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Boardgame Players Association
 2019-2020 March Madness
PBeM Championship Tournament


The 18th annual BPA March Madness PBeM tournament (2019-2020) will start with the draft around December 1.  I'm taking over for Bruce Monnin this year as he handles some health issues. This year we will be using teams with ratings between 90 and 100.

 

43 entrants signed up last year.

This year's bracket is setup for 44 entrants.


You can check out the teams in this year's tournament.

The tournament uses the Advanced March Madness rules.

The 17th annual BPA March Madness PBeM tournament (2018-2019) was won by Bruce Monnin, whose 11th seeded 1994 Arkansas squad defeated Ron Emch's 27th seeded 2018 Gonzaga team by a score of 70-54 in the championship game. 

For recent event history, check out the 2017-18 bracket and the 2018-19 bracket.


All entrants are required to be a member of the Boardgame Players Association.  See the BPA Website for details about joining.

Rules and stuff


All games will be played using the March Madness module of ACTS.  

ACTS was kind enough to make the March Madness module for use in this tournament.  Please show your appreciation by letting them know if you enjoy it and by following all ACTS guidelines. 

The higher seeded team in each game (The Favorite) is responsible for setting up the game in ACTS.  Please set up the GM (My ACTS account is "Sean") as Moderator and Owner for the game.

The tournament format will be two single elimination brackets.  Each player will receive one team in each bracket.  A random die roll will determine the order in which the players draft their teams.  The draft order will be reversed for the two brackets.  The bracket is currently set up for 42 entrants, but will be adjusted to the actual number of people who sign up.

You will be responsible for submitting your draft picks within 24 hours after the person before you picks.  Players are encouraged to email conditional picks where their turn to draft is approaching.  A player whose draft time limit has expired will be assigned the highest seed remaining.

There will be a four week time limit on each game.  That means a game can usually be completed if one of the players does a turn each weekday.  I would expect that most games will finish in less than three weeks.  Since these are single elimination brackets new games will start as soon as the opponents are both available.

In case adjudication is needed, I will be resolving all positions starting with the lowest numbered position (Center) and moving upward.  Timeouts will only be used if a 1-6 resolution occurs or on the last position if it could affect the outcome of the game.

If a close game, during adjudication GM will play out the game to GM's best ability.

Each game must begin within one week of when the matchup is made by the GM, unless they receive special permission from both participants and the GM.  Failure to comply will lead to a forfeiture of the match.

Any games exceeding the time limit will be adjudicated by GM Sean McCulloch and/or assistant GMs Bruce Reiff or Peter Stein.

March Madness rules clarifications to be used are found on the Rules Clarifications page.  We will be using the original rule that the bonus for the player guarding the Offensive Specialist card is ONE letter grade, as specified on the card.

Please familiarize yourself with the ACTS module before using it.  There are a couple of procedural hints which must be followed:
1)  When rolling your dice vs the clock to start your turn, the first die is considered to be the white die that determines which position gets scored.
2)  After a Technical Foul is played, add 2 points to your score, then return the card to your hand so you can discard it.  Then remember to reshuffle the deck.  Also note on your scoresheet that your opponent has one less coaching move both in this and future periods..

3)  Anytime an improper number of dice are rolled, the roll is voided and all dice must be rerolled

4) If the resolving player fails to declare which scoring die rolls belong to each player, the first roll(s) will belong to the resolving player and the last die roll(s) will belong to the non-resolving player. If either player has a bonus roll (due to a Hot Shooter, Fast Break, etc.), the Position resolution roll will be first and the bonus roll second.

Example:The LF is being resolved, with the Resolving player having a Hot Shooter in play and the non-resolving player having a Fast Break in play. The resolving player sends 4 die rolls but does not specify which die roll is which:

1st die roll = Resolving player's LF

2nd die roll = Resolving player's Hot Shooter

3rd die roll = Non-resolving player's LF

4th die roll = Non-resolving player's Fast Break

5)  You signal the end of your turn by adjusting your clock down to the next number.
6)  If a position is resolved which should not have been, it is difficult to undo.  Your best bet is to pick up all of your cards, start a new half, click to resolve all previously resolved positions, and replace your cards on the gameboard.  This requires a certain amount of trust, so be sure to contact the GM if necessary.
7)  When a Timeout occurs, preferred procedure is for the resolving player to perform all rerolls.  In case both players send a Timeout reroll, the first set of rolls to appear in the ACTS journal for tee game will be official.

To sign up, email the GM (Sean McCulloch).

The teams for each of the two brackets will be listed on the team's page. (The list currently there will be pruned once I know how many players we have.)  Thanks once again to Stuart Tucker and Terry Coleman who made many of the teams for this tournament.  These extra teams allow me to keep teams of similar ratings in the event.

The 3rd place player will be the person in the Final Four who lost to the champion.  Likewise, 5th place will be awarded to the Elite Eight player who lost to the champion and 6th place to the Elite Eight player who lost to the runner-up.