A player may begin a tournament with no reserve and later choose to switch cards from their deck to their reserve between games, so long as their reserve does not exceed its maximum size, and their deck does not go below its minimum size. Players select their starting ambassador. They may select an ambassador from their reserve as long as it is from the race they are designated to play for this tournament. Non-Aligned players reveal their other starting characters. All players may alter their decks using their reserve.
All players choose their starting hand, and play commences.
After each preliminary round, the following scoring method is applied to the players at each game. Each player gains a base score based on their placing. A player automatically places first if he scored a Major Victory. Otherwise, the base score is based on power, ties broken with influence, then initiative. For example, in a four-player game, the winner gets to award two points.