The Anatomy of a Good Faction Wars Team -- Part Two

II. Handling the Book

"...all the planning in the world doesn't help you know what's going to happen on TV." - Greg Jovi, eGo Busters GM

The roster deadline comes quick during a Faction Wars week. A general manager has seven spots (eight, counting Sudden Death) that need filled by members of his team. Each spot is worth a certain amount of points, ranging from one point (Opener) to five points (Main Event); the total number of points obtainable is 19. The GM's goal is to organize his roster in such a way that it outperforms his opponent's roster in order to gain 10 or more points (barring ties).

The following are the three most basic (and effective) strategies on winning:

1. Heavyweight Hitters

"You book your best guys in the top of the card and your worst in the lower card and hope they can match up toe-to-toe with your opponents line up." - Greg Jovi, eGo Busters GM

With this strategy, a team's best player serves as the Main Event player. The next two best players make up the Tag Team. Players four, five, and six fill the Mid-Card, while the GM's seventh best player is the Opener. Should two teams use this same strategy, all it comes down to is which roster performs better on television.

Two heavyweights, middle of the ring, duking it out. No bobs, no weaves. No butterflies, no bees. Just a lot of haymakers.

Main Event: Triple H (5)
Tag Team: Big Show & Eric Bischoff (4)
Mid-Card #1: Kevin Nash (3)
Mid-Card #2: Jeff Jarrett
Mid-Card #3: Hernandez
Opener: Kane

Total Points Earned (if Wins): 12

The above is an example of an eGo Busters heavyweight hitter roster. Based on whatever information provided, Jovi booked this roster under the impression Triple H, Big Show, and Eric Bischoff were going to have great weeks. If used effectively, the eGo Busters would score 9 points, with Kevin Nash's performance being the leading candidate to put Jovi's team over the top.

2. Undercard Sweep

After the first few weeks of the inaugural Faction Wars season, GMs realized there was more than one way to win a match, leading to the development of the complete antithesis of the heavyweight hitters roster: the undercard sweep. With this strategy, a GM anticipates his opponent booking a heavyweight hitter, and counteracts that by playing his best players in the Mid-Cards. If the eGo Busters chose to use the same seven players above, but in an undercard sweep scenario, it would look like this:

Main Event: Kane
Tag Team: Jeff Jarrett & Hernandez
Mid-Card #1: Triple H (3)
Mid-Card #2: Eric Bischoff (3)
Mid-Card #3: Big Show (3)
Opener: Kevin Nash (1)


Total Points Earned (if Wins): 10

Behind the power of Triple H, Eric Bischoff, and the Big Show, the eGo Busters would gain 9 points through the Mid-Cards. Under the same assumption from above, Jovi would then play Kevin Nash in the Opener.

The undercard sweep strategy is often viewed as "throwing the Main Event," with little thought given to the dynamics of playing from the bottom-up in what many consider a top-down game.

"...you can surprise your opponent and your big guns can cream his mid-carders. Obviously, we all have our own strategies, but I think 90% of the time they are based around those two concepts. And most of the time, I think straying from just the simple 'best guys in order' strategy can very easily lead to over thinking the game." - Greg Jovi, eGo Busters GM

3. Easy Ten-Spot

The third most effective strategy is a minor variation on the heavyweight hitters. If a general manager feels as though his best players can't be beat, he may think a top-down approach is best - so he books his top three players in the Main Event and Tag Team.

However, his fourth best player is an iffey play. The GM is concerned that he may not put up the points needed to take a Mid-Card, but could certainly handle the Opener slot, so he plays him there. This is an often under-utilized tactic that could potentially earn a GM the 10 points necessary, while avoiding the muddy waters of the Mid-Card. The eGo Busters easy ten-spot roster would be as follows:

Main Event: Triple H (5)
Tag Team: Big Show & Eric Bischoff (4)
Mid-Card #1: Kane
Mid-Card #2: Jeff Jarrett
Mid-Card #3: Hernandez
Opener: Kevin Nash (1)


Total Points Earned (if Wins): 10

Ultimately, all three strategies rely on the strength of play from Triple H, Big Show, Eric Bischoff, and Kevin Nash. Should they perform at their expected peak level, the eGo Busters would more than likely win using any of the above strategies.

4. Other

"My booking philosophy is to get inside the head of my opponent, figuratively speaking of course, and try to think how they will book that given week, and come up with a counter-strategy for how to book my talent." - Walt Florio, former GM of Stacy's Freak

There are other strategies being practiced throughout Faction Wars; they are not as prevelent, however. One such strategy is the 4-3-3. In the 4-3-3, a GM looks to win the 10 points needed by way of the Tag Team slot and two Mid-Card slots.

"The 4-3-3 should probably get more looks than it does. It's basically a combination of the top two strats: there's the top-down power aspect of the heavyweight hitters, but it's like an undercard sweep since all the power is ratcheted down one spot on the card. I think it doesn't get applied very often because the Mid-Cards are probably the toughest spots to book." - Jason Coellner, The !@#$ers GM

Another consideration made when booking a roster is the Tag Team slot. Two wrestlers, as opposed to one. Walt Florio has developed what he calls the Feast or Famine strategy when it comes to Tag Teams: pair two wrestlers in that spot that could either do really well...or really poor. If they both do well, it earns a GM 4 points. If they both do poorly, then the bright side is this - a GM only loses 4 points, as opposed to 6 (if the GM played them in separate Mid-Cards, for example).

"I don't mind sharing ideas with any other GM that wants to ask because I have confidence in my ability as a GM that I will win even with giving away some of my secrets." - Walt Florio, former GM of Stacy's Freak

Booking is the meat and potatoes of Faction Wars. With fifteen weeks plus playoffs, a team cannot survive on talent alone. A general manager needs to be able to play that talent in positions that will benefit his team the most. Some weeks, a GM feels invincible and goes with the heavyweight hitter. Other weeks, he may see chinks in his opponent's armor that calls for an undercard sweep. And then there are times when a general manager has no idea what will happen on television that week, so he goes out on a limb and tries the 4-3-3.