First Gens, First Gens everywhere!

[Shindigs 1,771]

I mean I am technically a first gen, so I could just write this about myself and my own experience. But that would be pretty boring, all things considered. Most because with where I am in the league right now I don't really "feel" like a first gen anymore. I barely have since my first season or two, honestly. So I'll instead focus on some of the more memorable experiences I've had working with other first gens. In more or less chronological order.

 

S81 Storylines

The first major experiences I had with first gens was on S81 Team Clue in the JST. Where our team had members like @eagle_3450 who had just joined and didn't know how to earn TPE yet, and now he's on London. So I suppose his career has been all downhill from there #blameDil (unlucky). But also @LanerDUSTwho later went on to win a cup with Vegas with me as GM. So that was a fun little storyline. The biggest rollercoaster of emotions from that team however, was easily @ToooSaucey. I decided to leave a goalie for last in my draft strategy and he was my choice. A user with a tonne of potential that simply hadn't been taught how to do anything, but was a great member and great at making graphics. I proceeded to teach him the ways and he transitioned into max earning and being a beast, but not too long after he changed jobs. Meaning that he lost his work PC that he had Photoshop on, and was working hellish hours while also attending college at the same time. Meaning he simply didn't have any time for the VHL anymore. But he was the first member to show me that doing what lead to most my success with Vegas was actually possible, and that with some personal touch, a lot of members have it in them to earn a whole lot more than they currently are.

 

S82 Storylines

The season after I picked up my gig as AGM under @FrostBeard in Beardislava. Where I continued to work with first gens, most notably @Scurvy who I still talk to regularly about build stuff and just general career planning for depreciation and such. A great guy, and the user behind the player who is the reason Bo Johansson will never be considered for "biggest steal" in the S82 draft. As this absolute legend fell all the way to 26th OA in that draft, despite being the most successful dman in that draft so far, and one of the highest TPE players in the class. I had hoped to draft him in the JST too, but barely missed out. So being able to draft him with Frosty in Bratislava was great, and I've been so happy for all the success he's had in Warsaw. Which speaking of Warsaw, @dlamb basically just looked at Bratislava's draft S82 and said "yoink, mine now!" by draft the same 2 players we did by also picking up @Girts who was the other more-or-less first gen I worked with in Bratislava. Now I believe Girts has been a member on the site for a very, very long time. But this player was his first. Though I could be misremembering that. Either way, as a forum only player (at least at the time) we had quite the PM thread going. Ending at around 120 messages IIRC. Great guy and again someone that's so deserving of the massive success his player is finally starting to see. He's been cursed with some of the worst S% numbers I've ever seen on a well built player during the earlier parts of his career. So it's about time that monkey came off his shoulder.

 

S83/84 Storylines

That brings us to my Vegas GM era and all the players I worked with. Standouts include @Blakemac22 who stepped up big time for us in the VHLM and picked up his earning a lot to make his way to the VHL proper. @TopTiddee2 who we drafted in the 3rd round only to have him go on and become our AGM as well as a max earner for basically all of his time with Vegas. IRL has gotten much busier for him since and his earning has suffered as a result. But hopefully thing will smooth out and he'll get back to the kind of earning he's shown himself capable of. Fellow Vegas alumni of that same draft class @RileyL is someone that really went above and beyond having also been picked in the 3rd round, with the very next pick. Never a max earner, but possibly one of the most consistent earners I've ever worked with. Those 10 capped a week are as close to a given as it can get, and bonus uncapped opportunities will see Riley do PTs to claim them as well. A massive pickup for Calgary in that draft and looking forward to seeing what arguably the best Power Forward the VHLM has seen in the Hybrid era will do at the VHL level.

 

S85 Storylines

And from my final class with Vegas we have another couple legend that stand out. @VattghernCZ a player who was much overlooked in the draft. Letting me pick him up in the 4th round (partially because his player name doesn't really inspire trust) only to quickly transition into max earning and looking like he's going to be an absolute legend for Vancouver at the VHL level as soon as next season. A great guy in the LR and a bit of a Wann Kerr on the ice. The other standout first gen from that same class, who I picked in the 2nd round due to the massive dman shortage that season is @Bobcat who for a while was more or less max earning, but primarily does Welfare+. Nowhere near as explosive in his earning as Vattghern has been, but still a rock solid and quite consistent earner that makes good use of FZ for some extra TPE income. Like just about all successful Vegas players from my period at the helm, he's also ended up on Vancouver. Because @Frank losing to Vegas in the finals gave such PTSD he's just decided to draft all our players. "If you can't beat the join them" in full effect, basically.  As much as it annoys me that Bo will end up playing against a team that's built primarily on my old players from Vegas. It's still good that they ended up in a good spot, since Frank is a great GM and there's very few places I'd rather see them go, realistically.

 

Unaffiliated, But still awesome

Now there are also some other first gens I've ended up having a lot of impact on despite not having them ever play on my team. @Thunder I've obviously shared a LR with somewhat since I was around Vegas LR even before I was GM there, at the same time he played there. But mostly it's him being @Scurvy's IRL friend that lead to him coming to me for a lot of help with various things throughout his career. And he's a great guy, so I've thoroughly enjoyed helping him out with all those things. The other standout in this category is @aimkin who I just barely failed to draft, as they went to SSK 3 picks before where I was going to take them. We had a really good draft interview and clicked so I just kept helping them as if they were on my team throughout that pretty rough SSK season, and though our DMing has calmed down of late. We still talk every now and again, especially when they have questions about how something works. Or end up with a particularly evil trivia question. Another great person who I wish nothing but the best for (despite how impossible playing for London makes that).

 

Those other cool people (and Cole)

Now there have been a lot of other impactful first gens around me #blamecole comes to mind, Lean the Frog and "fake" first gen Jacob. Since he kind of had a glow up with his 2nd player to the point he's like a whole different member now (multi confirmed). But in all those cases they have just been legend in the own right, I haven't really had any part in it. Other than spurring some of them on to earn more, not actively, but just by setting a high target that at least one of them has mentioned setting their goal as trying to catch Bo. Which I mean I'll take it, if I can passively help motivate others without even doing anything. That's a win/win in my book. Even though Jacob is annoyingly close to me in projected career TPE. Which may mean that if Bo sets the TPE career record, and he most likely will, then Jacob may very well take it the season after. That'd be kind of a bummer, but it is what it is. And besides, OD will probably just take it with The Frenchman a few seasons later anyways, since he has max carryover+ideal recreate time to go with also fully max earning.

 

I probably also forgot someone, and if I did it's a 50/50 if it's cause my memory is shit or because I didn't realize you were a first gen to begin with. Either way, I've hit 1500 words now. So I'm done and no one else is getting included, sorry!

 

1500+ Words Claiming for 3 weeks

[badcolethetitan 920]

#BlameCole

[leandrofg 1,156]

37 minutes ago, badcolethetitan said:

#BlameCole

 

I might just get in on the theme week fun, just to #BlameCole, that's for sure!

[VattghernCZ 972]

Wann Kerr is a shitpost with a stick, all 69 inches of him. Gotta work hard to have him leave his mark on the Wolves and the VHL, breaking a franchise record or winning an individual teophy would be an ultimate win. Maybe then I'll take my second gen player seriously lol.

 

I wouldn't be a max earner if it wasn't for your mentorship anyway, and for the guys streaming and commenting S85 VHLM draft saying something in the lines of "imagine someone with a name like this becoming an all time great, a hall of famer, and it would just say Wann Kerr".

 

 

[Aimee 1,119]

You had the sole impact of keeping me around the VHL with your mentoring and for that I will forever be grateful. 

[eagle_3450 278]

Shin you forgot to mention that I wouldn't leave you alone for 3 months after joining

[Shindigs 1,771]

Just now, eagle_3450 said:

Shin you forgot to mention that I wouldn't leave you alone for 3 months after joining

Only 3 months? 

[eagle_3450 278]

1 minute ago, Shindigs said:

Only 3 months? 

Okay fine, like the entire time I've been here except recently because I got sick and really busy

[Shindigs 1,771]

Just now, eagle_3450 said:

Okay fine, like the entire time I've been here except recently because I got sick and really busy

This does sound more familiar. Hope you get better soon.

[Daniel Janser 2,165]

1 hour ago, Shindigs said:

Only 3 months? 

that relates to the Finubacci relativity to time 

 

[Girts 1,053]

You were a huge help to me in many ways and I can't thank you enough for all the time and messages! Learned a ton, especially from all your amazing charts! 

[Shindigs 1,771]

Claim 2/3 Week Ending 12/18

[Shindigs 1,771]

Claim 3/3 Week Ending 12/25