Greetings captains!
While the Auburn Tigers put up an impressive display today in Jordan-Hare, I think we all agree that the true competition will be the one which takes place next Saturday. Never forget, our competition will determine the future safety of the citizens of Auburn against the threat of puzzle-based villainy – a competition to become the Auburn Puzzle Patrol!
A few orders of business as we begin final preparations for the competition. Firstly, be sure to read the updated Rules at http://auburnpuzzlepatrol.com/rules/ – these might undergo some more revisions before the day of competition, but nothing major should change. We’ll give a brief overview of the Rules during orientation, but ultimately it’s up to the Teams to read and understand these for themselves.
Next, keep mind of the schedule for the day, also available on the rules page. Specifically:
- 9:30-9:45am
Team Checkin at City Hall (aka Parker Hall)
- 10:00am
Orientation
- 8:00pm
End of competition
- 8:15pm
Reception at City Hall, Announcement of Winners
Another change in rules I wish to call attention to: the main mode of communication with APP4 staff will be Google Chat. All necessary staffers will have Gmail addresses which you may contact via text, audio, or video Google Chat. All announcements will be made simultaneously to all teams via the http://auburnpuzzlepatrol.com blog and the Twitter feed integrated into the Puzzle Patrol Console, so we will not be calling Team Captains via cell phones. If you need to test out your computer before the day of competition, you may chat APP3 Blue Team member Steven Clontz at steven.clontz@gmail.com at any time. In case of a game-breaking emergency during the competition, I’ll give you Steven’s phone number during orientation as well.
Also, we are asking veteran Heroes (regulars of these puzzle competitions) to contribute a few dollars if they can, no more than $3 to $5, in order to help pay for pizza and drinks at the reception. We do not want Rookies (first-time competitors) to pay any money – thanks for coming out and doing your part to keep Auburn safe! 
We’ll have a container players can donate money into at check-in.
Something else – regardless how the competition ends, it’s important that regular fall puzzle competitions continue on for the forseeable future. The Blue Team, the victors in Auburn Puzzle Party 3 (2009), has been working in a shadow capacity to my staff to help make this competition something special, and we need someone to step up and take charge to ensure that the Auburn Puzzle Party 5 in Fall 2011 carries on the tradition into the future.
The right to organize APP5 will be granted to the new Auburn Puzzle Patrol – the victors of our competition. Should they not wish or not be able to organize the competition, this right will go to the highest scoring team who is willing to step up to the challenge. My friends in the APP3 Blue Team assure me that this has been a rewarding experience, and they’re excited to see it all come to fruition this coming Saturday.
Thank you all for everything that you do. It all comes to a head in less than seven days. We should have a straightforward day of puzzle-solving fun… assuming nothing expected pops up!
-The Commissioner
