pseudo-Ceramic DM (Rd 1 started)
- Thread starter Sniktch
- Start date
Drawmack
First Post
Sure I'll take the judges hat.
I will be a fair and honest judge, but bribes can be sent to....
Seriously, I'm honored by the offer. just email me at tomener@ptd.net if you'd like me to judge.
I will be a fair and honest judge, but bribes can be sent to....
Seriously, I'm honored by the offer. just email me at tomener@ptd.net if you'd like me to judge.
Drawmack
First Post
Ashy said:Wow - competing against two folks kinda ups the stakes a bit, IMHO...Might be something we need to mention to alish2o, being that he wants to increase the challenge level of the real CDM, eh?
Hmm interesting, I think this would exponentially affect the contest though as you would need 3 * 3 * 3 or 27 entrants.
First round = 9 matches with 3 people to a match, or 27 people. Each match yields one winner.
Second round = 3 matches with 3 people to a match or 9 people. Each match yields one winner.
Third Round = 1 match with 3 people to a match or 3 people. Yielding one winner.
Now for the alternates. In a regular game there are 2 alternates. 2/8 = 1/4.
27 * .25 = 6.75, round up = 7
So to keep the proportions the same you are looking at 27 contestants with 7 alternates. That's 34 contestants just to run a three round, three way game.
Sniktch
First Post
I think Drawmack's right about the math. Its certainly do-able, but you'd need a much larger pool of contestants no matter how its broken down. I think it works this time due to the circumstances, but I'm not sure how it would effect the entire contest.
Not to mention the number of extra entries the judges would have to read...
Not to mention the number of extra entries the judges would have to read...
Sniktch
First Post
Drawmack, I just checked and my second e-mail got rejected too. Drop me a line if you see this and then I'll reply.
Pictures will be going up momentarily, but first...
Rd1 HalfElf vs NoOne
HalfElf, you have the start of a good story. I enjoyed this one and found the ideas presented to be interesting, but I found it skeletal. I think it could have used a good bit of fleshing out, as it raises more questions in my mind than it answers. As it stands, it feels disjointed and incomplete, and throws in at least one of the pictures as an afterthought (the lady on the cliff). Next time I think you should sit on your hands for an extra day and use the extra time to detail it further - I did the same thing in the last contest and in retrospect I needed to distance myself just a little more from my work before submitting it. Overall, though, a worthy entry and good luck in the next round!
NoOne
I thought this was a pretty strong entry. I really liked this tale of the doomed pilgrim and the demon fated to test him. Nice imaginative use of the pictures, too, for the most part, although it seems to me that you've merged the picture of the bat and the girl on the cliff somewhat. To be honest, I'm not completely sure where picture 4 fits in exactly, although I think I have a good idea. You might want to label the pics in the future, just for clarity. Still, I thought pic 1, 2, and 3 were handled very well, and a nice little story. Good work; I like forward to seeing your next entry.
From Maldur:
Halfelfsorcerer
Strange future story, It reads as the back of a campaign setting book. I just begs for more informaion about the world her describes.
NoOneofConsequence
A travel story, Cryptic tests. A part of a larger story but still a
whole.
My vote goes for: NoOneofConsequence
As Noones story Has better unity, it hasa beginning, a middle and a end. Where as Halfelfs story was more only a beginning.
Next, Jameumz and NiTessine, then on to new pics...
Pictures will be going up momentarily, but first...
Rd1 HalfElf vs NoOne
HalfElf, you have the start of a good story. I enjoyed this one and found the ideas presented to be interesting, but I found it skeletal. I think it could have used a good bit of fleshing out, as it raises more questions in my mind than it answers. As it stands, it feels disjointed and incomplete, and throws in at least one of the pictures as an afterthought (the lady on the cliff). Next time I think you should sit on your hands for an extra day and use the extra time to detail it further - I did the same thing in the last contest and in retrospect I needed to distance myself just a little more from my work before submitting it. Overall, though, a worthy entry and good luck in the next round!
NoOne
I thought this was a pretty strong entry. I really liked this tale of the doomed pilgrim and the demon fated to test him. Nice imaginative use of the pictures, too, for the most part, although it seems to me that you've merged the picture of the bat and the girl on the cliff somewhat. To be honest, I'm not completely sure where picture 4 fits in exactly, although I think I have a good idea. You might want to label the pics in the future, just for clarity. Still, I thought pic 1, 2, and 3 were handled very well, and a nice little story. Good work; I like forward to seeing your next entry.
From Maldur:
Halfelfsorcerer
Strange future story, It reads as the back of a campaign setting book. I just begs for more informaion about the world her describes.
NoOneofConsequence
A travel story, Cryptic tests. A part of a larger story but still a
whole.
My vote goes for: NoOneofConsequence
As Noones story Has better unity, it hasa beginning, a middle and a end. Where as Halfelfs story was more only a beginning.
Next, Jameumz and NiTessine, then on to new pics...
Sniktch
First Post
Jameumz vs NiTessine, rd 1:
Yikes! This was a very difficult for me to judge; I enjoyed both entries quite a bit and it almost comes down to a toin coss.
Jameumz presents us with a quest for the Blue Unicorn pendant, with a twist. I always enjoy the occasional story where the protagonists do not triumph in the end, and this is what we get. A couple of minor things that bothered me: in the beginning we see through Rynvesi's eyes for a moment and we see him liking and being attracted to his companions, which seems out of character considering the end, when he's revealed to be a fanatical cultists agent. Perhaps the scene is better seen through Uthoule's eyes. Also, how long have they been together? Rynvesi has never removed his gloves in his companions' presence? In addition, its nice to see the playfulness between the companions but its hard to swallow that seasoned adventurers are going to chase each other about screaming just after an ambush ended, when they're not sure if the area is safe yet.
NiTessine gives us a Harper tale that I can almost imagine finding in the series (well, assuming it were 300 pages longer). Another strong entry with a straight forward and familiar plot, NiTessine relies upon good descriptions and characterization to keep us reading. I think this would work great towards the beginning of a longer story; on its own the bullywug fight at the end just isn't difficult enough to make me fear for the character's safety. It could use a little more bang, I think - maybe one of the bullywug shamen does get off a summon spell? I don't know, that's just my thinking. Otherwise I like your story and characters a lot.
In terms of picture usage, I have to break it down pic by pic to look for an edge. Both use the frog statue as the idol of a deity, which is really hardly surprising. Jameumz uses the Blue Unicorn as the object of the quest whereas NiTessine throws it in as the ranger's holy symbol. I have no problem with this, per se, but thought it could have played a larger part in the story (maybe she could use it to banish the creature the shaman summons?). NiTessine uses the dagger as the object of his quest while Jameumz turns it into an identifying tattoo for his dark cult (see above for comments on this). Finally, I have to say I like NiTessine's use of the final pic as an island of beauty in a foul place more than the grim and foreboding image for which Jameumz uses it.
I've thought for hours on this one and still not made a firm decision. My initial impression when reading through them for the first time was that Jameumz made slightly better use of the photos, but that his story has a couple more potential holes in it, while NiTessine's piece is more descriptive and solid overall. I'd definitely like a third opinion on this one.
From Maldur:
Jameumz: You describe one of those double crosses every gamemaster loves, but is really hard to pull off right. Great stuff.
Nitessine: This is a very new idea. A story with no weird twist, no hidden complot. Just a mission, and it works! Very nice.
My vote goes for Nitessine, primarily for his better incorporation of the pic in the story.
Yikes! This was a very difficult for me to judge; I enjoyed both entries quite a bit and it almost comes down to a toin coss.
Jameumz presents us with a quest for the Blue Unicorn pendant, with a twist. I always enjoy the occasional story where the protagonists do not triumph in the end, and this is what we get. A couple of minor things that bothered me: in the beginning we see through Rynvesi's eyes for a moment and we see him liking and being attracted to his companions, which seems out of character considering the end, when he's revealed to be a fanatical cultists agent. Perhaps the scene is better seen through Uthoule's eyes. Also, how long have they been together? Rynvesi has never removed his gloves in his companions' presence? In addition, its nice to see the playfulness between the companions but its hard to swallow that seasoned adventurers are going to chase each other about screaming just after an ambush ended, when they're not sure if the area is safe yet.
NiTessine gives us a Harper tale that I can almost imagine finding in the series (well, assuming it were 300 pages longer). Another strong entry with a straight forward and familiar plot, NiTessine relies upon good descriptions and characterization to keep us reading. I think this would work great towards the beginning of a longer story; on its own the bullywug fight at the end just isn't difficult enough to make me fear for the character's safety. It could use a little more bang, I think - maybe one of the bullywug shamen does get off a summon spell? I don't know, that's just my thinking. Otherwise I like your story and characters a lot.
In terms of picture usage, I have to break it down pic by pic to look for an edge. Both use the frog statue as the idol of a deity, which is really hardly surprising. Jameumz uses the Blue Unicorn as the object of the quest whereas NiTessine throws it in as the ranger's holy symbol. I have no problem with this, per se, but thought it could have played a larger part in the story (maybe she could use it to banish the creature the shaman summons?). NiTessine uses the dagger as the object of his quest while Jameumz turns it into an identifying tattoo for his dark cult (see above for comments on this). Finally, I have to say I like NiTessine's use of the final pic as an island of beauty in a foul place more than the grim and foreboding image for which Jameumz uses it.
I've thought for hours on this one and still not made a firm decision. My initial impression when reading through them for the first time was that Jameumz made slightly better use of the photos, but that his story has a couple more potential holes in it, while NiTessine's piece is more descriptive and solid overall. I'd definitely like a third opinion on this one.
From Maldur:
Jameumz: You describe one of those double crosses every gamemaster loves, but is really hard to pull off right. Great stuff.
Nitessine: This is a very new idea. A story with no weird twist, no hidden complot. Just a mission, and it works! Very nice.
My vote goes for Nitessine, primarily for his better incorporation of the pic in the story.
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