Alliance Tournament XVII is fast approaching! The teams have been practicing hard to prepare for the annual bloodbath in the arena that will take place on the first two weekends of November, but before gazing at the explosions, it’s time to look at the epic prizes that are up for grabs this year – both for the competitors, and for those cheering on their teams.
As teased in the original announcement, new tournament prize ships are being created for this year’s event. While these ships are still in development, you can feed your excitement with a sneak peek!
Raiju
‘Two generals choosing to meet in battle will each believe victory is in their grasp despite one general being wrong in the greater number of cases. This shows the importance of good information to the general in the field. If information is lacking, false, or otherwise imperfect, disaster is sure for the general acting precipitously.’
So it goes somewhere in the Analects. In other words, make sure of your own info before committing, and if you can stop the other guy from knowing what the hell is going on, so much the better. It’s basic but you’d be surprised how often people will jump into a fight without thinking it through.
– Muryia Mordu, quoting the Analects of the Raata Empire
The Raiju is Mordu’s Legion’s premiere electronic attack frigate. Based on the Garmur hull, this ship boasts Mordu’s signature speed and terrifying missile output. It is also complemented by an extreme warp disruption range bonus as well as bonuses to sensor dampener strength which will allow it to hold down an enemy from range, pour on the missile damage, and prevent it from even thinking about shooting back. If you are unlucky enough to encounter one of these ships, bring friends.
Laelaps
‘The pinning force is an essential element of the war of maneuver but must be carefully assembled from quick yet resilient troops. Scouts cannot pin an army but companies of mounted infantry may achieve the task. Above all, measure the enemy strength before attempting to fix them in place.’
Good old Doule dos Rouvenor. Don’t get fixated, no pun intended, on the details of his kind of warfare. I’ve seen scouts pin down battleships, but that’s not the point. Use the right force mix, and have them use the right tools to pin down an enemy force of such and such strength. That’s the lesson here. But yeah, don’t try and scramble a Nyx with a Garmur. That’ll end badly.”
– Muryia Mordu, quoting the War Commentaries of dos Rouvenor
If being locked down by the Raiju sounds terrifying, the Laelaps takes it to a whole new level. This ship is a heavy interdictor variant of the Orthrus, combining the Orthrus’ mobility and missile output with heavier tank and a huge bonus to warp disruption field generator range so that nothing can leave its grasp. Unlike many other heavy interdictors which are slow to maneuver, the Laelaps has a bonus to speed which allows it to stay mobile even while its warp disruption field generator is active, making it the fastest heavy interdictor in New Eden.
Prize Format
This year, the distribution of prizes is being altered slightly. Previously, prize ships were reserved for the top 4 teams, but that is now being extended to the top 16. This allows those middle-tier teams to get a small taste of the ships and ensures that each match has value – although the largest rewards are of course still reserved for those teams who make it to the top. Prizes will be allocated to teams based on where they exit the bracket after their second loss.
Top 16 (4 teams, knocked out in losers round 4): 2 Raiju, 2 Laelaps
Top 12 (4 teams, knocked out in losers round 5): 4 Raiju, 4 Laelaps
Top 8 (2 teams, knocked out in losers round 6): 6 Raiju, 6 Laelaps
Top 6 (2 teams, knocked out in losers round 7): 8 Raiju, 8 Laelaps
4th (loser of match 75): 12 Raiju, 12 Laelaps
3rd (loser of match 77): 16 Raiju, 16 Laelaps
2nd (loser of winner’s bracket): 20 Raiju, 20 Laelaps
1st (winner of finals): 40 Raiju, 40 Laelaps
(Total of 140 of each ship)
Teams will only get the highest bracket of prizes they have earned. For example, a team which leaves the bracket in losers round 6 will get the top 8 prize (6 Raiju, 6 Laelaps), but will not also receive the top 12 and top 16 prizes.
Twitch Match Predictions
Watching your excitement during the live broadcast of the Alliance Tournament XVII feeder tournament back in September when predicting the outcome of matches was something truly spectacular!
The upcoming main event will also leverage Twitch’s predictions functionality to let the viewers vote on who they believe will crush their opponents in a given match. Each day, there will be hundreds of SKINs up for grabs, including the gorgeous GalNet SKINs that you had your eyes on for a while, as well as a limited number of physical prizes such as Mixed Dimension ship models, EVE watches, USB Hub Rifters, and vouchers for EVE Online Merchandise! These will be activated at different intervals throughout the day, so be sure to clear your schedule if you want a chance of claiming one of them for yourself.
Alliance Tournament Links
Together with EVE_NT crew, we cannot wait to bring you over 80 matches this November and witness another chapter in EVE Online’s competitive history.
You can find all the key information below, including the match schedule, brackets, and more.
Gather your snacks, grab a can of Quafe, and join the live broadcast at 14:30 UTC each tournament day!
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