Hello everyone, and welcome back for the first proper installment of The Bear’s Portuguese adventure. I’ve been tossing around a few ideas for an update cycle, and haven’t been able to settle on anything solid. As a result, I’m beseeching you for your input in this matter. Here are the ones that jump to mind:
1) Full Season updates — Probably my least favorite option. Too much information to convey in too short of a time.
2) Quarter Season updates — By which I mean to say I update every 10 league games (30 games total in a year), plus an offseason update (for 4 a year)
3) Whenever — No rhyme or reason, just an update whenever the mood strikes. Could be for an individual game that was awesome, or could be a gap of 10-20 games between updates.
Thoughts would be greatly appreciated (and if you have a different idea, please let me know).
So anyway, with that said, let’s take a look at the opening third of the season. First things first, here’s how my first full week in charge went:
Hmm, okay.
Is that like jungle fever?
Oh boy, here we go…
Alrighty then! I suppose as far as take-overs go, it was a fairly painless affair, and at least I kept my job! With the transfer embargo lifted following Machado’s election, I could get down the grisly business of trying to build a squad. Our non-existent finances meant I would be looking for freebies, and my existing players’ lack of quality meant I couldn’t offload them without taking a financial hit from releasing them (which I ultimately was forced to do).
Here are the best players I was able to bring in:
Yeah, he’s old, but he’s still a fine keeper for the Portuguese third tier. I probably won’t keep him longer than a year, but I’m glad to have him on board.
I’m using him as one of my centerbacks, and while I’m a little worried his stats are already starting to decline at 31, he’s been solid thus far in the season (it’s not hard to be solid at this level).
My token Brazilian striker! He’s pretty much at the peak of his career, so hopefully I’ll be able to get a few good years out of him. Early signs point to him being quite productive.
My right winger. He’s not super impressive, but he was one of the only solid wingers available to me (seriously, I’m STILL looking for a decent left winger).
And finally, here’s the whole squad all together:
We’ve had a few injury problems to start the year off, but we had a pretty grueling stretch of games as well. We have some solid starters, but almost no depth to speak of. Thankfully the team is gelling nicely, and we’re already out of the Taca, so there won’t be any extra cup games to bog us down. I’ve also been trying to force my preferred 4-2-3-1 onto this club, even though I don’t really have the players to support it just yet (in fact, I don’t have anyone to support the left side of the pitch at all). I’ll be once again trolling for a left winger during the January window, and hopefully I can track down a decent leftback while I’m at it.
With 10 league games played so far, here is how we stand:
Perfect! I couldn’t have asked for a better standing at the 1/3rd point. I should emphasize that there is no way we’ll go up this year. Fatima and Esterla V.N. are way better than us, and there’s simply no way we’ll be able to catch them up. Honestly though, I’m 100% okay with this. Dezembro is in no way ready for the Liga Orangina, and I’d like to spend at least a year or two down here consolidating and rebuilding.
That’s it for this run, thanks for reading everyone!
Kevin
14 марта, 2012 at 17:49
Hi Stromson
Lelo looks like an invitation to score goals at least at this level. Hopefully he doesn’t «lay low» :) Good start to your first 10 games and it’s pretty even in the league so far. Option 3 for updates as I think it suites you perfectly :)
Stromson
15 марта, 2012 at 11:40
I hope he doesn’t lay down here. :) Thanks Kevin!
Bence Répási
14 марта, 2012 at 19:11
Hello Stromson
Nice start of your first season, it seems you can keep up with those bigger teams despite the lack of funding. I hope you can find someone to the left side as soon as possible.
With the options: I also suggest the third.
Stromson
15 марта, 2012 at 12:00
Thanks Bence! Still looking for that left winger… >.<
Laxeyman
14 марта, 2012 at 19:45
Good start Stromo, you brought in some good players, I particularly like the look of Lelo, hopefully he can bang in the goals :) Keep up the good work mate, good luck!
Stromson
15 марта, 2012 at 12:02
Thanks Laxey! Our hopes pretty much ride on Lelo doing just that.
saltwater
14 марта, 2012 at 19:52
Yep, I’m all for option 3, and a fine start to the season. The squad you’ve build up looks slightly explosive (for a portugues 3rd tier team) and I definetly wouldn’t rule out a top 3 finish.
Good Luck, Stromo!
Stromson
15 марта, 2012 at 12:04
I’d be pretty thrilled with a top 3 finish, but I’ll be surprised if it happens.
David Faithfull
14 марта, 2012 at 19:53
Firstly with the options i think you should take the third option. That keeps the game more interesting as you could have half a season in one post but then the odd few games which have to been spoken about taking up a whole page!!!! Lelo looks like an amazing player for the league your team is in and hopefully a left winger will come to Dezembro soon!! Also for the league position that is a great start and even if you finished there at the end of the season that is a mazzive achievment!!
Stromson
15 марта, 2012 at 12:05
Thanks David, I’m definitely leaning toward the third option myself. :) I’m thrilled with the start as well, I just hope we can keep it up.
David Faithfull
15 марта, 2012 at 18:59
Hopefully you can mate as long as your veterans do not get injured i can see your team reaching a good 4th or 5th position :D
Darren Smith
14 марта, 2012 at 20:05
Well to start I think you should update in whatever way makes playing the game more natural. I often find that stories end when the gamer feels held back by posting and starts to lose enthusiasm so go for whatever feels right. As for the start, well the signings were good and the results even better, lets hope for more of the same and brilliant foundations to build on mate.
Stromson
15 марта, 2012 at 12:26
Thanks Darren. :) I agree, the more laid back posting style would probably feel much more natural. Hopefully we can carry our early season success through the rest of the year.
nielsneutron
14 марта, 2012 at 20:12
I say you try out with option 3 and see where that goes. Your signings are all looking great but some of them are rather old. Hopefully they can stay with you a season or two in order to build a better team with promising youngsters. Or you can get new experienced people on frees.
Good luck.
Stromson
15 марта, 2012 at 12:33
Yeah, I realized several of them were approaching (or had arrived) at the end of their careers, but there was precious little young talent available, and the older guys were willing to sign for pretty cheap.
nielsneutron
19 марта, 2012 at 14:36
Also there is something wrong with the Media files in your real name update. TV2 sporten is a Danish tv channel which I really doubt would comment on low league portugese transfers.
Stromson
19 марта, 2012 at 15:53
I’m completely oblivious to most European news and sports channels, so it doesn’t bother me too much. Besides, I figure it’s worth the sacrifice to have the real team and league names.
TheZiggy
14 марта, 2012 at 20:38
I’d say that’s a pretty decent start to the season. The one saving grace at the lower levels is that most of the teams are also struggling the same, and a squad of variable quality. Getting a good winger at almost any level seems to be tough, unless you have millions to throw about.
As for update frequency, it’s a tricky one, but I get the impression right now you’re thinking along the lines of the 4 updates per season. However, I think you can allow yourself some flexibility, because this has to be fun.
Stromson
15 марта, 2012 at 12:36
I don’t have too many preferences with update schedule, I was just afraid of «overposting». You are correct about the other squads though. I’m several games on from this update, and the table has changed pretty dramatically during that time (only 5 or 6 games later too).
Adam D
14 марта, 2012 at 22:33
How about half season up dates? Going from Start of one transfer window to the start of the next.
Or assuming Portugal has a simular seasonal structure to the UK, maybe a 3 update method going:
— Start of the season till end of December
— Start of January till some point near end of season
— End of season (cup finals, run in to title, etc) and pre-season for next one.
Overall I’m a fan of a few meaty updates per season rather than several small ones.
Stromson
15 марта, 2012 at 12:39
That’s a fair take. I think I prefer shorter updates myself, or at least shorter intervals. I’ve found with the larger updates, it’s harder to convey the ups and downs of the season, and you tend not to get to know the players quite as well.
sammy
15 марта, 2012 at 06:03
good start stromson! i think option 3 is the best. i hope you can find your desired left winger
Stromson
15 марта, 2012 at 12:40
Thanks Sammy, I’m still searching pretty desperately for one. :(
Johnny Karp
15 марта, 2012 at 07:37
Looking good so far mate, well done. I wouldn’t rule out an outside chance for a promotion but I guess you have more details about the situation than me. As for the posting option, I’d go for number 3.
Stromson
15 марта, 2012 at 12:43
Thanks Johnny! I’d have considered promotion a possibility based on the start, but I just don’t feel like our squad is strong enough. Given the overall age, I fully expect more injuries in our future, and we lack the needed depth to recover should someone like Lelo go down.
vaibhavc
15 марта, 2012 at 16:13
Maybe you have a chance for promotion, but 3rd place seems like a more realistic option. I think you should update whenever you want, but it should be regularly! And definitely videos. Videos have to be a part of your updates.
Stromson
19 марта, 2012 at 15:56
I’ll see if I can’t get my microphone working again for the return of some videos. :)
CsAtlantis
19 марта, 2012 at 11:31
Hey Jon, some interesting signings to strengthen the club, the 40 year old GK seems much better than what you had, hopefully with your new chairman you can get some money, are you earning any money from ticket sales?
Good luck for the rest of the season (does finishing first mean playing in a playoff? kind of remembered doing something like that in fm2011)
Stromson
19 марта, 2012 at 15:58
Yep, finishing first just entitles you to a 3 team playoff against the winners of the other two regional leagues (north and central, in my case). Kind of a bummer, but it certainly makes the end of a season a bit more interesting.
We’re definitely not making any money on anything at the moment. Since I’ve taken over the club, we’ve wrung up some serious debt. >.<