ISML Rules and Guidelines - FAQ

International Saimoe League is governed by a Constitution and supported by Annual Charters. Please read both documents for a full understanding of our processes, but if you are short on time, the highlights are summarized in a brief, convenient FAQ below.
Last updated: 23 March 2010

What is ISML and how do I participate?
  • ISML hopes to find the most moe among anime girls, and it's up to you to decide by casting your vote!
  • Voting is free of charge; you are not required to register an account.
  • Join the forums to discuss ISML with fellow fans. Subscribe to the news blog for tournament updates.
  • Your participation means that you agree to our rules and policies.

What has changed since 2009?
  • All nominations have equal weight (no more 10 points, 8 points, etc.).
  • Preliminaries have been completely revamped and improved.
  • The Regular Season now consists of 50 contestants instead of 64, but it is still round-robin.
  • Only the next Round's matchups will be revealed prior to voting.
  • No more overtime matches will occur. Ties in the Regular Season will stay as ties.
  • Double Elimination remains the same. Ties will be broken using Regular Season statistics.
  • Exhibition Matches will be hosted throughout the year.
  • Some of our character eligibility rules have changed.

What is the schedule of 2010?
  • The calendar at right highlights all the scheduled match days.
  • Matches start at 1500 GMT on the scheduled day and last for 24 hours.
  • Results will be released 12 hours after a match ends.
  • The schedule is tenative and may change in the future, but we'll keep you updated on the news blog.

How does the Regular Season work?
  • The Regular Season is a round-robin tournament with 50 Contestants.
  • All matches will be one-on-one. Each Round will feature one exhibition match.
  • In each arena, vote for the girl you find more moe, or abstain.
  • The winner of each Period earns a Necklace, which — aside from the fame and glory — will help the Contestant's chances of appearing in ISML again next year.
  • The goal of the Regular Season is to win enough matches (over the course of the whole season, not just one Period) to place in the Top 16.
  • The Top 16 advance to the double-elimination tournament in the Postseason.

What do the statistics mean?
  • Wins are worth 3 points; draws are worth 1 point.
  • SoS is Strength of Schedule, which is the same as total points. It's used to calculate SDO and SAO.
  • SDO is the sum of SoS's of all a Contestant's defeated opponents.
  • SAO is the sum of SoS's of all opponents to date, regardless of outcome.
  • VF is Votes For. VA is Votes Against. VD is the difference of these two values.
  • An additional head-to-head tiebreaker is applied at the end of each Period.

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Event Calendar
2010 Calendar