*How to Run a Warskill Tournament*

By Dame Katrin Kött Karlsdöttir

 

One of the parts of the HFS that many Players like the most is war
tourneys. Fighters enjoy facing off against one another and seeing who
is the better fighter. Not everyone likes them, but they are an integral
part of HFS.  Running a Warskill tourney is much like running any other
activity, chaos embodied.  

*Start on Time*

One of the easiest ways to give people the perception that they are in a
poorly run tourney is starting late.  Everyone is familiar with the
concept of  “HFS Time.”  This means, basically, that nothing ever starts
on time.  In a tournament situation it is doubly annoying to have to
wait because it is always advertised that if you don’t show up on time,
you won’t be able to enter.  This means that some people who really like
to fight in tourneys show up on time and then have to wait a long time
when the tourney is inevitably delayed. 

*Have your organization done ahead of time*

You should always have any organization of the tourney done as much
ahead of time as possible.  This includes creating sign up sheets,
tourney sheets and recruiting Reeves and Field Heralds.  Last minute
organization is usually what causes a tourney to be delayed. Make all
clarifications ahead of time; it's usually good to have a meeting with
your reeves before you start to make sure everybody is running with the
same ideas. If you make any clarifications during the tourney, make
sure, at the instant of clarification, that all reeves are notified.
This way everybody is playing by the same rules. This is one of the
times that Field Heralds are of great benefit! 

 Depending on the number of people you have in the tourney, and the
number of reeves available, you may want to set up multiple list fields.
Each list field should have at least two reeves. As you have the Herald
announce who is being called up to each field or “to the list”, you can
then call who's up next or "to arms" to fight, that way they have a few
minutes to get ready.

*Reeves*

Reeves are critical to a successful tourney. An, otherwise well run
tourney, can be soundly hated if you have poor Reeves.  Make sure your
Reeves know exactly what is expected of them.  Sometimes even the most
honorable fighters miss shots in the heat and adrenaline rush of a
tournament.  A good Reeve who is not afraid of making the final call on
contested shots is worth his weight in gold.  Depending on the number of
people you have in the tourney, and the number of reeves available, you
may want to set up multiple list fields. Each list field should have at
least two reeves. As you call up people on each field or “to the list”,
you can then call who's up next or "to arms" to fight, that way they
have a few minutes to get ready. 

*Handling Complaints*

There are always complaints in a tourney.  Tourneys are very fluid and
there is no exact way to run them correctly.  Remember that you are
dealing with carbon-based life forms and not machines and that their
feeling and emotions sometimes get the better of them.  A good
List-mistress should always be the coolest person on the field and may
need to calm down hysterical fighters who are sure that they were robbed
of a win, or were called dead by an, obviously blind, Reeve. Listen to
them. Sympathize with them. But /always/ side with the Reeve on the field. 

*Sign-up Cards*

Some List-mistresses use sign up sheets to allow people to sign up for
events.  There are several problems with this method.  First, there is
usually only one sign-up sheet per event and people usually have to wait
to sign up for the event because it is done one at a time.  The second
problem is in trying to randomize the event.  You either have to
pseudo-randomize it by, say, taking every other name, or you have to
transfer those names to cards to shuffle their names up.  A better way
is to use sign-up cards (See figure # 1).
<Documents%20and%20Settings/Administrator/My%20Documents/fig1.gif> Sign-up
cards should each have a number to identify the fighter for use on a
challenge grid for Round Robin Style Tourneys and a spot for the reeves
check off that each contestant’s equipment has passed a safety
inspection.  Notes can be made about wins and losses after each bout has
been fought.  When you are ready for a round, you simply go through the
cards, pulling any who have been eliminated or dropped out, and then
shuffle them like cards.  This is quick and simple and can be repeated
for each round.

 


  The Round-Robin Style

Round-Robin or Challenge-Tourney is a tournament style that involves
each of the fighters fighting each of the other fighters, with the
winner being determined by the person with the most wins.  This is easy
to track with a large Challenge grid (See figure # 2).
<Documents%20and%20Settings/Administrator/My%20Documents/Drakenweb/new/fig2.doc>There
is the possibility of a tie in this situation and in this case the two
who tied can fight it out for winner.  If there is a tie in a three man
round-robin then the round is repeated until there is a winner. This
often results in a more fair tournament, but always results in a much
longer tournament.  Small tournaments can be run this way but don’t try
it on a larger tourney!

*Elimination Styles*

Most tourneys are single elimination; these are easy to coordinate and
run fairly quickly so you can have multiple rounds (ex. sword and
shield, single sword, open class, florentine, mage battle, etc.). Single
Elimination tournaments are always the quickest. If you are running a
large tournament, this is the easiest way to go.  The fighters generally
enjoy double-elimination or triple–elimination tournaments more, because
even after they lose a bout, they still have another chance and don’t
lose interest in the tournament.  This also helps cut down on “luck” wins. 

In a Single Elimination tournament, two people fight a bout and only the
winner goes on to the next round. If you come up odd at any point before
the final round, a "bye" is pulled in to fight. The bye fighter/s can be
picked ahead of time and used multiple times, but do/does not actually
participate in the tourney. If the contestant wins they continue on; if
the bye wins then the contestant is eliminated and the tourney
proceeds.  For any elimination style tournament you will need a bracket
sheet (See Fig 3).
<Documents%20and%20Settings/Administrator/My%20Documents/Drakenweb/new/fig3.gif>
 When you get to the final round, one of two scenarios can happen. 

*Scenario 1: *The matches all eliminate down to one happy tidy winner
(The ideal situation). The loser of the final fight is second place.
Then all you have to do is have one more fight for 3rd place between the
losers two rounds back. Everything is simple and good.

*Scenario 2:* The matches eliminate to an odd number of contestants. If
you encounter this in a final round (3 people left) then you go to a
round robin style. Each contestant fights every other contestant left.
The one with the most wins, is first, etc. Its important to keep track
of each fight in the round robin, since sometimes you'll have to go
through more than once.

At the end of the tourney, the tourney records are tallied. If you have
been accurate in your record keeping as you went this should only take a
few minuets. Tally the kills for each contestant and the one who won the
most bouts wins the tourney.  When a contestant is eliminated, their
tally is totaled. This is where it becomes important to keep track of
the order the bouts were fought and wins/losses for round robins.
Someone may win a bout, but die in the round robin, thus breaking their
winning streak. 

*Have Fun!*

Remember, overall, that this game is meant to be fun.  If your not
having fun, you shouldn’t be doing it.  Whether you are running the
event, or participating in it, you should keep that in mind.  It is very
easy to lose sight of the “fun” aspect of game in the sheer
competitiveness of a Tournament. Try and keep a perspective on it and
you’ll be able to stay in the spirit of the Dream.