I'm pretty sure I covered pretty much all I needed to say in my actual article, but if anyone would like to know more PM me here or hit me up at
[email protected]
Also, something that a lot of people are misconstruing about my article: The people at P!P should not be to blame. It's not that they DON'T want us to have nice things, it's that they can't. I'm sure if they had infinite money they would give out $1M per BR, but the fact is they're probably doing the best they can with what they've got. Yes, I think they should've cut basically anything else before scholarships, so perhaps they've made some incorrect decisions, but at the end of the day none of us can really know, and I'd put my good faith in OP and assuming they're doing their best.
Since Marvin brought it up, I've been pushing for Pokemon to start charging the Masters for events (Yes, the Masters, the adults, not the kids, inb4 moderators) for a long time. If the system were something like this...
BRs = Free
BRs should always be free as introductory events.
Cities = $5
We have around 30 Masters per Cities here, so that'd be $150 dollars. That could pay for the CC winner to get a full box, maybe? I think most people would even be fine if Cities started charging and not increasing suppport, as long as that support was going into other events.
States = $10
I think we have around 100 Masters at our States, so that'd be $1k, which should be more than enough to pay for trophies to come back?
Regionals = $10
Again, $1k combined with the leftover money from Cities and States should at least do a great deal towards helping bring scholarships back, yes?
Nationals = $20
Not sure how many Masters were at Nats last year, but I'm assuming this would be enough to bring back trophies, and maybe even increase trips/scholarships?
I just feel like it's more than fair to say "While you're a child and in your early teenager years you get to play tournaments for free and enjoy the benefits of those who do pay for it, and then once you get to the age where you can get a job, you start paying for the tournaments." Obviously I would want all of these prizes to go to every division, but maybe Masters could even get a little bit more stuff for having to be the only ones to pay? I dunno.
I also feel like there are so many cheap/free prize support options Pokemon could be exploring. Why not give State champions 1,000 PTCGO credits and a special State/Regional/National champion title on their PTCGO avatar, or something? Why not print alternate art Collectors for the top 32 at Regionals? Why not have a top 32 and 1st place playmat at States/Regionals/Nationals? Why not give out a "VIP pass" to States/Regionals winners that lets you have a priority line for registration, a static seat, and stuff like that? Some of this costs money yes, but the VIP pass and PTCGO stuff are completely intangible and cost almost nothing. I don't get it.
Sorry, I'm tired and rambling. No scholarships is bad, I stand by everything I said in my article.