Multicache as advent calendar

[+BethDaddyKaty]

Hi all,

 

Advice welcome

 

I was thinking of doing an advent calendar in the local area. There are a lot of active cachers and I thought it would be something a bit different for Christmas.

 

The idea would be to have a string of 24 caches on a bird theme. Each bird is hidden in a (roughly) circular route, with a specially produced FTF badge. Each bird has the first half of the co-ordinates for the next cache.

 

However, to make it an advent calendar, the second half of the co-ordinates will be published each day. My plan will be to add this onto the multi-cache page, but also to auto-tweet it (because they're birds) at midnight for the FTF hounds because from experience there WILL be competition for those badges.

 

The idea will be the caches will all be cache and dash-type hides, not difficult in itself. The challenge will be to find all 24 in sequence. My guess is some will want to do them as the month progresses, and some may want to do all 24 in series after Christmas.

 

Logbook will be in a special cache on 24th.

 

Would be interested to know if people think it is a good idea, and also whether a multi-cache is the best way of implementing this? I could do 24 traditional caches, but I appreciate having to release one a day is a lot of hassle for our hard working reviewers.

 

Thanks for your advice.

[+CAVinoGal]

23 minutes ago, daddybeth said:

The idea would be to have a string of 24 caches on a bird theme. Each bird is hidden in a (roughly) circular route, with a specially produced FTF badge. Each bird has the first half of the co-ordinates for the next cache.

24 physical locations for the birds - would need to be in compliance with the proximity rules.  FTF badge in each bird - but each one is part of a multi, so they get an FTF badge for the STAGE? By adding the FTF element, it sounds more like a series of 24 traditionals, or mysteries.

 

27 minutes ago, daddybeth said:

However, to make it an advent calendar, the second half of the co-ordinates will be published each day. My plan will be to add this onto the multi-cache page, but also to auto-tweet it (because they're birds) at midnight for the FTF hounds because from experience there WILL be competition for those badges.

So you'll be editing the waypoints/cache description each day and adding half the coordinates; the other half to be in the hidden bird stage.  Will those birds be hidden daily as well?  I can imagine someone catching on to the theme, and finding (and grabbing) all the FTF badges even before you  tweet/publish the second half of the coordinates.

 

It's an intriguing idea, but a lot of work for you to implement the way I am interpreting it (and I could be wrong!).  A 24 stage multi is quite ambitious; I'm not sure how I, as a geocacher, would feel coming upon this, say in June, and having to find a series of 24 stages - though the bird idea (and finding the birds) could be a lot of fun!

[+BethDaddyKaty]

Thanks for your feedback.

 

The idea would be to just schedule the tweets with the second half of the co-ordinate.so there is little effort required beyond setting it up initially. The second half can then be added when I am able to to the cache page for those not wanting to race for FTFs.

 

You are right that it is an ambitious series, but of course the joy of Twitter is that as well as the GC logs people can interact on Twitter and those responses are archived also.

 

My plan is to place them, roughly, on the circular commute I do on pushbike so the caches could be placed shortly before "release" and intensely maintained for the 24 days, with routine maintenance thereafter. However, the risk that one link in the chain could break the cache is concerning, which is why I am debating between a multicache with total control of release dates vs traditional caches but losing some of the advent calendar feeling.

 

 

[+niraD]

1 hour ago, daddybeth said:

The idea would be to have a string of 24 caches on a bird theme. Each bird is hidden in a (roughly) circular route, with a specially produced FTF badge. Each bird has the first half of the co-ordinates for the next cache.

This will be a problem. If one cache has information for finding another cache, then the second cache is considered a bonus cache. But according to the Help Center article Bonus caches:

 

Quote

Bonus cache clues can’t be in another bonus cache

No geocache should have more than one cache dependent on it.

In the example below, the two Mystery Caches on the right side are not allowed. If one preliminary cache is disabled or archived, three caches become unavailable instead of one. In some regions, this is known as "Daisy Chain".

 

So you can have the cache for December 1 point to the bonus cache for December 2, but you cannot then have the bonus cache for December 2 point to the bonus cache for December 3 (or any other bonus cache).

[+CAVinoGal]

1 hour ago, niraD said:

This will be a problem. If one cache has information for finding another cache, then the second cache is considered a bonus cache.

 

As I'm reading it, these are all STAGES of ONE multi-cache, not 24 separate caches. 

"Would be interested to know if people think it is a good idea, and also whether a multi-cache is the best way of implementing this? I could do 24 traditional caches, but I appreciate having to release one a day is a lot of hassle for our hard working reviewers."

If, in fact, this is 24 separate CACHES, then it would be "daisy chaining", and disallowed as niraD pointed out.  A multi would be about the only way you COULD implement this, I think.  At least as far as releasing some info each day to lead to the next stage.

 

Not all cachers use Twitter - and they would have to set up an account in order to get all the clues - that isn't allowed either, is it?

 

As I said, an intriguing idea, but the implementation is not going to be easy or simple!

 

Edited November 7, 2019 by CAVinoGal

[Keystone]

A cache needs to be find-able on the date of publication, so releasing stage clues on twitter once each day won't work with a multicache.  It would work with traditionals but the daisy chaining problem needs to be solved.  A single "series bonus" cache at the end of the daily standalone caches (presumably, self-contained Mystery caches) would be one solution.

Edited November 7, 2019 by Keystone

[+niraD]

4 hours ago, CAVinoGal said:

As I'm reading it, these are all STAGES of ONE multi-cache, not 24 separate caches. 

Yeah, there's some language that refers to a single multi-cache, but the idea of an FTF badge for each of the 24 pushed me solidly into the "series of 24 separate caches" camp.

[+papu66]

Two things come to mind.

First, making a single multi with 24 physical points may cause some tension if there is shortage of hiding spots in the area.

Second, If the multi needs to be available on the day of publication, I wonder if you could just make it extremely hard (but technically possible).

For example, if each stage had a combination lock to open and the code is revealed at midnight (and coordinates to next stage inside), then this might be okay.

As I see it, you maybe don't even need 24 locks, as you can just use the old ones which you remove as the days progress.

[+niraD]

7 minutes ago, papu66 said:

First, making a single multi with 24 physical points may cause some tension if there is shortage of hiding spots in the area.

Actually, a multi with 24 physical stages could be easier than 24 separate physical caches. With the multi, the 24 physical stages are allowed to be within 528ft/161m of each other; the saturation guideline applies only between them and other caches. With separate caches, all the caches need to be 528ft/161m from each other.

[+papu66]

2 minutes ago, niraD said:

Actually, a multi with 24 physical stages could be easier than 24 separate physical caches. With the multi, the 24 physical stages are allowed to be within 528ft/161m of each other; the saturation guideline applies only between them and other caches. With separate caches, all the caches need to be 528ft/161m from each other.

I know, but if there's 24 stages close by, people would brute force find them to get those badges ad leap ahead in the multi.

[+DerDiedler]

7 hours ago, daddybeth said:

My plan will be to add this onto the multi-cache page, but also to auto-tweet it (because they're birds) at midnight for the FTF hounds because from experience there WILL be competition for those badges.

I don´t think that there will be any FTF hunt for only a badge. One station of a Multi is nothing FTF hounds want´s to find first. They cant claim anything online and they can´t put a [FTF] in any log to get it registered by Project-GC. Taking a badge home, invisible to any other competitors, is just not appealing to a real FTF hound

[+Max and 99]

1 hour ago, papu66 said:

Second, If the multi needs to be available on the day of publication, I wonder if you could just make it extremely hard (but technically possible).

For example, if each stage had a combination lock to open and the code is revealed at midnight (and coordinates to next stage inside), then this might be okay.

I'd be very surprised if that was approved. 

[Johannis10]

https://coord.info/GC6VA66 for example was part of an advent calendar. We create for each day a seperate cache. We contact a reviewer a few weeks bevor. The reviewer ceck all listings bevor publishing the first cache and locked the listings. He create a publish list, who automatically publish the Cache at the right day and time. Works perfect. Have fun.
Greetings Johannis10

Edited November 7, 2019 by Johannis10

[+cerberus1]

17 hours ago, daddybeth said:

I was thinking of doing an advent calendar in the local area. 

 

My guess is some will want to do them as the month progresses, and some may want to do all 24 in series after Christmas.

 

 - but I appreciate having to release one a day is a lot of hassle for our hard working reviewers.

 

Nice try...     

We've done a couple dozen series with a "bonus" at the end.  The "calendar" sounds like fun for those who'd do it as-presented. 

 - Around half we've done had the bonus completed, missing the clue/unable to read on a couple.

Maybe it's just me,  but as much as I like to walk, I wouldn't want to continue the same cache route each day just for another "along the way", when I can simply do them all at a later date.

[+TeamRabbitRun]

Are you going to make me sign up for twitter to do your cache(s)?

 

Is this supposed to be an advent calendar-like experience, meaning every day I get a treat (tweet? bad pun) or will this actually be a advent-themed thing?