A Tarn Race in Ven'dara
Member Blog post · Lifestyle
Riders from all over Gor are gathering in Ven’dara for a tarn race in the Stadium as part of the Harvest Festival events taking place there.
Any Goreans, Free or slaves, are invited to say which favoured rider they will be putting gold, silver or bina beads on for this big race.
Information needed is: Name of home, name of rider, name of tarn, racing colours, the ‘level’ of the rider (Champion, Veteran or Novice) and a short pen portrait of the (NPC) rider.
For example, the favoured rider of Talarius is:
Pelop of Rarir, riding Sigurd’s Hammer. A Veteran rider. Colours: red and green.
Pelop has been on the circuit some years now but has failed to fulfil his early promise since the death of his first tarn, Dara’s Dart. Though originally from Helisto he’s now a journeyman tarn racer but he does just well enough to make a living from the sport.
So – why pick a “Novice” rider?
A Champion is expected to win and often does! But should he not finish on the top four perches of the winning post and especially if any Veterans or, Priest Kings forbid, Novices, finish ahead of him, his prestige will take a bit of a hit!
A Veteran has a fair chance of winning! Not a lot to gain but not a lot to lose.
A Novice has nothing to lose! OK, this is probably his first major competition and finishing in the first 4 places is unlikely, but who knows? He’ll most likely gain prestige by finishing ahead of his peers and if he beats a Veteran or Champion then he’s on his way to fame!
Odds will be posted before the race, once the riders are known, so bets can be placed before the race takes place. Please post your ‘fancy’ for the race and \ or any questions.
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The mechanics of it – an optional read for those that like to know the nitty gritty.
Excel scripting is used to fully automate the race. The program takes into account the ‘level’ of each rider and adds a slight positive distance bias to “Champions” and a slight negative one to “Novices”. The race is divided into 12 stages (the hoops) and the “spread” of the field is calculated at each stage so a stage-by-stage commentary will be provided.
Prestige Points (pp’s) are what’s at stake here and determine the real winners on the day.
Prestige Points are earned by the first 4 riders to finish: Winner = 25pp, Second = 15pp, Third = 10pp, Fourth = 5pp. They are also earned or lost in the following way:
A Champion gains 1pp for every Champion he finishes ahead of but loses 1pp for every Champion ahead of him and he loses 2pp for every Veteran and 3pp for every Novice that he finishes behind. So, great chance of winning but if he does poorly ... his prestige suffers a lot.
A Veteran gains 1pp for every Veteran he beats and 2pp for every Champion but he loses 1pp for every Veteran and 2pp for every Novice he finishes behind.
A Novice gains 3pp for every Champion he beats, 2pp for every Veteran and 1pp for every Novice, though he loses 1pp for every Novice ahead of him.
Comments
29 comments on this post.
Ooo....I'm checking the Vendara TRG stat sheets now! Thanks for sponsoring this event for the festival, Talarius!
is it now
It's on 29-30 October - help build up the 'field' by describing the rider You fancy!
young Novice rider who is brash and sure of himself
Need more info ... "Name of home, name of rider, name of tarn, racing colours, the ‘level’ of the rider (Champion, Veteran or Novice) and a short pen portrait of the (NPC) rider"
Oooo. I haven't seen a good tarn race since I left Ar. I'm really looking forward to it!
The riders taking part are determined by Goreans themselves (Free and slaves). So please create a rider that you will be supporting in the format: Name of home, name of rider, name of tarn, racing colours, the ‘level’ of the rider (Champion, Veteran or Novice) and a short pen portrait of the (NPC) rider. Thanks!
If we create the rider, are we also responsible for role playing them in role played races? I don't think I could do that, lol.)
No Kyna - once you have created a rider all you have to do is sit back and bask in glory if they do well or earn some coin by betting on them if you like the odds! A program script determines how they do at each stage of the race. The "name of home" can be any place on Gor.
I see. Thank you for the clarification, Talarius. There hasn't been a great racer for several years now, but I'll certainly give it some thought. ;)
yes AKAB TY FOR THAT CLARIFACATION
OK lets make it a fun time, all You have to do is name a tarn pick some colours that your rider will wear, then name the tarn rider and whether He is a Champion, a Veteran, or a Novice, and a small description of the rider. easy peesey, Talarius does the rest. Y/you just sit back and enjoy.
Talarius will bet on ..... Pelop of Rarir, riding Sigurd’s Hammer. A Veteran rider. Colours: red and green.
Pelop has been on the circuit some years now but has failed to fulfil his early promise since the death of his first tarn, Dara’s Dart. Though originally from Helisto he’s now a journeyman tarn racer but he does just well enough to make a living from the sport.
ok, im picking Gorin of Tor riding Tors Pride,colors blue n white,he is Novicewill this do Akab
this is my tarn I just wrote about
Aiken, bets on the tarn, Trailblazer, rider is Sigmus of Treve, a Veteran, colours are red Green and Blue, Sigmus is semi retired, and is riding in this race as a farewell to His many supporters.
Reads the latest gossip pages for the Ven'dara Harvest Races and sheds a tear to read that this will be old Sigmus' final race.
Perfectly done there Akab Khalid!
I will be putting BIG coin on Gold Dolemite and His Rider, Cameron Churlish, a novice rider from Talmont. The first of His graduating class in the new Tarn Rider school, Cam shows great promise...in theory. Can He bring the Cup home in His first year on the circuit? Colors: Dark Grey field with three Gold slashes.
my coin is goin on Tors Pride and his rider Gorin of Tpr colors:Blue n White he is a novice first year riding
my money is on Taruk Dunnbar a champion rider of the Hold colours Scarlet ,Tarn is called Fred
An excellent start and the 'field' is filling up with a champion, two veteran and two novice riders entered. There are usually twelve riders in these races so more riders are needed. Be quick as there are only a couple of hands before the race!
I will put my coin on Concobhar of Treve. Rumored to be the son of Rask of Treve, he was born to be a tarnsman, though his relationship with his father can be described as strained at best. Concobhar has a reputation for wooing tarns and women, and a fondness for drink. Though he claims the scarlet caste, he is a bit more leisurely in his pursuits, yet he was the last grand champion of the races in Ar. He flies Scarlet Rain, and his colors are scarlet and black.
Thanks Kyna - that's halfway to a full field of a dozen. I'll assume that Concobhar is classed as a Champion.
Indeed he is.
Can We put money on more than one Rider then? Because I have another in mind if that's the case.
When the odds are announced you can bet on as many riders as you want but, as for 'creating' riders, which we are doing now, it would be better to have just one 'created' per Gorean. But Free and slaves can contribute here - so get cheeky to post one up!
The 7th rider is the 'fancy' of the slave cheeky of Ven'dara. Baron Hemacticus, of Besnit. He is a Veteran Rider in the races of Ar, Argentum, and sometimes Tarnburg. He's never taken the gold cup, but He places well, and is a fierce competitor. His tarn is Blackwing and colors purple and gold. We need at least another 5 riders and the race will take place in just 2 hands of time!!
azalea chooses the rider Ahaz, He is new but seems confident in taking the win and will be riding Raven...He wears the colors green and white