The Cell Discussion

[Kade Underbough]

Anyone else think Dirks is going to wind up winning this thing? He's powergaming, sure, but it seems to be pretty effective.

[Amen]

Ataraxis: fuck yes

Everyone else: I'm sorry if I overlooked anybody trying to kill me, there were a lot of you.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

No I'm still in this bad-boy. I hope to the Thayne that I can make it through Round 1 semi-intact.

[Ataraxis]

Ataraxis: fuck yes

Ha, yes indeed. I was worried when everybody started separating into cliques, so I thought I'd have Lillian pull this trick to even the odds a bit and introduce a common focus. I didn't like the idea of leaving you guys out of the big fight, either! So hey, let loose (within the realm of fantasy-realism) and enjoy.

[Breaker]

I find it entertaining how quickly everyone in my cell (my character included) is willing to trust each other.

Amen: I think you incorporated everything. But now there's a bullet with Josh's blood, and your name on it...

[Duffy]

Good grief, at this rate I might make round two after-all!

[Amen]

Oh man, if Duffy and company actually turned their attention on you, I was totally going to betray them. It was going to be awesome.

...probably shouldn't have said that yet.

[Duffy]

Lol, don't worry, Duffy isn't in the Arena anymore, and Lysander is a man of science *epic evil grin.*

[Breaker]

Hey, don't worry, it's all open to interpretation. Just because the bullet was headed for Marcus when I posted, doesn't mean it can't miss by an inch but potentially hit one of the other guys in that cluster ;)

And yeah, you really shouldn't have told them that. Because honestly, having a bunch of lower-level characters attack a weakened Josh en mass sounds like hella fun to write.

[Amen]

In the interest of actually having something engrossing to write in the future, I took the bullet.

If I misunderstood what was happening with the connection between Josh and Lillian...well, I guess we'll find out? I'm not sure if it's like a string that snaps, or if it's temporary based on how far the characters are from one another.

[Breaker]

In the interest of actually having something engrossing to write in the future, I took the bullet.

If I misunderstood what was happening with the connection between Josh and Lillian...well, I guess we'll find out? I'm not sure if it's like a string that snaps, or if it's temporary based on how far the characters are from one another.

Ataraxis and I discussed this at considerable length on AIM, and to the best of my understanding the boost each character receives and how long it lasts for is up to the writer.

EDIT: Although if you're stuck, contact Atar. he's very good at providing suggestions because of his superior understanding of Lillian's abilities.

[Hysteria]

I have edited my last post.... just the very end because I hadn't refreshed to see Amen's new post ;)

[Hysteria]

In the interest of actually having something engrossing to write in the future, I took the bullet.

and I attacked you while you were weak! Ahh, the circle of life.

[Duffy]

Post up, and edited somewhat. I'll try and tidy it up over the next few minutes before having to go out.

Yay for Proletarian Thieves!

[Alis Grave Nil]

yo duffy, just a quick question, did you attack marcus or did you get to his side and aid? i was a bit confused on that.

[Duffy]

I attacked Marcus.

EDIT:

OH, rofl, I see what you mean. 'At Marcus's side' meaning his side, like, side of his body.

[Alis Grave Nil]

aha, well good to hear XD
he he he alright, lets se how it goes...

[Nayeli]

*wakes up and checks on current events in her cell*

:eek:

I'LL SAVE YOU, LETHO! :cool:

*goes to post*

[Alis Grave Nil]

its going to be a little special next post haft to be made from my iphone cause i work to midnight and then i haft to get up at 6 am again for work and work until 2 pm...

and somewhere inbetwen this i need to post or be disqualified...
so i guess it must become a combined effort of lunsj break, to and back from work and second lunsj break or miss the dead line... XD

glad my iphone allows me to post XD

[Visla Eraclaire]

I think the stretching of the 24 hr rule is going to get pretty subjective. I see nothing in the rules that say you can be late if you're waiting for someone. How late can you be? How can you prove you were waiting? Once the person you were waiting for is time disqualified shouldn't you be forced to post?

Seems like a messy situation that is to be avoided.


Rules are rules.

?

[Hysteria]

It would be pretty hard if you posted right after someone and they didn't post again for just under 24 hours.

[Visla Eraclaire]

Oh, I agree. But that isn't what happened here. Pat posted at 6:28 PM on the 14th. Lorenor posted at 7:12 PM on the 14th. Pat's 24 hours were up at 6:28 PM on the 15th. Lorenor's were up at 7:12 PM on the 15th. Pat was formally removed at midnight between the 15th and 16th. Lorenor didn't post until 2:15 AM on the 16th.

I want to see people in this thing and being removed because of a timing technicality is rough, but if Pat is going to be removed, I don't see why Lorenor shouldn't. If he was waiting for Pat and ready to post during the 24 hours, why didn't he post right after Pat's time was up. Or right after he was disqualified? Pat posted in the OOC thread at 10:48 acknowledging that he had missed the deadline (3 and a half hours after it passed). Lorenor's IC post wasn't until closer to 7 hours after his deadline had passed. It just doesn't hold water for me.

I like both of these guys, I want them to participate, but if one's out, they should both be out. This rule has to be applied with some reasonable consistency.

If nothing else, this is a lesson that needs to be learned for the next tournament. Make sure you spell these things out in advance. If there was a rule that covered this, I'd have no complaints at all. But there isn't.

[Atzar]

*wakes up and checks on current events in her cell*

:eek:

I'LL SAVE YOU, LETHO! :cool:

*goes to post*

Aww, dammit squirrel! I'm a capybara! A capybara! YOU DON'T FUCK WITH THE CAPYBARA!!!

[Nayeli]

What is this madness!? Squirrels are clearly the superior mammal. Squrirel vs. What-the-hell-is-a-Capybara-anyway? RODENT BATTLE GOGOGO!!

http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/1590/rodentbattle.jpg

[Hysteria]

Someone has too much time on their hands....

[Nayeli]

True. I think anyone with a hope of finishing the Cell better have too much time on their hands. :P

[Saxon]

And a high tolerance for bullshit.

[Max Dirks]

If there was a rule that covered this, I'd have no complaints at all. But there isn't.It's a valid concern, but a hard and fast rule might tempt players to powergame. Instead, I'm imposing a notification requirement.

From now on you have 3 hours from the point when a player you are waiting on a response from is disqualified to notify me so that I can remove him or her from the tournament. It is your responsibility to watch the time. While you are waiting on me to bunny the character out of the tournament, you should prepare a reply as if that person is no longer alive. After I remove the inactive player you will have only 3 additional hours to post unless you have posted within the last 24 hours.

I'll try to make it so that there are no gaps within those two 3 hour periods, but their might be. I'll give you an exact time of when your post needs to be completed in my removal post.

[Saxon]

So is Lorenor grandfathered in because of this rule or is he getting the axe like he legitimately should?

[Max Dirks]

So is Lorenor grandfathered in because of this rule or is he getting the axe like he legitimately should?He's grandfathered. He followed my instructions from the DQ post and will not be punished.

[Visla Eraclaire]

Given the timetable I presented, I don't think that waiting sufficiently accounts for his late posting, but at least there's a rule now.

Any other excuses you want to accept before they happen rather than having to retrofit things?

[Max Dirks]

He followed my instructions, Visla. I gave him 6 hours to post following my disqualification post and he did it within 3, which is why he's not being punished.

[Ataraxis]

For the guys in Aequitas: even with the link severed now, they should retain the excess energy they got from Josh until used in one way or another. It's temporary, but the exact length should depend on what exactly you do with it.

[Visla Eraclaire]

He followed my instructions, Visla. I gave him 6 hours to post following my disqualification post and he did it within 3, which is why he's not being punished.

You've missed my point entirely.

The point has nothing to do with what you said in your disqualification post. I submit that he failed to take any action to preserve his position in the tournament. Dissinger showed up and acknowledged his lateness. Lorenor did nothing until after Dissinger's disqualification. If he was on hand waiting for a post, he could have replied as soon as the 24 hours was up, as soon as Dissinger acknowledged he was out (10:30 PM), or at the very least made an OOC post saying "Hey I was waiting for Dissinger."

Given that he did none of these things, I don't think he can legitimately blame his lateness on Dissinger's failure to post. He didn't act with reasonable diligence, which is what the 24 hour rule is all about. Even your new rule requires notice. While we shouldn't hold him rigidly to a notice rule that didn't exist at the time, there's a lot of evidence that he wasn't ready and waiting for Dissinger, and thus shouldn't be entitled to the extension.

If he wants to come in and say, "I was here, I was ready, I was waiting for Dissinger. Here is the reason I didn't post about it." That's fine. If he sent you a timely PM, that's fine. None of that has occurred and it looks to me that he simply missed the time, and failed to even acknowledge that as quickly as someone who is being disqualified. His choice to wait as long as he did was not a reasonable one.

These are the kinds of things you open yourself up to with a rigid time rule. If you want to make it more flexible, fine, but do it across the board. Lorenor failed to post. He didn't do so relying on any rule. You made a new rule to accommodate him. If Dissinger had been given six hours, he would have been timely as well.

If your interest is being lenient and keeping people in, keep people in. If your interest is in letting people wait until the last minute, post no notification, and get pardoned after the fact, I don't follow you. Both in is a reasonable conclusion based on leniency. Both out is a reasonable conclusion based on a strict application of the rules, subsequently modified to accommodate future problems. One in and one out is making a distinction where I believe there is no basis for one. Your reason is that he was waiting, but all the facts seem to demonstrate that he was not ready or waiting, and that if he was, he had no reason to believe waiting was acceptable.

[Neville Longinus]

To be honest, this whole 'powergaming DQ'd people out of the tournament' thing looks really silly when you play it out. People randomly get zapped out of existence via lightning bolt or something?

It's so comical that everyone else has no choice but to just ignore that it happened. Wouldn't it make more sense to give people carte blanche to kill those characters themselves? It would make much more sense in the context of the tournament than Dirks randomly killing people and everyone ignoring it because of how silly and nonsensical it was. Not only that, but think of how cool it is for people to actually be able to kill someone else without their permission. It's the price they pay for getting DQ'd.

Also I still say the whole timetable problem would be solved if you made it 26hr or more intervals. People will still try to post once per day, but it's not a panic rush for everyone to post right under midnight.

[Silence Sei]

Just a heads up, A chamber.

Sei just attacked anybody without 'Silence' or 'Book' in their name.

[Duffy]

Duffy Booken?

Hehe.

Bring it on Sei, bring it on, A Game time! (A game meaning I might hit 55 if I'm lucky...:p)

[Silence Sei]

Just for a clarification, the glass can be stopped either spell or planting itself in something.

Also the speed rate from which it shot from Marcus was like that of a bullet.

[Breaker]

Nice. Yo Ed, do you still use AIM?

[Silence Sei]

Nope. Got too many untrustworthy people on my BL and I don't ever feel like answering 5000 "Who is this again?"s

But feel free to shoot the PMs with me.

[Letho]

I hate you all so much right now. I got up at 5:30am today and drove 13 fucking hours straight and only got home just now. My next post will suck balls. As should all of you.

[Silence Sei]

Couldn't have stopped at an internet cafe, Letho buddy?

[Letho]

I live in Croatia. Even as I type this, it's transferred to the Internets via Morse Code by the Chinese slaves we keep in the basement.

[Duffy]

Things sure are hotting up in here!

/terrible pun.

[Silence Sei]

Well then Duffy, looks like it's about to be you and me mano a mano for a bit.

Bring it, 'Joey'.

[Letho]

Cutting it close. Damn these Chinese slaves!

EDIT: And posted! Suck that, 13 hours on the road!

[Silence Sei]

You know nothing of close, Godhand posted -exactly- 24 hours after his last post.

If that post would have just been 1 minute longer....

[Letho]

Yeah, well, gotta leave some wiggle room. Otherwise Dirks slaps you on the wrist. And by slap I mean shoot you with a gun. And by wrist I mean the head.

[Duffy]

You knew the conditions before signed up sweet-cheeks :D!

[Silence Sei]

Hey, Dirks won't shoot me unless he has to.

After all, me and Godhand are with the B-listers XD

BTW Dirks, me and my wife were RotFing at your post in the A chamber.

[Breaker]

Bam. I didn't attack anyone this time, so you all get a bit of a break...

[Letho]

To Christoph and everyone else involved in trying to kill Letho, but mostly to Chris: I mistakenly looked up your level 6 profile when I wrote my last post (I think you had that link in your profile info until recently, but I could be wrong). Because of that I initially downplayed the effect of your attack on Letho. As it stands now, Letho would get 90% immunity to the fire, so I went ahead and edited my post a bit to reflect this, making it more difficult for Letho to maintain the field, especially when Atzar joined in as well (though do these attacks stack level-wise or are they considered separately is up to debate, but to hell with it).

[Silence Sei]

God Bless it. How come whenever it seems that I'm going to be able to get some quality posting in against somebody, they stop replying.

Damn you for signing off Duffy!

[Alis Grave Nil]

I wrote down a start og a reply but all the additional post stoppes me from posting yet and with a 8 hour shift comming up in 6 hours i wont be able to post yet... So if i miss my deadline please just pm me that i missed it and allow me atleast the leverage of a conclusive post but i hope i make it... Sucks to Get a 10 hours shift followed by a 8 hour shift that starts 6 hours later...

Posted on my iPhone some words may have been changed due to automatic Word change

[Duffy]

Gah, don't leave Alis, I need you :(

[Esmerelda]

I always wanted to upgrade my Swarm from steel to Prevalida, but I never thought I'd have a chance at level 0 to get my hands on some. After I eat Dirk's Katana, I'm going to eat Letho's sword, provided no one's noticed it by then and grabbed it.

[Silence Sei]

Gah, don't leave Alis, I need you :(

Who else is he going to die in the arms of once Sei finishes his conquest?

[Hysteria]

After all, me and Godhand are with the B-listers XD

Ouch, my pride.

@Alis: I know the feeling, I need to post at around 5pm-ish, then again at maybe 12 so that I have time to get home late tomorrow night and post....

[Nayeli]

I always wanted to upgrade my Swarm from steel to Prevalida, but I never thought I'd have a chance at level 0 to get my hands on some. After I eat Dirk's Katana, I'm going to eat Letho's sword, provided no one's noticed it by then and grabbed it.

I'll be grabbing it in my next post, seeing as it's right at Ulysses' feet. On the other hand, what with Teric bearing down on me from one side and possibly Atzar in the other, who knows how long I'm going to last now. XD Letho and Ulysses could probably hold their own against Atzar and Christoph, but with Bloodrose in the mix things get trickier...

Now this is really getting interesting. ;)

[Silence Sei]

Ouch, my pride.



Dirks' IC words, not mine XD

[Duffy]

I already have someone in mind to kill Duffy Sei, and sadly, it won't be you!

[Atzar]

I always wanted to upgrade my Swarm from steel to Prevalida, but I never thought I'd have a chance at level 0 to get my hands on some. After I eat Dirk's Katana, I'm going to eat Letho's sword, provided no one's noticed it by then and grabbed it.

One thinks Letho, Bloodrose and Ulysses would all have a problem with you eating it.

One also thinks Dirks won't be all that happy that you're eating his sword.

[Nayeli]

One thinks Letho, Bloodrose and Ulysses would all have a problem with you eating it.

One also thinks Dirks won't be all that happy that you're eating his sword.

This "One" guy sure is thoughtful.

Oh, Atzar, do you care if I post before you, or should I wait? I've prepared a post and nothing about it really effects you, but if you're doing something that'll harm Ulysses, I'll wait and then change things around.

Edit: Or just post whenever, I dunno. I'm planning on waiting until JUST before I go to bed to put my post up, so that I have the maximum amount of time tomorrow to post. Heh.

[Silence Sei]

Question.

Can people who have been DQed for time still advance to the finals?

As in, lets say Diss scores a 70 for his posts. Now lets say 6 people ICly managed to stay alive in the cell, and also scored prtty well, but Diss is still in the top 4 score-wise.

Now, would he be able to advance, even though he had a lot shorter time to do anything? Or is it if he is DQed ICly he can no longer be allowed to continue.

Sorry, I just thought that character wise, Max Dirks wouldn't revive people that annoyed him earlier unless he was feeling truly sick, twisted, and wanted to kill them again.

[Kade Underbough]

DQed people won't be continuing into the finals.

Oh and Nayeli, I actually didn't have Kade throw his dagger. He used the blade to push away at yours. No biggie though, since our little skirmish is done for now. Just wanted to clarify so no one wonders why he's still running around with a weapon.

[Silence Sei]

Thanks Kade. So basically one has to keep up the posting until the final day to qualify for being in the big 8.

Awesome. Not like I'm actually going to be in the top 4, but hey, worth a shot.

[Kade Underbough]

Well, if Orlouge dies say, four days before the round is over, you aren't expected to post any longer and if you achieve one of the qualifying scores, you'll still get to continue on to the final round.

[Nayeli]

Oh and Nayeli, I actually didn't have Kade throw his dagger. He used the blade to push away at yours. No biggie though, since our little skirmish is done for now. Just wanted to clarify so no one wonders why he's still running around with a weapon.

Oopsies, my bad. ^^; *embarrassed*

[Atzar]

Just for some clarification on my post: I played this as if Ulysses slashed at me, and then got interrupted by Letho's sword and Bloodrose. So Ulysses broke off any further attacks to deal with Teric, but still made the first one in his previous post.

I'm not sure that this is what was intended, but Ulysses' most recent post came as I was writing mine up, changed the situation a little bit on me, and I didn't have time to edit it before my deadline. Regardless, I think my interpretation of the action still works with the whole big picture here.

This is hectic.

[Ulysses]

That's exactly what I intended in my post Atzar, sorry if that was unclear! So no worries ^^

[Atzar]

Good to hear, then. Thanks for the confirmation.

[Kade Underbough]

I misread Christoph's ability and didn't realize the explosion was so profound. I'm going to edit in the morning to account for that, though once Kade gets up, he'll just have more reason to shoot at Christoph, so my actions affecting others will remain the same.

[Breaker]

Thanks Kade. So basically one has to keep up the posting until the final day to qualify for being in the big 8.

Awesome. Not like I'm actually going to be in the top 4, but hey, worth a shot.

To the best of my understanding, as long as you end with a concluding post (as opposed to being DQ'd or lasting till the end) you're eligible to continue to the finals.

[Hysteria]

Yeah, if you die you don't have to keep posting, but can move on. If you DQed though I think your out.

[Hysteria]

Kamikaze! I am determined to take you with me Sei.

*shakes fist* wrongs will not be forgotten! *continues shaking*

[Duffy]

This is indeed an epic clusterfuck.

How do I wrap up Sei attacking me, Marcus jumping on Sei, Lillian throwing the door at us all and Talen jumping on Sei too???

Lawl...

[Amaril Torrun]

How do I wrap up Sei attacking me, Marcus jumping on Sei, Lillian throwing the door at us all and Talen jumping on Sei too???



By any means and at any cost.

[Silence Sei]

This is indeed an epic clusterfuck.

How do I wrap up Sei attacking me, Marcus jumping on Sei, Lillian throwing the door at us all and Talen jumping on Sei too???

Lawl...

Don't worry Duff, I handled the situation.

Might as well call you Dragon Force, because you're going 'Through the Fire and the Flames'

XD

Oh, Allis is out, btw.

[Hysteria]

The slight change in weather gave Sei a greater advantage, as soon as the sunlight hit the man's features, his piercer grew an extra three feet. This would mean that Marcus would have to change his mid-air course if he were to avoid being punctured in the heart by the light mystic's weapon.

Sei, did you mean Talen would have to change course?

[Silence Sei]

Sei, did you mean Talen would have to change course?

Indeed I did. Let me go edit that.

Also Hys, you might want to spell check your last post, there's a couple of errors I saw in it.

[Hysteria]

Hmmm, it did have a lot of mistakes.... Thanks Sei.

One more post from me I belive, then i'm out.

[Duffy]

5 hours for me to post, best get a move on!

[Alis Grave Nil]

since am late and all that am going to take my time and do a real conclution post... so nobody needs to bother with my character, he wont do anything to anyone and you need not do anything to him... i will take care of it.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

I just wrote my conclusion post for Round 1. This has been incredibly fun. I hope this thing can keep going the whole 2 weeks.

[Christoph]

Mmmm... explosions. I'll hopefully be back home in time to write my post before my deadline (because I was stupid enough to post at 9 instead of 1AM a couple nights ago, so now I could well be time-screwed). Maybe Eli will cease to be a terrain feature for a couple posts. Maybe.

[Kade Underbough]

Option 4 for Cell Gambling:

Who dies first?






I win Option 4 by guessing Lorenor would be the first to fall.

You WILL respect my ability to forsee the future.

[Ulysses]

i win option 4 by guessing lorenor would be the first to fall.

You will respect my ability to forsee the future.

:eek: He's a witch! Burn the witch! BURN HIM!!

[Neville Longinus]

Dark cloaks with a hood, unstable personality, and same exact posting times. I'm getting a little disturbed between my parallels with Numbers.

[Breaker]

:eek: He's a witch! Burn the witch! BURN HIM!!

First we must determine if he weighs the same as a duck...


Dark cloaks with a hood, unstable personality, and same exact posting times. I'm getting a little disturbed between my parallels with Numbers.

Well, Josh's cloak wasn't dark at the beginning of the cell...

and he can't turn into fire... [/jealousy]

EDIT: I deleted and re-posted as you suggested. Makes for better continuity.

[Neville Longinus]

In other news, can I get a summary of what's happening in environment of the other chamber? Apparently I'm not the only one with pyrotechnics en masse. Maybe I could even use all the fire being spewed a chamber away.

[Duffy]

Enforcing continuity checks on the other arena and drawing on it would be a good, and simple way to improve score.

Ulyssess is clever like that ;)

[Breaker]

@ Sei

For whatever reason, I imagined that Sei is facing away from Josh, hence the knife thrown at his spine. If Sei is in fact facing towards Josh, the target would be his stomach, and I'll edit accordingly once I hear from you.

@ Duffy

Same thing, only reversed.

[Amaril Torrun]

Bloodrose, is there anything specific to know about flashbag's potential for damage? In other words, is Kade about to be permanently blind for the rest of this tournament or is it meant to be more of a temporary thing? By your profile saying that its up to each PC to determine if it affects him or her at all, I'm assuming its open to interpretation.

[Nayeli]

Similar question to Amaril, but I'm curious to know if it still effects Ulysses if he's facing away from Bloodrose--seeing as he is running away.

[Bloodrose]

Amaril - The effects are intended to be temporary. It's meant to blind and/or disorient characters for a short time (time depending on the character), but leaves no permanent damage.

Nayeli - Ulysses is safe from the blinding effect, as is anyone not looking in Teric's direction when it goes off. Whether or not he's close enough to be stunned is open to interpretation, but since he's moving away from Teric, he's probably pretty safe.

[Letho]

Oh, you cheeky old bastard. Should've went for the head. ;)

[Duffy]

I only just clocked that a dagger is en-route towards me, yay!

Don't you know it's rude to hit girls?

[Silence Sei]

Numbers & Hysteria.

Sei wasn't standing up during his harpooning of Talen, he's on the ground.

Marcus tackled the mystic, and now Sei in on the ground below him. He reached around Marcus' back to use his harpooning technique which would have technically punctured Talen mid-air.

Like the Leonitas jumping scene in 300, but they're slever enough to spear him during the slow-mo.

So theoretically, the knife wouldn't have been thrown at any part of Sei if it was thrown through the air. Now if he threw it at the mute's face...

If either of you want time to edit, that's fine. If you want to leave them as is, that's cool, just let me know ASAP.

[Max Dirks]

Only 1 DQ in the past 36 hours? You guys are amazing.

[Ulysses]

My concluding post is up. :)

[Amen]

Numbers & Hysteria.

Sei wasn't standing up during his harpooning of Talen, he's on the ground.

Marcus tackled the mystic, and now Sei in on the ground below him. He reached around Marcus' back to use his harpooning technique which would have technically punctured Talen mid-air.

Like the Leonitas jumping scene in 300, but they're slever enough to spear him during the slow-mo.

So theoretically, the knife wouldn't have been thrown at any part of Sei if it was thrown through the air. Now if he threw it at the mute's face...

If either of you want time to edit, that's fine. If you want to leave them as is, that's cool, just let me know ASAP.

I responded with the assumption that these edits or something like them would be made with the original intentions intact. The long and short of it is that Marcus rolled away from Sei, and is now charging Josh head on.

[Silence Sei]

well if those two haven't posted in another hour, I'm simply going to write the dagger going over Sei so I can continue to post.

[Silence Sei]

Should probably inform Trez Chamber people.

I've posted that the sun was starting to come out in my last post. I'm sure yall can go with 'the sun beams hadn't hit over in their chamber' kind of thing.

But just thought you all should know the weather outside the dome -is- changing.

Mostly to accomadate my mute XD

[Nayeli]

Should probably inform Trez Chamber people.

I've posted that the sun was starting to come out in my last post. I'm sure yall can go with 'the sun beams hadn't hit over in their chamber' kind of thing.

But just thought you all should know the weather outside the dome -is- changing.

Mostly to accomadate my mute XD

Is time between the chambers really relative? I'm not sure that it is.

[Silence Sei]

Not sure, but I figured you would all like to know, just in case.

[Breaker]

Sorry about that Sei... I'll edit my post to say the first dagger was just thrown into the fray. Should have read more carefully.

in other news...

Enter the Breaker.

EDIT: Btw is dopple-Sei's sword also made form prevaldia?

[Silence Sei]

Yes it is

[Breaker]

Good... otherwise it probably wouldn't have cut him.

[Amen]

I think I caught everything in Numbers' post and addressed it sufficiently, but if I overlooked something important please let me know.

[Breaker]

Nah you got it all... and that bit about wondering how Sei got behind Josh made me laugh.

@ Sei

For clarification, Breaker is trying to use superior speed and power (and his ridiculous forearms) to get past the blades, slam Sei into the wall, get a body lock and crush him to death. But he'd probably settle for some sort of body check.

[Duffy]

Nicely done Sei.

Let the REAL epic duel between Duffy and Sei commence :D

[Duffy]

Okay.

I'm on my way out, however, I'd like to get the chance to post 3 more times and reveal the rest of the poem and bitch slap to Sei's ego before I go.

(And then a concluding post of course).

So, let's make this sword fight epic enough entertainment for the little people to learn a thing or two!

[Hysteria]

@Sei:
I realised you were still lying down, but figured it wouldn't make much difference.... (landed on his feet and fell forwards vs landed on his feet and moved forwards) unless the hammer swing was going to travel over you.

I'll write up a conclusion post full of drama and stuff now ;)

[Breaker]

@ Duffy

You may want to re-read my post and edit accordingly. Most glaringly, Josh threw a delyn knife at you, not a prevaldia dagger. And Lillian is not in the same knot as Sei, Breaker and Marcus; she's at the other end of the arena.

[Duffy]

Fair enough, will edit the metal now.

[Silence Sei]

Ok Duffy, lets do this and make the posts that will hopefully skyrocket us into the finals.

Good luck!

[Amaril Torrun]

Oh my fucking God, this thing is so much fun! Just had to get that out there.

[Silence Sei]

I too am enjoying this.

But people are going to tarnish Sei's poor image with wanting to die by his hand and everything XD

[Silence Sei]

Just an observation.

After completely readin the Tres thread begginning to end from yesterday to today....

Has anyone else noticed that Letho and Sei are pretty much eerily doing the same things?

Saving another competitor, raging over the death of a competitor, using possibly their best stat enhancing moves to try and topple the giants...

I mean, seriously, I honestly had no idea Letho was doing all that until today. Now I think I just copied him without ever reading his posts!

[Silence Sei]

One last thing, if everyone in the A Chamber can send me a PM.

Provided Sei Prime is still alive after the duel with Duffy, I would like to do something that will more than likely require everybody's permission to pull off.

[Neville Longinus]

Why yes, you do have my permission to be burned alive and take everyone with you. Go ahead.

[Silence Sei]

Truly kind of you, but that was not what I was going for.

I'm sure somebody will find a way to stop your wasteland of fire and flames.

If I had completed my quest with Corvus before the Cell as a matter of fact, Sei would be fine still fighting in them.

[Breaker]

Yo Sei, can you describe the nature of your attack? I understand it's a punch to the jaw with a prevaldia surprise, but you lost me on the light magic...

[Silence Sei]

No no no friend, you misundertsnad.

It's a punch to the neck with an 'iron' surprise. Sei is hoping to stab you with the magical emei piercer in his ring from the neck with that punch.

From there, I'm saying that he's trying to use his influence over Light Magic to drain the lightning that just fueled you. I was trying to convey that lightning magics have a basis in light magic in order to be used. Breaker came back when the lightning bolt struck him and, as a result, Sei's trying to drain the power the lightning bolt gave him away.

If I misunderstood how the character works, then my bad. Feel free to beat the shit out of Sei. Otherwise I hope I articulated it better now.

Sorry I keep confusing you.

[Breaker]

It's probably lack of understanding on my part due to sleep deprivation... although that's not really how it works. The lightning doesn't give Breaker his power so much as a narcotic rush, and it gives him an edge over Josh in controlling the body.

If anything, draining that charge might get Josh back in power. Is the drain dependant on the emei piercer stabbing him? Because it's not very likely for anything iron to pierce Breaker's skin.

[Silence Sei]

No, it just requires the emei piercer to be in contact with Breaker. It doesn't have to actually penetrate. Least that's what I'm going with. Sorry again for the misunderstanding on my part :D

[Duffy]

I do hope Sei is alive, I'd hate for a weedy little Norwich runt to gut you in two now :D

[Amen]

Just a heads up for people in my group: I edited my post. There's no real significant change, except that Marcus is now on the center island with Rayse, but hasn't done anything but yell at him.

Hope this is alright with everyone, I just wasn't completely satisfied with where my original post left me after I considered it for awhile.

[Kade Underbough]

Atzar, are you controlling the fireballs Christoph threw? The way his post reads, it seems as though he threw the first volley of flame, expecting you to bring on the next wave of attacks while he waited to recharge.

Since Kade has already dealt with the fireball, or it dealt with him depending on how you look at it, I don't really know how to respond.

[Duffy]

So now we're well into the carnage, how do we think the round 2 line-up is looking?

I see A Chamber being:

Ataraxis
Duffy Bracken
Rayse
Numbers or Sei

(Or minus me and Number and Sei going through, I thought I'd play the optimism card though).

T Chamber:

Letho
Ulysses
Bloodrose
???

I'm tempted to say Christoph but I'm getting more of a feel for greatness from Atzar, so it could go either way.

[Atzar]

Atzar, are you controlling the fireballs Christoph threw? The way his post reads, it seems as though he threw the first volley of flame, expecting you to bring on the next wave of attacks while he waited to recharge.

Since Kade has already dealt with the fireball, or it dealt with him depending on how you look at it, I don't really know how to respond.

He controlled the first volley, but now he's just the factory - I control where the goods are shipped.

[Letho]

Hopefully, not for much longer. ;)

[Silence Sei]

So now we're well into the carnage, how do we think the round 2 line-up is looking?




Ataraxis for just the sheer quality of his/her/their writing.
Rayse due to the insane amounts of character development he'sgot going on.
Duffy/Numbers/Godhand all seem pretty evenly matched, so that's anybody's guess.
Sei sinply because now that I've gotten Dirks involved, I think my writing quality is about to sky rocket.

Letho due tho the fact that he always seems to bring his A-game.
Ulysess just because of his wit and unique character
Atzar because even though all he's doing is playing sidekick, he's playing the role well.
Christoph because I would just like to fight a chef mage. XD

[Max Dirks]

I can say with about 100% certainty that Max Dirks will advance to Round 2.

[Silence Sei]

I shoulda bet on that horse.

[Max Dirks]

Hey numbers, are you down for kicking Sei Orlouge's ass? I plan to shoot his wings, send him plummeting to an awaiting Joshua Cronen. Sei, mind taking the hit or should I merely "attempt" it?

[Silence Sei]

You should know by now Max that you're welcome to be my guest.
However, Sei's wings aren't out any more. He retracted them once the first Mystic Protection went off. A shoulder shot would make more sense.

You want I should edit my post to retract Sei's double casting Mystic Protection on the original?

[Duffy]

Just double checking if there's any objections to using Ruby's spellsinging? It won't have any impact on the outcome or if I do get through to Round 2 (through some small mercy) the healing effect won't be counted in terms of his resurrection to continue fighting.

It is, in effect, purely for show to teach Sei something about heroes and wotnot.

[Max Dirks]

Sei, then your character leapt over 50 ft into the air on a vault off of his doppleganger's shoulders? That's the height of the platform that Dirks' is sitting on and from what I understand, you're trying to get eye to eye with him. Sei would at least have to jump 15 ft to even get to the shield above the adamantine wall. Without flying that seems rather impossible (unless your character has been approved with such leaping ability, of course).

[Atzar]

So now we're well into the carnage, how do we think the round 2 line-up is looking?

I see A Chamber being:

Ataraxis
Duffy Bracken
Rayse
Numbers or Sei

(Or minus me and Number and Sei going through, I thought I'd play the optimism card though).

T Chamber:

Letho
Ulysses
Bloodrose
???

I'm tempted to say Christoph but I'm getting more of a feel for greatness from Atzar, so it could go either way.


From the Aequitas Chamber, I think Ataraxis has the only surefire ticket to round 2. From there any of Rayse, Amen, Godhand and Numbers could take the last three spots. I'd personally probably go with Rayse, Amen and Godhand at this point.

In the Treslizn Chamber, I think Letho, Bloodrose and Christoph are moving on. The last spot, I think, goes to either me or Ulysses.

[Silence Sei]

I wasn't trying to insinuate anything about being eye to eye, just that Dirks should be able to feel Sei's eyes on him. If I need to edit to specify just how high Sei went, I will, whatever you thinks reasonable.

[Silence Sei]

Max, if it helps at all, I went ahead and edited my posted.

Sei only got 15 feet off the ground, but climbed the other 45 feet using his swords as climbing stakes.

Buy that or should I go back? My bad for not being more clear earlier. mistakes have been corrected.

And trust me, come level 7, I'll give Sei a leaping ability.

The Leonidas Leap, if you will :P

[Duffy]

Well Sei, the ball is in your court now.

The Nine Duffy is referencing to was begun in the Paradox thread; Duffy is searching for eight others to fight the various aspects of Lucian Lahore - that is pretty much the gambit I've been working on, and the reason I entered the tournament, to get you on my side ;)

Conclusion post will be up tomorrow, and a little departing gift will be available for you all!

It's been good fun, whatever the outcome, I wasn't expecting to get to round 2 but frankly, xp and 'titles' aren't worth it unless it's been a good worthwhile journey, and I've loved every minute :D

[Max Dirks]

I've knocked Sei back down into the Cell (with permission), and introduced Dirks' IC reasoning for hosting the Cell. However, for the remainder of round one, my posts will be limited to disqualifications and conclusion post requests (as in, have Dirks take out my character).

[Amen]

Man, that was supposed to be my conclusion post.

I guess I don't know when to quit?

[Duffy]

Who is left fighting now then, I've lost track of all the bodies? :D

[Hysteria]

Amen, Godhand, Ataraxis and Rayse I think are still puffing along.

We still have six days left till the round ends. I was thinking, it would normally take quite a while to work through probably 100 posts (I reckon they could get another 17). What are we looking at for the next round?

[Max Dirks]

One thing that's different from other tournaments is that I've been keeping up with the action as it occured. There are four people left in the Aequitas Chamber and two left in the Treslizn Chamber. If, for whatever reason, both finish early, I'll probably judge early too. My goal is to complete the Cell before most of your finals start.

[Neville Longinus]

If a non-involved judge was assigned to each thread beforehand, they could have easily been following along since the start and had a clear picture of the whole thing. They could reasonably wrap things up right at the end of the round.

It's a lot harder to make sense of things if you try to read it all in one go... Not to mention how long it would probably take.

I still say the timer should be on a 26 or more hour interval to allow people to post before/after or go on if someone doesnt reply to them in 24 hours.

edit: what the hell dirks stop posting while im typing you jerk

[Hysteria]

When are finals for those of us in different hemispheres?

[Duffy]

Sometime the end of April/May for the UK, usually May 7th-21stish for UK Universities.

No idea about the crazy states.

[Max Dirks]

Mine are next week, but I've only got two. The University of Iowa has theirs the second and third week of May for undergrad students. High school finals occur during the last week of May and the first week of June.

[Letho]

Well, I certainly had a blast (several of them, as Atzar neatly put it), and like Letho, I really didn't expect to. I'm generally not the tournament type, but this was the first tournament that felt like fun since the last Serenti for me. I must thank all of those who attacked Letho; it was great working with every single one of you. Also, killing some of you, that was fun too. Especially you, Cory. ;) Also, my thanks to Ulysses. Probably the only one who didn't attack Letho. :P

As for my predictions who will go through... I think that the Aequitas chamber will be more difficult to judge, with a number of people not only capable of reaching the finals, but getting very similar scores. Ataraxis seems like a popular choice, and after reading a couple of his posts, I have to agree. But there are about five people for the other three spots. I'm going to go with Sei, Duffy and Godhand, but Rayse and Numbers have about equal chances to go through as well. I think Amen will be just a tad short of the finals.

As for Treslizn chamber, I think Bloodrose is a very safe bet. In fact, I think the whole thing will be decided between him and Ataraxis. Ulysses played it smart, checked out early while she was ahead, so I'm going with her as well. The last spot will be decided between Atzar, Christoph and yours truly. Atzar was surprisingly constant, Chris usually good and I killed some people. So we shall see. Details will decide.

[Max Dirks]

I'm not sure if I was clear enough in the Rules and Regulations Thread, but the Cell rounds are continuous. I will have no more than 10 IC minutes pass between rounds. I bring this up because I've noticed that many of your conclusion posts, particularly those in the Treslizn Chamber, take place after the character has been revived. This probably won't hurt your continuity now, but it might be a bitch to write through if you advance to the second round. I'll allow conclusion edits as necessary.

[Letho]

Good thing I finished with Letho's face in the mud. :D

[Duffy]

Hehe, I forgot about the revival thing...

Duffy is going to look like shit if I get through (IF!)

Crispy Bard anyone?

[Arsène]

I really hope I don't make it. Arsene served as comedic relief in the most horrific way possible.

And it can only get worse.

[Silence Sei]

Bah. You guys are pansies. Sei's going to take those ten IC minutes with the opening post in my next round.

Dirks probably knows what I'll do if I advance, but the rest of you wait and see if that opportunity comes my way...

[Tainted Bushido]

Bah. You guys are pansies. Sei's going to take those ten IC minutes with the opening post in my next round.

Dirks probably knows what I'll do if I advance, but the rest of you wait and see if that opportunity comes my way...

Your girl has a date with my samurai buddy, get on it...

EDIT: ;)

[Silence Sei]

I'm goin I'm goin.

Gee louise I typically have to be the one kicking people into gear to post.

[Tainted Bushido]

You haven't quested with me in awhile, so its understandable.

[Silence Sei]

Well damnit, ICly, everyones now screwed if Godhand and Ataraxis advance. They're hurt, not dead. That's about 80% better than 80% of the other competitors.

[Silence Sei]

A chamber is DONE bitches!

Get to judging damnit Dirks!

[Max Dirks]

Both chambers are done, I'll get to work.

[Neville Longinus]

Well damnit, ICly, everyones now screwed if Godhand and Ataraxis advance. They're hurt, not dead. That's about 80% better than 80% of the other competitors.

I'm not dead either, and if I advance I have an amusing way to prove that. Not to mention if I get to round 2 it's all regular Rayse, none of this psycho mumbo jumbo.

[Letho]

Whoever got some heavy beating in the first round, Letho can heal pretty much anything if you get on his good side (and if I go through, of course). Just food for thought for potential allies. ;)

[Silence Sei]

I'm hoping Sei and Duffy advance simply because it'd be bad ass to have the Heroes of Scara Brae, Radasanth, and Corone all under one dome.

Seriously, the three of us need to do a quest together.

[Duffy]

I expect it'll take a fare while longer to judge, but any sort of eta Max?

[Duffy]

That was eerily well timed!

Well done to everyone who's through, it was a blast!

(Stone the crows, I got higher than 40 O.o)

[Max Dirks]

I was really impressed by round one. Overlooking a few power gaming issues, I'd say that this has been the best Cell on record. It's a shame we only have the one left on the forum to compare it to. Best of luck to everyone who advanced. I only gave limited commentary in my judgment (it is a tournament after all), but I'm always available to talk in private or in a Workshop thread if you'd like.

[Amen]

Thanks for the judgment and congrats to the winners!

[Tainted Bushido]

Biggest upset of the round, "Dissinger DQing on day three"

[Max Dirks]

You did cost a lot of people a lot of money, Taint.

[Tainted Bushido]

I would be more apologetic if the circumstances were truly something I had any control over.

When your sister has her wedding, not so much.

EDIT 3550 Gold cost total.

With a potential to wreck even more if my not placing loses people the points they need on option 2.

[Visla Eraclaire]

My negativity about others made up for Diss' loss. Though I think you missed my bet on him, Max. I'm listed at +750, but those are just my two wins. My bet on Diss was a loser, so I should net +250, I think.

Hm, still pondering who I should bet against in round 2... Maybe Godhand.

[Letho]

I would be more apologetic if the circumstances were truly something I had any control over.

When your sister has her wedding, not so much.Pat, what the fuck?, There has been like a week of pause between the rounds. You should've made her have a wedding during that time. ;)

Seriously, it sucked not being able to fight you this time around, man.

Anyways, congratulations to all that went through. Now, if you would all be so kind to follow Pat's example so I can win this thing, that would be great. :D

[Ataraxis]

Lots of surprises – some better than others, some not (in my honest opinion, Amen was at the very least in the top 4 of Aequitas). Still, thanks for the work you put into judging both chambers.

Unexpected finalists and runners-up aside, I have a question about the XP rewards, if that's okay. I've never been one to gripe about experience, but I think this might be of concern to a lot of the participants.

In comparison to the previous Cell battles (found here (http://www.althanas.com/world/forumdisplay.php?f=97)), which were generally twice shorter (for the exception of Cage 2 and the Final Cage), took twice as long to complete, and had fewer participants overall, the players who moved on back then received on average more experience than those who moved on in this instance of the Cell (the upper limit being over 3500, or 3178 for seven of Dissinger's posts here (http://www.althanas.com/world/showthread.php?t=1855&page=3)).

How come even top rewards (2500 for me, 2750 for Letho) net less than typical winner XP rewards in battles? From my time as a judge, I know that 2500 is the base XP when the highest level participant is level 8, while 2750 is for level 9. The highest level participants in each of the chambers were level 12, which implied a base XP of 3500.

I remember it was mentioned that considering the added difficulties of this Cell, those who advanced would receive ample (http://www.althanas.com/world/showthread.php?p=162512&highlight=large+amounts+exception#post162512) bonuses (http://www.althanas.com/world/showpost.php?p=162696&postcount=8) compared to typical battles or tournaments. Moreover, a member-made multi-participant battle (http://www.althanas.com/world/showthread.php?p=142147#post142147) in the Citadel netted even higher rewards than that, even though it was less taxing (written over almost two months, or 6 if you count the last post). Then again, maybe some of the bonus came from the six month wait for the judgment, but I'm not sure how that can be verified.

In short, for a staff-administrated event that solicited much more dedication and sustained effort from all of its participants, the rewards it provides are even lesser than that of a typical, ten-post Citadel battle with similar (if not lower) scores. Something seems slightly off about this, but perhaps there is plausible explanation, and I've merely overlooked it. My apologies for the possibly troublesome post, if that is the case.

If not, however, then those who in part joined after reading this blurb:


The Cell was the first way to make large amounts of EXP for participating in a tournament and this year will be no exception.

Might find that this event did not quite perform as advertised. It's a small matter, but even so it does affect a lot of the participants. A review of this might prove beneficial to everyone, and to the continued success of future tournament endeavors.

***

On another note, contrary to what this (http://www.althanas.com/world/showthread.php?p=164066&highlight=fallen+characters#post164066) seems to imply, Bloodrose did not die in his chamber, as can be read in this excerpt:


"Ah, you're awake!" A voice caught Teric's attention, and he turned to find a monk standing next to him. The robed, tonsured man carried a water skin in one hand and a bandage in the other. He was smiling, as the cheerful Ai'brone typically were, and he seemed rather surprised as well.

"You make it... sound," Teric coughed, "like I shouldn't be."

"I'm sorry." The monk apologized. "It's just impressive is all. I think you're the only competitor from Treslizn who didn't succumb to his injuries."

[Neville Longinus]

Area of effect spells = powergaming. Wish someone told me that before this thing.


a player can be described as a powergamer if he or she presumes or declares that his or her own action against another player character is successful without giving the other player character the freedom to act on his own prerogative.

For instance, a player who unilaterally describes his character as doing something with (or to) another character that would usually require the other to play along — such as having a fight or a sexual encounter — is considered to be powergaming.

Until this point, this is what I assumed powergaming to be. At no point did I produce an action on someone without their permission, and none of my terrain-changing antics were actions that were 'forced' on anyone. There's a level 6 profile that can make rifts in space that gush out never-ending waves of lava, which is nothing compared to what I did.

If you still claim this is powergaming, then you're operating under a different definition from the rest of us.

[Nayeli]

Congratulations to everyone who made it to the second round! :D

Am I going to be able to update Ulysses' profile before the next round begins? That much experience ought to bring him up a level, and I'd like very much to have some new skills and stuff. :p I could definitely post an updated profile today, would that be enough time for it to be approved?

[Letho]

Lots of surprises – some better than others, some not (in my honest opinion, Amen was at the very least in the top 4 of Aequitas). Still, thanks for the work you put into judging both chambers.

Unexpected finalists and runners-up aside, I have a question about the XP rewards, if that's okay. I've never been one to gripe about experience, but I think this might be of concern to a lot of the participants.

In comparison to the previous Cell battles (found here (http://www.althanas.com/world/forumdisplay.php?f=97)), which were generally twice shorter (for the exception of Cage 2 and the Final Cage), took twice as long to complete, and had fewer participants overall, the players who moved on back then received on average more experience than those who moved on in this instance of the Cell (the upper limit being over 3500, or 3178 for seven of Dissinger's posts here (http://www.althanas.com/world/showthread.php?t=1855&page=3)).

How come even top rewards (2500 for me, 2750 for Letho) net less than typical winner XP rewards in battles? From my time as a judge, I know that 2500 is the base XP when the highest level participant is level 8, while 2750 is for level 9. The highest level participants in each of the chambers were level 12, which implied a base XP of 3500.

I remember it was mentioned that considering the added difficulties of this Cell, those who advanced would receive ample (http://www.althanas.com/world/showthread.php?p=162512&highlight=large+amounts+exception#post162512) bonuses (http://www.althanas.com/world/showpost.php?p=162696&postcount=8) compared to typical battles or tournaments. Moreover, a member-made multi-participant battle (http://www.althanas.com/world/showthread.php?p=142147#post142147) in the Citadel netted even higher rewards than that, even though it was less taxing (written over almost two months, or 6 if you count the last post) from being judged as a quest. Then again, maybe some of the bonus came from the six month wait for the judgment, but I'm not sure how that can be verified.

In short, for a staff-administrated event that solicited much more dedication and sustained effort from all of its participants, the rewards it provides are even lesser than that of a typical, ten-post Citadel battle with similar (if not lower) scores. Something seems slightly off about this, but perhaps there is plausible explanation, and I've merely overlooked it. My apologies for the possibly troublesome post, if that is the case.

If not, however, then those who in part joined after reading this blurb:



Might find that this event did not quite perform as advertised. It's a small matter, but even so it does affect a lot of the participants. A review of this might prove beneficial to everyone, and to the continued success of future tournament endeavors.This discrepancy might be due to the fact that both Godhand and myself (not including Dissinger who is level 13) effectively play with characters that are at about level eight or nine. Actually, I think Godhand's last update was level seven, but I could be wrong. Still, even if that's the case (which would make some sense EXP-wise), the EXP shouldn't have been calculated according to that. If we awarded EXP like that, then Visla, for example, would've been receiving level zero EXP until yesterday when he did an update. Which would be bad.

Am I going to be able to update Ulysses' profile before the next round begins? That much experience ought to bring him up a level, and I'd like very much to have some new skills and stuff. I could definitely post an updated profile today, would that be enough time for it to be approved?Yes, it would. :)

[Silence Sei]

I don't suppose -I- could update Sei before round 2, even though he didn't level?

And can anybody help me learn how to play a level 6? I'm so used to downplaying Sei's abilities that when I started treated him at his current level, I was penalized for three conclusions. I'm not complaining, it's a fair judgement, but a lot of it has to do with the fact that I'm so used to not playing my character as if he's level 1-2 that I don't know how strong a level 6 is supposed to be.

[Nayeli]

Yes, it would. :)

Oh, you just want me to have some cool new skillz 'cause I'm on your team. ;) But okay, speed-update awaaaaay!

[Bloodrose]

I like Atzar's score in T-chamber:

Atzar Kellon –

Story: 17/30
Character: 17/30
Writing Style: 17/30
Wildcard: 17/30
Total: 56/100

He's all special and gets a wildcard out of 30, while everyone else only gets out of 10! Luckily it's just a typo though, since his actual score doesn't reflect the inflated wildcard numbers, but it still caught me off guard as I was reading everyone's commentary.

Also, like Ataraxis was kind enough to point out, Teric is not dead. Please don't describe him as such, Max, if you can avoid it, because it's fairly crucial to my opening post.

[Ataraxis]

No problem, I'm just a friendly neighborhood nitpicker doing my job.


Atzar Kellon –

Story: 17/30
Character: 17/30
Writing Style: 17/30
Wildcard: 17/30
Total: 56/100


Well, somebody got carried away with copy-paste, eh?

[Kade Underbough]

This basically went as I would have expected. Those that moved on deserved to do so, and I doubled my gold on my Kade and Amaril accounts due to Max's lack of faith. :D I believe I saved Numbers Guy 1000 gold as well. I can't remember the last time I felt my heart thumping as I was writing post and as the round went on I could feel my writing getting close to back to where it has been in the past. I had a blast.

[Atzar]

Oh, you just want me to have some cool new skillz 'cause I'm on your team. ;) But okay, speed-update awaaaaay!

I'm not sure you'll be able to use him as a level one, though - I asked Dirks about this over AIM about a week ago, and he said I wouldn't be able to level between rounds.

Hopefully he'll post here to clear that up.


Congratulations to everybody who participated, and added congratulations to all those who are advancing. There are a couple of surprises in the next round - and therefore, a couple of surprises that aren't in the next round - but overall I'm happy to be moving on.

Unfortunately, I'm about as useful as a box of tissues in a forest fire now. The next round might be over swiftly for me, unless somebody wants to help me out. [/shameless appeal for mercy]

[Silence Sei]

Unfortunately, I'm about as useful as a box of tissues in a forest fire now. The next round might be over swiftly for me, unless somebody wants to help me out. [/shameless appeal for mercy]


Honestly, I think the only ones who aren't beat up to hell and back are Godhand and Ataraxis. I mean, Teric survived but from what I understand, he's pretty badly hurt too.

This will be like paraplegics in a fist fight.

[Nayeli]

I guess it doesn't matter much if I get to play as level one or not--the only really relevant update was that my swordsmanship went from "above average" to "skilled." Doesn't really make a huge difference.

I might actually be at an advantage because I'm pretty sure Ulysses will be in good condition. Considering that the lethal/killing wound gets healed, and Ulysses got killed pretty much in one hit, I think I'll have are a couple cuts and bruises. Does that sound right?

[Silence Sei]

Pffff I'm actually in pretty good condition.

Considering that the lethal wound gets healed, and Ulysses got killed pretty much in one hit, I'm pretty sure all I'll have are a couple cuts and bruises. :)

True enough.

I don't suppose Ul has heard of Sei's exploits as much as he's heard of Letho's, huh?

[Nayeli]

True enough.

I don't suppose Ul has heard of Sei's exploits as much as he's heard of Letho's, huh?

Ummmm I doubt it. Would Sei be famous enough to be known to a random fisherman on Scara Brae?

Nonetheless, I think a Letho/Sei/Ulysses alliance would work quite well. ;)

[Max Dirks]

Until this point, this is what I assumed powergaming to be. At no point did I produce an action on someone without their permission, and none of my terrain-changing antics were actions that were 'forced' on anyone. There's a level 6 profile that can make rifts in space that gush out never-ending waves of lava, which is nothing compared to what I did.

If you still claim this is powergaming, then you're operating under a different definition from the rest of us.No, I'm not. This is ripped right from the site rules (see FAQ above) under Battles:
"Powergaming and Bunnying" : Two things you want to avoid in a battle are powergaming and bunnying. Powergaming is when your character performs an action that is above their abilities, or performs some sort of special move or spell that is not in their profile., usually leaving the other character defenseless against the attack. Bunnying is when you control another player’s character without getting permission to do so.Let me know where you found that definition, Rayse, and I'll remove it.
I remember it was mentioned that considering the added difficulties of this Cell, those who advanced would receive ample bonuses compared to typical battles or tournaments. I used a hybrid curve that relied primarily on score and post count rather than character level. Scores in this tournament (probably because I was judging it) were lower than the previous Cell. Ultimately, lower level characters made out better than higher level characters.

On another note, contrary to what this seems to imply, Bloodrose did not die in his chamber, as can be read in this excerpt:Indeed, that was one of the last things I put up last night. At three in the morning after judging for 7 hours, in fact. I'll edit that out.
He's all special and gets a wildcard out of 30, while everyone else only gets out of 10! Luckily it's just a typo though, since his actual score doesn't reflect the inflated wildcard numbers, but it still caught me off guard as I was reading everyone's commentary.Not copy/paste, just fast typing in Word. That should be a five if I'm not mistaken.

Finally, for all of you concerned with mid-round level updates, here's the general Althanas rules on those:
Character Levels: It is likely that, between tournament rounds, characters may receive enough EXP to raise a level. If a character has a level update approved before the beginning of the next round, that character will be allowed to use any new powers or skill upgrades for the rest of the tournament.

I'm here for any other questions and comments you might have.

[Silence Sei]

If said Fisherman ever stepped foot in Radasanth, yes. Sei's the 'Hero of Radasanth' just as much as Letho is 'Hero of Corone'. Not to mention the fact that his home is a big ass cave that sits in the middle of a park in Radadsanth for all to see.

[Nayeli]

If said Fisherman ever stepped foot in Radasanth, yes. Sei's the 'Hero of Radasanth' just as much as Letho is 'Hero of Corone'. Not to mention the fact that his home is a big ass cave that sits in the middle of a park in Radadsanth for all to see.

Haha, well Ulysses has spent some time in Radasanth, so in that case I think it's reasonable to say that he's heard of Sei. Probably not as familiar as he is with Letho, but still, if he's famous then yes.

[Christoph]

Scores in this tournament (probably because I was judging it) were lower than the previous Cell. Ultimately, lower level characters made out better than higher level characters.

At least you acknowledge that you score low. :p But not to put too fine a point on it, it strikes me as rather unfair to the higher-level players who entered on the promise of good rewards (almost everyone, I'd wager). With few exceptions, most participants received less EXP than a normal battle would have granted. This contradicts previous statements (http://www.althanas.com/world/showpost.php?p=162696&postcount=8) that the extra effort required in the Cell would be rewarded.


Because since it's not a traditional battle with a defined winning score and a defined losing score, the EXP amounts are largely arbitrary. I happen to be rather liberal with my distribution curve as to reward those who stuck with it. It's hard work posting every day when you have to read one post. Reading through (ideally) 12 posts, taking note of every detail and replying is tough work. Where I come from folks get rewarded for tough work.

Most players clearly weren't rewarded, but rather were penalized, for their hard work. I wasn't here for the last Cell, but as I understand it, this contradicts the point of the tournament.


I'm not all that bothered about not advancing, as it leaves me more time for other things. No stressing out over posting every day and all that nonsense. It did seem odd that a lot of the scores didn't seem to match the comments. Just as one example, I didn't receive any negative comments regarding my Writing Style elements, yet I scored the same in that category as Ulysses, who received quite a few negative WS comments (nothing against Ulysses, of course, who did a decent job in general). I'm curious about that, since it's hard to really gauge based on a single paragraph.

[Max Dirks]

Just as one example, I didn't receive any negative comments regarding my Writing Style elements, yet I scored the same in that category as Ulysses, who received quite a few negative WS comments (nothing against Ulysses, of course, who did a decent job in general)This is a valid concern.

Remember though, there are three aspects of Writing Style: Technique, Mechanics, and Clarity. Your technique was certainly higher than hers in some aspects (particularly with respect to using brevity to manipulate pacing), but she did a much better job than you of using literary techniques (irony, foreshadowing and the like). Save the excessive comma usage, your mechanics were roughly the same. Finally, I felt that her writing was clearer than yours. When balanced out, the score must be the same. I don't judge arbitrarily. In fact, I've pioneered "comparative judging," meaning your scores are directly compared to the others to determine who did best in each individual category.

Furthermore, this is a tournament that is designed for the best of the best. I try to limit my commentary to only the most noticeable strengths and flaws.

[Max Dirks]

Double post: though I disagree, Atzar has generally convinced me to modify the way I administered the EXP to give a bit more favor to Level. As such, look for your EXP amounts to be lifted. If they don't lift, I'll shift about GP to help out the lower levels.

[Ataraxis]

That's great to hear, so thank you for that.

And here's a bit of harmless nitpicking about Chris' situation. I did read the Treslizn Chamber, and although their techniques were balanced out, the difference in their mechanics was much larger than the difference between their levels of clarity, and your comments actually seem to reflect that. Technically, due to this point in writing style, his total score would at least be one point higher (56 instead of 55 against Ulysses 57), if not a tie.

Like I said, just nitpicking, as I am wont to do. I don't really desire or expect any changes, but it seemed fair to at least point this out. Not pronouncing myself on any of the two other categories, though.

[Atzar]

Honestly, I think the only ones who aren't beat up to hell and back are Godhand and Ataraxis. I mean, Teric survived but from what I understand, he's pretty badly hurt too.

This will be like paraplegics in a fist fight.

Yeah, at least you have something pointy to put in other people though.

EDIT: I was going to edit that to find a less double-entendre-y way to word it, but I think it's funnier the way it is.

[Letho]

He also has only one arm to do it. ;)

[Ataraxis]

Actually, apparently, his arm grew back at some point. True story.

[Duffy]

I take it from Ulyssess new bio and the like, that we're okay to count the XP gained from this as 'acquired?' Technically Duffy is level three, although at the current rate i'm on 10,500, so might as well wait until level 4 for a bigger update.

(Task has alot of work to catch up on when he gets back :D)

[Max Dirks]

Small clarification on between round level updates. Generally they are allowed, but because I plan on making the Cell continuous I have decided to nix that. Thus, your characters power level must be the same as it was when you registered for the tournament. I'll add a general note to the Rules and Regulations thread later today.

[Breaker]

When does round two start?

[Duffy]

I take it from that Max, that I'm free to start at least writing my update as I'm eliminated from the tournament?

[Silence Sei]

When does round two start?

Midnight tommorrow night.

So technically, 'Thursday'.

[Rayse Valentino]

No, I'm not. This is ripped right from the site rules (see FAQ above) under Battles: "Powergaming and Bunnying" : Two things you want to avoid in a battle are powergaming and bunnying. Powergaming is when your character performs an action that is above their abilities, or performs some sort of special move or spell that is not in their profile., usually leaving the other character defenseless against the attack. Bunnying is when you control another player’s character without getting permission to do so.

Man, I haven't looked at that page in years. So you're using the bunnying definition for powergaming, two words which are synonymous everywhere non-Althanas, and gave powergaming its own special definition. That's fine, although it still doesn't apply to me.

I guess using fire isn't in my profile? Or above my level? Maybe generating heat isn't in my profile, or even surrounding myself with the heat I generated? Without explicitly stating what I did wrong, it's obvious you're just BSing to get back me in some visceral passive aggressive way.

edits: Dirks IM'd me with a list of 'powergaming actions'. I debunked all of them (some of them are things I didn't even do) but he still claims I powergamed. I guess it's like accusing someone of rape, even if they didn't do it they're still guilty.

edit2: VVVVVV Hey don't get me wrong I would've been perfectly fine with Dirks telling me I was shitty, it's what I expected after all, but let's not confuse debunking false claims with the additional false assumption that I think it would change the outcome of the scores.

[Visla Eraclaire]

edits: Dirks IM'd me with a list of 'powergaming actions'. I debunked all of them (some of them are things I didn't even do) but he still claims I powergamed. I guess it's like accusing someone of rape, even if they didn't do it they're still guilty.

Well reasoned indeed. (http://lmgtfy.com/?q=BAWWWW&l=1)

False rape accusations are a lot like losing a contest on an online roleplaying site. Get Godhand in here to say his catchphrase.

On the topic of things way less important than Rayse, like for instance The Cell as a whole, I have to admit that this has turned out much better than I would have predicted, though it still isn't my cup of tea. My cup of tea has liquor in it.

[Ataraxis]

So, it's 2 AM EST, 1 AM CST. Thursday, April 29th. Something seems to be amiss, but maybe that's just me. Unless it was midnight at the end of Thursday (thus technically Friday), though that's not the convention and no one seems to have corrected Sei when he (rightfully) assumed otherwise.

[Breaker]

Let's all whine about this!

[Tainted Bushido]

Wow first Rayse with his trolls, now you, did someone drop a troll virus or something?

[Max Dirks]

Sorry folks, I've been having some severe connection issues this evening and haven't been able to adequately prepare for the tournament. It will begin tomorrow at midnight rather than tonight. If my Internet stays connected long enough, I'll post an update in the Mazrith Chamber.

[Silence Sei]

I demand a free level up for all the contestants of the cell, seeing as we were all put out by your 'interweb trouble'

XD

[Christoph]

Wow first Rayse with his trolls, now you, did someone drop a troll virus or something?

We may need to implement a quarantine.

[Bloodrose]

Just a point of clarification:

Since a lot of us have skills that are limited to a certain number of uses per thread (and since these battles are being considered "continuous" and most everyone is beat to shit), are we all operating under the assumption that skills used in the previous battles count towards this thread as well?

Example: If you have a skill that's limited to "3 uses per thread" and you used it twice in your original battle, you have one shot left for this battle?

Or are we going with the literal "per thread" and all our beat up meatbags magically have their skills replenished?

If there's no official word on the matter, I vote we all assume our limited-use skills are NOT replenished. Seems to fit more with the theme, and should make things more interesting (cause everyone being 3/4 dead isn't already interesting enough :D).

[The Trap Master]

Just a point of clarification:

Since a lot of us have skills that are limited to a certain number of uses per thread (and since these battles are being considered "continuous" and most everyone is beat to shit), are we all operating under the assumption that skills used in the previous battles count towards this thread as well?

Example: If you have a skill that's limited to "3 uses per thread" and you used it twice in your original battle, you have one shot left for this battle?

Or are we going with the literal "per thread" and all our beat up meatbags magically have their skills replenished?

If there's no official word on the matter, I vote we all assume our limited-use skills are NOT replenished. Seems to fit more with the theme, and should make things more interesting (cause everyone being 3/4 dead isn't already interesting enough :D).

I talked to Max about it like two days ago. Magic is -not- replenished.

I repeat, magic used 'per thread' is -not- replenished between cell rounds.

[Breaker]

Just a point of clarification:

Since a lot of us have skills that are limited to a certain number of uses per thread (and since these battles are being considered "continuous" and most everyone is beat to shit), are we all operating under the assumption that skills used in the previous battles count towards this thread as well?

Example: If you have a skill that's limited to "3 uses per thread" and you used it twice in your original battle, you have one shot left for this battle?

Or are we going with the literal "per thread" and all our beat up meatbags magically have their skills replenished?

If there's no official word on the matter, I vote we all assume our limited-use skills are NOT replenished. Seems to fit more with the theme, and should make things more interesting (cause everyone being 3/4 dead isn't already interesting enough :D).

+1

[Bloodrose]

I talked to Max about it like two days ago. Magic is -not- replenished.

I repeat, magic used 'per thread' is -not- replenished between cell rounds.

That's what I figured, but I thought I'd get it down in writing so everyone could be on the same page.

[Max Dirks]

Magic is not replenished. This will be good and raw.

[Ataraxis]

Alright, I asked around and I'm not exactly the only one who found the description and map of the Cell even more confusing than it was before. Rather than wait until it becomes clear, I've made up a few hypotheses on paint, that you may point out which one is the right one. If none of them are, it could be problematic, since these are possibilities that came up while discussing with others (some participants, some not).

http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h158/Necathys/Cell/MAPCELL.png?t=1272700092

http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h158/Necathys/Cell/CELLMAP2.png

http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h158/Necathys/Cell/twilight_cell.jpg

But seriously, I'm being serious (the third one was not serious).

[Max Dirks]

The second is correct. I realize my little text drawing didn't format correctly.

[Ataraxis]

So, what are Dirks and Phagan standing on? A 15-foot tall tower of adamantine in the middle of the Mazrith chamber? Meaning Aeq and Trez were not separated by a wall of adamantine, but a transparent force-field that would have allowed them to see what was happening in the other chamber?

Also, in the previous round, there seemed to be a big confusion about whether anyone could physically touch the adamantine walls, or if they were protected by the force-field (which would have made them useless in Round 1). It's moot now, since the field is down, but I'm curious as to which it was.

[Letho]

Dirks, I'm working under the assumption that Ulysses gets a bullet to the head for not posting in a timely manner. I can't leave him out of my post because of continuity, so I'm going to make Dirks shoot him in my post. If you have problems with this, let me know and I'll edit or something.

[Max Dirks]

So, what are Dirks and Phagan standing on? A 15-foot tall tower of adamantine in the middle of the Mazrith chamber? Meaning Aeq and Trez were not separated by a wall of adamantine, but a transparent force-field that would have allowed them to see what was happening in the other chamber?That's right. In fact, several people in the Treslizn chamber took note of the actions of the Aequitas chamber during the battle. The intent was for each chamber to be independent of each other in the first round, then I would combine the two for the second. Now that I look at it, the original round would have been a combination of picture 1 and 2 that you drew. The difference would be that the original arenas were more ovular. Please excuse me if my descriptions were poor.
Also, in the previous round, there seemed to be a big confusion about whether anyone could physically touch the adamantine walls, or if they were protected by the force-field (which would have made them useless in Round 1). It's moot now, since the field is down, but I'm curious as to which it was. Of course you can touch the wall, but running magical fire up it and ripping a portion of it out (and subsequently throwing and crumbling it into a little ball) is too excessive. Adamantine is made from prevalida, mythril, spider silk and other potent materials. It would eat magic and be indestructible based on all of your individual character levels and abilities. I gave you and Sei a break when you otherwise interacted with the shield portion, but like you said its moot now. The only shield left is around Dirks.

Hope that answers your questions.

Letho, feel free to bunny me and I will respond to your post in turn.

[Ataraxis]

More or less, so thanks.

As for the points you brought up: the crumbling into a little ball, I think, refers to Lillian's meteor hammer? However, this was done in direct response to Numbers' defining the doors as being made of iron, rather than adamantine. Instead of ignoring someone else's actions, since they weren't DQed for it, I went along with that description for reasons of continuity. The fact that I continuously referred to the door as being made iron in the posts should also have clarified this stance. In terms of power, that was also well within the limitations of her current character profile, as it states she can bend dehlar with effort, and I underplayed that ability by making her struggle somewhat to bend mere iron.

My reasons of continuity also apply to Sei's actions, as he succesfully stabbed into the indestructible force-field and climbed up in this manner: since it was accepted as a legal action, I deemed that simply using the force-field as a solid surface was in no way an abusive action, especially when considering the interaction between the force-field and the rain in your first post. If it were meant to disintegrate people, it should have vaporized any water coming into contact with it, but this was mentioned nowhere, and as such the rain would have simply slid off the field. If it acts as a solid surface to rain, it acts as a solid surface to anything else, including Lillian's feet, even if she were using adhesive webs on it. Since all actions were based on official information, as well as actions of participants that were considered approved by absence of disqualification, I believe that none of the actions described in Lillian's posts required any sort of 'legal break' or 'letting it slide' mindset, though I thank you for the otherwise good intentions.

Moreover, here is the one official definition of Adamantine that can be found in the Bazaar FAQ:


First and foremost is Adamantine. No normal substance can harm adamantine, cause it to lose shape or edge, and among "abnormal" substances the only one known to even pose a threat to adamantine is icemold (see below). Adamantine appears as either a tan stony substance or a steely metallic substance, although different ancient weapons-mages and craftsmen often "signed" their creations with special tinges or colors. Adamantine items are relics from a time before and during the Wars of the Tap, and can only be made by a mage using the entire Eternal Tap. As such, no adamantine items have been made since the end of those wars. Based on ancient texts, the only known method of creating adamantine suggests that it is an alloy, as it describes a process by which mythril and prevalida ores are melted together over a fire stoked by liviol wood and kindled on a bed of Njalian Spidersilk; the entire thing must, of course, be presided over by a mage feeding the power of the Eternal Tap into the mixture. There may still be other means, altogether unknown, of crafting adamantine, but anyone who discovers such a method is bound to keep it a dead secret in order to maintain the high price of what they create.

There is no description mentioning any capacity to eat magic, and none of the players currently using adamantine weapons seem to be aware of this new property you speak of (infusing Tap Magic during the smelting process implies no inherent ability to absorb any and all magic, the same way an enchanted weapon does not). While it does state indestructibility, it does not say anywhere that the metal does not vibrate: in fact, the simple fact that knocking on adamantine would create a sound means that it would be able to vibrate, and thus, to absorb heat (as heat would increase the vibration of its particles). As long as the adamantine did not melt or lose shape (which it did not), then heating up the area either through physical or magical means would be physically viable, and does not violate any of the specified properties of adamantine in the canon accessible to players.

I hope that this clarifies.

[Max Dirks]

I'm not even sure why you are bringing this up. It appears like you're not happy with my decisions regarding power gaming in the first round. Frankly, your pattern of attempting to undermine every thing I say or do is getting frustrating. To put this issue to rest, I'll submit to you the following:
The fact that I continuously referred to the door as being made iron in the posts should also have clarified this stance. Which is why only 016573 was actually punished for his manipulation of the door. Once the interpretation was skewed, it would be unfair to punish everyone else. This is particularly true in light of the general advice I give for opponents effected by power gaming: "Work through it."
My reasons of continuity also apply to Sei's actions, as he succesfully stabbed into the indestructible force-field and climbed up in this manner: since it was accepted as a legal action, I deemed that simply using the force-field as a solid surface was in no way an abusive action, especially when considering the interaction between the force-field and the rain in your first post.The spirit of the force field is to prevent the sort of garbage that happened last time during the finals where a level 0 hushpuppy abused virtually all parts of the setting to pull out a victory against higher leveled foes. Neither your attack, nor Sei's, damaged the integral purpose of the field, therefore I "let it slide." Perhaps a better term is that it "was not power gaming."
There is no description mentioning any capacity to eat magic, and none of the players currently using adamantine weapons seem to be aware of this new property you speak of (infusing Tap Magic during the smelting process implies no inherent ability to absorb any and all magic, the same way an enchanted weapon does not). It's a common rule of geology that when two minerals combine their offspring inherits the attributes of their parents. For clarification purposes, I will have the bazaar staff add the magic absorbing quality to the official description.
As long as the adamantine did not melt or lose shape (which it did not), then heating up the area either through physical or magical means would be physically viable, and does not violate any of the specified properties of adamantine in the canon accessible to players. When metal heats, particles move faster and it eventually loses form. In canon, it says that adamantine cannot melt or lose it's form. Therefore, it it appropriate to infer to the contrary that adamantine will not absorb heat. Again, this is something that I will have the bazaar moderators add. When the Bazaar rules were being made, it was decided that adamantine would be the strongest material on Althanas: indestructible and generally unavailable to the public. It was something to be desired, but nigh achievable. Finally, in keeping with the spirit of the shield/arena, it was my desire for it to remain largely unaffected by player actions.

I hope that clears up my interpretation of the situation. If you would like to further discuss my decision in the tournament, I encourage you to come to me privately.

[Visla Eraclaire]

Wow, we're discussing fantasy metallurgy now. I sure am glad not to be a party to that.

[Ataraxis]

For for the vibrations: adamantine can still be broken by Icemold, an abnormal substance with abnormal effects. This being said, I very much doubt something much more powerful, such as a supernova exploding, would leave adamantine intact. No character will ever achieve this level of power, and as such, the alloy is considered virtually indestructible. This means it can vibrate, but that it would require millions of times the heat generated during the Aequitas battle to warp it. It did not warp, but it still vibrates, and still becomes hot to the touch.

To close the matter of adamantine: alloys do inherit properties from their components, but they are mitigated by the percentage of composition. Delyn is a good example of this, as it incorporates a good balance of the properties of Dehlar and Damascus. Considering adamantine is made of mythril (which is weak against offensive magic yet very conductive to enchantments) and prevalida (which is good for both), but that neither of those metals absorb or cancel magic by definition, the adamantine would require a note in the Bazaar saying that this is indeed a new property. Since you say you're doing this, then I have no concerns about this point anymore: as long as it’s in the canon and that people know of it, then I’m content.

As Visla said, however, this is fantasy metallurgy. I reiterate: as long as the nebulous becomes clear, and that this new information is available in a canon that is accessible to all players, then it’s good.

Moreover, the points I bring up are not meant to change your decision at the end of Round 1. Even if we had an option for appeals, I have absolutely no intention or desire of putting anyone through that laborious and unfulfilling process. My only intention was to clarify why people made certain mistakes because of understandable misunderstandings (such as the information being unavailable), or why certain actions were not mistakes, as you seemed to have implied in a previous post. Many have expressed a desire to explain themselves, but few bothered because they were afraid of sounding like sore losers or suffering from sour grapes, so I felt it was fair to present their point of view as a third party.

I’m sorry if you take the points I bring up personally, but I’ve made a point of expressing valid concerns that are shared by other participants, in a tone as neutral as a can muster, with the occasional lighter note (which I believe you took for sarcasm). Considering it’s been mostly a discussion between you and me, it’s understandable that you can’t take much of anything I say seriously or objectively. Still, know that I would have actually preferred not to speak at all, if most of the people who did share any of the these concerns I brought up hadn't chosen not to express their qualms, in fear of being ignored, dismissed, or insulted – which, I regret to say, did happen in this thread.

A lot of people have lost faith in this tournament, and contrary to what you may think, I’m bringing all these points up for a chance to rekindle their interest, either as participants or readers. If you deem my intervention to be unnecessary, however, I will remove myself from this discussion.

I will agree to your terms, and end this here. I will, however, respectfully decline the offer of continuing this conversation privately, as we both know how that will go.

I apologize to anyone I may have incommoded with my posts, and hope you may all resume your discussions as before.

[Saxon]

I like how the law student is the one lecturing Jean who is actually an engineer over the semantics of metallurgy of a ficticious metal with random facts over geology to cover up the fact he's adding rules after the fact. AND he's getting frustrated over it. Makes for good TV.

http://content.ytmnd.com/content/f/2/8/f28814974d3e13516658bd48817dd0b9.gif

[Christoph]

http://bookreviewsbybobbie.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/troll.jpg

[TheOrganism]

Lol @ Trolling example ^^^

[Breaker]

Sorry for the stupid post kids. I edited so Josh just throws a normal rock at Teric, I'll have to edit the rest later because I gotta get to work... thanks for playing through in my absence.

[Aiko]

Reading your post, I should note Max, that your sword is reduced to an odd looking dagger in length now, that's how much got consumed. The rest, is history. Now, if you'd like, I'd be happy to make you a new one, provided you went on a quest with me to both acquire the materials, and unlock the reconstruction program files in Esmerelda's operating system, after of course, you resurrect her. It will have an atom edge, and be by far, the sharpest sword made through non-magical processes in Althanas, due entirely to the way in which she will make it, constructing it atom by atom.

I should note, that her spikes are scattered around the area she exploded in, along with portions of her limbs, making for potential unlikely weapons. Should anyone care to use them.

[Max Dirks]

Just to clarify the rules, since there was some confusion.

The three hour grace period only applies when you are going to miss your post because your character cannot reasonably alter course without a reply from the other player. For example, Sei attacks Bloodrose, but Bloodrose does not post again. When it is Sei's turn to post again, if I haven't already DQed Bloodrose, Sei can request the 3 hour grace period to alter his post based on Bloodrose's absence. It cannot be used to circumvent the 24 posting rule by awaiting a "dodge" or "defense" from another player that has not yet been posted by the time it's your turn.

Hope that clears things up.

[Letho]

Well, I wrapped it up on my side. Rushed it a little bit, but whatever.

Just wanted to say that it was great to write with all of you. Also, I finally got a chance to work with Bloodrose, which was something I wanted to do for a while. Shame the Cell is such a hectic environment that it all boiled down to a couple exchanged blows. Still, pretty cool.

At any rate, for someone who typically hates tournaments, I had a good time. In the end, good luck to all of you and may the best writer wins.

[Hysteria]

At any rate, for someone who typically hates tournaments, I had a good time. In the end, good luck to all of you and may the best writer wins.

I liked it too. Even though I found myself completely outclassed just on the power of characters, I thought everyone was pretty good at giving the weaker characters a chance to get involved and it was pretty good to see the range of writing styles and characters that are being used on the board.

So yeah, kudos to Dirks and the participants.

[Visla Eraclaire]

Well this has gone out with a whimper, hasn't it?

Sixteen days since it was completed, not a word on a final resolution.

As someone pointed out to me, it took half as much time to write (April 30-May 8) as to judge (May 8-May 24 and counting)

[Max Dirks]

Having recently graduated and completed bar applications, I hope you of all people would understand the delay. I also have no Internet outside of work and the coffee shop. Fear not, it shall be judged, but I'm not sure of exactly when quite yet.

[Visla Eraclaire]

Delegate it, and if you aren't going to be regularly around (which is understandable given the bar situation) delegate much more so that the site can be smoothly administered in your absence.

[Christoph]

So uh, it's been almost another three weeks. I don't really care one way or another about round two (though it'd be cool to see who won), but I would like to have the EXP from round one added, and as I understand it, that won't happen until round two has been judged. So... I think everyone has been patient and understanding so far, but this is getting just a little absurd.

Not to put too fine a point on it, but what's the hold up?

[Silence Sei]

Max has had bar exams and a sloppy net connection due to personal issues. He gave me his word that the Cell Judgement would be finished by this weekend, as he is finally freed up enough to do it.

[Visla Eraclaire]

FYI, the bar exam is no excuse for this. He's not taking a real bar (Maryland) and he isn't even studying.

Net connection is a legit excuse, but he should have delegated this a long time ago.

[Silence Sei]

Perhaps he should have spoken to you all about it, but whenever I aksed he told me he would be on it soon. One occasion said he actually just had to re-read to double-check his scores and make sure he didn't miss anything.

As far as his net connection, he can only get wi-fi at a nearby coffee shop. When the shops closed, he can't do much about anything. Between the exam, and work, He hasn't had much time to stay online at said coffee shop.

[Visla Eraclaire]

I'm not arguing with any of that. I'm just informing everyone that the bar isn't until late July and that is not a valid excuse. I'm actually studying, unlike him, and I still have time to sneer at the lateness of this

[Gable Rose]

And you know he's not studying how?

[Christoph]

He’s really into voyeurism.

[Rayse Valentino]

To be fair, this isn't the first time where a staff member has gone afk and none of the other staff could be bothered to pick up the slack.

See: The FQ.

See: The Dajas Pagoda.

See: My god, just about every tournament?

[Silence Sei]

You keep a talking but all I hear is 'wah wah wah'.

:D

[Rayse Valentino]

I don't know where this sudden spree of trolling came from, but rest assured any plans I had of doing threads with you are gone.

[Silence Sei]

I'm hurt by that, I really am. So much so that whenever someone tells me I'm whining about something I'll refuse to ever do threads with them as well.

So, anyone wanna take a gamble that Max was just waiting for most participants to become inactive so he could make a third cell and beat us all due to not posting on our behalfs?

Seems like a decently underhanded move....by that I mean I'd do it.

[Visla Eraclaire]

And you know he's not studying how?

Talked to him yesterday. I'm actually just busting his balls because he's taking an easy bar.