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Did you know you can setup tactics in advance? If you were to ask most veteran PPM players they would tell you that having tactics pre-set is one of the best ways to manage your team.
The question then isn't should we use tactics, but which ones do we set?
In your PPM members area under the "Game" menu you will find a sub-section called "Tactics" (link: http://hockey.powerplaymanager.com/en/tactics.html). This page is where you will setup and/or edit your pre-defined tactics. It should be said that i'm assuming you are a pro member here, and have full tactic features. If not, please read on anyway as this is truly a wonderful feature.
What you want to do is setup a few different tactics, so that you can quickly set your team up before each game. There is no right or wrong way to do this, however there are commonly suggested tactics that are considered "must-haves". The top 3 that I strongly suggest you have are:
Offensive, Counterattacks and Active Forecheck are also good options, however if in doubt, start with these top 3 first and then go from there. Reading the forums will reveal a LOT of information about which tactics to use the most.
The question then isn't should we use tactics, but which ones do we set?
In your PPM members area under the "Game" menu you will find a sub-section called "Tactics" (link: http://hockey.powerplaymanager.com/en/tactics.html). This page is where you will setup and/or edit your pre-defined tactics. It should be said that i'm assuming you are a pro member here, and have full tactic features. If not, please read on anyway as this is truly a wonderful feature.
What you want to do is setup a few different tactics, so that you can quickly set your team up before each game. There is no right or wrong way to do this, however there are commonly suggested tactics that are considered "must-haves". The top 3 that I strongly suggest you have are:
- Defense with Low Importance. This tactic is one of the best you can use against a team that is stronger than you, and is especially good Vs a team who plays the offensive tactic. Low importance is optional, however to conserve energy loss, i always suggest playing low importance unless the game is a "must-win".
- Normal with Low Importance. This tactic is pretty much the same as above, however the normal tactic system is very good against the "Defensive" style of play. It's also a great tactic to use as a fall-back, so if you're unsure, normal is a pretty good all-round one to go with.
- Breaking Up with Low Importance. This is my favorite tactic as it's the very best one to use against teams that use the "normal" tactic option. As many new players and/or those who don't change tactics use normal by default, this one can be a very popular one to go with.
Offensive, Counterattacks and Active Forecheck are also good options, however if in doubt, start with these top 3 first and then go from there. Reading the forums will reveal a LOT of information about which tactics to use the most.
Setting Up your Tactics
This is one of the hardest parts of the game. Choosing the tactic to use is not enough, as you also need to play around with a few other options.
3 or 4 lines?
If you are up against a tough opponent, think of playing just 3 lines by choosing "yes" underr the rotate 3 lines section. 3 lines will use more energy, but will allow you to play only your top 3 lines of players so have more chance to score and therefore win.
Changing the goalie and/or dropping the 4th line?
These 2 options are both good if your team is being lit up on he scoreboard. I always choose the option to change and reduce lines after both the 1st and 2nd periods, and generally have trailing by 2 (to 99) after 1st and trailing by 1 (to 99) after the 2nd period for both options. the leading by option an i have set to 99 to 99. The 99 means the option is not used.
Mimic your opposition?
If your opposition drops their 4th line, you can set your team to mimic them and do the same. Some believe saying "yes" to this ensures your team will play at their best, but it is purely optional.
Pulling the goalie?
This is always a difficult decision to make as it means your team is trailing with 2 minutes to go in the game, however if you find yourself in this position you can have your team pull the goalie in exchange for a 6th skater. It's not always a good move, but worth a shot if you're ballsy enough to take the risk.
As always, tactics are a personal preference thing and what one person believes to be a great idea may be a really stupid one to the next person. My suggestion is give different tactics a shot and see how your team works.
