Stunty Manifesto

In early 2006, coach hunter, an avid proponent of the Stunty Leeg, wrote a lengthy opinion piece that he termed the "Stunty Manifesto". Following is the post in near entirety... only tidbits of unimportant or outdated information have been left out. To read the original post in its entirety as well as community responses, check out the Stunty Manifesto forum thread.

Introduction

Hello Stunty Leeg fans, and welcome to my 'Stunty Manifesto'. This work was developed to address a variety of issues in the Stunty Leeg, and to provide my views on these issues. I will also provide recommendations for future Stunty Leeg directions. Grab a beer... it's kinda long. :)

Before reading further, you should enlighten yourself with some of the most vocal opinions such as that of long-time Stunty Leeg team developer and contributor, EvolveToAnarchism. Of note is his recent Guide to Designing Stunty Leeg Teams, currently 2/3 completed. I will be critiquing and elaborating on his 'F.U.N.' criterion, so it would be beneficial to the reader to have some familiarity and background with the topic.

Also, a disclaimer: everything in this post should technically be considered my opinion. However, I have dedicated much thought and effort to the Stunty Leeg via participation in a variety of Stunty Leeg tournies, establishment of a playtesting league, forum posting, and development of a variety of teams (most retired now). Also, I will do my best to support my views with facts and sound theory.

I am writing this mainly because I have derived great pleasure from playing in the Stunty Leeg, and I would like to see it continue to develop. I believe that I have sound ideas to further this development. The Stunty Leeg is almost solely FUMBBL's baby; by the coaches, for the coaches. It is derived from Blood Bowl, but is not necessarily bound by Living Rule Book (LRB) restrictions. An obvious example of this is the inclusion of a variety of non-LRB teams, which have been created by the coaches on this site. My point is that the Stunty Leeg can actually be anything we want it to be, and the possibilities are endless.

Critique of F.U.N.

To begin with, I would like to discuss conceptual races. Many Stunty Leeg coaches, myself included, have designed races for hopeful implementation into the Stunty Leeg as an 'official' race. Some of these are well thought out; others appear to have developed off the cuff. To centralize these ideas and provide a site to find rosters, I developed the Stunty Compendium. In an effort to remain objective, I have included every race submitted to me which has been discussed in the forums and would have a chance of getting into the Stunty Leeg as an official team. (Side note: The Stunty Compendium was originally maintained on my personal website... I have since moved it to the FUMBBL User Guide).

What are the criteria for inclusion into the Stunty Leeg, you ask? Excellent question! :) At this time, there are no official guidelines regarding which teams are included, and the decisions seem to be entirely up to peikko. The best posts I can find on this subject, from peikko, are here, and here. The last one lists the following bases for consideration: 5% Fluff, 35% Balance, and 60% Uniqueness. Evaluation of proposed races in the forums typically uses the 'F.U.N.' criteria coined by EvolveToAnarchism: Fluff, Uniqueness, and Novel Playing Style.

Fluff

The F in F.U.N. stands for Fluff. Although this is the least important category under consideration by peikko, it is typically the main basis for criticism when new races are presented in the forums. Oftentimes, this criticism comes from EvolveToAnarchism, who firmly believes that new races should be based on Warhammer fluff. The problem with this is that Blood Bowl is seldom mentioned in Warhammer books, and although derived from this universe, has become something separate. In fact, BB is officially separating from the Warhammer universe, as indicated by a member of the Blood Bowl Regulatory Commission here. It will be set up in such a way that no knowledge of Warhammer will be necessary whatsoever, and may even be produced by a company other than Games Workshop. As such, I would contend that there are no fluff limits on race creation at this point, other than fitting proposed teams somehow with the current teams for example, it is unlikely that Smurfs or Gummi Bears or Simpsons exist in the same universe as the current Stunty Leeg teams, but it is not unlikely that an underground or unknown race from a distant land (which fit into the general fantasy theme) exists. The Stunty Leeg is meant to be a fun and non-serious league, and creativity with race design should be encouraged!

Even if we did self-impose fluff restrictions on race creation, requiring derivation from Warhammer, the doors are wide open for creativity. Here is some information regarding Warhammer Fantasy, for those interested. Essentially, it is a make-believe universe, derived from other famous make-believe universes (most notably Dungeons and Dragons and Tolkien's Middle-Earth). The Warhammer universe is not unique, nor is it static: GW regularly publishes new texts to alter the flora and fauna, political connections, base races, etc. I have read on these forums that one reason for this is money, as official new figures are put out frequently as well, which are required for play. Whatever the reason, the point is that Warhammer is an ever-changing make-believe world, and there is no logical rationale to adhere only to what is officially known about this universe when it comes to developing new races for the Stunty Leeg. Fluff is simply make-believe stuff to relate a race to the other races or to the universe, and fluff can easily be altered to fit a race properly. In fact, the vast majority of the current Stunty Leeg races have no official GW/ Warhammer mention or rationale for playing BB, so the races were developed based on an 'if then' philosophy: e.g., If Pygmies mentioned in Warhammer played Blood Bowl, then I believe they would appear thusly. The fluff for these teams is presented in the forums as more official than it actually is in reality, it is based upon the creator's interpretation of the universe. This has led to what amounts to an entitled opinion of what should be in the Stunty Leeg.

To summarize, based upon the official standing and direction of Blood Bowl, as well as the kinetic and derived nature of the Warhammer universe, I feel as though adhering to self-imposed Warhammer fluff restrictions stifles the creativity which should be encouraged in this particular division. Fitting the fluff to that of the other races should perhaps be encouraged or required, but fitting the fluff to Warhammer is somewhat illogical and should not be encouraged or required.

I believe that fluff is important, but not necessary. That is, a unique and balanced race can be created without a background. However, the background helps others conceptualize the race and helps explain the uniqueness and balance, and for at least those reasons should be included with every proposal. Fluff creation can be a lot of fun, too! :)

Uniqueness/ Novel Playing Style

By and large, everyone seems to agree upon these criteria as necessary for consideration of proposed races. I fully agree- I mean, why have a new team that is essentially an old team with a different name? The importance of this criterion is reflected in the assignment of 60% weight to uniqueness according to peikko. Uniqueness and novel playing style are such similar constructs that I believe they fit better together.

The only disagreement I have with some uniqueness/novelty criticisms is in regards to the race schticks. Although this is an accurate way to describe and differentiate the uniqueness and novelty of teams, boundaries do not have to be too distinct. For example, just because Fairies have a core of players who start with Jump Up doesn't mean that another race cannot have an ancillary player who also starts with Jump Up. However, core themes should not be redundant: as the main Pygmy players are built around the Shadowing skill, it would be redundant to develop another team in which the main players all use Shadowing.

balaNce

In an effort to retain the FUN acronym, and in avoidance of the less funny and memorable FUB acronym, I would like to mention 'balaNce'. :) peikko weights this criterion at 35%, second only to uniqueness. EvolveToAnarchism does not specifically differentiate this construct in his guide, but there is no doubt in the value of its importance (and no doubt that he values its importance). Many teams are proposed that could be considered over the top in some regard(s), and these are rapidly toned down by the community. Races with strengths should also have weaknesses. The typical distinction is between bash and agility, although factors such as speed, unpredictability, and danger are also important. Also, the team must be balanced in light of the other Stunty Leeg races, so much must be taken into consideration.

Conceptual Race Recommendations

When developing a race, there are a few points to consider beyond those already discussed. A common opinion that I will echo here is to refrain from simply adding '-ling' to an existing race (or even a new one, for that matter). You should avoid this if for no other reason than others will not take it as seriously. Don't name any of your positions as such, either. For example, 'Vamplings' and 'Nurglings' really should be something more creative IMHO. Races should be original adding '-ling' is not original. Similarly, the children of a race are not a separate race, and represent another rather unoriginal concept. Although I do not know the official stance on this, my guess is that it is extremely unlikely that any such race would ever become official in the Stunty Leeg.

Conceptual races should be playtested thoroughly. It is great to see coaches coming up with ideas, but without actual testing it will not be known how they will perform. As I mentioned, the Stunty Compendium has sought to centralize and playtest ideas, and I encourage coaches to submit their races (after discussion in the forums). In lieu of this, one should coordinate with other coaches to playtest ideas, or at the very least play standalone games.

Stunty Leeg change/ modification proposals

It is well known that the Stunty Leeg is not completely balanced, and fine-tuning is often in progress. Playtesting future races prior to inclusion will help with this, but a number of issues currently at hand should be addressed.

My next recommendation is in regards to appropriate responses to proposed races. Too often, hostile and nonconstructive responses turn potential coaches from the Stunty Leeg. New proposals should be encouraged, and race creators should be given thoughtful and appropriate feedback. One reason why I decided to write this text is so that I can provide new coaches some direction and instruction.

However, the best recommendation to assist in this manner is to develop and establish official criteria for conceptual teams. That is, teams should meet certain minimum requirements, as outlined by those running the site/Stunty Leeg. Meeting these criteria does not automatically entitle a team for inclusion in the Stunty Leeg by any means, but would perhaps deem it ready for playtesting and further consideration. Teams not meeting these specific criteria would not be considered for inclusion, and coaches proposing new teams could be directed to the criteria page instead of receiving various opinions.

To aid in the creation of such official criteria, my next recommendation is to form an advisory committee which would report to peikko. There are some different means in which this could be implemented. One way would be for peikko to retain full authority, but would weigh his decisions carefully upon input from the committee. Another method would be for the committee members to have voting privileges, and for decisions to be based on a more democratic system. Committee members could even be voted in by the FUMBBL community. In any case, I would recommend a total size (including peikko) of either 3 or 5 members, so that if votes were to take place, we wouldn't have to worry about ties.

This committee would help decide on changes to the Stunty Leeg, including issues such as new race implementation, changes to existing rosters, formation of official tournaments, etc. It would also decide upon the 'official fluff' for each race. I really think that it would be a great idea to establish some official fluff for each race, so that decisions to change the rosters based on fluff actually have some basis. A page in the User Guide could easily be devoted to this, and it would serve to demystify the creation and background of the races currently in the Stunty Leeg.

Conclusion

To conclude, I would like to express my appreciation first of all to those of you who read this entire text :) and to all those involved in the Stunty Leeg, past, present, and future. I fully anticipate deriving much more joy from this creation!

Also, a special thanks to those who have proposed new races and those who have actively participated in playtesting them.

And, of course, to Christer for the kickin' site and peikko for all of his work with the Stunty Leeg. Although some (including myself, at times) do not agree with his decisions, I certainly do not envy his position. Finally, props to EvolveToAnarchism, who has put much time and effort into the Stunty Leeg. Without his work, there probably would not be much for me to comment on!

Regards,
~hunter

Return to Stunty Leeg Central