May 12

From A Mod: Common Misconceptions in FML

 
Written By Nik Reeves-McLaren | View Comments

162x90genlogo From A Mod: Common Misconceptions in FMLMonths ago, I wrote this post on my blog A Mod’s Life about common misconceptions that we mods have to deal with on a regular basis. As it turns out, most of these are still relevant nearly half a year on!

On the mod forum we’ve been hammering out a list of common misconceptions about FML, and I thought that I’d list a few of the key ones here. This may wind up as a feature on the official site, in more depth at some stage in the future – another reason to keep an eye on that one!

1. Moderation

  • Mods work for SI – no, we don’t. And we don’t get paid either. We do it for the love of the game and the betterment of its community.
  • Mods should be good at the game/are top because they’re mods – nope. Many mods are quite rubbish at the game, and we don’t have any secret advantages. In fact, because of our moderation duties, we have less time to devote to things like testing tactics, scouting for players…



2. Skills

  • The skill planner queues skills – the skill planner is something that helps you to plan skills, nothing more, nothing less. I think SI is debating the merits of allowing some limited skill queuing to help the casual gamer, but it’s not a guaranteed future feature by any means.
  • My friend and I both have the same scouting skills; we should be able to sign the same players! – Nope again! Scouting skills determine only the number of players you can see, the selection of which players you can see is completely random.



    • 3. Matches

  • I’m great at FM, me, I should win all my games – welcome to FML, learn to live with defeat. You’re gonna get to taste it – regularly. Teams in FML are far more evenly matched than in FM/real life, and so seemingly ’shock results’ are more common than you expect. In each of my last six seasons I’ve won, drawn and lost roughly the same number of games in my FA, and been mid-table a lot… You’re going to face wildly different tactics more regularly than you’re used to, managers will make big changes more often… Flexibility and awareness are important for a successful FML manager.
  • I’m playing the AI, I should win – common one this – nope. The AI uses the tactics and squad last set by the team’s manager. Now you should win, because the AI can only make limited changes in the game and so is there to be outwitted. In fact, it shouldn’t be called AI at all, as it displays none of the “I”. But FML is for all sorts of managers, casual or hardcore, and AI should, and will, NEVER mean an auto-win.
  • Arrows are the same as in FM – they are not the same as in FM08, but I’m confident they are the same as they will be in FM09. Forward and backward arrows now equate to the individual player forward runs setting only.
  • I lost my last game, this ME is crap – again no. Every dog has their day – it’s only a problem when it’s the dog’s day every match. Look at your results – is it? No? You’d won your last 20? Think Man Utd v Southend…
  • My tactical change should work instantly – it may take a while for your team to adjust.



    • 4. Transfers / Finances

  • Auction Bids can be withdrawn – no they can’t, just like you can’t undo the damage of that itchy nose at Sotheby’s. The very act of placing a bid influences the decision of other managers to bid, and how much they bid – so withdrawing would be grossly unfair on them.
  • End of contract auctions – the advantage is given to the owner here. Many people don’t realise that if they are not the owner, and win the auction, they will pay exactly what they bid.
  • Loans can be recalled – there were a hideous number of exploits with loans, so now players out on loan in FML cannot be recalled.
  • Sell-on clauses – these are not the same as in FM08. In FML, the sell-on is on future profit made, not the fee. It’s a risk…
  • Erm, excuse me – I want the rest of the prize money from my FA – check three weeks ago then. A very regular query this one – the FAs pay out the minimum guaranteed amount of prize money at the start of the FA season; the balance, based on your final position, is paid at the end of the season.
  • Wages are paid daily, not weekly or monthly.



    • 5. FM

  • FML is not a giant network game of FM08.
  • No, you can’t pick Chelsea!
  • Yes, there will be an FM09 – FML is coded by a different development team.



    • So that’s the list – many, many thanks to all the mods who contributed to the forum thread that I’ve shamelessly pillaged: Andy Gathercole, Calvin Gransden, Andy Coburn, Stephen Church, Cian Fahey, David Hill, Stephen Gilchrist, Nick Brooke, Cleon Hobson, Scott Gibson, Ollie Chissell, Paul Kemp and Stu Mackie. Apologies to anyone who contributed and has been missed off – send me a pm and I will add you on to the credits here!

    Written By Nik Reeves-McLaren
    It's a Mod's Life author Nik Reeves-McLaren is a moderator in Coppell. His long-running blog tracks his experiences as a mod, as well as providing the latest information on changes in the FML universe.
    Interested in more? Here are some related articles for you!
    blog comments powered by Disqus