Stillwater Archery Tournament

 '''

The Stillwater-Cedarwood Archery Tournament is an archery tournament hosted by the House of Stillwater-Sloane and is held at Stillwood Castle Archery Range on the Cedarwood sim.

SURL: Stillwater Castle Archery Range

The event alternates with the Stillwater Joust.

Rules & Regulations (as of 1/5/2015)
• The tournament is open to all bipedal avatars within the normal 5 to 8 foot height range.

• No meter is used, but a chosen weapon to use in the tournament must be Spellfire compatible.

• All bows used in the tournament should be similar or the same in order to promote fairness among competitors. To that end, we recommend A&D HUD-based weapons (A&D, The White Armory, etc.). 􀀃. If a competitor does not have an A&D weapon, then a free bow will be provided and both competitors will be required to use the free bow. If a competitor has no problems with having a match against the free bow (which may fire a bit faster than the A&D based weapons), then it will be allowed.

• No enhancers, boosters, potions, shields, or cheats allowed. If found during any part of the tournament, the competitor will be disqualified.

• Viewer based Animation Overrides (AOs) are allowed, but are subject to being turned off if they are found to be too distracting, or if the host specifically requests it.

TOURNAMENT SETUP

The "Velde's Archery Range", developed by Alexander Velde, allows for one (or two) player(s) to shoot from 10, 20, or 30 meters away and then are scored accordingly. Timed rounds of 30, 60, or 90 seconds can be used but should be the same during the entire tournament. 􀀂

TOURNAMENT & MATCH FORMATS

--Singles--

The Singles Format simply involves one archer who attempts to rack up the most points over a set time limit. Each archer takes their turn to try to become the high score leader. The winner is determined by the one who has obtained the most points after all archers have shot. Another format is a tournament composed of THREE (3) rounds, and the winner is determined by the archer who won 2 out of 3 matches.

--Duels--

The Duels Format is very much like the Singles Format, only the tournament is composed of bracket-style setup where archers are randomly paired. The winner in a duel is the archer with the most points after one or more rounds, and then advances in the tournament to the next round. This continues until there are two in the finals and a champion emerges. Any one of the differentiating factors used in the singles format may be used here as well.

--Time Limits--

Time limits for the tournament will vary based on the turnout, but for the most part, rounds will consist of 60 seconds each. Larger tournament may warrant 30 seconds rounds, while smaller tournament may warrant 90 second rounds.

--Range/Distance--

By default, all tournament matches will take place from the 20 meter (20m) range, however, archers may ultimately debate and decide to have their contest at the 10m or 30m range. So long as it is agreeable by both participants, then it is permitted. Additionally, a tournament may be held at different ranges, 10m in the quarterfinals, 20m in the semifinals, and 30m in the finals. All participants should stand behind the assigned range.

--Points--

Regardless of fire rate, each target is only worth a single scoring chance (so high fire rates won't bag you more points, just bag you some lag).

There are three target sizes:

• Small = +3 points

• Medium = +2 points

• Large = +1 point

There are also three special targets that modify targets score value:

• Red, The Dragon, +3  (Always try to hit)

• Blue, The Mystic, -3   (Try to avoid hitting)

• Purple, The Crest of Chaos, Random Result from -6 to +6  (It's a gamble)

There are also added points for increased range:

• 0-9 Meters:          0's out score, too close

• 9-19 Meters:        No impact

• 19-29 Meters       +1

• 29-39 Meters       +2

• 39+                      Out of range ignores all hits.

Point Examples:

• If you where at 20m (+1) and shot a small (+3) dragon (+3) you would gain a total of 7 points from that hit.

• If you where at 30m (+2) and shot a medium (+2) Mystic (-3) you would gain 1 point for that hit.

• If you where at 10m (+0) and shot a Large (+1) Mystic (-3) you would get -2 points for that hit.

STARTING PROCEDURES

• Participants will sign in on the tournament board provided. Practice time is provided before the start of the tournament and this gives participants the opportunity to pre-test their bows to ensure they fire and register on a target

• Participants selected for a match will then take their spot(s) on the standing pad or starting line

• Participants will say "ready" when they are ready to shoot. When all participants in the match are ready, the official with start the countdown on the board. It will count from 3 to Zero. At Zero, the targets will rez and the match begins.

• After the match, the archer with the most points or wins is deemed the winner of the match. The number of rounds will be revealed ahead of time, but more often will be THREE (3) rounds.

• After all matches have been completed, the existing competitor(s) will seat themselves and the next competitor(s) will take to the range. The tournament is finished when all matches have been played and winners announced.

• Tie Breakers Procedures: In the case of a tie at the end of a round or at the end of a tournament, an additional overtime round will ensue between the tied participants.

OTHER RULES

• No jumping or flying during a match. In the case of such, a warning will be given. Continued or frequent failure to comply may result in disqualification.

• No reloading arrows during a match.

• No leaving or going AFK during a match.

• In the case when a participant crashes or goes AFK (away-from-computer) before or during a match, they have 5 minutes to report to the range or else they will forfeit by default. If the crash happens during a round, the round will be redone.

• No arguing with the official. Please IM concerns after a round has finished and they will be looked at.

PRIZES & AWARDS

• There will be an awards presentation after the tournament. In order to receive your awards and prizes, please remain available after the tournament to collect them.

• 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place finishes are recognized, and awards will be provided for each placement.

SCRIPTS/PERFORMANCE-BASED RULES / LAG REDUCING TIPS

• To help keep the tournament running smoothly, it is highly encouraged that competitors keep scripts down by removing any unnecessary HUDs, radars, etc. Script monitoring tools may be available at the site of the tournament for display purposes.

• Anyone who is not competing in a match should NOT have a weapon or HUD equipped. This is to help reduce lag for the current competitors.

• Advanced 3D graphics take a lot of processing power to render. These tips may help free up much needed FPS by cutting out needless rendering for a match.

• Low Graphics: Go to Preferences and turn Graphics settings to Low, or Custom and manually move the sliders where desired. Limiting Draw Distance also helps.

• Turn Off Settings: Go into Advanced Settings and turn off unneeded Types and Features such as Flexi Objects, Dynamic Textures, Trees, Bump-mapping, etc.

• Derendering: Derendering is a great way to avoid rendering specific things; such as complicated objects, parts of avatars, or even whole people. Just be careful not to derender anyone you will be competing with. In Firestorm, switching group tag restores the derendered objects. Other viewers may differ.

• Firestorm Specific Regarding Rigged Mesh: Viewing Rigged Mesh in Low Graphics actually 'hurts' FPS (frames per second) in a big way. This is because Low Graphics turns off Hardware Skinning. Manually enabling this check box fixes the issue.

Good luck and have fun!