#thousand faces

Guidelines

1. Your creation must focus on your recipient’s request. While unrequested background ships are fine (unless listed as a Do Not Want), the focus must be on the gen (non-ship) request. 2. You will be expected to create a gift matching your recipient’s request. Filling any specifying prompts is not obligatory, but try to create something you honestly think your recipient will enjoy! 3. You must not include anything that your recipient has listed as a DNW (Do Not Want). Not even as a throwaway reference in a single line. This applies regardless of if you are creating a gift or a treat. 4. The minimum requirements for the gifts are 300 words for fic or one sketch on unlined paper for art (traditional or digital; no manips). 5. After the matching is done, all the requests will be made visible to everyone to allow for treating! There are no minimum requirements for treats (but remember to mind your recipient’s do not wants!). You can also create manips and fanvids for treats. 6. This is an anonymous exchange: refrain from discussing your assignment in public. After the works are revealed, there’ll be one week anon period when the creators remain anonymous before the creator reveals. 7. If at any point you need to drop out, just click on the “default” button on your AO3 assignment page; we’ll find a pinch hitter to create a gift for your recipient instead. If you need an extension to finish your gift, contact the mod before the deadline. 8. After the reveals, comment on your gift. 9. Most importantly: be excellent to each other!

Sign-Up Information

Sign-ups will take place here on AO3, ending on March 14th. There, you can fill out details about your request and offer. You can edit your sign-up at any time until the sign-ups close on March 14th.

When signing up, you will be able to choose fandom and genre tags, as well as specify any additional details.

You will have to select the DMBJ canon you’re interested in creating and receiving a gift in:

Novels: Daomu Biji / The Grave Robbers’ Chronicles (including spinoffs, side stories, and extras)

TV: The Lost Tomb 1

TV: The Lost Tomb 2 Explore with the Note

TV: The Lost Tomb 2.5 Heavenly Palace on the Clouds

TV: Ultimate Note

TV: Sha Hai (and spin off movies)

TV: The Lost Tomb Reboot/The Sound of Providence (and spin offs)

TV: The Mystic Nine (and spin off movies)

Movie: Time Raiders

If you’re interested in a canon that is not currently a tag on AO3, such as the South Sea Archives, Moonfall Echo, or the donghua, you can say in your request details that you would like something in one of these canons. Please be aware, though, that the more obscure your request, the harder it will be for your gifter.

This does not mean that you’re limited to requesting or creating a work during the canon timelines for those series/books. It’s just to mark which canons you’re familiar with to allow for easier matching: some participants might have a preference for a particular canon era, some might not be familiar with all the versions. You still have to choose your preferred canon eras even if you want to create or receive an AU.

You will also have to specify genres you’re interested in:

Action/Adventure

Angst

AU

Canon Compliant

Canon Divergent

Dark

Domesticity

Fluff

Humour

Crack

Hurt/Comfort

Requests

Requests

Fandom - you have to choose at least one. If you’re willing to receive a gift in any canon era, you can just click “Any”!

Character - you have to choose at least one. AO3 should let you list up to 20, if you want more than that, you will need to write them in the Optional Details section.

Relationships - if you are after a particular platonic relationship, you can put it here. E.g. 'Zhang Qishan & Zhang Rishan', 'Wu Xie & Xie Yuchen', etc. AO3 should let you list up to 20, if you want any more than that you will need to put them in the Optional Details section. Remember that this is a gen (non-ship) exchange, so romantic/sexual ships should not be asked for.

Genre/Additional Tags - you have to choose at least three tags.

Ratings - you have to choose at least one. This will help your gifter know what you like and are comfortable with when they're coming up with ideas to fill your prompts.

Warnings - you have to choose at least one. This does not mean that you WILL receive a gift with warnings, it just lets your gifter know if you are comfortable receiving a gift with warnings or not.

Optional Details - here’s where you can go into more detail about your perfect exchange gift!

You can include:

General Likes: your gifter may, but doesn’t have to, include them. This isn’t a place for detailed prompts, just general themes you enjoy.

DNW (Do Not Wants): things that your creator must not include - squicks, triggers, characters or things that you simply don’t like. Remember that you don’t owe anyone an explanation about why something is a DNW, and that DNW are not meant to be taken personally. Just list the things you don’t like, “DNW: X, Y.”

Prompts/specific ideas: if you have any prompts, you can also put them here! You can be as general or as detailed as you’d like, but remember that while your creator will try to make the best gift for you, filling a specific prompt is not obligatory. You can include a crossover prompt (with other DMBJ verse or other canons), but make sure it’s not the only prompt you have.

Whether or not you are open to background ships in your gift, and if so, ones you are or are not happy to see.

If you chose novels as one of your fandoms, you can use this field to list the ones you’re familiar with, such as ‘Books 1-4′ , ‘main series only′, ‘main series + specific extras’, etc.

The requests will be made publicly visible after matching is done, so that others will be able to create treats (additional gifts) based on them!

Offers

Fandom - you have to choose at least one. If you can create works for any canon era, you can just click “Any”!

Character - you have to choose at least one. AO3 should let you list up to 20, if you want more than that, you will need to write them in the Optional Details section.

Relationships - if you are offering a particular platonic relationship, you can put it here. E.g. 'Zhang Qishan & Zhang Rishan', 'Wu Xie & Xie Yuchen', etc. AO3 should let you list up to 20, if you want any more than that you will need to put them in the Optional Details section.

Genre/Additional Tags - you have to choose at least three tags.

Ratings - you have to choose at least one. This will help matching what people are comfortable writing with what people are comfortable receiving.

Warnings - you have to choose at least one. This does not mean that you have to create a gift with warnings, it's just for helping to match what people are comfortable writing with what people are comfortable receiving.

Optional Details - in this field, you can tell us more about the kind of works you like to create, for example if you feel best with certain kinds of AUs, or like writing darkfic. We’ll take it into account when matching! By the same token, if there’s something you really don’t want to write, let us know here as well.

If you chose novels as one of your fandoms, you can use this field to list the ones you’re familiar with, such as ‘Books 1-4′ , ‘main series only′, ‘main series + specific extras’, etc.

In the optional details of your offer, you can also name people you don’t want to be matched to, for example your regular beta, and we will do our best to avoid matching you!

The offers will only ever be visible to the mods; never to anyone else.

Your Assignment

You will be matched to create a gift for someone who requested at least one of the fandoms that you offer, with as many similar genres/likes as possible. This exchange will be hand-matched, after using AO3’s matching algorithm to first generate the potential matches.

If you have any issues when you receive your assignment (you have a question about it or think there’s an issue with it), contact the mods as soon as possible. Do not contact your recipient on your own.

You will have to create a gift for your recipient, fulfilling the minimum requirements of fandom, genre, and ship, and avoiding any stated “do not wants”. Filling exact prompts is optional, but try to create something matching your recipient’s likes that they will enjoy!

You will have to post your gift to the exchange AO3 collection before the due date (April 30th), using the “gift this work to” option to give it to your recipient. Your work will remain in the collection only visible to you and the mods until the reveals happen. Remember to tag your work appropriately or use the “chose not to warn” warning.

Treating

Treats are additional gifts for the participants! To allow for treating, the requests will be made visible when matching is done. You can create treats at any time until the creator reveals! There are no minimum requirements for treats, and in addition to fic and art, manips and fanvids are also allowed. As with assignments, you have to respect the recipient’s Do Not Wants, and while the optional details are optional, try to create something fitting the listed likes. One treat can only be gifted to one person.

Pinch Hits

In case someone needs to drop out, we will look for a pinch hitter to complete their assignment. Pinch hits will be posted to this tumblr and the DMBJ Yu Cun Discord.

Extensions

If you think you can finish your assignment, but you need a few days more, you can always ask for an extension!

Multi-Chapter Fics

If you are writing a multi-chapter fic for the exchange and don’t want to drop the entire fic at once, these are the posting guidelines for it:

Multi-chapter fics that are assignment fills must be fully written and at least the first chapter posted by the assignment deadline, ready for the fic reveals on May 7th.

From May 7th, at least one chapter is to be posted daily.

All chapters of the fic must be posted by the time of author reveals and end of treating on May 14th (If the fic is more than 7 chapters long, then this will mean that multiple chapters will need to be posted on some days).

Multi-chapter fics that are treats can begin to be posted at any time from May 7th, but must also be fully posted by May 14th.

Other important information

Make sure to check the email you use on AO3 frequently during the exchange, as it will be the primary means of communication. We might contact you if there is an issue with your sign-up or if your gift creator has a question for you.

If you’d rather we contact you on your twitter or tumblr, please leave your handle in the offer section of your sign-up.

Follow us here to avoid missing an announcement or a deadline!