A simple four-team tournament for game night
For four teams, a single round robin gives each team three matches and produces six matches overall. Use the schedule below, agree the result and tie-break rules in advance, and keep tournament standings separate from in-game scoring.
Decide what counts as a match
Choose whether one match means a single complete game or a short series. Use the same format for every pairing. A series gives people more play, but it also expands the evening, so check your available time before announcing a best-of-three format.
This is a suggested event format, not an official ZONEZ competition rule set. If you use ZONEZ, keep its game rules as the reference for play and finishing a game. Record any separate house arrangements before the first match, not after a result becomes inconvenient.
Give each pairing one place in the schedule
Label the teams A, B, C and D. The schedule below includes each possible pairing exactly once. With two suitable play areas, both matches in a round can run at the same time; with one, play them in the listed order.
| Round | First match | Second match |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | A vs B | C vs D |
| 2 | A vs C | B vs D |
| 3 | A vs D | B vs C |
There are four teams with three opponents each, giving 12 team appearances. Each match uses two of those appearances, so the schedule contains six matches. A final is optional and would be an extra match, not part of that six-match total.
Budget for changeovers as well as play
Measure or estimate your own group's match time before setting the schedule. For a planning example, if each match occupies a 20-minute slot including reset time, six sequential matches need 120 minutes. Two simultaneous matches per round need three such slots, or 60 minutes, before introductions and breaks.
Those numbers describe the timetable, not a claim that ZONEZ or another game takes 20 minutes. If a slot is a hard limit, decide in advance what happens at the limit. Prefer a natural game-ending procedure; do not improvise a time-out winner after play has started.
Keep standings easy to read
A simple house system is two tournament points for a match win and zero for a loss. If your agreed match format permits draws, award one to each team. If draws are not part of the format, leave them out entirely.
Write down both teams, the winner or agreed draw, and the tournament points after each match. These points are only for the event standings. They do not replace the game's own scoring system or change how a turn is resolved.
Agree tie-breaks before the first result
For two teams tied on tournament points, you can use their head-to-head result. For a larger tie, compare the results among the tied teams first. If that still leaves a tie, either share the placing or play a pre-agreed deciding match if there is time.
Do not automatically use raw in-game score difference across unrelated games or formats. It is only a sensible tie-break when the scores are comparable and everyone agreed to use them beforehand. Keep the policy short enough to explain without a second tournament meeting.
Give waiting teams a useful role
With one board or table, invite a waiting player to record the result or check the next pairing, if they want to help. Keep spectators clear of the playing area and avoid giving one side unsolicited tactical advice.
Introduce the game before starting the schedule so the first match does not become an uneven lesson. The beginner teaching guide and game-night checklist can help with that opening. Once play begins, let the schedule do the organising and keep the focus on the games.
