u/Round_Force_3962

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Playing Animal Scramble this weekend and figured I'd dump what I learned reading through the site, since a lot of people seem to be scanning randomly and hoping.

The chip economy is lopsided and most people are missing it:

Vowels = 3 chips per scan. Consonants = 1. Hunt vowels first, they're basically triple value and you can't build anything without them.

J, Q, X, Z are ONLY in Sunshine, and you have to answer animal trivia to earn them. Q and Z are 10 points each, J and X are 8. One of these on a Triple Letter square is worth more than a dozen consonant scans.

The board is where the game is actually won. It's Scrabble rules — first word crosses the center star, everything connects after that. The multiplier stacking matters way more than raw letter count.

Put a Q or Z on a Triple Letter, extend the word to hit a Double Word, and you're looking at 60+ on one play. Don't dump your high-value letters on plain squares just because you have them.

Two things that are easy to miss:

Letters are shared across all your game cards, but only your highest-scoring board counts for prizes.

So multiple cards = multiple layout attempts from the same letter pool, not more letters. If you're buying more than one, that's the reason.

Ties go to whoever submitted first. If you land a good score, post it. Don't sit on it until 4:15.

Practical stuff:

Deadline is 4:20 PM Sunday. Actual hard deadline.

Service is unreliable out there. If you can't scan, take a photo of the sign and run it through Google Lens later when you've got signal the link still works and you get the chip.

Charge your phone. You're using the camera constantly all weekend.

27 animal signs across 5 zones (Downtown, Forests, Meadow, River, Sunshine). Some are off the main paths.

If you're teaming up, split the zones and pool everything. One person parked in Sunshine grinding trivia for the quest letters is probably worth more than three people wandering.

Anyway, good luck out there. Say hi if you see me.

Third Shambhala, first one sober — a thread for everyone doing it clean this year 💚

Adding to it all week.

Two Shambhalas behind me, both altered.

This year I'm rolling in dry for the first time, camping with Camp Clean Beats over in Synergy.

Instead of making my own nervous "how do I fest sober" thread I figured I'd just start one and keep it updated because I know I'm not the only one showing up substance-free this year.

Recovery, sober-curious, taking a season off, or you just want to actually remember the sunrise set.

Truth up front: you don't need anything to have the weekend of your life here. The river, the Fractal Forest at 3am, the fairy houses, the Wishing Tree, the actual humans — that was always the drug.

What Camp Clean Beats is (for anyone who doesn't know):

Peer-supported, fully substance-free camp in Synergy. Everyone welcome — long-term recovery, newly sober, sober-curious, or just doing it clean this year. No labels required.

Optional peer-led meetings, Thurs–Sun, 3x/day: 10–11am, 4–5pm, 9–10pm. Sharing is always optional.

Community-powered ... no site fee, everyone pitches one ~4hr care shift (coffee, welcoming, tidying).

That's the whole magic.

Sober-specific stuff I'm actually planning around:

Hydration is the whole game — ~4L/day, electrolytes not just water. Dehydration is the #1 medical call every year and sober you feels every bit of it with nothing masking it.

Guard your sleep like it's sacred. Music runs to ~6am. Earplugs + eye mask + a dark tent. Sober you needs the rest substances used to fake.

Cold valley nights (drops to ~8–14°C pre-dawn). Warm layers. Cold + tired is where a shaky night starts.

Know where support lives even if you never touch it: Camp Clean Beats meetings, Sanctuary (24hr, by Medical, for overwhelm/anxiety), Safe Space (24hr), Medical 24hr downtown.

Have your "why" ready. It's a gift culture — someone will offer. "I'm good, camping sober this year" ends it every time. Nobody here pushes.

The float, sunrise sets, and a downtempo reset in the Grove are the sober jackpots. Wander wide.

I'll be around all weekend (volunteering as a floater too) and I'll edit this thread with on-the-ground updates once I'm in.

Sober vets — what do you wish someone told you before your first clean Shambhala? First-timers — ask me anything.

See you on the farm. 💚

-Will