The RPG Tournament of 2006 Commences
Stamped with the Tri-Mod Seal of Approval


All posts should maintain a PG-13 rating.

Welcome to the start topic of the 2006 RPG Tournament. You can find rules, regulations, etcetera, here. But first, a necessary and further explanation of the pairing system for this tournament.

During each round of the RPG Tournament, you as a player will choose one character of any RPGer in the tournament. You must then use that character in your post in some manner as an NPC. You may make slight changes to make sure that the character involved fits in the world of your own character. You may not use any character twice except in the case that you have exhausted all characters available that you could not include without making major changes.

Minor changes are those to appearance and name or minimal editing towards any of the following: history (mostly in the case of changing names within the history), age, or talents. Use reasonable judgment on what could be easily altered and what is so world specific that it should not be; as the character's personality and the things associated with make the character, these cannot be changed. Any questions can be forwarded to me.

How well another player's character was implemented in your post will be part of the requirements section of points. This will be judged solely from the information given in the character form. Any unclear or non-included information related to the character is up for interpretation and this will not be considered in the judging. However, these are not cameos. Any attempt to skip around this by hardly including another player's character at all in your own post will be a cause for the deduction of points.

The format for each round will proceed in the following way. A scenario will be given and an array of guidelines, somewhere between seven to ten, in which three must be chosen and implemented in that particular post. Certain rounds may have other, unique rules, but this is the basic format of each round. The purpose of guidelines is to give a basis on which each judge may critique a post. Note: Guidelines will not be in use for the first round. All other rounds will include them.

The scoring system is detailed in the sign-up thread. It should be noted, however, in reference to the linguistics section, that grammar and spelling are judged on the basis of their readibility. As long as it is comprehensible, it is unlikely that you will lose points for small errors. Entertainment level is based on the judge's perception of how much the general reader would enjoy the piece, not his or her own opinion.

In terms of post length: quality is encouraged over quantity, but any verbosity will not cause a points deduction unless it seems extremely pointless or is a detriment to the rest of the post.

The total points of each RPGer will be posted at the end of each round, as well as the points for that particular round's entry. Each judge will provide comments on why a role-player received the scores they did, be those brief or in depth. The scene and guidelines of each round will be recorded, as well as the player's individual scores.

Below you will find the first scene and a list on which any questions will be recorded. We, the judges, wish you the best of skill.

[u]Previous Rounds
1. (Post) One of the family members or friends of your character is kidnapped.
2. (Plotline) Craft an RPG plot and setting without basis in preexisting material. You must somehow include one of the nine elements given below in the plot. Provide any additional information about the world the RPG is set in that would be necessary for someone signing up for the RPG. Finally, describe the direction you would intend the plot go in if you were to host the RPG.
3. (Post) Your character possesses unrequited love for another, or vice versa. The love felt need not be romantic or sexual (romantic); plutonic and familial love are as easily accepted. More disturbing versions of sexual love are best avoided, unless you feel you can somehow use it in such a way that it is acceptable under a PG-13 rating. The lover in a sexual relationship must be at least fifteen in age, to give some degree of plausibility. The state of "unrequited love" must be intact at the end of the post, though some smaller degree of affection or attraction may be returned. At your discretion you may create a new character for this round if you so choose; such a character should be sent to both of us judges for approval, of which a response will be delivered within a half day's time. As normal, you should use one other player's character which you have yet to use in the post. Due to the nature of this round, this character's role may be more minor than usual. In addition, you must implement one or more of the following guidelines in your post.
4. (Post) Your character is accused of or confesses to a crime they did not commit. You must include an action scene of at least moderate length and use one of the guidelines below.

ROUND 5 - FINALE!
Round 5 is the finale of the RPG Tournament. In recognition of this event, this round will be worth double the usual points. The theme of this round is tragedy and it is entirely open-ended, with certain restraints. What this means is that there will be no prompt this round and that your post may revolve around whatever sort of plot you choose as long as it involves the theme. Tragedy, however big or small, should be the focus of the post. But a clever role-player can sneak in other genres if they do so carefully.

To reiterate, your task is as follows: present each of the following pieces as a connected whole while involving the open-ended theme/genre of tragedy under the given restraints, the storyline of the post being of this genre.

With the extra points comes the extra work. For this round, you must present more than usual for judging. The following are the required pieces for this round. And, this is very important, every piece must be interconnected to the other parts (in the same world) and must involve the theme of tragedy.

1. One RPG Plotline: this must be entirely new or never used. In the latter case, a link can be provided. The plotline may be modified if old and unused to better fit the rounds restraints on genre. However, though tragedy in the plot and connection to the other pieces in this round is required, the plot does not need to revolve around this genre.
2. One character form: this must be entirely new or never used. In the latter case, a link can be provided. The character may be modified if old and unused to better fit the round's restraints on genre. However, though tragedy in the form and connection to the other pieces in this round is required, the character does not need to revolve around this genre.

When presenting characters, the following generic form order should be used.

Generic Character Form
Name: (Self-explanatory, though you may use an alias or omit a surname if it is justified.)
Race: (If your character is of a non-human race, please state so here. If the race is one that is not well-known in literature or another form of media, please elaborate on its origins and culture.)
Gender: (The sex of your character.)
Age: (How old your character is. Approximate numbers are viable for extremely old characters.)
Appearance: (The physical looks of your character.)
Clothing and Gear: (The clothing and gear of your character, be that weapons or traveling supplies.)
Personality: (How your character acts.)
History: (The events of your character’s past.)
Talents: (Your character’s skills, be these magical or mundane.)
Other: (Anything else you would like to add, or anything that does not fit in another field.)

Other fields may be added only if they are absolutely necessary and do not fit in to any existing field.

3. One post: this must include two characters of other players, connection to the plotline (same world) and the element of tragedy. The post should be written in one of two ways: in the perspective of the new character with an RPG Tournament character of yours as an important NPC or half in the perspective of the new character and half in the perspective of an RPG Tournament character. In either case, the posts of two previous rounds must somehow be connected to this round's post. The connection should be plot-related and can be from minor significance to an obvious extension of previous storyline. The RPG Tournament character used must have been used in at least one of the posts this is connected to. Optionally, you may forgo the connection of one or two previous posts, but for each such connection not used, an additional judge NPC or character of another player must be included.

When using the characters of other players, or even your own previous characters, it is permissable to make modifications to their forms. Such modifications must be clearly stated at the start of the post or points will be deducted. When modifying a character, you may only modify the following fields (other modifications are subject to point deduction): history (minor changes), age (minor change), name, clothing and gear (minor to major changes), appearance (minor changes), race (only if non-vital to form: judge's decide when it is non-vital or private message the player the character belongs to), talents/powers/etcetera (minor changes or major changes with owner's approval).

Using a judge NPC is no longer required!

Judge NPC
1. Name - His actual name is indeterminate, either by the fact that he does not know it, or that he has told no one. He calls himself "Hattus."
Race - Human
Gender - Male
Age - 29
Appearance - Hattus is about 68 inches tall and of a rather frail build, though patches of his body such as his arms and legs are heavily muscled; a wide, ovular head with a bulbous nose that has large nostrils offsets his build. His nose is covered in slightly discolored skin and the rest of his complexion is a tan and surprisingly and almost unnaturally smooth. He has matted, animal-like hodgepodge hair, spiky in some places, with miss-cut bangs and having different lengths of hair intermittently. His hair is a wheaten color and his eyes two colors, one black-brown and the other amber; his left eye is noticeably of more size than the right to the point that his right eye seems to be squinting constantly. Hattus has lengthy lips, the upper lip being smaller than the bottom and slightly upturned in a curious expression; his teeth are a ruddy yellow color. His right cheek sports two unique rat scratch marks that have scarred him, white against his tan skin. He has stubby eyelashes and thin, almost feminine eyebrows that are a somewhat lighter color than his hair. He has a small mole on the left side of his face which is somewhat disconcerting and that grows infected quickly if cut. Hattus has a meager double chin and both are covered heavily in stubble that interrupts his otherwise dainty skin texture. His curvy ears are attached and one has a small pockmark on it at the top, the other a bump in almost the same place. Surprisingly, these ears are a fitting size for his rounded head.

Clothing and Gear - Hattus is clothed in a worn jacket (often worn unzipped and unbuttoned), yellow with brunette fur trim. Underneath is a raggedy tie-die tee with a large swirl in the middle. It is brutally obvious that the colors orange and yellow are missing from the pattern. He has on his head a papal miter in the 11th century style, a slightly rounded conical, that is a distinctly soiled white or off-white as it is impossible to tell; it is far too small and often seems overshadowed by his hair. He wears a second, smaller hat- a tall, conical tin-foil hat- on top of it. An old woolen sweater is tied around his waist, knotted tightly, and alternating colors of beige, putrid yellow, and a similarly nauseous green. It is so dirty, however, that it seems like it is polka-dotted "dirt" shade overtop that. His socks are mismatched, the first proudly woolen and distinctly black in color. The second has the potential to be knee-high, but is folded over, and though perhaps striped blue and white at one time, is now colored what could be called “soot and navy in repose." He wears black athletic shorts atop his baggy khaki trousers, thoroughly stained the both of them. His shoes are bitter hiking boots, blissfully new-looking and so slightly misplaced; they are a simple leathery apricot color with dark brown and yellow laces. He wears a white string of yarn with a tiny silvery key strung upon it.

Among his possessions are a tan leather knapsack, slung over his front and one shoulder diagonally. There are two strapped pockets containing tinkling bells that jingle ever so faintly (and somewhat irritatingly) but if strapped tight enough, can be muffled. He has broken his pockets that now span the entire backside of the inside of his coat and to each other. There are every myriad of small objects in here that he has picked up and a plethora of lint. Here lays a miniscule metal lockbox opened by the key around his neck. It contains all of his baby teeth and a secret compartment that he uses to store small, valuable items or simply sentimental ones. He has a sleek black accordion that he fondly calls "squeezebox."

Personality - Perhaps the correct word for Hattus' personality is "mellow." But to call anything the correct word for his personality is a waste of time. He never seems to anger, though he does often get surly and tires easily. Seemingly not of the type to intrude, he watches conversations whenever the chance is available and clearly plays up the fact that he is deaf to lure those speaking into a false sense of security. He likes to be on top of a situation, surprisingly, and often exploits any possible advantage that presents itself. He is without wit in words, though sometimes his actions make jokes of their own; he might be called a prankster if the situation calls for it. There is no keen intelligence lurking beneath his discolored eyes, but he does have a certain resourcefulness and versatility. He's no planner, but if given a few directions, he can improvise in full. His most obvious traits are that he does possess a certain loyalty and his unpredictability. At times seemingly with a kind heart and a desire to help, at others he demands repayment, and still rarely he has bad intentions from the start. Hattus is exactly the type to take more than one free sample and also the man that (sometimes unknowingly) puts a quarter in the "leave-a-penny, take-a-penny" container. There is one constant about him though: half-heartedness. He does everything with a certain, often useful, but usually creepy, indifference. In people's perception of him his greatest ability is that despite all his quirks, he plays them off so quietly that he is often regarded without much care, and thus is an easily forgettable person.

History - None; "Judge NPCs should be broad enough to fit in to most any world with minor modifications; additionally, their character histories are not given so that they might be implemented as you wish."
Talents - None; see other.

Other - Hattus is nearly deaf but reads lips almost perfectly; he insists he can hear the bells, which is why he keeps them. He never learned sign language, however. He usually tries to get away with pretending he cannot understand what people are saying if he can. His lack of hearing has not entirely affected his speech, which is still as filled with grumbling and as raspy as ever, save for the fact that sometimes he annunciates a little incorrectly or speaks in a volume not appropriate to the situation. Hattus aspires to become a crypto zoologist and has extensive knowledge of the topic. He also knows a fair bit of cryptography and often writes in code if he can, of which he has several personal ones. He plays the accordion decently.

We do not expect you to finish all of this work in so short an amount of time as one week. The deadline for Round 5 is November 15th at 11:59 PM CST. This round will be worth 100 points.

Finally, please ask any and all questions you have about this round as soon as possible! There are no worthless questions.

[u]FAQ
Question: What are we expected to post for the first round?
Answer: There are no restrictions as long as it relates to the given scene. You might choose to depict the search for the kidnapping victim or their rescue, or something entirely different. What you do with your post is entirely your choice.

Question: How much are we required to use another RPGer's character in our posts?
Answer: We are not asking you to feature them, though you certainly could. We want them to be used enough that we can easily judge that you have portrayed them correctly. They should have a role of moderate importance if it is at all possible.

Question: If you are using an old character, is what happened in the RPG they're from now part of the past?
Answer: Whether or not the plotline and/or events of the RPG an old character is from are completed or still ongoing is entirely up to the poster.

Question: What is the content rating of the RPG Tournament and its posts?
Answer: All posts should fall under a PG-13 rating.

Question: When we use someone else's character, do they have to use our character in return? Once we use them, do we have to use them in each post from that character's POV?
Answer: No.

Question: (Round 2) Do we need to include the sign-up form for the RPG?
Answer: No.

Question: (Round 3) What if we use more than one guideline?
Answer: You cannot gain extra points by using additional guidelines. However, should your first guideline be found to have been used somewhat incorrectly, having such back-up guidelines may net you some of the lost points.

Question: (Round 4) May we use the character of someone who has been eliminated or who has withdrawn?
Answer: Yes.

Round 5 Specific
Question: May concepts and events from the character's original RPG be included in this round's post?
Answer: This is allowed if and only if these concepts and events are explainable within the post.

Question: Can we write a portion of the post in a perspective other than that of our new character required for this round or our previous RPG Tournament character?
Answer: You may write part of the post in the perspective of another player's character or judge NPC if you so choose; if you do so, the character of yours (new or RPG Tournament old) whose perspective is not used should still be included as an important NPC.

Question: When connecting to previous posts, can we use the posts of other players?
Answer: Yes.

COMPOSITE SCORES (Out of 190)
1st place - Vulpix.ck - 165.25 pts.
2nd place - Weasel Overlord - 162.5 pts.
3rd place - Sheila Rae – 155.75 pts.
4th - Asilynne – 146.75 pts.
5th - SuperSonicMewtwo – 143.75 pts.

Bear - Withdrew - 63 pts.
Ace64 - Withdrew - 69.75 pts.
Master Rudy - Eliminated - 27 pts.
Mystic_clown - Eliminated - 21.5 pts.

[u]Participants
SuperSonicMewtwo
Weasel Overlord
Sheila Rae
Asilynne
Vulpix.ck