MECCG TOURNAMENT HINTS AND ADVICE (version 1.0) Planning to host the next Middle-Earth CCG World Championships, or another large-scale tournament? This is what I learned during my experience as Event Coordinator for the 2001 Worlds tournament, held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The event was an awful lot of work, but it was also a rewarding and enjoyable experience. This is a dynamic document. If you have any comments or suggestions, please let me know at: stephen@chirographum.com Good luck in your efforts. Start early. Be flexible. Have fun. Stephen David Wark www.chirographum.com/tolenmar/meworlds.html ============================================================================ GERNERAL PRINCIPLES: * You can't do everything by yourself. There's too much work to be done, and it's far too easy to get distracted by the little details and lose sight of the purpose of the event as a whole. * Don't expect to participate fully in the various tournament events. Again, there's too much to do. The reward lies in hosting a successful event. * Expect to spend as much money as the typical traveller to the event. * Always carry a camera! PLANNING COMMITTEE: Have a planning committee of at least four people: * Tournament Coordinator (responsible for planning/organizing/managing the main tournament; selecting the judges; distributing and collecting the decklists/player records; making the pairings; announcing the results) * Event Coordinator (responsible for the non-gaming events, such as dinner excursions and breakfast meetings; renting the tournament hall; procuring the prize support) * Communications Coordinator (responsible for maintaining the Web site; communicating with the mailing list; communicating with the Council of Elrond, as appropriate; preparing the paperwork and documentation) * Registration Coordinator (processing the registrants, processing payments, balancing the books, coordinating lodging for guests) LOCATION: Location, location, location! The participants will spend about twelve hours a day in the gaming space, so it had better be convenient and comfortable. * Get an attendance estimate about 6 months in advance, and find a space to fit. * Find an open gaming area in a central location (ideally, near restaurants, public transport, and a gaming store), with flexible seating arrangements to accomodate shifting numbers of players at the various events, and that has space for non-players to congregate without distracting the players. * Be prepared to rent the space for at least 12 hours a day. * Find out any food and beverage policies for the space. LODGING: Even if they only spend four hours asleep each night, the participants should benefit from inexpensive, proximate, and comfortable lodgings. * Billet as many guests with as many local players as possible--not only does this enhance the tournament experience, but it also cuts down on costs and gives the guests an local guide to the city. * Reserve a block of rooms at the most inexpensive location close to the tournament site. University dormitories are often available in the summer, as are hostels. * Get all reservation information in writing and distributed to participants in advance. No one likes an unpleasant surprise on their bill, has happened at the notorious Hotel Europa. * Make short-term apartment rental information available for participants who are interested in handling their own lodging. EVENTS: The tournament experience doesn't begin and end with the tournament itself. Try to plan as many social events as possible around the central tournament location. * Initial gathering: to meet and greet people, confirm attendance, and distribute registration packs * Awards dinner: a leisurely meal in a private setting, to distribute prizes, make speeches, and generally relax after an exhausting event. If the restaurant you want isn't normally open, ask anyway--if you bring a large enough group, they'll be happy to stay open for you. * Special event dinner: Is there a special restaurant or tourist attraction that fits the theme of the event? By all means, invite people out for dinner. * Breakfasts/brunches: find a friendly restaurant to host daily meetings for the earlybirds in the group. COMMUNICATION: Participation makes or breaks your event, and communication ensures good participation. * Send updates to the Council of Elrond every two weeks. You need their feedback on all the tournament planning, prize distribution, judge nomination, prequalifications, etc. * Send monthly announcements to the official mailing list once a month until two months before the events (at which point, you'll really start to be busy), and then send weekly announcements thereafter. * Talk to the Planning Committee as often as possible. Use a mailing list, or a web collaboration service, such as Blogger or LiveJournal, to discuss issues and track decisions. PAPERWORK: Running up a printing bill for these items is worth the expense. * Event guide, listing all the schedule of events, and the rules for any side events. Include pertinent tourist information if you have the time. * ID tags for participants * Deck lists. You can't have too many of these. * Player tournament records. * Tournament pairing summary. * Rulings/Clarifications/Errata guide--this was a big success at the Montreal tournament. Print out a legible copy of the latest rulings and clarifications and have one copy available for each table. PRIZE SUPPORT: People may say they play just for the camaraderie, but everyone really wants their preciousss. * Coordinate with the Council of Elrond for appropriate prize distribution for all the events. Does everyone get a prize, or only the Final Four? Are the prizes thematically-appropriate and balanced in terms of value and appearance? * If you're buying a travelling trophy, make certain that it can travel well! The Palantir used for the Country Cup is lovely, but it's also enormous, which, while appropriate for Tolkien's works, is wholly inappropriate for international travel. * Contact artists from the card game for original art, sketches, autographed prints, or autographed cards. Most artists are very helpful, and are as enamoured of the Tolkien properties as the players. WEB SITE: Until the participants arrive at the tournament, the Web site is the public face of the tournament. Make a good impression, and make your life easier at the same time. * Learn from the mistakes of others--check out the original Montreal tournament registration site at www.chirographum.com/tolenmar/meworlds1.html * List the schedule and description of all events. * Make electronic copies of all the paperwork available for download * List the payment options * Provide a list of links to all the third-party groups: sponsors, event locations, prize suppliers, artists, etc. * Have a summary section for changes and new developments * Announce all the house rules and qualification requirements for all events * Add a FAQ section * Add HTML forms so that participants can register online * Don't forget the copyright information * Add a guestbook for comments from participants * Keep a running total of registered and paid participants * If permitted, list the names of all participants (but don't categorize by payment status...that's rude!) REGISTRATION: Getting as much information (and money) from the participants early in the process simplifies the planning effort, if for no other reason than that the problems crop up earlier rather than later. * Get the full contact information for each person * Have the people identify their full level of participation in all events, so that you can make reservations and appropriate budget decisions. * If possible, have the forms forward the information to a database. Otherwise, you're at the mercy of whoever retypes the information. * If possible, program the forms to autoreply to the participant, so they have a record of their registration choices * Ask the participant to post their name on the Web site * Keep track of who has paid, how they paid, and when they paid. Follow-up on late payments at least one month before the event. * Tie early payment to preferential treatment, such as priority lodging, or reserved spaces at the side events * Advise participants that their deck lists may be posted if they win the events BUDGETING: Don't make promises you can't keep, and try to keep the unpleasant surprises to a minimum. * Base your registration fee on: (room rental + prize support + printing costs) divided by the number of participants. The fee should be around $20 U.S., but can be more if you offer more stuff. * Keep your break-even number of participants in mind. If you have more participants, you can consider adding more prizes * If you're hosting a series of sealed-deck events, charge for those cards separately. Almost all of my out-of-pocket losses came from giving away packs of cards. * Don't count on selling stuff at the event to make up your costs. This didn't work for me. The participants have travelled far, and have spent a great deal of their own money, so they can't be expected to pay any more. * Don't ask for last-minute donations, for the same reasons mentioned above. TOURNAMENT FORMAT: The main tournament is the most hectic. Here are a few tips to keep things from overwhelming you. * Confirm the tournament requirements (e.g., number of rounds, format, etc.) with the Council of Elrond at the moment of the bid (or, preferably, have the CoE make the requirements clear at the start of the bidding process). * Have at least four non-participant coordinators at all times (distributing and collecting information, official timer, announcements, facilities coordinator) * Have at least three judges. They are allowed to participate in the tournament, but cannot adjudicate their matches, naturally. * Count on 2 hours per round (including changeovers), with 5 rounds minimum, and a 2 hour introductory section, and an hour for lunch. That's 13 hours a day, right there. And it still won't seem like enough time. * Make sure that people fill out a separate decklist for each deck they bring. Too many participants provide a single annotated list, and the lack of a standard format makes deck checks virtually impossible. * There will always be some people who can't change/build their decks on time or within limits. Be prepared to offer 10-minutes grace for these people. * Keep spare site cards available for everyone to borrow. These cards should be easily identifiable. * Keep a set of the Player's Guides available for people to consult. Some people may have questions about foreign-language cards. If you're feeling particularly amibitious, keep the NetMECCG deckbuilder running on a laptop. * Keep a spare set of maps and dice available for people to borrow. GAMING EVENTS: Not everyone makes it to the Final Four. Plan some supplementary gaming events so that everyone is actively playing as much as possible. * These events tend to be small, so a single person can serve as Tournament Coordinator * Most people will register for events as a back-up in case they don't make the main event * Participants should be advised of the requirements for the side events at the time of registration * The side-event coordinator should not be participating in another event; e.g., if you want to run a sealed event, don't play in the main tournament. * Be prepared to cancel some events, particularly those with extensive deckbuilding requirements. Everyone who expressed an interest at the time of registration may be playing in the main event. Jumble the prize support accordingly. AFTER THE TOURNAMENT: What, you thought your responsibilites ended with the Awards dinner? Just as you're responsible for building anticipation, you're equally responsible for preserving their memories. * Make sure none of the original paperwork goes astray. * Send Thank-You notes to all the sponsors and suppliers. It's just polite. * Convert the registration Web site to a photo album. People already have the link, so it'll be easy to remember. * Scan and post photos from the event. Provide due credit, and identify as many people in the pictures as possible. * Post all the tournament reports from all the players. Pictures are fine, but personal accounts are better. * Provide links to other player sites that might have their photos from the event. This was a community event, not a showcase for the planning committee, and so a multiplicity of voices and memories should be represented...even people who had complaints about the event. It will only make the next event better. * Advertise your page on the mailing list, and invite contributions from as many people as possible * List all the winners, their deck lists, and, if possible, all the event rankings. GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR EVENT!