Treasure Chest!

South Island Hector's dolphin Cephalorhynchus hectori hectori

If you're uncomfortable with the human cost of war and don't want to glorify it... good news, you don't have to! A tournament arc gives you all the fun of competition and rivalry and struggle to improve, without the uncomfortable knowledge that your protagonist's subordinates are likely doing awful things offscreen.

Similarly, if you like getting into your antagonists' heads and humanizing them, but don't like writing the kind of monster that makes a good high fantasy antagonist- good news! In a tournament arc, the only thing that makes an antagonist an antagonist is that they want the same thing Blorbo wants and are fighting them to get it.

Struggle to come up with a plot? Tournament arc has defined beats. Struggle with making high stakes feel cool and not corny? Tournament arc. Want to write a big ensemble cast? Tournament arc.

Shall be fed and then instantly disrespected. Praised be, Ammy.

you can do it, magikarp!

[art by me - neonscrapyard]

Rainy Day Daydream (s1e23):

Dentist (s6e21):

Puhoy (s5e16):

All Your Fault (s5e9):

Belly of the Beast (s2e21):

Three Buckets (s9e14):

Bonnie and Neddy (s7e1):

Dentist (s6e21) (again):

Whispers (s9e13):

Trying something new ✨