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Contest End of Winter/Start of Spring 2019 Poetry Contest Voting Thread

Which Poem or Poem do you like best? (you may vote for up to two)

  • Poem 1: "A Lord"

    Votes: 2 12.5%

  • Poem 2: "Grieving Loss"

    Votes: 4 25.0%

  • Poem 3: "Fangs of Sotek"

    Votes: 3 18.8%

  • Poem 4: "War"

    Votes: 7 43.8%

  • Poem 5: "Jungle Temple"

    Votes: 5 31.3%

  • Poem 6: "Six Sneaky Skaven"

    Votes: 10 62.5%
  • Total voters
    16
  • Poll closed .
Scalenex
Slann

Scalenex

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We got six fine poems. You may vote for up to two.

A Lord

Aloof, a lump aloft
A legend, already alight
A list, a lord, always

Grieving Loss

The Bellowing, raging wind swayed the grasses
Where a saurus thereupon crouched
Emotionless and cold of the wind’s tout brass
For she held a corpse’s dead slouch

Indeed, the wind’s assault upon her scales felt too real
With the unending time’s taunt to feel
She wondered if she could’ve felt the heart’s faint zeal
Or if that was just her tensed claws’ reeling

The omnipresent clouds begun darkening above her
Rats and lizards’ many blood spills hardening around her
Seething muscles pulsating themselves aggressively within her
Teeth clenching and trembling with urges to roar their rage for her

A stegadon herd trotted across the horizon yonder
Its pups trailing from behind with grand wonder
Contradicting her and the corpse’s bloody tale
Her roar reverberating throughout in its scale

Memories fleeted and faded amidst the burning pain
Her Stabbed gut perturbed with churning shame
Surrounded by bloody carnage that was; now enshrouded by lonely silence
The mangled corpses all strewn about violently; now in peace with nature’s patience

Amidst it all; amidst all of the otherworldly torment, she somehow found its sense

For the sauri never question purpose
An omen to the Old Ones’ incessant will

And so, she let go
And let go

The eyes beginning to warm and water up strangely enough, she thought...

Fangs of Sotek

Fire in the skies,
raging among the stars
Come to life as dragonflies
traveled from afar.

Slaying the forces of the dark.
All evil that wears their mark
will think: 'What the heck!?'
Just before they face the 'Fangs of Sotek'

- Zectoka

WAR

Sharp teeth snap and meet cold steel
The hiss of an arrow in the air
Blood dried and cracked on hard scales
Blank unblinking eyes stare

Shrieks of pain blend with those of rage
Bone is crushed in snapping jaws
Arrows snap and poison flows
The acrid stench from dripping maws

Rippling strength a fatal blow
The fasted hand the smallest slice
Toppling to join the rest
Half crushed skull the tilted knife

Pools of poison, blood and gore
Indiscriminate, no one left
Drowning on the muddied floor
All will taste the hand of death

JUNGLE TEMPLE

Roots run deep
Reaching skyward, branches stretch
Up up up
Splitting the sky and hiding it from view through thick green
Up up up
enclosed
A stronghold of shadows
Cast by blue moonlight and fiery sunshine
Up up up
Wind tears branches snap
Crash
Splinter
Down down down

Roots run deep
An anchor in the ocean of rich soil
Down down down
Twisting and choking the life from the ground tracing rocks with gentleness
Down down down
Deeper still
Buried beneath centuries of destruction, millennia of disintegration
Floods rip limbs from the earth
Crack
Torn apart, exposed and shattered
Up up up

Roots run deep
Walls stretch into the sky
Stones glisten underneath grit and grime
Waiting
Watching
The jungle protected
Or claimed
Vines cling to stone
Soft leaves fall on harsh stone
Drip
Carvings
Images
Stories
Drip
Roots run deep
Claimed by the jungle
Drip
The onslaught of the sky
Water gouges stone
Wind tears branches
The earth cracks
Stones vanish
Trees topple
Walls crumble
Ruin
Vines and ruin
Roots run deep

Six Sneaky Skaven

Six sneaky Skaven creeping through the trees

Squeaking and cursing and scratching fleas

A whistle, a thunk, and then a cutoff cry

Down fell a ratman, a dart in his eye


Five furious Skaven glaring through the trees

Squeaking and cursing now ignoring the fleas

A creak, a snap, a squeal that was cut quick

A grin on lizard lips at the pitfall’s trick


Four frantic Skaven edging through the trees

Squeaking and cursing with shaking knees

A ripple, a whisper, a blade through vile heart

Blood for Sotek as does another life depart


Three terrified Skaven fleeing through the trees

Squeaking and cursing as fear glands squeeze

A crack, a rumble, as the ground opens yawning

One too slow screams into chasm falling


Two trapped Skaven staring through the trees

Squeaking and cursing fear making them freeze

Another whistle, thunk, and topple into dark

From the shadows steps one of Chameleon mark


One overcome Skaven slashing through the trees

Squeaking and cursing as his foe weaves as a breeze

Flittering into sight, and flittering out of sight

Till a slash and a gurgle and end of the fight


No Skaven creeping through the trees

The hunter smiles again, seemingly pleased

Throughout the jungle squeals and cries

As the verminous invaders, one by one dies

Constructive commentary and critiques is encouraged. Combined, these six poems are less than 900 words collectively so I ask that you read these slowly and carefully consider your votes.

I randomized the order of the poems. It is a happy coincidence that poem 6 has the word "Six" in the title.

Have fun and enjoy the first days of Spring. Voting will be open for two weeks and two days because that seems mildly poetic.

Author Identies

Poem 1: A Lord by @King Dust
Poem 2: Grieving Loss by @Paradoxical Pacifism
Poem 3: "Fangs of Sotek by @Imrahil
Poem 4: "War" by @Infinity Turtle
Poem 5: "Jungle Temple" by @Infinity Turtle
Poem 6: "Six Sneaky Skaven" by @Y'ttar Scaletail
 
Last edited:
I've been sitting here for about five minutes try to come up with some stupid haiku as a response, but "competition" is 4 syllables so I'm stuck on the first line. 'This competition' sound like a bit of a stretch...

I'll get back to you guys when I'm feeling a bit more inspired :p
 
kewl poetic entrants guys and girls. They're all good and i have no idea what to vote for (or what poetry is anyway) as per usual :/
 
After a first reading i have a clear winner.
But i need more readings to decide my second vote. :p
 
Awww... two poems are falling back.
It's a pity, as i was almost going to give a vote to one of them.

Unknown author, even if you are collecting few votes, i want you to know that your work has been appreciated!
 
Let me try to do some poetry critiques. Maybe that will help me figure out what I should vote for.

"A Lord": The first Poem was the shortest. I don't have a problem with this. My favorite poems from famous poets of yore are generally very short ones. This good aliteration and communicates the traits of a Slann conscisely with well chosen words. Well done.

"Grieving Loss": Like you would expect with a poem named "Grieving Loss" the second poem had the most feels. This was sort of structured, sort of free-formed. Not sure I would have done that myself but I cannot deny the impact of this poem. Well done.

"Fangs of Sotek": Of all the pieces in this contest, the third poem seemed to have the most structure. The piece had a formal rhyme and rhythm structure and much like the first poem communicated a single core character with concise well chosen words. Well done.

"War": The fourth poem was mostly structured with a bit of free form. There was a lot of partial rhyme and slight deviations from the form, but it works. It certainly encompasses typical Lizardmen attitudes towards war evocatively. Well done.

"Jungle": While a lot of poems here had elements of being a free form poem, the fifth poem was the only truly free-form poem. Highly appropriate for a poem about ancient wisdom encapuslated by savage wilderness. Well done.

"Six Sneaky Skaven": Another highly structured poem. I'm not sure if a steady rhythm jumped out but the rhyme scheme was excellent and I like that it told a complete story in an entertaining fashion. Well done.
 
I am a sucker for structured and rhymy (is that a word?) poems.
But all of them were entertaining to read, good job everyone!

1. Short is hard, you have to find precise words and there isn't much space for structure (that's probably why Haiku are pretty formalized). Nice alliterations as well.

2. A lot of feelings in there, a very emotional piece. Also very thematic with all the different stuff mentioned. That also makes it dynamic.

3. I like how this one refers to a bataillion in AoS, it reminds me of my own piece from a time ago (the Shadowstrike song). It also has a nice structure and the rhymes look well done (not that I am not an expert for English rhymes as that isn't my native language. Often I think English rhymes look weird, but once spoken they sound OK, or vice versa.)

4. War is hell, this poem isn't, though. Nice job on the rhymes, and it has the perfect length IMO. Quite brutal as well, as is war.

5. I admit I am not a fan of free form, but I like how this piece is about the jungle and the structure mimics that seemingly chaotic, yet ordered undergrowth in a away. It also has the contrast between the temple and the jungle (one active, on passive), and the up and down. And that contrast is also in the words (like when "twisting and chocking" is in one sentence with the word "gentleness").

6. This looks like it is meant to be sung around a campfire. It is entertaining and well structured. I like.


Voted.
 
Voting has slowed down so I'm calling it. The winning poem is "Six Sneaky Skaven" by our own Y'ttar Scaletail. Infinity' Turtle's teen angst picked up second and third place.

Author Identies

Poem 1: A Lord by @King Dust
Poem 2: Grieving Loss by @Paradoxical Pacifism
Poem 3: "Fangs of Sotek by @Imrahil
Poem 4: "War" by @Infinity Turtle
Poem 5: "Jungle Temple" by @Infinity Turtle
Poem 6: "Six Sneaky Skaven" by @Y'ttar Scaletail

Thank you to all who participated. If interest remains, we will have a Poetry Contest every Equinox, so a two a year.

The Solstices I guess have no contest at least for now.

I'm sure the April 1st snafu and Y'ttar winning two contests in a row are completely unrelated.
 
scalenex said:
I'm sure the April 1st snafu and Y'ttar winning two contests in a row are completely unrelated.
Click to expand...
Ehem, sorry about that. :P

As much of a last minute rush as it was, it was fun to write. I for one would like to see more such compys. :)
 
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