2010 Rule changes

[tomrcole]

Hello Guys,

After our first year with the format I would like to hear what you would like to see different with the rules and format. One of the things we are looking at changing is the team size. We found that 11 guys are really hard for most teams to fill so we would like to cut the size down. I am thinking to 9 or 8 but would like to hear your thoughts

[Whiskey]

I think smaller team sizes should def. bring in more teams. Might even be easier for some that are currently playing to field 2 or more in some cases. I wouldn't mind an 8 man team but would that be 7+1 or 8+1? I kind of like the 7+1 personally as it just goes back to the ease of filling up a team.

One thing not really a rule change more of a scheduling thing would be to ensure every team in the same division play the same teams. As finals go by score regardless of who you play I would think it would be only fair to match up against the exact same teams as the same teams in your division. So if an Open team A plays Tactical Team B then Open Team B should also have to play Tactical Team B instead of Skills team A. This will ensure that all the teams played the same caliber players as their rivals in their division.

I imagine you will also have to put in a rule about the .50 cal rounds. No big deal, they will be allowed but will have to modify the Hopper list.

I would also like to see a clarification on if teams are allowed to set or "Stage" items inside of the field of play. I know we got conflicting answers on one game about being able to set a box our with extra pods and an air tank as an active player can not leave the field of play or receive gear from dead players. So any clarification would be good.

Other than that this league was run really really well! The reffing at both of the events I attended were some of the best I have ever seen! Keep up the good work and I can't wait for 2010!

[Warchild]

My thoughts are pretty much are in line with Whiskey's. Having spent the last 3 years trying to put together 10 man squads for woodsball tournaments, I would welcome smaller team sizes. I would say a 7+1 would work well. Its much easier to get 7 people to play an event. Many PSP & USPL teams will already have 7 -8 man rosters and many seem to be itching to get into the woods. I am starting to realize that a lot scenario teams are just not interested in tournament play.

I would like to see a regional and/or national/global ranking system put in place. It gives teams competing in the league someting to shoot for.

[Woody]

I wouldnt mind seeing smaller teams. It wont take from the amazing play in this league. I would rather see and 8+1 but thats cause I come from a bigger team. .50 paint needs to be allowed and I am sure it will be. I would like to see the ranking system up and running next year. Adds abit to the competition. Though I wouldnt mind seeing this years final standings posted too. I loved the field size at dday, but if a smaller roster is fielded then a smaller field might be in order.

[Hoot {MWB}]

Oh Sir Tom, where to begin....


Nah man it was great. We said it months ago and we still mean it, this format was exactly the type of woodsball we love to participate in. I hope this thing just continues to grow and flourish for you. The Woods need this.

As for suggestions:


01 Keep the site up to date and USE it as a powerful recruiting tool. Before the first tournament this place was hopping, the stories on the main page, concepts, etc. After the first event the entire tournie was posted on the main page, results, stories, etc. After that tournie the amount of info slowly faded away. There was nothing posted on the main page about DDay results that I was aware of. We were bummed to see that. So, if you can, spice this place up and keep someone on it 24/7!

02 Smaller teams: I agree it will draw more teams in, which is a good thing. We have close to 40 guys on our roster, so picking just 11 to play was very difficult. However, with a 8 or 9 man team, this just means we can field two of them, perhaps three! Personally, that's a win-win for us. It gives us another dedicated UWL team to practice against at home. I say go for it.

03 .50 Cal will need to be addressed. I don't know enough about it to give an opinion.

04 Have a FINALS tournament. If there had been one this year, we would have been there with bells on. SPPL does it, and it was a blast. There is just a special feeling of accomplishment to not only be successful during the year, but also at Finals. Heck just to participate in Finals, even if you get dead last is a special feeling. It brings a more legitimate balance to the UWL...a Championship Weekend. Where the best woods teams from all over the country come together and duke it out.

05 If you want to sponsor teams, actually send them packets.

We are looking forward to 2010 Tom. The guys are already talking about next year and the strat planning has begun.

[F3TT]

Good season this year, I had fun at the events I got to go to.

As for changes in the rules, yeah I gotta agree with the team side. I been talking to local scenario teams and its hard to get 10 man teams together and play at a event. 5-8 would help out a lot I think.

Another thing I have heard from players was it was just to hard for them to decided to play a event then go. They had to worry about making sure they had the right hoppers and the right guns and what not. A lot of them don't like the fact they have to buy a hopper just for that event. In this economy they want to save money and that is a thing they will only use for the UWL. I think that maybe since the addition of the new division, that the Open Division should be allowed to rock any hopper and gun they want to use. That would also add a bigger difference between the Tactical and Open Division. Right now the only difference is that Pro's can not play in Tactical.

I would also to see a little more done with the web site. We live in a day and age were everything is done on the net. Having a updated website, is something that will help this league grow. The Stats are also something that will help this league out when its done.

[tomrcole]

Hello Guys,

I know one of our biggest failings was on the web/info side and the recruiting side. Once the season was up and running it was really hard to keep up. Example since Pittsburg 8/29 I have been to Russia, Texas, Brazil, Florida UWL, World cup and I am now in China. I underestimated the amount of time the UWL would take, so we are going to hire someone for 2010 to keep up with the site and info for the players and teams. One thing we are going to add is live score updates via twitter.

My core concerns for the first year were:
1, Make sure the format worked and was enjoyable
2, Have the fields ready to be walked the day before the event
3, having good refs
4, Have fields that were fair and good for woodsball teams.
5, Make sure everyone at the events had a good time!!

Next year we will concentrate on the marketing and info side and we will do a much better job

We have already started meeting with our sponsors for next year and it seems most will come on with the UWL again for 2010. We will also have several new big sponsors for 2010. You guys can help by emailing our sponsors and letting them know you like where we are headed with this.

We will have a championship event. We will allow .50 paint.

We plan on having the schedule out around 11/1

I would like to thank the teams for keeping me excited about the UWL I really enjoy seeing you guys have fun competing at our events.

[F3TT]

For the first year the league was great Tom! I thought I had it ruff just traveling around the states this year for work I don't think I could handle flying around the world like you do!

I like really like what I hear, and I can't wait for the next season to start up. The format is one of the best I played in, and as the owner of the league I can Honestly tell you that it means alot to me that you listen to what your the players want and go out of the way to make them feel like they are at home and very important when there at the events.

I will make sure to email all of the sponsors and let them know how fun the UWL is and how much I think it will grow in the years to come. If there is anything you need feel free to call me, or PM and let me know. I still have some flyers left over that I am going to be handing out at Fulda gap this November, as well as some ones I got from Chuck for the USPL.

It's good to hear whats coming, and its good to know that our input is valued. Be safe on your trip!

[Woody]

Another thing that might bring in more teams would be to have a 5+1 division. These small groups go play a UWL event and of course love it like we all do. Then they go home to thier friends and local fields and come back as a 7+1 or 8+1 team at a later event. Its a win win situation.
I tend to agree with Fett, the open division should be just that open. Have everyone running semi auto. Maybe even give them a bps rating so that nobody has to buy more gear. Then keep that 1 heavy on each team running as hard and as fast as he wants.

[Lewthor]

Suggestions:
Keep the site updated!
List the rules specifically. No vagueness on what loaders can be used, make a list of what can or can't.
I'd like to see divisions cut out entirely. You handicap for firepower already. There were hardly any teams that played in the skills division at any event. What's the point in adding more dilution to the already thin team count? Is it really that scary to play against better teams to need a tactical division? (which is just a restricted version of skills, which was almost empty on it's own)
What about limiting play to 1-battery? In your gun or in your loader you choose. Limits firepower and yet adds some level of strategy. Maybe limit the amount of paint used per team per game too. Also limits firepower and adds strategy.
I like 7+1 for team size.
Here is what I'd like to see: All players except the scout/sniper can use any marker. Only limitation is you're only allowed 1 battery. Electro marker with a shake and bake hopper or mech marker with any electronic loader. That should make all the people with E-grip A5's or TM7/15s happy. 1 case of paint per team per game. Divided up however the team see's fit. That will make the cost of play easier on the wallet and can be planned for ahead of time. X number of games = X number of cases of paint that can be budgeted for ahead of time. Scout/sniper has to use a pump still.
That will limit total firepower to make all styles of play relatively equal. Thus making the need for divisions moot. You can then have finals for the top 4 teams and prizes for the top 3. Winning a division by default seemed pretty lame to me. A season end championship game would rock too!