RPGC #1 -- Inspired By A Song

[brokndremes]

Yay! I missed these. Will write stuff at some point, assuming I have the time. On a somewhat unrelated note, does anyone happen to have copies of the Hall of Fame from the oldguild WOTM?

[XxLyraxX]

@mdk May the song we pick be a fan-made one?

[Song Book]

My type of fun. I have a song to.

[mdk]

Yeah, you never did say how long it needs to be...

@Rare

That's deliberate. It doesn't need to be any kind of long or short; whatever's natural is fine. The voters are in charge of deciding how long is too long, or how short is too short, for them, personally.

May the song we pick be a fan-made one?

@XxLyraxX

Anything you like! This, too, is really up to the voters. If people hate the song, that might hurt your odds of winning -- but then again it's not a song-picking contest, it's a writing contest, so you've really got as much leeway as you dare to take. The ball is totally in your court.

[Psyga315]

Never mind, found it.

[TheUnknowable]

I've got two songs in mind. I just need to decide which one to use.

[Psyga315]

I already got a song in mind... But not sure if Japanese songs are allowed.

[FernStone]

Definitely entering, also have to choose a song which seems to be the difficult part.

[Loksfjoer]

That's nice :) Can we pick a non-English song? If we do, do we need to provide a translation to proof the story really was based on a song?

[mdk]

That's nice :) Can we pick a non-English song? If we do, do we need to provide a translation to proof the story really was based on a song? (applies to @Psyga315 too)

@WiseDragonGirl

It's up to you. Personally, I'm toying with some instrumental-only songs for my entry. As far as the popular vote is concerned, you don't need to explain the connection. That said, if by chance you also wanted to go for one of the bonus categories (like Idlest Delilah, in this case), we on the staff could probably use a translation, to see if we really think you were the closest to the original theme of your song. Don't think of it as a requirement though. You don't have to prove your level of inspiration to us or anybody else. You could write a greek tragedy based on the Burger King jingle, and you'd still be in the contest. Maybe not get a lot of votes, but as long as you're writing what you want, you're already winning.

[Revans Exile]

You say how awards are chosen but not what the awards are. What are the awards?

[Blitz]

I think I'll give this one a whirl.

[Psyga315]

You say how awards are chosen but not what the awards are. What are the awards?

@Revans Exile

It's at the opening post.

[mdk]

You say how awards are chosen but not what the awards are. What are the awards?

@Revans Exile

@Psyga315 is correct -- but the actual prizes are a bit unclear, and/or buried somewhere in all these RPGC threads. Here's the skinny -- we're basically doing everything we can think of to reward winners, both of the main-prize popular vote, and all the staff picks. Some of the rewards (Hall of Fame, newsletter spots, publicity) are available now -- you'll get all those. Other rewards are on the way too -- but they involve some re-coding of the website, to add things like personal trophy cases, graphics, profile features, and stuff like that. I'm not really in a position to predict when they'll be ready, or what things will actually turn out to be possible, but we're keeping records so that everybody who might be eligible for a post-facto feature later on will get that, too. TLDR -- awards are given for each of the bonus categories; main award is decided by popular vote; all winners will be recognized in the contest thread, the hall of fame, the site newsletter, and any future features we're able to add.

[gorgenmast]

I think I will participate as well.

[Revans Exile]

<Snipped quote by Revans Exile> It's at the opening post.

@Psyga315

People's Choice - The main prize goes to the winner of the popular vote. Depending on participation, runners-up may get prizes as well. Staff Picks - RPGC staff each select winners from the bonus categories

That tells how winners are chosen and that is all. I am asking for the actual awards themselves. For example best entry wins a hand drawn avatar, custom signature banner, custom title, a hall of fame, etc.

TLDR -- awards are given for each of the bonus categories; main award is decided by popular vote; all winners will be recognized in the contest thread, the hall of fame, the site newsletter, and any future features we're able to add.

@mdk

In that case not worth my time.

[Mahz]

I am asking for the actual awards themselves. For example best entry wins a hand drawn avatar, custom signature banner, custom title, a hall of fame, etc.

@Revans Exile

I'm building an award/trophy kind of system so awards will actually be supported by the forum and you should be able to trivially scroll through the winners of past contests and view someone's trophy case on their profile. I think people should also be able to brag. Not sure exactly how I will implement it yet since I've been working on other features. Maybe you get to pick a trophy from your trophy case to show up in your userbit on each post. Maybe you get a banner in your posts. I'll give it some thought soon, but the idea is that I want people to feel a sense of accomplishment as they accumulate awards on the forum.

[Revans Exile]

So basically you are going to rip off Xbox's Gamerscore or Playstation's trophy system. Custom made avatars or signature banners taylor made for each contest would be a billion times better than useless pixel trophies.

[Dedonus]

Custom made avatars or signature banners tailor made for each contest would be a billion times better than useless pixel trophies.

@Revans Exile

You know that that stuff doesn't pop out of nowhere, right? If they could find someone to donate art/avatars/banners, then that would be fine, but just realize that, unless they find someone to donate such "rewards", those types of "rewards" usually don't come for free.

[mdk]

In that case not worth my time.

@Revans Exile

If you have better ideas we'd love to hear them. Visit feedback and let us know. Or, sign up and help build it yourself. If neither of those options appeal to you, and you still feel you need better reasons to write, then RPGC may not be for you.

<Snipped quote by Revans Exile> You know that that stuff doesn't pop out of nowhere, right?

@Dedonus

That too. This is the first run, and I'm focusing our efforts on (a) refining the process and (b) reviewing all entries in a meaningful and helpful way, because in my judgment those are the lasting foundations that will carry this contest in the long term. Incidentally if anyone is interested in helping us with artwork -- whether it's banner images like you see in this thread, or if you've got some thoughts on how else you can put your skills to work for the community -- we are taking on contributors for RPGC #2, and we could certainly use an artist or two on call. Any further discussion on the content/quality/rewards of the contest would be best carried out in the "Discussion" tab of the sub-forum. If you don't like the RPGC threads, feel free to make your own.