What are the match rules for CS2?

COUNTER-STRIKE 2 RULES

LAST UPDATED: June 3rd, 2024

1.1 Match Procedure

  • Tournament Teams
    • A “team” will consist of 5 Players and up to 5 allowable substitutes for a total of 10 players per roster. Multiple teams from each eligible institution will be allowed to participate in the tournament.
    • All 10 players must be in the lobby for the match to begin.
    • If a team has less than 5 players, the match cannot be played and the team with less than 5 will have to take a forfeit.
  • All players on the team have to be 16 and older in order to participate. Team managers/admins must be able to verify a players’ age upon request.
  • Set Length
    • Matches will be played as a best of 1.
      • Each game should be expected to last 40-60 minutes.

2.1 Game Rules

  • Game Settings
    • The home team will host the lobby and invite the away team using the private matchmaking code.
    • The lobby will have the base premier lobby settings:
      • Rounds: Best out of 30
      • Round Time: 1:45
      • Start Money: $800
      • Freeze Time: 20 seconds
      • Buy Time: 20 seconds
      • Bomb Timer: 40 seconds
      • Overtime Rounds: Best out of 6
      • Overtime Start Money: $10,000
      • Round Restart Delay: 5 seconds
  • Game Server Settings:
    • All players should set their matchmaking ping to 60
      • Settings Menu>Game>Max Acceptable Matchmaking Ping
  • Map Pool
    • The following maps are allowed in official matches
      • Anubis (de_anubis)
      • Inferno (de_inferno)
      • Mirage (de_mirage)
      • Nuke (de_nuke)
      • Overpass (de_overpass)
      • Ancient (de_ancient)
      • Train (de_train)
  • Pick/Bans Selection
    • The Home Team bans 2 maps
    • The Away Team bans 2 maps
    • The Home Team bans a map
    • The Away Team picks a Starting Team
  • In the event that an incorrect rule set is loaded on the server, the match will be stopped and reset. Any rounds played in the incorrect format will not count towards the match outcome.
  • Team coaches/team captains will be responsible for communicating captain gamertags/lobby password for inviting teams/players to the lobby.
  • If a team is missing one or more players a grace period of 15 minutes at the start of match time (for example, if the match starts at 6:30, you have until 6:45) will be given to find those players. After 15 minutes, the team missing players will forfeit the match.
  • The lobby leader must not start the game before all players from both teams have joined the lobby.
  • Only those registered for the current match have the right to be in the game lobby. This includes players, coaches and designated streamers.
  • Stoppage of Play
    • The game may only be paused for the following reasons
      • Player Drop
      • Player Disconnect
      • Technical Issues
      • Stoppage of play may be requested at any time for the above reasons. The team initiating the pause must first call for it in chat. The pause may not be called during combat. Players may not move around the map while the pause is in effect. Once both teams are ready, the team who initiated the pause will unpause it. Each team will have a total of 5 minutes of pause time per match. Misuse of the pause feature may result in punishment for the team misusing it.
  • Tactical Timeout
    • Each team is allowed to call two Tactical Timeouts per match. Tactical Timeouts may only be called during the buy phase of a round. 
    • During the Timeout, only the players currently in the game and their coach are allowed to talk to each other. Other roster members are not allowed to be in the Timeout meeting. 
      • If a player drops or disconnects and cannot return within the 5 minutes, that player’s team may decide to continue playing or forfeit.
      • Please contact a Vanta Support member if abuse of the Timeout feature is suspected.
  • Remake Procedure: In the event of a server crash that impacts all ten players, the game may be remade. Picks and bans must stay consistent with the previous iteration of the game, and the rest of the game will be played out in full. 

3.1 Restrictions

  • Scripts: These cheats are prohibited in Vanta matches:
    • Anti-flash
    • Bhop, or bunnyhop
    • Burst Fire
    • Center View
    • FPS
    • No Recoil
    • Aim Lock
    • Triggerbot
    • RapidFire
    • RateChanger
    • Stop shoot
    • Stop sound
    • Tooltips
  • Configurations/Start Parameters: The following commands are seen as giving an unfair advantage in the map and are strictly prohibited.
    • mat_hdr_enabled
    • +mat_hdr_endabled 0/1
    • +mat_hdr_leven 0/1/2
  • Character Skins: Character skins are strictly prohibited. All players must use the default CT/T skins during matches. If character skins are seen to be used, please message support@vanta.gg with corresponding screenshots so that the issue may be dealt with in proper fashion.

4.1 Reporting

  • Score Reporting Format: Scores will be reported in “Win/Loss” format. Teams will indicate the number of games won by each team, final scores should be one of the following: 1-0 or 0-1. All scores should be reported to the Vanta platform.
  • Forfeits: Forfeits will be considered a 1-0 win for the team that showed up to play. 

For more information about our general competition rules, please click here.

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