> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://countertrade.gitbook.io/docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://countertrade.gitbook.io/docs/battles/how-battles-work.md).

# How battles work

The arc of a battle inside a room — joining, trading a paper balance, ranking by ROI, settling, and claiming.

A battle is a time-boxed competition that runs inside a room. You join, trade a simulated paper balance against live market prices for a fixed window, and your standing comes from your return on that balance — not from how much you deposited to enter.

Every battle begins as an open room in Battle Hub. While the room is open, traders join by paying its entry fee — a real token deposit held on-chain in escrow, not spent on trades. Joining closes shortly before the battle begins, so the field is set before anyone places an order.

When the start time arrives, the room goes live. Everyone receives the same paper balance and trades it against live market prices. Paper balance is not real money and can't be withdrawn; it exists only to score the battle.

While the room is live, the leaderboard ranks everyone by ROI, the percentage return on that starting balance.

At the end time the room stops accepting orders and ends. Final standings are then settled into on-chain payouts, and once the room is finalized, winners claim their prize from the wallet they joined with. The entry fees held in [escrow](/docs/funds-and-settlement/entry-fees-and-escrow.md) fund the prize pool; your paper PnL only decides who ranks where. Results are final once a room settles — there's no process to contest an outcome. See [Battle rules and scoring](/docs/battles/battle-rules-and-scoring.md).

Rooms come in a few formats: a one-on-one duel, a free-for-all of 5 or 10 traders, or a 5v5 team battle. The format sets how many seats there are and how the prize pool is split — some rooms pay the winner alone, others share the pool across the top finishers or the winning team.

## Example

Say a room starts everyone with 10,000 paper USDT. You finish the battle at 11,500 — a +15% ROI. Another trader finishes at 10,800, or +8%, and a third drops to 9,200, or −8%. You rank first, they rank second and third, on ROI alone.

In a winner-takes-all room, first place claims the whole prize pool. In a room that splits the pool, it's shared across the top finishers or the winning team instead.

## What to know before you join

A room needs a minimum number of traders. If too few have joined by the time joins close, the room cancels instead of running, and every entry fee is refunded — you claim your refund back to the wallet you joined with. No battle means no result and no prize; you get your deposit back.

The trading window is fixed. You can't place orders before the room goes live or after it ends, so the battle is decided entirely by what you do between those two times.

Prizes and refunds are always claimed from the wallet you joined with. If you lose access to that wallet, you can't claim from it — that wallet is yours to keep safe.

## Related

* [Battle rules and scoring](/docs/battles/battle-rules-and-scoring.md) — scoring, tie-breaks, and what happens at the end
* [Battle lifecycle](/docs/battles/battle-lifecycle.md) — the exact room states, from open to finalized
* [Leaderboards](/docs/ratings-and-competition/leaderboards.md) — how live standings and ROI ranking work
* [Settlement](/docs/funds-and-settlement/settlement.md) — how final standings become claimable payouts