This is a new contest, 90% as a rebuttal to PALEMOON dropping MapDraft, and 10% as a new, improved MapDraft. I've made some changes to the organization and structure of the contest, but the general premise is the same. In this contest, you will have to make a map using/following the "Kicks" I give you. What is Kick you ask? Well, there are three types:
Tile Kicks tell you the type and number of tiles you are allowed to use.
Object Kicks have, you guessed it, the objects you are allowed to use in your map.
Rule Kicks give you a rule you must follow whilst mapping.
Not you, the person sitting across from you. Oh, they're not interested? Okay, I guess you'll do. Each round in Kickstart will be comprised of ten contestants. Now, if you're wondering how they are chosen, don't waste your time, because they aren't. The first ten people to comment saying they want in will get in. There will be no "contestant list." This ensures that everyone has an equal chance of getting to compete. As soon as the contestants are confirmed, I will PM them their numbers. "What are numbers," you may ask yourself. Well, there are twenty of each Kick type, and they are all assigned numbers. PMs will be listed with three-numbered strings, for example 18-3-12. That means that you will use Tile Kick 18, Object Kick 3, and Rule Kick 12 to make your map.
Once you receive your number strings, refer to the Kick List below for the details of your Kicks. Get it? Excellent. Also, unless you receive a pack with extra ninjas/exits, you will only be allowed one of each per submission. "But how do you submit the maps?" Well, I'm gonna say that the only submissions I'll take will be on NUMA. Make sure you tag your map with kickstart and X, with 'X' being the round number. This makes it easy for the judges to find and rank your maps. Deal? Don't forget, I have to go off the honor system because there's no way to tell of you're cheating. But why cheat? It takes away the whole reason to be in this contest. If I somehow find you are cheating, you will not be allowed to join again for awhile. But it'll serve you right.
I'm not creative enough to come up with sixty Kicks, so as a reward for joining early, the first ten people to sign-up will be allowed to make two of each Kick type. I will be screening the Kicks, and any I find unworthy will be discarded, and the player who created it will automatically docked a rank or two. Don't let that happen to you. If I must I'll come up with the new Kicks.
There are twenty Kicks of each type. No contestant will get the same combination of Kicks. Number-strings are read as follows: Tile Kick-Object Kick-Rule Kick. Easy enough, right? Just remember: Teal Tiles, Orange Objects and Red Rules.
Tile Kicks
1. (bufar) I'm Number One!: You can only use "1" tiles and "E" tiles, as many as you need.
2. (bufar) Tunneling: You must use at least 350 "E" tiles. You also get 15 "6" tiles and 15 "7" tiles.
3. (PALEMOON) Typical PALEMOON Behavior: Use between 40 and 100 "E" tiles.
4. (PALEMOON) Generation Y: If you have 200 maps or less, you must place: 10 "E" Tiles, 10 "6" Tiles, 5 "1" Tiles, 5 "8" Tiles, and 20 "5" Tiles. If you have 200 maps or MORE, you must place: 10 "8" Tiles, 10 "1" Tiles, 5 "E" Tiles, 20 "5" Tiles, and 5 "4" Tiles
5. (kkstrong) It's all in the name!: Take the number of letters in your metanet forum name, multiply that number by 30. You are to use this many "E" tiles. Take the number of letters in your metanet forum name, multiply that number by 15. You are to use this many "2", "3", "6", or "7" tiles. Take the number of letters in your metanet forum name, multiply that number by 15. You are to use this many "1", "4", "5", or "8" tiles. Everything else will be a "D" tile.
6. (kkstrong) Take The Easy Way In: You map may contain any number of each of the tiles as long as you have exactly 437 "D" tiles in the map.
7. (sTalkR) Futurism: Unlimited use of "E" and "5" Tiles, up to eight "2" Tiles, and up to eight "3" Tiles.
8. (sTalkR) Minimalism: Up to "25" E Tiles, and up to "12" Tiles of your choice.
9. (squibbles) Don't stand so close to me: 25 tiles, the type doesn't matter, but none of them can be touching.
10. (squibbles) Five to a Room: You may use no more then 50 "E" tiles, and you get 10 of any other type of tile, excluding "5" tiles.
11. (romaniac) Three cheers for romaniac!: Minimum of 356 "E" tiles (half of map), 178 "D" tiles (quarter of map), 89 "1" tiles (eighth of map). The rest is any combination of these 3 types.
12. (romaniac) Twenty + 4: 20 "E" tiles and 4 of each other tile type.
13. (Kablamo) n00bs birthday: 10 "E" tiles, 15 "1" tiles, and 20 "4" or "8" tiles.
14. (Kablamo) nothing round on the ground: 10 "5" tiles, 30 "E" tiles, 5 "2" tiles, and 5 "3" tiles.
15. (Amadeus) The Planets: four "4" tiles, four "8" tiles, eight "E" tiles, four "5" tiles, twelve "2" tiles, twelve "3" tiles, twelve "6" tiles, and twelve "7" tiles.
16. (Amadeus) Platformer: 35 "E" tiles, 10 "2" tiles, and 10 "6" tiles.
17. (BionicCryonic) Loving an Elevator: 60 "E" tiles and 15 "4" or "8" tiles. You also need at least three one tile-width chimney areas eight tiles-lengths high.
18. (BionicCryonic) Nananana-nananana Batman!: 8 "2" tiles, 8 "3" tiles, 8 "5" tiles, 8 "6" tiles, and 8 "7" tiles.
19. (numa_ninja) ATOB TREES.: 15 '2' Tiles, 10 '6' Tiles, 5 '5' Tiles, and 20 'E' Tiles.
20. (numa_ninja) The mean kids at school give me swirlies: 55 'E' Tiles, 35 '8' Tiles, and 30 '4' Tiles.
Object Kick 1-20
1. (bufar) Double Team: You must use exactly 2 of the same type drone. You also get thirty gold and three oneways.
2. (Life247) Two-sided Coin: You get up to 100 mines, and up to 100 gold.
3. (PALEMOON) Going Home In A Body Bag: 1 Rocket Launcher, and X Gauss Turrets, where X is equal to the number of vowels in your NUMA name. You also get a piece of gold for every day that February has in a leap year.
4. (PALEMOON) Emergence Day: 4 Chain Gun Drones and 40 Gold
5. (kkstrong) The Prolifics die!: 2 blue drones, 3 guass, 7 floorguard, 45 normal doors, 200 pieces of gold, and 1 mine.
6. (Life247) Up and Up: 30 upward-facing launchpads, 75 gold, four seeker drones, and as many bounceblocks and oneways as you need.
7. (sTalkR) The Rookie: At least 18 pieces of gold, up to 24 mines, and 4 bounceblocks OR 8 one-ways. If you have submitted 100 maps or less, you get 2 rockets and a sniper, but if you have at least 101 submitted maps, you get 2 chainguns and a floorguard.
8. (sTalkR) Glass Cage: Between 30 and 40 pieces of gold, up to 10 mines, and at least 24 one-way platforms. You also get 5 blue drones and 3 thwumps if you have at least one submitted DDA to your name.
9. (squibbles) A Zen-like State: Four rockets, three seeker drones, and seventeen bounceblocks. You also get as many gold pieces as you want, but for every piece of gold, there must be a mine.
10. (squibbles) Don't think of a white polar bear: NOOOOOOO FLOORGUARDS! Anything else is allowed.
11. (romaniac) Rain Dancers: Twenty gold, seven lasers, twenve normal doors, and three trap doors.
12. (romaniac) Group Therapy: 5 rockets, 35 gold, 3 seeker drones with alternating "W" pathing, 25 mines, and plenty of one-ways.
13. (Kablamo) everything you need: 10 enemies of you choice, 1 extra exit, 35 gold, and 5 launchpads.
14. (Kablamo) hot fuzz: 3 chainguns, 30 gold, 1 lauchpad, 3 bounceblocks
15. (Amadeus) 7-7-7 Jackpot!: 40 Gold, 4 floorguards, 7 oneways which must be facing the same direction, and 2 rockets OR 1 chaingun.
16. (Amadeus) Hand-picked just for you: Between one and five of every object must be used, including ninjas and exits.
17. (BionicCryonic) Some Stuff You Can Use To Make A Map: 2 chainguns, 17 gold, 15 mines, and 3 normal doors.
18. (BionicCryonic) Hide-and-Seeker: 3 seeker drones, 1 floorgaurd, 27 gold, and 5 trapdoors.
19. (numa_ninja) Gaussian Blur: 5 Gausses, 20 Gold, 10 Mines, and 5 Launchpads.
20. (numa_ninja) Warmonger: 2 Chainguns, 1 Rocket, 30 Gold, 12 One-Way Platforms, and 5 Mines.
Rule Kick 1-20
1. (bufar) Team Effort: You must thank bufar for collabing on the the map or playtesting it, even though he didn't.
2. (bufar) OH EXPLOITABLE!: Your map must contain at least one glitch.
3. (PALEMOON) Touchy-Feely Relationship: All the gold must be placed so that they are directly touching another object or tile.
4. (PALEMOON) I Would Die 4 U: All of your gold must be placed dangerously close to objects that can kill your ninja.
5. (kkstrong) Swatch-a-kangaroo: Take every gold you were assigned, and make it a mine. Take every mine you were assigned, and make it a gold. Take every blue drone you were assigned, and make it a laser or chaingun. Take every chaingun or laser you were assigned, and make it a blue drone. Take every thwump or bounceblock you were assigned, and make it a one-way, locked door, or trapdoor. Take every one-way, locked door, or trapdoor you were assigned, and make it a thwump or bounceblock. Take every launchpad you were assigned, and make it a floorguard. Take every floorguard you were assigned, and make it a launchpad. Take every guass you were assigned and make it a rocket. Take every rocket you were assigned, and make it a guass.
6. (kkstrong) Avant Garde!: You must use any NReality Mod on one of your enemies. If you don't know how to make one, you can consult Modmaster, kkstrong's Mod Making Program: here.
7. (sTalkR) Greed: You have to place all your gold pieces into one big cluster.
8. (sTalkR) Shrunk: NOTHING is allowed to be placed in the outer three rows/columns of the map.
9. (squibbles) Walled In: You cannot place the tiles in such a way that all four sides are touching other tiles. Corners are allowed.
10. (squibbles) Ninja, Party of One: The Ninja may not be placed within 2 tile lengths of any other object or tile.
11. (romaniac) Access Granted: All surface E tiles must be accessible by a floorguard. If you do not have floorguards, you receive 5.
12. (romaniac) Double the fun, for half the price: Double the number of each object you are given, and halve the number of each tile. Round up.
13. (Kablamo) Without Warning: All your thumps must be fully hidden in tiles. You receive ten extra thwumps.
14. (Life247) Revolutionaries Unite!: Convert every enemy you have to either a zap drone OR a seeker drone. Mines are excluded from this rule.
15. (Amadeus) Malefactor: All locked and trap doors must be used in such a way that hitting a switch worsens the player's situation. If you don't have any doors, you receive five locked doors and four trap doors.
16. (Amadeus) Benefactor: All locked and trap doors must be used in such a way that hitting a switch betters the player's situation. If you don't have any doors, you receive four locked doors and five trap doors.
17. (BionicCryonic) KRA fish: The map must be a KRA. If you do not have a rocket, you get one. Lucky you.
18. (BionicCryonic) Reserved for Important People: NOTHING is allowed to be within the seven inside rows or columns.
19. (numa_ninja) Hypnotic: All drones must be surfacefollow "CW". All objects (including enemies) must be touching a tile at all times.
20. (numa_ninja) Frozen like a Popsicle: All drones are NaN'd and all objects must be touching a tile.
I know there's some secret math formula to come up with all possible number-strings, but I'm planning on becoming an English major, so anyone who helps me there will get something special. (Well, a big thanks to AlliedEnvy for helping me come up with the strings. He gets a cookie.)
Now, this contest will not be point-based. No, it will be ranked, with 0 being first, and 9 being last in true N style. This way no ties can occur, which wreak havoc on the people running the show. For the first round, I will be judge, but for all subsequent rounds, the person who takes 0th will be judge. This will take some strain off of me and also allow the top dogs to have some extra fun. But, if you win 0th, you will not be allow to participate in the round you judge. Obviously, this is to make sure others get to play and that you don't cheat.
Now, you may ask me how long each round takes, and I feel that a week is a fair amount to time to make a good map. The judging may take longer, but contestants will get a week from the time they receive their Kicks to make a map.
The biggest difference between MapDraft and Kickstart is prizes. I didn't ask PALEMOON, but I'm sure that by round six, he had over 300 of each pack type. There's no way in hell I'm going to do the same (having Kicks made by winners). So, the only award for each round is winning 0th. Unless any imagers volunteer to make sigbars or whatnot for the 1st- and 2nd-place winners, becoming a judge will be the only prize in this contest. But you all know participating is the real reason to join.
I have a channel on the IRC which will have an object/tile counter bot available most of the time to help you. You can find it [url=irc://irc.mountai.net/kickstart]here[/url]. I'll be on most of the time, and I'll find someone to host the bot for me.
