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battleshipexThese are questions and answers that have come up in Discord so far. Feel free to ask more questions there, or in comments. Also see the 2023 FAQ; all the answers there apply to 2024 as well. If you have more questions, ask them in comments here or in Discord and we'll update this.
What does the "Collaborative Work" tag mean? Does it refer to a work where multiple creators collaborate, or one where characters collaborate on work?
It can be claimed for either of those cases.
So we can collaborate on works? Cool! How does the scoring work for that?
There are a few rules for this.
1) All creators of a collaborative work must be on the same team.
2) Tags/points are logged per medium. So if your work is a text fic and a podfic of that text and cover art, you should separately claim tags/points for the text, tags/points for the podfic, and tags/points for the art.
3) Each creator on a collaborative work will have 1 work counted toward their work cap.
I've seen a lot of terms flying around that I don't understand... what's a firb?
Here's some vocabulary you might encounter:
CCOF: Creator's Choice of Fandom. A request for CCOF means that the creator can fill it with any fandom they like, including original work. CCOF nominations are categories of character, such as Any Codependent Sibling/Any Codependent Sibling.
AFIRB: Any Fandom I've Requested Before. A request for AFIRB means that the creator can fill it with any fandom you've requested in a previous exchange. If you've previously requested CCOF, those requests are not included in AFIRB—AFIRB refers to a fandom. AFIRB nominations are categories of character, such as Any Character & Their Adorable Pet. It's generally expected that creators will observe DNWs on past requests when filling them for AFIRB.
OW: Original Work (not Overwatch). This refers to original fiction, usually (but not always) written in the style of fanfic, and created to match a request just as fanfic would be. Original Work nominations are archetypes and tropes, such as Female Werewolf/Nonbinary Vampire.
DNW: Something you Do Not Want in any gift that's made for you.
Podfic: An audio recording of a fanfic.
Ship: A relationship between two characters. If the character names are combined with /, like Fluttershy/Pinkie Pie, it's a romantic and/or sexual ship. If the names are combined with &, like Rainbow Dash & Applejack, it's neither romantic nor sexual. In the context of nominations and sign-ups (see below), "ship" can also refer to a solo character or group nominated in the relationship field.
Participant: Anyone who signs up at the main collection and is put on a team.
Team: A group of participants all trying to win the game together.
Board: A 10 x 10 grid of squares that must be uncovered to progress in the game.
Boss: A wordcount target that must be reached to progress in the game.
Assignment: In most AO3 exchanges, each participant is assigned to create for a specific other participant. In Battleship, there are no assignments. You independently choose a request to create for. That request can be from either a sign-up in the main collection or a prompt in the prompt collection; those are treated as equivalent.
Freeform: AO3 calls these "additional tags". They are text tags that can be applied to a work to describe the content of the work. For example, if your work has a rainstorm in it, you can tag it "Rain" and/or "Storms". Freeforms are used to create targets on a Battleship board. To attack a target, create a work tagged with the requested freeforms.
What exactly are the steps to participate?
0) Join the Battleship Discord to collaborate with your team, ask questions of the mods, and hang out with an awesome community of people doing a weird exciting thing. This is optional but strongly encouraged.
1) Nominate fandoms and relationships (aka ships), and suggest freeforms. These are the components of a sign-up request or prompt. Battleship sign-ups and prompts draw only from the tagset created by Battleship nominations. Here are detailed instructions for nominating fandoms and ships (open until the end of sign-ups) and suggesting freeforms (now closed).
2) Sign up and/or prompt. A sign-up or a prompt contains one or more requests. Each request describes a fanwork you would like someone to make for you. A request needs to have one fandom, at least one ship, at least one medium (fic, podfic, or art), and at least one freeform. It draws from the tagset created by nominations. There's also a box for Optional Details where you can describe what you do or don't want to get. For example, you could include specific ideas for stories or artwork, general things you like, and/or DNWs. Your DNWs must be in your sign-up or prompt text to be enforceable (meaning that if your only gift contains something you listed as a DNW, the mods will find someone to make a replacement gift for you). Optional details are optional, so your creator isn't required to create to your idea or include everything you like, but they'll still be guided by your suggestions. Here are detailed instructions for signing up and prompting.
3) Join your team. If you signed up at the main collection, you will be put on a team. Each team has a captain and its own channels in Discord for general chat, strategy discussion, and calling shots (see below). Each team also has a spreadsheet used for team coordination. If you're not on Discord, you'll still be on a team, but you'll miss out on all the team collaboration aspects.
4) Attack boards and bosses. This year's game has five stages: Board 1, Boss 1, Board 2, Boss 2, and Board 3. Each team gets its own unique set of stages, and must complete the current stage before moving on to the next. You complete stages by putting works in your team collection that advance the team's goals. Each work must fulfill a request from main collection sign-ups or the prompt collection. Works remain hidden and anonymous for the duration of the game. Each new stage will be announced on Discord and Dreamwidth; team collaboration happens only on Discord.
4a) Attack boards by creating works with needed freeform tags and AO3 work labels. Each board is a grid, and each square of the grid has a target number and some tags, like "16, Breakfast, Tentacles". The team members must collectively reach a target by putting works in the team collection with those tags. Collaborate with your team on strategy for which tags to hit first.
In addition, there will be board-wide goals for AO3 work labels, like "27 Major Character Death works". Your team must collectively meet these goals before proceeding to the boss.
The team collections are moderated. Mods will check works put in the collection and note down which tags they claim. Then a live grid will be updated. When your team reaches a square's tag target, a team representative should go to the team's shot-calling channel and officially "fire a shot" at that square. Then the mods will say what the square contains. It might be something your team needs to clear this board, or something that will be useful in the next boss battle.
Once your team has found all the needed squares to clear the board, you can collectively decide whether to move on to the boss or target more board squares. When you've gathered everything you need, announce in the shot-calling channel that you're ready for the boss.
4b) Attack bosses by creating more works. Each work added to the collection earns a score that reduces the boss's hit points. Scores are based on wordcount for fic and podfic, and on elaborateness for art. Tags are not relevant for this round. The mods will announce when you have defeated the boss and will reveal the next board.
5) Finish the game! The first team to clear its final board wins the game. After that, there will be a 24-hour editing period so you can polish up everything you made in haste. Then works will be revealed. Creators will remain anonymous for two weeks, and then creator names will be revealed.
I don't want to be in Discord. How do I participate?
You can write treats and/or leave prompts in the prompt collection without signing up or being on a team.
If you sign up and you're on a team but you don't want to be in Discord, watch this Dreamwidth for posts about team progress, and create works that you put in your team's collection. Your best bet for contributing to your team's progress is to post works during the boss battles; then you don't have to worry about tag strategy.
I'm a slow creator. What if I make a work for a tag only to have my team clear it before I get to it, or decide it's no longer needed?
You can post that work during a boss battle, or save it for the mystery third board.
I noticed some things that just say "Don't worry about it" or "This is fine". What's that about?
Oh, that? It's fine. Don't worry about it.
What does the "Collaborative Work" tag mean? Does it refer to a work where multiple creators collaborate, or one where characters collaborate on work?
It can be claimed for either of those cases.
So we can collaborate on works? Cool! How does the scoring work for that?
There are a few rules for this.
1) All creators of a collaborative work must be on the same team.
2) Tags/points are logged per medium. So if your work is a text fic and a podfic of that text and cover art, you should separately claim tags/points for the text, tags/points for the podfic, and tags/points for the art.
3) Each creator on a collaborative work will have 1 work counted toward their work cap.
I've seen a lot of terms flying around that I don't understand... what's a firb?
Here's some vocabulary you might encounter:
CCOF: Creator's Choice of Fandom. A request for CCOF means that the creator can fill it with any fandom they like, including original work. CCOF nominations are categories of character, such as Any Codependent Sibling/Any Codependent Sibling.
AFIRB: Any Fandom I've Requested Before. A request for AFIRB means that the creator can fill it with any fandom you've requested in a previous exchange. If you've previously requested CCOF, those requests are not included in AFIRB—AFIRB refers to a fandom. AFIRB nominations are categories of character, such as Any Character & Their Adorable Pet. It's generally expected that creators will observe DNWs on past requests when filling them for AFIRB.
OW: Original Work (not Overwatch). This refers to original fiction, usually (but not always) written in the style of fanfic, and created to match a request just as fanfic would be. Original Work nominations are archetypes and tropes, such as Female Werewolf/Nonbinary Vampire.
DNW: Something you Do Not Want in any gift that's made for you.
Podfic: An audio recording of a fanfic.
Ship: A relationship between two characters. If the character names are combined with /, like Fluttershy/Pinkie Pie, it's a romantic and/or sexual ship. If the names are combined with &, like Rainbow Dash & Applejack, it's neither romantic nor sexual. In the context of nominations and sign-ups (see below), "ship" can also refer to a solo character or group nominated in the relationship field.
Participant: Anyone who signs up at the main collection and is put on a team.
Team: A group of participants all trying to win the game together.
Board: A 10 x 10 grid of squares that must be uncovered to progress in the game.
Boss: A wordcount target that must be reached to progress in the game.
Assignment: In most AO3 exchanges, each participant is assigned to create for a specific other participant. In Battleship, there are no assignments. You independently choose a request to create for. That request can be from either a sign-up in the main collection or a prompt in the prompt collection; those are treated as equivalent.
Freeform: AO3 calls these "additional tags". They are text tags that can be applied to a work to describe the content of the work. For example, if your work has a rainstorm in it, you can tag it "Rain" and/or "Storms". Freeforms are used to create targets on a Battleship board. To attack a target, create a work tagged with the requested freeforms.
What exactly are the steps to participate?
0) Join the Battleship Discord to collaborate with your team, ask questions of the mods, and hang out with an awesome community of people doing a weird exciting thing. This is optional but strongly encouraged.
1) Nominate fandoms and relationships (aka ships), and suggest freeforms. These are the components of a sign-up request or prompt. Battleship sign-ups and prompts draw only from the tagset created by Battleship nominations. Here are detailed instructions for nominating fandoms and ships (open until the end of sign-ups) and suggesting freeforms (now closed).
2) Sign up and/or prompt. A sign-up or a prompt contains one or more requests. Each request describes a fanwork you would like someone to make for you. A request needs to have one fandom, at least one ship, at least one medium (fic, podfic, or art), and at least one freeform. It draws from the tagset created by nominations. There's also a box for Optional Details where you can describe what you do or don't want to get. For example, you could include specific ideas for stories or artwork, general things you like, and/or DNWs. Your DNWs must be in your sign-up or prompt text to be enforceable (meaning that if your only gift contains something you listed as a DNW, the mods will find someone to make a replacement gift for you). Optional details are optional, so your creator isn't required to create to your idea or include everything you like, but they'll still be guided by your suggestions. Here are detailed instructions for signing up and prompting.
3) Join your team. If you signed up at the main collection, you will be put on a team. Each team has a captain and its own channels in Discord for general chat, strategy discussion, and calling shots (see below). Each team also has a spreadsheet used for team coordination. If you're not on Discord, you'll still be on a team, but you'll miss out on all the team collaboration aspects.
4) Attack boards and bosses. This year's game has five stages: Board 1, Boss 1, Board 2, Boss 2, and Board 3. Each team gets its own unique set of stages, and must complete the current stage before moving on to the next. You complete stages by putting works in your team collection that advance the team's goals. Each work must fulfill a request from main collection sign-ups or the prompt collection. Works remain hidden and anonymous for the duration of the game. Each new stage will be announced on Discord and Dreamwidth; team collaboration happens only on Discord.
4a) Attack boards by creating works with needed freeform tags and AO3 work labels. Each board is a grid, and each square of the grid has a target number and some tags, like "16, Breakfast, Tentacles". The team members must collectively reach a target by putting works in the team collection with those tags. Collaborate with your team on strategy for which tags to hit first.
In addition, there will be board-wide goals for AO3 work labels, like "27 Major Character Death works". Your team must collectively meet these goals before proceeding to the boss.
The team collections are moderated. Mods will check works put in the collection and note down which tags they claim. Then a live grid will be updated. When your team reaches a square's tag target, a team representative should go to the team's shot-calling channel and officially "fire a shot" at that square. Then the mods will say what the square contains. It might be something your team needs to clear this board, or something that will be useful in the next boss battle.
Once your team has found all the needed squares to clear the board, you can collectively decide whether to move on to the boss or target more board squares. When you've gathered everything you need, announce in the shot-calling channel that you're ready for the boss.
4b) Attack bosses by creating more works. Each work added to the collection earns a score that reduces the boss's hit points. Scores are based on wordcount for fic and podfic, and on elaborateness for art. Tags are not relevant for this round. The mods will announce when you have defeated the boss and will reveal the next board.
5) Finish the game! The first team to clear its final board wins the game. After that, there will be a 24-hour editing period so you can polish up everything you made in haste. Then works will be revealed. Creators will remain anonymous for two weeks, and then creator names will be revealed.
I don't want to be in Discord. How do I participate?
You can write treats and/or leave prompts in the prompt collection without signing up or being on a team.
If you sign up and you're on a team but you don't want to be in Discord, watch this Dreamwidth for posts about team progress, and create works that you put in your team's collection. Your best bet for contributing to your team's progress is to post works during the boss battles; then you don't have to worry about tag strategy.
I'm a slow creator. What if I make a work for a tag only to have my team clear it before I get to it, or decide it's no longer needed?
You can post that work during a boss battle, or save it for the mystery third board.
I noticed some things that just say "Don't worry about it" or "This is fine". What's that about?
Oh, that? It's fine. Don't worry about it.
Tags:
(no subject)
1/7/24 00:15 (UTC)Does this mean that there will not be a period where the losing team has to clear their final board?
(no subject)
1/7/24 00:15 (UTC)(no subject)
1/7/24 01:31 (UTC)Everyone who's guaranteed a gift does also need to have one before works are revealed, but we think that's unlikely to be a problem.