Whispers of the Golden Past League to open its doors soon

[Jestor]

Hello.

Are you looking for something different? Something more immersive than the usual league?

Then join the Whispers of the Golden Past, a new OOTP league that will be starting soon.

The year is 1900. A new century dawns and with it, new possibilities for baseball in America. Who will be the heroes that become enshrined in glory? What will the world become? The answers, my friends, lie with *you*.

Features:
-Starts in 1900
-Uses the Lahman Database
-Fictional teams*
-Event System**

*: City names and team names will be up to the individual GM, but they must write a backstory explaining why and how the major league club came into being. It must be historically plausible for whatever year the franchise is being founded. Hence, no Honolulu Xstacies in 1900 for example. Minor league clubs do not necessarily need the backstory, but the city and team name choices must also be historically plausible. Also, GMs will be *required* to write a story post at least once a week about their team or a player or member of their team.

**: The most radical feature of the WGP league. There will be events that shape the world in which the league plays. Some will be taken from actual history, others will be randomized and fictional. Some the entire league will know about, others will be PM'ed only to the individual GMs the event concerns. With every event, there will be effects. Sometimes the GMs will have a choice in how they can react to the event; other times, they have to accept the hand that Fate deals to them.

Other Notes:
-Owner uses 6.12 because of wanting to use Cato. GMs can use 6.5 though.
-25 man roster and 40 man roster both in effect
-Rule V draft in operation
-Modern baseball era settings with a 4 man rotation
-150 game seasons

Dispersal Draft:
-Serpentine draft
-Random draft order will be hit 10 times
-CPU will then draft for all teams, as it would take too long to do it manually

These are the preliminary details that are set in stone and not open to change. All else will be subject to later development by the owner/comissioner or by GM votes.

To start, we will have 16 teams. 2 leagues, 2 divisions of 4 teams in each league. Division winners will play each other for league title and then league champions face off in whatever the World Series of this universe gets called.

The website will be up next week, but I thought I would start seeing what interest is out there now.

Is this league different? Yes. But it's my aim to create an immersive, rich world for the GMs where you find yourself really caring about your teams, your players, and the universe in which they reside.

Let me know if you're interested. Thanks.

[Jestor]

One GM slot taken. 15 remain, as with the event system, I'd prefer not to be a GM unless I had to do fill a vacancy.

[UncleBuc]

I have some interest. I would like to see the rules defined in a little more detail and maybe soften the stance on a *weekly* article. And as always it comes down to timing. So when it looks as if things are ready to roll I'm willing to take a look.

[Vris]

Owner uses 6.12 because of wanting to use Cato. GMs can use 6.5 though.

This is impossible. Commish can have 6.5 and accept 6.12 exports, but 6.5 exports will not work with 6.12.

[ukhotstove]

I'd be interested, give me a shout closer to the time.

[Cooleyvol]

Sounds like a great premise......the PC has events/custom injury file including murders, etc. set in the same period. We just don't have a Rule V draft.

I might be interested if I could see the rules ahead of time.

[Jestor]

Originally Posted by Vris

This is impossible. Commish can have 6.5 and accept 6.12 exports, but 6.5 exports will not work with 6.12.

Looks like I'll have to get 6.5 then

[Jestor]

UncleBuc: Fairy nuff. I'll keep you guys updated.

ukhotstove: Will do.

Coolevol: Okay, anything specific that you're looking for with regards to rules?

[scprideandms]

Keep me posted, definite interest, would like rules fleshed out a litle more, let me know

[Astros33Resurrected]

id be happy to take on a team.

[Jestor]

scprideandms: Will do. I'll work on fleshing out the rules some more tonight.

Astros33Resurrected: Excellent! I'll mark you down as the for sure second GM then.

[woody5254]

Will there be FA?? If so I'd be very much interested in taking on a team. This sounds like a very unique premise and I would love to be involved.

[Jeremy Weimer]

Woody, you're not in any leagues besides Maelstrom anymore? That's too bad, you're TT. You need to be in more leagues.

[Jestor]

Originally Posted by woody5254

Will there be FA?? If so I'd be very much interested in taking on a team. This sounds like a very unique premise and I would love to be involved.

Yes, there will be free agency. And I'd be quite happy to have you aboard!

[woody5254]

Originally Posted by Jeremy Weimer

Woody, you're not in any leagues besides Maelstrom anymore? That's too bad, you're TT. You need to be in more leagues.

Thanks, Jeremy. Actually I ran into a rough spot in real life during the Spring and Summer and left all but Maelstrom. Now my life has gotten back to normal and am in the market to add a few again. I am actually already in ABC and NAHHBL, I just haven't gotten around to updating my sig.

[woody5254]

Originally Posted by Jestor

Yes, there will be free agency. And I'd be quite happy to have you aboard!

Thanks man. I will start thinking of the back story for my franchise then

[Jeremy Weimer]

Originally Posted by woody5254

Thanks, Jeremy. Actually I ran into a rough spot in real life during the Spring and Summer and left all but Maelstrom. Now my life has gotten back to normal and am in the market to add a few again. I am actually already in ABC and NAHHBL, I just haven't gotten around to updating my sig.

You're in ABC now? I need to start paying more attention.

EDIT: I see that you're one of the new expansion teams, that makes more sense. I thought you took over one of the other teams and I could've swore there weren't any owner changes that I didn't hear about. Now it all makes sense.

[Jestor]

Keep in mind that these rules are only a preliminary writeup and are subject to change. The basic framework and whatnot will all remain the same though.

Whispers of the Golden Past Rules and Regulations

League Premise
-Begins in the year 1900
-Uses real players with some form of the Lahman Database
-Teams are fictional, but there are requirements which are listed below in GM Duties
-Utilizes the Event System (explained in further detail below)
-Dispersal draft: Random Order will be hit 10 times and then CPU will do all drafting for all teams.

Engine Setup
-25 man rosters
-40 man rosters
-No waivers
-Financials on
-Team cash max: $10 million
-League minimum salary: $100,000
-Minor Leagues on
-Minor League options on
-Rule V draft
-No minor league free agents
-Free agency on
-1-100 ratings scale
-100+ ratings will not be visible

GM Duties
-When founding a team, a background story must be written detailing how the team came to be. The city and team name must both be historically plausible. So no Honolulu Xstacies in 1900, for example. Minor league teams must also be historically plausible in terms of city and team name, but no back story is required for them.
-Sims will take place on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Exports must be submitted by 7 p.m. CST. Dates and times will be subject to change pending comissioner’s schedule.
-GMs will be required to write a story post about their team, a front office person, or a player on their team at least once a week. That’s once a real time week. However, I do recognize that real life can interfere, so GMs will be given three free passes a season, where they don’t need to submit a story for that real-time week.
-Fan Interest must be kept at 10 or higher. If it falls below 10, then one of the following things happens: If the cash reserves are $5 million or higher, the GM will forfeit half of his money, simulating a marketing campaign to get fan interest back up to the acceptable level. If reserves are less than $5 million, then a random dice roll will take place simulating a vote of confidence by the team’s board of directors. There is a 50/50 chance for either result. Should the board of directors support the GM, then half of the cash reserves will be spent for the marketing campaign as outlined above. Should the board of directors not support the GM, they will be removed from ownership of the franchise.
-Negative cash flow can not occur for two consecutive seasons or the franchise will be disbanded and its players released to the free agency pool.

Expansion/New GMs
-Expansion teams will be handled in the same manner as the founding franchises. i.e. background story, historically plausible city and team name. Plausibility will of course depend on the year the team is being founded.
-Should a new GM take over for a team that has been bankrupted, they have the following options: Either they can set up an expansion franchise in another city or they can choose to start a new team in the same city as the bankrupted franchise. If they stay in the same city, then they will have first priority when it comes to signing the lost franchise’s former players. Should they open up shop elsewhere, they gain no special benefit.

Relocation
-Relocation will be permitted, but with the following restrictions:
-If it is a new GM that is taking over a financially viable franchise, they must wait until the end of the season, if assuming ownership on or before the All-Star Break or until the end of the next season if given the franchise any time after the All-Star Break. They must also write a background story as to the whys and particulars of the move.
-If it is an established GM looking to move, they must submit a proposal detailing the whys and particulars for their moving to another city before the end of the season. The proposal will then be voted on by the league’s owners and a 2/3 majority will be required to approve the move.
-If the fan interest in the old city was less than 50, then moving to the new city will automatically bump fan interest up to 50. If the fan interest in the old city was greater than 50, then fan interest in the new city will take an automatic 15 point drop. This is to simulate the anger that the sizeable number of loyalists of the old team will feel about the move.

Stadiums
-Teams will start with stadiums of 20,000 capacity or whatever the league average is at the time of their founding, should they start later than 1900. All ballpark factors will be set at 100.
-For every 10 years that a team stays in the same stadium, fan interest will automatically rise by 5, no matter what the fan interest is at the time.
-Stadiums will only have the maximum expansion capacity: an additional 5,000 seats, at least in terms of the original stadiums. Similarly they can only be renovated to the tune of 5 points maximum for each of the categories: LH singles/RH singles/LH doubles/RH doubles/LH homeruns/RH homeruns, etc.
-Each expansion of 1,000 seats will cost $1 million. Each shift in point will cost $250,000.
-Stadiums must be given names.
-Building a new stadium will be dependant upon the size of the stadium and the park factors. To wit:
-30,000 stadium: $10 million
-40,000 stadium: $15 million
-50,000 stadium: $25 million
-60,000 stadium: $40 million
-Ballpark factors ranging from 95-104: No additional cost
-Ballpark factors ranging from 105-114: $5 million
-Ballpark factors ranging from 114-120: $10 million
-Costs of stadiums and factors can be adjusted at comissioner’s discretion, though it will probably be put to league vote.

Rule V Draft:
-Will occur in offseason after free agency.
-Order is determined by last season’s record: worst to first.

Amateur Draft:
-Will take place in offseason
-Worst to first
-Straight draft
-Draft picks may be traded, but only for the next two years.
-7 round draft
-GMs will have a maximum of 24 hours from the last pick to make their selection. After a GM picks a player, it will be their responsibility to contact the next GM via both email and PM to inform them that their turn is up.

Free Agency:
-Offseason free agency sims will be simulated in 2 sims of 10 days each and then another 2 sims of 5 days each. Offers must be posted on the forum in order to be valid.
-In-season free agency: A team may put in a bid on a player, after which case, all other teams will have 24 hours to bid on the same player, with the winner being the team with the worst record that the player will accept.

Trades:
-One owner must post a trade on the forum and the other owner must be confirmed. There will be no fairness mechanism in place. If you get hosed in a trade, well then you learn from the experience and get smarter for next time.

All-Stars:
-Will be voted upon by the owners of each respective league. In case of ties, then the manager for the respective league (last year’s champion) will cast the deciding vote. Said manager will also choose the reserves for each team. In the inaugural season, ties will be broken by a die roll and the reserves will be chosen by the comissioner.

End of the Year Awards:
-Voted upon by the members of each respective league. In the case of ties, a die roll will break it.

Events System:
-As noted, some events will be public, able to be seen by all and some will be private, only able to be seen by the GM(s) it involves. Some will have choices to make, others will simply happen. Events will involve players, the association, fans, teams, or even the world at large. I suppose the best way to do this would be to give examples. My exact methodology of events will of course not be revealed, as that would take all the mystery and fun out of it.

Public Event, Choice To Be Made:

It is the first official session of the Golden Baseball Association. The ballroom at this swank, five-star hotel is filled with luminaries all finely dressed and quietly discussing issues of the day and the association about to be formed. All of you as owners are in attendance. Dinner is held, a sumptuous feast of gourmet meals prepared by the very finest chefs the establishment has to offer and after the post-dinner wine and cigar, a select few, including the owners, a pair of press reporters, and a scattering of special guests are invited back into the ballroom.

At the elegantly carved dias in front of the room stands a tall, thin Scotsman with a wide forehead and a brooding countenance beneath his thick, black hair. Once you are all assembled and seated, he smiles a little and speaks.

“I welcome you all to the first official session of the Golden Baseball Association. My name is Malcom Strumdrang and I will be serving as legal counsel to the GBA. Our first order of business tonight will be to select your leader who will guide this league to greatness.”

Two men are then introduced, their qualifications and philosophies given.

Danny O’Braiden is an Irish businessman, 50, who believes in taking a light hand with regard to discipline. Under his leadership, suspensions will be few and short in duration, though there is the potential for fans and partners to become disgusted with the lack of discipline in the league and so lose interest.

Thomas Nickelby, 35, is a minister of a local Episcopalian church. Very much a believer in hard and fast rules, he delivers punishment swiftly and exactingly. Suspensions will be much more common and for longer periods of time, but many will appreciate the strict attention to the abidance of rules.

Now you must vote for which will be your commisioner. Choose wisely, for your decision will set the tone for your association.

Public Event, No Choice To Be Made:

With the coming of the Great War, there are many who are answering the call to serve their country, including players in the Golden Baseball Association. These are the heroes who going to duty:

List of players follows

Should they come back alive from the war and still be willing and able to play baseball, they will be adored and worshipped by the fans and the teams that they are on will benefit greatly.

Private Event, Choice To Be Made:

Your star center fielder was discovered by the woman who runs his boarding house to be drinking heavily night. Today at practice, he looked sluggish and was clearly suffering the effects of a hangover.

The chairman of the board of directors thinks the player should be fined and privately chastized for his indiscretion.

Your field manager argues that this is the star of the team and so certain allowances should be made for it.

What do you do?

A) Fine him.
Effects: Loyalty decreases by one level. A chance his play will be affected on the field (i.e. ratings drop)

B) Do nothing.
Effects: Loyalty stays the same as do his ratings. A chance that the drinking will continue and the matter blows up into public scandal, which will result in further consequences.

As the above example illustrates, there can possibly be chains of events that link together to form storylines. For example, say you decide to do nothing in this circumstance. One of the effects could be *this* event.

Private Event, No Choice To Be Made:

You have allowed your star center fielder to continue his drinking. More and more people are starting to notice his wild nights and reckless behaviour and the gossip has spread throughout the city and the association as a whole.

Fans of the team are greatly displeased and have been writing angry letters to the editor to the local paper about your mishandling of the situation.

Fan loyalty drops by 3.
Public forum story will be posted about the behaviour of your player.
Player’s local popularity drops one level.

There will of course be positive events as well, but I decided to use the negative examples, because the world society likes the gossip about bad news.

Rules and regulations will of course be subject to change.

[ukhotstove]

How many days per sim ?

[Jestor]

Originally Posted by ukhotstove

How many days per sim ?

I was going to put that one to the vote of the GMs.