The rebirth of the Treefrogs!

[GoldenCrest Games]

The next installment of the Desktop Dynasties development leagues! Since everything is pretty much functional, and everything that needs to be in the save files has been completed, this is probably as close to the "official dev dynasty" as you can get!

Here are the details for this dynasty:

• I run the Treefrogs.....again. I can't help it, that bright green is intoxicating.
• I will do my best to live-stream everything I do in-league via twitch
• I should be able to post a stream notice here, as well as on the patreon page, with at least a day's notice. I'm going to try and get into a regular schedule pretty quickly, though.
• Dev notes will mostly be on the patreon page. (link in my sig) It's just so easy to update over there. It's free for everyone, no need to become a patron!
• Occasionally I'll host a development live-stream, where you can ask questions as I test or develop parts of the game. I'll try to give notice here before I do that too.

My intent with this dynasty is to continue to refine the AI and interface, while letting everyone get a look at how the game works. For the alpha testers, it might be hard to jump right in and know what buttons to click. I think the Dev league is going to be a good way to get a feel for how it all works.

With that, here's the list of players that were invited to the green room! (Note, there were 7 supporters generated in the top 20 players. Hopefully I can draft at least one of them!)

[GoldenCrest Games]

Here's the full draft list for all you draftniks!

[GoldenCrest Games]

Live draft scheduled for Monday 9/24 at 3:00pm central!

Head over to the twitch channel to check it out: https://www.twitch.tv/goldencrestgames

I'll also try to record it and post over on Youtube, in case anyone can't make the live draft. I'll spend a lot of time talking about the ratings, and how they work in the game engine, as well as doing the actual drafting. Might be good info for anyone who still isn't quite sure how the game works.

[GoldenCrest Games]

Planning out my draft strategy, and I'm down to 2 options:

• Traditional Treefrogs 3WR-1RB "Spread Power" attack
• Swarm 2RB "Power Passing" attack

It's a weird offense, but I really like spreading the offense out and then running the ball. I almost never invest enough into my WRs to get the most out of the passing potential, but I can usually do just enough that the defense has to respect it. That forces them to spread out to cover, which usually gives me the advantage in the running game.

on the other hand....

My experiment with the Swarm offense was FUN. I rarely run a 2RB offense, and I think I've just scratched the surface of what's possible. I can run a traditional power-running attack, or a RB-focused passing attack. I lose the ability to spread the defense against the run, but I gain flexibility in the passing game. Multiple RBs coming out of the backfield have shown to be pretty deadly against teams without LB talent.

Right now I'm leaning towards a 2RB package. I'll probably go with the exact same personnel package as the Swarm, 1WR-2RB-OL+. I just don't see me spending the draft picks on WRs that are needed for the 3WR packages. By the time I get an OL that I'm comfortable with, all that will be left are guys with 40 speed. You know I can't resist OL talent.

Here's a pic of the base 1WR-2RB-OL+ formation, along with the new-look Swarm uniforms. (In yellow) Don't ask why the Storm are all facing the wrong way.

[GoldenCrest Games]

Draft day is creeping up on us, and I can't help but start to start working on my draft strategy!

I'm 100% sure Carr and Montes are gone with the top 2 picks. They are just too good for anyone to pass on.

I'm pretty sure Long is gone at 3 or 4. A 20 year old top-3 player is not going to fall to me at #5.

That leaves the Swarm picking ahead of me. The Swarm will almost certainly take Huynh, Marquez, Sjoman, or Wilkerson because of how they value RBs. That leaves me 2 of the 4 elite RBs to choose from!

Frankly, all are legit running options. Huynh is on the edge of being too old for my top pick, plus he plays a defensive position I don't value. (Safety) I love the other 3. I would prefer Wilkerson because of his age, his 98 speed, and he plays a mean Kicker. I hate drafting kickers. After him, I think I go Sjoman, even though he's slower and older than Marquez. It's the elite kick returning that sold me. After my top pick, I'll probably be loading up on linemen so I don't know when I'd get back to the KR position. Getting one up front could really help me later on.

Yep, there's my list:
Carr
Montes
Long
Wilkerson
Sjoman

Not bad! I could build a team around any of them!

[GoldenCrest Games]

Don't forget, live draft scheduled for today at 3:00pm central!

https://www.twitch.tv/goldencrestgames

[GoldenCrest Games]

Here's how our draft turned out. (replay here: Desktop Dynasties Football: Developer's League Allocation Draft - YouTube)

Yeah, I changed my mind again and went with the 1RB 2WR +OL offense. I know, I know. I can't stick to an offense to save my life. I think this is probably the best fit for my style, though.

I had a chance at RB Sjoman with my top pick, but the chat room reminded me that 98 speed is hard to come by in a starting RB. I had to take Marquez, and pass on the kick return skill. (which would come back to haunt me)

After that, I took Mathis, Marks, and Rojas to gather some elite defenders at the DL, LB, and CB positions.

I loaded up on OL after that, which isn't surprising for anyone who knows how I roll.

It was about that time when I (unknowingly) grabbed the slowest player in the league as my starting QB! The chat was kind enough to point that out, for a good chuckle. (around 46:00 in the video)

I pretty much fell apart for the rest of the draft. It was fun, but my strategy totally fell to pieces.

In the end, I'm really happy with my team. My defense is going to be AWESOME, and I should be able to run the ball. I can live with that.

Going into week 1, my top trade priorities are:
1. See if I can find a KR
2. Find a second LB
3. See if anyone dangles an upgrade at QB

Who knows? The AI usually does a good job of maximizing value in the draft, but that often means they have redundant players. I might be able to fill a hole for a reasonable price.

[GoldenCrest Games]

The next live stream is going to be Wednesday at 2:00pm central!

This time we'll cover trading, shopping, trade block, and week 1 games!

https://www.twitch.tv/goldencrestgames

[GoldenCrest Games]

Week 1, according to the new game matchup screen.

The way to look at these ratings is that a 3* is basic functionality at a position. Anything less than 3* means you're going to get consistently exposed.

1* means you're an embarrassment. 0* means you either don't start that position at all, or you must be joking with your roster.

My roster isn't looking too bad! Granted, we're 2* in 4 positions, but the 5* in RB & CB might cover for that. We should get a win against the Phoenix this week.

[GoldenCrest Games]

Week 1 we took on the Phoenix. They were just plain terrible. (Check the replay Desktop Dynasties Football: Developer's League Week 1 - YouTube the game starts somewhere around the 36:30 point)

The defense couldn't contain my RB Marquez at all. He used the stutter-step regularly to freeze the defense, and then broke long runs for TD. On offense, the Phoenix were even worse. They had no answer for my superstar CB duo, and even gave up 2 interceptions!

The Phoenix should be embarrassed by that performance.

In other news, we pulled off a great trade to upgrade our QB! (in the video replay after the game)

We have no WR talent, but having a legitimate QB should really help RB Marquez dominate even more than he already does.

[GoldenCrest Games]

Next LiveStream is scheduled for Friday (tomorrow) at 10:00 am central. I'm going to try and get into a regular Mon/Wed/Fri schedule, I just have to figure out what time works best.

https://www.twitch.tv/goldencrestgames/

This time I'll really try to be a bit more brief. I'm not sure if we need every stream to be over an hour long.

This week we take on the Grizzlies, who put up over 40 points in week 1. Should be a good test for our defense! I'm also pretty excited to start throwing the ball to Marquez a little more regularly. I have a feeling we're going to dominate this season.

If I make enough progress on the playbook editor by then, we'll also cover that. If not, I'll probably give you all a little behind-the-scenes peek into how to create plays.

[jct32]

Starting off with 10 points isn't very good. Can we find out where our named players went?

[GoldenCrest Games]

Originally Posted by jct32

Starting off with 10 points isn't very good. Can we find out where our named players went?

• David Ginsberg went #14 to the Panthers (my youngest daughter's team. )
• RJ Blurton went #11 in the 2nd round to the Bandits, and ended up on the same team as my Patreon supporter!
• James Taylor went #3 in the 2nd round to the Sasquatch, but is still the #1 player on the roster!

[GoldenCrest Games]

Hey everyone, I've now gone full-on posting the dynasty over on our Patreon page. You don't need to sign up or anything to follow along. It's just a whole lot easier to post things over there than everywhere else. (plus I keep all the development updates there, too)

Shawn is creating Sports Games | Patreon

Stop by and check it out!