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Halo Championship Series (HCS) suspended Sentinels player Royal 2 until January 28, 2022, after concluding that his Halo Infinite server telemetry showed direct file modification that gave him an unfair competitive advantage. That was HCS’s finding—not an independently verified account of Royal 2’s intent. The ruling also nullified two Sentinels results, removed 3,660 HCS 4v4 points from team members, and stripped the team of its first-place Pool Play position at the HCS Kickoff Major Raleigh.
What prompted the investigation?
After the NA Kickoff Qualifier on December 1–2, 2021, players alleged that Sentinels had forced Halo Infinite to select a particular server, producing unusually high ping for others in the lobby. One allegation concerned Royal 2. The qualifier also suffered lobby connection problems that delayed play by more than four hours, according to HCS. The league said it began a formal investigation on December 3. HCS’s NA Competitive Ruling
What did HCS say its investigation found?
A server pattern in Royal 2’s telemetry
HCS said Halo Infinite automatically selected a server based on player pings; players did not have ordinary in-game control over server selection. HCS developers reviewed Royal 2’s matchmaking and custom-game logs from November 15 onward. According to the ruling, from November 26 through the final match of the December 3 qualifier, every US server except westus2 was missing from Royal 2’s server ping list. HCS said that left matches on westus2 and raised ping for affected players. NA Competitive Ruling
How HCS assessed the pattern
HCS said its developers reproduced a publicly known tactic for proactively removing eligible servers, and that the resulting data signature matched the pattern in Royal 2’s matches. The league reported finding no server or game outage that would explain the pattern, and no similar anomalies among other top players. It also said Sentinels’ ISP data did not match the dates of the irregularities or explain the telemetry. NA Competitive Ruling
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HCS’s stated conclusion was that “the only plausible explanation” for the pattern was direct modification of files that gave Royal 2 an unfair competitive advantage. The ruling cited Section VII.C(2), Hacking, and Section VII.C(4), Network Abuse. This is the league’s conclusion based on its investigation; the published ruling does not independently establish Royal 2’s intent or provide his complete personal account.
What penalties did HCS impose?
| Penalty | HCS ruling |
|---|---|
| Royal 2 | Suspended from HCS competition until January 28, 2022. |
| Sentinels results | Results nullified for NA Open Series 11-27 and NA Kickoff Qualifier 12-1. |
| Team points | 3,660 total HCS 4v4 points removed from Sentinels team members. |
| Raleigh placement | First-place Pool Play position for HCS Kickoff Major Raleigh 2021 revoked. |
HCS said the remaining Sentinels roster could still compete in Raleigh’s Open Bracket if the team completed its roster by the December 13 roster lock. The penalties and eligibility details are from the original ruling. NA Competitive Ruling
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Were there later rulings involving Sentinels?
Yes, but they were separate from Royal 2’s original case. An HCS update published in January 2022 says the administration issued additional rulings on December 14 concerning Royal 1 and Lethul for conduct toward league officials and on social media. Those actions should not be conflated with the telemetry finding and suspension against Royal 2. HCS January 2022 update
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What does the public ruling establish—and what does it leave open?
The ruling provides HCS’s technical explanation, the period and server pattern it identified, the alternative explanations it considered, and the penalties it imposed. It does not establish Royal 2’s full first-person response, so claims about his intent or any personal explanation should not be inferred from the league’s finding alone.
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