Category : BBS Programs+Doors
Archive   : CLFB121.ZIP
Filename : CLINTRO.TXT

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| | RUNCH
+-|- EAGUE FOOTBALL VERSION 1.21
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Copyright 1991 by Stephen David
An Introduction to Crunch League Football

Press 'P' to pause scrolling. Press (SPACE) to abort.

Introduction
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Crunch League Football is a unique on-line football simulator. It allows
players on a bulletin board to coach teams against those of others using the
bulletin board. The player can set up the roster and plays for his team and
have the computer simulate a realistic game for him. Following is a brief
discussion of how to play the Crunch League and how it works. For those of
you who don't know much about football, there is another text file discussing
the game itself.

Starting Out
~~~~~~~~~~~~
As soon as the sysop has announced the beginning of a new season, it is a
good idea to create a team as soon as possible, due to the fact that there are
only a limited number of teams each season. The sysop may decide to have a
password in order to log on. This is usually because he wants to keep
the game within a select group, and in order to play it is necessary to ask
him for the password.
First time players are next asked if they would like to learn about Crunch
League Football. If "yes" is selected, the help menu is displayed (see The
Menus, below). The next option is to log on as a visitor. This is helpful for
people who are not sure if they would like to make the commitment of having a
team and would like to look around first. The visitor menu allows the caller
to view the help, sports page, and, if Crunch League is registered, gambling
menus (see The Menus, below). Once all the teams have been filled, it is also
possible for non-players to use the visitor menu, but they cannot make a team
until a team has been deleted or added (see How Crunch League Works, below).
Once logged on, it is necessary to select a team name. Depending on how
the game is configured, there are two ways that this might be done. Usually,
the sysop has set it so the player may choose the name and city for his team.
In special cases, however, he might decide to select the team names and cities
beforehand. In this case the player must choose a team from the list of names
given.
The next step in creating a team is by far the most important - the draft.
This is done in four rounds, each round with slightly less skilled players in
it than the preceding one. The coach is allowed to choose two players in the
first round, five in the second, eight in the third, and ten in the fourth.
Different positions are abbreviated in the following way:

Offensive Abbreviations: Defensive Abbreviations:
QB Quarterback DB Defensive Back
RB Running Back S Safety
WR Wide Receiver LB Linebacker
TE Tight End NG Nose Guard
OT Offensive Tackle DE Defensive End
OG Offensive Guard DT Defensive Tackle
C Center
K Kicker

(Refer to the general football information file for more information about
these positions.) There is a required number for each position during the
draft in order to make it possible to have a starting player for each position
in the game. Players' positions, however, can be changed by selecting "edit
player positions" on the default setup menu (see below).
The next step for creating a team is to set up its default plays. A team's
plays usually depend on the skills of its players. Teams with better
quarterbacks and receivers should use passing plays more often, while teams
with better runners should use running plays. Defensive plays, although
partially based on a team's ability, also depend on the strategy of the team
it is playing. For the description of the different offensive and defensive
Crunch League plays, refer to general football information. When choosing
plays, it is possible to refer to a team's list of players at any time by
pressing '?'.
The remaining questions for default plays are more specific. They also
depend a great deal on the team's statistics. The first question deals with
when to substitute players. In order to switch players often, keeping them
fresh, the stamina level at which they are switched should be high. This has
drawbacks, however, because the better players on a team will not be able to
play as much. Finally, there are two questions dealing with kicking. A team
will drive until the fourth down and then decide whether to punt or continue
driving. If a team had a good kicker and a mediocre offense, they would want
to punt if they were more than a few yards away from the first down line at
the fourth down. On the other hand, if they had a strong offense, they would
want to set the determining line further back. The situation is similar for
kicking field goals, except it puts the team in relation to the end-zone. A
team with a strong offense would have no reason to attempt a field goal within
twenty yards of the goal line, but a weak offense would. The distance should
be too great either, especially if kicking or defense are not to good, because
the ball could be lost close to the kicking team's own end-zone.
The last step for creating a Crunch League team is to set up its offensive
and defensive rosters. Each player who can play and has not been chosen
already will be listed for each position. After each name and number, the
player's abilities will be listed in parentheses in the same order they are in
on team lists (i.e. pass/receive/kick, block/run, tackle, stamina, balance). If
all the players for a certain position have been injured, a player from another
position will be substituted with great penalties to his abilities. Once the
roster has been set up, the team is complete and ready to play Crunch League
Football!

The Menus
~~~~~~~~~
Crunch League Football is set up on a system of menus to make playing it as
simple a possible. A menu selection is made by pressing the first letter of
the selection's title (e.g. press 'S' for the S>ports Page). The main menu
has a selection of several sub-menus, each one described in detail below.

Current and Default Setup
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Choosing these options from the main menu allows a coach to view, and change
if he wants to, his plays and rosters. The current setup is the setup for
the next game. This can be used in order to use a special strategy in the next
game. After that game, however, the current plays and rosters will be reset to
the defaults. Changing the default setup will change what the current setup
will revert to after the next game but NOT before then. Changing plays and
rosters follows the same procedures as described above in setting up a team.
Selecting defaults from the current setup menu allows you to reset the current
plays, offensive roster, and/or defensive roster to their corresponding
defaults.
On the default setup menu is the additional option of editing player
positions. If a player's abilities would fit a different position better than
the one for which he is currently designated, his position can be changed here.
It is not possible to go below the minimum number of players required for each
position, but any player can otherwise switch to any position.

Help
~~~~
Choosing the help option from the main menu will allow a coach to view
either this or the general football text file. Choosing ANSI on/off will
toggle ANSI color.

The Sports Page
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The sports page menu allows a coach to view important information about his
and other Crunch League teams. It has several selections to choose from.
Current rankings will display the rankings of Crunch League teams, by
division, so far in the season. Latest scores will list the scores of the most
recent games in the season (if any have been played). The record books are
descriptions of Crunch League games played so far in the season, divided by
week. By selecting the most recent week, the coach can see exactly what
happened in each of the last games.
Choosing the schedule option will display the schedule of games for the week
specified. At first, only the regular season's schedules will be listed, but
as the results of post-season games come in, later week's schedules will be set
up and can be displayed. The final option, view team, allows a coach to view
the statistics of his and other teams. After a team is chosen from the list,
information about the team's record and players' abilities will be listed.
This option is helpful in setting up the strategy to use when playing other
teams. Press 'P' to pause the scrolling or space to abort any of these
listings.

Trade Menu (Available Only in Registered Versions)
~~~~~~~~~~
Use of the trade menu allows coaches to trade players from their teams with
each other at any point in the season. The trading process can be done in
basically two ways. Trades with which a team is involved can be listed from
the trade menu using "L".
The first method is if you have a certain player that you want to get rid
of. Perhaps you already have to many players in that position or something.
You do this by "M"aking an Offer. The player will be put on the list of
players to be traded, and other coaches can make "C"ounter Offers if they want
that player and are willing to offer another player for him.
If you receive a counter offer, you can "A"nswer it. If you are satisfied
with what the other coach has offered you, you can accept it. If you are not,
you can refuse it. If you are note sure yet, you don't have to answer the
counter offer immediately.
The second, usually faster, method skips the second step of the first. A
coach can simply "R"equest a player from another team and make a counter offer
at the same time. The coach whose team the player is requested from can then
answer this offer in the same way he would a counter-offer in the first method.
Trade offers can be "D"eleted by either coach involved with them at any
time. It is a good idea to be sure of a trade because, as soon as a counter-
offer is accepted, the trade is final. It is extremely important not to lower
the number of players for a given position beyond the minimum so the team does
not suffer from a great handicap in later games by having to substitute in a
player from another position. As soon as any trade is made, both teams
involved must reset their rosters in order to make up for any player who might
have been lost. Note that current rosters are reset to the new default
rosters.

Gambling (Available Only in Registered Versions for WWIV)
~~~~~~~~
If the sysop elects to do so, he may allow both players and visitors to bet
on games. Depending on how it is configured, it is possible to bet on any
game in which you are not involved, using either upload credit, gold, or your
security level. You are not allowed to bet on a game in which you are
involved, since you could purposely lose to win the bet. The sysop may decide
to disable any or all of these media, however, from betting. Betting is quite
straightforward and simple. Your sysop will have set a limit on the amount of
gold, sec level, and U/L K that you can bet each week. You can not bet more
than you currently have. When you bet something, 50 gold for example, it is
taken away as soon as you place the bet. If you win the bet, you are given
your gold back, in addition to any extra gold you won, depending on the odds of
the bet. Odds are based on a team's current record for the season as well as
past records.

How the Crunch League Works
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The games for the current week in the Crunch League season are played at
midnight every day they are scheduled. During the regular season, each team
will play every other team in its division twice, once at home and once away
unless the sysop has implemented the shortened season option. In this case,
each team will play each other team in its division once, randomly either home
or away. The outcome of each game is based on several factors such as: the
plays used by each team, the abilities of players on each team, trends, and
luck. Each play is run individually, and important ones are recorded in the
game record.
As soon as the regular season has ended, the playoffs begin. The first
place teams of each division play each other in a kind of single elimination
tournament for the league championship. If two or more teams are tied for
first place in their division, the team that will go on to the playoffs is
determined by a points gained:points given up ratio. If there is an odd number
of divisions in each league, a second place, wildcard team will be randomly
chosen to play as well. If there is only one division, the first place team
is automatically made league champion. The final game of the season is the
Superbowl. The two league champions play one final game to determine the
Crunch League champion team. If, of course, there is only one league, the
champion of that league is automatically made the Crunch League champion as
well. After the Super Bowl is over, the coveted Crunch League Most Valuable
Player award will go to the player who contributed most in the game.
At the end of the season, if your team has done especially badly, you may
opt to have the sysop delete your team. The next time you log on after that,
you will be able to draft a new team and start over again (Be careful not to
let anyone beat you to the empty space, however!). Make sure you also play an
active role in the game, or the sysop may decide to delete you even if you
don't ask.

Play Crunch League Football!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Enjoy playing the Crunch League, and please encourage your sysop to
register. If he decides to register, you will be able to use the trading and
gambling options existing only in the registered version. So don't miss out
on these opportunities any longer! Have your sysop register soon if he hasn't
already. And thanks for using this fine Crunchware product! Look for other
Crunchware programs in your area.