Zapleague Rules, Regulations and Conventions

ZapLeague will consist of a base of four inaugural teams. Additional teams may be franchised by the ZapLeague Board as warranted by the number of unassigned players belonging to ZapLeague.

The ZapLeague schedule will consist of one (1) season comprised of four (4) sessions. A session shall be defined as a span of three (3) scheduled weekly matches. Changes to this schedule are at the discretion of and the approval of the ZapLeague Board.

A match will consist of three (3) slots per team, with the team captain assigning players to each slot at their discretion. Each slot will be assigned to three (3) games, one against each slot on the opposing team. Multiple players may share a single slot; i.e., player A playing the first two games and player B playing the last game. Games will be played as friendly matches, using default settings (unabridged dictionary, medium difficulty, s-words off, UK and US extra words enabled, Sudden Death enabled). Variations from these settings must be agreed upon by both players. Scores will be reported by the winning player via the Igames chat system for non-registered players and the ladder reporting for registered players. Games MUST be played in the order scheduled, with no variations. Winners will be awarded 10 team points, and their opponents will be awarded one team point for each scored round they won.

All errors, grievances and disputes should be reported as soon as possible to the team captain. Team captains will submit to the ZapLeague Secretary for presentation to the Board for review and final ruling prior to the next scheduled league match. Captains will submit completed play rosters to the WebMaster for their team no later than 6:00 p.m. PST on the Wednesday prior to the match. Alterations to the roster may be until five minutes prior to the beginning of a round; changes made after that time will not take effect until the next round of play.

All ZapLeague matches will be played in the Igames WordZap Lobby or via ICQ if play in the Igames Lobby is not possible. If it is necessary to play via ICQ both players should be notified prior to the scheduled beginning of their game.

ZapLeague matches will begin at 6:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time each Thursday as scheduled on the "ZapLeague Schedule" page of this site (scores will also be posted to this schedule at the end of each round as they come in). Team captains and players are requested to present at least ten minutes prior to the beginning of matches. A five minute grace period will be allowed for late players, however players exceeding that grace period will forfeit the round.

Trading players amongst teams may take place at any time as long as both team captains and the player concur. Any such trades must be reported to the ZapLeague Secretary before the next scheduled match. Players may transfer teams prior to the onset of league play each session without incurring any penalties. Once league play has begun players must have the approval of their team captain and the captain of the team they are transferring to prior to making the trade. In the event a player feels that they cannot continue with play on a particular team and cannot obtain the approval of their team captain for a trade, they may resign from their current team but may not join another team until the end of the current session.

While players may resign from a team at any time, they may not rejoin another team following their resignation until the beginning of the next session. Players having difficulty with a team or captain that cannot be resolved peacefully should request arbitration from the League Board.

Elections for team captains will be determined by majority vote of the active team members at the end of each season, and the results of these elections will be reported to the ZapLeague Secretary as soon as possible.

The purpose of the ZapLeague is to provide a fun and challenging opportunity for fans of WordZap to exercise their skills. In order to maintain an atmosphere conducive to this goal all participants in the ZapLeague are asked to conduct themselves with as much courtesy and decorum as possible. Any conflict should be settled peacefully at the lowest possible level; when this is not possible arbitration should be requested from the ZapLeague Secretary. ZapLeague participants who do not conduct themselves in an appropriate manner will be censured by the ZapLeague Board, including suspension or expulsion from the league for behaviors sufficiently disruptive to the harmonious management of the League.

The ZapLeague will be governed by the ZapLeague Board, consisting of the ZapLeague Secretary, the captain of each team, and two player representatives elected at-large. Elections for ZapLeague Secretary and the at-large representatives will be held at the end of each season and be determined by popular vote of all ZapLeague members at a general membership meeting. Individuals interested in serving as League Secretary or as a board representative should notify their team captain or the current Secretary. Each captain will appoint an assistant captain to represent their team for all league functions that they are unable to attend. The ZapLeague Board will appoint a ZapLeague Webmaster who, as well as fulfilling those offices, will represent the ZapLeague Secretary in their absence. Board members are expected to present for all board meetings in fulfillment of their responsibility. Any board member who fails to present for three (3) board meetings, or have their alternate representative present, will be assumed to have resigned from the board and a new representative to fill their position will be solicited.

The ZapLeague Board will meet on an "as needed" basis and a minimum of one general membership meeting of ZapLeague will be held each season. Meetings may be scheduled by any voting member of the ZapLeague board by providing notification of the date, time and agenda of the meeting at least one week prior to the meeting. A quorum of at least one half of the current voting membership of the board must be present at a board meeting in order to conduct ZapLeague business. There is no quorum requirement for general membership meetings. Policy decisions of the League will be forwarded to all ZapLeague Board members for review. Board members will have three days to respond to such decisions, after that time their approval of said decision will be assumed and the decision enforced. The decisions of the ZapLeague Board may be appealed by any voting member of the ZapLeague Board during this three day review period, or at any later time by calling for a ZapLeague Board Meeting (see protocol above); decisions appealed during the three day review period will not be enacted until such time as the board renders approval at a Board Meeting. Should the need arise, any voting member of the ZapLeague Board may require a recall vote for the replacement of the League Secretary. Recall votes will be conducted through the protocol of a regular board meeting, with the voting rights of the ZapLeague Secretary delegated to the ZapLeague WebMaster. In Order for a recall vote to be passed a majority of 85% of the total voting board members must vote approval. In the event of the recall or resignation of the ZapLeague Secretary the League Webmaster will become Acting League Secretary until such time as a general membership meeting can be called and a new League Secretary installed.