A session is short, so it's handy to spread the tournament across days: one round a day at quiet hour or after the afternoon snack, blitz 10+0. Over a week you get a full 5-6 round tournament, and the final and awards fit neatly into the session closing.
You can also run a within-group tournament on one rainy day - several rounds in a row. The bot handles both equally: it deals pairings and the counselor enters results.
At a camp phones are often banned or handed in for safekeeping - and that doesn't block a tournament. The bot has a standard answer: the counselor enters the whole group as guests by name from their own phone.
Kids play in the common draw, and results are entered by the counselor or appointed helpers from the older children. The bot collects no data about kids beyond names for the table - convenient and safe, nothing to clear with parents.
A live table is half the fun: post it on the group board and update it after each round. Kids follow their place, cheer for one another, and by the final the suspense grips the whole group. Awarding the champion at the session closing becomes a memorable moment. Everything is run from the bot Vibe Chess Bot with /create_tournament, /start_tournament, /next_round and /finish_tournament - more in the organizer guide.
The counselor enters the whole group as guests by name from their own phone. Kids play in the common draw, and the counselor or older-child helpers enter the results. Kids need no phones at all.
It's easiest to spread it across the session: one round a day at quiet hour, a full 5-6 round tournament over a week with the final at closing. You can also run several rounds on one rainy day.
Yes. The Swiss system pairs players by strength after round one, so both the little ones and the older kids get opponents at their level. It's interesting for everyone.
No, only names for the tournament table. No phones or other information is needed, and nothing has to be cleared with parents.
Boards by the number of pairs and the counselor's phone with the bot. Clocks aren't required - camps usually play without strict timing, capping games by quiet hour.
The Vibe Chess app is built for an evening over the board, not for online play: it keeps the sign-up list, the pairings and the table while you deal with people and the venue. All of it free.
score groups, no rematches, no two byes in a row
everyone plays everyone, the app works out the number of rounds
who is free and who is already at a board is shown under Now
The bot is constantly improved based on real tournaments. If you need a feature that isn't there yet, message the developers right inside the bot with the /support command. Many features appeared exactly because organizers asked for them, and useful ideas get added quickly.
The educator's guide - tournament at school. A fast format - tournament in one lesson. Regular tournaments - club tournaments. Full mechanics - organizer guide.
At the board since childhood: hazy about his rating, precise about every rook he has blundered. Counts an evening as a good one if the opponent stayed to talk afterwards instead of rushing off to check with an engine. Message →
