With Fall 2024 being the inaugural season for Fortnite: Zone Wars, this rulebook is subject to change at any time at the sole discretion of League Officials for the purpose of competitive integrity and bettering the player experience. Any changes will be communicated in the Weekly Coach Notes newsletter and announced in Match Lobby Chat.
*Fortnite: Zone Wars leagues are unaffiliated with the NFHS Network and certain state associations.*
PlayVS Zone Wars is currently in its final Beta stage as we add finishing touches. Please be aware that current visuals, and gameplay are not final and may be subject to change.
We are aware of current bugs affecting the Beta 2.0 version, as described below.
Known Issues 9/30/2024
Games cannot be started unless there are 4 players.
The grid on some arenas may cause building to start below the ground. This will be fixed in the next update.
Increased Magazine Capacity mods for weapons sometimes causes them to need to be reloaded at the beginning of a round to have full ammo.
If a player leaves mid-match, rounds will not proceed correctly.
We value your feedback. We would love to hear from you!
View the High School Competition Rulebook for league details.
Introduction and Purpose
These Official Rules (Rules) of the PlayVS Scholastics Esports League apply to each of the teams who have registered and met the requirements for the 2024-2025 school year, as well as their head coach, assistant coaches, vice principals, athletic directors, Starters, Substitutes (collectively Team Members), and other members.
1. Game Rules
1.1 Definition of Terms
1.1.1 Game. An instance of competition that is played until a winner is determined by one of the following methods, whichever occurs first: (a) completion of the countdown timer or objective achieved, (b) Team Surrender, or (c) Team Forfeit.
1.1.2 Round. An instance of individual competition, often between individual team members. The player or team that wins the majority of available rounds will be determined the winner of the game.
1.1.3 Set. A series of games that is played until one player wins a majority of the total games (e.g., winning two games out of three “best-of-three”). The winning player will receive a win tally in favor of their team for the match.
1.1.4 Match. A group of sets that is played until one team wins a majority of the total sets (e.g., winning two sets out of three “best-of-three”). The winning team will either receive a win tally in a league format or advance to the next round in a tournament format.
1.1.5 League. A group of teams that regularly play against one another. There are two distinct types of PlayVS leagues: (a) Recreational and (b) Competitive.
1.1.6 Phase. A section of scheduled league play that comprises a season. There are distinct phases for leagues, with each phase having its own league format.
1.1.7 Season. Scheduled league play that will occur over a predetermined amount of time.
1.2 Roster Requirements
1.2.1 Roster Submission
Team members must be eligible to compete on behalf of their school as listed in Section 2. Team Member Eligibility of the league's Competition Rulebook.
Each League page will list the number of players necessary to fill a team’s Roster and Bench. No individual may simultaneously hold two or more roles as listed above. All players and coaches are expected to be present physically or virtually for all official PlayVS matches. The Roster and Bench must be finalized before the Roster Lock Date, as listed in Section 3.4 Roster Submission of the league’s Competition Rulebook.
Once a Game of Record is established, substitutions are not allowed. Once the game is complete and the results are recorded, player substitutions may be made before the start of the following game.
1.2.2 Substitutions
Substitutions must be made by one of the following:
Confirming competing players within the Match Assistant at the beginning of the match.
Using the Match Assistant to change the roster and re-confirm rosters in between games.
In the event the Match Assistant is unavailable, rosters and substitutions must be confirmed before the start of each game unless otherwise approved by a League Official and stated by a PlayVS Admin in the Match Lobby Chat.
Players on the bench may be used for any match their team is competing in within their assigned league. Eligible substitutes for a match will be displayed on the Bench tab of the team’s roster card. Only the players shown on a team’s Bench can be used as substitutes in an official PlayVS Match.
If a player on the starting roster cannot compete in the match and there are no available Substitutes, competition cannot continue without a full team (2 players).
1.3 Game of Record
A Game of Record (GOR) in Fortnite: Zone Wars is established in the following conditions:
1.3.1 When the barrier drops in the first round.
Once GOR is established, game restarts will only be allowed under limited conditions as listed in Section 7.4 Game Restart of the league’s Competition Rulebook.
1.4 Stoppage of Play
During any pause or stoppage, players may not leave the match area unless authorized by their coach. Coaches should communicate any disconnections or pauses inside PlayVS’ Match Lobby Chat.
1.4.1 Directed Pause
At any time and at their sole discretion, League Officials may order the pause of a match. Teams may complete the current game and finalize the results.
1.4.2 Player Pauses
By default, players are not able to pause an in-progress game. In the event of an equipment failure, or if an in-progress game is stopped, then the reporting player will forfeit the individual round.
1.4.3 Player Disconnection
In the event of a player disconnection in the middle of a round, teams will complete the current round and screenshot the results of the current game (up to the point of the most recent round’s completion).
Once the disconnected player can reconnect, the game must be recreated and the match played out until a team has earned 10 round wins.
For Example:
Player A on Team 1 disconnects in the 15th round of Game 1.
The match continues to complete the 15th round, resulting in a win for Team 2.
Player B on Team 1 confirms the current score of 8-7, with Team 1 in the lead.
There are at least two more rounds needed to confirm a winner for the game, so the game is recreated with the same teams as originally listed in Game 1.
Game 1 will then continue in the recreated game until a team has won the minimum ten rounds needed to win the individual game.
If the disconnected player, or their coach for the team, has not shared any updates in match lobby chat within the 10-minute window, notify PlayVS Support immediately for further assistance.
1.5 Match Format
Match Format: Best-of-Three (Bo3) Games
Games Format: First-to-10 Round Wins
Mode: Competitive
1.5.1 Phase Details
All matches within the season will share the same Match Format as listed above, regardless of phase.
For a detailed breakdown of each phase available for the league, see section 5.2 Phase Details of the league’s Competition Rulebook.
2. Player Equipment
2.1 Equipment
Each player on the Starting Roster must have access to school-provided equipment or must be permitted by the school to provide their own equipment in the following categories:
2.1.1 PC or Compatible Gaming Console
2.1.2 Monitor/Television
2.1.3 Headsets and/or Earbuds
2.1.4 Table & Chair
2.1.5 Compatible Controller, or Mouse & Keyboard (for PC)
2.1.6 Computer Specifications (for PC)
3. Match Process
3.1 Pre-Match Setup
Teams must adhere to Section 6.2 Pre-Match Setup in the league’s Competition Rulebook as they prepare to join their match.
3.2 Match Setup
3.2.1 Create Lobby & Send Invites
The Home team will select the Search Icon next to Play.
Input the PlayVS Island Code 1468-5100-8548.
Set matchmaking privacy to Private.
Send invites to the remaining players.
3.2.2 Game Mode & Team Selection
Players will join the lobby and select the button for Ready Up.
Once in the lobby, all players will move into the Competitive area.
The Home Team will stand in the Left Zone.
The Away Team will stand in the Right Zone.
3.2.3 Weapon Selection
After team selection all players will individually select their preferred Primary Weapon, Secondary Weapon, and customizations. Once all players have chosen their weapons and customizations, all players will move into the middle of the hub under the Player Ready Indicator (#4).
3.3 Match F.A.Q.
3.3.1 Spectating
Spectators are not currently available within the PlayVS Island.
3.3.2 In-Game Content Updates
PlayVS Fortnite: Zone Wars is a UEFN Island that may release new content patches. At any time, this Island may be updated to improve the competitive experience for our players and the larger PlayVS Community.
Any items currently disabled in-game by Epic Games will not be available for use during official PlayVS matches. All PlayVS matches will occur on the most up-to-date patch, and any items are eligible for use in PlayVS matches unless otherwise stated by League Officials.
4. Post-Match Process
4.1 Results
If the match is completed using the PlayVS Match Assistant tool, then in-game statistics and results will be recorded at each game's conclusion.
In the event that the PlayVS Match Assistant cannot be used, then statistics will not be tracked, and the match results must be submitted manually within 1 hour of match completion. Players should take screenshots of the match results and share those with their coaches.
In the event of an error, coaches must contact PlayVS directly.