Official Rulebook

PROJECT PBE Set 18 is a competitive Teamfight Tactics event designed to bring together top players from around the world to compete on the PBE server. The event uses a custom Discord bot for ladder tracking and tournament management. Rankings are determined using a regional LP multiplier calculator that cross-references peak rank across different servers into a unified “True LP” score, allowing fair comparison between regions.

The formula behind the True LP calculator will be published publicly when sign-ups close. The calculator is still being refined ahead of the event based on feedback from top players across all regions.

Set 18 sponsorship is being finalized and will be confirmed before the event begins. In Set 17, MetaTFT served as the title sponsor and powered the leaderboard data and PBE match history; the Set 18 sponsorship arrangement will be announced in the PROJECT PBE Discord.

For Set 18, PROJECT PBE is working with DataTFT, to produce statistics during the event. These stats will be made available to the wider TFT community and will provide insights into meta trends, compositions, and player performance throughout the ladder phase.

PROJECT PBE Set 18 operates across five circuits. Placement into each circuit is determined by peak regional rank up until June 7th, 2026, cross-referenced using the True LP calculator.

A promotion and demotion system is active. Players who reach a qualifying BLP threshold in their circuit will enter a first-to-3 series of up to 5 games. Winning the series places the player in the next circuit up for the following set. Losing the series keeps the player in their current circuit. Full thresholds and series rules are documented in Section 05.

Placement in the circuit is reflected via a role change in the official PROJECT PBE Discord after registration is confirmed.

All players must have a valid PBE account in good standing. Your PBE account name must be composed of purely alphanumeric characters only due to bot limitations. Players from outside of NA may participate but are responsible for obtaining and maintaining their own PBE access. PROJECT PBE is not responsible for any PBE access issues that prevent participation.

The ladder phase runs from July 18th (5:00 AM EST) to August 7th (6:00 PM EST), 2026. Exact start and end times will be announced in the PROJECT PBE Discord. All circuits compete simultaneously during this window.

Players use the PROJECT PBE Discord bot to compete for Beta LP (BLP). Scores are updated every 20 minutes and can be viewed through leaderboard channels on mentr.gg or via bot commands in the Discord. Queue times are generally expected to be under 10 minutes, though this is not guaranteed.

The bot undergoes maintenance once per day, aligned with the PBE’s daily patch cycle. Any maintenance windows will be announced in #bot-updates. If the bot is updated while you are in queue, you will need to rejoin the queue after the reset.

All players who stream are required to have the PROJECT PBE tracker active during their streams. The tracker is an OBS browser source provided by the organizers. If a sponsor places their branding on the tracker and a player has a legal conflict of interest with that brand due to their organization or existing contracts, a brandless tracker with PROJECT PBE branding will be provided instead. If no sponsor is secured, all players will receive a brandless tracker.

Because the PBE is a beta environment, bugs are expected. The distinction is as follows, as per Mortdog: “Anything you could do by accident is a bug, but anything you can do on purpose is an exploit.” Bugs are allowed. Exploits are banned.

If you observe a player using an exploit, report it in #help-desk with proof. Confirmed exploit usage will result in immediate disqualification and an indefinite ban from all future events hosted by Kai, unless a different penalty is specified in #known-bugs for a particular exploit.

BLP (Beta LP) is the ranking currency used throughout the PROJECT PBE ladder. It is not a flat points system : each game’s BLP outcome is adjusted based on the relative strength of your lobby. The formula is as follows:

In practical terms, playing in a lobby of stronger players increases your BLP gain on a win and reduces your BLP loss on a loss. Playing in a weaker lobby has the opposite effect. This system rewards competing against the strongest possible opponents.

The decay system applies to only the top 32 players within Tier 1 only. At the end of each day, if a player has not played enough games to offset the decay, their BLP will be reduced based on their current ladder position. Decay operates differently from the live server decay system.

Decay is offset by playing games. The total absolute value of BLP gained or lost across all games in a day must equal or exceed your decay threshold. It does not matter whether the BLP was gained or lost – only the total movement counts.

For example (assuming everyone in your lobby every game had the exact BLP as you), if you are ranked 5th, your daily decay is 30 BLP. The following combinations would all offset decay:

Players who reach the following BLP thresholds during the ladder phase will be eligible to enter a promotion series. Reaching the threshold is not enough on its own; the player must also win the series to earn promotion.

Players who fall to or below the following BLP thresholds during the ladder phase will enter a demotion series. Losing the series places the player in the lower circuit for the following set. Winning the series keeps the player in their current circuit. Demotion series only trigger for active players; inactive players who end on a low BLP without playing are not subject to demotion.

All promotion and demotion series follow the same format: a player must reach 3 top-4 finishes to win the series. A loss is recorded for each bot-4 finish. The series ends the moment either 3 wins or 3 losses are reached, with a maximum of 5 games total.

A series begins immediately once a player crosses a threshold during the ladder phase. BLP continues to accumulate normally during the series. On a promotion win, BLP resets to 500 in the new circuit. On a demotion loss, BLP resets to 500 in the lower circuit.

Security locks your circuit placement for the following set so it is not subject to re-seeding. There are three ways to secure a placement, depending on your starting circuit and how far you climb.

Promotion is the path to security for every circuit below Tier 1. Reaching a promotion threshold and winning the series at least once during the set locks your starting circuit as a floor for the following set. Climbing further, to 775 BLP in the circuit you promoted into, locks that higher circuit instead. A Tier 1 player who began the set in Tier 1 secures Tier 1 by reaching 840 BLP.

In Set 17, a 40,000 RP prize pool was distributed to the first 20 players to complete all three phases of a successful promotion within the same set: reach the promotion threshold, win the promotion series, and reach the security threshold in the new circuit. Set 18 RP support is not yet confirmed. Full Set 17 distribution is documented in Section 10 as a reference.

In the event of a tied BLP score at the end of the ladder phase, the following tiebreaker order applies:

The top 25 Tier 1 players at the end of the ladder phase advance to the PROJECT PBE MAJOR, a two-day tournament taking place August 8th and 9th, 2026. The first game starts at 10:00 AM EST on both days. Check-in opens an hour prior each day.

Day 1 is a multi-game format with reseeding after each game. The top 25 players compete across multiple lobbies. After Game 4, the bottom players are cut and the remaining top 8 advance to Day 2. Bonus points are awarded based on ladder placement entering Day 2:

Day 2 uses a Checkmate format. Players accumulate points across games. A player reaches “check” once they accumulate 20 points. From that point, the player must finish 1st in a subsequent game to “checkmate” and claim the championship. Players who have not reached check continue to accumulate points until they do. The event continues until one player achieves checkmate.

An updated video manual for Set 18 will be provided before the event begins. All participants are expected to review it to ensure familiarity with bot commands, lobby creation, and result submission.

Win-trading is strictly prohibited in PROJECT PBE. For the purposes of this event, win-trading is defined as any deliberate action that significantly weakens a player’s own position in order to benefit another player, with the intent of influencing standings or tournament advancement. All players are expected to play in a manner that maximizes their own placement at all times.

A play will only be considered win-trading if substantial evidence has been brought forward. Substantial evidence requires at least 3 of the following 5 conditions to be met. Condition 3 is mandatory and must always be satisfied. If Condition 5 is met, the player is automatically subjected to penalties regardless of the other conditions.

Suspected win-trading must be reported within 6 hours of the play occurring. Reports must be submitted directly to Kai via Discord DM (@kai_) and must include video evidence. Due to the fast-paced nature of the event, allegations submitted after this window will not be reviewed. Each player may formally accuse win-trading a maximum of two times across the entire event.

If a player is suspected of win-trading during the ladder phase, the BLP for the specific lobby in question will be temporarily frozen and will not count toward standings until a conclusion is reached. Players in that lobby may continue competing. If the accused player is found guilty, their points for the entire event may be subject to further penalties beyond the specific lobby.

Players found guilty of win-trading are subject to the following penalties:

Players may appeal their ruling unless otherwise stated in the competitive decision. Severe cases or repeat offenses may result in a permanent ban from all future PROJECT PBE events. Appeals must be submitted to Kai directly.

All participants are expected to maintain a high standard of sportsmanship and compete with integrity and respect throughout the event. The following rules apply to all circuits for the duration of PROJECT PBE Set 18.

Participation in PROJECT PBE is a privilege, not a right. Kai reserves the right, at his sole discretion, to deny entry to, suspend, or remove any player from PROJECT PBE, whether before or during the event, where Kai reasonably believes that the player’s past or present conduct, online or in person and whether or not it occurred during a PROJECT PBE event, would make them a disruptive or detrimental presence or pose a risk to the safety, integrity, or reputation of the event, its participants, or the community. Such a decision may be made independently of the specific rule violations listed above and is final.

The Set 18 MAJOR prize pool will be confirmed before the event, funded by sponsorship. The Set 17 prize pool was $3,000 USD; the table below shows that distribution as a reference, and the Set 18 total will follow the same percentage split. All prizes are distributed exclusively via PayPal. Winners must provide a valid PayPal address within 7 days of the conclusion of the MAJOR. Players are responsible for any applicable taxes in their jurisdiction.

Set 18 RP support is not yet confirmed. In Set 17, a 40,000 RP prize pool was awarded to players who achieved a full promotion within the ladder phase; the structure below documents that Set 17 program as a reference pending Set 18 confirmation. To qualify, a player must complete all three of the following phases within the same set:

RP is awarded to the first 20 players to complete all three phases. Finishing position is determined by speed within the ladder window. Unused positions roll to a post-event feedback incentive pool.

For questions about the rulebook, disputes, or technical issues during the event, use the following channels: