KLONDIKE, CP Army Headquarters— We saw major armies fighting for the trophy in the last two March Madness rounds. But the Small/Medium armies were left behind in round one and the quarter-finals. Let’s take a look at what the S/M leaders think about tournaments.
Over the past four months, only major armies have made it to the finals in the three tournaments conducted. Although unexpected outcomes resulted in excitement for the March Madness semi-finals, small armies were left in the dust in the earlier rounds. The last tournament explicitly held for S/M armies was the Challengers Cup 2 in August 2021, although there was a free for all battle in February and a S/M division of the New Year Bonanza in January of this year.
Challengers Cup 2 finals between the People’s Imperial Confederation and Fire Warriors.
Club Penguin Army Headquarters reached out to Nefenomster, Red Ravagers leader, and Sam, People’s Imperial Confederation leader, to hear what they had to say about their army’s participation in tournaments.
How do you feel about the administration of tournaments right now?
Nefenomster: The tournaments are bland. I saw someone suggest in a previous post for us to incorporate what most events these days are; fashion shows, find four, mancala, etc. I completely think this is an amazing idea. Something needs to change to make people interested again. We could even set it to where armies were judged individually like how marching bands are in the real world. Size was not the main goal anymore (still would affect grading, as coordinating 50 is more impressive than coordinating 10); instead, it was based on skill and coordination primarily. I know that’s a big step and most major armies would definitely not agree with that, but something needs to change. Something needs to relight the spark in this community or this community will die sooner rather than later.
Sam: I feel like tournaments are ran fine right now! I haven’t really been active in CP armies right now so I don’t know if things changed or anything but I think everything is okay.
Would an S/M-only tournament interest you?
Nefenomster: I would love a S/M only tournament! There are plenty of small armies that aren’t as hyped about these current tournaments because it feels unrealistic to even try against the power houses of the army community.
Sam: I think an S/M only tournament would be really cool!!
Would you prefer to participate in this tournament rather than the current ones?
Nefenomster: Personally I enjoy the current tournaments a decent bit, but I have to admit they are a bit bland. Everything is so predictable. So yes, I think I would prefer s/m army tourneys for a few reasons. The first reason is that small armies will get motivation from it. Small armies are more likely to have rivalries with each others rather than with the larger armies. They’ll find it more exciting to battle against those people. Next, is that it would boost the “economy” in armies by encouraging the need to recruit.
Right now, not much is keeping armies motivated to even stay alive much less win tournaments. Small medium tournaments would stimulate the army economy by making people have goals outside of top ten and actually feel there are more reasons not to shut down other than personal goals. By encouraging recruiting in ANY army we are helping the community due to the fact most people don’t stay forever in their first army. It opens up the opportunities for new leaders and new armies to emerge. Keeping the community alive for another generation, once those of us here are no longer able to continue due to our lives in the real world progressing.
Sam: I’d love to participate in one and I would prefer to participate in S/M only tournaments rather than major ones. I think if you’re a small army, you should participate in the S/M tournaments. Then, when you get bigger you can be in the major ones so I think its nice.
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From the conversations above, we can see conflicting views about the sorts of tournaments that appeal to S/M armies. However, this is clear: tournaments are no longer as attractive as they used to be. Hopefully, we will see newer and more exciting tournaments in the future, including ones that are more open to smaller armies participating. Perhaps more tournaments exclusive to S/M armies is the answer.