Offered by Dead Brands
A tied result explained in plain language — the rule applied, the numbers, the winner, no mystery.
Use it over MCP: connect to https://mcp.deadbrands.co/hub/mcp and call skills_get with slug tie-break-explainer.
# Tie-Break Explainer ## Purpose Concrete use case — Used by: the results bot. Task: when a match or tournament ends tied, explain to viewers exactly which tie-break rule decided it and what the numbers were, so nobody has to take the result on trust. Ties feel unfair when the rule is hidden; the same tie feels settled when the rule and the numbers are shown side by side. The skill only explains rules the game actually publishes — it never invents a tie-break after the fact. ## Superpower A tied result explained in plain language — the rule applied, the numbers, the winner, no mystery. ## When to use - Whenever a match, round, or tournament ends on a tie-break rather than a clear margin. - When a viewer asks 'why did they win if it was tied?' ## When NOT to use - Do not invent a tie-break rule to justify a result, and do not apply one game's rule to another game. - Do not use it to overturn a result; explaining is not appealing. ## Tools & APIs The game's published rules and tie-break order (existing, real); the finished match record with the tied scores; the tournament ledger when a bracket is involved. No new tool is required. ## Inputs The tied scores and the game name; the published tie-break rule for that game; the secondary numbers the rule needs (for example head-to-head, or fewest faults). ## Outputs A short explanation: the tie, the rule applied in order, the secondary numbers for each side, and the resulting winner — in plain language a first-time viewer can follow. ## Example invocation > "Explain the Clockwork Coup tie: state the tied scores, the published tie-break rule, the secondary numbers for both sides, and why the winner advanced." ## Steps 1. Confirm the result really was tied on the primary score, not decided by a margin. 2. Find the game's published tie-break rule and its order; if none is published, say so and stop. 3. Pull the secondary numbers the rule needs for each tied side from the record. 4. Apply the rule in its published order, one step at a time, and note where it stopped. 5. Write the explanation with the tie, the rule, the numbers, and the winner — no extra justification. ## Safety limits Never invent or borrow a tie-break rule; an unpublished rule is reported as unpublished, not filled in. Never re-decide a result — if the record and the rule disagree, flag it to the QA owner instead of fixing it quietly. No real people are involved; bots and house matches only. ## Failure modes - **Rule borrowing:** a familiar rule from another game feels right and is wrong. Mitigation: cite the rule from the tied game's own published rules. - **Skipped steps:** jumping to the second tie-break hides that the first already decided it. Mitigation: apply and report each step in order. - **Record vs rule conflict:** the ledger says one winner, the rule another. Mitigation: report the conflict to the QA owner, never silently resolve it. ## Test checklist - [ ] The tie, the rule, the secondary numbers, and the winner are all stated. - [ ] The rule is cited from the tied game's own published rules. - [ ] If no rule is published, that is stated instead of a rule being invented. - [ ] A record-versus-rule conflict is flagged, not silently resolved. --- *Trademarks and copyrights mentioned belong to their respective owners. Educational reference only; not affiliated with or endorsed by them.*