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WBO Organized Play Rulebook Update: Plastics & HMS - Printable Version

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WBO Organized Play Rulebook Update: Plastics & HMS - th!nk - Oct. 31, 2022

Hello World Bladers!

Today we are announcing one of the largest updates to any of our rulebooks in recent times. After extensive community discussion and collaboration, effective today, we have updated the rulebook for Beyblade's oldest formats, Plastics and HMS.

With a huge number of updates that have been a long time coming as well as another swathe spurred by recent discoveries and collaboration from our small but incredibly passionate Plastics & HMS community, the list of updates is extensive. There are unbans, in-depth clarifications, and even a new and specifically tailored optional set of deck construction rules for use with Multiple Beyblade Match Types to increase accessibility and the variety of types able to be used in a single deck.

The updated rulebook can be seen below. But for additional details and reasoning on the changes made, strap yourself in and read on, there's a lot to cover!

Plastics & HMS Rulebook


[Image: LrPSM1N.png]

Updates Overview

If you wish to navigate to a specific section, you can use your browser's "Find In Page" function to search the Identifier for that entry (e.g A1).

Gameplay Changes
  • A1. Addition: Alternate Deck Construction (Multiple Beyblade Match Types) (Optional)
  • A2. Addition: Part Stress, Integrity, and Intended Tips Overarching Rules
  • A3. Change: Breakage During Play
  • A4. Change: Gimmick Reset Now Optional
  • A5. Removed: Bearing Tuning
  • A6. Clarification: Marking Parts
Part Ruling Changes
  • B1. Legalisation: Hidden Spirits Parts, Kellogg's Attack Rings, Radio Control Attack Rings
  • B2. Legalisation: SG Wing Base and G Special Base Tip Inversion
  • B3. Legalisation and Clarification: Sub Attack Ring Inversion & Interchangeability
  • B4. Clarification: Magne Weight Disk Mold 1 Plastic Detachment
  • B5. Legalisation & Clarification: Tip Interchangeability
  • B6. Clarifications: WD Inversion, Base Clips, Engine Gears, Support Part Inversion.
  • B7. Clarification: Bit Chip Figure/Power Spirits Bit Chip
  • B8. Clarification: Parts With Removable Metal Balls
  • B9. Clarification: Spin Gear Component Requirements
  • B10. Clarification: Gyro Engine Gear
Launcher Rulings
  • C1. Legalisation: Launcher Shims and Lubrication
  • C2. Legalisation & Clarification: Takara Tomy MFB Light Launcher 1 Winders, Hasbro MFB Winders and Electronic Tops Launchers
  • C3. Legalisation: Main Unit Prong Swap
  • C4. Clarification: Duotron and Double Shooter Usage
Terminology
  • D1. Change: "Plastic" Format Name Changed to "Plastics"
  • D2. Clarification: Generic Parts

Gameplay Rulings

A1. Addition: Alternate Deck Construction (Multiple Beyblade Match Types) (Optional)

Optional: Alternate Deck Construction (Multiple Beyblade Match Types) Wrote:The following set of rules are an optional alternate ruleset which may be applied to all Match Types that require the selection of multiple Beyblades (P3C1, 3on3, and Deck Match Types). These replace the standard restrictions on Repeated Parts in these Match Types, as to make them more accessible and allow a broader range of viable Combinations to be used alongside each other. Check the details of the tournament you are attending to see if this ruleset will be used.


Combination Composition (Plastics):
  • Combinations in a deck must not share the same Attack Ring or Tip - a Tip being the part of the Beyblade which is intended as the main point of contact with the stadium floor when upright, be it part of a Blade Base or a standalone Shaft or Tip (eg SG (Bearing Version 2) Shaft, Customize Grip Base Tip). All other parts may be repeated.
  • It is legal to use the same physical part for multiple combinations in a deck, within the bounds of these restrictions. In this case, each full combination must be shown to the opponent and/or judge fully assembled in line with the rules of the Match Type in use.
  • Tips with a Mode Change which do not require disassembly (detaching any part of the Beyblade), or which share the same Tip in at least one mode (eg Dranzer S’ Spiral Change Base with and without SG (Free Shaft Version) Shaft) are considered the same Tip and may not be used on multiple combinations in the same Deck.
  • Tips which require disassembly for Mode Change may be used in their different modes in the same Deck.
  • Both Core ARs and Sub ARs may not be repeated across combinations (eg, one cannot use War Lion with War Lion SAR and War Lion with War Monkey SAR in the same deck, but can use Bound Attack Ring and Bound Defense Ring in the same deck as they are each considered a whole part).
  • Takara's Twin Horn Attack Ring and Hasbro's Twin Horn Core Attack Ring are considered different Attack Rings for the purposes of deck building due to being different component types. Other parts with brand differences such as Flying Defense are considered the same part and thus may not be used in the same deck.
  • You may use any Sub-Ring on Gabriel and Cyber Dragoon Battle Spec.’s SG Wing Base, even if it is used as a Sub-AR on the same or another combination.

Combination Composition (HMS):
  • Combinations in the same deck may not share the same Running Core.
  • You may only use Magical Ape MS' Gyro Mode once per deck.
  • It is legal to use the same physical part for multiple combinations in a deck, within the bounds of these restrictions. In this case, each full combination must be shown to the opponent and/or judge in line with the rules of the Match Type in use.

Previously, parts such as Wide Defense, Defense Ring, Heavy Metal Core and Customize Grip Base were useful to almost every type - and critical to many, which resulted in types such as Force Smash (which needs all four) being practically unplayable in competitive events using Multiple Beyblade Match Types despite their competency. As Plastics and HMS were not designed with Deck Formats in mind we have traditionally allowed it to be optionally played with Single Beyblade Format finals, however we now acknowledge the demand from newer players who may have come from Burst or MFB generations who wish to engage in the tactical depth of Multiple Beyblade Match Types but have not been able to due to the accessibility obstacles presented by our standard Deck ruleset.

As such, we feel the proposed rules not only provide a deep tactical game but are also fair, accessible, and will actually serve to expand the variety of Combination Types seen in Plastics Tournament decks. In addition, it avoids the difficulty of managing duplicate parts in Plastics, where identical parts can have different names within the same brand, and many parts are repeated within the same combination (eg 2x Right Spin Gear Shells to make 1 Right Spin Gear, or the ability to repeat SARs with compatible ARs plus SG Wing Base), as well as being difficult to avoid for newer players (eg the exceedingly common Right Spin Gear can be difficult to find 2 alternatives to in an affordable way).

The ruleset for Plastics allows re-use of all but the most influential parts - the Attack Ring and Tip of the Beyblade, and defines the latter. This ensures variety in combination function by allowing the use of more combination types which may otherwise compete for parts while still preventing the use of identical combinations in the same deck - keeping with the intended spirit and tactical focus of Deck Format.

In addition, for the sake of accessibility a similar option is also available to hosts of HMS formats. Due to the small range of parts available in HMS - and the even smaller range of affordable parts as well as the shared roles of parts like Circle Upper, the decision was made to give the option of only restricting the Running Cores.

We acknowledge these rules represent a massive departure from current Deck Construction rules as well as presenting additional time spent during combination checking and between rounds for shared parts, however after extensive discussion and community consultation, this optional ruleset has been provided to increase the range of combinations able to be used in a single deck and to make newer formats like WBO Deck, 3on3 and P3C1 accessible to those getting into Plastics and HMS for the first time - including the reuse of the same physical parts within a deck to reduce the need to buy multiples and therefore offset any financial-based advantage from repeat parts. While this is a bit more work for judges, we also know our Plastics judges tend to be passionate and quite savvy about the format and trust in their capability to manage this.

As always, our recommendation to Organizers of these formats is to choose the most appropriate match types for their player base - and note that the option still remains uniquely for Plastics and HMS to not use Deck at all for finals.


A2. Addition: Part Stress, Integrity, and Intended Tips Overarching Rules

Part Stress, Integrity and Intended Tips Overarching Rules Wrote:
  • Part Stress: Combinations must not be put together in a way which does not fit correctly or significantly deforms parts to the point of causing permanent deformation. An example of this would be forcing Wolborg 2' SG (Bearing Version 2) tip into Burning Kerberous' Customize Bearing Base which causes irreversible damage to the tip, or using White Gabriel G's version of Twin Horn with Zeus’ Screw Zeus (as opposed to using Gaia Dragoon V’s Dragon Breaker).

  • Integrity: Combinations must not pose significant risk of disassembly in their use - such as balls which can fly out of the Blade Base during the course of normal play, or parts only held on by force outside of normal design.

  • Intended Tips: The primary contact point of a Beyblade with the stadium floor must be with a part of the Beyblade originally intended to be used as a tip. The circular flat tip section of Seaborg's Defense Grip Base Tip is considered an intended tip as well as the sharp rubber point, as are both sides of Dragoon S’ Storm Grip Base, Gabriel/Cyber Dragoon Battle Spec.'s SG Wing Base and Gaia Dragoon's G Special Base.

These rulings have been added to provide overarching guidance for legal construction of Plastic Beyblades. While many rulings in Plastics have been seen as "if it fits, it's legal" there have been varied interpretations and understandings of this concept.

The Part Stress ruling clarifies that parts must fit together without bending other parts in an unnatural and damaging way. It should be kept in mind that this does not preclude the existing popular Screw Zeus combinations as when oriented correctly these do not severely bend the parts in use. While we acknowledge some legal Screw Zeus combinations may cause a small amount of wear on the SAR details, per previous legalisation, this is considered acceptable (it is within normal parameters for play wear), versus the major bending of Hasbro's Twin Horn Core AR on the same SAR.

The Integrity ruling clarifies that Beyblades must not be assembled in a way which could pose a significant risk of disassembly (and therefore injury to players or bystanders). This is generally simple and common sense, but as it is a matter of safety and questions have been raised about such matters, we have opted to clarify and future-proof these rules.

The Intended Tips ruling clarifies that parts used as tips (the primary contact point of a Beyblade with the stadium floor) must be intended for use as such - preventing the inversion to surfaces that are not intended for stadium contact or use it parts which require a tip without one as to prevent damage to stadiums or parts. Specific clarification is provided for tips which have traditionally been used for inversion due to the design of the other side of their tips and the retention mechanism that allows this use. 

These rulings should help to answer construction legality questions that may arise in future.


A3. Change: Breakage During Play

Breakage During Play Wrote:
  • If a Beyblade part or launcher breaks during battle or while launching, the battle is voided and the owner must produce an identical replacement to continue the match. If this is not possible due to lack of available parts, the selection phase begins again for both Bladers with the match continuing from the current score.

  • If both players’ Beyblades break at the same time and they both cannot produce identical replacements to continue the match, the selection phase begins again for both Bladers with the match continuing from the current score.

Concessions have been made to our standard Breakage During Play rules, acknowledging both some additional breakage risk and also the difficulty of obtaining multiple copies of parts. These changes aim to reduce penalization for part breakage and to remove any incentive towards using this as a strategy. Should a blader be unable to replace their Beyblade with an identical one, rather than losing immediately, both Bladers return to the selection phase as though both Blades broke, however the points do not reset as to minimise any disadvantage to either player.


A4. Change: Gimmick Reset Now Optional

Parts with Multiple Modes Wrote:
  • Parts with gimmicks/mode changes that may activate or change – whether intentionally or not– post-launch may be reset after each battle. These are not considered mode changes and do not require players to turn around to change them, and may be done even if disassembly is required to do so (such as in the case of Wolborg 4’s Circle Survivor with a Final Clutch Base).

While this rule is a staple of Beyblade Burst, there isn't great precedent for it in Plastics in particular - quite the opposite in fact given Engine Gears are shown being used both Wound and being charged up from battle (Circle Survivor for example- which can also require disassembly to reset when using a Final Clutch Base).

In addition, the few non-EG parts which may require a reset would either be largely unused (eg SG Auto Change Base - which is also notable for becoming somewhat difficult to actually reset over time, Jumping Base (Trygle)) or somewhat healthier for the format (Jumping Base 2). As such, the wording of this section has been changed to permit the use in either mode, in the spirit of the greater freedom afforded to the Plastics format.


A5. Removed: Bearing Tuning

Bearing Tuning previously Wrote:Bearing Tuning: The tuning/seasoning of NSK shield bearings. Tuning is a process in which NSK shield bearings are stripped of their lubricant using paint thinner or other chemicals to increase Stamina capacity. Seasoning is connecting the tip of the shaft connected to NSK shield bearings to a motor and making it spin in order to reduce the friction.

The decision to remove this section was based on three factors. Firstly, this practice is already technically banned under Physical Modification restrictions.

Secondly, given the age and heavy use a lot of the MR52ZZ Bearings used in Plastics and HMS have seen, and as some simply come better from the factory, performance gains from Bearing Tuning have become comparatively more marginal than they were when this rule was implemented - and in fact, it has also been found that bearings that spin too freely can be quite detrimental in certain match ups.

Thirdly, it is incredibly difficult to judge the difference between a good, broken-in bearing and a tuned and seasoned one, especially as players can simply take the time to repeatedly launch a Bearing Gyros Beyblade or the like to wear in Bearings similarly to a motor. As a result, the rule has become less relevant with time and is now being removed from the rulebooks - obviously keep in mind it is still not allowed under Physical Modification restrictions - you should not show up to a tournament with your bearings in a tub of desiccant, but we will not be expecting judges to inspect specifically for this in constructed combinations.  


A6. Clarification: Marking Parts

Marking Parts Wrote:Parts may be marked in order to differentiate parts from your opponent’s in the event that your Beyblade(s) separate, or to maintain the orientation of your combination’s parts should it separate and need to be re-assembled. You may apply minor markings (single lines or dots) to them with a pen or marker. Other methods of marking not explicitly outlined here are addressed under the guidelines for Foreign Substances and Painting/Clear Coating as defined above.

This minor clarification fixes the wording of a ruling designed for Burst's more restrictive rule on part decoration with the more flexible rules for Plastics & HMS.


Part Rulings

B1. Legalisation: Hidden Spirits Parts, Kellogg's Attack Rings, Radio Control Attack Rings

Product Restrictions Wrote:
  • All Bearing Gyros Parts (Excluding the Gyro Defense Attack Ring), Electronic Beyblades, RC Beyblade Blade Bases, parts of the figures from the Bakutenryu/Hidden Spirits Beyblades (aside from the Tip used by Hayate Base), The Kelloggs Promotional Beyblade Base Spinner Part and any Beyblade sideline/promotional product that is not compatible with the mainline Beyblade series of tops are illegal.

Kellogg's ARs: While these were barred for use in Hasbro tournaments, these were licensed products and are designed and built as standard 4 Layer System Attack Rings. As such, to increase the range of available parts for the format as a number of them do have competitive viability, we have opted to unban these parts for tournament use. The Spinner piece has remained banned due to the structure and launch method used.

Radio Control Beyblade Attack Rings: Previously we banned Remote Control parts broadly which lead to some possible misinterpretations of the intent of the rule. Specifying only the Blade Bases are banned makes it clear that the Attack Rings from these releases including the unique version of Upper Claw released with RC Beyblade Driger V2 and the equivalent Three Kingdoms release are legal. The Blade Bases have remained illegal as a number of them such as RC Super Flat Base and the RC Engine Gear Bases would likely become far too dominant and the batteries inside have often broken down after all of this time, making them potentially hazardous.

Hidden Spirits Parts: While we have historically banned the use of all Hidden Spirits parts (aside from legalising the Attack Rings of Griffolyon and Salamalyon which were legalised about a decade ago), further examination of documentation from the time has revealed that these were in fact intended for legal use - even their rather odd Blade Base and Weight Ring are shown being interchanged with parts from main-line Beyblades. This also closes certain loopholes caused by this rule that could have been seen to inadvertently ban a number of common Weight Disks that happened to be used on Hidden Spirits releases, as well as potentially the entirety of Dragoon Victory due to the tenuous method of classification of Hidden Spirit Parts and inclusion of it in that category on Hasbro's Website. In addition, this allows the use of Hayate Attack Ring as a relatively affordable, high-powered Left Spin Smash Attack AR, as well as allowing the use of Zeo Attack Ring as a high-powered Right Spin Smash Attack AR.

In addition, the following section was added to clarify the legality of Weight Ring and Hayate Base, which are only intended for use with each other.
Hayate Base and Weight Ring (Bakutenryu Hayate et al.) Wrote:
  • The Weight Ring and Blade Base of Bakutenryu Hayate and its various alternate versions may only be used with each other.

While these parts are unusual in their attachment mechanisms, they were shown in documentation being used with other, mainstream Beyblade parts, and as such have been legalised to increase the available part pool for the generation. They must, however, only be used with each other as designed.


B2. Legalisation: SG Wing Base and G Special Base Tip Inversion

SG Wing Base (Gabriel, Cyber Dragoon Battle Spec.) Wrote:
  • You may invert the plastic tip from Gabriel and Cyber Dragoon Battle Spec.'s SG Wing Base in order to use the wider flat plastic surface as the tip, as long as it fits securely in line with the Integrity ruling.

G Special Base (Gaia Dragoon) Wrote:
  • You may invert the plastic tip from Gaia Dragoon's G Special Base in order to use the wider flat plastic surface as the tip, as long as it fits securely in line with the Integrity ruling.  

Both of these Blade Bases share the same tip, and the mechanism structured identically to Storm Grip Base, including a viable alternative tip on the other side which does not damage stadium surfaces. As such, we have opted to legalise the inversion of these tips for the sake of consistency.

The wordings for Defense Grip Base (Seaborg) and Storm Grip Base (Dragoon S) have also been updated to add a reference to the Integrity ruling alongside these additions.


B3. Legalisation and Clarification: Sub Attack Ring Inversion & Interchangeability

Attack Rings and Blade Bases with Sub-Attack Rings (Plastics) Wrote:
  • You may not use an Attack Ring or Blade Base which has a slot for a Sub-AR without using a Sub-AR.
  • You may use the Sub-AR from one AR or BB with a different AR or BB.
  • You may invert the Sub-AR, as long as doing so does not cause undue stress on any part of the Beyblade.
  • The Sub-Ring Parts of Dual Dragon (Dragoon F), Bound Attack Ring (Bound Attacker), Bound Defense Ring (Bound Defenser) and Spark Attack Ring (Sparkling Attacker) are considered to be parts of the main Attack Ring, and are not interchangeable or removable.
  • As an exemption to the above, the Core piece of Bound Defense Ring and Bound Attack Ring is considered the same part, and as such the Sub-Ring of each may be interchanged with each other.
  • The Sub-Rings of Bound Attack Ring and Bound Defense Ring may be oriented either way up and in any of the rotated positions available, as long as doing so is in line with the ruling on Part Stress.

While interchangeability of Sub Attack Rings has long been a fixture of our Plastics play (even though it was not legal under Takara's rules of the time), SAR inversion has always been a grey area most didn't set foot in - it was not clarified in the original BBA rules, nor has it been in ours. However, on consideration of the possibilities this opens up the decision has been made to legalise this - top of SAR to Weight Disk contact is already established by SG Wing Base, after all.


B4. Clarification: Magne Weight Disk Mold 1 Plastic Detachment

Magne Weight Disk Wrote:
  • Magne Weight Disk may be used without its plastic shells should they have detached through the course of normal use.
  • Should the shells of a Magne Weight Disk detach during a Battle, you are not to remove it from the BeyStadium. Leave them and allow the battle to proceed as normal. This is not counted as disassembly.
  • If this occurs, the shells must be left off for the remainder of the Match.
  • It is legal to use a small amount of adhesive to re-affix the plastic shells of Magne Weight Disk as long as performance is not altered in a way that differs from stock performance.

Given the course of time, it is rarer to find a Mold 1 Magne Weight Disk with its two plastic casings still attached than without. Rather than render these parts illegal, after significant testing it has been found that Magne Weight Disk does not present any danger without its casings attached and as such we have legalised this option, as well as the use of a small amount of adhesive to repair these parts if desired as an exception to the Foreign Substances rule to restore original functionality - without doing so, it is likely mold one would disappear from the competitive landscape entirely which is a larger impact to authenticity than the alternative.


B5. Legalisation & Clarification: Tip Interchangeability

Interchanging Blade Base Tips (Plastics) Wrote:
  • You may not interchange tips from Blade Bases in which the tip is considered to be the same part as the BB. Two examples of this are Driger S's SG Metal Change Base and Voltaic Ape's Customize Metal Sharp Base.
  • You may interchange tips and shafts when they are considered to be part of the Spin Gear, or an independent part, such as the tips of Dragoon V2's Customize Grip Base, Dragoon V's Magne Flat Base, Uriel 2's SG Grip Change Base and Wolborg 03 (Uriel)'s SG Grip Base, in line with the Integrity ruling.
  • In the case of SG Grip Change Base, the tip may be inserted into the Casings of Wolborg 2's SG (Bearing Version 2) to be used as a tip.
  • In the case of SG Grip Base, the tip may be inserted into a Magnecore SG using Dranzer V's Volcano Change Base.
  • The tips of Jumping Base may be used in place of the lower tip part of Burning Kerberous' Neo SG (Double Bearing Version) Shaft, and vice versa.
  • The tip section of SG (MG Spring Version) may be used in the casing section of SG (Spring Version).

These guidelines aim to clarify the somewhat murky rules around swapping Tips between Blade Bases

Volcano Change Base: While it does appear somewhat odd, Volcano Change Base is structurally minimally different to other Removable Tip-equipped Blade Bases. Its own tip does not fit into other Blade Bases, however the tip of SG Grip Base can in fact fit and be fully retained with use of a Magnecore Spin Gear. As such, the decision has been made to clarify the legality of this setup.

Use of SG (MG Spring Version) Tip in SG (Spring Version) Shaft Part: The similar structure of these two parts and the fact the tip is part of the SG allow them to be interchanged, though it is worth noting that the tip piece of SG (Spring Version) must be removed to release it from the Shaft section (which is only possible with the Takara version).

Neo SG (Double Bearing Version) with Jumping Base Tips: The shaft of Burning Kerberous' Neo SG (Double Bearing Version) has a removable tip (though Hasbro did glue it) which is conspicuously the exact same size as those of the previously released Jumping Base. For Jumping Base, the access to multiple removable tips out of the box allows these tips to be considered separate parts and therefore the use of Burning Kerberous' Tip Piece on it is acceptable.


B6. Clarifications: WD Inversion, Base Clips, Engine Gears, Support Part Inversion.

Weight Disk (Plastics, Heavy Metal System) Wrote:
  • Plastics Weight Disks may be used in either upward or downward orientation.
Base Clips (Plastics) Wrote:
  • You may interchange Base Clips between Blade Bases.
  • You may interchange Engine Gear Blade Base Clips between Engine Gear Blade Bases.
Blade Bases with Support Part Slots (Plastics) Wrote:
  • You may not use a Blade Base that has slots for Support Parts without Support Parts.
  • Support parts may be oriented either way up as long as they comply with Part Stress and Integrity rules.
  • For two-part SP (eg Cross Attack, Reverse Attack), you may use a different SP in each slot of a compatible Blade Base if desired.

While all of these rulings have been universally understood to be unwritten rules of the game, these inclusions aim to clarify these for newer players.


B7. Clarification: Bit Chip Figure/Power Spirits Bit Chip

Bit Chip Figure/Power Spirits Bit Chip Wrote:
  • The rubber and metal Bit Chip from Takara’s Bit Chip Figure and Hasbro’s Power Spirits line may be used with either a Regular SG Core Part or Heavy Metal Core, and may only be used with the pole section facing into the Beyblade.
  • The Bit Chip Figure/Power Spirits Bit Chip may not be used without the metal piece.

While the unique Rubber and Metal Bit Chip from Takara Tomy's Bit Chip Figure series and Hasbro's Power Spirits has never been explicitly illegal, they were often considered to not have been intended for competitive use. Recent research, however, has shown that they were directly advertised for such use on Takara's packaging of the products. As such, we are explicitly legalising these as well as providing guidelines for use. The requirement of the Metal Piece to be used is in line with our existing Legal Construction rules.


B8. Clarification: Parts With Removable Metal Balls.

Parts with Removable Metal Balls (Plastics) Wrote:
  • You may not insert metal balls into parts not designed to hold them. This includes the center of a Heavy Metal Core.
  • It is strongly recommended, but not required, to use an even distribution of balls when configuring a combination as to prevent premature damage to launchers and parts.
  • For those parts which are designed to hold them, the following rulings apply:
  • Metal Ball Base (Draciel Metal Ball Defenser): You may use up to four 1/4" Steel Balls in the pockets, as well as an optional addition of up to two 1/4" Steel Balls in the holes on the underside of the Base.
  • SG Metal Ball Base (Draciel S): You may use up to four 1/4" Steel Balls in the pockets only. No additional Balls are permitted.
  • Fortress Base (Draciel F): You may use up to two 1/4" Steel Balls in the pockets only, no additional Balls are permitted.
  • G Special Base (Gaia Dragoon): You may use up to four 3/16" Steel Balls in the pockets. If not using SG (G Ball Version), you may only use Metal Balls in the two pockets protected by the SG Shell protrusions.
  • SG (G Ball Version): You may use zero or one 3/16" Steel Balls in the holder underneath the SG Core Part.
  • SG (Grease Ball Version): You must use one 1/4" Steel Ball in the cartridge part of the SG Core. You may optionally use the supplied Silicone-Based Grease, this must not be replaced with another type or consistency of grease.

These rules lay out the legal amount and type of Metal Balls usable in various Spin Gears and Blade Bases, while also recommending the use of an even distribution to prevent breakage. In addition, Lower-Than-Stock numbers are also provided as an option for the sake of accessibility.

Metal Ball Base: This ruling formally recognises the legality of 6-Ball Configurations as shown in Spin Up Book Vol. 1 with consideration if its unique design choices which make balls placed in the holes underneath the Blade Base easily removable while still holding them securely. It is worth noting that the Takara version of this part can be somewhat fragile and care should be taken when experimenting with this.

SG Metal Ball Base, Fortress Base: As balls may not be securely retained in other locations, these rules limit their use to intended amounts in their pockets. These have long been mostly accepted rulings, but this prevents arguments involving filling the Blade Base up with additional Balls.

G Special Base: The small balls of Gaia Dragoon are able to particularly easily escape a Beyblade if not held in place by the SG Shell, thus additional restrictions are in place to prevent their escape. We do acknowledge the fact the Red recolour came with a Magnecore SG which does not retain two of the Metal Balls directly and only through Magnetic Attraction, however in this case we are erring on the side of player safety.

SG (G Ball Version): The decision has been made to make this optional in case a player has lost the 3/16" Steel Ball and is unable to source a replacement, for the sake of accessibility.
 
SG (Grease Ball Version): In this case, as the Metal Ball is the intended Tip of the Beyblade, it is compulsory to use it, however as Hasbro did not supply Silicone-Based Grease with their releases of Draciel F (despite the name of the part), we have deemed the use of Silicone-Based Grease optional.


B9. Clarification: Spin Gear Component Requirements

Spin Gears (Plastics) Wrote:
  • You must fill all slots on a Spin Gear, with the exception of the optional use of a Metal Weight Ring with Regular SG Shells.
  • It is legal to change Cores and Casings between Spin Gears as long as they fit correctly.
  • For Spin Gears with bearings, a suitable ABS, POM, Metal or MR52ZZ Shielded Steel Ball Bearing must be used in each available slot. Bearings may be interchanged as long as they fit securely.

Filling All Slots: While the need to fill all slots has been broadly assumed as a ruling, it is important to clarify this as a matter of legal construction.

Compulsory Use of Bearings: While this is a small obstacle to accessibility, they are critical to the normal functioning of parts using them and as such it is not feasible to allow the use of these parts without bearings.

Optional Use Of Metal Weight Ring: While the omission of a Metal Weight Ring in a regular SG would be seen as incomplete construction, it has been determined later release of Regular SG-Equipped Beyblades often lacked this part, such as the BBA Series of Beyblades (BBA Defenser, BBA Attacker, BBA Balancer and BBA Survivor), which clarifies the intended legality of this configuration.


B10. Clarification: Gyro Engine Gear

We have added an extensive section to clarify the use of the highly competitive but very unusual Gyro Engine Gear. These rules codify legal launching of the Beyblade (including the legal launch involving two winders), as well as clarifying the legality of Spin Direction changing - after all, Gyro Engine Gear was the first true Dual-Spin Part in Beyblade.

Gyro Engine Gear (Flame Pegasus, Thunder Pegasus, Capricorn Strike G) Wrote:
  • A Beyblade using Gyro Engine Gear is considered to be spinning as long as the metal Gyro part is visibly moving the same spin direction it was launched in, regardless of whether the top half of the Beyblade has stopped or not. If a Beyblade starts spinning again after it has stopped, the battle does not resume as the battle has already concluded.
  • A Beyblade using Gyro Engine Gear is not considered Spinning if it is fully inverted (spinning upside-down).
  • You may change either or both bearings to another type of bearing.
  • You may change spin directions used by the Gyro Mode between battles.
  • Gyro Engine Gear combinations are considered to have stopped spinning when the bulk of the Beyblade, that is, the Engine Gear, stops spinning.
  • Gyro Engine Gear may be legally launched in one of three ways:
  • If using only a launcher, the Beyblade is to be launched in line with standard launch protocol, and may only be launched in Right Spin.
  • If only using the Engine Gear to launch without a launcher, you must place the Beyblade at the Tornado Ridge of the BeyStadium. If the BeyStadium does not have a Tornado Ridge, you must place it approximately 3cm from the edge of the BeyStadium wall. In this case, you must be sure to release the Beyblade from your hand onto the BeyStadium floor during the word “shoot! with the tip of the CEW making first contact with the floor of the BeyStadium.
  • If using both the Engine Gear and a launcher, the Engine Gear must be spun during the countdown, and the Beyblade launched from the launcher (which must be a Right Spin Launcher) during the word "shoot!" as normal.

The decision was made not to account for the top half of the Beyblade when determining if a combination using Gyro Engine Gear is Spinning or not, as Gyro Engine Gear is one of the only Beyblade parts that can produce a combination where the bulk of mass is not, in fact, the top half of the Beyblade (which can sometimes not rotate at all, or even rotate in reverse, while the bulk of the Beyblade continues spinning in the direction of launch underneath it). In addition, this is also in place to restrict the obnoxious levels of life after death judging from this top half can technically produce - Gyro Engine Gear is already one of the strongest Stamina types in the format without needing further advantage.


Launcher Rulings

C1. Legalisation: Launcher Shims and Lubrication

Launcher Shims and Lubrication Wrote:
  • Launcher Shims: The rear wall at the entry of a Launcher may have a thin piece of material attached to it (a “shim”) to prevent or remedy skipping due to wear. This must not improve performance of the launcher above stock configuration. If a judge determines your launcher has been modified to the point of illegality due to such modifications, they may tell you to switch to a new version of that same part.

  • Lubricating Launchers: A small amount of lubricant (non-petroleum based to avoid damage) may be used on gears and internal contact surfaces of launchers to improve longevity. This must not improve the launch strength of the launcher above stock configuration. If a judge determines your launcher has been modified to the point of illegality due to such modifications, they may tell you to switch to a new version of that same part.
This rule was approved with the goal of extending the lifespan of these older parts and reducing the number of launchers bladers need to buy to be able to play.

Allowing lubrication enables bladers to conduct preventative maintenance on their launchers - while providing guidance to discourage the use of petroleum-based lubricants which weaken plastics.

Launcher shims allow the restoration of launchers which have worn to the point of skipping through the use of a small piece of material (such as the metal from a Beylauncher coil) placed against the retaining wall of the launcher. These practices are beyond what we expect a judge to check for given the lack of performance impact, and as an additional benefit serve to reduce the amount of launchers discarded to landfill.


C2. Legalisation & Clarification: Takara Tomy MFB Light Launcher 1 Winders, Hasbro MFB Winders and Electronic Tops Launchers

Legal Equipment Wrote:
  • Only official Plastic Generation (Plastic Format) and Heavy Metal System (HMS Format) Beyblade products produced by Hasbro, Takara-Tomy, and Sonokong can be used. In addition, Takara Tomy MFB Light Launcher 1 Winders, Hasbro MFB Winders and Electronic Tops launchers may be used.

These winders have always been compatible with Plastics launchers and have been used often in modern-day tournaments. Clarifying their legality enshrines the ability to use more widely available Takara-Tomy MFB Light Launcher 1 Winders to allow more Bladers to obtain an equivalent to the Dragon Winder, the gold standard for Plastics winders.

In addition, the launchers of Hasbro Electronic Tops were slightly modified Plastics Launchers, which are fully compatible with Plastic Beyblades. As such, it has been decided it is better to legalise these for both accessibility and ease of judging.


C3. Legalisation: Main Unit Prong Swap
V-Force Arcade Challenge 5-in-1 Main Unit (Plastics) Wrote:
  • You may replace the ridged plate on the Launcher section with spin-direction appropriate prongs to use the Main Unit as a regular BeyUltimate Launcher.

The Main Unit is structurally identical to Takara's BeyUltimate and Bey Max Shooters, aside from the prongs being replaced by a ridged plate - even the stoppers inside are still present. As such, for the purpose of making these powerful launchers somewhat more accessible to all - as well as reducing the burden on judges to identify them - we have legalised this simple modification.


C4. Clarification: Duotron and Double Shooter Usage
Double Shooter (Plastics and HMS) Wrote:
  • You must use the appropriate prongs for the format being played.
  • You may use either set of prongs.
  • You may only launch one Beyblade as part of a Battle.

Duotron Launcher (Plastics) Wrote:
  • You may use either set of prongs.
  • You may only launch one Beyblade as part of a Battle.

These rulings have always generally been assumed to be correct, however for the sake of clarity we have added these passages to the rulebook.


Terminology

D1. Change: "Plastic" Format Name Changed to "Plastics"

This change has been made based on the near universal use of "Plastics" as the name for the format. Mentions of "Plastic" will be slowly updated over time, though if you notice a mention that has not been updated, please inform a member of Staff.


D2. Clarification: Generic Parts

Changes have been made throughout the rulebook to refer to parts which were not specific to Beyblade but instead generic industry parts - MR52ZZ Bearings and various sizes of Steel Balls. This is both to provide actual clarity to the parts in question.

We also acknowledge that while we only allow the use of Genuine Licensed Product, we cannot expect Judges or Bladers to tell the difference between an original and after-market part of the same spec for something like this without specific differences in performance - this defines the actual spec used if checking these.


Phew! That's everything covered! The WBO Staff would like to issue a sincere 'thank you' to our incredibly dedicated Plastics & HMS Community for their collaboration and consultation (as well as patience) on this massive undertaking.

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.

RE: WBO Organized Play Rulebook Update: Plastics & HMS - JA Industries. - Oct. 31, 2022

As someone who has been wanting to host PLA/hms for awhile,I have been looking forward to these updates, and I’m excited that they are finally out.

RE: WBO Organized Play Rulebook Update: Plastics & HMS - Flame~Capricorn - Oct. 31, 2022

The deck format ruling change has to be my favorite, no longer do I have to worry about not reusing neo sg shells

RE: WBO Organized Play Rulebook Update: Plastics & HMS - th!nk - Nov. 01, 2022

(Oct. 31, 2022  3:10 PM)Flame~Capricorn Wrote: The deck format ruling change has to be my favorite, no longer do I have to worry about not reusing neo sg shells

Honestly, I really wanted to remove the original deck from the rulebook because it's like... non functional even in say Maryland where we are seeing a really high tier meta, and actually doesn't define what a part is (though I can confirm you cannot reuse SGs, hilariously). But I think the newer version or Single Bey will comfortably be the go to, to be honest.

It is a great time to be doing this on that note, because we are actually seeing an uptick in tournaments. Really gratifying to see.

RE: WBO Organized Play Rulebook Update: Plastics & HMS - th!nk - Nov. 11, 2022

Additional Updates

The Organized Play Team have made two amendments to the rules - one ruling change and one clarification.

Clarification: Jumping Base/Neo SG (Double Bearing Version) Tip Interchangeability

Interchanging Blade Base Tips (Plastics) Wrote:
  • You may not interchange tips from Blade Bases in which the tip is considered to be the same part as the BB. Two examples of this are Driger S's SG Metal Change Base and Voltaic Ape's Customize Metal Sharp Base.
  • You may interchange tips and shafts when they are considered to be part of the Spin Gear, or an independent part, such as the tips of Dragoon V2's Customize Grip Base, Dragoon V's Magne Flat Base, Uriel 2's SG Grip Change Base and Wolborg 03 (Uriel)'s SG Grip Base, in line with the Integrity ruling.
  • In the case of SG Grip Change Base, the tip may be inserted into the Casings of Wolborg 2's SG (Bearing Version 2) to be used as a tip.
  • In the case of SG Grip Base, the tip may be inserted into a Magnecore SG using Dranzer V's Volcano Change Base.
  • The tips of Hasbro's Jumping Base may be used in place of the lower tip part of Burning Kerberous' Neo SG (Double Bearing Version) Shaft, and vice versa.
  • The tip section of SG (MG Spring Version) may be used in the casing section of SG (Spring Version).

A clarification has been added to specify that only Hasbro's Jumping Base and its tips are eligible for interchanging with Burning Kerberous' Shaft. Takara's version uses a different mold for the spring and tips that is not compatible.


Change: Bit Chip Detachment
Bit Chip (Plastics) Wrote:
  • If a Bit Chip is knocked off of a Beyblade during a battle, you are not to remove it from the BeyStadium. Leave it and allow the battle to proceed as normal.
  • If this occurs, or if the Bit Chip is dislodged but remains on the Beyblade, the Bit Chip may be taken off for the remainder of the Match, or placed back onto the Beyblade correctly.
  • You are not obligated to use a Bit Chip.

This update has been made to allow players more flexibility in the spirit of the series, and to account for Bit Chips being displaced but not detached.