Creating an Event
Creating an event can seem like a daunting task. There are lots of things that you must take into account when planning, creating, releasing, running, and maintaining an event. This section of the handbook is designed to help guide you with each of these parts. Also keep in mind that you have other resources you can take advantage of. You can always look online for technical help, browse social websites for ideas, and ask other staff or community members for help.
Types of Events
It is important to distinguish between different types of events, as each has different requirements.
Festival
A festival-type event is an event that occurs one time or on a regular basis that must be hosted and run by one or more operators. These types of events require little or no maintenance, as they usually run for short periods of time and are under constant supervision. Festival-type events also don't require as much technical knowledge, as they can operate manually rather than automatically. Because of this, festival-type events often require multiple people to run and oversee them. You may need one or possibly two emcees to lead the event along with several other moderators to ensure the emcee(s) can focus on leading. These kinds of events also require you to carefully schedule a time (more on scheduling below) because of its limited-run nature.
Some examples of past festival-type events include The Pantheon of Pyrrhia, The SandWing Moon Festival, Trick-or-Treating, and the Darkstalker VAs.
Ongoing
Ongoing events are events that occur for a long period of time or even indefinitely. These types of events are generally more technically complex and require maintenance because they must be automatic by nature. It cannot be assumed that an operator can operate the event at all times, so the event must operate by itself. Ongoing events also must be consistently engaging, as they often need to provide a replayable experience to justify being ongoing, though there are some exceptions to this rule like the RainWing Vault Quest. Ongoing events are typically more difficult to execute correctly, but can be enjoyed longer and by more players.
Some examples of past ongoing events include the Dungeon, the RainWing Vault Quest, Waves of Enemies, Battlewinner, The Dungeon Wilds, Snow Day, the Festival of Favors, and The Lost Labyrinth of Ptah.
Planning
The first step in creating an event is coming up with an idea. You should start by choosing which kind of event type you want (see above). The event type will determine what the content of your event will look like and what kind of work will be involved to execute it. If you're creating an event for the first time, you may want to consider a festival-type event over an ongoing event. Whatever type you choose, your initial idea will set the course for the rest of the project. Consider which event type your idea falls into. If you prefer one type over another, think of ways that you could adapt the idea to fit the other type. If you're struggling to come up with an idea, try examining past events or coming up with a theme or story idea first.
Once you have an idea, you need to flesh out the details. Will this event happen in Minecraft? Will it require lots of building? What other skills will be needed, and what might be a challenge? At this stage, you'll want to gather information about what is needed to prepare your event. You may want to test certain concepts in a single-player world or poll the popularity of your idea with the community. Once you have determined the scope of your project, you should lay out a step-by-step plan to prepare your project. For example, the plan for the RainWing Vault Quest might look something like this:
- Draft the story the player will follow.
- Build in-game locations.
- Program command blocks to play out the story as the player experiences it.
- Test and finalize for release.
Your plan should be specific enough to have discrete, consecutive steps, but still allow for changes during the development of your event. You should allow changes to be made so that if you run into unforeseen problems, you can adapt without rewriting your entire preparation plan. If some step of your plan involves a skill or system you're unsure of, don't be afraid to ask someone with more experience for help or advice. Create a project on GitHub to track your progress and work with others.
Development
Now that you've got a plan, it's time to begin development. Depending on the event, development may range from taking very little time (like the Darkstalker VA) to very long amounts of time (like The Dungeon Wilds). You can usually determine by your plan how long development will take.
While developing your project, it's important to collaborate with other staff. You should regularly provide updates and allow others to provide input or give advice. Don't be afraid to ask for help! It can be very difficult to develop a project alone and asking others for assistance can greatly accelerate the development and make it a better overall project. When allowing others to help, you need to lead the action and give specific, achievable goals to most effectively work together. You cannot reap the benefits of multiple sets of hands if they do not work together. The better you understand your team, the better you'll be able to communicate with them and understand their strengths. Have fun with your team and actively make sure everyone has something to do.
You will inevitably run into unforeseen challenges in development. There will be moments where you will have to make an immediate decision at the moment or undo some of your previous work. It's important to consistently imagine how participants of your event will act or interact with it. Consider that participants will have certain expectations before and during their participation in your event. While you may consider something to be sensible or simple to understand, someone else might see it as confusing or complicated. Remember to step back every so often to look at the project as a whole. Does it make sense for participants to sign up like this? Is the system to redeem these credits simple to understand? Will this series of events fit within a reasonable amount of time? If something doesn't seem right, readjust.
Here are some potential challenges that are common to run into:
- Scheduling is difficult. If your event is festival-type, try to keep the total duration to less 90 minutes per session. The generally most available times are on weekends around 1 p.m. PST or 3 p.m. EST. This allows players in the Americas time in the morning while not being unreasonably late for players in Europe. It may be a good idea to run a poll to see which time is most popular.
- Ender Pearls and Chorus Fruit can cause a lot of problems with players ending up in areas they shouldn't be. You can disable these from working by using region flags.
- Prize items can be tricky to do correctly. All special items should contain the name of the event in their lore. If you want to include prize items, you can generally safely give Money Vouchers, vanity items (like player skulls), or even token items like the Ptah Restoration Spell (value $25,000). If you want to include items like armor or tools with special enchantments or attributes, it's a good idea to discuss with other admins. It's difficult to balance these kinds of items, and they need special attention.
- Even if you protect a region against modification, players can place phantom blocks that they can jump onto climb walls. You'll have to either redesign these to add overhangs or ensure players are in adventure mode, which prevents them from placing blocks client-side.
Release
Release will look different for each event. Perhaps you release your event with a simple announcement reveal like the Festival of Favors. Perhaps there is a scheduled time for the event like the Oasis Fishing Competition. Either way, you'll need to announce your event in some way. The reveal announcement is how most people will find out about your event, so it's important to
This section is under construction.