Frozen_Feet
2014-01-12, 05:18 PM
Giant in the Playground scenario design contest:
A Matter of Life and Death
http://www.vinylrecords.ch/I/IR/Iron_Maiden/Matter/matter-life-death-10.jpg
Welcome to the (in my recollection, first) scenario design contest in these boards! For you D&D folks, "scenario" means the same as "adventure".
General rules are below:
Application for the contest will be open from 12th to 31st of January! Contestants should post their interest in this thread within that time.
The contest is also looking for judges! The application for judges will also be open from 12th of January, but will continue until 28th of February.
Upon 1st of February, each contestant will be given a random song from the Iron Maiden album A Matter of Life and Death. The creator of this thread will post knowledge of which song is assigned to which contestant during 1st of February. The contestants will then have until 1st of March to craft a scenario based on the song they were given.
At 1st of March, completed scenarios will be randomly distributed to judges. The judges then have until 1st of April time to playtest and rate the scenario they were given.
From 1st of March to 1st of April, there will also be a public vote, where members of these forums can vote for their favorite.
During 1st of April, the judges will post their reviews, and the result of the vote will be announced.
Information to contestants:
The theme for your scenario will primarily be dictated by the song you're given. However, to maintain some level of thematic unity, look at the album cover.
You scenario should aim to fill one 4 hour gaming session.
The text of your scenario, including sample characters, adaptation notes and such, should fit within the character limit of one forum post, that is 50 000 characters.
You are allowed a second post for housing any maps, pictures or other illustrations you may draw. (This is to conserve characters; links to image hosting sites can get quite long.) This second post should ideally contain no text (save perhaps for scenario name). All reference marks should be in the pictures themselves.
You will post your work on the forums, in a thread which will be opened when the contest proper begins.
Plagiarism is banned. So is using images you didn't draw yourself, with the exception of tile-based map-making programs (should you desire to use them). In blunter words: draw your own art, dammit!
A contestant can double as a judge; however, you will get someone else's work to test and rate.
Your scenario may be for any RPG system; however, you may want to read the rating criteria (below)
Rating criteria (for the judges to use):
Each scenario will be given a score from 1 to 5 in the following fields, with 1 being the worst and 5 being the best:
Ease of Use: This basically grades mechanics of a scenario, and how easy it was for the judge to use them. Remember: you won't know what games the judge will have available, so you might want to keep an eye on adaptability.
Plot: the judge's impression the storyline of your scenario (should there be any) and writing quality of any NPCs you include.
Freedom: This grades how much influence the players can have on the overall course of your scenario.
Graphics: The quality of any illustrations (character pictures, maps, graphs) you include, as well as formatting of your text.
Entertainment value: This measures three things, really: the clarity of your scenario's goals, the players' interest in them, and how much material the judge has to come up during play to cover gaps in your material.
Economy of time: How well the material you provided filled the 4 hour slot.
Heavy Metal: Does it feel like the scenario was based on an Iron Maiden song?
Overall score: the weighed average of the ratings (see below).
As I will serve as one of the judges, here is how I will decide the score for various fields:
Ease of Use: the less I have to learn new rules not contained in your text, the better. If I can grab an assortment of random 5 people and play the game with only the material you provided, that's a 5. If I have to buy and learn GURPS, that's a 1.
Plot: If even one character you include makes me want to play them and feel like they can carry 4 hours of gaming, you get a good score. If I feel the scenario would be better if I replaced the characters with random models, or if it feels like a lame imitation of Saving Private Ryan, you get a low score.
Freedom: if I run your scenario with two groups who come up with two completely different ways to approach your scenario, and it still stays within parameters you laid out, you get a high score. If the players missing one clue makes rest of your scenario unusable or irrelevant, you get low score.
Graphics: you get points for two things: for your graphics being useful, and for them being pretty. If your maps are an incomprehensible mess and your characters look like doodles of old Picasso, you get a low score.
Entertainment value: You get a high score if my players follow the most obvious path you set with enthusiastic grins on their faces. If my players ask "but seriously, what are we supposed to do?" after two hours of their characters not doing anything, you get a low score. You also get a low score if they make their characters have sex in a dark basement rather than involve them with your material.
Economy of time: If have to start pulling stuff out of my behind at the two hours mark, you get a low score. Likewise, if at four hours it feels like we're barely halfway through and I have to end the session in a cliffhanger or anti-climax, you get a low score.
Heavy Metal: If my players start singing Trooper in the midst of the session, you get a high score. If they ask me "so which Shoujo anime you based this on?", I will murder your unborn children.
Rules for judges:
You may also participate as a contestant. However, your work will be given to someone else to rate.
When given a scenario, you are supposed to play it at least once.
After playing, you write a review. It should include four parts: your initial impression of the scenario before playing, playtest session report, your thoughts after the play, and scoring.
When giving the overall score, you simply average your ratings on the different categories. However, if you feel like it, you can weight the results in favor of some area or areas, by either picking two areas and counting their averages twice, or picking one area and counting it four times.
To give an example: if you rated a scenario 4,4,4,3,1,2,3,4, the ordinary average would be 25/7=3.57. But if you feel the area you rated 1 is especially detrimental, you can count it four times, ending with 28/10=2.8. Or, if the first two areas were so exemplary the rest hardly matters, you would end up with 33/9=3.666.
You will post your review in a voting thread once the contest approaches its end.
Both players and judges will be allowed to give their opinion in the public vote as well. Rules are subject to discussion and change until 1st of February. All days end at 00:00 GMT+-0.
A Matter of Life and Death
http://www.vinylrecords.ch/I/IR/Iron_Maiden/Matter/matter-life-death-10.jpg
Welcome to the (in my recollection, first) scenario design contest in these boards! For you D&D folks, "scenario" means the same as "adventure".
General rules are below:
Application for the contest will be open from 12th to 31st of January! Contestants should post their interest in this thread within that time.
The contest is also looking for judges! The application for judges will also be open from 12th of January, but will continue until 28th of February.
Upon 1st of February, each contestant will be given a random song from the Iron Maiden album A Matter of Life and Death. The creator of this thread will post knowledge of which song is assigned to which contestant during 1st of February. The contestants will then have until 1st of March to craft a scenario based on the song they were given.
At 1st of March, completed scenarios will be randomly distributed to judges. The judges then have until 1st of April time to playtest and rate the scenario they were given.
From 1st of March to 1st of April, there will also be a public vote, where members of these forums can vote for their favorite.
During 1st of April, the judges will post their reviews, and the result of the vote will be announced.
Information to contestants:
The theme for your scenario will primarily be dictated by the song you're given. However, to maintain some level of thematic unity, look at the album cover.
You scenario should aim to fill one 4 hour gaming session.
The text of your scenario, including sample characters, adaptation notes and such, should fit within the character limit of one forum post, that is 50 000 characters.
You are allowed a second post for housing any maps, pictures or other illustrations you may draw. (This is to conserve characters; links to image hosting sites can get quite long.) This second post should ideally contain no text (save perhaps for scenario name). All reference marks should be in the pictures themselves.
You will post your work on the forums, in a thread which will be opened when the contest proper begins.
Plagiarism is banned. So is using images you didn't draw yourself, with the exception of tile-based map-making programs (should you desire to use them). In blunter words: draw your own art, dammit!
A contestant can double as a judge; however, you will get someone else's work to test and rate.
Your scenario may be for any RPG system; however, you may want to read the rating criteria (below)
Rating criteria (for the judges to use):
Each scenario will be given a score from 1 to 5 in the following fields, with 1 being the worst and 5 being the best:
Ease of Use: This basically grades mechanics of a scenario, and how easy it was for the judge to use them. Remember: you won't know what games the judge will have available, so you might want to keep an eye on adaptability.
Plot: the judge's impression the storyline of your scenario (should there be any) and writing quality of any NPCs you include.
Freedom: This grades how much influence the players can have on the overall course of your scenario.
Graphics: The quality of any illustrations (character pictures, maps, graphs) you include, as well as formatting of your text.
Entertainment value: This measures three things, really: the clarity of your scenario's goals, the players' interest in them, and how much material the judge has to come up during play to cover gaps in your material.
Economy of time: How well the material you provided filled the 4 hour slot.
Heavy Metal: Does it feel like the scenario was based on an Iron Maiden song?
Overall score: the weighed average of the ratings (see below).
As I will serve as one of the judges, here is how I will decide the score for various fields:
Ease of Use: the less I have to learn new rules not contained in your text, the better. If I can grab an assortment of random 5 people and play the game with only the material you provided, that's a 5. If I have to buy and learn GURPS, that's a 1.
Plot: If even one character you include makes me want to play them and feel like they can carry 4 hours of gaming, you get a good score. If I feel the scenario would be better if I replaced the characters with random models, or if it feels like a lame imitation of Saving Private Ryan, you get a low score.
Freedom: if I run your scenario with two groups who come up with two completely different ways to approach your scenario, and it still stays within parameters you laid out, you get a high score. If the players missing one clue makes rest of your scenario unusable or irrelevant, you get low score.
Graphics: you get points for two things: for your graphics being useful, and for them being pretty. If your maps are an incomprehensible mess and your characters look like doodles of old Picasso, you get a low score.
Entertainment value: You get a high score if my players follow the most obvious path you set with enthusiastic grins on their faces. If my players ask "but seriously, what are we supposed to do?" after two hours of their characters not doing anything, you get a low score. You also get a low score if they make their characters have sex in a dark basement rather than involve them with your material.
Economy of time: If have to start pulling stuff out of my behind at the two hours mark, you get a low score. Likewise, if at four hours it feels like we're barely halfway through and I have to end the session in a cliffhanger or anti-climax, you get a low score.
Heavy Metal: If my players start singing Trooper in the midst of the session, you get a high score. If they ask me "so which Shoujo anime you based this on?", I will murder your unborn children.
Rules for judges:
You may also participate as a contestant. However, your work will be given to someone else to rate.
When given a scenario, you are supposed to play it at least once.
After playing, you write a review. It should include four parts: your initial impression of the scenario before playing, playtest session report, your thoughts after the play, and scoring.
When giving the overall score, you simply average your ratings on the different categories. However, if you feel like it, you can weight the results in favor of some area or areas, by either picking two areas and counting their averages twice, or picking one area and counting it four times.
To give an example: if you rated a scenario 4,4,4,3,1,2,3,4, the ordinary average would be 25/7=3.57. But if you feel the area you rated 1 is especially detrimental, you can count it four times, ending with 28/10=2.8. Or, if the first two areas were so exemplary the rest hardly matters, you would end up with 33/9=3.666.
You will post your review in a voting thread once the contest approaches its end.
Both players and judges will be allowed to give their opinion in the public vote as well. Rules are subject to discussion and change until 1st of February. All days end at 00:00 GMT+-0.