Waylander the Slayer
Explorer
I'm ready for my match...at least I think I am.
Me too.
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Iron DM 2010 Discussion Thread
- Thread starter CleverNickName
- Start date
Me too.
humble minion
Legend
Indeed!
Unfortunately, Pbartender managed to spot all the areas in my entry which I wasn't entirely happy with, or which my post-submission reread revealed that I needed to fix up! Annoyingly, a lot of the criticisms were perfectly justified given what I actually submitted, but were things I'd actually thought about and solved when designing the entry (the reason Rukxillana couldn't just kill Chih Xuan, for instance, was that she had to be possessing him when he died in order to hijack the ascension), but which I didn't manage to put into words or articulate clearly. That's the handicap of being as rushed as I was, I guess - you don't get the time to look over it again and fix that stuff.
Congratulations Sanzuo, and best of luck for the rest of the comp. Hopefully I can put up a better showing next time.
InVinoVeritas
Adventurer
I always forget what its like to be waiting for a judgment, so full of hope, so filled with doubt. Wondering if they're typing it out or they're just busy with life, making you wait in helpless anticipation.
I've just gotten off an extremely busy week, so yes, I have been busy. The judgment will be tomorrow.
CleverNickName
Limit Break Dancing (He/They)
Has anyone heard from Pbartender?
I'll move the start day/time back to noon tomorrow.
I'll move the start day/time back to noon tomorrow.
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CleverNickName
Limit Break Dancing (He/They)
Time is always your enemy in this competition. Because of the 24-hour limit, there are several different ways that a judge can make a match challenging.
One way is to build a list of obscure, highly-specific ingredients that challenges your vocabulary. With a list like this, you will spend (waste?) a great deal of time looking up words in a dictionary, researching topics in an encyclopedia, and otherwise trying to figure out what each ingredient is and how to use it. ("What the heck is an Overcaptious Patih, and what does it have to do with a Barmy Pulque? In Downtown Nandavaram--wherever the hell that is!")
Another way to make a difficult list is sort of the opposite: use extremely versatile, flavorful ingredients that everyone has seen many, many times. These things inspire tons of ideas all at once, and can drag your story all over the place if you aren't careful. With a list like this, you will spend (waste?) most of your time writing yourself in circles, and most of what you write will end up getting deleted or going nowhere. ("Alright. I've got six pages on the Rogue Griffon and its Psychotic Paladin rider, but I don't know how to link them to the five pages I've already written on the Ancient Shipwreck Lair and the Conch Shell...and I've only got thirty minutes!!!")
Yet another way is to use words that have double (or triple) meanings. Wind, for example, can be something that blows or something that you do to a watch. Bow can be a weapon, a part of a ship, or a Japanese greeting. Read can be something you have already done, or something you need to do. And so on. Each one of these can potentially give you bonus points if you incorporate multiple derivatives of the words into your story...but aren't six ingredients hard enough? ("For my Clown School ingredient, I will use both a school of clownfish AND the Clown Conservatory! Brilliant! Now, for the Sex Pistols...")
There are other ways, of course. But of the three that I have listed here, which one is your favorite? least favorite?
One way is to build a list of obscure, highly-specific ingredients that challenges your vocabulary. With a list like this, you will spend (waste?) a great deal of time looking up words in a dictionary, researching topics in an encyclopedia, and otherwise trying to figure out what each ingredient is and how to use it. ("What the heck is an Overcaptious Patih, and what does it have to do with a Barmy Pulque? In Downtown Nandavaram--wherever the hell that is!")
Another way to make a difficult list is sort of the opposite: use extremely versatile, flavorful ingredients that everyone has seen many, many times. These things inspire tons of ideas all at once, and can drag your story all over the place if you aren't careful. With a list like this, you will spend (waste?) most of your time writing yourself in circles, and most of what you write will end up getting deleted or going nowhere. ("Alright. I've got six pages on the Rogue Griffon and its Psychotic Paladin rider, but I don't know how to link them to the five pages I've already written on the Ancient Shipwreck Lair and the Conch Shell...and I've only got thirty minutes!!!")
Yet another way is to use words that have double (or triple) meanings. Wind, for example, can be something that blows or something that you do to a watch. Bow can be a weapon, a part of a ship, or a Japanese greeting. Read can be something you have already done, or something you need to do. And so on. Each one of these can potentially give you bonus points if you incorporate multiple derivatives of the words into your story...but aren't six ingredients hard enough? ("For my Clown School ingredient, I will use both a school of clownfish AND the Clown Conservatory! Brilliant! Now, for the Sex Pistols...")
There are other ways, of course. But of the three that I have listed here, which one is your favorite? least favorite?
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Pbartender
First Post
My sincerest apologies. We had a minor emergency involving the gas company last night.
No worries... Everything turned fine. Just a lot of hassle and wasted time in the end.I'll post my ingredients later this morning (Waylander and Pro-Paladion, please check in, if you're awake).
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Pbartender
First Post
Guh.
Jane! Stop this crazy thing!
Jane! Stop this crazy thing!
Wicht
Hero
I've always been a fan of the double use, when possible. Its like hedging your bets - if the judge doesn't like one use maybe he'll like the other. Of course the danger is in trying to do too much.
The main problem with obscure ingredients is often they are so specific in meaning they have only one definition and thus make it more likely that both writers will use it in very similar ways. I actually prefer the ingredients more open to interpretation as it allows the contestants to turn in very different adventures.
Pro-Paladin
First Post
I'm still here, ready to go.
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