Hello, everyone, I'm Achikah and I adore base decorating.For me, besides my friends, base decorating has kept me engaged with DCUO throughout the years. It's been an outlet of creativity and enjoyment and one I am immensely passionate about, both for my own creations and seeing the creations of others. So, in light of this, I have started a contest to help encourage fellow community members to find their passion in building/decorating while hopefully inspiring others in the process. Welcome toBase Off!For those new to Base Off, it's a bi-monthly base contest, meaning every 2 months, a new contest will start with its own set of rules. The participants are given 6 weeks to create a base for the contest under specific themes/restrictions. The next week will be for touring, judging, and announcing the winner, and the last will be downtime for me to set up the next contest.So, now that you know what Base Off is about, let's get into the current contest!Contest GuidelinesFor the next installment of Base Off, your theme will be...Day of the DEAD-corators!That's right, summer is on it's way out and one of the best time of year, spooky season, is upon us. That means Base Off is once again going into the mouth of madness for a third Halloween spook-tacular!For Day of the DEAD-corators I want you to give me your best Halloween themed base. It could be something fun and lighthearted like trick or treating, something comedically over-the-top, could be subtle and eerie, or a completely repulsive vile affair! Graveyards, Haunted Houses, Creature Features, Macabre, Harvest Celebrations, Masquerades- Halloween has such an eclectic array and so many fun ways to portray it! The main thing I want from you though is to paint me a picture of some Halloween festivities and/or spookiness.If you're going off a homage to a pop culture source (movie, book, comic, video game, etc) please let me know ahead of time too so I can verse myself in it to understand your entry. You can post either on the YouTube video, here in the forums, or over on the Base Crafter's Discord group!RulesThere aren't many rules to Base Off, but there are a few: Follow the theming to the best of your abilities. One base entry per decorator. Bases that have already competed in prior Base Offs cannot be re-entered. Try your best! Judging ParametersBase Off is intended to stoke the flames of creativity. So, above everything, I want you to tell the story you've envisioned with your base. However, this is also a competition, and as the sole judge of such, I’ve designed a set of criteria I’ll be focusing on to choose a winner: Creativity- How inventive is your base: How the layout works, what story is told, how furniture is used; pretty much any and everything dealing with unique experiences and creations when viewing your base. Craftsmanship- The layout and flow of the base, as well as how it's put together: are the dividers lined up accordingly, are clipped items cleanly clipped, can rooms/halls be accessed as they should, etc. Logic- How believable is your base: do items work together constructively, does it make sense for them to be there in relating to the base's theme, do the rooms sync up in a logical progression, are items that are meant to serve the theme/room able to do so believably in the context given. Storytelling- How immersive and enthralling is the base's narrative: is there a story being told, if so how engaging is it, how does the layout/pacing progress, etc. Aesthetics- The overall visual presences of the base: how is furniture being used to create an atmospheric or cinematic experience. Given the theming, there will be a sixth criteria for judging, the Trick or Treat tier, for how innovative, unique, and engrossing your vision of the Halloween spirit is!Like all forms of art, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and like anyone else, I have my own personal tastes and opinions when it comes to décor. Because of this, you may gravely disagree with the outcome of the contest, which is understandable. However, I am the final say in deciding the winner and wanted to offer as much transparency to the judging process as possible. So, below are past Base-Off winners, as well as a link to my base tour playlist to help you gauge what my sensibility and tastes are when it comes to decorating.||Diving In| |Days of Summer| |NotLD| |ADID| |Lofty Ambitions| |Seaso-NO| Lights Camera Craftion| |DotD||||Places Wild| |Iconi-Clash| |Danny the Base| |Bon Appetit||PrizesWhat would a contest be without fabulous prizes! Each Base Off will offer different prize pools and include rarer items for avid builders such as out-of-season pieces and elite furniture drops, as well as some stylish accruement for your characters. For the current contest, the grand prize winners will receive:US Prizes1st Place PrizeCrown of Thorns Portal x1Underworld Columns x6Gorgon Altar- Aflame x3Speed Force Ceiling x3Speed Force Hallway Arch x3ANDWinner's choice of one of the following:Man-Bat Commando Henchmen Uplink DeviceMetal Man-Bat Sidekick Uplink DeviceVampire Bat- Tier 2 Trinket Pet2nd Place PrizeCrown of Thorns Portal x1Underworld Columns x4Gorgon Altar- Aflame x2Speed Force Ceiling x3Speed Force Hallway Arch x23rd Place PrizeCrown of Thorns Portal x1Underworld Columns x2Gorgon Altar- Aflame x2Speed Force Ceiling x3Speed Force Hallway Arch x2Base Off is also for our EU friends here on the game! If an EU contestant wins one of the three prize pools, the following items will be allotted instead:EU Prizes1st Place PrizeCrown of Thorns Portal x1Source Wall x8Cobblestone Flooring x6Brazier- Lit x3Impaled Damned x2ANDWinner's choice of one of the following:Paradox Reapers Henchmen Uplink DeviceNightmare Bat- Tier 3 Trinket Pet2nd Place PrizeCrown of Thorns Portal x1Source Wall x6Cobblestone Flooring x4Brazier- Lit x3Impaled Damned x23rd Place PrizeCrown of Thorns Portal x1Source Wall x4Cobblestone Flooring x2Brazier- Lit x3Impaled Damned x2For clarification, there is only one loot pool for Base Off currently, meaning US/EU are competing against one another.DeadlineOctober 23rd is the deadline for entries to be in, meaning you'll have roughly 6 weeks to plan, prepare, and finalize your entry. After that, the next week will be used for my own personal touring for judgement. The first initial tours are expected to be streamed from my Twitch Channel the following Friday, October 25th, with the winner’s announcement the Friday after, November 1st on my YouTube Channel.EntryTo enter, add "Achikah" your base generator permission once your base is completed and post a comment on the provided Youtube video announcement above (or you can also find it HERE), message here in this thread, on the Base Off entry thread in the Base Crafter's Discord, or you can reach out to me in game at “Achikah” through the mail. After you’ve done so, I will message you back in confirmation.Note: If I have not replied to you, I have not seen your entry! So please, if the deadline is looming, reach out again and contact me!The comment should contain which server you’re on (EU/US), character name (spelled as it would be in game in its entirety), and the name of your base. Subscription to the channel isn't required but would be greatly appreciated.Again, only EU/US PS/PC will be consider for this judging pool, but any Xbox/Switch users wanting to participate are more than welcome to post their entries here for everyone else to see.Any further questions or comments are welcome here, as are Works In Progress for anyone willing to share.With that, a new Base Off has commenced!Happy decorating all, and may the best builder win!-Achikah
For all my tl;dr friends, or just for clarity's sake, here's a more concise blurb of the contest and its guidelines. Base Off is a reoccurring bi-monthly base competition to foster a community of creativity and discussion amongst DCUO base builders. Every 2 months, a new contest will start with its own set of rules. The participants are given 6 weeks to create a base for the contest under specific themes/restrictions. The next week will be for touring, judging, and announcing the winner, with the last used for downtime to set up the next contest. Base Off: Day of the DEAD-corators! Contest Parameters: Create a base that is specifically centered around the cinema. Starting Date: September 13th, 2023 Deadline for Entries: October 23rd, 2023 Initial Livestream of Entries on Twitch: October 25th, 2023 Winner Announcement Video on Youtube: November 1st, 2023 US Prize Package includes: 1st Prize: Crown of Thorns Portal x1, Underworld Columns x6, Gorgon Altar- Aflame x3, Speed Force Ceiling x3, Speed Force Arch x3, and winner's choice of one of the following: Man-Bat Commando Henchmen Uplink Device, Metal Man-Bat Sidekick Uplink Device, Vampire Bat- Tier 2 Trinket Pet2nd Prize: Crown of Thorns Portal x1, Underworld Columns x4, Gorgon Altar- Aflame x2, Speed Force Ceiling x3, Speed Force Arch x23rd Prize: Crown of Thorns Portal x1, Underworld Columns x2, Gorgon Altar- Aflame x2, Speed Force Ceiling x3, Speed Force Arch x2EU Prize Package includes:1st Place Prize: Crown of Thorns Portal x1, Source Wall x8, Cobblestone Flooring x6, Brazier- Lit x3, Impaled Damned x2, and winner's choice of one of the following: Paradox Reapers Henchmen Uplink Device or Nightmare Bat- Tier 3 Trinket Pet2nd Place Prize: Crown of Thorns Portal x1, Source Wall x6, Cobblestone Flooring x4, Brazier- Lit x3, Impaled Damned x23rd Place Prize: Crown of Thorns Portal x1, Source Wall x4, Cobblestone Flooring x2, Brazier- Lit x3, Impaled Damned x2Entry: To enter, add "Achikah" your base generator permission once your base is completed and post a comment on the provided YouTube video, this thread, the designated Base Off thread in the Base Crafters Discord, or message "Achikah" on the game. The comment should contain both your server (EU/US), character name on game (spelt accurately), as well as the name of your base.Note: Only EU/US PS/PC users will be eligible for this current contest.
Base Off: Day of the DEAD-corators! Contest Parameters: Create a base that is specifically centered around the cinema. Starting Date: September 13th, 2023 Deadline for Entries: October 23rd, 2023 Initial Livestream of Entries on Twitch: October 25th, 2023 Winner Announcement Video on Youtube: November 1st, 2023 ummmmmmmm the cinema? lemme guess cnp?
Haha, you know it. I always Copy and Paste the first day and then go back and edit afterwards. Sometimes things slip through the cracks, but I really thought I edited though and saved it. Maybe the forums putted out on me, haha. Either way, good catch. As long as the dates are good, that's what really matters. But, for those curious, it is a Halloween contest, though I wouldn't be opposed to a haunted cinema... >.>
A bump for the upcoming weekend! We've got a handful of bases entered so far, but for anyone interested in celebrating spooky season or wanting inspiration, I put together a mega playlist of a bunch of fun Halloween, horror, and harvest themed bases! You guys can check it out Here!
Just a few more hours left for entries, Dead-corators! We have 9 so far for this year's festivities. I'll be posting a list once the deadline's fully set in cast there's any last minute entries. Hope you all have been having a fun Octoboo-r!
Alright, entries for Day of the Dead-corators have closed! We have 10 very fun and frightful bases to visit for Friday's stream which should start around 8:30-9pm PST over on my Twitch. Below is the entry list. If I have forgotten you, please reach out ASAP and I'll be sure to add ya. Otherwise, I hope I'll see you guys for the stream! US Server Smoove- Phantom of the Sewers 0mnipotentHera- A Coven's Former Glory FR0STWING- Hokey Halloween Frankenvolt Monster- Frankenbolts Lab Madam Lebaeux- Bloodport Temple Outlander_DF- Sacrum Humus iOnslaught- Alucard's Dwelling Sailor Europa- Trick r Treat EU Server Anik Sur- Skid Row HR666- Creepy Carnival
I know I'm a little late, but I wanted to say thank you all for the wonderful Halloween stream! The bases were phenomenal, and I had a blast hanging out with all of you in chat. If you didn't have a chance to catch it live, I'll link the VODs below! All that being said, as a heads up to all contestants: as mentioned in the stream, I am going to be taking that extra week for judging and indulge/relax with some holiday festivities myself for this last week of October. Luckily, having seen the calendar and knowing myself, I planned ahead for this and the end of the year Base Off will not be delayed. Expect the winner's announcement to be on Friday, November 8th instead of the 1st. Hope you all have a very happy Halloween and stay tuned til then!
With our candy stashed away and jack o' lanterns on the curb, another Halloween has come and gone, but there's still one last trick and treat up our sleeves to hand out... Here are your winners of Base Off: Day of the DEAD-Corators! A HUGE thank you to all the contestants, livestream participants, supporters, and donors who make this whole thing possible, and congratulations to our winners! Halloween is one of my favorite holidays and being able to share it with all of you in your wonderful bases really makes it even more special. I'll be reaching out to each of the winners about their prizes and shipping everything off ASAP over the next week. Stay tuned for the announcement for the final Base Off of the year coming in the next few weeks!
A bit late on viewing these but (as always) I'm floored by how creative people are given the base items we have to work with. Simply amazing (congrats all!)
