Please read the rules carefully as some things have changed from previous years!
If you have any questions or concerns about any aspect of the contest, please message me directly (#22700)! Don't just go ahead with whatever and assume things!


1.
* Sign-Ups starting January 15th and will be ending on February 26th.
(This is to allow players time to start collecting funds, other resources, and possible team members for the contest.)
* All important mascot dates can be seen on the official HP calendar and the Important Dates Thread of the Forum’s Mascot Contest category.
* Training starts February 27th and the last day to train is April 30th!
 
2.
* Entrance fee per animal for the Ticket/Show Categories:  $80 mill HPD
* Entrance fee per animal for the No Ticket/Show Categories: $25 mill HPD
(Prices have been lowered this year to encourage more participation!)
 *This is an entrance fee per animal, not per player fee requirement!
* If you decide to drop out of the contest after training starts or get disqualified for not completing a required task, the fee is non-refundable. If you decide to drop before Sign-Ups close a refund will be given, but you will need to message me on (#22700) about it!
* Please send your entrance fee to Samantha (#1) as soon as you complete the sign up form or by February 27th.
(That will allow me to monitor who sent fees and who has not.)
 
3.
* You can enter in 4 categories: Horse (tickets & shows), Dog (tickets & shows), Horse (no tickets & shows), and Dog (no tickets & shows).
* One entrance per individual/team per category.
(Example: If you are on a team for the Horse Tickets/Shows category, you cannot enter a separate animal in that same category for yourself or with another team.)
* Mascots must be trained on separate accounts from other Mascots across all categories!
(This is to ensure training integrity and for monitoring progress purposes!)
 
4.
* Everyone must start with a "store aged" animal (3 for horses, 2 for dogs).
* This can be from the actual Store (or Cash Shop) or it can have lines.
* I can age-forward a newborn for you before the contest, but I will not de-age a lined animal.
* If your animal has lines we will subtract the "born with points" as well as any points earned from animal awards before the contest starts from your final score.
* You MUST accurately report any "born with" and animal awards points on the sign-up form.
The animal is NOT allowed to gain any other points before the training contest begins.
 
5.
* If you have a question about what is allowed for gaining points, ask me before you do it!
* It's a zero tolerance policy, and players who violate this WILL have their animals disqualified immediately.
* The Tickets/Shows Categories can use any and all means possible to gain points on their animals.
* The No Tickets/No Shows Categories cannot use training tickets, private shows, HPP trade-in for animal points, or extra energy from Store or Cash Shop.
* ALL animals in each category can use public shows, club registry, club shows, points won in the Mascot focused contests or activities hosted by the Event Coordinators during the run of the Mascot Contest, points from earning animal awards (AFTER the contest starts, please see rule #4 for more information).
* Any prizes saved up from past stocking stuffers, goodie bags, contests, activities, or events, etc. before the Mascot contest starts cannot be used for your entry! This is to ensure everyone starts off on the same footing.
 
6.
* Each animal must be Named before the contest starts and have a unique image and a back-story before it ends.
* All animals must ALSO have their height (for horses), color, and brand (does not need to be permanent) filled in before the end of the contest.
* Animals are not required to have stylesheets, as that would preclude basic players from participating. Since they are an upgrade perk.
* There are specific deadlines for these on the HP Calendar (you can also find a mini-calendar in the Mini News) & in the Important Dates forum thread.
* Animals who do not meet these deadlines WILL BE DISQUALIFIED.
 
7.
* You cannot de-age, age-forward, or breed your animal during the run of the contest.
* When advertising for your mascot in Ad Chat, no member of staff can use their staff bold text. They must buy prime advertising from the Cash Shop to make it a level playing field.
* If you are on a team, make sure you guys take turns participating in the activities that I post geared towards the mascots (rules might be different from the ECs), it's to make sure everyone has a fair chance at earning points.
***Super Important***
For single participants - You, and only you are responsible for training your mascot!
Teams - Only team members from that specific team can train their mascot!
* No outside trainers across the Mascot Contest board. If caught using a trainer your mascot will be immediately disqualified!


Remember:
* Voting in all categories makes a big difference during the final scoring!
It especially helps for the bonus prizes, so please don’t skip when the time comes!
* Part of your score is the popular vote!
It would be a good idea to advertise your animal so that you can get the popular vote.
Showcase them! Be proud of your pixel and share their greatness with others!
 *You can get funds from your personal banks, participating in club run activities, etc.
You have from now until the contest begins to raise even more money and acquire resources such as finding a graphic artist. You should also use this time to start reserving tickets and private shows.
* Having a plan will save you time and energy!
* We need at least 3 contestants in each category for the contest to run.
It's encouraged for you to enter as many categories as you want to.
The more competition, the more fun and challenging it is!
* There are optional mini-events for mascots in all categories during the contest in order to earn points and other power-ups. Mini contests will all be posted ahead of time, each with specific due dates which can be found on the HP Calendar - you may begin entering them as soon as the contest officially starts, but you may not enter after any mini-event's due by date passes.