Regular Season Tournaments Invitation

Dear Forensics Community,

We are excited to welcome you to the National Online Forensics Regular Season online tournaments. These monthly synchronous and asynchronous competitions are a fantastic way to prepare your students for Nationals and provide additional rounds for team members throughout the year. With a condensed schedule of three preliminary rounds and up to two elimination rounds, competitors get high-quality practice without spending the entire day waiting for rounds. Plus, with $0 travel costs, these tournaments are both convenient and cost-effective. Run by experienced tournament directors, our events are among the best online tournaments your competitors will attend. Physical awards will be shipped ASAP after the tournament concludes.

Tournaments are offered across all grade levels—from kindergarten to college—in a wide variety of events. Our highly qualified tournament staff is committed to delivering a smooth, engaging day of competition. The schedule takes only half a day to complete (see schedule here), and winners receive Bronze, Silver, or Gold medals.

Key Information

* Registration Deadline: 8:00 PM Pacific the Tuesday before each tournament on ForensicsTournament.net

* Judging Requirements: One judge per 5 IE entries per pattern / 2 debate teams. Uncovered entries may be allowed at the discretion of the Tournament Director with applicable fees.

* Rules: The complete set of NOF rules is available here.

We hope you and your team will join us throughout the year. For questions, please email us at Robert@nationalonlineforensics.org.

Sincerely,
Robert Cannon, Danny Cantrell & Alexandra Smith
National Online Forensics

2025-2026 Synchronous Tournament Information Schedule (Pacific Time)

* Round 1: 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM

* Round 2: 10:45 AM – 12:15 PM

* Round 3: 12:30 PM – 2:15 PM

* Elim Round 1: 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM

* Elim Round 2 (if needed): 4:45 PM – 6:00 PM

* Awards: 6:30 PM (earlier if possible)

Events offered:

Entry Policies

* Competitors may enter as many speech events as they like, but do so at their own risk.

* Competitors may enter only one debate format and no IE events if entered in debate.

* In small-entry scenarios, events may be combined within their category (e.g., “Interp” events).

Individual Events

* Three prelim rounds; one final (two elims if entries exceed 30).

* Judging Requirement: 1 judge per 5 entries.

* Prelim Ranking: Ranks / Decimal / Drop High Rank

* Elim Ranking: Total Rank / # of 1sts / Elim Rank / Elim Decimal / Judge Pref

* No speaker points will be used.

* Competitors will be recognized with Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Honors awards.

* See the NOF Bylaws for more details.

Debate

* Middle School and Elementary School divisions of LD and Public Forum will use the NOF debate topic found on the NOF Topics page.

* High school LD, PF, and Policy will follow the current NSDA topic.

* Prelims are randomly paired in all three prelims; brackets broken in elims.

* One final round (two if entries exceed 30).

* Debate entries are single-entry only.

* Judging Requirement: 1 judge per 2 debate entries.

* Speaker Point Scale: 70–100

* Prelim Ranking: Wins / Total Points / HL Points / Z Score / Opp Wins

* Speaker Ranking: Total Points / HL Points / Ranks / Z Score

* Top speakers (top 15%) will be recognized.

* A 5-minute forfeit rule applies to all debate rounds.

* Awards: Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Honors

* See NOF Bylaws for more.

Congress

* Dockets released monthly at NationalOnlineForensics.org.

* Three prelim rounds; a final if entries require multiple chambers.

* Entry Limit: 3 IE/Congress events (Extemp limited to 2).

* Rounds will not be rerun for missed speeches.

* Judging Requirement: 1 judge per 5 entries.

* Prelim Ranking: Cume Rank / Cume Decimal / Adjusted Rank / Parli Rank

* Elim Ranking: Total Rank / # of 1sts / Rank Points / Decimal / Judge Pref / Parli Rank

* Elementary, Middle, and High School will each have separate prelim dockets, plus a shared Finals docket. Merged divisions will use the shared bills and the Finals docket as prelim material.

* Awards: Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Honors

* See NOF Bylaws for more.

Awards

* Sweepstakes: Top schools recognized in each division (college, high school, middle, elementary).

* Physical Awards: Shipped to coaches following the tournament.

* Address Verification: Coaches confirm shipping address during registration. Additional charges may apply if an incorrect address is provided.

Judging

* Uncovered Entries: Must be approved by the Tournament Director in advance.

* Judges may be assigned ballots outside their registered events. Flexibility is appreciated.

* Judges must remain in the Judges Room until dismissed or until their ballot is picked up via email.

* Incomplete eBallots (minimal or no feedback) may incur a judge no-show fee.

Fees

* School Fee: $50

* Individual IE: $25

* DUO: $45

* Congress: $30

* Debate (1-person): $50

* Debate (2-person): $60

* Debate (Worlds): $75

Judging & Admin Fees

* Missed Ballots: $25 (first) / $50 (each additional)

* Uncovered IE/Congress Slot: $35 (with approval)

* Uncovered Debate Team: $125 (with approval)

* Entry Changes after Deadline: $25/change (with approval)

* Judge Drops within 24 hours: $150

* Incomplete eBallots: May result in judge no-show fees

* Tournament Delays (depending on the violation): $20–$100

* Competitor No-Shows (without prior notice): $35