Sim Dynasty Football Game Guide
From Sim Dynasty Rulebook
Sim Dynasty Football Game Guide
This is the wiki game guide for Sim Dynasty football. Please feel free to make any changes or additions you see fit.
Introduction
Objective of the Game
In Sim Dynasty Football, your objective is to draft a football team drawn from a pool of fictional players, build a playing strategy that will guid you through four preseason games, 16 regular season games, and the postseason, cumulating in the Sim Bowl championship. Although you do not have direct control of your team during a game, your decisions in how to utilize and train your players and your strategies will determine their on-field success. For additional challenge, multi-league seasons are available in which you have the additional objective of building your team over time.
League Information
League Names and Structure
Each league type is named according to a different scheme. The Single Season leagues are named after some of the top players of all time. The Dynasty leagues are named after running backs that are in the Hall of Fame. The names are also selected such that the league names form unique four-letter abbreviations, so some players with names that have the same initials as players on the list or names that would have more than two initials are not represented.
Single Season leagues consist of 16 teams arranged into two conferences, with each conference divided into two divisions of four teams each. Dynasty Leagues start with the same structure but may grow or shrink over the years. Teams will be arranged into conferences and divisions after the league fills.
League Types
Single Season Leagues
Single Season Leagues are 16-team leagues that draft a completely new team each season. A Single Season League plays a full single season schedule, including preseason and postseason. After the season is complete, links will appear on your My Teams page to view the league results.
Players, statistics, standings, schedules, and box scores are available for the most recent season of a single season league; for prior years only the schedule, results, and standings are available, as all players, statistics and box scores are deleted. Box score detail for non-postseason games is reduced; formation and fatigue information as well as the intermediate steps of each play will be unavailable.
Renewing a Single Season League
At the end of a Single Season league, you may opt to stay in the league for another season; if you stay, you will retain your city and team name and strategy settings but all of your players will retire. The league will re-open for signups to fill the slots of any owners who have left, and a new draft with all new players will take place. At the scheduled offseason processing time after the Sim Bowl (usually 11PM Eastern time), any owners with a restart status of "Unknown", "Undecided", or "Leaving" will leave the league.
If fewer than 10 owners stay in a league, the league will come to an end; that league's most recent season will be visible for two weeks, after which the entire league will be deleted and the league name and message board will be recycled for use by a new league.
You can set your restart status on the Owner Profile page. After week 10, if you have not selected whether you are staying, leaving or undecided, a reminder will appear at the top of each page. If you have not yet decided and no longer want to see the reminder, set your status to "Undecided".
Premium Leagues
Premium leagues are multi-season leagues; you keep your team from season to season, during which players grow older and may retire, and each season you participate in a 7-round college draft to add new players to your team.
New Premium leagues require a paid subscription, plus an initial fee to purcahse a slot in the league. The initial fee includes a purchase of the first 6, 8, or 10 months worth of play, after which the ongoing subscription is month-to-month. All subscriptions must be paid via PayPal.
Game Information
Season Schedule
All leagues start in the year 1960. After the league's initial draft, the calendar is advanced to the first preseason game. Games are always played on Sundays, so indivisual games are usually referred to by the week number in the season rather than the calendar date
Preseason
The preseason consists of four gmes in which preseason statistics are kept but standings are not. Although these games do not officially "count", they are important in that they give you an opportunity to experiment with different players and strategies. During preseason games, the starters from your DEpth Charts play in the first half, and your backups (if any) generally play in the second half. This is both to reduce the risk of injury to your starters and to give you an opportunity to see more players in action.
You are allowed to carry up to 80 players on your roster in preseason weeks 1 and 2, and up to 65 players in weeks 3 and 4.
Regular Season
The regular season begins the weekend after Labor Day and runs for 17 weeks, during which your team will play 16 games. Sometime between week 4 and week 10, your team will have a "bye" week in which it doesn't play, but your players still receive improvements. This off week gives you time to take a lookk at your opposing teams, get a feel for their strategies, and plan your own strategies for the remainder of the season.
Postseason
Immediately after the regular season, the top six teams will participate in the postseason: the winner of each division, plus the team with the top record in each conference that did not win a division. These additional two teams are known as "wild cards".
The two wild card teams and the division winner with the worst record in each conference will play a Wild Card Round playoff game. The winner of this game will face the division winner with the best record in the Conference Playoffs to determine the champion of each conference. Finally, after a final off week, the two conference champions face off in the Sim Bowl to determine the league champion.
In the Wild Card round, the division winner will be the home team. In the Conference Playoffs, the team that had a bye in the Wild Card round will be the home team. In the Sim Bowl, the city most likely to have better weather will host the game.
Field Measurement
All measurements on the field are measured to the nearest 3.6 inches (1/10th of a yard); each 1/10th of a yard is referred to here as a "field unit" (or "unit" for short). The play area is 999 of these units wide, with unit 0 and unit 1000 representing the goal lines.
Because the ball moves in increments smaller than a yard, this may cause apparent mismatches due to rounding, i.e a ball may be reported as moving from the 33 yard line to the 36 yard line, yet be reported as gaining only 2 yards. Likewise, a play that is reported as a 2-yard gain may only change the "To Go" yardage by 1.
Units .5 of a yard or more are rounded up, units less than .5 of a yard are rounded down. Yardlines likewise are rounded at their midpoint. The exception is the area between the goal line and halfway to the 1 yard line, which is reported as the 1 yard line rather than the goal line. "To Go" distances shorter than half a yard are reported as "inches".
Within the simulation, the ball is 3 units wide, and all measurements are taken from the point of the ball nearest the goal the offense is advancing towards. However, in Dynasty Vision, the ball is 9 pixels wide (to make it visible), and each pixel covers 2 units of space, so the ball appears on screen at six times its normal size. The end of the visible ball closest to the goal line the offense is attacking is aligned with the end of the ball in the simulation.
Timing
Each play listed in the play-by-play and Dynasty Vision has a time listed; this time represents the amount of time remaining in the quarter at the time the previous play ended. If the clock is stopped, there will be a period after the time; otherwise, the clock is running. Time runs off the clock in one second increments.
When the clock is running, time will run off the clock as follows:
- Reset time (4-8 seconds): This is the time it takes for players to get up off the ground and return to their own side of the line of scrimmage.
- Huddle and Set: This time varies based on the time management strategy currently in effect; it can take from the entire remaining portion of the 40 seconds available, or it can be as few as a couple of seconds for spiking the ball.
- Snap and Play Time: If the clock was not previously running, it starts with the snap. The length of the actual play will vary based on the action on the field.
Weather
Weather is an important part of football. Weather components directly used in the simulation are:
- Precipitation
- Wind direction
- Wind speed
- Temperature
- Wind chill
Weather conditions are tied to the home city; weather data including monthly average temperatures, precipitation and prevailing winds by city have been compiled from real-world sources and used to build the weather model used in the game. Short, medium, and long term trends are generated by the weather model and applied against the real world data to generate varying yet realistic weather patterns. Weather conditions do not change over the course of a game.
Precipitation
There are five levels of precipitation modelled in Sim Dynasty Football:
- Clear
- Rain
- Heavy rain
- Snow
- Heavy snow
Precipitation occurs when there are sudden temperature changes due to crossing trend lines; if the temperature is at or below 32 degrees the precipitation will be snow instead of rain.
Wind Direction and Speed
Wind direction is locked to the eight main compass points. Note that the direction indicated is the direction in which the wind is blowing toward, rather than the traditional weather reporting standard of the direction the wind is coming from. All football fields in Sim Dynasty are oriented north-south; note that on the Dynasty Vision display, North is to the right side of the screen, not the top.
Temperature and Wind Chill
Temperature effects that primarily affect the ball use the actual game temperature; temperature effects that primarily affect the players include wind chill. Wind chill has no effect if the temperature is 50 degrees or higher or the wind is 3 mph or less, and on clear days the wind chill effects are halved.
Weather effects
Weather effects modeled in the game include:
- Passes in cold temperatures and wet conditions are harder to catch.
- Wet balls are dropped more often. If a drop is due to a wet ball, the play by play will specifically say so.
- The ball does not travel as well in colder temperatures, reducing field goal range.
- Wet or snowy conditions reduce field goal accuracy.
- Winds will either extend or reduce the length of all types of kicks. Crosswinds especially can reduce the range of a kick.
Penalties
Penalties are a fact of life in football; even the best players will make mistakes in such a physical environment. The main two factors influencing penalties is Aggressiveness and Execution, with the exception of Illegal Touch which is solely a factor of Execution and Personal Foul which is a function of Attitude and Aggressiveness.
List of penalties
The penalties currently included in the simulation are:
| Penalty | Description | Yardage | Avg per game |
|---|---|---|---|
| Encroachment (defense) | Before the snap, a defensive player illegally crosses the line of scrimmage and makes contact with an opponent or has a clear path to the quarterback. The play is whistled dead. | 5 yards | 0.3 |
| False start (offense) | An offensive player illegally moves after lining up prior to the snap. The play is whistled dead. | 5 yards | 2.7 |
| Holding (offense or defense) | Illegally grasping or pulling an opponent other than the ball carrier while attempting to ward off a block or cover a receiver. | Offense, 10 yards; defense, 5 yards and automatic first down | 2.8 |
| Illegal contact (defense) | Making significant contact with a receiver after the receiver has advanced five yards beyond the line of scrimmage. The illegal contact is called only if the quarterback is still in pocket and the ball is still in his hands. | 5 yards and an automatic first down | 0.3 |
| Illegal touching of a free kick (special teams) | The ball, after an onside kick, is first touched by a member of the kicking team prior to traveling 10 yards. If a member of the receiving team first touches the ball, any player may touch it. | Re-kick 5 yards back | Varies |
| Offside (defense) | A player is on the wrong side of the line of scrimmage when the ball is snapped. This foul occurs at the snap, so play continues. Although technically an offensive player can be caught offside, offensive players moving into the neutral zone are charged with a False Start. | 5 yards | 1.2 |
| Pass interference (offense or defense) | Making intentional physical contact with an intended receiver after the ball has been thrown and before it has been touched by another player, to prevent him from catching a forward pass. Offensive players can commit pass interference when a defender has a clean shot at an interception. | Offense, 10 yards; defense, spot of foul (or placement on the 1 if the foul occurs in the end zone) and automatic first down | 1.1 |
| Personal Foul (offense or defense) | A conduct- or safety-related infraction. Includes unnecessary roughness, such as hitting a ball carrier after he is already out of bounds, "piling on" a ball carrier who is already down, violent contact with an opponent who is away from and out of the play, and other Attitude-related violations. Note: Players with Attitudes above C+ (52 or higher) will rarely commit Personal Fouls. | 15 yards; automatic first down if committed by defense | 0.2 |
| Roughing the Passer (defense) | A defender continues to tackle a passer (after taking more than one step) after the pass is thrown. | 15 yards and automatic first down | 0.3 |
Team Information
Roster Size and Salary Cap
During the regular season, your team is limited to 53 players. Of those 53, only 45 may be designated as active players that weight gain will participate in games. The active roster is fixed when the game starts; if you move a player to or from the active roster during a game, you will see that change on your roster page and depth charts but not in the game in progress.
You are not required to keep a full roster; however, a team must have at least 24 uninjured active players at the beginning of each game. Players will automatically be moved from inactive to active and/or picked up from waivers if necessary to comply with the 24-player minimum.
During the first two weeks of the preseason, teams may carry up to 80 total players on their roster, and the salary cap is not enforced. Teams must cut down to 65 players before the start of the third preseason game and must cut down to 53 players and be under the salary cap before the start of the first regular eason game.
Player salaries and the salary cap are expressed in numbers that are roughly equivalent to thousands of 2009 dollars. The default salary cap is 128000, equivalent to 128 million dollars in 2009. Salaries are based on both overall skill level and position, with quarterbacks, defensive ends and cornerbacks earning the highest and tight ends, safties and kickers earning the lowest. Salaries are relative to the overall skill level within a particular position, so a player at a particular position in one league may earn less than a player with a lower rating score in another league. Players with lower Attitude scores may demand slightly more money than they are actually worth, and there is a slight randomness to the salaries as well; this prevents a salary from exactly corresponding to any given numerical ranking.
Enforcement
If a team has more than 45 players on the active roster at the beginning of the game, only 45 of the active players will be selected to participate in the game and some players will autmatically be moved to the Inactive roster. If a team has more players than the current roster limit, or the team is over the salary cap, players will automatically be waived to get down to the limit. Players from the Inactive roster will be waived first, starting with the lowest overall grade and working toward the highest, and if the cap and/or roster limits are still exceeded players will be waived from the Active roster, again from lowest overall grade to highest.
Drafts
When you first sign up for your team, you will have no players; a draft process is used to select players for your team. Single Season leagues will only have an Initial Draft; owners in multi-season leagues will refresh their teams each year with drafts from the college system.
The Initial Draft
There are two steps to the initial draft process: bidding for draft position and ranking players in order of draft preference.
Each team will draft 70 players from a pool of over a thousand. In order to make this process manageable, each of the first 50 rounds of the draft is limited to a specific position, or pairs of positions in later rounds. These 50 rounds are divided into 5 "superrounds" of 10 rounds each. In order to determine the draft order for each round, an auction is held for each superround. Within each superround you have 1000 points to bid for draft position at each round. Each superround has a slightly different mix of positions.
| Round 1 QB | Round 2 RB | Round 3 WR | Round 4 LB | Round 5 S | Round 6 T | Round 7 DT | Round 8 DE | Round 9 CB | Round 10 C |
| Round 11 QB | Round 12 FB | Round 13 WR | Round 14 LB | Round 15 G | Round 16 T | Round 17 DT | Round 18 DE | Round 19 CB | Round 20 K |
| Round 21 S | Round 22 RB | Round 23 WR | Round 24 LB | Round 25 G | Round 26 T | Round 27 DT | Round 28 DE | Round 29 TE | Round 30 P |
| Round 31 QB | Round 32 RB | Round 33 WR | Round 34 LB | Round 35 G | Round 36 S | Round 37 KR | Round 38 CB | Round 39 TE | Round 40 C |
| Round 41 QB/RB | Round 42 CB/S | Round 43 DT/DE | Round 44 LB | Round 45 G/T | Round 46 K/P | Round 47 WR/TE | Round 48 KR | Round 49 RB/WR | Round 50 LB/CB |
You start with 100 points assigned to each round. If you were to bid, say 400 points on Quarterback, you would have to remove points on one or more other positions, making it more likely that you will draft later at those positions. Ties are broken randomly.
If you attempt to save your bids with more or less than 1000 points in each row, the system will evenly (as much as possible) add or remove points to each column until it evens out at 1000.
Three hours before the draft, your bids will lock, and returning to the draft page will reveal which draft slot you won in each round. You may continue to order players at each position until the draft runs at 6PM Esatern time.
Clicking on the position abbreviation in the bidding grid will take you to a page displaying all of the players available at that position. Most of these are players who actually play that position, although a few may be players at other positions that qualify for the position being ranked. The two special teams positions on the draft grid, Kick Returner (KR) and Holder (H) may be a variety of positions as there is no native positions for these roles. Kick Returners are most often wide receivers, although running backs, safeties and cornerbacks round out that list. Your Holder is usiually your third-string quarterback with good Hands, although punters and occasionally offensive linemen will show up on this list as well.
To rank your players for the draft, simply drag and drop them into your preferred order or enter the position numbers in the fields to the right.
The College Draft
Each year after the offseason, there will be a 7-round college draft. Coming in game time in April, in real time it occurs at 10:30PM the day after the offseason runs. Ranking players for the college draft is similar to ranking positions for the initial draft, except rounds are not drafted by position.
To help control your draft selections, you can set which types of players you are willing to consider in reach round of the draft, and you can set the overall number of players to accept at each position. For example, you may choose to never use a first or second round pick on a punter no matter how good that punter is.
Player Information
Player Abilities and Numerical Values
Because of the wide variety of roles played in football, it takes a number of abilities to describe a football player. Fortunately, only a subset of these abilities is really important to a particular position; however, because responsibilities can rapidly shift on the field of play during, say, an interception, a player may find all of his abilities being put to use at some point.
Abilities are divided into six groups: Offense, Defense, Special Teams, Physical, Mental, and Dexterity.
All players are created with skills assigned randomly. Skills are stored internally from 0.0 to 100.0, but for most leagues they are displayed as "grades" between a value of A+ through F. Ratings are presented only with the letter value of each skill because it is easier to evaluate and read online, and it more accurately represents the reality that a player's precise abilities are usually not known. Ratings are color coded to make them easier to quickly interpret: A's are red, B's are blue, C's are green, D's are yellow, and F's are black. The higher the letter grade, the better that player is in that skill area.
Each letter is assigned a numerical range of eight points (see chart below).
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Salaries
Each player is assigned a salary based on his overall skill level, plus a slight modifier based on Attitude (as lower Attitude players tend to hold out for more money)and Health (healthy players get more play and are worth more), plus a slight random factor to represent the vagaries of contract negotiations. Salaries are not linear; the top few players at each position often make quite a bit more than their colleagues even though there may not be a huge skill difference between them.
Of course, in the real world salaries go up from year to year due to inflation, and a player's Player Card will show his salary in actual dollar figures for that year, but for simplicity's sake salary is shown on most pages as a number of "salary units" that is effectively equal to thousands of dollars in 2009 dollars. For example, a given player's card might read "4825 ($156K/1960 $)" for his salary, which translates as 4825 salary units, or 4.825 million dollars in 2009 dollars, which is about $156,000 in 1960 dollars.
The league enforces a "minimum wage" based on a player's Service Years:
| 0 years: | 310 |
| 1 year: | 385 |
| 2 years: | 460 |
| 3 years: | 535 |
| 4-6 years: | 620 |
| 7-9 years: | 745 |
| 10+ years: | 845 |
When a player is cut or traded, you are immediately off the hook for his salary.
If a trade takes you over the salary cap, you must get below the cap before the first quarter of the next regular season game or players will be automatically cut to bring you under the cap.
Players who have been on the waiver wire for more than 1 week will drop their salary demands by 10% every week to make themselves more attractive, until they are picked up or reach their minimum wage.
Salaries in multi-season leagues
In multi-season leagues, all players salaries are recalculated during each offseason. They may go up or down, but there are some limits to how much they can increase in case there is some radical shift in the talent pool. The salaries are all normalized so the top player in the league usually makes around the same amount.
College players who are ready for the draft will ask for salaries about 80% of what an equivalent pro would ask for. However, due to SCAA regulations, they cannot make any salary demands until their college career is over (i.e. after the offseason.)
Overall Rating
A player's overall rating is a quick way to get a general sense of how good a player is, but should not be relied on too heavily to evaluate players.
Player Cards
Player skills, Improvement Chance history, career statistics, and transactions of each player are just a few examples of what is listed on each player card. You can see a player's card by clicking on his name. These links appear everywhere you can see the player's name, including your Depth Chart, the Waiver Wire and Box Scores.
Improvement Chances (ICs)
Improvement Chances are the means by which players improve (i.e., increase their numerical value) in each individual skill area. The higher the value, the better that player is in that skill area. An IC is an opportunity for that player to improve. A player who receives an IC must also convert that IC to receive an improvement in that skill. As each player accumulates and converts ICs, his skill levels increase. Each player will improve at a different rate, based on age, current skill, and other factors.
Overview
During the course of the football season, your players will improve and decline based on that player's playing time, training plan, and individual factors such as Age, Potential, and Attitude. These improvements are noted in your players' records as your coaching staff records them.
Improvements are accumulated from a set of Improvement Chances, or IC's, accumulated over the course of each game. During the week between games, your players will practice and train based on the training plan you outline for them, including which role to Train As and what kind of Drills to run between scrimmages, and just prior to the next game your coaches will prepare their reports and add records of each player's Improvements in their Player Cards.
Improvement Mechanism
Player improvements occur during the week before a game, based on each player's individual training plan. Improvements are tracked internally to a tenth of a point, and a successful improve may encompass a range from a fraction of a full point to over a full point. Thus, in leagues using letter grade systems, counting improvements will not give an exact value of a player's grade, but should provide a good estimation. Average improvement sizes are larger for low grades and smaller for high grades. The maximum value for any ability is 100.0.
Training Plan
There are two types of improvements available in your Training Plan: Position Training and Drills. These are set on the Roster page, in the far right columns.
Position Training
Position Training trains a player in areas that are important to a particular position or role. Improvements will be earned in the skills that make up that role's overall score, in roughly similar proportions to that skill's importance to the overall score. Any player may train in any position or role; however, if you are training a player in a role or position that is not connected to that player's natural position, Execution improvements cannot be earned.
Drills
Drills are meant to help you target improvements for abilities that are not part of your position's basic skill set. About 60% of your improvements go to the skill set of the position you are training for and 40% go to your drills.
The default drill is A, which means "All-Around". This drill does not concentrate on any area, and can result in improvements in Speed, Health, Agility, Execution, Stamina, Jumping, Hands, Tackle, and Strength. The conversion rate is a little lower than the more targeted drills; Improvement Chances will convert to improvements only 75% as often as other drills.
Targeted drills are different from the All Around drill in that they have a higher conversion rate for the abilities that they target, but they also may reduce one ability that is opposite to the targeted goals of the drill. For example, Weight Training drills build strength, but they add bulk to a player reducing his overall speed. Conversely, running Sprints may improve a player's Speed and Agility, but they tend to make a player lose weight and thus Strength. The targeted drill groups are:
C - Conditioning - This is an exception to the others because it only improves two skills and has no "downside". This improves Health and Stamina, and as a bonus any player training in Conditioning will have his Conditioning score for the next game increased by 10%. It is recommended to have players coming off an injury late in the week prior to a game to have Conditioning drills in his training plan; this is also useful for players with Attitude problems who do not put in enough effort on the training field to be at their top Conditioning. Like "All-Around", Conditioning drills have a lower conversion rate (75% of normal).
D - Discipline - Discipline training improves Attitude, Execution, and Hands; it reduces Aggressiveness.
F - Footwork - Footwork drills increase Agility, Jumping, and Break Tackle; they reduce Strength (on the theory that as you become more agile you may lose weight)
K - Kicking - Kicking drills increase Kick Accuracy, Kick Power, and Execution; they reduce Endurance (as kickers don't really need it). This helps make up for the fact that kickers tend to earn fewer IC's overall.
S - Sprints - Sprint drills improve Speed, Agility and Pursuit; they reduce Strength.
W - Weight Training - Weight Training increases Strength, Stamina, and Tackling, and reduces Speed.
Accumulating Improvement Chances
Improvement Chances (ICs) are accumulated separately for Position Training and Drills. Only full IC's are attempted to convert to Improvements at the end of the week; fractional ICs will roll over to the next week.
ICs are allocated as follows:
Position Improvement Chances (improvements applied to those attributes most important to the position selected for training):
All players on roster: .5 All players on the active roster: +.25 All players who appeared in that week's game: +.25 Time played in game: seconds of play/450 (maximum +2.0) Young inactive players: +.5 for each year under 25 Bye week: +1.0
Drill Improvement Chances (improvements applied to the set of attributes in the selected drill set):
All players on the roster: .5 Attitude (work ethic) bonus: Attitude/400 (i.e. 0.0-0.25)+random(Attitude/200) (i.e. 0.0-0.50)
Thus, Attitude is, on average, worth just over 1 IC per 10 points of Attitude over the course of a 21-week season (16 games + bye + preseason).
Converting Improvement Chances to Improvements
At the end of the week, immediately prior to playing the first quarter of the next game, Improvement Chances are processed based on your selected Training Plans for each player and may be converted to Improvements. The chance of converting an Improvement is based on a player's age and Potential, so players with a higher Potential will convert more improvements over time.
Most abilities improve best just after college and fall off until age 26. Execution improves well into the early 30's. Throwing Accuracy improves best in the mid-20's and can improve into the early 30's. Speed, Agility and Strength show the least improvement, with improves falling off by age 25.
| Age | Most Abilities | Throw Acc | Execution | Spd/Agil/Str |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | 42.5% | 35.0% | 60.0% | 37.5% |
| 21 | 52.0% | 37.5% | 70.0% | 42.0% |
| 22 | 57.5% | 40.0% | 65.0% | 30.0% |
| 23 | 45.0% | 45.0% | 50.0% | 22.0% |
| 24 | 32.0% | 52.5% | 45.0% | 11.0% |
| 25 | 11.0% | 57.5% | 40.0% | 5.0% |
| 26 | 7.5% | 60.0% | 37.5% | 2.0% |
| 27 | 5.0% | 58.0% | 33.0% | 1.5% |
| 28 | 5.0% | 50.0% | 30.0% | 1.2% |
| 29 | 5.0% | 47.5% | 26.0% | 1.0% |
| 30 | 5.0% | 35.0% | 20.0% | 1.0% |
| 31 | 5.0% | 11.0% | 13.0% | 1.0% |
| 32 | 5.0% | 7.5% | 10.0% | 1.0% |
| 33 | 5.0% | 5.0% | 7.5% | 1.0% |
| Older | 5.0% | 5.0% | 3.5% | 1.0% |
This chart is correct for most players; some players may improve at a slightly faster or slower rate, as if they were a year or two older or younger than their actual age.
Name Changes
Prior to regular season week 4, you are permitted to change the first and last name of the player by clicking on the player's name and going to his card. Players may also have a nickname, which can be changed at any time. Offensive player names WILL NOT BE TOLERATED! If you find another team's player names offensive, please report that team so the issue can be resolved. Duplicate names in a league are not permitted.
Injured Players
Football is a very physical game; over the course of the season, players will get injured. Although the number and severity of injuries has been reduced in Sim Dynasty compared to reality, you may still see key players unavailable for long periods of time.
Injuries come in two forms: minor injuries, which can take a player out of a game for a period of time (anywhere from a couple of plays to the rest of the game) but have no lasting effects, and major injuries which cause a player to be out for days, weeks or even months.
Injuries happen based on a player's role on the field; the ball carrier/receiver and the defender that tackles him are at a higher risk of injury, but anyone on the field can be injured. Injuries are roughly distributed as follows:
9.9% Offensive Line
17.5% Quarterback
19.6% Running Backs
14.4% Wide receivers
11.3% Defensive linemen
15.5% Linebackers
11.7% Defensive backs
About half of all major injuries are for 10 days or less, although some particularly severe injuries may last two to three months.
The number of days a player is listed to be out is only an estimate; players may occasionally heal faster or slower based on their Health rating. The Injury Report page will show each player's estimated status for the next two games.
Conditioning and Fatigue
Football players spend the week prior to a game training and getting in proper condition, both mentally and physically, to play. Some players work harder at this than others, and players coming off an injury mid-week do not get the benefit of a full week's workouts. This is all represented by a player's Conditioning level, which is visible on his player card. A player's Conditioning for a game is set immediately after his previous game ends, giving you time to make substitutions if necessary. Most players will start each game at 95% of their top physical condition, although a few hard workers with good Attitudes may be higher than that. Players with low Attitude ratings do not always put in the work required to be in top form and may start games at anywhere from 75% to 95% of their top Conditioning.
The Conditioning rating represents the top energy level a player can reach during a game; this energy level is represented on the Dynasty Vision display as a small bar graph to the right of each player. The terms "Fatigue" and "Energy" both refer to the same concept but in reverse of each other, so a player with 80% Energy has 20% Fatigue.
As players play, they expend energy and start to fatigue, causing their abilities to drop. The rating penalty is a 3% drop in ratings for every 5% of fatigue; thus. a player that is 50% fatigued will find his ability scores 30% lower than normal. As players fatigue, they will be substituted out based on the "substitute out" rating on the Depth Chart at that position. If no substitution level has been set, they will be substituted at 50%. Players with lower Stamina ratings will fatigue faster and recover energy slower.
Positions
Each player has a native position that does not change; this position represents his skill sets and training. The positions are:
| Offense | ||
|---|---|---|
| Abbrev | Name | Recommended minimum |
| QB | Quarterback | 2 |
| RB | Running Back | 4 |
| WR | Wide Receiver | 4 |
| TE | Tight End | 2 |
| C | Center | 1 |
| G | Guard | 3 |
| T | Tackle | 3 |
| Defense | ||
| Abbrev | Name | Recommended minimum |
| DT | Defensive Tackle | 2 |
| DE | Defensive End | 3 |
| LB | Linebacker | 5 |
| CB | Cornerback | 3 |
| S | Safety | 3 |
| Special Teams | ||
| Abbrev | Name | Recommended minimum |
| K | Kicker | 1 |
| P | Punter | 1 |
Roles
While on the field, a player fills a particular role. In some cases, the role is the same as the position, i.e. a player with the Quarterback position plays the Quarterback role. For some positions, the role simply determines the exact position a player occupies in a formation, for example a player at the Guard position may fill the role of either Left Guard or Right Guard. In other cases, a role determines a particular specialization within a role, such as Fullback vs. Halfback. Finally, special teams units may have specialized roles such as the Holder that holds the ball for placekicks, or a Kick Returner which is normally filled by a wide receiver, running back or cornerback. The roles used in each formation are displayed in the formation preview on the Depth Chart page. A player's Player Card shows the player's skill level at the most common roles, and whichever grade is highest is shown as his Best Role on the roster page.
| Offense | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abbr | Name | Desc | Pos | Skills |
| C | Center | The Center snaps the ball to the Quarterback and then performs blocking duties with the offensive line. | C |
Hands, Execution, Strength, Pass Blocking, Run Blocking |
| QB | Quarterback | The Quarterback runs the offense and lines up behind the Center. Typically the quarterback will hand off or pitch the ball to a running back or pass the ball to a wide receiver, although he may occasionally keep the ball and run it himself, either by design or by being forced to scramble by the defense. | QB | Throw Accuracy, Throw Power, Execution, Carrying, Hands, Agility, Speed, Break Tackle |
| HB | Halfback | The Halfback is the running back that most often actually runs the ball, although he may occasionally be called upon to catch a screen pass or run a passing route. He may often be referred to as just a Running Back, or as a Halfback or Tailback depending on where he lines up. | RB | Carrying, Speed, Agility, Break Tackle, Execution, Catching, Hands |
| FB | Fullback | Although he is a running back, the Fullback more often performs blocking duties or runs ahead of the ball cariier to clear a path. | RB | Run Blocking, Strength, Carrying, Pass Blocking, Speed, Break Tackle, Agility, Catching, Execution |
| LT | Left Offensive Tackle | The Tackles line up outside of the Guards and are responsible for both run and pass blocking. The Left Tackle in particular is responsible for protecting the Quarterback's blind side, and is thus weighted more toward Pass Blocking than Run Blocking, whereas the Right Tackle is usually the best Run Blocker. | T |
Agility, Strength, Pass Blocking, Execution, Run Blocking |
| RT | Right Offensive Tackle |
Strength, Agility, Run Blocking, Execution, Pass Blocking | ||
| LG | Left Offensive Guard | The Guards line up next to the center and are responsible for both run and pass blocking. Guaards may either block straight ahead to protech the pocket or pull to one side or the other to open a hole and trap a defensive lineman to support the run. | G |
Strength, Pass Blocking, Agility, Run Blocking, Execution |
| RG | Right Offensive Guard | |||
| SE | Split End End | The Split End is a wide receiver who usually lines up on the far left, several yards away from the Left Tackle. He is often referred to as the "X Receiver". | WR | Catching, Agility, Speed, Execution, Carrying, Break Tackle, Jumping |
| TE | Tight End | The Tight End usually lines up to the right of the Right Tackle, and may perform either as a blocker or as a pass receiver. Because he often acts as an extra blocker along with the offensive line, the side the Tight End lines up on is referred to as the "Strong Side". When used as a receiver, he is often referred to as the "Y Receiver". | TE | Catching, Pass Blocking, Run Blocking, Carrying, Execution, Speed, Agility |
| FL | Flanker | The Flanker is a wide receiver who usually lines up on the far right, several yards away from the Tight End and a step behind the line. He is often referred to as the "Z Receiver". | WR | Catching, Agility, Speed, Execution, Carrying, Break Tackle, Jumping |
| Defense | ||||
| Abbr | Name | Desc | Pos | Skills |
| LDE | Left Defensive End | The Defensive Ends line up on either end of the defensive line. Their function is to rush the Quarterback and contain outside runs. The stronger and more agile usually lines up at RDE, opposite the Left Tackle, to attack the Quarterback's blind side. | DE |
Tackling, Run Cover, Agility, Strength, Execution |
| RDE | Right Defensive End | |||
| LDT | Left Defensive Tackle | The Defensive Tackles line up between the Defensive Ends.on either end of the defensive line. Their function is to rush the Quarterback and stop runs up the middle. | DT |
Strength, Tackling, Run Cover, Agility, Execution |
| RDT | Right Defensive Tackle | |||
| SOLB | Strong-Side Outer Linebacker | The Linebackers play behind the defensive line and perform a variety of duties depending on the situation, including rushing the passer, covering receivers, and defending against the run. The Strong-Side Outer Linebacker, nicknamed "Sam", lines up just outside of the Tight End; the Weak-Side Outer Linebacker, nicknamed "Will", lines up just ouside the tackle at the opposite end. The Outer Linebackers (OLB) may be called upon to drop back into shallow zone pass coverage, stop the outside run, or blitz the Quarterback. The Middle Linebacker, nicknamed "Mike", is responsible for stopping the inside run; in a four-linebacker set such as the 3-4, he plays on the strong side inside the SOLB. On player cards, the two Linebacker specializtions are shown as OLB (Outer Linebacker) and ILB (Inner Linebacker). | LB |
Strength, Tackling, Run Cover, Agility, Execution |
| WOLB | Weak-Side Outer Linebacker | |||
| MLB | Middle Linebacker | Tackling, Strength, Run Cover, Execution, Agility, Pass Cover | ||
| LCB | Left Cornerback | The Cornerbacks primarily cover the receivers, although they may occasionally be called upon to blitz the quarterback. In a rushing play, the Corners are used to contain the rusher. | CB | Pass Cover, Speed, Tackling, Agility, Run Cover, Jumping, Catching, Execution |
| RCB | Right Cornerback | |||
| FS | Free Safety | The Safeties line up farthest from the Line of Scrimmage and are responsible for deep-pass coverage and pursuit of any ball carrier that passes the earlier lines of defense. The Free Safety is usually the smaller and faster of the Safeties, providing extra coverage against the pass. | S | Pass Cover, Speed, Tackling, Pursuit, Agility, Catching, Execution, Jumping |
| SS | Strong Safety | The Safeties line up farthest from the Line of Scrimmage and are responsible for deep-pass coverage and pursuit of any ball carrier that passes the earlier lines of defense. The Strong Safety is usually the larger and stronger of the two, providing extra coverage against the run; however, the name of the role does not come from his strength, it comes from the fact that he lines up on the strong side. | S | Tackling, Speed, Run Cover, Strength, Execution, Agility, Pass Cover, Pursuit |
| Special Teams | ||||
| Abbr | Name | Desc | Pos | Skills |
| K | Placekicker | The Placekicker, usually simply referred to as the Kicker, handles field goals and PAT (Point After Touchdown, or "try") kicks | K | Kick Accuracy, Kick Power, Execution |
| P | Punter | The Punter kicks punts and the free kick after a safety. A Punter must have a stronger variety of skills than a Kicker, as he may be called upon to act as Quarterback in the case of a bad snap or a fake punt. | P | Kick Power, Kick Accuracy, Execution, Hands, Throw Accuracy, Throw Power |
| KOS | Kickoff Specialist | The Kickoff Specialist is responsible for handling kickoffs. Usually this role is filled by a Placekicker, but teams who have an accurate Placekicker with a weak leg may choose tyo use a stronger-legged Punter or backup Kicker just for kickoffs, where distance is more important than accuracy. | K | Kick Power, Kick Accuracy, Execution |
| KR | Kick Returner | The Kick Returner is positioned at the far end of the field during kickoffs to return the kick. | WR, RB, CB | Kick Return, Speed, Break Tackle, Agility, Catching, Carrying, Execution |
| LKR | Left Kick Returner | |||
| RKR | Right Kick Returner | |||
| PR | Punt Returner | The Punt Returner is positioned about 40 yards past the Line of Scrimmage during punt attempts to return the punt. | WR, RB, CB, S | Kick Return, Speed, Break Tackle, Agility, Catching, Carrying, Execution |
| KRB | Kick Return Back | The Kick Return Back, or Kick Return Blocker, is an upback positioned in front of the Kick Returner. His primary responsibility is to block for the Kick Returner, but he should have some Kick Return skills in case of a shorter kick. | WR, RB, CB, S | Run Blocking, Kick Return, Speed, Break Tackle, Agility, Carrying, Catching, Strength, Execution |
| LKRB | Left Kick Return Back | |||
| RKRB | Right Kick Return Back | |||
| LS | Long Snapper | The Long Snapper lines up as a Center and snaps the ball to the Holder or Punter on kicking plays. As the "long snap" is effectively a 15-yard backward pass, the Long Snapper must have an accurate throwing arm. | C |
Pass Blocking, Throw Accuracy, Hands, Execution, Strength |
| H | Holder | The Holder takes the snap from the Long Snapper, sets the ball in position, and holds it for field goal and PAT kicks. The skill of the Holder has an effect on the accuracy of kicks, as a poor hold can result in a ball tumbling on a kick causing it to hook away from its intended trajectory. The Holder is usually a backup Quarterback or occasionally a Punter, as he may be called upon to act as a Quarterback in the event of a poor snap or a fake field goal attempt. | QB, P |
Hands, Execution, Throw Accuracy, Throw Power |
| GUN | Gunner | The Gunner lines up in the Wide Receiver position on a punt attempt. As eligible receivers, the Gunners can sprint downfield before the ball is kicked to tackle the Punt Returner or down the ball. Gunners may actually perform as Wide Receivers in the event of a failed or fake punt. | WR, RB, CB, S | Speed, Tackling, Catching, Strength, Agility, Break Tackle, Execution |
| LGUN | Left Gunner | |||
| RGUN | Right Gunner | |||
| HT | Hands Team | "Hands Team" players are present on both sides during an onside kick attempt. These players have the strongest Catching and Hands skills to quickly get control of onside kicks or recover loose balls for their team. | WR, RB, TE, CB, S | Hands, Catching, Exeecution |
| HT1 | Hands Team 1 | |||
| HT2 | Hands Team 2 | |||
| HT3 | Hands Team 3 | |||
| HT4 | Hands Team 4 | |||
| HT5 | Hands Team 5 | |||
| HT6 | Hands Team 6 | |||
| Specialist Offense | ||||
| Abbr | Name | Desc | Pos | Skills |
| SB | Slot Back | The Slot Back is a Running Back that lines up off the line in the "slot" between a Tackle or Tight End and the Split End. A player lining up in this position that is intended to act as a receiver is known as a Slot Receiver. | RB | Carrying, Speed, Agility, Break Tackle, Execution, Catching, Hands |
| SR | Slot Receiver | The Slot Receiver is a Wide Receiver that lines up off the line in the "slot" between a Tackle or Tight End and the Split End. This role is usually seen as the fourth receiver in a Shotgun or Single Back formation. | WR | Catching, Agility, Speed, Execution, Carrying, Break Tackle, Jumping |
| SR2 | Slot Receiver 2 | |||
| TE2 | Tight End 2 | A second Tight End; in two Tight End sets, the second Tight End lines up to the left of the Left Tackle. | TE | Catching, Pass Blocking, Run Blocking, Carrying, Execution, Speed, Agility |
| LWB | Left Wingback | The Wingbacks act as Fullbacks in sets that require extra protection for a Quarterback or Kicker. They usually line up off the line in the gap between the Tackle and Guard or jut outside the Tackles. | RB | Run Blocking, Strength, Carrying, Pass Blocking, Speed, Break Tackle, Agility, Catching, Execution |
| RWB | Right Wingback | |||
| Specialist Defense | ||||
| Abbr | Name | Desc | Pos | Skills |
| WILB | Weak-Side Inner Linebacker | In four-linebacker sets, the Weak-Side Inner Linebacker lines up on the weak side (usually the right side) and the Middle Linebacker lines up on the strong side. | LB | Tackling, Strength, Run Cover, Execution, Agility, Pass Cover |
| WS | Weak Safety | A Safety who acts in the same capacity as a Strong Safety but on the weak side. | S | Tackling, Speed, Pass Cover, Strength, Execution, Agility, Catching, Pursuit |
| FS2 | Free Safety 2 | An extra Free Safety, usually seen at one end of the line on kickoffs. | S | Pass Cover, Speed, Tackling, Pursuit, Agility, Catching, Execution, Jumping |
| NB | Nickelback | An extra Cornerback used in the 4-2-5 Nickel formation, lining up across from the Slot Receiver. | CB | Pass Cover, Speed, Tackling, Agility, Run Cover, Jumping, Catching, Execution |
| DB | Dimeback | An extra Cornerback used in the 4-1-6 Dime formation. | CB | Pass Cover, Speed, Tackling, Agility, Run Cover, Jumping, Catching, Execution |
| NT | Nose Tackle | The centermost Defensive Tackle lining up directly across from the Center. In a 3-4 formation, the role of Nose Tackle is actually filled by the player normally at Left Tackle, so in Sim Dynasty the Nose Tackle is only seen in sets requiring five Defensive Tackles such as Kick Block formations. | DT |
Strength, Tackling, Run Cover, Agility, Execution |
Playing Players out of Position
Although each player has an assigned position, any player can play in any position. However, this comes at a penalty, both in a player's abilities not likely being suited to the alternate position and in the form of severely reduced Execution (75% lower) while playing at the alternate position. Offensive linemen can play other positions on the offensive line with a reduced execution penalty (50% lower). and wide receivers can play at tight end and vice versa at only a 25% Execution penalty. The Player Card for each player shows the player's rating at each position; this rating takes into account the Execution penalty.
In order to appear on the depth chart at a given position, the player must either play that position natively or hold at least a C+ rating in that position.
Managing your Team
Sim Dynasty offers you a large assortment of ways to manage your team.
Roster
Your Roster gives you a one-page view of everyone on your team. From the Roster, you can perform transactions on players (moving them between the Active and Inactive rosters, moving them to Injured Reserve, placing them on the Trade Block, or waiving them) and you can set a player's training plan for his Position Training and assign Drills. You may have no more than 45 players on the active roster, with the rest (up to a total of 53 during the regular season) on the inactive roster. From other teams' Roster pages you can propose trades.
Depth Chart
Depth charts are the mechanism by which players are assigned to roles. There are two kinds of Depth Charts: "Parent" Depth Charts that are generic in nature, such as Guard and Safety, and specific charts such as Left Guard or Strong Safety. If there are no players on a specific Depth Chart, the corresponding parent chart is used instead. The Formation Preview will show exactly which players will be assigned to a given formation and how they got there.
In addition to specifying players, each depth chart has substitution settings determining when players are removed from the game or returned to the game due to fatigue.
Coach Preferences
The Coach Preferences page allows you to establish all of your tendencies in different situations. You don't have complete control over exactly which plays will be run, only the general proportion of each of several types of plays. (Note: The distance of the passing game is set by the toggles at the bottom of each page). You will have to set these preferences, including the values for short and long distances for each tab, listed below:
| Team Set | Description |
|---|---|
| Green Zone | Your typical set in the middle of the field. |
| 2-Min | The 2 minute set, near the end of the game or 1st half; you can set the time left in a half when this set becomes active |
| Yellow Zone | Used when the offense is deep in its own end. The default is within 15 yards of the offense's goal line, but you can set the distance at which this strategy takes effect. |
| Red Zone | Used when the offense is closing in on the end zone. The default is within 20 yards of the defense's goal line, but you can set the distance at which this strategy takes effect. |
| 2-Min Red Zone | Used when the offense is closing in on the end zone near the end of a half, you set both the distance to the end zone and the time left. |
| Goal Line | Used when the offense is very close to the end zone, you can set the distance to the end zone. This zone is sometimes referred to as the Gold Zone. |
| 2-Min Goal Line | Used when the offense is very close to the end zone near the end of a half, you set both the distance to the end zone and the time left. |
Each of these sets have a default set of offensive and defensive preferences, so you don't have to change anything to play with the defaults. If you do choose to make changes, you can do so by typing a name for the custom set near the top of the preferences, where you see "enter a new strategy name". You can also update a previously saved custom set by selecting it from the drop down menu -Select a strategy to overwrite-. You will not be able to automatically copy the set for one situation to another (ex: from Base to 2 Min). You must manually set the preferences in each tab if you want your team to be run significantly differently than the defaults.
Offense
The plays available in each set are the same for all of the offensive sets are as follows (remember the yardage settings are: Short, which is a distance up to the number you set, Long, which is a distance greater than or equal to the number you set, and Medium is in between) You will run either a Pro Set or I Formation, at random, unless you use a Shotgun set, in which case the formation is set to Shotgun. In Shotgun passes, you generally have more time to pass which increases the chance of completing a pass, but you are at risk of losing more yadage if sacked.
| Play type | Description | Yardage (You set these) |
|---|---|---|
| Short Pass | A short, quick, high completion percentage pass | "Short" |
| Med Pass | A medium length pass | Somewhere between "Short" and "Long" settings |
| Long Pass | A long pass, Going Deep! | "Long" |
| Middle Run | A run up the middle, between the tackles | N/A |
| End Run | A run outside the tackles | N/A |
| Short Sideline Pass | A pass towards the sideline | "Short" |
| Med Sideline Pass | A pass towards the sideline | Somewhere between "Short" and "Long" settings |
| Long Sideline Pass | A pass towards the sideline | "Long" |
| Short Shotgun Pass | Set your formation to shotgun and throw a short pass | "Short" |
| Med Shotgun Pass | Set your formation to shotgun and throw a medium distance pass | Somewhere between "Short" and "Long" settings |
| Long Shotgun Pass | Set your formation to shotgun and throw a long pass | "Long" |
| Screen Pass | Deep dropback pass, where the Offensive line lets the defense through, then lead blocks for a RB on a short dump. | Short pass, hoping for an overly aggressive pass rush. |
| Play Action Pass | Pass that follows a fake handoff, generally medium to long pass, hoping to catch the defense in a run set. | varies |
Defense
The possible defensive sets are shown below ("Short" and "Long" can be set here also, but are probably irrelevant on defense at this point). Generally, you will be running a 4-3, although there is a Nickel set in which the Middle linebacker is removed to allow for an extra defensive back (Nickel Back), which you can set in the depth chart page:
| Defensive Play | Description |
|---|---|
| Balanced Run Cover | Key on both Outside and Middle Runs with equal emphasis |
| Inside Run Cover | Crash in to stop the Middle Run |
| Outside Run Cover | Key on the outside-the-tackle running attack |
| Man to Man | Pass defensive set where each defensive back matches up with a potential receiver. Best to counter screens and medium passes. |
| Shallow Zone | Defensive Backs each protect a region within a prescribed area, to stop any completions in that area, keying on shorter passes; sometimes set in a Nickel formation. Best to counter short passes. |
| Deep Zone/Prevent | Defensive Backs still protect a zone, although the zones are deeper downfield, keying on long passes; usually set in a Nickel formation. Best to counter long passes, but leaves you vulnerable to shorter passes and running plays. |
| Sam-Will Blitz | The Sam and Will linebackers blitz, rest of the D plays Man to Man "They're your outside linebackers. S for Sam comes from S from Strongside OLB. W for Will comes from Weakside OLB. MLB is sometimes called Mike"(credit: spyboy1306 on the SimDynasty message board)" |
| Corners Blitz | Both corners abandon pass coverage and attack the quarterback, usually unblocked. Safeties and Linebackers pick up man to man defense on receivers. |
| Maximum Blitz | Corners and Sam-Will Blitz combined, for a total of an 8 man blitz, leaving only 3 defensive backs to stop the offense if the blitz fails. |
Kicking
The kicking game preferences including punting and field goals are shown below.
Punting
There are 4 punting situations, each of which has a setting for position on the field (called "Zones"). In each, you can establish the punter's Distance vs Hangtime, and punt formation. The punt formations are Punt Tight Protect, Punt Tight Wing, and Punt Spread Wing, which range from a very safe punt formation with limited downfield punt coverage against a return (Tight Protect) to a spread formation in which the risk for a punt block is a little higher, but the downfield coverage is better. "Distance vs Hangtime" is a percentage of effort the punter will put into kicking it as far as he can. A high value will mean the punter will kick it higher (but shorter), allowing for good punt coverage and also shorter punts that are better when there is a risk of punting it into the end zone. A low value emphasizes distance, which is better for getting out of poor field position; however, long-distance, low hangtime punts carry a greater risk of long punt returns.
If close to the end zone and the punting strategy would carry the ball too close to the end zone, the punter will angle the punt toward the sideline, hoping to put the ball out of bounds close to the goal line or pinning the returner into the corner to make a return difficult.
A punt returner may allow the ball to bounce if it is close to the goal line in hopes it will bounce into the end zone for a touchback. The longer and lower a punt is kicked, the more chance it has of bouncing into the end zone, but some punts may bounce backwards toward the line of scrimmage or off at an angle and go out of bounds, so allowing the punt to drop does carry some risk.
Fourth Down Situations
A variety of situations governing when to go for it, or kick a field goal on 4th down, when punting would not be appropriate.
Onside Kicks
There are two situations here, each depending on the number of points you are behind and time left in the game. If either condition is met, your kicker will try on onside kick if you are kicking off.
Last Second Field Goals
These settings will overrule the Fourth Down Situations rules above, given there is a limited amount of time left in a half or in the 4th quarter, or anytime in overtime and you are tied or behind by 3 points or less (in the case of 4th quarter situations). You can set the time left in the game or half and the distance where you would be comfortable trying the field goal. Also, you can set a confidence level for the kick (estimated chance of making the kick). Setting it lower makes it more likely that you will try the field goal as long as the time and yardage rules are also met.
Returns
This tab determines what your kick and punt returners will do based on the position of the kick or punt. You can set the number of yards seep into the endzone the kick has to be to force the kickoff return man to kneel and down the ball for a touchback. You can also set the distance to the goal line the punt will land before the punt returner lets it bounce in hopes of it crossing into the end zone for a touchback. As described on the page, Execution affects this ability, and there are some other variables that underlie the results of punts and kickoffs.
Time Outs
This tab allows you to tell the team when to start using time outs to stop the clock on offense or defense, in order to save time to get another score when you are trailing.
General Manager Information
Trades
Through the GM menu, you can propose a trade to any other team in your league. If the other team accepts, the trade will be executed immediately, and the players will change teams. However, if a trade is made while a game is still in progress, that change does not take effect until the game is over; you will see the player on your roster and be able to put him on your depth chart but he will not appear in the game in progress.
Injured Reserve
Any player who has been injured and is expected to be out longer than 5 days may be placed on the Injured Reserve list. Players on Injured Reserve do not count for or against the team's roster limits; however, once a player has been moved to the Injured Reserve list, that player is ineligible to play, practice or train with the team for the remainder of the season, including the postseason. Thus, players on Injured Reserve cannot collect Improvement Chances even after their injury has healed.
NOTE: Injured Reserve is not available in Single Season leagues.
Watch List
The Watch List allows you a way to easily keep track of players you are interested in. You can add a player to the Watch List from his player card, and add private notes to that player as well. You can add any players to the Watch List, whether they are on your team or not, including college players and players in other leagues.
League Information
League News
Sim Dynasty has a news page that will show you what has been going on in your league in the way of player transactions, such as trades, status changes, injuries, and retiring players.
Standings
To see how your team is doing in the league overall, you should go to the Standings page. This will show you the standings for all of the teams in your league. (Under the "Games" tab)
Schedule
To view the schedule for the regular season, without seeing who won or lost go to this page. This is the best place to go if you don't want to know the results of the game until you watch it in Dynasty Vision. (Under the "Games" tab)
Schedule with Results
To view the schedule for the regular season including the results of any previously played games. (Under the "Games" tab)
Scoreboard
The scores for all games in the league during the current week, at a glance. (Under the "Games" tab)
League Info
Sim Dynasty also has a League Info page that allows you to see who is in your league. It also displays their e-mail address, if they have chosen to let it be shown in their Profile. You can also U2U them from here by clicking their name. When you do this, the u2u screen will pop up, and you can U2U them right from there. You can also see when your opponents last checked into the site. This way you can know who has been actively managing their teams, and which teams belong to "dead" owners.
Team Statistics
You can view your team statistics from the Team Stats page. These are actual cumulative stats from the current season. If you traded for a player during the season, only his accrued stats from when he was on your team will show up. If you traded a player away, only the stats he accrued while on your team will show up here.
Individual Statistics
You can view your players individual statistics from the Individual Stats page. You can only see players here that are currently on your roster.
League Leaders
To see who leads the league in various statistical categories, check out the League Leaders page. It will show you the top 20 players in each category. You can view Single Season leaders and All Time leaders of various categories.
Player Rankings
The Rankings page serves two purposes. The first is to show all players ranked according to their statistics, and the other is to show all players ranked according to their abilities.
Player Statistics
The benefit of using this page as opposed to the Leaders page is that this page will show all of the players in your league, which is more comprehensive. On this page you can choose to sort by every category that is kept on the player cards.
Player Abilities
This part of the Rankings page will show all of the players in your league according to their abilities. As with the other page, this page can be sorted by all player abilities displayed on the player cards. This page is especially useful for scouting around your league to find the players on other teams that you would like to trade for.
Miscellaneous
PayPal and Payments
For our pay leagues, we use PayPal as the method to receive payments. If you have a credit card, checking account, or any other type of banking account, you can use PayPal to send in a payment.
If you only have a checking account, the payment will be sent to us by a PayPal e-check. E-checks can take up to 4 business days to clear, and you will not see the credits hit your Sim Dynasty account until then. If you are signing up for a new team and send in an e-check, please post a message in the Support Message Board letting Admin know, and we can hold the team for you until it clears. (You can post a message in Support privately if you prefer.) If you are renewing a team using an e-check, you will have to wait the four days to get credit. We have considered removing e-checks as a payment option, because of the confusion they cause, but many of our players only have checking accounts, and we don't want to prevent them from playing.
Finally, if you don't have any kind of bank account or credit card, you can mail in a personal check or money order to us. Please write your screen name and/or league name on the check or money order, and add $2 for handling. (For example, if a league costs $20, the payment would be for $22.) Please make your payment out to the site owner, Tyson Lowery. Allow up to three weeks for the credits to be posted to your account. You can get our address by posting a private message in Support.
Reporting Problems & Suggesting Enhancements
Have you noticed something about the game that isn't quite right? Are you having problems accessing your team or logging in? Or is there something about the game that you would like to see improved? We encourage you to sound off on the Message Boards.
Using this Wiki
We use the same software as Wikipedia for maintaining this page. We encourage you to make additions and corrections where you see fit. We found the following links to be helpful when learning the syntax of editing a page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:How_to_edit_a_page
Working with Tables:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Table
