A Dark Tournament in Battlefield Park [Tri-Sport]

[Vanion Shadowcast]

A beautifully-penned scroll, written in what very well could be blood, is posted to the board, and next to the signature at the bottom is a strange stamp: the symbol depicts a multitude of ghostly spirits that form a circle, and within the circle lies a chalice.


I will be hosting a tournament soon, once I've moved into my new manor in Battlefield Park. The tournament will be in similar vein to the Hydra Invitational Tournament that took place this past summer, requiring would-be duelists to alternate between fighting in armed melee, unarmed brawling, and controlled spellcasting.

The winner of this tournament will receive the following from me:
The Squireship of Battlefield Park
My Mentorship in unarmed combat
My Apprenticeship in mystical dueling
My tutorship in the dark arts

Tack up your application and introduction below. I will hold the queue for participants open for two weeks, at most, and will close it when eight duelists sign up. I will take an additional two duelists beyond the eight on a waiting list, in the case of missing participants.

- Vanion Shadowcast, Baron of Battlefield Park



((The format for this will be a little different than the Hydra Invitational. Here are the details. If you have rules questions, please PM me.

Tournament Format:
Eight duelists will be split into two seperate brackets, randomly. Each bracket will undergo three round-robin style matches.

Scoring will be based on Match Points; each point that a duelist scores in a duel is worth one match point (up to five, maximum). A win is worth an additional three match points. A shutout is worth two additional match points. Any victory that happens in six rounds or less is worth an two additional match points to the victor.

The top two highest scoring duelists from each bracket will enter the single-elimination semi-final portion of the tournament. Seeding for this portion of the tournament will be based on total Match Points. The undefeated champion of this portion of the tournament will be rewarded any of the above titles/accolades that are relevant to their rankings.

Tri-Sport Dueling Rules:
This is somewhat ammended from Sylus' Hydra Invitational Tournament.

All duelists will receive a sum total of four modifiers for each duel (to be used for fancies, feints, or foci). No duelists will receive access to the following DoM spells: Nether Ray, Immolation, or Elemental Fury.

DoF defenses (dodge, armblock, duck, leap, legblock) will not score an advantage as per usual in DoF. Instead, a regular defense will score 0.5 points, while a fancy defense will score a full point as per usual.

There can be no ties in the tournament, and duelists must win by a full point or more.

Round Rotation:
Every duel will follow the same round rotation, as opposed to the Hydra Invitational's changing rotation. The first three rounds of a duel will be DoS. The second three rounds of a duel will be DoF. The next three rounds of a duel will be DoM. After round nine, the rotation starts anew with DoS.

Personal Note:
This is a good opportunity for newer players, or for old players to create new characters. I'm hoping to build a roleplaying/story-telling relationship with the winner of this tournament. Vanion is who he is, so keep that in mind when deciding if (or with which character) you want to participate.

Date pending! Location will be Battlefield Park in the RoH chatroom.))

[Lilly Hyde]

Well, this sounds like fun. Sign me up please.

Lilly Hyde

[edie rolstein]

Under the ornate scroll, a small note is tacked up.

"Edie Rolstein."

[Saieniel]

I desire a challenge. This will suffice.

Saieniel Dúeth

[Faris Dugan]

I will try this.

[Xanthippe Kasiph]

Vanion, you punk!

You must have learned a -few- things, because I can't fathom any other way nobody has cut your mouthy self to pieces by now.

Teach me! Well, all your pixie-dust voodoo mystical stuff at least. I know how to use a sword, and how hard can it be to just pop somebody in the face a few times? Don't worry, you can still be the pretty one!

[Shale]

Kindly reserve a spot for me. Provided the date works well, I shall endeavor to attend.

- Shale

[Bile]

This should prove humorous one way or another.

Bile

[Viktorya]

I will attend.

[Charles Blackstone]

Sign me up

-Charles

[Vanion Shadowcast]

Pinned over the original scroll is a smaller note, penned identically.

Charles Blackstone is the first on the waiting list. With such an interest, I will expand the tournament to allow for twelve duelists and three duelists on the waiting list, if we reach a total of fifteen participants.

-Vanion Shadowcast, Baron of Battlefield Park


((Format note: If we get 15 people signed up, I will add an additional bracket of four for the round-robin portion of the tournament. The two highest scorers out of all the brackets will receive a first round bye in the single-elimination portion of the tournament.

With fewer than 15 signed up, Charles and any others posting after him will be on the waiting list in the case of no-shows, and I will stick to the format in the original post.))

[Lily Karos]

I will attend this tournament.

Lily Karos

[Vanion Shadowcast]

Registration for this tournament will close at Midnight, Saturday November 30th.

[Viktorya]

I will be unable to attend. I wish Charles Blackstone luck with my spot.

[Vanion Shadowcast]

Registration is closed for the tournament. I will accept last minute registration only if absolutely necessary the night of the tournament, or if we have significant cancellations beforehand.

The tournament will take place in Battlefield Park at 8pm [EST] on Saturday, December 7th. Brackets will be revealed the night of the tournament.

The tournament roster is as follows:
Eddie Rolstein
Saieniel Dueth
Faris Dugan
Xanthippe Kasiph
Bile
Charles Blackstone
Lily Karos



A hand drawn map lies below the words, leading to a circled location annotated as The Swallowed Graveyard.


((
Setting: The Swallowed Graveyard



Fighters will fight in the graveyard, which sits above a marsh in a dense section of the forest. There are no rings, meaning no immediate boundaries to keep one pair of fighters away from another. Simple torches rise from the marsh, and seem to always be burning. At the south entrance, a human skull has been mounted over a torch, and eerie orange light flickers from behind the dead man's empty eyes.

Many of the tombstones are so old and worn by the elements that the names of those buried here have been lost forever. One could fall into the marsh if they slip off of one of the rickety bridges, and the murky water looks as though it has been slowly re-claiming the graveyard over the years.

Some of the graves have been recently unearthed, so it is possible to fall into an open grave if one doesn't look where they're going. Within the open graves are either the peaceful (or restless) dead, or nothing should their inhabitants be mysteriously missing. For those in tune with dark magics, a lot of negative energy hangs over this place. Old spirits appear, trees move to snag nearby wanderers, and anything is possible in this forlorn graveyard.

Old crypts loom as well, and should a fighter break into one, who knows what they might find within.

Be as creative as you'd like with the setting!
))