I'm glad I had been working on an idea before I found out I advanced. Because I lose the entirety of Friday due to work. And I won't get home until well after the deadline, so I have to be finished and confident of it by tomorrow night.
Egad, the Paizo word count tool is even more evil this round than it was the last. It's like the more it gets used the closer it comes to awakening and opening a portal to hell.
So I've got a reasonable second or third draft of my archetype done. My initial draft was over 700 words, I trimmed a LOT of fat off, and now have it reasonably under, by my word counter. 428 words. I figure I can narrow it just a wee bit more and then I'll have room to add something back in that I wasn't comfortable with deleting from the first go. Before doing that, I figured I'd see what the official word count is, just to get an idea of where I really stand. (For my magic item, my unofficial word count ran about 5 or so words behind the official one.)
428 words on my system equal 449 words by the official count.
:::Sob:::
Hmm. My word count on OpenOffice is identical to the submission tool's word count.
I, too, have trimmed the fat. My current draft is 139 words smaller than the highest word count it reached. I think that it's better for it.
21 word difference between official and program? That's a significant difference.
21 word difference between official and program? That's a significant difference.
That's a bit scary.
I haven't submitted yet, but my intial design was 561 words, and then I trimmed it down to 444, but it just totally lost its character. Working on another archetype now, hopefully I'll find something that is just right! :D
Best of luck to everyone on trimming the fat! :)
21 word difference between official and program? That's a significant difference.
It is, though in Paizo's defense, I'm not using any kind of fancy WP program to count, (since I don't have a fancy WP program at the moment) but rather an online word counter I've been using for years. Which is clearly not up to industry standards. But it just makes me feel better to shake my fist at the official submission tool. :-)
Well I'm actually still under. Just finish the first peer and personal review. Got some choppy sentences I need to fix up tomorrow. Should probably get some sleep though...nearly 4 Am now for me.
I have a couple I'm still toying with and one is around 445 words and I still need to two more words for ability names. We'll see what the word counter thinks of that. One of my other ideas shouldn't have a problem. Can I say this is my least favorite round? Not that it's bad, but this is definitely the round I knew I would find very challenging and was most looking forward to seeing other people's designs.
I'm glad I had been working on an idea before I found out I advanced. Because I lose the entirety of Friday due to work. And I won't get home until well after the deadline, so I have to be finished and confident of it by tomorrow night.
I am in the same boat as far as work. If I didn't have progress reviews to hand out to my people, I would take work off. As it is, I'm going to try to leave early and finalize my archetype Thursday night/Friday morning because Friday day is a bust for me as well.
I have a couple I'm still toying with and one is around 445 words and I still need to two more words for ability names. We'll see what the word counter thinks of that. One of my other ideas shouldn't have a problem. Can I say this is my least favorite round? Not that it's bad, but this is definitely the round I knew I would find very challenging and was most looking forward to seeing other people's designs.
I still think Round 1 is by far the worse just do to the wait time between submitting and learnign whether or not you advanced.
I was toying with two. But I'm just simply short on spare time. Most of Wed was eaten up by work, and my wed game. And Friday might as well not even be there for me thanks to work. Thankfully I've got Thursday off. My butt is going to be terribly numb by the end of tomorrow. ^^;
::falling into a comfy chair::
I'm going to let my idea stew overnight, and give it several more passes tomorrow, and try to get it submitted sometime tomorrow night. Luckily for me, I'd mulled this archetype over off and on before the first deadline, and still played with it loosely in my head ... because I was sure I wasn't going to be in this group with forgetting to put in "Create Wondrous Item" feat ::still face-palming over that one:: So I wasn't thinking at all when I got the email yesterday! LOL!
Brain is back in gear, polish is ready, and here's hoping everyone gets their submission wrassled into shape :) Once I've submitted, I'll finally have time to actually take a peep at the rest of the Wondrous Items!
Contributor
,
Dedicated Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Dedicated Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
|
Ahh, my archetype is all but finished. I know, I'm just a measly alt, but my archetype is INSANE!!! :D Maybe because I had some temperature while designing it.
Anyway, Top 32, don't disappoint me by submitting something uninspired - create something unique and awesome! The best of luck to all of you!
(And still waiting for the submission tool link to start working for us alts...)
RPG Superstar 2011 Top 32
,
Star Voter Season 8
aka Sect
|
This one's shaping up to be a rough one: I'm wishing that I had just fifty more words to work with.
Then again, that would lead me to wishing that I had another "just fifty more", and then another "just fifty more", and then...
Anyways, it's pretty challenging and fun, so I'm kind of getting psyched here.
RPG Superstar 2011 Top 32
aka Bats Kabber
|
Sadly, I had assumed I wouldn't make the cut and hadn't even checked to see what the 2nd round was going to be about. I didn't find out I had passed until about 11pm Tuesday night. Since then, I've been sleep deprived and my brain has been stuck in high gear. The first 24 hours was pretty intense, but I think I've got a pretty good archetype design going now. I've made it to the spit and polish stage and my word count is good. I plan to submit tonight and hopefully get some sleep finally.
I'm very much looking forward to reading all of your submissions. I know voting won't start until the 25th, but do they post them for reading before that?
I don't think so: the couple of days are for the judges to look them over, make sure that they fulfill the requirements, and offer criticism.
Feedback. We offer feedback and constructive criticism here. ;-P
|
RPG Superstar 2010 Top 16
|
No, Danny. Voting goes live as soon as the entries are revealed.
The intent here is to give fans some reason to check back in with the messageboards every week at the same time: first to find out who made the previous cut (and to find out what twists the judges have mandated), and then to read the new entries.
RPG Superstar 2011 Top 32
,
Star Voter Season 6, Star Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
|
I've been so laser focused since I found out I was in the top 32 that I just found this thread.
Congratulations to everyone else who made it! I've really enjoyed reading all the other items people have come up with.
Time constraints don't seem too bad now, but they look tighter and tighter as the rounds get more sophisticated. I'm still going to try to have my archetype done tonight - looks like a busy work day for me tomorrow as well.
I don't think so: the couple of days are for the judges to look them over, make sure that they fulfill the requirements, and offer criticism.Feedback. We offer feedback and constructive criticism here. ;-P
And we thank you for that. I know I have to step up my game by a few notches to compete next round but as long as I know I did my best then I'll be proud of my performance. Some of the competitors this year and even some that didn't make it this year have numerous publishing credits to their name. So even if we can't all win RPG Superstar, doesn't mean we have to stop developing the game we love. Remember this, even Steve Jobs got fired from Apple back in the day. A loss today may lead to a win tomorrow.
Can I say this is my least favorite round? Not that it's bad, but this is definitely the round I knew I would find very challenging and was most looking forward to seeing other people's designs.
Yea, I agree, it feels more technical than creative. It's hard to fit the "superstar" in there while at the same time eating up so many words getting the rules legalese correct.
I'll admit, I'm paranoid of running into a computer/internet outage or some other calamity. I'm submitting tonight.
Remember, some archtypes are very small. If you have trouble with word count take a look at rogue archtypes. They only change out two abilities, but considerably tweak the class.
I'll admit, I'm paranoid of running into a computer/internet outage or some other calamity. I'm submitting tonight.
That's not too paranoid. I take screenshots of the preview post's word count function. 449 at last count. :)
|
RPG Superstar 2011 Top 32
aka Bats Kabber
|
Remember, some archtypes are very small. If you have trouble with word count take a look at rogue archtypes. They only change out two abilities, but considerably tweak the class.
I was able to trim one of my abilities down by relating to a spell. That helped my word count significantly. Two long paragraphs trying to explain what I wanted got pared down to “this ability functions like the spell/ability/class feature XXXXX except . . .” I caught myself trying to reinvent the wheel in a couple of places. You get the idea.
Plus, as was mentioned by most everyone in my round 1 submission, my verbiage is clunky when brainstorming. So I had to do a lot of simplifying of my language. Now I think my word count is under 400 and it reads so much smoother than my round 1 item.
|
RPG Superstar 2010 Top 16, 2011 Top 32
,
Star Voter Season 6, Star Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8
|
I just submitted after several hours of putting it down, picking it up, putting it down, etc. After three hours of not being able to find anything that sprang out at me, I decided to bite the bullet and get it in early. I think I had it where I wanted it and I hated the idea that I might tinker a bit too much and lose that sweet spot...
Good luck, everyone. I'm going to go finally read all the other items now!
Inspiration struck Tuesday evening, spent a little time researching and jotting down rough notes. Wrote it up in format on Wednesday morning, only to be disappointed at how short it was. Inspiration struck again this morning, and now I just have to polish it up, format it, and submit later tonight.
Feelin' pretty good right now!
|
RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32, 2011 Top 16
,
Star Voter Season 6, Star Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
aka JoelF847
|
Of all the days to be stuck at work waiting on one last thing I need to get done here! I was at 449 words last night, but know I need to add a bit of clarity here and there, so will have to find a few more words to trim still to make room for the additions.
Egad, the Paizo word count tool is even more evil this round than it was the last. It's like the more it gets used the closer it comes to awakening and opening a portal to hell.
It's evil, but it's your friend. It's like a writer's little imp, sitting there on your shoulder, ready to bite you if you go over the limit defined by its hellish master. :)
*rubs some old, bite-shaped scars on the shoulder*
After two days work, and various drafts I'm at EXACTLY 450 words. Thank that Gods!! :D
Uh...hrmm...when I preview my submission there is no word count like there was for the first round. Did it get moved somewhere?
Uh...hrmm...when I preview my submission there is no word count like there was for the first round. Did it get moved somewhere?
You have to put the Title in. It appears next to the subject line :)
Ah, that's what I get for just wanting to check the body of it -_-
Google Docs - 429
Paizo - 416
I guess the BBCode tags don't count in the final submission.
Almost done. Just doing final edits.
My word count is slowly creeping back up, but I think I am almost completely done. I'm up 57 words from my lowest word count, but still 84 words below my highest. I printed out a copy of each draft, which shows just how much farther along the current draft is. I can barely look at the first draft now.
I'm hoping to get out of work soon a little early. I figure being at work is actually a good thing. Clear my head so I can see my idea fresh. I got something that I am happy with, now just to see if I can find the fatal flaws that the voters will! I am close to the word count as well. My idea is to get this one idea up to snuff and then see if I'm struck with any last minute inspiration. Good luck everyone! I think expectations are going to be really high for what we come up with this round. We are true Pathfinders going down a path that has not been trodden.
|
RPG Superstar 2011 Top 32
,
Star Voter Season 8
aka Sect
|
I'll admit, I'm paranoid of running into a computer/internet outage or some other calamity. I'm submitting tonight.That's not too paranoid. I take screenshots of the preview post's word count function. 449 at last count. :)
Your wisdom may very well save me: I submitted just a few moments ago.
450 words.
I took a screenshot of it just in case.
448. But just out of paranoia I'm doing 2 more edits. ^^;
It has definitely been interesting going through ideas with a mind of how many words it would take to get my ideas on paper.
Now I just have to weigh my two archetypes against each other and decide which one is the corvette and which one is the studebaker.
*whew*
Done and submitted. Let the dice roll what they will.
I just submitted mine too. I thought I'd feel better with it out of my hands, but now I'm super paranoid that I missed something or I have one word too many! :)
Yes, let the dice roll!
|
RPG Superstar 2010 Top 16, 2011 Top 32
,
Star Voter Season 6, Star Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8
|
*whew*
Done and submitted. Let the dice roll what they will.
I just submitted mine too. I thought I'd feel better with it out of my hands, but now I'm super paranoid that I missed something or I have one word too many! :)
Yes, let the dice roll!
Oh dude, do yourself a favor and don't look at it for a few days. I looked at mine and noticed a small, but annoyingly obvious error I made. Doesn't negate the concept, but it does make me ever so irksome.
|
RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32, 2011 Top 16
,
Star Voter Season 6, Star Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
aka JoelF847
|
Phew! I'm all in.
This is the best I've felt since about 5 minutes after finding out I made the top 32! No pressure and nothing to do now but read the other top 32, make some posts, and bask in the feeling of not having a looming deadline. What's that you say?...a villain statblock needs to be created for round 3? How come I now feel that the basking will be short lived?
|
RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32, 2011 Top 16
,
Star Voter Season 6, Star Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
aka JoelF847
|
Oh dude, do yourself a favor and don't look at it for a few days. I looked at mine and noticed a small, but annoyingly obvious error I made. Doesn't negate the concept, but it does make me ever so irksome.*whew*
Done and submitted. Let the dice roll what they will.
I just submitted mine too. I thought I'd feel better with it out of my hands, but now I'm super paranoid that I missed something or I have one word too many! :)
Yes, let the dice roll!
You shouldn't have admitted to that...now everyone is going to be looking for it! :)
|
RPG Superstar 2013 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2011 Top 16
,
Dedicated Voter Season 6, Star Voter Season 7
aka primemover003
|
I just submitted mine. 441 words (same in MS Word and on the board). I need to go Stunning Screech into a paper bag. I think I just spored myself...
--For those about to Vrock... WE SALUTE YOU!
And its in.
NOOOOOOOOOOOO! Obvious spelling error!!!!
Just kidding. ^^; Though funny thing I didn't know, adamantine is real. Which I learned because for a moment I was convinced I had spelled it wrong because my spellcheck wasn't picking it up.
Now the long waiting period.
Now I just have to weigh my two archetypes against each other and decide which one is the corvette and which one is the studebaker.
I know how that is. I have a second one which I really like, but I'm afraid it won't play well with the audience. It is pretty awesome though. Maybe I'll show it off much later down the line.
I hate that feeling. Probably be best to unveil the might have beens after voting too.
I hate that feeling. Probably be best to unveil the might have beens after voting too.
Absolutely. I recall reading that it would be bad form as some might think you're trying to show other submissions to sway the voters.
I remember that as well. Right now as a distraction I'm contenting myself with using the critism on my item to improve it.