Rules & Stock Eligibility
Diamond Hands Fantasy is a fantasy game where you draft a roster of publicly traded stocks and compete head-to-head on simulated scoring. This page explains which stocks you can draft and the weekly rhythm of waivers, roster windows, and the Core 4. Nothing here is investment advice — rosters and scores are entertainment only and do not represent real positions in any security.
Stock eligibility
The draftable universe is built from three major U.S. stock indices, plus a curated set of high-interest names:
- Dow Jones Industrial Average — the 30 blue-chip constituents.
- Nasdaq-100 — the 100 largest non-financial companies on the Nasdaq.
- S&P 500 — the 500 leading U.S. large-cap companies.
- The DHF hype list — a hand-curated set of high-interest stocks we add on top of the indices so the game stays fresh and reflects what people are actually talking about.
Indices overlap, so a stock that appears in more than one is still a single draftable entry. The eligible set is refreshed as index membership changes and as we update the hype list. If a stock leaves every eligible index and the hype list, it stops being draftable for new leagues, but stays valid for the season of any league that already rostered it.
You must be 18 or older to play. See the Terms of Service for full eligibility details.
Weekly roster-move limit
Each team gets four (4) roster moves per week (Monday 12:00 AM EST – Sunday 11:59 PM EST). Waiver claims and add/drop transactions both count as moves.
Waiver priority
At the start of the season, waiver priority is set by the reverse order of the draft — the team that picked last gets first waiver priority. When a manager successfully claims a stock off waivers, they move to the bottom of the order and everyone else moves up. Priority is continuous all season and carries from one waiver period to the next.
The weekly waiver schedule
There are two waiver periods each week, separated by two roster windows:
- Waiver Period 1 — opens Monday 9:30 AM EST (market open), closes Wednesday 4:00 PM EST (market close). Submit claims; they process in current priority order.
- Midweek Roster Window — Wednesday 4:00 PM EST → Thursday 9:30 AM EST. Make lineup adjustments, add free agents, and drop stocks.
- Waiver Period 2 — opens Thursday 9:30 AM EST, closes Friday 4:00 PM EST. Submit claims again; they process in current priority order.
- Weekend Roster Window — Friday 4:00 PM EST → Monday 9:30 AM EST. Add/drop, set your lineup for the upcoming week, and modify your Core 4.
Dropped-stock rules
When you drop a stock, it enters the waiver pool— other managers can’t add it immediately. It must first pass through a waiver period. If no claim is submitted, it becomes a free agent and can be added during an open roster window. This stops managers from side-stepping waiver priority and keeps things fair.
Lineup management & the Core 4
Each team designates four stocks as its Core 4 for the week. The Core 4 are foundational positions and are locked during the active trading week— you can only change them in the Weekend Roster Window after Friday’s close.
After Wednesday’s close you may adjust all non-Core-4 positions, moving stocks between FLEX, additional starting slots, and the bench. This lets you react to the market while keeping the Core 4 strategically committed.
Weekly timeline
- Monday — market opens; Waiver Period 1 begins; the new matchup week starts.
- Wednesday — market closes; Waiver Period 1 ends; Midweek Roster Window opens.
- Thursday — market opens; Midweek window closes; Waiver Period 2 begins.
- Friday — market closes; Waiver Period 2 ends; Weekend Roster Window opens.
- Saturday & Sunday — manage rosters and update Core 4 selections.
Daily-tempo leaguesfollow the same structure compressed into a single trading day: one waiver settle at the 4:00 PM close and one overnight roster window before the next day’s open.
These rules describe the standard weekly format and may be refined before public launch.