signaling the halfway point in the game, survivors from both tribes come together to live as one, making it to the "merge". at this point, survivors will compete against each other to win individual immunity; winning immunity prevents that player from being voted out at tribal council. most players that are voted out after the merge form the game's "jury". once the group gets down to three people, a final tribal council is held where the remaining players plead their case to the jury members. the jury then votes for which player should be considered the "sole survivor" and win the show's grand prize. in all seasons for the united states version (excluding the 40th "survivor: winners at war" season), this has included a $1-million prize in addition to the sole survivor title; some seasons (particularly earlier seasons) have included additional prizes offered during the game, such as a car, as well as fan-favorite prizes awarded at the finale. all contestants are paid on a sliding-scale based on the order they were voted out: the first player voted out has been given and the amount increases from there. some of the seasons that have featured returning players have increased these amounts: "survivor all-stars" featured payouts starting at , while "winners at war" had a minimum payout. all players are offered for participating in the finale show.