Wild Card Round Format Discussion

[Jeric 46,835]

WILD CARD INFORMATION

Later today the first leg of the team creation rounds will be over, and I have been preparing to segue into the next round, the Wild Card Round. In each group you picked two of the three individuals that you want to move on to the World Cup, leaving one spot open. In each group you eliminated four characters from contention and allowed four other characters to survive. The Wild Card Round is designed for you to pick the final spot on each team. Until now, voting was done as multiple choice, for this round, you will be choosing one character to move on. The estimated time for this leg of the team building rounds will be equal to the previous leg of this competition depending on feedback. Remember, the overall length of this competition was intended to take us through a good portion of 2018. The mechanics of how you will select each final spot were originally conceived as a playoff system, however I am going to set up a poll later today and leave the decision up to the community. Here are the proposed Wild Card voting mechanics. 

 

Option 1 - Playoff System (Seeded Selection)

Each group's Wild Card contenders received a specific number of votes, allowing them to be ranked 1-4 in most cases. The proposal is that each group will have two rounds of matches - Wild Card Semifinal and Wild Card Final. These are head to head - character vs character - matches. The first round will pit the highest voted Wild Card character in that group against the lowest (so 1 vs 4), while the characters who received the second and third highest amount of votes (2 vs 3) will face each other. The winner of each Semifinal match will proceed to the Final match where you will select the character who will fill the last slot on the team. Since will will be visiting each group twice, every daily poll would likely need to have two groups going at the same time. Otherwise it would add an extra month or so to the tournament. See the below screenshot of how this would look in practice. 

 

Wild Card Semifinal match setup (Seeded Playoff)

Gummy received the most votes between him, Royal Guard, Igneous, and Sonata. Royal Guard received the fewest votes so they go head to head. Sports fans would recognize this system, but I wanted to make sure it makes sense for non-sports fans as well. After the winners are decided we would go to the Wild Card Final for the same group. See below. 

 

Wild Card Final match setup (Seeded Playoff)

 

The winners of the previous matches play each other for the third and final spot on the team. This means every two days we would complete two groups team rosters under this system as we move through the competition. If there were ties in the first qualifier rounds, matches will be randomly generated. If there are ties in The Wild Card, ties will be decided based on total votes from the previous matches with the highest total vote count deciding the winner. Ties in that condition will require a coin flip to decide. There is another option as well. Simpler, but perhaps less exciting. 

 

 

 

 

Option 2 - Winner Takes All

This would be identical to how we held the first leg. All four characters in a group are placed in one poll. The highest voted character fills the final spot. One group per day until we go through each group and have the final selections. Ties will be decided based on head to head. Second ties will be decided based on the highest total votes up to that point in all phases thus far. If that ties, coin flip. See example setup below. 

 

 

 

 

Option 3 - Playoff System (Random Selection)

This is identical to the first option, except the Wild Card opponents will be randomly generated instead of past voting determining who they will face. I will leave it up to you guys on what mechanic the majority prefers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Captains and Team Coach Preview

 

As I mentioned previously, each team will have a Captain (voted by you) for simplicity and to influence visuals like team flags and team jerseys. There is another reason for the Captain. It should be mentioned that I will be introducing a Coaching Mechanic that will allow members to join a team as their Coach (or one of their Coaches) that will allow the opportunity to release characters, trade characters with another team, and pick up previously eliminated characters (with limitations) in order to build a more competitive team. Coaches will make this decision at specific periods in the competition and will be able to update the roster by trading with another team or through releasing and picking up another character - except for the Captain who is always set in stone. You may want to consider this as we move forward in this tournament, as this will be a game changer and unpredictable variable. Details will be forthcoming as we wrap up the Wild Card. 

 

 

At any rate, the poll regarding the exact mechanics on the Wild Card will go live later today and you can voted on the three above options. In the end, both will take the same amount of time, one is just slightly more simpler to follow and track, but may be less exciting overall. 

[ChB 18,532]

@Jeric I like Option 1 the most. Looking into two groups at once and voting on two rounds makes it sound more exciting. 

[ShootingStar159 2,155]

30 minutes ago, Jeric said:

There is another reason for the Captain. It should be mentioned that I will be introducing a Coaching Mechanic that will allow members to join a team as their Coach (or one of their Coaches) that will allow the opportunity to release characters, trade characters with another team, and pick up previously eliminated characters (with limitations) in order to build a more competitive team.

Any chance of picking up new characters from season eight, considering how long this is likely to run?

[Jeric 46,835]

29 minutes ago, ShootingStar159 said:

Any chance of picking up new characters from season eight, considering how long this is likely to run?

Stay tuned. 

 

[ChB 18,532]

3 hours ago, Jeric said:

Option 3 - Playoff System (Random Selection)

This is identical to the first option, except the Wild Card opponents will be randomly generated instead of past voting determining who they will face. I will leave it up to you guys on what mechanic the majority prefers.

In this case, would it be possible for wild card contestants to mix between two groups? (Example: Gummy vs. Strongheart.) 

[Jeric 46,835]

18 minutes ago, ChB said:

In this case, would it be possible for wild card contestants to mix between two groups? (Example: Gummy vs. Strongheart.) 

No. Both options keep everyone within the group they were originally shuffled into. The difference between the two playoff options is one set of matches is determined by previous votes and the other by chance. For example, in the second system, who Gummy plays first isn't predetermined, other than it could be any of the other three. 

Now, after the Captains are picked and prior to the World Cup and Top 16, some eliminated characters would go into a pool allowing a team with a Coach or Coaches to make a call on rosters. 

 

 

 

Edit:

Another option is to have two full passes on the Wild Card round with just one team at a time, but keep the playoff aspect. It would take slightly over two months to finish. This was intended to be a long tourney, but there us some flexibility that may allow me to ensure that the Championship Match happens around the time of the Season Finale instead ... making it feel like more of an event. 

[Ashen Pathfinder 16,152]

@Jeric

I prefer playoff system one; personally. I like that it gives each character a chance without it feeling like the same as the previous. Nice way to shake things up!

[Goat-kun 2,498]

How interesting. It is only more of a shame then that most groups won't be able to play for an honest victory. I do wonder though what happens to the groups that shall receive no coaches.

[Denim&Venöm 16,517]

@Jeric 

I guess I prefer option 3. Playoff portion gives a statistical edge to the highest runners up, while a standard vote would just be going through the motions again. Here, there's a bit more anticipation for what matches maybe set up and more chances for a character to make a comeback. 

[Oleks 1,983]

8 minutes ago, Jeric said:

We just completed the first leg of the World Cup Qualification events.

So, will we see the Hall of Shame? I wonder how many contestants ended up there.

[Jeric 46,835]

Ignore the poll. I'm testing something. Hence he joke 

 

7 minutes ago, Oleks said:

So, will we see the Hall of Shame? I wonder how many contestants ended up there.

Yes, I suspect we will.

 

5 hours ago, Jeric said:

Option 1 - Playoff System (Seeded Selection)

Each group's Wild Card contenders received a specific number of votes, allowing them to be ranked 1-4 in most cases. The proposal is that each group will have two rounds of matches - Wild Card Semifinal and Wild Card Final. These are head to head - character vs character - matches. The first round will pit the highest voted Wild Card character in that group against the lowest (so 1 vs 4), while the characters who received the second and third highest amount of votes (2 vs 3) will face each other. The winner of each Semifinal match will proceed to the Final match where you will select the character who will fill the last slot on the team. Since will will be visiting each group twice, every daily poll would likely need to have two groups going at the same time. Otherwise it would add an extra month or so to the tournament. See the below screenshot of how this would look in practice. 

 

Wild Card Semifinal match setup (Seeded Playoff)

Gummy received the most votes between him, Royal Guard, Igneous, and Sonata. Royal Guard received the fewest votes so they go head to head. Sports fans would recognize this system, but I wanted to make sure it makes sense for non-sports fans as well. After the winners are decided we would go to the Wild Card Final for the same group. See below. 

 

Wild Card Final match setup (Seeded Playoff)

 

The winners of the previous matches play each other for the third and final spot on the team. This means every two days we would complete two groups team rosters under this system as we move through the competition. If there were ties in the first qualifier rounds, matches will be randomly generated. If there are ties in The Wild Card, ties will be decided based on total votes from the previous matches with the highest total vote count deciding the winner. Ties in that condition will require a coin flip to decide. There is another option as well. Simpler, but perhaps less exciting. 

 

 

 

 

Option 2 - Winner Takes All

This would be identical to how we held the first leg. All four characters in a group are placed in one poll. The highest voted character fills the final spot. One group per day until we go through each group and have the final selections. Ties will be decided based on head to head. Second ties will be decided based on the highest total votes up to that point in all phases thus far. If that ties, coin flip. See example setup below. 

 

 

 

I'm quoting myself for clarity. You are all voting for one of the above. 

[ChB 18,532]

Quote

If one of the Playoff systems win, did you want or or two groups per poll?

Two groups per day. I don’t want the Wild Card rounds to drag on for too long.

[Jeric 46,835]

9 minutes ago, ChB said:

 

Two groups per day. I don’t want the Wild Card rounds to drag on for too long.

Aye. Fatigue is a concern with 64 days. I should note that while I will be working on some things for the actual World Cup during the Wild Card, there will need to be some sort of hiatus to finish up some of the visual parts of the Mane Event.

The time in between will be focused on the roster management with you guys that I mentioned earlier, so there will be something for people who like this tournament to focus on. 

[Adderbane 120]

28 minutes ago, ChB said:

 

Two groups per day. I don’t want the Wild Card rounds to drag on for too long.

What about having the semifinals for one group, and the finals for another each day?

[Hierok 11,829]

Now it gets interesting.  Come on Discord! Please win this tournament! 

[Sparklefan1234 161,875]

I voted for:

1. Second Option 

2. Second Option 

[Frostgage 7,972]

I'm definitely in favor of two groups per day - doing two at once doesn't take away from the experience at all and truthfully the wild card rounds aren't important enough to spend a full 2+ months on

[Ashen Pathfinder 16,152]

4 minutes ago, Frostgage said:

I'm definitely in favor of two groups per day - doing two at once doesn't take away from the experience at all and truthfully the wild card rounds aren't important enough to spend a full 2+ months on

Pretty much this. Plus I prefer the seeded system; as it lends some importance to the previous qualifiers.

[Ganondorf8 11,118]

Hmmm... I'm not really sure how I would like to see this next part pan out. All of the options on display do have their positives and negatives so it really comes down to whether you want an easy system or a difficult one.

[Denim&Venöm 16,517]

@Jeric I just thought of something.

What if people want to vote, but the server starts glitching out? There any contingency plans to keep the polls going? 

[Jeric 46,835]

23 minutes ago, Denim&Venom said:

@Jeric I just thought of something.

What if people want to vote, but the server starts glitching out? There any contingency plans to keep the polls going? 

Amusing because I just thought of mentioning this too. There is kinda a contingency plan for any significant outage (longer than a few minutes or consistent enough to screw up people being able to access the thread). 

The obvious one is I would extend the time to come as close to the down time as possible. The sysops people would have that figure. 

The second less obvious one has to do with possible data loss in the event of an outage. I would send a mass PM to everyone who has previously voted to have them confirm that any votes they made are still there. Plus a status update and a post.

I may consider having a backup site, but the negatives of that are problematic if people don't remember or bookmark the link. I suppose I could set up a Discord server for emergency communication. 

[Jeric 46,835]

Looks like most people are leaning towards a structured seeded playoff ... two groups per day. I'll keep this going until the end just in case, since the Wild Card rounds weren't planned to start until after Feb. 

You can expect a series of posts tomorrow after this poll wraps up with the Wild Card schedule and matches since I planned for several outcomes, as well as a retrospective on the first leg of the Wold Cup qualifying round. 

[Toastypk 920]

So there's going to be trades happening?

Cause I have a particularly good idea for one. (hint: i just saw the movie!)

Though that seems like the trade and coach thing is all going to be explained later.

[Jeric 46,835]

Wild Card breakdown will be up shortly now that the poll is finished.

 

[Nye 1,652]

Will you be making a Discord as you mentioned above?