OK, I have devised the rules, and now I am devising strips to illustrate those rules. I would prefer them to be vaguely amusing, and I don't have access to Gabe's amazing bottomless pool of funny, so I will be a bit slower with this than he was.

There are tell rules that must be guessed. I should give the hint now that rule 10 is a continuation of rule nine.

Just as an experiment, this one will be run a bit differently. If you think you have guessed one or more of the rules, post a strip that complies with them. I will tell you which rules it breaks, and if it gets too hard and goes on too long, which panels they were broken in. The winner will be the first person to post a 100% compliant strip. Note that copying any of my compliant strips will get you nowhere. :)

Now, to think of some strips...

This one complies with rules one to five, and breaks rules six to ten...

21193

That "tell rules" in the first post should have been "ten rules", sorry. Here is one that breaks the first five rules, but complies with six through to ten...

21198

Sorry they aren't very good strips in their own right. I always turn out bad strips when I push too hard.

This one is 100% rules-compliant. Don't bother just reposting it and claiming victory. :)

21202

That's it - I am going to bed now.

I think I like these rules better.

Ha. I tried to trick people into thinking this was one of DexX's posts by cunningly using a title just like his.

21210

21211

This didn't follow rules 11-15, because I saw those after I posted this strip. Hey, wait a minute...

http://www.stripcreator.com/view.php?ID=21212
21212

I don't think you should be able to win just by posting a compliant strip -- you could do that without fully understanding why. I suggest that the winner should have to be able to articulate (a close approximation of) all ten rules.

Rules? ][ : 11-15, yes. by Gabe
Follows: 3, 6, 8, 9.
Breaks: 4, 5, 7, 10.
Not quite: 1, 2.

Storytime Dragon meets Sir-Drinks-A-Lot by ObiJo
Follows: 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9.
Breaks: 4, 10.
Not quite: 5.

Rules? ][: 0-60, 8.5 seconds by evil_d
Follows: 1, 3, 8, 9
Breaks: 4, 5, 7, 10
Not quite: 2, 6

Well, Obi did a damned good job, clearly getting seven and coming fairly close with an eighth.

I have decided to add a new rule, just to make it a little more challenging to win - the winning strip cannot use any of the same characters or backgrounds that I have used in my 100% compliant strip above. It is quite possible to do so, if you have a fair idea what the rules are. This will rules out people just vaguely copying without actually guessing the rules.

OK, I will follow this up with a strip that breaks every rule, then come back in a couple of hours.

21282

Like the title says, this one breaks every rule in the book (urrr, list). As you can see "The strip must not be funny" is not one of the rules. :)

Like I said, I will be back in about two hours to see if anyone has replied. Until then, have fun. :)

Cripes, this hurts my head. I keep coming up with these really obscure rules that the various comics comply with, then I'll get down to the last one I'm checking and find that it shoots the rule all to hell.

It's harder being on the receiving side.

:)

21298

7 right? Cool. But I think I may have just stumbled over them, and this strip will probably prove it:

21311

quote:

---

It's harder being on the receiving side.

---

21328

quote:

---

It's harder being on the receiving side.

---

Hopelessly Confused by Gabe
Follows: 2, 3, 8.
Breaks: 1, 4, 5, 7 (big time fail on 7), 9, 10.
Not quite: 6.

Adventures of Onion-Skinned Boy by ObiJo
Follows: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6.
Breaks: 5, 8, 9, 10.
Not quite: 7 (really close on this one).

Rules ][? Electric Boogaloo by kaufman
Follows: 1, 2, 3, 6, 8
Breaks: 4 (going well until that third panel), 5, 7, 9, 10
Not quite: None. :)

Well, ObiJo has slipped back a couple of notches, matched on the compliance by kaufman's first effort. However, Obi got extremely close on rule 7 (so close I almost let it go), while poor old Gabe slipped back to only three right and six definitely wrong.

Okies, this will be followed by one more fully compliant strip, this one with a few strong clues written in. Not dead giveaways, though - don't want to remove all the challenge. :)

quote:

---

Adventures of Onion-Skinned Boy by ObiJo
Follows: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6.
Breaks: 5, 8, 9, 10.
Not quite: 7 (really close on this one).

Rules ][? Electric Boogaloo by kaufman
Follows: 1, 2, 3, 6, 8
Breaks: 4 (going well until that third panel), 5, 7, 9, 10
Not quite: None. :)

---

21414

I am beginning to think that ten rules is too many - I have a list typed up, and even I have trouble complying with all of them.

OK, next round of guessing, I will reveal any rules that everybody gets, and pointing out which panels break which rules.

PS. I am glad somebody got rule 4... it was the one I liked most when I wrote them, and I thought it would be spotted by everyone straight away. :)

This makes absolutly no sense to me whatsoever. What is going on here?

Nevermind I just read the other thread and figured out what is going on, seems like it woudl be higly frustrating not know what rules you got right and what ones were wrong tho. But then again I could just be a dumbass

21418
Not knowing if the Title counts in Rule 4, I remade this thing.

Closer... as promised, more details...

Rules ][? Master and Student by kaufman
Follows: 1, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9.
Breaks: 2 (something missing), 7 (in panels one and three), 10 (something missing).
Not quite: 6 (half-right, but half is missing).

Since nobody has broken rule three even once, here it is:
3 - Strip must contain narration in at least one panel.

Oh, and only one submission ever broke rule 8, so here it is too:
8 - One of the two height props must be used at least once.

I would include rule 1 as well, but Gabe is having no luck on that one...

Damn Aussies. I think I got at least two more, but I'll have to wait 'till I get home to post anything. Damn web nazis.

This is really starting to hurt my head. I think my main problem is that I think too much about this. I start looking at the comics, make up a rule, then start running down through the list to see if I can decide whether or not it's being followed.

Only I keep coming up with really obscure fucking rules. Forget 'use the height prop'. I keep getting overwhelmed with things like the names of the characters and backgrounds, syllables, consonants, vowels, first letters, last letters, same, different, ACK! My mind is fried. I've been staring at these for an hour and if I don't go work out now I won't later. So I'd best leave.

And fry my brain some more when I get back.

Not an entry. Just an admission of stewpidititty.
21458

I actually left a few out of my last comic on purpose. Figuring that number scores that go away tell you as much as number scores you gain. The prop for instance. No excuses this time because I went for all I think are right, except maybe one which is an experiment. But I have to admit I'm still pretty lost on the backgrounds, though I took a guess:

21478

Oh and excuse the typo in the first panel. me=we

This rule #1 better be something these guys aren't just doing accidentally, 'cause I feel pretty stupid that everyone got it but me.

I give for tonight. I spent another half an hour looking through these, made a comic, then then php broke in Stripcreator and it wouldn't let me post it.

I'm gonna go play Unreal for a while and mindlessly kill things.

DexX just called me and said that my last comic was wholly and completely right. He also called me a stud and suggested you all send me money. Don't bother trying to confirm this using his ICQ #, he's auditioning for Survivor 3: Harlem.

My internet connection conked out yesterday and was down all night long. After running around the house screaming for a while, I calmed down.

Luckily it happened while I was surfing, and happened to have this thread opened, so I spent a good chunk of time scrolling up and down this page trying to figure out rules.

And I'm no further along than I was when I started. I'm feeling stupid. Well, more stupid than usual.

Gabe

I know, I know - I should have set up an individual bookmark for the forum, but instead I always get into the forum via the strip creator front page. I have been locked out for the last two days thanks to that whacky error message we have all been getting. Anyway, seems to be all better. Just wanted to post this for those who are hanging around right now. I'll follow it up with the latest scores... though I already know Obi got at least one wrong...

My Brain Hurts! by Spankling
Follows: 4.
Breaks: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.
Not quite: 7.
(Yeah, I know it wasn't an entry, but it's an opportunity to give some clues.)

War & Stuff by ObiJo
Follows: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9
Breaks: 5 (left something out of panel 3), 7 (something bad in panel 1), 10 (follows from rule 9 - you left something out).
Not quite: None. :)

Nice work, Obi - Seven rules right, and three clearly wrong, so no grey areas to worry about.

OK, now for some big obvious hints for some rules, revelation of some rules that pretty much every has guessed, and requotes of previously given-away rules...

1 - Strip must contain a (possibly misquoted) line from a <-?-> song.
2 - Strip must contain a monosyllabic non-lexical exclamation. (Translation - one syllable, not an actual word, followed by an exclamation mark, such as "Argh!", "Ick!", and "Blah!".)
3 - Strip must contain narration in at least one panel.
4 - Strip may not contain the word <-?->.
5 - <-?-> panel must contain mention of <-?->.
6 - Strip must contain mentions of at least one <-?-> and one <-?->.
7 - Backgrounds employing <-?-> may not be used.
8 - One of the two height props must be used at least once.
9 - A character from the <-?-> set must be used at least once.
10 - The required character from rule 9 must <-?-> at least once.

Note that the <-?-> can be more than one word. :)

This is starting to look like a game of MadLibs. Hey, there's an idea... :)

quote:

---

I'm gonna go play Unreal for a while and mindlessly kill things.

---

I demand a recount on Master and Student -- I think you'll find it complies with both sides of Rule 6.

Anyway:
21502

Yeah, that rule caused me some grief. It was one of the few I noticed right off the bat. But I thought they were two separate rules. So my first comic was fine. Then I goofed and in the next comic it turns out what I thought was a <-?-> was actually a <-?->. So that screwed me up. Then I realized they were one rule.

But I got more screwed up when I saw Kaufman's comic which I was sure was right, but you said it was half wrong. I hashed over that, and finally decided you'd just made a mistake.

quit yer yappin boy

quote:

---

quote:

---

I'm gonna go play Unreal for a while and mindlessly kill things.

---

If you kill mindlessly in UT, you get your arse kicked. Kill strategically to do well. :)

If you want mindless killing, invest in Serious Sam.

---

we were discussing today how long the word 'cool' had been around because it was always considered a kids-word and as kids we thought it was our word and we were the only ones thet used it but looking back it must be really old

this is in the context of cool meaning good not of a low temperature

quote:

---

quit yer yappin boy

---

quote:

---

Well, I did an awful lot of killing, mindlessly or strategically or otherwise. I tried out the fatboy mod that sort of 'inflates' your character's body the more people you kill.

---

quote:

---

quote:

---

quit yer yappin boy

---

<-?-> me.

---

Oh yeah? Well last week I went to <-?-> and I took your <-?-> by the <-?-> and I stuffed a big ol' <-?-> right down <-?-> <-?->. And then I got my ass out of there because <-?-> showed up with a <-?-> and told me he was gonna <-?-> my <-?-> so hard I'd have to <-?-> to <-?->.

1 - Strip must contain a (possibly misquoted) line from a Beatles song.
2 - Strip must contain a monosyllabic non-lexical exclamation.
3 - Strip must contain narration in at least one panel.
4 - Strip may not contain the word "the".
5 - Third panel must contain mention of a nationality.
6 - Strip must contain mentions of at least one fruit and one vegetable.
7 - Backgrounds employing the colour green may not be used.
8 - One of the two height props must be used at least once.
9 - A character from the "dexx" set must be used at least once.
10 - The required "dexx" character must insult another character at least once.

Note the wording of rule 10 - kaufman only wins if that Grey is supposed to be me... Is it? OK, mate, you may claim victory only if you agree to call the next contest "What are the rules of this contest? ]I[".

That was fun. :)

I was just about to say, 'Does rule 7 have anything to do with color? 'Cause if it does I've been wasting an awful lot of brainpower considering I'm color blind.'

quote:

---

10 - The required "dexx" character must insult another character at least once.

Note the wording of rule 10 - kaufman only wins if that Grey is supposed to be me... Is it? OK, mate, you may claim victory only if you agree to call the next contest "What are the rules of this contest? ]I[".

---

quote:

---

I was just about to say, 'Does rule 7 have anything to do with color? 'Cause if it does I've been wasting an awful lot of brainpower considering I'm color blind.'

---

Damn, early bird gets the worm. I knew someday my erratic sleep schedule would be my downfall. But I was thinking it would be a house fire. Good job, kaufman. :)

I forgot to mention this earlier. It's so wonderfully ironic.

Obviously I had absolutely no clue what rule number one was. But oddly enough, ever since DexX's first posting, I'd been humming and singing 'Little Help from my Friends' almost constantly. At work, at home... I'm sure quite a bit of the time I sat in front of my PC wondering what rule one was.

Then when I found out I felt really stupid.

quote:

---

Then when I found out I felt really stupid.

---

quote:

---

quote:

---

Then when I found out I felt really stupid.

---

DexX gives Gabe a hug.

Don't worry, Gabe - we love you

---