HFL Rulebook (v1.0)

ThisHero 8/22/2010, 11:18 pm

The HFL is an online franchise for users originally from Tracy / the bay area. As a football simulation league, we strive to eliminate cheeseball so our league resembles the NFL as much as possible. Take the time to familiarize yourself with our rules and set up.

(1) NFL SIMULATION: Realistic play is required in the HFL. What does this mean?

No fake punt/FG formations on non-4th downs.
No "rocket-jump" user-catching.
Play-action on 3 & 7 or longer is not allowed.
You may not quit & start over if losing to the CPU.
No DESIGNED nano-blitzes. Your team may accidentally nano, but do not nano by design.
Varied play-calling is a must. Explore and use your playbook, not just a few plays!
You must punt on 4th down unless you PASS the 50 yard line. Doesn't apply if you're behind in the 4th.

General Manager Rules: GM Rules that limit unsporting behavior not related to gameplay.

You may NOT sign a free agent in the off-season and trade him in the same year.
Salary Cap points are NOT tradable.
No more than three trades per season.
Post any transactions in the "Trade History" forum. They act as a receipt to fall back on in case there is a dispute over points, draft picks, or trades. Post receipts to keep from being "screwed" by others.

(2) GAMEPLAY SETTINGS: These are the gameplay settings in use for the HFL.

Difficulty: All-Pro / All-Madden for the playoffs.
Accelerated Clock: 20 seconds.
Time: 8 minute quarters.
Injuries/Fatigue/Weather: ON.
Uniforms: Home team chooses uniform colors.

(3) TIMELINE: Each week advances every two days. Contact future opponents to settle on a time to play!

(4) TRADES: Week 6 is the trade deadline. First-year users must clear all trades with the commissioner. Once you have logged a full season in the HFL you are free to trade on your own.

(5) ANNUAL NFL ROOKIE DRAFT: There is a rookie draft at the end of every season. The Draft is always the first Friday (at 7:00 PM) following the end of free agency. If you elect to trade a draft pick(s) away, the person who "owns" your draft pick will instruct you to draft the player of their choice. You are advised to post trades involving draft picks on these message boards.

(6) FREE AGENCY: You begin each season with 100 points with which to spend on free agents. This is your salary cap. You may INSTANTLY sign THREE PLAYERS rated 59 OVR (or below) for FREE at any time. Players are free-agent eligible under two conditions:

A FIVE year veteran rated 70 OVR or higher is considered a "restricted" free agent, meaning there is a 1-in-6 (16%) chance he will enter free agency at the end of the season.
A SIX year veteran (or older) rated 70 OVR or higher is considered an "unrestricted" free agent, meaning there is a 2-in-6 (33%) chance he will enter free agency at the end of the season.

There are two periods to sign free agents. "In-season" free agency, which takes place between Week 1 and the Super Bowl, and "Off-season" free agency, which takes place after the Super Bowl and before the new season. Older players in free agency may regress / retire, while young free agents may progress after you sign them. Beware: If you sign a player who retires after free agency, you will not be compensated.

» RELEASING PLAYERS You can free up FIVE salary cap points with each player you voluntarily release who is rated 80 OVR or above—Kickers/Punters excluded. You may go above 100 salary cap points.

» HOMETOWN DISCOUNT In order to help users keep their team together, we've added a hometown discount perk. This means that any players who were ORIGINALLY on your roster or who you personally drafted are now easier to re-sign. If one of your players opts for free agency, any bid by another team must be ten points more than your offer. So if you offer a player 20 points, someone else would have to offer 30 points, and so forth. It also means that you can blockbuster your own hometown discount players for only 70 points.

» IN-SEASON FREE AGENCY is a grossly inefficient way to build your team, though it may be necessary to add one more piece or two for a Super Bowl run, or to plug a glaring hole in the middle of the season. There is a (high) fixed cost to sign players during the season. It is highly recommended you only sign players 59 OVR (practice squad players) and below during the season in order to save your points for "off-season" free agency. The cost per player signed during the season are as follows:

80+ OVR = 45 points
70-79 OVR = 30 points
60-69 OVR = 15 points

59 OVR & Below = FREE

» OFF-SEASON FREE AGENCY is a moderately efficient way to build your team at the end of every season. Off-season free agency allows you to land an impact player(s) & competent / fringe starter(s). Off-season free agency is a more efficient way to spend your salary cap points because you can bid auction style on any player in the free agent pool. A bid on a player 80 OVR and above begins at ten points. Bidding on a player between 60 OVR & 79 OVR begins at one point. You may instantly sign any player 59 OVR & below instantly. The user offering a player the most points at the end of free agency signs that free-agent. Because most players signed in free agency are veterans, they will almost certainly be eligible for free agency the following season.

» THE DRAFT is the most efficient way to build your team because draft picks remain on your team for FOUR years before becoming free agency eligible. Teams that draft well are able to spend more points on star free agents in the off-season and better retain their own players, making draft picks the most forgiving on your salary cap. You can also realistically expect draft picks to remain with your team for six seasons because five year veterans only have a 16% chance of entering free agency. Plus, all draft picks you draft are "hometown discount" eligible. The only downside to draft picks are their initial skill levels: they enter the league raw, though they gain skill rapidly. The top ten overall picks in the draft are 20 points — all others are free.

» THE FRANCHISE TAG allows you to keep one player on your team who opts for free agency. This is a handy tool to use on a player who may command a lot of points in free agency.

» BLOCKBUSTER CONTRACT If an owner offers a free agent 80 salary cap points during off-season free agency — 70 for a hometown discount player — bidding will cease and the free agent will instantly sign with that team. As with everything, there are advantages and disadvantages to this approach.

Advantages: (1) If you covet a player in free agency, signing that player to a blockbuster contract guarantees they will be on your team. (2) Players signed to a blockbuster contract are guaranteed to remain on your team for TWO years before becoming eligible for free agency.
Disadvantages: (1) Signing a player to a blockbuster contract hampers your ability to sign other players during free agency. You'll likely be stuck filling out your roster with draft picks and fringe-talent. (2) You may NOT trade a player who signs a blockbuster contract to another team in their first year.

(7) TEAMS: HFL teams as of September 1st, 2010.

NFC

(East)
New York Giants - (Computer/Open)
Philadelphia Eagles - (xxURDONExx)
Washington Redskins - (Computer/Open)
Dallas Cowboys - (xBONZAIx)

(North)
Minnesota Vikings - (TurkishThugg)
Chicago Bears - (Computer/Open)
Green Bay Packers - (Captan Anarcy)
Detroit Lions - (BigTime Angel)

(South)
Atlanta Falcons - (Computer/Open)
Carolina Panthers - (Computer/Open)
New Orleans Saints - (OttomanTurk209)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers - (Ed Grenade)

(West)
San Francisco 49ers - (ThisHero)
Los Angeles Rams - (Computer/Open)
Seattle Seahawks - (Computer/Open)
Arizona Cardinals - (AsianWariorKing)

AFC

(East)
Boston Patriots - (Get x Fiinky)
New Jersey Jets - (MJT6393)
Buffalo Bills - (TorVic23)
Miami Dolphins - (xSuspect209x)

(North)
Cleveland Browns - (WetBandit209)
Baltimore Ravens - (Chris The Tip)
Pittsburgh Steelers - (EasyD33zy)
Cincinnati Bengals - (SavBotJ)

(South)
Tennessee Titans - (KillNu25)
Indianapolis Colts - (KressSideRider)
Jacksonville Jaguars - (Computer/Open)
Houston Texans - (FavreFrmSobr)

(West)
San Diego Chargers - (RonnieDodge)
Kansas City Chiefs - (Compuer/Open)
Oakland Raiders - (HellaGnarly)
Denver Broncos - (PitchSlicer)