Fortress Forever League - Suggestions & Criticisms

[homie in reboks']

Hi friends,

So, this thread is all about improving the current FF League. I'm going to start it off by making a list of suggestions I've received. I'd really appreciate any and all feedback about the league. I am open to any ideas you may have. I'm not saying anything you suggest will happen, but I will listen to you.

Also, it will really help if you explain why you think your suggestion would be good to implement. I'm open to being convinced in most cases.

As you can see, there is a poll attached to this thread. The poll is about a big issue that will be explained in the first two items in the list: restructuring the league so it has three divisions instead of just two.

--The List--

+Expanding the league to three divisions: http://imgur.com/8BSfUSJ. This could be implemented to stablize the divisions and help games be more competitive by reducing the amount of 'blowouts'.

+If the league was expanded, and the amount of teams in each division reduced, should the # of wins to reach a title match be reduced as well?

+What maps you would like added or removed to the map pool.

+How would you like the title matches to work? Challenger picks the map? Multiple maps played?

+Specific rules you would like verified, removed, added, etc..

+Expanded roster slots. A limit to the amount of team members changed during the week.

+How matches are scheduled between teams. Do they need to go through an admin to make sure everything is verified?

+Do you think you would be a good admin? Would you like to be an admin? Do you think I'm shit, and I should be removed as 'the commish'?

--The List--

Alright, so that's a few of the points I remember being brought up to me. Feel free to mention some that I didn't list here. I'd really like everyone's feedback on how they think the league is going so far, and what they would like changed so it could become a more enjoyable experience for everyone.

I really appreciate everyone's participation, feedback, and just fucking playing the game. This is a community league and I want everyone to have the opportunity to help shape it into something fun.

[This message brought to you by DONG ENERGY: Make DONG a priority.]

[NeonLight]

Vote you fucks

[the_cake]

Based entirely on the current skill levels 3 divisions would make sense. I just wish there were 4 or so more clans, I don't know that the upper divisions playing the same 3 clans over and over is any more sustainable than matches between the opposite ends of a division resulting in blowouts.

[Ruta]

I think 3 divisions is needed given the obvious skill gap between teams in each division. Wizards, 2g, Saints, and BIG are all "in-between" teams. They will probably run train on silver, but have/would struggle against the plat teams.

While having more teams would make things interesting, you don't have to make existing teams play each other ad nauseam. The MLB has inter-league games, you could have a rotating schedule of 1 week a month all matches are out of conference to break up the monotony. The out of conference record doesn't help or hurt your title shot, just more about bragging rights.

I think we're all interested in seeing more competitive games. Having teams getting rekt week in and out just isn't fun. I've been pretty impressed by the number of games that are being played and the obvious desire to keep this going.

This is contingent on DET returning, it looks like they have a full roster...but I would split the league up like this:

Plat- 4
Gold- 5
Silver- 5

[BOOMstick]

I would be in favor of either expanding the rosters and/or having a league night where everybody plays on a fixed day, perhaps a Monday ala old STA in tfc. The purpose of these two suggestions is to combat the ringer problem. Either teams do not have enough roster slots for four members of their own teams to show up or there is confusion and inconsistency with the scheduling of the matches.

As of today, in 34 matches played since Week 1, there have been 10 matches where ringers have been used. This does not count the matches in which parsed logs are unavailable, so the number could be even higher. Maybe this can be rectified with a 7th roster slot or mandatory match times. I do understand the drawback in a 7th roster slot- there would be fewer teams in the league if more teams were allowed an extra roster slot. But, the list of free agents on the spreadsheet has not substantially changed at all for weeks, and a home can be found for them if teams are willing to take them.

[KubeDawg]

Maybe make it a requirement to have at least 5 or 6 players on your team even though the extra players would still be subs. That way from the start there's at least 1 extra player per team available to prevent ringers from being necessary.

[Peppas]

Originally Posted by Ruta

While having more teams would make things interesting, you don't have to make existing teams play each other ad nauseam. The MLB has inter-league games, you could have a rotating schedule of 1 week a month all matches are out of conference to break up the monotony. The out of conference record doesn't help or hurt your title shot, just more about bragging rights.

If I'm reading this right, an example would be like every 3rd week teams in the Gold division would either play a Plat team or a Silver team. Whether it is 4 or 5 teams in the middle division, they can be broken up where half plays plat and the other half plays a silver team. Then the next time, it would be a team from the other division that they play.

This way you don't have the lowest tier teams playing the highest tier.

Just an idea

[Peppas]

And you can keep a separate record for W\Ls for inter-division play. Have your regular division Wins and Loss columns, and the Inter-division Wins and Losses can be used as a judgement tool if a team should be promoted or demoted to a different division.

[Ruta]

Originally Posted by Peppas

If I'm reading this right, an example would be like every 3rd week teams in the Gold division would either play a Plat team or a Silver team. Whether it is 4 or 5 teams in the middle division, they can be broken up where half plays plat and the other half plays a silver team. Then the next time, it would be a team from the other division that they play.

This way you don't have the lowest tier teams playing the highest tier.

Just an idea

That is correct. I also think you should have relegation/promotion matches. If Team A from Gold is last and Team B in Silver has held title OR team A has lost 3 in a row, the relegation/promotion match should occur. The only way to get promoted is to beat the team ahead of you. I think this puts more emphasis on games outside of title matches. It also gives an opportunity for one particular division not to get overloaded. When Clermont got promoted, no one was relegated to fill their spot in Silver. Not that I disagree with that decision, I think a team like 2g and Wizards would run train on silver if they were relegated which is why we're here talking about this!