A word on voting

[Vic Wertz]

A few have asked about the number of votes cast, and other such details. We're not going to provide exact numbers, but I will tell you this:

Hundreds of people voted for their favorites, yet the difference between making the Top 16 and getting knocked out of the competition came down to a single vote.

So if you're a fan of a particular contestant, vote for them. Don't assume that other people will get them through. Your vote absolutely can be the difference!

[Adam Daigle]

I'm amazed that this hasn't been replied to yet. My only question, which I understand if you do not wish to answer, is did more people vote in this round than entered in the first round? Juss wonderin'.

[Ross Byers]

I had 2 friends who forgot to vote by the deadline.

I better not have been 17th or they will never hear the end of it (well, 18th, since there was a dropout.)

[Joel Flank]

Same here, but luckily, they're not going to say who was next in line, so there's nothing to worry about.

[Daniele Nanni]

So, I know this can't be helped -- it's what happens when you open the vote to the public -- but is this something we should really encourage?

How are we encouraging the "Superstar" tag if we're encouraging people to vote for people they like, rather than voting for the work that represents what a superstar really is?

Wouldn't this also defeat the discouragement of using your friends as editors, especially when it comes to stat-blocking since the 16 contestants aren't allowed to have anyone edit their work? You can be lazy on the editing if you know you have friends that will back you up regardless of how sloppy you may have gotten.

If you're talking about a one vote difference, then someone who's submission that might be so-so may actually trump a submission that was more worthwhile, simply because they had more people vote for a name rather than quality.

Again, I know it can't be helped when we're leaving this to the public to decide, especially on forums where free accounts can be made and voting is anonymous. But, should it actually be encouraged, especially with all of this talk about what a superstar should really be? Should it really come down to a personality contest?

Maybe I just interpreted this comment the wrong way.

[Joel Flank]

I think in the last round, it may have mattered slightly for the #15-16 spots, but in future rounds, with fewer entries, only the best will advance. I also had some misgivings about having friends vote for me just because I had made it in, but I figured that:

a) not all of them would even vote that said they would (which was the case)
b) if friends and family asked about it, I wasn't going to say, "no, you're not a gamer, and your vote isn't good enough for me"
c) I figure that everyone will have their own small group of votes (mom, spouse, weekly gaming buddies, etc.) and it would basically cancel out.
d) some of my gaming buddies that voted for me had never really checked out the Paizo site and messageboards, and now they have - so that's a good thing. Who knows, they might make the difference in a future round with their votes.

[Nem-Z]

I suspect that with half as many contestants but only one fewer vote the odds are actually more in favor of amusing entires than last time. People are simply more likely to have an extra vote after picking their favorites from the pack.

[Vic Wertz]

Qor wrote:

Maybe I just interpreted this comment the wrong way.

I think so. When I said "if you're a fan of a particular contestant, vote for them," I was trying to say "if you're a fan of a particular contestant's work, vote for them," and not "if you're a friend of a particular contestant, vote for them."

I'd also like to add that while one vote made the difference in getting to the top 16, the difference between the top of the list and the bottom of the list amounted to hundreds of votes. So I do not believe that anyone who does poor work is likely to get by for very long.

[gbonehead]

Vic Wertz wrote:

I'd also like to add that while one vote made the difference in getting to the top 16, the difference between the top of the list and the bottom of the list amounted to hundreds of votes. So I do not believe that anyone who does poor work is likely to get by for very long.

Heck, to even get into the top 32, they had to get past the Triad of Doom, so in effect, I'd say there's no way to be in it at all unless you stand out in some manner.