ghoulpool.us ™

NOTICE: More rule changes for the 2010 game. This has been done to protect the intent of the game, which is picking people most of us know to die, and not abstract psuedo-celebs in an effort to exploit the loopholes. Make sure you read this page in it’s entirety. Ghoulpool.us staff is not responsible for you breaking the rules, so it’s on you.

1. Game season is from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2010. The entry fee is $25 for one list, or $50 for three lists. Money is due by PayPal by 12/31 for your entry to be valid. 5% of all fees collected (less PayPal fees) will be used to offset expenses associate with running this site. Specials will be offered to incent you, the players, to bring in more players, making this game more fun and competitive. Look for emails, web site postings, and news on Twitter (www.twitter.com/Ghoulpool) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/Ghoul.Pool)

2. People on your list MUST BE a celebrity or political figure in their own right. What this means is that Michael Jordan would be eligible, but Michael Jordan’s mom would not. To check whether a name passes muster, please check with the Celebrity Status Check page for a series of benchmarks. If your pick is deemed to not be a celebrity, you will have 48 hours from notification to replace that celebrity, or play a name short until the first Waiver Wire period. Again, if there might be a question, ask before submitting. Also, as names are submitted that are deemed not eligible, I will attempt to keep THIS LIST up to date as a reference point for all.

3. You will pick 20 names per list, and rank them accordingly. Any name can appear on any list, so there is no reason to conduct a draft. If you enter more than one list, names DO NOT need to be unique (meaning that Elizabeth Taylor can be #1 on all three of your lists, if that’s what you want).

4. You will also need to pick a tie breaker. The tie breaker will only come into play if total points for the prizes is shared by more than one player. In that case, only the players involved in the tie will participate in the tie breaker. The tie breaker is the date of death for the FOURTH person to die during game play. Not the fourth person on your list, but the fourth confirmed and scored death during the game year. The person closest to the actual date of death using number of days as a guide will win. There is no penalty for being over or under — this ain’t the Price Is Right.

5. Points will be calculated on 4 criteria. a. Rankings of your list. b. Age Points. c. Unique Points d. Cause of Death. Point calculations can be found at Points Page. If a death of a celebrity occurs on your birthday (which must be submitted prior to game start), you will receive double points. We’re givers, it’s what we do.

6. Each quarter, you may drop someone from your list to add another. The newest addition will take the 20th position, and everyone else will move up to fill the empty slot. There are only additions allowed on the 1st day of each quarter. In the event a person picked up for the waiver wire is later reported to have died prior to the waiver wire date, the dropped player will return in it’s original spot to the player’s list. No additional waiver wire selection will be permitted. This “undo” is valid only for 15 calendar days – beginning on the 16th day, the new pick-up will be dropped with no points awarded, and the 20th spot will be left blank.

7. Prizes will be distributed as follows:
* 1st Confirmed Death – $75 (split among all people with the recently deceased)
* 1st Actor/Actress Death – $20 Blockbuster Gift Card (selected randomly from all correct entries)
* 1st Author Death – $20 Amazon.com Gift Card (selected randomly from all correct entries)
* 1st place 65% of remaining pot*
* 2nd place 25% of remaining pot*
* 3rd place 10% of remaining pot*

8. If you actually cause the death of anyone on your list, you will be eliminated from the game and forfeit your fee.

9. Deaths must be confirmed. Reports of death with no evidence of death will not be permitted. The points will be tallied and the winner declared on January 10, 2011 in order to give enough time for obituaries posted for those who die during the last days of the year. Deaths that occur during the game period, but are reported after midnight US Central Time January 9, 2011 will not count in this game, or any other game. Choosing some celebrities should be considered a calculated risk. As an example, Osama bin Laden’s death may not be reported for weeks or years after the fact. If a person has died in a previous game period, and it is reported after the cutoff date, the player will not be permitted to replace that player until the next waiver wire.

10. People currently on death row and/or sentenced to death are not eligible.

* After expenses as described in Rule 1.

This page has the following sub pages.

• Everything for 2010
• 2010 Celebrity Status Check
• Point Calculations 2010
• 2010 “Celebs” Deemed Not Eligible