January 31: Golden Ticket/Tag Claims close at 23:59
February 1: Freeform tag suggestions open at 0:00.
February 18: Discord opens at 0:00, Relationship tag nomination starts.
February 20: Freeform tag suggestions close at 23:59.
February 25: Signups open at 0:00.
March 4: Relationship tag nominations closes at 17:59.
March 4: Signups close at 23:59.
March 5-6: Mods make teams and verify signups.
March 7: Teams release at 15:00
March 8: Gameplay starts at 15:00
Battleship creation is expected to run for three weeks after gameplay starts, and will have a two week anonymous reading period after gameplay comes to an end. You can expect the discord to be closing down approximately two weeks into April.
ABOUT:
MCYT Battleship is a MCYT creation event where teams of artists, writers, podficcers and web weavers work together to clear game boards and progress through a story adventure. Each team's board will be made up of squares marked with tags, and a square will be cleared when enough works containing that tag have been posted by that team. Clear your team's board and find goal squares, beat word count bosses, and post works alongside other teams! For more details about how gameplay works, check here!
MCYT Battleship is based on the multifandom Battleship Exchange, originally created in 2020 by Soulstoned and Red Ranger, inspired by a community challenge in the Trick or Treat exchange. Without the generous use of the multifandom spreadsheets created by mod Firebird, MCYT Battleship would not be possible. Icon by Bruce Burton on Planet Minecraft, Header by Jonny Gios on Unsplash.
RULES:
You must be a member of the discord, for team communication.
Because of Tumblr, Ao3 and Discord TOS, you must be 13 to participate in this event. You must be 18 to participate in an 18plus team.
Respect your fellow participants, even when you disagree on fandom matters.
You agree to cooperate with your teammates to the best of your ability, even if you disagree about game tactics. Mods will discord jail people for extended arguing and asshole behaviour will get you kicked from the event.
All works must be mcyt-themed
The collection will be opened and gifts exchanged when at least one team has won the event and every participant has at least one gift.
All works must be complete and created for MCYT Battleship 2026.
All works must be gifted to a request made in the event, respecting their DNWs and adhering to their requested ships and tags.
Dark or triggering topics or themes must be tagged for.
No AI-Generated content. Your gift must be made by you during the event.
All works must be minimally coherent/legible and suitable to give as a gift.
Works may not contain substantial repeated material included in an effort to boost word count or length.
Don't be an asshole.
LINKS:
Discord: [here]
Ao3 relationship tags [here]
Ao3 freeform tags [All Ages here] [18 Plus here]
Ao3 Collection: [All Ages here] [18 Plus here]
Overflow Prompt Collection: [All Ages here] [18 Plus here]
Written Signup tutorial: [here]
Video Signup tutorial: [here]
What is this event about? (written) [here]
How does gameplay work? (video) [here]
FAQ:
Who runs this event? See our mod list here!
How are you handling age verification? If you are in a jurisdiction that requires age verification by law, you can see your options here! If your area does not require age verification, Discord has pushed back its road map and age verification should not be a concern for this year of gameplay.
What is MCYT Battleship? MCYT Battleship is a collaborative gifting event where creators come together in teams to progress through a story by creating MCYT fan works for each other.
How does it work? See a written description here and a video introduction here! For a shorter explanation, see below
Nominations and Signups: The event starts with a relationship nomination week, where participants nominate relationship tags that they want to be available for the event— i.e. Geminitay & PearlescentMoon (Life Series), or Fluixon/Saparata (States SMP). There is no limit on number of tags you can nominate.
Near the end of the week mods release a list of several hundred event tags covering different aus, themes, or tropes that will be used in gameplay— i.e. Cuddling & Snuggling or Non-Consensual Body Modification.
During signup week participant sign up on Ao3 in either the 18-plus or the all-ages collection (depending on which team they want to join). Signups use the relationship tags and event tags mentioned earlier, as each person fills out requests indicating which relationships would make a good gift for them, and which event tags they opt into for each relationship. For each request they will also fill out a DNW (Do Not Want) to list things that they do not want as part of a gift to them.
Gameplay: Mods divide participants into separate teams (between 30-60 people on each team), and each team will be issued a 10*10 bingo-style board with tags in each square. Participants mark "hits" by posting a gift featuring that tag, and once a square is "hit" a certain number of times, mods will reveal what is on that square.
Each posted gift must match an event request, respecting the requested ships and Do Not Want, and featuring at least one tag that the person requested. Works should also feature one or more tags from your team’s board to accumulate “hits.” Gifts can be given to your own team members or members of the opposing teams.
Teams will race to uncover all the goal squares on their board and move on to the next round— a word count boss that will be defeated by posting a certain amount total word count or art/web weave complexity points.
The rounds go 1) tag board, 2) word count boss, 3) a different tag board with new tags, 4) word count boss, 5) final tag board with every tag in play.
Battleship gameplay is over when at least one team has cleared the final tag board, and every participant has at least one gift.
Reading Weeks: All the works are revealed once gameplay is over, and then we take two weeks to read and comment on everyone's works!
How are these tags defined? Can I use a literal definition of a tag like "Hunger Games" if I think one up— an eating contest instead of the death games? We have a breakdown of the rules about tag meanings here!
What type of MCYT is included? We welcome creations based on any SMP, whether or not they have a canon tag on Ao3. Mianite, DSMP, QSMP, Hermitcraft, 3rd Life, Lifesteal, Vampires SMP— it’s all welcome. Crossovers are also welcome, and they can include crossovers with non-mcyt canons and character.
Can I join if my Art is a Game/Fan Song/Bookbind? While we love seeing different types of art, for this event creation is restricted to the four types of creation mentioned above— art, fic, podfic, web weave— because of the difficulty of calculating points and processing works quickly during gameplay.
What is a Web Weave? We have an explainer with examples here.
What is a DNW? Participants will have the opportunity to fill out a DNW, which stands for Do Not Want, on each request. This is anything that has the potential to ruin a gift for you, and is where you opt out of content that would trigger, squick, or just render the gift unreadable for you. DNWs must be phrased politely, (so no "No foster aus because they suck and you suck if you like them"), and they must be reasonable, (so no internally conflicting DNWs such as "no blood/injury" if you also opted into graphic depictions of violence, and no attempting to box someone into a specific gift such as "dnw anything that isn't a space au where legundo is a cyborg and Owen is a llama-based alien and they mutually pine before dying in each other’s arms and then get brought back as trapped AIs"), and they must be specific and clear, (so no “no triggering content"). However, they can be as petty (disliking 1st person) or as broad-reaching (no modern aus, no specific ships not opted into, no crossovers with specific servers or fics) as you like. Deliberately breaking someone's DNW is grounds for a ban from the exchange.
Is shipping allowed? Yes. Because there is no broad fandom-wide consensus about how Creator boundaries are to be enforced in specific cases (whether it's okay to write beeduo as /r or /p is an obvious one, or whether it’s permitted to ship Joel Smallishbeans) or between specific fandoms (Lifesteal approach to shipping and boundaries is different from MCSR is different from DSMP), the mods will not be policing any specific understanding of boundaries across the event. The event's motivating ethos is Don't Like Don't Read, in that participants will be able to indicate through tags in signups if they are interested in a given relationship being interpreted as romantic or platonic, and what subject matter they're interested in, and this must be respected when gifts are given. If you disagree with someone about the contents of the relationship they requested, you simply do not gift to that person. NSFW will have to be opted into and is only able to be opted into if you are part of the 18plus collection.
Is NSFW allowed? Yes. NSFW works are allowed, but must be opted into, both in the signup and by being part of the 18-Plus collection. No one under 18 is permitted to join or gift to the 18-plus collection. For the comfort of the greatest number of participants, and to conform with Tumblr and Discord TOS, anything with the tags Underage Sex or Adult/Minor Relationship will not be permitted to be part of the event.
How are Minors defined for the purposes of those warnings? We are using the age within the work— so if the fic itself would require the tags. With recent server epilogues, setting a "canon age" has become increasingly difficult across servers, and this is further complicated because of the fandom's tendency to both age up or age down their characters. It is no longer tenable to make a list of characters who are always minors (and by extension, those who are not), when we are talking about fan works that frequently modify their ages through aus or set events either pre-or-post canon. As such, we are asking people to make sure that the work they create has all necessary characters being of-age in the work. In cases of ambiguity the mods will be interpreting with an attempt at good faith, but note that clear attempt to circumvent the content rules will fall under the "do not be an asshole" provision and could also result in a ban.
Note: the exception to this rule is if the streamer themselves is currently a minor. Minor creators or their characters are not permitted to be shipped or written into NSFW work, even aged up.
Are major archive warnings (noncon/graphic depictions of violence/MCD) allowed? Aside from content rules about underage sex, major archive warnings are allowed. Depictions of real life horrors such as genocide and slavery are not-uncommon motifs in MCYT fics, and the mod team is not interested in legislating which types of horrors, griefs or abuses are inherently worse than others and are therefore off-limits. Because holding writing to a quality standard or saying only survivors can write atrocities is unworkable from a moderation standpoint, the three mentioned major archive warnings (Major Character Death, Graphic Depictions of Violence, Noncon), are permitted to be included, and feature as a gameplay mechanic.
However, Major Archive Warnings must be explicitly opted into during signups, and delivering un-asked for major archive warnings is grounds for a ban from the event. The major archive warning rape/non-con is only able to be opted into as part of the 18-plus collection. The major archive warning Underage Sex is not permitted to be opted into.
Is Dark/Violent content allowed? As long as it is something that the person has not DNWed, yes. For many of us, the source material that originally drew us to the fandom includes major character death, torture, murder-for-hire, death games, public executions, nuclear explosions, mass death, child death and more. The fanfiction that arose from the source material follows in that trend. We will allow dark content to be part of the event, but it must be tagged for.
We also ask that participants use best judgement in delivering commonly triggering topics un-asked for. We reserve the right to ban people at mod's discretion for delivering unrequested triggering content, under the "do not be an asshole" rule.
Moreover, if your fic is rated E for any reason, (including violence or gore) it can only be delivered if you are on an 18-plus team, gifted to a prompt in the 18 plus collection (made by an 18 plus person).
How can I get involved? You can participate in this event as a:
Author
Artist
Web Weaver
Podficcer
Can I participate as a pinch hitter? This event doesn't require pinch hitters in the normal way, because there are no assignments— everyone picks who they want to gift to, as many times as they want. However, the event doesn't end until everyone has a gift, so at the end of the event a list of everyone who doesn't have a gift yet will be posted, and it will be possible for anyone to make a gift for those people at that time. It is useful to note, though, that in the normal run of an exchange between 14% and 20% of an exchange is pinch-hit, with anywhere from a month to a day to make the gift, and in battleship the giftless list that gets released is closer to 2% to 3% of the event, with all gifts due ASAP. There are far fewer gifts due in this way, and the format and schedule is quite different. If you are planning to wait to pick up an assignment in this way, you should know that it doesn't work like traditional pinch hitting. If you know you want to participate in the event, you would do better to join a team (you can still pick your own assignment in a manner similar to pinch-hitting), or treat as a mercenary during the event by picking from the giftless list.
What is a mercenary? Mercenary gameplay is a way for people to participate without being on a team or continue playing after their team finishes their final board. Mercenaries will be fighting a word count horde and earning points (like during boss battles), and the points will be available for currently-playing teams to use to buy extra tag hits during round three. Mercenaries have their own lore.
These event spreadsheets are crazy, who designed them? The spreadsheeting for this event is chiefly thanks to the ingenious Firebird, multifandom mod, who did things with spreadsheets we did not know were possible. This event would not work without her coding.
When do I have to join the discord? You have the option to join the discord as soon as it opens on February 18th, and we ask that you join before signups close on March 3rd.
How does team assignment/claims work? After you fill out your Ao3 signup, you will fill out a google form that will ask you some questions that will allow us to balance teams (so that we don't have all the podficcers on one team, for example, or all the faster writers on a different team, or an entire team all in one time zone). Mods will balance the teams based on the google form. If you do not fill out the google form, you will be assigned a team at random.
I'm a slower creator/brainstormer, can I still be involved? Slow writers are an invaluable asset to any team, and are definitely still welcome. During gameplay last year we had several people who spent the entire event making gifts they dropped on board three, two and a half weeks into the event, which was part of how some teams cleared that round so fast. As long as you think you can get at least one work finished during the three weeks of the creation period, please, join us! Everyone who makes any gift during the event is considered a full participant!
It sounds like you make works based on tags, but I'm a slow creator and I'm afraid my team is going to clear my board before I finish my work. Can I still help my team? There is a method to structure your work so it’s valuable to your team no matter how long it takes you to finish!
Half the event tags will be on the first board and half on the second, so as soon as you see the first board, you'll know which ones will be on the second, and then you can structure a work that hits tags for every single board. Let's say the first board is revealed and it has "storms" but not "rain", and you know "rain" is in the event. You start writing a work where rain storms are prominent. How this works:
you finish the work during the first board, and hit the "storms" tag.
you finish it during the first boss, and your wordcount goes to defeating the boss.
you finish it during the second board, and hit the "rain" tag.
you finish it during the second boss, and your wordcount goes to defeating the boss.
you finish it during the final board and both rain and storms are in play, and you hit both tags.
you finish it after the game ends and the recipient gets a treat.
The fic I'm writing is turning into a multi-chapter. Do I have to have it all written before I post? Mods will only process tags on works that have been marked as "complete", so yes, you do have to have it all written before you post. Remember, you can claim a maximum of 100 tags per work, so aiming for 10k there or thereabouts will allow you to be maximally efficient.
Can I post a comic? Comics are a great way to hit some more unusual tags! Comic away! However, substantially repeating material in an attempt to boost word count or length is not permitted, so comic panels copied with only minor variations may not be accepted.
What is an AU tag? AU stands for Alternate Universe and means anything that would make the work not able to be tagged as canon compliant. Fantasy, space, modern, and superhero are all examples of popular aus. AU tags were a key part of aufest gameplay, and are still part of this event at a reduced level. The distinction between an AU tag (like AU - Superheroes/Superpowers) and a theme/trope tag (like Public Transit) is that to claim an AU tag the AU must be a significant and celebrated part of the work, not something that is a passing reference if you aren’t paying attention.
Can I look at the tags before creation period starts? The tag list will be released during nominations week, so everyone can get a look at it and consider which tags work best for their blorbos. We will be asking for community submissions in early February, so you might even get to help build the tag list yourself.
Can I create multiple fics? The spirit of battleship is all about creating multiple works, but we still want everyone to have a chance to contribute. Participants are capped at seven works per tag board or 50k points per word count boss, to allow their other team members to contribute. After one team has finished the event, all work caps are lifted, and mercenaries have no work cap.
Can I use AI to help me with my piece? You must create your work yourself, as that is the spirit of the event. Works may not be wholly or partially created by generative text or art programs (so-called "AI") such as chatGPT or OpenArt.ai. Works may not be wholly or partially duplicated from other works, and may not contain substantial repeated material included in an effort to boost word count (such as paragraphs or comics panels that are copied with minor variations).
What if I need to drop out? We know that life is no respecter of event deadlines, so there's no hard feelings if something happens. However, if you are fully going to be unable to contribute for the rest of the event, please contact the mods, because boards may need to be re-balanced if your team is down several members.
I have a question not answered here? Send us an ask on tumblr, contact @antimony-medusa on tumblr or discord!
On the other side is all I am - a web weave for an esmp 1 au where fWhip almost dies in the Grimlands explosion and Gem combines their souls to save him.
For @mcytbattleship!
Sources:
Critical Role Campaign 1: Jugs and Rods, Laura Bailey || The Sunken Tomb, The Legend of Vox Machina || @wizardarchetypes || @zlo-sovs-lifeboat || @celezart || The Adventure Zon, Balance Arc, ep. 68 || An Explosion near a Village, Dirk Langendijik || when there’s nothing left for you or I to do, whismicaltwine || Sparks, tfwiki
Venesection - a web weave about Legundo (and Owen). On what to do with all that regret (and anger).
For @mcytbattleship!
Sources:
Neverafter, Dimension 20 || It is Written, Brian Lorimer || Saipan, William Draper || Mortal Lessons: Notes on the Art of Surgery, Richard Selzer || Still Life with Meat, Claude Monet || Momentmal, Pixabay || Welcome to the Horizon 2.5: The True Trans Traveler, Midnight Burger
Heading Home - post-nuke dsmp web weave of Technoblade returning to find everything gone and his search to find the Syndicate.
For @mcytbattleship!
Sources:
the nature of forms, The Narcissist Cookbook || nouskrabs, shutterstock || @melscrate || Franz Kafka diaries
-
@faithschaffer || Cairn in the Snow, Casper David Friedrich || The Worm King’s Lullaby, Rockard Siken || @petfurniture* || bodys, car sear headrest || @null2946
-
@the-wyzer || the nature of forms, The Narcissist Cookbook || J. R. R. Tolkien || The Ends of the Earth, Lord Huron || @kiera—b || Oh No!, Marina
-
frame of mind, tristam & braken || @ladyatomic || @jaclcfrost** || @aviornova || @ups1gbt3f7op3dr || The Homecoming, Barbara Howes
*twitter account that has since been deleted
**tumblr account migrated to @greelin
Sources:
Lovelace, Wolf359 || The Demon Flying, Mikhail Vrubel || Dusseldorf, Richard Hambleton || nightingale, paisley rekdal || The Life Clock, Richard Teschner || Bright Eyes, O Paulsson || the library at the very bottom of this place, The Narcissist Cookbook
DISCLAIMER: this was made and scheduled for posting months ago. This is about the character.
v!Avid is heavily concussed due to his own foolishness and Legs' duty requires him to watch over them, but he really just wants to go to sleep.
-
“You should try to sleep, if you can. You’ll need the energy come morning.” Legs covered his candle, plunging them into darkness. Avid let out a thin frightened noise, like a bleating lamb. Then their eyes adjusted to the crimson moonlight pouring through the open ceiling.
Avid curled his fingers in the thin sheets and gasped, “Don’t leave. Please, don’t leave. I’ll be good. I’ll rest.”
“I’m not going anywhere. Relax, Avid.” Legs said curtly and folded away his writing supplies.
Rating: Mature
Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply
Category: Gen
Fandom: Vampires SMP
Relationship: AvidMC & Legundo
Characters: AvidMC, Legundo
Additional Tags: concussion, Abandoned Structures, Attempted Murder, Desperation, Exhaustion, First Aid, Hallucinations, haunting the narrative, Headaches and Migraines, Late Night Conversations, Oaths & Vows, Paranoia, Sleep Deprivation, Sunrise/Sunset, Superstitions, trapped with enemy, Ableist Language, Suicidal Thoughts, Hurt No Comfort
DISCLAIMER: this was made and scheduled for posting months ago. These are the characters not ccs.
Interested in joining our big bang, but work in an unusual medium? You are still welcome! Our participants have the opportunity to opt into Other Art Form when they're filling out their signups, and that Other umbrella is where we can fit just about any type of art! If you work in art form that doesn't fall under the big three categories (visual art, podfic, web weave), you can absolutely still participate as an "other" artist! You'd join the discord and open a ticket to speak to the mods, and we'd work out a minimum expectation for your medium, and then you do claims with us this weekend!
Needlework, music, sculpture, cosplay, playlist, video— it's all welcome! Of our 42 writers who've signed up so far, 30 of them have opted into "other" already. If you can make a piece in your art form that compliments a fic within a month, we'd love to have you join. Claims are this weekend!
Join the discord and speak to the mods about your medium here.
For @mcytbattleship
Sources:
@ratbeef95 || @vicprobably || The Infinite Moment of Us, Lauren Myracle || Story Six, The Narcissist Cookbook || pixnio ||sunset over the winter forest, Heinrich Gogarten|| Cold Island, My Singing Monsters || Haunted Winter, Vikingpilot || Hypothermia, Wikipedia || @ol34nder73 || @the-crastle || A Linnet In A Gilded Cage, Christina Rossetti
The Swindler - a Jackie P. Scythe web weave, entrance and exit.
For @mcytbattleship
Sources:
The Drifter, Glenn Dean || maybe when you see me next, The Narcissist Cookbook || Sacco-Vanzetti Case Records || Yahtzee, Wikipedia || Story Three, The Narcissist Cookbook || Words Fail, Dear Evan Hansen || Story One, The Narcissist Cookbook ||Showdown, Mathieu Nozieres || Revolver 1942, Elizabeth Johnson || Bohemian Rhapsody, Queen
Next to Godliness - a skyblock kingdoms web weave on ambition, creation and consequences
For @mcytbattleship
sources:
Sainte-Chapelle, franceguide.info || Some Mysteries Are Better Left Unsolved, Arcane || Giovanni’s Room, James Baldwin || Frankenstein, Mary Shelley || Suzanne Rivecca || @marisswaggerton || The Golden Arm, Wikipedia || @thearcanagame || x-ray phantom of forearm, OpenMedis || @chilicheesecake0 || War of the Worlds (2005) || An Alchemist's Anguish, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood || Silent Hill f || beach piano, The Narcissist Cookbook
We Go Questing - a recursive hermitcraft web weave based on this artwork!
For @mcytbattleship
Sources:
morning fog, Licu H || @buzzkillgirls || The Hero and the Crown || Don Quixote and Sancho Panza by Honoré Daumier ||@amberwrens || @kafk-a || The golden apples of the sun, Liam Moloney
Liabilities vsmp au - Owen is force-cured by Legundo and his plans to kill Avid are put on hold as he finds himself reliant on Avid's skills as an alchemist when his disease returns.
Avid yammers about various snake oil salesmen posing as doctors that he had to deal with growing up while Owen grapples with 200 years of touch starvation.
Avid: How is he more unnerving now that he's human?
Owen: I brought you food. Do NOT read into it.
I'm sure an eager-to-please and bloodthirsty Avid being Owen's latest object of obsession is totally chill. Nothing to worry about Legs.
Seven(ty) Years Bad Luck - Web Weave of Apo missing Martyn in the years after Oakhurst.
For @mcytbattleship
Sources:
@moriipoda || Ada Limón, "Lies About Sea Creatures" || Margaret Atwood || @sleepcorvid || A House In Nebraska, Ethel Cain || Mick Haupt, unsplash.com || Ivan Marchuk, “The sun woke up” || @applestruda || Jenny Han, It's Not Summer Without You || Big-Crochet-Roses by Beja || Wikipedia, Five of Cups || Rider-Waite Tarot Deck, Five of Cups || Cast of the Hand of Louisa G. Powers Ibbotson|| The Mountain Goats, "Riches and Wonders"
Queen of the Harvest - a webweave on the Queen of Gilded Helianthia
for @mcytbattleship
Sources:
Lucky Duck, Michael-Che Swisher|| Edges Pocket of Stream, Heather Cline || Summer Skies, Lynn Dunbar || Light of a Thousand Suns, Helena Scheffer || @floweroflaurelin || @marlowe-art || iStock || Dress Art Mystery || The Light That Comes Through, Sparkbird
