About
What are the Bloggies?
The BLOGGIES are a yearly awards event started by Prismatic Wasteland in 2022. It celebrates standout tabletop rpg blog posts from the previous year — shining a light on the posts that linger in your mind long after you’ve closed the tab. The awards celebrate (and share) the creativity and hard work that keeps the blogging scene alive.
Why does TTRPG blogging matter?
Blogging is as old as the hobby itself. Its roots trace back to the mimeographed pages of wargaming and fantasy zines of the 1970s, where enthusiasts debated mechanics, shared house rules, and dreamed up entire worlds. These grassroots publications were the lifeblood of the early hobby, connecting far-flung players in a time before the internet. As the decades passed, the scene migrated to message boards and forums, where ideas sparked across threads and communities. Today, blogging bears this torch, becoming the primary venue for deep dives into mechanics, nuanced critiques, and the sharing of gameable ideas.
Blogs offer a slower, more reflective pace compared to the quick hits of social media, with space to explore ideas in depth, and return to them long after. They keep alive the spirit of experimentation and sharing that defined the hobby in its earliest days, providing a platform for creators to speak directly to players and for players to contribute to the larger conversation. It’s a lineage of creativity and collaboration, continuing to evolve while staying true to its roots.
(This manifesto has been written, rewritten, and tweaked by every host. This version is nearly identical to SachaGoat's version, which I found too good to make any significant changes to.)
How do the Bloggies work?
The Bloggies are like a cursed crown — wearing it means carrying its burden. You know, like, The Dutchman, The Red Hood, The Lich King, Death, or Santa Claus. That means the person hosting the Bloggies this year, won platinum last year, and the person who hosts next year, is foolishly trying to win this year.
How many blog posts compete? 16 finalists per category. 64 blog posts total.
How do blog posts compete?
The Bloggies are an unserious affair. It operates like the Thunderdome with a bracket-style tourney. 64 blog posts go in. Four golds, silvers, and coppers leave. Then the golds have to fight each other for platinum. It's a lot of chaotic fun.
How are blog posts selected?
The community nominates blog posts in December. Then the host winnows it down to just 64 finalists. This is not an easy task — which is why the host might lean on the number of nominations, the guidance of previous hosts, and dangerous amounts of caffeine.
How does voting work?
The Bloggies change from year to year. (That's what happens when the mantle moves from one person to the next.) This year, the four brackets will run cocurrently over the course of a week. The final brackets will be released ahead of time to give everyone a chance to re-read.
Is campaigning allowed?
Yes. It's encouraged. But there's a golden path to Bloggies greatness — boost another post at the same time. So, if you're hyping up your theory post, try to hype up someone else's post at the same time. If you fail to uphold this one rule, your URL will be cursed with inane comments, typos, and long load times for all eternity.
