Q: How are season division placements determined?
3.0.6 The NGS league is divided into six (6) in-game Storm League rank divisions. NGS places teams into divisions based on a variety of factors, including (but not limited to): in-game Storm League rank, past NGS performance, performance in other Heroes of the Storm competitions, as well as information provided in the registration survey. Divisions with larger numbers of teams are further split into coasts.
What this means:
They collect all Storm League ranks of your entire team’s roster (total of 5-9 players) but put more emphasis on the top 3 players. This sets up an initial placement spread and helps to create upper and lower bound ideas between each Division. The upper and lower bounds of a Division is estimated as the average SL rank between all the teams in a Division. After that, they look at your past performance in NGS as a team if applicable or as known individuals from prior seasons. This works as an unofficial promotion/demotion system for past playoff teams or lower ranking teams and Grand Champions as well. They also take into account any outside performance in other leagues or tournaments if that information is relevant, available or provided. When the team captains register for the Season, there is also a short questionnaire where they can put their overall competitive desires and preferred area of placement. Other discretion of placements are solely based on the decisions of the Placement Committee in an effort to provide the best competition experience for all Divisions as equally as possible!
Q: Can I be on two different teams if they are in different divisions?
2.1.5 Team members may only be rostered on one NGS team at a time. Playing under more than one Battle.Net ID is prohibited.
Regardless of Division or Coasts, a player is only allowed to register and play for one team. However, once you leave a team and decide to join another, you can play with the new team freely.
You are able to play as an off-roster substitute for a team even if you are currently rostered on a team following stipulations as listed in 2.3.3 and 2.3.4.
Q: What if I have multiple battle.net accounts? Which ones can I use to participate?
2.1.7.1 Members must register on the NGS website with the Battle.Net ID they have played the most games on. Permission to register with an alternate account instead may be requested from a moderator if you believe it is more accurate.
7.0.4 also covers a few topics regarding deception within the league. You should be sure to register your account on the website and the account you use should be what is considered your “main account” on the NA servers. This refers to the account with the most amount of games played and reflects accurate and up to date information such as having a rank in SL over at least the past two seasons.
Smurfing is a big no-no and could quickly get you suspended from playing.
Q: What if I need to use an off-roster substitute?
Be sure to read the quick rules located under 2.3 Off-Roster Subs! Off-roster subs are completely viable during the regular season following those rules. Just remember to inform the opposing team captain and your Division Moderator as soon as possible and within 1 hour prior to the match time!
Q: The opposing team captain is requesting to use an off-roster substitute for our match this week. Can I deny it?
As the team captain, you are allowed to deny an off-roster sub under these circumstances only, found in 2.3.3. Specifically 2.3.3.1 identifies the circumstance where the opposing team captain failed to notify you 1 hour minimum in advance in which case you should contact your Division Moderator immediately to inform them of the situation. Of course, you are always free to accept any off-roster sub despite reasons to deny them! In the end it is your decision!
Q: Can I get a roster change after playoffs start?
2.2.4 Rosters will hard lock one week before the end of a division’s regular season. From this point on, no roster additions will be permitted, including during the playoffs.
This prevents any last-minute drastic changes to a main roster that could affect playoff outcomes unfairly and that are not comparable to a team’s regular season performance.
Q: What about using an off-roster sub for playoffs?
2.3.6 Off-Roster Subs will not be allowed once rosters hard lock. See Section 6.0 for playoff format.
Also, unfortunately no for the same reasons. You can find the remaining playoff rules and format under 6.0 Playoffs!
Q: How do I find an opposing team captain to schedule my upcoming match?
In the NGS discord (which you should join if you haven’t), we have a very convenient #captains_list channel in order by Division, Coast and alphabetically by team name! Here you can find not only the captains of each team but also any other main points of contacts including assistant captains and managers. You can also find captains on the NGS website by going to their team profile page and they are marked with a crown in front of their name.
Q: I have sent the opposing team captain several message but have not heard back. What can I do?
All teams are pingable in discord! The first recommendation is to ping the entire team in your division chat channel and request that someone from the team contact you in lieu of their captain being unresponsive. With this, it is also important to immediately contact your Division Moderator about the issue and they can reach out as well.
Q: What should we do if our opponents do not show up to a match?
4.1.1 There will be a 15-minute grace period to attend matches. If a team is more than 15 minutes late, the opposing captain can request a forfeit from a moderator. If this occurs three (3) or more times, they may be disqualified from the league for that season.
4.1.1.2 and 4.1.1.3 also label the circumstance of communication when scheduling a double header.
Q: Who do I contact if I think the opposing team is cheating or using a player outside their roster? Who do I contact to report toxic/abusive chat I have received in discord and or in game from another member of NGS?
You can always contact any of the Moderators or Board members if you suspect any foul play or unsportsmanlike behavior and it will be thoroughly and fairly investigated to keep the integrity of NGS. The Disciplinary Committee will also be involved to determine the best course of action proceeding. All Community Guidelines can be found in the rules section 7.0.
Q: How do I get a caster for my match?
The sooner you schedule your matches and put them on the NGS website calendar, the more likely a caster will be available to pick it up! All casters are volunteers, so they always do their best to pick up games as frequently as they are able and see all matches presented on this calendar. We have an average of over 70% of matches being live casted throughout a season!
Q: Who do I contact to report a toxic or unprofessional caster?
Anything regarding the casters of NGS should be brought to the attention of either the Head Caster, Raka, or the Assistant Head Casters, Krushinator and EternallyBlue. Clips or other forms of information are helpful to evaluate the situation as well.
Q: I have a player that needs to leave the team for personal reasons. We no longer have enough players to play our remaining games. Is there anything I can do?
Of course! We suggest you take a look in the discord channel #free_agent_apps and on the website while you are logged in. As captain, you should turn on the “Looking for More” option on your team profile page so free agents signed up on the website can find you and you can see the “Find Players” option in your drop-down menu to browse those players as well. Lastly, review 2.3 Off-Roster Subs in the rules in case you need a quick fix for an upcoming match! (Playoffs not included)
Q: How do I report a match after it has been played? Who is responsible for reporting it?
The winning team is responsible for uploading the match. The best place to find this information and more is to check out this short video. Enjoy!
Q: I am the captain of the team and I need to step down. How do I transfer the team to a new captain?
Simply log into your NGS profile on the website and go to your team page, select “Manage” and “Change Captain”, then select the player you wish to promote! Be sure to tell your Division Moderator as well so they can get the #captains_list in discord to reflect this change.
Q: As a captain, am I required to read the rules and familiarize my team with them?
Absolutely! 7.0.8 Ignorance of these rules is not an excuse to break them.
This being said, any of the Moderators can and are more than happy to help you through them if you have any questions or concerns. While most of the rules are basic amongst any league or competition, it is important to understand and know where to find this information as it also has the structure and format of the season and other topics.
Q: As a captain, do I need to know how to set up a game lobby? Are there any resources to help me with this? How is the order of map picks and bans determined?
We recommend you familiarize yourself with setting up your own custom lobby. Some casters may set one up for you or the opposing team captain, but it is always best that you know yourself too! Section 4.3 Match Setup can be found on the website rules page or you can check out this video for a quick and easy walk through of the entire process!
Q: What are the restrictions for team names? What are the restrictions for team logos? Are mature themes allowed?
2.1.2 Team names, player names, and logos should be appropriate enough for Casters to say on twitch stream without repercussion and appropriate enough for a minor to see. The NGS Board reserves the right to request a team to change their name or logo at their discretion.
2.1.2.1 Team names are restricted to a maximum of 2 special characters and a total of 26 characters. Special characters refer to any non-alphanumeric characters such as parenthesis (), apostrophes ‘, hyphens -, etc. The total number of 26 characters includes any special characters, alphanumeric characters, and spaces.
While NGS is not 100% family friendly, many participants and volunteers are parents and others are under the age of 18 so the use of mature themes will likely be requested to change before the season begins.
