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Maracas aggressively drawing closer. You cannot run.

What's the theme for this month's contest?

As mentioned by Riegfried and Soy in their announcement, the theme this time is Masks!

What kind of masks? Well, that decision is entirely up to you. Feel free to be inspired directly by the Carnival like Riegfried and Soy are. Or get more philosophical with it. What are the masks people (and pokemon?) wear every day? How do we hide our true selves?

Again! All up to you.

How many Pokémon can we use in our entry?

For this contest, you are only allowed to use One Pokemon. This pokemon will have to use at least one move. Your character may appear physically to handle any props/decors/backdrops, but the focus should be on the pokemon!

Can we team up for this contest?

This time, in part due to the nature of the prizes being rewarded, you will not be allowed to team up with another character.

Where will this contest be held?

Riegfried and Soy have generously provided their own mansion near to the Safari Zone for this contest. Transport to the location and back again will be taken care of by them as well.

What will the timeline be for this contest?

Good question!

ICly, the contest is taking place on Tuesday, February 13th This is also the day we will put up the IC log.

OOCly, we will open contest entries as of this post. You will be able to submit your contest entries on this post, and we will link it again in the upcoming post. We have decided to open them immediately to give people as much time as possible to get their entries hammered out and submitted.

Submissions will be open until Tuesday, February 20th, which is two weeks from now, and one week after the IC log goes up.

A voting post will go up Wednesday, February 21st, and will be open for at least one week, with an option to extend it if we feel folks haven't had a chance to vote yet. If we decide to extend this deadline, we will let you know!

Are there going to be prizes? What can we win?

We cannot reveal too much about the prizes, but rest assured, they'll be sparkling!

How do contests work in VR?

Unlike the games, where there are various categories to participate in, in VR, contests work by trying to match the provided theme (in this case spring/nature) as best as possible.

Once all submissions have been gathered, we will set up a poll, and all players can vote for who they feel is the best in show. Voting will be done similar to Eurovision, in which you can give 12 points to your favorite entry, then 10 points to your second favorite, 9 points to third place, etc etc all the way down to 1 point. Points will be tallied and the person with the highest score wins.

In addition, there will be one secret voting category (which will not be revealed until voting commences). Obviously, the parameters for this category are going to be secret, but it could be something like asking you to choose the most humorous entry or the best use of music.

If it still isn’t clear yet, we encourage you to take a look at our contest tag and check out some of our previous contests.

I have other questions!

Please ask them down below and we’ll respond ASAP.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Submit your entries here. What we are looking for is information on what your character is doing, and how their Pokémon are carrying out this performance. To help you along, we've created a small form to fill out.

The deadline for these submissions is February 20th at 11:59 PM EST! Best of luck to everyone!

Edited 2024-02-08 15:01 (UTC)

Character name: Hiccup
Pokemon: Icecube the Eiscue
Move used: Headbutt and Icy Wind

The performance:

Hiccup has never seen or done this before, but he decided to give it a try anyway! He stands off to one side while Icecube the Eiscue waddles out to the center of the stage. His head fully covered in an ice block as is normal for his species. His mask?

"Okay bud, show them what you can do," Hiccup says encouragingly to his Pokemon.

Icecube flaps his flippers and turns around in a circle before using Headbutt. Which takes the form of him doing a faceplant into the floor. His "mask" then shattered upon impact, causing him to fall back on his rear end. Now in noice form, Icecube sits there and blinks. Even Hiccup looks kind of surprised? Icecube then uses his flippers to feel around his face. "Eis...cue?" Realizing that all his ice is gone he then starts to panic! Then blasts himself in the face with an Icy Wind.

Once the Icy Wind subsides Icecube has started to form some more ice. Though its piled on top of his head around his hair. Awkward. Talk about a bad hair day. Feeling around his head again he realizes what's happened and then tears start to form in his beady eyes. "Eis... eiscue!"

The Pokemon then runs to Hiccup, sobbing, and nearly knocks his trainer over as he clings to him. Hiccup patting the ice penguin in an attempt to comfort him. "Hey, you did great."

And then they walk awkwardly off stage.

Was... was that supposed to happen? Was their performance an accident or is there some deeper meaning to it?!

You decide!

Edited 2024-02-08 15:38 (UTC)

Character name: Jotaro Kujo
Pokemon: Ariados
Move used: Infestation, String Shot and Scary Face

The performance:

"Good grief. You really want to do this, don't you?"

Jotaro's Ariados, Kakoyin, chitters excitedly. With a sigh, Jotaro pats his back and then nods to his partner. He stands just behind center stage, nodding grimly.

"Like we practiced then." Kakoyin starts by using infestation, summoning a number of smaller creatures and sending them scattering on stage. The swarm spreads out chaotically on the stage, while Kakoyin bounds over to the center of the stage. He then uses String Shot, attaching one chunk of the swarm to the others and stringing them in the a thick, sticky web until all of the Infestation is connected one way or another.

Jotaro holds his hand up and Kakoyin takes his cue. With a triumphant cry, the Ariados leaps up and pulls hard on its string shot. The webs tighten and clump together in a messy ball. The ball gets tossed into the air and thrown to Jotaro, who catches it easily. Much like how sticky tape is no longer adhesive when glitter is attached to it, Jotaro is able to hold the web without getting trapped.

Jotaro holds the bug-ridden mask up to his face and Kakoyin leaps onto his head. He then turns to the audience and uses Scary Face, projecting a ghastly image onto the webbed mask!

Tah dah!

...

Kakoyin will bow to the audience and Jotaro will give them a nod. Then, Jotaro will walk off the stage, Ariados still on his head.

... Good thing the Pokemon is the focus and not the trainer but even if they weren't, Kakoyin has enough enthusiasm for the two of them!

Edited 2024-02-10 05:21 (UTC)

Character name: Rui Kamishiro
Pokemon:Nepeta the Floragato
Move used: Leafage, Magical Leaf, and Scratch

The performance:

Rui, in the theater outfit he arrived to this world in, as well as a yellow, pink, and green mask stands front and center.

“We all know of the pokemon Floragato, but do you know it didn’t always have its signature mask? This is the story of its origin~”

Rui steps aside and waves his arm to show off that Nepeta the Floragato is in the center of the stage now. She’s wearing a green mask that hides the normal black fur of her “mask”.

“Long, long ago there was a Floragato. This Floragato had big big dreams. She wanted to make friends, and show off her amazing skills. She practiced and practiced, until she felt like she was ready.”

With a spin, Nepeta uses Leafage to send a tornado of leaves into the air.

“However, this Floragato was terribly shy and nervous. Whenever she tried to show what she’s practiced to others-”

Nepeta spins again, but trips and falls.

“She always messes up. She keeps on trying, but after a while, no one wants to watch her.”

Nepeta gets back up. She reaches out a paw to try to stop the invisible audience from leaving, but she drops her paw after a minute and looks down at the ground.

“If only there was a way she could stop being nervous around others. If she could only have more confidence. But she gets scared whenever others watch her…So…What could she do? She thought and thought…”

Nepeta taps her head mimicking thinking.

“And then gets an idea. If she gets nervous when people watch her, she just needs to make it so that it seems like they’re looking at someone else! She puts on a black mask to hide her face, and heads back into town to try again.”

Nepeta removes the green mask and slides it over towards Rui. “Floraaaaa! Flora Flor!” She calls out.

“She gathers everyone around, and none of them seem to recognize her behind the mask. Not only is she able to perform the tricks she had tried before, but-”

Nepeta uses Magical Leaf to create a tornado of leaves shimmering with color and magic. With a wave of her arm, the leaves move around the stage to her command. When they make a full circle and get back to the front of the stage she uses Scratch to destroy them in a quick motion, leaving shimmering shreds of leaves falling to the stage like confetti. She raises both her arms up in a ta-dah pose.

“She’s able to reach newer heights with her tricks. Everyone is amazed, even the Floragato. With that amazement, she’s able to build more and more confidence as she continues to perform.”

Nepeta bows to one side of the stage, before running to the other side of the stage to bow again.

“One day, she decides to reveal who she was behind the mask to everyone, but to her surprise the mask doesn’t come off.”

Nepeta paps and rubs her face with both her paws.

“It turns out, she’s actually become the skilled, confident, and beloved performer that she had been pretending to be. Floragato have continued to have masks ever since.”

After a short pause, Rui and Nepeta both bow to the audience. Rui grabs the abandoned green mask as the pair leave the stage.

Edited 2024-02-19 22:01 (UTC)

Character name: Vinegar Doppio
Pokemon: Duelio the Farigiraf
Move used: Double Hit, Nasty Plot, Psychic

The performance:

It's been a while since Doppio's done something like this, so he's a little nervous - but you'd never guess it from the horrible, bright yellow outfit he's wearing. Is he supposed to match his Pokémon? Because, tragically, he looks like a clown in a hazmat suit. Duelio looks confident, however, and as they exchange a look and a nod, Doppio finds himself feeling ever so slightly better about his chances.

"Right." Doppio turns to their audience. "I couldn't get all my ideas done in time, but I hope you enjoy it anyway!"

First, Double Hit - Duelio twirls on his hooves, first to the left, then to the right, gently bumping his head against Doppio's hands in what almost looks like some kind of secret handshake. Next, Duelio focuses, which... catches Doppio a little off-guard, because they didn't talk about this. Is he using Nasty Plot...? Whatever he's doing, Doppio hopes people don't notice they've gone off-script.

Anyway, Doppio opens his arms wide - next up is Twin Beam, so--

Hey why is Duelio turning towards the audience.

HEY IS DUELIO USING PSYCHIC--

A vivid image - a drawing - materializes in the minds of all. And then, a voice.

"Our trainer said this is supposed to look like a Carnival costume from his home, but we couldn't find an affordable tailor who could get it done today. But we still think it looks really cute, so everyone please look! We're very, very proud of our trainer! They don't do this kind of thing a lot but they were so happy planning this out and so excited, and we think we should win even if the costume isn't real! Everybody memorize our trainer's drawing like we did, okay? It's a shame people care about 'money' so much... But if you look at our trainer and imagine they're wearing the costume, then all of us can match and we'll look so--!"

"That's enough, Duelio!"

Doppio is sweating all over. His jaw is clenched. The stage lighting is hitting him in a funny way; one of his eyes looks significantly greener than the other.

"I... I mean, that's... the end... of the performance." He's just... going to drag Duelio off-stage now. "T-Thank you, everyone."

Character name: Astarion
Pokemon: Rune the Cofagrigus
Move used: Flash, Ominous Wind, Scary Face

The performance:

Astarion was given the opportunity to really put on a show. What it showcased was to be interpreted, sure, but there was something deliberate he wanted to share about his message. If some will get it then, so be it. He was a man of many secrets, or even masks. Astarion was nothing if performative, at least now it was on his own terms.

The stage would be dark as night, Rune was standing upright and completely stone faced. Suddenly, his eyes would open and would give the audience a Scary Face. Opening his sarcophagus of a body, Astarion's pale figure would emerge. He wore a black cloak as he slowly emerged like a curious cat entering an unknown world. There was fear and trepidation in the steps as he left only to stand directly next to Rune. The mask he wore was blank. A white, blank mask. No eyes, nose, mouth. No features except for the small curls of white hair flowing against it. With an Ominous Wind, the cloak and mask would rattle...only for Astarion to showcase fear. He made a motion to grab on to the cloak and mask.

The wind would blow even harder, only for Astarion to toss the mask aside and throw the cape on the ground as a resounding Flash hid his figure. When the light dissipated, Astarion was shown maskless and cloakless. He wore simple white slacks and a flowing see-through white blouse. But there was a glaring contrast to his white clothes and pale expression...he was covered in fake blood (really, it's paint). All over his face, dripping. His white clothes were also greatly stained.

Astarion opened his arms wide, as if to show the audience his dirty stained figure.

Character name: Boober Fraggle
Pokemon: Archie the Volbeat
Move used: Play Rough, Protect, Flash, Moonlight, Struggle Bug, Tail Glow, Helping Hand, Encore

The performance:
Boober hadn't committed to entering the contest until the last call for participants was made. Even now, as he's about to go on, he's hardly sure about it. But this is a story he wants to tell.

At first, it's just Archie on stage. For a costume, he wears a robe of dark blue feathers - on loan from the hosts, of course. A sheer blue ribbon us keeping the end of the robe secured around his tail. For now, Boober is out of sight, just like last time. He'll rely on the stage microphone he's been outfitted with for narration.

"This story is about how... How masks aren't always for tricks or hiding the bad parts of a person. Sometimes, we mask parts of ourselves that are-- Amazing, really! We just don't think of them as any good."

Archie takes this cue to leap up and attempt the attack Play Rough, only to stop short when he notices the ribbon used to hide his tail is starting to come undone in his action. He lands back down on the stage, sadly, his robe pulled around him tight.

"When we feel so different, a mask can help us be more like everyone else. But that can make it hard to do the things we love, with the people who matter most. If the mask starts slipping, it seems easier to just hide away."

A Protect goes up around Archie, shutting him off from everything else. He then begins alternating gentle uses of Flash and Moonlight to indicate the passage of many days. And after a bit of that, Boober - clearly nervous - steps out on stage.

For the most part, he's not wearing a costume, just his usual kind of clothing. But over his usual hat is a silvery veil that falls all around his face. Boober approaches Archie and lays his hands against the energy field of protect. It is dropped, but Archie then uses Struggle Bug to try and push Boober back with a force emitting from his beating wings. Boober stays put as Archie's own resistance forces the ribbon to come undone, and the entire robe to fall off him.

His tail exposed, Archie uses one final attack, Tail Glow, as Boober simply lays a hand on his head and nods at him. He focuses intently on his pokemon and not the audience, so he can get through this last bit of speech while actually on stage.

"It can take someone else to teach us that we don't need our masks... Because we should all let our uniqueness glow."

Boober hugs Archie, and the flicker of tail glow indicates surprise on the pokemon's part. Perhaps that small bit wasn't planned. But after a brief moment, Archie regains composure and his tail glows even brighter than before.

Boober is back to being awkward as he stands up and gives a rigid bow, but Archie is having none of that. A combination of Helping Hand and Encore allows him to get across his pride not just in his own performance, but in his trainer for being brave and coming on stage, however briefly.

Character name: Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd
Pokemon: Hob the Raticate
Move used: Tackle, Quick Attack, Headbutt, Iron Tail, Toxic, Rest

The performance:
The scene starts with Dimitri - dressed wholly in black - coming out to help set up some fairly large rocks, scattered about the scene, and all primarily away from the center of the stage. He retreats soon enough so that Hob can soon walk onto the scene.

.....Wearing a frankly massive and rather cartoonish paper mache Raticate head. As in, it seems three times larger than her body. A body, it should be noticed, is clad in one of her favorite glittery blue dresses, and decorated with a giant blue bow on the back. It seems to be the only thing which can stand out next to the immensity of the paper mache.

Needless to say, a giant paper mache head makes for an unbalanced Raticate, and Hob wobbles around the stage for a moment on her hind legs, clearly unsure of where she's going. She goes to, and fro, to, and fro...

Until finally, there is a muffled squeak deep within the paper mache, and Hob goes awkwardly tumbling straight into a Tackle that slams the head RIGHT into one of the large boulders that was placed there on stage. The hardened paper mache cracks, is tugged off with little rat hands.

...There is another paper mache Raticate head underneath, this one lacking whiskers but making up for it in a lot of gaudy painted-on makeup.

Another squeak. Maybe a littler more indignant. Hob swishes her tail from side to side before readying herself for a Quick Attack straight at another boulder. But her large ribbon gets caught underneath her feet, and she goes crashing straight into the rock. She stumbles away, paper mache falling around her.

There is another paper mache Raticate head. This one has glassses painted on.

The squeaking becomes a little more rapid-fire and intense. Stumbling a little more from some dizziness, Hob heads for another building, leaving behind a trail of flaking paper mache. Headbutt, this time!

Yet still, still, there is another paper mache head left behind in place of the last, the painted on fur of this one seeming especially shiny. The squeaking sounds angrier, this time, as Hob drags here tail back towards the middle. At least, as the heads have been broken, each one has been consecutively smaller. She doesn't wobble nearly as much when she comes to the center of the stage, and takes her long tail in hand.

Iron Tail can also be used like this.

There is still one last paper mache head. It is certainly the smallest of the lot, and does not look so nearly top heavy there upon her little Raticate shoulders. It even almost looks the most normal, too, with no painted-on accessories or cartoonish makeup. Hob's squeaking has not stopped, however, although it does sound a bit... tired and frustrated.

Then it sounds more like a gurgle than anything else, and - welp, yeah, that's sure SOMETHING melting out from the paper mache which makes up the mouth! It's Toxic, melting through paper like only a very, VERY gross liquid can.

With that damp messy hole now made, Hob is able to reach up with only her little rat hands, and start tearing, and TEARING, and TEARING at the paper in a Raticate frenzy! The paper goes flying everywhere, some of it wet, a lot of it not, until Hob is finally standing there in a snowfall of paper mache.

She makes for quite a wild sight, with Toxic still staining around her teeth and mouth, fur sticking up every which way, and paper clinging to her ears and fur. For a moment, she just stands there, tail thrashing about, huffing.

It takes a lot of work, to rid herself of the cartoonish paper mache. With one last big sigh, she twists around and takes a ribbon from her large bow inbetween her teeth. A tug undoes it. With all that glittery material, she just tired gathers it all together in one big pile there amidst goo and paper...

And then Hob flops down into it for a Rest.

For a moment longer, the light stays on. Hob snoozes. And then, Dimitri comes out onto the stage once again. Ignoring all the mess, he slowly crouches down besides the shimmering nest and its occupant. There is great care in the way he bundles up Hob in that ribbon, making it a blanket to wrap her in before he takes her large body into his arms.

He carefully cleans the remnants of Toxic from her mouth. He adjusts his hold so she's most comfortable. Then, with a soft smile on his face, Dimitri holds her close.

And he walks off stage.

Character name: Min-Gi Park
Pokemon: Ballroom Blitz the Pancham
Move used: Leer, Taunt, Echoed Voice & Parting Shot

The performance:

Anyone who's met Blitz may be surprised to see him up on stage. The Pancham is frequently undisciplined despite Min-Gi's best efforts, and seems to thrive on causing trouble. Even now he looks ready to create havoc. Although he's clearly trying to give a look of eerie intensity there's a glint in his eyes and a smirk keeps creeping onto his face. He's sporting a black top hat and a white shirt with a striking black jacket over the top. Dark paint has been applied to the white fur between his dark eye markings to create the appearance of a mask.

The stage itself is largely dark and empty, save a spotlight that shines directly down onto Blitz. The Pancham holds himself as still as he can bear to make himself until ominous music starts to play through the speakers, vaguely piano-like, but distorted and otherworldly. There's a slight nod to 'Behind the Mask', but mostly it seems to be intended to call to music popular closer to the start of the 20th century.

"Anyone who's been to Kalos has heard the stories of Fantôminus," Min-Gi begins. He can't be seen, but he sounds a little stilted. Is it concerns over the Pancham, or something else? Either way, Blitz seems to be sticking to the script so far. He gives a flourishing little bow, introducing himself. "He's an infamous villain, feared by all."

At this Blitz Leers at the audience. He's yet to move from centre stage, but he turns and leans to each side, repeating the move a few times over to make sure everyone sees the full effect.

"There are few who are more ruthless than he. He is known to take on the role of his victims, even framing their loved ones for his crimes. It's hard for some people to understand how he can get away with it when he's so vicious, but the truth is he often escapes without anyone knowing he was even there. Not everyone can identify the signs of Fantôminus. His genius is near unmatched and he's well known for his ability to disguise. Only his most dedicated pursuers come close, but even they have never managed to apprehend him for long."

Blitz starts to prowl now, the spotlight following as he Taunts any who dare to try and track him.

"Lumiose City is his usual hunting ground, but almost every region has fallen victim to this master criminal at some time." The routine is going well, and now he's hit his stride Min sounds more confident. He's getting more into it, enjoying the performance almost as much as his Pokémon. As Blitz makes his way around the stage he pauses at various points, posing and using Echoed Voice to signify each time he strikes. The cries build, heightened with every attack he makes. "Nowhere is truly safe."

Blitz comes to settle back in his original spot in the middle of the stage, no longer bothering to try and hide his smirk from the audience.

"Once his enemies get close you can be sure Fantôminus won't stick around much longer. He enjoys the terror he inflicts far too much to let himself be caught and pay for his crimes."

At this point Blitz performs a startlingly fast Parting Shot, almost looking like he's about to dive off the stage and into the crowd before the lights turn out. Everything is pitch black. For a long moment there's nothing but silence. Then the empty stage is thrown into bright light. There's no sign of Blitz anywhere.

"Like his namesake, Fantôminus is a ghost. He leaves no trace. He won't be gone forever, but not even the smartest among us knows when he'll strike again."

Edited 2024-02-20 09:30 (UTC)

Character name: Shadowmaru
Pokemon: Akuma the Sensu Oricorio
Move used: Helping Hand, Revelation Dance, Baton Pass

The performance:
This performance is a dance. Fitting for the Sensu Oricorio. A fan dance. With both Shadowmaru and pokemon peering through their fans as if the fans are the masks. Oricorio's looks to be painted with some kind of ninja design - the headband, the face mask. While Shadowmaru's is designed with erratic numbers and letters. They're both reasonably in sync for the most part, and the music is appropriately lively.

And then Shadowmaru starts to fall out of step. Dropping his "fan mask" for longer periods, and letting his frustration show all over his face. That's precisely when Oricorio uses Helping Hand - and Shadowmaru replaces his fan mask. The dance resumes, albeit skipping more often, turning slightly warped.

No symbolism here, nope.

The music skips, he stumbles, and Shadowmaru's fans fall to the ground. He falls to his knees, hands to his head, while the music suddenly warps completely, grating and choppy. Oricorio pauses, looking over. And then comes Baton Pass.

When the move finishes, Shadowmaru is holding the ninja fans. The music is once again lively and delightful, with the former AI moving smoothly as ever. Oricorio remains unseen until Shadowmaru finally hesitates in a step.

For the final move, Revelation Dance, Oricorio appears on his head, holding the numbered fans, both of them moving in perfect step with one another. The song plays out to the end, and the two of them bow, also in sync.

The end!

Hey mods! I'm confused! Sorry!

Do we post our submissions here or in the log like during the Halloween event? Is there a form?

Thanks!

Please submit them on the post. We've edited in a form to help you do so!

Okay cool! Thanks a lot! <3

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

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