No fiction in this report (“yay” - everyone).

Big report. A lot of information. If you have any interest in either/both the Character Sheet System used in the Dark Jedi Brotherhood, as well as the Antei Combat Center, I strongly suggest reading the report and encouraging others to do so as well.

Reminder: while the CS System was designed for all kinds of fiction-related activity in the Dark Jedi Brotherhood, it is my dual-job as a member of the Voice team and Combat Master to assist with the development of the System in all of its functions. The ACC pays closer attention to smaller details and intricacies of the CS System, while Fiction and Run-Ons have a bit more flexibility in the differences between +1 in a Skill and +2 in a Skill. My answers to questions may vary when it comes to ACC/non-ACC use.

That said...

And now you know...

For this section, I’m going to go over some questions that pop up on a recurring basis. My hope is get this down in writing so that future CMs/ACC Staff will be able to maintain consistency. So, as I said to myself, “Hey, let me address these frequently asked questions,” I realized that all the questions are either tracked in my head, or scattered between multiple chat rooms and private messages on Telegram.

I realized I have almost 0 logged through the [Log in to view e-mail addresses] that I opened as a hotline for all members to use. This probably falls just as much on me, because I endeavor to answer questions quickly and in a timely fashion. I know others have asked Atra or my other judges questions (that they then double check or relay to me).

Reasons to use the email for ACC Mechanic/Rules questions:

1. I can favorite/star messages and ensure I’m getting back to people.
2. It allows (in the event that I’m not able to reply immediately) that someone from my staff can answer the question.
3. Allows the entire staff to better track/see my answers to questions or concerns.
4. Fun fact: James (SCL/codemonkeygod) is also on the ACC Staff group. This allows him to make sure something that gets brought up isn’t code related (meaning that the CM might not be able to actually fix it). Even James (for those that have not had a lot of interaction with him) also makes the same request of members to send him emails when they think of a change/fix they want him to address. It is a lot easier for us to track things. I’d appreciate the same courtesy. Thanks.
5. I'm asking nicely.

If you are in emergent need of answer, you can still PM me on Telegram and go, “Hey, did you see my email?” I’m very, very quick with my turnarounds. Try me. :)

Now, for answers to the ones I’ve been able to track for myself...

And Knowing Is Half The Battle

Knowledge is power, and one of my main goals as CM over the past year has been to ensure that knowledge is easily accessible and transparent to all. Here are some answers to frequently asked questions that have come up.

Q: “What’s the difference between Telekinetic Pound and Telekinetic Wave?

“What’s the difference between Stun and Stasis?

“What’s the difference between Feat X and Feat Y

A lot of the feats in the database — (C-D4WG) — are set up as tiered evoluitions of the respective Force Power or Skill they modify.

Atra was kind enough to make this nifty flowchart to help illustrate these.

I’ll be adding this to the Feats section of the Character Sheet Guide.

Q: “Why do I need a feat to throw my lightsaber?

Telekinesis as a Force Power on a 1-5 scale is all about concentration required to execute actions. The Feats we have in place are more of a game-mechanic — more often than not — used to help create different ways that two “Masters” of Telekinesis can differ from one another. As mentioned earlier, we also establish tiers to the Feats themselves in terms of how powerful they are.

With high Telekinesis, you can manipulate objects (like a lightsaber) with Telekinesis pretty easily. This means you could have your lightsaber float around in a fit of showmanship. However, when engaged in combat, you would relegate to the Telekinetic weapon feats in their respective tiers: Saber Throw, Telekinetic Combat, Telekinetic Mastery.

Let me try and break this down further with imagery.

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This is throwing a lightsaber, and then maybe guiding it with TK in a straight line into a target. You could then use TK to pull the saber back to your hand, obviously (not shown in Gif, but you have seen this 100 times in Star Wars media).

Pretty raw. You could call it back to your hand pretty easily too as long as you had +3 or more in TK.

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This is throwing a lightsaber with the Saber Throw feat:

The fineness/art is there, making it a bit more combat-effective.

(Random Side Note: I’ve discovered GifMaker. :D)

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This is using the Telekinetic Combat feat:

With TK combat, you are still using the weapon like a marionette with your active focus and hands as a guide.

Note: Dual Wielding Skill is still needed and applicable when using TK Combat.

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This is using the Telekinetic Mastery feat:

As much as I hate absolutely loathe with all my being the ending of KOTOR 2, the way that Darth Traya uses her three lightsabers to fight you is the best example (visually) of TK Mastery.

Q: “I didn’t read the CS 2.0 Launch report, what is the deal with Handeness and Dual Wielding?”

Your character is either Right Handed or Left Handed. You select this when making your character. This is important because if an opponent cuts off your dominant hand, your combat writing would need to reflect this. It can also factor into your combat style in general.

You have two ways you can explore a character being able to use both hands in combat.

Ambidexterity is very different from Dual Wielding. Dual Wielding is your character's ability to use two weapons at the same time. Ambidexterity is the ability to use one weapon with equal proficiency in either hand.

With Dual Wielding, starting at Adept (+4), a character can “fight seamlessly with any combination or pairing of weapons, and only the keenest of duelists will be able to detect an off-hand.” This still relates to using two weapons at the same time. At +5, you “have no off hand.” What this means is that when using two weapons you do not have an offhand at all. Someone who has high Dual Wielding should have no issues fighting with both hands in harmony.

Ambidexterity is the ability to use either hand with equal competency. Starting with the ”Ambidexterity” feat at the Journeyman level, a character can wield a single weapon fairly in either his left or right hand. While combat applicable, the character still favors one hand over the other. If the primary hand is hindered, he can still fight effectively, but not at peak performance.

At the Equite level, the ”I, Am Not Left Handed” becomes selectable. With this feat, a character has trained equally with both of his hands and can fight equally with a weapon in one or the other. He no longer has an off-hand, and can fight seamlessly at full effectiveness even if one hand is completely disabled.

Q: “Is there a universal format for Skills/Force Powers on the CS’s?”

Force Powers are always Bold and Skills are always Italicized.

Q: "What does Sovereign (+6) actually mean for a Skill/Power?"

+6 is like +5, just louder. What that means is that since the tier is only available to 3-4 active members of the Brotherhood, it really doesn’t have any bearing on anyone that isn’t a GM.

The best way to look at +6 is a way of determining which skills a GM has perfected that another GM has not.

Anyone with a +5 would still be able to combat a +6 skill on equal footing. Why? Because the tier really does not really exist outside the intended design of the 1-5 scale that the entire system is built around.

Q:

...

I hate everyone. But on a serious note, you’d need to have at least a +4 to manipulate small things such as activation switches or grenade-pins on a person's armaments. Also be mindful of good storytelling pacing/narrative in your combat writing. What seems logical and easy might not necessarily fit the narrative, and could work against you.

GMIT - Feedback Data

The Grand Master’s Invitational Tournament has been completed. I sent out a survey to all the participants for feedback, and after looking at the data I’ve come away with the following:

• 100% of the members agreed that the rules/guidelines for the competition were transparent and well outlined. (At least I did one thing really well).
• 50% of the participants in the GMIT participated for the competition element, but thought the awards were also cool.
• Nearly half the combatants favored the Singular Ending format.
• For the most part, responses were positive to the Fictional Prompts/Updates between the rounds.
• Middling feelings of how well the Tournament was promoted, but only one participant listed it as a detractor.
• Most responses were positive for the Venues used for the GMIT, but clearly more than a few competitors were not so hot on them.
  
• More Venues/variety. Feedback has been heard and will be addressed.
• Fractional scoring would make determining close battles/ties better. (ACC Staff will continue to endeavor to make sure that any tie or near-match has detailed assessment of what the determining factors were.
• Majority of competitors felt that Judgement notes were fair, and the level of detail that was provided in them was positive. (The context of that detail is what has the most concern, but I will talk a bit more about this later on in the report.
  
• Turn around times. One or two members expressed an annoyance with this. I’ll address turnaround times on ACC Matches later in the report.
• When asked about Character Development from the story, some members really enjoyed it, others were indifferent or did not feel it was helpful.
• My face is apparently silly. Noted ;P.
• Continue to make sure all Source information is synced/not conflicting (Tooltips matching Wikipedia documentation, etc.)
• CS Mechanic tweaks were brought up. These will be incorporated into continual balance/tweaks of the CS System.

With that information tucked away, I’m happy to talk about the next major ACC competition.

Journeyman ACC Tourney (2016)

Alaris Jinn has been one of my longest tenured judges. He came to me with an idea a few months back about running a Journeyman Tourney to get the newer members invested in the ACC as a platform. They have been run in the past, but the last time we saw one was over 4 years ago (I remember, because I participated in it as a Jedi Hunter!).

Alaris will be running and headlining the tournament, with my oversight on the administration end. So, I now pass the floor to him.

A Special Episode of Another Moment with Alaris

Wally pretty much hit in on the head here! It’s been 4 years since the last Journeyman Ladder in the ACC. We haven’t run one since the creation of the new Character Sheets. Those of you who are unfamiliar with me, I place a very heavy focus on introducing the Brotherhood to our newer members in every way possible. Generally speaking, Journeymen (and the Novitiate) are our members who have been in the Brotherhood less than a year. In that time, you learn all the ropes: competitions, the CoJ, leadership systems, etc.

What better way to learn and develop your skills in the ACC than against other members who are not as versed in the ways of combat writing? What we’re trying to do here is hone your storytelling abilities as soon as possible, before you get into direct combat with the big guns that we all saw in the Grand Master’s Invitational. The people we saw compete there are the best of the best from each unit, and this is one of the first steps to yourself becoming the best that the Brotherhood has to offer.

Thinking outside the box, plot wise, is a great way to get higher marks in Story in the ACC (on the whole, and not just in this tourney). We want to encourage you to come up with, and write, interesting narratives to the battles and opponents you will face. Have fun with it. A helpful tip will be to show, not tell, something we don’t see very often, and going deeper than a surface level “prove your worth” or “If I defeat you I will be more powerful” trope.

Show us what you’ve got here and take your first step into a larger world.

You can see the full competition here, but make sure you make your way to the Sign Up Form. The all powerful Sign Up Form.

Just in case you didn’t catch that, you do not have to subscribe, but you do need to head over here to the Sign Up Form.

Sign ups run until April 10th, 2016 The first round will begin on April 11th, 2016

Get hyped!

ACC Qualification - Policy Reminder

All members looking to take part in the ACC in both a competitive or recreational (for fun) capacity must take the ACC Qualification Exam. For further knowledge of the current standards used in the ACC, I highly suggest taking a look at the ACC Combat Studies Exam, which breaks down a full ACC match and asks for multiple choice answers based on reading comprehension. This is a great way to learn about the new ways Force Powers and Skills work with Aspects and other elements of the Character Sheets.

I repeat: ALL members that wish to take part in the ACC must pass the Qualification Exam. This goes for former Trainers, Judges, Combat Masters, and Dark Councillors alike.

If your exam takes any longer than 2-3 days to grade, contact the ACC staff or myself directly at: [Log in to view e-mail addresses]

Thanks.

ACC Grading / Qualifications

Touching on what I hinted at earlier, I have a few quick policies I'm putting into play now that I have my ACC Staff in a comfortable position.

• ACC Matches (outside of organized Competitions) will be graded within 10 days of completion. If your match takes longer than this time period, contact the ACC Staff to follow up.

• ACC Qualifications will be graded within 72 Hours of being submitted. If your Qualification takes longer than this time period, please alert the ACC Staff immediately to follow up.

If your match or exam is within this time period, please be patient. Thank you!

ACC Grading

Quick note here on ACC Grading. We have worked very, very hard to establish a standard with how matches are judged. This means heightened attention to detail supported by more in depth feedback on a match-by-match basis than any other judging-format in the Brotherhood. Even with this heightened attention to details, things will inevitable get missed. It happens, as we are all humans. If you have questions following an ACC Judgement, please send all follow up questions or concerns to me at [Log in to view e-mail addresses]. I am here to explain and expand on anything you have questions on, and most judgement that are not easy-calls get run by me anyway for double-check. We also employ a two-judge rule anytime there is a tight/close match. These are all steps we've taken to make things better. I know it's not perfect, but I am confident that our feedback and turn arounds are creating a positive atmosphere for members and the ACC.

Thanks.

Here is a quick snapshot of the projects I am overseeing and their respective status.

• Martial Arts Forms / Guide — Pending GM Review
• Venues Update — Soon (TM), Pending CM review
• Feats Database Clean Up — Work In Progress
• ACC Space — On Hold Until Post-Possessions

Venues

I also have the standing offer to any of the units that wish to have Clan-specific venues. Send us an email at [Log in to view e-mail addresses] if you are interested.

Otherwise, I’ve spent my idle time at work writing this report, which means I couldn’t go through the 20+ venues sitting.

You can find an archive of my previous Combat Master reports HERE. These reports contain a lot of helpful information, so if you’re a new or returning member, I’d suggest leafing through them.

ACC Links

• Species Wiki
• Disciplines Wiki
• Aspects Wiki
• Skills Wiki
• Force Powers Wiki
• Feats Database -- CDawg

ACC Exams

• ACC Combat Studies
• ACC Qualification Exam

That’s all for now. My next report will have some statistics on the ACC, and will most likely offically launch the Journeyman Tourney!