RPG Superstar 2015 Top 16
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Marathon Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Marathon Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
aka mamaursula
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Submitted! Now I wait and try not to wear my fingers out by crossing them for so long...
Best of luck, everyone!
Mine's done, but I promised myself I would not send it until I reread it tomorrow after I slept. Sleeping being the imperative operation that needs to happen before submitting :-)
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RPG Superstar 2015 Top 16
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Marathon Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Marathon Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
aka mamaursula
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I was reading the Monster Manual entry in wikipedia (looking for info on how many copies it sold), and came across this quote.
"As nothing is easier to design than new monsters, it has spawned a host of imitations."
So I don't see what the problem is, guys. :-)
Ahem To quote the great Owen Stephens - "If it was easy, we wouldn't need professionals to design it." :-)
It's easy to throw some stats together and call it a monster, particularly if the AD&D MM1 is your only reference point as to what's acceptable.
It's much harder to take an idea that's interesting and hasn't been done to death AND execute it in a way that preserves what's interesting about it in a gameable way.
There's an additional layer to doing it in Pathfinder that old school D&D mostly didn't have in that you have a zillion stats to get right and most of them are interconnected. If you change your critter's Dexterity, you just changed at least three other numbers in your stat block as well. In my experience most of the details don't matter if you're just prepping an evening's gaming for your friends, but for this contest, and any future professional gigs, it's something we'll be expected to nail. There's a few things you can fudge, but far more that you can't, or at least shouldn't in this particular context. (And given my fluffing the price of my magic item, I expect my own entry will be in for particular scrutiny in that area.)
Ideally you want those numbers to help communicate your concept and comply with a ruleset the size of a college textbook.
No, it's not easy.
I have my first draft done and it hit the 550-600 word count range, so off to a good start.
Word count is always and forever my enemy. My favorite practice monster, written before the rules for this round were announced, clocked in at 1500 on the first draft. I managed to hack and butcher it down to under 600, and was ready and eager to go on Tuesday, only to have to accept that it was not a good Darklands monster. *saddest of faces*
So, I started over... My new monster's draft is done, under 600 (by a nose; I just spent 2 hours chopping out 250 words); and I'll sleep on it and submit sometime Thursday evening, if all goes well.
That said, this has easily been the most difficult round for me so far. I developed, then scrapped, so many ideas today. T___T Them's the breaks!
Depends on the designer... monsters and templates are my favorite 2 things to design by a mile and I find them easy. But for magic items I have a natural inclination towards SAKs so getting myself to fight that instinct is hard. If a monster was a magic item it would prolly be SAK because doing one thing really well gets a monster killed, it needs to be a little versatile and have answers for different approaches to it to remain a challenge.
RPG Superstar 2015 Top 16
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Hey everyone. I don't want to be overstepping my bounds in posting this, but time is short and I don't want folks lagging behind if there's even a slim chance of it happening.
Leviathan's End maker Jason Keeley posted that he cannot continue the contest. If you think you might have been close to getting in the top 16, then be prepared for the possibility that you might get bumped up!
More than likely we won't have an answer for this until Paizo opens again tomorrow morning.
Jason, I already said it in your map thread, but good luck with the move and please make it to top 32 next year. I really liked your stuff and was hoping to see a cool monster from you. In fact, please still post a monster if you can!
Thanks! I did have a (hopefully) fun idea for a monster, but my apartment won't pack itself! Maybe I'll post it if I have the time...
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Dangit I swear Pathfinder is the only RPG system that really did a lot with mesoamerican stuff :|
Only straight-up fantasy RPG, maybe... :)
I agree, we need more Aztec themes. I love their mythology.
RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32
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Star Voter Season 6, Star Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
aka CalebTGordan
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Dangit I swear Pathfinder is the only RPG system that really did a lot with mesoamerican stuff :|
Only straight-up fantasy RPG, maybe... :)
I agree, we need more Aztec themes. I love their mythology.
AD&D and 2nd Ed had some Meso-American modules and monsters as well.
I would like to see more of every culture though. More West and Central Africa, more Polynesian, more Austrailian Aboriginal, more Indian, more Everything.
Having predominantly White European fantasy can be limiting.
Dangit I swear Pathfinder is the only RPG system that really did a lot with mesoamerican stuff :|
Only straight-up fantasy RPG, maybe... :)
I agree, we need more Aztec themes. I love their mythology.
AD&D and 2nd Ed had some Meso-American modules and monsters as well.
I would like to see more of every culture though. More West and Central Africa, more Polynesian, more Austrailian Aboriginal, more Indian, more Everything.
Having predominantly White European fantasy can be limiting.
I'm actually going to be writing an adventure soon that uses Gnolls extensively, and I'm thinking I might use elements of Tanzanian and Ethiopian culture (including more African elves) because hyenas.
In regards to First Edition Monster Manual and monsters in general, my favorite story about the 1e monster manual is that a whole bunch of the monsters were inspired by terrible dollar store toys.
Article here, by no less than Tony Di Terlizzi
Gary used them as minis because well, you couldn't FIND minis of monsters back in the day. He would also give them to writers and ask them to come up with a monster based on them.
If I ever make it to a monster round, I may well go back to this post and pick out a terrible dollar store monster to make...
My first draft is around 625 words and still needs some flavour stuff. That's better than Dana's 1500 but still not good enough. Need to break out the hacksaw...
On the plus side, this puts me exactly on the pace I expected to be at this point - basic concept and stats for Wednesday, draft writeup by midnight (Central time) Thursday, clean it up and add some finishing touches over the remaining 16 hours.
My first draft is around 625 words and still needs some flavour stuff. That's better than Dana's 1500 but still not good enough. Need to break out the hacksaw...
That was monster #1. :P My final monster for this round started at 850, and I hacked it down to under 600 and submitted a few hours ago. *wipes brow*
Good luck finishing up on yours!
I barely have anything down. This is gonna be a loooong night.
Just got mine in, but there was really no alternative; tomorrow's looking pretty full, so it was now or never.
Good luck to all in getting your submissions in! I hope this round is as competitive as last round was.
Finally done - that must have been the toughest challenge so far.
I'm really curious to see what you all came up with.
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I feel like I need to be sedated.okay, let me just say that waiting sucks!
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is it tuesday yet?
Thanks, now the Ramones will be in my head for the next four days.
Stilllll working on it.
I think I finally have this down. :)
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Oh man, it was my birthday yesterday, I totally forgot to mention.
Happy birthday to me, monsters to look at soon, can't wait :3
Aaaaand submit.
Aaaaand work. Kill me now.
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It was then that I realized, staring into the abyss between waking and dreaming... that I was the monster all along.
I'm still making final nudges and checks. :)
So, any guesses about how long it will take for the judges and associated Paizo characters to start dropping vague comments and hints about the incredible quality of the Round 3 competition to torment us? Me, I'm betting on Sunday.
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RPG Superstar 2015 Top 16
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Marathon Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Marathon Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
aka mamaursula
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So there are just about 3 hours left until the deadline.
If you have not submitted yet, you should do so soon. I would hate to have last minute internet or power issues cause someone to miss the deadline.
For real, the cable & internet guy is supposed to be coming to my house today to fix/swap out bad equipment. Glad I turned my monster in yesterday.
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RPG Superstar 2015 Top 16
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Marathon Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Marathon Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
aka mamaursula
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So, any guesses about how long it will take for the judges and associated Paizo characters to start dropping vague comments and hints about the incredible quality of the Round 3 competition to torment us? Me, I'm betting on Sunday.
Pishaw, my money is on 15 minutes after the close time for entries.
Modules Overlord
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So, any guesses about how long it will take for the judges and associated Paizo characters to start dropping vague comments and hints about the incredible quality of the Round 3 competition to torment us? Me, I'm betting on Sunday.Pishaw, my money is on 15 minutes after the close time for entries.
After the contest closes?
Oh heck no, I have strong feelings about some of these NOW.
Strong feelings? That's either really good or really bad. :p
RPG Superstar 2015 Top 16, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 16
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Star Voter Season 6
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Entries showed up a couple days ago? That right there is confidence.
I've got mine in the preview box, checking it out to submit, and people start calling, texts blowing up my phone, both cats jump in my lap....
LEAVE ME ALONE FOR 5 MINUTES GOTTA DROP THIS MONSTER
Done but not submitted. Word count currently 599 :-). Giving it one more check in light of Sean Reynolds' PDF, which I finally got last night after unrelated problems kept it out of my hands a day or two longer than I'd have liked.
So, any guesses about how long it will take for the judges and associated Paizo characters to start dropping vague comments and hints about the incredible quality of the Round 3 competition to torment us? Me, I'm betting on Sunday.Pishaw, my money is on 15 minutes after the close time for entries.After the contest closes?
Oh heck no, I have strong feelings about some of these NOW.
I'm sorry to have underestimated the depths of your cruelty :p Ah well, torment is inevitable in this case anyway. Do your worst!
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Besides, I'm expecting a giant shipment of Reaper Kickstarter Bones any day now, so that's something less anxious to obsess over. :-)
Phew, I just submitted. .__o
I really don't know how well this round is going to go for me. I'm worried! :|
But hey, let's remember: the worst case scenario for this round is that we lose now and enter again next year older and wiser. Right? :)
This is my third time having a go at the monsters round, hopefully I have learned something. :p
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RPG Superstar 2015 Top 16
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Dedicated Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
aka Rusty Ironpants
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Entries showed up a couple days ago? That right there is confidence.
Yeah, some of us were quick on the trigger. Whether that is a good thing or not still remains to be seen.
Although, at least for me, there comes a point when continually rewriting something is no longer a good thing and the quality actually starts to go down. Knowing when that point is - that's the real trick! :)
I like to use the time that's given to me. Even if I finished an entry early (which I didn't), it's still valuable to set a project down for as long as I can afford to and come back at it with fresh eyes. I'll usually see things, obvious things, I might have missed otherwise when my brain was too familiar with it.
EDIT: That's just my process though. I firmly believe every writer will do things differently in a way that works best for them.
RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
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Dedicated Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Dedicated Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
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I went over all the entries with my +1 keen red pen, and tomorrow I'll write more detailed commentary and decide which ones I'll recommend to advance to round 4.
And before I forget:
Interesting... Veeeeery interesting. ;-)
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Besides, I'm expecting a giant shipment of Reaper Kickstarter Bones any day now, so that's something less anxious to obsess over. :-)/jealous
Wave 1, baby!!!