Isle Of X Design Contest

[Roland St. Jude]

The Isle of X Contest

The ship set ground on the shore of this uncharted desert isle...
"The Ballad of Gilligan's Island" by George Wyle and Sherwood Shwartz

This month's contest is to describe and design an forgotten, uncharted, or otherwise unknown and mysterious (to the rest of the world) island. Who lives here? Why is it unknown or mysterious? What kinds of adventures might newly arriving heroes find? What treasures does the island hold?

The contest begins with the posting of this thread and will continue until Noon, January 15, 2008 (Eastern US Time). Please remember, as always, to follow the general contest guidelines (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=1396387&postcount=2).

The Rules:

1.) You will be creating an island, some interesting inhabitants, and some treasure , and a secret of the island.
2.) Your entry must include the following:

A description of the island (geography, flora, fauna, climate, etc.)
A description of some interesting inhabitant (or inhabitants) native to that island (with stats, if appropriate).
A description of some valuable treasure on the island (with stats, if appropriate).
A description of some secret of the island (with stats, if appropriate).
Entries should be set in the standard D&D cosmology, and not any particular setting (e.g. Forgotten Realms or Eberron.) Try to avoid referencing non-core/SRD books where possible, but obviously, this contest may require some reference to non-core material.
Each new entry should be started on a new thread here on the Contests board, dedicated to just that set of items and the discussion of it. Put the tag [ISLE] in front of the title of that thread. Any thread without this tag will not be officially entered.
Post on the Entry Thread to let the mods know that you have completed your [ISLE] entry. We'll try to keep a post with all the entries listed in one place for easy reference. This post in the Entry Thread is where you must post a link to your thread to be officially entered.Categories of voting and judgment will include the following:

Best Island
Best Inhabitant(s)
Best Treasure
Best Secret
Funniest Entry
Rookie Award

If you are eligible for the Rookie award (this is your first entry in an official GitP Design Contest) please note that in your post to the Entry Thread. Otherwise, everyone is eligible for everything else - no need to indicate anything.

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to post them to this thread. Good luck!

[Lord Tataraus]

Awesome! I've got a great idea for this, I hope no one else takes it. I hope to get my thread up some time tomorrow, but first a few questions:

This will be my first entry for an official contest so just so I get this right, do I post in the Design Contests section or the overall Homebrew section? Also, would it be allowed to include a few maps? I find it a lot easier to explain things (especially my idea) with some maps, probably 2 or 3. I would put them in spoilers, but otherwise would their be any restrictions for including maps (such as size)?

Thanks!

[Roland St. Jude]

Awesome! I've got a great idea for this, I hope no one else takes it. I hope to get my thread up some time tomorrow, but first a few questions:

This will be my first entry for an official contest so just so I get this right, do I post in the Design Contests section or the overall Homebrew section? Also, would it be allowed to include a few maps? I find it a lot easier to explain things (especially my idea) with some maps, probably 2 or 3. I would put them in spoilers, but otherwise would their be any restrictions for including maps (such as size)?

Thanks!


Yes, post in this (the Design Contest) section. If you haven't read the general contest rules make sure to do that. And, yes, you're free to include maps, pictures, drawings, etc.

Good luck!

[Lord Iames Osari]

Awesome! I've got a great idea for this, I hope no one else takes it. I hope to get my thread up some time tomorrow, but first a few questions:

This will be my first entry for an official contest so just so I get this right, do I post in the Design Contests section or the overall Homebrew section?

You post them in the Design Contests section.


Also, would it be allowed to include a few maps? I find it a lot easier to explain things (especially my idea) with some maps, probably 2 or 3. I would put them in spoilers, but otherwise would their be any restrictions for including maps (such as size)?

Thanks!

Can't answer that definitively, but I can't think of a reason for maps to be disallowed.

Edit: Ninja'd by the Mod.

[Lord Tataraus]

Yes, post in this (the Design Contest) section. If you haven't read the general contest rules make sure to do that. And, yes, you're free to include maps, pictures, drawings, etc.

Good luck!

I've read the rules already, thanks for the quick reply!

[Duke of URL]

This will be my first entry for an official contest so just so I get this right, do I post in the Design Contests section or the overall Homebrew section?

Other folks have pointed out that your final entry needs to be here (and with the proper title, etc.) -- however, you are free to post some or all of your ideas in the regular homebrew forum for feedback and critique.

[MandibleBones]

Huzzah! This actually looks really fun :)

[Lord Tataraus]

Other folks have pointed out that your final entry needs to be here (and with the proper title, etc.) -- however, you are free to post some or all of your ideas in the regular homebrew forum for feedback and critique.

Thanks, I'm doing that right now! I've got a lot of 'brewing to do with this thing, I just hope its not too much...

[RandomFellow]

Can it be an island in a sea of air? (e.g. a floating/flying island?)

[Lord Tataraus]

Can it be an island in a sea of air? (e.g. a floating/flying island?)

Well, the rules only say "island" so technically it could be an island in anything, island in the middle of lava, the sky, an island of dreams in the real world (that's mine :smallbiggrin:).

[BooNL]

Looks like a fun contest. Even though I've never homebrewed anything, I'll give it a shot.

Got some ideas brewing already, posting my thread later tonight.

[RandomFellow]

Well, the rules only say "island" so technically it could be an island in anything, island in the middle of lava, the sky, an island of dreams in the real world (that's mine :smallbiggrin:).

This is true...but you never know =0

[DraPrime]

I had an idea back in the Hell's Belles contest that I never truly implemented, but I think it will apply well for this island.

[Yami]

Sweet googly moogly, a contest I not only feel like joining, but one that practically writes itself for me! Hark, for I herald the return of the Zaratani.

I'll put up the Wandering Isle thread once I get it typed up.

[Fax Celestis]

I'm rocking this like it's a casbah. :smallbiggrin:

[Duke of URL]

As of this morning, there are 15 started entries in the contest. That's pretty good, compared to some of the more recent ones.

[Roland St. Jude]

As of this morning, there are 15 started entries in the contest. That's pretty good, compared to some of the more recent ones.

Only if they finish. Hell's Belle had 20 started threads and the Library contest had 27. Yet the actual entries for each was like a half-dozen and the number of votes even fewer.

[The Vorpal Tribble]

Whoa, only just now noticed this.

*gets to work*

[Yami]

Well, I plan on posting up a finished thread, I just figured I'd type it out first just in case I don't.

[The Glyphstone]

Well, the rules only say "island" so technically it could be an island in anything, island in the middle of lava, the sky, an island of dreams in the real world (that's mine :smallbiggrin:).

You keep your grubby paws off the Elemental Plane of Fire...:smallcool: :smallcool: :smallcool:

[RTGoodman]

I'm thinking about doing an entry here, but I've got a couple of rookie questions.

First, I was thinking of using the saurial race as an inhabitant. All the information is available from the Wizards website here (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/frx/20030528a), so it would it be illegal or against the rules (since they're not Core/SRD material) to use them?

Also, they originated in Forgotten Realms, but would it still be okay for me to use them since the Isle itself isn't actually a part of the Realms? (As in, I'd be using the stats found in the above link, but none of the fluff, therefore taking them out of FR and putting them into a generic setting.)

Thanks!

[Roland St. Jude]

I'm thinking about doing an entry here, but I've got a couple of rookie questions.

First, I was thinking of using the saurial race as an inhabitant. All the information is available from the Wizards website here (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/frx/20030528a), so it would it be illegal or against the rules (since they're not Core/SRD material) to use them?

Also, they originated in Forgotten Realms, but would it still be okay for me to use them since the Isle itself isn't actually a part of the Realms? (As in, I'd be using the stats found in the above link, but none of the fluff, therefore taking them out of FR and putting them into a generic setting.)

Thanks!

Nothing about any of that seems disqualifying, so have at it, I say.

[Kellus]

Only one question: the rules disallow team entries. Being at best a mediocre artist, is it unreasonable to have someone else do illustrations specifically for my entry?

[Roland St. Jude]

We've ruled in the past that that's fine because the art, while interesting, isn't part of the contest and should be unjudged. Oh, and give credit to the artist, of course.

[The Vorpal Tribble]

Man, been... so... busy...

Lets see if I can get my entry done in four days.

*cracks his knuckles*

[Duke of URL]

Wait... today's the 15th?

Crap.

I had the rest of my entry spec'd out in my head, but not written down yet.

Oh, well. Best of luck to the entrants, and I will try to read them all and vote.

[Neek]

Bugger. I've been so dragged down by life that I couldn't get my entry done in time. Me + deadlines == fail.

[Fax Celestis]

*Keenly awaits results.*

[Lord Iames Osari]

*Keenly awaits results.*

*what that guy said*