The eWrestling Encyclopedia
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2021 update: New forums to find up to date, active e-feds are at https://efeds.goodforum.net

An e-federation (also typeset as eFederation, e-fed or just referred as fed) is a fantasy wrestling league or promotion in e-wrestling, operated electronically and is based on professional wrestling. Formed in 1995 with a small group of people and four efeds that email based feds. It uses roleplay aspects to shape events in the way it turns out in the real business. In modern day, these federations are mostly ran through the use of a message board, where everything is conveyed via text form with images, and sometimes videos, borrowed from other entities, contrary to when conducted by means of website, email, postal mail, dicing systems, and simulated or strategic gaming.

Just like in real-life professional wrestling, bookers of a federation arrange weekly or even bi-weekly shows and pay per view events, depending upon the availability of those in charge of operations. Results are assembled by those who are dubbed as a "fedhead", another name for an owner or president, who decides outcomes and may script matches, storylines or promos, whether or not staff or handlers of e-wrestlers are available to contribute. There are various type of federations that vary in regards to a type of roleplay character permitted and how a roleplayer is able to win matches.

Types of e-federations[]

  • eFederation Network - An efed network is a social network specifically geared toward the creation, documentation and promotion of e-federations and fictional superstar characters. The first efed social network in existence is the eFed Network, created by Josh Tamugaia and Steve Cuthbert, joint owners of the WWX - World Wrestling Xistence.
  • Imitation federations - Imitation federations are characterized by duplicating a real-life popular wrestling promotion, using their events, images, wrestlers such as from WWE, TNA and further more. Also, some federations accept a mix of wrestlers from more than one wrestling promotion.
  • Original federations - Original federations is where the promotion makes little to no reference to real-life wrestling and depicts make-believe pro wrestlers and events, but usually borrows images from real-life federations as well as pop culture.
  • Imitation/Original federations - Allows both Imitation and Original content.
  • Angle federations - These federations are run more similarly to a real life wrestling promotion. In this case, angles or storylines are created and planned ahead of time and writers roleplay for events knowing where the angle is going, but without knowing the final result. The "winner" of an angle is determined on the strength of their overall efforts rather than on a week to week basis. This style of federation involves slightly less submissions than a traditional roleplaying federation, but does require handlers to work more closely together.
  • Hybrid federations - Match outcomes are decided by a combination of roleplay and angle aspects. Some Hybrid federations exist with a tilt toward one type of federation such as for example being a 60% roleplay or a 60% angle federation. These are popular with fedheads and handlers, as roleplays are not as long-winded as roleplay federations, but are still important. Several modern day, top federations have been hybrids, and they have quickly became the most popular type of federation.
  • Roleplay federations - These federations base all match overcomes on the evaluation of judges, or for that matter, its fedhead or staff. Winners are only determined by a decisive selection of who delivered the best effort in their roleplays for an event. This is the best type of federation from a competitive standpoint, allowing roleplayers to truly challenge themselves. However, strict RP federations don't take angles into account, if at all. Matches are put together by the federation fedheads rather than a strict booking team.
  • Email federations - These federations use the email system to write and receive roleplays and use it to send out the completed shows. Winners in the results are decided based on what type of federation they are between an angle federation and a roleplay federation. This is an outdated way to engage in the e-wrestling world since message boards were made to be occupied for free.
  • Fantasy federations - There are two type of Fantasy Wrestling promotions:
  1. The first type is where a number of handlers work together to write the shows. Some of them even do roleplays. When the results are done, the handlers review the shows. The characters are original in nature.
  2. The second type is where one person or more work together to put out shows with no roleplay involvement. The characters range from original, to real pro wrestlers, movie characters, celebrities, sports stars, video game characters and more.
  • Game federations - These federations use various game systems, and rely on the match simulators in wrestling video games, strategic gaming, or dice systems to determine wins. Storylines, promos and overall roleplaying are sometimes done like the more popular federation types online, using a message board, or they are put together on a storyboard and played out by the storymode of the game. However, these type of federations are rare online and none are really of high significance.
  • Match Writing federations - There are two type of Match Writing promotions:
  1. This style of federation, also known as a Pre-Booked Sim federation in some circles, demands a dedicated team for planning and administration and the highest amount of writing skill to succeed. Match writing federations tend to be angle-based since the amount of labor in writing matches and executing promos is prohibitive to allowing random roleplaying. Federations will typically run like a traditional real-life federation with a weekly card created by the bookers, who determine who wins each match ahead of time. Angles are "won" by the most talented writers rather than week to week results. Shows run like a live show with promos breaking up the matches until the final bout. Due to high amount of work involved, Match Writing federations are not as common as the other types apart from Game federations, but contains more quality writing.
  1. There is also another form of Match Writing that has appeared in recent years in such e-federations as WWA-Efed.com. This style involves two or more writers each writing a match where their wrestler wins, and a "Grader" grading each match on a certain number of criteria points. Whichever match wins the most categories is the match that counts, and the one who wrote it wins. Promos are also encouraged to be written to hype feuds or characters, although are not nessecary to "win" matches. Some e-federations such as the XWA BattleZone will have fellow members actually vote for the winner, presenting an alternative to grading by an authority and allowing more control from members. This style makes for a unique e-federation experience with new heights of interactivity between members.

Overview[]

Moved by the fads and trends of contemporary professional wrestling, almost everyday a new federation is opened and pursuing recruitment of members to play their part as staff or e-wrestlers. To find success, a federation requires a vast amount of dedication and time committed towards it. However, a majority of fedheads seem not to understand when blindly beginning their ventures out of inspiration. As study has it, a lot of federations barely survive a few weeks of existence, sometimes reopening a few months later. At most, some last about a year. Moreover, for the lower percentage of longstanding federations, its longevity could stretch from 3-10 years.

When most federations form, a popular trend has been consistent. This trend is the blatant lack of logic on how realistic its progression can be handled. Most federations immediately propel into a storytelling billion dollar wrestling company overnight, typically maintaining a cliche back-story or sometimes none at all. Some, however, have came around to attempt to try and break that tradition such as SKYFIRE Wrestling, an independent e-wrestling federation with a "TV deal".

In today's era, e-federations are finding ways easier to promote with the progressing enhancement of technology and new ways becoming accessible to promote, such as using YouTube, Twitter, or Facebook. Efeds have also went on to begin using audio podcasts for fun "roundtable" discussion and to talk about current affairs in their federation as well as the efed world.

In early August 2013, the One Ring Circus, opened its doors, allowing efed handlers and efed owners alike the opportunity to promote and archive their creations. The network operates as a central hub of the worldwide efed community.

Legal issues[]

For some time, some e-federations have been spotted and shut down due to real-life pro wrestling companies like WWE taking legal action and pursuing its rights by filing for copyright infringement. Because several federations use real wrestlers' images for their website banners, pretend events, and e-wrestler picture base especially from such company, this can potentially lead to problems for online federations.

External links[]

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