Event info

The quests

The challenges are split into main quests and side quests, plus surprise bonus quests during the day.

Main quests are worth the most points, and finishing all of them in time earns a bonus. Most send you to a set location to find an organiser, who tells you what to do next.

Side quests are done along the way, and range from taking a photo somewhere to racing the light rail.

Blast from Season 1

• Slow Rail!Get off the light rail at Haymarket, then run to Town Hall on foot and board the same light rail vehicle.
• Atop the FairfieldClimb to the top of the Pyramid Net Climber in Fairfield Adventure Park.
• The Second Coming of ScomoTake a video of one of your teammates saying (with your best Scott Morrison impression) “I don't hold a hose, mate”.
• Go Big or Go HomePhotograph your team visiting as many big things as possible.
• Very Chinese Time Of My LifeEnact a set conversation in Chinese (as best as you can) at Hurstville or Burwood.
• Beach Day???Take a swim at a beach in full clothing.
• On TimeHave your whole team show up at the briefings on time.

Some side quests are scored comparatively, so only one team can win:

• RailSoc Challenge for Most Stations VisitedVisit the most train/metro stations.
• Bye Sydney!Get to the furthest point away from the start.
• We are so CoolTake the coolest group photo.

Bonus quests are posted on Discord during the day. Some are time-sensitive or tied to a place:

• Stop, drop, and go say hiMake a pitstop at a named station within the hour and say hi to an Organising Committee member.
• RiddlerSolve the riddle.

The full list is on the quest list and map.

Scoring

Main quests

Most main quests are staffed by an organiser, who records your points on the spot.

Side quests

Proof goes in on the submit page. Photo or video evidence is required for most side quests, and the organisers check it during the day. Follow each quest's own instructions for what the proof has to show.

The briefing

How submissions work is covered in the briefing on the day, so be there on time.

The tab

The live tab shows the standings until 14:30, when it freezes. Scoring carries on after that; the final standings are kept back for the closing ceremony.

Winning

The team with the most points that is back at UNSW for the closing ceremony wins.

Rules

1. 1All team members must stay together for challenge completions (unless otherwise specified).
2. 2Photo/video proof must clearly show all team members and the relevant location or task.
3. 3No falsifying evidence. Any team found to be faking submissions will be disqualified.
4. 4Public transport is the main mode of travel. You may bike, but your whole team would have to bike. Driving, taxis and rideshare are allowed but not encouraged.
5. 5Respect the public. Be courteous to bystanders, staff at businesses, and fellow commuters.
6. 6Be back at UNSW for the closing ceremony at 17:30.
7. 7Most importantly, have fun.

What to bring

• A fully charged phone, and a power bank if you have one. The whole day runs on your phone: the quest list, proof uploads, your ticket and Discord.
• Opal card or a credit card for public transport.
• Comfortable shoes and clothing, because you will be walking a lot.
• Water bottle and snacks.
• Sunscreen, hat and other forms of sun protection.
• Pen and paper, for some quests.
• Enthusiasm and a competitive spirit.

Collaborating societies

Season 2 is run by eleven societies:

• Asian Studies Association
• Chess Club
• GeoGuessrSoc
• PhotoSoc
• PuzzleSoc
• Queer Students in STEM
• RailSoc
• Rhythm Games Society
• Tabletop Games Society
• WanderSoc
• WestSoc

Install the app

Once installed, the quest list and the parts of the map you have looked at work without signal, and the app can notify you when the organisers post an announcement. Everything also works in a browser.

iPhone. Open this site in Safari. Tap Share (the square with an arrow pointing up), then Add to Home Screen, then Add. On iPhone, notifications only reach the installed app, so turn them on from there: the gear at the top of any page, then Notifications.

Android. Use Chrome. Open this site, tap the three-dot menu, then Install app (some phones say Add to Home screen).

Open the app once while you have signal so it can fetch the quest list, and look at the map around where you will be.

Using the app

The quest list. The chips above the map narrow the list to one category, and the search box finds a quest by code or name. Allow my location, in the filters or the pin button on the map, shows how far away each quest is, and a slider then narrows the list to a distance you set. Quests with no fixed location have no pin; the count in the corner of the map says how many there are, and a tap on it lists them.

A quest’s sheet. Tap a quest on the list or a pin on the map. The sheet has what to do, where it is, how many teams have scored it, and its codes and points. A tick, on the row or on the sheet, crosses the quest out and adds its base points to the total at the foot of the list. Ticks stay on the phone they were made on.

Live questions. During the day the organisers can put a question on a quest: a choice, a number, a short answer or a wager of points. The quest is marked LIVE on the list, the question is at the top of its sheet, and you answer it there once you have signed in on the submit page. If answers close at a set time, the sheet says when.

Sending proof. Sign in with your team name and the submit code from the organisers, pick the quest, attach up to four photos or videos, and send. On a phone, the green button in the bottom corner opens the form from every other page, and Submit proof on a quest’s sheet opens it with that quest already picked. Keep the page open and the screen awake while a large video uploads.

Compress. The Compress view of the submit page shrinks a video on the phone before it is sent. Pick a picture size and a target size; Use as proof then puts the result straight into the form. The first run downloads about 31 MB and keeps it, so try it once before the day.

Already sent. Every submission and what the tab team decided, on the submit page. A rejected one comes back with the reason and can be sent again. Your score, on the same page, is the team’s place and points until the tab freezes.

The live tab. Every team’s place, points and last scored quest. It refreshes itself every 30 seconds until the freeze.

The bell. A dot on the bell at the top of the page means a message from the organisers you have not read. An urgent message opens over whatever page you are on, and a message about a quest links straight to it.

Communication

All event communication runs through the official SCS Discord server:

• Challenge announcements
• Bonus drops
• Score submissions
• Leaderboard updates
• Organiser contact

The Season 2 Discord server invite will be shared closer to the event. Keep an eye on our socials and this website. (Don't have Discord yet? Get it here.)

Announcements are also posted on this site. The bell at the top of every page opens them, and the installed app can notify you when one is posted.

At least one person from each team must join before the day.

Questions

What if no one from our team can make check-in?

You can join later. Late teams still check in at the Keith Burrows Theatre, and you will have less time for quests.

Do we need to bring our own food, drinks, hat, etc?

Yes. Some food and drink is provided at the end of the day.

Do we get a participation award?

Not quite, but there is free food at the end of the day.

Will we still be eligible for prizes even if not all of us are in the societies running this event?

Yes.

Is there a minimum standard of skills and experience required to participate?

No. Organisers will be around to help with any puzzle tasks.

SCS glossary of terms

OrgComm

Shorthand for “Organising Committee”, which is the entire team that plans and runs the event.

Tab

Shorthand for tabulation, but used as a noun for the system which tracks the points earned by each team (also “Tab Team”, “Tabbing”).

Credit

(verb) To attribute points earned to a team.

Quests

The set of activities that teams can complete to earn points.

Briefings

The introductory session at the start of the event that explains how everything works.

Convenor

Persons managing the overall running of the event.

Lead

Persons managing the overall running of a specific part of the event.

Credits

• The haptic taps in the app come from web-haptics by Lochie Axon.
• Videos are compressed on the phone by ffmpeg.wasm.