[CCOS] April CCOS Entry Time! Enter Here!

https://media.giphy.com/media/26tPghhb310muUkEw/giphy.gif ENTRIES ARE OPEN Before the usual greeting, check out our new C&C Discord!

Greetings everyone! Welcome again to this month's Community Concept Open Stage. In this contest, I ask for any and all Champion Concepts posted in the months of March and April (that have not been entered in a CCOS prior), and run it by a temporarily anonymous panel of fellow Summoners! If you're interested at all, read on! Everything is detailed below.

Contents: List of Entrants | Prizes | Entry Requirements | How to Enter | Timeline | Scoring | Judges Needed! | FAQ | Support the CCOS!

Entrants (7/30): Lynn, the Intruder Tor, the Techmaturgical Thermomancer Telford, the Beast Siulv, the Scarlet Orphan MORE DARKIN Shil'Ka, the Darkin that Chose Sir Oswald, the Humble Knight Mallus, the Deacon of the Demons

Note: Don't hesitate to call out errors, mistakes happen!

Prizes:

• Top 5 concepts will be highlighted and praised in the results announcement.
• ALL entries will have a score associated with their concept in the scoring categories as well as a good chance at feedback and critiques.

Entry Requirements:

• Limit ONE entry per player.
• Concept Entries must be posted this month, or have been posted last month (as in this month; April 2018, and last month; March 2018), and never entered in a CCOS before.
• No WIP Concepts please. This contest is here to encourage complete content. WIP Concepts will be disqualified and / or ineligible for points.
• Concept Entries must be YOURS. If the linked Concept's author and your name are different, your entry will be disqualified, and / or rendered ineligible for points.
• Entries will be taken from now until the 2nd.
• All entries must at least have a LORE and a KIT section to be considered a concept. More is needed to remain competitive, but to proceed to judging, you need at least that. Concepts without a LORE and a KIT by the time judging begins will be considered a WIP Concept, and thus disqualified and / or ineligible for points.
• The first 30 entries will be taken. Any posts above that limit will not be entered.
• Entrants can be disqualified and / or be ineligible for points based on rude behavior towards other entrants / judges (though negative feedback, so long as it is constructive, is fine), as well as disregarding of the Universal Forum Rules (no, porn is NOT a legitimate reference image). Other major problems may also qualify.
• You must include a meaningful review of another community member's work that, at the time of writing, is NOT in the CCOS, and provide a link to it in your linked concept,. Failure to do so will result in disqualification. If you have to ask what "meaningful" is, give them the kind of review you would want to see on your concept.

How to Enter:

1. Post your concept normally within the Skin & Champion Concepts Board, if it's not already posted.
2. Reply to THIS POST with a link to Step 1.
3. Wait for me to reply with "Entry Confirmed!". If it takes more than a few days for me to reply, don't hesitate to remind me! I might've missed you!
4. Watch the "Current Entrants" List above and double check that you're up there, if you are, then you're in!

Note: There is max of THIRTY slots.

Timeline:

4/6/18: CCOS starts. 4/17/18: Entries close, judging begins. 4/28/18: Judging stops, results announced.

Scoring:

Scoring is based on this rubric:

CHARACTERIZATION: 0-10 points How well you sell your character personality and/or concept. A low score means you're pitching a generic, cliche, or simply bland character, or rehashing an old concept in a trite manner. A high score means you're delivering a fully fleshed out, unique, engaging personality, crafting a brilliant story that draws the reader's attention, or putting a revolutionary spin on a concept.

FANTASY FULFILLMENT 0-10 points How well your kit and lore interact to sell the character and the fantasy. A low score here means the two feel like alien concepts or simply don't mesh, while a high score indicates that every moment spent in game with the champion lines up to what you'd expect that character to deliver.

BALANCE POTENTIAL: 0-10 points Not how well your kit's numbers ARE balanced, but how well they COULD be balanced without major adjustments to the design. We don't expect you to get numbers 100% right, but it's still easy to tell if something is balance-able or simply unworkable. A low score here means that something fundamental in the kit or playstyle is simply irreparable, while a high number means that the character delivers fair, reasonable mechanics that a little tuning can make nearly perfect.

GAMEPLAY OUTPUT: 0-10 points How well your kit functions in an actual game, and how well it fulfills the role/roles expected of it. A low score here means your kit fails to provide a solid reason to pick it, OR your kit is so overloaded that it warps the game in bad ways. A high score here means the champion is solidly built and has something unique and pick-worthy to bring to the table, but isn't overbearing compared to other, similar choices.

GAMEPLAY FLOW: 0-10 points How it feels to play as or against your kit. A low score means your kit is clunky, awkward, impossibly difficult, or otherwise frustrating to play as, or, conversely, that it is infuriating or perhaps impossible to meaningfully play against. A high score means that your kit is fun to play, offers opportunities to express player skill, and provides meaningful counterplay.

ELEGANCE & FOCUS: 0-10 points How much unnecessary baggage your design has. A low score here means your kit is awkward, clunky, and possibly full of tiny insignificant or unnecessary components that muddy up the design. A high score here means your kit does what it intends to do as simply and elegantly as possible, to the point that any added mechanics would feel like added bloat, and any removed mechanics would feel like you're harming the very core of the character's mechanical design.

Note: If you have any questions on a category, I'd be happy to go into more detail.

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TOTAL: 0/60, averaged between all judges.

It's also important to note that, to give some context, The Djinn thinks that most official Riot champions would earn between a 40 and a 55. Just helpful to provide some context for these numbers.

Judges Needed: So if you're at all interested in judging this month, E-Mail me at '[email protected]' and I'll give you more info. I encourage lots of questions! I ALWAYS need more judges, and there is no detriment to stop trying and walk away halfway through (because a lot can come up over the course of a month).

I do ask that all judges fill out the rubric and provide feedback for every champion. If you don't, I can't accept your scores.

FAQ:

But I've never made a Concept before....

Honestly, just give it your best shot. Try searching up other CCOS entries and look at what won first place. Focus on what makes your champion unique from everyone else. Imagine playing against it - is this guy going to be permabanned like Zed or Yasuo? Study up on how Riot writes their lore.

Or just reference Sir ArmaMalum's Introduction to Champion Concepts. That works too.

I have a WIP Concept...

Feel free to post and work on your Concept as much as you want. It's not technically entered until you provide the link to the entries thread. Just make sure you're not the 31st entry or beyond, and that the Concept was either made in March or April, and has not yet been entered into a CCOS!

I don't have a Concept, and I don't have time to judge, but I want to help!

This is still cool. The single best way for you to help is to give feedback. Negative or positive, just make sure it's constructive, and that the author can use it effectively if they choose to do so.

Can I change my Concept after entry?

As encouraging feedback and Concept participation is a major motive behind this contest, I encourage iterating on a Concept, HOWEVER you have to be able to argue it's still the same champion, so no major changes. Otherwise, it will have to count as a new entry, with your previous entry being disqualified. Please keep in mind that your entry doesn't start until you provide the link here; If you want feedback before entering I advise you to simply post it normally, and provide the link when you feel you're ready. Just be sure to enter before the entry period ends, and before we hit 30 entries!

Does that mean I can't swap out my Concept completely?

No. So long as there's still room left, you can completely swap out your Concept. If we're at 30 entries and you want to change, then I can't allow that.

Should I drop out?

You can, but there's no opportunity cost to staying in, so I'd recommend you just go the distance.

Can I change my Concept after judging starts?

Yes, but this may not be the smartest thing to do. The judges peruse the entries at their own pace once judging begins, in whatever order they desire. This means there is no guarantee that your changes will be seen by every judge. If you do make changes, especially late in the judging period, you have to be prepared for a score that does not accurately reflect your final Concept.

Will there be any specific themed CCOSes?

I've considered the idea. I don't think it's a good idea to run them in place of the CCOS since they might exclude some up and coming concepts, but if anyone wanted to take the initiative and run their own themed CCOS, such as one where all contestants HAVE to have been a prior entry, I'd very much endorse it. I'd do it myself, but one's enough.

What's it take to host the CCOS?

If you're not judging? Not much - have some Google sheets for scoresheets to pass out to the judges and make sure you get them all back by the end.

What's it take to judge?

You need to be able to understand why certain design choices are made. It's not enough that a concept looks cool, it needs to make sense from a design perspective and still be fun to play and at least defeatable by opponents. You also need to be able to identify the individual parts of each champion and how they work toward one whole champion. If you're in the habit of posting long good neighbor reviews, or if you've scored in the top five in any CCOS, you're in a good spot here. If you're the kind of guy that can't muster even a paragraph for another concept, I'd suggest refraining or improving upon your critical analysis skills.

Support the CCOS: Some of you have been doing this already, but if you'd like to support the CCOS, as well as get more people involved each month, provide a link to this post on your entry so that others can find it easier. This lets the CCOS accrue more visibility without anyone needing to spam reminders. This is by no means a requirement, but thanks to anyone who does help out!

Above all else, have fun!