8 directly invited teams & 8 teams from Open Qualifier play in this stage
8 directly invited team comprises of:
Top 2 from KWC India Qualifier
Top 4 from Open Series S6 India
Top 2 from KCS India
First Round is Single Elimination Bo3
Subsequent Rounds are Double Elimination Bo3
Upper Bracket Finals is Bo5
Top 4 qualifies for LAN Finals
LAN Finals – October 17 – 18, 2026 – at Bombay Exhibition Center, India
Double Elimination
All matches are Bo5 except Grand Finals
Grand Finals is Bo7 with Ultimate Battle
About the Ultimate Battle Show Hide In Honor of Kings Pro League: Fall 2018, starting from the playoffs, Global Banpick is used as a base rule for drafting (also use in AOV Tournament, started in AOG Spring 2019). Unlike in AOV, HOK tournaments use a special rule for the final game of a Bo7 in Game 7, called Ultimate Battle. Note that in subsequent tournaments, Ultimate Battle has been used for the final game in series of other lengths as well. In an online tournament, the time durations are modified as follows: See also: Global Banpick
In a series utilising the format, procedure for the Ultimate Battle will start if there is a tied series following the penultimate game (ie. 3:3 for a Bo7, or 4:4 for a Bo9). The offline procedure is laid out as follows:
After the crystal has been destroyed, the referee will call upon the head coach of both teams to the center of the venue. The loser of the previous game will have 60 seconds to choose sides, and the side selection will be displayed to both teams and the audience.
The head coach, assistant coaches, analyst and other staff will be allowed on the stage. The team will discuss and make their draft within 3 minutes. This process begins after the side selection.
At the end of 3 minutes, the head coach must submit the hero lineups and challenger spells to the referee, and then coaches must leave the stage. There will be a penalty if the players don't use the same heroes and challenger spells as the coach submit.
In addition, if a team failed to submit the hero lineups and challenger spells within 3 minutes, the team have to use the lineup from the previous game.
The time will start when the coach come to the stage, and the referee will give a signal for the countdown at 1 minute, 30 seconds, and 10 seconds.
Each team's hero lineups and challenger spells will not be visible for the opponent team till the game starts.
The coaches of the losing team will have 2 minutes to chose sides (instead of 60 seconds).
The coaches will get 8 minutes (instead of 3 minutes) to submit the draft, with countdown signals given at 4 minutes and 1 minute.
KIC 26 India Quali is running now and ends Oct 18, 2026.
Who plays next in KIC?
Revenant XSpark vs 4ENDS Esports on Oct 17 (05:30 UTC), best of 5.
Where can I watch KIC?
Recent matches streamed on YouTube @jioblast, YouTube JioBlast. Every match on this page links to its own streams.
Where is KIC 26 India Quali played?
Online, Mumbai, at Bombay Exhibition Center (LAN Finals only).
How much prize money is in KIC 26 India Quali?
₹500,000 INR (≃ $5,165 USD).
How many teams are in KIC 26 India Quali?
16 teams are listed: Revenant XSpark, S8UL Esports, TRUE Rippers, Reckoning Esports, Team Resurrection Impossible, 4ENDS Esports, Northeast Syndicate, XTREME TORNADO, Crux Requiem, Alpha1 Esports, Red Ant Esports, Vasista Esports and more.
What is the KIC format?
Pro Qualifier – September 29 – October 4, 2026. 8 directly invited teams & 8 teams from Open Qualifier play in this stage. 8 directly invited team comprises of:. Top 2 from KWC India Qualifier.
Which characters get banned most in KIC?
Haya, Pei, Chicha, Guan Yu, Mai Shiranui, counted from listed results.