Clan Operator Nickname and Contact:
Clan Leader Nickname and Contact:
Clan Operator has read the rules and agrees to them (and hopefully understands them):

B(C, etc.)-teams need to supply their complete roster with the application as well to allow us to gauge their strength so that we know where to seed them if they're accepted. Please also pay special attention to the guidelines on Guest Players found in Clan League Rule 4 - you need to list them as well to allow us to properly seed the clans.

Please sign your clan up only if you seriously want to take part in the Cup, do not sign up inactive or fake clans or clans with too few players to actually meaningfully compete. Clans that drop out during the tournament will have a non-favourable note to them for further competitions that could prevent them from being accepted.

Sign-ups will be closed on Sunday 17th February, Hybrid Clan Cup will start the following week.

If you have any further questions, feel free to contact our AoT staff members or any other staffers.

Cannot wait to see how our first Clan Cup goes, hope it's a beginning to a great new tradition And spread the word - the more clans, the more fun for everyone!

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We're in Need of a Web Dev (and Other Staffers)!

We're always on the lookout for community members eager to help their fellow players enjoy the game we all love even more!

Currently we would quite welcome help from a skilled webmaster to improve on our web, so if you have experience with creating and running websites (especially PHP) and would like to leave your mark on not only the "Age of" community, make sure to contact us! (You'll need a forum log-in, and careful to replace the addressee line with my nick - Black Adder - yes, this could be one of the things you could help with fixing )

We could definitely also find use for various other talents you might have, especially concerning graphics, streaming or other content creation, and our League Staff team could also accommodate another enthusiast to make sure our Leagues function as well as possible!

So if you'd like to help us bring RTS League and the fun it offers to the community to the next level and join our team, be sure to message me (you'll need a forum log-in, and careful to replace the addressee line with my nick - Black Adder ) with your ideas and how do you think you could help us and the community improve!

About us:
RTS League is the foremost and longest running "Age of" clan competition ever, with a history of hosting numerous other strategy games (like StarCraft II, Empire Earth, and Dawn of War) in the past. Fun and friendliness are the prominent aspects of RTS League, with the unquestionable prestige and fame the triumph brings to the top finishing clans following close behind.