STARLING.GG Join the Discord

Show up alone.
Leave with a team.

Free 5v5 tournaments, run start to finish on Discord. Teams are drafted by estimated MMR, so the games come in close. No signup form, no downloads, no premade required.

Next tournament

Announced in the server

Events run every three weeks on Saturdays, 3:30 PM Central.

Join the Discord and the next date lands in your announcements channel.

Join the Discord

Free to enter, solo or with one duo partner.

How it runs

  1. Sign up with your Riot ID

    Every event goes up as an announcement in the server. Click Register on it and enter your Riot ID. That's the whole signup.

  2. Get verified

    Starling confirms the account through the Riot API and pulls your rank and match history. Brand-new accounts get a second look before they go into the draft.

  3. Get drafted

    Teams are balanced by estimated MMR, the matchmaking rating read off your ranked history, so games stay close. You're placed in the role you asked for whenever the numbers allow it.

  4. Play the bracket

    Matches run back to back through the evening. Moderators report results in Discord and the bracket updates as you go.

  5. Honor your teammates

    When the night ends, everyone gets a quick vote on the people they played with. That reputation follows a player into the next event, so how you treat four strangers actually counts for something here.

Everyone gets a second life

Every tournament is double elimination: losing drops you into the losers bracket, where you can fight all the way back to the Grand Finals.

Here is one team's night at Run It Back. Krugalicious lost their opening match and won every match after it.

  1. Winners R1

    Krugalicious
    NCTEB won

  2. Losers R1

    Krugalicious won
    Baddies

  3. Losers R2

    Krugalicious won
    The Lil Guys

  4. Grand Finals

    NCTEB
    Krugalicious won

  5. Bracket Reset

    NCTEB
    Krugalicious won
The completed Run It Back bracket. Krugalicious lose to NCTEB in the winners bracket, win two losers-bracket matches against Baddies and The Lil Guys, then beat NCTEB in both the Grand Finals and the bracket reset to become champion. Open the full bracket

Starling redraws this bracket after every reported match, so the one sitting in the server is always the current one.

What this community has already done

  • ––Tournaments run
  • ––Players competed

    Watch live, get drops

    Matches stream live in Discord, free to watch, with in-server rewards dropping during the good bits. Highlights land on YouTube afterward.

    Something to do while you wait

    The server doesn't go quiet between tournaments. The off weeks are where people actually get to know each other.

    Satsuma's clan badge: white condensed lettering reading SAT on a black square, on an emerald field.
    Satsuma · level 4
    Pixel's Bakery's clan badge: a white star inside a gold ring, on an azure field.
    Pixel's Bakery · level 3

    Two real badges from the server, built in the editor and worn as Discord role icons.

    • Clans

      Ten ranks, Iron to Challenger, climbed by playing together. Each rank unlocks more of the badge editor, and what you build becomes your clan's role icon.

    • The dungeon

      A roguelike run with classes, skills and a relic pick at every elite. It does not care that you are in champ select.

    • Cards

      Packs, decks, and battles you can put Int Coins on.

    • And the small stuff

      A daily Wordle, daily quests, music in voice, and coins dropping during streams.

    Common questions

    Do I need a full team to sign up?

    No. Register solo or with one duo partner, and Starling drafts you onto a balanced team of five. Showing up without a squad is normal, not a workaround. We also offer joining as a premade team, so you can bring your clan.

    What if I get bad teammates?

    Every event ends with an honor vote on the people you played with, and that reputation follows a player into the next one, so behaviour here has a memory. Accounts that look stronger than they claim get a smurf check before the draft, and organisers can hold someone out of an event over their record.

    Is it actually free?

    Yes. There will always be free tournaments on the schedule. Paid events with bigger prizes may join the lineup down the line, but free entry isn't going away.

    What do you actually win?

    Some events are just for the games, no prize attached. Others carry one, and when they do, it's named right on the registration announcement so you know what's on the line before you sign up.

    What rank do I need to be?

    Any. Teams are matched by estimated MMR, not rank, so Iron and Challenger both get competitive games.

    How are teams balanced?

    Starling estimates your MMR from ranked history and drafts teams to come in close in strength, seating you in your preferred role when possible.

    What if I lose my first match?

    You're not out. It's double elimination: a loss sends you to the losers bracket, with a path back to the Grand Finals.

    I missed registration. What now?

    Registration opens shortly after the previous event and stays open for about a week, well before the next one. You can still register as a substitute at any time, even after sign-ups close, and you'll get a DM if a spot opens up. Otherwise, join the server anyway: events run every three weeks on Saturdays, so you'll be ready when it opens again.

    I got banned. Can I appeal?

    Yes. Email appeals@starling.gg with your Discord username and we'll take a look.

    Every three weeks on Saturdays, 3:30 PM Central

    Ready when you are

    Join the server, link your Riot ID, and you're in the next bracket. Show up solo and you'll leave with four new teammates.

    Join the Discord