GAFFR.io – the EFL Championship Fantasy Manager Game that revolves around the second division of English football is back for season two and we have created a guide that includes how to play the game, rules and tips to get you started.
GAFFR Fantasy Rules and Substitutions
In GAFFR, you will have a squad of 15 players in your team with one free transfer each week to replace any player in your squad with a player who plays in the same position within the budget constraints.
Breakdown of your 15 man squad:
- 2 Goalkeepers
- 5 Defenders
- 5 Midfielders
- 3 Forwards
You will have a bank balance of 100 million to spend on your virtual squad and the maximum number of players you can select from each team has been set to three.
Formations
For each gameweek, you must have one starting keeper and 10 outfield players. You can choose any formation, as long as you’ve picked one goalkeeper, at least three defenders, at least two midfielders and at least one forward in your starting XI. Formations can also be changed midweek as you make substitutions. The valid formations in the game are:
- 3-4-3
- 3-5-2
- 4-4-2
- 4-5-1
- 5-2-3
- 5-3-2
- 5-4-1
Price Changes
Price changes depend on a player’s performance, so it directly affects whether his price will rise or fall. The price changes will take place on the day after the final match of the gameweek. For example, if the last match of a gameweek is on a Saturday, the changes will occur on Tuesday morning around 3 AM (presumably GMT).
GAFFR Fantasy Transfers
Fantasy managers will have unlimited transfers until the first matchday begins on Saturday, 7th August 2021 and after this, you can make one free transfer each week. If a player you transfer in costs less than the player you transferred out, the balance amount will be credited to your bank.
Transfers will be carry forwarded to the next week as long as you don’t use all the available transfers in the gameweek but you can never have more than two free transfers a week which is the limit unless you are playing a boost.
There is no limit on the number of transfers you can make each matchday but every additional transfer beyond the free transfers available will incur a hit of -4 points from your score in the next gameweek.
GAFFR Fantasy Captains
Gaffr.io is the only Fantasy Manager game that lets you have three captains instead of the usual one or two. You have an emergency captain along with your main captain and the vice-captain.
Captain
Your captain will double his points if he plays during the matchday.
Vice-Captain
A vice-captain’s points are multiplied by 1.5x each week and it is rounded if the result is not a whole number. For example, A vice-captain who scores 5 would finish on 7 after the multiplier has been added.
Emergency Captain
An emergency captain comes in if your captain or vice-captain if either does not play a single minute during the matchday. The multiplier here depends on which captain does not play. For example: if your captain does not play then the emergency captain’s points will be multiplied by 2x or multiplied by 1.5x if the vice-captain does not play. The captain’s role is prioritised here and if an emergency captain receives double points then there will be no vice-captain.
GAFFR Fantasy Substitutions
Substitutions in GAFFR work similarly to FPL. You can set the order of the bench and if a player does not play a single minute in your starting XI, you will get the player off the bench according to the priority you have set from left to right or a player in a similar position and maintains a valid formation.
For example, if you’re playing a 4-5-1 formation and your forward does not play, he can only be replaced by another forward on the bench according to the order of the bench to maintain a valid formation. Whereas if your formation is the same and a midfielder does not play, you will get a defender or a forward off the bench and the formation will change to a 5-4-1 or 4-4-2.
Tip: It is best to have starting players on your bench instead of scrubs that barely see any minutes so that you can have 11 players for a matchday in case there are any postponements, injuries or other issues. It will also help you capitalize on double gameweeks with additional players who might start multiple games.
GAFFR Fantasy Boosts
Gaffr Fantasy has multiple boosts or chips that are unique and give you various opportunities throughout the season to get an edge over your opponent or to close the gap between your mini-league rivals. There is a pool of six boosts in total and you can choose any three that suits you best at any time but you can only play one boost per round.
The tournament is divided into three phases and you will have three boosts per phase (nine in total) that will refresh every 15 gameweeks to play across the season.
- Gameweeks 1 – 15
- Gameweeks 16 – 30
- Gameweeks 31 – 46
Not every pool will have the same boosts so you cannot play the multi captain and overhaul boosts more than twice in a season.
Overhaul
You can make unlimited transfers to your squad within the limitations of your budget similar to a wildcard. The changes made to your squad are permanent and your team will not revert back to your pre-overhaul squad the next gameweek.
Super Subs
The points scored by the players on your bench including the goalkeeper will be counted to your total for the gameweek just like a bench boost.
Captain Fantastic
Your captain’s score will be tripled and your vice-captain’s score doubled but the same emergency captain rules will apply.
Park the Bus
As the name suggests, this chip is meant for defenders and the points for all the defenders in your XI will be doubled. The only catch is that you won’t have any captains if you activate this boost so use it wisely.
Midfield Generals
The points for all your midfielders will be multiplied by 1.5x and rounded. No captain multiplier will be applied for any player or position similar to the “Park the Bus” boost.
Multi Captain
Your captain, vice-captain and emergency captain’s points will be doubled.
Optimal Captain
The highest-scoring players in your starting XI will be selected as the optimal captains (captain, vice-captain and emergency captain according to the points scored) and their points will be multiplied accordingly. Only players in the starting XI are included.
Goalfest
Every goal scored by a player in your starting XI adds another five points to your total score for the week. This includes penalties and goals scored by substitutes that come off the bench when a player does not play in your eleven. Captain multipliers do not apply to the five-point bonus.
Midfield Dynamos
Instead of a 1.5x multiplier of the “Midfield Generals” boost, this boost adds a 2x multiplier to all the midfielders in your XI. No captain multipliers are applied for any player or position.
Last Ditch
In this chip, a 3x multiplier will be applied to all your forwards in the starting XI but all your defenders and the goalkeeper will score zero points. No captain multiplier will be applied for any player or position.
Jeepers Keepers
This boost is especially for keepers and activating it will count the scores of both of your keepers to the total in addition to some bonus:
- +2 points per clean sheet per half.
- +3 points per save.
- +10 points per penalty save.
You will have captains if you use this boost but captain multipliers do not apply to the bonus scores.
Tip: This chip might not seem like much at first glance but if played right it can be highly rewarding and it best to use it when both of your keepers are facing tough opposition and are expected to save lots of shots.
Away Day
The points of players in your starting XI who are playing away for the matchday are doubled. No captain multipliers apply to any players.
GAFFR Fantasy Scoring Rules
The game has a performance-based scoring system that rewards bonus points to players for their production on the pitch rather than just awarding points based on goals/assist/clean sheets and penalty saves. The players will score points according to the following table:
| Action | GK | DEF | MID | FWD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Appearance | +1 | +1 | +1 | +1 |
| 60 Minutes Played | +1 | +1 | +1 | +1 |
| Goal (excl. Penalties) | +5 | +5 | +5 | +5 |
| Assist | +3 | +3 | +4 | +3 |
| Penalty Won | +3 | +3 | +4 | +3 |
| Penalty Scored | +3 | +3 | +3 | +3 |
| 1st Half Clean Sheet* | +2 | +2 | - | - |
| 2nd Half Clean Sheet* | +2 | +2 | - | - |
| Full Time Clean Sheet** | - | - | +1 | - |
| Every 2 Goals Conceded | -1 | -1 | - | - |
| Yellow Card | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
| Red Card | -3 | -3 | -3 | -3 |
| Every 3 Saves | +1 | - | - | - |
| Penalty Saved | +5 | - | - | - |
*Must play at least 60 minutes in the match to be eligible
GAFFR Fantasy Performance Points (Bonus)
Each player’s performance will be awarded according to the performance points table at the end of the match. The four highest-rated players from each match will receive +4, +3, +2 and +1 points respectively. If there is a tie for bonus points then all the players at that rank will receive the same points at that level. A minimum of four players are awarded performance points from a game. For example, if four players have the same rank/rating then all of them will receive +4 points and no further performance points will be awarded.
| Player | Rating | Points |
|---|---|---|
| A | 10 | +4 |
| B | 10 | +4 |
| C | 9 | +3 |
| D | 8 | +2 |
| E | 8 | +2 |
| F | 8 | +2 |
In this example, there is a tie for the highest rating so players A and B will receive +4. Player C has the second-highest rating and will receive +3. To fulfil the quota of four players minimum who will receive performance points, the next players D, E and F who are tied will receive +2 points each.
| Action | Points | |
|---|---|---|
| All Players | Won Match | +1 |
| 4 Defensive Actions* | +1 | |
| Each Key Pass | +1 | |
| Each Shot on Target | +1 | |
| 2 Successful Dribbles | +1 | |
| Each Goal (incl. Penalties) | +2 | |
| Penalty Won | +2 | |
| Penalty Saved | +3 | |
| Yellow Card | -2 | |
| Red Card | -5 | |
| Penalty Missed | -3 | |
| Goalkeepers | Match Clean Sheet | +1 |
| Every 4 Saves | +1 | |
| Defenders | Match Clean Sheet | +1 |
EFL Championship Penalty Takers for Each Club
The penalty takers for each club have been sorted according to the first, second and third choice from left to right.
| Club | Penalties |
|---|---|
| Barnsley | Cauley Woodrow (FWD, 8M) |
| Birmingham | Scott Hogan (FWD, 6M), Jérémie Bela (FWD, 8M) |
| Blackpool | Jerry Yates (FWD, 6M) |
| Blackburn Rovers | Adam Armstrong (FWD, 11M) |
| Bournemouth | Junior Stanislas (MID, 9.5M) |
| Bristol City | Nahki Wells (FWD, 7.5M) |
| Cardiff City | Kieffer Moore (FWD, 10M), Joe Ralls (MID, 5.5M) |
| Coventry City | Matt Godden (FWD, 5.5M), Tyler Walker (FWD, 6.5M) |
| Derby County | Graeme Shinnie (MID, 5M), Martyn Waghorn (FWD, 7M) |
| Fulham | Ivan Cavaleiro (MID, 8M), Aleksandar Mitrović (FWD, 11M) |
| Huddersfield | Juninho Bacuna (MID, 7.5M), Jordan Rhodes (FWD, 7M) |
| Hull City | Josh Magennis (FWD, 6M), Mallik Wilks (MID, 6.5M) |
| Luton Town | Elijah Adebayo (FWD, 6M) |
| Middlesbrough | Paddy McNair (DEF, 6M) |
| Millwall | Jedd Wallace (MID, 10M) |
| Nottingham Forest | Lewis Grabban (FWD, 8M), Lyle Taylor (FWD, 7M) |
| Peterborough | Jonson Clarke-Harris (FWD, 6M) |
| Preston | Daniel Johnson (MID, 7M), Scott Sinclair (MID, 6.5M), Alan Browne (MID, 5M) |
| QPR | Lyndon Dykes (FWD, 8M), Charlie Austin (FWD, 9M) |
| Reading | Lucas João (FWD, 10M) |
| Sheffield United | Sander Berge (MID, 5.5M), Billy Sharp (FWD, 8M) |
| Stoke City | Steven Fletcher (FWD, 7M), Sam Vokes (FWD, 5.5M) |
| Swansea | Jamal Lowe (MID, 8.5M) |
| West Brom | Matheus Pereira (MID, 11M) |
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