Update 7/14/19 @ 2:15 PM: Added Deadline extension to July 23rd, see below.
So get this: I was sleepin' peacefully in my cannon the otha night when suddenly my pet Bob-omb, Bombn-legg, got too close to my Fire Bar space heatah and exploded! He'll be alright, but my whole house came crumblin' down! Knew I shouldn't 'a built it outta brick blocks, but thems were in the buildin' codes back when I built it! They was cheap too! Anyway, needless to say, I gots me no house to sleep in! That's where youse guys come in. I need you Makers ta help build me, Banzai Bill-der, a new house ta live in! And here's how we're gonna do it...
I've heard that 'round dese parts, youse guys sometimes hold a contest called the Lunar Magic Creativity Contest, where ya use Lunar Magic to make some neat artistic stuff. Sounds like a perfect way for youse guys to build a fancy new pad for me! I'll even reward the top 3 Makers with special prizes! So whadda ya waitin' for? Read the rules and get ta work on my new dream house!
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Lunar Magic Creativity Contest
Welcome to the fourth Lunar Magic Creativity Contest! I'm your host FPzero, and Banzai Bill-der has generously leased me this space inside his post to tell you all the rules of the contest. This is the first time it's been hosted inside a C3. I hope plenty of you will participate even though the rest of the event is going on. If you've never seen a LMCC before, you can see the results for the last one, hosted back in 2016, here: https://www.smwc.me/t/87746
The way LMCC works is that you use Lunar Magic to build a non-playable scene/picture/piece of art in Lunar Magic's level editor utilizing blocks and sprites. Since these will not be playable levels, you don't have to worry about traditional level design elements and can instead focus on just arranging objects and sprites to build some pretty houses, apartments, or other living spaces for Banzai Bill-der.
General Rules and Guidelines:
1. Your goal is to build a house, apartment, or other living space for Banzai Bill-der! You will be scored on how closely you relate to the theme.
2. All the usage of layer 1, background/in-level layer 2, layer 3 and sprites will be what's going to be judged in your entry. Basically everything that shows up in Lunar Magic when the level is opened, sans Mario's starting positions. You're not absolutely forced to use all of these, though; make use only of layer 1 if you'd like, for instance!
3. Make your entry in level 105.
4. You're free to use any level mode. That does include translucency and such, as well as vertical levels. You may also use specific horizontal level modes Lunar Magic 3.0 provides.
4a. The horizontal level modes you're allowed to use are 08, 0E, and 1A.
5. The number of screens you're allowed to use depends on the level mode you're using.
6. Submit your entry as an BPS file as well as a screenshot. If your entry uses animations, LICEcap is recommended to you can capture it as a gif. If you're having trouble using LICEcap, you can message me (FPzero) for assistance.
7. Don't share your entry with anyone! We are going to do community voting in addition to judge scoring, so we want entries to remain anonymous.
Graphics Rules:
1. You are limited to SMW's original graphics. You may not use ExGFX for your Layer 1 and 2 elements at all. That said, you are still allowed to place any GFX file into any GFX slot.
2. You are allowed to manipulate map16 to make new tiles.
3. You are allowed to make custom palettes.
4. You are allowed to make Layer 3 backgrounds or use the various pre-assembled Layer 3 backgrounds that already exist in the site's graphics section. This is the only case where ExGFX files are allowed.
5. 4bpp-to-2bpp conversion is allowed for layer 3. This also means that recoloring tiles is allowed for conversions only.
6. ExAnimation for all layers and sprites is allowed.
Frequently Asked Questions
-Do I have a limitation of how much map16 I can use?
There is no limit since you're not making an actual level.
-Is it okay if Lunar Magic gives me a warning because I'm using too many sprites?
It's alright, since your entry is not meant to be played. Use as many sprites as you need.
-Can I recolor tiles like in the VLDC?
Because ExGFX is not allowed for Layers 1 and 2, there is no way to recoloring graphics. The only exception is in converting 4bpp tiles to 2bpp tiles for use with Layer 3.
-Why are the graphics rules harsher than in other years?
Mostly to keep things simple since this contest has a shorter submission period than usual.
-Do I have to use all the space in my chosen level mode?
Don't feel forced to use all the space, though, and don't worry about the edges of your submission not ending on the edge of a particular screen; it will not count as "cutoff".
Submission Details:
Submit your entries to me (FPzero) via PM. As mentioned in General Rule #7, don't reveal your entry to anyone else, as there is going to be community voting at the end of the contest. We want participants to remain anonymous for the community vote.
The deadline is Tuesday, July 23, at 16:00:00 UTC. The contest will end when the week long C3 posting period is over. Yes, this does mean you only have 11 days to complete your entry! Spend your time wisely. (The deadline has now been updated to July 23rd. You have an additional week to work on entries.)
Judging Criteria
Your entry will be scored in three categories for a total of 50 points.
Creativity (20 points): How unique is your entry? Did you really grasp the "creativity" part in the contest's title?
Crafting (20 points): Is your entry polished, or does it just look cluttered and messy?
Theme Adherence (10 points): How nicely and creatively does your entry convey a house, apartment or other living space? Have you considered all sorts of elements that would be in a place someone lives?
Community Voting
The community will be able to vote for their favorite entry after the contest is over. A screenshot of every entry will be posted, so everyone will be able to see all of them equally and more easily. This voting will be held via PM and each user will have the right to vote for one entry as their favorite. We will have more details on the Community Voting process when the time comes.
Prizes
The top 3 winners based on judge scores and the winner of the community vote will be awarded with trophies, and all other entrants will get a participation trophy. Please note that the judges hold the right to disqualify spammy, effortless entries made with the sole purpose of winning a trophies.
That about wraps up the contest rules. Banzai Bill-der's telling me this is all the space I have available to rent. Feel free to use this thread to discuss the contest and ask questions. I hope you have fun participating and have a great C3!
So get this: I was sleepin' peacefully in my cannon the otha night when suddenly my pet Bob-omb, Bombn-legg, got too close to my Fire Bar space heatah and exploded! He'll be alright, but my whole house came crumblin' down! Knew I shouldn't 'a built it outta brick blocks, but thems were in the buildin' codes back when I built it! They was cheap too! Anyway, needless to say, I gots me no house to sleep in! That's where youse guys come in. I need you Makers ta help build me, Banzai Bill-der, a new house ta live in! And here's how we're gonna do it...
I've heard that 'round dese parts, youse guys sometimes hold a contest called the Lunar Magic Creativity Contest, where ya use Lunar Magic to make some neat artistic stuff. Sounds like a perfect way for youse guys to build a fancy new pad for me! I'll even reward the top 3 Makers with special prizes! So whadda ya waitin' for? Read the rules and get ta work on my new dream house!
-------------------------
Welcome to the fourth Lunar Magic Creativity Contest! I'm your host FPzero, and Banzai Bill-der has generously leased me this space inside his post to tell you all the rules of the contest. This is the first time it's been hosted inside a C3. I hope plenty of you will participate even though the rest of the event is going on. If you've never seen a LMCC before, you can see the results for the last one, hosted back in 2016, here: https://www.smwc.me/t/87746
The way LMCC works is that you use Lunar Magic to build a non-playable scene/picture/piece of art in Lunar Magic's level editor utilizing blocks and sprites. Since these will not be playable levels, you don't have to worry about traditional level design elements and can instead focus on just arranging objects and sprites to build some pretty houses, apartments, or other living spaces for Banzai Bill-der.
General Rules and Guidelines:
1. Your goal is to build a house, apartment, or other living space for Banzai Bill-der! You will be scored on how closely you relate to the theme.
2. All the usage of layer 1, background/in-level layer 2, layer 3 and sprites will be what's going to be judged in your entry. Basically everything that shows up in Lunar Magic when the level is opened, sans Mario's starting positions. You're not absolutely forced to use all of these, though; make use only of layer 1 if you'd like, for instance!
3. Make your entry in level 105.
4. You're free to use any level mode. That does include translucency and such, as well as vertical levels. You may also use specific horizontal level modes Lunar Magic 3.0 provides.
4a. The horizontal level modes you're allowed to use are 08, 0E, and 1A.
5. The number of screens you're allowed to use depends on the level mode you're using.
- If you are using a normal horizontal or vertical level, you have screens 00 to 05 (6 screens) to make your entry.
- If you are using horizontal level mode 08, you may use screens 00 to 04 (5 screens). Example here: https://bin.smwcentral.net/u/50/08example.png
- If you are using horizontal level mode 0E, you may use screens 00 to 03 AND screens 0F to 12 (8 screens). Example here: https://bin.smwcentral.net/u/50/0Eexample.png
- If you are using horizontal level mode 1A, you may use screens 00 to 08 (9 screens).
6. Submit your entry as an BPS file as well as a screenshot. If your entry uses animations, LICEcap is recommended to you can capture it as a gif. If you're having trouble using LICEcap, you can message me (FPzero) for assistance.
7. Don't share your entry with anyone! We are going to do community voting in addition to judge scoring, so we want entries to remain anonymous.
Graphics Rules:
1. You are limited to SMW's original graphics. You may not use ExGFX for your Layer 1 and 2 elements at all. That said, you are still allowed to place any GFX file into any GFX slot.
2. You are allowed to manipulate map16 to make new tiles.
3. You are allowed to make custom palettes.
4. You are allowed to make Layer 3 backgrounds or use the various pre-assembled Layer 3 backgrounds that already exist in the site's graphics section. This is the only case where ExGFX files are allowed.
5. 4bpp-to-2bpp conversion is allowed for layer 3. This also means that recoloring tiles is allowed for conversions only.
6. ExAnimation for all layers and sprites is allowed.
Frequently Asked Questions
-Do I have a limitation of how much map16 I can use?
There is no limit since you're not making an actual level.
-Is it okay if Lunar Magic gives me a warning because I'm using too many sprites?
It's alright, since your entry is not meant to be played. Use as many sprites as you need.
-Can I recolor tiles like in the VLDC?
Because ExGFX is not allowed for Layers 1 and 2, there is no way to recoloring graphics. The only exception is in converting 4bpp tiles to 2bpp tiles for use with Layer 3.
-Why are the graphics rules harsher than in other years?
Mostly to keep things simple since this contest has a shorter submission period than usual.
-Do I have to use all the space in my chosen level mode?
Don't feel forced to use all the space, though, and don't worry about the edges of your submission not ending on the edge of a particular screen; it will not count as "cutoff".
Submission Details:
Submit your entries to me (FPzero) via PM. As mentioned in General Rule #7, don't reveal your entry to anyone else, as there is going to be community voting at the end of the contest. We want participants to remain anonymous for the community vote.
The deadline is Tuesday, July 23, at 16:00:00 UTC. The contest will end when the week long C3 posting period is over. Yes, this does mean you only have 11 days to complete your entry! Spend your time wisely. (The deadline has now been updated to July 23rd. You have an additional week to work on entries.)
Judging Criteria
Your entry will be scored in three categories for a total of 50 points.
Creativity (20 points): How unique is your entry? Did you really grasp the "creativity" part in the contest's title?
Crafting (20 points): Is your entry polished, or does it just look cluttered and messy?
Theme Adherence (10 points): How nicely and creatively does your entry convey a house, apartment or other living space? Have you considered all sorts of elements that would be in a place someone lives?
Community Voting
The community will be able to vote for their favorite entry after the contest is over. A screenshot of every entry will be posted, so everyone will be able to see all of them equally and more easily. This voting will be held via PM and each user will have the right to vote for one entry as their favorite. We will have more details on the Community Voting process when the time comes.
Prizes
The top 3 winners based on judge scores and the winner of the community vote will be awarded with trophies, and all other entrants will get a participation trophy. Please note that the judges hold the right to disqualify spammy, effortless entries made with the sole purpose of winning a trophies.
That about wraps up the contest rules. Banzai Bill-der's telling me this is all the space I have available to rent. Feel free to use this thread to discuss the contest and ask questions. I hope you have fun participating and have a great C3!