FAQ
From TaikaiWiki
Contents |
Introduction
Who
Members of the Random Insanity forums and IRC channel (info and rules here).
What
In short, this is the work of a community of writers; a mixture of original fiction and fanfiction, the main attraction being the “Tournaments” held periodically. However, separating this from something like a cross-fandom community writing role-play is the inclusion of a unique style of gameplay; the writing aspect is key, but essentially this is a game played in part by writing and in part by participating in whatever game system is in use. Originally these things began as “a [...] reason why we have people who might otherwise not be fighting going head-to-head” because “the whole point behind Eternity is to have totally badass crossover fight scenes in totally kickass locations.” (Peptuck, 2009)
While the modern tournament scene has somewhat evolved beyond simple cross-fandom brawl writing, that original spirit is still an integral part of these writing games. It's a bit of a stretch, but you could compare these events to a sort of mini-NaNoWriMo (lasting usually 1-2 weeks).
The community has run several dozen tournaments since the year 2000. For more details on how and when these things got started, check out the History page.
When
We try to have 2-4 of these things a year, but things never go just as planned unless you have a pet shinigami, and even then... Check the Main Page or the RI forums to get the latest on scheduling.
Where
Tournaments and related writing take place on the RI forums. Discussion and other information are split between the forums, the IRC channel, and this wiki.
Why
The main reason, we hope, is that you participate out of enjoyment! Other reasons may include things like:
- Writing practice
- To be introduced to new fiction that catches your interest
- To pen epic, elaborate fights
- Explore the personality of a character in a different way than their source material did
- To help build upon the overstory or EMC
- Experiment with your writing
- Meet new people
- To win
...pretty much whatever reason you like is good enough reason to join in.
How
Basically, you pick a character from some fictional source and then you write/role-play them over the course of the tournament’s story. For the details on how these things typically work, see the tournament page.
Fanfiction, You Say?
In a word, yes. Yes, we’re aware that this writing isn’t going to win us any Pulitzer’s, but we do this for fun. If you have a strong aversion to any and all fanfiction, than these tournaments probably aren’t the thing for you. However, be aware they are not strictly fanfiction, due to Eternals and the backdrop most tournaments take place in (see below for more info). If the idea of taking a character and throwing them into a strange new world (well, to them) and writing what plays out, along with everyone else and their characters, sounds interesting, by all means feel free to watch a tournament unfold, or participate yourself!
What's All This About Eternals and Multiverse and Stuff?
Well, this is a long story. To put it simply, think of every piece of fiction that’s out there in Real Life--from your Shakespeare to your Star Wars to your Watchmen to your Speed Racer--and clump them all together and call it the Multiverse (as in, many universes). Now, imagine that there was another dimension that encompassed and connected all these fictional characters and worlds, without their knowledge. This dimension is known as the Continuous. And inside this fictional reality exists a mythos created by the community, containing, among many other things, the Eternals. This all-encompassing universe provides plenty of room for original fiction as well as a way to explain the mixture of characters from other fictional sources.
Emperor Palpatine Dueling Merlin Over the Plains of Mordor?
Anything Else I Should Know?
Why, yes...
Regarding Knowledge of the Canon
There is a lot of information to digest regarding the canon created by the community, and not even all of it is on this wiki. Extensive knowledge of the Eternals and the Multiverse and all that are not required to participate! You may miss out on a few references to old tournaments, inside jokes, or whatnot, but on the whole, most tournaments are set up in such a way that someone with just a basic understanding of what key elements of the canon are will be able to participate.
Regarding Acceptable Content
Mature Content
As one might imagine from the term tournament, these stories tend to be conflict-driven and contain a good bit of violence. While individual hosts may make specific requests, and certain rules about things like powergaming are usually always in effect, the general rule of thumb is anything PG-13~R goes. We do have younger members in the community. Detailed fights, violence, language, innuendo, and the like are acceptable (be aware that your level of integration of these elements may lose you some readers if you go overboard), but we ask that you refrain from detailed gore and sexual content in tournament writing. If you want to write lemons with your sponsored character, fanfiction.net is right around the corner. If you want to write tournament-inappropriate stuff that is somehow connected to a tournament or EMC, we actually have a place for that (it’s not just for that, mind you), called Into Eternity.
Respecting Source Material
On one hand, it is quite impossible to write anything that could be classified as fanfiction without some stretching of the bounds of the original work. Half the fun of these things is seeing different interpretations of different characters (both those you are familiar with and those you’ve never heard of). That said, here at Eternity, there is an unwritten rule that we usually attempt to adhere closely to how the original work developed it characters, themes, etc., even when writing a character out of their element. We encourage humor even if you’re writing a more serious character, but be aware that straying too far from the source material (unless, maybe, in the case where you make it clear from the start that you intend to do something whacky and the hosts okay it) may earn you funny looks, scowls, and A-Votes. Again, if you want to write an alternate retelling of a whole video game plot, complete with Quina x Brahne, fanfiction.net is only a few clicks away.
Regarding Time Requirement
As the community has aged, the tournaments have become more drawn-out in an attempt to accommodate the job/college/family/friends/etc. schedules of the community. With rounds lasting several dozen hours, ample time is typically given to meet the often merciful quota of writing; one could probably spend only an hour per round writing something and get away with it. However, for a sponsor (and this will be different for everyone, depending on how fast you can read and write), should you really get into a tournament and make an effort to read everything written as well as write your own pieces of the story, you may be looking at a good six hours or more for every 24 hours in the round.
Should you feel like you may not have enough time to fully participate in a tournament, there is always the option of Sidekicking, which is a specific participation classification designed to take the weight of sponsorship off the player’s shoulders and allow them to just write as much or little as they have time and will for without feeling like they have to juggle everything.
