Hello World Bladers!
Today we have a slew of very interesting and meaningful updates for you, ranging from when we qualify the start of a battle to when Organizers can qualify a met win condition (via a new unranked experimental option), as well as few minor updates to legal Drivers for Burst Classic and Burst Limited.
Updates Overview
All Formats: Start of Battle & Mid-Air Contact Clarifications
Historically, going back as far as the Plastics generation, the technique of "sniping" (or "gattyaki" for veteran Bladers) has remained an unusually legal outlier in the rulebook, and deliberately so. Out of the respect of those who were skilled enough to perform it consistently, the WBO rules have always intentionally left leeway in rulings to enable this strategy.
However, in the current day, the concept of "sniping" - that is, hitting your opponent's Beyblade mid-air before ever touching the stadium floor, in an attempt to immediately knock them out or drastically reduce their spin - seems unsportsmanlike and promotes two unhealthy behaviours; one which plays around the rules and realities of Beyblade rather than within them, and another which attempts to end a game before the average Blader would consider it to have started.
After reviewing this at length internally (and we mean at length!), we have decided to clamp down on this with the following change being implemented across all formats:
This change now ensures that both Beyblades touch the stadium floor at least once before contact can be made, no longer making sniping during the launch procedure a legitimate strategy. Similar to when a launch is obstructed or a launcher skips, a Blader's Beyblade is interrupted while entering the stadium and the battle is to be re-done.
Closely related to this is tightening up/refining the understanding of when a battle begins to reflect the above change. The start of a battle has historically been at the end of the Judge calling "3-2-1 Go Shoot", rather than when the Beyblades actually interact with the stadium. However, the following changes will now be made:
With this change, while Bladers should still launch on "shoot", the start of a battle is shifted to when both Beyblades touch the stadium floor instead. This means that win conditions, such as the Knock-Out that may incur via midair contact, cannot be incurred until both Beyblades have touched the stadium floor.
All Burst Formats: Rebound Unranked Experimental Period Begins
For those unaware, the Knock-Outs you see in Burst today aren't what they've always been! Back in September 2017, a change was made to the Knockout ruling in Burst formats, removing the ability to avoid a knockout by bouncing back off the back wall of a pocket and back into the stadium. This veered the the WBO ruleset away from the WBBA's ruling on this, which still permitted them.
This change was met with mixed reception at the time, but has become an accepted rule in the modern game, particularly as Beys have increased in size and weight over time. However, we do still see mentions of this rule being removed from time to time, often for different reasons; some find the ruling a headache, some find it a deviation from the "intended Burst experience that should be", and so on.
But the one main reason we hear is to simplify judging. It is no secret that this rule in it's current form requires Judges to have a keen eye on pockets and exits, particularly in Attack matchups, as a knockout can happen in a flash. Rebounds however, prevent this, creating a situation where either a Bey is either stuck in a pocket or isn't, and doesn't mandate the same keen eye.
We don't believe there is a right or wrong answer to this debate, as both ways of handling this have merit. However, we hear the calls and would like to encourage the community to voice their feedback and give the ruling a try.
Starting today, we will be implementing an unranked experimental period of the Rebound Clause, to gather data, gauge support and overall interest for bringing our ruling more in line with the WBBA. This will use the following rule amendments:
Of note, the inclusion of a 2-point KOs is exclusive to the inclusion of Rebounds, as this is an incentive to offset that KOs may become harder to achieve.
For those that choose to partake in this experimental unranked period, we require you to explicitly mention this rule choice when proposing and hosting events, and appropriately mark it as "Experimental" and "Unranked" when using the "Schedule an Event" form.
During the experimental period, we will be gathering feedback in a thread linked below, so we invite Bladers to weigh in on this ruling there after trying this in an experimental event.
This experimental period does not have a definitive timeline as of yet, as we are mostly interested in seeing how well this kind of change is received by Organizers, Judges, and participants before making any decisions on the topic. We intend to keep a close eye on this and hope that everyone will be willing to give us their feedback over time to inform any future decision.
All Burst Formats: "Win Condition Priority" Section Expanded
This little alteration is more of a clarification than it is changing how we play. Previously, the Gameplay Appendix did not have a full-fledged "Priority" section for win conditions, only stipulating that Bursts take precedent over Knock-Outs. However, we have decided to expand on this section to provide clarity going forward. For context, the ruling previous read the following:
Starting today, this ruling has been removed and replaced with the following:
While disputes regarding this rarely occur, we believe that being thorough and also providing Bladers with a definitive hierarchy of win conditions will help out in those rare instances when they do occur.
Burst Classic & Burst Limited: Hasbro Bearing and Atomic Series Drivers Unbanned
If you play Burst Classic or Limited with any regularity, you'll know that several prolific parts are currently banned from these: Hasbro's version of the Bearing Driver in both formats, and the Atomic series of Drivers - Atomic, Atomic-S and Atomic' in Classic.
At the time of their banning, these made a lot of sense, either being meta-warping or infinitely splashable parts which significantly reduced part diversity in either format. However, as these formats have grown older and gained access to newer and more potent Driver choices, the fear of these Drivers has become misplaced, and we feel these parts are no longer as relevant as they once were.
With this in mind, effective immediately, Bearing (Hasbro), Atomic, Atomic-S and Atomic' are once again legal for use in Burst Classic and Burst Limited. The "Legal Equipment" section in both format rulebooks has been updated accordingly.
Feedback?
If you have any feedback on these particular changes, or any questions or suggestions for further adjustments or additions, please post your thoughts below or in the WBO Organized Play Rules thread.
Thank you to everyone for your continued support of WBO Organized Play! We appreciate any and all feedback and are always looking to improve and clarify things where possible.
Today we have a slew of very interesting and meaningful updates for you, ranging from when we qualify the start of a battle to when Organizers can qualify a met win condition (via a new unranked experimental option), as well as few minor updates to legal Drivers for Burst Classic and Burst Limited.
Updates Overview
- [IMPORTANT] All Formats: Start of Battle & Mid-Air Contact Clarifications
- [IMPORTANT] All Burst Formats: Unranked Experimental Rebound Clause
- [IMPORTANT] All Burst Formats: "Win Condition Priority" Section Expanded
- Burst Classic & Limited: Hasbro Bearing and Atomic Series Drivers now unbanned
All Formats: Start of Battle & Mid-Air Contact Clarifications
Historically, going back as far as the Plastics generation, the technique of "sniping" (or "gattyaki" for veteran Bladers) has remained an unusually legal outlier in the rulebook, and deliberately so. Out of the respect of those who were skilled enough to perform it consistently, the WBO rules have always intentionally left leeway in rulings to enable this strategy.
However, in the current day, the concept of "sniping" - that is, hitting your opponent's Beyblade mid-air before ever touching the stadium floor, in an attempt to immediately knock them out or drastically reduce their spin - seems unsportsmanlike and promotes two unhealthy behaviours; one which plays around the rules and realities of Beyblade rather than within them, and another which attempts to end a game before the average Blader would consider it to have started.
After reviewing this at length internally (and we mean at length!), we have decided to clamp down on this with the following change being implemented across all formats:
Format Rulebook - Relaunching Wrote:If your launch is obstructed or noticeably underpowered due to an event beyond your control or contact is made in mid-air, you can request a relaunch, which will immediately void and end the current battle.
The primary reasons you’d want to request a relaunch are:
Bladers are entitled to a single relaunch per battle, though judges may freely invoke relaunches for Bladers outside of their allocation if they have a valid concern.
- Your launcher malfunctions in a way that causes your launch to be underpowered
- You are accidentally hit or shoved by the opposing player or a spectator
- Contact was made before both Beyblades touch the stadium floor once.
Bladers must request a relaunch during the countdown or immediately afterwards. The judge may deny the request if they determine that you were at fault or requested too late.
This change now ensures that both Beyblades touch the stadium floor at least once before contact can be made, no longer making sniping during the launch procedure a legitimate strategy. Similar to when a launch is obstructed or a launcher skips, a Blader's Beyblade is interrupted while entering the stadium and the battle is to be re-done.
Closely related to this is tightening up/refining the understanding of when a battle begins to reflect the above change. The start of a battle has historically been at the end of the Judge calling "3-2-1 Go Shoot", rather than when the Beyblades actually interact with the stadium. However, the following changes will now be made:
Format Rulebook - Launching Wrote:A battle is prompted with the call of “3–2–1 Go Shoot!” and begins when both Beyblades have made contact with the stadium floor at least once.
Both bladers must simultaneously launch their Beyblades as the word “shoot” is called.
- Keep your Launcher held within your KO half of the BeyStadium. Never attempt to obstruct your opponent’s launch.
- Bladers cannot shoot their Beyblade onto the opponent's Beyblade mid-air.
- Bladers must keep their Beyblade within a 30cm/1ft radius from the centerpoint of the BeyStadium floor for the duration of their launch.
- Do not touch the BeyStadium at any time. If you think the BeyStadium should be adjusted, ask a judge.
- If a winder-based launcher is being used, a legal launch consists of the winder being pulled out of the launcher, rather than pushed in.
With this change, while Bladers should still launch on "shoot", the start of a battle is shifted to when both Beyblades touch the stadium floor instead. This means that win conditions, such as the Knock-Out that may incur via midair contact, cannot be incurred until both Beyblades have touched the stadium floor.
All Burst Formats: Rebound Unranked Experimental Period Begins
For those unaware, the Knock-Outs you see in Burst today aren't what they've always been! Back in September 2017, a change was made to the Knockout ruling in Burst formats, removing the ability to avoid a knockout by bouncing back off the back wall of a pocket and back into the stadium. This veered the the WBO ruleset away from the WBBA's ruling on this, which still permitted them.
This change was met with mixed reception at the time, but has become an accepted rule in the modern game, particularly as Beys have increased in size and weight over time. However, we do still see mentions of this rule being removed from time to time, often for different reasons; some find the ruling a headache, some find it a deviation from the "intended Burst experience that should be", and so on.
But the one main reason we hear is to simplify judging. It is no secret that this rule in it's current form requires Judges to have a keen eye on pockets and exits, particularly in Attack matchups, as a knockout can happen in a flash. Rebounds however, prevent this, creating a situation where either a Bey is either stuck in a pocket or isn't, and doesn't mandate the same keen eye.
We don't believe there is a right or wrong answer to this debate, as both ways of handling this have merit. However, we hear the calls and would like to encourage the community to voice their feedback and give the ruling a try.
Starting today, we will be implementing an unranked experimental period of the Rebound Clause, to gather data, gauge support and overall interest for bringing our ruling more in line with the WBBA. This will use the following rule amendments:
Unranked Experimental Ruling: "Knocked-Out" Wrote:A Beyblade is knocked-out when it exits the stadium and does not return. Beyblades stuck on an element of a stadium are still considered in-play.
Beyblades that bounce back into the stadium after exiting the stadium are still considered in play.
Unranked Experimental Ruling: How to Win Section Wrote:To win a match, a Blader must score enough points (3-5) to meet the victory requirement of the Match Type being used.
You score point(s) when:
- The opposing Beyblade stops spinning
- The opposing Beyblade exits the BeyStadium (2 Points)
- The opposing Beyblade bursts, OR if Frame, God Chip, or Driver Chip comes off
Of note, the inclusion of a 2-point KOs is exclusive to the inclusion of Rebounds, as this is an incentive to offset that KOs may become harder to achieve.
For those that choose to partake in this experimental unranked period, we require you to explicitly mention this rule choice when proposing and hosting events, and appropriately mark it as "Experimental" and "Unranked" when using the "Schedule an Event" form.
During the experimental period, we will be gathering feedback in a thread linked below, so we invite Bladers to weigh in on this ruling there after trying this in an experimental event.
This experimental period does not have a definitive timeline as of yet, as we are mostly interested in seeing how well this kind of change is received by Organizers, Judges, and participants before making any decisions on the topic. We intend to keep a close eye on this and hope that everyone will be willing to give us their feedback over time to inform any future decision.
All Burst Formats: "Win Condition Priority" Section Expanded
This little alteration is more of a clarification than it is changing how we play. Previously, the Gameplay Appendix did not have a full-fledged "Priority" section for win conditions, only stipulating that Bursts take precedent over Knock-Outs. However, we have decided to expand on this section to provide clarity going forward. For context, the ruling previous read the following:
(Former) Burst Rulebook - Gameplay Appendices Wrote:Burst+KO Draw (Burst Priority)
If a collision between two Beyblades results in one being bursted and the other being knocked-out at the same time, the knocked-out Beyblade is the winner (as it leaves the BeyStadium a fraction of a second after the burst occurs).
Starting today, this ruling has been removed and replaced with the following:
(Current) Burst Rulebook Gameplay Appendices Wrote:Win Condition Priority
Knock-Outs take priority over Spin Finishes. If a collision between two Beyblades results in one being knocked-out and the other losing all of its spin at the same time, the no-longer-spinning Beyblade is the winner (as it lands the deciding blow before being out-spun).
Bursts take priority over all. If a collision between two Beyblades results in one being bursted and the other being knocked-out at the same time, the knocked-out Beyblade is the winner (as it leaves the BeyStadium a fraction of a second after the burst occurs).
While disputes regarding this rarely occur, we believe that being thorough and also providing Bladers with a definitive hierarchy of win conditions will help out in those rare instances when they do occur.
Burst Classic & Burst Limited: Hasbro Bearing and Atomic Series Drivers Unbanned
If you play Burst Classic or Limited with any regularity, you'll know that several prolific parts are currently banned from these: Hasbro's version of the Bearing Driver in both formats, and the Atomic series of Drivers - Atomic, Atomic-S and Atomic' in Classic.
At the time of their banning, these made a lot of sense, either being meta-warping or infinitely splashable parts which significantly reduced part diversity in either format. However, as these formats have grown older and gained access to newer and more potent Driver choices, the fear of these Drivers has become misplaced, and we feel these parts are no longer as relevant as they once were.
With this in mind, effective immediately, Bearing (Hasbro), Atomic, Atomic-S and Atomic' are once again legal for use in Burst Classic and Burst Limited. The "Legal Equipment" section in both format rulebooks has been updated accordingly.
Feedback?
If you have any feedback on these particular changes, or any questions or suggestions for further adjustments or additions, please post your thoughts below or in the WBO Organized Play Rules thread.
Thank you to everyone for your continued support of WBO Organized Play! We appreciate any and all feedback and are always looking to improve and clarify things where possible.
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