[Montly event] Ask the blog and maybe you'll win a prize!

Discussion in 'Public Member Events' started by ShelLuser, Feb 9, 2016.

  1. Hi gang!

    As you may, or may not, know Empire Minecraft actually has a blog. It's used to share tips, tell stories, and everything us (Contrib. team) or you can think of. However, it's also an area which the staff would like to see used a little bit more than it is now.

    So here I am... I actually like writing stories (reboots for my 2 continuous stories coming real soon!), tutorials but I often seem to lack ideas and motivation when it comes to the blog. And that got me thinking just now... Why don't we try to get you guys to help out? And before you wonder: I'm not asking you guys to write stories for the blog, I'm asking you to help us get ideas to write about ;)

    Ask the blog & win a prize!

    The title basically says it all. Try to come up with an interesting question and if it looks usable enough I'll pick up on it, use it in a blog post which will automatically grant you a prize (there is no guarantee that the post will be used, that's up to staff, but if I use your idea you will win a prize). Starting now and it'll be held every month for this year (or until my rupees run out, lol! :D).

    What to ask? Well, that's your problem, but here are some rough ideas:
    • Maybe you'd like a specific Empire or Minecraft feature explained?
    • Maybe there's something you'd like to ask the staff but are too afraid to ask? This might be your chance to get someone else to do it for you ;)
    • Requests can also be done as long as its related to the Empire. So... Maybe you're opening a shop and would like some extra attention for that? Or maybe you deem your event worthy of more attention? No promises that it's going to happen, but you don't know until you tried!
    • Or maybe you have some weird challenge for me or us (if needed I'll try to get other Contrib team members to help me out) to try out? Could be reason for some good laughs I guess ;)
      • This actually gave me an idea :D
    In general I'd prefer to keep things (Empire) Minecraft related, but who knows...

    Current event month: March 2016 (Event is currently on hold)
    Upcoming event month: April 2016

    Prizes

    Winner of March 2016 is Birosquinha. He won the following prizes:

    Main prize for the March 2016 event:
    • Block of Diamond
    • Block of Gold
    • Block of Emerald
    • And one Vault voucher
    Runner up: Kytula. She won a vault voucher.

    Didn't win a prize? :-(

    You know the saying, right? If at first you don't succeed, just give up! :D Wait, that doesn't seem familiar... :confused:

    More seriously: if you don't win a prize then there's obviously the next month to consider. However... Depending on the situation (and entries and my own mood) I may feel like including previously given suggestions to next months contest. No promises! But if you didn't win there's always a (small) chance that you may win next month.

    And there you have it!

    PS: I prefer that you send your ideas in by responding to this thread, but if you prefer using a PM then that's ok too. Just be aware that winners will always get announced in public!

    Event on hold?!

    Right now I'm busy working out the idea(s) for this month. This means that any entries you sent in will compete for the upcoming event of April 2016. The only caveat is that the next prizes have yet to be determined.
    Krysyy, Kytula, 607 and 2 others like this.
  2. I have one... I the wiki is helpful but a list with information on all the different types of staff heads, all the krysyy and aikar heads and how many there are, and maybe what they go for. I find that something like this would be very helpfull to the random person who doesn't want to spend forever on the wiki.
    ThaKloned and Kytula like this.
  3. Maybe some explanation about member outposts. This had me puzzling for quite a while in the past.
    Topics to discuss:

    What is an outpost?
    How does an outpost work?
    How do you get your own outpost? (In detail)
    What are some popular member outposts?
    (...etc...)
    gladranger7, ShelLuser and Kytula like this.
  4. I'm planning to host a big event in April on my lots, and am currently sprucing them up and trying to reduce lag so players can enjoy it better. But the only info I can find about how to do that has been asking other players. So far my answers have been: of course redstone mechanics ie. autofarms, lighting, itemframes, signs, colored glass, hoppers, and everything lol can cause lag.

    Maybe you could do a 2 part article on planning events in town.
    1. How to make your area appealing to players/reduce lag (as much as you possibly can, you can't control what your neighbors build)
    2. Going through the proper channels before you host the event, so it will run smoothly. Example: I had a parkour course built, and had staff (not senior staff) approve it. Also: I. Posted Forum thread about it II. Added it/sent in request to add it to the events calendar.

    So there's a rough idea of what I'd really like to see! ^_^
    BlinkyBinky and ShelLuser like this.
  5. There are some pretty interesting ideas coming in so I got a really good feel about all this. Time for a small bump!
    Kytula likes this.
  6. Suggestion: Continue your "Farming all the things!" series!
    Dufne and ShelLuser like this.
  7. And a small bump, but because I don't like bumping I'll also explain a little more on how this will continue. Some people already noticed that there's no end date for the event; that's because this is going to be held every month (so a few bumps here and there will be inevitable I suppose).

    So; this content is for March (next month). I'll let it run with a few bumps here and there until we're getting close around the 20th. That'll be the main date of the event because then I'll have 7 days left to actually come up with a blog post (which is the main idea).

    Then we get a winner, the post will be written and when we reach the next month we'll start all over. I'll re-use the thread, update my post above and off we go again.

    And there you have it ;)
    Kytula and LtCaptainMe like this.
  8. Ze bump.

    Next weekend I'll declare the first winner and start working on that particular blogpost.
    1. A comprehensive tutorial on horses, covering breeding (basics, offspring stat calculation and tips), taming, eggifying, stats on EMC (explaining speed and jump numbers), empire stables and general tips for using your horse
    2. A tutorial about PvP Arena tactics like the one PenguinDJ made about the Mob Arena
    3. Tactics for fighting each miniboss (that now include the Wither and Elder Guardian) - I might be able to contribute to some extent
    BlinkyBinky and TamTamV like this.
  9. This is a small upate (no bump, honest, I don't like those so I use them sparsely).

    Event update

    Good news: your chances to win a prize have risen a small bit.

    I should have done this right from the start but it's too late for that. Better late than never. I've upgraded this event into a contribution team event. Meaning so much that all your entries are also free for the taking by my fellow contribution team members under the mandatory rule that if they use your idea then they're required to give you a nice prize. A promise is a promise: if your idea is used then you will win a prize of some sort.

    However; if any of them use your idea then this does not make you the official winner for the month. That decision is mine alone to make, because in the end this is still my event ;) So the prize you win is fully up to the discretion of the team member who used your idea. But rest assured: it should be something nice and useful, I will not accept prizes like a stack of cobblestone or something. It needs to be nice, and I'm sure my fellow team members can come up with something good.

    4 more days until I'll declare the official winner for March 2016.
    BlinkyBinky, SoulPunisher and Kytula like this.
  10. I think that just having our idea/questions used is reward enough! ^_^ thanks for making this a team project now guys! and thanks shell for the event <3
    Pab10S, BlinkyBinky and ShelLuser like this.
  11. I am currently working on that, I have been for the last month but a funeral got in the way :p dont worry it will be here soon
  12. Results for March 2016

    This was a difficult one but the winner of this month is Birosquinha with his suggestion on a tutorial for fighting mini bosses. I've already started to collect some working material, and I'm hoping to sort things out soon enough.

    Runner up is Kytula with her idea on how to set up an event in town. Thing is: I have something planned myself but not something I'd consider usable for the blog. But I never stopped to think about all the preparations that go into it. True story: I've messed up a few preparations myself and if there's one thing you can learn from its your mistakes.

    You will both receive your prices in a few moments and I'll start working on the mini boss guide. Its also an excellent motivator to go over the respective wiki pages again (both for information, but also to spot sections which are open to improvement).

    What happens next?

    The event is now put on hold, as seen in my first post. So any new entries which get sent in from here on will compete for the upcoming month of April 2016. The main difference between an active event and one on hold is that I'm busy working out current ideas and haven't made up my mind on the next prizes yet.

    So if you have an idea: please keep it coming!
    Kytula likes this.
  13. 1. Obligatory 1.9 post, talking about possible fun new things that EMC would enjoy.

    2. Blog post about some lesser-known shops on EMC. I know of a couple.

    3. Post about iron farming. I'm surprised there wasn't one already.

    4. Perhaps a post about good outposts in the Frontier that players might be interested in joining?
    Kytula likes this.
  14. Thanks shel! & congrats Birosquinha! I'm looking forward to reading about mini boss fights ^_^ I die so much when I try 'em :p
    ShelLuser likes this.
  15. Nice surprise after a week away from EMC :D. Thanks Shel!
    ShelLuser likes this.
  16. 1.9 post on the blog, where's my prize? :V
  17. I can vouch that hashhog's post on 1.9 has been pending way before your suggestion was posted.

    EDIT: Jan 6th was when he started...
    Kytula and ShelLuser like this.