New to fictional play, any tips?

22tbrads22 · 04-22-2018, 11:43 PM

Haven't ever played fictional. anyone have any tips for me? I'm thinking a modern day league with 12 teams. Any ideas for financials, feeder leagues, anything will help as I have no idea what I am doing, thanks!!!

james17 · 04-23-2018, 12:33 AM

I've always played strictly fictional with a modern mlb set up with three minor leagues and a rookie league. I play with a salary cap of $155 million and that seems to work well. I left market sizes, fan interest, other financials with the default ones that came with the the original setup. I went with an inaugural draft but have been a trade crazy to build up my original team. Went with draft pick trading on too. Have really liked the fictional world that's been created.

5-4-3 · 04-23-2018, 01:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 22tbrads22

New to fictional play, any tips?

Yes, abandon it and go back to the 2018 MLB!

Just kidding. Have fun.

D-BacksJosh · 04-23-2018, 01:44 AM

Just keep it simple to start with, you can add things as you go. For me, making things really complicated to start off just makes me lose interest. I've been building my current fictional through 4 versions of OOTP. Started off with just 16 teams and a reserve roster with no financials. Since then I have added financials, 8 teams, 1 level of minors and altered rules to my liking. You can even record what you've done in the league history evolution screen so you can look back on all the work put into it. Also, I would suggest looking at these custom schedules to start your league, it will help guide how you want the structure and schedule to look...

http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/boar...d.php?t=249096

22tbrads22 · 04-23-2018, 02:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by D-BacksJosh

Just keep it simple to start with, you can add things as you go. For me, making things really complicated to start off just makes me lose interest. I've been building my current fictional through 4 versions of OOTP. Started off with just 16 teams and a reserve roster with no financials. Since then I have added financials, 8 teams, 1 level of minors and altered rules to my liking. You can even record what you've done in the league history evolution screen so you can look back on all the work put into it. Also, I would suggest looking at these custom schedules to start your league, it will help guide how you want the structure and schedule to look...

http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/boar...d.php?t=249096

Thanks for the tips. What do you mean by you added financials? sorry I'm so familiar with just the regular MLB this stuff is very foreign.

D-BacksJosh · 04-23-2018, 02:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 22tbrads22

Thanks for the tips. What do you mean by you added financials? sorry I'm so familiar with just the regular MLB this stuff is very foreign.

In league settings, the sky is the limit for how you want to create your league. You can adjust all of the rules. DH? no DH? you can use a reserve roster, you can set roster limits, determine the nationalities of players, set amateur draft rules, make it possible to trade draft picks, etc. Financials or no financials or you can adjust the financials to something else like I have mine set so the superstars can make around $100,000 a year. seems more realistic to me then having multi-million dollar contracts. The customization is mind blowing. I have to admit I have created many fictional leagues in the past that I couldn't get just right, it took me a while to figure all the options out and find how exactly I wanted my league to operate. Which is why I suggest starting simple, if you are comfortable with all of the MLB rules then use that and you can change little by little as the seasons pass.

Reggie · 04-23-2018, 06:51 AM

I will just add that starting small is good. I've tried starting with 30 teams, put in tons of work and later find I didn't like what I had done and deleted the league.

I don't toy with the financials much.. other than selecting a starting year. I use a fixed budget for the inaugural draft and select the adjust budget to city population option.

After a few seasons, if I like my creation, I start expanding into other cities a couple at a time.

smiller · 04-23-2018, 09:01 AM

Not having too many teams at first gives you a chance to know the players in your league better which really helps with immersion.

22tbrads22 · 04-23-2018, 11:40 AM

any tips on feeder leagues? should i use them, when should i implement them, hpw do they work etc.

jtnlange · 04-23-2018, 11:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 22tbrads22

any tips on feeder leagues? should i use them, when should i implement them, hpw do they work etc.

I think feeders are good, I like to follow a career from HS all the way to retirement. I have not seen the issues a lot of people have with too much talent. I would go with a small college and HS feeder system. Trevor L.

HolyCow98 · 04-23-2018, 01:15 PM

Smaller is better in my opinion.

I usually go with 2 8 team leagues no divisions. For me, my goal is to get over the unfamiliar feeling as fast as possible. I want to be able to remember who the stars are, where do they play etc etc from around the league.

Its easier to notice things like that when the league is smaller. I eventually expand, but I almost always start off with 16 to 20 team 2 league/no division setups initially.

Big T · 04-23-2018, 01:26 PM

I did 2 Leagues with 2 divisions of 6 teams each, 24 teams in total. The MLB plays a 100 game schedule (I shorted it up so I can play all my teams games)

Each of the 24 teams have a AAA, AA and A teams.

Playoff structure is the old fashion 4 division winners.

fuzzy_patters · 04-23-2018, 02:00 PM

Two versions ago, I started one in 1871, and it is still going strong. I'm in 1911 now. I have started others that I couldn't get into as well. Here are a few things that made a difference.

In this one I did a lot of research of census records and the history of cities until that point so that the league would feel like it really could have existed. Each team had a market size proportional to the city's population in 1870, and I have adjusted these every ten years. The nicknames were all historically based. For example, the St Louis Survivors were so named because the real St Louis had a cholera epidemic right before the league formed. This would be an uplifting nickname for a city banding together.

Another things that I have done is to change 2-4 things about the league each year based on what I think would have really happened based on the previous season. For example, if one team sold out all of its games, it might build a bigger park. If every team is flush with cash and there are excess talented players, the league might have an expansion draft. This has kept the league dynamic like real baseball history.

One of the best things that I have done to keep myself interested in the league is to come up with backstories. Early in my league, the Baltimore Shippers had terrible attendance for 3-4 years in a row. I moved the Shippers to New Orleans the following year and renamed them the Rebels. New Orleans did even worse so I moved them back a few years later. Coming so soon after the end of the Civil War, I assumed that the southerners would see this as Yankee imperialism and that the system was rigged against the Rebels, and that the Rebels would threaten to go to the papers if the league didn't have an expansion draft to give them a team. When the new Rebels and the expansion Cleveland Eeries couldn't win, they would threaten two more times until there had been so much expansion that the new teams could break away and become a rival league to the older, more established league. Backstories like this give the league character and make it more interesting to play.

Lastly, have fun! A fictional league is a big sandbox. Play in it! If you put the time into it, it can become very real to you as you watch the fortunes of teams and players rise and fall, and you eventually get to induct your first Hall of Famers. Good luck!

Eugene Church · 04-24-2018, 04:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by smiller

Not having too many teams at first gives you a chance to know the players in your league better which really helps with immersion.

This is excellent advice from smiller.

I have one league with 64 teams and it is just too large to get to know the players and teams well... and it works me to death to administer it... it used to be a labor of love... now it's more labor and some love... I have been doing it for over 10 years and just can't stop playing it though I have thought about giving it up many times in recent years... alas, I am addicted to it and can't let it go.

I had one league with 8 teams and you thoroughly get to know the teams and the players... easy to administer, too.

12-16 teams is the most I would recommend.

I never use minors or financials.... I just keep it simple.

04-22-2018, 11:43 PM	#1
22tbrads22 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Aug 2016 Posts: 140	New to fictional play, any tips? Haven't ever played fictional. anyone have any tips for me? I'm thinking a modern day league with 12 teams. Any ideas for financials, feeder leagues, anything will help as I have no idea what I am doing, thanks!!!

04-23-2018, 01:15 PM	#11
HolyCow98 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Douglasville, GA Posts: 2,735	Smaller is better in my opinion. I usually go with 2 8 team leagues no divisions. For me, my goal is to get over the unfamiliar feeling as fast as possible. I want to be able to remember who the stars are, where do they play etc etc from around the league. Its easier to notice things like that when the league is smaller. I eventually expand, but I almost always start off with 16 to 20 team 2 league/no division setups initially. __________________ NPBL Enjoying its 60th season Georgia GM

04-23-2018, 12:33 AM	#2
james17 All Star Starter Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 1,306	I've always played strictly fictional with a modern mlb set up with three minor leagues and a rookie league. I play with a salary cap of $155 million and that seems to work well. I left market sizes, fan interest, other financials with the default ones that came with the the original setup. I went with an inaugural draft but have been a trade crazy to build up my original team. Went with draft pick trading on too. Have really liked the fictional world that's been created.

04-23-2018, 01:44 AM	#4
D-BacksJosh Banned Join Date: May 2011 Location: Arizona Posts: 875	Just keep it simple to start with, you can add things as you go. For me, making things really complicated to start off just makes me lose interest. I've been building my current fictional through 4 versions of OOTP. Started off with just 16 teams and a reserve roster with no financials. Since then I have added financials, 8 teams, 1 level of minors and altered rules to my liking. You can even record what you've done in the league history evolution screen so you can look back on all the work put into it. Also, I would suggest looking at these custom schedules to start your league, it will help guide how you want the structure and schedule to look... http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/boar...d.php?t=249096

04-23-2018, 06:51 AM	#7
Reggie Major Leagues Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Rochester, NY Posts: 442	I will just add that starting small is good. I've tried starting with 30 teams, put in tons of work and later find I didn't like what I had done and deleted the league. I don't toy with the financials much.. other than selecting a starting year. I use a fixed budget for the inaugural draft and select the adjust budget to city population option. After a few seasons, if I like my creation, I start expanding into other cities a couple at a time.

04-23-2018, 09:01 AM	#8
smiller Major Leagues Join Date: Oct 2013 Location: Pittsboro NC Posts: 424	Not having too many teams at first gives you a chance to know the players in your league better which really helps with immersion.

04-23-2018, 11:40 AM	#9
22tbrads22 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Aug 2016 Posts: 140	any tips on feeder leagues? should i use them, when should i implement them, hpw do they work etc.

04-23-2018, 01:26 PM	#12
Big T Hall Of Famer Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 3,878	I did 2 Leagues with 2 divisions of 6 teams each, 24 teams in total. The MLB plays a 100 game schedule (I shorted it up so I can play all my teams games) Each of the 24 teams have a AAA, AA and A teams. Playoff structure is the old fashion 4 division winners.

04-23-2018, 02:00 PM	#13
fuzzy_patters All Star Starter Join Date: Jul 2011 Posts: 1,804	Two versions ago, I started one in 1871, and it is still going strong. I'm in 1911 now. I have started others that I couldn't get into as well. Here are a few things that made a difference. In this one I did a lot of research of census records and the history of cities until that point so that the league would feel like it really could have existed. Each team had a market size proportional to the city's population in 1870, and I have adjusted these every ten years. The nicknames were all historically based. For example, the St Louis Survivors were so named because the real St Louis had a cholera epidemic right before the league formed. This would be an uplifting nickname for a city banding together. Another things that I have done is to change 2-4 things about the league each year based on what I think would have really happened based on the previous season. For example, if one team sold out all of its games, it might build a bigger park. If every team is flush with cash and there are excess talented players, the league might have an expansion draft. This has kept the league dynamic like real baseball history. One of the best things that I have done to keep myself interested in the league is to come up with backstories. Early in my league, the Baltimore Shippers had terrible attendance for 3-4 years in a row. I moved the Shippers to New Orleans the following year and renamed them the Rebels. New Orleans did even worse so I moved them back a few years later. Coming so soon after the end of the Civil War, I assumed that the southerners would see this as Yankee imperialism and that the system was rigged against the Rebels, and that the Rebels would threaten to go to the papers if the league didn't have an expansion draft to give them a team. When the new Rebels and the expansion Cleveland Eeries couldn't win, they would threaten two more times until there had been so much expansion that the new teams could break away and become a rival league to the older, more established league. Backstories like this give the league character and make it more interesting to play. Lastly, have fun! A fictional league is a big sandbox. Play in it! If you put the time into it, it can become very real to you as you watch the fortunes of teams and players rise and fall, and you eventually get to induct your first Hall of Famers. Good luck!