Going To/Running My First Gathering/Tournament

[pulsr]

I'm going to try my best to give a brief run down of what you should expect from going to your first gathering and/or tournament.

Before you go to anything, tournament or a gathering, you really need to ask yourself what are your intentions?

1. I'm looking forward to playing some real people and see how I fare against people locally.
2. I'm not that great of a player but would like to gain some input from other players.
Obviously, everyone's intentions might vary a bit, but don't feel like you can't just go to a persons gathering and not talk and learn about the game. Of course playing is really good too!

Some silly things to note before going to gatherings:
0. DID I SHOWER AND DO I SMELL NICE?
1. You should probably consider eating before hand.
2. Also, doesn't hurt to have the hosts # just in case.
3. May also want to see if anyone is carpooling, this is a great way to make friends in the community (look at SD, it is entirely powered by Shtkn's death trap mobile)
4. You should really find out if the host needs another setup because it is always sweet if you bring one and helps you get people to play with you. (Bring a stickkkkkk atleastttttt)
5. May also want to find out if it is cool to crash the night there, especially if you are traveling an hour or so to your destination.

Alright, you get to the gathering now what!?
Well two things can happen.
1. No one is there but the host (Envi)
2. There is a ton of people and they are gaming

If scenario (1) happens, you better befriend the hell out of the host because he is going to know who you are because you were the first one there! Also, If the host is a formidable opponent, get in a few games in. This is another great time to improve yourself. Take into consideration if the host hosted once, he'll probably host twice so you really wanna be on his good side!

If scenario (2) happens, be POLITE I can't stress this man, no one wants to play with a douche bag. In all of my years of gaming with Socal, I have never experienced anyone being an asshole ever (Well New York Kevin...) Okay, now get active! Talk to people get in some games. This is so important, so many people come to my gatherings and never speak a word except for like, "where is food" If you go to a gathering grow some balls and socialize.

Gaming Etiquette
Okay, this will obviously vary depending on where you are at, but something to really take into consideration is being generally polite in a fighting game. By this, I mean don't act like are an XBL player. No shit talking, no being ass hat. You are at a persons house who just wants to have people over and game with a good vibe. Some people are notoriously loud while playing (TheSadder) and that is cool and all as long as it is honest and cool with your surroundings. Try to avoid calling people a scrub to their face, the community is always trying to get stronger and doesn't need people trying to destroy it. If your opponent is god awful, I don't know how, but CREATIVELY tell them their flaws.

After it is all over...
Help clean up! You'd be surprise how many times it is always the same 3-4 people helping me clean up after having 20-40 people at my house.

Here's probably the most important advice I can honestly and truthfully give to the Dustloop community. After a gathering/tournament seriously take a moment to reflect on how you played. Don't ever put yourself in the mindset that "Oh I lost because the player was better" To me that is the equivalent of mentally giving up. So, really spend time thinking about where your game needs improvement and if you can't really figure out what you did wrong, or what needs improvement... ASK PEOPLE. They should know how they beat you or why did, get engaged find out what to do! Don't just go home and say I need whacky ass gimmicks to win. You need to make your game stable.

-Le Pulsr

[kriaser]

Some ground rules to prevent being a douchebag at a tournament:

1. Just because someone plays a top tier character, don't nag them by saying they're "cheap". Chances are you'll get laughed at and called an idiot by everyone there.
2. Don't poke fun at someone unless they're a friend. This is a skill based competition afterall. If someone does not know you are kidding, they may take offense.
3. Show sportsmanship. Respect your opponent and he/she will respect you. Hand shake, say GG, compliment on their moves, maybe even provide a tip or combo to use. (Last two only apply during casuals)

Feel free to add to this if you've had tourney experience.

[shtkn]

Finding/Running a Gathering
1. Search your area! Don't reinvent the wheel
Search the Match Finder section of Dustloop
Also search shoryuken's regional threads
If you don't see a place for your area, you might need to start it up. Make sure you widen your search area enough (at least cities an hour or two away) before you give up and start your own thread. If the gathering is too full, then you guys may need to split up, but that's another discussion for another topic... the first step is to get people to show up and play!

2. Set a Location!
For most people, this will be their house/apartment. For others, this may be a rec. room, an arcade, a LAN center, or something even more exotic. Wherever you host, be sure to give directions and be prepared to give directions over the phone. Be sure to mention start/end times, conditions(no loud noises after midnight or something, shoes off in asian house), etc.

3. Equipment!
If you get a handful of people showing up, multiple setups would help everyone play/learn faster. Don't be afraid to ask for help bringing equipment. This is a community, everyone chip in!
An abbreviated checklist for equipment:
1. TVs
2. consoles
3. sticks/pads (though i think most people have the common sense to know that you won't have enough for everyone, be sure to mention it otherwise they'll most likely forget)
4. power strips to plugs those electronics into
5. tables and chairs

4. Have a Way to Contact Them And Be Reachable!
Have a regular form of communication between everyone (typically, these forums) so everyone can keep up to date with events. Help arrange carpools to save gas!
Post up your phone number or some way that someone en route to your gathering can get in contact with you/someone you trust for assistance. Trust me, even if you post the address and the times, people will call you since they will get lost or forget to get directions. Be prepared to be the point man and help them get to the gathering or execute a plan B in case things go wrong (your venue is becomes unavailable or someone bringing equipment can't make it).

5. Security
If you're not familiar with most of the people showing up, you may be worried that someone will steal stuff. This is a valid concern, and unfortunately, there's not bulletproof way to solve this problem. The only advice I can offer is to keep an eye on your stuff and if something goes missing, stop the gathering, make an announcement, and ask for help looking around. If you want to step out for a bit to grab a bite to eat or something, be sure that someone you trust is there to make sure stuff doesn't get swiped.

6. Get to Know People!
Bond! Go out together to eat! Watch match vids together, talk about common interests, ask each other about how/why you did that move in the match, watch a movie, etc. This is not only a training ground, it's a social setting.

7. Make it a Regular Event!
People get better the more they play/learn. In order to facilitate this, try to have these gatherings on a regular schedule (twice a month, once a month, once a week, whatever).

[Amadeous]

I've seen a lot of people have problems in even online tournaments that have problems playing at the top of their game due to the pressure. Now I'm sure it depends on a person-by-person basis, but overall just remember that you're there to relax, have a good time, and make some friends. If you really can't stop thinking about winning or losing, just try to calm down and think of the games as friendlies.

[4r5]

And honestly, is this really a thread to teach people how to make friends and be sociable?

Just like SRK's newbie forum. This too will slowly transition from 'how i fighting games?' to 'how i life?'.

Some silly things to note before going to gatherings:
0. DID I SHOWER AND DO I SMELL NICE?
1. You should probably consider eating before hand.

A FINE LINE WE TREAD

[Skye]

Just like SRK's newbie forum. This too will slowly transition from 'how i fighting games?' to 'how i life?'.




A FINE LINE WE TREAD

That's awfully broad.
Some people, appreciate insight from experienced people, and the best worth while tips to ensure that they don't fuck up.
Some play it more safe than others and request greater detail in what they should do.

[shtkn]

RUNNING A TOURNAMENT
1. Find a Venue. Announce it Well in Advance
Self explanatory. Make sure your venue can hold your anticipated number of entrants. If your venue costs you money, don't be afraid to charge a venue fee (just keep it reasonable!). You can make an announcement in the Tournaments/Events section of dustloop, also don't forget shoryuken.com's event section either.

2. Consider Running multiple games to raise attendance
A lot of tournaments have multiple games, see if it's appropriate for your area. Gague interest by asking around.

3. Post the Rules
Singles? Doubles? 2v2? Waseda Format? Pokemon Format? EX Characters? Banned stages? Up to you. If you're not familiar with a game, ask someone who's into it for advice on a ruleset. Typically these are the rules used by most western tournaments (but change if something doesn't work for you!):

* default round settings (ex: default round time, default starting life, default rounds to win a match, etc)
* 2/3 matches, Double Elimination Bracket. 3/5 for Semifinals and Grand Finals.
* No EX Characters/ Unlimited Characters/ Boss characters
* Typically, all entrants in a tournament put money into a tournament pot and the top 3 finishers get the winnings. First place gets 70%, 2nd gets 20% and 3rd gets 10%. If it's a fairly small tournament, payout is either to the top 2 finishers: 80%, 20% or everything goes to 1st place.
* In-game button macros are ok, but no hardware macros. No turbo button, no programmable controllers. You can use a controller that has those features, but you can't use those features.
* Loser of a match can change character. Winner must stay with their previous pick.
* Both players can pick select new characters when they start. EX: Player A uses Sol vs Player B, but can use Ky vs Player C.
* Players can request a 'blind select'; both players write their char selection on a piece of paper before going to the character select screen. This is used to avoid deadlocks where players won't select a character before the other guy picks.
* No wireless controllers to save on setup time.
* Accidental pause = you lose the round or redo if your opponent is feeling generous.
* Tournament director can DQ (disqualify) someone if they're holding up the tournament too long (by not being there for their match)

Japanese tournaments are normally:
* Single Elimination Bracket
* Single Match for all fights
* Can not change characters throughout the entire tournament

4. Know How to Run a Bracket
As a first resource:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&s...qi=g6&aql=&oq=
Running a bracket can be very tiring. You will have people not be there when their match is going on, and you will need to call or find them, and as the day drags on, you may get run ragged. Ask for help if you need it!

5. Ask For Help With Equipment
Again, community effort. Be sure to label everyone's consoles, tvs, sticks, etc so there's no confusion at the end of the day when everyone's tried, packing up, and don't remember where stuff is.

6. You WILL be Running Behind Schedule
Tournaments almost always fall behind schedule due to people not showing up on time and unforseen circumstances slowing things down. You will need to compensate for this somehow. Try and schedule things a bit longer than you think necessary or schedule flexible things between tournaments like a food break or something.

7. Let Entrants Know When They are Supposed to be Playing
get their phone numbers when they sign up. This is used to call them when it's their turn in the tournament and you can't find them.
Have a whiteboard and write down names of people who have a match coming up/cant find them to show to everyone. Have them come to the tournament directors since you probably can't remember everyone's faces if this is the first time you've met them.

8. Try and Have an Area for Casuals, But Know Where Your Priorities Lie
Tournaments are a great time to play people who probably drove further than usuaul to come and compete. Make it worth their time and give them the opprotunity to play games vs people they don't normally fight. However, make sure that you have enough setups to run the tournament effeciently before you put stuff to the side for casuals... you're here for a tournament first (and you can have casuals after the tournament's over)!

WIP

[Skye]

3. Know how to run a bracket

Oh! On that note, I know a lot of people who use Tio for their brackets.
I've used it once for an online tourney, it's pretty good.

[SuperKawaiiDesu]

Some silly things to note before going to gatherings:
0. DID I SHOWER AND DO I SMELL NICE?

Oh god yes to you in chinatown fair, you know who you are

and about etiquette, im generally very social. I talk to people, not many people talk around at the arcade. I try to be nice and compliment them on something i liked or offer a suggestion after we play but i feel like im being a condescending asshole, and when they just walk off i feel horrible. I dont know if its just me or what, i think some people take it as offensive so you may wanna be careful with that. And talk more people staying quiet and listening to music is so boring.

Also, i astral people ALOT. Is that a douchebaggy thing to do?

[Purrin]

just try to calm down and think of the games as friendlies.

Just a heads up,

Friendlies = Smash

Casuals = Most every other Fighting Game community

Dittos = Smash

Mirror Match = Every other fighting game community

Cash Battle = Smash

Money Match = Every other fighting game community

Some peeps will hate on you for that...Peeps like me.