Fire Pro Wrestling's CPU Logic Editor is a very powerful tool that's deep enough to allow one to meaningfully change the way a wrestler behaves in the ring. Not only does it allow you to give your character a more distinct personality and style but Logic also functions as a balancing and pacing tool.

The AI itself is fairly simple but many people view CPU Logic as some kind of ancient magicks mere mortals cannot understand and it's hard to fault them. After all, the game tells you very little. All while overwhelming you with a large number of menus and settings in what seems like way too many sub-menus. In this guide, we won't really be looking at each of these menus in detail but instead I'll focus more on the general theory of creating solid Logic. The aim is to give people a good grasp on the basics so they can make their own creative decisions using Logic.

But we'll still go through some things to keep in mind for each position and go over some examples of how to accomplish certain archetypes.


Before we begin we should establish something important. You might have noticed that on the workshop some Edits are tagged as Pro Wrestling and others as Cement. This is the game's terminology to differentiate between characters who are built to "work" a match (Pro Wrestling) and characters who are built simply to win in the most efficient way (Cement)

While this guide will help explain the cold-hard theory of Logic editing, which you can also apply to a Cement build, all examples are geared more towards the Pro Wrestling style. The aim being more to create interesting matches and recreating characteristics of real-life wrestlers.

In each of the sub-menus you'll find several, sometimes very many, options. The good news is that the sheer number of options doesn't actually make the process harder as long as you understand that it's easiest to break up all the options into two categories. To explain that let's look at the first menu you'll see when you enter the CPU Logic menu: Stand Back (Stall)

Don't worry, my menu looks different because it's (partially) customized. Not because I'm on some secret version of the game.

[Stand Back (Stall)] is the name of the "position" we're editing. Don't worry, I'll explain what this exactly means a little later. In very basic terms, you get to select what happens if the AI is simply standing and not doing anything else.

You can see a list of actions to choose from. That's in the left-most column labeled "Controls" this is the input that needs to be made to perform that action. If a move is associated with it, that'll also be listed in the right-most column. But the real fun takes place in the columns between those two.

You can choose the likelihood of something happening and you have the possibility to have things happen more or less often as a percentage (each column must add up to 100%) depending on the damage level of the opponent. The damage levels are as follows.

SML DMG (opponent is less damaged) goes to
MED DMG (medium level of damage) followed by
LRG DMG (opponent is more damaged) and finally
Opp. Condition Critical (opponent is hanging on by a thread. Can probably be pinned or submitted by the next move. This is important, keep this in mind when editing Logic. You don't want moves here that you're not okay with ending the match.)

Though you'll see that this menu only lists SML and LRG. Other Position menus offer different combinations of damage levels you get control over. I don't know why it's not more consistent and offers them all everywhere. But it's too late to question that with the game's development and post release support having long since concluded.

The important part about that menu, though, is that you can divide the eight options given into two categories. Move Selection and Position Selection. Both are equally important and they allow you to have a reasonable level of control over how your character acts. In this case, the top three items are all position selection while the bottom five are part of the move selection. Let's go into more detail.

Before we move on, though, one important thing. When I put something in "quotes" I'm referring to an action. This is what you see in the logic menus in the column labeled Controls. If I'm referring to a position on the other hand I'll put that in [square brackets]. These are the names of the sub-menus themselves. This is to avoid confusion as sometimes actions and positions have the same names. So:

[Initiate Grapple] in square brackets refers to the position.
"Initiate Grapple" in quotes refers to the action found under [Stand Back (Stall)]

Let's start with Move Selection first. This does not refer to picking out moves for the wrestler's moveset (though this is also very important) but controlling the AI's decision making when picking which move to do. You get to pick the rates at which moves happen and when. These are named after the names of the move slots from the moveset editor. This is what you'll find in the left-most column. Though, the names of the moves themselves are also in the column on the right. There's more depth to it too, we'll get back to that later. For now let's keep it as simple as we can. You get to choose which of the moves happen how often and when. When I say "when" I'm referring to the opponent's damage level.

The basic idea is to start with smaller moves at SML DMG. Like basic strikes, throws such as bodyslams and more basic holds. To soften the opponent up, essentially. This naturally lends itself to ramping up the intensity of the moves as the match goes on. Once we reach LRG DMG we'll bring out the heavier guns.

We can see that in the default settings for the menu of the position [Initiate Grapple]

In this example, you can see that the lighter moves, in the "Grapple (SML)" Moveslots start out common early on (SML DMG) but become way less likely over time (through MED DMG and LRG DMG) to a point where most of them won't happen at all anymore. Take the Bodyslam as an example. Whenever your characters lock up for a grapple there's a 10% chance that they go for a Bodyslam at the start of a match in SML DMG. But as the opponent gets more damaged it transitions to 3% in MED DMG, which means the move still happens but much more rarely. Finally, in LRG DMG it doesn't happen at all anymore. The thing is a Bodyslam is the type of move that can feasibly happen at any point in a match so you can handle things differently if you choose.

Moves in the Grapple (MED) Slots have a low to moderate chance of happening early, a high chance happening in the middle and a lower chance again at the end.

As the opposite to the weaker moves in the Grapple (SML) slots, strong moves in the Grapple (BIG) slots barely happen at all earlier and become more likely later. This means that moves escalate over time.

In practical terms this means the wrestler tries softening up the opponent with some weaker moves before transitioning to the heavy hitters. This is the default logic, of course. And you can just leave it like this for a lot of your characters (at least in [Initiate Grapple] but at times you might want to mix it up. For example utility moves such as a backswitch will be useful all throughout the match so it makes sense to keep a reasonable chance for it happening all throughout. Then you have the bottom two options, which function more as what I've teased as Position Selection. These two are things you'll want to greatly change based on what type of wrestler you're trying to make.

You can also get more creative with it. Like having a wrestler start out calm and collected, trying to control the match with technical holds at first. But near the end they show hints of frustration using less technical maneuvers like stomps, chokes and the likes. There's a lot of room to shape the personality of a wrestler here. This is only one example.

Now let's talk about Position Selection. Keep in mind that this is not official terminology but I feel it's the most fitting description. But first we need to establish what a position is in regards to Fire Pro.

Essentially it's the specific context the AI is currently in and it affects the range of actions that an AI can select from. The name of each sub-menu in the CPU Logic menu is also the name of a position.

Following is a list of all positions. Even though a lot of them are obvious I'll also list what exactly they mean. For more details on each of these go to the Positions and Logic Stats Overview section of this guide.

[Stand Back (Stall)] - Wrestler simply stands there or walks. Basically doesn't really do anything.
[Initiate Grapple] - Wrestler is locked up with opponent in a front grapple
[Circle Opponent] - Wrestler is locked up with opponent in a back grapple and is behind the opponent
[Irish Whip] - Opponent has been sent running with an Irish Whip
[Opp. Against Corner] - Opponent is leaning against the corner turnbuckle pads.
[Opp. Down Near Corner] - Opponent is lying down and close enough to the corner for a dive
[Opp. Down Near Center] - Opponent is lying down and too far away from the corner for a dive or Opp. Down Near Corner did not result in a dive.
[Opp. Down - Face Up] - Opponent is lying down and face up (And the AI did not elect to go for a dive or running move)
[Opp. Down - Face Down] - Same as above, but the opponent is lying face down.
[Opp. Dazed Near Corner] - Opponent is in a dazed/staggered position and close enough to the corner for a dive.
[Opp. Dazed Near Center] - Opponent is in a dazed/staggered position and too far away from the corner for a dive or Opp. Dazed Near Corner did not result in a dive.
[Opp. Dazed] - Opponent is dazed/staggered but no dive or running move has occured
[Guard Position] - Wrestler has Opponent in the MMA Guard Position.
[Mount Position] - Wrestler has Opponent in the MMA Mount Position.
[Back Mount Position] - Wrestler has Opponent in the MMA Back Mount Position.
[Opp. At Back] - Wrestler and Opponent are locked up in a Back Grapple and the wrestler is in the front.
[Opp. Outside of Ring] - Opponent is outside of the ring.
[Performance] - Not so much a position of its own. Listing it here for simplicity. Allows to set which taunts happen how often and in what position.
[Priority Attack] - Also not really a Position but it's best kept here. This, while easy to understand on a surface level, offers an amount of depth that goes too far to briefly explain here. So this will get it's own detailed section after this..

Let's go back to [Stand Back (Stall)] for now.

You can see that the three topmost options I labeled as position selection are "Initiate Grapple", "Stand Back (Stall)" and "Circle Opponent". So in this case, if the 51% for "Initiate Grapple" in SML DMG were to trigger, your wrestler would attempt to lock-up and go for a front grapple. The AI would then move on to make a decision as to what to do based on [Initiate Grapple] because it's now in that position. I know this seems obvious but with how many people seem to have trouble getting their characters to do what they want them to do I still think this bears mentioning. It's pretty easy to control the flow of a match knowing this.

However, transitions into other positions may not be so aptly named. For example under [Initiate Grapple] you'll find "Grapple (Run)" which transitions into [Irish Whip]. Part of "getting good" at controlling the flow of your character's offense is understanding which Actions lead to what Position. At the very end of this guide I'll have an overview for this.

What's also very important to bring up is that a move (most moves in fact) can also result in a change of position. Any move that knocks an opponent down will then transition to one of the two [Opp. Down] positions. Of course there's also moves such as the Back Switch which will transition to [Circle Opponent] which you'll better know as a back grapple. Using the innate position selection along with moves that transition to a different position you get a lot of control over how your wrestler's offense flows. You are able to funnel them towards a position where they can do particular moves such as their finisher this way too. I'll be giving some examples on how to accomplish a few relatively simple things that can still significantly impact a wrestlers behavior later.

Before we move to the next big subject let's look at how Positions flow between each other. Check out this gif, we'll be going over exactly what happens too.


I put the name of the position currently in effect at the bottom of the screen. We go through a whole six positions really quickly. Let's break it down.

A match always starts in [Stand Back (Stall)]
In this example the AI selects "Initiate Grapple" so it transitions to
[Initiate Grapple] to select an action/move next. Which is "Grapple (Run)" in this case. Perhaps better known as an Irish Whip. This sends our opponent running and now makes our AI consider
[Irish Whip] for the next action. It's a move! Specifically "Running (Med)" - a Lariat. Our opponent falls flat on their back. Which means we're now in
[Opp. Down - Face Up] where the AI simply selects "Pick Opponent Up". Our opponent is damaged enough they stand there dazed which means next the AI will consider
[Opp. Dazed] and here chooses "Back Grapple" so we end up in
[Circle Opponent] where the AI goes for "Back Grapple (Med)" which is a Back Neckbreaker in this case, grounding our opponent again and...

This is where the gif ends. But it's not typically where a match ends. So this will basically go on until we have a winner (or a draw.) Plus exchanges are not usually that one-sided. If you want to know the full truth: Even though that is a sequence that can organically happen if you simply use the default John Smith I didn't simply record and waited for something to happen that I can use as an example. I tweaked the logic so it'll (almost) always happen. I also used a mod to make it so the second wrestler (black tights) has a very low chance of ever retaliating and starts out damaged enough to where they will stand up dazed when picked up.

If you want to know which actions are strictly for changing positions: It's basically every action that doesn't reference a move that you chose when editing the moveset. You can also go to the section Positions and Logic Stats Overview for more detailed info.

Knowing all that you might already be able to set up some Logic. There's much more to learn of course. But if you want to play around a bit now's a good stopping point. Originally this guide was only supposed to explain this but then I thought naaah, I gotta do more. And now look at this monstrosity I created.

Above I listed all the different positions that open up parts of the moveset. However in addition to the position menus there's also some others with miscellaneous purposes. Those are usually single stats in their own sub-menu. They don't allow you to have much direct control over what's happening but allow you to set more of a tendency for certain things happening.

Ukemi - Ukemi is a can of worms of its own. It is, however, not "selling" don't let anyone tell you that. In very simple terms Ukemi makes your wrestler take moves on purpose in exchange for a chance at a damage boost or clutch kickout down the line. However it's true that you can control the pacing of a match with this to some extent. A high Ukemi at the beginning of a match, for example, would result in taking more offense early on. Everybody does this differently but I personally recommend not using too high values and remain in the ballpark between 0% and 30%. On the other hand I'd also encourage you to experiment with higher values because experimenting with Logic is how you really get a feel for it. Also: The damage levels displayed don't refer to your opponent here, but your wrestler themselves.

Showmanship - Affects the chance of your wrestler sending their opponent to the corner when performing an Irish Whip. Generally this has the effect to draw the matches more towards the corners of the ring the higher it's set and you'll feel it more if "Grapple (Run)" under [Initiate Grapple] or "Back Grapple (Run)" under [Circle Opponent] is set higher.

Discretion - Affects how much a wrestler stops to breathe. Because breathing is an actual mechanic in this game. If a character runs out of breath they will not be able to perform moves anymore and even stop in the middle of a run where they'd otherwise go for their sick Lariat. A character may also decide to breathe instead of doing a move in general. This is especially egregious with outside dives. That's one reason they are so rare in an unmodded game.

But that's only one thing, it also affects where your wrestler will drag the opponent with the Front Headlock (That's "Grapple (3D)" under [Initiate Grapple]) At around 33-66% (so the middle third) it'll favor the corners. Any higher than that and it's center of the ring instead. When below 33% it'll end the Front Headlock immediately.

It also affects Tree of Woe attacks, where a lower Discretion seems to lead to more Tree of Woe set-ups. If only Fire Pro did anything cool with Tree of Woe (There's a mod to turn it off.)

Flexibility - Ah, yes, Flexibility. Everyone has a different idea on what it does. Some view it as this thing that destroys your logic set-up. And y'know, it might. The most common idea is that it makes your character go for the Front Headlock (3D Grapple) instead of an irish whip against opponents using the shoot fighting styles (Shooter, Grappler, Fighter.)

Cooperation - This affects quite a few things for tag matches. In a nutshell, the higher the value the more likely double team grapples or specific set-ups like for the doomsday device are. It also affects the likelihood of interrupting a pin attempt or submission. A higher Cooperation value will cause your wrestlers to drag opponents to their home corner with the Front Headlock. This supersedes discretion.

Outside Return Count - This affects how early/late a wrestler answers the 20 count on the outside. The lower it is the longer they stay outside. At 0% they basically don't care about the count. If it's higher they enter the ring sooner. At 100% they'll head straight back into the ring as soon as the count begins.

Touchwork - This determines how often your wrestlers go to tag out. If you find your wrestlers to tag too much you might want to lower this.

Weapons - Affects the likelihood of the wrestler picking up a weapon from the ground or pull it up from under the ring.

Second Interference - This affects how often interferences/interruptions happen with a second/manager at ringside. It's worth noting that they have to be in the same stable and the stable has to be set to neutral or heel for it to work.

Now we're getting to one of the most straightforward and yet very powerful tools when it comes to shaping CPU Logic. [Priority Attack] essentially let's you freestyle a little. It's often shortened to simply "prios". You can create basic chains such as forcing the wrestler to go for a pin after a specific move. Let's actually look at what the menu looks like.

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So in the column SML DMG and LRG DMG we get to pick the likelihood of the chain happening when the opponent is less damaged or more damaged. The column "Priority Attack" contains the move that triggers the chain while the column "Follow-Up Attack" determines which move will happen afterwards. Specifically it lets you pick a slot / input for a move.

This is important because the same input might call for different moves based on position. This is mostly relevant for grounded moves because the trigger might cause the opponent to land face-up or face-down. If you are going for specific chains it's best to take note of what position the opponent ends up in after which move. The AI will always do its best to follow instructions but if that's not possible, usually because the opponent has gotten up too fast or left the dazed state already, it'll instead do nothing.

The actions you can choose from as follow-up attacks are a little limited, you can't simply chain into ANY move but you'll find you still have plenty of possibilities.

Misc:
(Don't forget these exist, they are more useful than you might think)
Pick Opponent Up
Roll Opponent Over

Grounded:
(Move changes depending on whether opponent is lying face up or face down)
Standing at Head (MED)
Standing at Feet (MED)
Standing at Head (BIG)
Standing at Feet (BIG)
Standing at Head (Pin)
Standing at Feet (Pin)

Corner Dives:
Run Up Turnbuckle (Standing) (SML)
Run Up Turnbuckle (Down) (MED)
Jump Onto Post (SML)
Jump Onto Post (MED)
Jump Onto Post (BIG)
Jump Onto Post (SML) + (MED)

Taunts:
Taunt / Performance 1
Taunt / Performance 2
Taunt / Performance 3
Taunt / Performance 4

(Fun Fact: Taunt / Performance 4 is the taunt that plays when your wrestler wins and yes, a chain from that will also trigger after the match)

Running Moves:
Running (SML)
Running (MED)
Running (BIG)
Running At Downed Opponent (BIG)

(If you chain into Running (SML/MED/BIG) your wrestler will wait for the opponent to get up, in case they are downed)

Well, now that we know our options let's have a look at one basic thing you can easily do.
Make your character do a taunt after doing a sick move!

50/0 - Powerbomb Whip -> Taunt / Performance 1

After performing a Powerbomb your character has a 50 % chance to taunt earlier in the match and stops doing it later. The logic behind this is that you'd start taking your opponent more seriously later in the match and actually try to win instead of celebrating yourself every other powerbomb you throw. A more cocky wrestler would probably still continue taunting though. Also, the notation is more or less self explanatory but when I write 50/0 that means the likelihood is 50% at SML and 0% at LRG.

Just in general I recommend using Prios first and foremost to make your wrestler pin after their finisher and a few other moves that you want to use as potential match-enders. You can also have them go for a match-ending submission or something after specific moves. It's only after you've secured your character's way of winning a match that you should worry about move sequences or character spots, such as taunts.

If you don't use Carlzilla's ModPack and have no intention of doing so feel free to skip this paragraph. The ModPack adds more options for you to prio-chain into. Most noteworthy: Standing Front and Back Grapples. While it's tempting to just set these in the Prio menu itself this will make it incompatible with the saves of people who don't use mods. You also won't be able to share these on the Workshop. This is to avoid breaking other people's games.

So if you want to use these features I recommend using the Extended Movelists mod. This also allows you to set a theoretically infinite number of Prios per move. This will keep your save "clean" while you'll still be able to use advanced features enabled by mods. If you want to share a wrestler that uses features of the Extended Movelists mod (and others) you can create a full export of that character via the ModPack. The main reason I bring up mods here and not anywhere else is that, first of all, this particular mod is incredibly useful for making a wrestler but "Why can't I upload my edit to the workshop?" and "why does my character get deleted from the workshop" are also two of the most common questions that get asked on the ModPack Discord and sometimes outside of it too. Having modded prios set is one of the most common causes for that.

If you have multiple chains set up for the same move the AI will go through Priority Attack from top to bottom, this means you can create branches in move chains. For example:

50/50 - Powerbomb Whip -> Standing at Feet (BIG)
100/100 - Powerbomb Whip -> Standing at Head (Pin)

This will make it so there's a 50 % chance that your character will, after performing a Powerbomb, do whatever move is in the specified slot, for example here it could be a leg based submission move. We set it to happen 50% of the time in both SML and LRG. So in the event that that chain does not trigger the game moves on to the next in the list for that move. Here we have a 100% chance for the wrestler going for a pin. In more practical terms this means that after a powerbomb there's a 50 % chance of your wrestler attacking the leg of the opponent (with whichever move is in that slot) and if that doesn't happen they'll go for a pin. So in this example it's a 50/50 toss-up- between both options.

So one of your moves leads to another. But what if I told you that this other move could lead to further moves? We're just gonna call this a sequence. You could set up a simple one as follows::

100/100 - Powerbomb Whip -> Standing at Feet (MED) (Let's assume this is a Stomp to the legs)
100/100 - Stomp -> Standing at Feet (BIG) (Let's say this one's a Boston Crab)

So what this means is that after a Powerbomb your character will stomp the leg of the opponent and then follow it up with a Boston Crab. Even though you only have ten slots for prios you can get pretty creative with it. Your sequences can also be longer than three moves but the longer they are the less likely they are to actually complete from start to finish. You can combine this with branches too, of course, if you really want to. But I'll be honest, at that point you might just set the regular Logic Positions to pick moves the way you want to.

Keep in mind that there's nothing preventing your character from starting a sequence of moves in the middle. So in this example, if your character does the Stomp near the legs naturally they will still follow with the Boston Crab. You also have to consider that if a move is a Pin or a submission it's very unlikely that your wrestler will be able to follow up if you chain anything from those. So it's best to just not do it unless it's the end of a sequence.

I also recommend not setting these things to happen 100% of the time. Mainly because it's boring if something always happens a certain way. I did it in this example for simplicity's sake and to not distract from the idea of a sequence by complicating it with setting specific likelihoods of things happening. For pins after a finisher it's fine, of course but other than that you should really consider if it's a good idea to have an action happening every time a specific move happens.

The tl;dr of Advanced Sequences would be "It's a combination of regular CPU Logic and Prios to create sequences that would not be possible with Prios alone" and as such it's only really adjacent to the whole topic of Priority Attack. But it's still good to be aware of it just in case you want to do something specific. If you want a thing to happen there's a decent chance you'll be able to provoke it even without Prios. Of course you don't want to railroad your character into always doing one thing and never anything else so you should always consider the impact a change like this might have and experiment. Always do test matches (frankly, this is part of the fun anyway.) Let's look at one possible example for this.

As we've learned, we cannot choose certain move slots/inputs as follow-up moves. But that doesn't mean we can't incorporate them into sequences. One notable example would be Corner to Center Attacks or C2C Moves as they are often called in the community. people often struggle to set them up consistently but there's multiple ways to do so. Here is one that relies on a specific move happening before. C2C moves can trigger from [Opp. Down Near Center] with "Corner-to-Center Attack". By the way, if you want a C2C attack to happen at least somewhat reliably you'll have to set it relatively high. 50% at least.

Let's just say you want a C2C move to be a part of your sequence. You can't Prio into it so this'll only work if the previous move sets it up properly. There's a couple of Corner moves that'll place an opponent just in the center of the ring. The Top Rope Hurancanrana for example will do just that. So simply setting the chance for the C2C to happen really high will create a sequence already, without the use of prios. You can now chain from the C2C into whatever else floats your boat and carry on as normal with your Prios from here.

[Opp. Against Corner] -> Top Rope Hurancanrana. Positions opponent at the center of the ring.
[Opp. Down Near Center] -> C2C Move
[Priority Attack] - C2C Move into Whatever floats your boat.

It's a little out of the box, but essentially we're using the regular flow of logic to reliably create a sequence of moves. I still advise you to not create your logic in a way that always makes your character do the same things. That gets repetitive fast. Seeing the above sequence twice in the same match, for example could easily be jarring.

With MoveCraft moves that, say, force the opponent to be thrown to the corner or other positions you get even more options here.

It's pretty much just how Logic normally works anyway while considering how certain moves position the opponent. And we're combining that with Prios. I still felt it's important to note that especially with Positions that have limited slots like [Opp. Against Corner] or [Opp. Down Near Center] as described here you can easily use those as a starter for a sequence or in the middle of them if you do it right.

In the following section we'll be going over some builds that help you accomplish a pretty big difference to the default Logic without really changing all too much. This is both to highlight how much of an impact even relatively small changes can happen but, of course, this will also show you some practical application for the dry theory we just went through. Hopefully this will give you some ideas to work from and help your understanding of how to set-up your wrestler's Logic. I'll be explaining why we do everything we do too. But I won't be giving exact numbers as I feel that'd just encourage people to copy and paste instead of experimenting for themselves.

Our first example is relatively simple to set up while our second has a bit more depth to it.

What is a "Rushdown Powerhouse?" I'm very often asked this question. That's a lie, no one ever asked me this. The Rushdown Powerhouse is basically a fancy way to describe a strong wrestler who's quite aggressive. Rather than wait for an opponent or pick them back up again they'll do the most efficient thing and lay into the downed opponent for maximum efficiency in inflicting pain through strength.

It may look something like this


[Initiate Grapple] -> Move: Bodyslam (grounding the opponent]
[Opp. Down - Face Up] -> Move: Seated Chop (Opponent remains grounded)
[Opp. Down - Face Up] -> Action: Rolls opponent over
[Opp. Down - Face Down] -> Move: Pimp Juice DDT (opponent remains grounded, but face up)

Moves: High impact moves that leave the opponent grounded. Grounded moves should only have very few submissions, if any.

Logic:
[Opp. Down Face Up] - very low / no chance for pick-up, some chance for rolling opponent over.
[Opp. Down Face Down] - reasonable chance for picking up, low / no chance for rolling over.
[Priority Attack] - Chain Pins from moves intended as match-enders

Choose moves that look like they pack a punch and make sure that most of the moves end with the opponent downed. A lot of moves do this but I bet you normally don't think about it. But you really should. What position the opponent ends up in can be quite important for some builds, such as this one. Something else you want to keep in mind for your moveset is to avoid overly elaborate set-ups and pick more moves that are to the point. That'll make everything feel faster

For grounded moves in particular you want to avoid submissions, not saying you can't have any but most moves should be other moves, such as stomps, deadlift suplexes, the Pimp Juice DDT, the seated chops... there's many more options, especially with MoveCraft. Try to pick a good couple of moves that end up with your own character still standing at the end as those will make it more likely that your character can do another move before your opponent can get up.

Avoid moves that pin unless you want them to be match-enders. Pins usually cause your opponent to get up before our powerhouse can follow up. Also keep traditional submissions to a minimum they will feel like they slow down the pace. This counts both for grounded moves as well as others. but as always it's good to have at least one that can fire late in a match just in case there's a Submission only stipulation to a match.

That said, grounded mounted punches, that qualify as submissions in the game, and the likes are perfectly in-character for the Rushdown Powerhouse. And if you want to expand the repertoire you can use the MMA positions as well so feel free to give them a move that simply goes into the mounted MMA positions and set the moves in that position to suit our needs too. This is optional but will really help with move variety if used correctly.

We only need to adjust [Opp. Down - Face Up] and [Opp. Down - Face Down] for the core of this build to work. But of course it's wise to adjust different Positions as well. For instance, you might want to go to [Stand Back (Stall)] and tone down "Circle Opponent" and "Stand Back (Stall)" this will make it so your character goes right for the grapple or strike instead of trying and failing to fish for a back grapple or hanging back. This results in a more direct and aggressive style.

After picking our moves, without even adjusting the logic, we're already funneling towards the downed positions for the opponent. But now we need to make sure our character doesn't do anything dumb like "picking up the opponent"... well we still want that to happen just not as much. I'm not going to give you exact numbers because ultimately it depends on your preference and you'll of course still want to test it and adjust as needed. As noted above we'll be making all our changes in [Opp. Down - Face Up/Face Down]

Generally speaking for this build you'll want the chance for "Pick Opponent Up" to be very low. Maybe even try putting that at 0 just to see how it works for you. After all, the main aim is to throw the opponent to the ground and keep them there for follow-ups.

Maybe Instead of picking your opponent up you could set a relatively high chance for your wrestler to roll the opponent over to make sure moves from [Opp. Down - Face Down] also have a chance of happening these are the options called "Roll Opp. Face Up/Down".

Of course this creates a problem where your wrestler never picks up an opponent and despite the main concept of this build there's still very valid reasons to want to go back to a standing position. So, meanwhile, in [Opp. Down - Face Down] your wrestler will never roll the opponent over but instead has a chance to pick them up. This will result in your character needing to pass two dice rolls before they pick up their opponent, so keep that in mind. I

The reason you don't want them to have a chance to roll over in both is to avoid your wrestler rolling your opponent back and forth; It'll also ensure that a higher variety of moves happen. If you find yourself having more moves that result in the opponent landing face down anyway you might want to switch that around or adjust the frequency of it but most of the time that won't be the case. You'll also want to avoid pins in [Opp. Down - Face Down] for that same reason. Rolling your opponent to face down only to roll them back for a pin looks a little dumb.

Now, reducing pick-ups will open up percentage points to assign to the move selection. How convenient, now you can assure that your character uses a good variety of moves even in the late match. Just make sure that if you use mounted punches or other "submission" moves and you DON'T want them to end the match that you never allow them to happen in Opp. Condition Critical. If you're fine with them ending matches then go nuts, though, because it'll probably happen.

Something important to keep in mind is that you'll also want to increase the chance of picking the opponent up in [Opp. Condition Critical] if they have a standing grapple of any variety as their finisher. If your character has, say, a running move you can continue to funnel towards that by setting the chances for an Irish Whip higher in [Initiate Grapple]. Basically, we'll be funneling your wrestler's Position to naturally flow into both grounded positions but at the end, if you want them to do a specific move from different positions to end it or just want to flow back up to the standing positions for the sake of move variety (or other reasons) you will still be able to do that.

Near the end of the match it's probably smart to increase the chance of a pick-up in any case just to make sure the offense stays varied. By the end you'll probably have seen each grounded move a few times even if you made sure they all have a good chance of happening.

Now you have a character that beats their opponents down and doesn't stop their offense once they are on the ground. If moves are picked correctly this set-up will keep the energy high.

What if I told you that all you need to do to get from the Rushdown Powerhouse to the Submission Master was to change the moves? Well, When I say Submission Master I'm specifically referring to grounded submissions because we'll still be flowing naturally to the grounded positions.

Moves: This time you still pick moves that end up with your opponent grounded but instead of being power based they should be more technical. Throw in some submissions for good measure but keep in mind that your wrestler will be less likely to be able to follow with a grounded move after doing a submission. Especially if your wrestler also ends up lying down at the end of it, which is very common.

In this case this is something to keep in mind but nothing to worry about. You can have a submission expert who does slams and takedowns or strikes to down an opponent and then follows up with grounded moves. Or have one that does plenty of submissions from the standing positions. They'll still want to follow with grounded moves wherever possible.

Logic: You set it up exactly as with the Rushdown Powerhouse. It's the same general set-up. That's the beauty of it. You have a set-up that funnels into a specific position (or set of positions) but how it feels changes greatly depending on the moves chosen. So you can use any other combination of moves with that Logic set-up and see what happens. You might stumble across something you really like. A character focusing slams and throws as well as strikes will seem like a very aggressive wrestler here while giving them more technical and submission moves will make them feel more methodical.

Here we want to create an agile wrestler who runs and flies about the ring and gets a lot of opportunities to follow standing grapples with more standing grapples.. Y'know, all of the good things you associate with a faster paced style such as Lucha Libre and while this build definitely takes inspiration from that that's not the only style that does a lot of moves, often in quick succession.

In action our creation will do things like these a lot (among other things)


[Initiate Grapple] -> Move: Jawbreaker B (which makes the opponent dazed)
[Opp. Dazed] -> Action: Back Grapple
[Circle Opponent] -> Move: Leg Tackle (grounding the opponent)
[Opp. Down Near Corner] -> Move: Pole Vault Frog Splash

Moves: Athletic moves, more moves that leave the opponent standing and dazed than normal. Just don't overdo it.

Logic:
[Initiate Grapple] - Higher Irish Whip, lower "Grapple (3D)"
[Circle Opponent] - No Irish Whip
[Priority Attack] - prios after dives into moves, pins or picking up.
Showmanship - High, up to 100%
Discretion - 33%-65%

Additionally it's a good idea to pay special mind to these additional positions
[Irish Whip] - Move Selection, consider stamina for Running type moves.
[Opp. Down Near Corner] - Move Selection. Dives to lying or standing targets work.
[Opp. Dazed Near Corner ] - Move Selection. Only dives to standing targets work.
[Opp. Dazed Near Center] - Move Selection
[Opp. Dazed] - Move Selection, Increase "Back Grapple" if needed

Do you remember the Rushdown Powerhouse and how I said most moves should land with the opponent lying down? Well, here we kind of want the opposite. We'll want a bit more variety here in particular with the regular front and back grapples that we'd control under [Initiate Grapple] and [Circle Opponent] in the Logic menus.

What you absolutely don't want is to only have moves that leave the opponent standing. Or even the majority of moves that do that. Just a good deal more than you'd normally have. Normally most of them are in SML but you'll want to make sure to have some in MED as well. In BIG it's optional. But if you do, keep those to a minimum . Because you don't want your heavy hitters to leave the opponent on their feet. But do feel free to make exceptions if you feel it'd work for your character. What you really don't want is to have your finisher leave the opponent standing. Can't pin a standing opponent, after all.

For this build we'll be partially funneling towards the [Irish Whip] Logic so make sure to pick some cool moves here in particular. These will be the Counter and Running slots in the movelist making up only 6 moves in total. You don't need to worry about the moves leaving the opponent standing here. You can do it, of course. If you really want to. But there's no pressing need and it might result in a lot of repeat moves.

And what's a Luchador without any dives? The answer is that it's still a Luchador, it's a more versatile style than a lot of people give it credit for, but for our intents and purposes we equate Lucha Libre with high flying. Be mindful of which dives hit a standing opponent and which hit a downed opponent. Take notes in wordpad or the old fashioned way with pen and paper if you don't think you'll be able to remember.

If you want to use the "Run Up Turnbuckle" move slots be sure to go to the skills menu and set the Ascend Style to "run-up" otherwise your edit will just run into the corner and fall over like a buffoon instead of doing flips and ♥♥♥♥.

This is a bit more complex than the Rushdown Powerhouse because we'll be making changes to a lot more positions. These are [Initiate Grapple], [Circle Opponent], [Irish Whip], [Opp. Down - Near Corner], [Opp. Dazed - Near Corner], [Opp. Dazed - Near Center] as well as [Priority Attack]. Even though that's a good deal more Position menus than before our changes will be simpler and a lot of it is just move selection which I'll only provide pointers for. In addition to Positions let's adjust some Logic Stats. Showmanship starts at 70 but we should increase it a little. We'll also adjust Discretion to something between 33 and 66. This is so the wrestler favors the corners when dragging the opponent around.

For [Initiate Grapple] you'll want to reduce the "Grapple (3D)" - Front Headlock to 0 or something very low in SML. This is what will cause your character to take an opponent by the head and drag them across the ring, usually the center or the corner of the ring, depending on Discretion. In our case it'll be the corners. There's not much of a point to do that in SML DMG as this is mainly for dives and our opponent probably won't stay down long enough in SML. In turn, increase the chances for it in MED. In LRG I usually avoid it. We don't need it for positioning because "Grapple (Run)" will already do that thanks to us increasing Showmanship.

In [Initiate Grapple] you'll also want to make sure to have a reasonably high chance of "Grapple (Run)" - Hammer Throw to happen. Because this is where your character starts doing the Running and Counter type moves. The defaults are actually not too bad for our intents and purposes but you'll probably want to raise it a bit overall. Depending on the style of your character you might want to lower it in the late match, though. The reason for this is that Running moves in particular cost a lot of Stamina so it's best to either use Counter Type moves near the end or just lower the chance of Irish Ships happening. Anyway, if you make these changes you'll have points to spend. Spread them out as you see fit.

in [Circle Opponent] there's exactly one thing you'll want to do for sure unless you have a specific reason for it. Set "Back Grapple (Run)" - Hammer Throw to 0 or lower it considerably. This is honestly something I'd do regardless of the style of a character but if your character is locked in on a back grapple you kind of want these back grapples to happen instead of an [Irish Whip] move which is what will follow if the opponent is set running. Though, feel free to leave it as is in SML. If a Back Grapple happens in SML DMG it usually gets reversed anyway so turning it into something that doesn't get reversed might be a good idea.

We want our character to go for dives. But you probably want to avoid repeat dives, because those can get kinda silly sometimes, you should use [Priority Attack]. Set your dives to chain into literally anything. This can be a pin where applicable. Particularly for moves that pin anyway because they have a chance to hit an opponent lying face down. However this can also be a submission or simply picking the opponent up to their feet. I'd avoid putting running moves in chains here because if they are too close to the ropes your character might go for a quick run to the other corner and run straight into it like an absolute genius and then fall down.

Additionally it's kind of important that we adjust some Logic Stats as well. In the Menu you'll find Showmanship and Discretion. For Showmanship, just go as high as you want, it'll make Irish whips go to the corner more often. 100% Showmanship doesn't mean that all Irish Whips go to the corner though. I recommend going a bit higher than default and playing around from here to get what feels right for your purposes.

Discretion should ideally be in the middle third (33%-65%.) This is not necessarily a must, you can use a different range too, what's important is that you know what this means. Discretion affects multiple things but among others it determines where the opponent is dragged with [Initiate Grapple] -> "Grapple (3D)". 0%-33% will cause your wrestler to not drag their opponent and simply ground them immediately. 33%-65% will make it so they drag them near the corners. Anything above that will make your character drag their opponent to the center of the ring.

All right, those are all the essentials necessary for this build to work in place. The thing is, with what we've set up, we'll both cause more running and counter moves to happen as well as corner dives. So I want to get into the positions that we work towards here as well to give you a better understanding. But still, if you were to not change anything else, at its core, the build would still function. But by tuning it more you can get just that little bit extra out of it.

Right, let's get to [Irish Whip] there's no hard and fast rules for this one just pick what works best for you. Keep in mind that Running moves use more Stamina especially for people who don't have a Fighting Style set that benefits from the more agile moves this usually encompasses. Setting the "Counter (BRH)" slot to something high can be fun but be careful with it. It can easily get ridiculous and can result in like 3-4 leapfrogs before an actual move happens. But it just might work for some edits.

Let's get divin'! We got two Positions for that. [Opp. Down - Near Corner] and [Opp. Dazed - Near Corner]. For outside dives there's also [Opp. Outside of Ring]. For the latter just do whatever you want. For the former two you'll want to consider if a dive targets a standing or grounded opponent. Both will work in [Opp. Down- Near Corner]. Though, if your selected dive targets a standing opponent they'll wait on the Turnbuckle until the opponent gets up, which can slow down the pace. For [Opp. Dazed - Near Corner], though, you'll want to use standing dives specifically. Grounded dives won't work. Because you can't exactly wait for your opponent to lie down voluntarily. I also advise raising Do Not Ascend if dives happen too much for your liking.

Finally, let's get to [Opp. Dazed - Near Center] because this is what we've kinda been building towards when we made it so our moveset has moves that lets our opponent standing. Those tend to cause your opponent to be dazed, especially later in the match. This is where you chain running moves from. Other than in [Irish Whip], of course. Keep in mind that depending on how many moves you have that end in your opponent dazed this can mean a lot of running moves. This is something you'll want to test out and make sure it doesn't happen too much. If it does just increase "Don't Run". Running moves can already happen plenty from the [Irish Whip] Logic, unless you set it so only Counter type moves happen there.

The intent is not to follow every time the opponent is dazed with a running move. If you pick "Don't Run" your wrestler will instead go to what you set in [Opp. Dazed] where you can follow with a Front Grapple -> [Initiate Grapple] or Back Grapple -> [Circle Around] as well as the higher impact strikes. I recommend setting Back Grapple higher than Front Grapple here because Front Grapples happen all the time anyway. Back Grapples on the other hand require specific set-up such as this.

Wow, that was a lot of text for this build. Even though the tweaks made to most of the Positions are relatively small there's always things to consider. But what did we actually do here? With the Rushdown Powerhouse it was more clear, we specifically tried to funnel big power moves into more big power moves but on the ground rinse and repeat.

Here we made a couple smaller changes across the board and they mostly work towards making our wrestler seem dynamic, fast and as unrelenting as possible. It won't always happen that our Speedster gets to chain a lot of moves together in a row but when it does happen it'll be cool.

This is where we explore some things that in some cases might not be directly set up in the Logic menus but are related to the creation of CPU Logic, maybe sometimes in unexpected ways.

It's for example a very useful pacing tool but you'll also realize that the moves of a wrestler also inform how you have to set up your Logic to accomplish certain things.

Finally, I'll actually go through some ins and outs for all the Positions as well as Logic Stats. That one's a huge infodump so it's broken up into four sections due to the limitations of the Steam Guide system.

When designing a character's CPU Logic you might already have an idea of how strong you want them to be compared to other members of your roster. Naturally, the first thing people consult when trying to balance their characters is the parameter total because that's a number that's readily available. However parameters are better for fine-tuning and controlling pacing. It's easy to correct small discrepancies with that but what it really comes down to is the Moveset and Logic

What has a much bigger impact than Parameters or anything else on how much someone wins is how many match-enders they have and how often they are allowed to use them. Match-enders being (for the purposes of a regular wrestling match):
- Moves with innate pinning combinations/transitions
- Moves that prio into pins
- Submissions (Also consider prios into submissions from other moves)

Specifically, and this is where Logic comes in, this is true for the above types of moves as long as they are set to happen in LRG DMG or Opp. Condition Critical, depending on which is the highest in each Position. In the grounded positions, for example LRG DMG is still relatively safe to use for these types of moves (though they can end a match) because you can also set Opp. Condition Critical in that position. But in [Initiate Grapple] you can't. So anything in LRG DMG that combos or prios into a pin or is a submission might end the match in that position. If you allow for pins to happen in [Opp. Down - Face Up] or [Opp. Down - Face Down] in Opp. Condition Critical then you need to be careful of any move that happens in LRG. It's why many people don't allow for pins to happen through the logic in these positions or at least only allow for a very low chance for them to happen.

As far as a number of match-enders goes I can't tell you what a good number would be because there's more factors. Such as how often match-ending moves can happen, how you handle parameters and how everyone you want to put your character against is balanced. You might have a character with one match-ender that happens a lot and another character has five that happen very rarely but amount to roughly the same so they are more or less 50/50. But this is hard to balance so what it really boils down to is watching matches and changing things if you notice anything off.

In fact, everyone handles the balancing of their characters in a different way. There's no real community standard to speak of. That doesn't mean that your creations would be incompatible with mine for example. But depending on how much our approaches differ that might just be the case.

But generally speaking as far as balancing goes the broad strokes of it are affected by the logic, especially the match-enders while the parameters are better used for fine-tuning.

Let's actually briefly bring up parameters.

We haven't talked about them yet. Makes sense, this is a guide for Logic. But every aspect of Edit creation works in tandem to create interesting characters. And that includes the parameters. There's different philosophies here. Just looking at it you just might feel like doing it in what's considered the "RPG" style where the things your characters are good at get a higher value. But it's also worth considering the "work" aspect of a wrestling match and instead spread parameters in a way that gets you a match paced the way you want. You can do a lot of fine-tuning as well as control the average match length of a wrestler by tweaking parameters.

A good example would be a Striker: Instead of giving them high values in the Attack parameters for Punch and Kick you lower these values because you know they will be used for many moves. Putting them both on 10 might make matches end super quickly. Instead, you'd increase the values used for moves they don't use as often. Of course, I doubt anyone has an absolute overview over what parameter is used how much on any given one of their characters so don't worry about it too much. Pretty much everyone plays this by ear.

Let's say you're testing an edit but it turns out you have to tweak them. Say you notice that a wrestler acts more or less the way you want. BUT the matches are all shorter than you'd like them to be. The three most common causes for that would be.
- Faulty Logic (Match enders happen too often or unintended match enders)
- Wrestler's Attack Parameters are too high
- Opponent's Defense Parameters are too low

If you determine it's due to parameters then the fix is easy: Adjust the parameters, test again and see if the result is better. If it's due to the logic you'll have to locate the problem, fix that and try again. When watching matches you might also notice other things. Like your wrestler going for a specific move too much or not going for dives as much as you'd like. It's probably smart to take notes here and check the Logic for that after the match. And even if you have a character you've used for a long time now you might still find things you want to change. That's why no Edit is ever truly finished.

By this point it's very likely clear to you that the logic and moveset go hand in hand. After all the logic is what lets you controls what moves happen at what point in the match. A lot of the stuff we'll go over here will probably be a repeat if you read the examples as well as other previous sections.

Be mindful of whether a move transitions into a pin or not. If you don't want a move to be able to end a match it's probably wise to make sure it's not a pinning combination. For most moves that's not a problem. A German Suplex for example will have a version holding the bridge for a pin and a version without. You can also use logic to prevent a pinning move to happen in LRG DMG / Opp. Condition Critical if you really want the version with a pin but without a chance to end a match.

Also, be careful of submissions. Don't use any submissions that you're not fine with ending a match in LRG DMG / Opp. Condition Critical. I love a match ending with a random neck crank sometimes, it keeps things exciting. But if you want to prevent something that's normally considered a Rest Hold you'll definitely want to restrict those kinda moves to SML DMG and MED DMG.

Take note of what position the defender (and attacker) end up in after a move. Honestly, most of the time you probably won't have to care too much about this. Unless you want to do something specific. But it's at the very least good to keep in mind whether the opponent lands fade-up or face-down after a move. Because that increases the frequency at which you see moves from the respective logic positions. It's also good to keep up with moves that have the attacker stay down after the move. Of course, there's also the B Variations of moves, those will make it so the defender remains standing dazed. Good to know. There's also MoveCraft moves that throw the defender to a corner or to the apron as well as other stuff. This makes it easier to set up things that would normally be harder.

The length/pace of a move's setup really affects the feel of it. Moves with longer or convoluted setups automatically draw more attention to themselves so you should probably not use too many of them. Naturally, this is really subjective and depends on what it is that you're trying to do but it's better to avoid giving moves with more elaborate setups like, say, a Phoenixplex too high a chance of happening, because these moves stand-out and thus work better as a potential match-ender or a more rarely occurring move. There's also a couple of MoveCraft moves that have entire sequences in them. They look cool, but the wow-factor wears off quickly if it happens too much. When looking at other people's creations this is one of the most common things that I notice. Because yes, these moves are cool but they are even cooler in moderation.

Take notes! This is something I didn't do for a long time and I still don't do it as much as I should. But taking notes for what you want to do with the logic (or other things) as you pick out moves WILL make your life easier. It can be stuff like "Oh, I want this Backswitch in one of the SML slots to happen all throughout the match, not just early on" or "Yeah, after that Chokeslam my dude really needs to do a sick taunt that I think fits really well!" and then we got "Okay, I know this move ends with the defender face-down, so it's a perfect opportunity to prio into that signature submission that happens to target face-down opponents." Or perhaps you just want to remember something else. I dunno. The possibilities are endless and it's definitely a good idea to write something in Wordpad or do it old school with a pen and paper.

When I say "Logic Arc" I mean the general kind of flow from SML DMG through MED DMG to LRG DMG there's a couple of things that you can do to make a match feel different. This is mainly to give you some ideas and not full-on builds like we've seen earlier.

Escalation: (Feelin' out -> Slammin' -> Whole Hog) This is the standard. You start out weaker moves in SML DMG, a lot of them probably don't even ground the opponent. In MED DMG you ramp it up and finally in LRG DMG you bring out all the heavy hitters. This is simple and a lot of people use it for everything. The idea here is, because the game is literally designed around that idea, that your edit gradually softens up the opponent to do bigger and bigger moves.

Slow it down, brother: (Getting some ♥♥♥♥ in -> Slowing it down -> Death comes) This setup has you start with whatever moves you see fit in SML DMG make sure there's no or very few holds here, though. You just want strikes and some throws. Maybe even some stuff that would normally happen in MED DMG (use with caution, though, these have a higher chance to get reversed when done too early.) For the actual MED DMG part of the match... we'll slow it down, brother. Put some holds in here, mostly in the downed positions. They don't need to be typical rest holds but it might help. This'll give the vibe that these guys are pacing themselves. They've done their opening stretch now they're resting up before the finale. You'll still want to escalate your other moves a bit, of course. Finally, in LRG DMG you just make em go crazy, they've had enough of a break and are now ready to go for the kill.

The Jabroni: (OW! -> I got good some hits in, though! -> WOW I ACTUALLY GOT A SHOT) This is an odd one, but you can sure do it. First off, make sure to pick out some moves in the BIG slots in your moveset. But here's the thing. You make these happen in SML DMG. Why? Well. Doing BIG moves early in the match will just cause them to be reversed a lot. And when one fires successfully isn't that some great babyface jobber fire we can catch a glimpse of? In MED DMG you'll want a mix of all kinds of SML and BIG slot moves. Finally in BIG DMG you do whatever you like Do your regular endgame set-up if you want. Maybe make this dude cool all of a sudden. This creates a situation where a wrestler will likely never damage their opponent enough to reach BIG DMG or even MED DMG and lose long before that. But essentially, as the match progresses they'll be able to land more and more of their offense and maybe even win if they make it far enough.

Another thing that I don't want to go too in-depth on. But which Fighting style you pick also has some effect on the Behavior of your wrestler. So I'll just drop this here[docs.google.com].


The savvy among you might already know this info from Lord Mo's old guide[lordmo.tumblr.com]. It was made for Fire Pro Wrestling Returns but it still holds true for Fire Pro Wrestling World.

There's a couple of things here that full under "good to know" but the Fighting Style affects a few things that you might want to know for editing Logic. Most notably: Dive Range (labeled Aerial Distance), Cancelling/countering Irish Whips (Hammer Throw Stop Rate) and holding on to the ropes to stop a rebound from an Irish whip to happen (Rebound Stop Rate)

You probably shouldn't pay too much mind to it but it's good to know in case you're using a style that's unusual for your type of wrestler and you wonder why they behave a certain way.

This also features information already covered under the Logic Stats section, but I decided to have it here as well so this section is a more complete reference for dos and don'ts for CPU Logic. This means some of the info here is redundant but it will be labeled as such.

[Stand Back (Stall)]
Accessed from:
Merely existing in this world

Enters into:
[Initiate Grapple] with "Initiate Grapple"
[Circle Opponent] with "Circle Opponent" (almost never works)

While the topmost three options "Initiate Grapple", "Stand Back (Stall)" and "Circle Opponent" all technically aim to go to a different position it's best to view "Stand Back (Stall)" and "Circle Opponent" as attempts to outmaneuver the opponent. If it's higher the pace of the match often feels more methodical as well.

"Stand Back (Stall)" will have your wrestler step back until they are at a certain distance from the opponent while "Circle Opponent" will instead sidestep and try to get behind the opponent. This as good as never actually results in a back grapple but it can, in very rare cases, happen. "Initiate Grapple" on the other hand makes your character move straight towards the opponent, resulting in them locking up.

If you were to make two characters that both have "Stand Back (Stall)" set to 100% they'd simply stand there and never do anything.

The whole "Initate Grapple" process only requires two characters to get close to each other so if one character has "Initiate Grapple" at 100% and another has 100% spread across all the strikes, there will still be way more grapples than strikes. Essentially, the actual chance of something happens also depends on the Logic of the opponent


[Initiate Grapple]
Accessed from:
[Stand Back (Stall)] with "Initiate Grapple"
[Opp. Dazed] with "Front Grapple"

Enters Into:
[Irish Whip] from "Grapple (Run)" - Front Headlock
[Opp. Against Corner] with "Grapple (Run)" - Hammer Throw (based on Showmanship)
[Opp. Against Corner] with "Grapple (3D)" - Front Headlock (based on Discretion)
[Opp. Down Near Corner] with "Grapple (3D)" - Front Headlock (based on Discretion)
[Opp. Down - Face Down] with "Grapple (3D)" - Front Headlock

No matter what your setup is, this is very likely the most common position to end up in. The game is designed around this after all. Being a wrestling game and all that. The only thing here that can really be seen as Position selection is "Grapple (Run)" - Hammer Throw, which goes to [Irish Whip] but at the very bottom you'll see "Grapple (3D)"- Front Headlock. Essentially this will put your opponent in a Front Headlock, allowing them to drag the opponent around. Where exactly they'll try to drag them is determined by [Discretion] and in Tag matches also [Cooperation]. "Grapple 3D", due to moving the opponent around, can end up in several positions. But I consider this more a "good to know" kind of thing than having actual control over the situation.


[Circle Opponent]
Accessed from:
[Stand Back (Stall)] with "Circle Opponent" (almost never succeeds)
[Opp. Dazed] with "Back Grapple"

Enters into:
[Irish Whip] with "Back Grapple (Run)" - Hammer Throw
[Opp. Against Corner] from "Back Grapple (Run) - Hammer Throw" (Based on Showmanship)

Although you can start an [Irish Whip] here I recommend against it. Back Grapples are already less common than Front Grapples so you don't really want to risk your character sending the opponent running instead of going for their sick moves from behind. Naturally, you might still find reasons for why you'd want to do it. So you can. I'm not the boss of you after all.


[Irish Whip] - Opponent has been sent running with an Irish Whip
Accessed from:
[Initiate Grapple] with "Grapple (Run)" - Hammer Throw
[Circle Opponent] with "Back grapple (Run)" - Hammer Throw
[Irish Whip] with "Counter (BRH)"

Enters into:
[Irish Whip] with "Counter (BRH)"

You probably already realized it but what ends up happening here solely depends on the moves. Most moves will lead to a downed opponent, or maybe a dazed one. Some more specialized ones will end up in other Positions, such as a Back Grapple or the MMA Positions. This is of course true for every other Position as well. But it bears special mentioning here since there's no innate Position Changes. Except the one back into itself.

If you find your character gets gassed out while running a lot you'll want to tone down the chances for moves in the "Running" slots here and shift more toward the "Counter" ones. Especially late in the match.

"Counter (BRH)" is different depending on the fighting style. It's either a Leapfrog over the opponent or laying flat on the ground, forcing the opponent to jump over. Unless the opponent stops at the ropes this goes right back into [Irish Whip]


[Opp. Against Corner] - Opponent is leaning against the corner turnbuckle pads.
Accessed from:
[Initiate Grapple] with "Grapple (Run)" (based on Showmanship)
[initiate Grapple] with "Grapple (3D)" (based on Discretion)
[Circle Opponent] with "Back Grapple (Run)" (based on Showmanship)

Enters Into:
Based solely on moves

Corner Running moves seem cool and good and all that but if you set them really high in SML they are less likely to happen. This is mainly because the opponent will probably recover before the move can connect. Which will result in your character starting to run and then stopping again as soon as the opponent wakes up. So it's better to contain that into LRG DMG


[Opp. Down Near Corner] - Opponent is lying down and close enough to the corner for a dive
Accessed from:
[Initiate Grapple] with "Grapple (3D)" (based on Discretion)
And all moves that down the opponent as long as it happens near the corner.

Enters into:
[Opp. Down - Face Up] with "Do Not Ascend"
[Opp. Down- Face Down] with "No Not Ascend"

There's a few things to be wary of here: First off: The default logic has a really high chance for your character to go for a dive. This also results in a lot of repeat dives. Your preference may vary but for me even my high-flyers often have 50% or higher in "Do Not Ascend".

To avoid repeat dives, even if you like to keep the chance for dives really high, the easiest way is to Prio from the dive into something else. Simply picking the opponent will definitely do the trick but you can really just do whatever. If it's a move you want to be able to end the match, make it a pin. Even if the move has an innate pinning combination. Because that only works when it hits a face-up opponent. Using a Prio will also make your character go for a pin when the opponent is face down.

And oh, right, The position may be called [Opp. Down Near Corner] but you can also pick dives that would hit a standing opponent here. Your wrestler will simply wait on the post for the opponent to get up before doing it. This can slow the pace a little due to the waiting but this may just be exactly what you want depending on your character.

There's this really cool "Run Up Turnbuckle (MED)" slot here. You can set a chance for it even if your character doesn't have a move. Or if you set a move but forgot to set the Ascend Style as "Run Up" under the Skill Menu in Edit Mode. If you do that the cool thing is that instead of doing a move your wrestler will simply run into the corner full speed and fall down. Nice. I think it's a feature more than a bug but if you disagree you might want to make sure to set that to 0% unless you have the correct Ascend Style enabled.

It's also kind of important that the two damage levels we have at our disposal here are LRG DMG and Opp. Condition Critical. Dives can and will still happen if the opponent is less damaged. But Opp. Condition Critical is a powerful tool because a successful pin or submission is very likely at that level. So you can easily set up a top rope dive finisher to be successful more often than not. Barring rope breaks, of course.

[Opp. Down Near Center] - Opponent is lying down and too far away from the corner for a dive or Opp. Down Near Corner did not result in a dive.
Accessed from:
[Initiate Grapple] with "Grapple (3D)" (Based on Discretion)
And all moves that down the opponent.

Enters into:
[Opp. Down - Face Up] with "Do Not Run"
[Opp. Down- Face Down] with "No Not Run"

This one's a very simple and tidy one. We have exactly three options here. But if you want "Corner-to-Center Attack" to fire you'll have to set it pretty high. I've had no issues, simply setting "Don't Run" to 0% and putting its point into "Corner-to-Center Attack" but your mileage may vary.

It bears mentioning that even though it's supposed to be for opponents lying down near the center, the "Running At Downed Opponent" action can still trigger when removed from the center a bit while "Corner-To-Center Attack" requires more specific positioning (that can vary from move to move as well).


[Opp. Down - Face Up] - Opponent is lying down and face up (And the AI did not elect to go for a dive or running move)
Accessed from:
[Opp. Down Near Corner] with "Do Not Ascend"
[Opp. Down Near Center]with "Do Not Run"
But most commonly moves that down the opponent and have them land face up

Enters Into:
[Opp. Dazed] with "Pick Opponent Up"
[Opp. Dazed Near Corner] with "Pick Opponent Up"
[Opp. Dazed Near Center] with "Pick Opponent Up"
[Opp. Down - Face Down] with "Roll Opp. Face Up" (yes, it's poorly named)

Firstly, it's kind of a no-no in the community to set "Head (Pin)" and "Legs (Pin)" to anything higher than 0% at Opp. Condition Critical. The reasoning is that a pin is very likely to happen at that damage level. So your character might just go for a pin after a simple elbow to the back. I won't tell you to never ever do it under any circumstances but if you want satisfying finishes I advise against it. It requires more careful consideration as to which moves can even happen in LRG DMG or Opp. Condition Critical in the different positions if you want to have pins here. For SML DMG or LRG DMG, however, do what you want in regards to the pins.

Just in general, and this is true for every slot: Don't put submissions or moves with pinning combinations into Opp. Condition Critical unless you are fine with them ending the match. I love a Neck Crank ending a match sometimes, sure. But it's basically a rest hold. Those typically don't end matches. It all depends and what you want to allow to happen.

As we've seen when we made the Rushdown Powerhouse, how you set up "Pick Opponent Up" and "Roll Opp. Face Up" can have a pretty big impact on how a character feels. By default the opponent will never be rolled over and the rate of picking up the opponent increases considerably the later we get into the match. There's nothing wrong with that but I really recommend playing around with it a little to get the kind of matches that you like.


[Opp. Down - Face Down] - Same as above, but the opponent is lying face down.
Accessed from:
[Initiate Grapple] with "Grapple (3D)"
[Opp. Down Near Corner] with "Do Not Ascend"
[Opp. Down Near Center] with "Do Not Run"
But most commonly moves that down the opponent and have them land face down

Enters Into:
[Opp. Dazed] with "Pick Opponent Up"
[Opp. Dazed Near Corner] with "Pick Opponent Up"
[Opp. Dazed Near Center] with "Pick Opponent Up"
[Opp. Down - Face Down] with "Roll Opp. Face Down" (Again, not named right.)

It's the same as [Opp. Down - Face Up] only your opponent will be lying face down for this. The same rules apply to it. The main difference is that it can be specifically accessed from [Initiate Grapple] with "Grapple (3D)" as that will always end up with the opponent lying face down unless the Discretion is set in the correct range to drag them to the corners, in that case they will also end up in. [Opp. Against Corner] in some cases.


[Opp. Dazed Near Corner] - Opponent is in a dazed/staggered position and close enough to the corner for a dive.
Accessed From
[Opp. Down - Face Up] with "Pick Opponent Up" when near the corner
[Opp. Down - Face Down] with "Pick Opponent Up" when near the corner
Any move that leaves the opponent dizzy / dazed.

Enters Into:
[Opp. Dazed] with "Do Not Ascend"

This is the standing counterpart of [Opp. Down Near Corner] and is where you set up dives. But while you could set a standing dive there this won't be true for dives to downed opponents here. Nothing will happen if you make the AI select a move that targets a downed opponent. It's essentially a waste. So make sure that all the dives you set a chance to happen for actually target a standing opponent.

We got "Run Up Turnbuckle (SML)" same as with "Run Up Turnbuckle (MED)" in the downed counterpart of this position; you'll want to avoid setting a chance for that if you don't have the Ascend Style for Run Ups enabled. Otherwise your character runs into the corner full force and collapses from the sheer enthusiasm. It's really cool, I love it. Prio into it from a taunt maybe, makes it even better.

You can also set a springboard move to happen here with "Rope Slingshot From Apron to Inside of Ring". That's a mouthful. If you want that to happen I recommend setting this high. This and the Run Up slot are the only ones that can't be accessed from [Opp. Down Near Corner] after all. So it makes sense to prioritize those slots.


[Opp. Dazed Near Center] - Opponent is in a dazed/staggered position and too far away from the corner for a dive or Opp. Dazed Near Corner did not result in a dive.
Accessed from:
[Opp. Down - Face Up] with "Pick Opponent Up" while near the center
[Opp. Down - Face Down] with "Pick Opponent Up" while near the center
Any move that leaves the opponent dizzy / dazed.

Enters into:
[Opp. Dazed] with "Don't Run"


One thing to take note of is that the Running moves can also be accessed from [Irish Whip] so if you have a move that happens less often there (or not at all) you can make it happen more often here to compensate. For some moves it also simply makes more sense to go against an opponent dazed from all the violence rather than one that is running back and forth. It's your call really.


[Opp. Dazed] - Opponent is dazed/staggered but no dive or running move has occurred
Accessed From:
[Opp. Down - Face Up] - with "Pick Opponent Up"
[Opp. Down - Face Down] - with "Pick Opponent Up"
Any move that leaves the opponent dizzy / dazed.

Enters into:
[Initiate Grapple] with "Front Grapple"
[Circle Opponent] with "Back Grapple"
[Stand Back (Stall)] if the opponent recovers from being dazed.

This is, aside from using a move such as the Back Switch, the easiest way to set up back grapples. Generally speaking there is no good reason to reverse this and have it go for back grapples more often. Unless, of course, your wrestlers finisher is a front grapple, in that case you'll want "Front Grapple" to be higher, at least in Opp. condition Critical.

This is also the easiest way to have the stronger strikes connect. I still like to just have a chance for them happening in [Stand Back (Stall)] because it's cool when it connects but it's not reliable at all. This, however, is super reliable.

[Guard Position] - Wrestler has Opponent in the MMA Guard Position.
[Mount Position] - Wrestler has Opponent in the MMA Mount Position.
[Back Mount Position] - Wrestler has Opponent in the MMA Back Mount Position.
Accessed From:
Base solely on moves.

Enters Into:
Based solely on moves.

I'm just rolling these three into one. Because that's what they essentially are. Moves in these positions will only happen if you have a move set that flows into them. Most of these can be found in the Position Change category in the list of moves. There's also plenty of options to flow back and forth between these positions, especially with MoveCraft moves. If you dare flow into those they can really enhance the repertoire of your wrestler. But keep in mind that a lot of the moves that can happen from these positions are submissions or pins. So they will have a chance to end the match.

The Position Change moves also do a small amount of spirit damage but it can add up quick especially if the MMA Attack Parameter is high. Most people's characters use low defense to MMA as well.

Ukemi
(This is the exact same info as in Miscellaneous Settings)
Ukemi is a can of worms of its own. It is, however, not "selling" don't let anyone tell you that. In very simple terms Ukemi makes your wrestler take moves on purpose in exchange for a chance at a damage boost or clutch kickout down the line. However it's true that you can control the pacing of a match with this to some extent. A high Ukemi at the beginning of a match, for example, would result in them taking more offense early on. Everybody does this differently but I personally recommend not using high values and remain in the ballpark between 0% and 30%. On the other hand I'd also encourage you to experiment with higher values because experimenting with Logic is how you really get a feel for it. Also: The damage levels displayed don't refer to your opponent here, but your wrestler themselves

[Opp. At Back] - Wrestler and Opponent are locked up in a Back Grapple and the wrestler is in the front.
Accessed from:
Being grappled from behind by the opponent. So from their [Opp. Dazed] or much more rarely [Stand Back (Stall)]

Enters into:
Based solely on moves.

Nothing to say here. Finally, you can just do whatever the hell you please. I mean you can do that anyway.

These move slots here are one of the reasons why back grapples happen somewhat rarely.
For a back grapple to succeed first there's a coin toss whether the Wrestler who's behind and actually doing the back grapple gets to do their move or if the [Opp. At Back] moves of the opponent are considered. Even if the coin toss is in favor of the back grapple there's still a regular reversal that can happen here.

[Opp. Outside of Ring] - Opponent is outside of the ring.
Accessed from:
Based solely on moves

Enters into:
Based solely on moves

Finally, we get to do some sick outside dives! The chance of those happening is relatively low, though, even if you set "Rope Slingshot Outside the Ring" and/or "Running to Outside the Ring" really high. That's mostly because your character's breathing may interfere with it. This is not an issue if you use the ModPack. That'll make outside dives a lot more common.

You can also set dives from the post to happen here. That can be cool.

[Performance]
This is literally just for taunts. Instead of damage level in the headers we have positions listed there. These are [Opp. Dazed], [Opp. Down], [Opp. Outside of Ring] and [Opp. on Post]

This gives you control over when and how often taunts happen. Aside from the usual word of caution of "not overdoing it" even if it sometimes seems funny there's not much to say here.

Except that [Opp. on Post] means your character does a taunt before going for a dive. Not that your opponent is on the top rope. This only rarely seems to actually work properly, though. Even when set to 100%.


[Priority Attack]
There's a whole section for it ;)

Showmanship
(This is the exact same info as in Miscellaneous Settings, It's copied here to offer a more complete summary of all sub-menus in the CPU Logic Menu)
Affects the chance of your wrestler sending their opponent to the corner when performing an Irish Whip. Generally this has the effect to draw the matches more towards the corners of the ring the higher it's set and you'll feel it more if "Grapple (Run)" under [Initiate Grapple] or "Back Grapple (Run)" under [Circle Opponent] is set higher.

Discretion - Affects how much a wrestler stops to breathe. Because breathing is an actual mechanic in this game. If a character runs out of breath they will not be able to perform moves anymore and even stop in the middle of a run where they'd otherwise go for their sick Lariat. A character may also decide to breathe instead of doing a move in general. This is especially egregious with outside dives. That's one reason they are so rare in an unmodded game.

But that's only one thing, it also affects where your wrestler will drag the opponent with the Front Headlock (That's "Grapple (3D)" under [Initiate Grapple]) At around 33-66% (so the middle third) it'll favor the corners. Any higher than that and it's center of the ring instead. When below 33% it'll end the Front Headlock immediately.

It also affects Tree of Woe attacks, where a lower Discretion seems to lead to more Tree of Woe set-ups. If only Fire Pro did anything cool with Tree of Woe (There's a mod to turn it off.)


Flexibility
(This is the exact same info as in Miscellaneous Settings, It's copied here to offer a more complete summary of all sub-menus in the CPU Logic Menu)
Ah, yes, Flexibility. Everyone has a different idea on what it does. Some view it as this thing that destroys your logic set-up. And y'know, it might. The most common idea is that it makes your character go for the Front Headlock (3D Grapple) instead of an irish whip against opponents using the shoot fighting styles (Shooter, Grappler, Fighter.)

Cooperation
(This is the exact same info as in Miscellaneous Settings, It's copied here to offer a more complete summary of all sub-menus in the CPU Logic Menu)
This affects quite a few things for tag matches. In a nutshell, the higher the value the more likely double team grapples or specific set-ups like for the doomsday device are. It also affects the likelihood of interrupting a pin attempt or submission. A higher Cooperation value will cause your wrestlers to drag opponents to their home corner with the Front Headlock. This supersedes discretion.

Outside Return Count
(This is the exact same info as in Miscellaneous Settings, It's copied here to offer a more complete summary of all sub-menus in the CPU Logic Menu)
This affects how early/late a wrestler answers the 20 count on the outside. The lower it is the longer they stay outside. At 0% they basically don't care about the count. If it's higher they enter the ring sooner. At 100% they'll head straight back into the ring as soon as the count begins.

Touchwork
(This is the exact same info as in Miscellaneous Settings, It's copied here to offer a more complete summary of all sub-menus in the CPU Logic Menu)
This determines how often your wrestlers go to tag out. If you find your wrestlers to tag too much you might want to lower this.

Weapons
(This is the exact same info as in Miscellaneous Settings, It's copied here to offer a more complete summary of all sub-menus in the CPU Logic Menu)
Affects the likelihood of the wrestler picking up a weapon from the ground or pull it up from under the ring.

Second Interference
(This is the exact same info as in Miscellaneous Settings, It's copied here to offer a more complete summary of all sub-menus in the CPU Logic Menu)
This affects how often interferences/interruptions happen with a second/manager at ringside. It's worth noting that they have to be in the same stable and the stable has to be set to neutral or heel for it to work.

Q: My Edit keeps winning with weak moves! How do I fix this?
A: That's definitely a problem with how you set up your logic and it can have multiple causes. The easiest way to remedy that is to go to [Opp. Down - Face Up] and [Opp. Down - Face Down] and set the chance for pints to happen to Opp. Condition Critical to 0 %. And make sure all moves intended to be match-enders have a prio into a pin but everything else doesn't. But generally Pins at Opp. Condition Critical is the most common cause for this problem. I'm not saying you can't have pins in Opp. Condition Critical but you need to know what you're doing.
You also need to keep in mind that any Submissions and pinning combinations that happen in the late match (LRG DMG or Opp. Condition Critical) can also end the match. So only allow these moves to happen late in the match if you want them to be able to end it.

Q: My wrestler just runs into the corner and falls over, what gives?
A: You either have the Whoops move set in run-up OR you have logic for run ups set but your wrestler does not have the Ascend Style set to run-up in the Skill menu. If you're cool, like me, you can do it intentionally

Q: My guy keeps going for dives repeatedly and it kind of gets old.
A: While you can set your Logic to go for dives less often it's not always what you want. In that case it's probably more elegant to use [Priority Attack], provided you have leftover slots, to chain from dives into something else. Such as a pin when it makes sense. A submission. Or simply picking the opponent up. That way they won't follow a dive with another dive.

Q: My wrestler doesn't get many moves in it's mostly the opponent.
A: This can have multiple causes: Ukemi, Weight Class or bad Logic
Ukemi: It might be set too high, Ukemi causes your character to take moves on purpose. If your Ukemi is set considerably higher than that of the opponent the match will seem one-sided in their favor. If it appears like moves get reversed a lot it could also be due to the weight class (Junior or Heavy) or faulty Logic.
Weight Class: Heavies get more reversals over Juniors. Just how it is. Juniors have more stamina in exchange. But this is one possible reason for this. It doesn't normally result in a one-sided match, though. If that's the case it's likely exacerbated by Ukemi or bad Logic.
Bad Logic: If a lot of moves in the BIG slots happen in SML DMG they will be countered a lot. It's cool when a big move happens early but you shouldn't set the chance for it happening too high as it'll just lead to a lot of reversals and only succeed very rarely.

Q: My guy jumps on the post, but then jumps down instead of going for a dive. What do?
A: I've actually done some testing on this and, unfortunately, that's a thing that just happens sometimes. The only thing that might make it happen more often is if you set a dive targeting a grounded opponent in [Opp. Dazed Near Corner]. But even if you don't do that It'll still just happen occasionally. This is most likely because of the Downtime Timer. It's not a visible timer. But it does determine when a character stands back up again or leaves the dazed state. The reason a character might climb the post and jump off is likely because when the climb happens it's still above the threshold at which a dive is deemed "safe" but when the character is sitting on the post it falls below that threshold before a dive can occur, so they just hop back off.