Pyramid Rules

From ColonialFleet

This document represents the current draft state of the Colonial Fleet's rules for the sport of Pyramid.

[edit] Initial One-on-One Rules

Athena proposed the following court diagram and rules based on analysis of several clips of Starbuck and Anders playing one-on-one

Rules:

An offensive player can score only in the heads opposite of their starting position.
Ball can travel only three paces with a player before it must be passed, shot into a head (goal), or rebounded against one of the rebound walls.
If the offensive player is tackled, the ball must be handed over to the opponent, who has to begin at the starting position.
Once the ball hits a rebound wall, it is up for grabs for either player.
After a score is made, the ball is turned over to the opponent and play resets.
No tackling or physical contact is allowed when a player is in the starting position or touching the neutral zone.
Tackling is allowed only inside the arena.
If the ball lands outside the boundary line, it is considered a foul and turned over to the other player.

[edit] Team Pyramid

The initial set of rules described are sufficient for one-on-one play but do not adequately describe constraints necessary for a team game of pyramid. The following sections highlight these necessary rules and serve as draft rules and lists of proposed alternative rules. These rules will be playtested and refined according to an appropriate democratic process via The Colonial Fleet.

[edit] The Team

A team may consist of any number of players. The minimum number of players that must dress for a game is 3. The maximum number of players a team may choose to dress for a single game is 20. Team captains must submit their rosters to the Head Official prior to the start of play. A team dressing fewer than 3 players at the start of the game will lose the game by forfeit. If the Head Official determines the roster of dressed players has changed at any point in the game, the team in question will be charged with a Major Foul and a Free Shot will be assessed, and the players altered in the roster will be ejected from the game.

Three members of each team may be active on the court at any time.

Substitutions must occur between the end of a Play and the beginning of the next. A team does not need to signal for a substitution, but should substitute in a "off then on" fashion. The Head Official shall hold start of the Play until there are enough players on the court. Failure to field sufficient players within 30 seconds will result in a Procedural Foul for delay of game.

Each team must appoint a captain and inform the Head Official of the captain's identity prior to the Start of Game. The captain of each team is the only team member allowed to directly speak to the Head Official. All player appeals to the Head Official must go through the team captain. Violation of this chain of command will result in a Procedural Foul at the Head Official's discretion. If the team captain becomes injured during play, a new captain may be appointed, and the new captain must be identified to the Head Official.

[edit] Equipment

A player's equipment consists of a team jersey, a glove, and an arm pad. The arm pad shall not be longer than the distance from a player's elbow to his/her wrist. The glove may be padded and may be with or without fingers. The palm of the glove may be present or cut away. Tackified gloves are permitted. A player may also opt to wear a single pad which runs from the elbow to the knuckles or fingers. If one-piece protection is used, the player will either not wear a glove or must wear an glove without padding. The Head Official reserves the right to determine if any piece of protective equipment may be unsafe for use. A player with unsafe pads must leave the court and may not return without approved equipment.

At a match, each team is required to wear a jersey of different color. It is the responsibility of the away team to bring a jersey of a color different from that of the home team.

On each player's uniform there is a patch, which shows which team the player is on. The patch appears on the person's left breast side.

One ball is used in a Pyramid game, it is the size of a small soccer ball which is colored black with red stripes.

[edit] The Court

The court may be of any size, provided that it takes the shape of a truncated equilateral triangle, that each truncation be identical and produce a line as long as the width of a head, and the court is marked appropriately.

The heads must be of identical dimensions. The recommended height is 8 feet. The hole for the scoring target should be as high as construction of the head will allow. The ball return mechanism and basket is optional.

The rebound walls may be of any dimension so long as their length and height are identical and their length does not exceed the distance from one Starting Position to the next.

The Neutral Zone shall be marked in the middle of the court. It shall be an equilateral triangle with sides parallel to the boundaries of the court. It must be large enough for a single player to stand in.

Three lines must be drawn parallel to the boundary lines where the heads are placed. These lines must mark a space at least large enough for a single player to stand in. These marked off spaces for the Starting Position should be of identical size.

[edit] The Officials

An official game must have a Head Official. The Head Official is the final arbiter of all rules, assessor of penalties, director of procedures, and timekeeper. The Head Official has the ability to stop play with his or her signal. All other requests for stoppage of play must be made through appeal to the Head Official.

The Head Official must be on the court during play. While on the court, the Head Official is considered to be part of the court. Players will take efforts to avoid the Head Official during play. Players who intentionally use the Head Official in their tactics may, at the sole discretion of the Head Official, be charged with a Major Foul.

The Head Official may, at his or her discretion, appoint up to three Assistant Officials. Assistant Officials may assist the Head Official in any manner considered appropriate by the Head Official, but must remain beyond the boundary line of the court and may not stop play.

[edit] Fouls and Penalties

The Head Official may recognize the following classes of Fouls:

Procedural Foul - A failure to adhere to important procedural rules of the game. These include all attempts to delay the game, violations of protected areas, failure to observe the Three Step Rule, and other ways to gain an advantage in ways not described by the Minor or Major Fouls.
Minor Foul - Any attempt to gain an unfair advantage through illegal but incidental contact with a player. Minor Fouls include but are not limited to illegal picks or blocks, failure to break tackle on a player who loses possession of the ball, or illegal contact. Minor Fouls also include game-disrupting behavior such as intentionally kicking a loose ball.
Major Foul - Any attempt to gain an unfair advantage specifically through illegal, excessive, or flagrant contact on the ball carrier or through intentional illegal contact on a non-carrier. Major Fouls include all forms of tripping, tackling the non-carrier, strikes to a player's face, illegal tackles, and any other blatant and flagrant use of force to gain an advantage.

The team against which a penalty is assessed is the penalized team, and the opposing team will be awarded team. The penalties associated with these fouls is as follows:

Loss of Play - Play is halted and possession of the ball is given to the awarded team. Play will begin in the Starting Position.
Disadvantaged Restart - Play is halted and possession of the ball is given to the awarded team. If the awarded team had the ball at the time of the Foul, then the carrier will retain possession of the ball. Play will begin with the carrier of the awarded team in the Neutral Zone. Members of the awarded team may take any position along the perimeter of the Neutral Zone. Two members of the penalized team may take position on the same sides of the Neutral Zone as those taken by the awarded team players. One member of the penalized team shall be forced to stand in the Starting Position of the penalized team's choosing.
Free Shot - Play is halted and possession of the ball is given to the awarded team. If the awarded team had possession of the ball at the time of the Foul, then the carrier at the time of the Foul will retain possession of the ball. The court will be cleared of all players except the carrier, who will take position in the Neutral Zone. At the Head Official's signal, the carrier will be allowed to, within the rules afforded to a carrier, advance on the head of his or her choice and shoot the ball. The Play will end after the shot, even if the shot does not result in a goal. The fouled team will start a new Play as the offensive team.

Delayed Penalty Rule: If a Foul is committed against the team in possession of the ball, a penalty will not be assessed until the opposing team gains possession of the ball. If the fouled team scores a goal, the Foul will be noted in game records but no Penalty will be assessed. If the Penalty is assessed, it will be assessed from the conditions present when the Foul was committed. This rule discourages players from committing fouls in order to ensure a restart of play in more favorable conditions.

Penalty Escalation Rule: The least penalty which does not disadvantage the fouled team shall always be assessed. If the offensive team fouls the defensive team, then Loss of Play will be assessed against the offensive team. If the offensive team is not shooting and is fouled without having once entered the Neutral Zone, Loss of Play will be assessed against the defensive team. If the Neutral Zone has been entered by the offensive team, Disadvantaged Restart will be assessed to the defensive team. Free Shot penalties will be handed out only in scenarios where a Major Foul is committed against a shooter in an attempt to prevent a nearly certain scoring shot.

[edit] Rules of Game

A game is played in an alternating series of Plays which begin with the ball in a Starting Position (or Neutral Zone in the event a Penalty was assessed) under the control of a player. A Play ends when the ball is out of bounds, when a goal is scored, or when the Head Official stops play to call a Foul.

[edit] Duration of Game

The game shall last for three periods of 15 minutes each, with a 5 minute break between periods.
If the game is tied at the end of the final period, up to two overtime periods may be played. Each overtime will last 5 minutes with a break between them of 2 minutes. Neither overtime shall be sudden death.
If the final overtime expires without a winner, the game is a draw.

[edit] Scoring

A score of 1 point will be awarded to a team for shooting the ball into a legal goal.

[edit] Winning

The game is won by the team with the higher score at the end of the final period played.
A team may be chosen the winner either by forfeit due to application of the rules of the game or by an agreement between the captains of the two teams.

[edit] Location of Ball and Players

For any line defining a zone on the court, the ball is considered to have entered that zone only when it completely crosses the plane defined by that line. A player who is upright said to have "entered" a zone when one of his or her feet completely crosses the plane of the line by the player's own volition. A player in control of the ball who is not upright is considered to have "entered" a zone if the ball enters that zone. A player who is not upright and does not have control of the ball is considered to be in a zone if any part of his or her body breaks the plane of the line by the player's own volition.

[edit] Face Off

When the Head Official calls for a Face Off, players will form up in the following fashion:
- The Head Official will take position on a corner of the Neutral Zone facing the center of the court. The head behind the Head Official will be the illegal head and the two remaining heads will be the legal heads.
- One player from each team will take position with the toes of one or both of their feet on one of the remaining corners of the Neutral Zone. These players will each face the legal head across from their position. These players will be called the "leads".
- One player from each team will stand at the boundary line in a position directly behind the lead of his/her opponent's team. These players will be called the "backs".
- The remaining two players will take position next to the back of their opposing team. These players must always stand on the side of the back which is closer to the center of the court. These players will be called the "crosses".
  - Example: The TCF Topguns and Canceron Sharks are in a face off. The Head Official stands on one corner of the Neutral Zone. The teams choose their fronts, who stand with their toes touching the other two corners of the Neutral Zone, each facing the legal head opposite them. The teams choose backs, and a Shark stands at the boundary line behind the Topgun front and vice versa. The remaining players, the crosses, stand next to the backs on the boundary lines. (TODO: Give a visual aid for this.)

When the Head Official is satisfied with the positions of the players, s/he will place the ball in the center of the Neutral Zone and blow the whistle. Loose Ball rules begin immediately after the Head Official blows the whistle. The first team to establish a carrier will become the offensive team.

The leads, backs, and crosses may physically engage with one another. No player is the carrier and physical engagement at the face off falls under rules governing contact between non-carriers. Physical engagement prior to the official's signal must also not violate the rule of set positions. Furthermore, a lead may not engage the other lead in a fashion that impedes his/her access to the ball (e.g. a lead may not engage the other lead on the lower torso, blocking the ability to bend or reach for the ball). A lead's attempt to engage the other lead during setting of positions does not make the opposing lead responsible for being available to be engaged (e.g. holding out a forearm for a forearm-to-forearm engagement does not require the opponent also offer his/her forearm).

Once positions are set, no player may move from his or her position until the Head Official releases the ball. No player may initiate contact with another player until the Head Official releases the ball. A player who violates this rule will first be warned by the Head Official and will be forced to move to a new position on the court (e.g. an offending back will have to switch positions with the team's front or cross). If any player on the team violates the rules of the Face Off after this warning, a Procedural Foul will be called and Loss of Play will be assessed.

In any situation in which the Head Official cannot decide which team should start the next Play, the Head Official will call for a Face Off.

[edit] Start of Play

Each Play begins with the ball in the possession of a player of the offensive team who must be standing in one of the Starting Positions or. The initial ball carrier may choose to pass to a teammate, throw the ball into a Rebound Wall, or bring the ball in bounds. Shooting from the Starting Position during Start of Play is a Procedural Foul.

One player from the offensive team and one player from the defensive team must stand in each of the Starting Positions for the two legal heads. The third player from the defensive team will take position in the Neutral Zone.

The Head Official will ensure that all players are in legal positions and signal the Play to begin. The non-carriers must, on the signal to begin, exit their Starting Positions or the Neutral Zone, as appropriate. The carrier will have five seconds to enter the Arena or pass the ball.

During a Play, the team in possession of the ball will at all times be referred to in the rules as the "offensive team" and the team that is not in possession of the ball shall be called the "defensive team". The member of the offensive team in possession of the ball will be referred to as the "ball carrier" or "carrier".

[edit] End of Play

The Play ends when the ball leaves the bounds of the court, when the carrier is tackled, when a team scores a goal, or when the Play is ended by the Head Official to assess a Penalty for a Foul.
- When the ball leaves the bounds of the court, the team which was most recently the offensive team becomes the defensive team. The new offensive team begins a new Play.
- When the carrier is tackled, the offensive team becomes the defensive team. The new offensive team begins a new Play.
- When the offensive team scores a goal, the defensive team becomes the offensive team and begins a new Play.
- When the Head Official stops play to call a Foul and assess a Penalty, play will begin in a fashion dictated by the type of Penalty assessed.

[edit] Rules for offensive team

Three Step Rule -- The carrier may carry the ball a total of three steps. A step is defined as one or more feet completely leaving the ground while the player begins the motion in a position on his or her feet. Any jumping motion that causes the feet to leave the ground thus counts as a step, but a diving motion where both feet remain in contact with the ground does not. Recovering from a trip, fall, or tackle does not qualify as a step unless entering a grounded position and recovering from it is used in a fashion that deliberately circumvents the Three Step Rule. Once the carrier has exhausted all three steps, he or she may not voluntarily cause his or her feet to leave the floor.
The carrier may initiate a pass to any other player, either directly or off a Rebound Wall. The carrier may pass to him/herself only via a Rebound Wall.
The carrier may shoot the ball at either of the two Heads opposite the offensive team's starting position. A ball sunk in either of these heads will be considered a goal and points will be awarded. Intentionally throwing the ball at the Head in the team's starting corner will be considered a Procedural Foul.
The carrier may enter the Neutral Zone at any time. It is a Procedural Foul to remain in the neutral zone longer than 5 seconds without passing the ball or stepping out of the Neutral Zone. No member of the offensive team is allowed in the Neutral Zone if it is occupied by the carrier, and a violation of this rule is a Procedural Foul. It is a Procedural Foul for the carrier to re-enter the Neutral Zone without having first lost possession of the ball. Shooting from the Neutral Zone is a Procedural Foul. A carrier who attempts to leave the Neutral Zone but is forced back in due to contact from the defensive team shall not be charged with a Procedural Foul.
Members of the offensive team other than the carrier must maintain contact with members of the defensive team as follows: contact must be with the arms bent and may not include contact to the head or face of the opponent. Holding of any part of the opponent's body or uniform is illegal. Violation of these rules is a Minor Foul. Flagrant and intentional violation of these rules, subject to the discretion of the Head Official, is a Major Foul.
Members of the offensive team other than the carrier may impede the motion of members of the defensive team (a procedure known as a "block" or "pick"). Such motions must observe the rules of contact. Such motions must also be made with both feet on the floor. Any motion of this nature performed with feet not on the floor is a minimum Minor Foul and may be, at the discretion of the Head Official, a Major Foul.
Members of the offensive team, subject to the rules of contact, may push or press players of the defensive team into the rebound walls or out-of-bounds provided that they immediately break contact after such a motion. Pushing and charging must be done with both feet on the ground. Pushing with arms extended or with feet off the ground is a mandatory Major Foul.
Tripping a member of the defensive team is a minimum Minor Foul and may be considered a Major Foul at the Head Official's discretion.
In addition to the rules of contact for all players, the carrier may initiate contact with members of the defensive team with the arms straight. If the carrier is being tackled, he or she may break the tackle, but may not strike or trip the tackling opponent. Illegal roughness from the carrier is a Minor Penalty or Major Penalty, at the discretion of the Head Official.
If the carrier steps into any of the Starting Positions, the heads associated with that Starting Position becomes an illegal goal and the other two heads become legal goals. Each Starting Position shall otherwise be treated under the same rules as the Neutral Zone, with the same non-blocking rules and delay of game rules.

[edit] Rules for defensive team

All contact with the non-carrier members of the offensive team are the same as the rules for the offensive team's contact with the defensive team, include the same Fouls, and will be remedied with the same Penalties.
In addition to the standard rules of contact, members of the defensive team may contact the carrier of the offensive team in the following fashion:
- The Tackle -- A legal tackle is defined as any motion which grips the torso or legs of the carrier and attempts to bring the carrier to the ground. The tackle is completed if, during such a motion, the knees or back of the carrier contact the ground or the ball contacts the ground while still in the possession of the carrier. The arms of the carrier may be grabbed only if it is incidental to a motion which grabs the torso or legs of the carrier. A tackle may be held for as long as 5 seconds provided the member of the defensive team is attempting to ground the ball or carrier's knees, after which time the Head Official will rule the carrier tackled even if the prior grounding conditions are not met. Once a member of the defensive team has initiated a tackle, no other member of the defensive team may do so until the tackle is broken or let go. The defender will also use the minimum force necessary to ground the carrier. Tripping the carrier during the tackle is illegal. Contact with the carrier's head is also illegal. An illegally executed tackle is a Minor Foul, except for intentional or flagrant tripping, contact to the head, or unnecessary roughness, which is a Major Foul.
- If the carrier is pushed out of bounds during the legal execution of a tackle, the Head Official shall rule the Play ended by tackle.
- If the carrier is pushed into a Rebound Wall during the legal execution of a tackle, the Head Official shall rule the Play ended by tackle. If the carrier strikes the Rebound Wall without having a legal tackle executed on him or her, the Play shall continue.
No member of the defensive team may enter the Neutral Zone nor any Starting Position when the carrier is in it, nor may they enter or stand in the Neutral Zone or Starting Position when the carrier enters it. If a member of the offensive team receives a pass in the Neutral Zone or a Starting Position, defensive team members must break contact with that player and leave the Neutral Zone or Starting Position. Violation of these reserved areas is a Procedural Foul. The Head Official shall allow a small amount of time for the defending player to break contact and leave the zone. If the Head Official calls a Procedural Foul for violating a Starting Position, the associated penalty will always be a Loss of Play to the defensive team, even if the Rule of Escalating Penalties would normally dictate a Disadvantaged Restart.
If the carrier leaves the Neutral Zone or a Starting Position and is forced back in due to contact, the defensive team may enter the Neutral Zone or Starting Position in pursuit of the carrier.
No member may stand in the Starting Position in front of a legal head unless engaged in contact with a member of the offensive team (rationale: lightens up on "goal camping")

[edit] Rules During Loose Ball

The ball is considered to be loose the moment it leaves the hands and control of the carrier, except as a shot. A shot on a head becomes a loose ball once it rebounds off the head or comes in contact with another player. The ball remains loose until a player can grip and control the ball with one or both hands.
No player may be considered the carrier during a loose ball. Contact rules during a loose ball are expanded to include pushing with straight arms provided the ball is within three feet of the pushing player.
A loose ball may not be intentionally kicked. Kicking a loose ball is a Minor Foul. If the hands or face of a player are within two feet of a loose ball, kicking the ball is a Major Foul.
A loose ball must be under the control of a carrier before it may enter a head and be counted as a goal. A loose ball which is bobbled, tipped, or deflected into a head does not count as goal. The referee will call the Play dead and a new Play will start with the defensive team becoming the offensive team.
If a member of the defensive team comes into possession of the loose ball, the defensive team may shoot on either two of the legal heads, but only after bringing the ball to the Neutral Zone (rationale: this prevents the defensive team from camping on the heads, stopping a shot, then turning and scoring themselves). If the defensive team should score a goal in this fashion, they will still begin the next Play as the offensive team.