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After some interesting exchanges in other threads I thought it would be useful to start a new topic to collect information on the rules and regulations of all the Lower Leagues, especially the exotic ones.
Remember, there is still the CM 01/02 League Guide, so I'll be content for now to just start with the leagues new to CM4.
SWISS NATIONAL DIVISION
I recently started a game in Switzerland (thanks to the Llama, which chose FC Schaffhausen for me), and I'm near the end of Season 1. The rules are intriguing and it's quite fun to manage in the land of purple cows.
The 12 teams in the National Division B (NDB) play the usual home/away pairs accumulating 22 rounds for the firsts half of the season. The top 4 teams of this Division and the bottom 4 of the National Division A (NDA) form a new Relegation/Promotion league where again every team plays every other twice. All teams start with 0 points, so being first in NDB absolutely doesn't matter. The top 4 of this round go to NDA, the bottom 4 to NDB.
The bottom 8 of NDB play a relegation round in a similar fashion, but here the teams retain half of their points from the previous round (rounded up if an uneven number), and finally the bottom 2 teams relegate.
The top 8 of NDA play a championship playoff, also with retaining half of their points from the previous round.
It can be quite frustrating should you be champion of NDB but still fail to promote because you fail in the playoffs, one thinks a championship should be worth something. On the other hand, the chance of promotion is quite good, with one third of the league qualifying for the playoffs, and half of the playoff teams promoting.
Finally, the teams in the NDB to avoid are Sion and Lausanne as they are quite good, and Vaduz due to a CM4 bug. Interesting challenges are Wohlen and Concordia BS (not kidding, and they truly honor their name, finishing rock bottom with 10 points in my game). Expectations for my FC Schaffhausen team were quite low (with a 80-1 shot at the title), but the team has some good players.
Right, and the UN should secure world peace.
But seriously, it took the personal effort of some researchers (yeah, SI affiliated, but I think they did that in their own time) to write the "Ultimate League Guide", and even if they come up with an updated version, it will contain recommended player names and focus on the highest reputation clubs, not the lowest ones.
I'm not holding my breath waiting for SI to provide useful documentation.
I agree to a certain extent, but once "settled" at a new club, dont you like to learn a little about it IRL? Example; find out a little more of their history, traditons and rivalries?
Likewise, I do like to know traditonally the bigger and smaller teams in each league after arriving. I personally feel it enhances the whole thing when you know you're going into a game against your arch rivals to win the cup for the first time in 30 years.
@Innocentius
Wow, interesting concept that I didn't even think about.
But surely you would be in dire trouble if you'd pull that kind of stunt in real life, not knowing the rules and missing promotion because you thought you'd rather let your U18 play that game...
Of course it's up to you to do so, but I'm somewhat oldfashioned and know what I'm getting into before I start a career in unchartered waters.
I like to jump in head first, so do a lot of the LLMers thats why it was decided that Project X,Y, Poof or whatever was just gonna be a randomised team with no other information.
I know that is the way i like it, finding out about the team and the league as i go along. If i am ever needinng to know somthing i know an LLMer will almost certainly know the answer.
Well, finished my first season with Schaffhausen and surprise, surprise, they changed the league format for 2003/04.
Forget what I told you earlier, those were the old rules, and starting in 2003, the NDA now has 10 teams, and the NDB 16. The 10th of NDA and the 1st of NDB trade places, and the 9th of NDA and 2nd of NDB play a 2-game playoff (at least according to the official rules).
The bottom 2 teams of the NDB relegate. But caveat, in CM4, only the last team is colored in red, and probably it's not implemented right. Also, CM4 doesn't indicate the playoff spot for NDA and NDB, so maybe they left that out too. I'm about to find out when I finish my second season. Anyone played that far in Switzerland yet?
Season 02/03 has transition rules, in that no team of the NDB relegates (how boring), and only the top 2 of the promotion/playoff league get a spot in the NDA, the other 6 go into NDB. 2 teams get promoted from lower leagues to complete the field of 16.
I have to say I preferred the old rules, the playoffs were fun, now it's really hard for a NDB team to promote, good I already made the leap last season...
One problem I have come up against is that I don't know if something that is happening in the game is a bug or it is meant to be there.
For example, my quest to find out if the yellow card revolving door in the Yugoslavian league is correct or is it a bug. Only this weekend I have found out it is meant to be there, but can you get as many loaners in as you like in this league? Is it a bug or is it meant to be there?
Little things like that would be known to the manager of the league. I don't mind playing the game blindfolded, but when it involves tip-toeing along a cliff face with a black hood on your head, it becomes a different story.
The Guerilla Guide to CM4 Lower Leagues 
Linear Mode
