LucyXpher

This is incredible! Amazing job with the the graphics and I love how easy this is to read! Great job!

This is a really cool graphic idea using the logo as your backdrop!

Love it

Great writeup! I hope you're wrong about the prediction though It's been too long for Halifax...

That's fair, thanks for clarifying! I know you didn't say that people needed to max earn-- I think you did say 8-10 TPE per week in your post originally. I think we do also need to be careful comparing first gens to recreates like yourself, Leandro and Jacob. I'm pretty sure Leandro has the record for the most TPE earned by a first gen player, Jacob is 2nd on the all time list, and you're 10th all time (honestly impressive). My point being that most players won't have anywhere near that kind of drive to earn. Also, factors like the timing of joining the league to maximize what you can earn in your first season, not to mention the time it takes for most people to figure it all out. I wish I had known some of that when I joined since I was almost 100 TPE behind the players who were drafted 1st and 2nd in my draft season, and I max earned every week since I created. It's certainly doable to clear the M in one season, but I don't think that's a reasonable benchmark or expectation to have for players or GMs-- to say nothing about preparing them for the next level. Players learn at a different pace, even with a GM who is communicating well with them. I've had some experience teaching music and I've had a similar experience there. It's unreasonable to expect students to make progress at the same rate because there are so many factors involved with that-- family life, time for practice, interest, aptitude, other commitments, etc... A good teacher will try to understand these things and modify expecations and methods to accomodate those differences-- without selling the student short, of course. You're right, nobody joins to do the bare minimum, but alot of people join on a whim without realizing what's involved and it takes time to build up the habit and set aside time to write a media spot for example, or learn everything about claiming, fantasy zone, VHFL, etc... It's alot to take in and I think that's easy to forget once we understand it. I really don't think we should underestimate that. I mean, I had players that wrote media spots or created graphics last season and were forgetting to click the practice button the same week-- but it happens when somebody is learning and it can be overwhelming. Another observation I had was the better the team performed in the sims, the more willing players were to try something new to earn TPE. As a GM I could use our success as a motivator. If the team is struggling to win and getting blown out every game for a 5 week season, I think it'd be pretty easy to fall off with earning, which is why I think it's important for GMs to build balanced teams with a variety of earners and experience levels-- some high end, some that might take longer to develop, and maybe the odd clicker. I don't think we can brush success at this level away as insignificant because even if it doesn't matter to the GM whose main objective is development and teaching, it can matter very much to the players whose learning and development is affected by it. Anyway, I appreciate where you're coming from and it's obvious to me you want to do right by first gens, so I have no issue with that whatsoever, even if I don't completely agree with some of the points. One point I really get stuck on is the suggestion that mediocre GMs win. It's just not true. It's possible to fluke your way to a league win if you've got simon in your back pocket, but by and large, I think the GMs who win are not mediocre at all and I'm not sure I like the idea of throwing shade at our peers who have sim success. I mean that's what everyone's here for-- just like nobody joins to do the bare minimum, nobody joins to lose.

I don’t know what I was expecting based on your title, but it wasn’t this

Beautiful work! AND using my favorite player of all time!

I’m so glad you’re on our Riga now

I completely understand your point about a good VHLM GMs main priority being development, but I strongly disagree with the premise that mediocre GMs win. In my opinion, the best GMs will find a way to do both— and that winning AND development are absolutely not mutually exclusive. If a GMs priority is developing players and teaching them about the league, should they never draft recreates then? But instead prioritize developing first gens completely? What about the experience a good recreate can bring to a locker room? I know in my first season as a player, that locker room leader was @crstats23– who, by the way, is not a max earner every single week, but has still created very effective players by remaining consistent and is a great presence in the locker room. Which leads me to my next point, you don’t need to be a max earner to get max enjoyment out of the VHL. For some people, they just don’t have time for that with life, but still enjoy the community of the league and the fun of checking sims daily. There’s nothing wrong with clicking welfare, and it’s certainly nothing to be ashamed of. If the best way for a player to enjoy the league is to click practice and welfare every week, then I say good for them! As an M GM, I’d certainly try to encourage them to try other things like press conferences, media spots/graphics, and trivia, because I enjoy those things and I think they can enhance the experience. But if those things create too much stress for a player, or they try to do more than they’re ready to take on each week, they could easily drop off or burn out. I think the best M GM will try to understand where each player is at and what they’re reasonably capable of doing week to week, with the main priority not necessarily being development in terms of sheer TPE earning, but teaching the league and helping players have fun. Fun should be the main priority, always— the VHL is not a job. Oh, and one of the most fun things you can do is win! I think, actually, the players on my roster that care most about winning are the first gens who, over the past season, have learned the system gradually and are now starting to flourish. You suggested that if a GM has a lot of returning players, they’re likely not doing enough for development— please correct me if I’ve misunderstood, but I strongly disagree with that premise. The players I’m personally most proud of are my returning players who started last season with 50-65 TPE and are now almost completely capped. They’ve learned how to earn weekly and consistently and are enjoying the reward of being dominant players in the VHLM after playing most of last season in depth roles. Am I supposed to hurry them along so they can be low-level E players after 1 M season? And it’s not like I haven’t been encouraging them to earn more— their update logs will prove that— but I won’t do so at the expense of their fun. It seems to me that the best/ideal M GM will find a way to balance winning and teaching. I don’t see these as competing interests at all, but actually mutually enriching! Winning is fun and can be a great way to motivate new players to earn and invest more in the league. Getting players earning and having fun will also lend itself to winning. Sure, you might lose players who earn their way out of the M in one season, but then maybe that’s where drafting and scouting have a part to play? Anyways, have this as habit of writing too much sometimes and I need to stop.. I do appreciate this style of media spot though as it’s definitely thought provoking and an opportunity to reflect on the role we share as M GMs, so thank you for that! I’d be happy to chat more, but if I misunderstood or misinterpreted any of your points, please let me know, that was not my intention!

I will absolutely take these final standings! Here’s hoping you’re the Nostradamus of the VHLM

Your graphics keep getting better and better! This one is just gorgeous!

This is awesome! I love seeing great pieces about a player with creative detail like this! Amazing job! It’ll be fun to watch how your player develops

That’s soo cool! Amazing work! If I saw this ad I would 100% be joining immediately

Thank you! And of course! It wouldn't be right without you btw we should write some more crazy stuff...

Welcome from YouTube! That’s how I found this place too!

Ethan, this is absolutely amazing! I said it to you before, but I'm saying it again now because it's true, this is legitimately one of the best pieces of writing I've read on this forum! The way you write dialogue, the playfulness of your player with the interviewer, the way your characters are given life, and most especially, the important subject matter you take on makes this a piece no one should miss. And your graphic for the cover is soooo good! I can't tell you enough how much I enjoyed reading this and how important it is, and I'm so glad I could contribute! You're incredible, Ethan!

I’m happy to be dumb when I get answers like this I had no idea about the planes, but I love Bohemian Rhapsody so it’s fun to put that together! Thanks for explaining it to me, it totally makes sense now!

I’m not sure I understand

Thanks for the trade talks @Nathan_8 and I hope this deal works well for the Hounds going forward! @Brewguy7 Its been a pleasure having you with the 21st to start this season and you played lights out for us! Wishing you all the best with Mississauga and hope this trade gets you more starts! @Starchychaff Can’t wait to have you join the 21st and I think you’ll fit in amazing with our group!

I enjoyed the heck out of this episode! But seriously, always a fun listen and glad to see @ethanjaeda (Robin Sierra) getting their flowers! P.S. Miami is going down

Loved this episode! I appreciate the Halifax shoutout (Miami rivalry notwithstanding) I also thought @Royski made a great point about M locker rooms not having the benefit of establishing a culture and identity with players only being there for 1-2 seasons. If that could be extended to 3 somehow, maybe raising the cap to 300, it would go a long way with building player relationships and community at that level. Also, I’m gonna double down on that @ethanjaeda Robin Sierra shoutout! They’ve been absolutely unreal for Halifax so far and they deserve every bit of success so far this season. Great podcast, and I love what you guys are doing for building excitement around 1st gens and players who may not always get the spotlight. Already looking forward to the next one!

Welcome to the VHL!

Logo by @ethanjaeda Just so it's clear and nobody gets the wrong idea, the SuperSailor weekly award is not all about points... but scoring 34 points in 14 games to start the season certainly doesn't hurt your case. In the first week of Season 94, the Halifax 21st have jumped out to a 12-2-0 record with huge contributions from every player up and down the lineup. It's truly been a team affair to start the season with seven of the team's nine skaters above a point-per-game and every skater on the roster at or above a +/- rating of +10. Both goalies have been stellar as well. Second season starter, Jon Webber III, holds an 8-2-0 start record with a .911 SV% and a 1.69 GAA, good for second in the league behind the 21st's own Lane Ellis who has a perfect win record in 4 starts, a .921 SV%, and a 1.25 GAA. Webber sits tied for the league lead with 3 shutouts in his 10 starts, while Ellis has 1 shutout to his name in 4 games. With a +40 goal differential through 14 games, the 21st lead the league by some margin in that respect while sitting 1st in the Eastern Conference and 2nd overall. So yes, while the SuperSailor award recognizes an individual, nobody carries a team on their own and the whole Halifax squad has been on fire to start the season! With 34 points in 14 games, though, and leading the team in scoring by 9 points, Robin Sierra has been lights out! Sierra's 18 goals and 34 points are good for 1st in the VHLM, and 16 assists is good for 4th overall. But Sierra's contributions go beyond the sims. This past week, @ethanjaeda also created a jersey set to commemorate Pride Month and posted them in the jersey channel of the 21st server. Not only that, they also created the amazing Pride colored version of the Halifax 21st logo at the top of this post! In their second season in Halifax, Ethan has been a consistent earner ever since their player was signed as a free agent, going undrafted in S93. Ethan has also been a regular contributor in the locker room-- especially in a creative way as they have a special talent for graphics. When I chat with Ethan every week, they're always so prompt to respond and enthusiastic to continue building and contributing to the team. That their player is leading the league after the first week of the season is a well deserved reward for all their effort and positivity over the past season and I can't wait to see what Robin Sierra can do the rest of the way! Congratulations to Robin Sierra on an incredible week and being named the first SuperSailor of Season 94! ༻❁༺

This is amazing! Thanks so much for putting these together!

Thank you!