MainOffender

December 18, 2019

So what a four way match?

Nah, it's way too early for that.

Also, you had me rolling with Piper trying to get Kamala into a crate with some meat. That's prime 80's material.

No four way, I promise. Trying to stay somewhat faithful to the era. Obviously, I wanted to run Savage/Hogan, but the AI booked Andre going over Savage literally the night before I took over, so I needed to keep the Giant in the picture.

December 18, 2019

PRIME TIME WRESTLING

March, Week 2, 1988.

We go straight to the still-damaged set of Piper’s Pit where Junkyard Dog challenges Andre the Giant to a match at WrestleMania IV. Heenan claims Andre has bigger plans for WrestleMania than animal cruelty, but that JYD can expect a formal response after tonight’s main event – a non-title contest between JYD and Hulk Hogan.

GRADE:
100

The Wild Samoans d. The Killer Bees in an even bout.

GRADE:
63

We go to Mean Gene who has Harley Race backstage. Race says he’s sickened that a low class profession like “Barber” could rise to the station of King. He demands Brutus Beefcake face him at WrestleMania.

GRADE:
82

Butch Reed d. S.D. Jones in a squash. Throughout the match, Slick promises that they’ve got a surprise for the Hart Foundation next week.

GRADE:
70

Ricky Steamboat and Jake Roberts are backstage. “Dragons breathe fire and snakes shoot venom… what do weasels do?” They challenge any two members of The Heenan Family to a match at WrestleMania.

GRADE:
88

Bob Orton Jr d. Hector Guerrero.

GRADE:
77

Footage airs from Texas tour stops where Davey Boy Smith is seen crushing cowboys in arm wrestling matches. “The American cowboy is no match for a British Bulldog!” Seeing this, Bob Orton seethes and dares Smith to show up in person.

GRADE:
97

The Islanders d. The Rougeau Brothers. Yes, we’re booking both our stereotyped Samoan heel tag teams who for some reason aren’t aligned on the same night and neither has anything interesting to do.

GRADE:
63

Susan Sexton d. Noriyo Tateno.

GRADE:
57

Backstage, Roddy Piper and Demolition attempt to lure Kamala into a large crate with a side of beef tied to a stick. Piper claims he has a buyer lined up that will pay handsomely for Kamala. Before any human trafficking can take place, Rick Martel and Tito Santana, aka The Strike Force, intervene, fighting off Piper and Demolition.

GRADE:
76

Hulk Hogan d. The Junkyard Dog when Andre the Giant's plodding entrance distracted JYD.

GRADE:
85

Andre hits the ring and stomps JYD, much to the amusement of Hogan. But Hogan’s delight soon turns to terror as Andre strangles him! Grabbing a mic, Bobby Heenan declares that Andre wants a WrestleMania rematch so that he can become a double champ. As Hogan fades in the stranglehold, Jimmy Hart begs the Giant to stop. “He can’t give you a rematch, big man! He just can’t! We already agreed to face Savage!” It’s a lie – but it’s also a verbal contract according to wrestling law. Randy Savage flies down to ringside – only to be laid out by Andre as well. The Giant stands tall over three bodies as we go off the air.

GRADE:
100

OVERALL GRADE:
89

December 17, 2019

A few WWF notes from January and February, 1988:

The alignment changes continue! The Hart Foundation and Bob Orton Jr are now faces. Meanwhile, Roddy Piper and Davey Boy Smith are now heels. This means that the three biggest stars in wrestling -- Hogan, Macho, and Piper -- have all turned since the last Wrestlemania. Despite the turn, Hogan is still Figurehead and still a benefit to the company, so... we evil now.

The Fabulous Moolah retired, dropping the Women's Title to Velvet MacIntyre on the way out.

Andre the Giant won the Royal Rumble. I'm going to stick with history and not award guaranteed title shots until '93.

On the February super card, Andre the Giant defeated Randy Savage for the Intercontinental Title, ending his two year reign.

PRIME TIME WRESTLING

March, Week 1, 1988.

As he enters, we go to a pre-recorded Hogan promo. He gloats about his successful defense against Ricky Steamboat. “The Hulkster also noticed that lil’ Macho Boy lost his belt last night! Better have Lizzie pick you up some supplements, brother!”

GRADE:
100

Hulk Hogan d. Brad Rheingans in a squash match.

GRADE:
80

Bobby Heenan hypes his clients – Harley Race, Paul Orndorff, Hercules, and new Intercontinental champion Andre the Giant. No one can stop The Family!

GRADE:
92

Hercules and Paul Orndorff d. The Killer Bees in a one-sided contest.

GRADE:
71

Roddy Piper and his bodyguards Demolition (“they remind me of my Hollywood friends”) arrive for an episode of Piper’s Pit, but the set is trashed when fun-loving cannibal Kamala crashes through.

GRADE:
100

Bret Hart d. Butch Reed when Reed walks out after a back-and-forth contest. Monsoon gets over how much better the long-reigning tag champs have been since dumping Jimmy Hart and fighting the right way. Heenan, of course, disagrees.

GRADE:
73

Backstage, Butch Reed and Slick say they’re sick of the overhyped Hart Foundation and are going to do something about it.

GRADE:
85

Nikolai Volkoff d. Outback Jack.

GRADE:
59

Backstage, Mean Gene catches up with a typically irate Macho Man. “Hulk Hogan fears the Madness, oh yeah! He better PRAY I’m not named #1 contender!”

GRADE:
93

Susan Sexton d. Itzuki Yamakazi in a match to remind the fans the women’s division exists.

GRADE:
56

Assuming he can get his set rebuilt in time, next week’s Piper’s Pit will feature Andre the Giant and the Junkyard Dog. JYD is still smarting from being the last man eliminated by Andre at this year’s Royal Rumble.

GRADE:
86

Ricky Steamboat and Jake Roberts d. Honky Tonk Man and Greg Valentine. Steamboat and Roberts have struggled against the Heenan Family of late and it appears they’ve formed an alliance.

GRADE:
85

OVERALL GRADE:
88

December 17, 2019

1987: THE YEAR IN REVIEW

THE KING OF THE RING: After turning heel, Hulk Hogan declared that he should assume his rightful place as the King of WWF. True to his word, he made it to the tournament finals, before suffering an upset loss to Brutus Beefcake. Hogan would get his win back in at the December MSG show.

CHAMPIONS STAY CHAMPIONS: The Hart Foundation defeated the British Bulldogs in January. That would turn out to be the only title change in the entire year as Hogan, Savage, Hitman and the Anvil, and even Women's Champion (it exists) The Fabulous Moolah defended successfully.

THE THREE ICONS: At the beginning of the year, Hulk and Andre were considered Icons in the USA. By the end of the year, thanks to his must-see talk show segments, Roddy Piper joined them atop the industry.

THEY'RE ALREADY DEAD: Despite unquestioned dominance, Vince McMahon nonetheless bought out Continental Championship Wrestling, Atlantic Grand Prix Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Association. You can see them in the vault in 30 years!

FLAIR REIGNS SUPREME: Ric Flair started and ended the year as NWA World Champion, beating back competition like the Garvin Brothers, Lex Luger, and Big Bubba Rogers. Despite his dominance, something seems off about Flair. A slight paunch, an increasing slowness to his strut... is it possible the young man is starting to feel his age?

COCAINE COUNTY, TEXAS: "Kerry, wipe your nose and get in here, I got a contract for you to sign!" WrestleMania III accounted for a surge in interest across the entire business. Suddenly flush with cash, Fritz Von Erich began signing talent to long term contracts, hoping to stave off the vultures up north. He snatched up the likes of Arn Anderson, Tully Blanchard, Kevin Sullivan, and the Rock n Roll Express. Not to mention the huge 10 year contract he handed to his son Kerry. This set off a chain reaction with the other big survivors of the territory scene - JCP and AWA - also making many workers exclusive.

THE BATTLE FOR JAPAN, PART 1: In the never-ending rivalry between these two companies, New Japan finished the year ahead.

CHAMPION'S CARNIVAL RETURNS: After a five year absence, All Japan held the Champion's Carnival tournament. Terry Funk won, defeating Jumbo Tsuruta in the finals.

INTERNATIONAL WRESTLING GRAND PRIX: New Japan's signature tournament was won by Tatsumi Fujinami for the first time. He defeated Steve Williams.

TALE OF TWO TIGERS: Despite his controversial reputation, Satoru Sayama returned to wrestling in July, agreeing to dates with both All Japan and New Japan. He’s wrestling as himself in All Japan while adopting “King Tiger” moniker in New Japan.

WRESTLER OF THE YEAR: Akira Maeda (NJPW)
US WRESTLER OF THE YEAR: Randy Savage (#2)
TAG TEAM: Akira Maeda & Nobuhiko Takada (NJPW)
YOUNG WRESTLER OF THE YEAR: Masahiro Chono (NJPW)
VETERAN WRESTLER OF THE YEAR: Terry Funk (AJPW)
FEMALE WRESTLER OF THE YEAR: Devil Masami (AJW)
COMPANY OF THE YEAR: NJPW
MOST IMPROVED COMPANY: WCWA
CARD OF THE YEAR: The International Wrestling Grand Prix '87

Doing something a bit different with Match of the Year. Too often, random throw away matches from TV or tour shows win this award. These are my snobbishly curated matches of the year, pulling at least one entry from each Cult+ company and excluding matches that don't appear on major events.

10) Al Perez d Kerry Von Erich, Labor Day Star Wars, September. 82. The WCWA locker room is a cesspool of drugs and mayhem. I'm amazed they pulled off this high of a rating.

9) Kung Fu d. Mascara Ano 2000 to retain the NWA Middleweight Title, CMLL Anniversary Show, September. 87. Man, I don't know what the hell goes on in Mexico.

8) Ric Flair d. Nikita Koloff to retain the WCW World Heavyweight Title, JCP September Supercard. 93. Flair's best match of the year came against the Russian defector.

7) Curt Hennig d. Larry Zybsko, AWA Supercard, March. 97. These two ran a series of great matches until Hennig signed exclusively with JCP in July.

6) Hulk Hogan d Randy Savage to retain the WWF World Heavyweight title, October Supercard. 99. The second match between these two after the double turn over the summer. I imagine Hogan retained via Jimmy Hart distraction.

5) Tatsumi Fujinami d. Akira Maeda, IWGP Tournament Block Action, August. 99. On his way to winning the IWGP, Fujinami fought a war against Maeda.

4) Akira Maeda & Nobuhiko Takada d. Takashi Iizuka & Yoshihiro Asai, Super Grade Tag League 87, November. 99. Some heavyweight vs lightweight action here in the annual tag tournament.

3) Jumbo Tsuruta d. Animal Hamaguchi to retain the NWA International Heavyweight title, AJPW Super Power Series, May. 99. A great year for Tsuruta as he held onto this title and the tag belts (w/ Genichiro Tenryu). Meanwhile, Hamaguchi would jump to New Japan in December and win their top title in only his second appearance.

2) Akira Maeda & Nobuhiko Takada d. Mr. Pogo & Bad News Brown, NJPW Wrestling Dontaku, May. 99. Guess they won Team of the Year for a reason! Despite their good performances, Maeda/Takada failed to win any gold.

1) Randy Savage d. Ricky Steamboat to retain the WWF Intercontinental championship, Wrestlemania III. 100. Come on.

NEXT: The Road to Wrestlemania IV.

December 17, 2019

Balanced, as all things should be.

With the return of the Macho Madness must befall the death of Hulkamania.

LOL! I really wish this was programmed into the code.

Cool concept - good luck with this

Really interesting idea for a diary! I will keep an eye out. Great first show.

Thanks for checking it out!

December 17, 2019

Shattering all attendance records and possibly the laws of physics, 145,000 people crammed into an unnamed venue located somewhere in the Great Lakes for the third installment of WrestleMania! (How did they find this generic place without GPS? Perhaps they clicked on it by accident.)

As fans hiked to their seats, they were treated to a 20-man Battle Royale featuring the likes of Greg "The Hammer" Valentine, Butch Reed, Dino Bravo, Jim Duggan, Kamala, and Koko B Ware. The match came down to Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake and King Kong Bundy, with Beefcake somehow managing to trick the monster over the top rope.
Brutus Beefcake won a 20-Man Battle Royale. Grade: C.

Opening the show, Roddy Piper rode to the ring on a replica of The Flower Shop set, which he destroyed while gliding down the aisle. (Grade: A+). Devastated by the destruction of his property, Adrian Adonis was never able to get his head in the match and eventually sunk deep into a Sleeper.
Roddy Piper d. Adrian Adonis via submission. Grade: B.

In the next match, Paul Orndorff dominated Tito Santana from the opening bell, even holding Santana so that manager Bobby Heenan could get a good slap in. Orndorff's overconfidence would eventually be his undoing as Tito caught him with a small package.
Tito Santana d. Paul Orndorff via small package. Grade: B-.

Accompanied to the ring by Bob Uecker in bondage gear, Demolition prevailed over the Can-Am Connection in a back-and-forth match. Afterward, they fired Uecker, the demons still seeking representation.
Demolition d. The Can-Am Connection via Decapitation on Tom Zenk. Grade: C.

The Junkyard Dog showed up to WrestleMania drunk and high, but Vince McMahon wasn't about to change his signature card the day of. He sent JYD out there to receive a stiff beating at the hands of Harley Race. Based on the response, Race could've carried a corpse to a decent match.
Harley Race d. The Junkyard Dog via pinfall. Grade: B.

In the post-match, Race beat down and humiliated JYD. Bowing wasn't a problem for JYD as he could barely stand up.
GRADE: A*

In a mediocre match, Jake Roberts bested The Honky Tonk man after dodging a guitar swing to the dome. Roberts then celebrated with Alice Cooper, who was allowed to play WrestleMania.
Jake Roberts d. The Honky Tonk Man via DDT. Grade: C+.

The tag-team titles were on the line in our next contest, with The Hart Foundation taking on The British Bulldogs. The health of the Dynamite Kid had been a subject for Bret and Jim going into this match and they focused on the recently returned Dynamite for most of the match. A hot tag to Davey Boy nearly turned the tide, but some well-time interference from Jimmy Hart allowed Bret Hart to pin Smith with a handful of tights.
The Hart Foundation d. The British Bulldogs via pinfall to retain the WWF World Tag Team Titles. Grade: B-.

Backstage, The Macho Man ranted about how no one respected his abilities as Intercontinental Champion. The fans were too busy eyeing Elizabeth to appreciate his greatness. Well, not tonight, Mean Gene. Tonight, he'd beat Steamboat alone.
Grade: A*

The battle between Savage and Steamboat lived up to the hype. A thrilling back-and-forth that lasted more than 20 minutes, Savage seemed gifted an opportunity early when the ref took an errant kick to the head. Macho seemed prepared to hit a dazed Steamboat with the ring bell but... he stopped himself? Later, with Savage fading in a Boston crab, Elizabeth rushed from the back and motivated Macho to reach the ropes. A series of reversals followed, a slam, an elbow drop... and a clean victory for Macho Man.
Randy Savage d. Ricky Steamboat via pinfall. Grade: A* (100).

Coming after an obvious Match of the Year was perhaps WrestleMania's most memorable moment... for all the wrong reasons. As soon as the battle of the Full Nelsons between Hercules and Billy Jack Haynes began, it was clear something was off with Haynes. He no sold every maneuver by a frustrated Hercules, refused to cooperate with a Full Nelson, and mostly just stood around yelling at fans with Hogan gear. Eventually, the ref called for a stoppage due to submission when Hercules managed to get one of Haynes' arms halfway secured. Haynes immediately stormed to the back.
Hercules d. Billy Jack Haynes via "submission." GRADE: C.

Following Haynes' bizarre performance, Hulk Hogan entered to rally his little Hulkamaniacs. The champ was clearly pissed by what had come before, but the crowd loved him, as usual.
GRADE: A*

Finally, Hulk Hogan met Andre the Giant in the main event. Two big loads bouncing off each other, building up to a massive body slam by Hogan. Most would agree that the match was good -- but clearly overshadowed by the Steamboat/Savage classic and Billy Jack's kayfabe breakdown.
Hulk Hogan d. Andre the Giant to retain the WWF World Heavyweight title. GRADE: B+

SHOW GRADE: A (94).

Some under the hood discussion: I did book the Prime Time Wrestling and Superstars episodes leading up to this, but because I stuck so close to history they didn't seem interesting enough to write up. That was where Haynes got jumped by Hogan's clique and, after I gave Hogan a slap on the wrist, that's why Haynes was pissed enough to "display true unprofessionalism" and tank his match at WrestleMania. In the future, I'll be writing up the Prime Time Wrestling episodes as they'll give a good look at how the world has changed. Superstars I pretty much auto-book so I won't be recapping those.

WRESTLEMANIA III: THE AFTERMATH

Billy Jack Haynes was, of course, immediately fired following WrestleMania. The heat from that incident apparently distracted McMahon enough that he forgot all about JYD showing up bombed.

Firing Haynes only increased public curiosity in the incident. Why had Haynes acted out in front of wrestling's biggest audience? Were rumors about Hulk Hogan being a total dick true? Wait... was wrestling FAKE?? Haynes enjoyed the limelight, telling his story first to the dirt sheets and later to Entertainment Tonight. Hulk Hogan was a bully and a phony! He didn't even pray.

Meanwhile, on the episode of Prime Time Wrestling after WrestleMania, Randy Savage received a standing ovation from the fans. He called out Ricky Steamboat and offered to shake The Dragon's hand. The show of good sportsmanship would turn Savage face.

At the same time, heat on Hogan was growing. McMahon saw an opportunity to defuse the situation... by making it all part of the show. And so, at Saturday Night's Main Event in June, Hulk Hogan defended his World Title against newly beloved Intercontinental Champion Randy Savage. On the ropes against Savage, Hogan resorted to blasting Macho in the face with the World Title, bloodying him and then trying to take his head all the way off with multiple leg drops. The fans were shocked. In the weeks to come, Hogan would align himself with Jimmy Hart.

Hulkamania's dead, brother.

NEXT: The rest of 1987!

December 16, 2019

MARCH, 1987. BACKSTAGE. PRIME TIME WRESTLING.

It all started because of a 10-gallon hat.

"You look like an idiot in that thing, brother. Like some kinda cowboy-elf, right, Jimmy? What the hell's your gimmick? Ever heard of a bandana? Bandanas sell, brother. You should go to props, maybe they can get you over."

There was no doubt that Hulk Hogan started the fight with Billy Jack Haynes, although it took help from his buddies Brutus Beefcake and Jimmy Hart to actually finish it. No one in the locker room would rat on Hogan, though. During the weeks leading up to Wrestlemania III, the champ had been on a power trip. As the biggest draw approaching what would be the WWF's biggest show ever, Hogan had Vince's ear more than ever. There were rumors he'd gotten Jim Powers fired on a whim because he thought the kid couldn't sell. Plus, after The Iron Sheik turned up blitzed to a Prime Time Wrestling taping and got pink slip'd for it, everyone in the locker room was walking on egg shells. Fired for being drunk? What the hell was that? Sheik was

always

drunk. When did everything get so corporate?

Suffice it to say, Billy Jack kept his mouth shut, so Hogan didn't get more than a slap on the wrist for their "scuffle," which left poor Billy Jack with a black eye and a couple cracked ribs. In the weeks leading up to WrestleMania, Haynes stewed, the beat-down gnawing at him more and more with every fawning media appearance Hogan made.

At WrestleMania, Haynes would have his revenge.

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FOR THE WWF WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Hulk Hogan © vs Andre the Giant (w/ Bobby Heenan)
The unstoppable force meets the immovable object! Months of battling The Heenan Family have at last led here.

FOR THE WWF INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Randy Savage (w/ Elizabeth) © vs Ricky Steamboat
After six months, this bitter rivalry will finally be settled!

FOR THE WWF WORLD TAG TEAM TITLES
The Hart Foundation (w/ Jimmy Hart) © vs The British Bulldogs
The Hitman and Anvil won the tag titles under controversial circumstances back in January. At last, the Bulldogs have a chance at redemption!

WHO HAS THE BETTER FULL NELSON?
Billy Jack Haynes vs Hercules (w/ Bobby Heenan)
These two meatheads have been feuding over who is better at squeezing necks. We're going to find out!

FOR THE FUTURE OF ROCK AND ROLL
The Honky Tonk Man (w/ Jimmy Hart) vs Jake Roberts
If the Honky Tonk Man wins, he gets to perform instead of that awful Alice Cooper!

LOSER MUST BOW
"King" Harley Race (w/ Bobby Heenan) vs The Junkyard Dog
JYD has decreed -- bark bark! -- that there can be no Kings in WWF and that he'll never bow to Harley Race.

FOR THE RIGHT TO A TALK SHOW ON THE WRESTLING SHOW
Adrian Adonis vs "Rowdy" Roddy Piper
It's The Flower Shop vs Piper's Pit! Who will reign supreme as WWF's host with the most?

GRUDGE MATCH
Paul Orndorff (w/ Bobby Heenan) vs Tito Santana
After spurning an offer of management by Heenan (it was never a serious offer anyway, Monsoon!), Santana must now face down one of the Family's biggest assets.

TAG MATCH
The Can-Am Connection vs Demolition
Demolition have been running roughshod over the tag division while also firing multiple managers as they search for someone capable of representing a couple of bondage demons. The Can-Am Connection have promised to end their reign of terror.

PLUS!
A pre-show Battle Royal featuring the rest of the roster so they stop whining!

OKAY, WHAT IS THIS? This is a Watcher diary. Sort of. My plan is to jump in to the WWF every year and book only the month of March, adjusting to all the nonsense that the AI has done in the meantime. I'm also going to do December for WCW when they start up. I'm also tempted to do the occasional G1 or a Champion's Carnival tour, but we'll see how that goes. If some other company rises to prominence, I might consider doing their big month, but the overly ambitious goal of this game is to re-book every Wrestlemania. LOL. I'll be burnt out in two weeks.

I've never written a diary before, although I've always been tempted. I'm going to be figuring out the format over the first few posts as well as what I actually want to write about. My plan at the moment is to take a broad view of events, but I'm happy to drill down if someone is interested in a specific wrestler/company.

A FEW WORDS ON METHODOLOGY: This isn't a pure Watcher game. I'm being pretty hands-on, jumping into companies whenever I see them screwing up, usually to add TV deals or sign talent languishing in unemployment, and also to phase out Time Decline workers that I feel have overstayed their welcome. However, there's not much I can do with bizarre AI alignment changes and ridiculous title runs, so I'm just rolling with that stuff and trying to head-canon a story around it.

I'm using The Golden Age mod. Duh.

NEXT: Wrestlemania III results! I booked this one pretty close to history. That won't be happening in the future.

Thanks for reading!

December 9, 2019

I'd like to see a few attributes geared specifically to announcers/color.

Verbose -- This announcer has a tendency to go on and on. Could occasionally hurt a match grade and/or cause the announcer's partners to be less effective because they can't get a word in. I'm thinking this would apply to someone like Mauro who I generally think is a good announcer but then sometimes shouts 'truculent' like 15 times in one match.

Argumentative -- This announcer sometimes loses the thread of a match because they're too busy engaging in pedantry. Could hurt a match grade and/or poison an announce team's chemistry. Real world example would be someone like Corey Graves or Michael Cole back in the era where all he did was complain about Daniel Bryan (I know some this was in character... but it sucked).

Sneering -- This announcer is prone to burying lesser known workers when calling their matches. Could hurt a match grade and/or hurt a worker's popularity and/or cause simmering tension with a worker. I'm thinking for guys like JBL or current day Jerry Lawler who seem incapable of selling young talent. Look at these Legion of Doom wannabes, Maggle!

All of the announcers in my examples would be fairly well rated, so these attributes would give players some interesting choices to make beyond plugging in whoever is best at Color. Like, sure JBL is an 80... but do you want risk putting him on air?

October 17, 2019

Radio Star: This worker has a gig with a local radio station in their home region. Small chance of their entertainment skills being increased at random times outside of wrestling shows.
NB: The Radio Star attribute is mostly for announcers and colour commentators, but managers, referees, personalities and wrestlers can have this attribute as well.

Talking Head: This worker is a regular contributor to a TV talk show and as such, has a small chance to increase their mic and charisma skills, but also has a very small chance of becoming toxic from saying something very controversial.

This is a great idea and seems like an excellent way to simulate the current era of a lot of dudes having podcasts. I actually think you could lump these two together into one 'Broadcaster' attribute and add the possibility of relationships forming due to positive/negative comments. See ya in court, Colt!

February 11, 2019

First time I've played a current-day mod in years (the allure of running AEW from the jump was too much) and I really like the way this is balanced. The scaling of popularity and psychology in particular make running a US indie appropriately challenging. Great job with this!

I do have a couple tweaks/suggestions/thoughts. These are all changes that I made to my own game before starting my run and maybe they'll be helpful to you guys when you consider updates. Also, as a reminder to some other posters in the thread... if you don't like the way something is set up in a mod, you can always change it yourself! <img alt="" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/eek.png.0e09df00fa222c85760b9bc1700b5405.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" />

-Juice Robinson was born in 89, not 86.

-The popularity for NXT women could use some attention. A few with national exposure (Lacey, Bianca) are set to only have pop in the South East. I increased them so they're in the high 20s, using Mia Yim's pop as a guide.

-Guys like Dream having low pop have already been mentioned, so I won't harp on that. I did increase a handful of NXT guys because I'm a stan and believe Dream, Black, and Gargano could walk out of NXT and headline indies.

-ROH and TNA are set up with a PPV deal with In Demand, but they don't have the popularity to maintain this. (AEW also can't get a deal with them right away, which they should be able to.) I think there could be a larger conversation about how modern PPV is rated -- the barrier for entry isn't as high as it was in the 90s and the coverage is significantly lower -- but, uh, that would never be a priority for me if I was a modder and I'm not sure what effects those changes would have. So anyway! I adjusted In Demand to Regional/40 pop/9 areas and decreased its viewership to Medium across the board. I think that should allow for better growth and accuracy in the American indies.

-I imported the default data's region settings then tweaked them - Tri State (100); South West and Mid South (95); Great Lakes, New England, South East (90); Mid Atlantic, Mid West, North West (85); Puerto Rico (80) and Hawaii (70). I'm anal but didn't like all the US being 90 importance.

-I nudged WWE's US popularity until they were a couple points into International. This didn't result in them going on a signing spree to start the game. I think it better reflects their present reach while fudging their US pop a bit. (International status shouldn't be tied to such high home growth but what can ya do.)

-I tweaked WWE's product so that Modern is at medium. This gets rid of the "Aerial is less effective" note, which I don't think is accurate for current day WWE.

-And finally, the most subjective one of them all. I made some tweaks to AEW's product. I don't think they're going to be a company that values performance "much more" than popularity. That puts them in New Japan territory where I see them as being basically a splashier ROH. Here's what I went with:

Key: Modern

Heavy: Realism, Mainstream (they're definitely running stories/gimmicks, so they gotta have that mainstream)

Medium: Traditional (I know Cody has said a lot about traditional promotions being inspiration, but in game terms I think a lower level is necessary)

Low: Comedy, Cult, Lucha Libre, Daredevil

That gives me shows rated more on performance than popularity, a nerf on hardcore skills, gimmicks/stories, a Steal the Show requirement, a Storytelling requirement, no high risk angles (sorry Joey Ryan), and a 40/60 intensity/danger level. I'm pretty happy with the results I'm getting so far.

Hope some of this was helpful. Thanks again for the hard work!

February 15, 2018

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Blackman" data-cite="Blackman" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="44604" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>No. Has anyone ever seen a fighter not respond to call-outs or saying he wouldn't take the fight if offered?</div></blockquote> I've seen a news story along the lines of "Challenger says Challenged is ducking him after not responding to his call-out for weeks." Unfortunately, I don't remember who was involved, so I can't go back and check if that challenge was ultimately accepted, disappeared, or what. I've only seen it once in a year of play. Never noticed anyone outright deny a challenge.

February 5, 2018

Just wanted to pop by and join the chorus. Really enjoying these!

Also, love a lot of the potential classes being thrown out by the community. In particular -- Cubans, Black Panthers, and Cheaters and Scumbags. I'm a big fan of seeing fighters from odd locations (I like using the roster search to find nationalities that aren't represented) and fighters with intriguing skill sets and/or trait combinations.

February 1, 2018

I was thinking of starting a women's division in GAMMA very early into my game, but the low pop levels in the US are troubling. The best way would be to poach BOTH Vaughan and Lehane as coaches as well as their top10 BW's and start a BW division. But my love for WEFF would make that a devestating decision for sure as it destroys two of their entire weight classes. Leave them there, though, and it will take years before there's any pop at all transfering to America. And Lehane and Vaughan aren't getting any younger .

A FW division would probably be better as a first COTT show, because that way Takeuchi could still be in it as a participant. Or you could have him coach opposite Ziskie. However: if you drop Luke Hilton to FW that'd make a more lucrative finale. Takeuchi could end up winning the season and face off with Ziskie (probably) for a PPV-worthy main event (I hope).

Any other approach would surely be crappy unless I use coaches from a different weight class, but I like to keep it the same for immersion purposes.

So many options... I WANT IT ALL, MAN! Call me "the poach".

Kill your darlings, man. I've decided to run a Women's Heavyweight division (145-126) in GAMMA because that's what the belt in the picture pack says. Haven't started poaching from WEFF yet but I'm hoping to spread the damage out so they don't suffer too much. There's plenty of talent out there for them to sign and build. Going to have it be my next COTT season.

I went with Featherweight off the bat. Morrison and Sugar as coaches even though I don't plan to have them fight yet again. Team Sugar had all of the Final Four. I asked him to form his own team after that and, inspired by his coaching success, he did. Doesn't reflect very well on Animal House! Banner vs. Takeuchi made the Finals. Banner seems outmatched and I really want him to win, so I booked the show in Ohio hoping for that home town bonus. Do it for ya pops! Ziskie vs. Li Kong-Ho will feature on the Finale as well. Winners will fight for the strap down the road.

September 11, 2017

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Gungner" data-cite="Gungner" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41194" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>If two workers have poor or bad chemistry as opponents, or tag partners, can they still produce a good match if they're popular enough?</div></blockquote> Yeah, bad tag chemistry in particular can eventually be canceled out by tag experience.

May 2, 2017

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="willr0ck" data-cite="willr0ck" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43093" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div> <a href="http://s1168.photobucket.com/user/aaronredwulfstudioswillr0ck/media/Rock-verse/Events/AOA%20Last%20RIghts.jpg.html" rel="external nofollow">http://i1168.photobucket.com/albums/r496/aaronredwulfstudioswillr0ck/Rock-verse/Events/AOA%20Last%20RIghts.jpg</a>[/center]</div></blockquote> Maybe I'm missing a pun or something, but I think this should be "Last Rites". And just so my reply isn't completely pedantic... I've been lurking in this thread on a daily basis because of how great this mod is looking. Your renders are amazing (I already use a bunch of your Cverse stuff) and I'm very excited about how this world is shaping up! Thanks for all the awesome stuff.

April 25, 2017

Mat Work is any work not Aerial.

This isn't really accurate. Mat Work is literally wrestling on the mat, like amateur wrestling -- slow-paced with holds and reversals.

Also, this post by Derek B in his mod-maker's guide from TEW 2013 is indispensable for stat explanations.

April 10, 2017

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Lukok" data-cite="Lukok" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41194" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>I'm playing The Mod Squad's Golden Age mod and a number of promotions have only one potential founder set to mandatory. Which means that the person has to be unemployed to set the company up when on the month it's supposed to pop up. I didn't know this, and a number of feds like ECW and WING never got founded because the potential founder was employed. If I fiddle with the contracts in the editor and make those founders unemployed, will they set up companies now, or am I screwed because the editor date for the company has passed?</div></blockquote> Unfortunately, I don't think companies will open after the set debut date. There's a workaround, though: Go into the database editor (not the in-game editor) and change the debut date for ECW (or whatever company you want). You could also change the potential founder at this point if you want it to be someone other than Heyman. Go back into your game, and change the name of the existing ECW record to avoid a conflict. Then, import the new ECW you edited. Rather than messing around in contracts, I'd personally just leave the founder blank. If you want Heyman to own or book the company, you can always put him into that role via adding a new player to the game and immediately leaving.

March 30, 2017

No matter how high im putting my match danger i keep getting the note that there arent enough dangerous spots in every single match, whats the deal here?

EDIT: Sort of fixed it by turning modern down, but why would i not be able to have enough risky spots when it was on medium? even with 100% it said it wasnt enough

Check Injury Risk/Content Risk on the matches themselves. They're probably set at low. You'll need to tweak them so your company is running more dangerous matches.

March 28, 2017

Do figureheads have an effect on A.I.-controlled promotions? Playing in CVerse '97 and SWF has Christian Faith as their figurehead, but they also went and turned him heel a couple years ago. Wondering if I should jump in and tweak this for them.

May 19, 2016

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="MaxxHexx" data-cite="MaxxHexx" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41290" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Woah, and they still working for free? I had no idea it would go that high before they wanted a check.</div></blockquote> I missed when he actually started collecting checks, but my owner's been getting paid since I had around 10K in the bank.

May 18, 2016

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="soxfan93" data-cite="soxfan93" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41212" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>That's where I have issues with my abilities to properly rate people. I wouldn't put Shawn Michaels any higher than 85, and I have a hard time rating Hall ahead of him.</div></blockquote> Not advocating one way or another, but with the increased power of male sex appeal in 16, couldn't that be used to differentiate between HBK (say 85 SQ and 90 SA) and Hall (90 SQ and 70 SA)? And then I'll just up Razor's sex appeal to 100 for my person game. No big deal.

May 18, 2016

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Remianen" data-cite="Remianen" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41194" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div> First off, if you got the impression I was angry or being aggressive or anything, I apologize for that. It wasn't the intent. I will also admit to the phrase 'working as intended' as used in common gaming parlance making my teeth itch. So again, sorry if that escaped its bottle. But in TEW13, it seemed infinitely easier to unlock psycho sermons (thus, fear/iron fist) than motivational speeches. Your tests would bear that out. I haven't had the opportunity to test it because my harmony preference coupled with Wrestler's Court and a dozen locker room leaders means that I don't see negative incidents much at all (I've had one in seven months so far, not including drug test failures who always get sent to rehab). In 13, I got great results overall from my post-show speeches since I never really criticized anyone (I'm a hugger).</div></blockquote> No worries! In 13, I was usually able to unlock Motivational Speeches within a few years, mostly through the Fatherly Approach with my stoners and positive speeches (I hug too -- and a lot of praise) and never came close to Psycho Sermons. This is totally a play style thing, though, and I never kept track of what I was doing. Without Fatherly Approach, it's looking like Take No Action is the best option for Velvet Glove -- this opens up a whole fun can of worms of workers walking all over nice guys like us. (Caveat: I haven't been able to send anyone to rehab yet, but I imagine that helps too.) I'd still like to figure out what each speech does, in inexact terms. I'll try keeping an eye on them and report back.

May 18, 2016

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Remianen" data-cite="Remianen" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41194" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>It's not working as intended because you tried ONE area and it didn't give the results you wanted? Perhaps it's intended to be harder? These tests you ran, over how many game years did you run them? From the moment the feature was announced in TEW13, I was under the impression that you weren't supposed to be able to unlock the features and/or benefits immediately. They're made to be earned over a career. Also, I didn't see you mention anything about post-show speeches.</div></blockquote> Easy tiger. <img alt=":cool:" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/cool.png.f00d2562b2c1d873a09323753efdb041.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /> I started running these tests in the first place because I noticed a lack of movement toward Velvet Glove in my RtG game where I've played for three years and, although I haven't been keeping track of every decision and speech, I've generally been a major softie. I've maxed out Loyalty, but remain stuck around the middle of the horizontal axis. These tests I ran were enough to observe movement toward other quadrants. Since my first post, I spammed a bunch of Take No Action decisions on drug tests and was able to get some movement toward Velvet Glove, so it works but definitely takes more time going in that direction. By comparison, I've already maxed out Loyalty from those decisions. So, Loyalty/Fear looks like it has greater swings. Didn't get enough of a sample size from post-show speeches yet, but mostly I noticed movement toward Loyalty from the sweetheart options I picked (doing 3x of the same thing with Leadership/Diplo maxed out). I really like how open 16 is about the effects of incident responses; wish we had something like that for post-show speeches. Anyway! Anyone else observed any phenomena related to this?

May 18, 2016

I still can't figure out what moves the needle toward Velvet Glove. I just ran some tests, trying out the different responses to a variety of incidents. I've got no trouble moving the needle toward Iron Fist and Loyalty, but can't budge it toward Velvet Glove.

Anyone have any insight on this? I'm beginning to feel like it's not working as intended.

May 16, 2016

What moves the needle between Velvet Glove and Iron Fist? In 13, I'm pretty sure Fatherly Approach pushed you toward Velvet Glove, but with that gone I'm not sure what decision does it now.

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Posts posted by MainOffender