Released for empty-safe rollout: October 5, 2026. This cumulative update fixes multiplayer rooms being held up by a player who stays AFK, does not download the map, or does not ready up.
From v6.7.18, rooms with at least two gameplay players can start with one ready player. Automatic starts and .start leave unready/AFK players out; if nobody is ready, the room waits. Spectators and referees do not count toward this two-player rule.
Newly unready players receive one shared extra five seconds on their first countdown during their stay. Several newly unready players add five seconds total, not five each. The same players receive no further extensions on later maps; leaving and rejoining gives a fresh allowance. The extension adds to the configured countdown and any existing chat extension.
A lone player's existing automatic/manual start behavior is unchanged. Readying up remains necessary to participate. The bot keeps its map availability, playlist, mod and referee safety checks. This update changes countdown readiness, not skip-vote thresholds, map selection, or active gameplay.
See the readiness guide, .start, and countdown troubleshooting.
October 5, 2026, 12:58 PDT: Room 1 runs v6.7.17 and is waiting for an empty/idle handoff to v6.7.18. Room 2 runs v6.7.17 and is waiting for an empty/idle handoff to v6.7.18. Room 3 runs v6.7.18. Room 4 runs v6.7.18. All four rooms were healthy at this observation. This dated snapshot does not automatically track later handoffs; Live lobbies and each room title show current availability.
Compatible updates wait for an empty, idle room for at least 30 seconds. Spectators count as occupants for deployment. No occupied room is forcibly closed to apply this fix. See room updates.
The full offline suite passed 715 tests, including ten new readiness/grace regressions. Checks cover one ready player alongside AFK players, a shared first extension, later maps without repeated grace, nobody ready, explicit player/moderator starts, spectators, and failed pre-start checks. Release identity, compatibility and read-only catalog preflights passed for all four room configurations.
This release includes successful-clear preference, Standard playlist synchronization, Noodle's LN fallback, and the earlier cumulative updates. A room does not need to run each intermediate release separately.