EVE Online’s Alliance Tournament XXII reaches its finals this weekend. Of the 58 teams that entered, 16 are left after more than 200 matches, and they head back into the arena on Saturday, 31 October to fight for the Alliance Tournament Trophy. A winner should be crowned by Sunday night.
The remaining field has its share of memorable names, including Ragequit Cancel Sub, a team named entirely with repeated letter I’s, a 50-character keysmash, and a squad called 34-yrs-old men get nagged by wives for playing EVE. Rosters for all 16 teams are available on the official team pages.
Format and schedule
The finals use a double-elimination bracket, and matches move from the Thunderdome test server to Tranquility. The match length grows as the bracket narrows:
- Best-of-one matches while more than eight teams remain
- Best-of-three once the field is down to eight
- A best-of-five Grand Final
Saturday’s broadcast begins at 13:00 UTC and Sunday’s at 12:30 UTC. Both days are expected to run until roughly 22:30 UTC. Everything is streamed on the Fenris Creations Twitch channel, and the matches are also played in front of a studio audience at NTU X in Nottingham, UK.
Ticket holders attending in Nottingham can get in from 12:00 on both days, and each ticket includes a token for a beer or soda.
Predictions contest and Twitch Drops
Players who want a stake in the outcome can still fill out a bracket in the ATXXII Predictions Contest. A total of 10,900 PLEX is spread across the leaderboard, and first place also earns an EVE: War for New Eden Veteran set. There is a consolation of sorts at the other end too: whoever finishes in last place receives a mystery prize. Last year that prize was the golden finger.
Twitch Drops are active throughout the weekend for anyone watching the broadcast, so tuning in for even part of the bracket should earn something for your account.
The Alliance Tournament remains one of the few places where EVE Online’s small-gang theorycrafting gets a big stage, and this year’s finals will decide which of the 16 remaining teams adds its name to the trophy.
Source: EVE Online official news.
