Today is the final day to get your nominations in!
Click HERE to nominate!!
Click HERE to see what's already been nominated!!
If you are the nominator of the following relationships, we need more detail before we can approve them:
Female Shepard/Original Krogan Character(s)
Female Shepard/Original Turian Character(s)
Garrus Vakarian/Original Female Character(s)
For the Shepard pairings: Are these character(s) male, female, or nonbinary?
For Garrus: What species are these character(s)?
For both: Do you want one or more? A little more detail about who they are will help put everyone on the same page for these relationships! Are they pilots or civilians, old or young, etc. You can edit your nominations directly or drop us a line to clarify!
Sign ups for the Spectre Requisitions exchange are now open and you may sign up from January 27th to February 11th. You must fill out at least three unique requests and three unique offers. (Requests and offers do not necessarily have to be the same!).
NEW THIS YEAR!
Treats will be considered OPT-IN. You will need to enable treats on Ao3, AND include your preferences for treats in each request. If you do NOT specify treat preferences, we will assume you do not want to receive any treats!
You can use the following template to state your treat preferences: Open to Treats: Yes / No
Open to Treat types: Fanart, Fanfiction
Open to Multi-recip treats: Yes / No
If you are open to all types of treats, you can simply say "Treats welcome!"
We have added a RATINGS box to sign-ups! The box is not mandatory and non-binding but will help with determining who is or is not interested in smut. If you are open to creating or receiving smut, SELECT the "Explicit" option for that offer/request. Please note that this is NOT a guarantee that you will be matched, in either direction, with someone who has opted in to smut; and even if you do match in that manner, you're not obligated to create smut (nor are they obligated to create smut for you).
How do you enable treats? Go to “My Dashboard” on your Ao3 account, select “Preferences” from the sidebar, scroll down to “Collections, Challenges and Gifts,” and make sure that the “Allow Anyone to Gift Me Works” box is checked.
NOW THAT SAID: SIGN UP! SIGN UP! SIGN-UP! CLICK HERE TO SIGN-UP!
You can go back and edit your Sign Up Form up until February 11th, 8:00PM EST. (Countdown here!)
How Do I Sign Up? Instructions beneath the cut:
1) Go to the Sign Up Form at AO3.
2) Start writing in the name of your favorite character/pairing from the nominations. Don’t forget to check the spreadsheet if you need inspiration!
3) The box should start to autofill your pairing as you type (if it doesn’t, that is a known Ao3 bug, and if you type it exactly as it is in the tagset, it will accept it). Select your pairing of choice. You can choose two pairings per request, and may have ten requests total.
The two requests do not need to be related; it is simply a way to try to get around the Ao3 restriction of only having 10 sign-up boxes.
4) Decide whether you would like to potentially receive fanart or fanfic, or both. Check the applicable box(es).
5) The RATINGS box on each request indicates whether or not you are open to receiving smut. The box is not mandatory and non-binding but will help with determining who is or is not interested in smut. Please CHECK the "Explicit" box if you want to receive smut; and leave it unchecked if you do not want to receive smut.
6) In the "Description" box, you MUST include:
-Any Do Not Wants (DNWs) for the requested relationship(s). We cannot enforce DNWs that are not contained in your Ao3 signup.
-Whether you are opting in to treats or not. If you are opting in, you must say which kind of treats you are open to receiving. If you do NOT specify treat preferences, we will assume you do not want to receive any treats!
You can use the following template to state your treat preferences:
Open to Treats: Yes / No
Open to Treat types: Fanart, Fanfiction
Open to Multi-recip treats: Yes / No
If you are open to all types of treats, you can simply say "Treats welcome!"
You MAY include:
-Prompts, general likes/dislikes -- this is used to help your assigned creator know what sort of gift you would most like to receive!
7) Repeat between 3-10 times, as you like!
8) You may write a letter that goes more in-depth and post it to your tumblr, dreamwidth, public google doc, or another platform, and then fill in the URL in the letter box.
9) Fill out your offers. You must fill out at least three unique pairings you would be okay with writing and can choose one or two pairings to fill in per request.
10) The ratings box on each offer indicates whether or not you are open to receiving smut. The box is not mandatory and non-binding but will help with determining who is or is not interested in smut. Please CHECK the "Explicit" box if you want to create smut; and leave it unchecked if you do not want to create smut.
A BIG WARNING ABOUT USING ‘ANY PAIRINGS’: You may choose to offer ANY, but this means you could be matched to ANYONE who has signed up for the archive. Exchange participants beware of this, do NOT pick Any Pairings if you are not up for a challenge!
The only limits we will allow on "any" requests by are the following parameters:
the category of relationship, eg Gen, F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi, or Other: you will get a sign up with at least one request of the chosen category. Can be combined with setting.
the game setting: at least one request will be set in Trilogy or Andromeda, depending or your pick; this can be combined with the above, e.g. "Any trilogy Multi" or "Any Andromeda F/F"
ANY Protagonist Shepard pairing: At least one pairing will feature a Commander Shepard (this restriction will not match Hannah Shepard or Clone Shepard.) You may combine this with a relationship category, e.g., "any Female Shepard F/F".
ANY Protagonist Ryder pairing: You will be matched with a sign up featuring at least one sign-up with a Ryder character (this request will not match Alec Ryder or Ellen Ryder requests). You may combine this with a relationship category, e.g., "any Male Ryder M/M".
No other limits may be selected so chose this CAREFULLY.
11) In the notes, please include any notes for the mods that might help the mods in matching you. For example: "I won't write varren fighting" or "Please do not match me to Councilor Udina". These notes are confidential between the mods and you, and are not shared with your match (or anyone else). You don't have to give reasons; just letting us know what your boundaries are is enough for us to hopefully better match you, and we don't share any information given with other people.
12) Click submit! And welcome to the Mass Effect Spectre Requisitions Rare Pair Exchange!
SIGN-UPS ARE OPEN!
Sign-ups for the Spectre Requisitions exchange will be possible from January 19th to February 1st. You must fill out at least five unique requests and three unique offers (requests and offers do not necessarily have to be the same!).
You may also choose ‘Any Pairings’ and ask or volunteer to write any of the pairings of the nominations list.
NOW THAT SAID: SIGN UP! SIGN UP! SIGN-UP! CLICK HERE TO SIGN-UP!
You can go back and edit your Sign Up Form up until 1 February 2021 06:00PM EST.
A BIG WARNING ABOUT USING ‘ANY PAIRINGS’: Any pairing means exactly that, that you are willing to get or create fanworks for any pairing. We cannot control what characters or prompts are in an “Any Pairings” request. Thus, it should not be used for a request like “Any Garrus Vakarian fic”. “Any pairing” requests should only be requested for when you really want to see a certain trope or kink (and don’t care which characters are used) and should only be offered if you want the sheer challenge of a pure mystery! The only thing we will allow you to limit it by is the category of relationship, eg Gen, F/F, M/M or F/M. Anything else put into the box will be ignored so chose this option CAREFULLY.
If you would like to participate but do not have an AO3 account, please send us a message and we will get you an invitation.
One Important Warning About DNW: Please add your DNW (Do Not Wants) to your sign-ups. We cannot enforce DNWs that are only in letters!
How Do I Sign Up? Instructions beneath the cut:
1) Go to the Sign Up Form at AO3 while you are logged in (or go to the Spectre Requisitions Collection for this year and click “Sign Up”)
2) Click the checkmark on “Mass Effect - All Media Types” for the fandom!
3) Start writing the name of your favorite character/pairing from the nominations. Don’t forget to check the spreadsheet if you need inspiration!
4) The box should start to autofill as you type; if it doesn’t, simply enter things as they are in the tagset. Select your pairing of choice. You can have one or two pairings per request, and may have ten requests total. This gives you a total of 20 potential pairings to request at maximum, and the minimum is 5 requests and 3 offers.
This is what it looks like with one relationship filled in:
Note that the box is still active and allows you to fill more in. If you are planning on requesting only the minimum, please only fill one in per box.
And here’s what it looks like with two tags filled in:
Now, the box is gone, and you’ve maxed out this request set. Note that when you’re doing multiple pairings, you’ll have to put your prompts/likes/DNWs for both pairings in the same box. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you’ve got more questions!
5) Decide whether you would like to potentially receive fanart or fanfic, or both. Check the applicable box(es) or select “any” for both.
6) Give your author some idea of what you want to see in the description box.
Good things to list: general likes, rating restrictions, prompt ideas, squicks/triggers/do-not-wants, or anything else you’d like the writer to know. Make sure you list things you definitively do not want. Authors and artists are absolutely forbidden to ignore squicks and triggers. Otherwise, the only guideline of your prompt authors/artists is unequivocally beholden to is the requested pairing, though they are encouraged to take your preferences into consideration.
7) Repeat between 5-10 times, as you like!
8) You may write a letter that goes more in-depth and post it to your Tumblr, DreamWidth, public Google doc, or another platform, and then fill in the URL in the letterbox.
9) Fill out your offers. You must fill out at least three unique pairings you would be okay with writing and can choose one or two pairings to fill in per request. If you have any comments for the moderators, please put them in the “Notes for Mods” section. This should be used for people you don’t want to match with, subjects you feel you can’t/won’t draw/write, or other information that you think may be helpful for matching you with a good assignment.
A BIG WARNING ABOUT USING ‘ANY PAIRINGS’: You may choose to offer ANY, but this means you could be matched to ANYONE who has signed up for the exchange. Do NOT pick Any Pairings if you are not up for a challenge! The only thing we will allow you to limit it by is a category of relationship, eg Gen, F/F, M/M or M/F. Anything else cannot be controlled so chose this CAREFULLY.
10) Click submit! And welcome to the Mass Effect Rare Pair Exchange!
Please check your AO3 assignments page or the email you have associated with Ao3 and see who you were assigned to! There were NO initial pinch hits this year. If any pinch hitters are required, we will advertise when they become available both on our tumblr and DW comms.
We have done our best to try to ensure that everyone has a good match, but if there is an issue with yours, please contact us. We will handle things discretely and privately.
Since assignments have gone out, there are a couple things we’d like all authors and artists out there to keep in mind:
You are only committing to writing or drawing one thing for your assigned recipient. That means, of the 5+ ideas they have offered, you are committing to writing one. If they asked for two pairings in the same line, you’re obligated to write only one of the two (your choice). Can you do more? Absolutely. Are you obligated to? Absolutely not.
Please remember that the spirit of this exchange is all rare pairs, all the time. Do not use the exchange to try to write/draw a mega-popular pairing, with a less-popular pairing in the background. We do not allow backdoor mega-pairings to dominate works in this exchange.
Please do not post your fic or art on Tumblr/DeviantArt/etc until the exchange has been revealed. It is imperative that everyone gets their gifts at the same time.
Please don’t contact your recipient directly. If you have questions you want to ask them, please contact us! We are happy to be intermediaries for you!
If you are writing a story/drawing a picture that features elements Ao3 has default warnings for, such as underage/non-con/etc, remember to tag your stories for such elements to advertise it to those that want to see it and to respect those that don’t. If you do not wish to do this or feel like you can’t tag a fic or artwork without spoiling the nature of a twist you’d prefer remain unspoiled, please use the “Choose Not to Warn” option so viewers can make the choice themselves whether or not they want to take a chance on seeing potentially upsetting content.
You are obligated to respect your recipient’s DNW/squicks, but optional details are otherwise that - optional.
Please be careful to not reveal who your recipient is. Posting “I’m so excited about my assignment!” is fine; posting “I’m so excited about writing Thane/Garrus for my best friend @participant!” is not.
If you have any questions or comments, be sure to let us know!
WE MADE IT, EVERYONE! While 2020 has thrown a heck of a lot of curveballs at it, Spectre Requistions 2020 batch has opened on-time and without Andromeda-level shenanigans. Please give our 2020 class some love; everyone could use some nice comments.
CHECK OUT THE COLLECTION HERE!
We will also be doing commenting bingo cards. If you want one, let us know by commenting below!
What’s a Commenting Bingo Card?
Commenting cards are 5x5 bingo card with a free space in the middle. The free space is meant for whatever sort of rubric you want to set; “fic that was given to me” “ a fic with Tali” etc; the rest are different criteria based on the works in the collection. Your challenge is to read and comment on as many as you can to fill up the card, make other rare pair writers happy, and have the Space Hampster smile upon you. This year, comment cards come in two forms: safe for work and not-safe-for-work; you may ask for a card made up of SFW prompts, NSFW prompts, or a card with a combination of the two. You can see all prompts here, and can opt out of 5 prompts out of each table. (EG, if you only do a SFW or a NSFW-only card, you can opt-out of 5; if you do a SFW AND NSFW combo card, you can opt out of 10). If you get a bingo, report back, and we will make you a silly graphic and talk up your contributions after the anon period ends!
SIGN-UPS ARE OPEN!
Sign-ups for the Spectre Requisitions exchange will be possible from January 20 to February 2nd. You must fill out at least five unique requests and three unique offers (requests and offers do not necessarily have to be the same!). Anytime someone offers something, we will update the “Offers Present?” tab on the nominations spreadsheet with an [x] when it is offered.
You may also choose ‘Any Pairings’ and ask or volunteer to write any of the pairings of the nominations list.
NOW THAT SAID: SIGN UP! SIGN UP! SIGN-UP! CLICK HERE TO SIGN-UP!
You can go back and edit your Sign Up Form up until February 2nd @ 06:00PM EST.
A BIG WARNING ABOUT USING ‘ANY PAIRINGS’: Any pairing means exactly that, that you are willing to get or create fanworks for any pairing. We cannot control what characters or prompts are in an “Any Pairings” request. Thus, it should not be used for a request like “Any Garrus Vakarian fic”. “Any pairing” requests should only be requested for when you really want to see a certain trope or kink (and don’t care which characters are used) and should only be offered if you want the sheer challenge of a pure mystery! The only thing we will allow you to limit it by is the category of relationship, eg Gen, F/F, M/M or F/M. Anything else put into the box will be ignored so chose this option CAREFULLY.
If you would like to participate but do not have an AO3 account, please send us a message and we will get you an invitation.
One Important Warning About DNW: Please add your DNW (Do Not Wants) to your sign-ups. We cannot enforce DNWs that are only in letters!
How Do I Sign Up? Instructions beneath the cut:
1) Go to the Sign Up Form at AO3 while you are logged in (or go to the Spectre Requisitions Collection for this year and click “Sign Up”)
2) Click the checkmark on “Mass Effect - All Media Types” for the fandom!
3) Start writing the name of your favorite character/pairing from the nominations. Don’t forget to check the spreadsheet if you need inspiration!
3) The box should start to autofill as you type; if it doesn’t, simply enter things as they are in the tagset. Select your pairing of choice. You can have one or two pairings per request, and may have ten requests total. This gives you a total of 20 potential pairings to request at maximum, and the minimum is 5 requests and 3 offers.
This is what it looks like with one relationship filled in:
Note that the box is still active and allows you to fill more in. If you are planning on requesting only the minimum, please only fill one in per box.
And here’s what it looks like with two tags filled in:
Now, the box is gone, and you've maxed out this request set. Note that when you’re doing multiple pairings, you’ll have to put your prompts/likes/DNWs for both pairings in the same box. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you’ve got more questions!
4) Decide whether you would like to potentially receive fanart or fanfic, or both. Check the applicable box(es) or select “any” for both.
5) Give your author some idea of what you want to see in the description box.
Good things to list: general likes, rating restrictions, prompt ideas, squicks/triggers/do-not-wants, or anything else you’d like the writer to know. Make sure you list things you definitively do not want. Authors and artists are absolutely forbidden to ignore squicks and triggers. Otherwise, the only guideline of your prompt authors/artists is unequivocally beholden to is the requested pairing, though they are encouraged to take your preferences into consideration.
6) Repeat between 5-10 times, as you like!
8) You may write a letter that goes more in-depth and post it to your Tumblr, DreamWidth, public google doc, or another platform, and then fill in the URL in the letterbox.
9) Fill out your offers. You must fill out at least three unique pairings you would be okay with writing and can choose one or two pairings to fill in per request. If you have any comments for the moderators, please put them in the “Notes for Mods” section. This should be used for people you don’t want to match with, subjects you feel you can’t/won’t draw/write, or other information that you think may be helpful for matching you with a good assignment.
A BIG WARNING ABOUT USING ‘ANY PAIRINGS’: You may choose to offer ANY, but this means you could be matched to ANYONE who has signed up for the exchange. Do NOT pick Any Pairings if you are not up for a challenge! The only thing we will allow you to limit it by is a category of relationship, eg Gen, F/F, M/M or M/F. Anything else cannot be controlled so chose this CAREFULLY.
10) Click submit! And welcome to the Mass Effect Rare Pair Exchange!
SIGN-UPS ARE OPEN!
Sign-ups for the Spectre Requisitions exchange will be possible from January 20 to February 2nd. You must fill out at least five unique requests and three unique offers (requests and offers do not necessarily have to be the same!). Anytime someone offers something, we will update the “Offers Present?” tab on the nominations spreadsheet with an [x] when it is offered.
You may also choose ‘Any Pairings’ and ask or volunteer to write any of the pairings of the nominations list.
NOW THAT SAID: SIGN UP! SIGN UP! SIGN-UP! CLICK HERE TO SIGN-UP!
You can go back and edit your Sign Up Form up until 25 Jan 2019 06:00PM EST.
A BIG WARNING ABOUT USING ‘ANY PAIRINGS’: Any pairing means exactly that, that you are willing to get or create fanworks for any pairing. We cannot control what characters or prompts are in an “Any Pairings” request. Thus, it should not be used for a request like “Any Garrus Vakarian fic”. “Any pairing” requests should only be requested for when you really want to see a certain trope or kink (and don’t care which characters are used) and should only be offered if you want the sheer challenge of a pure mystery! The only thing we will allow you to limit it by is the category of relationship, eg Gen, F/F, M/M or F/M. Anything else put into the box will be ignored so chose this option CAREFULLY.
If you would like to participate but do not have an AO3 account, please send us a message and we will get you an invitation.
One Important Warning About DNW: Please add your DNW (Do Not Wants) to your sign-ups. We cannot enforce DNWs that are only in letters!
How Do I Sign Up? Instructions beneath the cut:
1) Go to the Sign Up Form at AO3 while you are logged in (or go to the Spectre Requisitions Collection for this year and click “Sign Up”)
2) Click the checkmark on “Mass Effect - All Media Types” for the fandom!
3) Start writing the name of your favorite character/pairing from the nominations. Don’t forget to check the spreadsheet if you need inspiration!
3) The box should start to autofill as you type; if it doesn’t, simply enter things as they are in the tagset. Select your pairing of choice. You can have one or two pairings per request, and may have ten requests total. This gives you a total of 20 potential pairings to request at maximum, and the minimum is 5 requests and 3 offers.
This is what it looks like with one relationship filled in:
Note that the box is still active and allows you to fill more in. If you are planning on requesting only the minimum, please only fill one in per box.
And here’s what it looks like with two tags filled in:
Now, the box is gone, and you've maxed out this request set. Note that when you’re doing multiple pairings, you’ll have to put your prompts/likes/DNWs for both pairings in the same box. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you’ve got more questions!
4) Decide whether you would like to potentially receive fanart or fanfic, or both. Check the applicable box(es) or select “any” for both.
5) Give your author some idea of what you want to see in the description box.
Good things to list: general likes, rating restrictions, prompt ideas, squicks/triggers/do-not-wants, or anything else you’d like the writer to know. Make sure you list things you definitively do not want. Authors and artists are absolutely forbidden to ignore squicks and triggers. Otherwise, the only guideline of your prompt authors/artists is unequivocally beholden to is the requested pairing, though they are encouraged to take your preferences into consideration.
6) Repeat between 5-10 times, as you like!
8) You may write a letter that goes more in-depth and post it to your Tumblr, DreamWidth, public google doc, or another platform, and then fill in the URL in the letterbox.
9) Fill out your offers. You must fill out at least three unique pairings you would be okay with writing and can choose one or two pairings to fill in per request. If you have any comments for the moderators, please put them in the “Notes for Mods” section. This should be used for people you don’t want to match with, subjects you feel you can’t/won’t draw/write, or other information that you think may be helpful for matching you with a good assignment.
A BIG WARNING ABOUT USING ‘ANY PAIRINGS’: You may choose to offer ANY, but this means you could be matched to ANYONE who has signed up for the exchange. Do NOT pick Any Pairings if you are not up for a challenge! The only thing we will allow you to limit it by is a category of relationship, eg Gen, F/F, M/M or M/F. Anything else cannot be controlled so chose this CAREFULLY.
10) Click submit! And welcome to the Mass Effect Rare Pair Exchange!
Please check your AO3 assignments page or the email you have associated with Ao3 and see who you were assigned to! There were NO initial pinch hits this year. If any pinch hitters are required, we will advertise when they become available both on our tumblr and DW comms.
We have done our best to try to ensure that everyone has a good match, but if there is an issue with yours, please contact us. We will handle things discretely and privately.
Since assignments have gone out, there are a couple things we’d like all authors and artists out there to keep in mind:
You are only committing to writing or drawing one thing for your assigned recipient. That means, of the 5+ ideas they have offered, you are committing to writing one. If they asked for two pairings in the same line, you’re obligated to write only one of the two (your choice). Can you do more? Absolutely. Are you obligated to? Absolutely not.
Please remember that the spirit of this exchange is all rare pairs, all the time.Do not use the exchange to try to write/draw a mega-popular pairing, with a less-popular pairing in the background. We do not allow backdoor mega-pairings to dominate works in this exchange.
Please do not post your fic or art on Tumblr/DeviantArt/etc until the exchange has been revealed. It is imperative that everyone gets their gifts at the same time.
Please don’t contact your recipient directly. If you have questions you want to ask them, please contact us! We are happy to be intermediaries for you!
If you are writing a story/drawing a picture that features elements Ao3 has default warnings for, such as underage/non-con/etc, remember to tag your stories for such elements to advertise it to those that want to see it and to respect those that don’t. If you do not wish to do this or feel like you can’t tag a fic or artwork without spoiling the nature of a twist you’d prefer remain unspoiled, please use the “Choose Not to Warn” option so viewers can make the choice themselves whether or not they want to take a chance on seeing potentially upsetting content.
You are obligated to respect your recipient’s DNW/squicks, but optional details are otherwise that - optional.
Please be careful to not reveal who your recipient is. Posting “I’m so excited about my assignment!” is fine; posting “I’m so excited about writing Thane/Garrus for my best friend @participant!” is not.
If you have any questions or comments, be sure to let us know!
