Toxcatl

[Toxcatl]

Level: 17
Association: Topless 11 (#Y040E6), Platinum division


Season 1, level 1
League, Cup
I was lucky to start to play TE at the beginning of the season. The most used formation was 4-3w-1-2.

Season 2, level 2
League, Champions League
I bought 300-350T, blew them mostly on drugs and parties, and never spent real money again. Experimenting with 4-1-2-1-2 ND.

Season 3, level 3
League, Champions League, Cup
First treble, first poker. 4-5-1 V.

Season 4, level 4
League, Champions League

Season 5, level 5
League

Season 6, level 6
League

Season 7, level 7
Champions League
The only season I was tanking, for educational reasons =]

Season 8, level 7
League, Champions League, Cup
The most boring season ever. Almost inevitable second treble. No more tanking -- the game becomes too easy.

Season 9, level 8
League
I quit the game after this season for a while. AFK FC!

Season 10, level 9
Season 11, level 10
Season 12, level 10
Season 13, level 11
Season 14, level 12
100%
Friends brought me back (thanks, guys!) at the end of season 14 to play with them in Topless 11. I managed to get to the 4th place in the League to participate in the CL next season. 4-5-1 V again. Wölfer (22 y/o) joins the club.

Season 15, level 13
120%
League, Champions League, Cup
Third treble, another easy one. Playing in Gold 1, just 4 points short to Platinum. 4-2(mc)-3w-1.

Season 16, level 14
130%
League
I was hoping for treble, but lost both finals. Failed to win the last game of English tour event. At least this time we got promoted to Platinum. 4-2(mc)-3w-1 mostly. Starting to minimax players.

Season 17, level 15
League, Champions League, Cup
135%
Season #100. I've completed the event (scored 180 goals). Fourth treble, second poker. Semi-finals were hard. A very good season with several victories over stronger opponents. Staying in Platinum. From this season onwards it's hard to tell my main formation, I play differently in every game. Minimaxing.

Season 18, level 16
League, Cup
130%
Failed Germany Tour challenge (7/10 cities done). Troll-style defeat by penalties in the CL final. A couple of humiliating defeats in the Association Tournaments, but we are in Platinum. First Cup without winning the Champions League. Still minimaxing.

Season 19, level 17
League, Champions League, Cup
127% + 428 rests
Fifth treble, third poker, the hardest ones. A lot of 2-1 defeats and victories, two comebacks in CL after loosing the 1st legs. Beat +20% opponent in the CL final. Failed the Hat-trick challenge, hardly noticed it was there. Terrible performance in FA (7 defeats, 5 draws, 4 victories); last weekend was crazy with a troll-style victory against +29% opponent. We are miraculously staying in Platinum. Changing training philosophy to "all keys equally".

Season 20, level 18
League, Champions League
126% + 350 rests
Failed Spain Tour, 4/7 cities. Players in FA perform better than in three previous seasons, but we are out of Platinum. Equal training, less SA, less NP.

Season 21, level 19
League, Champions League
127% + 269 rests
Slacking in Gold1, back to Platinum with no problem. The only defeat in the League was from the team that kicked me out of the Cup. No problems in CL. Losing interest to the game, not even always farming. The team is really big (14 players).

I also quit. Team renamed to AFK FC. Again.

[Sharper]

Can you give me a screen of your tactics (423w1 or 3123w1) with the manager instructions ?

Thx

[Toxcatl]

Attacking / Mixed / Short / Off / Low / Normal / Zonal / Off

This is my default preset for the most of matches, when I play against significantly weaker teams. Formation and orders against equal or stronger teams are rarely the same. I use all positions and all orders.

[Sharper]

Can you Show Me Your Line Up on the tactic map for the both ? (42mc31 and 3123w1)

I need to see that

For Stronger opponents, a counter formation is necessary ?

[Toxcatl]

Can you Show Me Your Line Up on the tactic map for the both ? (42mc31 and 3123w1)

You have positions on the picture above, what else do you need? Move DMC to DC to get 4-2-3w-1.
Players exact positions inside their boxes are always different, I try to make the field as green as possible =]

For Stronger opponents, a counter formation is necessary ?

Yes, and right orders. Orders are difficult part for me.

[Toxcatl]

My current training philosophy (or religion, lol).
I couldn't know for sure, but I think that skills matter. The mechanics is tricky, and random factor is huge, but for me it feels like minimaxed players in certain situations perform better than universal ones, especially with high grey skills. So I try to avoid grey skills while concentrating on just a few white skills.
To do that I use only one type of drill for every player until he gets 310-320% in any skill. After that I start using the next drill in line. Most of the team are currently on the 2nd drills in their lines.
I can only guess what skills do, so I try different approaches for similar players.

GK: 1-on-1 Finishing > Shooting Technique > Hold the Line
and Shooting Technique > 1-on-1 Finishing > Hold the Line

DC: Gym > Hold the Line

DMC: Gym > 1-on-1 Finishing
I have only one guy to this position, and he is more DC than DMC. He naturally grew high Tackling, arguably the most difficult skill to train in the game, so I want to improve it even more. He didn't play well before this bizarre training anyway. He also gets a lot of yellow cards.

DL/DR: Long Run > Def Crosses
for Corner specialists: Def Crosses > Long Run

MC/(they are also ML/MR): Slalom Dribble > Long Run > Set-piece delivery
for Free-kick specialist: Pass, Go & Shoot! > Set-piece delivery > Slalom Dribble > Long Run

AMC: Slalom Dribble > Long Run > Pass, Go & Shoot! > Shooting Technique

AML/AMR: Slalom Dribble > Long Run > Wing Play

ST: 1-on-1 Finishing > Shooting Technique > Pass, Go & Shoot!
and Use Your Head > 1-on-1 Finishing > Shooting Technique > Pass, Go & Shoot!

[bendito]

Hello Tox, again thanks for your tips.

Some doubts about your training.

DC, is not better pressure game than keeping the line ?.

DRL, the same ... is not better Game of Pressure than Defending the Centers ?. In this case you train a gray as Head and I think that Corners Launcher is not the best option for a DLR, but for an MRL / AMRL, besides that I think that a DLR I prefer to be focused on defending than on the attack.

MC, why Set Piece Delivery ?. Here you train two unnecessary skills like Head and Cross. It does not better complement the Slalom and Long Run trainings, the Video Analysis training that contributes to the Creativity, something that I understand must be very important for an MC that besides his main SA must be the one of Game Creator.

ST, instead of 1-on-1 is not better Skill Drill, that together PG & S and Shooting Tech you train all the white skills (except Positioning).

I take this opportunity to thank your contributions, which are always very enriching

[Toxcatl]

Hello Tox, again thanks for your tips.

Some doubts about your training.

DC, is not better pressure game than keeping the line ?.

DRL, the same ... is not better Game of Pressure than Defending the Centers ?. In this case you train a gray as Head and I think that Corners Launcher is not the best option for a DLR, but for an MRL / AMRL, besides that I think that a DLR I prefer to be focused on defending than on the attack.

MC, why Set Piece Delivery ?. Here you train two unnecessary skills like Head and Cross. It does not better complement the Slalom and Long Run trainings, the Video Analysis training that contributes to the Creativity, something that I understand must be very important for an MC that besides his main SA must be the one of Game Creator.

ST, instead of 1-on-1 is not better Skill Drill, that together PG & S and Shooting Tech you train all the white skills (except Positioning).

I take this opportunity to thank your contributions, which are always very enriching

Hi, bendito!

I do not train all the white skills, I believe it's a mistake. I train some skills up to the skillcap, and don't care about the rest of them. I don't use those drills at the same time. I power-train a player only with the first drill until at least one skill is near the skillcap. Then I use the second one, and so on.

DC: Press the Play trains five skills, Hold the Line only two. So if you start with all the skills on 100% and spend the same condition, Hold the Line would train two skills up to 320%, and Press the Play would train five skills to ~190%. If you think it's better, then use Press the Play. I don't know the right answer, but my strategy is minimax, and Press the Play is a terrible drill for that.

My corner specialist is DL/DR, he needs Crossing. Maybe it's better to make ML/MR corner specialists, but I have what I have. Defending Crosses is the best drill for Crossing in this case.
Also, my DL and DR play as DC from time to time, and Heading is not useless in this case. Crossing is, though.
I agree, this position requires some improvements, but definitely not Press the Play. It's a newbie-ish drill, I don't believe it can be good.

My MCs are also ML and MR and they play those positions often. I only give Set-Piece Delivery to my free-kick specialist (MC/MR), because he needs Shooting. And there are just 4 drills for Shooting:
- Pass, Go and Shoot is an awesome drill for any MC, but it's no longer an option, because my player already has 320%+ Speed
- Shooting Technique trains also Finishing and Strength, both useless for MC
- Set-Piece Delivery trains useless Heading, situational Crossing and useful (for MC, but not for MR) Marking
- Wing Play trains useless Heading and Finishing
You see, if not Set-Piece Delivery, then what? It is a bad drill, but everything else is simply worse. The right answer is probably "do not make MC/ML a free-kick spec"? MC/AMC is a better choice probably.
Ather one, MC/AMC, is getting Long Run, and I don't know what will be next. My third midfielder (ML mostly, playmaker) got Long Run -> Fast Counter-Attacks

ST: ST needs Finishing, and I wanted to try Dribbling. The shortest and the fastest way is 1-on-1.
I want to try Positioning, so my second ST is getting Use You Head -> 1-on-1 (again, because 1-on-1 is the fastest way to get Finishing).
I will definitely do Shooting Technique + Skill Drill on the next one. I already tried Shooting Technique, but the player wasn't good, and I started too late.

[sasha m]

toxcatl, you are legend and inspiration.
thank you for all this insights.

now on a subject of MC training...
gave my younger MC a playmaker S.A., finished today. did some powertraining using GK, and then faced the same problem, where to push him, which exercise.
well, for me Counter Attack did the job:


pasing and creativity, yes please.
yes, 27% went to gray skills, but no more then usually. also, either can become white with new position....this made me think to add him AMC before continuing to grow stars, to make use of that finishing

[Toxcatl]

Thank you!

I find Fast Counter-Attacks more suitable for ML/AML. And I definitely want high Fitness on all my players, except maybe ST and GK (it's pain in the ass to train Fitness to a GK), because I want to be sure they can play with High pressing and M2M the whole game if needed. If it works like this, who knows =]

Maybe they changed the mechanics slightly since Al did his tests. But it should be 38% XP wasted on grey skills:

By the way, your player wasted 31%, not 27%.

If you want Passing and Creativity, then Use Your Head would be a better option IMHO, but still 19% go to waste: