The T5S2 Season 9 Invitational will be played using Warhammer 40,000 10th Edition Chapter Approved Strike Force Tournament rules, with the following addendums/additions:

​

• Lists must for each stage must total no more than 2,000 points and be submitted before the submission deadlines posted above, following all army mustering rules.

• Each round will use a predetermined mission and deployment setup, using the new T5S2 Season 10 Map Pool.

• In the event of a concession, the conceding player retains the VPs they have scored up until that point.  The other player may then continue playing to score additional VPs as if their opponent had no remaining time.

• During the "Determine Victor" step, the bonus 10 "Battle Ready" VPs are automatically awarded to both players.

• In the event of a draw, the player with the higher T5S2 Season 9 standing is considered the winner.

​​

The Invitational will be played in the following format:

​

• Players will be seperated into four groups of four; seeded based on rank, team, and timezone.  These groups will compete in a double elimination bracket to determine the winner of each (this means some players may be responsible for completing up to four games duirng this stage).

• The four group winners will be paired in a 2-round, single-elimination bracket to determine a single final winner.

​

Games in the Invitational must use chess clocks to ensure a brisk and fair pace of play.  Chess clock rules can be found in the TacticalTortoise Discord regulations.​​

​

The Invitational will hold its players to the highest standards of sportsmanship and rules correctness.  The following additional guidelines are in place for rules and sportsmanship enforcement:

​

• Players are expected to possess impeccable command of Warhammer 40k's rules, and especially rules pertaining to their own units and abilities.  Repeated rules mistakes may result in score penalties or ejection from the event.

• Players are held to the highest standards of clean play - while take-backs and corrected mistakes are acceptable, provided they are performed with the permission of their opponent, misuse of measurement tools and sloppy play may result in score penalties or ejection from the event.

• Players are expected to be ambassadors for the game of Warhammer 40k and conduct themselves with the highest level of sportsmanship.  Bullying, antagonistic behavior, talking back to other players or judges and other unsportsmanlike conduct may result in score penalties or ejection from the event.

• Players' armies are meant to be close approximations of tabletop Warhammer 40k armies.  They are to use as close a digital model to the official model from Games Workshop as possible, and must be sized so that their bases are of the correct dimensions (as outlined in the base size guides).  When in doubt, use Morpheus' Base Scaler for TTS (found here) alongside the dimensions listed on the Games Workshop website.  Incorrect model usage/scaling may result in score penalties or ejection from the event.

• Players are expected to play all of their Invitational games and arrive to each game in a timely manner.  Unplayed games may result in a mandatory concession applied for one or both players.

• Any or all Invitational games may be streamed and hosted by a third party.

​

Group stage games will use rules released on or before July 25th, 2025.  Additional rounds may use an alternative deadline based on new rules releases.

Rules released close to these deadlines may be judged or amended based on a doctrine of "rules as intended" to alleviate the effects any mistakes made by the Warhammer 40k design team.

​

The event will enforce rules judgements and FAQs made in this document (which is subject to change at any time).