Frequently Asked Questions
Find answers to the most common questions about D1 Arena, tournaments, streaming, and more.
Getting Started
Q: How do I create an account?
A: Click "Sign Up" in the top right corner, fill in your details, verify your email, and complete your profile. You will be ready to compete in minutes!
Q: Is D1 Arena free to use?
A: Yes! Creating an account and joining free tournaments is completely free. Some premium tournaments may have entry fees with prize pools.
Q: What games can I compete in?
A: We support a variety of popular esports titles. Check our Tournaments page for current available games and competitions.
Tournaments
Q: How do I join a tournament?
A: Browse available tournaments, click on one that interests you, and click "Join Now." Make sure you meet any requirements (game ownership, team size, etc.).
Q: What tournament formats are available?
A: We offer single elimination, double elimination, round robin, and Swiss-style tournaments depending on the competition.
Q: How are prizes distributed?
A: Prize distribution is shown before each tournament. Winners receive prizes through our secure payment system after tournament completion and verification.
Teams
Q: How do I create a team?
A: Open Hub → Teams to create a team or select a roster. Select a team to enter Team HQ. Authorized owners, admins and managers use Manage for members and join requests; invitations appear under Invites and require the invited player’s acceptance. Use Team HQ for team communication.
Q: Can I be on multiple teams?
A: Yes, you can join multiple teams for different games or tournament types.
Streaming
Q: Can I stream my matches?
A: Yes! D1 Arena supports live streaming. Go to your Hub → Studio → Ingest to get your server URL and stream key.
Q: What streaming protocols do you support?
A: Streaming access and maximum resolution depend on membership tier:
- Starter: RTMP up to 720p.
- PRO: RTMP or SRT up to 720p.
- Ultimate: RTMP, SRT, or WHIP up to 1080p.
- Partner: RTMP, SRT, or WHIP up to 2160p.
For WHIP streams, compatible viewers attempt WHEP playback first and fall back to HLS when needed.
Q: How do I start streaming?
A: Go to your Hub → Studio → Ingest, copy the server URL and stream key for a protocol available to your tier, add them to your broadcasting software, and start streaming.
Q: Why was my SRT or WHIP stream rejected?
A: SRT requires PRO, Ultimate, or Partner access. WHIP requires Ultimate or Partner access. A connection is rejected when the selected protocol is not available to the account tier.
Q: Which protocol should I choose?
A: RTMP offers the broadest broadcasting-software compatibility and works on every tier. SRT can improve reliability on unstable connections and is available to PRO, Ultimate, and Partner accounts. WHIP supports browser or compatible broadcaster ingest for Ultimate and Partner accounts.
VODs & Clips
Q: What are VODs?
A: VODs (Video on Demand) are automatically created recordings of your live streams. When you end a stream, a VOD is generated and saved to your profile for viewers to watch later.
Q: How long are VODs stored?
A: VOD storage depends on your membership tier:
- Starter (Free): 10 days
- PRO: 30 days
- Ultimate: 60 days
- Partner: 90 days
Q: What are Clips?
A: Clips are short highlight moments (up to 60 seconds) that you or viewers can create from your live streams or VODs. They are perfect for sharing your best plays on social media!
Q: How do I create a Clip?
A: While watching a live stream or VOD, click the "Create Clip" button. Select the start and end points (up to 60 seconds), give it a title, and save. The clip will be generated and added to your profile.
Q: Can viewers create clips from my streams?
A: Yes! Viewers can create clips from your live streams and VODs. All clips are associated with your channel and appear on your profile.
Q: How long are clips stored?
A: Clips are stored indefinitely and do not expire like VODs.
Q: Can I delete clips?
A: Open Hub → Videos to manage your recordings and clips. Applicable tournament recording restrictions still apply.
Chat Features
Q: What chat features are available?
A: D1 Arena chat includes real-time messaging, emojis, GIFs for PRO, Ultimate, and Partner accounts, moderation tools, and modes such as slow, followers-only, and subscribers-only chat.
Q: How long is stream chat kept?
A: Ordinary stream-chat messages are subject to the current 30-day cleanup process. Moderation, dispute, safety, security, and legal-hold records may follow different retention periods.
Q: What file types can I upload for my profile image and banner?
A: Allowed file types depend on your membership tier:
- Starter (Free): Static images (JPG, PNG, WebP) up to 5MB
- PRO ($14.99/mo): Static images and animated GIFs up to 15MB
- Ultimate ($29.99/mo): Static images, GIFs, and video (MP4, WebM) up to 50MB
- Partner (Invite-Only): Static images, GIFs, and video (MP4, WebM) up to 100MB
All uploaded profile images are cropped to 500×500. Video and GIF formats let you create a more dynamic, eye-catching profile. Upgrade your plan from the Membership page to unlock additional formats.
Q: Can everyone use emojis and GIFs?
A: Emojis are available to all members. GIFs are available to PRO, Ultimate, and Partner members.
Q: What moderation commands are available?
A: Moderators have access to 20+ commands including !ban, !timeout, !mute, !slow, !clear, !followers, !subscribers, and more. Streamers can appoint moderators using the !mod command.
Tips & Supporting Streamers
Q: How do I send a tip to a streamer?
A: Visit the streamer profile or stream page and click the "Tip" button. Enter an amount ($1-$500), add an optional message, and complete payment via Stripe.
Q: Can I tip a team instead of an individual?
A: Yes! On team pages, you can tip the entire team. The tip is split equally among all team members who are currently live streaming. If no members are live, the team owner receives the full tip.
Q: What fees are taken from tips?
A: For an ordinary creator tip, D1’s product fee and the 5.4% processing component are calculated from the tip amount, with a fixed $0.30 processing component. The D1 product fee is 25% on Starter, 18% on PRO, 10% on Ultimate and 5% on Partner. The creator receives the remaining allocated amount after the applicable fees and rounding.
Q: Can I remain anonymous when tipping?
A: Yes! When sending a tip, you can choose to hide your name. The streamer will see "Anonymous" instead of your username.
Q: Are tips refundable?
A: Tips are voluntary and non-refundable once processed. Please double-check the amount and recipient before confirming.
Q: How do I receive tips as a streamer?
A: Eligible tip earnings are recorded in the wallet. Creators connect Stripe Connect and complete applicable identity and payout requirements before receiving payouts.
Age and Location Eligibility
Q: Why can't I join a paid tournament?
A: Paid-entry eligibility depends on age, verified location, account status, event rules, and applicable provider or legal controls. D1 currently blocks paid-entry tournament participation for accounts located in Arizona, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Louisiana, Maryland, Montana, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Tennessee. Restrictions can change, and the absence of a block is not legal advice about your location.
Q: What can youth accounts do?
A: Users ages 13–17 require parent/guardian verification under D1 policy. They may join free tournaments but may not enter paid tournaments or receive cash tournament prizes. A separate parent/guardian monetization-consent and Stripe setup path may allow eligible tip or supporter-subscription earnings; it does not unlock paid-entry tournaments or cash prizes.
Tournament Streaming
Q: How does tournament stream auto-detection work?
A: When you register for a tournament and go live anytime between the tournament start time and end time, D1 Arena automatically:
- Detects your live stream
- Links it to your active tournament match
- Creates a VOD when you end your stream
- Associates the VOD with your match for replay viewing
Q: Can viewers watch my tournament match live?
A: Yes! When you stream during a tournament, viewers can click on your match in the bracket to watch your live stream. After the match, they can watch the VOD replay.
Q: What if I am on a team - does everyone need to stream?
A: No. For team tournaments, only one team member needs to stream. The system will detect any team member who goes live and link their stream to the team match.
Q: Do I need any special streaming software for tournaments?
A: No special software needed. Use your normal RTMP setup or browser streaming if your tier supports it. Just stream to your D1 Arena stream key as usual.
Account Security
Q: Does D1 Arena support two-factor authentication (2FA)?
A: Yes! We strongly recommend enabling 2FA for your account. Go to Settings → Security to set up two-factor authentication using an authenticator app.
Q: How do I withdraw my earnings?
A: Open the Wallet to review eligible earnings and payout activity. Payouts use Stripe Connect and require completion of applicable identity, account, and eligibility checks. A general manual withdrawal flow is not available to every account.
Q: How does D1 Arena handle communication and alerts?
\nA: D1 Arena provides Team HQ, protected direct messages, friend calls, Watch Party communication, email, in-app notifications, and authenticated real-time alerts. Third-party community services are managed separately and are not connected to D1 Arena accounts.
Tournament Fees
Q: What are the tournament fees?
A: Tournament fees vary by membership tier (includes 5.4% payment processing):
- Starter (Free): 11.4% total fee
- PRO ($14.99/mo): 9.4% total fee
- Ultimate ($29.99/mo): 8.4% total fee
- Partner (Invite-Only): 7.4% total fee
Fees are calculated into the entry fee - winners always receive the full advertised prize pool.
Account & Support
Q: How do I reset my password?
A: Click "Forgot Password" on the login page and follow the email instructions.
Q: How do I contact support?
A: Visit the Support Center or open the Contact page to use the D1 Assistant. The assistant can answer common questions and create a support ticket when follow-up is needed.
Streaming Server URLs
Use these URLs in your broadcasting software:
- RTMP (All Tiers):
rtmp://us1.d1arena.com:1935/stream - SRT (PRO, Ultimate, and Partner):
srt://us1.d1arena.com:9998?streamid=publish:{your_stream_key} - WHIP (Ultimate and Partner):
http://us1.d1arena.com:1990/rtc/v1/whip/?app=stream&stream={your_stream_key}
Your stream key can be found in your Hub → Studio → Ingest.
Age Requirements
- Minimum age: You must be at least 13 to create a D1 account.
- Ages 13–17: Parent/guardian verification is required under D1 policy; paid-entry tournaments and cash tournament prizes are blocked.
- Youth creator earnings: Eligible tips or supporter-subscription earnings require the separate parent/guardian monetization-consent and Stripe setup path.
- Adult content: Content and feature access may be limited by age, verification, and safety controls.
COPPA generally concerns covered online collection from children under 13. D1's additional teen controls are platform safety and eligibility rules.
D1 Cred (Channel Points)
Q: What is D1 Cred?
A: D1 Cred is our channel points system. You earn D1 Cred by watching streams, chatting, and following channels. You can spend D1 Cred on channel rewards, predictions, and polls.
Q: Can I convert D1 Cred to real money?
A: No. D1 Cred has no monetary value and cannot be exchanged for cash, transferred to other users, or converted in any way.
D1 Frenzy (Stream Hype Bar)
Q: What is D1 Frenzy?
A: D1 Frenzy is the live stream hype bar. As viewers tip and subscribe during a stream, the meter fills through five levels with visual celebrations and a contributor count. Reaching higher levels triggers on-stream effects so the streamer and chat can see the energy build in real time.
Q: How do I contribute to a D1 Frenzy?
A: Just send a tip or subscribe to the streamer while their stream is live. Both actions automatically count toward the active Frenzy session.
Q: Does Frenzy change pricing or fees?
A: No. Tips and subscriptions sent during a Frenzy follow the same pricing, fee splits, and refund rules as any other tip or subscription on D1 Arena.
Gift Subscriptions
Q: Can I gift a subscription to someone else?
A: Yes. You can purchase a Tier 1, Tier 2, or Tier 3 Supporter Subscription on behalf of a specific D1 Arena user you choose at purchase time. Gift subscriptions are not distributed randomly; you select the recipient.
Q: Are gift subscriptions refundable?
A: Gift subscriptions are non-refundable once delivered to the recipient. If the recipient is no longer eligible at the time of processing, contact our Support Center for review.
AI Features
Q: What AI features does D1 Arena offer?
A: D1 Arena uses AI (powered by xAI/Grok) for several features: content moderation, automatic game detection, support chatbot, content generation (titles, descriptions, bios), streaming troubleshooter, tournament predictions (Ultimate and Partner), and player insights.
Q: Is AI moderation automatic?
A: AI assists with moderation and may flag, hold, or limit content under D1 controls. Available enforcement actions can be appealed through the Support Center for administrator review.
Content ID
Q: What is Content ID?
A: Our in-house Content ID system uses audio fingerprinting (AcoustID) to detect copyrighted audio in streams and uploads. If copyrighted content is detected, you may receive a content strike.
Q: How do content strikes work?
A: Strike 1 is a warning. Strike 2 results in a temporary streaming restriction. Strike 3 leads to an extended restriction and manual review. You can dispute strikes if you believe they were issued in error.
Advertising
Q: How can I advertise on D1 Arena?
A: Visit our Advertiser page to register as an advertiser. You can create campaigns, upload creatives, set targeting, and manage your budget all from the Ads Manager dashboard. All ads undergo AI and human review before serving.
Q: Does D1 Arena use third-party ad networks?
A: No. D1 Arena operates a fully in-house advertising platform. We do not use Google AdSense or any external ad networks. This ensures better privacy and a cleaner viewing experience.
Account Management
Q: Can I deactivate my account temporarily?
A: Yes. You can deactivate your account from your settings. Your data is retained for 30 days, during which you can reactivate by verifying your identity via OTP.
Q: How do I permanently delete my account?
A: Go to Settings and select account deletion. A grace period lets you cancel before permanent processing. Some transaction, fraud, dispute, tournament, security, tax, accounting, provider, or legal-hold records may be retained when required for their purpose or by law.
Q: Can I export my data?
A: Yes. Contact our Support Center to request a copy of your personal data in a machine-readable format.
Skirmishes
Q: What are skirmishes?
A: Skirmishes are quick, casual challenges between players outside of organized tournaments. You can challenge another player or team to a 1v1 or team-vs-team match.
Language & Accessibility
Q: Is D1 Arena available in my language?
A: D1 Arena supports 45 languages, including English plus expanded European, Middle Eastern, African, and Asian language coverage. Use the language switcher in the footer to change languages.
D1-Native Viewer-Side Overlays & Chat TTS
Q: Do you support streamer-side overlay tools?
A: RTMP broadcasting software is still supported for ingest, but the old streamer-side overlay workflow was retired. D1 Arena now renders alerts, goals, polls, predictions, reward banners, and chat TTS viewer-side inside the D1 player, so every viewer can see and hear the experience in their own language.
Q: Where do streamers configure overlays now?
A: Go to Hub → Channel → Overlays. The unified 16:9 preview lets you toggle and position viewer alerts, the goal bar, polls/predictions, reward banners, D1 Frenzy, and chat TTS without copying overlay URLs into broadcast software.
Q: How does Chat TTS work?
A: Chat TTS is D1-native on the watch page. The streamer controls filters and trigger modes, while each viewer hears narration in their own preferred locale using paid-tier Polly where available and browser speech fallback where appropriate. Audio is not burned into the broadcast.
Q: Can I restrict who triggers TTS?
A: Yes. Trigger modes include every message, highlighted channel-reward messages, mod/VIP only, followers-only chat, and command-triggered messages. Streamers can also maintain blocked phrases so unwanted words are skipped even when a trigger fires.
Q: Do alerts and goal progress still update after async payments?
A: Yes. D1 fires viewer-side alerts and goal progress from both real-time broadcasts and Stripe webhook completion, so a tip that completes after checkout still updates the D1 player experience.
Passkeys & Modern Authentication
Q: Does D1 Arena support passkeys?
A: Yes. Website passkeys work in supported WebAuthn browsers and devices — iPhone / iPad (Face ID or Touch ID), Mac, Android, Windows 10 and newer (Hello), Chromebook, and hardware keys like YubiKey. Register one or more passkeys from Hub → Account → Security, then use "Sign in with a passkey" on the login page. Passwords and 2FA still work as fallback.
Q: Can I sign in with just a passkey and no password at all?
A: Yes. Click "Sign in with a passkey" on the login page and your device's credential picker shows you every D1 Arena passkey you have registered. Pick one and you're in — no email or password typed. This is the safest login available.
Q: How many passkeys can I register?
A: Unlimited. We recommend at least two (e.g. your phone and your laptop) so you always have a backup if one device is lost. You can name each passkey and delete any of them from Security Settings.
Tournament Integrity
Q: When does tournament registration close?
A: If the tournament has check-in enabled, registration closes the moment the check-in window opens (typically 15-30 minutes before start). If check-in is disabled, registration closes one minute before the tournament starts. The registration page shows a "Registration Closed" banner once the window is shut.
Q: Do I have to agree to tournament rules before joining?
A: When an organiser posts tournament-specific rules, yes — you'll see a scrollable rules preview and must check the "I agree" box before the Join button activates. We record your agreement timestamp, IP, and a hash of the rules. If the organiser later edits the rules, we still know exactly what you agreed to originally.
Q: What is a platform-wide tournament ban?
A: For serious tournament abuse (match fixing, chargeback fraud, coordinated disruption), admins can issue a platform-wide ban in four tiers: warning, 7-day ban, 30-day ban, or permanent ban. While banned, you cannot register for any tournament on D1 Arena. You'll see an active ban notice on every tournament page with the expiry date and reason. You can appeal through the Support Center within 14 days.
Q: Do I need to manually check in if I go live during my window?
A: No. If you go live during your check-in window, D1 Arena automatically checks you in — no forgotten button, no forfeit. For team tournaments the system checks in the whole team once every required member is live.
Q: Can I delete or re-title a VOD from a tournament match?
A: No. Tournament-generated VODs and clips are platform-owned records to preserve bracket history. You can watch and share them but title, description, privacy, and deletion are locked. Admins can override in exceptional cases with audit logging. This policy protects the integrity of tournament results.
Q: How are strike appeals different from strike expiries?
A: Strikes (content violations or tournament bans) can be appealed for 14 days after issue. A human moderator reviews every appeal. If your appeal wins, the strike is marked "Overturned" (green) in your history. If no appeal is filed and the strike ages out naturally after 6 months, it's marked "Expired" (gray). The distinction is preserved so your record accurately reflects what happened.
Chat Translation
Q: Does chat translate to my language automatically?
A: Yes. Stream chat messages are translated on-the-fly to each viewer's preferred language — no setup required on either side. A streamer chatting in Portuguese reaches viewers who see the translated Spanish, French, Japanese, Arabic, etc. instantly. The original message is shown alongside the translation so nothing is lost.
Q: Which languages does chat translate into?
A: All 45 platform languages. Chat translation follows the same supported language list as the footer language selector and account language preference.
Native Communications
Q: What is Team HQ?
A: Team HQ is an authenticated space where authorized team members can use text, voice, camera, and screen sharing. Access follows team membership, verification, and channel-permission controls.
Q: What are Watch Parties?
A: Watch Parties synchronize D1-hosted VOD playback with party chat. The host may turn D1-native voice off, limit it to friends, or allow signed-in participants. Camera and screen sharing may be available when voice access is enabled. No external voice service is required.
Q: Can I call a friend on D1?
A: Accepted D1 friends can exchange direct messages and use voice, video and screen sharing. Conversations with multiple friends support up to 10 eligible participants. Calls start one-to-one and can include up to 10 eligible friends. Friendship, blocking and age controls apply between participants; following an account alone does not grant messaging or calling access. These conversations are separate from Teams, which have their own rosters and Team HQ.
Q: Does D1 record calls?
A: The current implementation does not record or store call media. D1 processes authentication, signaling, roster, safety, and activity metadata needed to operate the features. Users must not record or redistribute another person's voice, video, or screen without authorization and any consent required by law.
Other Platform Features
Q: How does Official Cast work?
\nA: Tournament organizers assign approved D1 Arena casters. Each caster publishes through the normal supported D1 ingest path; D1 presents the assigned live cast and match focus on the tournament experience and processes the completed stream through the normal VOD pipeline. A native server-side multi-caster audio mixer is not currently implemented.
Q: Does D1 Arena have merch?
A: Physical print-on-demand checkout and automatic order submission to Printful are currently unavailable. For an existing purchase, open Purchases in the Hub or contact Support. Existing orders, refunds and disputes remain subject to the applicable purchase terms and Refund Policy.
Q: Is there a mobile app?
A: D1 Arena is currently shipped as a Progressive Web App (PWA) that can be installed from supported browsers. There is no current native App Store or Play Store binary.
Game discovery uses D1’s Steam-fed catalog (RAWG residual only).
Selected public clips and Clip of the Week winners may be shared on D1-operated social channels; details are in the Privacy Policy.