Alan_R

LLM stands for Lower League Management.
The idea behind LLM is that players of the FM (and CM) series of games attempt to play in the most realistic way possible within the confines of the game.

What this means is that the player starts out with a team from the lowest playable league in a given country. Countries with just one league can be considered for LLM only if the standard is not too high (e.g. the Welsh Premier League). In one league countries it is important that the team you choose is not one of the top teams in that league (e.g. TNS in Wales from the previous example), as they are not considered suitably challenging. If in doubt you can always ask FRANK to choose a team for you.

Furthermore, the challenge of an LLM game is not to 'win everything', but simply to undertake a career with all the ups and downs that would be expected within the real football world. In fact, many LLMers (commonly called LLaMas) hold those who fail spectacularly in higher regard than those who succeed. If the worst happens and you get sacked, simply apply for another job with another club when one becomes available. Of course, if you do win stuff, that's all good, but it is not the 'point' of the game. You'll find the feeling of satisfaction if you finally do win some silverware or get a hard fought promotion all the greater if you play this way.

Advice & Tips

Further to this philosophy, real managers do not swap tactics, strategic tips, or give advice to other managers on what players to buy. Therefore it is expressly forbidden for LLMs to share their tactics with anyone else, or to use someone else's tactics, or even to give advice or tips to another manager. Training regimes also fall under this restriction too. Likewise, player naming of any kind is also forbidden (this rule extends to former players too, or even 'not real' players). The reason for this complete ban on naming is due to the 'floodgate' scenario. If a newbie sees a player name, regardless of whether the player is current or made up, they may think that it is ok to name their own players and we get a flood of player naming. The easiest way around this is to forbid any naming.

Finding Players

Real life managers do not have use of a 'Player Search' button, so this feature of the FM games is not allowed in a LLM game. Instead using scouts is the method you use to discover players. It is not the only way, however - if you play a team where a player kicks ass, then scout him. If you hear a media report about a player and like what you hear, scout him. Send your scouts on missions (using SWYCT - see below). Regardless of how the player came to your attention, no player can be purchased without first having had the once over by your scouts (of course, you do not have to listen to their advice however).

Scouting

Because most lower league teams do not have the finances to send scouts all over the world, the Scout Where You Can Tour (SWYCT) rule is generally taken as the best way to decide where you can send your scouts. At the beginning of the season you can send your players on a friendly tour. The game restricts where you can go, depending on your level and finances. This is seen as the most realistic way of deciding where you can afford to send your scouts too. Don't worry about the future; as your club becomes bigger or should you get a job at a bigger club, then your touring options will expand to suit. If you are managing a club in Continental Europe, South America or Asia then it is also acceptable to scout countries which border yours.

Staff

A note on staff: Ideally, the only way to recruit staff would be through the job centre. However, this doesn't actually work at all well (some would say at all), so for staff it is ok to use the staff search feature. However, you should attempt to restrict your searches to staff with equal or lesser reputation than yourself (and again try to use the SWYCT rule when deciding how far afield you can extend your search, although for staff this rule can be relaxed in extremis).

The Spawn of Satan

Finally, in order to maintain fairness in our games, any use of editors, alterations to the database or third party updates are strictly forbidden. The game must be played as is out of the box, plus any official patches or updates only. I trust this rule needs no explanation as it is fairly obvious that use of such would/could seriously unbalance the game. Graphics or sound add-ons are acceptable as long as they don't change any data in the game itself.

I like this concept basically how I play my games but only recently heard of this 'llama' term. Is any one a llama or play FM this way?

a story of football + culture at

Hong Kong Football Club

BirdyFC

I think quite a few people on here do lower league management on here including myself.

Started out with MK Dons (not fully lower league) and got them to Championship before moving to Cowdenbeath and leading Scottish Division 1.
Moved to Celtic..... less said the better... and now I'm Bedford. Got them from Blue Square North up to the Championship, a FA Cup Final and a UEFA Cup appearance.

Chris (Birdy) - Bedford Town FM Legend / SOTW5 Winner
Birdy's FM2009 Standard Logo Thread

Bowser

Im Eastleigh and now Im in League 2 in three seasons, winning FA Trophy on the way, but runner up in Shield...Apthered got Accrington to Prem...

T.H

Awwww, I thought this was gonna be a really interesting thread about Llamas

WozzaWolves

I play in the lower leagues quite frequently.

Here's a song for u llamas..

YouTube - THE NEW LLAMA SONG !!!!!

Y2Stu

i'm not a Llama im a tiger :D

Fedorico Roma Fan

i pretty much always play in lower league, usually as the worst team possiblle in the league :P i find it so much more enjoyable :D

Hartynips

I usually work my may up from a smaller club, its very rare that i go straight to a top flight team.

My only two exceptions on FM08 are with Valencia and Hearts, the rest of the time i try and earn my stripes as it were and get a higher league club on my own merit.

Wicked thread Alan, but sorry to say mate, I'm not a llama.

JohnnySCFC

i managed to get port talbot to the top of the welsh prem but got bored and started a new game with aston villa :d, just won the league cup and f.a cup , without facing a big 4 team :D, but i did beat liverpool 5-0 in the prem, XD

liveru

I do a bit of both. My first game for each new edition, I tend to start a game with Liverpool but after that, I tend to start a game with Exeter then after that any game that I start is random teams. Sometimes in small European countries, sometimes someone like Barcelona.

Oh and I was fooled by the title as well.

Alan_R

Sounds like there is many like me. I try to play it realistically, ie I don't always sign the same players (alex fernandez and the other well known buys)

However I was hoping to find someone who actually was a 'llama' and played by their strirt rules.

I had a few questions, Such as by 'player search' (which they are not allowed to use) do they mean the search bar (top right of FM screen) or the actual player search from the scroll down menu (where assistant can filter unrealistic targets etc)

because... the player search is 'well known players in your region' with the addition of players outwith depending on your club knowledge. ie if you manage to get an italian scout a few italian players might come up.

If you are a small team you might not nessecerily be able to scout these foreign players but due to the club/scouts knowledge the player would be known to the manager none the less so I don't see what is unrealistic about that?

a story of football + culture at

Hong Kong Football Club

leachy-boi91

ive always done premiership teams .. arsenal,newcastle,liverpool,derby...
but ive started a game as millwall and it is more fun :)

abeatty2209

I have only really played top teams like milan,arsenal,inter and united. But i used to play ipswich on fm 07

fozzafulham

I would suspect that ture llamas wouldnt even come on sites like this. In case they heard a player name mentioned. It could drive them insane knowing of a player and not going to search him. what a morale dilemia

Wednesdayboy

Where did you get that definition of a Llama, they don't cheat, use editors (to benefit the team they are managing) or use other peoples tactics r use other peoples sugestions of players but they do share there own with none llama's because they pitty them as they can't find players for themselves :)

A true Llama only starts at the bottom with nothing and gets to the top without losing touch with what he has done and when he's won the premiership 5 times and the champions league 3 times, he gets bored, resigns and joins Worksop and starts the it all over again.

Reb3llist

oh damn, i thought he was referring to real llamas, shame D: