Got a historical game setup question.
 

When you create a historical game using the wizard you select single season replay or career on the first screen.

When you select career and set your make bad settings, it then imports all the players. It also import all prior history if you set it to do so. Then from this point you can make all the other wizard selections from the screens to follow, or you can go into advanced and make even more detailed selections.

Thing is, the players have all been imported already, so is the game using 3 year recalc by default for all inaugural seasons? If I want to use 5 year recalc, and start my league in 1901, is 1902 the first season played using 5 year recalc? I know this is confusing, but I've always been curious about this.

Just wondering when the recalc happens during league creation. I'm guessing all ratings are set when the league imports the players after step one. When you select the create league option in the final step it appears to me that the game is loading logos, and setting your historical leaderboards. I don't see is say anything about calculating player ratings.

If I understand your question correctly.
The default is 3 years not double weighted and the initial ratings will reflect that. As soon as you change it to 1 year or 5 years or double weighted under the historical tab, the ratings for the players will automatically reflect that setting.

See this baffles me though. This makes me believe that the initial season is played under the default 3 years(unless you select single season replay) and any change to 5 year won't happen until the second season. Otherwise, you could look at a guys ratings prior to switching to 5 years(when it's still on 3 year) and see the player ratings change from 3 year to 5 year.

This has bugged me for years. If you create the league and then switch it to 5 year or 1 year etc. it seems like it would use that setting for the 2nd season onward, but that what about the inaugural season? Or does the game store 1 year ratings, 3 year ratings and 5 year ratings during the calculation process allowing one to change at will? Can you play one month with 1 year recalc, the next with 3 year and the rest with 5 year? Not sure why anyone would want to, but is it possible? I'm just trying to figure out how the game sets the initial season?

That is the way I understand it. The ratings are effect as soon as you change the recalc period.

I'm really hoping you are correct, but would love to know for sure. When I get home, I'm going to see if this is something that can be seen. Seems like if you changed it from 1 year to 5, it would be pretty easy to see drastic changes in lineups and rotations.

What baffles me is that you can change the recalc period DURING the season. Seems like that would mess up the opening day computation. I know the players ratings will change but maybe under the hood they are locked until season end.

But now we are back to my initial question. If they are locked, then I would think the game has to be using 3 year or 1 for the inaugural season and even if you select 5 year during an advanced setup, the game doesn't use 5 year until after the first season when recalc can be performed.

Man chicken and the egg, I know, but it's so confusing.

Remember even if you erase prior history, the game engine still has the players IRL history stored and that is what it is using for its initial 3 yr or 5 yr ratings.

But, isn't recalc a process? By that, I mean doesn't the game run one of those bars across the top of the screen during the offseason(after end of season, but before December 31st) and in doing so, uses the recalc method chosen? If I have 5 year chosen it uses that? Or is the game running all 3 options?

When you erase prior history, you are telling the computer not to include a player or teams prior real life history in your league but the computer still has access to those real life stats prior to 1901 in your case to determine the 3 yr or 5 yr ratings. Does that make sense?

I understand what your saying, but I'm just not sure that's how it works. I've always thought recalc was a once a season process, just like importing league modifiers for historical accuracy is a once a season process. When I get home, I'm going to change a few leagues from 1 to 5 or 5 to 1 and hit run computer manager on league. Lineups and pitching rotations should change bigtime if one is able to simply change willy nilly.

I started a test league 1901. Went to opening day and let computer do the modifier prediction thing. Check lineup rotation for one of the teams. Then changed recalc period from 3 to 1. Checked line up and rotation and it did change. Then changed recalc period to 5 years. Checked line up and rotation and it did change again. Let me know if you get the same results.

Did the same when I got home. Saw what you did. Cool.