Karisa's Atypical Touhou Challenges (on hold again)

[Karisa]

"You can't let yourself be trapped by common sense in Gensokyo, right?"

I've decided to run some unusual Touhou challenges. The idea is that each challenge should be sufficiently different, from typical survival, typical scoring, or common challenges, that it'd be more about creating new routes, without being affected as much by prior experience before the challenge.

General rules: mostly the usual.
- If the game supports replays, please include a replay. If the game does not support replays, screenshots are fine, though a video (quality doesn't matter) would be preferred if your computer can handle it. Scores without a replay/screenshot will not be disqualified, but cannot rank better than 2nd place.
- Allowed slowdown rate: at most 5%.
- Default lives/bombs settings, no continues.
- Patches that are accepted in the high score forum (e.g. vpatch, English patch, EoSD retexture patch) are allowed.
- Only submit runs played after the round began. If for whatever reason you've already attempted a challenge before it was posted, your run does not qualify.
- If multiple difficulties are allowed, they will be ranked separately.
- If multiple shot types are allowed, they will be ranked together.
- The tiebreaker is score, unless otherwise specified.

Note that as these challenges are designed to be unconventional, any of these rules are subject to exceptions. Make sure to read the challenge rules carefully.

Also:

If I haven't yet posted a new round for whatever reason, you can take it as an implied extension (intentional or not).

By the way, don't be discouraged if you think you're not good enough. The challenges are open to players of any skill level. And there's still fun in playing the game in a different way than usual, regardless of how well you rank overall.

Have fun!


Current challenge:

#23 - PCB CherryMax avoidance

- Play PCB while gaining as little CherryMax as possible! Tiebreaker is score, as usual.
- All difficulties and shot types allowed.

Format:
Challenge number - Difficulty
Player - CherryMax - Score - Shot type - Stage - Slowdown - Replay

Example:
#23 - Normal
Sample - 201,000 - 500,000,000 - ReimuB - C - 0.123% - Replay

Rankings:
Easy
Inadequate - 200,000 - 655,366,720 - ReimuB - C - 0.250% - Replay
SomeGuy712x - 200,000 - 423,185,220 - Reimu B - C - 0.070% - Replay
Chirpy13 - 200,000 - 97,555,320 - ReimuB - C - 0.056% - Replay
Mero - 200,060 - 466,942,690 - MarisaA - C - 0.602% - Replay

Extra
Inadequate - 400,000 - 760,396,170 - ReimuB - C - 0.093% - Replay
dxk - 400,000 - 716,143,000 - ReimuB - C - 0.092% - Replay

Deadline: Sunday, August 10


Past challenges:
#1 - SA low graze
#2 - UFO scoring, stages 1 and 2 only
#3 - Single-stage MoF grazing, no bombs
#4 - TD NBNT scoring
#5 - IN time orb avoidance
#6 - DDC MarisaB survival, no shooting
#7 - PCB point item collection
#8 - SA ReimuA, no rightward movement
#5.1 - IN time orb avoidance, constant shooting
#9 - MoF MarisaC, constant focus
#10 - PoFV Youmu, no spell attacks
#11 - PCB low graze
#12 - DDC extend collection
#13 - TD arrange patch, survival
#14 - EoSD low score, constant shooting, no timeouts
#15 - GFW spell captures, gold medals count triple
#16 - IN survival above the PoC
#17 - PCB v0.06
#18 - IN point item avoidance
#19 - SA stage 3 low score
#20 - MoF scoring, without capturing any spellcards
#21 - UFO low graze
#22 - TD life part collection

[Karisa]

Double posting so I can keep the current round in the first post, though I won't do so here because it'd be redundant.

I'll start off with some fairly straightforward challenges. Expect some weirder ones later on.


Results archive:

#1 - SA low graze

Subterranean Animism is a game that's almost completely oriented around graze. It not only gives you thousands of graze for free, but even gives you a non-scoring reason to graze. So what happens if you're supposed to avoid graze?

- Clear SA with as little graze as possible!
- Only 1ccs allowed.
- Easy and Extra allowed.
- All shot types allowed. However, using ReimuA is probably a bad idea.
- No tiebreaker. If two runs finish with the same amount of graze, it's a tie.

Format:
Challenge number - Difficulty - Shot type
Player - Graze - Slowdown - Replay

Example:
#1 - Easy - MarisaB
Sample - 1234 - 0.2% - Replay

Rankings:
Easy
ARF - 175 - ReimuC - 0.0% - Replay
Mero - 589  - ReimuA - 0.08% - Replay
Malky - 654 - MarisaA - 0.08% - Replay
navpirx - 662 - ReimuC - 0.020% - replay
PMW - 696 - ReimuC - 0.0% - Replay
s - 709 - ReimuC - 0.070% - Replay
/La - 834 - MarisaB - 0.040% - Replay
Nyyl - 1013 - ReimuB - 0.070% - Replay
Mordon - 1080 - ReimuC - 0.000% - Replay
FSL - 1474  - ReimuC - 0.050% - Replay
Turke - 1702 - ReimuA - 0.1% - Replay

Extra
Tsym - 1199 - ReimuC - 0.000% - Replay
Wriggle - 1343 - ReimuC - 0.2% - Replay
Mino - 1616 - ReimuC - 0.00% - Replay

#2 - UFO scoring, stages 1 and 2 only

In typical UFO scoring, the first two stages have so few point items that they're mostly about increasing the PIV for later stages. There's normally no reason to summon blue UFOs here... but what if you only get to play those two stages?

- Score as high as you can in UFO stages 1 and 2!
- As soon as stage 3 begins, pause the game and choose to save the replay. If you somehow gained any points in stage 3, use the score at the end of stage 2 (as displayed on the replay) instead.
- Easy/Normal/Hard/Lunatic allowed.
- All shot types allowed, and will be ranked together.

Format:
Challenge number - Difficulty - Shot type
Player - Score - Stage - Slowdown - Replay

Example:
#2 - Normal - SanaeB
Sample - 40,000,000 - 3 - 0.2% - Replay

Rankings
Easy
s - 45,080,680 - SanaeB - 3 - 0.000% - Replay

Normal
apathy - 100,367,780 - SanaeB - 3 - 0.0% - Replay
ARF - 79,435,760 - SanaeB - 3 - 0.0% - Replay
s - 72,930,210 - SanaeB - 3 - 0.000% - Replay
Nyyl - 64,392,450 - MarisaA - 3 - 1.670% - Replay
L3PiK - 57,647,960 - MarisaB - 3 - 0.000% - Replay

Hard
s - 86,992,190 - SanaeB - 3 - 0.000% - Replay

Lunatic
s - 82,206,270 - SanaeB - 2 - 0.000% - Replay

Deadline: Sunday, July 28
(actually Monday July 29 at 12:00pm GMT, 7:00am Eastern, 4:00am Pacific, essentially the time that Sunday July 28 is over in all timezones)

Have fun!

[Mordon]

#1 - Easy - ReimuC
Mordon - 1080 - 0.000% - Replay

Second attempt. Had way too many spare lives that I could have used to bomb more. Probably will try to improve later.

[Nyyl]

#1 - Easy - ReimuB
Nyyl - 1013 - 0.070% - Replay

two tries, still room for improvement of course
on the first attempt i tried to bombspam hell's subterranean sun and racked up 400 graze points in the process. so don't do that

[ARF]

#1 - Easy - ReimuC
ARF - 601 - 0.0% - Replay

First try, no planning, just figuring it out as I went.

[Majildian]

#1 - Easy - MarisaB
/La - 834 - 0.04% - Replay

[Space Flower]

The idea of no-graze is kind of fun. What's more efficient? Timing out a spellcard by hiding in the corner where bullets are more spread out but you can't hit the loli, or beating it as fast as possible?

[Wriggle]

#1 - Extra - ReimuC
Wriggle - 1884 - 0.390% - Replay

Third attempt that got the clear (as in no rageretry). Countless mistakes.

[Karisa]

My record for SA low graze is 421 (edit: I just improved it to 324). I'll avoid uploading the replay until either someone reaches a lower graze count or the round's over. Good luck.

On an unrelated note, does anyone think it's worthwhile if I include the scores posted so far in the challenge post?

[Wriggle]

On an unrelated note, does anyone think it's worthwhile if I include the scores posted so far in the challenge post?

Sure. How often could you update?

[Karisa]

Same as I do for the scoreboard files: whenever I happen to read new posts in the thread, or every few days otherwise. (And considering this is my own thread, I'll probably be reading any new posts whenever I check HME.)

[touhoumaniac]

 :3

#2 - Normal - SanaeB
s - 58,560,060 - 3 - 0.000% - Replay

[yorgje]

My record for SA low graze is 421

420 GRAZE IT

[touhoumaniac]

#2 - easy - SanaeB
s - 45,080,680 - 3 - 0.000% - Replay

[Wriggle]

As for the suggestions, I think it'd be interesting to have a challenge for the lowest score [Yuugi's first spellcard would've been worth a lot, negatively; and the Extras would include other creative ways of not-scoring (that not necessarily relies on not-grazing, depending on the game)].

[Karisa]

SA stage 3 low score is already planned for the future. Though not next time, since I don't think it's a good idea to include the same game two rounds in a row.

As for general low-score runs, of any game, I'm a bit concerned about how much participation that would get, considering how it's effectively a full pacifist run with an extra condition... well, if there's enough support for it, sure. I guess they wouldn't necessarily be pacifist runs, anyway, particularly in the MoF+ games where shooting is only worth a few points and/or you get canceled bullets for timeouts anyway.

[PMW]

I love this idea, doing weird stuff on these games is always fun.

#1 - Easy - ReimuC
PMW - 696 - 0.0% - Replay

First try, no route, no kind of restarts at all, mistakes everywhere. Terrible. Will definitly try to improve this since it's such a fun challenge :3

Also, Okuu's suns are evil  :ohdear:

[LepLep]

#2 - Normal - MarisaB
L3PiK - 57,647,960 - 3 - 0.000% - Replay

I have stupided.

[touhoumaniac]

#1 - Easy - ReimuC
s - 872 - 0.070% - Replay

[Wriggle]

#1 - Extra - ReimuC
Wriggle - 1602 - 0.450% - Replay

I'll leave this one for now until someone eventually beats it.

[RegretDesi]

I had a score of about 11 million for Challenge B Easy...Then I noticed that the top score was over 50 million... 

[ARF]

#1 - Easy - MarisaA
ARF - 540 - 0.0% - Replay

#1 - Easy - ReimuC
ARF - 265 - 0.0% - Replay

(?･ω ･`)

[touhoumaniac]

#2 - lunatic - SanaeB
s - 82,206,270 - 2 - 0.000% - Replay

[ARF]

I'd like to see more MoF graze challenges at some point, because that is certainly not something people regularly route for Maybe something similar to this rounds UFO challenge (stage 1-2).

[Nyyl]

#2 - Normal - MarisaA
Nyyl - 64,392,450 - 3 - 1.670% - Replay

I know I've had higher than that by the end of stage 2 in other plays
hmmm I'll have to give it another go

[Karisa]

I'd like to see more MoF graze challenges at some point, because that is certainly not something people regularly route for Maybe something similar to this rounds UFO challenge (stage 1-2).

MoF graze is something I've considered, though one problem is that the patch only keeps track of it for individual stages (this would also be an issue for MoF low graze). Sure, players can add the stage counts together, or post all of them in the submission, but it'd be harder to keep track of.

I was leaning toward making one of the next challenges single-stage MoF grazing, actually. Perhaps offer a choice of 2 or 3 different stages in the same challenge, but restrict it to Easy/Lunatic or Normal/Lunatic so there aren't too many categories.

Also, 265 graze? Nice. (Here's my own 324 graze run that I said I'd upload.)

[DATAMOSHLOLIRAVE]

ah well, not too good of a run but was fun either way, chose reimuA for no reason what so ever but to just try it

#1 - Easy - ReimuA
Turke - 1702 - 0.1% - Replay

please note ive never cleared SA before  :blush:

[ARF]

#2 - Normal - SanaeB
ARF - 66,231,620 - 3 - 0.0% - Replay

Failed Kogasa's first spell ;~; Route is obviously shit as this was my first try on this, had no plan blah blah. Fun stuff though, will probably try again later.

#2 - Normal - SanaeB
ARF - 79,435,760 - 3 - 0.0% - Replay

Fairies pls ;~;

MoF graze is something I've considered, though one problem is that the patch only keeps track of it for individual stages (this would also be an issue for MoF low graze). Sure, players can add the stage counts together, or post all of them in the submission, but it'd be harder to keep track of.

I was leaning toward making one of the next challenges single-stage MoF grazing, actually. Perhaps offer a choice of 2 or 3 different stages in the same challenge, but restrict it to Easy/Lunatic or Normal/Lunatic so there aren't too many categories.

Also, 265 graze? Nice. (Here's my own 324 graze run that I said I'd upload.)

Sounds great, looking forward to that!

[Elysia]

#1 - Easy - MarisaA
Malky - 654 - 0.08% - Replay

BOMB ALL THE THINGS

Might be a good idea to group these according to shot type. Seems to me that ReimuC is obviously the best one here, but I'd be willing to bet on MarisaA for second place. Not too much I'd do differently in this replay, the biggest problem spots were Easy's versions of Ten Evil Stars and Subterranean Sun (too lazy to look up actual names). Going into that last card without full power cost me quite a lot.

[ARF]

#1 - Easy - MarisaA
Malky - 654 - 0.08% - Replay

BOMB ALL THE THINGS

Might be a good idea to group these according to shot type. Seems to me that ReimuC is obviously the best one here, but I'd be willing to bet on MarisaA for second place. Not too much I'd do differently in this replay, the biggest problem spots were Easy's versions of Ten Evil Stars and Subterranean Sun (too lazy to look up actual names). Going into that last card without full power cost me quite a lot.

ReimuB is also a pretty strong contender, I wouldn't rule out the possibility of a well planned ReimuB run getting somewhere between 200-300 graze.