Learn How to Play in 9 Minutes

GM: John Pack
Assistant GM: Arthur Field

Start Date: January 19th, 2008
Tournament Period: January 19th - July 19th, 2008
Next Start Date: October 1st, 2008 (and every October 1st thereafter)

Those interested in joining the tournament should send an email to john@gameaholics.com as soon as possible. Deadline for entries for the first round is January 18th, 2008.  Late entrants will be accommodated.  If four or more sign up, they can begin a game in the current round; otherwise, players will be added in the next round.

For the first 2008 tournament, all players will compete in five preliminary, somewhat simultaneous rounds. New rounds kick off every two weeks even though preceding games will not yet have finished.  In fact, the first games will just be wrapping up as the last of the five preliminary games gets under way!

All entrants must be members of the BPA in the year that the tournament is started. If you are not currently a member, you can become an associate member for $10 which entitles you to play in all of the BPA email tournaments. Information on joining the BPA and the ongoing PBeM tournaments they sponsor can be found at the Boardgame Player's Association.

All games will be played using the free Hoity Toity game facilities on SpielByWeb.  All players must join that site and provide the GM with your login name.  There is no cost to join.  As soon as possible, players should join SpielByWeb.  Although the interface is simple, some players may wish to play in a practice game there to familiarize themselves with the rules and the mechanics of the game and the website.  SpielByWeb is unforgiving -- you can't take back a decision once it's been selected.  Errors cannot be retracted.  Players are warned to carefully take their turn and to realize the "back" button does not undo a move.  On the other hand, players will find that the interface is very simple and makes the game easy to play remotely.

Each game will have a designated captain who will be responsible for creating the game using the name, password, and comment provided by the GM. The other players will join that passworded-game on SpielByWeb.com (by clicking on "games list" then "passworded-games" and then the join option next to their assigned game). Note: Passwords are case-sensitive.  The captain will be responsible for reporting the final score and tie-breakers (spaces from the finish line, set size, # of cards, and oldest card) to the GM.  If you are willing to be a captain, please notify me when you sign up.  Colors will be assigned randomly by SpielByWeb.

Preliminary Rounds: 5
Participants: No Limit (a minimum of 25 is required)
Rounds Begin: Every Two Weeks (Jan. 19, Feb. 2, Feb. 16, Mar. 1, Mar. 15)

Round announcements will be sent by noon MST on the round start dates.  Game captains are requested to have their games set up by 6 pm MST on the round start date.  Players may join their games any time after that.

Round Length: 9 weeks*
Players: 4-5 per game
Participation: Each player is expected to move at least once per day (except when SpielByWeb has been notified of a player's absence/vacation).
Absence/Vacation: To notify SpielByWeb that you'll be unavailable, click on "Going Away?" after logging in.  Then select the calendar date when you'll return.  While you're unavailable, SpielByWeb will put a suitcase next to your ID that will show other plays when you'll return whenever they mouse-over the suitcase icon.  When you return, click on "Back?" and then click on "[Mark Yourself Here]".
Drop Outs: Players may drop out at the completion of their current games and may ask the GM not to assign them to additional games.  Players should plan to finish each game that they start.
AREA: All games will be AREA-rated (as are all the games played at the World Boardgaming Championships).
Scoring:

*Slow players will be penalized one point per week if a game runs over the 9-week time limit.  A "slow player" is defined as one generating more than one complaint within a game or more than three complaints within the tournament.  I request players not notify me unless the game has been waiting on a single player, who is not on vacation, for more than 48 hours.  Most games should finish in 6 weeks.  I request that game captains stay on top of this for their games -- nothing ruins a game more than indefinite waiting.

Players will be assigned to their first games randomly though family members and friends may request to be placed in different games.  Such requests will be honored as much as possible (though it may not be possible in later rounds).

No 3- or 6-player games will be used.  As few games as possible will use 4 players.  The GM will attempt to ensure that each player plays in a minimum number of four-player games.

Advancement: The five entrants with the top total scores
Tie-Breakers: If top five entrants cannot be determined solely based on points, the tie-breakers will be used in the following order:

1. Total spaces a player has advanced beyond the "finish line."  (The is the line that triggers the final exhibit.  Only spaces beyond the line are counted even those spaces short of the line will also be reported.)
2. Total size of all final sets.  The size of each player's final set in each game (not including cards which cannot be exhibited).
3. Total number of cards held at the end of all games.
4. Oldest card held in any final set, Second oldest card held in any final set, etc.
5. Current AREA rating
6. Die Roll

All points and tie-breakers will be reported on this website as games end.  I doubt we'll ever need anything beyond the second tie-breaker.

Final Begins: May 17th, 2008
Trophy: The champion will receive the Boardgame Players' Association "PBeM Adel Verplichtet" Championship Plaque at the 2008 World Boardgaming Championships (or by mail if unable to attend). The BPA will award points toward its Annual Caesar Award (Competitor of the Year) for the top six places.  2nd through 5th places will be determined by finish in the final.  6th place will be awarded to the top point scorer from the preliminaries who didn't advance to the final.

The final will be a one-game, winner-take-all affair designed to conclude by July 19th.

I hope you all enjoy your games and have fun in the tournament!  Please contact John Pack with any comments or questions regarding the format, game engine, rules, or play as the games progress.

Check back here for updates as the tournament progresses!

SpielByWeb Hoity Toity Engine Notes

Players of any version of Adel Verpflichtet, By Hook or by Crook, and Hoity Toity should easily adapt to the SpielByWeb engine.  However, there are a few details worth noting before beginning that I'll summarize here.

Sequence of Player Actions

1. All Players choose a Location (Castle or Auctionhouse)
2. All Players choose an Action (Exhibit, Thief, Detective, or Check)
3. The Highest Bidder at the Auctionhouse, if any, selects an Item
4. Exhibitors at the Castle, if any, select items for their exhibit
5. Thieves at the Castle, if any, select items from each exhibit, if any.

All other "actions" are handled automatically by the game engine since they involve no player choices.  As a result, players will want to either check in more often than required or to read their email notification carefully to see what happened since their last move.  Note: It's possible that some or all of Steps 3-5 will not be required on any given turn -- in which case, players proceed directly to the next step (or next turn)!

Initial Checks and Thieves

The colors are a bit different than in Adel Verpflichtet or By Hook or by Crook.  Here's the opening card inventory for each Hoity Toity color and how that compares to the original games:

The thieves of each original color are one line below that color in this table. 

Other Differences

• The two Auctionhouse decks are not split when one runs out on SpielByWeb; thereafter, there is only one option at the Auctionhouse.
• Purple is not used when there are only five players.  Interestingly, Black is not used when there are only four players!

Note: Successful detectives advance based on current place (not position) just as they do in the original rules and at the World Boardgaming Championships. See this SpielByWeb forum for details.

Now you're ready to play!  Get ready for some seriously fun competition!

© Hoity Toity is copyrighted by Uberplay.  Adel Verpflichtet  and By Hook or By Crook are trademarks of the Avalon Hill Game Company.