RooCTF 2025 — FAQ
General Info
Q: What is RooCTF?
A: RooCTF is a 24-hour, hybrid, Jeopardy-style Capture The Flag competition hosted by the UMKC Cybersecurity Club. It’s global and beginner-friendly, open to participants of all skill levels.
Q: When does RooCTF 2025 take place?
- Start: October 24, 2025 – 4:00 PM CT
- End: October 25, 2025 – 4:00 PM CT
Q: Who can participate?
A: Anyone! It’s open to participants of all ages and skill levels.
Q: How do I register?
- Registration opens: August 1, 2025
- Registration closes: October 25, 2025 – 4:00 PM CT
- Questions? Email: [email protected]
Teams
Q: How many people can be on a team?
A: There’s no team size limit. Solo participation is also allowed.
Q: Can I be on more than one team?
A: No. Each person can only join one team.
Challenges
Q: What categories are there?
- Web
- Cryptography
- Reverse Engineering
- Binary Exploitation (Pwn)
- Digital Forensics
- AI / Misc
Q: How do I know the flag format?
A: Unless specified otherwise, all flags look like:
roo{text-like-i-have-read-the-rules_or_something}
Flags are case-insensitive. Always include the full roo{} wrapper.
Scoring
Q: How does scoring work?
- RooCTF uses Dynamic Scoring.
- Challenge points decrease as more teams solve them.
- All teams get the same value for a solve.
- No first blood bonus.
- Tie is broken by the team that reaches max score first.
Q: What happens if I submit the wrong flag?
A: Incorrect submissions won’t penalize you, but spamming may result in warnings or disqualification.
Prizes
Q: What prizes are available?
- College teams (UMKC campus): $2,000 total for top 3 teams.
- High school teams (UMKC campus): $1,500 total for top 3 teams.
- Teams don’t need to show up in person on October 24th, but they must be on the UMKC campus by 14:00 PM on Saturday, October 25th to be eligible for prizes
Q: Do remote teams win prizes?
A: Remote teams are eligible for recognition and leaderboard ranking, but on-campus prizes are reserved for UMKC in-person teams.
Rules & Conduct
Q: Can I share flags or solutions?
A: No. Sharing or trading flags/solutions between teams is prohibited.
Q: What’s the code of conduct?
- Be respectful to participants, organizers, and volunteers.
- No harassment, discrimination, or offensive language.
- Cheating or collusion = disqualification.
Accounts & Platform
Q: Where do I log in and play?
A: All challenges and submissions are hosted on our CTFd platform. You’ll need to register, confirm your account, and join/create a team.
Q: Do I need to use VPNs or special software to access the challenges?
A: No — everything is accessible directly from your browser unless otherwise specified in a challenge description.
During the Competition
Q: Can I ask organizers technical questions during the CTF?
A: Yes, but only in the #helpdesk Discord channel via ticket bot. Organizers cannot give private hints, but they can help with platform or environment issues.
Q: What if the server goes down?
A: Report immediately in the #helpdesk channel. Organizers will make announcements if there’s an outage.
Tools & Environment
Q: Can I run Docker/VMs locally for challenges?
A: Yes, if you want to isolate environments or tools. Just don’t attack the CTF infrastructure itself.
Q: Can I use AI tools?
A: MCPs and AI assistants are allowed as long as they don’t generate abusive amounts of traffic. Automated brute-forcing is not allowed.
Writeups
Q: How do I submit a writeup?
- Writeup window: Monday – Saturday (after CTF ends)
- Submit via public post in the #writeups channel on Discord.
- Must be in English (translations allowed if linked post is in English).
- Channel becomes public only after the CTF ends.
Q: Will writeups be required?
A: Not required for solving challenges, but encouraged. Some prizes are specifically for best writeups.
Miscellaneous
Q: Do I need advanced skills to play?
A: No! RooCTF is beginner-friendly. Many challenges are designed for new players, while others will push experienced teams.
Q: Is there a Discord for players?
A: Yes — it’s the main hub for announcements, helpdesk tickets, and community chat. The invite link will be posted on the CTFd homepage.
Final Check
Q: Is there a rules-flag?
Yes!
roo{i_read_the_rules_for_every_ctf}
For complete details, see the RooCTF Rules.