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CF Secret Santa 2015
CF SANTA
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Critical Failure's Secret Santa 2015!
>Who Is This For?
While Critical Failures originated as a domain to give a home to the miniature game posters outside of G&T, it has expanded to encompass all of our gaming brethren and all are welcomed here. Don't be discouraged if you've never set foot in the mini gaming threads, we'll find a Santa to give you your own special gift of awesome.
>Awesome! What are the rules?
As previous years have started a little later than the elves would like, Santa (being the kind and considerate employer you know me to be) has tried to get ahead of the game this year. Names will be taken until 2359GMT ON FRIDAY 30th OCTOBER, at which point no further names will be accepted. Names will then be picked at random and assigned to individuals, with PMs sent out on Sunday 1st November with the name of your Santee (the person you will be gifting). Remember the point of this event is that you are a Secret Santa, so please don't go spouting off to all and sundry. Based on the preferences that your recipient will post when they register to be a part of the event, you will then be prompted buy/convert/paint/whatever you deem suitable for a gift.
You will then be able to collect or work on whatever is being sent. The deadline for your recipient to get his gift is going to be 31st January 2016 - that hopefully leaves you with plenty of time to put together whatever it is and get it sent out. THIS DOES NOT MEAN TO START THINKING ABOUT MAYBE BUYING A GIFT A WEEK BEFORE THE FINISH, YOU SILLY GEESE. If anyone fails to provide a gift within a reasonable time (or at all), they will be summarily barred from the next event - or possibly worse. Past events have gone (in general) without a hitch and I'd like it to stay that way. Order sooner rather than later so you don't get screwed by some store/shipping/natural disasters.
>What would constitute a suitable gift?
This is where we unfortunately get subjective. I'd like to think we all have the good common sense to pick good gifts in this regard. For guidelines, I'd suggest something like $15 (or $20-ish with shipping) as a minimum. The minimum price on the gift is there to prevent someone from sending like a single arm, half a body or the random pages that fell out of someone's D20 OGL book. If you wish to do so then by all means go as far above this minimum limit as you want, it'd be awesome to see that sort of thing on the whole. We have had some fantastic gifts in previous years and remember that giving is just as important as receiving (however don't feel that you need to spend the GDP of a small island to take part)! You will basically be held to the honor system (and the threat of being pointed at and beaten with internet-sticks) to ensure that the person who you are gifting does not feel cheated. By all means, send a titan to your Santee if you wish!
Gift recommendation are a combination of what you're capable of, and what your Santee wants. A PnP gamer who's never touched bare pewter is probably not the right person to give a complete Cryx strike force too. On the other hand, they might greatly appreciate receiving a nicely painted rendition of their PC from their long-running forum game, or the latest expansion sourcebook in their setting of choice.
Even if you aren't that good with models, you can definitely still participate - nobody ever said no to a boxed set and it's a nice and simple gift. Books, modules, and other nifty aids to table top gaming will certainly go over well with the right people.
Single miniatures, books, or accessories are more than welcome and might actually be preferred in some senses, so long as they meet the $15 minimum requirement. There's no need to feel obligated to get someone the Complete Box set of D&D core books just because they express an interest in the system (The PHB should suffice, but if you really are feeling generous...). Be careful though - it's no use having an amazing plan if your Santee never actually gets the gift. Don't go crazy and end up never getting anything sent.
>I live in [insert country no-one has ever heard of]. Can I participate?
ABSOLUTELY! Ideally, we would get a few people from all over to participate. To make sending the gifts easier if we get enough international participants I will organize everyone into categories based on location while drawing the names to try and keep international mailing to a minimum. This cannot be guaranteed though so keep in mind postage and check weights etc before buying gifts.
>How do I sign up?
Entries are not considered official until I (CF SANTA) receive a PM from you containing the following:
1. Your name
2. Your address Please include a country so I don't have to guess
3. What games you collect / play, or what you would like to see in a gift
4: Suggestions - 'I play Exalted' doesn't help your Santa much in narrowing down what would be a good gift. Saying something like, 'I play Exalted and have been looking at getting Dreams of the First Age, Graceful Wicked Masques, or Scroll of Heroes' gives your Santa an idea of what you wants, and helps Santa if he's not familiar with your chosen system.
If you do not send this PM, you will not be entered in the event! - DO NOT SEND ME A PM JUST SAYING "I'M IN"
Even if you participated in the last event,your personal information has not been kept. Also, when your Santa gets your information they receive it in the form of THE SAME MESSAGE YOU SEND ME. I literally forward your contact information and model preferences to the person giving you your gift, so the reason to make you all jump through the hoops of filling the information out is so that I have something to supply to your Santa. I also want to make sure I have up-to-date information.
When you sign up, please put some money aside for the gift right then. If you do not have funds do not sign up. The overwhelming majority of previous excuses that we get are from people not having enough money to actually purchase a gift for their Santee, this hasn't been an issue for a few years so let's keep it this way. I realize most of you won't know at the time of sign-up who you're getting or what you're going to be gifting, but it's not unreasonable to put twenty-ish dollars aside for the event right at the off.
>How do you assign Santas?
Utilizing super-secret scientific method and a crack team of Elves we assemble the Santa Master List™ at a classified military installation fourteen fathoms down in the general vicinity of the Marianas Trench.
It's all done in one completely random shot. I don't tamper with it in any way, though I do take some requests into consideration in setting the names in the box up (For example if there are enough Santa's we may do regional draws... depends on the numbers. If you have a real problem with postage let me know and I may be able to tweak this a bit).
>What do I do when I send/receive my gift?
A few suggestions for sending the gift:
* Include your name (forum name) so people have some idea of who is sending them this wondrous bounty! It really shouldn't be all that hard to just write your handle on a piece of paper and throw it in.
* Consider using Delivery Confirmation/Tracking so you can track your package and make sure it gets there.
* Check in with your recipient via PM a few days after sending to confirm receipt if you don't hear anything.
Also, some guidelines for receiving the gift:
* Let your Santa know it arrived! One less thing they have to worry about.
* VERY VERY IMPORTANT: Post in the thread that the package arrived, and show off what you got!
* Take some damn pictures! Your Santa probably worked very hard on the gift, and we're all dying to see what's being exchanged.
One last final point: While lurkers are welcome to participate, I reserve the right to use absolute discretion in ruling people out of participation. If you have absolutely zero posts or a bare minimum number and you register on the boards to try and take part in this, I probably won't let you participate. Past events have shown that these users have been the most likely to vanish off the board never to be seen again, or otherwise skip on their end of participation.
And if you DO try to mess around with the system, Santa will have your address (and a crew of trained killer reindeer).
>Who Is This For?
While Critical Failures originated as a domain to give a home to the miniature game posters outside of G&T, it has expanded to encompass all of our gaming brethren and all are welcomed here. Don't be discouraged if you've never set foot in the mini gaming threads, we'll find a Santa to give you your own special gift of awesome.
>Awesome! What are the rules?
As previous years have started a little later than the elves would like, Santa (being the kind and considerate employer you know me to be) has tried to get ahead of the game this year. Names will be taken until 2359GMT ON FRIDAY 30th OCTOBER, at which point no further names will be accepted. Names will then be picked at random and assigned to individuals, with PMs sent out on Sunday 1st November with the name of your Santee (the person you will be gifting). Remember the point of this event is that you are a Secret Santa, so please don't go spouting off to all and sundry. Based on the preferences that your recipient will post when they register to be a part of the event, you will then be prompted buy/convert/paint/whatever you deem suitable for a gift.
You will then be able to collect or work on whatever is being sent. The deadline for your recipient to get his gift is going to be 31st January 2016 - that hopefully leaves you with plenty of time to put together whatever it is and get it sent out. THIS DOES NOT MEAN TO START THINKING ABOUT MAYBE BUYING A GIFT A WEEK BEFORE THE FINISH, YOU SILLY GEESE. If anyone fails to provide a gift within a reasonable time (or at all), they will be summarily barred from the next event - or possibly worse. Past events have gone (in general) without a hitch and I'd like it to stay that way. Order sooner rather than later so you don't get screwed by some store/shipping/natural disasters.
>What would constitute a suitable gift?
This is where we unfortunately get subjective. I'd like to think we all have the good common sense to pick good gifts in this regard. For guidelines, I'd suggest something like $15 (or $20-ish with shipping) as a minimum. The minimum price on the gift is there to prevent someone from sending like a single arm, half a body or the random pages that fell out of someone's D20 OGL book. If you wish to do so then by all means go as far above this minimum limit as you want, it'd be awesome to see that sort of thing on the whole. We have had some fantastic gifts in previous years and remember that giving is just as important as receiving (however don't feel that you need to spend the GDP of a small island to take part)! You will basically be held to the honor system (and the threat of being pointed at and beaten with internet-sticks) to ensure that the person who you are gifting does not feel cheated. By all means, send a titan to your Santee if you wish!
Gift recommendation are a combination of what you're capable of, and what your Santee wants. A PnP gamer who's never touched bare pewter is probably not the right person to give a complete Cryx strike force too. On the other hand, they might greatly appreciate receiving a nicely painted rendition of their PC from their long-running forum game, or the latest expansion sourcebook in their setting of choice.
Even if you aren't that good with models, you can definitely still participate - nobody ever said no to a boxed set and it's a nice and simple gift. Books, modules, and other nifty aids to table top gaming will certainly go over well with the right people.
Single miniatures, books, or accessories are more than welcome and might actually be preferred in some senses, so long as they meet the $15 minimum requirement. There's no need to feel obligated to get someone the Complete Box set of D&D core books just because they express an interest in the system (The PHB should suffice, but if you really are feeling generous...). Be careful though - it's no use having an amazing plan if your Santee never actually gets the gift. Don't go crazy and end up never getting anything sent.
>I live in [insert country no-one has ever heard of]. Can I participate?
ABSOLUTELY! Ideally, we would get a few people from all over to participate. To make sending the gifts easier if we get enough international participants I will organize everyone into categories based on location while drawing the names to try and keep international mailing to a minimum. This cannot be guaranteed though so keep in mind postage and check weights etc before buying gifts.
>How do I sign up?
Entries are not considered official until I (CF SANTA) receive a PM from you containing the following:
1. Your name
2. Your address Please include a country so I don't have to guess
3. What games you collect / play, or what you would like to see in a gift
4: Suggestions - 'I play Exalted' doesn't help your Santa much in narrowing down what would be a good gift. Saying something like, 'I play Exalted and have been looking at getting Dreams of the First Age, Graceful Wicked Masques, or Scroll of Heroes' gives your Santa an idea of what you wants, and helps Santa if he's not familiar with your chosen system.
If you do not send this PM, you will not be entered in the event! - DO NOT SEND ME A PM JUST SAYING "I'M IN"
Even if you participated in the last event,your personal information has not been kept. Also, when your Santa gets your information they receive it in the form of THE SAME MESSAGE YOU SEND ME. I literally forward your contact information and model preferences to the person giving you your gift, so the reason to make you all jump through the hoops of filling the information out is so that I have something to supply to your Santa. I also want to make sure I have up-to-date information.
When you sign up, please put some money aside for the gift right then. If you do not have funds do not sign up. The overwhelming majority of previous excuses that we get are from people not having enough money to actually purchase a gift for their Santee, this hasn't been an issue for a few years so let's keep it this way. I realize most of you won't know at the time of sign-up who you're getting or what you're going to be gifting, but it's not unreasonable to put twenty-ish dollars aside for the event right at the off.
>How do you assign Santas?
Utilizing super-secret scientific method and a crack team of Elves we assemble the Santa Master List™ at a classified military installation fourteen fathoms down in the general vicinity of the Marianas Trench.
It's all done in one completely random shot. I don't tamper with it in any way, though I do take some requests into consideration in setting the names in the box up (For example if there are enough Santa's we may do regional draws... depends on the numbers. If you have a real problem with postage let me know and I may be able to tweak this a bit).
>What do I do when I send/receive my gift?
A few suggestions for sending the gift:
* Include your name (forum name) so people have some idea of who is sending them this wondrous bounty! It really shouldn't be all that hard to just write your handle on a piece of paper and throw it in.
* Consider using Delivery Confirmation/Tracking so you can track your package and make sure it gets there.
* Check in with your recipient via PM a few days after sending to confirm receipt if you don't hear anything.
Also, some guidelines for receiving the gift:
* Let your Santa know it arrived! One less thing they have to worry about.
* VERY VERY IMPORTANT: Post in the thread that the package arrived, and show off what you got!
* Take some damn pictures! Your Santa probably worked very hard on the gift, and we're all dying to see what's being exchanged.
One last final point: While lurkers are welcome to participate, I reserve the right to use absolute discretion in ruling people out of participation. If you have absolutely zero posts or a bare minimum number and you register on the boards to try and take part in this, I probably won't let you participate. Past events have shown that these users have been the most likely to vanish off the board never to be seen again, or otherwise skip on their end of participation.
And if you DO try to mess around with the system, Santa will have your address (and a crew of trained killer reindeer).
Echo on
0
Posts
I mean... Great time to give gifts to the best people on the internet!
Origin ID: Discgolfer27
Untappd ID: Discgolfer1981
Perhaps I can interest you in my meager selection of pins?
Also, even if you have sent in your lists already feel free to add to them until the closing date. The more info that your Santa gets to work with the better!
www.pinnypals.com/pals/d0rkangl
PSN: TheBrayster_92
I'm in! Let's see if I can top my previous magnimosity!
Just going to "@" everyone who took part last year in case anyone missed the post;
@Denada, @Zombie Hero, @Mikey CTS, @mere_immortal, @Vanguard, @Khade97, @ElderCat, @Inx, @Denada, @ArcticLancer, @see317, @Delduwath, @Grunt's Ghosts, @Gabriel_Pitt, @MNC Dover, @stationary, @Extreaminatus, @ArcticLancer, @Kirindal, @Gizzy, @belligerent, @Hedgethorn, @The Brayster, @crimsoncoyote, @Iron Weasel, @Nealneal, @TraceofToxin, @Rend, @webguy20, @Kirindal
Island Name: Felinefine
I have a new job, though. PM sent!
The Division, Warframe (XB1)
GT: Tanith 6227
Legends of Runeterra: MNCdover #moc
Switch ID: MNC Dover SW-1154-3107-1051
Steam ID
Twitch Page
PSN: Wstfgl | GamerTag: An Evil Plan | Battle.net: FallenIdle#1970
Hit me up on BoardGameArena! User: Loaded D1
PSN: Guibs25 | XboxLive: Guibs | Steam: Guibsx | Twitch: Guibsx
You can use Amazon or an online store in the country your Santee is based in. Will save you international shipping and you can still send personalised stuff then but will be massively cheaper as it's separate from everything else.
Ah you are right, I didn't think of that. Makes a lot of sense.
PSN: Guibs25 | XboxLive: Guibs | Steam: Guibsx | Twitch: Guibsx
Cause it's fun waiting till the last minute.
To be honest this depends entirely on the numbers - if we get a lot of participants from the same country we can set up a separate draw for them. However the past few years we have found the vast majority of participants from the US, with only a couple from Europe and Asia. @mere_immortal's suggestion is the easiest way to avoid international shipping if that is a concern
Amateur.
Anyway, I'm signing up now. I'll update this post over the weekend with details on what I already have/what I might like.
UPDATE: Here's me blathering about what I have, like, and don't like.
Pen & Paper RPGs:
Due to scheduling conflicts, I don't really get to play p&p RPGs much, but that doesn't stop me from buying the hell out of rulebooks. I have various amounts of books for the following systems:
Shadowrun (1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Editions)
Old World of Darkness
Fate Core
Hackmaster (both the original satire edition, and the po-faced Basic edition)
Dark Heresy
Numenera
13th Age
One-Roll Engine
Board games (that I own and like):
Alchemists
Bullfrogs
Carcassonne
Concept
Coup
Descent: Journeys in the Dark (1st and 2nd Edition)
Dreadball (every single season, expansion, etc)
Eight-Minute Empire Legends
Epic
Flash Duel
Gloom
Hanabi
Hive
Jaipur
Level 99's Minigame Library 2013
Love Letter
Mage Wars
Sentinels of the Multiverse
Set
Small World
Summoner Wars
Super Dungeon Explore
Tash-Kalar
Tiny Epic Galaxies
Thunderstone (all the versions)
Tokaido
Board games (that I own and plan to get rid of, either because I don't like them, am bored of them, or don't have time for them):
Elder Sign: Omens
Epic Spell Wars of the Battle Wizards: Duel at Mt. Skullzfyre
King of New York
Netrunner
Munchkin
Warhammer: Invasion
Board games (that I own but haven't tried yet):
Marvel Dice Masters
Penny-Arcade: Paint the Line: Red Tide
Things I might like:
Pen & paper RPGs: If you've got some RPG that you are really excited about, then I would love to receive that as a gift - I would love to check out something I've never heard of! I will say, though, that I'm not really interested in D&D retro-clones, nor am I too excited about very rules-heavy games. If you want some specific suggestions, here are some things that I would like:
- Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition
- Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition
- Werewolf: the Forsaken 2nd Edition
Board Games: I generally prefer Euro-games, and am not really into games that revolve around social manipulation or bluffing (like The Resistance, for example). Co-op games are hit-or-miss because of the "one player takes over" factor, which is why Hanabi is brilliant.
Specific suggestions:
- I don't have any Descent: Journeys in the Dark (2nd Edition) expansions
- Shadowrun: Crossfire
- Legendary Encounters: Alien
- Ashes: Rise of the Phoenixborn
- 504 (<- seriously, this one right here)
Things I would prefer not to get:
- Miniatures (I already have so many unpainted ones - and that was before I backed three separate Reaper Bones Kickstarters!)
- Collectible games of any sort (CCGs, LCGs, minis, dice, etc - I simply don't have the time, money, and energy to focus on more than one of these at a time, and right now that game is Hearthstone)
- Cards Against Humanity (I have all sorts of Opinions™ about it, but the TL;DR is that I'm not a fan)
Lastly, here is my Amazon wishlist. Anything on it is fair game:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/1BI1F6XLF4Z1A
If you're interested in getting me something that isn't a tabletop game, check out this post in the Games & Technology Secret Santa thread, where I talk about things like video games and books.
Oh, yes, I'm also participating in the G&T Secret Santa. Would you mind indicating in the gift that it's coming from Critical Failures, so I know where to boast about my bounty? Thanks!
You know what else is fun? Not reading the OP closely so you don't know when the deadline actually is.
It's a blast.
If you need any further information or have any questions you can PM me and I can act as a middle-man (I will check PMs every other day at minimum). For those who have already been asked for some extra info, please can you get this over as soon as possible.
Thanks, and Happy Gifting!
Also, PM received. IT BEGINS. EXCITEMENT!
Perhaps I can interest you in my meager selection of pins?