This St. Patrick's Day, we're running Luck of the Lancer, a special Gears of War: Reloaded ladder event with $1,300 in total prizes. Two ladders, two playoff brackets, and a chance to prove your team is the best.
The Format
We're running two separate ladders:
- 2v2 Ladder — Playoffs on March 14th
- 4v4 Ladder — Playoffs on March 15th
For each ladder, the top 16 teams on the leaderboard will qualify for a single elimination playoff bracket.
Prize Pool
$1,300 total split across both ladders:
Playoff Prizes
| Ladder | 1st Place |
|---|---|
| 2v2 | $250 |
| 4v4 | $750 |
Ladder Bonuses
Finish #1 on the ladder standings when rosters freeze and earn a bonus:
| Ladder | 1st Place Bonus |
|---|---|
| 2v2 | $100 |
| 4v4 | $200 |
Eligibility Requirements
To be eligible for playoffs, every player on your team must complete at least 3 ladder matches before the playoff date. This ensures that teams earning a playoff spot have actually been active on the ladder, not just sitting on early wins.
Key Dates
All times are in Eastern Standard Time (EST).
- Now through March 12th — Ladder matches open
- Midnight EST, March 12th — Matches and rosters freeze (ladder standings locked)
- March 14th — 2v2 Playoff Bracket
- March 15th — 4v4 Playoff Bracket
How to Compete
- Create a GotNext account if you don't have one
- Head to the 2v2 ladder or 4v4 ladder and create or join a team
- Find opponents and play matches to climb the leaderboard
- Finish in the top 16 with at least 3 matches per player to qualify for playoffs
Get your matches in early and often. The more you play, the higher you climb.
How Standings Work
Ladder standings are based on team ELO rating, a skill-based ranking system. Here's what you need to know:
Team-Based Rating
ELO belongs to your team, not individual players. This means:
- Roster changes don't affect your team's rating — If a player leaves, your team keeps its ELO
- New teammates inherit the team's standing — Join a top-ranked team and you're competing at that level
- One team per ladder — You can only be on one team per ladder at a time
How ELO Changes
Your rating changes after every match based on the result and opponent strength:
- Beat a higher-rated team = bigger rating gain
- Lose to a lower-rated team = bigger rating loss
- New teams (under 7 matches) have larger rating swings to find their true skill level faster
- Established teams (7+ matches) have smaller, more stable rating changes
Starting Point
All teams start at 1100 ELO. Win your early matches to climb quickly while your rating is still adjusting.
Tiebreakers
If two teams have the same ELO, the team with more matches played ranks higher. Stay active!
Good luck, and may the Lancer be with you.