With the Fifth Alliance Tournament now only days away tournament organisers and event officials have now released details of what awaits the victors.
This year the teams entering the competition can choose a faction of their choice to honor, support and promote. If the team then reaches the final three they will be rewarded by their chosen faction.
Should a competitor choose to remain recluse and not honor any faction, they will be rewarded with a choice of limited edition faction hardware.
A number of GalNet observers have been vocal in their disapproval of this years awards. In previous years when the tournament was run by the Caldari Gaming Commission, the State poured ISK into the prize fund and many unique and relatively rare (at the time) vessels were gifted. The State also collaborated with the other empires to ensure a range of different prizes was available.
The faction equipment available for victors at this years event should not be dismissed as it is still a worthy prize. However it has been pointed out that in terms of ISK value it does not approach previous tournament winnings. Recently a previous tournament prize, the Republic Tribal Issue "Storm" Tempest, was valued at between 85 and 100 billion ISK.
Unlike past events it is not expected that any rare ships will be given out although it should be noted that this has not yet been confirmed either way by officials.
The question now is which, if any, faction will the teams chose to honor? Who will win the tournament trophy and which team will proudly display their gold medals?
The start is rapidly approaching, only one team will be victorious, the fight for glory is upon us.
External GalNet References
The Official Alliance Tournament V Site
Official Alliance Tournament V Rules and Prizes
GalNet Announcement : Groupings and Full Schedule
Archived Tribal Issue Tempest Lottery