Guardian Con 2019 - Battle for Orlando

Updated July 2nd: Winning in The Arena requires seafaring skill, nerves of steel and an iron will to resist the lure of fishing at inopportune moments. It's the ultimate test of a pirate's ability and the place where legends do battle for rich bounties and even richer bragging rights.

Hot on the heels of E3's Battle for LA, we're bringing the Arena's unique sense of competitive carnage to America's east coast with the Battle for Orlando.

Open to anyone attending Guardian Con this coming weekend, the Battle for Orlando is a chance to prove your skills, raise money for a good cause and compete to win the loot that every self-respecting Pirate Lord wants: a gold-plated Xbox One X console. You'll also get to compete against other players attending the convention, and maybe – just maybe – secure one of four slots in the final where you can do battle live on stream against others who've qualified and a special Rare crew comprising CaptainAshBacon, EdEMonster, Vaecon and our very own Chayification.

It's sure to be a lot of fun, so come visit us at booth #204 and play!

Here's how it works. The Battle for Orlando will unfold over the two days of Guardian Con, starting when the convention opens at 10am on Friday July 5th and ending with a live-streamed Grand Final taking place between 16:30 and 17:30 EDT on Saturday July 6th.

Day 1: Friday July 5th

• Visit the Sea of Thieves booth #204 between 10am and 6pm to enter the preliminary rounds.
• Each preliminary round will feature five crews of four players. Don't worry if you don't have three friends to hand, we'll help make up crews where needed.
• The preliminary round will feature a total of 16 matches over Day 1, with the winning crew from each match progressing to the quarter-finals on Day 2.

Day 2: Saturday July 6th

• The 16 winning crews from Day 1's preliminary round will return to compete for four places in the live-streamed Grand Final.
• The 16 crews will be randomly drawn into four quarter-final matches of four crews. The winner of each quarter-final will proceed to the Grand Final.
• The Grand Final will feature the four quarter-final winners plus a special Rare crew made up of hand-picked streamers including CaptainAshBacon, EdEMonster, Vaecon and Chayification.
• The Grand Final will take place at 16:30-17:30 EDT and will also be live streamed as part of the official Guardian Con live stream.
• The winning crew will each receive a gold-plated Xbox One X console. Crews will also be able to win money for charity by successfully completing challenges throughout the Grand Final.

The Grand Final will be broadcast live on the official Guardian Con Twitch channel between 16:30 and 17:30 EDT on Saturday July 6th. See you there!

Original story:

Over the last year, since the launch of Sea of Thieves, we've seen great feedback from creators and built really positive relationships along the way. One of the strongest has been with Gothalion, who has been a fantastic supporter of what we've done with Sea of Thieves from launch, whilst not being afraid to offer robust criticism too. That's why we love him!

When he approached us to see if we'd be interested in supporting Guardian Con, we jumped at the chance. To be able to support such a unique event, organised by the streaming community for the wider gaming community – but most importantly one that raises funds for an absolutely fantastic charity – was an opportunity we couldn't turn down. This is also a way for us to meet fans in a part of the States we don't often get a chance to visit, so it makes total sense.

Since then, we've been working together to come up with the best way to get involved – and we're extremely excited to announce that we'll be part of Guardian Con 2019 in Florida on July 5th and 6th!

Following our successful Battle for LA tournament held at E3 recently, where invited crews competed in The Arena, we are going to be hosting a Battle for Orlando tournament during Guardian Con. Attendees will have a chance to enter the tournament qualifiers throughout Friday July 5th. However, places will be limited so shake off those hangovers and make sure you get to our booth early!

The tournament will continue into Saturday, where the qualifying crews from Friday will be competing for a chance to contend with a hand-picked Sea of Thieves streamer crew in the Battle for Orlando final. At stake in the final will be the chance to earn donations for the amazing charity St Jude, but also a golden Xbox One X console for each member of the winning crew.

Alongside this, there will be members of the Sea of Thieves development team present at the event to chat and meet with fans. We're so excited to be a part of Guardian Con.

July 5th can't come soon enough!

To donate to St Jude, go here.

For more information about Guardian Con and to buy tickets, go here.