Ladies, Gentlemen and all manner of genders, welome to the first Northwestern Cup! Your host, Savalen Football Association (SAF), welcomes you to the northern kingdom of Savalen, where you will play out for the Cup! Good luck!
As there are no ranks, the tournament kicks off with all teams having an equal chance to win the prize. There is an element of luck involved, but you can improve your luck by doing one thing: roleplay! If you have both, you are giving yourself the greatet chance in winning the tournament, but losing is a part of sport and the fun part is writing it off. Your RP will be rated by me and will be entered into the scorinator (I will be using Xkoranate) before every matchday, which increases your chance of winning the match (this isn't a guarantee!).
In this thread, IC (in-character) roleplaying about the tournament, such as roosters and reports. Despite the name "everything thread", there are some things that should never be posted - whether it being comments, problems or placeholders (and no "tags"), they should not be posted here. They have to be instead directed to the sign-ups/OOC threadTelegram. Unnecessary out-of-character comments will result turning your RP bonus into 0.
For those of you still unsure, I will post a rooster and RP soon. Copying the format will not affect your RP bonus negatively, it's the content that's important and I will be generous, but quality will be rewarded over quantity (both play a part - one amazing post after MD 2 isn't as good overall compared to good ones every matchday - you will have one good RP bonus for MD 3, but otherwise you will haver an RP bonus of 0 for the rest of them. Balance is important!)
OOC: Cited from the OP of the 60th BoF. Many thanks to Valladares and Eura for the excellent introduction.
Transportation
Getting in will be easy as any nation from the INWU only needs a passport to enter the country, visa-free travel is the way forward. The easiest way to get into Savalen is through the main airport, Telegetu International Airport. It is also possible to fly to Trondheim and Molde, but flights are rarer to both cities. Travel by car is relatively cheap because of the developed rental service, but it is recommended that fans travel by train, as it is usually faster and cheaper. The trains themselves are well maintained and travel regularly, so it give you flexiblity when travelling
Languages
All citizens speak Norweigan and are required to know a second language. Around 50% of the population speak English as a second language and around 30% speak Mongolian, whith the other 20% compromising a wide range of langauges, with the largest being Slovak, which makes up a large portion of the immigrant population.
Lodging
All stadiums are in large cities, so there is at least a five star hotel in the cities if you are looking for luxury. There is also a wide range of four to three star hotels in all cities, which allows even the largest influx of tourists to not overburden the hotel system. Camping sites have sprung up, as the weather has hit a relative warm patchas spring comes to a close, so this is a viable option. However, there is no law, unlike with hotels, that campsities have to have faster WiFi or any WiFi at all, so if you still need to work, book your hotel now!
Weather
All of Savalen is within Temperate and Polar climates, with only Trondheim hosting matches and lying in the Polar area. The area is now experiencing warm weather, which means that it is a lovely time to play football, as warm weather in Savalen is typically a cool 18 to 20°C. Current tempuratures, in order of city size:
Alvdal: currently a cool 18°C, it is expected to rise to around 21°C for the final.
Trondheim: The coldest of the locations, it is currently around 14°C, but it can get as cold as 5/6°C in the evening. Wrap up warm!
Molde: it will stay around 22°C throughout the tournament, but the sea wind chill means that it will feel more like 18°C, even in the stadium.
Vik: Basking in the sunshine in the South-West of the country, temperatures will be around 24°C
Harrenhall: Located at around 1500m, the weather is till warm, but a cool breeze will make this place feel like 16°C or so
Røros: 19°C/20°C
Money
The national currency of Savalen is the Tugrik, which is fairly moderate. The current exchange rate is NS$1 = ₮0.92. The prices are relatively cheap, especially local produce. The average 500ml water bottle costs around ₮0.50.
Religion
Savalen doesn't have a national religion and when asked buy the international community, refused to give one. That being said, there are a few religous buildings around the country, mostly in the largest cities.
Format and Groups
Groups
Group A
Kathmandue
Topsail Empire
El Fiji Grande
Crumstain
Kaelmar Unionen
Group B
Savalen
Tracian Empire
Naigeria
Raventsvo
Gatito
Format
Groups
Sun 22nd
1 v 4
2 v 3
5 bye
Mon 23rd
1 v 5
2 v 4
3 bye
Tue 24th
1 v 2
3 v 5
4 bye
Wed 25th
1 v 3
4 v 5
2 bye
Thurs 26th
2 v 5
3 v 4
1 bye
Fri 27th
A1 vs B2
B1 vs A2
Sat 28th
B2 vs A1
A1 vs B2
Sun 29th
Final
3rd place play-off
Cut-offs at 5pm (GMT +1 due to daylight savings) on weekdays (this means that if you post an RP, your bonus won't be counted and it won't be rolled over to next week in a normal tournament, but I'm lax, so I might do it). Results will follow with an hour.
The draw was done on random.org.
I ordered the nations in sign-up order from 1 to 10, then drew the first to Group A, second to Group B etc.
Knockout rounds over two legs. Letter determines the group, number determines the placing.
If there is a group with equal points, the below seperation will occur, in order from the top:
Goal difference
Goals for
Head-to-head record
Play-off
Stadiums
Dodford Park
Built: 2008
Capacity: 57,250
City: Alvdal
Home team: Trondfjell Albion
Matches: MD 3 - Savalen vs Tracian Empire; MD 4 - Kathmandue vs El Fiji Grande; SF A1 vs B2 (first leg); Final.
Details: Found in the capital, this is the national stadium of Savalen. Expect a raucous home crowd, as it's unique "wall of sound", a stand without tiers, on the west side, is a formidable. Warning - not for the faint hearted.
Alvdal itself is a charming nordic village that streches on forever with the sparkling new city in the center. Hiking trails onto the highest peak in Savalen (3,647) start here.
Bright Hart Lane
Built: 1996
Capacity: 48,000
City: Trondheim
Home team: Trondheim Vikings
Matches: MD 3 - Kathmandue vs Topsail Empire; MD 4 - Savalen vs Naigeria; MD 5 - Crumstain vs El Fiji Grande; SF B1 vs A2 (second leg); 3rd Place Play-off.
Details: Found in the far north in the industrial city of Trondheim. Not much to see here, unless you're interested in the old industries (not being sarcastic - the old markets are worth a visit even if it requires an early morning start - they close at 8 am). But the passion of the fans is incredible, so sports talk will be heard all day, every day whilst the tournament is on. Why not go to one of the pubs during matchday?
Waterfront Park
Built: 2016
Capacity: 42,000
City: Molde
Home team: Molde FC
Matches: MD 1 - Tracian Empire vs Naigeria; MD 2 - Tracian Empire vs Raventsvo; MD 3 - Naigeria vs Gatito; MD 5 - Naigeria vs Raventsvo; MD 4 - Raventsvo vs Gatito; SF A2 vs B1 (first leg).
Details: Beautiful stadium built just for tournament found in Molde. Molde was a fishing village for centuries until, fifty years ago, oil was found nearby and the military decided to set up a base nearby within two years of each other. Since then the city has grown twenty fold and shows no sign of slowing up.
Viking Dome
Built: 2003
Capacity: 29,000
City: Vik
Home team: Vik
Matches: MD 1 - Topsail Empire vs El Fiji Grande; MD 3 - El Fiji Grande vs Kaelmar Unionen; MD 4 - Savalen vs Naigeria; MD 2 - Topsail Empire vs Crumstain.
Details: You want beautiful countryside? You've come to the right country! You don't like cheese, wine (amazing for this cold climate, grapes do grow here), ham or any type of cuisine that isn't sea-based? You've come to the wrong county. Vik represents the south-west of the country, which houses most of the agriculture. Enjoy! (oh and the stadium's small, but fiery).
Hallmaker Lane
Built: 1986
Capacity: 25,000
City: Landsby Kongelig (Village of Royals)
Home team: Harrenhall FC
Matches: MD 1 - Savalen vs Raventsvo; MD 2 - Kathmandue vs Kaelmar Unionen; MD 5 - Tracian Empire vs Gatito.
Details: Some people say that this stadium is a little small for the Northwestern Cup, but the grandeur of the seat of Khans is too stunning not to show. See for yourself. And then there's the stadium. Set on the outskirts in the first palace of Landsby Kongelig - where guests were welcomed, it is literally inside of the palace. One of the entrances is through the grand door and another through the servants door. To see this unique stadium, I would advise staying an extra day or two to see the stadium on a stadium tour! Also doubles up as a base for reporters.
Røros Dome
Built: 1999
Capacity: 32,000
City: Røros
Home team: Røros Rovers
Matches: MD 1 - Kathmandue vs Crumstain; MD 2 - Savalen vs Gatito; MD 4 - Crumstain vs Kaelmar Unionen; MD 5 - Topsail Empire vs Kaelmar Unionen; SF - B2 vs A1 (second leg).
Details: Based in Røros, an old mining town, the area has some of the best views in the INWU, let alone Savalen. A hike is greatly recommended, as is the visit to the "northern safari." If you're rich enough, how about a helicopter ride following the deer on their annual migration, a truly awe-inspiring site!
Final words: good luck!