[b]New Player Guide for FID - CI's Noob Guide
By: boroie
Source: https://forum.footballidentity.com/default.aspx?g=posts&m=2489949#post2489949[/b]
I originally wrote this guide for one of my teams and then shared it on the Irish forum. Apparently its good enough to post here too so here you go. There is nothing too revolutionary here but hopefully it will help somebody get to grips with the game that might have otherwise struggled. If you disagree with anything posted below or have other comments/suggestions, then please either drop me a PM or post a comment regarding it. Feel free to take this and post it in your team forums, or send a link to this article to any new players that join your team.
1. Dos and Don'ts
* When you are young, train skills that are low to get the most bang for your buck. Every year you age (eg 18 > 19) your maximum wage can be increased by 100,000. At 22 your maximum wage becomes 1,000,000 (1 million). Training skills is based on 2 things - your wage and the level of the skill being trained.
* Don't train one skill in isolation - all actions in the game require a combination of skills to be most successful. Speed is the only exception. For example, Fearlessness and Agility are used in nearly every physical confrontation (eg trying to dribble past a defender, trying to tackle a striker). If you train only Dribbling and neglect other skills then you will be knocked off the ball far more easily than a player who spread his skills around better.
* As a young player, do NOT train special skills (Sliding Tackle, 360 Dribble, Lightning Save, etc). All special skills act as a multiplier to your existing skills. If you have low skills, then getting a special ability will just make your low skill slightly less bad. You are much better off training your normal skills first and then training special skills when you are older and have a higher wage. Do not train more than 1* in any special skill until you have a good wage (1 million+).
2. General Play Tips
* If you choose the wrong action by mistake and its still your turn then press the Z key on your keyboard to cancel it (or click on your dot) to get your choice again. You have to be quick though.
* No Action. Use this option whenever you can. Dont run around like a headless chicken. Every time you move in a turn, this uses some of your condition. Every action you perform is affected by your current condition. This is to simulate you getting tired. When defending for example, if your team has the ball and you are standing on the halfway line, just click no action to stand still.
* From kickoff, choose a high starting position to conserve condition for later. The same goes for free kicks, place yourself appropriately instead of running around in the turns afterwards.
* Not everyone can shoot, head or pass the ball. This is purely dependent on your skills. Don't think 'anyone could do that' because FID is not like real life. Imagine your player as having the football skill levels of a 12 year old girl until you train up your skills and you wont be far wrong. Play it safe and use your teammates if they are better than you at certain things. You are not Pele.
* When playing a match, look down at the bottom of the screen and you will see your confidence bar. This also affects how well you perform in actions. Red is good, blue is bad. This bar gets higher if you have successful actions, and drops if you are unsuccessful. It also drops if you miss training for a day or are offside.
* When you are offside then your player dot will turn transparent. Never try to interact with the ball when you are offside. This will give away a free kick but it will also give you -5.0 match rating and drop your confidence to blue.
* There are two types of Bot players. Some have names like Bot Footballer4. They fill teams that don't have enough human players. The other type are human characters that have nobody playing them in a game, this is because the human maybe missed the match. They do stuff automatically. All bot players are [censored]ed. Bot Footballers (the first type) have really low skills.
* If a manager of a team has 'Supporter Pass' (or SP) then he can control one bot footballer per turn in a game. This also applies to the team assistant manager.
* Try not to one-touch or take Direct actions unless you have to. A direct action (eg Direct Shot, Direct Pass or Header) will never be as accurate as if you Received the ball first and then perform the action - unless you have 100 in the One Touch skill. It also takes exactly the same amount of turns in the game to accomplish a Direct Action as it does to Receive & Action. The benefit of Direct actions though is that it allows everyone less movement in that turn - this can be very useful sometimes for shots.
* Don't HOOF! The longer that your pass is, then the more movement every other player gets in that turn. This is especially true for low skilled passers. You can lose any advantage your team has by making a too long pass as the opposition defence has more than enough time to get back into position.
* Use short passing where possible to get the ball to a high passing skill player. The longer your pass is, especially when it is a high pass, the greater the chance that it will go severly off target unless you have trained your passing skills and Vision quite high.
* When making a low pass, dont leave it too short for an opponent to intercept. Stick your foot through it if an opponent is nearby. Better an inaccurate pass than giving the ball away easily.
* If you block a ball then you cannot interact with it the next turn. The same goes for punching. Block really does not work well/at all at low skill levels.
* The half will not end (well you get up to 5 minutes extra) if the ball is in the penalty area, or if it is a freekick/corner/goalkick. Keep an eye on the clock and if its the 2nd last turn before halftime, try to get it into the opposition box.
* If you are standing on the pitch and the ball goes through or near you so that the action menu pops up on your turn, you do not have to do an action there. You can choose to MOVE and then do something (eg receive the pass further down the line). The same goes for shots and dribbles.
* If you win a tackle against a player then he cannot tackle you next turn (and only gets half movement if it was a hard tackle). This means that you can dribble with the ball without worrying about that player. This does not mean that nobody else cannot tackle you though so be wary of opponents nearby.
3. Goalkeeping Tips
* You can see the type of the shot by checking the stars that the shooter got - it will tell you if it is controlled or if it is hard (or a header).
* You can see the strength/quality of the shot by looking down at the bars on the bottom of your screen. If its 4 bars or higher then it is a very well struck shot.
* If a shot is coming near you and you get the action menu up straight away, ALWAYS click move and position yourself directly in line of the shot.
* Punch = Parry. When you do this then the ball can rebound anywhere (including your own net). Most goalkeepers tend to punch shots they dont think they can catch.
* Save = catch/hold. Sometimes you can get a bad save if the shot is very good or you get a bad action, this can cause the ball to rebound like a punch.
* Never use the Save or Punch action when you have the action Receive Ball with Hands available. You are likely to end up looking like a fool as the ball rolls past you into the net if you do. Imagine a keeper diving full length to keep out a barely moving backpass that he could just walk over and pick up.
* Never EVER use the block option. NEVER!
* Don't be afraid to 'sweep' outside your area, especially if you have trained speed. You can pick up inaccurate long passes from the opposition sometimes and start counter attacks for your team. Always be wary of giving the ball away when you do this - you can get lobbed.
* Never try long crossfield passes. These will very frequently go off target to the opposition. Try to pass short if you have a defender open, or at least send it long and straight up the pitch to get it out of your half.
* Never try to tackle an opponent unless you can use the Tackle with Hands option.
4. Defending
* Most teams play an offside trap in this game if they have an active defence. We use the lines on the pitch (where the colour changes from dark green to light green and vice versa) which are labelled from Line 1 to 5. Line 1 is inside the box and is never used. Line 2 is on the edge of the area and is sometimes called 'Box line'. Line 3 (L3) is our start position for goal kicks. Line 4 (L4) is our start position for kick off. Line 5 (L5) is nearly at the halfway line. Halfway line (HL or HW) is our default position when the ball is in the other half.
* Never run forward from the halfway line unless you can easily win a ball uncontested. Stay with your man if you are unsure.
* When tackling, always MOVE first and then tackle at the end of the opponents dribble. Dont get left behind play with an unsuccessful tackle.
* Know when to use Hard and Soft tackles. If you make a hard tackle and fail it, then you can only move half your normal movement next turn. If you make a soft tackle and fail it then you can still make your full movement next turn.
* Hard tackles have a greater chance of success but also a higher chance of giving away a freekick or getting a yellow card/injury. Use against oponents near the box or against players that are much better dribblers or much faster than you. Use Soft tackle by default.
* Standing beside an opponent will put pressure on him so even if you missed your tackle against an attacker, try to crowd out his dot and make him fluff his shot or pass.
* The Block skill needs to be trained to a high level before it works some of the time. Do not waste your training on this skill unless you plan to specialise in it. At low levels it will do nothing for you.
* When stopping on a line, consider standing just in front of your man (especially if you are faster than him) so you might be able to play him offside. If you are slower than him then you may need to stand behind him to get the edge in a footrace. Make your defence aware of this though so you dont break the offside line if one has been called.
5. Midfield Tips
* Central Midfielders are primarily playmakers and destroyers. Know your role and don't unbalance the team by running forward to join every attack or running backwards to break the defensive line. Generally you will be the best passer on the team and will switch play to the wings or play in the strikers directly.
* If you are bad at tackling, then dont tackle a good dribbler unless absolutely necessary. You are more likely to give away a free kick or get an injury than succeed against a good dribbler. This is more true in your own defensive half though. Feel free to try and tackle anyone in the opposition half where giving away a freekick doesnt matter.
* If you are not specifically tracking an opposition player, then try to get into space so that your teammates have an easy pass to you. Don't be too far away from a bad passer and expect and accurate pass, you are likely to end up in a fight with several other players to get the ball.
* Unless you have trained shooting, dont shoot. You might get lucky and get it on target but its also likely to be very easy for the keeper to save. Pass it to the strikers instead.
* The same goes for dribbling.
6. Winger/Dribbler Tips
* Try not to dribble past too many defenders. The more players in a row, the more chance of you failing.
* Dont be afraid to put the ball into the box early, especially if your striker is a good fighter. Too many dribbles can let the defence get back and crowd out your attack.
* Know when to use Cross and when to Pass instead. The same goes for when to choose High or Low. A Cross can only be made from certain positions on the pitch, near the opposition area. High Crosses move faster than High Passes and give less movement to players - this can be an advantage. They can also go off target though. Low passes and crosses move the fastest and are the best option when passing to an unmarked player, as long as the ball can not be intercepted by a defender.
* Everybody has a minimum amount of movement on a turn. Don't make your dribbles too short otherwise you can get tackled when you least expect it.
* If you have low ball control/dribbling/speed then frequently players will be able to run further than you can when you are dribbling - be very careful you dont let yourself be tackled by a defender because of this.
7. Striker Tips (also for anyone shooting at goal)
* Heading the ball does not use your shooting skills. It uses the Heading skill. If you have a low heading skill then don't choose header unless you can easily beat the keeper because he is out of position. You will probably put it over the bar or into the keepers arms otherwise.
* Know when to use Hard and Controlled shots. Hard shots are much more difficult to get right with low skills. It is best to use these when you are closer to goal (think around the penalty spot) and just aim them down the middle. They might go anywhere. Generally use controlled shots outside the area if you have to shoot from there.
* It is best to shoot from inside the area rather than outside the area. Your shots are much harder to save when they are closer to goal.
* Try not to use direct shots unless there is a clear tactical reason to do so, or you have trained one touch to a reasonable level.
* Your passing is probably going to be terrible, keep it simple.
8. Training
* Team Training is once per week (it says what day and time on your character page near the next match information). You can only do team training if you have not performed training already that day. When the team training time arrives (generally 30 minutes before a game starts on one day) the text will turn into a link that you can click. Team training trains 3 skills at the same time for you that are set by the manager. It is well worth doing this.
* If a match has started (or is in the 10 minute warmup stage prior to kickoff) then never train condition - you just wasted your training.
* Match items are too expensive until you are on at least 1 million wage. If you choose the training option "Transfer to Bank" then it will save 1/7th of your wage to your bank account. This can be used to purchase match items. However you will not be able to train any skills that day. For example, Boots cost 120,000 - at the base wage that will take you 9 days of saving. Its NOT worth it.
* Always badger your manager to give you maximum wage. This directly affects how fast you can train your player.
* Train every day. If you miss training in a day then your player confidence will drop.
* Max wage levels:
18: 100,000
19: 200,000
20: 300,000
21: 400,000
22: 1,000,000
23: 1,100,000
24: 1,200,000
25: 1,300,000
etc
* Don't bother training Special Skills or New Positions unless your wage is good and you understand what they do.
* Getting 5 stars in a position means that you are completely adapted to that position and will not experience OOP (Out Of Position) penalties.
* Even at a wage of 1,000,000+ expect it to take up to several months to get 5 stars in a special skill or position. This is not worth doing except for old players who already have high skills.
9. Stars and Bars
* You can see what star rating a player gets by clicking on their dot after they do something. You can see your own rating at the bottom of the screen.
* Whenever a player attempts any action within the game, whether it is receiving a ball, tackling, shooting or whatever, they will be given a star rating for that action. The game examines the skills of the player (and the opponent if this is a contest) and the difficulty of the action they are trying to accomplish, then rates how likely this is to succeed. It gets the actual result by adding up all the skills into its calculation and adding a dose of random (to simulate luck), then compares the actual result to the first result.
* The star rating is as follows:
RED star - you failed very badly, 95% of the time you would do better than this. Equivalent to a striker kicking the ground instead of the ball.
ONE star - bad luck, you did worse than was expected of you, normally about 70% of the time you would do better than this
TWO stars - you did about as well as was expected of you
THREE stars - you got lucky and did better than we thought - maybe 25% of the time this can happen
GOLD stars - jackpot! 5% of the time you do amazingly well, much better than anyone thought you could
* For actions that only you are involved in, ie that are not a contest against one or more other players - these actions are: Headers (low/high/controlled/hard), Passes (low/high), Crosses (low/high), Throw Ins (low/high), Receive Ball (low/high/with hands), Goalkick/Dropkick, Shooting (controlled/hard). You do not fail the action if you get a 1*, it generally means that the direction is less accurate or the pass is longer/shorter than you chose. Sometimes a shot will turn into a pass (you scuffed it). Likewise getting a 3* or gold action here does not mean you are guaranteed to score or find your teammate with a pass. A striker with 20 shooting getting a gold star result just means that the game is surprised you didnt hit row Z with the shot, not that its a screamer into the top corner.
* For actions that are contests, ie you versus one or more players - these actions are: Tackling (hard/soft), Fight for Ball, Save/Punch, Dribbling, Blocking. You will ALWAYS fail the action if you get a 1* or a red star result. Getting a 3* or gold action is ALWAYS a success. When you get a 2* result then the opponent will also get a 2* result. This means the player with the best skills will win the contest. Also note that when you get a 1* then the opponent will get a 3*, when you get a 3* then the opponent gets a 1*.
* You will see Bars down on the bottom of your screen listed as Pass/Shot Quality. This goes from 1 to 5. This means how easy or hard it is to block or intercept a pass or save a shot. If you see a 1 bar then it might indicate that the ball is not moving that fast (eg imagine the difference between a floated cross and a driven cross) or that a shot is at a really good height for a goalkeeper to save. Getting a 3* shot and a 4 or 5 bar quality is a very good combination though.
10. Further Playing Tips
* Blocking out is a term that is used when you successfully position your dot between the ball and another dot so that he cannot initiate a fight for the ball (FFB). This is the best way to win the ball with a low skill player versus a high skill player. You generally have to be quicker to the ball than the opponent and be in the same spot as he is trying to go to. You will get better at this with practice.
* Don't let yourself be blocked out of fights. If the opponent goes first (so you can see his arrow), especially if he is faster than you, do NOT go to the same position. Go off to the side or ahead/behind so that you can initiate a FFB at least.
