My nominations:
Best Series:1.King of the Map by
SerbiaOne example in the series:
King of the Map - AusterlitzIn one respect a basic no-frills series of bracket tournies, this series does have one feature I really like: There are initially 3 games sent to each pair, with 2 more sent only if needed. This allows the balance of a best-of-five series for players that are evenly matched, while not wasting anyone's time playing five games against someone who is obviously no match.
2. Chap's Challenge by
chapcrapOne example in the series:
Chap's WWII Poland ChallengeThis series has a double level of strategy. There is, of course, strategy within the games themselves, but there is an extra level of strategy in deciding who to challenge. Will you take the time to research your opponents and see who you think you can beat, or will you just plunge in and pick someone at random? Very, very enjoyable!
Best Small Tournament:1.
The Third Crusade by
multiplayertim.
I like this tourney for two reasons: First, I love historical or geographical themes, with maps appropriate to the real-life material. The theme was well presented. Second, the structure of the tourney was innovative. In phase one, players were gradually eliminated, with the winner of each game being able to choose the spoils options for the next game. That's a nice touch in multiplayer tournies. In phase two, players who had been bitter enemies in phase one now found themselves to be team-mates. This too, is an interesting way of doing things.
2.
Journeys of Discovery - 1; Marco Polo by
DaveHThis tournaments was beautifully presented for signup. Despite being a small tournament, it managed to give a wide choice of maps. A player was able to choose a different map for each round. Furthermore, each map was perfectly consistent with the historical theme. As a fourth point, Dave used actual CC points gained/lost as a scoring system, which I think is an underused feature. All in all, a very interesting effort.
In addition to best Small tourney, I would like to give it a secondary nomination as Most Innovative Tourney.3.
Rust's Red Square Landing by
WorldCup4JamesThe tournament has a historical theme, and the TO betrays a passion for the theme in his initial post. The maps and settings chosen are perfectly consistent with that theme.
Best Medium Tournament1.
Angola Loves Random by
angolaReason for nomination: there's just not enough tournaments with big multiplayer games on random maps. We need more of them.
2.
MC's 25th Tournament by
mcshanester29A clear and coherent scoring system allowing players to prove themselves with 25 games on their own map before heading into the final.
3.
2011 World Cup of Risk by
WorldCup4JamesA visually stunning presentation greets players looking at this tournament for the first time. But unlike many tournaments where the presentation only extends to the sign-up phase, in this tournament it never stops. The scoreboards are constantly updated, and new graphics are added. Some are decorative, but many are functional, explaining the flow of the tournament, helping to sustain the excitement. Interesting facts are cited, statistics gathered, and "quotable quotes" from the players are posted. From a presentation point of view, this is everything that a tournament should be.
In addition to Best Medium tournament, I also wish to nominate this as Most Creative tournament.Best Big Tournament1.
Escalating Fog: Hold to Win by
bengaI love 7- or 8- player games, with escalating spoils and fog, so this was a natural for me. What makes this tournament special, however, is the attempt to reward people for winning via holding the map objectives instead of by killing all. Objectives victories are one of the most under-rated features of many CC maps, and it is good to see a TO try to encourage the use of them.
2.
Clandemonium Beta Style by
BlitzaholicI don't know if this was, objectively speaking, a great tourney, but it was one of my most memorable. The sheer chutzpah of asking players to play 105 games on your map is pure Blitz! I only made it to the quarter-finals, and even there I was exhausted after taking my turns. The poor bastards who made it to the finals must have been taking amphetamines.
3.
Epic Teams by
chapcrap and
IcePackEssentially a miniature clan war, this tournament allowed non-clan players to have a taste of clan-style warfare.
4.
HA reaches 5000 Arms Race Games by
HighlanderAttack. This tournament encapsulates a theme recurring in several of HA's tourneys, where players choose their own game load. The winner is decided by win percentage, and the only restriction is that players must join 50 games within a month, with no upper limit. A GA medal for most unique wins was also offered.
Best Terminator:313's Jamaican Terminator by
merch313Nicely presented, with a banner graphic perfect for the theme. A quarter of the players are dropped each round, which is in my opinion the perfect balance. I think single-elims are too luck dependant, but on the other hand I absolutely hate tournament where you have to stick around to the end even when you have no chance of winning. Having multiple games per round gives everyone a chance to balance out random factors, and dropping a substantial number of players each round means that those who aren't cutting it are spared the tedium of hanging around as third wheels. The tournament was updated frequently and all useful information communicated coherently.