A new Global Ban & Pick system is set to transform the competitive landscape of Honor of Kings esports, as 12 professional teams prepare to showcase their hero mastery at the third season of the Honor of Kings Invitational.
The system, which prevents teams from using the same hero twice in each match of a series, promises to deliver fresh strategies and unexpected matchups in every game.
The Honor of Kings Invitational S3 kicks off today and runs until March 1 with a prize pool of US$300,00.
The tournament will see a new champion take the stage, as previous Invitational winners, Vivo Keyd Stars and Blackshrew Esport were not able to qualify.
For fans that have been following along, this new slate of potential champions will feature some familiar faces and names, such as Nova Esports from Malaysia, Blacklist International from the Philippines, Kagendra from Indonesia, Team Vitality from France, and Alpha7 Esports from Brazil.
How the Global Ban & Pick system works
For the first time in the Honor of Kings Invitational, teams will compete using the new Global Ban & Pick system. Rather than teams picking and banning the same heroes in each match of a series, each hero can only be used once per team in a match.
This system ensures the meta continually shifts, as players and coaches must adapt their strategies to the reduced hero pool after each match. Furthermore, it tests players’ skill by requiring them to have a wide hero pool as the series progresses.
For games played in a best-of-seven format, the Ultimate Battle rules will come into effect if the series reaches Game 7. When this happens, a team’s head coach, assistant coaches, analyst, and support staff are allowed onstage, and teams will have three minutes to finalize their draft and lineup.
At the end of the three minutes, both teams must submit their lineups to the referee. If a team fails to submit a draft on time, they will have to use their lineup from Game 6 in the final game.
Once the game begins, both teams must adhere to their submitted lineups. If a team fails to do so, a 30 percent penalty will be applied to their final prize pool, and the game will restart until lineups match the submitted drafts.
Additionally, both teams’ lineups will remain hidden from each other until the game begins, forcing players to adapt their strategies on the fly. There’s also the possibility that both teams may pick similar heroes, giving fans a chance to witness exciting mirror matchups where players can showcase their mastery of specific heroes.
Prize pool breakdown
How the stages will unfold
The Honor of Kings Invitational S3 matches will take place at SM North EDSA’s Block Atrium. For the first time, fans can watch the group stage live at the venue and cheer their favorite teams on to victory.
Matches will follow a single round-robin, best-of-five format, meaning each team in a group plays the others once.
The remaining eight teams that survive the group stages will take a two-day break, before battling it out in a single elimination bracket.
Group winners will not face each other, and teams in the same group will not be drawn to play each other in the Quarterfinals.
All matches will be played in a best-of-seven, and if the series reaches game seven, the aforementioned Ultimate Battle rules will kick in. This means that if a game goes all the way to the last match, fans can expect a thrilling finish as teams will be able to pick previously used or banned heroes again.
Schedule
Group stage – Feb 21 – 24 : Matches start at 14:00 (GMT+8), with three best-of-five series a day
Playoffs – Feb 26, 28: Matches start at 14:00 (GMT+8) with two best-of-seven series a day
Finals – March 1 : Matches start at 18:00 (GMT+8) with a best-of-seven format
How to watch
Catch all the action from the Honor of Kings Invitational S3 on the game’s official channels:
- Twitch: @hok_global_esports
- YouTube: @hokglobalesports
- Facebook: @hokglobalesports
- TikTok: @hokglobalesport
