the_plateau | March 2025 Contest Info!

It's been some time since the last contest, but hosts Riegfried and Soy are finally back! Through the first half of March, characters will be able to catch video and audio announcements advertising their next contest and encouraging all trainers to enter.

The duo are in particularly fine form this month, and are rotating their outfits and props for every single announcement. There’s only one commonality between all these switches - they’re clearly alternating between matching each other’s looks or having exact opposite vibes. Wonder what the theme could be this time…?

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 as best as possible. IC, trainers will prep their Pokemon for some form of on-stage performance; OOC, players will list the trainers and Pokemon participating, which moves were used, and describe what happens in the performance.

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. As of this contest, the number of winning placements (i.e. whether there's just a single winning team, or if there's a 2nd or 3rd place) will depend on how many entries there are!

In addition: while there will be a secret additional category in this contest, like in previous ones, this time it will be awarded by Judges' Choice! More details on this in the OOC requirements section below.

If you'd like some examples of previous submissions, we encourage you to take a look at our contest tag for previous rounds.

So what's the theme this time around?

The theme this time is rivals and partners!

What does this mean? Well, most of it's up to you! But there's one important caveat - the entry requirements stipulate that you must team up with a second character to participate, and each character must participate with at least one Pokemon.

"At least one" Pokemon? How many Pokémon can we use in our entry?

Each trainer must have a minimum of one Pokemon participating, but may have a maximum of two. That means, for the "total" entry with both characters, there should be anywhere between 2 and 4 Pokemon!

If your character would like to borrow Pokemon for the contest, even from the other trainer they're participating with... this would be fine, but they're still expected to be the one preparing the Pokemon they're entering. The borrowed Pokemon should be looking to your character for their cues and coordinating with them for any props/assistance. Riegfried and Soy will be watching carefully!

Any other IC requirements?

Each Pokemon entered will have to use at least one move, and the full performance can use a maximum of six moves (shared between all of the Pokemon, however many get entered). It's up to you whether you actually want to use all six - you might get a tighter, more elegant performance with less!

Trainers may appear onstage to handle props/decors/backdrops, provide narration, and so on, but the focus should be on the Pokemon!

Any other OOC requirements? What's this Judges' Choice thing?

OOCly, we are requiring that the two characters are played by two different players! Only one player will need to post the resulting entry, but we're expecting both players to participate in brainstorming it. You may split up writing the submission whichever way you'd like, however!

As for Judges' Choice... this time around, Riegfried and Soy will be personally awarding an additional prize based on a secret criteria. OOC, mods will be picking this entry, and to be eligible, you must link to a thread related to the contest, with at least two comments from each of the players participating (4 comments total). You may edit this link in after you submit, at any point before voting closes - so you have until March 30th!

You can wait until the IC log, or make your own log/do an inbox thread ahead of time; it can be a thread where characters are rehearsing or where one is trying to convince the other to enter, it can be the actual performance, or it can even be characters just hanging out around the contest area. As long as it's related to the contest in some way, it's all fine!

If you aren't throwing your hat in for Judges' Choice, we're not requiring any IC comments for this one! Just the contest submission.

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

It's a mystery! :) (But yes, there will be prizes.)

Where will this contest be held?

Just like the last contest, Riegfried and Soy have generously provided their own mansion near the Safari Zone. They will also arrange for transport to the location and back!

What will the timeline be for this contest?

ICly, the contest is taking place on Saturday, March 15th. 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 in the appropriate comment below, and you will have until ~~Sunday, March 23rd~~ Sunday, March 30th to submit an entry.

A voting post will go up the following day, and voting will be open until ~~Sunday, March 30th~~ Sunday, April 6th. (This is also the deadline for editing a thread link into your entry, if you'd like to be eligible for Judges' Choice). Results will be announced shortly after that!

I have other questions!

Please ask them down below!

March 2025 Contest Info!

Questions