Hey guys! So we've had a lot of guides on how to mod, and how to map. However, something that deserves more coverage is the actual process of getting something ranked - specifically, how to become a BN!
Disclaimer: Please note that this guide will not be revealing questions, or solutions to questions in previous BN Tests. The goal of this guide is pool all current BN resources together into one thread, and to advise current modders of how to improve their modding skills in an effort to become a BN. Almost all of the information here is relevant even if you are already a BN.
Before you begin the test, please note that this is an open-book test. You are allowed to consult the ranking criteria, you are allowed to have a tab opened to read the list of BN Rules. Rather, you are encouraged to do so!
The test is out of 100 possible points. 50 of those points will come from Part A, and 50 from Part B. You need at least 75 points in order to pass.Let's begin with a break down of the BN Test. The test is split into two parts, Part A, multiple choice, and Part B, modding.
Part A will test your knowledge of the ranking criteria, as well as your knowledge of the BNG, and its many rules and regulations. Be sure to consult these resources if you find yourself stuck on a question. It is entirely possible to score 50/50 on Part A. All answers are available to you, you just need to know where to look.
The scoring system for Part B is a bit different from Part A. You can be awarded a maximum of 40 points for your mod. A 40/40 would mean pointing out everything that the test-makers have determined were "worth mentioning" in the set. An additional 10 points will be awarded by whoever is marking your test (typically a QAT, or a Community Manager). These 10 points will be awarded based on the quality of your mod, how well you were able to describe your concerns, and whether you mentioned any interesting ideas that were not marked as "wrong" on the map.
If you would like a more detailed explanation of the BN Test format, check out this blogpost written by Irreversible and Mao - the creators of the BN Test!
http://osuqat.tumblr.com/post/152896720 ... xamination
Writing a guide on how to succeed in Part B will be too difficult and too subjective. People will approach modding differently. However, here are some resources that will definitely help you out as you work through this section of the test (and they will continue to help you when you become a BN!)
Good luck on the test! Please comment below if you have any concerns you want to clarify! Unfortunately, I cannot actually discuss answers to previous BN tests, but if it's a question related to the ranking criteria or the bng rules, I will do the best I can to explain them! Other nominators, feel free to chime in about things I've missed or things I can add. Thanks for the read! I hope this guide will help improve the quality of modders entering the BNG. The resources I mentioned above are relevant to all modders by the way, not just for aspiring BN's.
Disclaimer: Please note that this guide will not be revealing questions, or solutions to questions in previous BN Tests. The goal of this guide is pool all current BN resources together into one thread, and to advise current modders of how to improve their modding skills in an effort to become a BN. Almost all of the information here is relevant even if you are already a BN.
- To become a BN, you first need to qualify for the BN Test. Because everyone wants to be a BN, there are certain requirements in place to automatically filter modders. Check out this thread if you want an in-depth guide on applying for a BN: t/471344
- To sum it up, you need a total score of over 1100* in order to be eligible for the BN Test. You can calculate your score here:
http://modscore.little.moe/
The BN Test
The BN Test is there to test your abilities not just as a modder, but also as someone who can adequately help bring a pending map into ranked. The procedure for checking a map and preparing it for ranking is slightly different from modding. Of course, your goal is to improve the map, but as a BN, or an aspiring BN, your goal is also to make sure the mapset meets all the requirements of an official "Ranked" beatmap. This is intended to be a short guide on how you can assure a map's quality. The intention of this guide is to help prepare aspiring modders for upcoming BN Tests.Before you begin the test, please note that this is an open-book test. You are allowed to consult the ranking criteria, you are allowed to have a tab opened to read the list of BN Rules. Rather, you are encouraged to do so!
The test is out of 100 possible points. 50 of those points will come from Part A, and 50 from Part B. You need at least 75 points in order to pass.
The BN Test: Part A - Multiple Choice
In Part A, you are given typical test-questions. Questions you can expect are:- Multiple-choice questions
- True or False questions
- Questions that ask you to select all possible answers from a pool (For example: Which of the following maps are mapped by Monstrata? Select all that apply.)
Part A will test your knowledge of the ranking criteria, as well as your knowledge of the BNG, and its many rules and regulations. Be sure to consult these resources if you find yourself stuck on a question. It is entirely possible to score 50/50 on Part A. All answers are available to you, you just need to know where to look.
- Ranking Criteria:
https://osu.ppy.sh/wiki/Ranking_Criteria
You will be tested on your reading comprehension of these rules. Be sure you know what they all mean. Additionally, familiarize yourself with the non-standard ranking criteria, as questions involving hybrid sets may also arise. While you are not expected to know how to mod taiko/ctb/mania maps, you are still expected to know how to handle them, otherwise, how would you nominate hybrid mapsets? - BNG Rules:
t/516786
You will be tested on how well you understand these BNG Rules. Be sure to know when you are allowed to bubble a map, when you should bubble-pop, and when you should rebubble a map instead of qualify. - Skinning Elements:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... 2074725196
This is a comprehensive list of skinnable elements as well as the skin sets they belong to. This spreadsheet will help you in answering any questions related to skinning. For example, if you wish to skin the Hitcircle Numbers.png in your mapset, you will need to include elements for default-0, default-1, default-2, etc... default-9. - Sourcing Official Metadata:
p/4561967
p/5311815
Metadata is absolutely important, and it is something all BN's have to check for before nominating a map. Incorrect metadata is unrankable, after all. These useful guides by Bakari and IamKwaN will give you a better idea of what sources are considered "official". The key to success in metadata is being able to determine what sites are official, and what sites are not. Please note that quoting another "ranked" version of the same song is not a viable source. People make mistakes, and metadata was not as strict a few years ago. Also, do not quote other rhythm games as viable sources. Make sure you are quoting from their official sites, cd's, albums. Hexis, osu's evil cousin, is also a rhythm game, would you trust the metadata on that site any more than osu? - Official osu! Rules:
https://osu.ppy.sh/wiki/Osu!:Rules
This resource is useful even though it doesn't pertain directly to beatmapping. If a question arises that requires you to judge the appropriateness of certain songs, maps, lyrics, etc... this is where you turn to. Remember that getting a beatmap ranked means it will become an official part of osu! Therefore, the content you create should also be appropriate for the site. The main take-away from this resource is how NSFW material is handled, and what kinds of topics should be avoided. - Other things to consider:
When approaching the multiple choice section, your mindset should always be "what should I do as a BN or QAT". Never think like an edgy experimental triangle mapper trying to push the boundaries of the Ranking Criteria. You can do that on your own time. Whenever you encounter potentially ambiguous questions, always choose the answer that most reasonable people would select. Remember that you are not arguing with the test marker, and you cannot provide explanations for your choices. Therefore, absolutely avoid the mindset "well this ranked mapset used a certain subjectively unrankable element, so that element can be considered acceptable." There may be exceptions, and people may have accidentally allowed a low quality map into the ranked section. Do not use edge-case examples as an excuse to pick certain answers.
The BN Test: Part B - Modding
Part B tests your modding ability. Unlike Part A, Part B is far more subjective, as there are many ways to approach modding. In this section, you will be modding a map spread which involves an Easy, Normal, Hard, Insane, and potentially an Extra. Be prepared to give suggestions for all five difficulties even if you may not be comfortable with certain star-ratings.The scoring system for Part B is a bit different from Part A. You can be awarded a maximum of 40 points for your mod. A 40/40 would mean pointing out everything that the test-makers have determined were "worth mentioning" in the set. An additional 10 points will be awarded by whoever is marking your test (typically a QAT, or a Community Manager). These 10 points will be awarded based on the quality of your mod, how well you were able to describe your concerns, and whether you mentioned any interesting ideas that were not marked as "wrong" on the map.
If you would like a more detailed explanation of the BN Test format, check out this blogpost written by Irreversible and Mao - the creators of the BN Test!
http://osuqat.tumblr.com/post/152896720 ... xamination
Writing a guide on how to succeed in Part B will be too difficult and too subjective. People will approach modding differently. However, here are some resources that will definitely help you out as you work through this section of the test (and they will continue to help you when you become a BN!)
- Modding Assistant
http://puu.sh/sQaQ4.zip
This tool made by Sieg is your bread and butter when you become a BN. Running a map through this program will check for almost every single unrankable error. Some very useful things this tool can check are: off-screen sliders, inconsistent values (tags, artist, source etc...), unused hitsounds, unused storyboard files, missing elements in a skin, etc...
Make sure you utilize this program in order to check for unrankables, because there will be unrankable elements in the test.
If you'd like more practice on finding unrankable elements, definitely check out Charles445's Modding Puzzle: p/4212622 - AiBat v3.1 (with snapping diagnostics)
p/2877127
Modding Assistant already accounts for everything the original AiBat checked for, however, Charles' modified version of the AiBat also features a "snapping dump" that displays the snapping of every single object on a map. This program is incredibly useful for two reasons. Firstly, it can check for snapping mistakes, such as accidental 1/16 and 1/12 snaps. Secondly, it can also check for snapping inconsistencies across difficulties. For example, a section of a song may be snapped to 1/3 on an Insane, but it might be snapped to 1/8 or 1/4 on Extra. By going through different difficulties for snapping, you are able to pinpoint these inconsistencies. - Spinner Recovery
Spinner Recovery is something that is mentioned in the current Ranking Criteria, but is not well written. Additionally, the ctb version of the criteria uses wording that isn't congruent with what most mappers are familiar with. So, I will reiterate them here:
Spinner Recovery is necessary on lower difficulties because new players need time to readjust their mouse/tablet after completing a spinner. The general rule of thumb is:
Easy: 1 measure of break, or 4 beats.
Normal: 1/2 a measure of break, or 2 beats.
Hard: 1/4 a measure of break, or 1 beat.
There is no requirement for spinner recovery on Insanes and Extra's, just exercise common sense (don't use 1/16).
Please note, this is on 160 BPM. - Distance-snapping Consistency (for Easy/Normal)
A quick trick to check for distance-snapping consistency is to select the entire difficulty (Ctrl+A) and then pressing Q twice, in order to remove all new combo's. After doing so, use AiMod, and check the "Distance Snap" box above in order to check for any instances where the map's spacing becomes inconsistent. Typically on Easies and Normals, the mapper will use a consistent DS, and deviating from this can be confusing to the player. Most of the time, distance-snap errors are accidents. - Difficulty Settings
When checking mapsets, another thing you should always consider is the difficulty settings of every individual difficulty. AR 10 on an Easy probably isn't the best idea. While, there is no set-in-stone value for difficulty settings, here is a good range I like to use. Make sure you consider the BPM and the rhythm density of a difficulty if/when you recommend a change to the difficulty settings.
Easy: AR 2-3.5 / OD 2-3 / HP 1-2
Normal: AR 4-6 / OD 3-5 / HP 2-4
Hard: AR 6-8 / OD 5-7 / HP 4-6
Insane: AR 8+ / OD 7+ / HP 5+
Extra: AR 9+ / OD 8+/ HP 6+
CS has been neglected because mapsets can be subjective. Exercise your own judgement. CS 7 on an Easy probably isn't a good idea, but CS 2 on an Extra can be perfectly acceptable. - Other things to consider:
Burai sliders: One thing Modding Assistant cannot check for is "Burai" sliders, sliders that overlap over themselves, and are thus unrankable. Make sure you keep your eye out for sliders like these:
Additionally, another thing Modding Assistant cannot check for, is hidden repeat arrows on repeat sliders. It's necessary for these repeats to be visible in gameplay, otherwise they pose an unfair reading challenge. Be on the look-out for stuff like:
When going through the test, you may also wish to consider spread-related issues, such as there being a difficulty gap between a 2 star Normal and a 6 star Hard. You are encouraged to create a General section in your mod where you discuss these things!
Check out pishifat's video on mapset spreads for a more detailed explanation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cFzwRIxte4
Additionally, don't forget to check hitsounds. If you aren't proficient in modding hitsounds, don't worry! You can still check for hitsound consistency. Listen to the hitsound patterns in the map, and if you notice a missing clap or finish, don't hesitate to mention it.---
Part B is all about modding. This includes both finding errors, and also suggesting improvements. Remember that there are no wrong answers in Part B, so if you are ever unsure of whether to mention something or not, definitely consider mentioning it! You won't lose marks for pointing out stuff that isn't inherently wrong, as long as you can back up your concerns with reasons. Here's a quick formula for writing effective mods:
Problem: State what you believe the problem. Example: This jump is too big...
Reasoning: Give a reason for why you believe that to be a problem. Example: ...because using a 5.00x cross screen jump on an Easy difficulty doesn't seem appropriate.
Solution: Offer a solution to the problem. Example: Consider reducing the spacing to 1.00x as this spacing will be consistent with the rest of your difficulty!
Good luck on the test! Please comment below if you have any concerns you want to clarify! Unfortunately, I cannot actually discuss answers to previous BN tests, but if it's a question related to the ranking criteria or the bng rules, I will do the best I can to explain them! Other nominators, feel free to chime in about things I've missed or things I can add. Thanks for the read! I hope this guide will help improve the quality of modders entering the BNG. The resources I mentioned above are relevant to all modders by the way, not just for aspiring BN's.
. I'll use the guide if the next round of BN has come :3