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Iron DM 2012 -- R2 complete, Finals in Progress
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<blockquote data-quote="Radiating Gnome" data-source="post: 5943043" data-attributes="member: 150"><p>Remember: For the semifinal and final round, each match is judged by ALL THREE Iron DM judges. I'll post my take in the spoiler block below, but we won't know the winner until all three judges have chimed in. </p><p></p><p>[sblock]</p><p>Wow, I really liked both entries -- this is going to be a tough match to judge. Thanks for such good work, guys. </p><p></p><p>This match is between Ambush in the Armatorium (AA) and Going Legit (GL)</p><p></p><p><strong>Ingredient Use</strong></p><p></p><p><strong>Bundle of Straw</strong> In AA, the bundle of straw is present in the cigars used to create a complication in the battle within the armatorium. Which is good. But in GL, the bundle of straw is the special dietary requirement of the two-tailed cows, a bundle the PCs must protect and transport while they search for the last herd of those two-tailed cows…. which I like better, so Advantage GL</p><p></p><p><strong>Forlorn Cyclops</strong>. In GL, the forlorn Cyclops is the orphan cyclops, being pushed off Oester island and just trying to protect his dwindling herd of two-tailed cows. In AA, we don't have a single cyclops, but a workforce of them, operating the armatorium and as the primary opponents for the Pcs. The CL cyclops was more forlorn, IMO, so again, Advantage GL. </p><p></p><p><strong>Gaudy Gangster</strong> - Both GL and AA had a bejeweled, gaudy gangster, but both had the same problem with this ingredient -- the gaudiness didn't really seem to have much influence on the story. Either one could be just a normal mobster and the adventure would play out basically the same way. I don't see any advantage to either entry here. </p><p></p><p><strong>Abandoned Foundry</strong> - AA has an advantage here because the foundry, or Armatorium, is the actual setting for the adventure. GL uses it, but as background. The PCs never really adventure in the foundry, it's just part of the reason they're going to Oester island withe a bundle of straw. </p><p></p><p><strong>Powerful Suit</strong> - I snickered at the interpretation of "suit" as legal suit in GL. And, as much as I like that usage, it's again part of the background, not the real adventure. To be fair, other suits may come up as the PCs try to deal with getting out of town to go hunt for cows on the high seas, but the central, big suit isn't something the PCs interact with directly. Meanwhile, the Suncoats in AA represent a pretty straightforward but effective use of the ingredient. Advantage AA. </p><p></p><p><strong>Drum</strong> - Both are good. I can go either with with advantage for this ingredient, so I think this one is a tie, too. </p><p></p><p>So, all in all, after all ingredients, we're caught in a 2-2 tie. Awesome. </p><p></p><p></p><p><strong>Creativity</strong> - Both entries are very creative. They're both terrific examples of what Iron DM can be. They both present interesting, unique situations that can have a variety of outcomes depending upon how the PCs want to deal with the challenges presented. The running skirmish in the Armatorium sounds like great game play to me -- and I'm really interested in the non-combat encounter possibilities of GL. </p><p></p><p>GL is cleverer -- reading "suits" as "lawsuits", the two-tailed cows, "Oester" island and it's big statues, and so on. But clever is only one shade of creativity, and AA has plenty of it's own -- the details of the armatorium encounter area with it's very interactive hazards (runes that Pcs and Cyclopses can activate, hallucinogenic haze, radiant energy, etc) is also very creative. </p><p></p><p>Both have a couple of challenges we see a lot in very creative Iron DM entries -- heavy investment in backstory that the PCs may or may not be aware of/exposed to in play. I think this is very important distinction. </p><p></p><p>In the Case of AA, the PCs, I expect, would get a lot of the backstory as they arrive at the Armatorium. They walk in, see the facility, get a tour, meet the cyclopses, and at least experience that backstory in play. Things that the PCs learn as they pass through the armatorium on the tour will end up helping them when the fighting starts -- making that backstory interesting and relevant.</p><p></p><p>But in the case of GL, the backstory is either not going to be much part of the player experience, or will be handed to them in a more expository way, and that backstory never ends up being important. The PCs have a quest (bring back the Two-Tailed cows) and that's their mission -- the backstory that makes the outcome of their quest important to their employer never matters to the PCs. They could be returning with the two-tailed cows for a bridal feast or as brides for minotaur patrons. It doesn't matter. </p><p></p><p>So, for creativity, I need to give AA an edge, because the real creativity is a more significant part of the adventure for the PCs than it is in GL. But, again, it's a narrow margin. </p><p></p><p></p><p><strong>Playability</strong> - I honestly don't see much distinction between the two for playability. They're about equally able to be dropped into a game, etc. As a 4e DM and big fan of overblown combat encounters, I'm really attracted to AA's running battle in the Armatorium, But some of the RP scenes and potentials in GL are just as good, in their own way. </p><p></p><p></p><p><strong>Overall</strong></p><p></p><p>Well, if you've been keeping up with the math, the ingredients were a tie, AA had a slight advantage in creativity that GL didn't make up in playability, so going into my final analysis Ambush in the Armatorium has a slight advantage. </p><p></p><p>Both entries are strong enough to be credible tickets into the finals, but we'll have to pick just one.</p><p></p><p>For me, the thing that helps me make a distinction is the point I made about the backstory details in AA becoming important in the actual adventure in ways that were just not matched in GL. Creativity on it's own is great, but when that creativity does things that I think are very important -- creates interesting scenes for the PCs, rewards the PCs for paying attention to details from earlier in the story -- that's great Iron DM -style creativity. I just think that, while GL did a decent job there, AA does it better.</p><p></p><p>So, My vote is cast for Ambush in the Armatorium, and for Ender_wiggin. Stay tuned for other judgements. Deuce Traveller, yours was an awesome entry, and I'm sorry I couldn't vote for both of you. </p><p></p><p>[/sblock]</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Radiating Gnome, post: 5943043, member: 150"] Remember: For the semifinal and final round, each match is judged by ALL THREE Iron DM judges. I'll post my take in the spoiler block below, but we won't know the winner until all three judges have chimed in. [sblock] Wow, I really liked both entries -- this is going to be a tough match to judge. Thanks for such good work, guys. This match is between Ambush in the Armatorium (AA) and Going Legit (GL) [B]Ingredient Use[/B] [B]Bundle of Straw[/B] In AA, the bundle of straw is present in the cigars used to create a complication in the battle within the armatorium. Which is good. But in GL, the bundle of straw is the special dietary requirement of the two-tailed cows, a bundle the PCs must protect and transport while they search for the last herd of those two-tailed cows…. which I like better, so Advantage GL [B]Forlorn Cyclops[/B]. In GL, the forlorn Cyclops is the orphan cyclops, being pushed off Oester island and just trying to protect his dwindling herd of two-tailed cows. In AA, we don't have a single cyclops, but a workforce of them, operating the armatorium and as the primary opponents for the Pcs. The CL cyclops was more forlorn, IMO, so again, Advantage GL. [B]Gaudy Gangster[/B] - Both GL and AA had a bejeweled, gaudy gangster, but both had the same problem with this ingredient -- the gaudiness didn't really seem to have much influence on the story. Either one could be just a normal mobster and the adventure would play out basically the same way. I don't see any advantage to either entry here. [B]Abandoned Foundry[/B] - AA has an advantage here because the foundry, or Armatorium, is the actual setting for the adventure. GL uses it, but as background. The PCs never really adventure in the foundry, it's just part of the reason they're going to Oester island withe a bundle of straw. [B]Powerful Suit[/B] - I snickered at the interpretation of "suit" as legal suit in GL. And, as much as I like that usage, it's again part of the background, not the real adventure. To be fair, other suits may come up as the PCs try to deal with getting out of town to go hunt for cows on the high seas, but the central, big suit isn't something the PCs interact with directly. Meanwhile, the Suncoats in AA represent a pretty straightforward but effective use of the ingredient. Advantage AA. [B]Drum[/B] - Both are good. I can go either with with advantage for this ingredient, so I think this one is a tie, too. So, all in all, after all ingredients, we're caught in a 2-2 tie. Awesome. [B]Creativity[/B] - Both entries are very creative. They're both terrific examples of what Iron DM can be. They both present interesting, unique situations that can have a variety of outcomes depending upon how the PCs want to deal with the challenges presented. The running skirmish in the Armatorium sounds like great game play to me -- and I'm really interested in the non-combat encounter possibilities of GL. GL is cleverer -- reading "suits" as "lawsuits", the two-tailed cows, "Oester" island and it's big statues, and so on. But clever is only one shade of creativity, and AA has plenty of it's own -- the details of the armatorium encounter area with it's very interactive hazards (runes that Pcs and Cyclopses can activate, hallucinogenic haze, radiant energy, etc) is also very creative. Both have a couple of challenges we see a lot in very creative Iron DM entries -- heavy investment in backstory that the PCs may or may not be aware of/exposed to in play. I think this is very important distinction. In the Case of AA, the PCs, I expect, would get a lot of the backstory as they arrive at the Armatorium. They walk in, see the facility, get a tour, meet the cyclopses, and at least experience that backstory in play. Things that the PCs learn as they pass through the armatorium on the tour will end up helping them when the fighting starts -- making that backstory interesting and relevant. But in the case of GL, the backstory is either not going to be much part of the player experience, or will be handed to them in a more expository way, and that backstory never ends up being important. The PCs have a quest (bring back the Two-Tailed cows) and that's their mission -- the backstory that makes the outcome of their quest important to their employer never matters to the PCs. They could be returning with the two-tailed cows for a bridal feast or as brides for minotaur patrons. It doesn't matter. So, for creativity, I need to give AA an edge, because the real creativity is a more significant part of the adventure for the PCs than it is in GL. But, again, it's a narrow margin. [B]Playability[/B] - I honestly don't see much distinction between the two for playability. They're about equally able to be dropped into a game, etc. As a 4e DM and big fan of overblown combat encounters, I'm really attracted to AA's running battle in the Armatorium, But some of the RP scenes and potentials in GL are just as good, in their own way. [B]Overall[/B] Well, if you've been keeping up with the math, the ingredients were a tie, AA had a slight advantage in creativity that GL didn't make up in playability, so going into my final analysis Ambush in the Armatorium has a slight advantage. Both entries are strong enough to be credible tickets into the finals, but we'll have to pick just one. For me, the thing that helps me make a distinction is the point I made about the backstory details in AA becoming important in the actual adventure in ways that were just not matched in GL. Creativity on it's own is great, but when that creativity does things that I think are very important -- creates interesting scenes for the PCs, rewards the PCs for paying attention to details from earlier in the story -- that's great Iron DM -style creativity. I just think that, while GL did a decent job there, AA does it better. So, My vote is cast for Ambush in the Armatorium, and for Ender_wiggin. Stay tuned for other judgements. Deuce Traveller, yours was an awesome entry, and I'm sorry I couldn't vote for both of you. [/sblock] [/QUOTE]
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