What is Huttball?
Huttball is one of the Player-vs-Player modes withing Star Wars: The Old Republic. It's set up as a bloodsport with aspects of American football, soccer and handball.

I've always been fascinated by the undocumented cultural aspects of content-rich universes - things like arts, religions, history, entertainment. The kind of topics that get mentioned in books, but only a very short mention in the context of what you're reading. In the real world, these subject have enough impact that you could fill libraries on just one topic.

This simulation is an attempt to create part of a fictional universe that is usually left unexplored.

Table of Contents
  1. What are the basic rules?

  2. How are teams organized in game and out of game?

  3. What can I do in the league?

  4. What is "Kossak 12, 23011?" The Huttese Calendar.

  5. Equipment and Fame.

  6. Team Strategy.

  7. Coaches and Coaching.

  8. Traits.

  9. Glossary of Terms.

How does this version of Huttball differ from the one in Star Wars: The Old Republic?
The Star Wars: The Old Republic is primarily designed as a playable PVP game, rather than an actual sport. So you have people dying and respawning during the match. Jedi murder other players with lightsabers. Smugglers call in orbital strikes. The sport-like elements include moving a ball into the opposing team's goal across a multi-level arena fettered with traps and obsticals.

In order to make the sport more plausible, I've assumed the following:
  1. A realistic version would be violent, but not so much that there are dozens of deaths per match. Deaths will occur over a season, but a team may lose 0-4 players over the course of a season.

  2. The owners have a monetary stake in the league, and players dying left and right isn't good for business.

  3. As the sport became more professional, the armor, weapons and traps in the game became specialized Huttball versions that were toned down. They inflict real damage and are capable of killing - but they are designed to minimize deaths.

  4. No force users.

What are the basic rules?
  1. The basic game is to log more scores within sixty minutes than the other team by carrying the Huttball into the opposing team's goal.

  2. A team consists of eight players with no substitutions allowed once the game has started.

  3. Teams may have their own arena which must be sanctioned as technologically neutral (i.e. no mechanisms can be built or doctored in such a way to favor the home team, beyond familiarity from playing in the arena).

  4. The arenas must be approximately 7,000 square meters of floor space in a rectangular shape and may have up to four levels which must be within the confines of the floor boundaries.

  5. The arena can have from one to five newball feeds which eject a ball at random after a scoring play.

  6. The arena can include semi-lethal traps that trigger both at random and by manual input on Huttball slicing tools worn by the slicers on each team.

  7. The huttball has a play timer that will trigger a repulsor blast after thirty seconds of being carried by the same player.

  8. All armor, weapons (staves, blasters) and tools (grapple, slicing tools) must be sanctioned by the league.

How are teams organized in game and out of game?
  1. A team will have no more than twenty one players on the roster during the season.

  2. An eight-man game squad must have at least one Carrier, one Enforcer, one Free Roamer and one Slicer.

  3. The Carrier position concentrates on ball possession, passing, receiving and scoring.

  4. The Enforcer position prevents the Carriers from reaching the goal by force.

  5. The Free Roamer position (often just Free) act in multiple defensive roles, attempting to intercept passes prevent scoring as well as being secondary options for ball carrying.

  6. The Slicer position has a highly specialized role that minimized contact with the huttball. They are responsible for coordinating the players via headset and have "slicing tools" (game equipment that evolved from actual slicing tools) that interface with the arena and their team's armor. By entering codes, they can manually activate the arena's traps or preset kolto and stim cartridges loaded into their teammate's armor.

What can I do in the league?
  1. Be an avid spectator. Use the rich history and current events as small talk in your role play. Or bet on the results of games.

  2. Adopt a player or players in the league. Using a PIN, you can spend experience on them that they will accumulate as they play games.

  3. Create a player (contact me) and use the PIN to spend experience.

  4. Adopt a team and get a PIN to spend experience for all players on that team.

  5. Buy an existing or new team (contact me) and have your RP mogul / corporation as the sponsor. Use the PIN to spend experience.

What is Kossak 12, 23011?
The fictional history of the Hutt Calendar The Months, in order:
  1. Kossak
  2. Dojundo
  3. Zochaeb
  4. Ardustagg
  5. Blotus
  6. Churabba
  7. Budhila
  8. Boonta
The Weeks, in order:
  1. Inijic
  2. Odominic
  3. Qulappa
  4. Masrii
  5. Jiramma
  6. Vermilic
  7. Trinivii
  8. Hestilic
The Days of the Week, in order:
  1. Ar'durv
  2. Zobara
  3. Noh
  4. Ardos
  5. Evona
  6. Varl
  7. Amura
  8. Shad'ruu
Equipment Bonuses
When a player gets famous, they can contract out to have better equipment and the services to maintain them at the highest performance levels. They can also use that clout outside the arena to hire goods and services for their healthy athlete lifestyle.

A player accumulates fame by great perfomances in the current season and prior years. Via this, he will retain a base level of fame due to his talent. It can go down (as when the player best seasons get pushed further into the past), but his is a slow process.

A faster process is self-promoting (and future enhancements will also allow players to get fame more quickly).

Each player has their level of fame, which they can allocate to In Game items and Out of Game items. As an example, if a player has 100 fame, he can allocate up to 100 fame worth of In Game items and 100 fame worth of Out of Game items. Most equipment will use the player's In Game quota, while most Out of Game items will only use Out of Game quota, although a few exceptions may spend both. (For example, a Lawyer will cost 50 In Game and 130 Out of Game, and this is noted by 50/130 in the dropdown.)

A player's fame can go down (it will creep down one point a day), and the system is designed to not invalidate the player's setup once it does go below the cost. When the cost of maintaining the equipment goes above the player's fame, you will start to see a fail rate on his page. You have separate fail rates for In Game and Out of Game. Failures are done at the bonus level (if you have three items that all are +DAM, you either get all the DAM bonus or none). The failure of an item is rerolled-every day and each item is rolled at game time.

I had a project 6-7 years ago where I made a spreadsheet of weapons and armor for the old West End Games system. I hated the fact that the WEG books (and other RP sourcebooks in modern eras) tend to have like 1 company makes 1 gun. So I researched KOTOR era companies and actually created product lines. That data is reused in this project.

  1. Damage (DAM) - Each level provides +1 damage per hit the player delivers (In game, applied before other modifiers)

  2. Hit rate (HIT) - Each level provides bonus -5% chance to opponent's ability to dodge an attack and also increases the chances player will deliver a hit (In game)

  3. Talent (TAL) - Each level provides +1 talent to the player's talent rating (In game, applied before other modifiers, formerly SKL)

  4. Armor (ARM) - Each level provides -1 damage per hit the player takes (In game, applied before other modifiers)

  5. Brutality (BRU) - Each level provides +1 talent to the player's talent rating (In game, applied before other modifiers)

  6. Fame (FAM) - Each level provides bonus +1 Fame for each day that you self promote. (Out of game, applied before other modifiers)

  7. Experience (XP) - Each level provides bonus + 3 XP for each day. (Out of game, applied before other modifiers)

  8. Team Experience (TXP) - Each level provides bonus +2 Team XP for players not playing in the game when their prep bonus is converted to Team XP. (In game)

  9. Dodge (DOD) - Each level provides bonus +5% chance to dodge an attack (In game, players with an existing agile trait would get an additional roll at the dodge bonus level)

  10. Heal (HL) - Each level provides bonus +1 HP for each day per level. (Out of game, applied before other modifiers)

  11. Slicing (SLI) - Each level provides bonus +0 to +3 health / buff on each slicing attempt (In game, applied before other modifiers)

  12. Prep Accumulation (PRP) - Increases the amount of prep bonus you can get each day when preparing for the next game (Out of game, applied before other modifiers)

  13. Auto Prep Accumulation (aPRP) - Increases the amount of prep bonus you can get each day when self promoting (Out of game, applied before other modifiers)

  14. Prep Maximum (PMAX) - Each level increases the maximum prep bonus by +1 - standard max prep bonus is 5 points (Out of game, applied before other modifiers)

Team Strategies
Each team can set a strategy that they will use in the next game (note: the strategy does not reset itself each game).

This allows a team to play to its strengths and also allows more actively managed teams to have an advantage by allowing the owner to adapt to upcoming games.

TXP
The team can also spend an amount of TXP for the next game (this will be set to zero after each game). Spending TXP can do one of two things: If the two teams select strategies where each counters the other, the TXP spent will give boost when determining which team ultimately executes better and gets the counter. In all other circustances, the TXP will increase the bonuses given by the strategy.

Counters
Counters are very signficant as a successful counter will reduce the bonuses of your opponent's strategy by 75%. This % reduction to the opponent can be less if your strategy isn't effective in the arena - to the point where it can be completely negated if you pick a strategy that doesn't work in a hi-brutality arena and you happen to be playing in the most obscenely brutal arena in existance.

If the two teams select strategies where each counters the other, in addition to TXP, the other factor is the type of strategy selected - a Counter strategy has less benefits, but the fact that it is a counter strategy gives it a major boost over a risky strategy. TXP has its limits though - even if you spend the 20 TXP while the opponent spends 0 TXP, it would be very unlikely that you would win the counter if you had a Risky type strategy versus their Counter type strategy.

The best countering strategies from best to worst are: Counter, Unorthodox, Safe, Risky. (Note that the Very Safe "Balanced Court" strategy supplies no bonuses and has no countering abilities. Effectively, it represents selecting no strategy.)

How to read strategies
A strategy looks like this: Counter > Harrass Slicers (Free-focus, counter Slicer / +1 BRU / +2F / min 2 free / less eff. in hi-brut. arenas) and has the following properties:
  1. A type, which gives an indication of the risk and reward the strategy presents.

  2. A focus, which notes what position the strategy primarily employs.

  3. A counter, which notes the kind of which strategies it will counter (match up to focus).

  4. BRUtality and TALent modifiers. Some strategies will provide negatives to one of these in lieu of bonuses given elsewhere. These modifiers are applied to the teams final calculated Brutality and Bonus ratings. (Teams typically have final ratings around 90-120.)

  5. Carrier, Enforcer, Free and Slicer modifiers. Some strategies will provide negatives to one of these in lieu of bonuses given elsewhere. These modifiers are applied to ratings to each player in the lineup at that position. (These bonuses or negatives are effectively 1 point = 5%. So a +1 would be +5%. -2 would be -10%.)

  6. Conditions that dictate when the strategies are available. This will usually be in the form of a minimum number of players at a position in order to use the strategy effectively.

  7. Arena Considerations that dictate if the strategies are less effective in certain arena types. High-brutality and High-Talent mean arenas that have a 110 or higher rating. Low-brutality and Low-Talent mean arenas that have a 90 or less rating.

Coaches and Coaching
Teams can hire up to three coaches. This can be done one of two ways, both which are available from the top of the player's page: a team can make one of their existing players into a coach or they can sign a free agent, including retired players, to be a coach. You will not see the buttons if you already have three coaches on staff.

Making a player into a coach will remove the player from your game roster. Like players, coaches will benefit from better equipment, specifically ones that help in Fame, XP, TXP and Game Prep.

Out of game bonuses
Coaches accumulate game prep in the same fashion as players and this prep rolls over into TXP each game. Note that they still have egos and may choose to self promote instead.

In game bonuses
The coaching staff will give bonuses based on their stats (Carrier, Enforcer, Free, Slicing, Brutality) factored with their coaching rating (a 50 coaching rating = 50% as effective as someone with a 100 coaching rating). As a staff, the stats are not averaged or totaled - the staff bonuses are created by taking the highest rated from each of the staff (ex: coach 1 has a 50 carrier x 100 coaching (resulting in 50) and coach 2 has a 90 carrier x 50 coaching (resulting in 45), the staff rating for carrier is 50.)

CPU teams get an added bonus that a better coaching staff (total coaching rating) will make it less likely they will choose a strategy not suited to the arena.

Player Traits
x Coaching Prospect: Player has x coach rating. (Ex: 90+, VG: 80+, G: 70+, M: 60+)

x-level Prospect: Prospect level of player. Increases the potential of getting a large amount of gift XP each day. (AAA > AA > A > BB > B...)

Adaptable: Allows the player to shift points from to brutality from talent the opposing team is much less talented and the player's team is less brutal. Also allows points to go to talent from brutality if reverse condition is true.

Agile: Allows player to negate attacks that would otherwise had hit. Can cause damage to be reversed to the attacker when the attacker is using melee tactics. Increased chance to deflect the ball without using weapons.

Choke: Decreases the chance that the player will score, steal or intercept the ball in the last minutes of a close game.

Clutch: Increases the chance that the player will score, steal or intercept the ball in the last minutes of a close game.

Coward: Makes the player more likely to let a teammate take a hit when their own health is below 50.

Criticalhit: Increases the chance that the player will score a critical hit.

Cybernetics: Amount of cybernetics player has from emergency surgeries (spending XP to heal).

Durable: Decreases the amount of damage the player takes when hit.

Frail: Increases the amount of damage the player takes when hit.

Goodhands: Increases the chance that a player will catch a ball that is passed to them.

Grapplemaster: Allows the player to deflect passes or steal the ball using their grapple. Will occasionally grapple opponents during play for extra damage.

Guardian: Makes the player more likely to take a hit for a teammate when their own health is above 50.

Gunmaster: Allows the player to deflect passes or knock the ball loose using their blaster. Will occasionally shoot opponents during play for extra damage.

Masochist: Player will sometimes force the Huttball pass timer to explode on an opponent doing extra damage to their opponent and to themselves. Player will sometimes drag or force an opponent into a trap purposely to cause damage to both players.

Passer: Player will make more accurate passes.

Plodding: Player is large and will wear down as the game progresses.

Powerful: Increases the amount of damage the player deals.

Short: Negates the possibility to deflect the ball without using weapons.

Staffmaster: Allows the player to deflect passes or knock the ball loose using their staff. Will occasionally hit opponents with staff during play for extra damage.

Tall: Increased chance to deflect the ball without using weapons.

Weak: Decreases the amount of damage the player deals.

Glossary of terms
x-chain (xC): Number of consecutive assists before a score and where the player was in that chain. The assist just prior to the score is called the Primary Assist. The next is 3-chain and then progresses upwards. So when a player is credited with a 9-chain, he touched the ball eight steps before the scorer (who is first in the chain).

Activate Trap (Trp): See: Trap Activate.

Assist (A): A pass, lateral or handoff prior to a score. The opposing team cannot touch the ball between the assist and score.

Buff (Bf): Stim cartridge activated by a slicer.
Buff Amount (Bf+): Amount of mL of stim applied by a slicer.

Check (Chk): Any disruptive action (body check, staff, grapple, blaster, activated trap) to an opposing player.
Check Staff (ChS): Check with a staff.

Damage (Dm): Amount of physical damage dished out by a player.
Hard Hits (Dm+): Damage of 25 more in a single check.
Massive Hits (Dm++): Damage of 50 more in a single check.

Draw (D): Game ending in a tie. Recorded for a player when the player was in the lineup for that game.

Forced Turnover (FT): A check that causes a turnover.

Fumble (F): Dropped huttball, either forced or unforced.

Fumble Recovery (FR): Player retrieved the ball immediately after a fumble. Recorded as either offensive (the player fumbling and player recovering are on the same team) or defensive.

Game Played (G): Player appeared in game.
As Carrier (Gc): Games played at Carrier.
As Enforcer (Ge): Games played at Enforcer.
As Free Roamer (Gf): Games played at Free.
As Slicer (Gs): Games played at Slicer.

Grapple (GR): Defensive manuever (check) with a grapple.

Grapple Save (GRs): Offensive manuever where the ball carrier is transported to a safe position by a grapple.

Handoff (H): Handing the ball from one player to another. Heal (Hl): Kolto cartridge activated by a slicer.
Heal Amount (Hl+): Amount of health healed by a slicer.

Healed (Hl'd): Number of times a player was healed by a slicer.
Healed Amount (Hl'd+): Amount of health this player was healed by a slicer.

Injury (Inj): Amount of damage taken by this player.
Intercepted (I): Amount of times the player had a pass intercepted.

interception (I): Amount of times the player has intercepted another pass.

Lateral (Lt): Amount of times player successfully lateraled (passed the ball without forward movement) to another player.

Lateral Attempt (LtAt): Amount of times player attempted a lateral to another player.

Lateral Reception (LtRc): Amount of times player successfully received a lateral from another player.

Loss (L): Game ending in a loss. Recorded for a player when the player was in the lineup for that game.

Newball (N): Player retrieved the ball from the newball platform after a scoring play.

Pass (P): Amount of times player successfully passed (passed the ball with forward movement) to another player.

Pass Attempt (PAt): Amount of times player attempted a pass to another player.

Pass Block (PB): Player blocks a pass preventing a successful reception but does not intercept the ball.

Pass Reception (PRc): Amount of times player successfully received a pass from another player.

Pass Timer (PT): Player carried the ball for more than thirty seconds and the repulsor blast was activated.

Plus-Minus (+/-): The number of scores minus the times the opposition scored while the player was in the lineup. This can be a negative number.

Possession (Ps): Number of minutes and seconds the player held the ball.

Prime Assist (P1): The assist immediately before a scoring play.

Score (S): A score or goal.

Shot (Sh): Times player has shot another player with a blaster.

Steal (St): Player takes the ball from the opponent without the opponent having attempted a pass or lateral.

Throwaway (TA): Player throws an incomplete pass or lateral that is not intercepted or blocked by the opposing team.

Throwaway Recovery (TA): Player retrieved the ball immediately after a throwaway. Recorded as either offensive (the player throwing the ball away and player recovering are on the same team) or defensive.

Throw Attempt (ThA): Total of lateral and pass attempts.

Trap Activate (Trp): Number of times a slicer intentionally activated a trap while an opponent was within its range.

Turnover (T): Total of fumbles, throwaways, steals, pass timers, etc.

Uncontested Score (S1): A score that is taken from the newball platform to the goal with no other players touching the ball in between.

Win (W): Game ending in a win. Recorded for a player when the player was in the lineup for that game.



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