Knockout Rounds

Advance winners through single-elimination rounds from Round of 32 through Finals. Features a regional bracket system with flexible opening options - open entire rounds, specific regions, or individual matchups for maximum control over tournament pacing.

Regional Bracket System

The bracket uses a regional identification system to organize matchups into left and right sides of the bracket. This makes it easier to reference specific matchups and manage voting by region.

Regional Labels

Each matchup has a regional label combining region number and letter:

• Region 1 (Left Side): Matchups labeled 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D...
• Region 2 (Right Side): Matchups labeled 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D...

Examples by Round:

• Round of 16 (8 matchups): Left = 1A-1D, Right = 2A-2D
• Quarterfinals (4 matchups): Left = 1A-1B, Right = 2A-2B
• Semifinals (2 matchups): Left = 1A, Right = 2A
• Finals: No regional designation (just "Finals")

Opening Options

You have multiple ways to open knockout matchups:

Round-Specific Commands (Recommended)

The easiest way - use memorable commands for each round:

• /bracket open-quarters - Open Quarterfinals (4 matchups)
• /bracket open-semis - Open Semifinals (2 matchups)
• /bracket open-finals - Open Finals (1 matchup)

Benefits:

• Clear and memorable
• Self-documenting (command name shows what round)
• Bot suggests exact command after closing previous round
• Same duration parameter as generic commands

Generic Commands

Fallback option - works for any round:

1. Entire Round: /bracket open-knockout - Opens all matchups in current round
2. Single Matchup: /bracket open-matchup matchup:1A - Opens one specific matchup

Flexibility Benefits

This flexibility allows you to:

• Use round-specific commands for clarity (/bracket open-finals)
• Open individual matchups for maximum drama (/bracket open-matchup matchup:1A)
• Pace voting by opening matchups one at a time or all at once

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Round-Specific Opening Commands

Open Quarterfinals

/bracket open-quarters duration:[time]

Opens all 4 Quarterfinal matchups (1A, 1B, 2A, 2B).

Same as: /bracket open-knockout when in Quarterfinals round

Open Semifinals

/bracket open-semis duration:[time]

Opens both Semifinal matchups (1A, 2A).

Same as: /bracket open-knockout when in Semifinals round

Open Finals

/bracket open-finals duration:[time]

Opens the single Finals matchup.

Same as: /bracket open-knockout when in Finals round

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Open Knockout Round (Generic)

/bracket open-knockout duration:[time]

Parameters:

• duration (optional) - Voting duration (default: 24h, range: 5m-30d)
  • Format: Number + unit (m=minutes, h=hours, d=days)
  • Examples: "5m", "2h", "24h", "3d", "7d", "30d"

Who can use: Administrators and Moderators only

Features:

• Opens all matchups in current round for voting (both regions)
• Creates interactive voting buttons for each matchup
• Customizable voting duration (5 minutes to 30 days)
• Displays time remaining and exact deadline in main embed
• Shows real-time vote counts with regional labels
• One vote per user per matchup (can change vote anytime)
• Vote updates immediately when clicked

Requirements:

• Tournament must be in knockout phase
• Current round matchups must have both participants ready
• Cannot open if matchups already voting

Examples:

# Default 24 hour voting for all matchups
/bracket open-knockout

# 2 day voting period for slower pace
/bracket open-knockout duration:48h

# Quick 30 minute round for live events
/bracket open-knockout duration:30m

# Week-long finals voting
/bracket open-knockout duration:7d

Output:

📊 Round of 16 Voting Open!

8 matchups are now open for voting.
Vote for ONE title in each matchup below.

⏰ Voting closes in: 23h 45m

[For each matchup:]
Round of 16 - Matchup 1A
Movie A vs Movie B
5 votes    vs    3 votes
[Button: Movie A] [Button: Movie B]

Round of 16 - Matchup 2A
Movie C vs Movie D
3 votes    vs    7 votes
[Button: Movie C] [Button: Movie D]
...

Deadline: 6/27/2026, 11:00:00 PM

User Experience:

• Members click buttons to vote for their choice
• Personal voting dashboard appears (only visible to that user)
• Dashboard updates in real-time showing all matchups with checkmarks (✅) for voted, (⬜) for not voted
• Track progress easily - "3 of 8 voted" with color-coded status (Gray → Blue → Green)
• Perfect for large rounds - See all your votes in Round of 32 (16 matchups), Round of 16 (8 matchups), etc.
• Can change vote by clicking different button
• Vote counts update in real-time on all messages
• Clear deadline shown so members know when voting ends

Personal voting dashboard with voting streak and stats

Live Standings:

• Real-time public leaderboard shows all matchup vote counts
• Color-coded progress bars indicate vote percentages (green = winning, yellow = close, red = losing)
• Updates automatically as votes come in
• Visible to all members in the channel

Live standings with color-coded progress bars

When to use:

• Fast-paced tournaments where all voting happens simultaneously
• Simple management - one command opens entire round
• Works best for active communities with high engagement

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Open Region

/bracket open-region region:[1 or 2] duration:[time]

Parameters:

• region (required) - Region number (1=left side, 2=right side)
• duration (optional) - Voting duration (default: 24h, range: 5m-30d)
  • Format: Number + unit (m=minutes, h=hours, d=days)
  • Examples: "5m", "2h", "24h", "3d", "7d", "30d"

Who can use: Administrators and Moderators only

Features:

• Opens all matchups in one region for voting
• Perfect for splitting rounds across multiple days
• Same voting interface as full-round opening
• Creates suspense by releasing regions separately
• Customizable duration per region

Use Cases:

• Region-by-region pacing: Open left side Monday, right side Wednesday
• Balanced scheduling: Split workload across days
• Geographic theming: "East Coast vs West Coast" narratives
• Build anticipation: Keep one region hidden while the other votes

Examples:

# Open all left side matchups
/bracket open-region region:1 duration:24h

# Open all right side matchups with 2-day voting
/bracket open-region region:2 duration:48h

# Quick 6-hour regional vote
/bracket open-region region:1 duration:6h

Output:

📊 Round of 16 - Region 1 Voting Open! (Left Side)

4 matchups in Region 1 are now open for voting.

⏰ Voting closes in: 23h 45m

[Shows matchups 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D with voting buttons]

Deadline: 6/27/2026, 11:00:00 PM

Strategy Tips:

• Open Region 1 (left) on Monday, Region 2 (right) on Wednesday
• Use different durations for each region if desired
• Helps spread engagement throughout the week
• Creates natural discussion points around each region

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Open Individual Matchup

/bracket open-matchup matchup:[regional label] duration:[time]

Parameters:

• matchup (required) - Regional matchup label (e.g., "1A", "2B", "1C")
• duration (optional) - Voting duration (default: 24h, range: 5m-30d)
  • Format: Number + unit (m=minutes, h=hours, d=days)
  • Examples: "5m", "2h", "24h", "3d", "7d", "30d"

Who can use: Administrators and Moderators only

Features:

• Opens a single specific matchup for voting (instead of entire round or region)
• Creates interactive voting buttons for that matchup
• Perfect for pacing - space out matchups over days
• Build suspense - feature one matchup at a time
• Customizable duration per matchup
• Shows time remaining and deadline
• Uses regional labels for easy identification

Use Cases:

• One matchup per day: Open 1A Monday, 1B Tuesday, 2A Wednesday, etc.
• Spotlight matchups: Feature important matchups individually
• Flexible pacing: Mix and match with full-round or regional opening
• Drama building: Create anticipation for each battle
• Featured match: Highlight "match of the week"

Examples:

# Open specific left-side matchup
/bracket open-matchup matchup:1A

# Open specific right-side matchup with 3-day voting
/bracket open-matchup matchup:2B duration:3d

# Quick 6-hour vote for semifinals matchup
/bracket open-matchup matchup:1A duration:6h

Output:

📊 Round of 16 - Matchup 1A Open! (Left Side)

Voting is now open for this matchup.

⏰ Voting closes in: 23h 45m

Round of 16 - Region 1 - Matchup 1A
Movie A vs Movie B
0 votes    vs    0 votes
[Button: Movie A] [Button: Movie B]

Deadline: 6/27/2026, 11:00:00 PM

Strategy Tips:

• Open high-profile matchups individually for maximum engagement
• Use different durations to keep tournament dynamic
• Great for "featured match of the day" approach
• Combine with /bracket announce to spotlight important battles
• Perfect for spacing out semifinals or finals voting

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Round-Specific Closing Commands

Recommended approach - use clear, self-documenting commands for each round:

Close Quarterfinals

/bracket close-quarters

Closes all Quarterfinal matchups and advances winners to Semifinals.

Output includes: "Winners have advanced to Semifinals. Run /bracket open-semis to start voting!"

Close Semifinals

/bracket close-semis

Closes both Semifinal matchups and advances winners to Finals.

Output includes: "Winners have advanced to Finals. Run /bracket open-finals to start voting!"

Close Finals

/bracket close-finals

Closes the Finals matchup and declares the tournament winner!

Output: "🏆 Tournament Complete! [Winner] is the champion!"

Benefits of Round-Specific Commands:

• Clear command names show exactly what round you're closing
• Bot suggests the next command to run after closing
• Reduces confusion about tournament progression
• Same functionality as generic /bracket close-knockout

Round completion results with winner announcements

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Close Knockout Round (Generic)

/bracket close-knockout

Parameters: None

Who can use: Administrators and Moderators only

Features:

• Closes all voting in current round
• Determines winner for each matchup
• Automatically advances winners to next round
• Auto-updates tournament phase when round complete
• Handles ties with random selection
• Detects tournament completion (after finals)

Requirements:

• Tournament must be in knockout phase
• At least one matchup must be in voting status

Output:

🏁 Round of 16 Complete!

8 matchups closed. Here are the winners:

Matchup 1A
Movie A (15 vs 8) defeats Movie B

Matchup 1B
Movie C (12 vs 11) defeats Movie D
...

Winners have advanced to Quarterfinals.
Use /bracket open-knockout to start voting!

After Finals:

🏆 Tournament Complete!

Movie Title is the champion!
Congratulations! 🎉

What Happens:

• All voting matchups in current round are closed
• Winners determined (higher votes win, random if tied)
• Winners automatically populate next round matchups
• Tournament phase advances (e.g., Round of 16 → Quarterfinals)
• If finals complete, tournament status changes to "completed"
• Bracket visualization updates with results

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Close Individual Matchup

/bracket close-matchup matchup:[regional label]

Parameters:

• matchup (required) - Regional matchup label (e.g., "1A", "2B", "1C")

Who can use: Administrators and Moderators only

Features:

• Closes a single specific matchup and determines winner
• Auto-advances winner when matchup closes
• Shows final vote counts
• Indicates if winner was automatically placed in next round
• Uses regional labels for easy identification

Requirements:

• Tournament must be in knockout phase
• Specified matchup must be open for voting

Examples:

# Close specific left-side matchup
/bracket close-matchup matchup:1A

# Close specific right-side matchup
/bracket close-matchup matchup:2B

Output:

🏁 Round of 16 - Matchup 1A Complete! (Left Side)

Movie A wins!

Movie A (15 votes) vs Movie B (8 votes)

✅ Auto-Advanced
Movie A has been placed in the next round matchup.

When All Matchups Close:

If this was the last matchup in the current round:

All matchups complete! Tournament has advanced to Quarterfinals.

Strategy:

• Close matchups individually as voting wraps up
• Don't need to wait for entire round to finish
• Winners automatically slot into next round structure
• Flexible pacing keeps tournament moving

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Tournament Status

/bracket status

Parameters: None

Who can use: All server members

Features:

• Shows current tournament phase and status
• Displays progress information
• Lists open voting opportunities
• Shows completion counts

Example Output (During Knockout):

🏆 The Shudder Discord Gore Cup
Status: knockout
Phase: round_of_16

Round Of 16
Single elimination bracket

Open matchups: 3
Completed: 5

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View Visual Bracket

/bracket view

Parameters: None

Who can use: All server members

Features:

• Generates a professional tournament bracket tree (like March Madness)
• Proper matchup pairing - Each matchup shows two participants grouped together with clear visual borders
• Minimum 1200px width - Wide, spacious layout for optimal readability
• Landscape participant boxes (240px × 50px) - Easy to scan and read
• Left-aligned text - Natural reading flow with smart truncation
• Clear bracket tree structure - Connector lines show tournament progression through rounds
• Visual matchup grouping - Container borders make it obvious which titles are competing
• Displays participant names with winner highlighting (green boxes with ✓)
• Shows champion trophy (70px) when tournament complete
• Discord dark theme styling
• Generated on-demand as high-quality PNG image attachment
• Only available during knockout phase

Visual Elements:

• Round labels (Round of 32/16, Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Finals)
• Grouped participant boxes with clear matchup pairing
• Type indicators (W/R/WC for Winner/Runner-up/Wildcard)
• Green highlighting for winners with checkmarks on the right
• Trophy emoji and "CHAMPION" label for winner
• Bracket connector lines showing progression to next rounds

Example:

/bracket view

Output:

• High-quality PNG image showing the full tournament bracket
• All matchups organized by round
• Current state with completed and pending matches
• Easy to share for social media or server announcements

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Quick Reference

Command	Purpose	Who Can Use
/bracket open-knockout	Open all matchups in current round	Admins/Mods
/bracket open-region	Open all matchups in one region (1 or 2)	Admins/Mods
/bracket open-matchup	Open single matchup by regional label	Admins/Mods
/bracket close-knockout	Close all matchups and advance winners	Admins/Mods
/bracket close-matchup	Close single matchup and advance winner	Admins/Mods
/bracket status	View tournament progress and open votes	Everyone
/bracket view	Generate visual bracket tree image	Everyone
Click button	Vote for title in matchup	Everyone

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Related Pages:

• ← Back to Brackets Overview
• Tournament Setup →
• All Commands →
• Tips & Strategies →