The Fallacy of Writing a Winning Fight

[Bandit With No Name]

Hey folks, we're bout to enter a big, multi-tiered, super awesome competition. What I'm gonna address here is the idea that it will be your WRITING that wins the rounds for you. Most of the fights on the Omniverse, and especially the Colosseum fights we are about to embark in, are decided by writing ability. Of course, we all have stats, ability benchmarks and ways that our characters are restricted, that's part of RPG aspect of the site. Higher stats, Moves, Powers and abilities are things that give you WRITING FLEXIBILITY, allowing you to do more with your character, which usually allows you to have more entertaining posts!

However, these things are still not the deciding factor, it's your writing. Having a stronger, faster, BETTER character than your opponent DOES give you an advantage: writing flexibility. You can do much more with a story if your character has fun Moves, interesting Powers, and can be justified in being better at attack or defense or fighting ability than their opponent; they are more tools in your toolbox. But those tools only amount to how you use them.

So, my main thing here that I'm trying to dispel is the idea that characters of higher level and with more Moves etc have an INHERENT score advantage. No, they don't. They have the advantage of writing opportunity. If you create a more INTERESTING NARRATIVE with straight 1s in your stats and no moves, then you can win the round against Mega-Power-Ranger-Vampire-Werewolf-Wolverine who writes like garbage.

Also of note: just because your CHARACTER is losing a fight doesn't mean your WRITING is. If you write a compelling story about trying to pull a victory from nothing; if you are beaten, saggy and ruined while your opponent stands over you like a sterling-silver Superman, and you your writing evokes EMOTION, it evokes an ENTERTAINING NARRATIVE, then you will WIN THAT FIGHT.

So yes, strategize about your Moves. Think about your approach. Plot and scheme. But don't get too wrapped up in the numbers.
Get wrapped up in the story.


Recap of grading card:
[spoiler]"Description and Clarity:
This section covers how effectively the writer created the world around the reader. Making sure that the reader can understand what is being described, using vivid or appropriate descriptions of items, events and people in the story and having good word choice all go into this section of the review. Note that using “purple prose” is not always effective, nor is consistently using flat, dry description. A writer that gets a good score in this section draws the reader into the world and allows them to see through the eyes of the character/narrator.

Voice:
No two writers write in the same style, nor should they. Even individual stories call for individual writing styles, a mood that creates a tinted lens through which the story is viewed. This is traditionally called the “voice” of the writer and it is a very important part of writing. A writer with a high score in this considers tone, pacing and including/disincluding detail throughout the entire story.

Character:
Character development, the actions and motivation of characters and dialogue are all important in this section. The goal is to create “round” characters as opposed to “flat” ones. Making the people in your writing seem real, not just archetypes following a plot progression is the goal here. The writer should consider who the people they are writing as are as individuals, why they take certain actions, their personal problems and boons, how they interact with the world around themselves and how they approach problems are all considerations for a writer in this section. Note that not all GOOD characters are LIKABLE characters. If you really hate a character that’s well written, this section deserves a good score!

Story:
Every body of creative writing, no matter how short or long, follows a storyline. How well the themes, events, messages and twists grab the reader is what makes the difference between a decent story and a great story. The writer must capture the reader’s attention hold it with the actions of characters and the world around them. This isn’t to say that a writing must be packed with action or intrigue, even something as simple as eating breakfast can be made into a great story. The presentation of events and how those events tie into the writer’s voice is what makes it good reading.

Grammar and Spelling:
This is the clerical work of the body of work. Spelling, punctuation, grammar and anything else that can be considered technical goes into this section. Generally every major grammatical error per 500 words moves this section down one grade."

"1: There is room for improvement. Generally the reviewer should highlight how the writer could improve this area as well as direct them to outside sources that can give more help.

2: This section was about average. The writer has room for improvement but about par with the rest of the site’s writing ability. Reviewer should highlight areas to improve and site specific errors or weak spots.

3: This section is above average. The writer has shown a competency higher than the average writer on the site, but can still notably improve. The reviewer can be vague with their ideas for improvement but still include specific details and weak spots.

4: This section was fantastic! The writer took the reins and really took the reader on a journey. Few errors or room for improvement can be found by the reviewer but anything that the reviewer feels could be cleaned up should be noted.

5: This section is one of the best the reviewer has ever seen. This level of writing is on par with professionals with very few errors and the reviewer should have a hard time finding room to improve. This grade should be handed out rarely, and only to the very best writing!" (There will likely be almost none of these assigned during the tournament, so just be aware of that.)[/spoiler]

[Proto Man]

No but seriously, those are excellent words of wisdom for anyone involved in any sort of competitive event or story on the website.

[Omni]

[Tartaros]

[Undyne]

This definitely deserves a...

[Minato Namikaze]

I'd give it this...

[Reece]

We already have two seals and a nice post.
Morgan Freeman was the next best thing I could come up with...

[Alex Silver]

He has level three super moves and all his stats are in the 5-8 area! What do I do???

...oh yeah, that'd do it.

[Weiss Schnee]

I'm guessing this is at least in part due to some of what I spoke of in chat, and if this is the grading card we'll be using in general, I'm all for it.
Worth noting the PSA might be a bit less necessary if this:

Once the fight has come to an end, the judge will decide upon the winner and give bonus rewards to each player based on the quality of their writing. The winner is determined by a combination of game mechanics (ie the stat difference between players, any injuries suffered during the fight, whether the players already have damage from previous fights) and writing quality.

Wasn't in the fighting and competition section of the rules, though
Note that I'm not disagreeing with you on how you're grading here, just pointing out that at the least, this section seems a bit outdated.

[Kopaka]

I think normally that section is valid, but the part about game mechanics is being hand waved for this tournament so that lower level players didn't give up before even trying.

[Bandit With No Name]

Mostly the mechanics that are considered are injuries, which bleed over from previous fights. For the most part your stats apply to a fight in the way I discussed, though in some cases the use of SP sometimes directly buffs your score, but only in the case of both participants agreeing beforehand.

[Kopaka]

...injuries, which bleed over from previous fights.

Whoa, wait. So are we or are we not getting healed between fights?

[Bandit With No Name]

Oh, I'm the Colosseum you are, I'm just saying in general on the site

[Omni]

I'm guessing this is at least in part due to some of what I spoke of in chat, and if this is the grading card we'll be using in general, I'm all for it.
Worth noting the PSA might be a bit less necessary if this:

Once the fight has come to an end, the judge will decide upon the winner and give bonus rewards to each player based on the quality of their writing. The winner is determined by a combination of game mechanics (ie the stat difference between players, any injuries suffered during the fight, whether the players already have damage from previous fights) and writing quality.

Wasn't in the fighting and competition section of the rules, though
Note that I'm not disagreeing with you on how you're grading here, just pointing out that at the least, this section seems a bit outdated.

This is true as well. It was just a good post. >.>

I think Thaal may slightly underestimate the importance of stats. They DO give you an inherent benefit. If you're a week into the site and have yet to unlock your first power up (which I think most people should be able to do within a month or so of joining) then you're going to be at an inherent disadvantage. But it's going to be a tiebreaker. If all else is equal, the more powerful person will win. But most of the time we want to see the underdogs win. If you are the better writer, you can take out someone twice your strength no problem. But of course, being "better" is a matter of great subjectivity. So sometimes it's going to come down to stats and that's where the game portion of the RPG comes from.

To combat that inspirational speech ... If you're a level 1 and you fight two people each with a Tier 2 powerup, you're going to die. Sorry. But hey you might kill one of them if you're a total bad ass!

There is a long answer at the very end of the Fight FAQ: <!-- l --><a class="postlink-local" href="http://omniverse-rpg.com/fights.php#FAQs">fights.php#FAQs</a><!-- l -->:

[Demetri Malius]

I'm guessing this is at least in part due to some of what I spoke of in chat, and if this is the grading card we'll be using in general, I'm all for it.
Worth noting the PSA might be a bit less necessary if this:

Once the fight has come to an end, the judge will decide upon the winner and give bonus rewards to each player based on the quality of their writing. The winner is determined by a combination of game mechanics (ie the stat difference between players, any injuries suffered during the fight, whether the players already have damage from previous fights) and writing quality.

Wasn't in the fighting and competition section of the rules, though
Note that I'm not disagreeing with you on how you're grading here, just pointing out that at the least, this section seems a bit outdated.

This is true as well. It was just a good post. >.>

I think Thaal may slightly underestimate the importance of stats. They DO give you an inherent benefit. If you're a week into the site and have yet to unlock your first power up (which I think most people should be able to do within a month or so of joining) then you're going to be at an inherent disadvantage. But it's going to be a tiebreaker. If all else is equal, the more powerful person will win. But most of the time we want to see the underdogs win. If you are the better writer, you can take out someone twice your strength no problem. But of course, being "better" is a matter of great subjectivity. So sometimes it's going to come down to stats and that's where the game portion of the RPG comes from.

To combat that inspirational speech ... If you're a level 1 and you fight two people each with a Tier 2 powerup, you're going to die. Sorry. But hey you might kill one of them if you're a total bad ass!

So... what you're saying is... I'm fucked xD

[Weiss Schnee]

oh, that was aimed at you with all the impeccable accuracy of a military sniper Demetri.

[Bandit With No Name]

I'm guessing this is at least in part due to some of what I spoke of in chat, and if this is the grading card we'll be using in general, I'm all for it.
Worth noting the PSA might be a bit less necessary if this:

Once the fight has come to an end, the judge will decide upon the winner and give bonus rewards to each player based on the quality of their writing. The winner is determined by a combination of game mechanics (ie the stat difference between players, any injuries suffered during the fight, whether the players already have damage from previous fights) and writing quality.

Wasn't in the fighting and competition section of the rules, though
Note that I'm not disagreeing with you on how you're grading here, just pointing out that at the least, this section seems a bit outdated.

This is true as well. It was just a good post. >.>

I think Thaal may slightly underestimate the importance of stats. They DO give you an inherent benefit. If you're a week into the site and have yet to unlock your first power up (which I think most people should be able to do within a month or so of joining) then you're going to be at an inherent disadvantage. But it's going to be a tiebreaker. If all else is equal, the more powerful person will win. But most of the time we want to see the underdogs win. If you are the better writer, you can take out someone twice your strength no problem. But of course, being "better" is a matter of great subjectivity. So sometimes it's going to come down to stats and that's where the game portion of the RPG comes from.

To combat that inspirational speech ... If you're a level 1 and you fight two people each with a Tier 2 powerup, you're going to die. Sorry. But hey you might kill one of them if you're a total bad ass!

There is a long answer at the very end of the Fight FAQ: <!-- l --><a class="postlink-local" href="http://omniverse-rpg.com/fights.php#FAQs">fights.php#FAQs</a><!-- l -->:

And yeah, like I said, in many cases your SP use will directly contribute to your victory. It's also kind of hard to write a compelling narrative while following the rules if 2 super-powered motherfuckers are just beating the shit out of you. It would really restrict your narrative to have people that just OUTCLASS YOU statistically, because like, there's not much you can really WRITE about if you're actually giving the proper attention to the numbers on the page.

Like, you CAN'T follow the rules and have a ton of options in that scenario, which is what makes the chances of you writing out of that scenario really slim, EVEN IF all you had special rules on to ignore SP's contribution to a score.

[Alex Silver]

Well, you said that even if you lose the fight IC you can win it OoC, right?
Then I'd say the best way out of that scenario isn't to try to get out at all, but to own the hell out of it and focus on describing just how badly you get your butt kicked as your character helplessly struggles or something...
...or was that something I took out of context?

[Bandit With No Name]

I mean that writing beautifully about having the shit kicked out of you isn't really interesting reading. It'd be rally really hard to make a good story out of that.