On the yahoo group " battlelorecalltoarms " there is a sign up database here (must be a member of the group to access it - joining is easy) for an online tournament for ... well, let's see how many sign up - originally slated for 10 players, and currently 5 have signed up ... played using Vassal. The adventures being used are those from the Dwarf and Goblin figure expansions (and "web-exclusive" scenarios too, I believe), with players either being in a group playing the dwarf or goblin side throughout the preliminary rounds. Medieval Lore rules will be used.

The tournament format is almost identical to one used for the Commands & Colors:Ancients tournaments played through that yahoo group :
-2? groups of 5? maybe more, depending on how many are interested
-player from one group plays each of the 5 players from the other one game during the preliminary rounds (again, possibly adjusted depending on number of players interested - as well as the following bulleted items )
-at the end of the preliminary rounds, 2 players from each group with the highest banner totals advance to the semi-final round
-for semi-final round the two players from the same group play a "full" game (play the adventure twice, switching sides for the second game), player with the most banners moves on to the final round
-final round same format as the semi-final round

Looking to start the games around the end of August/beginning of September.

The tournament-style play for C&C:A has been very enjoyable, I hope something similar can start up with BattleLore.

Link to post about this on BoardGameGeek

Is there still room? And does it matter if I've never played a game on Vassal before? (I've downloaded the software, just never had opportunity to use it.)

Four more slots available if we end up doing a 10-player (usual number) "mini-tournament". And not to encourage dallying, but it hasn't been filling that fast. If for some reason there is a spike in desire, adapting the tournament to more players wouldn't be that difficult. The more the merrier as far as I'm concerned. Getting to play and "meet" other players being the usual motivator for those involved. Certainly isn't prestige nor money

Being new to Vassal is not a problem at all - if one is familiar with BattleLore, it should be fairly intuitive. Feel free to email me or contact me on boardgamegeek if you would like a crash course on Vassal.

Happy Gaming

Could someone please explain what "VASSEL" is, how to use it, and where to get the software?

I have been looking for it, and since I am new to it dont really know much about it. I thought that ther might be more people out there like me, and this would be a great advertising post for it.

I did download that and load the battlelore modules and couldn't figure out where to go from there.

Pickle, Lothiam (and anyone else, for that matter), feel free to email me (t_rewoldt at hotmail.com) about any particular questions you have about Vassal . I would be happy to get on sometime with you and help you out. Weekend mornings are usually best for me.

Take care.

What's the time commitment for the tournament?

An hour or three per week - mostly depending upon one's familiarity with battlelore and vassal.