📜 FT8 BATTLE ROYALE RULES
Complete Guide to the Competition
🚀 Quick Start
- Configure WSJT-X to send to
- Make QSOs as normal - they're logged automatically
- Watch the Divisions page to see your weekly rank
- Finish in top 25% to get promoted, avoid bottom 25% to not get demoted
- Compete every week - Sunday at 23:59 UTC is when divisions change!
📡 WSJT-X Configuration
- Go to File → Settings → Reporting
- Check "Enable logged contact ADIF broadcast"
- IP:
- Port:
- Work FT8/FT4 contacts like normal
- Every confirmed QSO is automatically logged
- Points are calculated and added in real-time
- Visit this website to see your ranking
- Check the Divisions page for promotion/demotion status
- Updates every 10 seconds!
WSJT-X is the only officially supported application. Other loggers (GridTracker, Log4OM, N1MM, JTAlert, etc.) may work if configured to forward ADIF data, but compatibility isn't guaranteed and may break without notice. I'm unable to provide technical support for third-party logging software configuration.
💎 SCORING SYSTEM
| Action | Points | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Base QSO | +1 point | Every completed contact |
| POTA/SOTA Bonus | +2 points | Add "POTA" or "SOTA" in comment field |
| First Contact | +4 points | First to work this station on this band today |
| Band Multipliers | ×1.5 | 6m and 10m get 1.5× multiplier |
| Mode Multipliers | ×2.0 | FT4 gets 2× multiplier (FT8 = 1×) |
| Happy Hour | ×2.0 | 🦘 07:00-07:59 UTC and 🎉 17:00-17:59 UTC daily |
| ATH Happy Hour | ×2.0 | 1 hour when daily player count breaks ATH |
| Double Happy Hour | ×4.0 | When scheduled + ATH Happy Hours overlap! |
💡 Example: You work a POTA station on 10m FT4 during Happy Hour for the first time today.
Base (1) + POTA Bonus (2) + First Contact (4) = 7 points
× 1.5 (10m band) × 2.0 (FT4 mode) = 21 points
× 2 (Happy Hour) = 42 points! 🎉
💥 POINT STEALING
The Core Mechanic: Last person to work the same station on the same band AND mode on the same day gets ALL the points!
How It Works:
- 10:00 UTC - You work W9ABC on 20m FT8 → You get 5 points ✅
- 14:00 UTC - K4XYZ works W9ABC on 20m FT8 → K4XYZ STEALS your 5 points! 💥
- 18:00 UTC - N0ABC works W9ABC on 20m FT8 → N0ABC steals from K4XYZ!
⚠️ Important: Once stolen from, your points are gone for you on that contact/band/mode for the day. You cannot work the same station again to steal back (that's a duplicate penalty!). But other players can still steal from whoever currently holds the points.
Points reset at midnight UTC - fresh battle every day!
Important Stealing Rules:
- ✅ Steals happen per band + mode, per day
- ✅ Different bands don't affect each other (20m and 40m are separate)
- ✅ Resets at midnight UTC (fresh start every day!)
- ✅ You steal the FULL point value including all bonuses
- ✅ Chain stealing: If you steal from someone who already stole, you get ALL accumulated points!
- ✅ Discord announces when steals happen
- ❌ You can't steal from yourself (working same station twice doesn't help)
⛓️ Chain Stealing Example:
W9FFF gets the full chain value (28 pts), not just K4QED's base points!
🏅 DIVISION LADDER SYSTEM
Players compete in divisions based on skill level. Every Sunday at 23:59 UTC, divisions change based on weekly performance!
BRONZE
Starting Division
All new players start here
Can't demote lower
SILVER
Promoted from Bronze
Experienced operators
GOLD
Promoted from Silver
Top-tier competitors
ELITE
Promoted from Gold
The absolute best
Can't promote higher
⬆️⬇️ Weekly Movement Rules
- Top 25% in each division → PROMOTED to next higher division
- Bottom 25% in each division → DEMOTED to lower division
- 👑 Elite Division: Can't promote higher (compete for #1 ranking)
- 🥉 Bronze Division: Can't demote lower (safety net)
- ⏰ Timing: Changes happen every Sunday at 23:59 UTC
- 🔄 Fresh Start: Weekly points reset to zero every Monday
🎯 Strategy: Watch the Divisions page to see your current rank. If you're in the top 25%, defend your position! If you're in bottom 25%, start stealing points to climb!
⭐ ELO RATING & MILITARY RANKS
Your ELO Rating is a career score that tracks your long-term performance. Based on your ELO, you earn a Military Rank title!
Military Ranks (based on ELO):
| Rank | Badge | ELO Range |
|---|---|---|
| General | ★★★ | 2000+ |
| Colonel | ★★ | 1500-1999 |
| Major | ★ | 1000-1499 |
| Captain | ▸▸ | 500-999 |
| Lieutenant | ▸ | 0-499 |
How ELO Works:
- 📈 Earn ELO based on weekly performance in your division
- 🎯 Band Variety Bonus: +5 ELO per unique band worked (max +25 for 5+ bands)
- 🏆 Division Winner Bonus: +15 ELO for finishing #1 in your division
- 💥 Steal Bonus: +1 ELO per 10 steals (max +5 for 50+ steals)
- 🔄 ELO updates weekly when divisions process (Sunday 23:59 UTC)
- 💯 ELO range: 0 (minimum) to 5000+ (maximum)
⚠️ Inactivity Penalty (AWOL)
To encourage consistent play:
- Each inactive week: -3 ELO
- Minimum ELO: 0 (can't go negative)
Stay active! Even one QSO per week keeps you in the game and prevents AWOL penalties.
📊 LEADERBOARDS
We track multiple leaderboards for different time periods:
| Leaderboard | Shows | Resets |
|---|---|---|
| 📅 Daily | Points earned today | Midnight UTC daily |
| 📆 Weekly | Points earned this week | Monday 00:00 UTC |
| 🏅 Divisions | Weekly rank in your division | Monday 00:00 UTC |
| 🏆 Season | Current quarter (Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4) | Start of each quarter |
| ⭐ All-Time | Cumulative lifetime points | Never - hall of fame! |
💡 Pro Tip: The Divisions page is most important - that's where promotions/demotions happen!
⚡ HAPPY HOUR
We have TWO scheduled Happy Hours daily to accommodate players worldwide!
🦘 Aussie Happy Hour
07:00 - 07:59 UTC
×2 POINTS!
Great for VK/ZL and early risers
🎉 Evening Happy Hour
17:00 - 17:59 UTC
×2 POINTS!
Prime time Americas/Europe
🏆 ATH Happy Hour
When ATH is broken!
×2 POINTS for 1 HR!
Triggered when player count breaks ATH
Both scheduled Happy Hours are available to ALL players worldwide!
🎊 DOUBLE HAPPY HOUR 🎊
When a scheduled Happy Hour + ATH Happy Hour overlap...
×4 POINTS!
The ultimate bonus - rare but massive!
- The dashboard shows the current All-Time High player count
- When a new player logs their first QSO of the day and breaks the ATH...
- ATH Happy Hour triggers automatically for 1 hour!
- Discord announces it, website shows it live
- Only triggers once per UTC day (even if more players join)
🛡️ SECURITY & FAIR PLAY
We have systems in place to ensure fair competition:
📻 SINGLE TRANSMITTER POLICY
FT8 Battle Royale is designed for single-radio operation. Running multiple transmitters simultaneously is not allowed.
FT8: 65 QSOs/hour max (15-second TX intervals)
FT4: 130 QSOs/hour max (7.5-second TX intervals)
Combined: 130 QSOs/hour max regardless of mode mix
Coming Soon: A Multi-Operator category is planned for future seasons, allowing teams/clubs to compete with multiple stations. Stay tuned!
- 📻 Single Transmitter: One radio at a time - multi-radio setups will hit rate limits
- 🚫 Mode-Based Rate Limiting: FT8: 65/hour, FT4: 130/hour (based on TX interval physics)
- ✅ Callsign Validation: All callsigns are format-checked
- 🔍 Online Verification: Callsigns verified against QRZ.com database
- ⚠️ Duplicate Penalties: Same contact on same band/mode/day = -2× penalty!
- 📊 IP Tracking: All QSOs are tracked by IP address
- 🚨 Ban System: Cheaters and fake callsigns are permanently banned
⚠️ NEW: Duplicate Contact Penalties
If you log the same contact on the same band and mode twice in one day, you'll receive a DOUBLE PENALTY!
00:01 UTC - You work K9XYZ on 40m FT8 → +5 points ✅
18:00 UTC - You accidentally log K9XYZ on 40m FT8 again → -10 points penalty! (2× what you would have earned)
Daily Total Impact: -5 points
- 🔴 Penalty = 2× the points you would have earned
- 📝 Duplicate QSOs are logged with negative points
- 🚨 Discord notifies when penalties occur
- ⚡ Visible in activity feed and player stats
- ✅ Different bands/modes are OK (20m vs 40m, FT8 vs FT4)
Be careful with your logs! Uploading old ADIF files or logging the same contact twice will cost you points.
⚠️ Fair Play: Multiple transmitters, fake callsigns, and abuse will result in permanent bans. We track IP addresses and can detect suspicious patterns.
📱 FEATURES
👤 Player Profiles
View detailed stats, charts, and history for any player
⚔️ Compare Players
Head-to-head stats comparison between any two players
📡 Live Activity
Watch QSOs and point steals happen in real-time
📢 Discord Integration
Get notifications for QSOs, steals, and leaderboard updates
❓ FAQ
Each band is separate! You can earn points for 20m, 40m, 15m, etc. independently.
Yes! If someone else works the same station on the same band AND mode on the same day, they steal your points.
At midnight UTC each day. Fresh start every day!
In WSJT-X, add "POTA" or "SOTA" anywhere in the comment field before logging.
Every Sunday at 23:59 UTC. Top 25% get promoted, bottom 25% get demoted.
You lose 3 ELO per inactive week (AWOL penalty). Your division rank depends on weekly performance, so inactive weeks mean no promotion chance. Stay active!
Yes! Check your player profile - it shows which QSOs were stolen and by whom.
Every 10 seconds! The website auto-refreshes to show real-time standings.
Daily shows today's points only. Weekly shows accumulated points Monday-Sunday. The Divisions page shows your weekly rank within your specific division.
You'll receive a penalty of 2× the points you would have earned. For example, if a duplicate QSO would have been worth 5 points, you'll lose 10 points instead. Be careful when uploading ADIF files!
Absolutely! Each band and mode combination is separate. You can work the same station on 20m FT8, 40m FT8, and 20m FT4 all on the same day for full points.
We have two daily scheduled Happy Hours: 🦘 Aussie Happy Hour (07:00-07:59 UTC) and 🎉 Evening Happy Hour (17:00-17:59 UTC). Both give ×2 points and are available to ALL players worldwide!
When the daily player count breaks the All-Time High record, a special 1-hour ATH Happy Hour triggers automatically! All players get ×2 points for that hour. If it overlaps with a scheduled Happy Hour, you get ×4 points!
Simply log at least one QSO today. Every unique callsign that makes a QSO counts toward the daily player total. Check the dashboard to see today's progress toward the next ATH!
🎮 READY TO BATTLE?
Configure WSJT-X, make QSOs, and watch your ranking climb!
73 and good luck! 📻⚡