Focusing Community Turnout at SG Tourney Events

If I may interject, I have an idea that might help bolster some more enthusiasm & comradery... actually, to be 100% honest, this is the idea @dekillsage had for Paradise Found:

Split the pot bonus(es) the same way the event's payout works.

By doing that, not only are we showcasing our strong sense of community that (let's be blunt) doesn't really exist in other communities, but it grants that much more incentive. We already know that bringing the hype won't be an issue. Hell, KPB's stream at NEC15 was easily the loudest in the main hall and that was more or less a pickup tournament. If we were to institute this at an official major, it could set an unprecedented example.

Anywho, it's just a thought.

Wait, these pot bonuses aren't being split among the top 3/8/16/payout? What the actual hell?

I know it looks kinda janky atm, but I've updated the list at the top of this subforum with the latest developments. I'll make it all pretty and stuff when I get a chance (maybe tonight), but I'd appreciate it if people could let me know when roomsharing threads or new pot-bonus events show up so that I can add them straight away.

IAmAphroDynamek said:

Split the pot bonus(es) the same way the event's payout works.

I thought...that was how it worked.
(Entry fees + pot bonus) divided among the top N players. It's not just more money for first place...

The only way it doesn't look like that... is if there's collusion in Grand Finals. Then the entire pot bonus goes to third place!

shoutouts to blazblue

I figured I may as well say here that the list of majors that is now on the forum index will naturally contain all events that have SG as a main game or have a (large) pot bonus.

This means that if people decide to prioritize some of those events over others you might want to let people know in the thread for the less-popular events.

2015 has so far been a year of validation for our community. TOs are noticing us, and we have to make sure we show up to stuff. Midwest and Cali have shown they can do this.

Frankly, it's not as difficult as people make it out to be -- just show up, and bring a friend while you're at it.

Also, I've been speaking with a few TOs lately, and if we can keep up this momentum 2016 should be a very good year for us.

Gotta show up first, though. I know I'm sounding like a broken record, but go to a gat dayum tournament already.

DaRabidDuckie said:

Gotta show up first, though. I know I'm sounding like a broken record, but go to a gat dayum tournament already.

^^^ Cosign

I will be going to Canada Cup if I can get SG some good treatment there, which is in October, so I wouldn't be going to CEOtaku.

Going to CEO basically to show face, but i will promote summerjam as much as possible. I think we are all hoping for a spot in Final Round for the down south folks.

My main limiter for any of this is vacation time. Until 2018 (assuming I keep my current job, but they seem to like me so far) I have 10 days, every tournament takes 3 (Thursday, Friday, Monday, tournaments are never on Canadian long weekends), and the office doesn't officially close over Christmas, so I need to save 5 or 6 for that to have a nice break. After 2018 (not sure if inclusive) I'll have 15 days of vacation, meaning I could comfortably go to 2 or 3 tournaments in a year, assuming I'm still playing and competing and nothing else has taken over my life.

IMO the main SG tournaments should be something like SoCal Regionals (I've heard SG may not be happening this year because of an issue with Valle? In that case I would suggest NWM over SCR for 2016), Combo Breaker, and NEC. One for each region, and each of these majors has historically had a great turnout. We could highlight combo breaker as our main championship because to be honest it feels like a fair traveling distance from everyone AND had the best international turnout. After this year I could not care less about EVO.

NEC - Had a solid turnout in 2013 and had a great west coast turnout in 2014. I see no reason to not highlight this event, and I think it's at a good time for a lot of people.

SoCal Regionals - It's the major SoCal players travel to, which is a good 30-40 people. Not horribly unaccessible for Vegas and NorCal, and maybe not too much of a stretch for PNW. I'm only suggesting this under the assumption that scheduling SCR will not be an issue next year. I am also suggesting this because NorCal Regionals is not a good major for sidegames or in general. The support is nonexistant, and I would not recommend it as a major to fly out to. I'm actually considering skipping it next year in favor of something else.

NorthWest Majors - If SCR is problematic again next year, then my second choice would be NWM because even though there will be no (based on history) no SoCal attendance, it's something doable for NorCal and PNW, both of which are fairly active scenes. We were also given plenty of support from the TO's and Hilary did an amazing Job setting us up. Plus offline casuals with PNW cuties is a rarity. ;-;

Combo Breaker - Needs no explanation.

EVO - I think EVO's only strength for Skullgirls as a major is that a lot of players try to make it out regardless of whether or not Skullgirls will be there. Assuming no MadCatz support for next year (which honestly there probably won't be) there is absolutely no reason to make EVO a Skullgirls Major.


For what it's worth as someone who travels to as many majors as I can, the majors I am 100% planning on attending for 2016 are Combo Breaker and NEC. SCR is just a maybe because it's up in the air and I will probably end up picking Summer Jam over EVO if it comes to that decision. I am also not planning on attending another GDQ event unless SGDQ is held in Denver like it usually is. Big E and KPB have are really going out of their way to reach out to us so I would like to prioritize those events if possible.

I also know that everyone in NorCal is going to really push themselves to make sure attending NEC this year and Combo Breaker is possible for next year.

There are other Majors that aren't really being talked about too. I think GUTS 3 received a good amount of support for Skullgirls and from a "hanging out" standpoint that was my favorite major of 2014. ECT might be a good tournament to shoot for because it sounds like a lot of players from the east coast end up going there anyway, although I personally have no intention of picking it over another event. Frosty Faustings & Winter Brawl both sound like they were really good this year as well.

EDIT: I personally have no plans to attend CEO or CEOtaku because even though I hear incredible things about JeBailey as a TO. I honestly feel that attendance at these events will be inherently low because they are really a stretch to attend from most regions (NWM is too, but PNW is at least a populated local scene while florida does not seem to be. I could be wrong though). As much as I love Socks and Medic I would probably pass on these next year.

I would like to make sure input is given from the other World Warriors who have attended a lot of events, @FuLLBLeeD @mcpeanuts @Jayford @dekillsage @SonicFox5000 @WingZero

tl;dr Let's support the events that have reached out to us. Combo Breaker, NEC, Summer Jam, NWM, and GUTS.

Combo Breaker
NEC/NWM/TFC
Summer Jam/Guts/Ceotaku

In order of importance right now at least imo.

ECT doesn't seem interested right now.
Winter Brawl can be the ONE Big E event we don't pursue haha. If E wants us there though we'll see what happens.
Fuck EVO (unless you're going for any other game please go to EVO if you play another game its so fun)
CEO won't adopt us until we prove ourselves to have CONSISTENT numbers.
SCR seems all over the place right now haha so I'm indifferent. NCR too.
Final Round is the same as EVO and ECT where they've just never really budged.

If i'm missing anything else let me know, not really counting smaller, recently made tournaments (TCW, TS, etc)

I agree with Dolfinh's list completely. Plus the additional CEOtaku since that has main game and a lot of potential for us. As well as TFC because this is definitely a chance for us to show consistent numbers. Its more down south too to help those cats out.

Plus, Big E/Larry/Whoever runs ECT now besides LI Joe all work together and its veeery obvious. So if the Big E events and TFC pan out well. ECT and FR will follow.

Reading these assessments of tournaments makes me want to reiterate what I said earlier -- if we can keep up the momentum from Combo Breaker, 2016 should be a very good year for us.

I can promise you that if tournament numbers stay consistent and community support stays strong, TOs will be putting SG on the roster for future events. You may not think they are, but they're paying attention.

edit: I'm not making conjecture, either. Several TOs have discussed with me the issue of whether or not to have Skullgirls at their events.

Dolfinh said:

IMO the main SG tournaments should be something like SoCal Regionals (I've heard SG may not be happening this year because of an issue with Valle? In that case I would suggest NWM over SCR for 2016), Combo Breaker, and NEC. One for each region,

Uhhhhhhh

Wait what's this issue with Valle? With the SCR scheduling fiasco being the dominating headline, I haven't heard of anything specific between him and SG.

Broken Loose said:

Uhhhhhhh

Florida is EC in my mind

keninblack said:

CEO won't adopt us until we prove ourselves to have CONSISTENT numbers.

Worth pointing out (especially considering the history between Jebailey and SG) that CEO likely won't adopt us at all if we can't get numbers at CEOtaku - the whole thing of "We had an even just for you, and you didn't even show up!" will probably be the argument used, even if we make it clear that we were simply prioritising other tournaments that were even better.

I agree that CEOtaku doesn't really look as attractive an option as the other events, but it's worth keeping in mind that they choices you make can have an effect. On the upside, just looking at the thread it seems that there are some decent players who have said they're going anyway and there's likely going to be enough people there for the finals stream to have a full bracket, so a choice away from CEOtaku would be somewhat obscured from those looking on from outside and so any problems are likely due to people trying to stir shit up rather than the typical kappa kappa lol ded gaem.

At this point I say Big E events over CEO(taku)

I agree. If I was in the US, I'd probably be going to Big E events as a first priority myself. Just want to make sure people are considering all of the facts.

One thing that occurred to me after the last post that CEOt has going for it is that August-October-December would spread out the schedule a little more then August-September-December, when we might see a smaller turnout because of people not being able to make TFC so soon after SJ.

Dolfinh said:

Florida is EC in my mind

Philadelphia is a thousand miles away. In fact, so is Chicago. Do you consider LA to be part of PNW?

On this note, there's something to be said for CEOtaku being the only main stage SGE event south of the Mason-Dixon line. For those of us to whom literally every single major is a cross-country voyage, it's really worth it to come out to it.

Go to CEOtaku it will be good. Jebaily tournaments are always really well run

Vadsamoht said:

One thing that occurred to me after the last post that CEOt has going for it is that August-October-December would spread out the schedule a little more

Except, you're forgetting about Canada Cup, being held in Toronto, which is also in October (Halloween weekend).

The guy running it is modeling it after CB.

Sure, but I was going from the four that are currently listed on the forum index, and as far as I know and from following the thread here Canada Cup doesn't have SG as a main game. Absolutely nothing against the event itself.

So I just got my shift rotation schedule. Looks like the only one of the main page events that I'll be able to attend is CEOtaku... not really looking forward to that flight, tbh.... Not sure if I'll attend or not.

Is it crazy of me that I'm considering looking for a different job so I'd be able to play more fighting games? Damn...

Broken Loose said:

Philadelphia is a thousand miles away. In fact, so is Chicago. Do you consider LA to be part of PNW?

On this note, there's something to be said for CEOtaku being the only main stage SGE event south of the Mason-Dixon line. For those of us to whom literally every single major is a cross-country voyage, it's really worth it to come out to it.

I meant East Coast as in on the east side of the country, although admittedly I wasn't really thinking about the actual distance. I consider PNW West Coast as well!

Probably should have clarified one for each coast...

Jason said:

Is it crazy of me that I'm considering looking for a different job so I'd be able to play more fighting games? Damn...

The only odd part is putting it so bluntly. Most people would just say "I'm looking for a better work-life balance".

So no, it's not crazy.

Which do you guys think is more important?

Having a few tournaments where a lot of people show up (like 60+ for two or three majors) or having lower but consistent numbers across the board (25-30 for each major)

From my thinking, the latter is what catches attention and imo might be a better thing to strive for.

Depends how much the 50+ tournaments damage the numbers for the others, and what you're defining as a 'major'.

I'm basically asking quality or quantity. Let's say a large tournament is 45+ and a smaller one is 20+

Problem is, we want both and don't want the problems that come with going to either extreme. Ideally you'd be able to get ~30 people for every respectable tournament but still be able to fill at least a 64-man bracket if the event is one worth supporting. You don't really want to be the game with one tournament a year worth going to, but nor do you want to be the game that only ever gets 30 people max if you can avoid it.

If you absolutely had to choose one, you'd go for regularity at somewhat lower numbers, but that's certainly not to say that people shouldn't be trying to make the big events something special.

Honestly, I'd personally rather having big turnouts for a fewer number of events.

You get a shot at main-stage status. Stream time. Recognition and hype. Plus the community on average spends less money flying out to events.

If you get 20 people showing up to every major you get 'lol dead game' comments, side game status and people spending ~1000 on plane tickets to play in a side tournament.

I think it's easier to get larger numbers for events because of the money issues. I think that SCR (assuming it's in winter next year), Combo Breaker, and NEC are all fairly spaced out events.

I know next year that no matter what kind of financial silliness I encounter I am going to make it to combo breaker

I guess it also depends on what you want to achieve through the spread of numbers. If you're not caring about what other people think and want the best events for the players who can make it out, then yeah, big events are better.

Dolfinh said:

Which do you guys think is more important?

Having a few tournaments where a lot of people show up (like 60+ for two or three majors) or having lower but consistent numbers across the board (25-30 for each major)

From my thinking, the latter is what catches attention and imo might be a better thing to strive for.

We'd probably get the best answers asking an actual TO, like @thehadou

Sweet sassy molassey, it's good to be back! Anywho, regarding the current "quality VS quantity" topic we've landed on, I would have to lean towards the focusing on majors. From my particular standpoint, this latest surge in activity stems from the fact that Big E finally noticed not only the numbers you beautiful people can bring to any event, but the levels of hype & dedication burning in this community. If you think back to our our first stream at NEC, despite only being deemed a "side tourney", we still had the loudest crowd.

Furthermore, you can bet the farm on a barn that people all over the FGC took notice of us at Combo Breaker. Big E is opting to put some heat on us the rest of this year because he's starting to see what we all know: Skullgirls is a TO's dream game. Draws in incredible players, runs fast & always gets the crowd hype. Kick-Punch-Block plans to continue our support & I'm gonna work on getting the monthly INFLICT! series running again so that there can still be offline sessions to keep things lively.

BTW, that brings me to a quick point: Since the general concensus seems to "focus on the East Coast events", would trying to to kickstart INFLICT! back up on the 18th be foolish? I already know it's the second day of EVO, but (again, from what I've come to understand) EVO isn't really doing us any favors. Anyways, I just wanted to speak my piece & get your opinions... it's good to be back!

Just thought I'd mention that now we're past EVO and heading into the four tournaments listed on the forum index, it's worth keeping an eye out for majors in early 2016 that might be worth focusing on. This is not as a way of trying to farm more pot bonuses, but the earlier that people can make plans, schedule time off, etc. the more likely we'll get a good turnout.