Total Extreme Wrestling: WCCW 1983

[molson]

Total Extreme Wrestling - it's a clickfest, to be sure, but behind all that, it's a very deep, strong game with solid AI and attention to detail.

The Death of the Territories Mod, of course, takes things to a whole new level. The wrestling universe from April, 1983. 30 Promotions across the world, over 1200 workers - with their stats and characteristics refined over a period of months and months.

I'm taking over WCCW, home of the Von Erichs. WCCW was a regional promotion out of Texas in April 1983, but has all the tools in place to make a run at going national. Young talent all over the roster, a stranglehold on the wrestling business in Texas, and an owner willing to spend money to expand.

The Dynasty

This is my first time through the game outside of test runs, so I'll be learning as I go. So there's no house rules. I'll post the results of my cards, how they were rated, and once every game month take a look at the roster at a whole and how I'm doing business wise.

Along the way, I'll point out interesting happenings in the universe as a whole. Will Hogan still jump to the WWF, will some other promotion reach national dominance?

Unlike a FOF sim, I'll spend a little time explaining the mechanics and rules of the game here and there, just to help put the various goals in context with the game mechanics.

The Universe

World Dominance in the wrestling industry was very much there for the taking for a number of different promotions in April 1983.

There's a clear "big four" who have reached the level of "Cult" Status in the US. (Size of Promotions in TEW include Backyard, Small, Regional, Cult, National, and Global). A promotion's size depends on it's popularity in various regions, and each new level provides it's own unique benefits. Most relevant in DOTT is the race to National Status. Once there, workers will consider signing exclusive, "written" contracts you, a huge advantage.

Cult Promotions:
WWF
AWA
Mid-Atlantic
Georgia Championship Wrestling

There are 10 US regional promotions, including WCCW, trying to elevate to Cult Status.

Regional Promotions:
Mid-South
Championship Wrestling Association
WCCW
Championship Wrestling from Florida
Pacific Northwest
Central States
Southwest Championship Wrestling
World Wrestling Council
Houston Championship Wrestling
GLOW

The Universe also includes smaller promotions, as well as promotions in Japan Canada, Mexico, and the UK, but I'll be focusing on the above, for the most part.

The United States has an economy of "A" (and rising), and a wrestling industry rating of C- (and rising). Definitely favorable conditions for someone to try to go national, and then global.

WCCW

WCCW starts with $375,000 in the bank, and two demands from owner Fritz Von Erich. First, I can't drop below $225,000 at any time in the next year. Second, the promotion must not fall in size (to small) at any time in the next year. Von Erich has also will not tolerate the signing of any injury-prone wrestlers - only guys with at least a C- rating in Resilience are fair game.

WCCW currently has a "working relationship" with a number of promotions that allow for talent trading and shared workers. I can try to sign any of their guys, but can't sign them to exclusive contracts. I can also offer straight up talent "loan" trades. The agreement exists with: All Japan, Central States, Florida, Pacific Northwest, WWC, Mid-South, Houston, and Consejo Lucha Libre. Most everyone else I have a fairly hostile relationship with at this point.

All production and merchandising expenses are set at very conservative levels. One we make our national push, we'll revisit that.

WCCW presents two weekly shows. "The Stars of World Class on Tour" every Wednesday, and the "World Class Wrestling" television show, which tapes every Thursday night, and airs on Sundays on a local station in Texas. WCCW also runs a big arena show at the end of every month, starting with the last Saturday in April.

WCCW has it's biggest popularity in the mid-south (TX area) at a B-, with it's second highest region in terms of popularity is the midwest, at D-. To reach Cult status, we need at least C- popularity in two regions. So obviously, WCCW's big push in 1983 will be in the midwest. All new talent acquisitions will have to have to be known in that area.

WCCW, at this point, has a custom style the game calls "The Von Erich Shrine". That means approximately 70% of show time devoted to matches, and moderate tolerance of violence and intensity. There's a focus on traditional wrestling, but a fairly heavy dose of "sports entertainment" as well. Kaybe is still alive and well, but perhaps not at strict as other promotions of this era. "Hardcore" wrestling is expected only rarely, and "Daredevil" and "Lucha Libre" are completely abscent. I may tweak the product definition of WCCW down the road, but don't want to piss off Fritz or the loyal fan base right off the bat.

THE ROSTER

(Name, Age, Alignment, Days Left on Contract, Fee per apperance)

Main Eventers:
David Von Erich, 24, Face, 335, $1,000
Michael Hayes, 23, Heel, 503, $1,500
Kerry Von Erich, 23, Face, 69, $1,000
Terry Gordy, 21, Heel, 143, $1,000

Upper Midcarders:
Buddy Jack Robers, 31, Heel, 251, $800
Kevin Von Erich, 25, Face, 113, $1,000
Bill Irwin, 29, Heel, 251, $800
The Great Kabuki, 38, Heel, 203 $1,000

Midcarders:
Iceman Parsons, 26, Face, $500
Sweet Sugar Brown, 28, Face, 96, $500
King Kong Bundy, 25, Heel, 503, $500
Jim Garvin, 27, Heel, 335, $800
Chris Adams, 26, Face, 335, $500

Lower Midcarders:
Frank Dusek, 36, Heel, 251, $400
Mike Von Erich, 19, Face, 266, $500
Magic Dragon, 26, Heel, 92, $500

Openers:
Johnny Mantel, 26, Face, 221, $100
Brian Adidas, 25, Face, 251, $100

Occasional Wrestlers (These guys won't be mad if I don't book them regularly):
Black Gordman, 46, Heel, 106, $1,000
Checkmate, 31, Heel, 251, $350
Jose Lathario, 45, Face, 79, $1,000
Ken Mantel, 34, Face, 286, $1,000 Written Contract (not pay-per apperance, so I'll run this guy into the ground)

Managers:
Skandor Akbar, 44, Heel, 206, $600
Gary Hart, 36, Heel, 251, $600
Sunshine, 26, Heel, 335, $900
Precious, 24, Heel, 134, $900

Announcers:
Bill Mercer, 43, Face, 400, $1,100
Marc Lawrence, 37, 251, $900

Referees:
David Manning, 31, Face, 686, $3,000 Written Contract
James Beard, 28, Face, 215, $1,500

Road Agent:
Bronco Lubich, 45, Face, 189 $1,500 Written Contract

Authority Figure:
Fritz Von Erich, 53, Face, $7,000 Written Lifetime Contract

Personality
Arman Hussein, 41, Heel, 251, $600

WRESTLER CONFLICTS

Here's where it gets tricky. A number of my workers have contracts with other companies. A handful of them consider those other companies a higher priority than WCCW. So, if they're booked by that other company, they're not available to me that night, so I have to be careful not to advertise them. I have the ability to move my event schedule around if there are too many conflicts, but I have to limit that to avoid fan confusion.

-Bill Irwin: Central States

Central States runs a weekly show every Thursday, and a monthly "Wrestling at the Chase Event", starting the last Sunday in April. So I can't count on Irwin to be there at any of our TV tapings. Which means he'll probably be "designated Von Erich job boy" at our weekly house shows.

-Gary Hart, Magic Dragon, Sweet Brown Sugar, The Great Kabuki: Mid-Atlantic

Mid Atlantic runs weekly shows every Friday, and TV tapings every Wednesday. It also has monthly big events, next up is the Clash of the Champions the last Sunday in May. So I can't count on any of these guys for our weekly house show. Not as big a problem as Irwin presents, but Hart's absence may take some steam out of those shows, since he'll be part of a lot of storylines. Akbar will be given the opportunity to be the promotions top heel manager.

CHAMPIONSHIPS

WCCW is a promotion that has always loved its title belts. They currently have 5, which seems excessive for a promotion of this size, but I'll keep them all in place for now, with an eye towards unification down the road.

-WCCW Texas Heavyweight Championship. Main Event Title, 85% prestige. Current Holder: Jimmy Garvin (Since March 1983). This title will be defended only in Texas, to distinguish it as much as possible from the other singles titles.

-WCCW American Heavyweight Championship. Midcard Title, 65% prestige. Current Holder: Kevin Von Erich (Since March 1983). It's odd to see the "American" title with less prestige than the "Texas" title.

-WCCW Television Championship. Midcard Title, 50% prestige. Current Holder: Iceman Parsons (Since March 1983). This title will be defended only on television.

-WCCW American Tag Team Championship. Midcard Title, 70% prestige. Current Holders: Michael Hayes & Terry Gordy (Since December 1982).

-WCCW Six Man Tag Team Championship. Midcard Title, Main Event Title, 70% prestige. Current Holders: Michael Hayes, Terry Gordy, & Buddy Roberts.

INITIAL THOUGHTS

-Obviously, it's all about the Freebirds and Von Erichs at this point. The Von Erichs, Hayes, and Gordy are all 25 or younger, keeping them together will be a priority.

-Pushing the Von Erichs is a necessity in WCCW. You can trust their loyalty to the company over all others. I see David as the cornerstone of the company. He's not going anywhere, he's hugely over, and he's only getting better. He also seems the best equipped of the Von Erichs, from his stats, to play a heel. A David heel turn against the family somewhere down the road may the angel that propels us forward to a national level.

-Outside of the Freebirds and Von Erichs, things look a little thin. Though Gary Hart's H&H Limited Stable certainly has potential, and will be pushed right away (King Kong Bundy, The Great Kabuki, Magic Dragon, and Arman Hussein).

-Chris Adams and Iceman Parsons are the two top non Von Erich faces - I'll give them both plenty of TV time and hope at least one becomes a big star.

-Mike Von Erich is awful. I'll push him anyway, because he's another guy you can be sure won't be signed away.

-I'm going to book at least the first month or two with the roster I have before looking elsewhere, to get a better feel of who works well with who, who can deliver in storylines and who can't. Then we'll look for some big name guys who are over in the midwest, which should help us reach Cult status, and lead to a better TV deal on a bigger network.

-Not sure I need two refs, James Beard will be kept on as an emergency guy only, who we'll only call upon if David Manning misses a show for some reason.

-Fritiz Von Erich is going to get a ton of face time as a face authority figure. He's hugely popular, and can probably still get in the ring every so often.

April 1992, Week 1

First show is the weekly house show, for which I've advertised:

Freebirds v. Von Erichs for the 6-man Tag Championship. I'm pretty sure this match was run 15,000 times in WCCW, so might as well start out with it and draw a good crowd. It'll have to run 25-30 minutes to be able to fill out a 90 minute show with the rest of the roster.

Jimmy Garvin v. Chris Adams for the Texas Heavyweight Championship. This is a big "tryout" match for Adams to see if he's ready to take a step up.

Bill Irwin v. Iceman Parsons. If Irwin wins, he'll get a TV title shot at the next TV taping. Of course, anyone who knows of Irwin's other commitments to CSW knows the outcome of this match. It's important to get Iceman clean wins where I can, since he's sure to have his share of time limit draws on TV.

Mike Von Erich v. Checkmate. I'll give Mike every chance to improve by putting him in the ring with competent veterans.

It'll be an expensive show money wise, with all of the top guys in action, but you gotta make a good first impression.

[condors]

good luck

[Bee]

When I was in college one of my roommates had a poster of the Freebirds. For some reason I was thinking there were four of them. Anyway, looking forward to reading the dynasty. I enjoy dynasties that get into the guts of the game. Good luck.

[molson]

Originally Posted by Bee

When I was in college one of my roommates had a poster of the Freebirds. For some reason I was thinking there were four of them. Anyway, looking forward to reading the dynasty. I enjoy dynasties that get into the guts of the game. Good luck.

There was 3 for the main run, but I think Jimmy Garvin was was considered a Freebird at some point, maybe later in WCW.

[Bee]

Originally Posted by molson

There was 3 for the main run, but I think Jimmy Garvin was was considered a Freebird at some point, maybe later in WCW.

Well, it was 20 years ago so my memory of the poster could be faulty as well.

[waynegomez]

I grew up with World Class so I'll be very interested to see how this dynasty plays out.

[molson]

April 1983, Week 1

A couple of news notes before I post the first two shows later tonight

-the WWF has already come knocking on Michael Hayes' door looking to negotiate with him. This isn’t surprising in the least, Hayes exactly fits the WWF mold. Size, decent wrestling ability, but most importantly, over the top charisma and the WWF “look”.

I have no doubt they’ll sign him, and that the WWF will be his priority company. We still have him under a Pay-Per-Appearance Contract for another 17 months, so we’ll still have access to him on non-WWF dates. But there’s certainly a chance he ends his commitment to us after his contract is over, and when and if the WWF reaches a “national” size level (which could happen at any time), they could look him up exclusively.

So we’ll have to deal with him carefully from here on out. I’ve requested contract negotiations of my own with him, to see if I can extend the contract even further, maybe even give him a raise and a contractual promise of a single’s title reign. He’s too valuable to job out, but he won’t be the main guy in any angles. Worst case scenario, we replace him in the Firebirds with Jimmy Garvin, then re-group.

-Two small roster moves. My in-game advisor says I needed one more midcarder to get to my ideal roster size. So I’ve promoted Checkmate from “Occasional Wrestler” to Midcarder. Checkmate is a 31-year old British technical wrestler with above average ratings in the basics, toughness, and stamina. And he seems to be a good enough guy behind the scenes. We’ll let him slap around Mike Von Erich and Brian Adias to see if either of them can learn anything. Also, journeyman Ken Mantel was moved from “Occasional Wrestler” to Enhancement Talent. He’s on a written monthly contract, so he’ll job to someone on almost every show, mostly our young heels.

-Coming tonight, results of the first weekly house show, and the first tv show.

[molson]

-One quick note about shows and what would be considered a "good result". My popularity in my home region (they call it "mid south", but it's the Texas area) is B-. Any shows I run it that region that have a lower overall rating will slightly hurt my popularity, and any shows I run there that have a higher rating will slightly increase my popularity (increases and decreases are in the .01% levels, so it takes a string of good or bad shows to increase your popularity a whole letter grade).

My popularity in the Mid-west is E-. Any show higher than that will increase my popularity a few fractions of a %. Again, I need two regions at C- or higher to become "cult" level. (E+ is my highest grade anywhere else). Also, if I run identical shows in the midwest and texas, the texas show would have a better rating, because they'd be more into it.

So the basic strategy is run my big shows and biggest angles in Texas, because that what they demand, and run more TV tapings and experimental angles/matches in the midwest.

Show rating isn't an average rating of matches/segments. Instead, longer segments/matches and those later on the card, particularly the main event, are weighted the most heavily

With that out of the way:

THE STARS OF WCCW ON TOUR
Wednesday, Week 1, April 1983
Dallas Arena; 5,000 - Sold Out.

-Pre-show Dark Match:
King Kong Bundy defeats Ken Mantel in 4:52 by pinfall (C-)
Pre-Match Bundy interview (E+), Pre-Match Match Mantel interview (D-). After the match, Bundy gives Mantel an extra splash because he's evil and badass (D)

-Pre-Show Dark Match:
Brian Adias defeats Johnny Mantel in 2:58 by pinfall (E+)

-Checkmate defeats Mike Von Erich in 7:45 by submission (D+)

-Fritz Von Erich announces an 8-man, one-night tournament to determine the "King of Texas Wrestling". The tournament will take place at WCCW "Star Wars" at the end of April. The winner will also have a title shot at the championship of his choice. (B). A video package hypes and announces the contestants: Kevin, Kerry, and David Von Erich, the Freebirds, Iceman Parsons, and Jimmy Garvin (C+). Fritz also announces the stipulation for the upcoming match, that Irwin gets a title shot if he wins (B-)

-Irwin gets TV title shot if he wins
Iceman Parsons defeats Bill Irwin in 8:01 by pinfall (D)
Iceman is interviewed after the match (D), before fending off an attack from Irwin's occasional tag-team partner, Frank Dusek (D-)

-Bikini Contest
Michael Hayes hosts a bikini contest between Sunshine and Precious. Sunshine wins, Precious is pissed. (B)

-Texas Heavyweight Championship Match
Jimmy Garvin defeats Chris Adams in 11:05 by pinfall (C+) to make his 1st defense of the title. This followed a Garvin pre-match interview (C). After the match, Garvin, Sunshine, and Precious all stomped down Adams (Sunshine and Precious are clearly competing for Garvin's affections) (C+)

-Six-Man Tag Team Championship
Von Erichs defeated Freebirds in 19:47 when David caused Roberts to submit. Von Erichs win 6-man tag team titles. (B) After the match, the Von Erichs celebrate (C+), until the Freebirds regroup and head back to the ring. A wild 6-man brawl closes the show (C+)

Overall Rating: C+

Thoughts:
-Not a bad debut, considering none of these matches were backed by storylines. Two storylines debuted tonight, which should add heat to future segments: 1. The King of Texas Wrestling tournament. 2. Sunshine/Precious fued.
-The fans loved the T&A. Expect Sunshine & Precious to degrade themselves further in the weeks to come. (Can't piss of the network though). Once Garvin is finished with the tournament, I'll run the DOTT "Battle of the Valets Angle". Until then, just random T&A and catfights.
-Fritz is going to have to have a huge on-screen presence. For now, that'll involve making announcements, and occasionally making Gary Hart's life miserable. A heel turn is also a possibility - Fritz rates an "A" in playing heel, the way he spent most of his wrestling career.
-Adams was more impressive than Iceman in the start of the competition to determine the "most pushed non-Von Erich face". Iceman's interview bombed.
-Ken Mantel carrying Bundy to a C- is impressive. He'll have some job security putting my heels over
-My main eventers will all be occupied with hyping the King of Texas Tournament over the next month, leaving an opportunity for the lower guys to get involved in some storylines. We'll see who drops the ball.
-Part of putting the 6-man titles on the Von Erichs is due to the uncertainty with Hayes's contract.

[molson]

I advertised the following matches for my TV show (this is relevant because if someone doesn't show up for something, or if I advertise a show too far in advance and people get injured before it can happen, the fans get pissed. One the other hand, it builds heat for a match).

WCCW Texas Heavyweight Championship
Jimmy Garvin v. David Von Erich

WCCW Television Championship
Iceman Parsons v. Buddy Jack Roberts

Magic Dragon & The Great Kabuki v. Mike Von Erich & Brian Adias

[molson]

-Bill Irwin wasn't booked by Central States, making him available tonight, unfortunately for him, he's sent home early.

WORLD CLASS CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING
Thursday, Week 1, April 1983
St. Louis, MO: 2,000

-Pre-Show Dark Match
Chris Adams defeats Frank Dusek in 6:50 by pinfall (D). After the match, Adams thanks the fans for their support in his goal to gain WCCW championship gold (D-)

-Marc Lawrence and Bill Mercer announce that at a WCCW event in Dallas, the Von Erichs won the 6-man tag team championship from the Freebirds (D+). The also announce that the main event of tonight's show, as ordered by Fritz Von Erich, is Jimmy Garvin defending the WCCW Texas Heavyweight Championship against David Von Erich. (C-)

-The Great Kabuki & Magic Dragon defeat Mike Von Erich and Brian Adias in 6:40 when Kabuki pinned Adias. (D+). Prior to the match, a short music video hypes the brutality of the Magic Dragon/Great Kabuki team (C-) and Bill Mercer interviews their opponents tonight: Mike Von Erich and Brian Adias (E). After the match, Gary Hart tells the crowd that Dragon/Kabuki's path of destruction through WCCW has only begun (D+)

-King Kong Bundy defeats Ken Mantel in 3:45 by pinfall (D). After the match, Bundy and his manager Gary Hart continue to verbally berate and kick Mantel. Fritz Von Erich comes to the ring to make an announcement, and barks at Bundy and Hart to stop (E+). Fritz and Hart get into a heated argument, but Bundy and Hart soon leave (D)

-Fritz announces the first two matches for the King of Texas Wrestling Tournament: Terry Gordy v. Kevin Von Erich (C-) and a rematch of the next match tonight, Iceman Parsons v. Buddy Jack Roberts (D+). The other two first round matches will be announced shortly.

-WCCW Television Championship
Iceman Parsons and Buddy Jack Roberts wrestle to a 10 minute draw. (C) Parsons makes his first title defense. Parsons looked "off his game", Roberts looked good.

-David Von Erich defeats Jimmy Garvin by DQ in 12:31 after interference from both Precious and Sunshine (B). Sunshine played her part well. This was a non-title match, since it took place in Missouri.

Show Rating: C+

Thoughts:
-A great show for WCCW in the Midwest, where our popularity increases to 40.6% (which I read using the in-game editor). I need to get to 53.1%

-A third "official" storyline/push was debuted tonight, Gary Hart and his Kabuki/Dragon team's quest for destruction in WCCW. I probably need to get the tag belts off Hayes/Gordy so Kabuki/Dragon can go through everyone on their way to a title shot with the Von Erichs. (Heel v. Heel/Face v. Face isn't overly accepted in my current "product type").

-Iceman looked bad again, but at least pulled out a C match. Adams couldn't step up, had a D- with Dusek in the pre-show. I'll need to give these guys a lot of different opponents to see if either of them is worth really pushing.

-You can definitly see how much less over Fritz is in the Midwest than he is in Texas. The St. Louis fans didn't care too much about him, but hopefully they'll come around. (Fritz has A+ popularity in Texas, and C in the Midwest, which is still better than most of my roster there). In fact, the only WCCW guys with at least a C- popularity in the midwest right now are Fritz, David, Kerry, Hayes, and Roberts. (14 guys have at least that level in Texas)

-David and Garvin had a great match that might have reached A territory in Texas, and with a DQ finish. These guys will be paired off a lot, with David chasing Garvin for the title. I might need to promote Garvin from his current "midcard" status.

-The King of Wrestling tournament shapes up like this so far

Kevin Von Erich v. Terry Gordy
Iceman Parsons v. Buddy Roberts

[molson]

News

-Michael Hayes has indeed signed a PPA deal with the WWF. He refuses any further negotiations with me, and says his priority is now with the WWF. The WWF runs house shows every Thursday (the night of our TV taping), a TV taping every Sunday, and a big event the last Friday in April. Fortunately, there's no conflict with our King of Texas Wrestling Tournament Show. I decide to bite the bullet and move our TV taping to Saturday, a night where our entire roster is free (excluding big monthly events at the end of the month)

-My debut TV show draws a rating of 0.64. That's about 32,000 viewers on my local channel. We have the 5th highest rated wrestling show in America, and highest behind the "big 4" (AWA, Georgia, Mid-Atlantic, and WWF)

-Both AWA and WWF are rumored to be going after Ted Dibiase, but he's shunning them both, and staying exclusive to Mid-South, citing loyalty.

-Roddy Piper and Jesse Ventura sign PPA deals with the WWF.

-Hulk Hogan has signed a PPA deal with the WWF. He's continue to work for New Japan and AWA for now. He's received a shot at Bockwinkle's AWA title, but just like in real life, the AWA didn't put the strap on him. His WWF push will half to wait, as he's currently out for 2 months with some kind of spinal injury.

-Ricky Steamboat signs a PPA with Maple Leaf Wrestling (where the current champion is Angelo Mosca). He also wrestles for Mid-Atlantic. He and Younblood recently lost the NWA tag team championship to Ivan Koloff and Joe Leduc.

-Speaking of MACW, they just held the Crockett Cup, which was won by Ric Flair and Wahoo McDaniel (who defeated the team of Dusty Rhodes and my guy, Sweet Brown Sugar, who I haven't used yet).

-I've advertised three matches for the upcoming house show (for which we'll return to the midwest): Freebirds v. Von Erichs rematch for the 6-man tag championship, Roberts v. Parsons, and a 10-man Battle Royal.

[molson]

THE STARS OF WCCW ON TOUR
Wednesday, Week 2, April 1983
Kansas City, MO: 1,000 SOLD OUT

-Fritz Von Erich Announces a Stipulation to the Upcoming Battle Royal, that the winner gets a title shot against Kevin Von Erich and the WCCW American Heavyweight Championship at the Saturday TV Taping (E+)

-King Kong Bundy wins a 10 man Battle Royal to win the title shot against Kevin Von Erich. (D+) Match also included: Bill Irwin, Black Gordman, Brian Adias, Mike Von Erich, Checkmate, Frank Dusek, Jose Lothario, Ken Mantel, Johnny Mantel.

-Checkmate defeated Johnny Mantel in 5:51 by pinfall. (D-) After the match, Checkmate goes overboard in his celebration (E). He then rants about wanting to face better competition (E+)

-As Marc Lowrence starts the introductions for the next match, Michael Hayes comes out and tells him he's doing a horrible job, and that Hayes himself should take over. They briefly argue off mic, before Hayes leaves the ring (D+)

-Iceman Parsons and Buddy Roberts drew to a DDQ in 5:11. This is their second straight draw (they will be first round tournament opponents at the end of the month) (C)

-Bill Mercer interviews Precious, who warns Sunshine to stay out of her business. (E). Sunshine then comes out to confront Precious, and a cat fight ensues. Bill Mercer gets right in the middle to break things up. (D-)

-The Von Erichs defeated the Freebirds in 22:31 when Kerry made Hayes submit. The Von Erichs make their first title defense. (C+). Before the match, The Feebirds cut a long promo, promising a victory tonight (C). The Freebirds knock Kevin unconscious outside the ring, and then use the numbers advantage to gang up on Kerry and David. Mike and Brian Adias run to the ring to make the save, and the Freebirds are driven off as the show ends (Adias looked "dreadful" in this segment, David looked great) (D+)

Overall Grade: C-

Thoughts:

-They didn't seem to like us as much in Kansas City as they did in St. Louis, but a good enough show to increase our popularity here. Popularity in the midwest rises from 40.6% to 41.0%.

-Iceman hasn't set WCCW on fire, but I'm starting to get comfortable with his ability to put on C matches in the middle of the card.

-The Battle Royal was an expensive match with lots of guys to pay for a D- result, but we'll have less complaints from guys at the end of the month the more everybody is used. It'll be a big test for Bundy to see if he can have an entertaining match with Kevin at the TV taping.

-Checkmate's antics were the debut of another angle involving a mask v. mask feud with Sweet Brown Sugar. I'm not expecting much, but the feud will stay on the undercard, with limited time.

[molson]

NEWS

-The WWF is pushing Roddy Piper as an upper midcard face, teaming with Ivan Putski. I bet they do some fun interviews. Michael Hayes is being used as a Midcard heel - he made his WWF debut this week defeating S.D. Jones. Jesse Ventura debuted as a midcard heel, teaming with Invader I.

-Hulk Hogan as officially left the AWA to focus on New Japan and the WWF.

[molson]

NEWS

-Before the TV taping started, I looked around to see if there was anyone sitting at home, out of the wrestling industry entirely, that had some popularity in the Midwest. Pickings were slim, but I did send feelers out to Haystacks Calhoun. Maybe he'll be willing to come in and take a beating from the Freebirds.

-I also sent out negotiation requests for the 4 guys whose contracts are ending the soonest Kerry Von Erich (58 days), Lose Lothario (68 days), Magic Dragon (81 days), and Sweet Brown Sugar (85 days). I don't want to be giving a bunch of guys raises, but I might as well see what they're willing to do. I won't pay Lothario a penny more than $1,000/event (the same as what Kerry's making), so he'll probably be gone after the 68 days. Maybe one of my heels will "retire" him in an injury angle.

-I've also requested negotiations with the current WWF champion Bob Backlund, just to see if he's willing to talk.

-I've also decided to make a heavy push in the midwest right now, taking a chance and neglecting Texas a bit (at least until our popularity in Texas falls to a C-). They'll still get the big tournament show at the end of the month, but until then, we'll stay in the midwest, and looking at making some big talent splashes in the meantime.

[molson]

WORLD CLASS CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING
Saturday, Week 2, April 1983
Rochester, MN: 2,000 SELL OUT

-Dark Match:
Jose Lothario defeated Black Gordan in 9:37 by pinfall (C-) Before the match, Black Gordman was interviewed (D-). After the match, Lothario talks about how he feels he has one good run left in him (D)

-Pre-Show Segment
Checkmate presents a chess playing demonstration to the crowd to demonstrate his intelligence. He defeats who he calls a Grand Master in 3 minutes (E)

-The announcers bring up Bundy's Battle Royal win in Kansas City earlier in the week, and that he'll have a WCCW American Heavyweight Title Match against Kevin Von Erich. They point out Von Erich's first round match at the King of Texas Tournament is against another big man, Terry Gordy, and that Bundy should give him a strong test (D)

-Kerry Von Erich defeated Frank Dusek (w/Akbar) in 4:04 by submission (C-). Kerry "looked good".

-Kabuki/Dragon (w/ Hart) defeated Johnny and Ken Mantel in 7:32 when Magic Dragon made Johnny Mantel submit (D+)

-Fritz Von Erich announces the 3rd first round match at the King of Texas Tournament...David Von Erich v. Jimmy Garvin. The announcers talk about the great match they had on TV last week, and how Garvin would love the chance to win this tournament and unify his Texas Heavyweight Championship with one of the other singles titles. (C)

-Checkmate defeated Brian Adias in 3:33 by submission (D-). After the match, Checkmate once again celebrates as if he's won a title (E). He then offers an open challenge - if anyone on the roster can defeat him by pinfall or submission, he'll give them $5,000, and take his mask off on television (E).

-Fritz Von Erich announces the final match of the King of Texas tournament...Kerry Von Erich V. Michael Hayes. (C). The announcers hype the tournament as a whole, and discuss how we could conceivably see Freebird v. Freebird or Von Erich v. Von Erich

-Fritz Von Erich also announces that due to the time limit draw between Iceman Parsons and Buddy Roberts last week, and the Double DQ between them earlier in the week, Parsons will defend the TV title against Roberts again tonight, but it will be no DQ, no Countout. (D+)

-WCCW Television Championship Match - Hardcore rules
Iceman Parsons and Buddy Roberts drew after a violent brawl when the referee ruled neither man could continue. Parsons makes his second title defense. (D+) Before the match, a video highlight package shows the conclusion of the previous two patches between the two (D-)

-The announcers show a clip of video that they say was taken earlier tonight, which shows Skandor Akbar handing over a wad of cash to Gary Hart. (D-)

-WCCW American Heavyweight Championship Match
Kevin Von Erich defeats King Kong Bundy (w/ Hart) in 6:44 by count out to make his first title defense. The match included interference by Gary Hart. Despite the short length of the match, Bundy was said to be tiring badly by the end (C-)

Show Rating: D+

Thoughts:

-This was a show with an intentional lack of star power. Running so many shows in the midwest means smaller gates, so I wanted to save some money here, giving David, Gordy, and Hayes the night off, among others. Despite the D+ rating, by Midwest popularity still increases from 41.0% to 41.4%

-Checkmate's been given a chance to star in an angle, and he's bombing horribly. To be fair, he's more of a technical wrestler than an entertainer. On the other hand, he doesn't have a match rated higher than D+ yet. I think I'm going to give him a shot in the ring with David Von Erich, just to see he has an upside.

-I'm not sure where the Akbar/Hart money exchange is going yet, but they're definitely pissed that the main authority figure of their promotion is the father of their clients' most common opponents. They may be thinking big to shift the balance of power. Akbar's "Destruction Inc." stable is really sad at this point (Dusek and Irwin).

-I have four active storyline, which the game ranks in terms of overness as: 1. King of Texas tournament; 2. Precious/Sunshine 3. Magic Dragon/Great Kabuki 4. The Checkmate mask challenge

-I was pretty surprised to see the two old Mexicans pull out a C- match on the dark show. Lothario looks like he might have a little gas left in the tank. He still has above average ratings in the Basics, Psychology, Star Quality, Charisma, Respect, and Resilience. And he seems to be in decent shape physically. He'll get a small push for the rest of his contract before he rides into the sunset.

[molson]

NEWS

-Buddy Roberts showed up late to the TV taping, but arrived in time for his match with Parsons. I gave him a warning to not let it happen again. If he shows up late again, I'll suspend him a week.

-The King of Texas Wrestling Tournament Bracket has been set. This will be our first will be our first "medium" sized event to date, which means more advertising, a bigger arena, and a longer show. As of right now, none of workers have a conflict on that date. Of course, there's a chance Hayes leaves before then to focus on the WwF. Tournament Bracket:

-Terry Gordy v. Kevin Von Erich
-Iceman Parsons v. Buddy Roberts
-David Von Erich v. Jimmy Garvin
-Kerry Von Erich v. Michael Hayes

-The TV Show gets a .58 rating. That's down .08 from last week.

-Maple Leaf Wrestling (Toronto) seems to be on a spending spree. In the last 2 1/2 weeks they've brought in Ricky Steamboat, Adrian Adonis (who already won their main single's title), Bad News Allen, and Sgt. Slaughter (Ted Dibiase turned them down, just like he did with the WWF and AWA), they also tried but failed to lure Jerry Lawler. They're Canada's most popular promotion right now.

[molson]

News

-The AWA has made some type of offer to David Von Erich. I'm hopeful he'll stay loyal to me and just work AWA when he doesn't have a booking but they are a bigger promotion. I won't panic just yet, but AWA seems to be looking for some main-event level faces to replace Hogan.

-Piper and Ventura have left Mid-Atlantic and AWA, respectively, to focus on their WWF careers. Hopefully Hayes isn't next.

-Bob Backlund was willing to talk with me, but Fritz Von Erich put a prohibitive cap on what I could offer him, and offer wasn't big enough to tempt Bob.

-After the offer to David, Kerry seemed to have all the leverage in our talks. We extended him to 9 months total, at $1,500 a show (a raise from $1,000), and a $775 downside monthly guarantee. Magic Dragon wanted a $150 raise from $500 to extend his contract, which is up in about 3 months, but I won't bite.

-So far for the month, we're up $66,000. That includes only worker/show costs v. ticket revenue, I have no idea how things will look at the end of the month when other expenses/revenue is included.

[molson]

THE STARS OF WCCW ON TOUR
Wednesday, Week 3, April 1983
Cedar Rapids, Iowa: 1,000 SOLD OUT

-Once again, Hart, Kabuki, Dragon, and Sweet Brown Sugar are booked elsewhere.

-Dark Match
Jose Lothario defeats Brian Adias in 8:49 by pinfall. (D) Adias was tiring towards the end of the match. Before the match, Brian Adias gave an interview, talking about how much he was looking forward to his match with Lothario. (E+) After the match, the two shake hands. (E)

-Fritz Von Erich comes to the ring to announce that a portion of tonight's proceeds will be donated to a local Cedar Rapids charity. Skandor Akbar runs out, incensed that money would be wasted in that manner, and demands a raise (C). The argument heats up with Fritz punching Akbar in the head, sending him out of running to the back (C). Fritz yells at Akbar, telling him he's tired of his antics, and that he's personally challenging to a match, tonight. (C). Akbar grabs a mic, and accepts (C).

-Frank Dusek & Bill Irwin (w/Akbar) defeat Ken and Johnny Mantel in 7:59 when Irwin pinned Johnny Mantel. This match "brought the crowd's mood down" (E+).

-Bill Mercer interviews Terry Gordy about Gordy's first round opponent in the King of Texas tournament, Kevin Von Erich (who is also Gordy's opponent tonight in a tag team title match). (D+)

-David Von Erich defeated Checkmate in 8:02 by pinfall (C-). "David looked good"

-Sunshine comes out and shoots t-shirts into the crows with a t-shirt gun (C). Precious comes out, and the two argue over who is the better valet (E). Precious and Sunshine eventually come to blows again, and Bill Mercer and Mark Lowrance are all too willing to get involved to break them up (F).

-Black Gordman upset Kerry Von Erich in 3:58 by pinfall. That finish may not have been planned, as Von Erich may have suffered some kind of injury (D+)

-Bill Mercer interviews Kevin Von Erich about Gordy's comments earlier regarding their first round tournament match. D+

-Fritz Von Erich defeated Skandor Akbar in 4:36 by submission (D+) After the match, Fritz is attacked by the other members of Destruction Inc. (Irwin and Dusek), until Kevin & Mike run in and make the save. (D)

-Chris Adams defeated Buddy Jack Roberts in 11:41 by pinfall (C-)

-WCCW American Heavyweight Tag Team Championship
Kevin & Mike Von Erich defeated Terry Gordy and Michael Hayes to win the titles when Kevin made Hayes submit at 6:58. Mike was tiring towards the end. Gordy looked good. (C-) After the match, Kerry, Mike, Dave, and Kevin celebrate the Von Erich's victory. (C)

Overall Rating (D+)

Thoughts:

-My popularity in the midwest remains at 41.4%. A pretty disappointing show Definitely time to end to come back to Texas to be in front of some friendlier fans.

-Iowa hated the Sunshine/Precious stuff. Both rate fairly well and are two of the top "divas" of this era - I'll keep trying them in different things, but it seems like Garvin has to be more involved, or the fans won't care.

-Fritiz/Akbar was a just a chance to see if these guys can go at all, I'm contemplating a Hart/Akbar v. Fritz cage match at the King of Texas Show. The D+ here is somewhat encouraging, hopefully that would translate to at least a C+ in Texas.

-Black Gordman defeating Kerry was a total screw up, I just made a mistake in the booking screen. (That's the text sim equivalent of an unplanned finish). Kerry's momentum will take a hit, but at least we weren't on TV. We'll have to give him a couple of squashes to make up for it.

-Checkmate basically maxes out to a C- match apparently, as that's all he got against David Von Erich. I looked closer at Checkmate's physical stats and despite being only 31, he's pretty beat up. I'll finish up the angle I have him in, and then send him back to "occasional wrestler" hell.

-The Freebirds are in a definite losing streak, based in large part upon Hayes's uncertain status. So I took the belts off of them. Mike & Kevin is an odd combo, but the other Von Erichs really don't need the belts. Kevin is now is the holder of 3 title belts (tag team, 6-man tag, and American Heavyweight).

[molson]

News

-Haystacks Calhoun has denied my request for negotiations, saying our company simply isn't big enough for him to come out of retirement for.

-Buddy Roberts has arrived late for his second show in a row. I can't really suspend him yet, because I've already advertised another Parsons/Roberts match with a new stipulation. But I do fine him. I hope he's not on drugs or something.

-Now Maple Leaf Wrestling continues to go nuts, now offering contracts to both David Von Erich and Jimmy Garvin. No response yet on either guy.

-With all of companies bringing in new talent, I figure I should at least ask around, maybe see if I can get a surprise big name or two in for the tournament show. I request negotiations with some guys who are well known in the midwest, and who work for promotions I have a decent relationship with : Dick Murdoch, Ted Dibiase, Jack Brisco, Stan Hanson, (I try for Jerry Blackwell and The Crusher, but Fritiz blocks that because he thinks both guys are injury-prone),

-There's a new WWF champion, as Bob Backlund was defeated by Ray Stevens.

-I extend Sweet Brown Sugar's contract to a total of 9 months, with a raise from $500/show to $675/show. I haven't gotten around to using him yet, but he might have left when his contract was up in 10 weeks, with his MACW responsibilities.

[molson]

NEWS

-David Von Erich has told the AWA, WWF, and Maple Leaf wrestling all to shove it, because he's loyal to WCCW. The Von Erich super push will continue. Meanwhile, Jimmy Garvin's offer from Maple Leaf remains outstanding.

[PilotMan]

Hey, wanted to let you know that I am reading along. I like the time period that you picked. I have tried the demo for TEW a number of times, and for some reason the UI was a real problem. I like the idea, but I guess I just don't know enough about the backround to really make it work. Seeing what you do gives me a better idea about where to go. I still may pick this up, but I need to mess around with the demo some more. Keep showing us the ideas for the stories so that I can see how they develop in ring.

[molson]

Originally Posted by PilotMan

Hey, wanted to let you know that I am reading along. I like the time period that you picked. I have tried the demo for TEW a number of times, and for some reason the UI was a real problem. I like the idea, but I guess I just don't know enough about the backround to really make it work. Seeing what you do gives me a better idea about where to go. I still may pick this up, but I need to mess around with the demo some more. Keep showing us the ideas for the stories so that I can see how they develop in ring.

Thanks-

I've tried 3-4 times to get into this game, running into the same UI issues as you. That's why I'm trying the dynasty route. Progress is obviously slower, but it's forcing me to think about what I'm doing, and immersion is increased 100X because you really know your roster when you force yourself to write about them.

[molson]

WORLD CLASS CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING
Saturday, Week 3, April 1983
Dallas, TX; 5,000 - SOLD OUT

-We return to Dallas, hoping for a hot crowd and a decently rated show exactly 1 week before the big King of Texas Tournament Event.

-Dark Match
Jose Lothario defeats Black Gordman in 7:52 by pinfall (C+). After the match, Lothario grabs the mic and repeats his desire for "one last run". (C)

-Bill Mercer and Mark Lawrence announce that earlier in the week, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Mike and Kevin Von Erich defeated Terry Gordy and Michael Hayes to win the WCCW American Heavyweight Tag Team Championship. They hype the fact that Kevin is now a triple crown WCCW champion (D+)

-Terry Gordy defeated Mike Von Erich in 3:55 by pinfall (B-) Mike seemed off his game, Terry looked good. They showed good chemistry.

-The Great Kabuki & Magic Dragon (w/ Hart) defeated Ken and Johnny Mantel in 4:47 when Kabuki pinned Johnny. (C-) Kabuki looked great. After the match, Hart again rants about the viciousness of his team, and offered threats to the new tag champs, Mike and Kevin. (C)

-King Kong Bundy defeated Brian Adias in 3:16 by pinfall (D+)

-Fritiz Von Erich comes out and announces that since Iceman Parsons & Buddy Jack Roberts have now wrestled 3 consecutive draws, tonight's match will be a ladder match for the WCCW Television championship. (B-). After the announcement, an angry Skandor Akbar and Gary Hart come out to confront Fritz, complaining about the way he's running the company: particularly his bias towards his own sons, and his bias against their clients and the Freebirds. They challenge him to a steel cage match at the King of Texas Wrestling event next Saturday, Akbar/Hart v. Fritz/a partner of his choosing. Fritz' smile indicates his acceptance (B)

-WCCW Television Title Match: Ladder Match
Buddy Roberts defeats Iceman Parsons in 8:19 by retrieving the belt to win the WCCW television championship. (C). After the match, Iceman Parsons acknowledges that Roberts was the better man tonight, but that next week in the King of Texas wrestling event, it'll be a different story. (C). Buddy Roberts responds, gloating about his win, and pointing out that Iceman hasn't been able to beat Roberts once in their 4 matches together. (C-)

-Jimmy Garvin defeated David Von Erich in 12:30 by pinfall to retain the WCCW Texas Heavyweight Championship. Garvin struck Von Erich with the belt when the referee was distracted by Sunshine & Precious (both valets also interfered in the match on Garvins' behalf. (B-). After the match, Jimmy Garvin hypes their match next week in the 1st round of the tournament, saying that now that's he's gotten by the Von Erich hurdle, he should be able to dispatch David quickly next week. (B-). David responds, saying that while he's tired of the 3-1 odds, it won't make any difference next week. David says he'll win the tournament, and then take the Texas Title from Garvin. (C+)

-Overall Rating: C+

Thoughts:

-My popularity in Texas is now 74.0% (a slight increase after this show).

-Another good dark match between Gordman & Lothario. I can't wait to see what Lothario can do against younger/better competition

-Terry drags Mike to Mike's best match rating ever, by far, a B-. Terry may be the most talented guy on the roster.

-I've basically booked Fritz and a surprise partner v. Akbar/Hart in a cage for next week, with no idea who the surprise guy is (just like real wrestling bookers, I suppose). I have a bunch of negotiation requests out right now with some fairly big names, if that doesn't work, I guess we'll have to go with Chris Adams, as the biggest face not wrestling in the tournament that night. I'd love to debut a surprise new guy in that spot though (maybe to turn on Fritz in the match)

-Buddy's winning the television title was partly to give a little success back to the Freebirds (along with Gordy's squash of Mike), since they've been on a huge losing streak since I took over. Hopefully it'll also add heat to their match next week.

[molson]

NEWS

-Jimmy Garvin signs a PPA deal with Maple Leaf Wrestling, who are assembling a pretty amazing roster. MLW has weekly events on Thursdays, and their next big event is late May, so fortunately, there's no immediate conflicts. This is a little less of a problem than the Hayes/WWF relationship, because Hayes is more likely to leave us altogether for the WWF than Garvin is for MLW (since MLW is smaller and much less prestigious - at least for now).

-Buddy Roberts has received an offer from AWA. AWA runs Fridays and Wednesdays with a monthly show on top of that, so that'll complicate booking even further. AWA's also big enough that there's a strong chance Roberts leaves us altogether at some point.

-This all just emphasizes how hugely important it is to get to Cult status, and then National. More guys will view me as their priority company, and of course at National, I can start locking up guys exclusively.

-Maple Leaf Wrestling incredibly signs another big name - Bob Backlund, just coming off his loss of the WWF Title.

-Our TV show earned a .66 rating - our highest rating to date, and an increase of .10 from last week.

-Ted Dibiase and Stan Hanson reject my negotiation requests, they're both incredibly loyal to their current promotions. Dick Murdoch rejects me too, because he thinks our promotion is too small for him. Fritz Von Erich has capped out what I can offer to Jack Brisco, so that won't work. So as of the Wednesday before the big Saturday show, I have no mystery partner for Fritz yet. Still waiting to hear back from Bruiser Brody, Terry Funk, The Junkyard Dog, Abdullah the Butcher, Dusty Rhodes, and the Spoiler. Out of some desperation, I send feelers out to some guys a notch or two lower in the popularity scale - Manny Fernandez, the Wild Samoans, Chavo Guerrero, and Kamala (though the fans won't buy Kamala as a Fritz partner since he has minuscule stats for ability to play a face - he would have to interject on behalf of the heels) If I can't get any of those guys, then we'll have to go with Chris Adams. (I guess Mike Von Erich would make sense too, buy I don't want him to drag the whole segment down)

-I've advertised two matches for our final house show before the Big Event:

An 8 man tag featuring the participants in the tournament:
Kerry/Kevin/David/Parsons v. Hayes/Gordy/Roberts/Garvin

Fritz v. Skandor Akbar

-Because of our big event, I'll have to reschedule Saturday's TV taping for Thursday (when Garvin, Hayes, and Irwin are all potentially unavailable). That show will tape before, but air after the big event. For the sake of realism, I'll book the show accordingly.

[molson]

That's all until Monday, as I'm off for a long weekend.

Early next week will be the last house show and TV taping before the big event, the big event itself, and then the first end-of-month recap, where I can see where I stand financially (and particularly where I stand in relation to Fritz' mandates that I have, and take a look at who's improved their ratings over the month. I'll also look to tweak the roster placement some, bring in some new guys, and start new angles.

[molson]

NEWS

Well, one more thing. I took advantage of my "working agreement" with Florida to engineer a 3-appearance talent trade: Bill Irwin for Jake Roberts. Jake isn't known at all in the midwest yet, but he does have C- popularity in Texas. Statwise, he's at least top 3 on my roster at the moment: A+ in Charisma, B+ in toughness, Psychology, and Star Quality. He's a definite candidate to be Fritz' mystery partner, only to turn on him in a scheme orchestrated from the start by Akbar and Hart.

[Neon_Chaos]

Just wanted to say that I'm reading/lurking as well. The way the business is shaping up in your wrestling world is getting to be pretty interesting.

[Bee]

I tried the demo but the navigation is so bad, I gave up. Looks like there's an interesting game under there someplace though.

[Evil Afro]

Is Barry-O available? I loved that dude.

[molson]

Originally Posted by Evil Afro

Is Barry-O available? I loved that dude.

It looks like he's working for International Championship Wrestling, which was Randy Savage's father's promotion in TN. Randy's actually the current champion there. I went ahead and requested negotiations with 'ole Barry, maybe I'll bring him in for one match to job to Mike Von Erich.

[Evil Afro]

"BARRY...OOOOOOHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!"

[Atocep]

I've been reading. Used to be a big wrestling fan, but not anymore. I tried out the TEW game that was made freeware back in '03 and enjoyed it. DL'd the demo for the new version a couple days ago and I actually don't mind the click-fest that much. My problem is the only OS I have in my house is Vista and its a pain in the ass to play the game on it.

Your dynasty is showing me some good ways to use angles and storylines for my promotion. I'm amazed at the depth of this game. Probably the deepest text sim outside of FM. I just wish I could run it better.

[Icy]

I'm following too. I bought TEW05 as i liked the idea, but the interface and to need to write a lot of things in notepad to keep with my storylines, players ratings etc made me to lose the interest.

Tried the 07 demo and the interface looked similar, with a lot of clicks and not easy way to see wrestlers ratings from the screens where i needed them, forcing me again to keep writting stuff outside the game (notepad and excel) so i didin't purchase it. Now that i'm reading and following your dynasty i might give it a shoot again.

[Hammer]

I am a big late 80's early 90's WCW fan. Still got the videos

Playing the demo, the game feels a bit tedious on first impressions? I'm really enjoying the read in this thread though. I presume you can't get into the WCW dynasty unless you buy the game?

[molson]

Originally Posted by Hammer

I am a big late 80's early 90's WCW fan. Still got the videos

Playing the demo, the game feels a bit tedious on first impressions? I'm really enjoying the read in this thread though. I presume you can't get into the WCW dynasty unless you buy the game?

The DOTT mod helps tremendously with the tediousness of the game, at least if you have some familiarity with that era. Booking and roster management are much improved in this version, the biggest remaning weakness, IMO, is access to worker stats. Fortunately, The DOTT mod is so well put together that you really don't need to check the stats too much - you already know what everyone can do, and it's way more fun anyway to book based on feel and how they've done in your own matches and segments. I'll probably just check individual stats once a game month, to see who's improving/regressing (the game does track monthly changes).

I hope to have the next update up tonight.

[Hammer]

Look forward to that.

Can you control the winners and losers in this game? The other thing I was wondering, is do the audience get bored if you keep showing the same matches?

Looking on youtube, its shocking the amount of wrestlers that have died young.

I quite fancy the look of the MMA game coming out later this year.

[molson]

Originally Posted by Hammer

Look forward to that.

Can you control the winners and losers in this game? The other thing I was wondering, is do the audience get bored if you keep showing the same matches?

Looking on youtube, its shocking the amount of wrestlers that have died young.

I quite fancy the look of the MMA game coming out later this year.

1. Yes, absolutely you control the winners and losers. In addition to that, you can give a number of "instructions" to the road agents that plan out the match, like "X wrestler dominates", "work the crowd", "tainted victory", "decisive victory", "script the match", "call the match in-ring", interference from specific managers, etc. (I verbalize this in the dynasty with the commentary about people cheating, or winning in 3:00 as a "domination"). The outcome and manner of victory or defeat effect a guy's popularity and momentum.

2. There's some anecdotal evidence (from the TEW boards) that running a match too many times will make a crowd bored, at least if you run it too many times in one region. As a booker though, you can't run different matches every week, because you can quickly run out of fresh matches with a roster as small as WCCW's.

[Hammer]

Thats pretty cool. So you can build up the unstoppable heel for the main event etc. Ensure losses to top faces are "acceptable" by manager interference.

I was reading that WCW was actually the dominant federation at one point, and actually lost out by copying the WWF's cartoon style. The WCW I liked was obviously rigged, but done so in a very serious manner. Guys like Arn Anderson, Barry Windham, Stan Hansen. No frills, solid wrestlers/brawlers. Even the likes of the Steiners, Luger or Sting were pretty serious compared to the tripe you see these days. The good old days...

[molson]

Originally Posted by Hammer

Thats pretty cool. So you can build up the unstoppable heel for the main event etc. Ensure losses to top faces are "acceptable" by manager interference.

Yup, TEW completely assumes the fictionalized nature of wrestling as it's premise - you're the booker, trying to create stars, get people to come to your shows, and increase your popularity in various regions. And yes, a "tainted" victory doesn't hurt the momentum of a wrestler as much as a clean loss would.

And to be picky and clarify, this dynasty is about WCCW, not WCW. WCCW was a promotion based in Texas that seemed to be on the verge of national expanison (they had high production values, were one of the earliest promotions to use theme music, video packages, and pre-taped vignettes, and they had a ton of talent). Then everyone died, and the promotion went out of business (that's only a slight exageration). The goal of this game is to keep everyone alive and in fact, go national (it's still possible that wrestlers drop dead, and in fact, certain wrestlers have hidden stats for drug use - I'm sure David and Kerry do.) I can't have as much bad luck as they did though.

[molson]

Here's what's up for the last three shows of the month of April:

Wednesday: House Show

-King of Texas Tournament Preview:
Kerry/David/Kevin/Parsons v. Hayes/Gordy/Roberts/Garvin

-Fritz Von Erich v. Skandor Akbar

Thursday: TV Taping
(to air Sunday, after big event)

-Kevin & Mike Von Erich to defend their Tag Team Titles.
-Buddy Roberts to defend his TV title

Saturday King of Texas Wrestling

-King of Texas Tournament
Terry Gordy v. Kevin Von Erich
Iceman Parsons v. Buddy Roberts
David Von Erich v. Jimmy Garvin
Kerry Von Erich v. Michael Hayes

-Steel Cage Match
Fritz Von Erich & a Mystery Partner v. Skandor Akbar & Gary Hart

[Toddzilla]

Originally Posted by Hammer

Thats pretty cool. So you can build up the unstoppable heel for the main event etc. Ensure losses to top faces are "acceptable" by manager interference.

I was reading that WCW was actually the dominant federation at one point, and actually lost out by copying the WWF's cartoon style. The WCW I liked was obviously rigged, but done so in a very serious manner. Guys like Arn Anderson, Barry Windham, Stan Hansen. No frills, solid wrestlers/brawlers. Even the likes of the Steiners, Luger or Sting were pretty serious compared to the tripe you see these days. The good old days...

It's still real to me, dammit....

[molson]

THE STARS OF WORLD CLASS ON TOUR
Wednesday, Week 4, April 1983
Fort Worth, TX; 2,000 - SOLD OUT

-Pre-Show Dark Match
Skandor Akbar comes out and announces his displeasure with the recent performance of his client, Frank Dusek. He warns Dusek that if he can't win his pre-show match tonight against Adias, he'd likely drop him as a client. (D). Frank Dusek defeated Brian Adias in 5:52 by pinfall. (D-) Before the match, Bill Mercer interviewed Brian Adias about his upcoming match. (E)

-Chris Adams defeats Black Gordman in 8:32 by pinfall (C+)

-The Von Erichs come out as a unit and talk about their recent success, and how much they're looking forward to a Von-Erich dominated King of Wrestling tournament (C). Kerry then specifically hypes his first round match with Michael Hayes, and how he'll be keeping an eye on him tonight (C+)

-Jose Lothario defeats King Kong Bundy in 6:56 by countout, after Bundy misses a charge into the ringpost and knocks himself out. (D+). Bundy again was visibly tiring in a very short match, and the two were said to have very bad chemistry.

-Fritz Von Erich comes out and first announces that Bill Irwin has been indefinitely suspended due to drunken and rowdy behavior at recent shows (C). He then hypes his match coming up with Skandor Akbar (B)

-Checkmate defeats Ken Mantel by 9:27 by submission. (D-) He holds onto the hold several minutes before the ref forces him off (E) Before the match, Ken Mantel came out and says that he wanted to take on Checkmate and his "open challenge" he made two weeks ago regarding his mask and $5,000. (E)

-The Freebirds come out and discuss how even though they have lost a match or two recently, a new dawn is arriving for the them. Buddy Roberts is the new TV champion, and this Saturday at the King of Texas tournament, they promise an all-Freebird final, at which point they'd declare each other co-Kings, (C). Michael Hayes than specifically responds to Kerry's comments earlier, and hypes their first-round match (B).

-Fritz Von Erich defeats Skandor Akbar in 5:51 by submission. (C) Before the match, Skandor Akbar came out first and hyped his wrestling skills (B+). After the match, Frank Duskek (Akbar's client) and King Kong Bundy (Hart's client), attack Fritz before quickly running off - it's clear they know that the rest of the Von Erich's wouldn't be far behind (C)

-Kevin, Kerry, David, and Iceman Parsons defeated the Freebirds and Jimmy Garvin in 18:02 when David made Garvin submit. (C-) After the match ends, Michael Hayes and Buddy Jack Roberts are arguing in the ring, with Terry Gordy trying to play peacemaker. (C+)

-Overall rating: C- (The fans felt Fritz and Jimmy Garvin were used too much)

Thoughts:

-Pretty disappointing show leading up to our first big event. Popularity in the Texas area decreases from 74.0% to 73.2%.

-Lothario gets his first shot on the main part of show and his match with King Kong Bundy sucks. I blame Bundy more than Lothario. Bundy's very young at this point, but has an A rating in Looks, B in Star Quality, A in Menancing, B+ in power, and B in toughness. I think Bundy needs more "standing in the background while Gary Hart is yelling stuff" and more time playing the enforcer in non-wrestling roles. He doesn't have the stamina to comfortably get through a 6 minute match right now. He's wrestled 11 matches between us and Mid-South this month, and only two were rated C- or above - matches against Kevin Von Erich, and amazingly, Ken Mantel.

-The Bill Irwin "suspension" is just to cover his being gone via talent trade while I have Jake Roberts for 3 appearances.

-The 4X4 main event was disappointing at a C-, when previous Von Erich v. Freebirds matches have reached B and C+. Fortunately the King of Texas angle as a whole has reached C+, which should help the overall rating of the tournament show next week (the game's pre-programmed "angles" require you to do things in a certain order, the King of Texas angle involved the various announcements and hype interviews I've done this month). Any match that is part of an actual angle benefits.

NEWS

-We get 2 more rejections from big names - Abdullah the Butcher says we're not big enough, and Dusty Rhodes wants to focus on Mid-Atlantic. It looks like if we're going to get to cult status, we're going to have to go with the level of guys we have.

-The WWF wanted to talk to Randy Savage, but he's staying loyal to his dad for now. It'll be interesting to see how far loyalty goes in this game.

[molson]

WORLD CLASS CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING (TV Taping)
Thursday, Week 4, April 1983
Wichita, KS: 2,000 SOLD OUT

-We return to the midwest for this show, which has to be somewhat low-key because it won't air until after the Big Event. So hopefully, we can do enough to pop our midwest popularity a tad (it currently stands at 41.4%), and rest some of the bigger names. Michael Hayes is wrestling for the WWF tonight, and is unavailable.

-Pre-Show Dark Match
Frank Dusek defeats Ken Mantel in 10:56 by pinfall. (D-) Dusek was tiring towards the end. After the match, Akbar comes out and hypes his client, stating that when Bill Irwin returns from his suspension, Destruction Inc. will be re-born (D+) Before the match, Ken Mantel gives an interview (F+).

-Sweet Brown Sugar defeats Black Gordman in 8:05 by pinfall. (C-)

-Gary Hart and King Kong Bundy come out, offering anyone who can body slam Bundy $5,000. (C-). Mike Von Erich comes out, but before he can even attempt to slam Bundy, Gary Hart orders Bundy to attack Mike (D-). Chris Adams comes out to stand up to Bundy with a steel chair, and Bundy and Hart leave the ring (E+)

-Terry Gordy defeats Jose Lothario in 8:48 by pinfall while using the ropes for leverage in a surprisingly competitive match (D+) The two had bad chemistry.

-A video highlight package is shown that covers the recent 4-match series between Iceman Parsons and Buddy Roberts. Iceman is utilizing his return match clause tonight. (D-)

-WCCW Television Title Match
Buddy Roberts defeats Iceman Parsons in 10:32 by DQ, after the ref is knocked out, Roberts introduces a chair, and Parsons wrestles it away and strikes Roberts, to make his 1st title defense (C). Parsons was tiring by the end of the match.

-WCCW American Heavyweight Tag Team Championship
Kevin and Mike Von Erich drew with The Great Kabuki & Magic Dragon via time limit draw in 10:00 to make their 1st title defense (C-). Kabuki looked off his game. After the match, Gary Hart rants about his team, saying the best the Von Erichs can do is hang with them for 10 minutes, but the titles will be theirs soon enough. (D+)

Overall Show Rating (C-).

Thoughts:

-I left a lot of expensive guys off the card tonight. So to still go into the midwest and get a C- is a respectable and inexpensive result. Last time in the region, I got a D+, and that was using David, Kerry, Hayes, Sunshine, Precious, all $1,000+ per show workers that weren't used here. Midwest popularity raises again from 41.4% to 42.2%

-I FINALLY get around to using Sweet Brown Sugar, and he wrestles an OK match with Black Gordman. I have a very quick angle scheduled for him and Checkmate, mask v. mask, which should end Checkmate's WCCW career and elevate Sweet Brown Sugar to...something. He, along with Kevin and and Brian Adias, are the top 3 athletes in the company, and he's been wrestling OK matches with guys like Greg Valentine in Mid-Atlantic. I think he's going to have to lose the mask himself though, because I personally can't deal with the name.

-So that's 5 Iceman/Roberts matches, with the last one for a while Saturday night. I just love that 10 minute guaranteed "C" match with two guys who don't cost too much.

NEWS

-Of course, next up is the King of Texas event. If it's anything less than our highest rated and best attended show, it'll be a big disappointment.

-I make my first splash in the talent acquisition department, acquiring The Spoiler. The fact that he's listed as having a "strong friendship" with Fritz Von Erich probably didn't hurt. Even at 43, he's arguably the top overall worker in our company at the moment (probably just behind David - his stats show at least a B in more than half of the 32 overall categories.) I've signed him for 9-month PPA contract at $1,750/show, with a $1,050 monthly downside, making him the highest paid PPA guy on the roster. The only potential issue is that he has a listed reputation of being selfish, and that he's also working for what he considers a "priority" company, Georgia Championship wrestling. I'll have to regroup after the month and lay out exactly who has potential conflicts which months.

-JYD, who just turned me down, signed a PPA deal with the WWF.

-The next three rejections I get are from Bruiser Brody, JYD, and Terry Funk Brody says he's stretched too thin at the moment, and JYD just thinks we're not big enough. Funk seems willing to talk about a short term-deal, but Fritz caps me at a number Funk finds unacceptable.

-Black Gordman is apparently a little worn out because of the schedule I've been giving him. He's a 46 year old "occasional wrestler", and has wrestled 5 matches in the last two weeks between us and HCW. I'd like to use him as much as he can, he has an "A" rating in the Basics, which means the young guys can learn from him in the ring.

[DeToxRox]

Aweome read. Keep it up.

[molson]

WCCW: KING OF TEXAS WRESTLING
Saturday, Week 4, April 1983
Dallas, TX: 6,041

-First bad news of the night is that BOTH of my potential surprise partners for Fritz - The Spoiler and Jake Roberts, were booked elsewhere tonight. I realized this was possible, but didn't want to move the event date. We'll keep the cage match short, throw Adams into the surprise slot, and hope the crowd doesn't totally crap on it. The emphasis will be on the tournament.

-Pre-Show Dark Match
The Great Kabuki & Magic Dragon defeat Mike Von Erich & Brian Adias in 9:38 when Kabuki pinned Adias. (D+) Before the match, Kabuki performs some type of bizarre salt ritual (C). Also before the match, Mike and Adias gave an interview. They discuss how they lost to Kabuki & Dragon earlier in the month, but now, Mike is a tag team champion (with Kevin), and he has something to prove tonight - being the only Von Erich left out of the tournament. (D-)

-A Video plays hyping the tournament and it's competitors. (C+)

-King of Texas Wrestling, 1st Round Match
Terry Gordy defeats Kevin Von Erich in 9:54 cleanly by pinfall to advance. (B-). After the match, Buddy Roberts come out, and he and Gordy proclaim that the Freebird rout is on, and that Gordy will be on hand for the next match to make sure Roberts advances as well (C+)

-King of Wrestling, 1st round match
Iceman Parsons defeated Buddy Roberts (for the 1st time in 5 tries) in 7:08 by DQ after Gordy was caught cheating on Parsons' behalf. (B-) After the match, Gordy and Roberts argue in the ring, before Roberts storms out. (C).

-Fritz Von Erich comes out an announces that in the upcoming Garvin/David 1st round match, both Precious and Sunshine will be banned from ringside, since they had interfered in both of the previous matches between the two. (B-) Before Fritz leaves the ring, an angry Gary Hart storms in, demanding to know what Fritz has done, and demanding that their cage match be canceled. It isn't clear, but something clearly hasn't gone as planned for Hart (B+)

-King of Wrestling, 1st round match
David Von Erich defeats Jimmy Garvin in 9:45 by submission. (C+)

-King of Wrestling, 1st-Round Match.
Kerry Von Erich defeats Michael Hayes in 7:04 by pinfall in a wild, overbooked brawl that featured both Gordy and Roberts interfering on behalf of Hayes, and David interfering on behalf of Kerry. (C+) Kerry advances to take on his brother Kerry in the semi-finals. After David leaves the ring, Kerry grabs a mic and tells the crowd he wishes David luck, but that he's wanted to prove himself against him for a long time. (B) (My road agent says Kerry's character could use some freshing up).

-King of Wresting, Semi-Final Match
Terry Gordy defeats Iceman Parsons decisively in 6:33 by pinfall to advance to the finals. (C+)

-King of Wrestling, Semi-Final Match
David Von Erich defeats Kerry Von Erich in 12:59 by pinfall. Terry Gordy interfered with both wrestlers during the match (trying to "soften" them up for the final), and David finally pinned Kerry after Terry struck Kerry with a chair (it isn't clear if David noticed the chairshot). David and Kerry worked awkwardly together (C).

-Steel Cage Match
Fritz Von Erich and his mystery partner, Chris Adams, defeat SKandor Akbar & Gary Hart in 5:36 when Fritiz made Hart submit with the Iron Claw (D+). After the match, Hart and Akbar, who have been pissed all night, argue and shove each other. Akbar is heard yelling, "This isn't what was supposed to happen - where is he!" (B).

-A video hypes the tournament up to now and hypes the final match (B)

-King of Texas, Finals
David Von Erich defeats Terry Gordy in 17:44 by submission to win the 1983 WCCW King of Texas Wrestling Trophy. (C+). After the match, a number of wrestlers come down to the ring to celebrate with David: Mike, Kevin, Adias, Parsons, Adams, Fritz, Sweet Sugar Brown. Notably absent is Kerry (B).

Overall Show Rating: C+
(Fans thought Adias and Fritz were used too much).

Thoughts;

-We seemed to be headed for our first B- or higher show, but instead we get our 4th C+ in 9 total shows. Our Texas popularity decreases from 73.2% to 72.6%.

-What kept us from a B- was largely the crappy Chris Adams surprise, and 3 largely disappointing matches from David (C+, C, and C+). After Gordy/Kevin and even Iceman/Roberts reached B- level, to see David not reach it once against 3 quality opponents is a bit of a mystery. (especially since he's wrestled 2 B matches with Garvin before)

-The theme of the show was dissension - Roberts pissed at Gordy for costing him the match, Akbar pissed at Hart for screwing up "something" (apparently they were expecting someone other than Chris Adams as the mystery partner), and Kerry apparently pissed at David for pinning him after a Gordy chairshot. Unfortunately, Kerry and David have bad chemistry, so even if I turned one of them and ran an angle behind it, the matches probably wouldn't be too great. On the other hand, my road agent did say that Kerry was getting stale in his current gimmick.

NEWS

-In tragic news, Jimmy Snuka has died at the age of 39, sometime the night after his final match, teaming with Sgt. Slaughter to defeat Tito Santana & Ivan Putski in the WWF.

-Our latest TV show got a .61 rating. That's a decrease of .05 from last week, but right around our average. The TV networks have announced that they're accepting requests for negotiations for shows in the summer season. I'm not totally sure how this dynamic works, but I'm pretty happy with our network, since it broadcasts to our two key areas - midwest and Texas. The next step up would be a national syndication deal, which I'm sure we can't get yet. Since I only have one "season" left on my current deal, and without TV, we're pretty much dead, I go ahead and request negotiations for a renewal. But I'll throw some negotiation requests out there with other networks just to get a feel for that aspect of the game.

-Right after the show, Buddy Roberts tells me that he has signed a PPA deal with AWA. Again, I'll have to review all of my conflicts and see where we stand, but it might be tough to find any nights that all 3 Freebirds are available, with Hayes being used pretty regularly by the WWF

-Not surprisingly, David and Terry come to me after the show and tell me they need a bit of a break after their exhausting 3-match night.

-Jake Roberts & The Spoiler are both irritated that I haven't assigned them a role on the roster yet, or told them what their gimmick or face/heel alignment will be. I'll do that before they debut on our next show or two.

-I make two new signings as April comes to a close. At the request of Evil Afro, Barry-O is in at the bargain price of $125 per show. More importantly, I reach an agreement with the "Raging Bull" Manny Fernandez, at a pricey $1,800/show (surpassing The Spoiler as our highest paid guy). I also had to contractually guarantee him a midcard title reign while he's around (either the American Heavyweight or TV Title - shouldn't be a problem). Manny is a huge pickup - he's well known in both the Texas area and the midwest, and he brings B+ ratings in Brawling, Hardcore, Toughness, Stamina, Selling, and Intensity. At this point, I have to consider breaking Terry Gordy off from the Freebirds and starting a Manny/Gordy program. The best part of the signing is that even though Manny works for both Central States & Southwest Championship wrestling, we'll be his priority company, he'll have no conflicts. That equals a HUGE push.

-So with the Spoiler and Manny onboard, my worker costs are going to go up. I'll review the roster at the end of the month and perhaps make a cut or two. We also might have a slight glut in the main event/upper midcarder scene - everybody may not be happy with how things shake out.

-We're rejected by Kamala and Chavo Guerrero. The Wild Samoans are interested in talking, but they want Spoiler/Manny Fernandez money, and I feel like I need to get through another month before we load up the payroll too much more.

-Next up will be the end-of-month recap. Early indications are that we had a great month financially.

[molson]

WCCW MONTH IN REVIEW: APRIL 1983

Popularity in Texas: 72.6%
Popularity in Midwest: 42.2%
Population Goal to get to Cult (in both regions) 53%

Finances

Income:

Ticket Sales: $478,025
Sponsors: $15,096
Merchandise: $4,400

Expenses:

Workers: $132,975
Show Costs: $101,500
Marketing: $500
Merchandise: $4,511
Production: $800
Misc.: $1,000

Profit for Month: $256,275
Total Cash: $631,275

-We're in tremendous shape financially. I only held back stars on one or two shows, and still ended up clearing $250k. Fritiz' only two mandates for the next 12 months - that I always have at least $225k in the bank at all time, and that I not fall in size (my current "regional" size only requires 30% in 1 region), seem to be no problem at all

I'm not making any changes yet to our production values or merchandise production, as this month will already have it's share of new expenses. Guys like the Spoiler and Manny Fernandez will be used regularly, and we'll be focusing almost exclusively on the midwest to make the final push towards Cult status (which means a smaller gate from those midwest shows)

Roster

After cleaning up the roster, here's what we're left with. I haven't released anybody yet:

Main Eventers:

The Spoiler
David Von Erich
Manny Fernandez
Terry Gordy
Kerry Von Erich

-The Spoiler will be a heel, as he's much better suited to do. Manny, who can go either way, will be a face. Kerry's clinging to his main event spot after a less than spectacular month.

Upper Mid-Carders:

Michael Hayes
Buddy Jack Roberts
The Great Kabuki
Kevin Von Erich
Jake Roberts

-Jake will be a heel, like the Spoiler, he has a much higher rating for that role. Michael Hayes gets bumped down from main event status, primarily based on his uncertain contract situation (In addition to the fact that he can't work a match for more than 8 minutes).

Midcarders:

King Kong Bundy
Jose Lothario
Jim Garvin
Iceman Parsons
Sweet Brown Sugar
Bill Irwin
Chris Adams

-This is an interesting group that has a lot to prove. Checkmate has been bumped out to "occasional wrestler" status, to be replaced by Lothario, who has shown the ability for one more run. Bill Irwin moves down from upper midcarder, but he'll have his chances this month with a revitalized "Destruction Inc." stable. Chris Adams and Iceman did fine when they were used, both guys are on the verge of the upper midcard. Bundy is a big-time project - his matches are horrible, so he'll largely be relegated to "enforcer" status for Hart - hopefully he'll learn something along the way. Jim Garvin still owns the company's most prestigious title, but is stuck in the midcard due to a numbers game. He performed well in matches with David, and could be moving up the ladder shortly.

Lower Midcarders

Frank Dusek
Ken Mantel
Mike Von Erich
Magic Dragon

-Ken Mantel gets the promotion here, thanks to dragging Bundy to his best match, and also performing pretty well when teaming with Johnny Mantel against Dragon & Kabuki. Speaking of Dragon, he's getting a hell of an opportunity to team with Kabuki and gain some experience, but he's clearly holding Kabuki back at this point. We'll try him in some singles matches to see what happens if the team splits up. Mike actually hasn't been too bad for a 19-year old, and he wrestled a terrific match with Terry Gordy.

Openers:

Barry Orton
Brian Adias

-Both of these guys will lose and lose often, and neither has shown anything to anyone yet.

Enhancement Talent:

Johnny Mantel

-He's been OK when teaming with Ken, but it just looks like we don't have much to work with here

Occasional Wrestlers:

Checkmate
Black Gordman

-As I've stated, Checkmate is on the way out. It's likely close to the end of the line for Gordman as well, who is a little pricey at $1,000/show.

Wrestler Conflicts & Attitudes

Really for my own organization, here's the guys currently under contract who are also employed by companies they consider a higher priority, and what days they're potentially unavailable in May:

-Buddy Roberts, AWA (FRI, WED, last SUN in May)
-Gary Hart, MACW (FRI, WED, last SUN in May)
-Magic Dragon, MACW (FRI, WED, last SUN in May)
-Manny Fernandez, CSTATE (THU, FRI, 1st MON in May)
-Michael Hayes, WWF (THU, SUN, last FRI in May)
-Jake Roberts, GCW (THU, SAT, last FRI in May) Florida (TUE, WED, 3rd FRI in May)
-Sweet Brown Sugar, MACW (FRI, WED, last SUN in May)
-The Great Kabuki, MACW (FRI, WED, last SUN in May)
-The Spoiler, GCW (THU, SAT, last FRI in May)

And these guys have expressed frustration with the amount they've been used

-Bill Irwin
-James Beard
-Precious

[Hammer]

Great start. With baby steps there appears to be no reason why you can't keep getting better stars in, and thus raising the profile of the organisation - which means more money and even bigger stars.

I was wondering, is it possible for the main man to be a heel. An unbeatable bad guy. Probably take away the feel good factor from the fans? I could see a guy like Van Vader perhaps pulling this off...

[molson]

Originally Posted by Hammer

I was wondering, is it possible for the main man to be a heel. An unbeatable bad guy. Probably take away the feel good factor from the fans? I could see a guy like Van Vader perhaps pulling this off...

Sure, I can see the Von Erichs taking turns trying to beat a dominant champion. Like you said, you need a top guy to pull that off, because the most important factor in a show's overall rating is how good the main event is. Ferandez is the best candidate for that right now (The Spoiler's even better all around, but a little old to be buliding my company around)

One thing that's weird about WCCW right now is that they don't have one clear, top champion. The Texas Heavyweight title is technically the most prestigious, but the American Heaveyweight title isn't far off, and it's held by a guy who's more popular and higher up in the roster. I could unify them into the "WCCW World Heavyweight Championship", but Kevin v. Garvin isn't the matchup to do that with.

[molson]

WCCW ROLL CALL OF CHAMPIONS (in order of prestige)

(This is basically so I can keep track of title prestige ratings)

Texas Heavyweight Championship
Champion: Jimmy Garvin (2 Title Defenses)
86.8% Prestige (Up 1.8% from the beginning of the month)

Six-Man Tag Team Championship
Champions: David, Kerry, and Kevin (1 Title Defense)
71.7% Prestige (Up 1.7% from the beginning of the month)

American Tag Team Championship
Champions: Kevin and Mike Von Erich (1 Title Defense)
70.0% Prestige (Same as beginning of month)

American Heavyweight Championship
Champion: Kevin Von Erich (1 Title Defense)
65.8% Prestige (Up 0.8% from beginning of month)

Television Championship
Champion: Buddy Roberts (1 Title Defense)
52.1% Prestige (Up 2.1% from beginning of month)

[molson]

NEW SHOW SCHEDULE

As you can from the conflicts list above, nobody has any conflicts on Mondays or Tuesdays. So, I'm not completely sure how the game handles this, but starting now, I'll run my weekly house show on Monday, and my TV taping on Tuesday. The TV show will still run on Sunday. My end of month show in May is the "WCCW Parade of Champions", the last Saturday in May.

I just noticed that every recurring event in the game if given a level of "importance", which presumably can increase based on how successful your show is. Everything but the annual events seem to be rated "Normal". My King of Texas Tournament Event was also rated normal. My big event in May, however, The Parade of Champions, is my most important annual event, at "Historic". The order of importance seems to range from: Normal, Above Average, Highly Regarded, Historic to Legendary.

Saturday is the day with the least amount of remaining conflicts, unfortunately, the two guys who are potentially unavailable are the Spoiler, and Jake Roberts. I wish I could just put another guy in the mask and pretend it's The Spoiler.

I went ahead and looked through and renamed some of my annual events, to give everything a little more long-term context:

January: January Star Wars (Above Average)
February: Mexican Invasion (Normal)
March: Last Man Standing (Normal)
April: King of Texas Wrestling (Normal)
May: Parade of Champions (Historic)
June: June Star Wars (Above Average)
July: Independence Day Star Wars (Highly Regarded)
August: Cage Clash (Normal)
September: Labor Day Star Wars (Highly Regarded)
October: Texas Rumble (Normal)
November: Thanksgiving Star Wars (Highly Regarded)
December: Christmas Star Wars (Highly Regarded)