EPT![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/qH4SM.jpg)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Update #4: Registration for the Planet Zero Origins: Open Tournament in Houston is live!
Please note that the dates for the tournament have changed!
http://planet-zero.com/origins/overview/
Hope to see you there!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Update #3: First tournament spread is up!!! Click here to go to it! Please continue to provide community feedback so that we can deliver to you a better tournament experience in Houston.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
!!!Update #2 !!! (11/3/2011): I am close to a full-release for our first tournament on December 3rd, officially titled: "Planet Zero Origins: Open Tournament"--but I have a somewhat crazy idea that I want feed-back on.
We have heard from a ton of people in the two days since the teaser went up--and a lot of people want to compete. Remember, though, when I said we were going to start small? Part of this is a size limitation of our first reserved venue; we want our players and audience to be comfy (and not break laws by exceeding building capacity), so we are keeping our first LAN to 16 competitors.
I expect many more would love a chance to play though--and the winnings are gonna be pretty nice despite the small size for this first tournament. So here's an idea, directly inspired by TeSPA's recent tournament (thanks guys!):
How about a two-phase tournament?
Would you be interested in an online qualifier the weekend prior to the LAN, on November 27th? This would be open to anyone and everyone--you register with us ahead of time and pay the entry free via Paypal. All who participate would compete online that Saturday afternoon via Playhem.com, an excellent tournament-hosting site.
Depending on interest, we could have a 32-, 64-, or even 128-man online qualifier. Top 16 receive a berth into the LAN, thereby guaranteeing spectacular matches for viewers. Rather than pool play, we will run it as a standard round-robin, BO3 all the way. As an incentive for the Top 16 to continue playing for their LAN seeding, we will offer a smaller cash prize for either 1st place or the Top 3 in the online qualifer, depending on participant numbers.
As another incentive, if you pay to compete in the online tournament but don't make the Top 16, you receive a spectator pass free of charge.
Bigger tournament. Better matches. Every man gets a chance. More prizes.
What do you think? And what do you consider a reasonable entry fee for the online qualifier?
Poll: Do you want an online qualifier for this first tournament?
YES; Entry Fee @ $15 so people take entering seriously (11)
46%
YES; Entry Fee @ $10 so more can play (10)
42%
NO; keep it LAN only (may limit entry to grandmaster/master/high-diamond only) (3)
13%
MAYBE; I am not sure I can use PayPal and would seek an alternative method for paying the entry fee (0)
0%
24 total votes
YES; Entry Fee @ $10 so more can play (10)
NO; keep it LAN only (may limit entry to grandmaster/master/high-diamond only) (3)
MAYBE; I am not sure I can use PayPal and would seek an alternative method for paying the entry fee (0)
24 total votes
Your vote: Do you want an online qualifier for this first tournament?
(Vote): YES; Entry Fee @ $15 so people take entering seriously
(Vote): YES; Entry Fee @ $10 so more can play
(Vote): MAYBE; I am not sure I can use PayPal and would seek an alternative method for paying the entry fee
(Vote): NO; keep it LAN only (may limit entry to grandmaster/master/high-diamond only)
Note: If you are underage or do not trust PayPal, we could arrange to have you register and pay on location at Planet Zero.
Please let me know soon! I especially need to hear from those who plan on attending/competing but have yet to declare! And get your buddies to chime in as well! I will observe results over the next 48 hours and act accordingly. You determine the tournament format!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Update #1 (11/2/2011): Thank you all for the positive feedback so far! We only announced 24 hours ago and there is already quite a buzz going on! I want to especially thank the people who have volunteered to help out. This is a team effort and we could use all the help we can get to make these events happen (everyone on staff is also volunteering their time and effort, myself included!).
If you are reading this and have some skill in graphic art, especially in creating forum banners, flyers, and the like, we could really use your help. Everyone on staff has a particular skill we excel at, which makes for great synergy... but we lack a computer artist! If you have graphic arts experience and want to help make these events happen, please step forward! We would be most grateful! :D
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I. The Announcement
Hello Team Liquidians, Texans, and most importantly, Houstonians!!
Consider Houston a late-bloomer within the Starcraft 2 scene; despite hosting the 4th-largest city population in the United States, two dominant CSL teams, and pro-team Quantic Gaming, Houston has yet to establish a unified SC2 community presence--until now!
The team at Planet Zero is most pleased to announce a ground-breaking effort to galvanize the Houston SC2 community through a series of Houston-based tournaments.
II. John and Houston's Other e-Sports Community
John, the owner of Planet Zero, is well-known in other gaming circles, particularly the Street Fighter series; his anime center and arcade revitalized the Houston-Japanese gaming scene. He has organized high-profile tournaments for years, including super-regional/global invitationals for Street Fighter IV at Anime Matsuri. You know how the Koreans recently began flying to the states for Sundance's MLG curcuit? The Japanese have been doing so for years to come to John's tournaments.
Now it is Starcraft 2's turn to take center-stage in Houston. In order to make Houston a SC2 power-house, we need you, the community, to deliver.
III. The Plan
Our plan is to implement a seasonal tournament schedule containing progressively larger tournaments, culminating each year with the Anime Matsuri Global Tournament, hosted at luxurious Woodlands Waterway Marriott Hotel and Convention Center. Last year saw tens of thousands in attendance at Anime Matsuri; we expect the audience for Starcraft 2 to rival or even dwarf well-established tournaments like MLG.
But we want to play our hand intelligently. Prior to the big event, we will be hosting two smaller, Houston-community tournaments at Planet Zero. Our purpose with these smaller tournaments is three-fold:
a.) Establish the Starcraft 2 community in Houston
b.) Work the kinks out of our new equipment and set-up so our larger tournaments run without a hitch (you know which ones I'm referring to)
c.) Demonstrate to potential tournament sponsors that Houston has a SC2 community that will come out time and again
And item (c.) is really where you, the community, will determine how important Houston becomes to the global Starcraft 2 community. John already has contacts with major electronics, computer, and gaming companies--they will gladly sponsor Houston when the community comes forward. So, dear reader... it is in your hands.
IV. Take a poll, if you please, to test the waters:
Poll: Will you support the formation of a Houston-based SC2 community?
Yes; AND please give even more opportunities for the community to come together (30)
50%
Yes; I will come watch/play in tournaments (18)
30%
Yes; though I cannot be there in person I would enjoy high-quality casting streamed from Houston (10)
17%
No; I am anti-social and wish to keep to myself ; ; (2)
3%
60 total votes
Yes; I will come watch/play in tournaments (18)
Yes; though I cannot be there in person I would enjoy high-quality casting streamed from Houston (10)
No; I am anti-social and wish to keep to myself ; ; (2)
60 total votes
Your vote: Will you support the formation of a Houston-based SC2 community?
(Vote): Yes; I will come watch/play in tournaments
(Vote): Yes; AND please give even more opportunities for the community to come together
(Vote): Yes; though I cannot be there in person I would enjoy high-quality casting streamed from Houston
(Vote): No; I am anti-social and wish to keep to myself ; ;
--------
V. Assuming you chose some variant of "Yes," read on:
First off, thank for your interest. It is my personal passion to see this venture succeed. Having your support is a tremendous boost of encouragement.
I will be posting full details for our first two tournaments (Dec. 3 and Jan. 7) this coming weekend. One will be a tiny amateur open-tournament, the other an invitational. Both will be live-casted by a well-known shout-caster and streamed on TL. Due to the smaller nature of these first two events, space will be limited; we will begin offering spectator tickets for the live-cast on-site at http://planet-zero.com/ as soon as we nail down the details. And of course, if you're willing to travel, you're welcome to come no matter where you live!
Finally--and this is one of my highest priorities--I want to hear from you guys and gals what you want, both in regards to community-formation as well as the tournaments themselves. This can range from the general to the minutely specific. We organizers will listen to you and communicate with you. I want you to take ownership of this endeavor.
VI. For starters:
Poll: Map pool at the tournaments?
MLG/GSL hybrid pool (32)
78%
MLG pool (4)
10%
Blizzard Season 4 maps (excluding non-tournament designated) (3)
7%
GSL pool (1)
2%
Other; please explain via comment (1)
2%
41 total votes
MLG pool (4)
Blizzard Season 4 maps (excluding non-tournament designated) (3)
GSL pool (1)
Other; please explain via comment (1)
41 total votes
Your vote: Map pool at the tournaments?
(Vote): Blizzard Season 4 maps (excluding non-tournament designated)
(Vote): MLG pool
(Vote): GSL pool
(Vote): MLG/GSL hybrid pool
(Vote): Other; please explain via comment
Expect a follow-up to your input and a formal announcement this weekend.
Yours sincerely,
LuxVenture and the Team at Planet Zero
P.S. If you are a proactive individual who has polished skills (i.e. tournament/LAN expertise, webmastery, etc.) that you wish to contribute in order to better this effort for the good of the community, please contact me via PM. You will be highly appreciated. Cheers!
I'm sure the sc2 community from Texas A&M will be very interested! I know I am. TeSPA was a lot of fun, and it'd be awesome to have more tournaments around Texas similar to it, or even better. 
