Chad the DragonLordofAiur
Underboss
1085 Posts
    
Southeast PA
 | | 12/18/2005 1:32 AM |
| | Can anyone explain how league play works? Why do you only need one ticket to play the entire weekend? I've never played league before and have only done constructed and sealed. I'd like to give it a try if someone can explain what I am in for. | |
Member of Team Amish
3rd Place in 2007 Constructed World Championship
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Kiddoc
Underboss
1797 Posts
| | 12/18/2005 3:35 AM |
| quote:
Originally posted by Chad the DragonLordofAiur
Can anyone explain how league play works? Why do you only need one ticket to play the entire weekend? I've never played league before and have only done constructed and sealed. I'd like to give it a try if someone can explain what I am in for.
Generally league play is pretty small potatoes (:p) as far as competitive play goes. This is usually how it works:
You open a starter and a booster, and whatever you open, you build a warband with. You play that in casual games against others. A win gets you 2 points a loss gets you 1 point. You get various minor rewards based on your points.
You can usually play as many games as you want, since they aren't sanctioned, though you can't play the same opponent more than once (usually).
Most times (though not all times, what-so-ever...) the folks that aren't engaged in the constructed tournaments or are playing in a more relaxed atmosphere, are playing in league.
Don't get me wrong, leagues aren't a bad way to score some prizes, but the risk vs. reward tends to pale compared to the constructed or sanctioned limited tournaments.
So, league play is a modified version of a crude, long-running sealed tournament thats unsanctioned.
It's a ton of fun, and I'm looking forward to playing. And though the competition level isn't always very high, it can be a great way to meet new players, or to have some fun without the pressure of a major tourney. | |
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IanB
Commander
3112 Posts
| | 12/18/2005 3:57 AM |
| In this case it will probably be 2 boosters instead of a booster and a starter, because I don't think Ian is cracking open any War Drums until the actual pre-release. I think he already said it will be all Underdark.
There's the added cool factor of every time you complete a game (win or lose), you get to roll a die against a big pile of random figures and add something to your potential warband pieces, so if you get a bad draw to start with, you can still eventually recover some. Also, you could end up with rather a lot of minis compared to the initial cost of your league boosters. | |
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PatEllis15
Commander
4463 Posts
| | 12/18/2005 8:06 AM |
| Kiddoc about nailed it.
You CAN play the same person again, but never twice in a row. It is the ultimate filler, especially as at WF, there isn't a dealers room, and you can't always just "jump" into an RPGA event.
I have to say that I met Kiddoc and ChrisGroves for the first time during league play at WF! Who will I meet for the first time this year?!
Pat E | |
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Chad the DragonLordofAiur
Underboss
1085 Posts
Southeast PA
| | 12/18/2005 9:15 AM |
| So are there pairings or do you find your own opponent to play?
Is it come and go throughout the weekend? If you get a new figure I am assuming you can rebuild your warband then? | |
Member of Team Amish
3rd Place in 2007 Constructed World Championship
My combined DDM Skirmish record of all games ever played in all formats.
486 - 188 - 4 | |
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Wrackspawn
ChristopherGroves
Warlord
6093 Posts
| | 12/18/2005 10:15 AM |
| Pairings are "whoever you want". The only caveat is you can't play the same person back to back.
Prizes are awarded daily and for the whole event based on final point standings.
So, lets say you play a bunch of league on Thursday. You win, lose, etc. but accumulate a ton of points. You might win Thursday's league and the case or whatever is involved. Then you don't play as much Friday, etc. so you don't win then ... but Saturday you do league again ... etc.
Generally what happens is folks either play league while sanctioned constructed/limited events are occuring in which they aren't participating, between rounds of a sanctioned event (your match ends very early) or maybe after you drop out of an event if you determine you can't possibly win.
It's alot of fun in a less-pressure kind of way. | |
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Ack
Underboss
1476 Posts
| | 12/18/2005 1:16 PM |
| to find your opponent, you get a special badge with stickers for the various leagues you are involved in (DDM, AAM, SWM, etc).
From SoCal, 2 rolls for the winner, 1 for the loser of each match. And it was "clear" in the Q&A posted that you can play the same person multiple times.. just cant be back to back ("you will have to make at least 1 more friend" I think was the line).
It was alot of fun to play wacky bands against some of the best in the game. | |
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Chad the DragonLordofAiur
Underboss
1085 Posts
Southeast PA
| | 12/19/2005 12:31 AM |
| So let me get this straight - Please confirm or deny each of the following:
1. The matches are untimed.
2. The matches can still be won on assault points.
3. You can come and go without penalty. (i.e. there are no drops)
4. Each match you can field a different warband.
If you play league on one day and build a band from two boosters do you have to use the same band the next day or session or do you start over from another two boosters. What if I don't like my pulls - may I start over? I assume I would have to pay another $25 if that were the case.
How hard is it to find an opponent? Does the organizer help to pair people up? | |
Member of Team Amish
3rd Place in 2007 Constructed World Championship
My combined DDM Skirmish record of all games ever played in all formats.
486 - 188 - 4 | |
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2004 D&D Miniatures Champion
Kiddoc
Underboss
1797 Posts
| | 12/19/2005 1:05 AM |
| quote:
Originally posted by Chad the DragonLordofAiur
So let me get this straight - Please confirm or deny each of the following:
1. The matches are untimed.
2. The matches can still be won on assault points.
3. You can come and go without penalty. (i.e. there are no drops)
4. Each match you can field a different warband.
If you play league on one day and build a band from two boosters do you have to use the same band the next day or session or do you start over from another two boosters. What if I don't like my pulls - may I start over? I assume I would have to pay another $25 if that were the case.
How hard is it to find an opponent? Does the organizer help to pair people up?
Geez, you got a lot of questions about the most causal format there is out there. You planning on becoming the league world champion? [:D] Hehe, just playin'...
So, Yeah, matches are untimed. Who cares when you finish, it's just league? Don't drag things out, but time really doesn't matter.
Uh format? I have no idea. I hope assault isn't the format. I prefer standard with league. It's supposed to be fun. Standard makes it more fun to field super-crazy warband. It just doesn't seem as fun to me to have to worry about grabbing tile points every turn. Heck, it would be cool if they had a new format for league play (they could *hint hint* test new formats out for later competitive play), or did some random formats from the MHB.
Yeah, you can play league any time you want. It's a day-to-day thing. No dropping, no time constraints, play as much or as little as you want. No strings attached. This means you only have to pay your money once too. Pay your 25 bucks whenever you want to start, and you never need to play again (at least this is how it used to work).
Change your warband any time you want, no problems there. What you open is what you get though. I don't think you can "buy in" again, though I'm not sure. That seems kind of dirty/spurious to me. Rewards people that are just throwing money out trying to win a casual, fun game. It's kind of fun to just open whatever and try to make something out of it, even if it's terrible. You can always improve your warband though, by adding minis to it from the "random luck" roll you do as you report your match results. I'm personally looking forward to opening my 2x Dromite Wilders [:D].
How do you find an opponent? Generally by looking like someone approachable. Try and smile, bathe, and exercise good personal hygiene. Other than that, look for the guys with the stickers, sitting at the tables in the league area playing. It's not DCI sanctioned so there's no real "organization" to it other than reporting match results so you can roll your die a time or two. It's generally not to hard to find someone to play. It's designed to appeal more to starting/curious players or to folks that are choosing to sit out from the major competitions for any number of reasons. So there's usually a healthy pool of casual players and folks that have dropped from the bigger tourneys playing. | |
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nycfarmkid
Underboss
1210 Posts
Wadsworth, OH
| | 12/19/2005 1:32 AM |
| I think sealed league is one of my favorite formats to play in. I've done it twice now at Gencon '05 and Origins '05 and it has been a blast both times. Its always neat to try to field warbands with weird figures, and the fact that you can add to your warband choices over time increases the enjoyment. I enjoy the challenge of making sub-par bands work.
One thing that I run into and HATE are people who dont know the rules. You get this more frequently IMO in league play. Not knowing the rules is fine as long as you let me explain them, its when they get all pissy at you when you explain to them that they have to target the nearest creature, or you have to actually target something with area of effect spells that drives me nuts. Then you run into some people who think the rules don't matter too much cuz its only league. This bothers me because im very rules oriented. They are there for a reason so you need to follow them. And this, I'll admit, can turn some people off. All in all however I enjoy playing league and its a good way to increase your collection, meet people, have fun, and make trades. Make sure you bring at least a small box of trade bait just i ncase. | |
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PatEllis15
Commander
4463 Posts
| | 12/19/2005 10:16 AM |
| I probably won't sign up for DDM League at GenCon06. I found that I had PLENTY to do, and spend $25.00 for yet ANOTHER Starter of Aberrations, and played just 3 or 4 games (I did win a Red Slaad out of the deal, one of the few Angelfire fig's I didn't have..).
BUT, if you don't plan on participating in the RPGA events at WF, it really is a must. I'll happily get 2 more underdark boosters, and have some fun. The nice thing about the format is that it DOESN'T effect your ratings, so you can have a very friendly game with new players, and give them hints suggestions/pull punches if they mess up, without worrying about it's effect on your chances of skating into a championship...
Signing up for League will be the first thing I do when I get to WF.
Pat E | |
"Games evolve. Otherwise we'd still be pushing rocks around the dirt. What do you think the cavemen said when some dude showed up with sticks?" - Chairman7w | |
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Chad the DragonLordofAiur
Underboss
1085 Posts
Southeast PA
| | 12/19/2005 4:20 PM |
| | Hey thanks everyone for the advice and answers to my questions. I know I asked a lot of questions but I get really competitive sometimes and wanted to make sure I don't come across as a jerk when I play in this. It sounds like it will be a good way to try out some pieces that I've never used before. I've always wondered what would have happened if I used piece Y instead of X when I formed my warband from sealed. Now I can give it try and still have fun. I am definetely playing in the leagues whenever I am not in the regular tournaments. This sounds really cool. | |
Member of Team Amish
3rd Place in 2007 Constructed World Championship
My combined DDM Skirmish record of all games ever played in all formats.
486 - 188 - 4 | |
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millygoat
Warrior
297 Posts
| | 12/19/2005 5:49 PM |
| Yup, league is a good time. Especially though at Winter Fantasy I think, where the tourneys are generally in the mornign slots. Since they run a bit long, it can be tricky to sign up for an RPG in the middle slot unless you drop because you think you're out. That being the case, league play is a funtastic way to fill up that gap until the evening slots start.
I just hope I get better league pulls than I did at WF last year. Did okay at gen-con pulling a Ghaele, but seem to remember some horrid pulls at WF.
Millygoat | |
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Ack
Underboss
1476 Posts
| | 12/20/2005 12:24 AM |
| Chad - if you want to be competitive and stuff, you can always challange me to arm wrestling or something. seriously tho, League is all about crushing your enemy and hearing the lamentation of their wimmen! Or, if you have a crappy pull, getting in a few friendly games and having a good time of it playing something other than the competitive games. Plus you get to know everyone. Tho I got screwed by someone who apparently was counting time in our league game and didnt tell me so.. so arbitrarily he looked at his watch and said "well, thats an hour.. I guess I win". that was the 2nd closest to violence I came during the whole weekend.
er.. there was a point.. but its late and I lost track of it. Come to WF, find the bald giant in the yellow shirt and say "hey, wanna play a league game" and I will probably oblidge you. | |
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nycfarmkid
Underboss
1210 Posts
Wadsworth, OH
| | 12/20/2005 8:19 AM |
| Not that I am advocating this, but if you were really worried about getting bad pulls you could probably sneak a good rare in to the league. I highly doubt people would notice. Of course that takes all the fun out of making crappy bands work, which is what I enjoy. [:p]
All this talk about the WF league makes me want to go. Too bad I have my student teaching. I'll have to wait till Origins in Columbus, OH before I get any more league play under my belt.
Now that I tink about it, once I get a teaching job a lot of schools start classes in early-mid august. That would severely not be good for my chances of making GenCon in August. That makes me sad. [:(] | |
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aron1
Sergeant
415 Posts
| | 12/20/2005 10:16 AM |
| quote:
Originally posted by Ack
Come to WF, find the bald giant in the yellow shirt and say "hey, wanna play a league game" and I will probably oblidge you.
I hope you're bringing a new yellow shirt for each day, or I'm only playing against you in the Thursday league games. [)] | |
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Ack
Underboss
1476 Posts
| | 12/20/2005 9:30 PM |
| | I will wear it on thursday and will be easy to spot once you meet me. I kinda stand out in the crowd.. even amongst other gamers. | |
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