Historical League with fantasy Draft

robc · 06-18-2009, 10:38 PM

Hello,

Has anyone been able to create a historical league and have an initial fantrasy draft and have the AI teams give them a challenge? I like using real players, but I think it is fun putting my own team together instead of inheriting a real team.

I have started a couple in OOTP 9 and one in 10. By the time September roles around I am head by 15-20 games. I typically set the AI trading to very hard and try not to do any trade that seems rediculous. Is there any way to make the AI teams more competitive without making the game seem artificial?

Thanks

Rondell Tate · 06-19-2009, 04:09 PM

A few suggestions (in my order of preference) as it's my usual mode of play:

Always make sure you build your league based on the "rest of career" stats. You know what a 20-year-old Nolan Ryan is capable of; this gives the game relatively equal footing.

You might try playing with recalc off ... which adds to the "fog of war" because you're less sure about a player's career track. To make it foggier, start your league 3 years before you want to play it, turn off recalc and scouting (turn off injuries as well, or the players you most want to see might be in a long-term care ward someplace ... kind of a buzzkill), let it play the 3 years, then do your draft. This makes it "less realistic" but let's face it, we're starting a "historical league" with a fantasy draft, so it's hard to be a stickler ...

Turn on financials and dial down your team's income; use the new draft-with-salary cap option and you'll find yourself having to choose between, say, Ted Williams at $400,000 or Dom Dimaggio at $120,000, which restricts your ability to load up on all-stars ... taking Williams might mean picking some questionable-but-cheap pitching in the middle rounds, but can you really pass him up??? In three test drafts, I've also found this shakes up the draft order, as the AI now has to consider both ability and value instead of just ability ...

On draft day, don't choose a snaking draft but go with one where the order of picks is constant, and give yourself a late pick.

If you do all the above, don't try to trick the system into lopsided trades and are still +15 games by mid-August, you're better at this game than I am ...

robc · 06-19-2009, 05:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rondell Tate

A few suggestions (in my order of preference) as it's my usual mode of play:
...

Thanks, you gave me a few tips I haven't used before. I never simmed a couple years before I started a season. Also I have never tried the draft with financials. I have taken smaller market teams but I guess it wasn't enforced in the draft.

Dwight Schrute · 06-19-2009, 07:23 PM

i have not tried this in 10, but in 9 if you did a initial fantasy draft, contracts were not given until after the draft. but here if you run a few seasons prior to your target year, than have a draft, player contracts will go with them in the draft?
thanks

Rondell Tate · 06-19-2009, 07:33 PM

Dwight:
I'm not at the computer with the game on it, so I can't walk you through the click-by-click, but there's a new feature:

Inaugural Draft With Budgets - Users can now set team budgets before an inaugural draft takes place, based on balanced budgets, individually set budgets, or based on city population. In this mode, players have contract demands which combined must not exceed your draft budget, and the manager has to keep an eye on the budget when making his picks. The old mode without budgets is still available as well, of course!

Like I said, I ran three drafts (didn't play out the teams, just ran the drafts to play with the new toy) on three different settings ... you can handicap yourself pretty effectively this way from what I saw, and it makes the draft more like a Rotisserie draft, where you have to balance your budget as well as fill a roster. My small-market team I pretty much had to pick kids and build a development squad, to the point where personally I think I'll use it with a snake-type draft just so I can draft players I want (and it's a little redundant for my taste to do both ... but to each his own).

Scoman · 06-19-2009, 08:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by robc

Hello,

Has anyone been able to create a historical league and have an initial fantrasy draft and have the AI teams give them a challenge? I like using real players, but I think it is fun putting my own team together instead of inheriting a real team.

I have started a couple in OOTP 9 and one in 10. By the time September roles around I am head by 15-20 games. I typically set the AI trading to very hard and try not to do any trade that seems rediculous. Is there any way to make the AI teams more competitive without making the game seem artificial?

Thanks

Heres a few things you can try to make it more difficult,There is a new AI draft logic check box in the amateur draft portion of game setup. Make sure thats checked.
It only works for historical leagues. Also ,turn off financials ,you can always make wiser choices than the AI so it gives you a big edge in FA. Set trades to default settings but only make trades offered to you by the AI, Dont make trades by shopping players .Try those 3 simple things and see how it works for you.

Rondell Tate · 06-19-2009, 08:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scoman

Heres a few things you can try to make it more difficult,There is a new AI draft logic check box in the amateur draft portion of game setup. Make sure thats checked.
Also ,turn off financials ,you can always make wiser choices than the AI so it gives you a big edge in FA. Set trades to default settings but only make trades offered to you by the AI, Dont make trades by shopping players .Try those 3 simple things and see how it works for you.

I haven't played w/ the draft logic box. Does it make a big difference?
And to each his own on financials. I like making trades (although you can easily abuse the "Make it work now" button), so I prefer to handicap myself by starting w/ a bad and/or small-market team and build them up despite my comparative lack of $$$ (see my dynasty link in my sig

). My biggest problem is that I often get the players I want but they're all a year or two short of peak performance and I get fired when they hit a losing skid ... only to watch the core group turn into stars for the next manager.

But if what you really, really want to do is run the New York Yankees, clearly that isn't going to work for you.
Two totally different styles of play.

Scoman · 06-19-2009, 08:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rondell Tate

I haven't played w/ the draft logic box. Does it make a big difference?

With it checked I would say X has the best Drafting AI in historical leagues of all the versions.

Rondell Tate · 06-19-2009, 10:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scoman

With it checked I would say X has the best Drafting AI in historical leagues of all the versions.

Cool. I'll be checking it out more once I get fired in my dynasty.
Good to hear how many kind of "big ticket" items seem to be working better in this version ...

Dwight Schrute · 06-20-2009, 09:51 AM

yeah nice to see the 95% of first rounders are NOT all SP's

06-18-2009, 10:38 PM	#1 (permalink)
robc All Star Starter Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 1,660 Thanks: 412 Thanked 251x in 153 posts	Historical League with fantasy Draft Hello, Has anyone been able to create a historical league and have an initial fantrasy draft and have the AI teams give them a challenge? I like using real players, but I think it is fun putting my own team together instead of inheriting a real team. I have started a couple in OOTP 9 and one in 10. By the time September roles around I am head by 15-20 games. I typically set the AI trading to very hard and try not to do any trade that seems rediculous. Is there any way to make the AI teams more competitive without making the game seem artificial? Thanks

06-19-2009, 04:09 PM	#2 (permalink)
Rondell Tate Minors (Double A) Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 169 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1x in 1 post	A few suggestions (in my order of preference) as it's my usual mode of play: Always make sure you build your league based on the "rest of career" stats. You know what a 20-year-old Nolan Ryan is capable of; this gives the game relatively equal footing. You might try playing with recalc off ... which adds to the "fog of war" because you're less sure about a player's career track. To make it foggier, start your league 3 years before you want to play it, turn off recalc and scouting (turn off injuries as well, or the players you most want to see might be in a long-term care ward someplace ... kind of a buzzkill), let it play the 3 years, then do your draft. This makes it "less realistic" but let's face it, we're starting a "historical league" with a fantasy draft, so it's hard to be a stickler ... Turn on financials and dial down your team's income; use the new draft-with-salary cap option and you'll find yourself having to choose between, say, Ted Williams at $400,000 or Dom Dimaggio at $120,000, which restricts your ability to load up on all-stars ... taking Williams might mean picking some questionable-but-cheap pitching in the middle rounds, but can you really pass him up??? In three test drafts, I've also found this shakes up the draft order, as the AI now has to consider both ability and value instead of just ability ... On draft day, don't choose a snaking draft but go with one where the order of picks is constant, and give yourself a late pick. If you do all the above, don't try to trick the system into lopsided trades and are still +15 games by mid-August, you're better at this game than I am ... __________________

06-19-2009, 07:23 PM	#4 (permalink)
Dwight Schrute Minors (Single A) Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: scranton, PA Posts: 70 Thanks: 2 Thanked 0x in 0 posts	i have not tried this in 10, but in 9 if you did a initial fantasy draft, contracts were not given until after the draft. but here if you run a few seasons prior to your target year, than have a draft, player contracts will go with them in the draft? thanks __________________ Dwight K Schrute "Oh D!!......Oh D!!!"

06-19-2009, 07:33 PM	#5 (permalink)
Rondell Tate Minors (Double A) Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 169 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1x in 1 post	Dwight: I'm not at the computer with the game on it, so I can't walk you through the click-by-click, but there's a new feature: Inaugural Draft With Budgets - Users can now set team budgets before an inaugural draft takes place, based on balanced budgets, individually set budgets, or based on city population. In this mode, players have contract demands which combined must not exceed your draft budget, and the manager has to keep an eye on the budget when making his picks. The old mode without budgets is still available as well, of course! Like I said, I ran three drafts (didn't play out the teams, just ran the drafts to play with the new toy) on three different settings ... you can handicap yourself pretty effectively this way from what I saw, and it makes the draft more like a Rotisserie draft, where you have to balance your budget as well as fill a roster. My small-market team I pretty much had to pick kids and build a development squad, to the point where personally I think I'll use it with a snake-type draft just so I can draft players I want (and it's a little redundant for my taste to do both ... but to each his own). __________________

06-20-2009, 09:51 AM	#10 (permalink)
Dwight Schrute Minors (Single A) Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: scranton, PA Posts: 70 Thanks: 2 Thanked 0x in 0 posts	yeah nice to see the 95% of first rounders are NOT all SP's __________________ Dwight K Schrute "Oh D!!......Oh D!!!"

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