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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Rune" data-source="post: 976907" data-attributes="member: 67">Round 2, match 2 JudgementNemmerle vs. Wulf RatbaneWhew.  I knew that this was going to be a tough match to judge.  I haven't been disappointed.  In fact, as I begin to write this, I don't even know who the winner is.  I'm hoping I'll figure that out by the time I get to the end.Where to begin?  I'll start with a general observation about the two entries.  In general, both of the entries provide some excellent encounters, settings, and characters.  The focus of the two differs quite a bit, however, in a number of ways.  Nemmerle's entry, for instance, stays more or less local, while Wulf's spans the planes and, technically, an entire campaign (but not in the same way as Seasong's 2nd round entry did).  Wulf's entry provides an excellent character and wildly imaginative set-up and adds in a good grounding in verisimilitude.  Nemm starts with a focus on verisimilitude and then adds intriguing locals and situations, not to mention the intrigue!So, I'll just get into it.Nemm's hooks are much better than Wulf's.  They are many and varied and each is quite good.  Wulf uses the amulet as a hook, which is good, but that, itself, could use a hook.  He mentions that it is up to the DM to get it into the posession of the PCs, which is fine, but it doesn't contrast well with Nemm's thorough hooks.Both plots make me giddy with glee.  Having the PCs get used by a cursed item with a conscience, as Wulf's scenario plays out, is simply brilliant.  On the other hand, Nemm's thick and complex layering of intrigue and multiple concurrent threads building up to a chaotic crescendo could be quite damning, if handled poorly--but Nemm does not handle it poorly--quite the contrary, as a matter of fact.  He has paid enough attention to the character development and local history, and simple verisimilitude to make it work--and work well.Nemm provides nice locales; the battlefield and the aquarium are both nice (especially the aquarium, but I'll get to that later).  His characterization is also extraordinarily nice, and the inclusion of a "villain" who is nothing but a very destructive trickster is quite interesting.  Wulf provides an amazing set-up and a brilliant character in the amulet.  I also want to note that his wit is a very nice touch; most of it relies upon his reputation (or history, rather) to deliver, and adds a nice flavor to the entire entry.Wulf also provides a plethora of options to continue the story after the adventure, specifically if the "Quantum Leap" approach is taken.  It is intriguing to me to see that the single adventure could span an entire campaign in this situation; the final encounter could be a long time in coming.  Nemm also provides plenty to build upon (more, substantially, if less in theory) Intrigue, twists, and subtle intricacies lend a great store of strength to the adventure in this area.In general, I felt that Nemmerle did a better job of blending the ingredients together in significant ways.  However, when Wulf used an ingredient well, he really used it well.I'll start with the more disappointing ones.First, the worst one.  It's the aquarium, and it belongs to Wulf's entry.  This is the only truly tacked-on ingredient of the two entries and, for that matter, the only truly bad one.  In fact, the rest of them are all at least pretty good and fit into the scenarios; it's just that some are disappointing when compared to others (and considering the general quality of both entries in this match, not to mention the fact that this is the second round).I don't really like Nemm's use of the Amulet of the Planes.  While it works for the scenario, it seems a bit uninspired.  Similarly, I think that Wulf's entry would not be hindered in the least without the inclusion of the unsteady ground.  It's a nice tactical consideration, but the ingredient could have been more significant.I like Nemm's misanthropic halfling as a character and a secondary (and unrelated) villain.  However, his motivations didn't seem to strike me as misanthropic, so much as psychotic, while wulf's misanthropic halfling was both humorous (it is a halfling, after all) and more strictly misanthropic (no living servants!).Both scenarios make good use of the Battlefield--providing interesting flavor for intriguing encounters.  I think I like Nemm's more, because it adds history to the scenario and helps strengthen the whole of the adventure.Both also make good use of the Diseased paladin.  In Wulf's, it is primarily just used as a good encounter, but the fact that the paladin could possibly be redeemed helps things a lot.  On the other hand, I love the character of Nemm's paladin!  A lot of care went into it, and it shows up in someone who could easily be misunderstood and mistrusted.  If I were running the scenario, I'd play up the fact that she looks undead and watch hilarity ensue.Nemm's use of the Aquarium in conjunction with the Unsteady ground ingredient is absolutely beautiful.  This is the most exciting encounter I can remember seeing described in a long time and is exactly what should find its way into published modules.But I have to say, I think Wulf's Amulet of the planes is the best character I've ever seen in a tournament--it is an awakened cursed amulet with a conscience, but also a definite agenda.  Brilliant!Okay, so who wins?  Honestly, I still don't know.  So I'm going to make a quick decision here and stick with it.Wulf, your scenario is a work far superior to many a winning second-round entry; it has moments of brilliance that cannot be downplayed and is a very strong entry in its entirity.  There is also a sense that you've earned a chance at the championship after so many strong entries in tournaments--some I would have judged more favorably than the judge of the day.However, Nemmerle's entry has a stronger foundation and falls together more tightly, so I'm going to have to go with it.  This has been a very close match, but in the end, I award it to Nemmerle.  Nemmerle will advance to Round 3 to face Seasong, but first Wulf advances to Round 3 to face cool hand luke for the third-place honor.Congratulations, both of you, for raising the bar withoutstanding entries and good luck in Round 3.</blockquote>

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