2K22 Gameplay Rules CHANGES

***DISCLAIMER*** PLEASE NOTE THAT AS OF 1st Edition of 2K23 Rule Changes that the Debuff Penalty & the Payback Systems Rules below are OUTDATED and NO LONGER IN EFFECT -- reference the posts below & the 2K23 Rules Changes post for those Updated Rules, or refer to the always up-to-date and current gameplay rules in effect on the PWG League Rules post






DEFENSIVE ABILITIES LIMIT - you are limited to using ANY Defensive Ability to 3 total times MAX per match. These are the maneuvers that cost 1 Special Meter bar to perform (i.e. Kip-Ups, Possums, Ring Escapes). You also CANNOT use ANY Defensive Abilities immediately after being hit with any Special Moves (e.g. sub fins do not stun when released to pin attempt). For clarification purposes -- PAYBACKS are not counted as a Defensive Ability and DO NOT factor into the 3x usage limit.

PAYBACK CHOICES - You are allowed to select any of the Paybacks that are useable online: Resiliency, Low Blow, Poison Mist, Move Thief, Comeback.

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1 FINISHER LIMIT PER PIN ATTEMPT - You MUST make a pin attempt after EACH Finisher is hit meaning 1) you cannot hit multiple Finishers in a row 2) cannot hit a Finisher stunning them, to then hit a Signature (or other moves) followed by another Finisher right before the stun effect ends 3) you can Stun your opponent via Normal moves or Signatures allows you carte blanche for the duration of the effect - as long as a Pin is still attempted after each finisher.

RUNNING / REBOUND SPECIAL MOVE RESTRICTIONS - If you have a Running Special or Rope Rebound Special, you CANNOT hit it by Irish Whipping your opponents into the ropes. Several of the moves can be performed in ways that are Wonky in some instances, Irreversible in others, and can be Cheesed the rest. If the Special can be hit via Rope Rebound only, the moveset committee will be more lenient on your new request. If the Special can be hit via Running, then you must hit the move by either Running at your opponent OR your opponent choosing to Run at you of their own free will. You also now CANNOT hit a Running Special following any Kip-Up (your own or your opponents).

NO SPECIAL MOVES FOLLOWING KIP-UPS – whether you Kip-Up or your opponent Kips-Up,  the first attack attempted CANNOT be a Special Move

NO STUN LOCKING - You cannot hit Finishers in such a way that your opponent remains in a continuous stunned effect (timing your Finisher animation just before stun ends to re-stun them again). If a continuous Stun Lock happens to occur, immediately pin & release them to wipe out the effect.

INSTANT STUN PROTOCOL – If Opponent becomes Stunned Instantly (no portion of stun bar filled prior) via NON-ATTACK ACTIONS (kip-ups, climbing turnbuckles, glitches, etc.) you CANNOT hit ANY Special Moves during that specific Stunned State (you can still use normal attacks). PLEASE NOTE – when hitting a Signature that Instant Stuns your opponent, it is perfectly legal to then hit your Finisher off it.

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NO EARLY RECOVERY - in any match where the Roll-Out/Recover Mechanic is enabled, you have to wait the entire process out before returning to action. You CANNOT use Early Recover to break out earlier.

NO DEFENSIVE ABILITIES ALLOWED IN LADDER/TLC/STEEL CAGE MATCHES – this is to prevent matches of these types from overstaying their welcome, with 1-5 other superstars kipping up to prevent captures/escapes.

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ONLY Pins off Finisher/OMGs are LEGAL (including an opponents if multi-man)

ALL Non-Finisher Pin Attempts are now ILLEGAL (i.e. signature, normal pin-combo, offensive rollups)

Due to the Submission mechanic's overwhelming power & easiness in comparison to Pinfalls -- we have revised our rules on Legal Submissions which are listed below:

ALL Submission Holds once locked-in MUST be Immediately Released EXCEPT when attempting an LEGAL Submission

Sub attempts off Finisher are now considered LEGAL after FOUR Finisher/OMG hit -- meaning 5th Finisher & onwards you can tap

Sub attempts off Signature or Normal moves are still outright BANNED

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1 ILLEGAL ENTRY RING-IN ALLOWED PER TEAM PER MATCH:

• Protect Partner from getting Stunned
  
• Attack legal opponent and give control back to your Partner
  
• Protect your Partner from Opponents Ring-In
  
• Used at anytime EXCEPT FOR 1) Pinfalls/Submissions Break-Ups 2) Partner is ALREADY Stunned 3) Illegally Attacking Anyone Outside the Ring or Preventing Ilegal Opponent to Tag-In etc.
  

With Reversal Stocks now a thing of the past, the illegal partner CAN once again attack the legal opponents AFTER they REVERSE a corner turnbuckle grapple/strike.

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In the name of kayfabe and to deter members from taking on multiple feuds at once (singles feud and title feud etc.) Superstars that are booked multiple times on the same match card CAN have a health/momentum debuff to start the second match - simulating what wrestlers go through in a kayfabe sense of wrestling more than once in a night - IF certain criteria below is met.

This Debuff Rule shall only be enforced when ONE superstar is double booked on the same match card. IF BOTH players in the match are double-booked, this rule is null & void.

Assuming the 2nd booked match is a SINGLES match, Superstars who are booked twice in one show shall be subjected to the opposing player attacking them ONLY with Mid-Turnbuckle Diving Attacks (standing or supine doesn’t matter) UNTIL they earn 3 Special Bars to IMMEDIATELY Hit their Signature move. Both superstars shall then start the match standing and conscious in their respective corners WHEN & ONLY WHEN the doubled booked superstar health FULLY Recovers.

If the 2nd booked match is any other type of match (tag, multi-man, etc.) then NO debuff will be applied for the sake of complications.


***Rules subject to modification including additions, removals, changes, etc***

After playing the game and watching matches for six months, the staff has noticed how matches can have a tendency to get bogged down and devolve into a flashier game of rock-paper-scissor Grapple Spam since there's only a 33% chance of guessing correct for a Breaker. This is in contrast to some really great and fun matches that have a more free-flow element with multiple reversals in a row because BOTH players are going for Strong Strikes and Combo Starters versus predominantly hitting Grapple, which in turn forces the other player(s) to Grapple more, making the match less fun and more try hard.

Now, this issue TECHNICALLY should have been prevented already under past definitions of Spamming, but we decided to clear up any misconceptions & potential grey areas by making a hard rule on limiting Grapple Spam.

So from now on, you can ONLY land a successful Grapple Attack 3x in a row max BEFORE you MUST mix in 1 Strong Strike / Light Strike Combo Starter / Dive / Springboard / Special Move or other non-breaker Attack (i.e. press Triangle to be reversed)

TO CLARIFY -- essentially any time you press Circle to irreversibly lock up it constitutes a Grapple and counts towards the 3x limit REGARDLESS of the opponent's positioning (standing, grounded, corner). This means you hit a Standing Grapple move to knock the opponent down, and do 2 Ground Grapple moves after - the next move MUST be an attack that is initially reversible with Triangle. You can then land another 3 Grapple moves MAX before having to do another non-breaker attack BUT we really encourage our members to mix up attack types more than that for really fun back-and-fourth matches!

Lastly, if your Grapple gets "breakered", your non-breaker attack gets reversed, or you otherwise lose control of the match (e.g. defensive ability, etc.) then your Grapple Limit is automatically reset to 0 and begins anew.

WHAT HAPPENS IF/WHEN THIS RULE IS NOT FOLLOWED:

If a 4th Straight Grapple is accidentally hit - pin & release to empty their stun bar or let it drain out (if applicable) and give them a free Attempt to attack you (you can reverse) similar to how Bar Burning infractions were made up.

If a 4th straight Grapple is NOT MADE UP and leads to a Stunned Finisher and/or Victory a redo is standard protocol. Based on the context of the match, an outright victory may be awarded if it looks like the member may have intentionally broken the rule in hopes of getting a redo because they were losing the match considerably (e.g. used Res already, hit with more fins, comparatively lower health, etc.)

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Possum Pin defensive abilities are still LEGAL however they CANNOT be followed up with a Wake Up Taunt now. The Possum-Wake Up combination essentially frame/stun locks the opponent from doing anything while guaranteeing your own stun bar depletes with zero risk since there are no viable counters. Now, without Wake Up taunts used in conjunction, the opponent has the option to "counter" getting Possumed by using their own Defensive Ability to "keep the heat up" and try to finish filling the stun bar.

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To streamline Ladder & Steel Cage singles matches with multi-mans, as well as balance against the Stun Mechanic -- You must now hit THREE (3) Finisher/OMG before you can go for ENDLESS Capture Attempts in Ladder matches or ENDLESS Escape Attempts in Steel Cage matches.

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Considering multiple factors including double bookings being down from booking style, PPV's becoming 2-Night Weekend Events, and the limited application of the debuff based on the match type and its placement on the card harming the kayfabe aspect - the double book debuff penalty is indefinitely paused until further notice. If double bookings (outside obligated championship defenses) rise back up to the numbers prior to this rule being made - we won't hesitate to reinstate the debuff.


***Rules subject to modification including additions, removals, changes, etc***