Bible TCG Tournament Rules for Tabletop League
September 29, 2026. Document ID: BTCG-TOURNAMENT-RULES.
These are the launch competitive rules corresponding to Schedule D of the League Organizer Agreement. They apply to sanctioned tabletop events when published and supplied to participants. The first season's actual start and end dates will be announced before seasonal Championship Points are awarded. Publishing these rules does not announce an operational season, automated portal or championship. Players participate under the League Player Terms. Organizers act under their signed League Organizer Agreement. Official gameplay rules and errata govern how the game is played; these Tournament Rules govern event procedures and competitive records. AI tools may assist but do not replace the responsible human official.
1. Formats, registration and eligible cards. Launch sanctioned Formats are Classic and Draft Duels. Other Formats require published event rules.
Register Decks before round one, including at ordinary locals. Classic uses an 80-Verse Deck: 66 in the Main Deck and 14 in the Side Deck. Keep the registered list fixed. Between games in a Match, exchanges are one-for-one. Restore the registered configuration before the first game of each new Match. A Classic Deck may contain no more than four copies of the same-named Verse across its Main Deck and Side Deck combined. Draft normally uses three qualifying Booster Packs per Player; an event may announce four or five. Play Packs, Collector Packs, or the same announced mixture for every Player are permitted. Use the same Pack type for all Players in each opening round. Every drafted playable Verse goes into the registered Main Deck: 13 per Play Pack and 15 per Collector Pack. Three Play Packs yield 39 Verses and three Collector Packs yield 45. Draft has no Side Deck, Sideboarding, or same-name copy limit. The original opener of a Collector Pack keeps its separate collectible artwork card with their first pick; the artwork is not drafted or used in the Deck. Box Toppers are outside the allocation. Each Player chooses Era Faith or Act Faith for the whole Draft. Main-Age Verses use the selected Era or Act matching rule. Only Apocrypha Faith satisfies an Apocrypha Verse's matching requirement; Apocrypha Faith cannot satisfy a main Age's Era or Act requirement. Outside-pool borrowed cards are ineligible. Allow separate time for opening, drafting, and Deck construction. Genuine playable Original Art and First Edition copies are equally eligible, subject to current Format rules and errata. Playable cards from Collector or Play products may be used in constructed Decks. Print And Play cards and collectible artwork cards are not eligible Deck cards. Different playable printings share the Verse's copy limit.
Genuine eligible borrowed cards are permitted before the event. A physical copy cannot simultaneously serve two Players' Decks. Gameplay Owner follows the game definition, not the spectator who lent a card.
2. Matches and time. Matches are first to two game wins. Drawn games award no win, so "best of three" is not a hard three-game cap.
A Swiss round gives forty-five minutes for the entire Match, including sideboarding. Apply documented official time extensions before overtime.
When time expires, finish the current Turn, then play five additional Turns total across both Players, including all Queue items, Checks and cleanup.
Start no new game after time is called. An unfinished game after Turn five is drawn. Compare game wins: a 1–0 lead wins the Match; equal wins produce a drawn Match. If time expires between games, compare existing wins without starting another. Bible Points, remaining Bible size and Storyline positions do not break the tie. Elimination Matches are untimed first-to-two-win play, continuing after drawn games until a Player wins. Slow play and deliberate stalling remain prohibited. Natural draws follow the gameplay rules. Tournament administration does not turn sequential losing events into a simultaneous draw.
3. Match Points, tiebreakers and pairings. A Match win earns 3 points. A drawn Match earns 1 point per Player. A loss earns 0. Record individual games separately as wins, losses and draws. Standings are ordered by: Match Points, the Player's own game performance, Opponents' Match performance, and Opponents' game performance. Game performance equals: (3 × game wins + drawn games) ÷ (3 × games played). An unfinished game formally declared drawn counts; an unplayed game does not. Use zero if no games were recorded. Opponent Match performance equals: (3 × Match wins + drawn Matches) ÷ (3 × counted Matches). Exclude byes and unplayed administrative awards from both parts. Use zero if there are no counted Matches. For each opponent average, count every actual played encounter once, using that opponent's relevant event percentage. An empty average is zero. Use full precision for ordering. If all measures tie, share the place and skip the occupied following places unless advancement requires separation. Required separation uses a playoff under normal game rules, continuing after draws. A die roll or unfinished Bible Point lead does not determine advancement. Randomize first-round Swiss pairings. Later rounds pair similar Match Point totals and avoid repeats where possible. Exact ties may be randomized for pairings without changing standings. Announce the round count in advance. With odd attendance, select a bye from the lowest Match Point group eligible for a first bye where possible, randomizing equals. Do not give a second bye while another active Player remains eligible for a first. A bye gives 3 Match Points, no invented games, no opponent and no Elo change. Unplayed administrative awards likewise give the recipient 3 Match Points without invented games or Elo. A played Match ending in concession receives its normal rating result; a Match concession does not invent additional game wins. Negotiated unplayed Match draws are prohibited. Both Players confirm results, with unresolved disputes identified before finalization.
4. Tabletop Elo. Start at 1,500. For each actual completed eligible Match: Expected result = 1 ÷ (1 + 10^((opponent rating − Player rating) ÷ 400)). New rating = old rating + 32 × (actual result − expected result). The actual result is 1 for a win, 0.5 for a draw and 0 for a loss. Use both pre-Match ratings and retain full precision. Rate the Match once; do not also rate its individual games. A 2–0 and 2–1 win have equal rating effect against the same rating.
Byes and unplayed administrative outcomes do not change Elo. Store event, round and Match order consistently rather than using arbitrary data-entry order. Corrections must recompute affected dependent results. Tabletop Elo persists between seasons and remains separate from Online Elo.
5. Seasonal Championship Points. A qualifying local has at least four genuine Players and at least three completed rounds. A Player must complete their scheduled rounds. A scheduled bye counts. A drop before completion or disqualification earns no placement award. Placement by Championship Points: First - 10, Second - 6, Third - 4, Fourth - 2, Fifth or lower - 1. If Players remain tied and share a placement, each eligible Player receives that place's award and later places skip the occupied positions. Only the best twelve qualifying local finishes count each season. Retain all results and substitute better finishes. Eligible Matches still affect Elo even when the local is outside the counting twelve. Seasons last twelve months, with dates announced before the season begins. Allocate an event by its announced start date, including one crossing a season boundary. Championship Points and the best-twelve selection restart each season. Preserve history and carry forward Elo. Bigger-event awards, seats and qualification thresholds require their own announcements and are not guaranteed by these rules.
6. Event administration and appeals. The event notice identifies its location, start time/time zone, Format, rounds, adjudicator, registration deadline, season and any permitted special conditions. Ordinary local admission, Draft product rules and the prohibition on local result-based material prizes follow the League Player Terms and organizer agreement. A special prize or fee structure requires prior specific authorization and lawful event rules. Players must be ready for their assigned round. Before round one, the organizer explains the published lateness and penalty procedure. A documented access need, emergency or organizer error is considered fairly; penalties cannot be invented to favor another Player. The applicable procedure is supplied with the event notice and retained with its results. A Player may ask for clarification or appeal a ruling promptly before play proceeds irreversibly. The designated independent adjudicator reviews the applicable rule and relevant facts. A person does not decide a dispute involving their own Match. If no impartial adjudicator is available, a competing organizer must stop competing or arrange an authorized independent decision. Record an unresolved rules question for later official review.
7. Errors, integrity and event interruption. Call the adjudicator promptly for a Deck, score, card-condition or gameplay error. Preserve the current state where practicable. Correction should restore the lawful state without an unfair advantage; serious or intentional misconduct may require removal and a program review. An AI answer does not determine a penalty. Players may not insert self-made proxy cards into sanctioned Decks. Any event-specific damaged-card substitution procedure must be officially authorized and documented; it cannot enlarge the eligible card pool. If no such procedure is in force, use a lawful genuine replacement and the applicable correction process. Confirm results before submission. Material later corrections require evidence, notice to affected Players where appropriate and an audit record; do not fabricate attendance or Matches. A Player may withdraw for safety or personal reasons. Record actual completed Matches, withdrawals and byes correctly, applying the published Championship Point completion conditions and any announced lawful accommodation. Do not condition emergency assistance on completing a tournament. For an outage, interruption or cancellation, prioritize safety, preserve actual records and use the authorized contingency process. Do not label an incomplete event as completed to award points. Explain affected qualification, any product-sale remedies and the review contact. Mandatory rights remain available.
8. Versions and seasons. The event record identifies the supplied rule version and the actual announced season start and end dates. Unannounced championships, prizes, travel funding and invitations are not guaranteed by ordinary participation. Material operational changes are communicated before affected play where practicable; urgent safety or integrity corrections are explained and applied fairly. Contact rocky@bibletcg.com for an official rules clarification or results-review request.