2016 UC Decks of the Year Contest?

[sinjin7]

Its now December, shouldn't we be gearing up for our annual Deck of the Year contest?

[vasta41]

Yes! And can we re-work some categories and maybe add new ones?

[Räpylätassu]

Oh! Oh! Oh! Rookie award for a Best deck of a year from a first time designer.

[montecarlojoe]

Panic ye not - watch this space

[Mike Ratledge]

Sounds like a plan. Let's remember the name change to "Decks of the Year", and we might be a little bit early, since I believe we have always allowed for decks delivered around the holidays, but before 1-January, of course.

[Cbkimble]

What if we start a list of what categories we would like to see. Some may be outdated and/or maybe we should allow some new categories. I would say now more than 15-20 categories.

[vasta41]

Here are the categories from last year:
Best Ace of Spades
Best Back Design
Best Court Cards
Best Pips
Best Jokers
Best Deck Series
Best Gaff Card
Best Use of Colors
Best Deck for Flourishing
Best Deck for Fanning
Best Deck for Magic
Best Uncut Sheet
Best Tuck Box
Best Coin
Best Innovation on a Deck of Playing Cards
Best Crowdfunded Campaign
Overall Best Deck

Here are my suggestions, additions, subtractions, and modifications:
Best Deck for Flourishing and Best Deck for Fanning I would combine these categories into one: Best Deck for XCM
Best Coin I am not a big coin guy and even though this site is called United Cardists I understand most here like coins. So my suggestion would be to replace this category with Best/Most Innovative KS or Deck Add-On
Best Innovation on a Deck of Playing Cards
Best Innovation on a Tuck Case Playing card innovation has come far enough IMO to add this as a separate category
Best Deck Series (EX. Jackson's Tally-Hos or Fed 52s)
Best Deck Set not to be confused with best deck series (EX. Jody's Innovation or Brian Vessel's Seven Seas Master Collection- basically multiple cards with a theme released at the same time)
Rookie of the Year

[JacksandJokers]

Every year we have so much confusion over the Best Deck Series category. I really think this needs to be replaced or make it perfectly clear which decks fit into this category.

I really like the idea of a Best KS add on category.

How about a category for worst fully funded KS deck

[vasta41]

How about a category for worst fully funded KS deck

Great idea! I vote for this.

[Mike Ratledge]

How about a category for worst fully funded KS deck

Great idea! I vote for this.

Well, while I completely understand why you might want this, it pretty much breaks with the traditional annual celebration of the best of...

We'll think about it. We're conspiring in the moderator forum.

[rousselle]

Here are the categories from last year:
Best Ace of Spades
Best Back Design
Best Court Cards
Best Pips
Best Jokers
Best Deck Series
Best Gaff Card
Best Use of Colors
Best Deck for Flourishing
Best Deck for Fanning
Best Deck for Magic
Best Uncut Sheet
Best Tuck Box
Best Coin
Best Innovation on a Deck of Playing Cards
Best Crowdfunded Campaign
Overall Best Deck

Here are my suggestions, additions, subtractions, and modifications:
Best Deck for Flourishing and Best Deck for Fanning I would combine these categories into one: Best Deck for XCM
Best Coin I am not a big coin guy and even though this site is called United Cardists I understand most here like coins. So my suggestion would be to replace this category with Best/Most Innovative KS or Deck Add-On
Best Innovation on a Deck of Playing Cards
Best Innovation on a Tuck Case Playing card innovation has come far enough IMO to add this as a separate category
Best Deck Series (EX. Jackson's Tally-Hos or Fed 52s)
Best Deck Set not to be confused with best deck series (EX. Jody's Innovation or Brian Vessel's Seven Seas Master Collection- basically multiple cards with a theme released at the same time)
Rookie of the Year

1. Instead of XCM, perhaps rename the combined category Best Deck for Cardistry? While I'm fine with combining these two categories, btw, I seem to recall that they have typically been awarded to different decks, as decks that look *best* in a fan are not always the decks that are best for flourishes, for any number of reasons. Still, I'm happy to go with the consensus on this one.

2. I am one of the people who originally suggested adding Best Coin, and I think at one point the category may have been called Best Card Accessory or Best Add-On or something like that. The thing is, Card Guards / Cover Coins really are a thing, whereas other add-ons are a much more loose conglomeration of things. It might make sense to broaden the category to "Best Card Guard / Cover Coin" to make it more cardy (and, also, this makes it clear that the Stockholm 17 Card Guards count, as well as the more traditional cover coins), while at the same time distinguishing between these kinds of add-ons and, say, the mechanical displays or poker chips or mini-bowling pins that have sometimes been included as add-ons. Maybe make a "best Add-on" category that is separate from Card Guard / Cover Coins?

3. I really like the distinction of series versus sets. Thus, Fed 52 qualifies as a series, while KWP's Sherlock Holmes decks comprised a set. (Unless you consider the Moriarty V.2 deck an extension into series territory, which I don't.)

4. Instead of Rookie of the Year, what about "Best New Card Creator" to keep in the theme of celebrating "best of..."?

I agree with Mike that a "Worst..." category would be bad form for these awards.

[vasta41]

I like it all! My feelings will not be hurt no matter what decisions are made, I just thought I'd chime in. Either way I love this contest! The hardest part is locating the ever-growing list of decks released per year. PCF usually has a good one with pictures which I find handy. There was a point in time where I could hear a deck name and instantly think of what it looked like. But that was thousands of decks ago..

[sinjin7]

I understand the need to tighten up the categories so the contest doesn't get too unwieldy - quality of categories over quantity of categories, right? But consolidating the Best Fanning deck with the Best Cardistry deck is a bit tricky. While fanning is an aspect of cardistry as a whole, its a pretty specific subset and there are cardists who specialize in fanning alone. But the trickiest part is that sometimes the best fanning deck isn't even a deck designed specifically for cardistry. For example, two year ago (I think) I thought the two best fanning decks were Paul's Zenith deck and GW's Occults deck, and neither were cardistry decks.

I never liked the category for best series. Often times the series spans multiple years, and we're only voting on the current year. I wouldn't mind seeing that category eliminated. I'm all for best coin and best new artists (although I question if we'll be able to get enough new artists in any given year to make this category competitive).

What happened to the Hall of Fame that we were going to have that would show all the past years' winners?

[MagikFingerz]

Best deck for fanning and other cardistry are two quite different categories. Combining them just doesn't work, sorry.

Apropos, I will see if I can take some photos of fanned decks from this year when I'm home for Christmas. Someone remind me, I'll be coming home on the 29th.

[UtterFool]

I too think we should drop the idea of series.
Due to series often being put out over time (Time which may span more than a year)
Also who can say when a series is actually done.
Does one artist win multiple years because they keep putting out amazing decks in a ongoing series.

As I am not a flourisher of cards and have the manual dexterity of a rhinoceros I would not vote in this category , But I could definitely see the advantage and the reason for keeping , handling and fanning separate since one is visual and the other tactile.

[vasta41]

As I am not a flourisher of cards and have the manual dexterity of a rhinoceros I would not vote in this category , But I could definitely see the advantage and the reason for keeping , handling and fanning separate since one is visual and the other tactile.

IMO having a "Best Back" award and "Best Fanning" reward are redundant. Now I understand that just because a deck has a good back design doesn't mean it will look good in a fan but to me that's a little to specific. I don't find it that difficult to design a back that has nice corner features. It is a very small aspect of designing playing cards not to mention something not all people can or will ever do which is why I don't think it should be rewarded. Tom is right- fanning is much different than other types of cardistry. BUT, just like a square is a rectangle but not all rectangles are squares, fanning is still an aspect of cardistry. My thought processes was to broaden the category not just to fanning but all aspects of XCM so a deck of cards that looks great in a fan will have to vie against other cards meant for other kinds of manipulation, making it a harder fought category. Like the adage goes, "to be the best you've got to beat the best."

Having said all that, if the category remains I will not lose any sleep over it. What's the point of having a discussion if I can't opine?

[octave]

Best deck for fanning and other cardistry are two quite different categories. Combining them just doesn't work, sorry.

Apropos, I will see if I can take some photos of fanned decks from this year when I'm home for Christmas. Someone remind me, I'll be coming home on the 29th.

I totally agree, there were some very nice decks, which looked awesome fanned, but were only "ok" for flourishing. I guess the tastes differ too much here. I would also support two categories

[Räpylätassu]

4. Instead of Rookie of the Year, what about "Best New Card Creator" to keep in the theme of celebrating "best of..."?

I agree with Mike that a "Worst..." category would be bad form for these awards.

I think that it should be the Best deck from a first time designer, not a Best new creator. These are deck awards, not designer awards.

And I agree, rewarding the Worst is a bad idea. Unless we do a completely seperate awards for them. Kinda like Razzies for but for decks.

[th4mo]

I agree with sinjin and the old Svedish sviatch. Although I'm not a cardist myself, this IS still United Cardists!
Show a little respect to our roots and to our elders, and let's give them more than one award category...

[MagikFingerz]

I agree with sinjin and the old Svedish sviatch. Although I'm not a cardist myself, this IS still United Cardists!
Show a little respect to our roots and to our elders, and let's give them more than one award category...

Thanks, fomo.

For any newcomers, I'm "the old Svedish sviatch". Don't ask, it's a long story involving a walrus...

[vasta41]

I agree with sinjin and the old Svedish sviatch. Although I'm not a cardist myself, this IS still United Cardists!
Show a little respect to our roots and to our elders, and let's give them more than one award category...

Thanks, fomo.

For any newcomers, I'm "the old Svedish sviatch". Don't ask, it's a long story involving a walrus...

I miss wally

[sinjin7]

Maybe it's time to start taking donations for the prize pool?

[Cbkimble]

Maybe it's time to start taking donations for the prize pool?

I agree. I'll come up with a few tiers when I get home.

[Räpylätassu]

I am thinking about donating two tiers, half-a-brick in both.

[PrincessTrouble]

I'll be donating again. 6 or 12 decks. I need to look through my dupes.

[montecarlojoe]

Contest topic now open!

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{I will lock this one)