The Cogs - Season 2 Rules and Format

[Morblitz]

The problem is that the Icarus competitive community is (yet again) being treated like it is an extraordinarily large one. It is not. A community the size of dota or league of legends would be able to sustain this substitute rule. Icarus can not.
There are clans that can barely break into the teens in terms of member size, and sometimes other clans may loan members who don't have matches that week out to other new clans that are trying to break into the cogs in order to give them a fair chance at getting going. Subbing isn't an automatic win situation. It introduces a new player into a new crew that they usually haven't spent much time with gelling together as a team. It's a last ditch situation for teams that have to resort to subs. It really isn't the benefit that the rules seem to imply that it is.

There was much precedent of this in the first season, and without that happening, some clans may have ended up as some non-starters because they might not have been able to even play. That would have hurt the cogs as less teams would play, and rules like this will hurt the cogs in the future. Smaller clans are going to have a lot of trouble with this.

Can we stop treating this community like it has the capacity or even need to follow such prohibitive rules?

[Squidslinger Gilder]

The more complex ya make it, the less people want to play it. Honestly I'd rather have another Sky Tournament, cept minus the loadout locking. That was actually fun. Like flying best of 3 series vs best of 1. I'm sure others share that feeling as well. Putting everything riding on 1 match and then shit hits the fan just really craps on morale.

Yeah the community is not large enough or really healthy enough yet to go overboard. The Spire tourney is a great example right now of something going overboard. We do have folks flying in it but I don't have any desire to, plus the time is bad for me.

[Skrimskraw]

I dont see why such substitute rules needs to be applied unto an event that focuses on scrimmages without end prizes.

[RomanKar]

Just another reason why this overly complicated, prohibitive system called the Cogs needs to be scrapped in favor of something more understandable to the player and anyone who wants to follow the competitive scene.  Again, another rule that is far more detrimental to newer teams.

I, personally, was looking forward to getting into the Cogs.  We played one capture point match, and now have to wait for another shot.  Yes, we should have practiced more.  Yes, we could have been better prepared.  Now there is this sub locking thing.  It's all very discouraging for me, and I'm sure, other newer players in less established Clans.

As it stands, there is no avenue for consistent competitive play.  No way to even try to get better at competitive play (practice is good and all, but nothing can accurately simulate "game time" conditions).

I hate to be the person who complains and does little to actually help, but I don't believe I have the standing, experience, or knowledge to come up with or even try and run a different or better system. 

At this point, I really don't even care about prizes, or championships, or rankings, or any of that.  What I would like to see is just some competitive matches that I can play in.  I don't even care if they are broadcasted or not. 

Hell, maybe I will come up with something.  Something simple.  Something enjoyable.  Something everyone can participate in without all these needless restrictions.

[Sammy B. T.]

Theoretically there is still an open spot to sign up for this Saturday, I don't know if there is a cutoff.

Basically the sub thing hurts very small clans, that barely have 8 as they now functionally need 11 or 12 or it hurts the big ones like the Ducks who now instead of using about 28 people (24 in 3 teams and a pool of 4 subs) to now needing 36 so that each team has subs.

[RomanKar]

Honestly, Sammy, the Falconeers need to get their shtuff together to be a bit more competitive, but I fear some of the recent experiences (not all of it being the Cogs fault) have lessened our enthusiasm.  I will see about our interest, availability, and whether we can still get in.

[-Muse- Cullen]

Failure to provide Swallow with a team roster a day before the match via Steam or Skype will lead to an automatic forfeit for that match. This rule is still in place. Do not forget it.

The substitution rule is being looked in to at the moment and may be modified- the goal of changing the rule is to lower its abuse that we've seen in the past; its not simply trying to be there to be annoying . For the sake of this next coming match, substitutes will not be locked onto a team while we figure out a reworded solution that mitigates your worries. Its difficult to figure out a way to decrease sub abuse and increase the availability for substitutions, so have patience.

[N-Sunderland]

substitutes will not be locked onto a team while we figure out a reworded solution that mitigates your worries

Thank you very much. But I'm a little bugged by this...

changing the rule is to lower its abuse that we've seen in the past

I have not seen anything that could possibly qualify as "abuse" of substitute rules at any point in the Cogs.

[RomanKar]

I did not mean to infer that the rules were being made with the intent of being annoying or prohibitive.  I am sure it is just an unforeseen byproduct of trying to solve another problem.  However, the result is practically the same.

[Veyka]

<snip>
The substitution rule is being looked in to at the moment and may be modified- the goal of changing the rule is to lower its abuse that we've seen in the past;<snip>

What abuse? I have not been around as long as some, but I have been playing in the cogs since week 1 or 2 or the first season, and I can't think of one single time anyone used a sub for any reason other than not having someone else.

[-Muse- Cullen]

The substitution rule has been changed. I'll be keeping track of what goes on, so hopefully this'll work out well.

A team must make its roster with a maximum of 4 substitutes a day before the match. A player is only allowed to play on one team per week. If the player is on the roster as a substitute, but does not play, then the player can be a possible substitute for another match. However, if the player does play in a match, then they cannot substitute in another regardless of whether they are on the substitute roster or not.

[N-Sunderland]

Thank you so, so much for the new rule, Cullen!

[RearAdmiralZill]

Will the Cog's matches count for points in the new competitive system by default? Don't think it's been specified yet.

[Captain Smollett]

However, if the player does play in a match, then they cannot substitute in another regardless of whether they are on the substitute roster or not.

Wait do you mean that if the player subs for a match they can't play for another team all weak but can still play matches with the team they subbed for or that if they sub in a match that's the only match they can play all week.  The sentence structure is ambiguous.

[N-Sunderland]

It's just saying that in any given week, if a player plays on team x, then they can't sub on to team y regardless of whether they're on team y's sub roster or not.