OWCS 2026 - Korea Stage 2

🎮 Tournament Format

1. Regular Season

• Format: Round Robin system.

• Match Rules: All matches are played in a First-to-3 (Ft3 / Bo5) format.

• Progression & Consequences:

  • Top 4 teams: Advance to the Playoffs Seeding Decider Matches.

  • 5th – 8th Place teams: Advance to the Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ).

  • Bottom team: Proceeds directly to the Stage 3 Promotion/Relegation tournament.

2. Playoffs Seeding Decider Matches

• Format: Round Robin system featuring the top 4 teams from the Regular Season.

• Match Rules: All matches are First-to-3 (Ft3 / Bo5).

• Progression: All 4 teams advance to the Regional Playoffs, with the Top 2 teams earning a first-round bye.

3. Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ)

• Format: Double-Elimination bracket featuring the 5th to 8th place teams.

• Seeding: The 5th and 6th place teams from the Regular Season start in the Upper Bracket.

• Match Rules: All matches are First-to-3 (Ft3 / Bo5).

• Progression & Consequences:

  • Top 2 teams: Advance to the Regional Playoffs.

  • Bottom 2 teams: Placed into the Stage 3 Promotion/Relegation tournament.

4. Regional Playoffs

• Format: Single-Elimination bracket.

• Match Rules: All matches are contested in a First-to-4 (Ft4 / Bo7) format.

• The Ultimate Prize: The Top 2 teams officially qualify for the global Midseason Championship.

🚫 Hero Ban System

The tournament implements a strategic Hero Ban phase before each map under the following rules:

• Map-Specific Bans: Each team bans 1 hero per map. The chosen ban applies to both teams for that map.

• Role Diversity: A team's ban must be from a different role (Tank, Damage, Support) than the opposing team's ban.

• Ban Limits: A team cannot ban the same hero more than once in a single series. However, they are permitted to ban a hero that the opposing team previously banned in an earlier map.

• Ban Order: The higher-seeded team (or the team that lost the previous map) earns the right to