One of the things that I miss about v6 and earlier was the idea, anyway, that you could train different players to concentrate on different things in spring training. In practice, spring training was booooooring and it's not in the new version; however, it seems to me that it's turned into not a whole lot more than a chance to try out different lineup combinations. This is an attempt to bring the training back to the spring.
So here's the way it works:
1. Each coach on your team chooses one player to work with. No coach or player can be used more than once during spring. Each coach chooses one and exactly one "spell" (I can't think of a better term for this right now... somebody help me out!) to "cast" on the player.
Each "spell" can only be used once on a player in his lifetime, and there are certain additional restrictions as well. Consult the individual spell.
2. Add together the following numbers:
a. Train hitting, fielding, or pitching for a given coach
b. Train veterans, players, and rookies for a given coach
c. The applicable player skill for the spell in question
The sum total corresponds with a letter grade that in turn affects the chances that the "spell" will work:
540 or more: Grade A
420-539: Grade B
300-419: Grade C
101-299: Grade D
100 or less: Grade F
3. Roll a d100 (or make a RAND table in an Excel or OpenOffice spreadsheet (or go to
http://random.org/integers/) that creates a number between 1 and 100) and consult the following table:
Code:
Outcome A B C D F
Bust 01-04 01-05 01-07 01-09 01-15
Failure 05-15 06-18 08-20 10-30 16-40
Ignore 16-30 19-38 21-45 31-55 41-60
Good 31-60 39-65 46-75 56-85 61-95
Excels 61-90 66-92 76-93 86-96 96-99
GREAT 91-00 93-00 94-00 97-00 00
4. Consult the spell for the exact results. Here's a general idea of what they mean, as well as the morale hits for each. Yes, morale hits. I have it on good authority that the latest patch is going to allow you to edit moral directly from the player editor, and this just makes sense: nobody likes to be told how to do something they've been doing all of their lives. If you can convince somebody it's for the best, great. More to the point, if you can *make* them better, their morale will jump back up as they start racking up superior stats and making their team win more games.
Bust: Something goes seriously wrong with the "spell". At worst, a bust result might end a marginal player's career. At best, it might turn a decent player into a marginal one. -250 to Player Performance and that player cannot have a spell cast on him by that coach ever again.
Failure: The spell for some reason didn't take. -150 to Player Performance.
Ignore: The player halfheartedly tries to do what the coach asked him to do but when he's not looking the player goes right back to his old habits. -100 to Player Performance.
Good: The player does what he is told to do, no more, no less. -50 to Player Performance, but the increase in benefit to your team will probably make up for that, right?
Excels: The player takes what you gave him and puts a bit more effort into it than you expected. Don't you love players like that? No effect on Player Performance.
GREAT: The player synergizes everything the coach said and what he's already learned about the game and becomes a disciple of the coach's way of thinking. +100 Player Performance.
OPTIONAL: You can also use these tables during the regular season... one time per coach per player. A coach hired during the middle of the season cannot instruct a player.
Personality Traits
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A side effort of the TTM was to make the personality traits into something that more directly affect gameplay. Oh, I know, that Greed rating can be a real kicker come salary time, and Leadership grants a hidden bonus to everybody... but with the TTM, personality comes into play any time you want to take extra time to improve a player. As one could guess, different traits come into play when casting different spells.
Leadership: How well the player leads by example. I haven't actually thought of anything in here to base on leadership, but if anybody wanted to add something...
Desire for Winner: The higher this level is, the more risks a player will take to win games. Simply put, it's a measure of the player's unscrupulousness. Comes into play when you ask a player to cork his bat, steal signs, or do anything else that is or looks illegal or unethical.
Loyalty: Sometimes when a player is asked to do something it doesn't take a lot of extra work but does take a good bit of faith in one's leaders. A natural sense of loyalty is essential for these "spells".
Greed: A good manager is also a master of psychology. Therefore, he knows that sometimes you can entice a greedy player to do things he otherwise wouldn't do with the promise of an eventual reward.
Work Ethic: Probably the most-used of all the player personality traits because most of the "spells" listed require the player to take some extra time in the batting cage or fielding fungoes or spending extra time in the bullpen between starts.
Intelligence: The 2nd-most used trait, this one is especially necessary if you're trying to develop a pitcher who relies on deception to prevent runs.
Hitting "Spells"
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Choke Up
Swing For The Fences
Take Two And Hit To Right
Patience Is The Key
Be Aggressive
Chop At The Ball
Uppercut Swing
Open Stance
Closed Stance
Square Stance
Switch Hitter
Walk Year
Cork It Up
Pitching "Spells"
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Remove Pitch*
Add Pitch*
Convert Reliever Into Starter
Is That A Pickoff Or Is That A Balk?
Fielding "Spells" (note: I've taken the liberty of making managers with good "teach fielding" skills also good at teaching all of the mental aspects of the game.)
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Learn OF
Learn SS
Learn 2B
Learn 1B
Learn 3B
Baserunning Fundamentals
Bunting Practice
Sign Stealing 101
*Can be learned more than once in a lifetime (but only once per pitch!)
The "spell books" are yet to come. If y'all can think of a good "spell" I haven't added, let me know!