#poll tournament ideas

[thebiballerina]

Suggestions for More Varied Polyamorous Ship Tournaments

For me, half the fun of fandom-focused brackets is to learn about media that people are passionate about, maybe even ones that you are totally unfamiliar with. While I love Leverage (2008) with all my heart, it has gotten a little repetitive to see Hardison/Parker/Eliot win or place in so many OT3 or polyamory poll tournaments (at least five that I know of—see footnote), when I know there are so many interesting polyamorous ships out there. Since I understand the appeal of the H/P/E OT3 and I know Leverage fans will be dedicated no matter what, I propose that it could be helpful (and fun) to see a wider variety in types of polyamory poll tournaments. After all, there are many different ways that fans might consider a ship to be "best".

Thus I have developed a list of suggestions (thank you @doctorbeverlycrusher and @mary-louise4760 for your assistance here). This includes a mix of aspects that a ship can be ranked as "best" in, and specific ship dynamics. Feel free to ask for clarification or examples of any of the list items, add your own suggestions, and use these as inspiration for poll tournaments. (Some of these might need to be combined/altered to get enough potential contestants.)

Aspects/Dynamics to Rank Polycules By

"Do not separate them.": It is difficult to imagine any relationship within the group without the whole set being involved, whether romantically or queerplatonically. e.g. Many fans say this is why they would favor the Leverage OT3 over other polyamorous ships.

"Please do separate them.": Two or more partners should keep other partners firmly in-between them at all times. Keeping the polycule together is essential to continued civil interaction.

Rejection of canon love triangle/infidelity: Fandom took one look at that plotline and said, "No way. They have two hands." Or whatever the equivalent statement is when one runs out of hands for applicable partners.

Shipping Wars: The best resolution. Fixes many things.

Shipping Wars: The best non-resolution. Fixes nothing, but is good anyway.

Shipping Wars: Worst but technically effective resolution. Fixes the war, but creates new issues.

Shipping Wars: The funniest resolution. May overlap with some of the above three.

In-Universe Wars (or Conflict/Politics): The best resolution. Diplomatic!

In-Universe Wars: The best non-resolution. Undiplomatic!

In-Universe Wars: Worst but technically effective resolution. Diplomatic with respect to this issue, but also creates new ones.

Unexpected package deal: Essentially, the opposite of the identity porn trope where someone has feelings for multiple people that turn out to be a single person.

Seduction plans rapid-pivot: e.g. Sometimes your plans require seducing someone that turns out to be happily in a relationship, so clearly the only choice is to seduce both them and their partner.

Jealousy plot rapid-resolution: Sometimes you think someone will be angry or jealous about you having feelings for or ending up in an encounter with someone they also have feelings for, but they are very much not upset. Maybe even the opposite of upset.

Fake relationship rapid-resolution: Life hack! Turn the fake/arranged partner(s) into additional real partner(s). Often a subset of the above bullet point.

Hands-on instruction: So dedicated to helping their friend with romance/sex that they end up demonstrating. Thoroughly.

Couples (or established polycule) bonding exercise: We can fix them. Or make them worse. Or just seduce them.

Couples (or established polycule) unbonding exercise: Have you ever seen a couple mildly argue about how one of them caught up on a TV show alone when they were supposed to be watching it together? This, but with seduction.

Organization/scheduling proficiency: Have you ever tried to handle finding overlaps between multiple schedules? It's difficult. So I think there should be a competition for polycules that handle that best.

Sneak attack potential: "What's this? It's their third, with the steel chair!"

Heist crew

Band: This one can work for many different sizes of polycules, if you are flexible with the type of music group.

Ship^2: The ship crew. Works for ocean ships, starships, airships, and any other varieties.

Witch coven or assorted magical circle

Supernatural leaders: e.g. vampire colony, fairy council, werewolf pack where the alpha wolf only exists as much as it does in real wolves, etc.

Competition champions: The ideal team. Could be sports. Could be trivia night. Could be that they are just killing it at karaoke.

Competition contestants that somehow make everyone lose

Accidental legal polygamy: They weren't trying to all end up legally intertwined, but untangling that seems more effort than it is worth.

Canon co-parents: A canon plot means a kid has 3+ parents or parental figures. The ship writes itself.

"It takes a village," ("and the village takes each other"): One child (or set of children) takes so much wrangling that the polycule is just efficient.

Most awkward stepparent(s) configuration

Most chaotic potential family gatherings: e.g. In-laws who have to awkwardly try to get along when they hate each other, now with even more in-laws!

Best pet owners: Sometimes joint custody of a pet is a lot of work, and consolidation is ideal.

Using These Suggestions

All are welcome to use these ideas, altered or unaltered, in your own poll tournaments/games. No additional permission is required, though I would appreciate it if you linked this post somewhere on the poll blog, so others can find it. Also, if you let me know you have a tournament along these lines (whether directly inspired by this list or not), I will be happy to give you a shout out in the notes.

Footnote

Here are the poll tournaments I'm referencing when I say Leverage's H/P/E has won or placed in five that I know of.

Champions

@powerpolyculeshowdown (2023-03-09): Won in the final against Yoo Jonghyuk/Han Sooyoung/Kim Dokja from Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint.

@polyam-ship-showdown (2023-02-28): Won in the final against Ninth Doctor/Rose Tyler/Jack Harkness from Doctor Who.

@throuple-tournament (2024-04-04): Won in the final against Thanatos/Zagreus/Megaera from Hades and Nathan/Vlad/Ursula from Hunger Pangs: True Love Bites.

Placed

@ot3showdown (2023-05-12): Runner-up, lost in the final 49%-51% to Kirk/McCoy/Spock.

Ongoing

@bestpolyshipbracket: Currently in the final round, so H/P/E will either be in second or first place.

[zzoupz]

"Cecil would want Sans to win" "Sans would want Cecil to win" you fools. you buffoons. Cecil would want his husband Carlos to win

[prokopetz]

To the fairest. 🍏

[janmisali]

Number Tournament: PI vs FORTY-TWO

[link to all polls]

pi

seed: 19 (30 nominations)

previous opponent: the fine-structure constant

class: irrational number

definition: despite claims people often make about it, not known to be "normal" (that is, containing every possible sequence of digits). as far as we know, it could run out of fives at some point.

42 (forty-two)

seed: 14 (38 nominations)

previous opponent: googolplex

class: cultural

definition: is the story about "the point" of it as The Answer being that it's the ASCII codepoint for an asterisk actually true. like yeah codepoint (decimal) 42 in ASCII is an asterisk, but is that intentional or is that just a popular fan theory that people keep repeating as fact. I was under the impression that it was just a funny sounding number

[rainystressed247]

In spring the fairy dances.

[yuri-of-the-valley]

Disclaimer: I know only the top 3 of these are gender locked, I believe all grass types can & do have #girl energy and I would make a poll a mile long if I could.

Also consider a vote for one to include pre-evolutions too (essentially to include Roselia, Vileplume, Dolliv, and Gossifleur)

[destinywillowleaf]

one of a kind living in a world gone plastic

baby you're so classic

@most-tragic-character-tournament

(all my thoughts in the tags)

[winethorn]

so late but lol better late than never amirite

♡

love yall

[the-90s-music-colosseum]

Alright folks, it's here. Get polling and spread this around to anyone who might be interested. Put any other suggestions, ideas & remarks in the replies and I'll consider them too!

[normalwars]

is your favorite character.....a bit fucked up?

is your favorite character.....incapable of being even a little bit normal?

do you think they should hold the official title of "least normal"? well without further ado, i present to you

the unofficial official tournament to decide once and for all which character is the least normal.

nominations will be open until the 25th, may vary depending on the amount of nominations.

rules:

no real people. unless it's REALLY fucking funny.

please be civil. the block button is my best friend.

for the love of god no hp characters. that's my only guideline on characters.

be as not-normal as possible. embody the spirit of the normal wars. propaganda will be welcome once the bracket is completed!

inspired by @bestfictionaldivorce, @it-its-swag, @white-boy-bracket, @topdisease, @thecompetitionshowdowntournament, @physicallydisabledswagtournament and many, many others!!

[web-novel-polls]

I know it's been, like, over half a year, and I probably shouldn't be concerned with it anymore, but I think what bugs me so badly about people being so self-righteous about Jiang Cheng "being homophobic" in the Aroace Spec Character Tournament is that directly correlates to actual experiences and interactions I see within the LGBTQIA+ community. It's so close to the fear and shame that leads to the question of, "how much of comfortability and well-being do I have to give up to live within an amatonormative world? At what point do I speak up about my own repulsion? Do I ever?Why am I the always the one who has to change?"

I can't help but come back to that AITA about an aro and/or ace GSA member who was shamed and called homophobic by what should be their own community for the simple crime of looking away from PDA. Their club advisor who acted like they were the problem because it's "supposed to be a safe space for the other kids" but not really answering whether it's also supposed to be a safe space for the submitter. How aroace people are "included" until they're uncomfortable or don't want to talk about sex or romance. How sex and romance repulsed aroaces are never allowed to show repulsion, or they're prudes, homophobic, ruining the fun. Why is someone being uneasy something THEY have to apologize for? Why is it an attack, if not to protect the amatonormative idea that anyone who is personally unsatisfied, uncomfortable, rejecting of love and sex is somehow lesser or hostile to love and sex itself? How aroace are we allowed to be before we become "problematic"?

[I'm aware this is an emotional reaction for this specific instance. Don't be weird. Don't be a dick. Don't be aroace-phobic. Do be gay and aro and ace and trans and-]

[fictional-god-poll]

[superhero-smackdown]

I decided to say screw it and make the season 2

It's all the same as last year, and if you're new the rules are in the form notes.

I added an extra space for images this time but if your character was submitted last year then there's no need to add an image since I still have the images! If it's a new character it would really mean a lot if you added an image, but its by no means required at all.

Lastly I wanna remind everyone that no character is immediately in the tournament!! No matter how popular or obvious they are there's no guarantees. Aside from Kirby. I'm on the fence on whether I should put him as an automatic entry or save him to the end to make him battle the winner of this year. Maybe you guys can help with that. idk.

Anyway here's the form!! Reblogs are appreciated and help grow the tournament! Thanks to everyone who submits!

[dc-vs-marvel-tournament]

[amber-tortoiseshell]

Phylogenetic wild cat tournament

Ocelot, bay cat, lynx, leopard cat, domestic cat and puma lineages

Genus: Leopardus, Catopuma, Pardofelis, Lynx, Prionailurus, Otocolobus, Felis, Herpailurus, Puma & Acinonyx

Depth: 4 (3 wins away from championship)

The winner of the Leopardus genus, the andean mountain cat faces the canadian lynx, who already triumphed over five different lineages. After this poll, the winner will have to win only one more match to become the Best Little Cat - at least in this tournament.

Andean mountain cat

Canadian lynx

[hersheysmcboom]

Also please watch the below post from Instagram👇 free palestine🇵🇸

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