Lightning Run V: IRL Edition @ HSNCT (Friday Night)

[nicole.]

crosspost from Collegiate Announcements:

I will be running Lightning Run V, an Open and HS Open duos tournament on MAKEMAKE at the HSNCT, on Friday, May 26th, 2023.

In accordance with NAQT's side event policy, this event is not an official function of NAQT and is not sponsored or endorsed by NAQT.

Date and Time:

The tournament will occur on Friday, May 26th at the HSNCT. The tournament will start at a reasonable hour after teams have had time to check-in. This is anticipated to be 9:15 PM, with a staff meeting at 9:00, but I'll let you know with more details in an email closer to the event.

Questions
This tournament will be using MAKEMAKE. You can read more about the set here.

There will be 20 tossups and bonuses per round. Like at the actual HSNCT, we will be using timed rounds. Rounds will be timed at 14 minutes, with 7-minute halves. This is only slightly faster than the actual HSNCT pace, so we're expecting given the extra rules used to speed things up that this should give enough time for most rooms to get through 20 cycles.

Event Format:
Teams will be seeded into preliminary brackets, followed by re-seeding for playoffs. All teams will be guaranteed ten rounds. Teams are expected to stay and play the entire event, even if not in contention for the championship. This tournament will use the scoring ruleset from Lightning Run 1. There will be 20-point powers and 10-point midpoint buzzes, with tossups going dead immediately after the questions are read. Therefore, if a team buzzes first and gets the question wrong, they will automatically be negged. Bonuses will go dead after 2 seconds. There will also be a 14-minute timer, with 7-minute halves for each round.

Each division of this tournament will have a field cap of 18 duos. We will only expand beyond this if each room has a moderator and a scorekeeper.


Eligibility:
Duos are intended to be just that, two people, not more, not less. If you don't have a duos partner, you can sign up on the free agent list, where you can either reach out to other free agents or be automatically matched. Specific rules for each division are below.

Open: As long as a person or their team has not been exposed to the MAKEMAKE Set, they can play in this division. There is no age limit, although for safety reasons if you are an older player playing with somebody who would be eligible for the high school division, we ask that you have at least some prior association with the younger player (parent, former teammate, sibling, etc).

HS: Players from any team who would be normally eligible to play at the HSNCT can play in this division. This is an open mirror, so you can play with students from other schools. As HSNCT has Middle Schools playing this year, Middle Schoolers are allowed to play in this division.

Any player playing Lightning Run V must have not been exposed to MAKEMAKE previously.

Prizes
The top 3 scorers and the winning duo will receive a "trash" book prize. I'm keeping it to the top 3 as I can only fit so much stuff in my backpack/suitcase and I won't have time to shop in Atlanta beforehand.

Payment:
There will be a flat fee of $40 per duo (or $20 per free agent). This can be paid by Venmo, Zelle, Cash, or PayPal. I'll reply with payment options and methods when you send in your official registration.


Registration:
I have set up a Team Formation sheet here. Once you have set who you're playing with, email me to confirm your registration.

Please ensure you register before the day of the tournament. The deadline for dropping out of the field is five prior to the event (Sunday, May 21st, in this case), after which you will be responsible for the full amount due. If we have a catastrophic weather event delaying many teams's flights, refunds will be allowed)

Staff:
We will take moderators and scorekeepers who want to staff this tournament. All staffers not affiliated with attending teams will be paid $15 or can have me reimburse them for their dinner before the tournament (up to $20). You can sign up to staff here. All staffers must have a laptop able to run TJ Sheets.


If you have any questions, feel free to email me at [email protected]. We hope you can make it on the 26th.

[nicole.]

I have been informed that Game Rooms for NAQT Side Events do not generally open until 9-10 PM Friday Night. I'm still deciding on whether to push this to Saturday or to run a truncated schedule late on Friday. More details to come.

[Alkres]

can you please add me as a free agent to this. my email is [email protected]. thank you

[nicole.]

Due to personal and scheduling reasons, I've decided to cancel this tournament. Thanks so much to all who were interested, and I encourage you to look into some of the other side events running through HSNCT weekend.