Below are the rules for the Standoff Tournament:

- All players start with 1,000 acres of land.
- The kingdom explore pool is 10,000 acres and does not grow.
- Players may not defect - it is up to the kingdom to learn to work together.
- Players may not reset their province; all decisions are final
- Players may activate vacation mode only once, and for a maximum of seven days.

- The Paradise spell does not exist
- The Land Lust spell is slightly more powerful
- Each real day, military wages will rise 1%
- Conquest is more widely available outside of relations

- As the game progresses, rising flood waters will claim 5 of your acres each day. In addition, every successful traditional attack will destroy 5 acres of land instead of capturing it. As the game progresses, random events may occur to help stimulate action if necessary - these events may or may not be announced in advance.

This game is truly about teamwork. Players cannot select their kingdoms and will not be assigned kingdoms until the signup phase is complete. It is up to kingdoms to quickly becoming a functioning unit and to support teammates. Followers may have to learn to lead; leaders may have to learn to follow. Without a cooperative kingdom, chances of survival are limited. In addition, it is in the players' best interests not to allow any single kingdom to get too far ahead of the pack, or they may overwhelm your kingdom down the road. The great challenge is how to best handle these challenges and survive in this ruthless environment.