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OGpistolpete's Wrestling at War 2001


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Hey everyone,

I'm thrilled to announce the development of my latest TEW IX mod, Wrestling at War 2001! We're taking the Wrestling at War universe five years into the future, starting at the beginning of 2001. A lot has changed since the original release set in 1996, and things are about to get even more intense.

The biggest news? Vince McMahon is back! After spending seven years in prison after his conviction in the 1993 steroid trial, Vince was released in February 2000, and he's wasted no time climbing back to the top of his throne. Upon his return to the WWF, tensions flared, and by April 2000, Paul Heyman had left the company due to clashes over the creative direction. As the dirt sheets reported, the WWF locker room became a hotbed of chaos. By May, the WWF Board of Directors voted to remove Shane McMahon from his role as WWF President, replacing him with none other than his father, Vince. The Attitude Era we all knew and loved is ending, and Vince's new vision is taking over. Shane McMahon, feeling betrayed, goes on hiatus, leaving the future of WWF in Vince's hands.

But that's not all—March 2000 marked the end of another era as FOX 21st Century officially closed the doors on Hollywood Championship Wrestling (HCW). Though HCW's run was brief, it was an infamous chapter in late '90s wrestling history. Vince, ever the strategist, quietly acquired all HCW IP and video rights, adding more content to the WWF's library.

The drama doesn't stop there. Steve Austin, struggling with a neck injury from the lead-up into WrestleMania 15, and butting heads with management, was ultimately released after their refusal to allow his return to the ring. In a surprising twist, Hulk Hogan signed with the WWF, reinventing himself as Mr. America under Vince's guidance, hoping to revitalize his career one last time. Meanwhile, Randy Savage returned to the NWA, burying the hatchet after HCW's collapse. Eric Bischoff's brief run with the NWA ended abruptly after a tumultuous 1999 , with many insiders speculating he was shown the door (the second time in two years, after his dismissal from Executive VP of HCW by FOX executives.)

Perhaps the biggest shocker of all was the return of Shawn Michaels. Seven years following the infamous Baltimore Screwjob incident, and after nearly two years out of the ring as a result of his infamous walkout on HCW in 1998, the Heartbreak Kid is back in the WWF, thanks to Vince McMahon. He's set to make his in-ring return at WrestleMania 17 in a championship match, injecting new life into the WWF.

And just when you thought things couldn't get crazier, Shane McMahon reappears in October 2000, teaming up with Paul Heyman to form Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW). Their first major signing? None other than Steve Austin, sending shockwaves through the wrestling world. The likes of Lex Luger, Mick Foley, Brian Pillman, and Scott Hall joins ECW. Even Rob Van Dam, once nearly blacklisted for his marijuana use in WSW, also signs on. Many more surprising signings would quickly occur at the end of 2001, including Chris Jericho, unhappy with his booking at World Star Wrestling, jumping ship to the upstart ECW, betting on himself to be the face of a new promotion.

Wrestling at War 2001 is shaping up to be a wild ride filled with drama, unexpected returns, and intense rivalries. Get ready for an epic year in the world of wrestling—are you ready for war?

Stay tuned for more updates!

Edited by OGpistolpete
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29 minutes ago, OGpistolpete said:

Hey everyone,

I'm thrilled to announce the development of my latest TEW IX mod, Wrestling at War 2001! We're taking the Wrestling at War universe five years into the future, starting at the beginning of 2001. A lot has changed since the original release set in 1996, and things are about to get even more intense.

The biggest news? Vince McMahon is back! After spending seven years in prison, Vince was released in February 2000, and he's wasted no time climbing back to the top of his throne. Upon his return to the WWF, tensions flared, and by April 2000, Paul Heyman had left the company due to clashes over the creative direction. As the dirt sheets reported, the WWF locker room became a hotbed of chaos. By May, the WWF Board of Directors voted to remove Shane McMahon from his role as WWF President, replacing him with none other than his father, Vince. The Attitude Era we all knew and loved is ending, and Vince's new vision is taking over. Shane McMahon, feeling betrayed, goes on hiatus, leaving the future of WWF in Vince's hands.

But that's not all—March 2000 marked the end of another era as FOX 21st Century officially closed the doors on Hollywood Championship Wrestling (HCW). Though HCW's run was brief, it was an infamous chapter in late '90s wrestling history. Vince, ever the strategist, quietly acquired all HCW IP and video rights, adding more content to the WWF's library.

The drama doesn't stop there. Steve Austin, struggling with a neck injury from the lead-up into WrestleMania 15, and butting heads with management, was ultimately released after their refusal to allow his return to the ring. In a surprising twist, Hulk Hogan signed with the WWF, reinventing himself as Mr. America under Vince's guidance, hoping to revitalize his career one last time. Meanwhile, Randy Savage returned to the NWA, burying the hatchet after HCW's collapse. Eric Bischoff's brief run with the NWA ended abruptly after a tumultuous 1999 , with many insiders speculating he was shown the door (the second time in two years, after his dismissal from Executive VP of HCW by FOX executives.)

Perhaps the biggest shocker of all was the return of Shawn Michaels. Seven years following the infamous Baltimore Screwjob incident, and after nearly two years out of the ring as a result of his infamous walkout on HCW in 1998, the Heartbreak Kid is back in the WWF, thanks to Vince McMahon. He's set to make his in-ring return at WrestleMania 17 in a championship match, injecting new life into the WWF.

And just when you thought things couldn't get crazier, Shane McMahon reappears in October 2000, teaming up with Paul Heyman to form Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW). Their first major signing? None other than Steve Austin, sending shockwaves through the wrestling world. The likes of Lex Luger, Mick Foley, Brian Pillman, and Scott Hall joins ECW. Even Rob Van Dam, once nearly blacklisted for his marijuana use in WSW, also signs on. Many more surprising signings would quickly occur at the end of 2001, including Chris Jericho, unhappy with his booking at World Star Wrestling, jumping ship to the upstart ECW, betting on himself to be the face of a new promotion.

Wrestling at War 2001 is shaping up to be a wild ride filled with drama, unexpected returns, and intense rivalries. Get ready for an epic year in the world of wrestling—are you ready for war?

Stay tuned for more updates!

I loved your wrestling at war mod, at least reading about the lore behind it. Really wish more people played alternate history mods like these.

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2 hours ago, BulkBoganBrotherrr said:

Awesome to get more lore on Wrestling At War

Are you interested in officially porting the original mod to TEW IX?

It would be cool but I am really excited about the next iteration, I really want to put together some fun rosters and backstories for this project. I think ECW and WWF will be lots of fun to play, the latter particularly challenging due to some of the relationships involved ... Michaels back in WWF where Triple H remains a main eventer (Triple H was the in-ring accessory to Shane McMahon's Baltimore Screwjob), Michaels and Hogan having previous tension as Hogan was the reason Michaels left HCW (neither willing to job to one another over the HCW title), Hogan and Booker T have heat from an infamous incident back in their HCW days... not to mention Owen Hart's jumped ship from WSW to WWF. It's certainly an eclectic roster! Very excited to share all the company previews once I've finalized all their specifics.

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Extremely thrilled and cannot wait to spend hours and hours on end like i did for the 1996 version. Just wondering, do you have any plans for a women's division in any of the big promotions, or even a women only promotion instead?

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Posted (edited)

I should also put out a public announce: I am willing to commission someone for supporting graphics updates to the mod, leveraging Mammoth's awesome work on the 2016 mod (I would owe him backpay too!!) Please PM me for more details with examples of your work for reference and we can discuss further. I simply don't have the time available to dedicate to graphics while lots must be tended to in the data itself, where I would rather focus my time and effort.

Edited by OGpistolpete
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One thing I've always loved about Wrestling at War is how fun the alt-history rosters are. It seems like no matter which big company you choose, there's always some fun and unique things you can do with them. I hope the 1996 version gets ported over at some point too! It was by far my favorite mod in TEW2020.

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STEVE AUSTIN
"Stone Cold" Steve Austin became the face of 90’s pro wrestling, and helped push the industry to heights it has never reached before. “Austin 3:16” became the philosophy for Austin (and a good portion of America in 1996), reigniting mainstream interest in the WWF product, now vastly different with a new found Attitude entrenched in its being (as well as MTV every Thursday night.) For Austin, however, it has not been the storybook ending one would expect from once the wrestling world's hottest commodity.

Having left the NWA in 1993 to join the floundering WWF just before McMahon's indictment, Austin quickly became one of the company's most trusted workers through the tumultuous time. Austin became a main challenger to Shawn Michaels throughout 1993 and 1994. And by 1995, the WWF hit the launch button on " Austin 3:16" following his 1995 King of the Ring victory, where gave his now famous "Austin 3:16" speech. Overnight, Austin became the talk of wrestling, as he proceeded to defy all conventional moral standards, including the use of profanity during WWF broadcasts. By the end of 1995, Austin was drinking beer after big wins, flipping off his opponents, and initiating his Stone Cold Stunner on all who dare stand in his path. Austin soon set his sights on the WWF Championship, and dismantling the Shane McMahon regime.

From then on, Austin and (Shane) McMahon became the lifeline the WWF needed to withstand fallout from Vince’s steroid scandal, changing the popular narrative from one demonizing Vince McMahon as a pusher and dealer, to one tuning in every Thursday night to see just what Steve Austin would do next. He would first go on to win the 1996 Royal Rumble, earning a title shot at Wrestlemania 12 against Hunter Hearst Helmsley, where he won his first WWF Championship. Just a month later, he would draw Shane McMahon in a title contest at Backlash, before the two would collide one more time at Summerslam. It was at Summerslam, the WWF President earned his first WWF Championship run (dropping it for a short term to Mick Foley returning as Mankind), finding himself in an inevitable title match against Austin at WM13 (following his second Royal Rumble win.)

It was at Wrestlemania 13 where Austin’s second stint as WWF Championship began. And it was soon after his big win Austin began dodging all questions or calls for him to face the WWF’s next rising star… Goldberg. While Austin has seemingly reached his pinnacle with the epic defeat over his archnemesis Shane McMahon, the momentum quickly shifted in favor of Goldberg, who is now pro wrestling’s next big star. Goldberg’s undefeated streak quickly became Austin’s downfall, as the two clashed at Summerslam where Goldberg did the unthinkable, dethroning “Stone Cold” as WWF Champion and earning his first world title run.

To no one’s surprise, the two went on to main event Wrestlemania 14, where Austin finally broke wrestling’s longest ever winning streak (kayfabe 871 days) and won his third WWF Championship from Goldberg in another Wrestlemania main event spectacular. By 1998, the WWF was seemingly on top of the wrestling world, as Austin / Goldberg rode out their momentum through the year and into another planned rematch in 1999. But just a month before their highly anticipated rematch at WM15, destiny would have other plans.

In what was simply a precursor to the Wrestlemania 15 main event, February’s pay-per-view was supposed to give Steve Austin a brief pitstop with Owen Hart in the title match main event. But it was an ill fated piledriver that truly stunned Austin, breaking his neck incidentally, leading to an awkward near finish which saw referee Earl Hebner spending nearly a full minute checking on Austin. Courageously, Austin fought through the pain to finish the match, quickly hitting Owen with a surprise Stunner, and sending the fans home not knowing any better.

Behind the scenes, Austin returned to gorilla position, where he collapsed from the pain of a broken neck, rendering him out for the Wrestlemania 15 title picture and putting a hard stop to all of the WWF’s sustained success. The controversial result of February’s St. Valentine's Day Massacre main event brought more public scrutiny to the WWF’s improving brand image, but for the WWF, it was a detrimental blow to their weekly product. Instead, they would be forced to vacate the title the night after the PPV, as the company positioned Triple H in a main event bout that would never live up to the hype of Austin / Goldberg V at WM15. Truly, a massacre indeed...

Over a year later, Austin pushed voraciously to return to the ring, this time courting new WWF President, Vince McMahon, for his in-ring return to be approved and marketed as the next big WWF event. Vince, along with WWF doctors, however, refused to allow Austin back into the WWF ring given his condition. By July of 2000, Austin continued to miss scheduled company events, and was fined repeatedly until Vince had no other option but to terminate Austin’s contract. As shocking as the announcement was for the WWF and the world of wrestling, it didn’t take long for “Stone Cold” to find his next home in Extreme Championship Wrestling, joined by some familiar faces in Shane McMahon and Paul Heyman, his trusted confidants in a ruthless industry. By the end of 2000, simply Austin’s name alone has seemingly put ECW on the map, but can wrestling’s favorite antihero once again recapture the magic of “Austin 3:16”?

Edited by OGpistolpete
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  • 2 weeks later...

Mod production is going about as well as expected. Slow, but steady progress... I am paying close attention to ensure all the fine details are taken care of, so it can be a long process at times. The WWF is my most fleshed out promotion at this point, while the other "new big four" are steadily on their way to completion. Because WWF is in a position to share, I thought I would for a quick preview. Ignore the list of companies in the screenshot of the company view, that is all a work in progress.

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  • 2 weeks later...
8 minutes ago, OGpistolpete said:

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This looks awesome. And I'm hyped to book AJ Styles and CM Punk in ECW. This just changed the game in the Wrestling at War universe for me. I'll be waiting for the first glance into this adaptation of the mod.

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18 hours ago, mk3kratos said:

This looks awesome. And I'm hyped to book AJ Styles and CM Punk in ECW. This just changed the game in the Wrestling at War universe for me. I'll be waiting for the first glance into this adaptation of the mod.

Thanks for your continued support mk3kratos, you've definitely been a vocal fan of the mod in the past and your kindness is always appreciated! Definitely looking forward to your feedback from first playing.

17 hours ago, sonny912 said:

Nice poster,  can't wait to see the whole roster. Can you do a Retrospective on hcw's rise and fall like who were the final champions or where did rest of the roster go? 

Thanks sonny912! HCW's rise and fall, yes I should definitely do a retrospective to shed light on it's ultimate demise. Thankfully, it lives rent free in my head and continues to grow in legend as I flesh out the five-year evolution of the WAW universe, so hopefully it will make it's way onto paper. I do have a lore book in development... where I hope to have all the major (and minor) events mapped out in chronological order so players can sift through the history month-by-month. At this point it's becoming a necessity to maintain so I don't trip over myself when it comes to who wrestled where and when... I have at least 240 unique events captured in the lore book and that will only continue to rise as things are pieced together. I just hope I can produce an interesting and captivating lore that lives up to how wacky and entertaining the history of wrestling has been in the past. 

Here is a brief preview, mind you all subject to change as required...

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44 minutes ago, OGpistolpete said:

Thanks for your continued support mk3kratos, you've definitely been a vocal fan of the mod in the past and your kindness is always appreciated! Definitely looking forward to your feedback from first playing.

Thanks sonny912! HCW's rise and fall, yes I should definitely do a retrospective to shed light on it's ultimate demise. Thankfully, it lives rent free in my head and continues to grow in legend as I flesh out the five-year evolution of the WAW universe, so hopefully it will make it's way onto paper. I do have a lore book in development... where I hope to have all the major (and minor) events mapped out in chronological order so players can sift through the history month-by-month. At this point it's becoming a necessity to maintain so I don't trip over myself when it comes to who wrestled where and when... I have at least 240 unique events captured in the lore book and that will only continue to rise as things are pieced together. I just hope I can produce an interesting and captivating lore that lives up to how wacky and entertaining the history of wrestling has been in the past. 

Here is a brief preview, mind you all subject to change as required...

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I hope that lore book is posted here on the site. Do you ever wish your mod was made into a diary? Most people tend to just post cverse or real world diaries.

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38 minutes ago, sonny912 said:

I hope that lore book is posted here on the site. Do you ever wish your mod was made into a diary? Most people tend to just post cverse or real world diaries.

I definitely intend on publishing the lore book! I target including in the release of the mod, so hopefully I can hold up that commitment.

I think it would be awesome if someone tried a diary for this mod! I'm not sure I've seen any yet, but I would definitely be a reader!

 

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23 hours ago, OGpistolpete said:

I definitely intend on publishing the lore book! I target including in the release of the mod, so hopefully I can hold up that commitment.

I think it would be awesome if someone tried a diary for this mod! I'm not sure I've seen any yet, but I would definitely be a reader!

 

I'll do a diary of Wrestling at War 2001 and go all the way with it for anyone willing to read it.

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On 10/5/2024 at 12:41 PM, Aidenw723 said:

Before I saw these new updates, I was praying for a 1996 conversion. After seeing this, I could see why we don't need a conversion (even though one would be greatly anticipated), because this looks amazing!

I think the 2001 rendition will be an improvement in the 1996 starts. The worker pool was really getting drawn thin (4 big promotions vs. the regular 2 requires getting creative in filling the rosters.) IMO these rosters will have more “breathing room” in terms of different workers and match-ups that won’t get played out so quickly. Plus there is still a lot of meat on the bone when it comes to Day 1 independent or young hires. Once this is finished too it could lend well to a pretty quick conversion of the ‘96 data if I’m inclined. 

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On 10/6/2024 at 10:45 PM, OGpistolpete said:

I think the 2001 rendition will be an improvement in the 1996 starts. The worker pool was really getting drawn thin (4 big promotions vs. the regular 2 requires getting creative in filling the rosters.) IMO these rosters will have more “breathing room” in terms of different workers and match-ups that won’t get played out so quickly. Plus there is still a lot of meat on the bone when it comes to Day 1 independent or young hires. Once this is finished too it could lend well to a pretty quick conversion of the ‘96 data if I’m inclined. 

Speaking of promotions, what are the others like right now? We know hcw's closed and some pics of wwf but how are nwa and wsw doing?

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