We had a successful Sentinel Tactics tournament laster year for Who's Yer Con 2015, and are beginning to think about what we'll do for 2016.
Who wants to help? I'm looking for people who are willing to demo the game, judge tournament games, and/or invite people to try out a demo or the tournament.
Last year we had enough players for three four person teams and ran a single-elimination tournament. We had some fun prizes, including painted minis donated by GtG, and unpainted minis and other games donated by Russ and me. Russ and I ran demos on Friday night and Saturday morning, then ran the tournament Sat afternoon and evening.
Things I'd like to improve upon and new challenges:
- Russ and I were exhausted. We could use more help.
- Our space for the tournament was pretty good, but only by accident. I want to make sure we get all the tables and space we need.
- We were off in a low-traffic corner, which had its advantages, but proved poor for attracting people to demos. There was a jam-packed free-play area and I'd love to get some demo games going there.
- By next April, the next core and expansion games will be out. How will having so many more characters change what we want to do?
Given the above, and after some brief discussions with others, here's my current vision (though it's open to debate):
- We will run demos both in the assigned table area, and also in the free-play area. Demos will be skirmishes.
- We will plan on a four team, single elimination tournament. This is simply three games -- two first round games and then the winners play a championship game.
- Demos will again be Fri night and Sat morning. The entire tournament will again be on Sat.
- The tournament will include the new characters.
- We need at least four volunteers to make this successful
Who's Yer Con
http://whosyergamers.org/wyc.php
Some details
- Splitting up our volunteers between the free-play area and the assigned tables is annoying. It makes it harder to help each other out and simply to hang out and have fun working together. Communication/coordination/timing has to deal with being far apart. Materials can't be as easily shared. Still, we can't run the tournament in the free play area, but the free play area is where the vast majority of potential players are, so I see no viable alternative to being in both places. If we really can't get enough volunteers to make being in both places doable, than we could fall back to what we did last year and just be in the assigned tables area, but I hope it doesn't come to that.
- I think demos as skirmishes, rather than scenarios, is best, because that's what the tournament will be and people should know what they're getting into with the tournament. Scenarios are tempting because they're a bit more accessible (I think) and because it's straightforward for a single demoer to teach 1-4 new players the game by controlling the entire villain side. Still, so many of the scenarios aren't really about actually trying to incapacitate others, and I think there are viable techniques for running demos for fewer players, so it seems like the best choice to demo skirmishes rather than scenarios.
- Four team, single elimination tournament can accommodate up to twelve players and requires no more than two simultaneous tables and two simultaneous judges.
- If we get less than twelve players, we can make teams out of fewer people if necessary (or even just have two teams if we get down to six).
- If we have _more_ than twelve players, then I might call an audible and find a way to accommodate them. Up to two more teams can be accommodated by adding an extra round, but not needing more tables and judges. For six or eight total teams we'll need either another timeslot or one or two more judges and one or two more tables. I'm not too worred about tables, as I expect that we'll be using some tables to set up characters and those can be cleared off in a pinch. Not as sanguine about having the judges we need, but it's possible.
- Including the new characters will pose a logistical challenge in terms of how to display/prep all those characters for people to choose from, but I assume we'll find a way.
- It's a bit daunting to have _SO_ many characters to choose from, but I think that it would suck to _NOT_ include either the older or the new characters. People like the older characters and are excited for the new ones. Besides, I think most of the people who will be the most daunted by all the new characters are actually the people who know the game better. People who are brand new to the game are already picking mostly blindly. If someone likes the game well enough to know the characters well, I figure they're more likely to be excited by all the new characters then put off by them.
- Given so many characters, I'm leaning towards having multiple bans per team. This may be unnecessary, given the relatively nascent meta knowledge most people with have of the characters, and thus be more annoying than interesting. I'll need to think more about this and particularly welcome opinions about this.
- Minimum four volunteers: A demoer and a wrangler in both the free-play area and at our allocated tables. ideally all four would be able to demo, so they can give each other breaks. We could probably use plenty more people to run extra games in the free-play area, help wrangle more players, run errands/grab food, allow people to work in shifts.
- It would be nice to identify in advance booths in the exhibit hall area that are selling the game.
- I'd like to not only have a few handouts to advertise the Indianapolis Sentinel Tactics league, but have a QR code that people can scan to take them to the Facebook page.
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