It's that time of the year again. Welcome to the ninth iteration of Smogon's Official Ladder Tournament. The tournament where we're all bonding over the ladder experience at its fullest on Pokemon Showdown competing for this shiny trophy:
![](https://www.smogon.com/forums/media/badges/olt.png.m.1)
Due to how the 8 day deadlines fall, Cycle 1 will start on July 27th to be as convenient for as many people as possible.
Normally these rules are listed in each cycle's sign up thread, but they're moved here for convenience and to give the most important information for each cycle the space it should have. They obviously still apply for all cycles as before.
1. The host of this tournament is Quite Quiet. We will be using the regular Pokemon Showdown SS OU ladder for this tournament, not a new one. This will ensure maximum activity and competition.
2. The qualification period for the OLT will run for a total of 4 cycles with roughly 8 days per cycles. After each 8 day cycle, the top 8 accounts that appear on the leaderboard (using ELO) at the end of the cycle with the sign-up criteria explained in each cycle's sign up thread will qualify for the playoffs of the OLT. Playoffs will be the format explained here. The ladder is not reset after each cycle, only alts are (meaning you create a new alt after each cycle).
3. Once you make the top 8 and qualify (this does not mean making the top 8 at any given point during the cycle, it means being in the top 8 at the end of the cycle), you’re qualified for playoffs. You are free to ladder any other week you wish. However, making the top 8 more than once won't give a player anything other than personal satisfaction and bragging rights. If a person qualifies again during a week after their initial qualification, the newly qualified account will be skipped and the next unqualified account will be selected from the leaderboard to participate in the tournament.
4. Given that this is a ladder tournament, many of you are likely thinking there are ways people can cheat the system. We are aware of these issues and have been working with Marty and the other PS admins to monitor and patrol instances of cheating. Any person found cheating will be subject to strict punishments.
To add onto that: if we have a reason to believe you forfeited or tied a game that you don't believe to be lost or endless respectively, you will be sanctioned.
2. The qualification period for the OLT will run for a total of 4 cycles with roughly 8 days per cycles. After each 8 day cycle, the top 8 accounts that appear on the leaderboard (using ELO) at the end of the cycle with the sign-up criteria explained in each cycle's sign up thread will qualify for the playoffs of the OLT. Playoffs will be the format explained here. The ladder is not reset after each cycle, only alts are (meaning you create a new alt after each cycle).
3. Once you make the top 8 and qualify (this does not mean making the top 8 at any given point during the cycle, it means being in the top 8 at the end of the cycle), you’re qualified for playoffs. You are free to ladder any other week you wish. However, making the top 8 more than once won't give a player anything other than personal satisfaction and bragging rights. If a person qualifies again during a week after their initial qualification, the newly qualified account will be skipped and the next unqualified account will be selected from the leaderboard to participate in the tournament.
4. Given that this is a ladder tournament, many of you are likely thinking there are ways people can cheat the system. We are aware of these issues and have been working with Marty and the other PS admins to monitor and patrol instances of cheating. Any person found cheating will be subject to strict punishments.
To add onto that: if we have a reason to believe you forfeited or tied a game that you don't believe to be lost or endless respectively, you will be sanctioned.
Otherwise, feel free to use this thread for any other shitposting needs you may have and good luck to you all.