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Post by The REAL Mr. Jimmyface on May 31, 2021 1:33:42 GMT -5
Here is the vignette I saw that led to the change in the Heavy Metal Title. Welcome to 1992 WCW, kids!
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Post by The REAL Mr. Jimmyface on May 31, 2021 13:54:01 GMT -5
Some details and background on The Gauntlet Match, my mid year staple for my GWF (and other) feds...
I think the Royal Rumble is the single greatest gimmick match and PPV concept ever devised. 30 wrestlers in a single match, with the winner getting to main event WrestleMania. Goal oriented, unpredictable, action packed, and allows for surprise entrants coming down the aisle. It is a concept with a lot of capacity to create or further storylines, gauge fan reactions when two wrestlers face off for the first time, and allow someone new to get a taste of the spotlight by putting on a great match.
I tweaked it by not only changing the name, I made it that eliminations happened by pinfall or submission only. Of the thirty participants, 20 would come from the singles division, and 10 would come from the tag division (by selecting 5 tag teams). Put them in random order (either by drawing them out of a hat, or using an Excel Spreadsheet formula (see below), I would have them fight one on one until only one wrestler was left. Fatigue tokens accumulate, and it would become a challenge to see who could set a record for the most eliminations during the match. The original record was 16 by Thantos in 2087, a record that stood until 2109 when Paragon eliminated 21 opponents in a single match.
How do I select them? Well, selection process is something you need to determine for yourself, depending on how you run your fed. But for me, the first criteria for selection is to make sure the new cards included in the most recent set are participating, unless they are either a Heavyweight or Tag Team champion. You'll see why later. If the new card is part of a tag team, I also let their tag team partner (new card or not) to enter the match. Once they are in, I start drafting winning wrestlers from the month before, starting from the bottom and working their way up. Reason for that is because I'm looking to shake up the status quo. And I feel that will happen better by using the bottom of the card. I also look at the booklet to see if a wrestler who is not active is listed as part of either a storyline or follow up. For example, in 2109, Bounty Hunter was listed in the "Where Are They Now?" as being upset for a team calling themselves The Bounty Hunters without his permission, and that he may do something about it. So, at Gauntlet 2109, he was a surprise entrant. However you get to your thirty participants, make it fun and interesting.
Now, one on one matches, repeated 28 times, it is time consuming. A new wrinkle I added was using the Fray Match rules, which can be found in the booklet for the first Evolve set. This allows up to six wrestlers to participate in a match. This not only helped me save time, but also allowed the match to have extra dimension by having six participants going at once. Anything that peaks your interest in game play is a good thing!
Okay, the match happens and you have a winner. Now what?
Whoever wins gets a title shot against either the Heavyweight or Tag Team champions, depending on what division they are part of. Now, there is a slight conflict of interest, because the system I use determines a top contender every month for the primary and secondary champions. The solution I use is to have the title defense as a follow up match after the Gauntlet match that night. If a singles wrestler wins the Gauntlet, the Heavyweight title match happens that night. If a tag wrestler wins the Gauntlet, the Tag Team title match happens that night. And in both cases, it's held in a Cosmic Cage Match. I use that not only to clear the way for a new contender, but it's also a cherry on top for the evening.
Also, I record who gets eliminated, and more importantly, who causes the elimination. For every elimination you get, you literally move up the card. Three eliminations, move them up three spaces. Start with the lowest number of eliminations, and then the higher numbers. More often or not, this can result in someone new getting a shot at either the Interplanetary or Tag Team titles. The only wrestlers they can't go past are either the IP or Tag champions, or the winner of The Gauntlet match if they are facing the Tag champions.
For this reason, I never draw up my July card until the Gauntlet is finished. I learned that it saves me a lot of ink and scribbles, and my July card doesn't wind up looking like a Picasso!
The reason for having cards where the format changes is to shake things up. No matter what system you use or how great it works, a healthy shake up is a necessary way to keep your fed fresh and exciting. Let new contenders and feuds emerge in a manner that is determined by exciting and dynamic game playing.
Your homework assignment - can you think of other events you could add to your fed schedule that could accomplish the goal? What can you put together that could allow for someone to move up the card, possibly earning a title shot? See what you can come up, and feel free to share here. Have fun!
footnote...
Excel Formula - In one column (column A), put in the name of the wrestler. In the other column (column B), enter the following formula:
=RAND()
Once the formula is entered next to the name of each participant, there will be a series of decimal numbers appearing in column B. That means you did it right!
Highlight both columns, and do a Sort by column B. It will then shuffle column A at random. How many times you shuffle is up to you - I usually role 2 dice and use that number.
For extra mystery, I cover every entry in column A (the wrestler name) in a black highlight, which on a black font makes the name invisible. When it's time for that wrestler number to enter, I remove the black highlight. It's like a reveal, and more often than not, it popped me. Give it a try!
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Post by throwingtoasters on May 31, 2021 15:00:25 GMT -5
LOVE that you gave the Excel formula! Great stuff!! Any more Excel tips you have would love to see.
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Post by The REAL Mr. Jimmyface on May 31, 2021 15:54:18 GMT -5
LOVE that you gave the Excel formula! Great stuff!! Any more Excel tips you have would love to see. I don't use a lot of formulas in Excel. Most of the Excel use is for tracking championships and results. But when I do use it for mathematics, it's mostly using either a addition sum function (for calculating how many points are accumulated over a year) or using a subtraction sum function (for determining how long a title reign is). Adding Up Points earned during a card year or Season:On Row 1 of an Excel spreadsheet, add the following information - WRESTLER/TAG TEAM - JAN - FEB - MAR - APR - MAY - JUN - PPV- JUL - AUG - SEP - OCT - NOV - DEC - TOTAL The dashes on this represent how to break them up into columns. Wrestler/Tag Team would be column A, JAN would be column B, so on and so forth until you get to TOTAL, which would be column O (the letter, not the number). You would then enter each wrestler or tag teams name on a different row, starting with Row B, and moving downwards as you add talent. Whatever amount of points are earned by a wrestler would go under their month on the same row as their name. To set up a formula to add up points earned over a year, you would enter the formula in the TOTAL box on Row 2 as follows... =SUM(B2:N2) What this formula will do is to add up every number from JAN to DEC under the TOTAL. Helpful hint, if you hover the pointer under the bottom right box for Row 2, Column O (the first number under total), the thick white plus sign will turn into a thin black plus sign. When this happens, left click your mouse, and drag it all the way down Column O, covering all of the wrestlers or tag teams named. This will copy the formula to every box, so you don't have to type out the formula over and over again. This is a great way to track progress throughout your game year or season, and allows you to have year end totals for how well a wrestler or tag team did that year or season. Use the sort button to look at whatever date you need to, it won't ruin or change the numbers entered. Sort will allow you to look at the data as you need to. Just make sure when you sort, click the entire spreadsheet as opposed to a single column or row. Using Subtraction to determine length of title reigns:On Row 1 of an Excel spreadsheet, add the following information - TITLE AWARDED TO - TITLE WON FROM - DATE - CARD # - LENGTH - NOTES: The dashes represent how to break them up into columns. For this to work, you need to start off with card 1 and keep each following card in numeric order. As you can guess, this works best for feds with long histories, like the GWF for example. You will update the information on each following row as it occurs. Title Awarded To is where you enter the name of the wrestler or tag team who won the title, Title Won From is where you enter the name of the person who lost the title. Date is an optional column I use for my GWF fed, where I put the month and year that the title change occurred. Card # was discussed earlier, it's the card number where the title change occurred. Length is where you enter to formula. Notes is where I enter interesting details of the match. For example, "Final Round of a Tournament to crown the first ever United States Champion", or "Steel Cage Match", etc. On Row 2, Column E, enter the following formula: =SUM(D3-D2) See the earlier function description on how to use drag and click to copy the formula to all the boxes in Column E. At first, this is going to look rather goofy. The first entry you put on Row 2, your first ever champion, is going to have a negative number showing for the LENGTH. That okay, it's a quirk of the system. As you have new champions, that number is going to change to a counter from what card they lost the title (D3) subtracted from what card they originally won the title (D2). See above for using Sort. This can help you look at who had the longest title reign when you sort by Column E. Helpful hint - on the bottom of the page, add another tab for each title you have, and repeat the steps above. This will allow you to track all of your titles and their history. |
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noneck
Infinity Challenge
Posts: 51 
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Post by noneck on May 31, 2021 16:45:01 GMT -5
This is a fantastic thread with so many things to think about, I literally took the advice to take a walk and chew on them a bit. Kudos, sir! And thank you!
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Post by The REAL Mr. Jimmyface on May 31, 2021 17:38:57 GMT -5
This is a fantastic thread with so many things to think about, I literally took the advice to take a walk and chew on them a bit. Kudos, sir! And thank you! You are quite welcome - and walks are good for you. Clear your mind, get your blood pumping, and reconnect with the world. Sir, I think I'll join you! Thanks for the suggestion! |
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awffltony77
Infinity Challenge
This game is killing my PS4
Posts: 218
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Post by awffltony77 on Jun 6, 2021 6:05:10 GMT -5
This is some solid gold stuff.
I have fun every time I've ever played this game. But after hounding poor Jim on Facebook about this system the past few weeks, and now fully understanding it for the first time, I am in absolute heaven. I've applied this set up to a reimagined EVOLVE project and I can unequivocally state that it's the best time I've had since picking up 4 some odd years ago.
And it works perfectly . A season is now tangible and every match has meaning ...
The only difference I'm teetering on, is i like to switch a guy out if he loses 3 straight but... No. I've committed to this season roster for a reason. I cut him and I'll kiss out on perhaps a dramatic turn around... Or a historically bad season ..
Love all this man. And holy crap lol.. I'll just go ahead and not upload the old one...
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awffltony77
Infinity Challenge
This game is killing my PS4
Posts: 218
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Post by awffltony77 on Jun 6, 2021 6:06:17 GMT -5
Is it ok if I copy this onto a pdf file?
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Post by The REAL Mr. Jimmyface on Jun 6, 2021 9:11:23 GMT -5
Is it ok if I copy this onto a pdf file? Absolutely! And I like your idea of three losses and out. It adds some nice tension and story telling to a fed. Reminds me of Logan's Run, when the crystal turns red. If you've never seen the movie, I recommend it. 70s had some great sci-fi films, and this one is part of why that is. Here's the trailer, featuring the voice of Jackson Beck, my favorite voice over artist... |
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awffltony77
Infinity Challenge
This game is killing my PS4
Posts: 218
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Post by awffltony77 on Jun 6, 2021 15:38:56 GMT -5
Well I've gone to if they lose 3 in a row they at least have to defend their roster spot
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