HRTVAndrew

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="BHK1978" data-cite="BHK1978" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41343" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Who says? <p> </p><p> If one player wants to play a promotion differently than you, it does not mean they are wrong and your way is the right way. You just do not share the same opinion on how to play the game. </p><p> </p><p> It boils down to the player and how they want to play the game and what they think is the smart move for them to make. Personally I would not sign Marat to TCW because I see him as more of an SWF or USPW wrestler. I just do not think he is a "right fit" for the promotion. However, I would not begrudge anyone for hiring him if they think it can help them. Once again it comes down to how each individual player wants to play the game.</p></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> This. All of this. Every player plays the game differently, and I don't think there's any clause in the game with regard to signing or not signing guys who may or may not fit a certain mold. That's one of the great things about TEW, the ability to play whatever game you want and try to succeed with whatever vision you have!</p>

I love me some El Mitico Jr., for sure. As far as younger guys who aren't particularly over to start with, you can't go wrong with any of Ernest Youngman, Kirk Jameson, and Greg Gauge. Aldous Blackfriar is good, solid midcard fun as well once he matures; if you've got a good developmental system, he's a perfect guy to sign, stash for a year, and bring up when he's ready for prime-time.

<p><a href="http://imgur.com/a/j6I0m" rel="external nofollow">http://imgur.com/a/j6I0m</a></p><p> </p><p> WOM-EN'S WREST-LING!</p><p> </p><p> CLAP CLAP</p><p> CLAP CLAP CLAP</p>

OK, I'm usually pretty apolitical, and I try to keep real-world issues out of TEW (and whatever other games I play). However, this storyline I've stumbled into is way too good not to share. So it's February of 2018 and I've sort of run out of things for Frankie Perez to do. He was one of my first signings in my CVerse fed (long story short: Buddy Garner comes out of his hiatus and starts a workrate-crazy promotion), more than two years ago in game time, and he's been an asset. However, while he may be an excellent worker and a good talker, he's never going to be the face of my company or anything like that. As such, I put him in a program with Marat Khoklov. Marat is bulletproof, and will always be one of the easiest guys for any cult promotion or higher to book (simply have him squash guys on the weekly show, and build up an underdog face every year or so that will eventually topple him). I don't envision this being a super long-term feud or anything, just a two-month thing to get Marat ready for a long-term run at the tag titles with new buddy Eddie Peak. HOWEVER, this is where it gets good. So I've just signed Nemesis to be the heel authority figure. He won't show up every week, but he's around for segments or road agent work if I need him. Think of his role as my take on late-1980's or early-1990's Jack Tunney in WWF; when he shows up, you know important stuff's going down. In this angle, Nemesis has sided with Khoklov, and nobody is quite sure why, least of all Frankie Perez, who's getting his clock cleaned every week in various scenarios by Nemesis, Khoklov, or other random wrestlers. Well, it's going to turn out that Nemesis was installed as the authority figure through a massive bribe to Smark Friendly Wrestling by Khoklov, and Khoklov and Peak will wind up serving as his foot soldiers until I find a suitable tag team to knock them off and send Nemesis packing. In other words, my authority figure situation may very well be a direct ripoff of what's happening in certain real-life political venues. :D

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="HRTVAndrew" data-cite="HRTVAndrew" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41174" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>The December event, SFW Season's Greetings, has just happened, and it's the start of a new era in Smark Friendly Wrestling. In the main event, Jay Chord pinned Eddie Peak, clean as a sheet, and he's now the SFW World Champion. Simply put, it's time to use the young guys I've spent two years getting ready for the big time to carry the ball at the top of the card. Peak is still my figurehead (for now), but before his contract runs out, he'll probably turn heel and set up some fresh angles. Namely, the possibility of him tagging with fellow monster Marat Khoklov and running roughshod over the tag team division really excites me.<p> </p><p> Chord's first feud as champion will come against Jefferson Stardust, who defeated Kirk Jameson in a rematch of their SFW Grand Prix classic. This one wasn't quite as good (96, not 99), but after the match, the crowd erupted when Kirk Jameson turned face, helping Stardust fend off former Uprising mates Ernest Youngman and Greg Gauge. Jameson will enlist the help of Frankie Perez in a feud with those two, which is handy because Perez has sort of stalled (I just don't have a lot for him to do that he hasn't already done yet!).</p><p> </p><p> Sara Marie York, meanwhile, is now officially the queen of women's wrestling. After regaining the SFW Women's title against Alicia Strong at Season's Greetings in another sensational match, her popularity is up over 90 in some regions of the US. Up next for her is a tag feud, as Alicia Strong has brought in Raven Nightfall from USPW and Melody has been called in to help the champion. Nightfall is on the wrong side of 40, but she's not in time decline yet, and her first few matches with us have been quite good. As long as we don't get unlucky with Strong/Nightfall's chemistry, this should be a really fun feud.</p><p> </p><p> Other title news: Edd Stone and Koshiro Ino retained the tag belts against Killer Shark and Scythe. We did see the SFW Cruiserweight title change hands, though, as Mexican Hero captured the belt in defeating Aldous Blackfriar. Stone and Ino will enter a three-way feud with High Concept and Blackfriar/Roderick Remus, while Hero's first feud as champ will come against Lenny Brown. Brown's improved substantially since signing with me, largely due to being taken under the wing of Joshua Taylor. He's a very good worker with a lot of charisma and extremely strong psychology, and with Taylor bumping up his skills even more from time to time, the sky's the limit. </p><p> </p><p> Other news: Chord and York, naturally, both wanted pay raises after Season's Greetings. My usual plan is to give them 75% of what they ask for, as that's usually enough for positive morale boosts. With York, that wasn't a problem; she's very highly-paid for a women's wrestler at just under $30k/month, but with how over she is, it's easily justifiable. Chord, though, wanted a raise of nearly double his monthly salary (he earned $25k or so a month and wanted more than $40k, which would make him the highest-paid guy in the company by a large distance). I only went to 50%, and he hit the roof. However, I was at least able to cancel that out with a one-time bonus. Hopefully, that shuts him up for a while and keeps him focused on being the best champ he can be!</p></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> I was finally able to play this game through my February 2018 event, On Thin Ice. From a title perspective, not much changed. Jay Chord retained the big belt over Jefferson Stardust, and Edd Stone and Koshiro Ino kept the tag titles in a three-way match against Elmo Benson/Greg Black and Aldous Blackfriar/Roderick Remus. The only title change I made involved the Cruiserweight belt, which Lenny Brown won from Mexican Hero (who's over enough to not need it anymore).</p><p> </p><p> That doesn't mean nothing big happened, though. Sara Marie York and Melody had been feuding with Alicia Strong and Raven Nightfall. The faces won the tag match, but afterwards, Melody attacked York to turn heel and set up a feud that will run up to this year's Summer Festival in June. They had a face vs. face storyline last year, but I'm expecting better matches from them this time around due to the new alignment for Melody.</p><p> </p><p> Furthermore, I planted the seeds for a much bigger heel turn. Eddie Peak has been my franchise player for two years. However, he's on the wrong side of 40 and his stamina is quickly tapering off. As such, it's time for a heel turn, and I intend to launch that in the next week or two. The first guy he'll give the rub to is my next figurehead, Gino Montero, who'll likely beat him at Spring Stampede in April to set up a match for the big belt at Summer Festival. What's next for Peak after that? I'm not sure, but turning him heel sets up a lot of fresh matchups near the top of the card.</p><p> </p><p> Other developments: I signed Nemesis to a pay-per-appearance deal, where he'll serve as an authority figure that shows up when big things happen. He's excellent on the microphone, and this is now his primary gig since he stepped aside as IPW's booker. I also got Randy Bumfhole, who beat fellow new signee Ultra Spark Jr. at On Thin Ice in his first big match. From a developmental standpoint, I called Fro Sure up. He's turned into an OK worker, although I don't have any huge plans for him or anything like that.</p>

I just entered 2018 on my Smark Friendly Wrestling CVerse save, and some interesting stuff is happening. Namely, Phoenix I and Nemesis have both stepped down from their respective booking positions. I don't know how common this is this far in the game because I've never played a TEW game this far into the future, but it surprised me a bit. This does open up a chance to bring Nemesis in as a storyline authority figure; I've lacked one for a while since Koshiro Ino got healthy, and with Nemesis's ability to cut promos, he'll be perfect for that role.

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="HRTVAndrew" data-cite="HRTVAndrew" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41174" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Time for a Smark Friendly Wrestling update...and I must say, I love when a good plan comes together.<p> </p><p> I held my first-ever Grand Prix show just now, in November of 2017. The idea was pretty simple; I held two tournaments, one with 16 male wrestlers and one with 12 female wrestlers. The first few rounds were on my B show, the semis and finals were on the main show. The plans were set when the tournament started: Sara Marie York was going to win the women's tournament to set up a title rematch with Alicia Strong at the big December show, while Kirk Jameson and Jefferson Stardust would face off in the men's final, with Jameson winning and setting the stage for an eventual face turn against the rest of The Uprising (Jay Chord, Ernest Youngman, Greg Gauge).</p><p> </p><p> York won the final over Demelza Wade in an 86-rated match. That's pretty darned good. On to Jameson-Stardust, which was the first one-on-one meeting ever between those two...and they have great chemistry. Hello, 99-rated main event! <img alt=":D" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/biggrin.png.929299b4c121f473b0026f3d6e74d189.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /> :D <img alt=":D" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/biggrin.png.929299b4c121f473b0026f3d6e74d189.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /> All of a sudden, Jameson and Stardust are both legitimate main-event guys (popularity just over 80 around the US). This tournament worked perfectly, and while I wish I could credit it to my fantastic booking, a lot of it had to do with dumb luck!</p><p> </p><p> This show had another 99-rated match, as Joshua Taylor and Sean McFly teamed up to defeat Ernest Youngman and Greg Gauge. Both teams have excellent chemistry, and I wanted to do this match before Taylor and/or McFly started declining. McFly is in on a loan through my December show, where he and Taylor will face Super Ninja and Silver Tiger (who also have excellent chemistry together).</p><p> </p><p> We've gone this far without addressing my December main event, where Eddie Peak will put his SFW World title on the line against Jay Chord. It may be time to start going with the younger guys on top. Peak is 40, and while his popularity is great, he contributes awesome segments, and we're getting a slight boost with him as our figurehead, his matches top out in the 82-83 range, and his stamina is slowly declining. Meanwhile, Chord has turned into a legitimate star and can have good-to-great matches with anyone. Running with a heel champ on top for a while could be fun, and it certainly opens up fresh feuds for everyone else underneath.</p><p> </p><p> Comings and goings: I decided to part ways with Eisaku Kunomasu, who had declined to the point that his Technical Wizard gimmick, which has a rating of Legendary, no longer suits him. His contract ran out, so I didn't have to worry about the monetary hit releasing him would include. I did release Snap Dragon, who went unused for a while and was another guy in deep time decline. On the plus side, I won a mild bidding war for the services of Darryl Devine, who's always a good guy to have, and I picked up John Greed for a pretty cheap price when SWF decided they didn't want him anymore. Greed has incredible psychology, can cut a very good promo, and should slide into the Kunomasu "teach young guys how to work" role with ease. Elsewhere, SAISHO may close soon (the "banks close in" message came across), and that could open up room for me to poach some young guys.</p></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> The December event, SFW Season's Greetings, has just happened, and it's the start of a new era in Smark Friendly Wrestling. In the main event, Jay Chord pinned Eddie Peak, clean as a sheet, and he's now the SFW World Champion. Simply put, it's time to use the young guys I've spent two years getting ready for the big time to carry the ball at the top of the card. Peak is still my figurehead (for now), but before his contract runs out, he'll probably turn heel and set up some fresh angles. Namely, the possibility of him tagging with fellow monster Marat Khoklov and running roughshod over the tag team division really excites me.</p><p> </p><p> Chord's first feud as champion will come against Jefferson Stardust, who defeated Kirk Jameson in a rematch of their SFW Grand Prix classic. This one wasn't quite as good (96, not 99), but after the match, the crowd erupted when Kirk Jameson turned face, helping Stardust fend off former Uprising mates Ernest Youngman and Greg Gauge. Jameson will enlist the help of Frankie Perez in a feud with those two, which is handy because Perez has sort of stalled (I just don't have a lot for him to do that he hasn't already done yet!).</p><p> </p><p> Sara Marie York, meanwhile, is now officially the queen of women's wrestling. After regaining the SFW Women's title against Alicia Strong at Season's Greetings in another sensational match, her popularity is up over 90 in some regions of the US. Up next for her is a tag feud, as Alicia Strong has brought in Raven Nightfall from USPW and Melody has been called in to help the champion. Nightfall is on the wrong side of 40, but she's not in time decline yet, and her first few matches with us have been quite good. As long as we don't get unlucky with Strong/Nightfall's chemistry, this should be a really fun feud.</p><p> </p><p> Other title news: Edd Stone and Koshiro Ino retained the tag belts against Killer Shark and Scythe. We did see the SFW Cruiserweight title change hands, though, as Mexican Hero captured the belt in defeating Aldous Blackfriar. Stone and Ino will enter a three-way feud with High Concept and Blackfriar/Roderick Remus, while Hero's first feud as champ will come against Lenny Brown. Brown's improved substantially since signing with me, largely due to being taken under the wing of Joshua Taylor. He's a very good worker with a lot of charisma and extremely strong psychology, and with Taylor bumping up his skills even more from time to time, the sky's the limit. </p><p> </p><p> Other news: Chord and York, naturally, both wanted pay raises after Season's Greetings. My usual plan is to give them 75% of what they ask for, as that's usually enough for positive morale boosts. With York, that wasn't a problem; she's very highly-paid for a women's wrestler at just under $30k/month, but with how over she is, it's easily justifiable. Chord, though, wanted a raise of nearly double his monthly salary (he earned $25k or so a month and wanted more than $40k, which would make him the highest-paid guy in the company by a large distance). I only went to 50%, and he hit the roof. However, I was at least able to cancel that out with a one-time bonus. Hopefully, that shuts him up for a while and keeps him focused on being the best champ he can be!</p>

<p>World Heavyweight Championship: Sting vs. <strong>"Big Poppa Pump" Scott Steiner {©}</strong></p><p> </p><p> Stu Hart Classic Finals: <strong>Rob Van Dam</strong> vs. Booker T</p><p> </p><p> United States Heavyweight Championship: Rick Steiner vs. <strong>Rey Misterio Jr. {©}</strong></p><p> </p><p> World Tag Team Championship: Doomsday vs. <strong>Natural Born Thrillers {©}</strong></p><p> </p><p> Cruiserweight Championship: <strong>Chavo Guerrero Jr.</strong> vs. Jushin Thunder Liger {©}</p><p> </p><p> Dustin Rhodes vs. <strong>Vampiro</strong></p><p> </p><p> Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. <strong>"King of Old School" Steve Corino</strong></p><p> </p><p> Alex Wright and Ernest "The Cat" Miller vs. <strong>True Heroes</strong></p><p> </p><p> <strong>Jamie Knoble</strong> vs. Fit Finlay</p><p> </p><p> What will be match of the night?</p><p> <strong>Sting vs. Scott Steiner</strong></p><p> </p><p> How many championships will change hands?</p><p> <strong>1</strong></p><p> </p><p> Will we find out who attacked Ric Flair?</p><p> <strong>Yes</strong></p><p> </p><p> Who attacked Flair? (Answer this even if you answer no to the above question; you'll get credit for correctly naming the identity whenever it is revealed.)</p><p> <strong>Shane Douglas</strong> (going with the real-life animosity angle here)</p>

<p>Time for a Smark Friendly Wrestling update...and I must say, I love when a good plan comes together.</p><p> </p><p> I held my first-ever Grand Prix show just now, in November of 2017. The idea was pretty simple; I held two tournaments, one with 16 male wrestlers and one with 12 female wrestlers. The first few rounds were on my B show, the semis and finals were on the main show. The plans were set when the tournament started: Sara Marie York was going to win the women's tournament to set up a title rematch with Alicia Strong at the big December show, while Kirk Jameson and Jefferson Stardust would face off in the men's final, with Jameson winning and setting the stage for an eventual face turn against the rest of The Uprising (Jay Chord, Ernest Youngman, Greg Gauge).</p><p> </p><p> York won the final over Demelza Wade in an 86-rated match. That's pretty darned good. On to Jameson-Stardust, which was the first one-on-one meeting ever between those two...and they have great chemistry. Hello, 99-rated main event! <img alt="" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/biggrin.png.929299b4c121f473b0026f3d6e74d189.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /> <img alt="" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/biggrin.png.929299b4c121f473b0026f3d6e74d189.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /> All of a sudden, Jameson and Stardust are both legitimate main-event guys (popularity just over 80 around the US). This tournament worked perfectly, and while I wish I could credit it to my fantastic booking, a lot of it had to do with dumb luck!</p><p> </p><p> This show had another 99-rated match, as Joshua Taylor and Sean McFly teamed up to defeat Ernest Youngman and Greg Gauge. Both teams have excellent chemistry, and I wanted to do this match before Taylor and/or McFly started declining. McFly is in on a loan through my December show, where he and Taylor will face Super Ninja and Silver Tiger (who also have excellent chemistry together).</p><p> </p><p> We've gone this far without addressing my December main event, where Eddie Peak will put his SFW World title on the line against Jay Chord. It may be time to start going with the younger guys on top. Peak is 40, and while his popularity is great, he contributes awesome segments, and we're getting a slight boost with him as our figurehead, his matches top out in the 82-83 range, and his stamina is slowly declining. Meanwhile, Chord has turned into a legitimate star and can have good-to-great matches with anyone. Running with a heel champ on top for a while could be fun, and it certainly opens up fresh feuds for everyone else underneath.</p><p> </p><p> Comings and goings: I decided to part ways with Eisaku Kunomasu, who had declined to the point that his Technical Wizard gimmick, which has a rating of Legendary, no longer suits him. His contract ran out, so I didn't have to worry about the monetary hit releasing him would include. I did release Snap Dragon, who went unused for a while and was another guy in deep time decline. On the plus side, I won a mild bidding war for the services of Darryl Devine, who's always a good guy to have, and I picked up John Greed for a pretty cheap price when SWF decided they didn't want him anymore. Greed has incredible psychology, can cut a very good promo, and should slide into the Kunomasu "teach young guys how to work" role with ease. Elsewhere, SAISHO may close soon (the "banks close in" message came across), and that could open up room for me to poach some young guys.</p>

<p>Alright, diving in.</p><p> </p><p> BLOCK A</p><p> </p><p> Opening Round:</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Rey Misterio Jr.</strong> vs. Fit Finlay</p><p> Konnan vs. <strong>Chris Candido</strong></p><p> <strong>Booker T</strong> vs. Kanyon</p><p> <strong>Diamond Dallas Page</strong> vs. Mike Awesome</p><p> </p><p> Quarterfinals:</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Misterio</strong> or Finlay vs. Konnan or Candido</p><p> <strong>Booker</strong> or Kanyon vs. DDP or Awesome</p><p> </p><p> Block A Winner: <strong>Booker T</strong></p><p> </p><p> BLOCK B</p><p> </p><p> Opening Round:</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Rob Van Dam</strong> vs. Lex Luger</p><p> Hugh Morrus vs. <strong>Rick Steiner</strong></p><p> <strong>Dustin Rhodes</strong> vs. Shane Douglas</p><p> Steve Corino vs. <strong>???</strong></p><p> BONUS: Who is Corino's mystery opponent? <strong>Jamie Knoble</strong></p><p> </p><p> Quarterfinals:</p><p> </p><p> <strong>RVD</strong> or Luger vs. Morrus or Steiner</p><p> Rhodes or <strong>Douglas</strong> vs. Corino or ???</p><p> </p><p> Block B Winner: <strong>RVD</strong></p><p> </p><p> TOURNAMENT WINNER (worth 3 points): <strong>RVD</strong></p>

<p>Another SFW update, this time in early-October of 2017. We just held SFW Reckless Abandon, which was headlined by the team of Eddie Peak, Joshua Taylor, Jefferson Stardust, Elmo Benson, and Greg Black defeating The Uprising (Jay Chord, Ernest Youngman, Greg Gauge, Kirk Jameson) and Bulldozer Brandon Smith in an elimination match (I considered Cage Wars, but very few of those wrestlers would've benefited from that stipulation, so I decided against it). The show went pretty well, and was headlined by yet another show-stealing match featuring SFW Tag Team champions Edd Stone and Koshiro Ino. They beat Super Ninja and Silver Tiger in a 96-rated affair, and it's been a lot of fun seeing them tear it up against a variety of different teams.</p><p> </p><p> Elsewhere: Alicia Strong cheated to win the SFW Women's title from Sara Marie York, Aldous Blackfriar successfully defended the SFW Cruiserweight title against Duberry Excess, and El Mitico Jr. defeated Art Reed in the highest-rated singles match of the night (they earned a 90 together). I also debuted El Heroe Mexicano, changing his name to Mexican Hero for simplicity's sake, and he tagged with Frankie Perez to beat the menacing tag team of Killer Shark and Scythe. I'm shocked SOTBPW didn't renew his contract, especially since he's Champagne Lover's protege (not to mention an excellent worker), but their loss is my gain, especially since he's also decent on the mic and fully fluent in English. There's probably a Blackfriar/Hero feud on the horizon, simply because the latter is pretty much everything I look for in a cruiserweight.</p><p> </p><p> This month is going to be exciting. I opted to do a special show in November based around two separate tournaments called SFW Grand Prix. I put together a 16-man bracket and a 12-woman bracket (the top four get byes; in this case, that's York, Melody, Demelza Wade, and Nadia Snow), with each winner getting a title shot at a date of their choosing. The semifinal and final rounds of each tournament will be held that night, and I've already got everything mapped out exactly the way I want it to happen. Early-round matches will be held on my B-show every Thursday, while the main angles will happen on my A-show every Monday.</p><p> </p><p> In the rest of the wrestling world: <a href="http://imgur.com/a/pKRPb" rel="external nofollow">A superstar (and I mean that) who was under contract with USPW died very badly.</a> I dodged a bullet here, as I negotiated with him a year and a half prior to this happening. He wanted too much money given his age and declining skillset, so I went elsewhere. In a word: PHEW!!!</p><p> </p><p> In other news, I signed a few longer-term prospects. Marshall Dillon is probably the biggest name of the bunch, and his skillset actually reminds me of a poor man's Eddie Peak (not a great technician, but very strong psychology, can cut a promo, and is a useful brawler/menacing type). With Peak on the wrong side of 40 and starting to show his age in the ring, this could set the stage for a long-term mentor/protege angle between them. I also signed both Tiffany Jade and Amber Allen as part of the women's division; Jade has some popularity and is a decent worker, while Allen came cheap when NOTBPW didn't want her anymore.</p><p> </p><p> Unfortunately, I'm probably not getting one guy I wanted: Huey Cannonball (Jefferson Stardust's old partner) was allowed to walk from SWF, but NOTBPW seems very intent on getting him, and I'm not going to be bid up too much when Stardust is doing pretty well as a singles act. Plus, if I ever want to bring him in for a few dates, I've got a working relationship with NOTBPW that will allow that to happen, so it's not the end of the world.</p>

<p>I'd imagine there are MANY bad ways to die, and this one is right up there: <a href="http://imgur.com/a/pKRPb" rel="external nofollow">http://imgur.com/a/pKRPb</a></p><p> </p><p> Oddly, I tried to sign him a year and a half before this, but he wanted too much money (especially for his age) and re-upped with USPW. Bullet dodged!</p>

I just read all 20 pages of this diary, and I LOVED it. May jump in with predictions when the next round of matches gets posted. This is a great format with an awesome story behind it; can't wait for the next update!

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="HRTVAndrew" data-cite="HRTVAndrew" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41174" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>I just ran SFW Summer Festival, my company's flagship event, and it was a heck of a show. I made the decision to change ALL of my titles at the show, and that seemed to go over well. Eddie Peak beat Marat Khoklov in the main event to start his third World title reign, Ernest Youngman and Greg Gauge beat Elmo Benson and Greg Black for the tag titles, Sara Marie York beat Melody for the women's title, and Aldous Blackfriar (who's quickly getting over and just became "ripped," increasing his SQ to the mid-70's) won the cruiserweight title in a six-way ladder match (Fox Mask won it from Silver Tiger after my last big event).<p> </p><p> The show-stealing performances, though, belonged to a few guys in non-title matches. Match of the Night went to Edd Stone and Koshiro Ino vs. Super Ninja and Silver Tiger, which got a 91 as Stone and Ino emerged victorious. Additionally, Jay Chord got a huge rub from Sean McFly, beating him in an 89-rated match that went on just before the main event. Obviously, Chord is a guy I'm going to build around long-term, and I've programmed him in a post-Summer Festival feud with Joshua Taylor. Those matches should tear the house down and get Chord ready for a title feud with Peak, at which point I've got a difficult decision to make. Peak is one of my two biggest stars right now (the other being Khoklov), but he's just turned 40, and while he can have a very good match with pretty much anyone, his matches are starting to get the "drifted a bit due to lack of psychology" note, which troubles me. Meanwhile, Chord has literally every single thing one would want in a long-term champion, but his backstage behavior is a big problem.</p><p> </p><p> For the time being, Peak will feud with Super Ninja going into the next big event in two months. Ninja's matches are still very good despite his age, and that should kill some time while Chord feuds with Taylor and takes the next step towards being a legitimate main-event guy.</p><p> </p><p> My other title feuds are as follows: Sara Marie York will feud with the freshly-signed Alicia Strong (my women's division really COULD be its own show), Youngman and Gauge will feud with Stone and Ino, and Blackfriar will feud with Fox Mask (on the grounds that FM wasn't pinned or submitted when losing the title). Former World champ Marat Khoklov, meanwhile, will feud with Gino Montero, who beat Guide at Summer Festival and is absolutely ready for a major run. I already know those two have good chemistry, so that should go well.</p><p> </p><p> Other happenings: TCW has somehow improved to National size, and was able to fend off several suitors in keeping Ricky Dale Johnson and Bryan Vessey (while also signing Jackpot Jordan and Donte Dunn). I did offer Vessey because his ringwork was perfect for our product, but I wasn't willing to give him more than a two-year contract, and TCW apparently was. There's also a bidding war going on for Nicky Champion that I wasn't able to get involved in; he thinks my Cult-sized company is too small. <img alt=":mad:" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/mad.png.69834f23b9a8bf290d98375f56f1c794.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /> On the plus side, I DID sign Casey Valentine, who's going to be a strong upper-midcard hand for us for a while (maybe more, since he's only 28!).</p><p> </p><p> I've recalled Masked Patriot, Masked Stranger, Brodie Lachlan, and Pavel Vanzycha from developmental. Lachlan is probably the strongest long-term prospect of the group; I don't really see the others elevating much beyond the lower midcard (hopefully I'm wrong). Elemental IV has just spawned in my game, too, and the first thing I did when the calendar rolled over to June of 2017 was sign him to a developmental deal. Some of the young guys are also getting taken under the wing of the veterans; Jack Avatar is Guide's protege, while Lenny Brown has Joshua Taylor in his ear.</p></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Time for an update since we just ran Crash Landing (our August 2017 "big show"). That show is probably the best one I've ever put on.</p><p> </p><p> There were no surprises at the top, as Eddie Peak successfully defended his SFW World title against Super Ninja. However, the match that had everyone talking was the SFW Tag title match between Ernest Youngman/Greg Gauge and Edd Stone/Koshiro Ino. <a href="http://imgur.com/a/URlWy" rel="external nofollow">It's easily the best match I've ever put on, and it crowned new champs when Stone and Ino emerged victorious.</a> Coincidentally, the other tag match (Kirk Jameson/Bulldozer Brandon Smith vs. Elmo Benson/Greg Gauge) was the second-best match of the night, earning a 93 rating. Those two teams battled to a double-DQ, and I've got a fun plan for them going forward that I'll get to in a bit.</p><p> </p><p> The big story of the past week: Wrestling legend Sam Strong died just before Crash Landing. His daughter Alicia wrestled Sara Marie York for the SFW Women's title the day after his passing...and she lost (insert boos/catcalls thrown in my direction here). They wrestled a great, 90-rated match, and York won via flash pinfall. She's easily the most popular woman's wrestler in the U.S. right now (popularity in the 80's in every region), and it just didn't make sense to take the title off of her. Strong threw a fit after the match, continuing the storyline for at least another two months.</p><p> </p><p> Other noteworthy happenings: Marat Khoklov put Gino Montero over clean as a sheet, and I didn't even get any complaints (which surprised the heck out of me). Aldous Blackfriar retained the Cruiserweight title against Fox Mask (I went back and forth on that one for a while; ultimately decided Blackfriar had more prospective challengers), Aaron Andrews beat Spencer Spade, and the team of El Mitico Jr., Frankie Perez, Kip Keenan, and Duberry Excess beat Art Reed, Killer Shark, Scythe, and Casey Valentine in the traditional "get lots of people on the card" match.</p><p> </p><p> So here's where things are going: Eddie Peak is going to feud with Jay Chord, who's fresh off a win over Joshua Taylor at Crash Landing. Chord's got the rest of The Uprising with him, along with Smith. My plan is to do a 5-on-5 Cage Wars match to headline SFW Reckless Abandon in October, and then blow off Peak-Chord with a 1-on-1 title match at SFW Season's Greetings in December. Benson and Black will likely team with Peak in October to continue the feud with Jameson/Smith, and I'll likely throw Joshua Taylor in there as well since I don't have a ton for him to do (he's feuded with Andrews, Khoklov, and Chord, so from a storyline perspective, it'd benefit him to do something else). Oh, if only I had a new signing coming in to complete the match...oh wait, I totally do!</p><p> </p><p> </p><div class="ipsEmbeddedVideo"><div><iframe width="200" height="113" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/K1b8AhIsSYQ?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="" title="Starship - We Built This City (Official Music Video) [HD]"></iframe></div></div><p> </p><p> OK, so his name is Jefferson StarDUST, not StarSHIP, but it's close enough for the sake of this write-up (plus, anytime you get to link to that song, you HAVE to do it). I outbid every major company for Stardust and inked him to a five-year deal; the plan is to make him a big part of my future ideas since he's pretty much the total package. Can you tell I'm just a LITTLE excited? <img alt=":)" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/smile.png.142cfa0a1cd2925c0463c1d00f499df2.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> Other big feuds: I'm currently planning for Aaron Andrews to feud with Gino Montero, and for Super Ninja and Silver Tiger to go back to the tag ranks to feud with Stone and Ino. I'm also planning to turn Guide face. We've got a real dearth of veteran faces in the main-event scene beyond Peak and Taylor, I haven't had any major turns this year except for Art Reed (who's settled into an upper-midcard "gatekeeper" role), and Guide's ability to work very good matches with pretty much everyone will really help freshen things up. His reward for being so flexible? A feud with Marat Khoklov (hello, US vs. Russia subtext, good to see you!).</p><p> </p><p> News and notes from around the in-game world: It's actually been pretty quiet. Soul Taker and Champagne Lover wrestled a 100-rated match the night before Crash Landing, which means my 98-rated tag match above wasn't even the match of the WEEKEND, let alone match of the year. <img alt=":mad:" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/mad.png.69834f23b9a8bf290d98375f56f1c794.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /> Also, Bussho Makiguchi, #13 in the Power 500 and someone I brought over on a talent trade with PGHW some time ago, suffered a major concussion and is out for more than a year. Guess I'm glad I got something out of him before he got hurt!</p>

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Russelrules44" data-cite="Russelrules44" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41193" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>My only question is this. When it comes time to crown a king, who deserves the honor more? Sami Zayn (who currently is in a feud with Kevin Owens) or Kurt Angle? (who is having one last run at the big time and is currently feuding with Cesaro)</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> I'd say Zayn. Use Angle to make a new star. Maybe at the ceremony crowning a king, Owens and Cesaro could team up to attack Zayn, only for Angle to come out for the save. That'd set up a tag match at some point, which could add some excitement to both storylines (plus serve as one heck of a match!).</p>

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="mikemajestic33" data-cite="mikemajestic33" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41263" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Stable name for Kenny Omega, Adam Cole, and Will Ospreay. Looking for something non-BULLET CLUB related as I had Jim Cornette bury the BULLET CLUB in his company.</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> If you're presenting them as invading heels, The Uprising could work. Present them as rebellious sorts with cocky attitudes, and the name would make total sense.</p>

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="HRTVAndrew" data-cite="HRTVAndrew" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41174" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>I just ran SFW Summer Festival, my company's flagship event, and it was a heck of a show. I made the decision to change ALL of my titles at the show, and that seemed to go over well. Eddie Peak beat Marat Khoklov in the main event to start his third World title reign, Ernest Youngman and Greg Gauge beat Elmo Benson and Greg Black for the tag titles, Sara Marie York beat Melody for the women's title, and Aldous Blackfriar (who's quickly getting over and just became "ripped," increasing his SQ to the mid-70's) won the cruiserweight title in a six-way ladder match (Fox Mask won it from Silver Tiger after my last big event).<p> </p><p> The show-stealing performances, though, belonged to a few guys in non-title matches. Match of the Night went to Edd Stone and Koshiro Ino vs. Super Ninja and Silver Tiger, which got a 91 as Stone and Ino emerged victorious. Additionally, Jay Chord got a huge rub from Sean McFly, beating him in an 89-rated match that went on just before the main event. Obviously, Chord is a guy I'm going to build around long-term, and I've programmed him in a post-Summer Festival feud with Joshua Taylor. Those matches should tear the house down and get Chord ready for a title feud with Peak, at which point I've got a difficult decision to make. Peak is one of my two biggest stars right now (the other being Khoklov), but he's just turned 40, and while he can have a very good match with pretty much anyone, his matches are starting to get the "drifted a bit due to lack of psychology" note, which troubles me. Meanwhile, Chord has literally every single thing one would want in a long-term champion, but his backstage behavior is a big problem.</p><p> </p><p> For the time being, Peak will feud with Super Ninja going into the next big event in two months. Ninja's matches are still very good despite his age, and that should kill some time while Chord feuds with Taylor and takes the next step towards being a legitimate main-event guy.</p><p> </p><p> My other title feuds are as follows: Sara Marie York will feud with the freshly-signed Alicia Strong (my women's division really COULD be its own show), Youngman and Gauge will feud with Stone and Ino, and Blackfriar will feud with Fox Mask (on the grounds that FM wasn't pinned or submitted when losing the title). Former World champ Marat Khoklov, meanwhile, will feud with Gino Montero, who beat Guide at Summer Festival and is absolutely ready for a major run. I already know those two have good chemistry, so that should go well.</p><p> </p><p> Other happenings: TCW has somehow improved to National size, and was able to fend off several suitors in keeping Ricky Dale Johnson and Bryan Vessey (while also signing Jackpot Jordan and Donte Dunn). I did offer Vessey because his ringwork was perfect for our product, but I wasn't willing to give him more than a two-year contract, and TCW apparently was. There's also a bidding war going on for Nicky Champion that I wasn't able to get involved in; he thinks my Cult-sized company is too small. <img alt=":mad:" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/mad.png.69834f23b9a8bf290d98375f56f1c794.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /> On the plus side, I DID sign Casey Valentine, who's going to be a strong upper-midcard hand for us for a while (maybe more, since he's only 28!).</p><p> </p><p> I've recalled Masked Patriot, Masked Stranger, Brodie Lachlan, and Pavel Vanzycha from developmental. Lachlan is probably the strongest long-term prospect of the group; I don't really see the others elevating much beyond the lower midcard (hopefully I'm wrong). Elemental IV has just spawned in my game, too, and the first thing I did when the calendar rolled over to June of 2017 was sign him to a developmental deal. Some of the young guys are also getting taken under the wing of the veterans; Jack Avatar is Guide's protege, while Lenny Brown has Joshua Taylor in his ear.</p></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> One fairly-major edit early in June 2017, since this just happened: It turned out that Black Canvas Grappling had a lot of debts and was very close to going under. I took over the week after Summer Festival (just a few in-game days after I posted that update), and began using it as a second developmental territory. My logic is that BCG and my ringwork-heavy product are a fair match for one another, and I had several Japanese guys in my developmental system I could send over right away (plus I sent Totoya Munakata and Tanyu Toshusai over there as well since they're MUCH more popular in Japan and I have no immediate plans for them!). All Canada Pro Wrestling is in a similar predicament, but I opted to take over BCG instead.</p>

I just ran SFW Summer Festival, my company's flagship event, and it was a heck of a show. I made the decision to change ALL of my titles at the show, and that seemed to go over well. Eddie Peak beat Marat Khoklov in the main event to start his third World title reign, Ernest Youngman and Greg Gauge beat Elmo Benson and Greg Black for the tag titles, Sara Marie York beat Melody for the women's title, and Aldous Blackfriar (who's quickly getting over and just became "ripped," increasing his SQ to the mid-70's) won the cruiserweight title in a six-way ladder match (Fox Mask won it from Silver Tiger after my last big event). The show-stealing performances, though, belonged to a few guys in non-title matches. Match of the Night went to Edd Stone and Koshiro Ino vs. Super Ninja and Silver Tiger, which got a 91 as Stone and Ino emerged victorious. Additionally, Jay Chord got a huge rub from Sean McFly, beating him in an 89-rated match that went on just before the main event. Obviously, Chord is a guy I'm going to build around long-term, and I've programmed him in a post-Summer Festival feud with Joshua Taylor. Those matches should tear the house down and get Chord ready for a title feud with Peak, at which point I've got a difficult decision to make. Peak is one of my two biggest stars right now (the other being Khoklov), but he's just turned 40, and while he can have a very good match with pretty much anyone, his matches are starting to get the "drifted a bit due to lack of psychology" note, which troubles me. Meanwhile, Chord has literally every single thing one would want in a long-term champion, but his backstage behavior is a big problem. For the time being, Peak will feud with Super Ninja going into the next big event in two months. Ninja's matches are still very good despite his age, and that should kill some time while Chord feuds with Taylor and takes the next step towards being a legitimate main-event guy. My other title feuds are as follows: Sara Marie York will feud with the freshly-signed Alicia Strong (my women's division really COULD be its own show), Youngman and Gauge will feud with Stone and Ino, and Blackfriar will feud with Fox Mask (on the grounds that FM wasn't pinned or submitted when losing the title). Former World champ Marat Khoklov, meanwhile, will feud with Gino Montero, who beat Guide at Summer Festival and is absolutely ready for a major run. I already know those two have good chemistry, so that should go well. Other happenings: TCW has somehow improved to National size, and was able to fend off several suitors in keeping Ricky Dale Johnson and Bryan Vessey (while also signing Jackpot Jordan and Donte Dunn). I did offer Vessey because his ringwork was perfect for our product, but I wasn't willing to give him more than a two-year contract, and TCW apparently was. There's also a bidding war going on for Nicky Champion that I wasn't able to get involved in; he thinks my Cult-sized company is too small. On the plus side, I DID sign Casey Valentine, who's going to be a strong upper-midcard hand for us for a while (maybe more, since he's only 28!). I've recalled Masked Patriot, Masked Stranger, Brodie Lachlan, and Pavel Vanzycha from developmental. Lachlan is probably the strongest long-term prospect of the group; I don't really see the others elevating much beyond the lower midcard (hopefully I'm wrong). Elemental IV has just spawned in my game, too, and the first thing I did when the calendar rolled over to June of 2017 was sign him to a developmental deal. Some of the young guys are also getting taken under the wing of the veterans; Jack Avatar is Guide's protege, while Lenny Brown has Joshua Taylor in his ear.

<p>This guy popped up as a randomly-generated worker in my CornellVerse game: <a href="http://imgur.com/a/45o5z" rel="external nofollow">http://imgur.com/a/45o5z</a></p><p> </p><p> Uhhhh, Benjamin Button gimmick, I guess? <img alt="" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/confused.png.d4a8e6b6eab0c67698b911fb041c0ed1.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /> Oddly, based on the stats, except for his insanely-low stamina, he's actually an OK prospect!</p>

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="HRTVAndrew" data-cite="HRTVAndrew" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41174" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>We're into February 2017, and we've got a new SFW World Champion. Marat Khoklov beat Eddie Peak, clean as a sheet, at On Thin Ice (our early-February show). The match actually wasn't bad (82), as Khoklov has gained enough psychology to be useful in matches called in the ring. As mentioned, this storyline will continue to SFW Summer Festival, the biggest show of the year (which takes place in early-June), and for the moment, I've added Joshua Taylor to it, since he beat Aaron Andrews in a #1 contender match at On Thin Ice.<p> </p><p> Other big news: Melody pinned Demelza Wade for the Women's title in a triple threat match that also included Sara Marie York. The two worked together (albeit uneasily) in that storyline, but now, the focus will shift to Summer Festival, where my two best female workers will go one-on-one for the title. Face vs. face storylines can be tricky, but I'm really looking forward to this one. Heck, Sara's popularity is around 70 nationwide, making her more over than about 85% of the male roster!</p><p> </p><p> I also made a pretty noteworthy turn at On Thin Ice. Art Reed had been teaming with Clark Alexander, and they even won the tag titles together for a short time last year. However, with Alexander's contract up and him in a very steep decline, I had no use for the tag team anymore. Aldous Blackfriar and Roderick Remus beat them clean at On Thin Ice, and Reed snapped after the match, turning heel and setting him up to work good matches with my upper-midcard tier of faces (Edd Stone and Frankie Perez, specifically; those'll be really fun to watch!).</p><p> </p><p> Also, I'm happy to report that Koshiro Ino is back healthy. He tore his rotator cuff weeks after signing with me last year, but thanks to surgery, his 12-month recovery time got cut to just under nine months (I WAS able to keep him on the air as my commissioner, where he contributed to some fun segments from time to time). He beat Guide at On Thin Ice (thankfully, I had nothing else for Guide to do!), and I've got Ino pegged as a top-tier babyface for a while to come. He's not Eddie Peak or Joshua Taylor-level popular, but he's not far off, either.</p><p> </p><p> You may notice a lot of my guys are former TCW stars. If you've seen the TCW thread elsewhere on this forum, you'll know that I brought up their tricky economic situation. Since my last writing, it's only gotten worse. I signed Elmo Benson (probably for too much money), and will be reuniting High Concept, his tag team with Greg Black. Additionally, USPW signed both Human Arsenal and Danny Fonzarelli. As such, in the last year-plus, TCW has lost the following guys: Eddie Peak, Aaron Andrews, Joshua Taylor, Edd Stone, Guide, Elmo Benson, Human Arsenal, and Danny Fonzarelli. Yeah, they're, um...in BIG trouble. <img alt=":rolleyes:" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/rolleyes.png.4b097f4fbbe99ce5bcd5efbc1b773ed6.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> While my top guys are long-term stalwarts of the industry, I'm also really happy about some of the younger guys that are breaking out. Gino Montero, for instance, is between 65-70 in popularity around the country, and when autopushing everyone (as I do from time to time), the game put him at the main event level, which stunned me. Yes, he's a terrific worker and a future star, but a main event-level guy after a bit more than a year? Wow. I've put him in a program with The Uprising (Ernest Youngman, Kirk Jameson, and Greg Gauge), who are just a hair below that in popularity and will all be key figures going forward as well.</p><p> </p><p> I had to cull a few guys from developmental. Felipe Caballero and Marcel LeFleur got released; Caballero had a very low ceiling, while LeFleur just didn't develop nearly enough to where I'd ever use him. Christopher Gerard barely avoided the ax, and was instead called up to be a heel jobber for the time being. The next guy to make that decision about is The Masked Stranger, who's a solid all-around worker I'm not sure I have a spot for. It's not an awful problem to have, but this is where I could really use another TV show that I'll hopefully get moving from Cult to National at some point this year.</p></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> On to April 2017, and with it, the conclusion of SFW Spring Stampede. At the top of the show, Marat Khoklov retained his SFW World Championship cleanly over Joshua Taylor, setting up Khoklov-Peak 2 at SFW Summer Festival (my biggest show). Taylor got shoehorned in, but the dude's been on fire, producing some killer matches. He and Peak, in fact, teamed up for a 94-rated tag match with Kirk Jameson and Greg Gauge that's easily the best match I've had in this save so far. In fact, just for kicks, I brought Bruce the Giant in on a one-shot deal and had Taylor face him in a TV main event. Well, it turns out Taylor and Bruce have excellent chemistry, and despite Bruce being pretty much immobile and unable to work longer than eight minutes without getting gassed, the match got a respectable 78 rating.</p><p> </p><p> Joshua Taylor = miracle worker. <img alt=":D" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/biggrin.png.929299b4c121f473b0026f3d6e74d189.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> Other title feuds: Melody and Sara worked a 20-minute time limit draw at Spring Stampede, setting up a blowoff match at Summer Festival. Silver Tiger became my new Cruiserweight champion a few weeks before Spring Stampede, but he and Super Ninja lost the tag titles to High Concept (Elmo Benson and Greg Black) in a ladder match that night. I probably have to find a way to get the Cruiserweight title off Tiger, as I've got he and Ninja programmed with Edd Stone and Koshiro Ino (who I only recently found had excellent chemistry as partners) leading up to Summer Festival. My cruiserweight division is suddenly swimming with promising midcard guys (Aldous Blackfriar, Roderick Remus, Kip Keenan, and Fox Mask, to name four), so it shouldn't be too hard to pick one and see how they do when handed the ball.</p><p> </p><p> The latest TCW poaching report: Before Spring Stampede, I snagged Jay Chord, who became a logical fit in The Uprising with Jameson, Gauge, and Ernest Youngman. I gave him a six-year deal, and while he's a horrible influence backstage, he's got "future star" written all over him in big, bold letters (and I've got a ton of locker room leaders to keep him in line, too!). In lesser news, I've also poached Killer Shark and Floyd Goldworthy. I'm not quite sure if I'm going to put Goldworthy as Shark's manager, but the timing is perfect and the fit should be OK (since Shark can't talk). Meanwhile, SWF poached Rocky Golden and Eddie Chandler, leaving TCW with Wolf Hawkins, Sammy Bach, 47-year-old Ricky Dale Johnson, 45-year-old Bryan Vessey, and not much else. Someone sound the freaking alarms over there! <img alt=":eek:" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/eek.png.0e09df00fa222c85760b9bc1700b5405.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> Other signings/missed signings/notes: Alicia Strong is being allowed to leave USPW, which stuns me since she's one of the top female wrestlers in the world. Given my women's division, and the chances of matchups between her and Sara Marie York/Melody, I want her, and I want her badly. I also wanted Boom-Boom Jamaica, who would've been a perfect fit for my cruiserweight division and a strong long-term prospect, but he re-upped with SOTBPW for considerably less than I was offering. On the plus side, I did sign Lassana Makutsi and Scythe from SWF for very cheap, and given their levels of potential, they're low-risk, high-reward investments. Finally, Sean McFly turned down a VERY lucrative offer from USPW to stay with NOTBPW, and that's very good news for me. I've got a working agreement with NOTBPW, and the first thing I did after Spring Stampede was arrange a talent trade so McFly could come in for a program culminating in a Summer Festival match with Jay Chord!</p>

This may be my favorite pop-up message in the entire game because of the fun pairings that can happen.

We're into February 2017, and we've got a new SFW World Champion. Marat Khoklov beat Eddie Peak, clean as a sheet, at On Thin Ice (our early-February show). The match actually wasn't bad (82), as Khoklov has gained enough psychology to be useful in matches called in the ring. As mentioned, this storyline will continue to SFW Summer Festival, the biggest show of the year (which takes place in early-June), and for the moment, I've added Joshua Taylor to it, since he beat Aaron Andrews in a #1 contender match at On Thin Ice. Other big news: Melody pinned Demelza Wade for the Women's title in a triple threat match that also included Sara Marie York. The two worked together (albeit uneasily) in that storyline, but now, the focus will shift to Summer Festival, where my two best female workers will go one-on-one for the title. Face vs. face storylines can be tricky, but I'm really looking forward to this one. Heck, Sara's popularity is around 70 nationwide, making her more over than about 85% of the male roster! I also made a pretty noteworthy turn at On Thin Ice. Art Reed had been teaming with Clark Alexander, and they even won the tag titles together for a short time last year. However, with Alexander's contract up and him in a very steep decline, I had no use for the tag team anymore. Aldous Blackfriar and Roderick Remus beat them clean at On Thin Ice, and Reed snapped after the match, turning heel and setting him up to work good matches with my upper-midcard tier of faces (Edd Stone and Frankie Perez, specifically; those'll be really fun to watch!). Also, I'm happy to report that Koshiro Ino is back healthy. He tore his rotator cuff weeks after signing with me last year, but thanks to surgery, his 12-month recovery time got cut to just under nine months (I WAS able to keep him on the air as my commissioner, where he contributed to some fun segments from time to time). He beat Guide at On Thin Ice (thankfully, I had nothing else for Guide to do!), and I've got Ino pegged as a top-tier babyface for a while to come. He's not Eddie Peak or Joshua Taylor-level popular, but he's not far off, either. You may notice a lot of my guys are former TCW stars. If you've seen the TCW thread elsewhere on this forum, you'll know that I brought up their tricky economic situation. Since my last writing, it's only gotten worse. I signed Elmo Benson (probably for too much money), and will be reuniting High Concept, his tag team with Greg Black. Additionally, USPW signed both Human Arsenal and Danny Fonzarelli. As such, in the last year-plus, TCW has lost the following guys: Eddie Peak, Aaron Andrews, Joshua Taylor, Edd Stone, Guide, Elmo Benson, Human Arsenal, and Danny Fonzarelli. Yeah, they're, um...in BIG trouble. While my top guys are long-term stalwarts of the industry, I'm also really happy about some of the younger guys that are breaking out. Gino Montero, for instance, is between 65-70 in popularity around the country, and when autopushing everyone (as I do from time to time), the game put him at the main event level, which stunned me. Yes, he's a terrific worker and a future star, but a main event-level guy after a bit more than a year? Wow. I've put him in a program with The Uprising (Ernest Youngman, Kirk Jameson, and Greg Gauge), who are just a hair below that in popularity and will all be key figures going forward as well. I had to cull a few guys from developmental. Felipe Caballero and Marcel LeFleur got released; Caballero had a very low ceiling, while LeFleur just didn't develop nearly enough to where I'd ever use him. Christopher Gerard barely avoided the ax, and was instead called up to be a heel jobber for the time being. The next guy to make that decision about is The Masked Stranger, who's a solid all-around worker I'm not sure I have a spot for. It's not an awful problem to have, but this is where I could really use another TV show that I'll hopefully get moving from Cult to National at some point this year.

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="HRTVAndrew" data-cite="HRTVAndrew" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41343" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>...and in my current game with a custom workrate-based company, I've poached Eddie Peak, Aaron Andrews, Joshua Taylor, Stone, and Guide, while currently being in a bidding war for Elmo Benson! It seems like a real challenge from that perspective.</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Update: Not only did I poach Benson, but USPW got both Human Arsenal and Danny Fonzarelli. TCW is in MAJOR trouble. It's almost bad enough to make me want to start another game booking them under their cheapskate owner!</p>

<p><a href="http://imgur.com/2403KFM" rel="external nofollow">http://imgur.com/2403KFM</a></p><p> </p><p> Well, THAT didn't last long.</p>

What's everyone's view on TCW's financial standing in this game? I've played a few different CornellVerse games, and in most of them, TCW has gotten absolutely slaughtered due to financial issues. In an MAW game once, Brent Hill, Edd Stone, Darryl Devine, and Killer Shark all walked out, and in my current game with a custom workrate-based company, I've poached Eddie Peak, Aaron Andrews, Joshua Taylor, Stone, and Guide, while currently being in a bidding war for Elmo Benson! It seems like a real challenge from that perspective.