Pokémon TCG: Sword and Shield—Brilliant Stars

Medals at Nationals?

Like others have said it is a free event. Yu-gi, magic and other events charge to play in their main events. We should be thankful that ours are still free after all these years.
 
Well, I really like commemorial prizes (and I'm very disappointed that we maybe don't get any at States in Germany, but that's another problem), but I don't care if they are trophies or medals. Yes, a trophy would be nicer, but I don't play Nationals for the trophy, the most important prize is the trip to Worlds (at least in Europe where it's extremely expensive to get their on our own!).

And to be honest, I'm tired of that half-bowl shapes. Sure, glass trophys look nice, but they were all the same, and since 2009 even for Nationals. Medals are at least some variety for this year.

pokeMATHer made a good point - wearing a National Champion's medal at Worlds is an interesting option, exspecially for younger players.
 
Supposedly it scales with the tier of tournament...

Just imagine it! You'll need a wheelbarrow to carry it around! :thumb:
 
I can't see the picture Pete put up (some permissions issue or something), but is PUI or POP or whatever they are doing this simply as a money-saving effort?

If it's just about the money, that's very worrisome.
 
Listen, I'm perfectly fine with them changing from trophies to medals at states, I completely understand and honestly I actually agree with the change. Sending high class, expensive trophies over the world takes a lot of time and effort.

Once again, I understand the change with States: There are just too many and the expenses are high. But Nationals? How many are there in the first place? The trophies, IMO, are the highlight of the whole tournament! (other than a free trip to Worlds :p) I'm kind of disappointed in hearing they are taken away, but if someone could justify the change, I would feel a lot better.

Does anyone know if this also applies to VGC?
 
But Nationals? How many are there in the first place?
The problem is, international Nationals highly vary in size. Countries like Austria got about 20 masters with almost no competition last year (but still two trips -.-). Would it be fair to give the winners a trophy while the winner of a 150-masters-Regionals in the US only gets a medal?

And no, trophies are not the highlight of the tournament. The 2009 and 2010 Nationals trophys weren't that impressive anyway. I think it is very important to have some high-quality commemorial prize for the winners, but it doesn't matter whether they're trophies or medals. As already mentioned in this thread Olympics have medals as well and nobody ever complained about that.

Does anyone know if this also applies to VGC?
Medals for top four > trophies for top two.
 
The problem is, international Nationals highly vary in size. Countries like Austria got about 20 masters with almost no competition last year (but still two trips -.-). Would it be fair to give the winners a trophy while the winner of a 150-masters-Regionals in the US only gets a medal?

So, because not all events/areas have the same attendance, no one should get the infinitely cooler prize?

And yes, trophies are infinitely cooler, and way better prizes. How do we know this? Because we've been conditioned to believe this for the past 7 years. That's why they gave out trophies for bigger, more important events like States, Regionals, Nationals, and Worlds, and medals for smaller, less important events like Cities. And promo cards for even smaller, even less important events like Battle Roads.

I understand the idea that trophies don't photograph as well and can't be worn to events (with is a faux pas in my mind, anyway), but there's no one in this thread who can tell me with a straight face that they think medals are a better, more prestigious reward than trophies. Yes, one event in the entire universe, the Olympics, uses medals instead of trophies. Outside of that though, everything else in the world, along with every other collectible card game, uses trophies as prizes, and it is common knowledge that they are regarded as a better, more important prize than trophies.

I don't really understand this change, particularly when (as I understood it) a large part of the switch to medals for States was due to the complications in shipping, but I suppose it's what we have to live with. Hopefully if enough people keep voicing their opinion in a respecful manner, OP will realize their mistake and switch back to trophies (even if they're not glass) for next year.
 
So, because not all events/areas have the same attendance, no one should get the infinitely cooler prize?

And yes, trophies are infinitely cooler, and way better prizes. How do we know this? Because we've been conditioned to believe this for the past 7 years. That's why they gave out trophies for bigger, more important events like States, Regionals, Nationals, and Worlds, and medals for smaller, less important events like Cities. And promo cards for even smaller, even less important events like Battle Roads.

I understand the idea that trophies don't photograph as well and can't be worn to events (with is a faux pas in my mind, anyway), but there's no one in this thread who can tell me with a straight face that they think medals are a better, more prestigious reward than trophies. Yes, one event in the entire universe, the Olympics, uses medals instead of trophies. Outside of that though, everything else in the world, along with every other collectible card game, uses trophies as prizes, and it is common knowledge that they are regarded as a better, more important prize than trophies.

I don't really understand this change, particularly when (as I understood it) a large part of the switch to medals for States was due to the complications in shipping, but I suppose it's what we have to live with. Hopefully if enough people keep voicing their opinion in a respecful manner, OP will realize their mistake and switch back to trophies (even if they're not glass) for next year.

Thank you!!!

Again, my son as an example. His trophy from last year's States is the highlight of his room. His three cities medals are no where to be found. He is proud of his accomplishment of winning the cities, but his trophy is what he shows off.

I told him about States medals, he was unhappy but eventually agreed with me that medals to enable more kids to play the game (there are more SPTs because of this change) was better.

I told him about the Nationals Medals, LITERALLY tears rolled down his cheeks, *HIS* goal (besides an invitation) is the trophy not a medal, not the boxes of cards, not a paid trip, not a scholarship. It is (WAS) the trophy, something tangible that would have been around for many years. He would gladly give up the boxes of cards and the medal for a trophy. (sorry, a little selfish here, the scholarship and travel award are nice)

Why not trim $100.00 off the scholarship and opt for trophies for Nationals, something that can be show cased and displayed for years. US Nats is the biggest event in the world.
 
You know what?

It's the EVENT that gives the prestige to the prize, not the other way around. A Nats medal means exactly the same thing as a Nats trophy.

Do you think Olympic medal winners sit around wishing they had a glass trophy instead? Because only a glass trophy can properly reward achievement, right?

The trophies are nice but . . . they aren't exactly practical. My Nats trophy sits in its box on a shelf. I've taken it out of the box probably twice since I won it.

I think this is the first post of yours I've ever disagreed with :tongue:.

You're right, the event gives the prestige to the prize. When an event's prizes are downgraded, it makes the event seem like less of an achievement, and less important to win. As an example, imagine POP announced that the UK Nationals would have their prize support doubled. I'd instantly assume that more people would come to the event, more people would devote more time to testing, it would be regarded as a more competitive and it would be more difficult to win because of that, and a bigger achievement if you do.

Olympic medals are only given out every 4 years, and they've gained prestige because of that. We're used to having medals given out for City Championships. There's a big difference. It's natural that by replacing Trophies with medals similar to those given out at City Championships, people will feel less important when they win one. Supply/Demand states when supply rises, demand falls.

I agree that there's some problems with the trophies, but it doesn't mean the only (or best) alternative is to replace them with medals.
 
A Medal in a good presentation case can look every bit as impressive as a trophy.
Something like this http://www.photoartsmounts.co.uk/medal_frames5.jpg maybe

I do know what you mean about trophies on display and CC medals in drawers: the various Nationals trophies that we have are on display around the house, not so with the CC medals. But also not so with the states glassware.

The nationals trophies are on display because of what they represent rather than what they are and on a crowded shelf it is not at all obvious what the essentially clear glass object represents.

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@Nnaann: doubling the prize support for UK nationals would have minimal impact on attendance.
 
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@Nnaann: doubling the prize support for UK nationals would have minimal impact on attendance.

I agree, but it's still more impressive to win a tournament with 101 competitors then 100 (although that's probably underestimating it.)
 
I'm not upset about the Medals, it's not like we haven't gotten medals for big events before (STS). Trophies are easier to break by look cooler, but Medals you can actually take out of the house and show off to people a lot easier than a trophy. I'm not going to lug around a nice glass trophy as I am going to eventually (as would anyone) have a chance that I end up breaking it. No worries with the medals about that.

As far as being upset about the Medal over Trophies, no I not and I won't be, but I am upset that it is a DSi for T4 instead of a 3DS. You can all be mad about not getting a trophy, but me, I'll be upset about the DSi over the 3DS.

Drew
 
A Medal in a good presentation case can look every bit as impressive as a trophy.
Something like this http://www.photoartsmounts.co.uk/medal_frames5.jpg maybe

I do know what you mean about trophies on display and CC medals in drawers: the various Nationals trophies that we have are on display around the house, not so with the CC medals. But also not so with the states glassware.


See, we have a States trophy on display because that is highest won. We have gone to a grand total of one event higher than a States, that was US Nationals, not even gone to a Regionals. This year will change that. I know the odds are against my son winning, they are against most players. But, going by the same idea of limited shelf space, I do not think my son would like to remove his nice big hunk of glass, that displays very nicely with something dark behind it, with a piece of metal that sits flat on the shelf. So what if the medal is from a higher event, it has the same amount of prestige as the "participation" medals he gets.

Angry over getting a DSi instead of a 3DS? Who cares what you can sell it for. Dump the DS altogether and get a decent long lasting memento for what would be a memorable accomplishment.

If it helps, I'll send P!P a check, so they can buy some trophies for US Nationals. Yes, I know there are other Nationals, if someone from those Nations cares enough, they can offer the same thing. Do they have to be heavy pieces of fragile, hard to ship glass? NO! Get a trophy, put a "master ball" on top, engrave it and call it a day! Shipping problem solved, cost problem solved, IMAGE problem solved,


But, it looks like the nice frame for the medal, with a spot for the picture will have to do. Thanks for the great idea. My son has a much better chance of getting a medal in States than anything else and will use that idea if any medal is won. I may actually frame one of his CC medals, it looks nice.
 
I agree, but it's still more impressive to win a tournament with 101 competitors then 100 (although that's probably underestimating it.)
I don't actually see any difference between 100 and 101 or even 100 and 120.

Extrapolation is fraught with problems but the UK trend is down overall this year:( This time last year there were around 600 players in the UK ratings. This year we are down by a third. It will be interesting to see what States can add to the numbers. And how this affects nationals which is a different beast to all the other UK events I can't predict other than I don't expect to run out of space at UK Nationals. Last year that was actually a concern as the masters trip could not be won by Sami or Nicholas as they both had trips and that could be expected to bring out a few more masters who even if they don't fancy their chances against Sami view the rest of the field as a much lower standard of play. Will anyone in the UK be able to displace Sami from that 1st place trip that he has made his own for the past several years?
 
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So, because not all events/areas have the same attendance, no one should get the infinitely cooler prize?

And yes, trophies are infinitely cooler, and way better prizes. How do we know this? Because we've been conditioned to believe this for the past 7 years. That's why they gave out trophies for bigger, more important events like States, Regionals, Nationals, and Worlds, and medals for smaller, less important events like Cities. And promo cards for even smaller, even less important events like Battle Roads.

I understand the idea that trophies don't photograph as well and can't be worn to events (with is a faux pas in my mind, anyway), but there's no one in this thread who can tell me with a straight face that they think medals are a better, more prestigious reward than trophies. Yes, one event in the entire universe, the Olympics, uses medals instead of trophies. Outside of that though, everything else in the world, along with every other collectible card game, uses trophies as prizes, and it is common knowledge that they are regarded as a better, more important prize than trophies.

I don't really understand this change, particularly when (as I understood it) a large part of the switch to medals for States was due to the complications in shipping, but I suppose it's what we have to live with. Hopefully if enough people keep voicing their opinion in a respecful manner, OP will realize their mistake and switch back to trophies (even if they're not glass) for next year.

You see, this guy knows what he's saying. I know people who started playing the game last year, then gt competitive this year only to find the trophy they aspired to win morphed into a medal. If P!P can't provide them for the winners, maybe they could make a special shop on the main website where the winners of SPTs onwards get given, say, a barcode or ID of some sort at SPTs if they come 1st-4th. Then, they can use said barcode to buy a Pokemon-branded trophy from the official store, as it were. That way: i) P!P don't have issues with transportation of delicate glasswares, and ii) Players who win SPTs upwards and want the trophy for their achievement can purchase said trophy, amking it exclusive to themselves.

I seriously think this kind of thing, given some more thought by the right people, could work.
 
You see, this guy knows what he's saying. I know people who started playing the game last year, then gt competitive this year only to find the trophy they aspired to win morphed into a medal. If P!P can't provide them for the winners, maybe they could make a special shop on the main website where the winners of SPTs onwards get given, say, a barcode or ID of some sort at SPTs if they come 1st-4th. Then, they can use said barcode to buy a Pokemon-branded trophy from the official store, as it were. That way: i) P!P don't have issues with transportation of delicate glasswares, and ii) Players who win SPTs upwards and want the trophy for their achievement can purchase said trophy, amking it exclusive to themselves.

I seriously think this kind of thing, given some more thought by the right people, could work.

That might sound okay, for competitive players who really want the trophy. To Little Timmy's mother, who reads on the Pokemon site that if Timmy wins, he'll have to buy his own trophy, it will sound like a lame way to cheat small children out of their money.
Nobody wants to hear "Congratulations, you've won! Here's a code that you can use to get your trophy. It costs 75$ plus shipping and handling." I'd prefer an entry fee to that, and I hate the idea of Premier Events having entry fees.
No parent wants to buy countless booster packs, finally get to see their kid win a tournament, and then either have to spend more money, or tell their child that despite winning, even though everyone else gets a trophy, he can't have one.
 
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