Some questions about AAA

[Rey619]

OK, I'm fairly new to TEW (I have played at least 3 versions, but not for very long), and I have some questions on how to run AAA successfully. I'm a big fan of women's wrestling, so AAA seemed to be the best (only) bet.

 

1. Right now I'm 5 months into the game, and I am running two monthly shows. One 2 hour medium sized show in NW (the primary area), and one small 1 hour show in the Midwest. This in order to increase my importance in two areas (requirement for cult).

 

2. Money-wise, I'm still making money every month, but the profit gets lower and lower with every new signing and re-signing (none of my girls had covered their travel expenses, while almost everyone wants it now). I've over 300K, so money is not a problem right now.

 

3. I'm struggling to get match ratings better than D+ though. My main event picture consists of Catherine, Grace Harper, Suzanne Brazzle and Kate Avatar (one of the default characters). My shows also suffers from:

 

a) Way too many matches with the note: "this match brought the crowd's mood down

 

b) Show notes that say that some angles didn't match the quality of the matches. I think this is due to me running angles based on Overness. Let's face it, those angles doesn't work for a small company such as myself.

 

4. There are some workers who have a very negative influence on the locker room. Anne Stardust for one (can't do anything bout her, though), Black Widow and Steph Blake are two others. Locker room percentage is 85-90 though, so I guess it isn't so bad.

 

Any other hints and tricks? Talents I should push/hire? I'm thinking of doing a talent trade with 5SSW, dunno if that is a good idea though.

[Prime Elephant]

Rey, how long are your matches, and are you intelligently using your road agent notes?

 

Have you been pushing J-Ro and Goodlooks? They are both solid, especially Joanne.

 

Focus on your main event, your sub-main, and your opening, and make sure those are quality matches. For the rest of your card, run squash matches / beatdown angles with Katayama, Gorgon, or Blake with Domination, it'll build their overness up Quickly. Gorgon's best of this at this stage in the game because she's a good enough worker to have good blowoff matches.

 

Get a working agreement with USPW. Trade one of your main eventers for Alicia Strong, she's amazing. Give her a big win over one of your top stars when she debuts, then have her lose her last two matches in the company. This also has the bonus of keeping them from poaching your workers! !

 

Hire Honey Golightly and put her in the announcers booth with Anne Stardust. Get rid of Freebush, he stinks. Also consider hiring Sara Silver.

 

Look around for a better road agent to replace Black Widow if possible. With a good backstage staff, you'll install a "floor" for your matches that's more worthwhile than any single worker, and even your "bad" matches will get better.

 

Your locker room - hire some nice people/friends of your employees to improve the atmosphere. Chloe Dean, Tamara McFly, and Nurse Darla Knight are all really positive personalities. (McFly is the only person who will actually help in ring though).

 

Don't sweat too hard about having low rated matches for a while, it'll gradually go up as your workers get more experience.

 

PS. Don't use angles to build your undercard, keep em just for your main eventers. In addition, use angles where your main eventers are fighting/standing off and your undercard is standing around in the background, like Pull Aprt Brawl and Face Off, No Contact.

 

PPS. Use the preshow. Double book your main eventers and give them a 5-10 minute squash in the preshow. Your lower workers will gain valuable experience.

 

PPPS. Use a T&A angle once in a while.

[Self]

OK, I'm fairly new to TEW (I have played at least 3 versions, but not for very long), and I have some questions on how to run AAA successfully. I'm a big fan of women's wrestling, so AAA seemed to be the best (only) bet.

 

1. Right now I'm 5 months into the game, and I am running two monthly shows. One 2 hour medium sized show in NW (the primary area), and one small 1 hour show in the Midwest. This in order to increase my importance in two areas (requirement for cult).

 

Don't rush to Cult. I'm serious. Get really over in ONE area, then move onto the second.

 

2. Money-wise, I'm still making money every month, but the profit gets lower and lower with every new signing and re-signing (none of my girls had covered their travel expenses, while almost everyone wants it now). I've over 300K, so money is not a problem right now.

 

When running a lower promotion, I'm a big fan of using as few workers on a show that I possibly can. If you're still making a profit, that's fine, you're winning, but don't feel the need to use everyone every month.

 

3. I'm struggling to get match ratings better than D+ though. My main event picture consists of Catherine, Grace Harper, Suzanne Brazzle and Kate Avatar (one of the default characters). My shows also suffers from:

 

a) Way too many matches with the note: "this match brought the crowd's mood down

 

b) Show notes that say that some angles didn't match the quality of the matches. I think this is due to me running angles based on Overness. Let's face it, those angles doesn't work for a small company such as myself.

 

D+ may not sound good, but are you going up in Popularity after every show? If so, don't worry about it. You're winning. Regardless, you only really need to worry about your Main Event (and to a far lesser extent, your semi-main and opener) EVERYTHING else can be junk.

 

a) You'll get that, but it's not a huge deal. Don't take the negative road agent notes too seriously. I'm in the middle of a game where I've taken TCW to number one, and I still get that note in my undercard. Because it's the undercard, it really doesn't matter.

 

b) It's because your angles are getting scores lower than your matches. I wouldn't use overness rated angles with AAA. I'd use Sex Appeal or Entertainment if the girls can talk. Your workers don't have good overness, so why rely on it? Again, it's not an oh-so-serious note, but ideally your angles should be better than your matches. Main Eventers only. Skilled talkers only. Really menacing gals only. The Elite performers only.

 

4. There are some workers who have a very negative influence on the locker room. Anne Stardust for one (can't do anything bout her, though), Black Widow and Steph Blake are two others. Locker room percentage is 85-90 though, so I guess it isn't so bad.

 

Nothing wrong with that at all. As mentioned, Black Widow can probably go once you get a better Road Agent, but 80% perfectly fine.

[Prime Elephant]

Don't rush to Cult. I'm serious.

 

cosign. chill out at regional and build your bank up for some time. your expenses will go waaaay up once you get to cult.

[ampulator]

Also, you are getting into regional battles with CZCW... and probably losing. Consider a working agreement or a non-agression pact to get rid of the regional battles.

[Rey619]

Thanks for the advice.

 

OK, so I'll stop trying to expand, but I should still do two shows a month, though? Or will I burn out my crowd?

 

Right now I'm using Freebush and Silver on announcing. Anne Stardust is road agent, and Black Widow manages Wild Times. She has B- momentum, so I think I'll keep her for the time being.

 

I also found out that doing a Battle Royal was a good idea. C- match rating and a ton of wrestlers improving in stuff.

 

So, basically I should just do angles and storylines with the main eventers and those that are really good. Tag-team storyline with A-List and Lily & Rose weren't such a good idea...

 

I did sign Tamara though. And Golden Delicious and Lauren Easter. I might let someone go soon, I have way more wrestlers than recommended.

[Prime Elephant]

Give Lauren Easter a major push if you managed to grab her, she's got excellent skills.

 

Battle Royals and 5 v 5 tags are good.

 

Lily and Rose probably aren't over enough to justify feuding them with Wade and Snow yet, but I thiiink Demelza Wade is good enough on the mic that you can pull off talking angles with her team.

[Self]

If you can afford to run two shows a month, I see no reason not to do it. Maybe keep one show 'smaller' using less girls to keep costs down, but if you can afford it, go nuts.

 

In response to Prime Elephant, I'd actually be wary of 5v5 or Battle Royales. I've never played AAA, but I've played BSC a bunch and even though it's nice to give girls some in-ring experience, it can get costly. From a pure business standpoint, why pay 10 girls when you can get the same Match Rating with two?

[Regis]

Mostly all I can do is second a lot of stuff that's been said here, but from my own experience of running a regional promotion, I'd offer a few slightly different bits of advice.

 

The Battle Royale/5v5 matches thing? If you can do it and still make a profit, go for it. What you need, what you really, really need, is for your workers to develop as fast as or faster than the company. At some point your Popularity will start to equal your show grades, and at that point you'll need your undercard to be solid to shore up your much better Main Eventers. Yes, they'll always be weaker than your Main Event. Such is the nature of the beast. But you don't want them to be too far behind, and eventually some of those girls will be needed to fill the top slots. In short, if you can make your girls better, do make them better. It will always pay off in the end.

 

Sticking to one region I can heartily advise. The higher your overness, the bigger your gate, the more money you make, the more you can afford to spend on the necessities. The popularity of your Main Stars will get higher, which will directly affect your grades. Hell, if you can hit Cult by simple virtue of your popularity overspill rather than from working two regions, fantastic! Don't get greedy, don't start rushing. Be the best Regional you can be before you start working towards Cult, because Cult really is a kick in the teeth.

 

Other than that, it's mostly a general question of working with the game. Is someone rated well in one stat or another? Then use that stat for your angles. Is someone good at a certain style of match? Then once in a while, give them something that plays to those strengths. Try playing with the Dirt Sheet on for a while, to get a better notion of what's playing into the results you're getting.

 

And in the end, have fun!

[Greg McNeish]

Hell, if you can hit Cult by simple virtue of your popularity overspill rather than from working two regions, fantastic!

 

Is this actually possible? I've never bothered learning the specifics of spill-overs (thresholds and amount gained), so I can't work this out myself.

 

Is it truly possible to strictly focus on one region, without ever leaving home, and hit Cult?

[ampulator]

It's possible, but it's not exactly easy, and if you don't maintain your overspill, then you drop back to Regional anyway (which may actually not be a bad thing).

[Comradebot]

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Greg McNeish" data-cite="Greg McNeish" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="27735" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Is this actually possible? I've never bothered learning the specifics of spill-overs (thresholds and amount gained), so I can't work this out myself.<p> </p><p> Is it truly possible to strictly focus on one region, without ever leaving home, and hit Cult?</p></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Technically, yes, it IS possible (I think). Obviously, it'll depend on the regions where you get spillover into.</p><p> </p><p> But once you hit 83.1% (B+ popularity!), you can get spillover of a D+ which, in high importance regions, will mean you qualify.</p><p> </p><p> But, lemme state that again: You'll need to reach B+ popularity in one region, as a Regional company. So if you can put on A shows with a Regional company for a good chunk of time, you can do it. </p><p> </p><p> But it falls into the "almost" impossible range. It's doable, I'm sure... but seems hardly worth the trouble you'd likely put yourself through attempting to do so.</p>

[Rey619]

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Regis" data-cite="Regis" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="27735" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>The Battle Royale/5v5 matches thing? If you can do it and still make a profit, go for it. </div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Yeah, the profit thing is not a problem for me, at least not if I'm to run two shows a month with 1500+ crowd. The thing for me, and this is true for every aspect for AAA, is that I want this to resemble a real show in all ways possible. And that probably means that I can't "work" the game as well as I can. If I went to a show and saw the two-three top stars work dark matches prior to the show, I would have thought that were weird. Same if my favorite company were putting out battle royals and 5 vs 5 every show. </p><p> </p><p> Heh, that's probably why I'm happy and am having fun anyways, even though I'm not doing things right. I'm putting on shows that (in my mind) would have been fun to watch <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> But I do want to succeed in the game as well. </p><p> </p><p> I'm really liking the idea of having Alicia Strong for some matches. Need to try and do that when I return from my weekend trip.</p>

[Greg McNeish]

<p>Most indy shows have a big multi-man match somewhere on their card. It's done for this exact reason: You get your people active; keep them in the public eye; and give people a chance to work in a relatively low pressure situation, allowing them to focus more on sharpening their skills.</p><p> </p><p>

Mind you, that is generally done during the middle of the show, when people have settled in, but you're still not quite building up to the main event. Put it in your throw-away segment time (and every show has some of that), and it will be totally realistic.</p><p> </p><p>

Cheers!</p>

[Greg McNeish]

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Comradebot" data-cite="Comradebot" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="27735" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>But once you hit 83.1% (B+ popularity!), you can get spillover of a D+ which, in high importance regions, will mean you qualify.</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Nifty. Since we're on the topic (you know, 'cause I hijacked the thread), what are the thresholds for spillovers? There are only a few times where it happens, if memory serves. Of course, I have the memory of a goldfish, so....</p><p> </p><p> </p><blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Comradebot" data-cite="Comradebot" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="27735" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>But it falls into the "almost" impossible range. It's doable, I'm sure... but seems hardly worth the trouble you'd likely put yourself through attempting to do so.</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Come now, Comrade; aren't you always setting challenges for yourself, in your games? I dare you.<img alt=":D" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/biggrin.png.929299b4c121f473b0026f3d6e74d189.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p>

[Prime Elephant]

<p>^What greg said. You're booking an indy fed, not Smackdown. It takes a little bit of time to get the feel for what works at any promotion.</p><p> </p><p>

Also, remember that it's an indy fed, so your fans have the attention span for longer matches. People with B stamina can comfortably go 20 minutes with Slow Build, and people with B- in psych can call their own matches in the ring - this will really pop your ratings.</p><p> </p><p>

For shorter matches, make sure you're using All Out with your decent athletes(check your dirt sheet and see how they do). Have fun!</p>

[Remianen]

Nifty. Since we're on the topic (you know, 'cause I hijacked the thread), what are the thresholds for spillovers? There are only a few times where it happens, if memory serves. Of course, I have the memory of a goldfish, so....

 

Well, a search turned up this thread: http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showthread.php?t=42922&highlight=Spillover

[James Casey]

With regard to travel costs, try instead increasing the basic pay by one notch (600 to 700, say). This usually clears the need for travel fees, which are always more than that small increase. The negotiation screen will tell you what the travel fee will be ($532 seems common) so if you're underthat, it's profit all the way. Renegotiate anyone with travel fees in their contract that you can as well.

 

Run two shows a month in the NW to maximise exposure, training time and profit.

 

Don't sign too many workers. You'll bloat your roster, leading to mega payouts or an unhappy backstage. Twenty-five wrestlers would be fine for a Regional company, I'd say.

 

Really, really don't rush to Cult. Hold a show in the MW every 2-3 months to keep/boost pop there, but focus on the NW until you're around 55/60%, ifnot higher, before beginning serious expansion efforts.

[Rey619]

Hey, thanks again for all the advice.

 

I've now finished 2010, and I usually get D+ shows, which increases my popularity. Of course, USPW letting Alicia Strong go was their loss and my gain. I even got a C match out of her and Lauren Easter in the Queen of the Ring semi finals - before Easter was signed to an exclusive deal with NOTBPW.

 

Two additional questions:

 

1) How many shows with "this should have increased your popularity" do you need to actually get a better grade. I'm at D- now, and have probably gotten 15 notes of that kind through the year. Is there a way to see the numbers behind the letters?

 

2) USPW have offered contracts to at least a dozen of my workers, but nothing ever happens. This over the course of 3-4 months. Do my girls turn them down, then? I was afraid I would be completely out of good wrestlers, but they're still here.

[James Casey]

In the User Preferences section, you can select numbers or letters. I believe you need to be 5% over your popularity in terms of card score to improve, but someone else will probably say for sure.

 

Each grade is worth 5% (F- and A* are 6%) so if you're only going up by .1 or .2% a show, it'll take a long time to go up.

 

As a smaller fed, having companies stealing your workers is inevitable. Not getting an e-mail to say the workers ahve rejected the deal is one of the more annoying parts of the game. As a rule of thumb, if you don't hear after a week or so, the worker's staying - I don't recall a longer wait period, anyway.

[Rey619]

Huh.. I'm really glad at least a dozen of my workers will rather work for me than USPW though. A locker room with 90+ happiness is probably some of the reason.

[ritwik]

Huh.. I'm really glad at least a dozen of my workers will rather work for me than USPW though. A locker room with 90+ happiness is probably some of the reason.

 

maybe they have signed PPA deals with USPW ?

[Remianen]

Hey, thanks again for all the advice.

 

I've now finished 2010, and I usually get D+ shows, which increases my popularity. Of course, USPW letting Alicia Strong go was their loss and my gain. I even got a C match out of her and Lauren Easter in the Queen of the Ring semi finals - before Easter was signed to an exclusive deal with NOTBPW.

 

Wait, are you playing TEW2010? Seems awfully lucky to have Lauren's written deal with NOTBPW expire so soon.

 

1) How many shows with "this should have increased your popularity" do you need to actually get a better grade. I'm at D- now, and have probably gotten 15 notes of that kind through the year. Is there a way to see the numbers behind the letters?

 

User preferences. First checkbox on the left.

 

Or, you can use the editor.

[Rey619]

I was under the impression that Lauren had a PPA agreement with NOTPBW. She worked simultaneously for me and them before signing a written.

 

Well, BSC has offered a working agreement, and CWWF just came into existence. Women's wrestling is heating up in the C-Verse!