Hello everybody! Long time members will know that September has long celebrated character creation on SA, encouraging players to finally get out those character ideas they've been sitting on. Starting this year, March is going to have a corresponding month, focused on improving already existing characters: Application Improvement Month, also known as AIM!
What Kind of Contest is This?
This is a non-traditional contest! For the month of March, players are encouraged to go back and improve the applications for already existing characters. The application template has changed many times over the years, and many applications have fallen out of date as a result. Players are encouraged to go back, update old applications to the new format, and polish up their writing so that their application matches the character as they are. All participants are eligible for the bullseye medal!
How Do I Enter?
First, go fix up your applications! You can find the most recent template here. In particular, make sure that all the fields at the top are there and filled out! You can use your own template if you'd like, but it needs to have all the same information.
For powers: Please do not improve or upgrade your powers while adjusting the app. If you'd like to change wordings, be sure to PM @Kyros for approval. If your character was made before the advent of the 'species power' field, and you'd like to split your powers (or just relabel them all as species powers), please PM @Romi with your power changes.
Once all of your applications have been updated, post here with links to all of them to get your reward! If a character requires no changes (IE: was recently accepted), simply mention that when you post.
What should I be looking out for?
- Make sure your application title is just your characters name, and matches the name they most commonly use. If your character has gotten adopted, married, etc, make sure it reflects their current name! Remove any extra stuff like 'Application' or 'complete' from the title.
- If your character has a middle name in the application title that they don't go by, consider dropping it from the title.
- If your character is a college student, consider adding a major if they don't have one listed on the application.
- Make sure all the mandatory basic information fields are listed. For all characters, you need name, age, birthday, gender, species, and category. Students also need class, grade, and college major (if applicable). Staff need class and subject. Citizen's just need career.
- Double check to make sure your species field is filled out! Older applications likely will not have this part.
- Similarly, make sure you have a category field! Not all applications will have this. It should clearly state if your character is a student, civilian, npc, or member of the staff.
- Make sure everything is located in the right place! Personality traits shouldn't be hidden down in additional information, and powers shouldn't be placed in the appearance for example.
Is there anything else cool going on?
In the spirit of AIM, the staff has put together some neat entirely optional application templates! If you've been looking for a neat new design to use with your application, check out this post for some options: Free to Use Application Templates.
Again, this is entirely optional--feel free to modify the base template as you'd like, as long as it has ALL the fields. Please also keep in mind when using more advanced HTML templates that many of SA's users regularly use phones to browse. If you pick a template that isn't mobile friendly, they might not be able to read your application!
What's this about a reward?
There is a prize at the end of this! Once March is over, everyone who has signed up (and had their apps fully approved) will be given a special voucher, intended to help boost your characters power improvements. Effectively, the voucher can be used in the place of a training thread for a power improvement, with the training assuming to have happened off screen. If a power needed three threads to train, you just need two! This can be used for any character you'd like, but it must be used before the end of april. At the end of AIM, a thread will be made for people to use their vouchers, and everyone who qualified will be pinged.
March Contest: Application Improvement Month
Entries Close 23:59 PST on March 31st
Entries Close 23:59 PST on March 31st
