Return to Valhalla, a Tournament of Champions

[Prussian Havoc]

It is my #DevlinStoneCold belief that our Modding Community has the very best possible chance to not only endure but to absolutely THRIVE during this period of transition now that HBS has sunset BATTLETECH.

The key is to make Mod Usage as seamless for Gamers-new2Modding as possible. :bow:

Many gamers have Modding Redlines past which they will not proceed.

Some like @OathOfFealty have been leading the effort to work with the very best our Modding Community has to offer (@CWolfs and @bloodydoves) to help us realize the absolute best and most stable BATTLETECH Multiplayer Experience moving forward. But even he and I have our Redlines:

(Yes, this is a conversation from within @bloodydoves ’s discord which is a reward under his Patreon Account.)

Here’s to hoping we manage to successful Mod HBS’s Modloader within the next 33 Days, because on 24APR (the two year Anniversary of BATLETECH’s Launch I hope to hold the opening matches of the Second Valhalla Tournament of Champions. Hopefully we manage to get all 91 gamers back fo this he inaugural Valhalla tournament and a goodly portion of BATTLETECH gamers new to BATTLETECH Tournament gameplay.

Now THAT would make for a great start to BATTLETECH’s third year after Launch and first year with BATTLETECH’s Modding Community in the Lead.

I hope to celebrate all of that by using @bloodydoves Clan Beta Mod and a successfully modified HBS Modloader or @KMiSSioN ’s ModTek on an interchange able basis. @CWolfs, whom I already support on Patreon has been leading the effort to see if just how much value we can breath into and invest into BATTLETECH multiplayer

 

[Prussian Havoc]

Tournament Announcement:

UPDATE: Upon recommendation, tournament registration is already open. Seeds will be shuffled prior to Tournament start on 24 April.

 

[Prussian Havoc]

Thank you one and ALL for letting me know the registration page was off line.

Challonge was not in the wrong, it had defaulted to Organizer input of a sheet of participants, rather than Gamer Registration. I failed to cast this option returning to a default state when I submitted the tournament request to Challonge.

In other words, my bad.

But thanks tonight’s / Paradox’ early morning notice that the problem was persisting, I changed the Setting and should now have it set to Begin Reagiatration at High Noon Harebrained Time (PST) later on today.

This will let me add more information along the lines of what @MightyFox requested on our Tournament Announcment channel on discord. Thank you for this interest and your questions, Good @MightyFox. :bow:

 

[Prussian Havoc]

TOURNAMENT REGISTRATION begins today at High Noon Harebrained Time (PST).



Additional Tourney details will be posted to the Tourney’s Challonge site prior to Registration begging at HIGH NOON!

 

[Zakhodit]

I'm in.

Here's hoping we get a good turnout!

 

[Prussian Havoc]

I'm in.

Here's hoping we get a good turnout!

Yes, I’ll have to begin adding this link to my Twitter accounts, that and Facebook and truthfully even LinkedIn... all my various friends, connections and contacts can use a fun and pleasant diversion right now.

 

[Prussian Havoc]

I am thinking about mounting the Work of Mech Art I commissioned from @SpOoKy777 on UPS Store “blueprint backing” and using that as a Prize for the Top Competitor... maybe the Two Top Competitors. It’ll be light weight, durable and ship rather easily through International Mails.

It’ll be a bit of a departure from what @WilliamVonBillhelmHelmet won during my last Valhalla Tournament of Champions. : )

But then I am not a fan of cutting-down-to-size SpOoKy777’s Prints! (It seriously injured my Big and Stompy Gamer’s Soul... : ( )

 

[Prussian Havoc]

On BATTLETECH’s Valhalla Forums I have asked our Paradox Community Manager @emmasterakia for some assistance in securing digital prizes (Valhalla access) for the gamers who make it to the FINALS of this tournament.

Maybe this can be supported, and maybe not. But it was worth the ask as Paradox is a big supporter of our BATTLETECH Community. Also, we have done this before. Paradox secured admittance to Valhalla for @WilliamVonBillhelmHelmet upon his winning the Inaugural Valhalla, Tournament of Champions.

I will again be offering one or more Physical Prizes this year.

While I will not be going the route I did for the last tournament, I will still be mailing (possibly throughout the World) one or more Physical Prizes again this year.

Top of the list for possible physical prizes will be a Blueprint-board of the following Work of Mech Art by @SpOoKy777. This is the Work of Mech Art that I commissioned form him and is of BATTLETECH’s Climactic Campaign Encounter between Kamea and Victoria... at least one possible encounter. You are free to again run the Campaign and come up with your own.

PREAMBLE: This pic is the 3rd “Work-in-Progress” image of what may very well be 7 or more such WiP images.

As we see, Kamea has taken the worse of the Battle thus far.

Left Arm gone.

LRM20 smashed.

Kamea’s Allies Destoyed ~ the left-foreground BattleMaster now headless, the victim of a “Beta’ing” (a tribute to @HBS_Ouishi and his Beta Character’s death by AC20 to his Mech’s Head), the Player Characters Highlander, foreground Right (and a tribute to @HBS_CaptKerberos as the PC absolutely MUST see the final moment of the Battle, even at the risk of his own life for if Kamea Falls, the Hope and Future of the Arano Linage and of the Aurigan Restoration would fall with her!!!

As physical Prizes for the Tournament, I will be Blueprint-boarding at least one copy of the above print. Rolled and tubed-mailings of additional prints are possible but not yet decided.

Thoughts?

 

[Zakhodit]

An outstanding prize to be sure. But I think you should hold it in reserve unless we get at least 50 players to sign up. It would seem unworthy to obtain a prize such as this unless the challenge was equal to the spoils of victory.

That said we should continue to find players to join the tournament until we meet such a threshold. Until then any tournament matches played are merely practice

 

[Prussian Havoc]

An outstanding prize to be sure. But I think you should hold it in reserve unless we get at least 50 players to sign up. It would seem unworthy to obtain a prize such as this unless the challenge was equal to the spoils of victory.

That said we should continue to find players to join the tournament until we meet such a threshold. Until then any tournament matches played are merely practice

Excellent set of points, Good @Zakhodit. :bow:

For some the FLASH (of Tournament Announcement) to BANG (of Tournament Commencement) can be measured in months and they would be just as excited when it kicks off. For others the FLASH-to-BANG is best kept to a just shy of a couple of weeks.

So with our “Return to Valhalla” countdown timer down to just 11+ days, I’ll look to post some Facebook, Twitter, Forum and even LinkedIn posts advertising the tournament and our BATTLETECH Community, reaching out to and tagging @emmasterakia and @HBS_HighCommand on these various Lines of Effort as I publish them later this evening (EST.)

But first... off to my new Adobe Education PhotoShop Account to see if I can spin up some jazzy “Return to Valhalla” Publicity Shots. :bow:


Hmm... I need to take the Valhalla Shield and Banner and weather-effect it... just... so... : )

 

[Prussian Havoc]

Red City will be the map used during the tournament. Random Dice will be rolled in the “Return to Valhalla” discord channel on the Unofficial BATTLETECH Discord Server, to determine who hosts the match. I’ve had these posted and pinned to the Unofficial BATTLETECH Discord Server for quite some time and will now provide them here too.

And again, my thanks to @HBS_CaptKerberos for his having provided these following images, indeed all the early Electro-Optical Maps and Elevation Data Maps to us not all the long after BATTLETECH’s 24APR2018 Launch:

ELECTRO-OPTICAL MAP:

TERRAIN ELEVATION MAP:

 

[Prussian Havoc]

CALLING MESSAGE for the Return to Valhalla, a Tournament of Champions

PREFACE: Greetings one and ALL! In this time of illness and peril, some Big and Stompy Tournament action may very well give some much needed respite, fun and the joy of BattleTech competition to us all. In the weeks ahead, may you and yours find all the Strength, Courage and Fortitude needed to ensure your families, friends and Communities negotiate the challenges head. :bow:


TOURNAMENT INFORMATION:

This tournament is a double elimination tournament.

The Map for this tournament will be Red City.

A 90-second timer will be used for each match.

While all BATTLETECH DLCs are in-play, no Mods will be used.
Players will have a week’s time to complete their matches.

We will be using Mech Drafts for all Mech Selection and Lance Creation during the Tournament. With Mech Draft, the Match’s Host selects a Mech, then the other player selects a Mech, the Host selects the Third Mech and the other player selects the fourth and final Mech. These four Mechs will form the Lance that each player will use for that match. Players are then free to select their own MechWarriors for their Lance. A new Mech Draft is completed for each match of the tournament. In this way it is quite possible a participant will never use the same Lance twice.

The BATTLETECH Unofficial Discord Server, this Challonge site and the BATTLETECH Forum will be used to coordinate the tournament. Each provides an essential element of coordination, control and record keeping.

The BATTLETECH Unofficial Discord Server includes a dice roll function. A roll of these dice will determine who will host a given Match. In this way the choice of Host is left up to fate. This means that some will likely never host a single match, while others may continuously host matches. Fate / a roll of discord’s dice will decide. The discord server will also serve to facilitate real time coordination between players.

This Challonge site will be where players record the results of each match. The onus is on the players to the players to successfully complete their matches within a week’s time. The onus is also on the players to resolve all match disputes. If agreement and resolution is not possible, I retain final authority and once hearing both sides will resolve the issue in the fairest manner possible.

The BATTLETECH Forum will be where I publish weekly tournament updates.



If you have any questions, comments or concerns please let me know as soon as possible.

And as ever, good luck and good BATTLETECH gaming! :bow:

 

[Prussian Havoc]

Brackets have been reseeded.

Predictions can now be made.

Return to Valhalla, a Tournament of Champions begins tomorrow at High Noon Harebrained Schemes Time! (https://challonge.com/R2VToC)

 

[Prussian Havoc]

Our Tournament has begun!

Good luck, good health and good gaming to all our participants. Attached below is the tournament bracket and information as listed on Challonge.

“TOURNAMENT INFORMATION:

This tournament is a double elimination tournament.

The Map for this tournament will be Red City.

A 90-second timer will be used for each match.

While all BATTLETECH DLCs are in-play, no Mods will be used.
Players will have a week’s time to complete their matches.

We will be using Mech Drafts for all Mech Selection and Lance Creation during the Tournament. With Mech Draft, the Match’s Host selects a Mech, then the other player selects a Mech, the Host selects the Third Mech and the other player selects the fourth and final Mech. These four Mechs will form the Lance that each player will use for that match. Players are then free to select their own MechWarriors for their Lance. A new Mech Draft is completed for each match of the tournament. In this way it is quite possible a participant will never use the same Lance twice.

The BATTLETECH Unofficial Discord Server, this Challonge site and the BATTLETECH Forum will be used to coordinate the tournament. Each provides an essential element of coordination, control and record keeping.

The BATTLETECH Unofficial Discord Server includes a dice roll function. A roll of these dice will determine who will host a given Match. In this way the choice of Host is left up to fate. This means that some will likely never host a single match, while others may continuously host matches. Fate / a roll of discord’s dice will decide. The discord server will also serve to facilitate real time coordination between players.

This Challonge site will be where players record the results of each match. The onus is on the players to the players to successfully complete their matches within a week’s time. The onus is also on the players to resolve all match disputes. If agreement and resolution is not possible, I retain final authority and once hearing both sides will resolve the issue in the fairest manner possible.

The BATTLETECH Forum will be where I publish weekly tournament updates


If you have any questions, comments or concerns please let me know as soon as possible.

And as ever, good luck and good BATTLETECH gaming!”

 

[Prussian Havoc]

@SpOoKy777 has finished the Work of Mech Art that I commissioned from him, Aurigan Restoration. It is a tribute to BATTLETECH’s Campaign and the climactic showdown between Victoria and Kamea.

Once my local UPS Store is a bit safer to work with. I will be using this print in some form and fashion to construct a physical prose for both the Tournament Winner and First Runner Up. More to follow in the weeks ahead.

 

[Prussian Havoc]

ROUND ONE/WEEK ONE COMPLETE (24APR-01MAY)

ROUND TWO/WEEK TWO (02MAY - 09MAY) will see the No Loss Bracket complete its sole remaining match, the one putting Combatcookie against sounderdosc6863. This will fully seed the One Loss Bracket for its first week of matches.

It is authorized and encouraged to play forward into the next week or two if BOTH players are available and willing, but there is no tournament pressure to do so.

ROUND THREE/WEEK THREE (10MAY -16MAY) will see three matches on the docket, the single No Loss Semi-Final Match as well as both One Loss Round One matches.

ROUND FOUR /WEEK FOUR (17MAY -24MAY) if at all possible, will see both One Loss Rounds 2 and 3 conducted.

If completed, the above schedule will set up the Finals for the Week beginning 25MAY.

If matches are possible early, I will advance the schedule accordingly. Again, one match per week is the general rule (Round 4/Week 4 is the exception.)

The Spirit of Valhalla is to ADVANCE toward one’s opponent from the very first Turn.

If anyone has any questions please let me know.

Good Luck and Good BATTLETECH Gaming to all participants! :bow:

 

[Prussian Havoc]

Well fought and well done to ALL our tournament participants! There are some excellent matches featuring some of the highest level BATTLETECH Multiplayer Tactics and Schemes of Maneuver being held as our tournament progresses. Some of the finest Big and Stompy FUN is being enjoyed by our participants.

Our latest update follows:

ROUND TWO/WEEK TWO COMPLETE (02MAY-09MAY)

ROUND THREE/WEEK THREE (10MAY -16MAY) is currently under way and will see three matches on the docket, the single No Loss Semi-Final Match as well as both One Loss Round One matches.

The only remaining match for Week Three is the No Loss Semi-Final Match, with the Single Loss Bracket being ahead of schedule. It is authorized and encouraged to play forward into the next week or two if BOTH players are available and willing, but there is no tournament pressure to do so.


ROUND FOUR /WEEK FOUR (17MAY -24MAY) will see both One Loss Rounds 3 conducted.

If completed, the above schedule will set up the Finals for the Week beginning 25MAY.

If matches are possible early, I will advance the schedule accordingly. Again, one match per week is the general rule (Round 4/Week 4 is the exception.)

Again, to clarify our tournament intent, the Spirit of Valhalla is to ADVANCE toward one’s opponent from the very first Turn.

If anyone has any questions please let me know.

Good Luck and Good BATTLETECH Gaming to all participants! :bow:

 

[Prussian Havoc]

Congratulations to our finalists HonorKnight and sounderdisc6863! Both will be receiving a copy of the Aurigan Restoration print (attached a few post above) mailed to them sometime in the months to come as COVID-19 restrictions and printshop availability make possible.

And a special congratulations to HonorKnight for winning the tournament. Great job, well done and well-earned!

My thanks to all who participated. I hope you enjoyed your share the Big and Stompy Tournament Action! :bow:

 

[Prussian Havoc]

Given the pandemic and assorted other challenges, it took much, much longer than I would have wanted but today I picked up the print job and finally shipped via UPS, the 10.5x18-inch foam board print of the “Aurigan Restoration” to our tournament champion, @HonorKnight. :bow:

My thanks again to @SpOoKy777 for taking the commission to craft such an exquisite Work of BATTLETECH Art. :bow:

I have reached out to @sounderdisc6863 and hope to have a second copy of this print in the mail shortly.

Congratulations again to both our finalists, @HonorKnight and @Sounderdisc6863. And my thanks to all those who participated or simply followed along with this thread as we organized, held and now recognize and reward our finalists. Who knows, perhaps we’ll again have cause and opportunity to run tournaments for this or other HBS computer games! : )

Have a great day and ever better tomorrows!

 

[Prussian Havoc]

To spread the word and perhaps gin up some interest/discussion for the next BATTLETECH tournament, I posted the above information to Twitter:

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1417265352220811268

:bow:



Feel free to jump on the forum here or on Twitter and join in on the discussion.


ps: I don’t recall a Twitter functionality to our forum here. It may be a senior moment, but I really, really like it! : )