APW Thread

[Xendarii]

Since we have a ZEN thread, we definitely need one about APW as well. It's crucial to bring the glory and tension of Australian wrestling to the TEW players, mates!

 

I've played around with the demo a bit, and found that, when setting up a TV show right at the start (just like I did in 2013), I've made a significant loss at the end of the month. I've used the auto booking feature all the time, and the worker cost exceeded my income by far, which was different in 2013, if I recall correctly. Anyone interested in trying the same and confirming/objecting? I think that a TV show is extremely important for APW to allow them to grow in RAW's huge shadows, but if that means a significant financial loss every month, I doubt it's worth it at all...

 

Also, roster changes. It's sad that MoJax left for RAW, but I guess everybody see that coming, given how incredibly talented he is. I would've also liked The Rising Suns to stay around because of Jimmy Stratosphere, but that's probably a minor loss, especially because they got the Apocalypse. Love that. Don't really know what to think about Nighthawk and Tate, I always avoided signing the latter because of his character, although he's not nearly as horrible as Richie Fox. Nighthawk... well, there are more talented unemployed guys around in Australia.

[Gtact420]

Haven't tried APW in 2016. Do you still get the 'match risk is too low' ding as APW?

[Xendarii]

Haven't tried APW in 2016. Do you still get the 'match risk is too low' ding as APW?

Unless their product has changed, yeah, you probably still get that. You basically need to create custom matches for them by copying regular matches and setting the risk to low instead of very low.

[HiPlus]

So I have signed up, primarily for this thread only. I have played TEW2013 sporadically and jumped on board with TEW2016. Back in TEW2013 I dabbled with RAW and DIW but always ended up with APW. Now in TEW2016 I have briefly looked at RAW but don't like their roster make up and ended up back with APW. Anyway I have played 1 year so far with APW, now onto the topic.

 

Firstly, regarding running a TV Deal, it is completely necessary to try and pull back real popularity compared to RAW. However as pointed out it sends you into a financial spiral. I was able to run an initial deal with The Bloke Channel but I had to cancel that recently as the cash reserves that APW initially started with were depleted. Regarding if it is worth it.. Well I think if you don't mind the hemorrhage it can definitely help establish the brand more before reverting back. However I am not the best player at the game, so perhaps there is a smarter option I am missing.

 

Onto wrestlers, I really liked pairing up Christopher Gerard and Reggie Tate in a similar fashion to American Alpha of NXT with both running Legitimate Athlete gimmicks. They were great, picked up the Tag-Titles on two occasions. Tate however was generally slacking in matches compared to his counterpart. However that didn't deter the push they got. In the end though Tate's ego was too much and between Pay Raise requests, and bad locker room attitude he was let go and the team split up. (Also haven't had a single issue with Richie Fox when compared to Tate. However I may have just gotten lucky.)

 

Continuing to touch on wrestlers Xendarii has mentioned already. I am also disappointed by the departure of The Rising Sun. For the same reason as well, because of Jimmy Stratosphere. However in TEW2013 I gave them several pushes but they never felt like a legitimate tag-team. (Side note, in my current game they are currently SAISHO Destiny Tag-Team Champions, so good for them.) Plus, The Apocalypse are a great replacement.

 

Regarding Nighthawk, I brought in the Australian Luchador White Wasp to try and develop a Tag-Team and improve Nighthawk, in the end they have both proven to be lost causes.

 

Maurice Jackson is definitely a huge loss, although towards Nov/Dec his contract was up and I was keen to try and grab him back. However didn't end up pushing for it as I had eaten into my cash reserves so RAW were able to re-sign him.

 

Regarding who I signed, Molokai Milk and Surfer Dude Lucas have been awesome signings to help push the brand. Also picked up Peter Michaels, because how could I pass that up. I got Anguish and Chess Maniac who have both been solid in the Mid/Lower Card respectively. Key guys I want to sign, and/or wish I had signed sooner would be Devilfish (Always got him in TEW2013), Damian Dastardly, and literally anyone decent that RAW doesn't have a written contract on.

 

I haven't been dinged at all for the "match risk being too low" when using standard matches. I don't believe I have changed anything either.

 

Also, anyone suggest some home grown talent worth picking up early when I restart my game? I do prefer younger guys to eventually grow as well.

[Xendarii]

That's some great insight you give, HiPlus, thank you very much! Especially regarding that TV deal problematic, seems like it's pretty hard for APW this time. Essentially, you ruin your game when you decide to go with a TV deal and then end up not gaining popularity fast enough to compensate for the costs. Maybe it's possible with a really good wrestling industry and economy?

 

I'd always sign up Vortex because I really love him. Other than that, at least in 2013, I didn't really find many free agents worth signing in Australia. ZEN has some really good talent, as you already mentioned. Devilfish has the potential to overcome Lone Shark (although I like Shark more) and Dastardly is extremely charismatic. I'd also always sign Tombstone because he's got some potential, a great name, cool looks and a very nice personality, which makes him pretty unique for a DIW member.

[DevinTEW13]

Personally I have always been in love with the Australian wrestling scene as it has always peaked my interest. Now on to APW.

 

APW has a strong roster in my honest opinion. They just don't have workers that are very popular granted if they did RAW would just take 'em anyway. The loss of Mo Jackson was huge to say the least as APW could have easily been built around him. He is one of the best talkers and can also work pretty well in the ring. APW's roster isn't full of good talkers either although they do have decent ones in Stan Standish and Alexander Banks. Warmonger and Lone Shark are also right behind them on the totem pole as far as mic work goes. Now for the meat of it.

 

 

TAG TEAM ADDITIONS

 

As far as additions there are plenty of ways I could go. The tag team division only has four teams with one of those teams housing both men as main eventers in God's Gift. You can easily add Anguish and Misery who make up The Affliction to bolster the tag division hugely based on the teams pop alone. DOA and Switchblade who makes up Crime Wave could also be added to help out the division and would be a nice team at the lower reaches of the division. Another great team known as Australian People's Party with Marcus Kerr and Matt Stoppard could also be added to the small division and provide a nice jobber tag team until you find a way to build them up. These three teams are great for any promotion in Australia if you want a solid and stable tag division.

 

 

SINGLE ADDITIONS

 

On to simple additions to the APW roster that can really help bolster the roster a bit further. Firstly, Black Flash. Black Flash is a great wrestler to have with decent star quality. He isn't a great talker by any stretch of the imagination, but a feud with the next person on my list could lead to some great ladder matches and overness gains for Flash. Pookie Possum, despite the horrible name Pookie is decently over enough to crack the main event scene of APW thanks to his time in RAW. Pookie isn't half the wrestler that Black Flash is but pitting the two against each other or working together can only lead to good things. Lastly and probably the biggest asset that APW can get ahold of, Molokai Milk. Milk is THE man who can take APW to another level and whom you can ride all the way to cult. Milk has great performance skills, great promo skills, decent stamina, and great star quality. Milk is the guy you can build APW around for the next five years as long as time decline isn't something you allow to stop you. He's 35 and can be used in numerous ways with all of them being beneficial to APW's future success. He is perhaps the biggest free agent in the Australian market and can be used to get not only himself, but the workers he works with over as well. Bottom line, Molokai Milk is solid gold for a promotion like APW.

 

 

DIAMONDS IN THE ROUGH

 

I read in an earlier post about how Nighthawk is a lost cause. Just wanted to give a different opinion. Are his in ring skills sub par at best? Yes, yes they are. However it shouldn't sour anyone on his untapped potential. When I say untapped potential I don't mean as a wrestler, but as indeed a future main eventer. He has decent charisma and his star quality is there it's just a matter of finding a way to get the best out of him. As far as in ring skills are concerned he has decent brawling and aerial skills. It's his performance skills that need work. In the performance department the only thing he has going for him is his ability to sell other than that he is lacking tremendously. However teaming him up with someone like white wisp isn't the answer to me. Instead create a weird and entertaining dynamic by pairing him up with someone like Boo Smithison. Boo is the best in ring worker period in the whole of Australia and star quality and promo skills are the only thing that has kept him from being the Swoop of Australia. Nighthawk is an untapped resource that can blossom if handled correctly. Teaming with Boo, feuding with Boo, facing off against Lanny William, or Debonair are the best option you have when trying to improve his ring work. As far as promo skills, sparring with Alexander, Standish, Shark, or any other promo guy in APW can also work wonders. The best way I think is to steal Pinn from DIW and the rest is self explanatory.

 

Diamond number two, Blaze Maximum. Is the guy a complete and utter asshole? Why yes, yes he is. However, it doesn't change the fact that Blaze can be an important piece of any roster. Blaze is best suited to be the glue that keeps the midcard well together, and I say this because giving him anything more will come back to haunt you. Again, the guys an asshole and can't be trusted in any type of main event setting. Now back to the good stuff. He can work and he can talk. He also has decent star quality meaning he can gain grow along with the company.

 

 

EXPANSION AND EVENTUALLY COMPETING

 

As others have stated, getting a tv deal isn't the best option for APW. The reason is not because it isn't helpful, but it just isn't helpful enough. The Bloke Channel only has very small coverage in Australia meaning pop gains for APW will be to small. This in turn leads to a huge loss of cash as APW's pop won't reach a level where a tv show is sustainable even though it's very much needed in order to compete with RAW. My solution? Hold weekly event's and keep all big events for that month. As long as you can produce quality shows you will gain at least 4 points of popularity for APW. What I am assuming as I've never tested this out is that in about 6 month's time with this model you can probably have gained enough pop to make a profit with a tv show. Another thing on why you won't and can't grow fast enough to try and turn a profit with tv is due to the fact that the Bloke Channel low balls the hell out of you. You can only get either the graveyard time slot or the on demand time slot. The demand time slot seemingly receives more eyeballs than the graveyard time slot but even so neither have enough eyes for you to grow significantly. That is why I believe a weekly event with a huge event is the best model on your way to gaining the three most important time slots on bloke. There is also another way you can play this as well. You could still cut a deal with Bloke, but instead of have a recurring tv show you could cut a deal to have them show your big events throughout the year. The time slot wouldn't improve, but at least you can still have your product scene around Australia and not lose cash at an alarming rate. With this you can gain pop everywhere with the actual region the event was held gaining more pop than the others(I think) and APW can still remain profitable(I assume). Ticket sales should help offset the cost much more with one huge show than numerous tv shows with an untelevised event at the end of the month. Overtaking RAW is the end game no matter what and should always be at the front of your mind as competition breeds success and the fact they will always be on your mind will have you clawing to beat them. At least it's that way for me . I have yet to test my expansion strategy as I don't have the funds to purchase the game, but I do believe that this is the best route to take and I hope someone attempts this strategy and supply feedback. I'd really like to know if this can work as based on the demo it seems plausible.

 

 

Remember if your not 1st your DIW there is no in between

 

 

EDIT: A little proof about Nighthawk

 

http://i1377.photobucket.com/albums/ah64/TEW2013pics/Screenshot%201_zpsblbvl49a.png

[HiPlus]

It would have to be really good to not be losing money. However some of my signings may have impacted it, so perhaps you could run a TV program from the start with a profit. RAW just continues to dominate the Australian market and has everyone start of with Written contracts now so it makes it hard to pick up some strong talent off of them.

 

I don't much care for Vortex's look, but he seems like he would be decent so I may pick him up. (Looking at starting a fresh Australian promotion.) Devilfish is always great but often times I feel like he outshines Lone Shark (May be how I book them.) so I haven't grabbed him yet. Regarding Tombstone I always grab him and he has a great look. For some reason I just never push him, and he just floats around in the mid-card.

[HiPlus]

@DevinTEW13

 

Firstly, big thanks for the massive and informative post regarding APW as a whole. Especially mentioning guys like Black Flash and Pookie Possum (The name makes me shudder.) As I have never looked at either of the guys.

 

I completely agree with the fact Milk is perhaps one of the best signings you can pick up, and you can build the company around him for the first five years or so.

 

Back on the subject of Nighthawk, you can certainly build him up. But guys like Surfer Dude Lucas, Damien Dastardly, Christian Blithe, Rob Edwards all have much more potential upside while being younger.

 

Would also love the thoughts on Hugh de Aske, Fuyuhiko Wakabayashi, and Samoan Machine.

[DevinTEW13]

@HiPlus

 

Yeah Pookie Possum is a horrible name indeed and he's always repackaged when I pick him up .

 

The four men you named could easily be important pieces of any Australian promotion's roster and any upstart promotion around the world actually. After reading your post I decided to kick up another game.

 

APW

 

Two of the four men are just stars in waiting. Damien Dastardly and Hugh De Aske are solid gold. I had them two bump around with my go to of Debonair and Lanny. Needless to say that even on the losing end of those matches the men continued to grow in popularity as the matches was well above what they should have been. Damien is an instant star in the making as he debuts as a midcarder and it's hard not to have him not off Richie and be a champion right out of the gate. Hugh De Aske may not be as popular but he is just as valued as in a months time I was able to get him to 22pop in eastern Australia. That had him clawing at the midcard and prompted me to spark a feud between him and Dastardly. The second month of having those two face off in promo's and such built decent enough heat and the match wasn't a let down either for a midcard match scoring a 48. Dastardly is in the uppermidcard now with 33pop and Hugh is right behind him at 29.

 

The other two can also be stars, but I found myself using them in other ways. The way I used them led me to change the commonwealth into the APW world title and create the commonwealth as another midcard title. I held a feud involving Rob Edwards, Fuyuhiko, Lanny Williams, and Debonair to decide the first champion. Fuyuhiko was the winner of the fatal four way match at OzFest and he was now my go to workhorse for APW. I don't know why but the workhouse role just screamed at me for Fuyuhiko and Rob Edwards is slated right next to him as a tag partner. The only let down about Fuyuhiko is his mic work, but he and Rob seem like they can improve together. I give them a promo before and after each show in hopes of improving their skills.

 

Conclusion, these four men are actually pretty damn good and to have them in APW gives you an even brighter future. I'm planning on molding Rob Edwards a bit more as he and Dastardly can possibly make magic. Building them up has come at a price though as Lanny and Debonair isn't as popular as they once were, but seeing as how they are both over 40 I'm not too worried and I know I can build them back up.

 

 

TV TIME!!! I went after tv again knowing I could only get a graveyard slot. Now, my first time I boosted my popularity to about 55 in eastern Australia since that's where the majority of the shows will be held. In doing so I was making a profit of about 8k a show. Which has led me to believe that you'd need bare minimum a popularity of 50 in the area to remain in the black. This time around I went after tv again without boosting my popularity and I noticed that the damage wasn't as great when I didn't try to bolster my tag division right away. Having Fuyuhiko and Edwards tag up was more than enough since they only cost around 800 bucks combined. Tv is very much doable, but the goal is to become popular enough to where you can move out of the graveyard slot. That reason and that reason alone is why a tv deal with APW isn't profitable as the money earned and the eyes watching are extremely low. It is actually quite puzzling as you can easily produce great shows in the prime time slot as it only requires a rating of 49. Either way growth isn't impossible and I can't wait to purchase the full game in order to truly try my hand at the land of Aussie.

 

I already have three saves with DIW, APW, and RAW.

[HiPlus]

Really interested in finding out how this works for you. Especially interested in how it all runs through as well. I am planning of running my own organisation of younger talented guys to help decide who are the best targets for APW.

 

It is crazy that The Bloke channel really wont offer any spot other than On Demand or the Graveyard spot. I wonder if you had improved the risk level whether they would be more receptive.

[DevinTEW13]

It really is especially considering that APW could pull the prime time rating even if the AI is booking them. I may toy around with some things to see if I can find exactly what is needed in order to get a better slot and if I create my own fed Dastardly if they guy who'll carry my company.

[HiPlus]

Let me know what you come up with and if it is just the fact their content isn't risky enough for the channel.

[HiPlus]

So I thought I would post up how my place is going..

 

So while working towards Cult level about halfway through 2017 RAW decided they needed some new talent and who better than the team of God's Gift (Alexander Banks and Spiffy Stan Standish) and Nathan McKenzie. Which I don't blame them the exposure on tv and written contracts is a lot better than what I could offer. But it leaves me with very little at the moment as I didn't make many signings with this being my first run through. I may be starting a new save I think. Oh and they also want Christopher Gerard. My top heel at the moment. On the flipside I grabbed Frogue off them, but he was literally the only person on their roster that I could potentially sign.

[The Nickman]

So I thought I would post up how my place is going..

 

So while working towards Cult level about halfway through 2017 RAW decided they needed some new talent and who better than the team of God's Gift (Alexander Banks and Spiffy Stan Standish) and Nathan McKenzie. Which I don't blame them the exposure on tv and written contracts is a lot better than what I could offer. But it leaves me with very little at the moment as I didn't make many signings with this being my first run through. I may be starting a new save I think. Oh and they also want Christopher Gerard. My top heel at the moment. On the flipside I grabbed Frogue off them, but he was literally the only person on their roster that I could potentially sign.

 

Frogue Element is money. Push Frogue to the moon and back, he's the type of guy who could potentially carry your company (until RAW pinch him back, anyway).

[HiPlus]

<p>I am definitely bad at this game, starting up my 3rd? APW game at the moment. I have made it to July 2016 (Only ran 6 shows) and Alexander Banks, Spiffy Standfish, Nathan McKenzie and Warmonger have all been picked up by RAW on written contracts. So unless I want to pay through the nose to keep them it isn't happening. So as I head into August my Main Event picture looks like Devil Fish, Lone Shark, Harry Simonson, Molokai Milk and Scottie Hamstead. (RAW have yet to release/put people on PPA contracts for me to steal.)</p><p> </p><p>

Really not happy too happy with that as I don't rate Hamstead, prefer Simonson to work as the Gatekeeper to the Midcard essentially and help new guys and Devil/Shark to run the tag team division. </p><p> </p><p>

My current additions to the roster are as follows. Molokai Milk, Anguish, Damian Dastardly, Devil Fish, Lone Rider, Super Zero, Surfer Dude Lucas, The Brisbane Devil and Tyrant. (I know some of these picks aren't the best available to me, but I don't like signing the exact same group every time so try to mix it up.)</p><p> </p><p>

Well I don't have to worry about Hamstead being around at least. RAW are taking him as well.</p>

[DevinTEW13]

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="HiPlus" data-cite="HiPlus" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41383" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>I am definitely bad at this game, starting up my 3rd? APW game at the moment. I have made it to July 2016 (Only ran 6 shows) and Alexander Banks, Spiffy Standfish, Nathan McKenzie and Warmonger have all been picked up by RAW on written contracts. So unless I want to pay through the nose to keep them it isn't happening. So as I head into August my Main Event picture looks like Devil Fish, Lone Shark, Harry Simonson, Molokai Milk and Scottie Hamstead. (RAW have yet to release/put people on PPA contracts for me to steal.)<p> </p><p> Really not happy too happy with that as I don't rate Hamstead, prefer Simonson to work as the Gatekeeper to the Midcard essentially and help new guys and Devil/Shark to run the tag team division. </p><p> </p><p> My current additions to the roster are as follows. Molokai Milk, Anguish, Damian Dastardly, Devil Fish, Lone Rider, Super Zero, Surfer Dude Lucas, The Brisbane Devil and Tyrant. (I know some of these picks aren't the best available to me, but I don't like signing the exact same group every time so try to mix it up.)</p><p> </p><p> Well I don't have to worry about Hamstead being around at least. RAW are taking him as well.</p></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Don't feel bad I have restarted multiple games with DIW and APW a combined nine times. I have come to terms with the fact that running a tv show with APW from the start is a no no. Instead I have opted to have my events shown on tv instead. I too have been pillaged by RAW but Molokai Milk, Black Flash, Anguish, Misery, and Pookie Possum(Now Brian Spooks) are keeping APW well placed together. If they come for my new top guys its fine because I'm already preparing my young talent to be able to slide into any spot.</p><p> </p><p> Also, does anyone know where I can find the default data I've played around with mine a bit too much.</p>

[Kingster]

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="DevinTEW13" data-cite="DevinTEW13" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="41383" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Also, does anyone know where I can find the default data I've played around with mine a bit too much.</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> In the technical support forum, there's the thread with the lates patch, where you'll also find a link to the latest default database.</p>

[HiPlus]

<p>Firstly going to plug my AUSTRALIAN BASED dynasty really quickly.</p><p>

<a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showthread.php?t=535391" rel="external nofollow">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showthread.php?t=535391</a> That can give you a small insight on some Australian based talents.</p><p> </p><p>

Anyway, my main reason for bumping the thread is to find out how you are handling a long run with APW Devin. I generally call it quits after a year or two, of trying to compete with RAW. I know I need to stick that out longer, but how is your run going?</p>

[DevinTEW13]

I'm not gonna lie it is really difficult because RAW will take anyone you build up. I've lost Stan Standish, Nathan, Alexander Banks, Nighthawk, and anyone else who happens to get red hot. What have I done in response? I raided DIW. Tombstone is the man as I'm approaching cult I've been at it almost three years but it has been some time since I've played as I'm not in the shape I'd like. I may just start over.

[HiPlus]

So after the "Your Plans for 2020" thread it made me really think about the state of APW as it is, well not my favourite (ZEN exists) but the most treasured CVerse company to me, and I wanted to sort of write about it, and see if anyone else had opinions.

 

The company as a whole - Like any company transitioning to 2020 there are three main options for it. Close (Which APW is unlikely to do due to being stable financially.), become a child company (Which potentially could happen if RAW want the investment, particularly with J. J. McMinster being a business man.), third and most likely situation is J. J. McMinster keeps the company open and because of the success of RAW on the national stage even gets a TV Deal set up by 2020.

 

Who is gone -Every 3 years or so APW needs to replenish it's pool of talent as RAW inevitably raids them, ageing stars retire, and some people just move on from APW.

 

This will be the same case with Alexander Banks & Spiffy Stan Standish likely heading to RAW, Nathan McKenzie sure to follow suit, and potentially The Apocolypse (Hatemonger & Warmonger) move on as well.

 

At the same time you have the retirements of Lanny Williams, David Peterson, and referee Virgil Mann retiring from the industry. With Boo Smithson and Harry Simonson who will both be pushing 41 years old. The roster would have lost a lot of its bulk and have two of its in-ring backbones on their last run. Requiring a large infusion of talent.

 

Where do they rank - Now I know the regular "pushes" have been removed, but for the sake of ease (Until everyone is familiar with the new terms) where does everyone end up on the card? Alyx Macquarie, Christopher Gerard and Scottie Hamstead make up the Main Event heels on the roster, with Reggie Tate being the midcard heel to beat. The face side of things is more shaken up, as Lone Shark remains a premier face, with Barney Mason, Richie Fox and Nighthawk the Upper Midcard/ME as well.

 

Who do they sign? - With likely 7 guys leaving over the 4 years. I can definitely see a shake up in terms of signing new guys. I think at least 1 person gets dropped from RAW that is noticable enough to become a big face in APW. Then someone like Blaze Maximum or Molokai Milk or chasing Devilfish/Man O'War from ZEN. To bring them over to be senior roles in APW as they sign some younger guys along with them.