From the Paizo Pres Release
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anuary 24, 2012 (Redmond, Wash.) – Paizo Publishing today announced the finalists for RPG Superstar, the largest open-call tabletop roleplaying game design contest in history. Judges Ryan Dancey, Clark Peterson, Sean K Reynolds, and Neil Spicer selected the Top 32 from hundreds of submissions in an initial contest to design a wondrous item using the rules from the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, available in stores and in electronic form on paizo.com. The Top 32 wondrous items are now on display at paizo.com, complete with judge commentary and additional comments from 2011 RPG Superstar finalists Sam McGowan, Jerral Toi, and winner Sam Zeitlin. Gamers are invited to contribute their own comments to the entries.
“RPG Superstar is a unique opportunity for gamers to become professional designers and for Paizo to discover new, talented writers,” said judge and Paizo game developer Sean K Reynolds. “As a developer who regularly works with about a dozen notables from previous competitions, I look forward to seeing these designers grow and improve over the next four challenges. Congratulations to this year’s Top 32!”
The Top 32 finalists (and their winning wondrous items) for RPG Superstar 2012 are (in alphabetical order):
Chad Bartlett
Gloves of Reconnaissance
Alexander Bennett
Dustings of Darkness
Jim Callaghan
Cloak of the Swashbuckler
Will Cooper
Ghostvision gloves
Adam Donald
Flask of Liquid Sunlight
Bob Drouin
Figurine of Familiar Power
Anthony Guillotte
Bottled Time
Mark Hart
Spellblight Cage
Dan Jones
Claw of the Crawling Spell
Mikko Kallio
Vexing Spirit Lamp
Jacob Kellogg
Cloak of Energy Reversal
N. Edward Lange
Sunblossom
Thomas LeBlanc
Metamorphosis Saddle
David Ludwig
Basilisk’s Eye Sight
Andrew Marlowe
Cayden’s Cup
Jacob Michaels
Haunting Glass
Steve Miller
Night Monarch Vardo
Greg Monk
Shadow Box
Eric Morton
Boots of the Phantom Staircase
Joshua Murphy
Gloves, Charlatan
Jason Neals
Binder of Unbound Forms
James Olchak
Rajah’s Silhouette
Tom Phillips
Feywhisper Crown
Sam Polak
Moonlight Flute of the Ghost Hunter
James Raine
Spellbreaker Gauntlets
David Ross
Clockwork Conscience
Daniel Rust
Elixir of Resurgent Flame
Chris Shaeffer
Scent of the Savored Sting
Ian Studebaker-Grey
Silhouette of the Phantasmagoria
Jacob Trier
Sunrise Shawl
Russell Vaneekhoven
Chimaeric Mantle
Mike Welham
Raptoring Gloves
2012’s alternates are Benjamin Medrano, Andrew Newton, and Alex van der Kleut.
The Top 32 will now be required to design a concept for a new organization to the specifications of the RPG Superstar judges and submit that concept by 2:00 PM Pacific time on Friday, January 27. These round two submissions will be revealed to the general public on January 31 with judges’ comments and the public will then get to discuss the entries and vote for their favorite. Voting ends on February 6 and the Top 16 by votes will move on to round three.
The ultimate winner of RPG Superstar, announced April 3, 2012, will write a Pathfinder Module to be published in early 2013. The 2011 RPG Superstar champion module, Sam Zeitlin’s The Midnight Mirror, releases in April 2012.
For a complete schedule of RPG Superstar, including rules and a FAQ, visit paizo.com/rpgsuperstar.”
Congratulations to all the contestants and good look in the upcoming rounds.
