Fantasy WRC 2014: The (New) Rules

"Dusty Ventures" (dustyventures)
01/06/2014 at 12:00 • Filed to: fantasywrc, rally

The 2014 WRC season is nearly upon us, which means it's time for the return of Oppositelock Fantasy WRC. The new season brings new cars, new drivers, new teams, and a new fantasy structure.

First a quick look back at the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . McNewbie was our own Michèle Mouton in Fantasy WRC, shaming the boys and earning the title for highest points-per-rally average. Unfortunately also like Michèle she fell shy of earning the main title, though she certainly deserved it. Failing to make picks for Monte and Germany cost our lady motorhead and as a result she came up a scant nine points short of co-champions Hermann and Dusty Ventures. After 13 events and 632 points I most definitely did not foresee a tie coming.

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So, for 2014 there were a few changes that needed to be made, both to break any potential ties (though I would gladly co-rule with Hermann again) and to !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! for teh lulz ( !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! ). So throw out your Old Holy Rulebooks of Antioch and take note. Here are thine rules for 2014 (for a simplified "cliff's notes" version skip down to the text alongside the photo below).

•FIRST AND FOREMOST, as there are now four factory teams four is no longer the number thou shalt count to, thou must now pick five drivers for thy roster, plus a driver for thine special stage. Thy special stage driver may be one of your five main drivers or any of the other knights on the entry list
•Once again thou shalt not place two drivers from a single team upon thy roster, except for thine special stage.
•Thine points shall be the sum of the points earned by each of thy drivers (before adding in special stage points). If thy #2 driver finishes third, thou earns third place points (15) for that driver. If thy #4 driver finishes ninth, thou earns ninth place points (2). If thy #1 driver rolls and earns zero, thou should not have chosen Kris Meeke.
•Thine special stage shall now award points to the five fastest drivers, as good King Arthur always desired. Thy points shall be merited as follows: 1st-6pts, 2nd-4pts, 3rd-3pts, 4th-2pts, 5th-1pts. This is to help prevent another tie in the results.
•McNewbie, Lady of the 1000 Lakes, requested bonus points for choosing the winning driver, so she shalt have them. If the first driver on thy roster wins the rally thou shalt be rewarded with three points of bonus. Orlove, thou may ignorest this bit.
•If thou managest to put thy drivers on thy sacred roster in the order they finish thou art clearly a witch. However, as it has been decreed by the supreme coven that burning witches is no longer "politically correct" thou shalt instead be rewarded with ten bonus points. This only applies if all five of your drivers score points.
•Fantasy previews shalt be posted the Monday before the rally six hours after the noon in Briton, the time zone of our Lord. That's 1 PM U.S. Eastern to you philistines and heathens.
•Points shall be posted to the spreadsheet and a review written by Thor's Day after the rally, this is to ensure Sir Dusty of the Most Holy Fantasy Rally Championship can get his required rest.
•LASTLY, BUT IN NO WAY LEASTLY, there shalt be only one championship this year. The average points title is no more, as it failed to cross the bridge of death. Points in the one and only true championship shalt still be cumulative, but only thy nine best events shall be counted. This means if thou forgetest to make picks for an event, or if the Killer Rabbit of Acropolis gnaws the tires off thy drivers' cars, thou needest not hurl thyself in the path of the nearest passing carriage. Thou still havest a chance at acquiring the grrrrrrail.
•Also, if there be-ist a tie at the end of the season, it shall be broken in favor of the knight with the most event wins. Failing that it shall be in favor of the knight with the most podiums. Failing that it shall be in favor of the knight who first produces the phone number of the cute girl at the other end of the tavern.

Right, yes. Here's a simplified version. Before each rally you pick five drivers. No two drivers can be from the same team. You also pick a driver for the power stage (final stage of the rally). He can be absolutely anyone, including one of the five drivers you already picked. Put your five drivers in the order you think they'll finish. You will receive the number of championship points your driver earns in the rally.

Update 1/13/14: Two quick additional rules. 1) If you don't get your picks in before the start of the rally don't freak out, you can still make picks, though to make it fair you'll be penalized 5 points for missing the first stage and 2 points for every subsequent stage run before you submitted your picks. 2) If, after you have made your picks but before the start of the rally something happens to one of your drivers (injury, penalty, alien abduction, suddenly realizes he's meant to be a baptist minister) you can adjust the position of or replace said driver.

Anyway, here are the driver rosters for the main WRC teams for 2014, along with the typical confusing driver performance !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . For the sake of concise preview posts and me being a lazy there will be fewer stats in the previews themselves, so if you actually use the numbers to make your picks you'll need to refer to the spreadsheets.

Volkswagen Motorsport
•Sebastien Ogier
•Jari-Matti Latvala

Volswagen Motorsport 2
•Andreas Mikkelsen

Citroen Total Abu Dhabi WRT
•Kris Meeke
•Mads Østberg
•Khalid Al-Qassimi

M-Sport WRT
•Mikko Hirvonen
•Elfyn Evans

RK M-Sport WRT
•Robert Kubica

Jipocar Czech National Team
•Martin Prokop

Hyundai Shell WRT
•Thierry Neuville
•Dani Sordo/Chris Atkinson/Juho Hanninen

DISCUSSION (42)

Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur > Dusty Ventures
01/06/2014 at 13:08

I confuse

Stratos HF > Dusty Ventures
01/06/2014 at 13:08

God this looks like fun but damned confusing.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Dusty Ventures
01/06/2014 at 13:08

Since I was only able to join Oppo midway through last year, how may I be able to participate in the year of Twenty-Fourteen?

Hoccy > Dusty Ventures
01/06/2014 at 13:11

Having Mads Østberg in my team this year will be the easiest decision ever. You can't chose a driver that rolls and earn zero.

Also, this will be my first full year, and I hope to compete for rally victories and a podium overall finish. Good luck, ladies and gentlemen.

Hoccy > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
01/06/2014 at 13:17

We enter our "teams" in the preview posted before the rally. The first preview will be posted in about 1 week, since the Monte Carlo is run the following weekend.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Hoccy
01/06/2014 at 13:20

Thanks!

And prepare your assholes for the worst predictions ever!

Hermann > Dusty Ventures
01/06/2014 at 13:20

Happy new year, Dusty Ventures! (this is my first post this year) I look forward to angrily tweet on how your and McNewbie's choices were better than mine.

So, new rules, eh? I see you've been chatting with the FIA. What's in for 2015? Computing power restrictions? Internet speed limitations?
Just kidding, of course. This year will be awesome. This new 5-driver thing will be great and difficult.

Can I still brag for winning last year? I know we tied, but that's still a win!

Hermann > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
01/06/2014 at 13:21

So you're trying to compete with Orlove? Good luck, man!

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > Hoccy
01/06/2014 at 13:23

Since I don't have the time to participate in this myself, I'll award you one beer/hotwheels each time Østberg does better than fifth place.

Hoccy > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
01/06/2014 at 13:27

The bet is on. But with the amount of time you spend around here, I'm sure you could enter some rallies ;)

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > Hoccy
01/06/2014 at 13:32

Some rallies yes.. all of them, no. ;)

We'll see.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Hermann
01/06/2014 at 13:33

Only he has a Time Cube, where as I have a reTardis.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Hermann
01/06/2014 at 13:34

Double Points during a lunar eclipse!

willkinton247 > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
01/06/2014 at 14:05

NO! PREPARE YOURS, Sir.

willkinton247 > Dusty Ventures
01/06/2014 at 14:05

I'm so confused, but so down.

Dusty Ventures > Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur
01/06/2014 at 14:12

Here's a simplified version. Before each rally you pick five drivers. No two drivers can be from the same team. You also pick a driver for the power stage (final stage of the rally). He can be absolutely anyone, including one of the five drivers you already picked. Put your five drivers in the order you think they'll finish. You will receive the number of championship points your driver earns in the rally.

Dusty Ventures > Stratos HF
01/06/2014 at 14:12

Dusty Ventures > willkinton247
01/06/2014 at 14:15

Here's a simplified version, which I just added to the main post. Before each rally you pick five drivers. No two drivers can be from the same team. You also pick a driver for the power stage (final stage of the rally). He can be absolutely anyone, including one of the five drivers you already picked. Put your five drivers in the order you think they'll finish. You will receive the number of championship points your driver earns in the rally.

Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur > Dusty Ventures
01/06/2014 at 14:17

That makes sense. I might do this actually

McNewbie1 > Dusty Ventures
01/06/2014 at 15:26

I am both amused, a bit confused, and slightly hungry. I have a suggestion. Perhaps take it down a notch and post a simplified version at the end for us lesser minded folks? Just in case readers don't scroll down to the comments. Those of us who have played before know that you post a preview for every event.

Dying of laughter by the way. I now know what you were talking about.

Dusty Ventures > McNewbie1
01/06/2014 at 15:28

I did post a simpler version. It's right next to the "stop that" photo.

Raphael Orlove > Dusty Ventures
01/06/2014 at 15:28

Alien rays speeding down upon me in hyper-vision, surrounding me in the fullest of truths

walls glowing

fingernails humming

I sense the sense that is the coming of victory. And JM Latvala.

Dusty Ventures > Hermann
01/06/2014 at 15:29

I was wondering where you were hiding!

McNewbie1 > Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur
01/06/2014 at 15:31

You should. Sometimes our picks are serious, sometimes not. It's fun, just friends and rally fans playing for bragging rights. Dusty will post a preview before each race, then we make our picks. Five drivers from different teams, plus one power stage pick. Your power stage driver can be one of the five and walla!

McNewbie1 > willkinton247
01/06/2014 at 15:35

You should play with us! It's really fun. We bust each other's chops here and on Twitter. The prize is ENORMOUS! Well, actually it's just for fun, but it really fun. There's not much to it, as Dusty explained. He'll do a preview for each race, then we pick our five drivers from different teams, plus a power stage guy in the comments, and that's it! Or, if you're like Orlove and a gluten for punishment, you pick Jari matti Latvala every damn time.

willkinton247 > McNewbie1
01/06/2014 at 15:38

I'm in.

And I may be like Orlove... I am a fan of the Chicago Cubs...

McNewbie1 > Dusty Ventures
01/06/2014 at 15:38

Ah, I see. Sorry, skimmed after the first part, and went to the comments to see who I was going to beat in 2014. :p

McNewbie1 > willkinton247
01/06/2014 at 15:39

oh dear. yeah, some of Orlove's picks are Ha-larious.

Stratos HF > Dusty Ventures
01/06/2014 at 16:10

Awesome, thanks so much for the clarifications! Definitely want to participate in this!

Hermann > Dusty Ventures
01/06/2014 at 18:29

I've been hiding behind that bush near your house, trying to figure your game for this season. That red dot? Yes, night vision.

Since I've been robbed I don't have a phone to browse from anymore, also I spent the last two weeks at mom's farm house in my home state (Horray for rallying the beater between the corn fields)

CampingElement > Dusty Ventures
01/07/2014 at 15:12

I want in on this Dusty, sounds fun—plus I'm the only person I know who actually follows WRC somewhat (got hooked when I lived in England).....Do we just post our pics in the comments section of the preview prior to the race?

CampingElement > CampingElement
01/07/2014 at 15:21

*picks...derp.

Dusty Ventures > CampingElement
01/07/2014 at 15:21

Yep, that's exactly how you do it. Just put your picks in the comments of the preview, I add everyone into the google spreadsheet, then we see who comes out on top

CampingElement > Dusty Ventures
01/07/2014 at 15:24

Awesome. Looking forward to it.

chaozbandit > Dusty Ventures
01/07/2014 at 15:39

I laughed so very hard reading the rules, +1 to whoever wrote them. By the time I got to the end I was chuckling oh so jolly-like... which was a bad thing because I was in a lecture. Real excited to participate this year, good luck to all you Jalops!

Kris Meeke is on my roster. Come at me.

Dusty Ventures > chaozbandit
01/07/2014 at 16:00

I wrote it all but McNewbie and her tweets were my muse