RBC Awards -- Midterm Elections

[Alex Ayres]

A big problem with awards is the fact that people have short memories. When it comes time to voting, generally we’re considering things that happened in the last two or three months at most. For this reason, movies that came out in the beginning of the year get re-released around Oscar voting time.

We do not have that luxury, so to make up for it, I’ve decided to share my views on the awards thus far. I do disagree with having mean spirited reviews, as did Liander, so I will be abstaining from voting in those. Instead of voting for them, I have offered some alternative categories that could be used instead of the ones that are strictly negative and put people down.

Obviously, awards are subjective. The ones I have listed below are just my opinion, and this list isn’t to be a definitive gospel, but rather to drum up conversation, and maybe be a reference for people when voting does happen, so we can remember the events that happened pre-September.


Best Partner Binding :: White Fang and Mel
This couple, though elusive to the common folk, is one of the cutest couples in our city, hands down. And their wedding was a true delight. My personal favorite part was Lannair’s bit with the mead, but the whole event was a truly beautiful celebration of a truly beautiful couple, so this union gets my vote so far.


They Severed?! :: Josie/Pulse from Seyda
I think after the dust has settled, it seems a lot less surprising that these two severed from Seyda, but for those not in the know, this was a truly surprising read when perusing the severed thread. No other severance really caught my eye or caused a stir as much as this one did, in my opinion.

Mr. Social :: Xedanis
Xedanis doesn’t really say much in any of the papers, but the fact that he is the spearhead of KRKN/Port Luna, probably the most active organization as far as events go, make it hard for any other “Mr.” to pry this title from his hands.

Ms. Social :: Ezra
Staff at Ab, most posts on Ab, staff at KRKN, had a large hand in the successful and popular Prom event, loves the spotlight...etc. etc.

Best Warrior :: Damacus
Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, Jesse Lacey, Damacus. All of these men have one thing in common. The one thing that sets Damacus apart from these other men is the fact that post sexual misconduct allegations, Damacus actually seemed more popular and more loved.

That either says a lot about our city, or a lot about Damacus’s ability to navigate war, both politically, socially, and on the streets.

And while you need a politician for one, a PR person for the other, and a soldier for the third, a true warrior knows how to navigate all three. A look at how two separate wars (Agrippa vs Sonvar and dK vs de Draak) became one slaughter of Dama’s enemy with the words,

“I'd like to thank Damacus, for insisting we sit together and form an agreement to end this bloodshed.”

In Daly’s The End post, solidifies Dama’s campaign against Sonvar as the most successful of the year so far.


Sire of the Year :: Vex/Damacus
I can’t decide which of these two is the Sire of the Year so far. I am leaning towards Vex because of how he handled the situation in the war against din Kolesi and how it started. But, I think there’s a case to be made for Dama as well, partly for the reasons listed in the Warrior post, partly because of how active of a part he plays in the lives of all members of his lineage.

This is a tough call, and in the end, it’s really just a popularity contest, so probably not worth going too far into, so I’m going to go with my gut and say Vex.

Heart of Gold :: Dea
I was on the fence with this one for a while. But I think in light of recent events, and how this woman has handled some of the stuff in her personal life, it is a clear choice. This year I haven’t seen Dea speak out of turn once, every interaction I’ve seen her have has been kind, and even when she addresses things publicly that she may not approve of, it’s always with consideration.


Childe of the Year :: ophelia
I don’t really understand what makes a childe a childe of the year that isn’t covered in other awards so it feels like, again, this is just a popularity contest. So I wrote down 20 names and rolled a D20.



Best Death//Best Kill :: Willa on Eli
There’s a chance that I’m just ignorant, but this was my favorite because A. there was a lot of camaraderie around the fact that it was Willa’s first kill, the fact that it was actually, at least partially, relevant to a war, and that there was no hard feelings. No one was making fun of anyone, none of the cheeky “Rests”, leaving out the “Rise wiser” because people are just rude for no reason.

This was a great kill, a great death, and congratulations again, Willa.

Best Defensive Maneuvers :: Vex
This one is simple to me. dK tried to zero Vex three times in one night, and Vex averted it all three times. Despite dK’s smear campaign after Vex’s BPing back up, this is the same exact thing Pulse did last year to win this award, except Pulse only did it once.

Maybe there’s something I’m missing, but avoiding being zeroed three times in one night seems three times better than avoiding being zeroed just once in one night. So, to me, a no brainer.


2017 Class President(Non-city-leader who did awesome this year) :: Batrisha
I don’t frequent Batrisha’s bar, Reaper’s Arms, but I heard about it, and heard about the work they do. From what I understand, Reaper’s Arms has an entire section dedicated to helping people obtain their powers. I know that the Night’s Watch and Ab also have similar goals, but from what I can see/what I’ve heard, neither of these resources have offered as much help, or done as much to actively go out of their way and help newcomers.

But even if they did, Prom Night would give Batrisha and her bar the lead. I’m aware that a lot of people went into the success of RBC Prom, but Batrisha gave the space for those minds to come together and put an event. And not to mention, this space allowed for two completely different organizations (Ab and KRKN) to work in harmony to put on an event together.

And, this is purely speculation, but this event seemed to be a driving force in Ezra’s employment at KRKN.



Best Faction Leader :: Vex
Until there’s evidence to prove otherwise, Vex lead an unseasoned de Draak side to a near victory against a dK side that had already seen two wars (if you consider Agrippa vs dK a war) and was nearly twice as large. I believe out of all of the factions involved in these wars, de Draak comported themselves with the most honor and respect, towards themselves and their enemies, and considering the origins of the war, that could not have been an easy effort for Vex and de Draak as a whole.

Best Faction :: Agrippa
To me, Agrippa is the best faction so far because they seem to best exhibit the ideals of a family. It is probably not intentional, but if you step into Mead Hall on a Saturday night, you’re met with what is basically only members of this faction, with a few exceptions. They love spending time together, and rumor has it that they have regular “family nights” where they play games together to the wee morning hours.

Factions aren’t just people you go to war with, they’re people you rest and have a great time with, and Agrippa, as a whole, seems to do both of these things amazingly and cohesively.



Infamous or Famous it’s all the same to me! (Most Popular) :: Xedanis
I don’t even really have a reason to this. When I think of popular I think of Xedanis. That’s really it.


Right to bare Arms (Best arms in the city) :: RoD
I like an underdog story.

Hoist the Colors! (This person is bursting with RBC Spirit) :: Batrisha
Same reasons as above, really. Hoisting the colors to me comes in many different forms, but there’s nothing more in line with the RBC Spirit, or what I wish the RBC Spirit was, than someone who is actively bringing people together and helping new members of our community thrive.


____________________

As I was writing this, I realized that it might be nice to have a little two or three sentence blurb for each of the categories that tells us what we should be looking for in a person that we want to nominate for this award. I think some of them leave too much room for conjecture.


These awards I don’t think are negative, I just didn’t vote for them because either they change too much, or I haven’t seen anyone worthy of the award yet:

Most Eligible Bachelor/Bachelorette ::
Changes too many times to make a choice. I could pick someone and they be in a relationship two days later.

Lessons Learned (Teacher of the Year) ::
No one has really shown qualities of a great teacher as of yet, in my opinion.


Here are some ideas for awards that could replace the negative ones:


Best Death//Best Kill
I think this one can be split into two awards. The best death is not always a product of the best kill. For example, last year I would have given best death to Averie. I thoroughly enjoyed her responses in her zeroing thread.

Most promising new Community Member
Most Improved Community Member
Best Banner
Best Artist



Wish you were here :: (Clan, person, or family from the past you wish was still around)

I don’t really think this makes sense as a yearly award. The person who wins it didn’t actively do anything that year to win it, as they weren’t around. This seems to be a good opportunity to work something like a “Lifetime Achievement Award” into the award ceremony. The community nominates someone that year who is just missed in general, and then some of the people who are still around who are closest, or anyone with fond memories, can write little blurbs about the person that ends up in a closed thread in the city's newspapers to commemorate them.




Ambassador to Fuckitstan (The land of zero fucks to give)::

I don’t know if this is a negative one or not, but either way it doesn’t make sense to me. I don’t think there’s anyone in the city who actually doesn’t give a fuck. And, if there is, they probably don’t give a fuck about this award, so why have it? I think it could be replaced with something more relevant and positive, even if it isn’t negative.



The ones I thought to be negative and can be replaced:


Fall from Grace ::
Wench of the Year ::
Less Talk, More Action ::
Can’t keep a partner, but can keep binding ::
Awkward! (WTF Binding) ::
Leggo-my-Ego-tastic ::
Firecracker (Best Retorts/Comebacks)
Drama King/Queen ::



Thank you for reading, and in a few months time, happy voting!

[Ezra]

Really interesting read and a good perspective! There’s always tons of debates around the awards, and I’m definitely of the “Make Awards More Positive” camp, so I agree wholeheartedly. Gotta say, I like all your picks as well.

[Alex Ayres]

I would have gotten away with it if it wasn't for the pesky Ab Antiquo staff...

[Ezra]

Good effort. Don't do it again.

[Vex]

From staff perspective, you get a smack on the wrist for the attempt (albeit it very obvious), but also kudos for a well written analysis. The awards don't mean a whole lot, but recognition never goes amiss. Generally speaking, I agree with the more positive categories and look forward to seeing what the award staff do about it.

On a personal level, the only one I disagree with you on is Best Kill/Death. The rest seem well reasoned enough that I'm not going to nit pick.

HOWEVER, Egotastic and Firecracker aren't negative. They're mine. Less talk, more action isn't necessarily negative, neither is Awkward Binding (but could be changed to something denoting a seemingly strange pairing).

[Ezra]

Eh, I disagree "Less talk, more action" isn't negative. It's for the person you think needs to shut the fuck up. That's not exactly positive. Awkward binding can be fun, for weird pairings, but usually people use it in a really negative way. I love the idea of "most promising new community member." We had something like that, two years ago I believe? It was "Freshman Class President" or something similar to that. A bit nebulous, since I think Anders won it then, and he's been around for like... 14 years. Maybe making it someone who is underpowered or only powered in the last year, or something like that.

[Alex Ayres]

Thank you for the kind words. Going forward, if I choose to write anything, it will be with my name right along the top!

[Xedanis]

As the resident token Social popular guy [and the owner of the station that runs these events, I suppose] I just wanted to sneak in and let you all know that I read this very thoroughly and will be taking all of this on board when it's time to plan the next round of awards!

Btw, yes, KRKN will be doing our very own awards this year, and yes, there will be category changes.

Anyhoo, carry on! *scuttles off, stealing Vex's award shinies as I go*

[Alex Ayres]

I actually edited this piece because I'm trying to remove "Mrs." And "Miss" from my vocabulary. "Mr." does not tie a man's social status to another person, whereas "Mrs." And "Miss" do.

So I changed Mrs. Social to Ms. Social.