Everyone except Christian has been bounced. Therefore Round 134 is over. The Wizard is still the Judge, but he's someone else now. The Wizard until about 3 days ago, Aron Wall -- Rule Date: 2000-04-16 20:38:14 GMT ====================================================================== John-Martin wrote: > Storytelling > > Ah, what I could tell you, there may be a million stories in the big > city, but there is at least one for each of the many stories this fine > old building. > > I could tell about the Prince and the Showgirl . . . but, I better not. > > I know. > > This story is interesting in that each scene takes place on a different > story > my structure, > > The tall man walked up to the bellhop in the lobby on the first story and > asked, "I need a package of winterfresh gum and the Doctor's Scarf." > > The bellhop paled, "The Doctor's scarf? It is too early." Checking to > see that no one was looking, he pulled the man ear near his mouth. > "Take the left most elevator, push each of the buttons on the right side of > the > panel. Exit on the first stop, You'll meet a mysterious stranger. who will > help you. > > As the tall man entered the elevator, his trained eye noted that except for > tower and sub-basements, all of the buttons were square and were tightly > packed in a rectangle. He pushed the seventeen buttons as instructed > idly thinking to himself if the tower and sub-basements were in one row, I > would have had to push eighteen buttons. (He didn't think about it, but > the number is also prime -- the Storyteller) > > jml > > AKA > John-Martin Lotz > > -- > Rule Date: 2000-04-06 01:24:57 GMT Judgement: The only iffy part of the rule is this: what is that number referred to at the end? If it were the immediately preceding number 18, the rule would be INVALID. But I guess it is reasonable to assume that the number referred to is 17, a prime if I ever saw one. Style: +2. At first I didn't like this rule very much, but it seems to have grown on me. I really, really like how John-Martin put several subtle restrictions on future rules simply through the narration itself. The Wizard -- Rule Date: 2000-04-06 15:56:22 GMT ====================================================================== Nicholson Neisler wrote: > >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> > Chapter 2 > > The elevator jerked to a start, and the tall man steadied himself on > the cold metal walls. It was only a moment, but that moment was > enough; the elevator came to a stop. Both the second and third story > lights were lit, which made him think he was now somewhere in between. > Where had the second story gone? The tall man would learn before the > day was through, that was for certain, and he would learn to wish he > hadn't. > > The elevators opened onto a long hallway. Too long. The fluorescent > light were bright. Too bright. He took a step and then another and > walked on down the hall. On each sides were doorways, numbered one > after another, odd on the right, even on the left, always the same. (He > didn't think about it, but all the odds where prime -- the > Storyteller) After some time he came to the end of the hall, where > there stood another elevator. Where was the mysterious stranger? He > turned to look from where he had come, and there was the stranger, as > mysterious as he had imagined. > > "I need a package of winterfresh gum and the Doctor's Scarf." the Tall > Man said. > > "The roses are blooming in May." the mysterious stranger said. > > The Tall Man pulled a package from a too small pocket. He gave it > without a word to the mysterious stranger. > > "Take this elevator. Push all of the buttons on the left side. Tell > the Bouncer no lies, for he will accept no story but your own." He > turned to go. > > "But I am to..." Said the Tall Man. But the mysterious stranger was > already far on down the hall. > > The Tall Man entered the elevator. > > (Editors Note: I like the Prime Stuff. Keep that up in each chapter. > And the Mysterious Stranger is intriguing. Get him back by chapter > six.) > > >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> > > -Nick > > -- > Rule Date: 2000-04-06 05:29:40 GMT Judgement: VALID. Style: +2. I don't like using Editor's Notes to bring in restrictions, but this one is well done, so no penalty. The Wizard -- Rule Date: 2000-04-06 16:02:15 GMT ====================================================================== John M Goodman II wrote: > >>>>> > Chapter 3 > > The elevator was strange. The buttons were blank, and there was a single > light where the floor numbers should be. It displayed the number six > under what looked like a checkmark with a line on top of it... (it was the > symbol for square root, but the Tall Man knew nothing of Algebra - > Storyteller). Unsure of himself, the Tall Man pushed the buttons as the > mysterious stranger instructed. > > The elevator did not seem to move, but the symbol displayed by the light > was changing to all sorts of strange things... most of which the Tall Man > did not recognize. They finally stopped changing with what looked like an > oval twisted in the middle. The doors opened. > > Before the man was a hall that seemed to have no end. An endless number > of large men stood before an endless row of unlabelled doors. Any of them > could be a bouncer. > > As the Tall man walked down the hall, not sure who to speak to, he noticed > that each man wore a nametag, with a number spelled out... Two, Three, > Five, Seven, Eleven, Thirteen... > > The Tall Man heard a gentle thudding, and turned. At the end of the hall, > back where the elevator was, there stood a short, scrawny fellow with a > basketball. His nametag read One. Somehow he didn't seem to fit. Behind > him, where the elevator was, there was another door. The elevator was > nowhere to be seen. > > The Tall Man approached the scrawny fellow, who began to dribble his ball. > A lightbulb appeared above the Tall Man's head (he wasn't entirely dim - > Storyteller). "You must be the bouncer." > > "And I must ask to hear your story," the scrawny fellow replied. > > The Tall Man was catching on, "you can ask me no questions, for I must > tell you no lies." > > With a nod, the scrawny fellow pulled a small object from his too large > pocket and placed it in the Tall Man's hand. "Remember, it will spark if > chewed in the dark. You must discover why you are here before you leave > the next floor you reach." > > With that, the scrawny fellow stepped aside and opened the door behind > him, revealing a staircase. The Tall Man stepped through the door... > > (Editor's Note: You will begin to notice that, starting with this > chapter, each chapter of the story will show that something in the > previous chapter was not what it seemed.) > > >>>>>>>>>> > > -John > > -- > Rule Date: 2000-04-06 13:32:12 GMT Judgement: I emailed John to find out how he thought that his rule obeyed the editor's note. To which he replied that it was the identity of the Bouncer. Supposedly we all thought that the Bouncer would be some tough guy keeping out unwanted individuals, but really he was just bouncing a basketball. I don't buy it. The bouncer still is the one to screen his story and accept or reject it. As for the physical attributes of the guy, they are only relevent if he is the one who enforces his decisions, which has not been established. I do not recall having made any preconceptions about the physical characteristics of the Bouncer from the previous rule. Thus I declare this rule a INVALID (it was near the borderline). Style: The conversation with the Bouncer is good, I like the reference to how 1 isn't prime. I penalize a point for the editor's note, however. I want the restrictions either embedded in the story itself (even a story with no apparent restrictions at a later point can still be contradicted by a later rule!), or else, if you have to use the editor gimmick, make it an in character like the 2nd rule's note, in which the editor makes some actual textual criticism. This editor's nate, however, is a transparent mechanism for putting in an out of charecter restriction. But overall a good rule, so +1 Style. The Wizard -- Rule Date: 2000-04-06 22:27:10 GMT ====================================================================== "Jeremy D. Selengut" wrote: > >>>> > > Chapter 2, part 2 > > This elevator was not nearly so sleek as the first; in fact, it seemed > to be a service elevator. I must be at the back of the building now, > the tall man thought as he began to press the buttons on the left side > of the panel. With this the image of Judith appeared before him and > he recalled when he had seen her last -- could he really have stopped > her from going? No, he rationalized, she was determined to find her > father, he could not be responsible for the consequences... Just as > he pressed the last button he realized that, in his reverie, he had > accidentally hit one of the buttons in the right hand column (why did > they place them so close together?). Before he could react the > elevator gave a violent jerk and then fell freely down the shaft. In > the brief span before the elevator hit bottom and he was knocked > unconscious two independent facets of his personality supplied equally > useless thoughts. As a professor of mathematics he realized that > although the erroneous number he'd pressed was not prime it was the > smallest "lucky" number, one whose prime factors sum to a prime > number. His humorous side chimed in that this number might be lucky > for someone else, but considering the circumstances, probably not for > him and perhaps the bouncer he was supposed to meet could be persuaded > to bounce the elevator whenever it finds the bottom of this shaft? > > (Editor's note: future factual inconsistencies with prior chapter > submissions which are not noted in the submission itself or in an > attached note by the author will result in the submission being > discarded.) > > >>>>> > > -Jeremy > -- Rule Date: 2000-04-06 13:34:34 GMT Judgement: The editor's note is perfectly true as far as it goes. But let it also be known that factual inconsistancies with prior chapter submissions which *are* noted in the submission itself or an attached note will *also* be INVALID. Normally "inconsistant" in the R.O.'s is interpreted as logical consistancy, but given the theme of the round and the fact that the rules tell the story directly, I am going to extend this requirement to internal inconsistancy within the story itself. However, as far as I can see, Jeremy has not put in any such inconsistancies. So I shall declare this rule VALID. Style: Jeremy expertly supplies background information without making the mystery any more apparent. Judith is good. I give this rule +2 Style. Would have been the maximum, but I deducted a point for the editor's note, which is both out of character and unnecessary. Please avoid editor's note's in the future unless they are providing realistic textual criticism like that of rule 2. The Wizard -- Rule Date: 2000-04-06 22:50:29 GMT ====================================================================== cleonhar@adpims.com wrote: > 134:5 > >>>>> > The Tall Man was dreaming of falling. In his dream, a scrawny, laughing man led > him to a staircase which was revealed, too late, to be no staircase at all, but > a ramp painted with stairs. The Tall Man tumbled screaming, endlessly, through > the dark. He had suffered from nightmares of falling throughout his adult life, > but this was a new one. (Actually, this particular nightmare differed from the > others in one significant way... it had really happened, although he would not > remember the incident until much later. -- the Storyteller.) > > Consciousness returned slowly. The Tall Man sat up gingerly, aching in every > joint and muscle. The last thing he could remember was... something about a > bouncer? And then what? He seemed to remember a moment of inattention, a foolish > misstep, and then... oh, yes, the falling. That, he remembered. Ouch. > > Standing painfully, he stepped out into what appeared to be a parking garage > filled with office cubicles. No, not cubicles, he realized. Although the > partitions did appear to be the standard metal-and-cloth dividers used to pen in > officeworkers around the world, these particular walls seemed to be arranged > into some sort of a mazelike configuration, rather than rows of cubicles. > > "Now, THAT's something you don't see every day," he muttered to himself. > > The walls were low enough to afford the Tall Man an unimpeded view across the > top of the maze. He gazed across the vast expanse of the labyrinth, wondering if > he should venture into it, and what he might find within or beyond it's > boundaries. Suddenly, he noticed a dark shape, low and swift, moving about > within the walls of the enclosure. > > It was at about the same moment that the Tall Man was gaining a dawning > appreciation for the fact that, whatever it was racing through the maze, it was > fast, it was big, and it was getting closer, that he noticed the approaching > sound of thudding hooves, which he had until that moment been attributing to his > pounding headache. Just as he was beginning to ask himself if he might not want > to consider taking in the proceedings from a vantage point of greater safety, > like, say, the lobby, the great shaggy bulk of a massive bull erupted from the > maze's entrance and headed straight for him on thundering hooves. > > He stood rooted with panic as the beast sped toward him. Suddenly, as his brain > was giving up on the idea of flight and beginning to seriously consider fainting > dead away instead, the hulking creature suddenly wheeled about on its hooves and > lurched to a stop at his feet. Slowly, the bull lowered itself to the floor. > Peering back over it's shoulder, it fixed him with one steely eye, waiting. > > "My god," the Tall Man thought, "am I actually supposed to RIDE this thing?" > > Curiously, the bull appeared to be wearing a red tank-top jersey of some kind, > embroidered upon the back with the cryptic phrase "BULLS 23." > > "Now, THAT's something you don't see every day," he gibbered to himself. > >>>>> > -Christian > > -- > Rule Date: 2000-04-07 20:03:37 GMT VALID. Christian admirably makes this rule's VALIDITY independent of the 134:A issue. Well done. I will not deduct for the absense of any chapter heading this time. Add in the style bonus for the dual consistancy and Christain gets +3 Style for this excellent piece of narration. I get the feeling that I am being too lenient on style. Oh well-- might encourage a few more fantasy rules. The Wizard -- Rule Date: 2000-04-08 00:03:57 GMT ====================================================================== Andre Engels wrote: Allow me to dissect your rule... > Chapter 4 > (no forgetting chapter numbers, no skipping chapters, no splitting chapters - > we need some order - the storyteller) > It seems that 134:A has passed, thus 134:4 is still VALID. The Storyteller's note is inconsistant with this turn of affairs, as 134:4 split a chapter, and Chapter 3 does not yet exist. +1 for a sensible restriction -1 for the storyteller going out of character -1 because this invalidates your rule rather obviously, given 134:A's failure. > "Is this guy going to ride me or what?" the bull thought. Or at least, that's > what he thought he thought - some others thought he did not think at all. > > He made an inviting howl at the tall man, but not with the intended effect. > Instead of mounting him, the tall man ran away fast. So fast that he did not > notice that he was falling over the edge. "I guess that's the last we see of > him," the bull thought (or thought not). But he was wrong. > > Shrugging his shoulders (however friendly carrying bulls may be when you > ride them, when you're not they are mostly indifferent to you), the bull > turned around again, and ran to the stairway. Elegantly, certainly for a > bull this size, he climbed up to the 23th floor, and met the bouncer. > > "You don't have him?" the bouncer said. The bull, having been unable to > speak ever since the days of Adam and Eve, shook his head. "I guess I'll > have to do it myself again. Never trust those new people, and even less > those animals." > > The bull knew he had disappointed his master, and went back to his cage. Too > small for his size, but he knew better than to protest. > > "No lies! No lies!" he heared the bouncer shout in the distance. +1 for narrative > > (It does add some spice, doesn't it, looking from another perspective? From > now on we will change perspective in non-prime numbered rounds, but not > in prime-numbered rounds - the story-teller) -1 for replacing "rule" with "round", which invalidates this rule yet again. > -- > Rule Date: 2000-04-11 11:15:25 GMT Total: INVALID, -1 The Wizard -- Rule Date: 2000-04-11 16:06:33 GMT ====================================================================== There was one Proposal, 134:A, by Wizard-Judge Aron. ----------134:A------------ That 134:3 be declared VALID That 134:4 be declared UNSUCESSFUL --------------------------- FOR: John, Christian, Richard Wein (Tich) AGAINST: Aron, Jesse, John-Martin, Jeremy RESULT: Fails 3/8 ====================================================================== Some arguments surrounding 134:A: Wizard-Judge Aron: Richard Wein wrote: > But the reason given by Aron (that "the physical attributes of the guy ... > are > only relevent if he is the one who enforces his decisions") doesn't seem to > be either of the above, and doesn't make any sense to me. Am I missing > something, Aron? Let me go over my position in more detail on this rule: 1. I do not myself recall having that strong of an impression of the Bouncer's preconcieved role. At the time of the judgement I had to judge from my own reference frame, relying on what the story suggested to me. 2. Even if the fact that the bouncer was someone bouncing a basketball is suprising, doesn't mean that the guy isn't a Bouncer in the preconcieved sense. Given the story as set out in 134:3, I am still inclined to believe, given his mention in the previous rule, that the Bouncer is also in charge of accepting rejecting his story. How else can you interpret: " Tell the Bouncer no lies, for he will accept no story but your own." but as a reference to some ability of the bouncer to accept/reject him or his story. Thus, while John has shown that the Bouncer is a Bouncer in a suprising new way, he has not shown that the Bouncer is not a Bouncer in the preconcieved sense, too. The part about the physical attributes of the guy was a response to John's private email to me in which he explained that we were all expecting the bouncer to be some buff, strong guy, and he turns out to be a scrawny guy instead. But I do not see that any sort of physical appearence was forshadowed by the previous rule-- why couldn't a scrawny guy be a Bouncer in a doorman sense? Going back to something Tich said earlier: > If the reason for Aron's judgement is one of the following, then I would > find it very harsh but understandable. > (a) That the "bouncer" of rule 134:2 did not "seem" to be a doorman. > (b) That a basketball player is not a reasonable interpretation of > "bouncer", given its context in rule 134:2. How about c) That the bouncer of rule 134:2 did seem to be a doorman, but the bouncer of both rules considered together *still* seems to be a doorman (or at least someone in charge of accepting people only under certain conditions) in addition to being a basketball player. 3. I felt that this rule was borderline, and INVALID just barely. That being said, I still rule it INVALID, because I don't see that anyone has refuted point #2 above (option c). And I am not going to change my stance just because of an outcry against it, mainly because of 134:4, which I would have to declare UNCSUCCESSFUL (it is pretty clearly inconsistant with the previous rule). 4. If you don't accept these arguments here, go ahead and try to overturn my judgement by proposal. It's part of the game, after all. Here it is: ====================================================================== Jeremy: My reasoning is that, although 134:3 have surprised (some of) us by exposing our assumptions it has still not shown us that our assumptions were flatly incorrect. Rules are now required to show that something "was _not_ what it seemed." It is still possible that the ball-bouncer may turn out to be, in addition to his doorman duties, capable of bouncing unwanted types from some venue. 134:3 could have done: "Funny, I expected you to the guy who throws unruly drunks from the nightclub, not a basketball player, said the tall man. No, said the Bouncer, and actually, what I'm doing here is called dribbling, I'm known as the bouncer because I served time in jail for passing bad checks..." ====================================================================== John: Also, would it not be reasonable to interpret my rule in such a way as to assume that the bouncer was not a bouncer in the sense of throwing people out. After all, he didn't seem physically equipped for such a job, he wasn't in a situation to throw anyone out, unless he wanted to vacate the stairwell, and most importantly, if you take it that way, my rule may be valid. It's hardly an unreasonable interpretation, and if it is reasonable, and doesn't contradict other rules, shouldn't it be used? ====================================================================== Christian (reacting to Jeremy): Sigh. One can certainly argue for this position, but I wish we didn't have to dumb things down to the level of sitcom writing, wherein it's not enough to clearly imply or insinuate something, we need to throw in enough extra verbiage to beat everyone over the head with the joke as well.