Development Trait, and how it works, quick analysis!

[Sigil]

Here we go!!

***************Update 9/7/12***************

Copying my response!!!

In order to test the if there are any actual XP gain changes, I have replaced players QB's scheme. This has not resulted in any difference regarding the XP (I've changed the play types, not the players play style). For another note, while Jordan Parks as a QB prefers to play as a pocket passer, his overall is higher if the Scheme is set to Field General. Field general requires a decent awareness, throw on run and play action stats. Interestingly, Those three stats are the lowest QB stats that Parks has, compared to all my other QB (Fitz and McNabb). Again, very confusing.

On another note, as a coach, my preferred offense is West Coast, while I use Bills's original playbook, which is set to Spread. Since we can't use our own playbook (this was, I believe, confirmed as a bug and hopefully will be fixed), I cannot test to change Bills's offensive play book to west coast, and hire a QB that can play west coast, to see if he would gain more xp. However, at this point I am going with what I see. Play style adjustments do not affect the XP gain from weeklies/Milestone/seasonal's

Another very important note. Your first string players EARN more XP through weeklies, compared to bench players. The difference can be significant if the player has the development trait. Therefore, even if your bench player plays %33 percent of your snaps, depending on their development trait level and their rookie status, they may or may not earn more XP

However, if the bench player is a Rookie, sharing the same level of development trait with the 1st string player, the rookie will earn more XP because of his rookie status. This increase is approximately 10% more XP.

One another note. While my rookie QB requires to accomplish the same weeklies as my veteran QB, my rookie HB requirements to fulfill his weeklies are lot easier to complete compared to my veteran HB. At this point my theory is that this may be related to their overalls when they get drafted and enter the league. My rookie QB does have an 88 overall while my rookie HB has only a 69 overall. The effect of overalls is not certain of course, and requires more testing.

Alright, let's get to the numbers. Here are my 2 LOLB's as a comparison.

K. Morrison 31 years old. LOLB Normal Development Trait. 80 OVR

1st String XP gain (from easy to hard): 495 594 495

2nd String XP gain (from easy to hard): 445 534 445

O Sims 21 Years old (rookie) LOLB Slow Development Trait 71 OVR

1st String XP gain (from easy to hard): 720 600 600

2nd String XP gain (from easy to hard): 648 540 540

As you can see, there is a huge difference of how much XP they can potentially earn. Another note, I cannot test it, but if my O. Sims had a higher development trait I would assume that his XP gains would be higher than what it is currently. However, the difference may not be significant, or perhaps close to about 9-10% as he is a rookie, he already has a boost, and the development trait boost for veteran player's may not apply the same way it applies to rookie's. This would explain why one of the poster's was seeing only about 9% of increase during/after year one, when the development trait was purchased.

What does all this mean? As a rookie, you can do 2 things. You can increase some of your stats on your initial year (or perhaps further. CJ spiller, even thou he is past his rookie year, is still earning more XP and his requirements to earn this XP is still much lower) with the XP boost thats already inherited. Or you can invest on the development trait to keep the boost once you reach to a certain age.

I'll copy what I wrote here to the OP as well. Thank you for the input. Again, nothing is set in stone. These are just my findings, but I'd love to be proven wrong. Remember, we are in this all together

***************Update 9/6/12***************

Thanks to the contribution everyone. So far this thread has been getting some good attention, and I am hoping that we can all learn and benefit from each other's knowledge regarding the development system.

Last night, after comparing Drew Brees to Jordan Parks (rookie QB, both have Superstar development) I've decided to see if there was any correlation between some of the newly implemented abilities/skills.

To make this a bit less complex, I'll start with 3 quarterbacks that I have on my own team. Jason Parks (Rookie QB, superstar dev trait), Fitzpatrick-(veteran-quick dev trait) and Donovan MacNabb(veteran- slow development trait).

First, I've looked at their production grade. Out of all three, Jordan Parks has the lowest production grade, while his xp gains are much higher compared to other two. That didn't make sense to me. Same thing with their intangible ratings and durability. The only correlation that was happening was on their physical. However, when I switched to Running Backs and tried to find a correlation between their xp gains and physical/durability/intangible/production grades. There wasn't a logical conclusion either. Furthering, in hopes of finding some kind of connection, I decided to see my WR's, since I have 5 of them in roster, perhaps finding a connection would be easier. Unfortunately I also was left empty handed.

So far, the only things that I am certain are, Rookie's do earn more xp, each rank of development trait increases WEEKLIES between 25-33 % while MILESTONE goals can differ about 4 to 10 times more between rank 1 to rank 4. Seasonal goals have nothing to do with the development trait. Rookies do not seem to get the disadvantage of having a slow development trait on their rookie year (The lowest overall that was tested with the rookies was 72 and yet their xp gain rate was higher compared to veterans that play on the same side of the field. Below that I do not have anything tested to reach into a conclusion).

Couple things of note for people that are seeking answers. Practices gain flat XP and having a high development trait does not change the XP gain. If played EVERYONE will receive this XP. However, players receive a bit less than what the coach receives. Looman has confirmed that the idea is, the longer the practice, the higher the gain. He has also confirmed that having ratings on practices (easy-normal-hard) was not something he wanted to leave in, therefore players should not consider it as hard difficulty = more xp. Basically, longer the practice, the more the XP.

Players that are not played often by the user have harder time to gain XP via weeklies/milestone/seasonal goals. I found that earning XP for the offense side of the game is lot easier than the defensive side of the game. This can be related to many things, and can be adjusted with sliders etc. If your player/coach is having hard time earning XP for their defenders, try adjusting your sliders for defensive play that can give you more opportunities to complete the goals.

On a personal note, I do think there is one inherited flaw. If you're building a team from nothing, you are going to have a hell of a time. Your players are going to have a very hard time to get XP in overall. I believe, at least the weekly XP gains should be adjusted against what team you're playing. If you are facing #1 offense as #32 defense, the goals should be easier to accomplish. For example, instead of gaining XP for stopping the offense at 250 yards, it could be increased to 400 yrds. My personal belief is that in real life, a defender would learn much more from an opponent that challenges them to their max.

Anyhow, I think I am ranting at this point. For everyone, I will do my best to update this thread as often as possible. Meanwhile, I do not have too much time in my hands. Please don't hesitate to put in what you've found. Sharing our knowledge is essentially what this thread is about

***************Update 9/5/12***************

Last night Josh Looman did a little radio chat as many of us are aware. He did not answer many questions, but one of them was related to rookies and their XP earning status. It appears that a player's production rate is calculated on his XP earnings. He also said that the xp scaling is related to the players development trait (as we all know at this point). However, looking at my roster as Bills, I have drafted 3 players that have the overalls 71-72-78. One has slow development trait, while the other two have the normal. All three of these rookies have higher xp earnings compared to their counter parts for their weeklies and for some of their milestone goals.

Looman has also stated something important. In order for a backup player to receive the xp, that said player has to be in the game and at least have participated 1/3 of the snaps. Therefore, if you are playing your CCM online as coach, make sure that you adjust your fatigue and auto sub options around to give your players the play time. Remember, accomplished weekly goals are SHARED by your team. My understanding is, milestone goals are INDIVIDUAL goals that give XP only to that person, while WEEKLIES are shared by your team. What you will notice is that weeklies that your coach have differ from weeklies that your players have. Therefore it is potentially possible to complete more weeklies that will benefit many of your players. Your coach may have 3 weeklies that asks for 250 passing, 2 passing td's and 3 turnovers, but if you also throw, say 3 passing TD's to your receiver, any other receiver that had the same goal for that week and has at least participated 1/3 of the game, he will receive that XP.

Another important note. Some people seem to complain about the seasonal goals, which are also your players individual goals. Seasonal goals are not shared, and they are divided into 4 levels. Each level increases your XP gain for that season significantly. (The bar on the right corner you see that asks for 110 receiving passes for example/year) In order to get the maximum XP, you would have to complete it all. But it is not the end of the world if you cannot finish it, because eventually you will earn some XP no matter what. However, one thing I am not sure is if that XP by levels is earned when the mark is reached, or if its given to the players at the end of the season. Would love to see if someone can confirm this.

Another thing that I am curious about. McNabb in my roster has a seasonal, that if reached to level 4, will earn him 20k XP, while Fitzpatrick, with the same seasonal goal as McNabb, would only earn 10k for the same seasonal goal (both level 4 seasonal goals). Interestingly thou, Fitzpatrick has Quick Development Trait, while McNabb has Slow Development Trait. I do not know what causes this difference. Perhaps it could be something related to the production rate as Looman has mentioned during his interview. I am about to check and compare both players on their production grades. Will get back shortly.

***************UPDATE 9/4/12***************

In order to try how much XP a rookie can earn per game at rookie level difficulty, just by completing weeklies/milestone (that can be accomplished only by weekly) I've tried playing a game where with highest score/TD'S/Passing yards and so forth. In said game, I've beat 2 NFL records by throwing 8 TD's and while throwing for 560 yards (2000 XP in total, this reward XP does not change, even with development trait, or with having a rookie status). Overall, including the XP rewards for breaking the record, I have earned 18k XP from one game alone. The majority of this was earned by throwing 5 TD's and by throwing over 500 yards for the said game (4000XP each, nets to 8000XP total).

If we compare this to Donovan McNabb, who has Slow Development Trait, just by throwing 500 yards in that same game with my rookie, I have earned little over 10 times of what McNabb would earn (he would gain only 375 XP for throwing 500 yards, while my rookie has earned 4000XP for it).

Also, Fitzpatrick has Quick development trait, which if this was accomplished by him, and if he had thrown for 500 yards, he would earn 1500XP. Now there is a huge difference of XP gain between a veteran QB who has slow development trait, compared to a rookie who has superstar development trait.

What I need is, for someone to find a superstar QB that is a veteran, and see if they can post the milestone rewards and the xp gain for for passing 5 TD's or for throwing 500 yrds in one game. This should tewll us, if indeed a rookie with superstar development trait has higher xp earnings for weekly MILESTONE accomplishments, compared to a veteran with same level of development trait.




***************UPDATE 9/4/2012***************

It appears that I was way off in some of my calculations. There is at least one factor that affects your players XP earnings, and that is the rookie status. Rookies, no matter what round they are picked, will EARN MORE XP, even if they have SLOW DEVELOPMENT TRAIT. Their weekly/milestone/seasonal goals WILL ALSO BE EASIER TO ACCOMPLISH, hence more XP RETURN overall. This is important, because many of us seem to complain about how to earn XP while sitting on the side, in coach or player mode. In coach mode, every player, no matter if they play or not, earns XP by practicing (there are certain practices that gives XP to the coach ONLY, beware). Rookies, if played, earns more XP by completing their goals, meaning, people do not need to worry about their rookies not getting as much playtime, as the accomplished goals will earn more XP, even if less games are played as a Rookie.

In order to test, I have decided to sign Donovan MacNabb as Bills, 3rd string QB. He does have Slow Development (rank 1) Trait and I have compared him to Fitzpatrick who has Quick development trait (rank 3). There is approximately 45% difference between what Fitz earns in weeklies, compared to McNabb. However this is not ALL! XP gain CHANGES depending on if your player is 1st string or not. My weekly goals XP gain was INCREASED when McNabb was put as 1st string QB.

However, what it seems to be more IMPORTANT is the fact that MILESTONE goals differentiate on their XP rewards in HUGE numbers. For example, McNabb gainst only 75 XP for 300 passing yards, while Fitz gains 250 XP if accomplished.

Another Comparison. McNabb earns 375 XP for 500 yard passing in one game while Fitz can earn 1500 XP for the same accomplishment. Now what is more important is, our rookie, Jordan Parks. For completing 500 Passing yards in one game, he earns a whopping 4k XP for it!!!!!!!!! (he does have the Superstar trait, as well as rookie status)

Initially, MILESTONE goals earn you LOT MORE XP compared to weeklies, when development trait level's are taken into account, as well as what string they are on.

Another important note! Seasonal goals seems to be giving RANDOM XP and are not affected by Development Trait. McNabb, if played will earn 20k XP for throwing 35 TD's a season, while the same accomplishment earns only 10k XP for Fitzpatrick (Even thou Fitzpatrick has QUICK development trait, compared to McNabb's SLOW development trait). My assumption is that this is decide by the type of the player, but further testing will be required.

************************************************** ****

P.S: I have missed an important detail, which is that there are 3 levels of development trait, not 2. Slow>Normal>Quick>Superstar. This means the percentage of XP gain by each rank is approximately 33% instead of what I thought, down from 50% increase per rank.

Alright. it Seems this is getting more complicated. Couple things before reading the rest of the post. Rookie players do earn MORE XP(even if they have slow development trait, they will earn more XP compared to a veteran, who has Normal Development trait, until their rookie status is rewoked), with much easier weekly/milestone/seasonal goals. I believe this is done on purpose to boost up their XP gain throughout the season. It seems EA has put more into this whole XP than what me may have initially thought.

After playing as a Bills coach for a season, and reaching the playoffs, I have finished the season, collecting decent amount of XP.

At first, I was unsure what the development trait did. I've decided to use Cordy Glenn for my experience, Bills LT with an 82 Overall start (depending on the scheme, as I am playing Spread as my scheme). He had NORMAL development trait, so I've decided to save up the required 50k XP to purchase him the first level of Development trait, which raises his XP gain from NORMAL to QUICK.

In comparison, Chris Hairston has almost the same overall rating, but does not have any development trait increase.

While both players excel at LT position, they differ in their playstyle. Glenn plays as a Big Mauler while Hairston prefers Balanced playstyle. The reason why I put this out there is that while they share the same weekly goals, they differ on their seasonal and milestone goals. Hence the comparison can only be made between their weekly goals.

Here are the results on the xp difference for weekly goals, between having quick development trait and Normal development trait.

Cordy Glenn Chris Hairston

16 First Team Downs
742XP 525XP
275 Team Passing Yards

742 XP 525XP

2 Team Rush TD's
742xp 525XP



So, the development trait is useful as it seems. The problem is, in order to benefit from it, your player needs to have somewhat decent games. This means, if your player's overall is low, he may not have the skill to accomplish his weekly/milestone/seasonal goals, hence losing lots of XP.

TLDR; Development for each rank seems to increase a players XP gain rating for WEEKLIES only about %30-%35 per rank, while MILESTONE GOALS THAT CAN BE ACCOMPLISHED WEEKLY ONLY, earn about 5 to 8 times more XP, depends on what rank trait your player has.

P.S: Non of these include boost from purchasing Coaching packages. I believe they increase the weekly/Milestone/Seasonal goal XP as well, but not sure of the percentage.

One another Quick note, Coach packages, when purchased, do not disappear from your list of packages, unless they are refreshed. I have purchased LOLB xp package, and it was on the list again. I have assumed that each purchase would increase the XP gain and so I made 3 purchases on the same XP package. This used all my XP, however, the Increase stayed the same. It is I believe an initial bug, so make sure to refresh the screen once a package is purchased to avoid making repeated purchases that wastes your Xp and gives nothing back. When a package is purchased it should disappear from the list.

[aikitim]

where do you see the players weekly goals? I keep hearing about it but I cant seem to find them...

[The Clairvoyant]

Quote: Originally Posted by aikitim

where do you see the players weekly goals? I keep hearing about it but I cant seem to find them...

In more > personel > team goals

[Sigil]

Quote: Originally Posted by aikitim

where do you see the players weekly goals? I keep hearing about it but I cant seem to find them...

Go to Players, and click team goals. Your Roster will be shown. From there you can pick any player on your team. in xbox, after choosing a player, you can use LB and RB to switch between weeklies/Milestone and Seasonal goals.

[NDAlum]

Quality thread sir. I was curious about this and it seems like you'd have to play at least 3 seasons to see the benefit of putting 50k XP into a player.

You'd have to go a year without upgrading his attributes before you could start to progress that player.

Is there the regular progression after the season? If so does the trait have any impact?

[Sigil]

Quote: Originally Posted by aikitim

where do you see the players weekly goals? I keep hearing about it but I cant seem to find them...

Quote: Originally Posted by NDAlum

Quality thread sir. I was curious about this and it seems like you'd have to play at least 3 seasons to see the benefit of putting 50k XP into a player. You'd have to go a year without upgrading his attributes before you could start to progress that player. Is there the regular progression after the season? If so does the trait have any impact?

My estimates are a bit lower on this. For example, if you draft someone on the 1st round, but lets say that said player doesn't have a draft history throughout the season, his likelihood to have any level of development trait is lower (this is of course an assumption, I've picked up Jordan Parks as an 88 overall QB, but he had a draft story throughout the year therefore no surprises that he has the Superstar trait already as he is a 1st round 1st pick kinda fella . However, that said player can still have an overall to be a starter on the first year. With that, he could gain easy accomplishments for xp gain, therefore able to get the 1st level of the trait rather quickly. Now even thou we didn't put any points into his other skills, because of his overall, he can potentially finish his goals throughout the season. However, because we already purchased the trait, his one year overall gain should be about 50% more than previous year. Now he has the points to purchase the superstar trait (going up from rank 1 to 2), as well as some extra points to increase his other ratings, making it even easier to gain more XP, on his 2nd year.

After the 2nd season, once the superstar trait is purchased (rank 2) he will gain 100% more xp on his 3rd season, meaning, he will double his progression on his 3rd year, easily reaching to A status player. And because he doesn't have to purchase anymore development traits, all this xp gain can be used for his other attributes. My estimates at this point is about 150k XP per season, depending on how successful you are throughout the year, including practices etc.

Now that number, 150k may seem very high, but we have to factor in the fact that seasonal goals, when accomplished, brings in a great amount of XP at the end of the season. With the trait doubling the earnings, I think I am not way off on my estimate (this is of course, assuming as a player, you've received your part of your weeklies at least every week, as well as some milestone accomplishments etc.)

Also, another thing to factor is the milestone accomplishments. Some of those will be achieved during early years, while some will be achieved later on. However, my understanding is, a player, especially with the development trait, should gain more XP each year, as more milestone goals will be achieved. Perhaps an example is the way salaries work. Increased amount of payments every year.

Again, the number may seem high, but if you look at some of the xp requirements for increasing skills like speed on a HB, I would think that the amount of XP gain would make sense. In this case, my understanding is, the only players that can actually accomplish and collect enough xp to raise their main stats even further with those crazy XP requirements would be the superstar players, that have the trait either early on, or have at least started with a rank on it.

Also, at the end of the season, because of accomplished season goals (depends of course, how well you fare into the season), you should see some crazy amounts of xp gain on players that have the trait at rank 2. To answer your question, there isn't a progression after the season, and you don't get bonus out of nowhere, but you do get great amount of XP for accomplishing the seasonal goals.


Lastly, I haven't tested everything, but if I am correct, we should be able to see clear difference between players with Superstar traits, and those who don't have it, at least at their prime.

[ragnarok1978]

Wow, I wish I hadn't deleted my test save already, where I was playing player mode ad a MLB.

By my calculations, my xp gain only rose 9% on goals and other game stats (like tackles made) when going from quick to superstar. Given tho, I didn't use that much time testing it.

If the gain is that much higher, up to an additional 50% from quick to superstar, that makes it an entirely new ballgame, and definately worth getting.

[rodrigose]

I keep hearing about it but I cant seem to find them