Challenges
Complete and submit challenges in order to earn coins that can be used to redeem prizes! Challenges can be done through art or literature (ponies or human), and submitted on your preferred hosting site- so long as you're able to link it in the submission boxes! You can submit more than one entry per challenge.
To The Bitter End
Bloodfeuds both ancient and modern never tend to go well. Folks and families can get caught up in this mess, even whole towns- and the blood spilt ain't always of the guilty parties. Even if you don't remember exactly how it began, you sure know how you're gonna end it; nothing's ever over till the last memories lay in the dirt.
Draw or write about a pair of rivals. Are they amicable nemesis- or would they sooner see eachother in hell than call a truce? How far are they willing to go to have the last laugh?
Cowboys vs Aliens
Strange lights in the woods often just means the shiners are out and about. Strange lights in the sky? That's somethin different entirely. One wonders what those mystery airships are up to.
Draw or write about a close encounter with something that isn't from this world- is it really an alien, or is it perhaps a hoax or a case of mistaken identity?
Critters Most Fearsome
The Glawackus, Teakettler, and the Gillygaloo are all funny little things that folks see out in the woods while workin their shift at the lumberyard. Sometimes they're a little spooky, like the Hidebehind- but these things are mostly harmless- doing such as flying backwards and laying square eggs. It's goofy, sure, but a little fun never hurt nobody.
Draw or write up your own lumberjack critter. Usually, these creatures aren't all that frightening- they're more fun and silly. What sort of strange animal can you dream up?
Fool's Gold
Great scars get dug down into the earth for want of ores, gold, and oil- the veins of nature exposed and mined up in mazes upon mazes leading down in attempts to match bottomless greed. One wonders when looking down into the dark tunnels ahead- perhaps, have we delved too deep?
Draw or write about a discovery in the depths- a mine, a cave, or even the dark seas. What awaits down where light won't even tread?
This place is made up of people of all classes and creeds. Those already here had a rich tapestry of tales to draw from, and those folk who came across the sea brought with them not only their families but the spooks and stories from their own lands- what kind of tale do you bring to the table?
Adapt a creature or some folklore inspired by your heritage! preferable, you can also have your OC tell a story from their homeland- even if it's a made-up place.
Patchwork Phantoms
Horses for the Horseman
What is a cowboy without their trusty steed? Of course, not everyone's choice in mount is the most conventional- heard tale of folks even riding camels out on the plains!
Draw or write about your choice of mount- can be near anything! Is your ride your loyal partner, or would you trust em about as far as you could throw em?
Snowed In
Say you and a few friends get caught in some nasty weather; can't hardly go nowhere, can't call for help, and the storm doesn't seem to show any signs of letting up- hasn't for days now.
See, the thing is, food stores are running low, and there's concerns that this little party may end up one of the Donner variety. Say then, someone goes missing.
Who amongst you can you really trust?
Draw or write about the tensions that arise from a locked-in or stranded scenario.
Last years challenges are available here! Nothing new, but if you'd like to tread old ground you can certainly submit to any of these!
The Major's Tree
It's a fearsome, somber thing, branches stretching up towards the sky with roots planted in the middle of the road. Folks tend not to linger here, either out of respect for its ill-fated namesake or for fear of what stalks the road in the night. Lone hoofbeats, ghost trains in the
distance and lost soldiers pass through the tales told of the place.
Draw or write about an encounter on the weary road. Do you find an echo from the lost past, or even a shadow from your own?
Bloodied Ballads
Stories can be wonderfully told through music, and that of the macabre finds its home in the classic tradition of the murder ballad. Love, revenge, innocence and admissions of guilt all mingle in the verse. Do you have a song to confess?
Pull inspiration from a murder ballad to adapt into art or writing (link the original), or create your own take on the ballad.
Examples Kate Mccannon ,Where the Wild Roses Grow,In Hell i'll be in Good Company
Spin a Yarn
With each telling, stories change and grow over the years just as the folks telling them do. Some of the best have been passed down generations- little fragments of wisdom or warnings kept for those young or foolish. These stories are heirlooms, but not the sort to be kept locked up behind glass; they're meant to be shared.
Put your own spin on a classic story through writing or art. Be sure to link to the original tale for others to read.
Past the Veil
Spiritualism is the new big thing- step up to the table and join hands to see what comes through to answer your call! Is the seance just an act by vultures who prey on the bereaved, or is it a genuine channel to spirits of the beyond?
Draw or write a scene of communing with the dead- who is the spirit? What do they have to say?
Deal with the Devil
What’s the real cost of your soul? What would it take for you to part with it? Perhaps some fine fiddle skills, the woman of your dreams- or the classic folly of wealth and power? Name your price and come to the crossroads for a meeting you won't soon forget.
What sort of exchange would your character make? Was the deal worth it, or does it fall flat? Write or draw out your tale.
Prayers for the Wicked
Our past follows us always, and try as we might to run from it the only thing we can do is try to reconcile with ourselves. For some, there's no such thing as redemption, only a black stain or a scarlet letter upon their name. We make our own demons. If the weight of your sins could take a form- would it be a terrible beast, or would it just be the face in the mirror?
Design a creature or write an interaction revolving around your character's regrets, fears, and storied past.
In the Pines
Things lurk out there- things beyond simple explanation. Whether they hide between the trees, beneath the brook, across the worn bridge, or just at the edge of perception, they're out there all right. There may not be anything concrete, but those howls in the night and eyes in the dark are just proof enough for many ponies.
Pay tribute to your favorite cryptid through art or writing.
